Armenians faced a long history of oppression and strife in the Ottoman Empire. This dated back to the
Ottoman incursion of Christian Armenian territories in the 1500s. By 1894, Armenian nationalists had had
enough, and attempted to rise up, striking at the Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman government alleged this was the result of a holy war between Christianity and Islam, though this
was not the case. For the Ottomans, however, this justified a harsh response, resulting in roughly 300,000
Armenian deaths over the next three years.
Concerned about further Armenian movements, the Ottoman Empire took further actions in 1915 to ensure no
Armenian leaders could rise. On April 24, the Ottoman government seized and imprisoned 250 influential
Armenian intellectuals. Many of these Armenians were later executed, and as World War I wore on, the
Armenian Genocide progressed.
What did Ottomans insist about the violence between
themselves and Armenians?
It was relatively unimportant.
It was emblematic of a holy war.
It could be solved peacefully.