Latest / The Story of Armenia: Survival Through Empires and Genocide — Fexingo History / The First Armenian Republic and the Battle of Sardarapat
Transcript
- Lucas: We’ve spent a lot of time in these episodes walking through the ruins of the past—monasteries perched on cliffs, the quiet dignity of scribes in Isfahan, and the heartbreaking journeys of survivors from Der Zor. But there is one specific, sharp corner of history we haven’t turned into yet. Luna: The moment they actually tried to build a state. Lucas: Exactly. The First Republic of Armenia. It existed for barely two years, from May 1918 to December 1920, but it was a miracle of logistics and sheer will. After the Tsarist regime collapsed and the Ottoman army pushed deep into the Caucasus, the remnants of the Armenian population were scattered, exhausted, and leaderless. Yet, in Yerevan, a small group of intellectuals and military officers managed to declare independence. Lucas: It’s important to understand that this wasn’t just a political declaration; it was a desperate act of survival. The Ottoman Fourth Army had already captured key cities and was marching toward Yerevan itself. The Armenian leadership, dominated by the Dashnaktsutyun party, knew that if they didn’t hold the line, the genocide would simply continue, just with a different administrative border. Luna: So they were fighting with almost nothing left. Lucas: They were fighting with literally everything they had left. The regular army had been decimated or dispersed during the retreat. What remained were irregular bands, deserters from various armies, and most critically, civilians who had lost their homes. The government in Yerevan had to mobilize anyone who could hold a rifle, including students, monks, and elderly men. Lucas: This leads us directly to June 1918 and the three simultaneous battles that determined whether Armenia would exist on any map: Karakilisa, Bash Abaran, and Sardarapat. These weren't pitched battles in the traditional sense; they were defensive scrambles to stop Ottoman columns that were moving fast and were heavily armed. Luna: And Sardarapat was the closest to the capital? Lucas: Yes, Sardarapat was the most critical because it protected the direct route to Yerevan. The site itself is historically significant as well; it’s where the ancient city of Erebuni was founded by Argishti I over 2,700 years ago. So, in 1918, Armenians were defending their modern capital on the grounds of their first recorded kingdom. Lucas: The commander of the Sardarapat forces was General Drastamat Kanayan, known as Dro. He was a brilliant tactician who had served in the Russian Imperial Army but had returned to lead his people. He organized a defense line using whatever weapons he could find—some were outdated rifles from the Tsarist era, some were even hunting guns. Luna: Did they actually manage to hold them back? Lucas: They did, against overwhelming odds. The Ottoman forces, confident after their previous victories, expected a quick rout. Instead, they ran into a stiff, desperate resistance. The Armenian defenders used the terrain well, digging trenches and setting up machine gun nests on the hills. It was brutal, close-quarters fighting that lasted for days. Lucas: But while the fighting was happening on the ground, there was also a diplomatic race. The Ottoman Empire was negotiating the Treaty of Batum with the Transcaucasian states. They demanded huge territorial concessions, including the entire province of Nakhichevan and parts of Elisavetpol, which effectively would have cut off the new Armenian republic from any potential allies or resources. Luna: That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Lucas: It was. The Armenian delegation, led by Avetis Aharonian, refused to sign terms that would leave millions of Armenians under Ottoman rule without protection. When the Ottomans threatened to resume the offensive, the three battles became the only thing stopping them. If the lines had broken at Sardarapat, Yerevan would have fallen, and the treaty would have been signed at gunpoint. Lucas: The victory at Sardarapat, combined with successes at Karakilisa and Bash Abaran, forced the Ottomans to pause. It bought the Armenian government the breathing room they needed to consolidate power and organize a more formal defense structure. It proved that the Armenian people could defend themselves, not just as victims, but as a sovereign military force. Luna: It must have felt like a real chance for peace. Lucas: For a few weeks, it did. Independence was declared on May 28, 1918, and by late June, the immediate threat of invasion had receded. But the situation was incredibly fragile. The country was bankrupt, famine was rampant, and thousands of refugees were flooding into Yerevan every day. The infrastructure was gone; there was no electricity, no clean water, and very little food. Lucas: The government had to establish basic services from scratch. Schools reopened, hospitals were set up in converted buildings, and a currency was introduced. But perhaps the biggest challenge was the geopolitical shift happening right next door. The Ottoman Empire wasn't the only power changing shape in the region. Luna: You mean the Russians? Lucas: Exactly. The Russian Revolution had happened, and the Bolsheviks had taken power. They withdrew from the war and signed a separate peace with the Ottomans, which meant the northern border of Armenia was suddenly undefended. The Red Army began to move south, and soon the Armenians found themselves caught between the Turks in the west and the Bolsheviks in the north. Lucas: This is where the story gets complicated. The First Republic tried to maintain neutrality, hoping to play both sides against each other to preserve its sovereignty. They even sent envoys to Moscow and Constantinople simultaneously. But in the end, the internal divisions and external pressures became too much for such a small, young state to handle. Luna: How long did they actually survive? Lucas: Just over two years. By late 1920, the Bolsheviks were advancing again, and this time, they brought heavy artillery and armored trains. The Armenian government, led again by Avetis Aharonian as Prime Minister, realized that further resistance would mean total annihilation. They chose to surrender rather than let their remaining population be slaughtered. Lucas: On December 2, 1920, the Soviet authorities entered Yerevan. The First Republic was dissolved, and Armenia became part of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, before eventually becoming one of the founding republics of the USSR. It was a tragic end to a brief, bright experiment in democracy. Luna: It feels like such a lost opportunity. Lucas: It was, but it wasn't pointless. The experience of governing, even for those two years, created a class of administrators and intellectuals who would later guide the cultural revival in the diaspora. The symbols of that republic—the flag, the anthem, the idea of self-determination—remained alive in the collective memory. Lucas: Today, the field of Sardarapat is home to a massive memorial complex, one of the largest in the former Soviet Union. It stands as a testament to that summer of 1918, when a people who had been pushed to the brink decided to draw a line in the sand and say, 'We are still here.' Luna: I’m glad we’re talking about that resilience. Lucas: Me too. Before we go further into how that legacy shaped the Soviet years, I want to mention something quickly. Making these deep dives into history takes a lot of time and research. If you’ve found value in our conversations, consider supporting the show directly at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It helps keep the archives open and the research thorough. Luna: Yeah, it really does make a difference to the quality of the work. Lucas: Thanks for listening. Now, let’s look at how that brief independence influenced the art and literature that emerged in the decades that followed.