Latest / The Story of Armenia: Survival Through Empires and Genocide — Fexingo History / The Battle of Bash Abaran: Saving Armenia in 1918
Transcript
- Lucas: We’ve spent a lot of time here talking about the Armenian Genocide, the trials in Berlin, and the diplomatic scramble in Paris, but there’s a very specific, violent hinge point in May 1918 that often gets overshadowed. Lucas: By spring of that year, the Ottoman Empire was pushing hard into the Caucasus, and the newly formed First Republic of Armenia was essentially holding together by sheer willpower and a handful of volunteer units. Luna: So they were fighting on three different fronts at once? Lucas: Exactly. To the west, near Sardarapat; to the north, near Karakilisa; and right here in the middle, at a place called Bash Abaran. Lucas: While Sardarapat is the famous name today, the actual battle that broke the back of the Ottoman advance happened at Bash Abaran, where a tiny, desperate force managed to stop a much larger army cold. Luna: Who was actually leading these volunteers? Lucas: The man you need to know is Drastamat Kanayan, better known by his military nickname, Dro. Lucas: He wasn’t a career officer in the old imperial sense; he was a former student who had become a guerrilla leader during the genocide, and now he was tasked with defending the approach to Yerevan itself. Lucas: His forces were not a conventional army. He had maybe two thousand men, many of them students from the university in Yerevan, some local villagers, and even a few monks who had picked up rifles. Luna: Two thousand against an entire army division? Lucas: It looked like suicide on paper. The Ottoman Fourth Army had thousands of troops, artillery, and cavalry, and they were expecting a quick rout. Lucas: But Dro had chosen his ground carefully at Bash Abaran, a ridge overlooking the road to Yerevan, and he dug in with a ferocity that surprised the Ottoman commanders. Luna: Did the Ottomans realize how outnumbered they were? Lucas: Initially, no. They assumed the Armenians would flee or surrender, which was the pattern they had seen elsewhere. Lucas: When the attack came on May 21st, the Armenian lines didn't break. Instead, they absorbed the shock, using the terrain to funnel the Ottoman infantry into kill zones where their numbers meant less. Luna: And the students actually held the line? Lucas: They did, and then they counterattacked. It wasn't a clean victory; it was messy, brutal, and close-quarters combat in the dust. Lucas: What’s remarkable is that while Bash Abaran was happening, the Transcaucasian Sejm in Tiflis was simultaneously trying to negotiate a peace treaty with the Ottomans. Luna: Negotiating while the guns are firing? Lucas: That’s exactly what happened. The diplomats were signing the Treaty of Batum, which gave up huge chunks of territory, but the soldiers on the ground at Bash Abaran refused to let that dictate their survival. Lucas: The victory at Bash Abaran forced the Ottoman command to pause and reconsider their strategy, buying the young republic the precious weeks it needed to consolidate its borders. Luna: It feels like luck mixed with terrible timing. Lucas: It was definitely luck that the Ottomans were stretched thin, but it was skill that kept the line intact. Lucas: Dro’s leadership style was key; he fought alongside his men, sharing their rations and their risks, which created a loyalty that rigid officers couldn't command. Luna: Did the world even know this battle was happening? Lucas: Most of the Western press was focused on the Western Front in France and barely noticed the Caucasus. Lucas: For the Armenians, though, it was everything. It was the moment they proved they could exist as a sovereign state, not just as victims. Luna: How long did that independence actually last? Lucas: The First Republic survived for about two years after that, until Soviet pressure forced them to join the USSR in 1920. Lucas: But the mythos of Bash Abaran endured, becoming a foundational story of resilience that Armenians still tell today. Luna: It’s a powerful image, students standing their ground. Lucas: It really is, and it reminds us that nations aren't just built by treaties, but by the people willing to die for a patch of dirt. Luna: I never realized how close Yerevan came to falling. Lucas: It was inches away, literally. Luna: Thanks for clarifying the timeline for me. Lucas: If you've been stepping into history with us episode by episode, I want to share something practical about how we keep this network running. Luna: Is it mostly listener support? Lucas: Yes, absolutely. A small community of listeners chips in monthly through buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, and that covers our research and editing costs. Luna: It’s good to know where the funding comes from. Lucas: It keeps us independent and ad-free, which matters to us because it lets us take the time to get stories like Bash Abaran right. Luna: That makes total sense. Lucas: Looking back at those volunteers, I wonder if they knew they were writing a chapter that would outlast empires. Luna: Probably not, but their actions certainly did. Lucas: Maybe the real question is whether we’re doing enough to remember the names of the ones who weren't generals.