Customer Reviews

The History of the Armenian Genocide: Ethnic Conflict from the Balkans to Anatolia to the Caucasus

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This study took an interesting approach, despite its title it has little about the actual implementation and excecution of the Armenian genocide instead covering topics such as: the Abdul Hamit Massacres, the Adana massacres, the bank Ottoman raid, Islam's bent for domination which implies inferiority for non-muslims dhimmis such as Armenians, German complicity, the failure of European humanitarian intervention due to their vested and colonial interests, the Young Turks, how the precarious situation of Armenians constantly massacred and vulnerable with little weaponry or outside diplomatic assistance made them contrary to Balkan Christians take the route of asking for reforms and protection within the Ottoman Empire instead of seeking their independence as they were in an existential crisis where they decided upon the failed project of seeking protection from a Turkish system that thrived on repression and oppression, the Kemalist invasion of Russian Armenia, a comparison of the Holocaust and the Armenian genocide, the Turkish post-war tribunals that failed to punish the key players of the Armenian genocide(but these trials did provide proof of the intent to destroy the Armenians), the role of impunity during and after the genocide and earlier massacres in the failure to punish muslims for their crimes and how the implacable Kemalists along with European vested interests made sure there was little in the way of punishment, among other topics. Chapter 14 entitled: "The Implementation of the Genocide" only spans from page 219-235 in the edition I read(second revised edition 1997). Such an approach to this study makes ensures that it is well covered why the Armenian genocide occurred, which is more important than drudging page after page about the actual genocide and its implementation, which would have gotten tedious as this book is over 400 pages.

The scholarship of Dadrian shines throughout the work, he cites countless works in Turkish, Armenian, German, French and English and the work is very well referenced with a plethora of footnotes. This man has been studying the Armenian genocide for decades and it shows, I doubt much is written in the languages he can read about the subject that he has not already read, and most of it seems cited in this work. How Turkish historians and other historians can deny the Armenian genocide shows to anyone who has read this work their complete lack of honor and decency, to comment on history with no other desire than to extricate Turkish society and state from their mis-actions. Dadrian uses Austrian and German diplomatic archives at a time when they were Ottoman Turkey's wartime allies, he references the memoirs of architects and implementators of the genocide where they incriminate themselves, he cites the Turkish trials after the war to punish the Young Turks published in the official Turkish government gazette at the time(Takvimi Vekayi), Ataturk's speeches, eyewitnesses, Allied diplomatic archives, Turkish historians such as Refik and Akcam, and Turkish sociologist Ismail Besikci, who attest to the reality of the Armenian genocide. With such evidence how can one deny the Armenian genocide, and claim to be honest or better yet, a member of humanity?

Dadrian's book is probably one of the most intensely researched works on the Armenian Genocide to date. It gives an accurate big picture description of much of the international politics going on at the time, which many other books on the subject do not. I found it quite objective with a scholarly tone. I think it was actually a little weak on descriptions of the horrors of the Genocide, yet this was not the author's focus. If an uninformed reader were to read one book on the Armenian Genocide, then this may not be the best one, I think "Survivors: An Oral History of the Armenian Genocide" or "Black Dog of Fate" are easier and more personal reads. However, Dadrian's book is a must for historians and experts on the subject, as it is probably the best true historical account on the subject to date.

This was a well written and thoroughly researched book documenting the treatment of the Armenians living under Turkish rule. Despite the scholarly nature of this work, it is not a dry academic tome. I highly recommend this book for those who seek to gain insight into this episode of genocide which, in many ways, may have inspired Hiltler's later genocide of the Jewish people.

Incredible research went into this book. Not only can one get a historic view of the Armenian Genocide, but it also demonstrates the essentials of good academic research.

Excellent work. This is a great place to start if you are just starting your research on the Armenian Genocide.

Hello
I am Greek but my origin is Armenian. I have read this book in Greek translation. I didn't really enjoy it. It is a good history book for history students and schollars. It is a product of hard work and you will learn more about the genocide if you read it. I have read in Greeks "the crime of silence". I found it better.
Read more about Armenian genocide, dont believe the Lies of Turks. In our days Turks are not responsible for the crimes of their grand fathers. The lands of my grand father was Armenian, Kurdish and Turkish too. This land is Turkish now and I dont want to take it back. I want justice for the death people. I will be happy if the official Turkish State acknowledges the genocide. The memory must be alive for ever.

So I bought this book because I wanted to learn about the Armenian Holocaust, something that was only touched on in grade school. Instead I recieved a book that is full of wonderful academic work but confusing to read, and not focused on the genocide itself. I wanted a book closer to Martin GIlberts history of the holocaust which blends historical accuracy with documents and interesting accounts of the tradgedy. Instead this book goes overboard documenting German complicity while shying away from the actual deportations,t he massacres, maybe this is due to a lack of actual historical record. Fine...I will settle for that. But until Im satisfied im going to read "caravans to oblivion" and other books on the subject because I want a book dealing with the genocide, not just the documents of government soruces and diaries by government figures. I believe the author uses the volumes of sources to prove Turkish complicity. Except I didnt need to be convinced of complicity by the Turks( we all know the Turks butchered the armenians, otherwise how can one exlained why no armenians live in turkey today?) I wanted the history of what happaned in Armenia, I wanted to learn about the Armenian rebellion at Van and Musa Dagh.

Oh well...

I had heard a lot about this book and I just finished reading it, I am quite familiar with the subject matter but in my oppinion this is the best. I think this book is a great contribution to the historical understanding of the Armenian Genocide and of Genocide in general. It's an extremely well researched book. The authors wide reading in the relevant sources in Turkish, Armenian, German, French and English, has no parrallel. I highly reccommend this book to anyone interested in this subject.

This book, clearly the work of a scholar, does not exude the vehemence that characterizes the work of other prominent authors on the subject. It has helped me overcome many of my biases. However, Dadrian portrays many issues as black-and-white. For example, he attributes the entire Ottoman reform movement to the intervention of European powers on behalf of Christian minorities. Furthermore, he pays no attention to the fact that the Turks also suffered greatly under "Turkish misrule". The work also contains a misinformed and insulting chapter on Islamic Law. These biased statements will needlessly harm Dadrian's well-deserved reputation in the eyes of knowledgeable readers.

An excellen treatment of the topic. I recommend it to everyone who wants to learn about the history of turks.