Ethnic Cleansing

Intro. : A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: Being allied with Germany during the First World War meant that Turkey could settle once and for all its long-running ethnic and religious feud with the Armenians, a community living in a province in disputed territory east of Turkey near the Caspian Sea. The Russians, principle allies of the Armenians, as well as the British and French could not come to their aid because of the war and they were left pretty much at the mercy, or lack of it, of the much stronger Turkish forces.

Intro. : A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: The first decade of the twentieth century was not a good one for the Ottoman Empire. Often designated by the great powers with less justification than imagined, the "sick man of Europe," Turkey lost control of Crete and watched as large areas of the Balkans and North Africa slipped from their jurisdiction. With imperial fortunes failing, Turkey became more determined to maintain control of its Asian possessions. This included systematic oppression of the Armenians who inhabited a province bordering the Caspian Sea.