Kurdish rebellions during World War I
During World War I, several Kurdish rebellions took place within the Ottoman Empire.
The rebellions were preceded by the emergence of early Kurdish nationalism and Kurdish revolts in Bitlis in 1907 and early 1914. The primary Kurdish war aim was the creation of an independent Kurdish state, a goal that Britain and Russia promised to fulfil in order to incite Kurdish resistance. Other reasons for resistance include a fear that they would suffer the same fate as the Armenians, the desire for more autonomy, and according to Ottoman sources, banditry.
The first Kurdish rebellion was launched in August 1914, before the Ottoman entry into World War I. From 1915 to 1916, further Kurdish rebellions took place in Botan, Dersim, and south of Kiğı. 1917 saw 2 additional waves of rebellion in summer and August, the latter of which received Russian military support. Besides direct military opposition, Kurdish civilians also partook in passive resistance by assisting advancing Russian forces, hiding or adopting Armenian refugees during the genocide, and resisting Ottoman military drafts. Shortly before the Armistice of Mudros in October 1918, Mahmud Barzanji broke away from the Ottoman Empire and established a quasi-independent Kurdish state under British supervision.
British wartime promises of an independent Kurdistan were included in the Treaty of Sèvres (1920), which assigned a small amount of territory for a planned Kurdish state, but these plans were abandoned with the Turkish nationalist victory in the Turkish War of Independence and the ensuing Treaty of Lausanne (1923). Kurdish rebellions in Turkey continued after 1923 and are still ongoing in the present day.
Several villages were looted, burned or destroyed by both the Kurdish rebels and the Ottoman authorities. In reprisal to the rebellions, Ottoman authorities deported large populations of Kurds.
Kurdish aims[edit]
The Kurds hoped that the Allies of World War I would aid them in creating an independent Kurdish nation if they were to fight against the Ottomans.[2] Indeed, Britain[3] and Russia[4] promised to support Kurdish independence to encourage resistance. As the war progressed, the advance of Russian troops into the Eastern Anatolian hinterland with an idea of the "Liberation of Armenia" gradually turned (for a while) into an unspoken "Liberation of Kurdistan".[4] Other reasons for resistance include a fear that they would suffer the same fate as the Armenians, as well as increasing autonomy.[5]
Ottoman staff officer Barhan Ozkok, writing in 1932, attributes Kurdish resistance to a desire for independence as well as banditry.[6]
A 2022 article by Turkish academic Erhan Taş contests claims that Kurdish resistance (specifically the 1916 Dersim revolt) was driven by nationalism or a desire for independence, as these are not backed by contemporary war documents and based on statements by authors writing in later decades.[7]
Timeline[edit]
Initial revolt (1914)[edit]
The first Kurdish rebellion during World War I took place prior to the Ottoman entry into World War I. In August 1914, the nephew of the mayor of Dersim was killed by a member of the Ferhatuşağı tribe, and in response to Ottoman reprisals the Ferhatuşağı tribe rebelled. The Ferhatuşağı were joined by the Karaballı, Lower Abbas, Abbasuşağı and Koçuşağı tribes. The murder of the chieftain of the Ferhatuşağı tribe ended the rebellion.[8]
Uprising in Dersim, Ottoman deportations (1916)[edit]
The Dersim uprising of 1916[11] was an Alevi Kurdish uprising[12] led by Ali Ağa[8] in the region of Dersim.[12] Its causes laid in the Kurdish fear that they would suffer the same fate as the Armenians, as well as the desire to remove the state control in Dersim.[5] This revolt was encouraged by Russian emissaries, who had promised to local chieftains that Dersim would be given independence after Russian occupation.[6]
The uprising began in early March 1916.[6] Kurdish rebels occupied and destroyed the towns of Nazimiye, Mazght, Pertek, and Charsandjak,[12] and then marched towards the residence of the province governor (vali), Mamuretülaziz (modern day Elazığ).[13][12] As the Kurds advanced, they captured many weapons from Turkish soldiers.[14] Turkish officials in Mezere and Harput felt extremely threatened by the Kurdish revolt, since the Russians at the time occupied the area between Erzurum and Erzincan which adjoined Dersim to the north.[15] The Ottoman army would likely to be incapable of resisting a coordinated Kurdish-Russian advance on Harput,[15] leading the Muslim population of that settlement to make preparations to escape.[15]
In response to the Kurdish rebellion, Ottoman authorities launched an operation to clear Dersim from Kurdish rebels on 1 April.[6] Involved in this operation was the Ottoman 13th division, led by Galatalı Şevket Bey.[15] This division included a contingent of troops led by Hasan Khayri Bey,[11] as well as Shafi’i Kurds.[12] On the day following the start of the operation, Kurdish rebels launched an unsuccessful counterattack on Pertek.[6] Kurdish rebels were defeated at Kayacı, Mazgirt (13 April) and Şimaligarbî (16 April).[6] By 16 April, the rebels had been reduced to an area between Nazimiye and the Ohi stream.[6] On 18 April, after defeating 500 rebels in the area, Ottoman troops looted Kavaktepe and the surrounding villages.[6] The next day, they burned down the village of Lemit.[6] As Ottoman troops advanced, they clashed with Kurds at Şeyhin, Kopik (22 April), Gökerik Hill, Sinevartaşı (23 April),[6] and Zelbaba Hill (28 April).[6]
On 2 May, the Kurdish rebels surrendered.[6] The operation had concluded with the defeat of the rebels, who had suffered heavy casualties.[14] With the situation now having come under Ottoman control, the preparations of the Muslim civilians of Harput to escape had been rendered obsolete.[15] After the defeat of the uprising, entire populations of the responsible tribes were deported from Dersim.[13]
Passive resistance[edit]
Kurdish civilian support for Russian forces[edit]
On 2 August 1916, the Ottoman Second Army led by Ahmed Izzet Pasha began an offensive to recapture Malazgirt from Russia. Russia responded by rushing experienced mountain units to stem Ottoman attacks. Kurdish civilians hostile to the Ottoman Empire helped Russian forces find uncharted tracks across the mountains. The Ottoman offensive came to a halt in early September and finished on 26 September 1916.[22]
Kurdish resistance to Ottoman recruitment[edit]
Although tens of thousands of Kurds served for the Ottoman army during World War I, recruitment attempts were not always successful. In Diyarbekir and Bitlis, only a tiny portion of Kurdish tribesmen subscribed to the Hamidiye, while, for instance, in Dersim, everybody refused to join. Lack of military enthusiasm was commonly noticed among the Kurds in the Ottoman Army, with Kurdish forces frequently showing contempt for orders and avoidance of responsibility. Ottoman leadership often distrusted Kurds, and deliberately equipped them with an insufficient amount of outmoded armaments and ammunition. Kurdish desertions were common, and almost no Kurdish soldiers remained in the Ottoman Army by the end of the war.[24]
Casualties[edit]
Military[edit]
Ottoman staff officer Barhan Ozkok, writing in 1932, states that Kurdish rebels suffered 300 killed and 200 captured in a battle on 28 April 1916 during the Dersim revolt. He further mentions 100 Kurdish soldiers being killed on 1–2 May. He does not provide figures for the entire 1916 Dersim rebellion, nor does he provide figures on Ottoman losses.[6] Yakup Kaya writes that Kurdish forces had suffered heavy casualties during the 1916 Dersim revolt.[6]