Thursday, December 4, 2014

The Armenians of Zeitun (Zeitoun)

Robin Thomson writes from Aintab on Facebook; he offers this photo of  Marash Zeytun Armenian women.
"who defended their lands.."
Grandpa Peter remembered when the Zeitountsis fought to protect Zeitoun, their mountain abode,  against the onslaught of the Turks.  In 1918, during the Armenian Genocide, after the American missionaries, thinking to encourage peace, had convinced the Armenians of Zeitoun to give up their armed fight against the Turks. The Turks who did not make peace, the Turks who made genocide, marched these brave Armenian peoples of Zeitoun, bound and humiliated, marched them through the streets of Marash to their death.

Grandpa Peter cried every time he remembered the forced march of the once proud peoples, heads down, shamed: the courageous Armenians of Zeitoun.

4 comments:

  1. Omg..the woman on the left with the pistol in her belt looks just like YOU!

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    Replies
    1. Just call me a pistol-packin' momma! You'll have to teach me how to shoot straight, though!

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  2. The date you mention above is incorrect; the Zeytun Armenians were the first to be forcibly deported by the savage turks of Ottoman Turkey and the Genocide of Armenians actually began first in Zeytun on April 8-10, 1915. There were no Armenians left in Zeytun after June of 1915. After World War I, about 1500 Zeytun Armenians returned back to their damaged and burnt villagetown of Zeytun, which the Turks had renamed as "Suleymanli" in Dec 1919 only to be forcibly deported and massacred again in June 1921..

    ReplyDelete
  3. The date you mention above is incorrect; the Zeytun Armenians were the first to be forcibly deported by the savage turks of Ottoman Turkey and the Genocide of Armenians actually began first in Zeytun on April 8-10, 1915. There were no Armenians left in Zeytun after June of 1915. After World War I, about 1500 Zeytun Armenians returned back to their damaged and burnt villagetown of Zeytun, which the Turks had renamed as "Suleymanli" in Dec 1919 only to be forcibly deported and massacred again in June 1921..

    ReplyDelete