A Wreath on Gamavor's Tomb

A Wreath on Gamavor's Tomb

Vahe H. Apelian, 19 July 2012

 

Gamavor is an Armenian word meaning volunteer. It is used only as a noun. For the one or two generations preceding ours Gamavor referred to the approximately 5,000 Armenian men who voluntarily joined the French Army and faught the Turks during the First World War. The French called the formation La Legion Armenienne.

The Armenian soldiers were motivated by a French and Diaspora Armenian pact which promised that in return for Armenian military support to the Allies against the Ottoman and German alliance, the French and their allies would help the Western Armenians lay the foundation for home rule in Cilicia, part of historic Armenia. Most, if not all, of the volunteers were expatriate Cilicians. Approximately 1,200 came from the United States, including 70 Kessabtsis. Among the latter was Nshan, the paternal uncle of historian Dr. Antranig Chalabian. When the doctor dedicated “Revolutionary Figures” to his uncle, he included the following inscription in the book: “Towards the end of 1916, when my father was subjected to deportation, his brother left America and returned to the homeland to enlist with the volunteers to fight against the Turks. After training with the Armenian Legion in Cyprus for two years, my uncle and his cousin Panos went to Palestine along with thousands of volunteers, fought in the Battle of Arara, went to Cilicia and after the turnabout of the French Government, returned to America and died in Fresno in 1973.”

The Battle of Arara was the major military engagement of the Gamavors. It took place on Sept. 18, 1918, near Megiddo (the Biblical Armageddon) in northern Palestine. The valor of the Armenian combatants in securing victory against the German-Turkish forces merited special commendation of the Allied High Command. Twenty-three Armenian combatants were killed in action. What followed the battle was another sad chapter in Armenian history.

The French forces, having secured victory, headed north and eventually captured Cilicia. Their presence encouraged the Genocide survivors to return to their ancestral villages. But instead of honoring their pact with the Armenians, the French reneged on their promise and withdrew their forces, without giving notice to the Armenians and without having negotiated with Turkish forces about the state of the Armenians they were to be left behind. I recall being told during family conversations that the French even padded the hooves of their horses to muffle the sound of their unannounced midnight evacuation. “Chivalrous France” became a sarcastic expression in Armenian conversation and literature.

Abandoned and left to the whim of the Turkish onslaught, without the protection that they had rightfully expected from their French allies, and unable to protect themselves, the Armenians once again fled their Cilician homeland to disperse around the world. Only two Armenian villages were left from a thriving Armenian enclave on the prime northeastern Mediterranean region-- Wakf in historical Mussa Dagh in Turkey and Kessab in Syria.

The Kessabtis tenaciously held on to their enclave, establishing a de facto home rule, mostly under the leadership of the Gamavors. The home rule lasted from 1918 to 1921 during which the Armenians established administrative and judicial bodies to enforce law and order. They also had an army to protect the population from the prevailing lawlessness. It's said that members of other minorities, such as the Greeks and the Alevis, were given refuge in Kessab. Eventually the French disbanded the self-rule, as they cemented their colonial control over Syria and Lebanon.

The British and the French, as the supreme powers in that part of the world, redrew the map of the region to suit their interests. The straight-lined borders of present-day Middle Eastern states were the work of  Sir Mark Sykes of Britain and  François Georges-Picot of France. They carved, among themselves, what had remained of the Ottoman Empire, without regard for the mosaic of the area's ethnic, religious or social fabric.

The redrawn map put Kessab within Turkey. The prospect of ending up in Turkey terrified the Kessabtsis, although they had been under Turkish rule for centuries, had adopted Turkish words, traded almost exclusively with Turkish-occupied Antioch and had almost no dealing with their Arab neighbors in the south. The uncertainty over the fate of Kessab heightened in the latter part of the decade (1937 to 1939) as Turkey began imposing its presence in Kessab and made Turkish language teaching mandatory. Many members of the first post-Genocide generation born in Kessab had reached conscription age by then. They were urged by their families to flee, lest they be drafted into the Turkish army. These young men also became the last resort for their families forced to leave their ancestral village.

The Kessab episode may be the only instance where the great powers gave in and redrew the map in that small corner of the Middle East to save it from Turkish occupation. Kessab was incorporated into Syria but at a price. Most of the arable lands of Kessab were given to Turkey. It is generally accepted that Cardinal Krikor Bedros XV Aghajanian (Գրիգոր Պետրոս ԺԵ. Աղաճանեան, French: Grégoire-Pierre XV Agagianian, Italian: Gregorio Pietro XV Agagianian) played a decisive role in the redrawing of the border as he struggled to secure the last remnant of Armenian Cilicia. The first official visit to Kessab (March 20, 1944) of Shukri Kuwaitli, the first elected President of Syria, was Syria's token of appreciation to the Armenians for urging that their native land be included in Syria.

The late George Azad Apelian, in his pre-teens in the mid-'50s, remembered the Gamavors arrival to Keurkune--one of Kessab's twelve villages--for a September reunion and celebration. Their arrival created much excitement among the villagers, particularly among the youngsters: seeing the men in their military fatigues and carrying ammunition and rifles was a thrill for all. The Gamavors celebrated their victory at the Battle of Arara seated next to the village spring, feasting on food over white sheets spread on the meadow. They sang about the Gamavors. George had memorized the old song that ended with:

From Arara to Cilicia

Are reminders of the Volunteers

On the tomb of the Volunteer

There is no wreath, however.

Source: Keghart.com.

A Wreath on the Gamavor’s (Legionnaire’s) Tomb

Vahe H. Apelian

 

Gamavor is an Armenian word meaning volunteer. It is used only as a noun. For the one or two generations preceding ours Gamavor referred to the approximately 5,000 Armenian men who volunteerarily joined the French Army to fight the Turks during the First World War. The French called the formation La Legion Armenienne. In English the descriptive word we have chosen is legionnaire. I am not sure if the word legionnaire inherently describes volunteering to a legion for a lofty cause, as was the case with the Armenian Gamavors. 

The Armenian volunteers were motivated by a French and Armenian Diaspora pact promising that in return for Armenian military support to the Allies against the Ottoman and German alliance, the French and their allies would help the Western Armenians lay the foundation for home rule in Cilicia, part of historic Armenia. Most, if not all, of the volunteers were expatriate Cilicians. Approximately 1,200 came from the United States, including some 70 Kessabtsis. Among the latter was Nshan, the paternal uncle of my maternal uncle, the historian Dr. Antranig Chalabian, who dedicated his book “Revolutionary Figures” to his uncle Nshan and noted the following:  “Towards the end of 1916, when my father was subjected to deportation, his brother left America and returned to the homeland to enlist with the volunteers to fight against the Turks. After training with the Armenian Legion in Cyprus for two years, my uncle and his cousin Panos went to Palestine along with thousands of volunteers, fought in the Battle of Arara, went to Cilicia and after the turnabout of the French Government, returned to America and died in Fresno in 1973.”

The Battle of Arara was the major military engagement of the Gamavors. It took place on Sept. 18, 1918, near Megiddo (the Biblical Armageddon) in northern Palestine. The valor of the Armenian combatants in securing victory against the German-Turkish forces merited special commendation of the Allied High Command. Twenty-three Armenian combatants were killed in action. What followed the battle was another sad chapter in Armenian history.

The French forces, having secured victory, headed north and eventually captured Cilicia. Their presence encouraged the genocide survivors to return to their ancestral villages. But instead of honoring their pact with the Armenians, the French reneged on their promise and withdrew their forces, without giving notice to the Armenians and without having negotiated with Turkish forces about the state of the Armenians they were leaving behind. I recall being told, during family conversations, that the French even padded the hooves of their horses to muffle the sound of their unannounced midnight evacuation. “Chivalrous France” became a sarcastic expression in Armenian conversation and literature.

Abandoned and left to the whims of the Turkish onslaught, without the protection that they had rightfully expected from their French allies and unable to protect themselves, the Armenians once again fled their Cilician homeland to disperse around the world. Only two Armenian villages remain from the once thriving Armenian enclave on that prime northeastern Mediterranean region, along the Mediterranean coast,—the vilage Wakf in historical Mussa Dagh in Turkey and Kessab in Syria.

After the genocide the surviving Kessabtis who managed to return to Kessab tenaciously held on to their enclave and established a de facto home rule, under the leadership of the Kessabtsi Gamavors who had left the legion and moved to Kessab with their arms. The home rule lasted from 1918 to 1921 during which the Armenians established administrative and judicial bodies to enforce law and order. The former legionnaires also formed an armed force and protected the population from the prevailing lawlessness in the region and gave refuge to some members of other minorities such as ethnic Greeks and the Alevis. The French disbanded the Kessab self-rule, as they cemented their colonial control over Syria and Lebanon.

The British and the French, as the supreme powers in that part of the world, had secretely already drawn the map of the region to suit their interests. The straight-lined borders of present-day Middle Eastern states were the works of their foreign ministers, Sir Mark Sykes of Britain and François Georges-Picot of France. They carved, among themselves, what had remained of the Ottoman Empire, without regard to the mosaic of the area's ethnic, religious or social fabric.

The drawn map put Kessab within Turkey. The prospect of ending up in Turkey terrified the Kessabtsis in spite of the fact that they had been under Turkish rule for centuries, had adopted Turkish words in their vocabulary, traded almost exclusively with Turkish-occupied Antioch and had almost no dealing with their immediate Arab neighbors in the south. The uncertainty over the fate of Kessab heightened in the latter part of the decade (1937 to 1939) as Turkey began imposing its presence in Kessab and made Turkish language teaching mandatory. Many members of the first post-Genocide generation born in Kessab had reached conscription age by then. These young men, including my father, were urged by their families to flee to Lebanon lest they be be drafted into the Turkish Army.

The Kessabtsis also appealed to the occupying forces to have Kessab removed from the emerging Turkey. It is generally accepted that Cardinal Krikor Bedros XV Aghajanian (Գրիգոր Պետրոս ԺԵ. Աղաճանեան, French: Grégoire-Pierre XV Agagianian, Italian: Gregorio Pietro XV Agagianian) played a decisive role in having the colonial rulers redraw the map to secure the last remnant of Armenian Cilicia. This episode may be the only instance where the two great powers redrew the map in that corner of the Middle East to save the Armenian enclave Kessab from the Turkish occupation. Kessab was incorporated into Syria but at a price. Most of the arable lands of Kessab were given to Turkey.

The first Syrian government official visit to Kessab took place on March 20, 1944. Shukri Kuwaitli, the first elected President of Syria visited Kessab as a token of Syrian Government’s appreciation of the Armenians for having their native enclave included in Syria. 

The late George Azad Apelian, in an article, noted that during his pre-teens in the mid-'50s, the  Kessabtsi Gamavors came to Keurkune--one of Kessab's twelve villages--for their traditional September reunion celebrating their participation in the battle of Arara.. Their arrival created much excitement among the villagers, particularly among the youngsters, seeing the men in their military fatigues and carrying ammunition and rifles. The Gamavors celebrated their victory at the Battle of Arara seated next to the village spring, feasting over white sheets spread on the nearby meadow. They sang a song about the Gamavors. George had memorized the old song that ended with:

From Arara to Cilicia

Are reminders of the Volunteers

On the tomb of the Volunteer

There is no wreath, however.

The Cilician Mount Ararat

The Cilician Mount Ararat

Vahe H. Apelian

              Much like Mount Ararat, Gassios Ler  (Կասիոս Լեռ) has been a silent witness to the lives of the Kessabtsis since the original inhabitants set foot at the mountain slope. The mountain rises from the Mediterranean Sea shore and flanks Kessab in the northwest. It commands a majestic view to the traveler approaching Kessab. Gassios Ler may very well be regarded as the Cilician version of Turkish-occupied Mount Ararat.
 

Ler in Armenian means mountain. The Armenian name of the mountain, Gassios, is thought to have evolved from Cassius. Syria was once a Roman province and several “Cassius”s were governors of Syria. Although the Kessabtsis refer to the mountain as Gassios Ler, its official name in Arabic is Jabal Aqra ("Bare Mountain") because of its sparse vegetation. Its summit is approximately 1,800 metres (5,000 ft) and commands a magnificent view of the Mediterranean, Moussa Ler of the famed Forty Days of Mussa Dagh by Frantz Werfel and parts of the historical Antioch through which Apostle Paul traversed spreading Christianity.

The very first stamps of the new  Republic of Armenia depicted Mount Ararat even though the mountain is in Turkey. Much like Mount Ararat, Gassios Ler is part of Turkey as well. However, the Kessabtsis continue to relate to it as their own. Historically, it was part of Armenian Cilicia. The mountain, along with parts of the region (Sanjak of Alexandretta), including part of the Kessab, was annexed to Turkey in 1937-1939. Present-day Kessab was incorporated into Syria, thanks to the appeals of the local Armenians to the European powers. It is claimed that Cardinal Aghajanian played a decisive role in securing present-day Kessab as a remnant of the historical Cilicia. Kessab retains its Armenian inhabitants to this day, while the rest of Cilicia is depopulated of its once-thriving Armenian population.
 

Up to its annexation to Turkey and once a year, on the Sunday nearest to August 15, Kessabtsis used to go on pilgrimage to the ancient ruins on top of Gassios Ler, to celebrate the Feast of Assumption. Kessabtsis called these ruins Ballum. Some of the historians claim that a temple dedicated to Greek god Apollo stood there once. At one time for the Kessabtsis, the word Ballum and the Feast of Assumption were intertwined if not synonymous.  Both of my parents as youngsters used to accompany their parents to celebrate the Feast of Assumption at Ballum on Gassios Ler.

The Feast Assumption is an important religious celebration to Catholic and Orthodox Christians as the day that Virgin Mary was received into Heaven. However, all the Kessabtsis, irrespective of their denominational affiliations, celebrate the feast. Grapes are brought to the church and are blessed after Divine Liturgy. Kessabtsis would not eat grape until the feast. I remember well my paternal grandmother Sarah forbade me to pick grapes from vines until their blessing. The Feast of the Assumption is a major festivity for the Kessabtis who continue to celebrate it with davul and zurna and feast on harissa. 
 

Gassios Ler, unlike Mount Ararat, has one summit. In the gorge between the snow-capped twin peaks of Mount Ararat our legendary King Ardavast remains chained, accompanied by his faithful dogs that unceasingly lick his chains to free Ardavast to liberate Armenia. No such legendary figure inhabits Gassios Ler. Both mountains however, remain silent witnesses of our turbulent history, stretching from the slopes of Mount Ararat to the slopes of Gassios Ler and its surroundings within the famed historical Armenian Cilicia.

Source: Keghart.com.

Year of human resources preparation: What will be its measure?

 Vahe H Apelian

On January 4, 2024 issue of the Eastern Prelacy’s newsletter “Crossroads” published His Holiness Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia’s yearly pontifical message. This year the message was titled “2024, Year of human resources preparation”. The pontifical message was issued on January 1, from Antelias, Lebanon, the seat of the ancient catholicosate of Cilicia. It was addressed “To the prelates, the clergy, the community authorities of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia and to the daughters and sons of our people.” After analyzing the state of the Diaspora, His Holiness Aram I, a prolific writer and an impressive intellect, lists nine recommendations and ends his message stating that “we assure you that the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia is always ready to support and participate in the sacred mission of human resources preparation.”

As I write, a conference is taking place in Antelias. The ongoing conference has a broad agenda and pertains to the "Analysis and Awareness Platform" (AAP). The agenda includes addressing Azerbaijan's historical falsifications, exploring legal avenues for the collective return of the indigenous people of Artsakh to their homeland, anticipating developments in the regional political landscape, outlining strategies for the release of prisoners of war and abducted political leaders of Artsakh, and seeking commitments from international leaders to preserve Artsakh's spiritual and cultural heritage.”

I am not sure whether a similar conference will take place having its agenda the Catholicos’ 2024 pontifical message, making 2024 the year of human resources. Naturally it is not expected that the Catholicos necessarily preside over such a conference. His charge is to bring the issues to the attention of the secular and religious leaders across the nation. Catholicos Aram, I has been charging the Armenian nation with yearly charges or missions. What has been lacking in these charges in my view is the measure against which, at the end of year, progress or lack of progress is measured, simply because there is no measure. 

Almost all equations in science have an author. We know that Einstein is the author, maybe the most recognizable scientific equation that energy equals the mass of the object multiplied by speed of light squared. There is another equation that may not be as readily recognized as Einstein’s but nonetheless is fairly well known.  It has to do with WORK. I do not know if there is a single scientist to whom the work equation is attributed. But scientists have accepted that, work is equal to the force applied multiplied by distance covered due to the application of the force.

That equation makes brutally clear that whatever force is applied, or efforts made, if there is no distance that has been covered, or progress made, work is not done. We have a beautiful Armenian word for it, deghkayl – տեղքայլ. It is a discipline boy scouts do during parades. They stay put at a spot but have their legs and arms moving. There may be an English word for it, but it is alluding me, as I type. I remember once Sarkis Zeitlian alluding to deghkayl during a lecture he gave to the ARF Zavarian Student Association members. On the contrary, if distance is achieved, with hardly the force that was applied in a parallel situation, work has been done.

I cannot say that Diaspora organizations have been negligent or not negligent to the year's charge, or whether they have considered the year's charge or simply ignored it,  simply because there is no accounting towards the year's stated mission.

What has been lacking with Catholicos Aram’s mission statements for the year is the measure against which an accounting is given at the end of the year. Surely it is much wider scale, across the Diaspora. It may be that it is the sum total of what organizations have done. Was church attendance increased? Did organizations experience a spike in their membership or a decline? Was donations for charity increased or not increased?. Whatever the object or the mission was,   there has to be a measure The year ends and there is no accounting of the progress made or not made, simply because there was no charge to each organization to have set a measure for the year, and account for progress made or not made at the end of the year. 

The year ends, so does the year's mission.  It ends just like that,  and the new year comes with  a new mission.

Should there be a conference whose agenda is the Catholicos Aram’s charge for the year, the conference should set measure against the issues or the specific goals, so that an accounting is done at the end of year whether progress was made or not made.

Albert Apelian M.D.: "The Antiochians" (2/2)

Reviewed by Vahe H. Apelian

Kessab is located at the southernmost border of the historical Armenian Cilicia on the Mediterranean Sea, almost equidistant between coastal cities of Latakia, Syria in the south and historical Antioch or Antakya, the capital city of Hatay province of Turkey in the north. For centuries, Kessab, along with the rest of the Armenian Cilicia, remained under the Turkish yolk. As an outcome, the Kessabtsis traded  with Antioch in the north and remained almost oblivious of Latakia in the south. That is how I explain Albert Apelian chose titling his last novel  “The Antiochians”, instead of the Cilicians. 

Dr. Apelian had The Antiochians published in 1960 by Vantage Press Inc. Most of its 312 pages had appeared in weekly installments in Hairenik Weekly of  Watertown, Massachusetts and in the Nor Ashkhar, a New York biweekly.

The novel's plot is an account of the unfolding of the lives of Kevork Agha Matossian of Kessab and Keorkineh and that of his descendants. Matossian, a gentleman farmer “could trace his ancestors to the fourteenth century, to the first kings of Armenian Cilicia”. He was a tall and handsome man. “What a powerful leader this man would have made, had he lived in France,” had said the French consul in Antioch, present-day Hatai in Turkey. Matossian had silkworm and silk business dealings with the French. 

Through his association with the French consul and with lots of baksheesh–bribe in Turkish--Matossian succeed to have his son, Haig, appointed Antioch’s medical doctor. Haig, newly graduated from medical school at the American University of Beirut (AUB), falls in love with Osanna Melidonian soon after his return home. An orphan, who had been brought up and educated by American missionaries, was a teacher in Kessab. The newlyweds make their home in Antioch where their son, Ara, is born. His parents sent him to Kessab early on so that he would grow in Kessab instead of Antioch.

Ara lives through the ordeal of the 1909 pogrom, the sacking of Kessab, and the Armenian Genocide while a medical student at his father’s alma mater in Beirut. During the First World War, he is drafted in the Ottoman army. After the war, he moves to the U.S., completes his medical training and starts a successful practice. He marries and has a son Vahakn. Dr. Ara loses his wife to cancer and then his only child in the Second World War. Distraught, he returns to his ancestral village and finds his mother had died just a few days before his arrival. He ends his life there and is buried in the family’s ancient cemetery in Keorkineh thus putting an end to Kevork Agha Matossian’s lineage.

The author said of the novel, “despite its historical background and true-to-life picture of Armenian people, places, and customs is a work of fiction from beginning to end”. It is a superbly narrated book. His descriptions of events and places are akin to a pictorial presentation. The narrative is “liberally spiced with foreign words, phrases, most of which are easily understood when taken in their context”. 

 Dr. Apelian’s narration of historical events indicates a sharp mind that analyzes events with a revealing insight. Two caught my attention. In 1909 most of the Kessabtsis were able to flee to safety when their villages were also attacked in the aftermath of the Adana Massacres that decimated the Armenian population of that city and some of its surrounding towns. Kessabtsis have historically attributed their survival to their fighters who, for few hours, held at bay the marauding Turkish mob thus giving time for the Armenian population to flee. It turns out there is more to this interpretation. Had it not been for the outright help of their neighboring Turkmen village Faku Hassaan (pronounced now as Fakassan), the fleeing Kessabtsis would not have been able to secure a southwestern passage to the Mediterranean Sea and have their representatives reach Latakia to ask the French and British consuls' help to evacuate to safety the survivors reaching the sea. Also the sudden change of guard in Constantinople, due to the dethroning of Sultan Abdul Hamid, and his replacement with the more moderate Sultan Reshad came at this opportune time enabling the French and British consuls to send boats to evacuate the escapees, without concern for repercussion from the Sublime Porte.

The other revelation for me was his analysis of the Dardanelles campaign. Historically it has been claimed that had the Turks not emerged victorious over the Allied forces, they would not have had the opportunity to commit the Genocide of the Armenians. According to Dr. Apelian, “no one can definitely be sure whether or not British diplomacy at that time favored an early occupation of Constantinople. A premature collapse of the Sultan’s government could seat a victorious Russia at the peace conference”. Dr. Apelian’s keen grasp of such historical events indicates that he had an intimate knowledge of Armenian history, more than one would expect from a busy medical doctor. 

Despite the author’s assertion that any similarity of the characters to persons living or dead is coincidental and unintentional, a reader who has a rather intimate knowledge of Kessab is bound to draw a parallel between the novel and actual people and places. For example, Dr. Albert S. Apelian, 1893 (Kessab) - 1986 (Massachusetts), was the son of Dr. Soghomon Apelian, the first Kessabtsi Armenian to graduate from the AUB medical school. Dr. Soghomon's wife Ovsanna was a teacher in Kessab but she hailed from elsewhere. Father and son Drs Soghomon and Albert, were drafted to serve in the Turkish Army during the First World War. 

Albert Apelian regarded The Antiochians the crowning achievement of his writing career, a fulfillment of his father’s prediction that one day he might “write a long novel”. He attributed his interest to his father’s encouragement.  

 Dr. Albert S. Apelian ended his introduction of the novel writing with “It is self-evident that truth must prevail, or we shall all perish! And the truth is to be found everywhere, even in the pages of a work of fiction.”  Indeed, the book is as much fictional as it is a personal account of that crucial period in Armenian history.

The Antiochians' plot has Victorian flavor. All in all, it is a very readable book, especially for Armenians who hail from Kessab, It depicts and preserves for posterity a way of life long bygone now on that coastal Cilician town Kessab.

Orphanages Near East Relief ran in Lebanon

 Recently Ara Babian posted about the orphanages the Near East Relief (NER) ran during 1920’s on what is presently Lebanon. The number orphanages run there indicates the decisive role the American Near East Relief played in the recovery of the Armenian nation after the genocide. It also indicates the important role what is presently Lebanon in the life on the Armenian community that continues to this day. The estates of a few of these orphanages would later become the seat of the Catholicosate of Cilicia, the famed Armenian Sanatorium and the Birds' Nest orphanage under the Catholicosate's jurisdiction. The text below is my translation of the posting. I have also posted the original article. Vahe H. Apelian

The cities of Lebanon where there were orphanages during 1920's 

1.  Nahr Ibrahim (NER)- The orphanage was founded in the spring of 1923 to shelter the Armenian orphans of Caesarea (Կեսարիոյ) and Konya (Գոնիայի). Stanley Kerr was the principal. The malaria epidemic wreaked havoc in the orphanage and many orphans died. In 1924, the orphans of Nahr Ibrahim were transferred to the Byblos orphanage. Note: The Byblos (Jbeil) Armenian orphanage Birds’ Nest sit on a sprawling coastal property and lately has become a magnet for devlopers. 

The estate of Byblos Birds' Nest orphanage

Coastal view of the Birds' Nest orphanage in Byblos (Jbeil) Lebanon
During my HS years with two classmates we have camped on the island (1)

 

2.   Ghazir (NER) - In 1919, the Americans established an orphanage here for Lebanese children, who were transferred to Tyre in 1922. After that, the institution was entrusted to the Swiss missionary Jakob Künzler, under whose care 1,500 Armenians, mostly from Urfa, found refuge. The institution turned into an orphanage for girls. There used to be a carpet weaving workshop. In 1925, a school for the blind was opened. The orphanage is known for the carpet it weaved and gifted to the U.S. president Calvin Coolidge in 1925.

3.  Maameltein (NER): - The orphanage was founded in 1922. This institution was dedicated to care of boys and operated for only one year. In the same place, on July 1, 1923, the Lebanese Armenian National Sanatorium was opened, which in 1938 was moved to the village of Azounieh in Mount Lebanon, where it operates to this day.

Armenian Sanatorium in Azounieh, Lebanon

4.   Jounieh (NER).- The orphanage was for girls housing up to 470 girls. Girls transferred from Caesarea and Konya found shelter in the institution. The institution was closed in 1925, some of the girls were taken to Ghazir and to Sidon.

 

 

5.   Zuk Mikael (NER): - The orphanage for girls. It was founded in 1922. It sheltered 350 girlss under the leadership of the Danish missionary Maria Jacobsen. In 1923, as a result of the water crisis, the institution was closed and the children were transferred to the Sidon orphanage.

 

6.   Antelias (NER): The orphanage was founded in 1922, it had around 1250 children. It was run by the Australian branch of Near East Relief. The institution also ran a vocational school. In the late 1920s, this estate became the seat of the Great House of the Catholicos of Cilicia.

The seat of the Catholicosate of Cilicia or Sis, in Antelias, a coastal town in Lebanon

7.   Beirut (NER).- Since 1922, this American charitable organization had a special handicraft school for widows, built on the seashore. Due to the large number of female students, a second similar institution was established in 1923 at St. James (Beirut). These two institutions were closed in 1925.

 

8.   Sidon (NER): - The orphanage was founded in 1918. It was reserved for Lebanese orphans. Later, thousands of Armenian orphans found shelter here. The institution was called "Bird's Nest". The the director was  by Maria Jacobsen, who later became the director of the Byblos orphanage

 

9.   Hammana, Sour, and Damourr (NER).- These institutions had a short life. The orphans of these places were later transferred to other American orphanages operating in Lebanon.

 

 

Արա Պապյան

  · 

Ուզում եմ հիշեցնել, որ միայն ներկայիս Լիբանանի տարածքում 1920-ականերին գործել է ամերիկյան ինը որբանոց։ 

1. Նահր Իպրահիմ (NER)- Հիմնուած է 1923-ի գարնան՝ Կեսարիոյ եւ Գոնիայի հայ որբերը պատսպարելու համար: Տնօրէնն էր Սթենլի Քերրը: Մալարիայի համաճարակը աւերներ կը գործէ այս հաստատութեան մէջ, բազմաթիւ որբեր կը մահանան: 1924-ին Նահր Իպրահիմի որբերը կը փոխադրուին Ճիպէյլի որբանոց:

2. Ղազիր (NER)- 1919-ին ամերիկացիները հոս որբանոց մը հիմնած էին լիբանանցի երախաներու համար, որոնք 1922-ին կը փոխադրուին Սայտա: Անկէ ետք հաստատութիւնը կը վստահուի զուիցերիացի Եաքոպ Քիւնցլերին, որու տնօրինութեամբ հոս ապաստան կը գտնէ մեծամասնութեամբ ուրֆացի 1500 հայ երախայ: Հաստատութիւնը կը վերածուի աղջկանց որբանոցի: Հոս կը գործէր գորգագործութեան արհեստանոց մը: 1925-ին կը բացուի կոյրերու վարժարան մը:

3. Մաամըլթէյն (NER).- Հիմնուած է 1922-ին: Մանչերու յատկացուած այս հաստատութիւնը կը գործէ միայն տարի մը: Նոյն վայրին մէջ 1 յուլիս 1923-ին կը բացուի Լիբանանի հայոց ազգային բուժարանը, որ 1938-ին տեղափոխուած է Լեռնալիբանանի Ազունիէ գիւղը, ուր կը գործէ առ այսօր:

4. Ճիւնի (NER)- Հոս գործած է աղջիկներու որբանոց մը, որ կը հաշուէր 470 սանուհի: Հաստատութեան մէջ ապաստանած էին Կեսարիայէն եւ Գոնիայէն տեղափոխուած աղջիկները: Հաստատութիւնը կը գոցուի 1925-ին, աղջիկներուն մէկ մասը կը տարուի Ղազիր եւ Սայտա:

5. Զուք Միքայէլ (NER)- Աղջկանց որբանոց: Հիմնուած է 1922-ին: Կը պատսպարէր 350 երախայ՝ ղեկավարութեան տակ դանիացի միսիոնարուհի Մարիա Եաքոպսոնի: 1923-ին, ջուրի տագնապի հետեւանքով, հաստատութիւնը կը փակուի եւ երախաները կը տեղափոխուին Սայտայի որբանոց:

6. Անթիլիաս (NER)- Հիմնուած էր 1922-ին, ունէր շուրջ 1250 երախայ: Կը ղեկավարէր NER-ի Աւստրալիոյ մասնաճիւղը: Հետագային հաստատութիւնը կ’ունենայ նաեւ արհեստից վարժարան: 1920-ականներու վերջերուն, այս կալուածը կը դառնայ Մեծի Տանն Կիլիկիոյ Կաթողիկոսութեան նստավայրը:

7. Պէյրութ (NER)- Ամերիկեան բարեգործական այս կազմակերպութիւնը 1922-էն ի վեր ունէր որբուհիներուն յատուկ ձեռագործի վարժարան մը՝ ծովի ափին շինուած: Աշակերտուհիներու մեծ թիւին պատճառով, նոյնատիպ երկրորդ հաստատութիւն մը կը հիմնուի 1923-ին՝ St. James-ի (Պէյրութ) մէջ: Այս երկու հաստատութիւնները կը փակուին 1925-ին:

8. Սայտա (NER)- Հիմնուած է 1918-ին: Յատկացուած էր լիբանանցի որբերու: Հետագային հոս ապաստան կը գտնէ հազարի չափ հայ երախայ: Հաստատութիւնը կը կոչուէր «Թռչնոց բոյն»: Տնօրէնի պաշտօնը վարած է Մարիա Եաքոպսոն, որ հետագային պիտի դառնար Ճիպէյլի որբանոցի տնօրէնուհին:

9. Համմանա, Սուր եւ Տամուր (NER)- Այս հաստատութիւնները կարճատեւ կեանք ունեցած են: Այս վայրերու որբերը հետագային տեղափոխուած են Լիբանանի մէջ գործող ամերիկեան այլ որբանոցներ: