V.H. Apelian's Blog

V.H. Apelian's Blog

Saturday, August 22, 2026

A chronology of Armenia related events between 1915--1923

1915 to 1923 is a crucial period in Armenian history and is a very convoluted era. In order to give a structure to that period and facilitate its visualization, I listed pertinent dates in a chronological order to personify. Vaհe H Apelian



  

1914 – 1915

July 28, 1914,

 a Tuesday

On this day, World War I formally started, when Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.

February 19,1915,

 a Friday

On this day, the Gallipoli campaign (also known as the Dardanelles campaign) officially began during World War I when British and French naval forces started a long-range bombardment of Ottoman fortifications in the Dardanelles, located in present-day Turkey. Historian claim that the Ottoman victory at Gallipoli did not cause the Armenian Genocide, but the wartime crisis surrounding the campaign created a climate of fear that the Committee of Union and Progress used to justify the massacres.

April 24, 1915, 

a Saturday

On this day, Ottoman authorities arrested over 200 Armenian community leaders, intellectuals, and professionals in Constantinople, marking the beginning of the Armenian Genocide.

1918

May 28, 1918,

a Tuesday

On this day, the Armenian National Council in Tiflis, Georgia, declared the independence of Armenia, marking the establishment of the First Republic of Armenia.

June 4, 1918,

a Tuesday.

On this day, and a week after declaring Independent Armenia, the First Republic of Armenia, signed the Treaty of Batumi. Turkey recognized Armenia's impendence. The treaty left Armenia with a severely truncated, landlocked territory, including (10,400 square km) areas like Yerevan and Etchmiadzin.

June 13, 1918,

a Thursday

On this day, and two weeks after declaring independence, a Republic of Armenia delegation, comprised by Avedis Aharonian, Alexander Khadisian, and Mikayel Papajanian left Tiflis on an official visit to Turkey as the Republic Of Armenia’s maiden visitation to friendly Turkey.

June 19, 1918, 

a Wednesday

On this day, the Avedis Aharonian, Alexander Khatisian and Mikayel Papajanian, delegation arrived in Constantinople, where it was received in a manner appropriate to dignitaries representing a state. They remained until November 1, that is, approximately 4 and a half months. https://vhapelian.blogspot.com/2025/11/republic-of-armenia-first-official_26.html

 

August 1, 1919,

 a Thursday

On this day, the inaugural session of the National Assembly of Armenia convened, while Avedis Aharonian and his delegation were in Constantinople.

https://vhapelian.blogspot.com/2026/08/august-1-1918-inaugural-session-of.html

 

October 30, 1918,

a Wednesday

On this day, Armistice of Mudros was signed. Armenians did not formally participate in the Armistice of Mudros. The agreement was made exclusively between representatives of the victorious Allied Powers (represented by Great Britain) and the defeated Ottoman Empire. It enabled the Allied powers to begin partitioning the Ottoman Empire.  The armistice of Mudros led to the Treaty of Sèvres, the little ally to the allied powers.

November 1, 1918, a Friday

On this day, The Avedis Aharonian, Alexander Khatisian and Mikayel Papajanian, delegation, having spent almost four and half month in Constantinople, left the capital city Constantinople around November 1, 1918, following the signing of the Armistice of Mudros on October 30, 1918.

November 11, 1918, a Monday.

On this day, the World War I formally and famously ended on the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

1919-1920

January 18,1919, 

a Saturday

On this day, the historic Paris Peace Conference of 1919 formally opened on January 18, 1919, though preliminary meetings and arrivals began on January 12, 1919.

January 21,1920,

a Wednesday

On this day, the Paris Peace Conference of 1919 officially ended.

August 10, 1920,

a Tuesday

On this day, the Treaty of Sèvres was signed after the main formal sessions of the Paris Peace Conference concluded, though it was part of the overall peace process. The Treaty of Sèvres promised a post-World War I independent Armenia with a territory on the Armenian Highland, including provinces like Van and Erzerum, and an outlet to the Black Sea. However, this treaty was never implemented because it was rejected by the emerging Turkish nationalist movement led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who waged a war against the Allied Powers and established the Republic of Turkey. Consequently, the Treaty of Sèvres was replaced by the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, which made no provisions for an Armenian state and set back the prospects for Armenians.

November 29, 1920

Monday

On this day, Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed by local revolutionaries.

December 2,1920,

a Thursday

The leadership of the First Republic of Armenia (the ARF government) agreed to cede power to the communists. The 4th PM of the first Republic of Armenia Simon Vratsian was in office between November 23, 1920 to December 2 of 1920 when he ceded power to the Bolsheviks. Armenia became part of the Russian dominated Soviet Union.

December 2, 1920, a Thursday

On this day, the Treaty of Alexandropol, signed on. It was a devastating accord between the First Republic of Armenia and Turkey. For Armenia, the treaty was a capitulation that forced the country to cede over half of its territory, including the Kars region, renounce the Treaty of Sèvres, and accept severe military restrictions that left it a vulnerable, de facto protectorate of Turkey. The treaty was never ratified due to Armenia's Sovietization. The treaty's terms, particularly concerning borders, were largely confirmed by the subsequent Treaty of Kars.

1921-1923

13 October 1921,

a Thursday

On this day, the signing of the Treaty of Kars took place that established the borders between Turkey and the three Transcaucasian Soviet republics, which are now the independent republics of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. The treaty was signed in the city of Kars.

June 24, 1923,

a Saturday

On this day, the infamous Treaty of Lausanne, the “granddaddy” of all Turkish Armenian treaties, took place. The treaty effectively ended the Armenian Cause / Hai Tahd, by abolishing the Treaty of Sèvres, which had envisioned an independent Armenia. While the treaty did not explicitly mention Armenians, it granted amnesty to perpetrators of past crimes, including those related to the Armenian Genocide, and codified the borders of modern Turkey consolidating Turkey's control over the historic Armenian lands and resulting in expulsion of the Armenians and the confiscation of their properties.

 

 

 

 

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