Top-Down and Local Violence in the Late Ottoman Empire: The Role of Security Concerns and a Century of “Accumulated Experience”

Abstract

ABSTRACT During the extermination process of the Armenians of the Ottoman Empire in the World War I, there were two related, but dynamically different forms of violence at work. The first of these can be termed “top-down” violence, in the form of government policies put into practice by the ruling Union and Progress Party through the decisions of its Central Committee. The other form, “bottom-up” violence, was perpetrated by local forces who took advantage of the possibilities and opportunities created by wartime conditions and central government decisions. The target of both types was the population of Ottoman Christians, and the Armenians, first and foremost. The origins of the “top-down” violence are to be found in the century of “accumulated experience” of the Ottoman regime in dealing with various Christian populations within its European territories and their demands for greater economic, social, and political rights, as well as the Great Power intervention on their behalf. Against this background, the Armenian genocide can be seen as a “preventive measure”. Its main purpose was the search for “permanent security”, and in this sense the article acts as a case study based on the theses found in Dirk Moses’ book The Problems of Genocide. As for the phenomenon of “bottom-up” violence, the article also presents a number of previously unpublished documents that give hints as to the role played by different groups—especially the Kurds in the Armenian genocide.