:: Back to Schoolar ::

ARMENIAN MISSION OF THE “ANGEL OF THE BATTLEFIELD”

by Dr. Arman Kirakossian

110 years ago in the month of February Clara Barton, founder and chairperson of the U.S. Red Cross arrived in Constantinople, capital city of Ottoman Empire to offer some relief to Armenian population, victims of the massacres of 1894-96. Armenian diplomat and politician Garegin Pasdermadjian has truly noted: “After the great massacre of 1895, thanks to the personal testimony of Clara Barton, we came to learn of another Christian Power, a nation dedicated to the lofty principles of our common religion, a champion of liberty and justice, and a helpful friend to all oppressed and suffering peoples. We are indebted to Clara Barton in the sense that she was the first among other Americans to inspire us with this faith.”
Clarissa Harlowe Barton was born in North Oxford, Massachusetts on December 25, 1821 to Stephen and Sarah (Stone) Barton. The youngest of five children, most of her education came from her two brothers and two sisters and at the age of 17 she began teaching at a school. In 1850 she enrolled in Clinton Liberal Institute, New York. Two years later in Bordentown she established the first institution to provide free education in the state of New Jersey. In 1854 she moved to Washington D.C. and was employed by the U.S. Patent Office. This was the first time a woman had received a substantial clerkship in the federal government. During the Civil War (1861-65) Clara fully dedicated herself to providing relief and care to wounded soldiers. Never before had women been allowed in hospitals, camps or on battlefields; initially, military and civil officials declined her help. Eventually, she gained the trust of these officials. As a result of her untiring work, she became known as the "Angel of the Battlefield." Officially, she became the superintendent of Union Nurses in 1864 and began obtaining camp and hospital supplies, assistants and military trains for her work on the front.
After the war, President Lincoln granted her the ability to begin a letter writing campaign to search for missing soldiers through the Office of Correspondence. In 1869, she traveled to Europe for rest as directed by her doctor.
In Switzerland she was educated about the concept of the Red Cross as outlined in the Treaty of Geneva and also by observing the Red Cross while traveling with volunteers serving in the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71). In 1873 she returned to the United States; rallied to have the US join in this treaty. In 1881 she established the American Red Cross and the United States ultimately signed the Geneva Agreement in 1882. In 1884 Barton expanded the original concept of the Red Cross of assisting in wartime to include assisting in any great national disaster. Barton was the President of the American National Red Cross for twenty-two years. Under her leadership, Red Cross's work included aiding victims and workers in the floods of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers in 1882 and 1884, the Texas famine of 1886, the Florida yellow fever epidemic in 1887, an earthquake in Illinois in 1888, and the 1889 Johnstown, Pennsylvania disaster/flood. Internationally, countries noticed and recognized the need for such peacetime assistance and in 1884 the Geneva Convention passed the "American Amendment" to include this concept. The first wartime experience for the American Red Cross was in the Spanish-American War in 1898.
Barton also was highly dedicated to fighting for and furthering the rights of women; she worked closely with Susan B. Anthony, Lucy Stone and others. Clara Barton died on April 12 in Glen Echo, Maryland at the age of 91. Clara Barton published several books, including the History of American Red Cross; the Red Cross, In Peace and War; the Story of my Childhood, etc.
Clara Barton had hardly finished the details of the year’s work in the South Carolina Islands and was busily occupied in editing a history of the Red Cross for publication, when she started receiving letters with a requests of assisting Armenians, sufferers of the massacres of 1894-95 in Ottoman Empire. This was an unusual request because the situation was neither natural disaster, nor wartime problems. It had to do with a planned massacre and contained sensitive political elements. At that time the National Armenian Relief Committee was established in New York by several representative gentlemen. At the end of 1895 the American Red Cross and Clara Barton were requested by the National Armenian Relief Committee and Board of Missionaries to undertake the distribution of relief funds among the sufferers. Fund raising started earlier in the U.K. and U.S. but there was no organization with capacity and experience of taking aid to Turkey and distributing it there. Hundreds of U.S. resident missionaries based in Turkey were themselves helpless sufferers to a great extent and practically prisoners in their own houses, otherwise they would have been the normal channels for distributing aid.
As it was later mentioned in Clara Barton’s reports the idea of involving the U.S. Red Cross in the distribution of aid to Armenian sufferers belonged to Rev. Henry O. Dwight of the American Board of Foreign Missions at Constantinople. Rev. Jadson Smith of Boston and Mr. Spencer Trask of New York American Relief committee in their letters addressed to Clara Barton indicated that though it was not possible to bring back those killed during the massacres, the American Red Cross might help tens of thousands orphans, starving and helpless individuals. They believed that the Red Cross being a non-political and non-religious organization might get access to places that even armies cannot get.
Clara Barton, 74 at that time, was at first hesitant but finally accepted the charge of this distribution of relief provided the Red Cross would act on behalf of the American people and would be backed with adequate funding. On December 14, 1895 Clara Barton announced that the American Red Cross would send a relief expedition to Armenia as soon as sufficient funds were available to aid the estimated 350 thousand destitute and starving people.
Clara Barton requested 5 million U.S. dollars for the implementation of the mission and a staff of 20, but later the funding was reduced to 500 thousand, then to 100 thousand and finally 50 thousand was promised. Eventually she received US$116,326, a large part of the fund was contributed through the churches – particularly the Protestant evangelical bodies of America. The unexpended balance of US$15,400 was turned over to American Mission schools in Turkey, to be held as an emergency fund subject to Barton’s orders.
“The necessity for immediate action was urged; human beings were starving, and could not be reached, hundreds of towns and villages had not been heard from since the fire and sword went over them, and no one else was so well prepared for the work of field relief, it was said, as ourselves”, wrote Clara Barton. No other organization had a trained force of field workers, and besides Turkey was one of the signatory powers to the Red Cross treaty of Geneva. This was also an opportunity for Clara Barton to demonstrate to the ones criticizing her and the Red Cross that the mission of her organization was to help people and to show that the American Red Cross would be able to cope with that complicated task.
Sublime Porte was suspicious about any foreign aid considering it as a political intrigue or interference to domestic affairs. Turkish authorities made statements that even respected organizations, like the Red Cross would be denied access to Turkey. The Embassy of Ottoman Empire in Washington D.C. denied visas to the representatives of the American Red Cross. However, Clara Barton believed that the international treaty should be respected and despite her age and poor health she decided to get to Constantinople and negotiate with the Sublime Porte personally.
Clara Barton started her journey on January 22, 1896 full of uncertainty because she was not sure whether the Red Cross delegation would be prohibited or allowed to enter the country. On February 6 she arrived in London, where she learned that Minister Alexander Terrell, Chief of U.S. Mission had managed to convince the Sublime Porte to allow entrance of the American Red Cross delegation. The delegation headed towards Turkey through Vienna and on February 16 got to Constantinople. Clara Barton was accompanied by Julian B. Hubbel, Mr. Pullman, Charles King Wood and Edward M. Wistar. Later linguist Ernest Mason and his mother also joined the delegation.
Getting to Constantinople they immediately met with the members of the Missionary Board in Constantinople and Dr. Washburn, president of Robert College. Then accompanied by Minister Terrell and his premier interpreter, Gargiulo, an experienced diplomatic officer, Clara Barton met with Tewfik Pasha, the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs. Mr. Terrell expressed concerns about the suffering condition of the people of the interior in consequence of the massacres and noted that what they were offering was purely humanitarian, having no political, racial or religious bearing as such.
"We have," said Clara Barton, "brought only ourselves, no correspondent has accompanied us, and we shall have none, and shall not go home to write a book on Turkey. We are not here for that. Nothing shall be done in any concealed manner. All dispatches which we send will go openly through your own telegraph, and I should be glad if all that we shall write could be seen by your Government. I cannot, of course, say what its character will be, but can vouch for its truth, fairness and integrity, and for the conduct of every leading man who shall be sent. I shall never counsel nor permit a sly or underhand action with your Government, and you will pardon me, Pasha, if I say that I shall expect the same treatment in return — such as I give I shall expect to receive."
Almost without a breath Tewfik Pasha replied, "And you shall have it. We honor your position and your wishes will be respected. Such aid and protection as we are able to, we shall render.” Given the good reputation of the American Red Cross and its chairperson Clara Barton Sublime Porte authorizes this organization to offer relief and agricultural rehabilitation programs to the regions and population suffered as result of Armenian massacres.
Sublime Porte’s precondition was that the mission cannot be carried out as the Red Cross mission but should be referred to as a personal mission of Clara Barton. They were concerned that the Muslim population would identify the cross with the Christianity and it would deepen religious animosity. To secure expeditions the Sublime Porte designated military escorts. Later Clara Barton wrote that her meeting with Tewfik Pasha was her only meeting with Turkish officials. Sublime Porte or local authorities did not create obstacles for the work of the mission.
According to the initial plan the expedition was supposed to sail eastwards along the Black Sea coastline and then get to Armenia by land. However, British Ambassador to Ottoman Empire, Philip Currie recommended Clara Barton to offer first relief to the population of Zeitoun and Marash as different epidemics were raging in those places. On March 18 Julian Hubbel, Clara Barton’s Assistant and Field Officer of the American Red Cross in Turkey headed towards Alexandretta from Constantinople and there formed caravans to get to Aintab, which was planned to become the southern base for the mission. From here they headed to north-east to Harpoot, Marash to help thousands of refugees in those places. Clara Barton stayed in Constantinople with Financial Officer Pullman to coordinate the program.
Massacres were followed by epidemics of typhoid and typhus fevers, dysentery and small pox. To stop the epidemics in the cities of Zeitoun and Marash Dr. Ira Harris, famous Eastern epidemiologist based in the city of Tripoli, Syria was invited to assist. Number of sick people in both cities exceeded 10,000. People died by scores. Due to the efforts of American professionals number of cases of sickness and deaths became considerably less.
In general, the Red Cross had four expeditions to Armenian Turkey, the region between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. These expeditions took aid to the sufferers, reconstructed houses and resettled survivors. The first expedition was led by Julian Hubbel, who also coordinated filed efforts of the program. The second expedition was led by Edward M. Wistar, the third one by Charles King Wood, and the fourth one was led by Ira Harris. Expeditions visited Killis, Aintab, Marash, Zeitoun, Birejik, Oorfa, Diarbekir, Farkin, Harpoot, Palou, Malatia, Arabkir, Egin, Sivas, Tokat, Samsoun.
When refugees got settled in the houses and settlements they were provided with food, medicine, clothing, seeds, sickles, spinning wheels and looms. Even the cattle stolen by Kurds was purchased and returned to the owners. About 2,000 plough oxen and different harvesting tools, including 500 ploughs were provided to the farmers. In addition, the financial secretary of the Red Cross was directed to send 5,000 liras ($22,000) to care of Rev. Dr. Gates to be divided among the expeditions for the purchase of cattle and the progress of the harvest of 1897. As instructed by Clara Barton aid was distributed with the assistance of rural or regional commissions comprising of church leaders and merchants who were well aware of needs and customs of the people. Clara Barton was concerned with the apathy of the inhabitants towards life and future, which was the result of their grief and fear. The Red Cross was also concerned with the great danger felt by all — that of continued almsgiving, lest they settle down into a condition of pauperism. Hence, the Americans made considerable efforts to revive the economic life of communities.
American missionaries have greatly supported to the mission of the American Red Cross in Turkey. In the report of Clara Barton we come across the following names: Henry Dwight; Joseph Greene; George P. Knapp; George Washburn; daughters of Cyrus Hamlin, the veteran missionary and founder of Robert College; Grace Kimball; Mrs. Lee and others.
However, not everything went the way Clara Barton would prefer. There were numerous pessimistic cables and letters from the United States addressed to her urging to stop the relief mission because the Turkish government created obstacles for the Red Cross, the routes of expeditions were not properly selected and that the funding used for the mission would rather be used for the internal needs of the Red Cross. The ones who have made donations for this mission were not happy with the fact that the success of the mission was solely associated with the name of Clara Barton and not with the American Red Cross or the contributors. Angry and disappointed with this kind of attitude Clara Barton wrote a letter to American Committees saying that they are relieved of the responsibility of making further contributions.
The work of Clara Barton was also criticized by some representatives of American-Armenian community. They were not happy that in addition to Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire some aid was offered to Muslim Turks. Similar criticism appeared in “Christian Herald” Daily which had raised US$50,182 for providing relief to Armenians suffered from the massacres. Later some biographers of Clara Barton explained the aid to Turkish population as being part of the governing principles of the Red Cross, namely that the Red Cross helps everyone in need. Another explanation might be an agreement with Turkish officials that the aid would not be targeted to Armenians only.
A couple of months after her departure from Constantinople, Clara Barton was awarded the Second Order of Shefaket by the Sultan Abdul Hamid II for her service to the Ottoman Empire. Some biographers think that one of the unexpected outcomes of her mission was that she turned to be an ambassador of good will and greatly contributed to improvement of Turkish-American relations.
Despite the criticism and allegations Clara Barton thought well of the mission of the American Red Cross, which helped to save thousands of human lives. In her book “The History of the Red Cross” she recognizes the good work of her colleagues from the American Red Cross during the five months of providing aid to Armenian population suffered from the massacres of 1894-96. She also recognizes the efforts of Alexander Terrell, U.S. Diplomatic Representative in Constantinople, who did a lot for the success of the mission.
On September 2 Clara Barton returned to London, where she learned of the incident in the Ottoman bank in Constantinople and the new massacres of Armenian population of Constantinople that followed it. She postponed her trip to the U.S. and immediately sent cables to Washington and Constantinople suggesting that she might get back to Turkey to continue the mission of the American Red Cross. But this time she was recommended not to go back to Constantinople.
There was a great reception to honor her upon her return to Washington. The reception was in hotel “Shorham” and was organized by those individuals who had made donations for this difficult mission of the Red Cross.
Clara Barton thought that the relief mission to the Armenian population of Ottoman Empire was not complete because Christian Armenians were left to the whims of a semi-savage civilization with 100-200 thousand of them still being in need for shelter, medicines, food and for the charitable beneficence of the civilized world. Clara Barton believed that without assistance about 50,000 people would perish because of starvation and deprivations by May, 1897.
Though details of this mission were widely covered by the Armenian and American press of that time it has not become a widely discussed subject by the historians and has not been offered to the wider public in Armenia. Reports of Clara Barton and her partners about their humanitarian mission in Ottoman Empire were published in a book in Washington at the end of 1896. Those reports are very interesting in a sense that they provide a detailed description of the situation of Armenian population affected by the massacres and the aid provided to them by American expeditions. We believe that translation of the book into Armenian and its publication will be important not simply for the audience and professionals. It will help to pay tribute to Clara Barton, the praiseworthy daughter of American people, “the Angel of the Battlefield” and recognize her as an honorary friend of the Armenian nation.

AZG Daily
Issue #29 (3432)