The Kum Kapu demonstration occurred in the

Kumkapı Kumkapı (meaning 'sand gate' in Turkish) is a quarter in Fatih district of Istanbul. It is located along the northern shore of Marmara Sea. Up to recent times, Kumkapı is the center of the Armenian community of the city, boasting a school an ...

district of Constantinople on July 27, 1890. It ensued in skirmishing in which several demonstrators and four police officers were killed. The intent of the demonstration was "..to awaken the maltreated Armenians and to make the Sublime Porte fully aware of the miseries of the Armenians."

Background

Towards the close of the nineteenth century, Armenian revolutionary societies began to agitate for reform and renewed European attention to the Armenian Question. The

Hnchak The Social Democrat Hunchakian Party (SDHP) ( hy, Սոցիալ Դեմոկրատ Հնչակյան Կուսակցություն; ՍԴՀԿ, translit=Sots’ial Demokrat Hnch’akyan Kusakts’ut’yun), is the oldest continuously-operating Armenian ...

party in particular utilized the tactic of

mass demonstration A political demonstration is an action by a mass group or collection of groups of people in favor of a political or other cause or people partaking in a protest against a cause of concern; it often consists of walking in a mass march formati ...

to hasten the process. They had been suspected to be behind an earlier June 1890 protest in

Erzerum Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...

that resulted in a

massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

July 27, 1890

On 27 July 1890,

Harutiun Jangülian Harutiun Jangülian ( hy, Յարութիւն Ճանկիւլեան; 1855 – 15 June 1915) was an Armenian historian, political activist, and member of the Armenian National Assembly. He was especially known for his involvement in the Kum Kapu demo ...

, Mihran Damadian and

Hambartsum Boyajian Hampartsoum Boyadjian ( hy, Համբարձում Պօյաճեան) (14 May 1860 – 30 July 1915), also known by his ''nom de guerre, noms de guerre'' Murad and sometimes Medzn Murad ( hy, Մեծն Մուրատ, "Mourad the Great"), was an Armeni ...

interrupted the Divine Liturgy at the Armenian Cathedral in Constantinople to read a

manifesto A manifesto is a published declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party or government. A manifesto usually accepts a previously published opinion or public consensus or promotes a ...

and denounce the indifference of the Armenian patriarch and

Armenian National Assembly Armenian National Assembly was the governing body of the Armenian millet in the Ottoman Empire, established by the Armenian National Constitution of 1863. Hovanissian, Richard G. (1997) ''The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times.'' New Yor ...

. They soon forced the patriarch to join a procession heading to

Yıldız Palace Yıldız Palace ( tr, Yıldız Sarayı, ) is a vast complex of former imperial Ottoman pavilions and villas in Istanbul, Turkey, built in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was used as a residence by the sultan and his court in the late 19th ...

to demand implementation of Article 61 of the

1878 Treaty of Berlin The Treaty of Berlin (formally the Treaty between Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Great Britain and Ireland, Italy, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire for the Settlement of Affairs in the East) was signed on 13 July 1878. In the aftermath of the R ...

. Even as the procession was gathering, police surrounded the crowd, and shots were fired that resulted in a number of deaths, including four policemen and three protestors.

Result

The Hunchaks concluded that the demonstrations at Kum Kapu were unsuccessful. At the same time, while there was no clear result from the event, the Hunchak press praised the courage shown by those present. Similar demonstrations on a lesser scale followed throughout most of the 1890s.Hovhanissian, Richard G. (1997) ''The Armenian People from Ancient to Modern Times.'' New York.

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

, 218-9

Notes

{{Armenian Resistance 1890 protests Rebellions in the Ottoman Empire 19th century in Armenia Conflicts in 1890 1890 in the Ottoman Empire Armenian rebellions in the Ottoman Empire Rebellions in Turkey Riots and civil disorder in the Ottoman Empire July 1890 events 19th century in Istanbul Demonstrations