Tovmas Nazarbekian ( Armenian: Թովմաս Նազարբէկեան; 4 April 1855 – 19 February 1931), also known as Foma Nazarbekov (russian: Фома Назарбеков), was an

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...

n general in the Russian Caucasus Army and later promoted to commander-in-chief of the

First Republic of Armenia The First Republic of Armenia, officially known at the time of its existence as the Republic of Armenia ( hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետութիւն), was the first modern Armenian state since the loss of Armenian statehood in the Middle ...

Early life

Tovmas (Thomas) Nazarbekian was born to a wealthy Russianized noble family of Armenian descent in

Tiflis Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

. He attended the military academy in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. His early military engagements include the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 and the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

of 1904–05. Nazarbekian was awarded the

Order of Saint Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus ( pl, Order Św. Stanisława Biskupa Męczennika, russian: Орден Святого Станислава), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Poni ...

for his contribution to the storming of the fortress of

Ardahan Ardahan (, ka, არტაანი, tr, hy, Արդահան, translit=Ardahan Russian: Ардаган) is a city in northeastern Turkey, near the Georgian border. It is the capital of Ardahan Province. History Ancient and medieval Ardaha ...

during the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish War. He was also awarded the Order of St. Anna for his success in

Erzurum 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 ...

. In 1902, he was promoted to colonel. Years later in the 1904–1905

, Nazarbekian was awarded the

Gold Sword for Bravery The Gold Sword for Bravery (russian: Золотое оружие "За храбрость") was a Russian award for bravery. It was set up with two grades on 27 July 1720 by Peter the Great, reclassified as a public order in 1807 and abolished ...

for distinguished service during the

Battle of Mukden The , one of the largest land battles to be fought before World War I and the last and the most decisive major land battle of the Russo-Japanese War, was fought from 20 February to 10 March 1905 between Japan and Russia near Mukden ...

. After the war, he attained the rank of

Major-general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in 1906.

World War I

Following the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, he was appointed as a general to fight in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historica ...

, initially in the Persian Campaign. His military achievements include his victory in the Battle of Dilman over Khalil Pasha. He also commanded the forces that took

Bitlis Bitlis ( hy, Բաղեշ '; ku, Bidlîs; ota, بتليس) is a city in southeastern Turkey and the capital of Bitlis Province. The city is located at an elevation of 1,545 metres, 15 km from Lake Van, in the steep-sided valley of the Bitlis R ...

in the dead of winter, and took his army down through the mountains of Eastern Anatolia to the plains of Mush. He engaged with the Ottoman 3rd Army at the Battle of Mush and captured the city Mush. Later he moved toward

. The success in

Battle of Bitlis The Battle of Bitlis refers to a series of engagements in the summer of 1916 for the town of Bitlis and to a lesser extent nearby Moush, between Russian Imperial forces and their Ottoman counterparts. The town was the last stronghold of the Ot ...

led to the furthermost Russian advance into Anatolia. These military achievements earned him the admiration of military critics both in Europe and America. In this position, he supported the British Mesopotamian Army by disrupting supply lines. He established the outposts which made possible the further advance of the British in the

Mesopotamian campaign The Mesopotamian campaign was a campaign in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I fought between the Allies represented by the British Empire, troops from Britain, Australia and the vast majority from British India, against the Central Po ...

. Following the army's advance beyond Bitlis, he was in close co-operation with the British General Marshal. General Nazarbekov, for his achievements, was decorated by the French Government. In 1917, the chaos caused by the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

put a stop to all Russian military operations and the regular Russian regiments deserted from the frontline. In this situation, during December 1917, the

Armenian volunteer units The Armenian volunteer units ( hy, Հայ կամավորական ջոկատներ ''Hay kamavorakan jokatner'') were units composed of Armenians within the Imperial Russian Army during World War I. Composed of several groups at battalion stre ...

realigned themselves under the command of Nazarbekian, with Dro as a civilian commissioner. The Tiflis ( Armenian Congress of Eastern Armenians which united with the Armenian National Councils) collected 50,000 soldiers under Nazarbekian. On 5 December 1917, the

Special Transcaucasian Committee The Special Transcaucasian Committee ( Russian: Особый Закавказский Комитет ''Osobyi Zakavkazskii Komitet'' (OZaKom, Ozakom or OZAKOM)) was established on March 9, 1917, with Member of the State Duma V. A. Kharlamov as C ...

negotiated with the 3rd Army the

Armistice of Erzincan The Armistice of Erzincan (also spelled Erzindzhan or Erzinjan) was an agreement to suspend hostilities during World War I signed by the Ottoman Empire and Transcaucasian Commissariat in Erzincan on 18 December 1917 (5 December O.S.).Tadeusz Swiet ...

, which froze the conflicts until 7 February 1918. Before 7 February the regiments of the Armenian Corps were immediately deployed to the front. With the help of their Christian neighbors, Armenian forces increased in size until they numbered 150,000 armed men on the border. By the end of January, 1918, Nazarbekian's divisions occupied the major positions from Yerevan to Van and Erzinjan. In the following conflicts, he was driven back to Dilidjan in May 1918. However, at the

Battle of Karakilisa The Battle of Karakilisa ( hy, Ղարաքիլիսայի ճակատամարտ ''Gharakilisayi chakatamart'', tr, Karakilise Muharebesi or ) was a battle of Caucasus Campaign of World War I that took place in the vicinity of Karakilisa (now Vanadz ...

he pushed the advancing Ottoman 3rd Army back for a few days, giving the Armenian forces time to prepare for the

Battle of Sardarabad The Battle of Sardarabad ( hy, Սարդարապատի ճակատամարտ, translit=Sardarapati chakatamart; tr, Serdarabad Muharebesi) was a battle of the Caucasus campaign of World War I that took place near Sardarabad, Armenia, from 21 to ...

First Republic of Armenia

Nazarbekian was appointed the first ever Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the

. He used his knowledge and experience to aid in the creation of the Armenian regular army. On 25 March 1919 he was appointed Chairman of the Military Council of Armenia, and on 15 July 1919 he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general. Nazarbekian remained politically neutral during the years of the First Republic. During the Sovietization of Armenia, he was arrested with other Armenian officers in January 1921, but released four months later. He settled in his hometown Tiflis, where he lived quietly and wrote a series of memoirs about the war on the

Caucasus Campaign The Caucasus campaign comprised armed conflicts between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, later including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Mountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus, the German Empire, the Central Caspian Dict ...

from 1914 to 1918. Nazarbekian remained in Tiflis until his death in 1931.

Awards

, 3rd class with Swords, "For excellence in the storming of the fortress Ardahan" (1877) * Order of St. Anna, 3rd class with Swords, "For distinguished service under Erzurum" (1878) * Order of St. Anna, 2nd class with Bow, "25 years of service" (1878) *

(18 June 1906)Razvedchik Journal, page 819, 4 July 1916 * Order of St. Vladimir, 3rd class with Swords (1905) *

, 1st class with Swords (1915) * Order of St. Anna, 1st class (1915) *

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George (russian: Орден Святого Георгия, Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. Originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) a ...

, 4th class (7 January 1916) * Order of St. Vladimir, 2nd class with Swords (1916) *

* Medal "In memory of the 300th anniversary of the reign of the Romanovs"

References

R. O. Sahakyan. Lieutenant-General Tovmas Nazarbekyan's role in military operations of the Russian army against the Turkish genocidal forces (1914-1916). Dedicated to the 160th birth anniversary of Tovmas Nazarbekyan http://www.fundamentalarmenology.am/datas/pdfs/270.pdf

External links