Battle of Sardarapat

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Part of Caucasus Campaign in the Middle Eastern Theatre (World War I)

Date	May 22-26 1918
Location	Sardarapat, Armenia
Result	Armenian victory

Combatants

Ottoman Empire

Democratic Republic of Armenia

Commanders

Movses Silikian

Strength

12,000

Turkish Fourth Army

Casualties

Caucasus Campaign
Sarikamis – Malazgirt – Van – Koprukoy – Erzurum – Erzincan – Kara Killisse – Sardarapat – Bash Abaran

The Battle of Sardarabad was a battle of the Caucasus Campaign of World War I that took place in the city of Sardarapat, in May 1918.

Just two months after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed, the Ottoman Empire attacked into what had been Russian-Armenian territory. Elements of the Fourth Army crossed the border in May 1918 and attacked Alexandropol (modern-day Gyumri). The Ottoman Army intended to crush the Democratic Republic of Armenia and seize Transcaucasia. The German government objected to this attack and refused to help the Ottoman Army in this operation.

At that time, only a small area of Armenian territory remained unconquered by the Ottomans, and into that area hundreds of thousands of Armenian refugees had fled after the Armenian Genocide.

The Ottoman Forces forces began a three-pronged attack in an attempt to conquer Armenia. When Alexandropol fell, the Ottoman Army moved into the Ararat Valley – the heart of Armenia. There they ran into a large (6,000-man?) force under the command of General Movses Silikian. The battle at Sardarapat (now Armavir) took place on May 22-26 1918, the middle column of the Ottoman Army was defeated and forced to retreat.

However, the other two columns of the Ottoman Army were undefeated and they forced the Armenian Army to retreat in disarray after another engagement later in May. Defeated, the Democratic Armenian Republic had to sue for peace in June, 1918. The Ottoman Empire had conquered the Armenian Republic.

[edit] Aftermath

Worried by the Ottoman conquest of Armenia, the Democratic Republic of Georgia to the north asked for, and gained, German protection. However, with the defeat of the Central Powers in October of 1918, the Armenian Republic again declared its independence from the Ottomans.