The Battle of Sardarabad: Armenia's Last Stand for Independence

In May 1918, as the Ottoman army advanced into the heart of the Caucasus, a desperate Armenian force made a final stand near the small town of Sardarabad. This episode of The Story of Armenia takes you to the crucial three-day battle that saved the Armenian nation from annihilation. We explore the unlikely coalition of regular soldiers, fedayi fighters, and ordinary villagers who held the line under the command of Movses Silikyan, a former Russian imperial officer. We discuss the Ottoman plan to crush Armenian resistance following the Bolshevik withdrawal from World War I, the role of the Armenian National Council in coordinating a desperate defense, and how the victory at Sardarabad—alongside simultaneous engagements at Karakilisa and Bash-Abaran—allowed the First Republic of Armenia to be declared on May 28, 1918. This is not a story of inevitable triumph but of narrow chances, human courage, and the fragile birth of a nation. We also touch on the controversial figure of the American missionary Clarence Ussher and the ongoing debate over whether Sardarabad should be remembered as a military victory or a political miracle. #Sardarabad #MovsesSilikyan #FirstRepublicOfArmenia #OttomanEmpire #WorldWarI #CaucasusCampaign #Fedayi #Karakilisa #BashAbaran #ArmenianNationalCouncil #BolshevikRevolution #TreatyOfBrestLitovsk #ClarenceUssher #May1918 #ArmenianGenocide #Independence #Caucasus #FexingoHistory #ArmenianHistory #MountArarat Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo