Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Armenian Genocide Made Changes In His Fate: Mihran Mesrobian: Anothe

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Armenian Genocide Made Changes In His Fate: Mihran Mesrobian: Anothe

    ARMENIAN GENOCIDE MADE CHANGES IN HIS FATE: MIHRAN MESROBIAN: ANOTHER ARMENIAN SOLDER OF GALLIPOLI

    12:28, 3 October, 2014

    YEREVAN, OCTOBER 3, ARMENPRESS: Mihran Mesrobian's name has had a great
    significance for the architectural researchers of Washington. He was
    one of the leading architects of Harry Wardman, a famous real estate
    developer of Washington in 1920s. Mihran Mesrobian designed a number
    of remarkable buildings in the city, such as the Hotel Carlton Hotel
    Hay-Adams, Wardman Tower and many others. These constructions are
    the city's trademark to this day.

    However, the story of Mesrobian's life is even more spectacular.

    Mesrobian was born in merchants' family, in the city of Afyon in the
    Ottoman Empire. He had been a man of art.

    At age 15, he was enrolled in the second year of the prestigious
    Imperial Academy of Fine Arts (Academie des Beaux-Arts) in Istanbul,
    which now called after the name of one of the most famous of Ottoman
    architects, Armenian by origin - Sinan. At the age of 20 he was
    appointed as the municipal architect of Smyrna. He also participated
    in the restoration work on Dolmabahce Palace In Istanbul, built by
    the Armenian Balian family architects.

    Unfortunately, World War I and Armenian Genocide made changes in
    his fate. In August 1914, only a few months after his marriage to
    Zabel Martmanian in Smyrna, Mihran Mesrobian was conscripted into
    the Turkish army. Coming officer training, in October 1914, he began
    serving in the rank of second lieutenant. As a military engineer, he
    took part in the Battle of Gallipoli, in the Russian front, and then
    was transferred to Palestine and Syria. He was awarded two Turkish
    medals of honor and the German Iron Cross for his service at Gallipoli.

    Returning from the war, Mesrobian discovered that his brother's
    families and his underage sister were deported from Afyon in 1915,
    and his property confiscated. He had never heard of them after. In
    August 1921, Mihran Mesrobian with his wife and two sons immigrated
    to the USA, where they lived a long and fruitful life.

    Story of Mihran Mesrobian is reminding a biography of Sarkis Torossian
    and other Armenians, who were drafted into the Ottoman Army during
    the WWI and whose families, at the same time, became victims of the
    Armenian Genocide.

    Mihran Mesrobian's granddaughter Caroline Mesrobian-Hickman, a best
    known researcher of her grandfather's art, shared with Armenian
    Genocide Museum-Institute her memories about him.

    Dear Caroline, could you please tell about Mesrobian's family, who
    were his parents?

    Mihran Mesrobian's parents, Gaspar and Miriam (nee Palanjian), lived
    in Afyon Karahisar, a town in western Anatolia whose population was
    predominately Turkish. Armenian and Turkish sources agree that around
    6,500 Armenians were living in Afyon in 1914, with very few Greeks and
    Jews, and about 89,000 Turks. Afyon had been connected by railroad
    to the major Ottoman cities of Istanbul and Izmir/Smyrna since at
    least the 1860s. It was well known for its very high-quality opium
    and cereal production, also for inlay furniture.

    Generations of the Mesrobian/Messrobian family had lived in Afyon.

    Mihran's father, grandfather, and other branches of the family were
    cereal and opium merchants. Mihran had three brothers and one sister.

    Their parents died before WWI, and we presume they were buried in
    the Armenian cemetery in Afyon.

    Is it true, that Mesrobian was placed in the second year class of the
    Academie des Beaux-Arts in Istanbul at the age of 15 as being quite
    advanced in drawing?

    According to an oral history that Mihran gave late in life to his son
    Ralfe (my father), he showed talent for drawing at an early age. He
    graduated from the Sahakian School, the largest Armenian school in
    Afyon. The curriculum was modeled on European standards. The classes
    that were of particular benefit to Mihran were math, drawing,
    penmanship, and manual labor/construction. So Mihran had the
    opportunity to develop his talent at an early age. The school also
    taught Armenian, Turkish, French, and English. Mesrobian's fluency
    in French was very useful when he entered the Imperial Academy of
    Fine Arts in Istanbul, because a number of the teachers were either
    French or were Turks who had studied in Paris. He could also read
    and write Ottoman Turkish. So the Sahakian School prepared him well
    to enter the Academy. According to the oral history, Mihran placed
    out of the first-year classes at the Imperial Academy in Istanbul,
    which were largely devoted to drawing and copying models.

    In 1909 Mesrobian was appointed as a municipal architect of Smyrna.

    Can we find any information and any drafts or photographs about
    his works during that period? Mihran was in full charge of building
    inspection while he was municipal architect in Smyrna, 1909-1912. He
    left a summary list of the buildings he designed in Smyrna: one hotel,
    eight houses, one warehouse, one market containing sixty-four stores,
    one bank and club house, of stone and concrete construction. He also
    designed a topographical map of 1100 acres, dividing it into 1615 lots;
    and opened irrigation canals and planning sites of farmhouses.

    As is well known, a large part of Izmir/Smyrna burned in 1922, along
    with the municipal records. The only visual evidence of his output in
    Smyrna is the hotel mentioned above -- a small hostelry built in 1912.

    The photograph that Mihran brought with him to the U.S. was taken
    just before the building opened, so we don't know the name of the
    hotel or its address. I was in Izmir last October (2013) and walked
    through a number of streets in the former old city, but didn't find
    the building. There are pockets of buildings still extant that date
    from the late 19th and early 20th century, so it is possible that
    one or more of his buildings still stands.

    What is known about Mihran Mesrobian's participation in World War I?

    In which battles he had taken part in?

    Mihran was drafted into the Turkish Army in August 1914, just a few
    months after he married Zabel Martmanian in Smyrna. He graduated
    as a 2nd lieutenant from the Beylerbeyi Reserve Officers School in
    October 1914 and was assigned to the 4th Fortifications Regiment,
    as an engineer. He evidently served also at some point in the 1st and
    3rd divisions. He was sent first to the Dardanelles and participated
    in the Gallipoli/Gelibolu campaigns in late 1914 to 1915. He then
    was at the Russian front, enduring a harsh winter when the snow was
    many, many feet deep. He of course had to travel through parts of
    historical Armenia to the Russian front. His battalion was then sent
    to Palestine/Syria.

    How long did he stay in captivity in Egypt?

    In the fall of 1918, a major offensive by the British and their Arab
    allies resulted in much of the Turkish 4th Army Corps being taken
    prisoner by Arab irregulars. Mihran's unit became separated from the
    main unit. They wandered for days and were then captured by Arabs. He
    was in an officers' prison for about 6 months, from late fall 1918
    to May 1919.

    According to the oral history Mihran gave to his son Ralfe, the Arabs
    who captured his unit were going to kill all of them. But T.E.

    Lawrence, who happened to be in the area, interceded, reminding the
    Arabs that prisoners of war must not be executed. Mihran spoke about
    this incident a number of times, always crediting T.E. Lawrence with
    saving his life. Although I have not found documentation of this,
    we have no reason to doubt his account.

    Which military awards and rank did Mihran Mesrobian obtain during
    the WWI?

    He was a lieutenant in the reserve army corps. He was awarded two
    Turkish medals of honor and the German Iron Cross, for his service
    at Gallipoli. His work included building and repairing roads, mines
    and tunneling, siting and designing fortifications, and drawing
    topographical maps.

    How has the Armenian Genocide affected on Mesrobian family?

    Mihran's three brothers were all married and had families, but his
    teenage sister Palazoo was not. They were all deported from Afyon in
    August 1915 and never heard from again. Mesrobian/Messrobian cousins
    were also deported. After WWI, Mihran returned to Afyon to try to
    regain and sell his family property but was unsuccessful. Census
    information shows he was not from the Armenian Quarter but from the
    Haji Murad Quarter, which was a more recently established multi-ethnic
    neighborhood outside of the old city of Afyon.

    How do you remember your grandfather, what kind of person he was?

    To a small girl growing up in North Carolina who visited my
    grandparents only twice a year with my family, Mihran was to be treated
    with great respect. He seemed foreign to me, very reserved. He did
    not talk very much, at least when we were visiting. But I could tell
    that he was very perceptive and intelligent, watching my sister and
    me like a hawk! His paintings and watercolors filled the house and
    were amazing to ponder.

    He was often not well - understandable when we consider all that he
    had endured in his early life.

    I also remember he and my grandmother working in the kitchen to prepare
    wonderful Armenian recipes. I wish I had the perspective I have today
    and could have a series of conversations with him about his experiences
    and his architecture. How many times have I wished for that!!

    But I feel that I know him very well through his buildings. I have
    studied them for years and have immense pride in his remarkable works
    and what he was able to accomplish as an immigrant. He was a true
    survivor. He had remarkable talent and had the great opportunity to
    use it fully in the US.

    What about his influence on your career in architecture history?

    Architecture is in my blood; my father was also an architect. But I
    didn't get any artistic talent like my sister, so I decided to study
    the history of art and architecture. How remarkable that I would end
    up living in Washington and be able to admire, study, and write about
    his buildings.

    That's an enduring bond for which I will always be grateful.

    http://armenpress.am/eng/news/778779/armenian-genocide-made-changes-in-his-fate-mihran-mesrobian-another-armenian-solder-of-gallipoli.html




    From: A. Papazian
Working...
X