Nikol Duman (), born Nikoghayos Ter-Hovhannisyan (; 12 January 1867 – 23 September 1914), was an

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

n revolutionary from

Karabakh Karabakh ( ; ) is a geographic region in southwestern Azerbaijan and eastern Armenia, extending from the highlands of the Lesser Caucasus down to the lowlands between the rivers Kura and Aras. It is divided into three regions: Highland Kara ...

. He was a member of the

Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (, abbr. ARF (ՀՅԴ) or ARF-D), also known as Dashnaktsutyun (Armenians, Armenian: Դաշնակցություն, Literal translation, lit. "Federation"), is an Armenian nationalism, Armenian nationalist a ...

. He was active in the Russian Empire, Persia and the Ottoman Empire.

Early life

Nikoghayos Ter-Hovhannisyan was born to an

n family in the village of Kyshlak (today Gyshlag or Tsaghkashat) in the region of

Nagorno-Karabakh Nagorno-Karabakh (, ; ) is a region in Azerbaijan, covering the southeastern stretch of the Lesser Caucasus mountain range. Part of the greater region of Karabakh, it spans the area between Lower Karabakh and Syunik Province, Syunik. Its ter ...

, then a part of the Russian Empire. His father was a priest. In 1887, he graduated from the

Shushi Shusha (, ) or Shushi () is a city in Azerbaijan, in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Situated at an altitude of 1,400–1,800 metres (4,600–5,900 ft) in the Karabakh mountains, the city was a mountain resort in the Soviet Union, Soviet ...

diocesan school. He then taught in Armenian schools in the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...

until 1891, when he moved to

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

, where he was a teacher and also the treasurer of the circle of local Armenian national figures. Beginning in 1893, he taught at the school in the village of Galasar,

Salmas Salmas () is a city in the Central District of Salmas County, West Azerbaijan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. It is northwest of Lake Urmia, near Turkey. Etymology The original name of Salmas was ...

, where he took an active part in Armenian national and political life as a member of the

(ARF). Nikol was one of the three members of the ARF committee in Tabriz, along with Hovnan Davtyan and

Hovsep Arghutian Prince Hovsep Arghutian (; 1863 – 1925), also known as Khanasori Ishkhan and Ishkhan Arghutian, was an Armenian military commander and political activist. Biography Hovsep Arghutian was born in Sanahin, Tiflis Governorate, Russian Empire t ...

Revolutionary activity

After the

Hamidian massacres The Hamidian massacres also called the Armenian massacres, were massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire in the mid-1890s. Estimated casualties ranged from 100,000 to 300,000, Akçam, Taner (2006) '' A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide a ...

of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire from 1894 to 1896, Nikol entirely devoted himself to the

Armenian national liberation movement The Armenian national movement ( ''Hay azgayin-azatagrakan sharzhum'') included social, cultural, but primarily political and military movements that reached their height during World War I and the following years, initially seeking improved statu ...

and organization of self-defense. In 1895, he moved to

Van A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. There is some variation in the scope of the word across the different English-speaking countries. The smallest vans, microvans, are used for transporting either goods or ...

with a group of 50 people. His house was besieged by the Kurdish

Hamidiye cavalry The ''Hamidiye'' regiments (literally meaning "belonging to Hamid", full official name ''Hamidiye Hafif Süvari Alayları'', Hamidiye Light Cavalry Regiments) were well-armed, irregular, mainly Sunni Kurdish but also Turkish, Circassian,Palme ...

. Although the Kurds had set fire to his house, Nikol managed to escape under the cover of smoke and went to the nearby mountains, where he and his men firing back and killed two Hamidiye members. Admiring his courage, the Kurds nicknamed him "Duman" ("Storm"). He was arrested in Van, but soon released. Duman was the initiator of the 1897 Khanasor Expedition, an attack on the Kurdish Mazrik tribe and its commander Sharaf Beg for their role in the

and ambush at

, and took part in the campaign as a squad leader. The attack began on 25 July 1897 and ended on 27 July 1897. All of the men in the tribe were killed and only the women and children were spared, a mercy the Turks and Kurds never gave the Armenians. Sharaf Beg managed to escape. Afterward, Duman moved back to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, in

Tiflis Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

. During the

1904 Sasun uprising The Sasun uprising or Sasun rebellion of 1904 (, ''Sasuni yerkrord apstambut'yunĕ'', literally Second Sassoun resistance) was an uprising by Armenian militia against the Ottoman Empire in Turkey's Sason region in 1904. The empire wanted to prev ...

, he is tried to get his men to

Sason Sason is a town in the Batman Province of Turkey. It is the seat of the Sason District.İl ...

, but was unable to. Nikol Duman with fedayi

At the beginning of the Armenian-Tatar massacres in February 1905, he was hastily called by telegram to

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

, where he organized a self-defense and, on 7 February, had successfully arrived to fight against Tatars. Duman was then appointed head of the self-defense of Erivan region. He was an advocate of the liberation of

Western Armenia Western Armenia (Western Armenian: Արեւմտեան Հայաստան, ''Arevmdian Hayasdan'') is a term to refer to the western parts of the Armenian highlands located within Turkey (formerly the Ottoman Empire) that comprise the historic ...

and proposed a general uprising. He took part in the ARF party congresses, and in 1910, was present at the Second Copenhagen International Congress. Following the

Young Turk Revolution The Young Turk Revolution (July 1908; ) was a constitutionalist revolution in the Ottoman Empire. Revolutionaries belonging to the Internal Committee of Union and Progress, an organization of the Young Turks movement, forced Sultan Abdul Hamid II ...

of 1908, he led operations in Van,

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, 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. It is the site of an ...

and

Trabzon Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. The city was founded in 756 BC as "Trapezous" by colonists from Miletus. It was added into the Achaemenid E ...

. He also took part in the

Persian Constitutional Revolution The Persian Constitutional Revolution (, or ''Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh''), also known as the Constitutional Revolution of Iran, took place between 1905 and 1911 during the Qajar Iran, Qajar era. The revolution led to the establishment of a Majl ...

, leading the ARF forces during the defense of Tabriz.

Death

In 1914, he became ill with tuberculosis and went for treatment in

Kislovodsk Kislovodsk (; ; ) is a spa city in Stavropol Krai, in the North Caucasus region of Russia which is located between the Black and Caspian Seas. It is part of the Caucasian Mineral Waters region. Demographics Population: Etymology The Rus ...

. At the same time, the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

was beginning. Feeling that he would not be able to participate with the other

Armenian fedayi ''Fedayi'' ( Eastern ; , , , ), also known as the Armenian irregular units, Armenian militia, or Armenian Hayduks were Armenian civilians who voluntarily left their families to form self-defense units and irregular armed-bands in reaction to ...

, Duman committed suicide with a pistol shot on the evening of 23 September 1914. He was buried in Tbilisi, at the

Armenian Pantheon of Tbilisi The Armenian Pantheon of Tbilisi, also known as Khojivank ( ka, ხოჯივანქი ''Khojivank'i''; ) or Khojavank (), is an architectural complex in north-eastern part of the Avlabari district of Tbilisi, Georgia (country), Georgia ...

, next to the grave of one of the founders of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation,

Simon Zavarian Simon Zavarian (Armenian: , also known by his ''nom de guerre'' Anton, ; 1866 – 1913) also spelled Simon Zavaryan, was an Armenian political leader and an important leader of the Armenian national liberation movement and one of the three founde ...

Legacy

Nikol Duman's house museum is located in his native village of Kyshlak in the

Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Artsakh ( ), officially the Republic of Artsakh or the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh ( ), was a list of states with limited recognition, breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory was internationally recognised as part of Azerbai ...

. Several cities in Armenia contain streets named after Nikol Duman.

Notes

References

External links

Official house museum website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duman, Nikol 1867 births 1914 deaths Armenian nationalists People from Askeran Province Armenian fedayi Armenian military personnel who died by suicide Russian people of Armenian descent Armenian expatriates in Iran People of the Persian Constitutional Revolution Burials at Armenian Pantheon of Tbilisi 1914 suicides People from the Russian Empire Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Iran Suicides by firearm in Georgia (country)