Academic Journal of History and Idea

Abstract

Armenians, one of the important elements of the Ottoman Empire, played successful roles in the modernisation process. Hovsep Vartanyan, known as Vartan Pasha, was one of the prominent figures with his successful activities and personality in the XIXth century, which constituted the most important period of modernisation. Educated at the Mihitarist School, Vartan Pasha served at various levels in the army and managed to enter the administrative staff of the state by earning many degrees of Osmaniye and Mecidiye Orders. In Istanbul, he worked as a counsellor and translator for the city administrators and was given the title of "Pasha" and became a member of the administrative staff. In addition to literary and translated works such as "Akabi Hikâyesi", "Boşboğaz Bir Adem", "Topal Şeytan", Vartan Pasha also has a two-volume historical work titled "Şark Muharebesi Hikayesi". Initially published in parts in Tercüman-ı Efkar Newspaper, "The Story of the Battle of the Orient" was collected in 1879 and published in Bogos Kirişçiyan Printing House. Vartan Pasha, who wrote his works in Ottoman Turkish with Armenian letters, also carried out important activities in the Turkish press with Armenian letters. As a result of the researches, it was determined that there was no comprehensive study on the life and activities of Vartan Pasha. In this article, a biographical study was carried out in line with local and foreign sources, and his work "The Story of the Battle of the Orient", which describes the Ottoman-Russian War of 1877-1878, was evaluated historically by giving information about it.