The article is the continuation of the research published in the Bulletin of Oriental Studies, II, 20232 and starts from the period following the fall of the rule of the Safavid power over the region. It considers the state of the Christians of Eastern Transcaucasia in the given period, and the main causes leading to their intensified conversion to Islam. The main focus is on the economic incentives of their Islamization and particularly the poll-tax levied on the Christians in Shaki khanate from the times of Haji Chelebi Khan till the mid-nineteenth century already under the Russian Rule. The published and unpublished archive documents of the period show that the poll-tax named ‘abrishum-i din’ (in Persian), ‘din ipaki’ or ‘ipak dini’ (in Turkish) levied from the Christians of Shaki khanate was rather a heavy tax and in some cases was a reason for their conversion to Islam. The Persian document represented in the article with its English translation and commentaries contains a forcible argument for this.

Keywordshristianity Islam Christians Armenians Udins conversion poll-tax-jizya

Armenians and Greeks were in a dominant position and Turkish businessmen were in a less than enviable position. When the Young Turks came to power in 1908, they began to implement their plan to destroy the country's economy at the expense of Christian property. If by 1915 the Young Turks were aiming to prevent the seizure of the Armenian national properties of Constantinople, then during the First World War they began to conduct an open policy of their dispossession. The deportation, exile and murder of more than 34,000 Constantinople Armenians made their property dispossessed and facilitated their confiscation and appropriation. In 1922, following the massacre of Armenians and Greeks in Smyrna and the city's subsequent fire in September, the Kemalists sought to replicate these events in Constantinople. Despite the efforts of the allied military forces to prevent the deportation and massacre of Christians, the Ankara government remained unwavering in its stance. In its decision to deport the Christians of Constantinople, the government created a situation in the city that was so dire that it compelled the Armenians and Greeks to flee voluntarily. Following their escape, the implementation of the laws and directives passed by the Kemalist authorities enabled the government to fully seize the property left behind by the Armenians of Constantinople.

KeywordsConstantinople Armenians ethnic property arrests dislocation exile economy Turkification

The present article concerns the final work of the British missionary of German-Jewish origin, Joseph Wolff (1795–1862), Travels and Adventures of the Rev. Joseph Wolff (1860–1861). As an autobiographical memoir and the culmination of his journeys from 1821 to 1845, it contains rich testimonies about the Armenians, both in their historical homeland and in various regions and countries, including the Ottoman Empire, Persia, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and India. Wolff provided accounts of both ordinary Armenian inhabitants and prominent figures of the time. Possessing profound knowledge of Armenian history and culture, he often included historical digressions covering both distant and more recent epochs. Thus, his final travelogue-autobiography serves as a valuable source for studying the history, demography, and daily life of Armenians in the first half of the 19th century.

KeywordsJoseph Wolff travelogue missionary Armenians of Middle East Jerusalem Syria Persia

The first period of Archbishop Gevorg Chorekchyan's tenure (1921–1927) coincided with the most difficult years for the diocese of Georgian Armenians. The head of the diocese spared no effort or energy in maintaining the effective functioning of the diocese. He approached the resolution of any issues with great zeal and willingness. Chorekchyan intended to convene a church council of representatives from the diocese of Georgian Armenians, where matters of church decoration, as well as many issues concerning clergy, were to be discussed, aiming to more closely connect the faithful people with their native church. In 1927, Archbishop Gevorg Chorekchyan returned to the Mother See of Etchmiadzin and was elected a member of the Supreme Spiritual Council.

KeywordsArchbishop Gevorg Chorekchyan diocese of Armenians in Georgia Georgia Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin Supreme Spiritual Council church monastery