Where is Mousa Dagh located and
Who is the Mousadaghian?
Mousa Dagh is situated on the Mediterranean coastline, 18 km to the west of Antioch. Mousa Dagh’s Armenian villages as Yoghun-Olouk, Kheder beg (Idder), Bitias, Hadji Habibli, Vakef, Keboussik and smaller villages like upper Azzer, lower Azzer, Tchavlik, Magharadjek, Soultoumou and Amadj have been on the coastline for centuries, but it is hard to determine the exact date of their existence.
However it is clear that northern Assyria was among the first regions where Armenians were settled in the 3rd century B.C..The number of Armenian emigrants settled in that region increased in the 1stcentury B.C., during the reign of Dikran the Great, who occupied the region down to Palestine.
The Armenian community was in constant change during the following centuries, its number always varying depending on the circumstances governing the region. But the number of Armenian emigrants increased from the 11th century onwards, during the Seldjouk-Tatarian invasions into Armenian lands and administratively well-organized communities were born. After the fall of the Cilician Kingdom, the local community was weakened and regained its vivacity only after the 17th century, in Mousa Dagh, Kessab and in certain neighbouring villages as Aramou, Yacoubieh, Ghenemieh, etc.
In the early 20th century, Mousa Dagh’s Armenian villages drew attention due to their organized life both nationally and culturally. Soon they represented a threat to the Ottoman Empire by becoming the center of the resistance movement. But how did Mousa Dagh and Mousadaghians manage to become so famous?
The answer is provided by Franz Werfel’s epic novel "The Forty Days of Mousa Dagh”, which shows how a small number of Armenians went up the mountains and courageously fought against thousands of Turkish soldiers, during Mousa Dagh’s historical and glorious battle. An unbelievable battle took place indeed in Mousa Dagh, during the most atrocious exterminations of Armenians in 1915, in all parts of the Ottoman Empire.
After struggling for forty days, Mousadaghians were rescued by french battleships, as they detected by chance the red-cross-flag on the top of the mountain. The French transported the surrounded villagers to Port Saaid in Egypt. Mousadaghians stayed there for four years, where they built a temporary city. Then, in 1919, after the decline of the Ottoman Empire, they returned to their homeland which was invaded by the Allies.
Mousadaghians are known to be stubborn and robust. When they returned, they found their villages in total ruins and plundered, but they rebuilt them anew until 1939, when they were once again forced to leave their homes and villages.
