DIE GRÜNDUNG DER DEUTSCHEN ORIENT-MISSION UND IHRES ARMENISCHEN HILFSWERKS

Abstract

The German Eastern Mission, founded by Dr. Johannes Lepsius on September 29, 1895, abandoned its initial Christian propaganda program in the Muslim regions of the East due to the systematic massacres of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, and dedicated itself to supporting the endangered Armenian people. Carrying out complex activities of informative nature concerning the massacres, the organization united the German public and church circles, and with their material support undertook the rescue of thousands of helpless orphans and widows. Orphanages, handicraft enterprises, hospitals, and other institutions were established in Urfa, Caesarea, Diyarbakir, as well as in a number of regions of Bulgaria and Persia, where there were large numbers of refugees, which were of valuable importance for the survival of the Armenians who had escaped the massacres. In parallel with the organization of the Armenian relief work, the German Eastern Mission was actively fighting against the Turkish misinformation, at the same time trying to urge the German government to resolutely defend the endangered Armenian people.