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Silences: My Mother's Will to Survive by Alice Tashjian Table of Contents Acknowledgments Foreword Preface Introduction Appendix Frances' Story-Ch. 1 Four Sons-Ch. 2 ThreeDaughters-Ch. 3 Missionaries-Ch. 4 Deportation-Ch. 5 To America-Ch. 6 Leon's Story-Ch. 7 
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Preface Historically, the natural boundaries of Armenia, the seat of one of the most ancient civilizations of the globe, were the Black Sea on the Northwest and the Caspian Sea and Iran on the East. The Caucasus mountains border the country and separate it from Georgia on the North; the Kurdish mountains separate the country from Mesopotamia on the South. The Anatolian highlands that surround the tableland of Armenia are beautiful from a distance. They provide a natural fortress, with peaks reaching heights of ten to thirteen thousand feet. Other chains of mountains surround the country on the eastern and western borders. The plateau itself rises to a height of five to six thousand feet. Armenia has her share of beautiful lakes and rivers. Among the major rivers that cross the plateau are the Euphrates (2,800 km) the Tigris (2,000 km) the Coruk (400 km) and the Araxes (950 km). Historians and poets have sung the beauty of the many lakes in the area from generation to generation. Famous for its 'ishkhan,' a tasty kind of trout, Lake Sevan, (1,370 square km) an unbelievably blue fresh water lake located 1,925 meters above the sea, has attracted many tourists. The altitude of Lake Van is 1650 meters above sea level. It is a large lake (3,690 square km) with slightly salty waters. Urmia (4,600 square km) is 1,200 meters above sea level, and has water saltier than the sea. In the center of Armenia towers Mount Ararat or Masis (5,156 meters), as well as the two peaks, Arakaz (4,100 meters) and Sipan (4,000 meters), and other lesser mountains. Recorded in the Bible, Noah's Ark landed on Mt. Ararat. A hub for poets and a center for worship, this region remained the political and cultural center of the country for many centuries. The Armenians believe that they are descendants of Togarmah (Thorkom), a grandson of Japhet, the youngest of Noah's three sons, who settled in Armenia after the Ark rested on Ararat. The first people, later called Armenians, came into the area around Lake Van and formed a settlement. Later, they formed a kingdom; some historians believe that the date was around 810 b.c. They named their country Haiasdan, after Haig, the son of Togarmah, one of their kings. The Bible mentions that the sons of Sennacherib escaped into the land of Armenia. Ezekiel tells that the people who furnished Tyre with horses and mules were the Armenians, who were famous for their animals. Armenia was one of the nations that were summoned by Jeremiah to aid in the destruction of Babylon. He identified Armenia as the kingdom of Ararat. Thaddaeus and Bartholomew preached in Armenia early in the first century. In 301 a.d., after the conversion of Saint Gregory, called "the Illuminator," the Armenians adopted Christianity as their state religion. In 404 a.d. the invention of the Armenian alphabet and the translation of the Bible defined them as a Christian nation to the rest of the world. Many stone carvings and much of the metal work, displaying distinctive national skills, remain to this time. The fifth century was a period of great cultural revival. In the early days, monks hand-painted the gospel manuscripts with elaborate designs called "Illuminated." Symbols of birds and animal figures illustrated the Gospels. The colors remain brilliant to this day. Encrusted with pearls and gemstones, the gold covers of the books are now protected in museums. Some believe that there may be an Armenian Gospel manuscript, the Book of Sebasteia [sic], illustrated in 1066 by the Armenian priest-painter, Grigar. They carried these early books from monastery to monastery where they were copied and illustrated. Usually, they gave the name of a city or some important church person to the book. Sivas, in the province of Sepastia, was the capital of Lesser Armenia; it was founded during the Roman ascendancy by Queen Pudotoris of Cappadocia during the first quarter of the first century b.c. Named Augustus or Sebastea in honor of Caesar Augustus, the city was on the trade route from the Far East to Constantinople. This small community grew and was a principality for 350 years. The Armenians were the only people who cooperated with and aided the Crusaders. When the Crusaders withdrew, Armenia was invaded by the Caliphs of Baghdad, the Sultans of Egypt , the Khans of Tartary, the Shahs of Persia and the Ottoman Turks. From the hands of the Persian fire-worshipers in early times to the Muhammadans in later centuries, this Christian nation suffered constant persecution. The Armenians struggled against raids and conquests by neighboring tribes and nations. Mountains running east and west formed a corridor for invading armies. For fourteen centuries, the Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Mamelukes, Seljuk Turks and the Mongols under Tamerlane, subjugated Greater Armenia and often massacred much of her population. Historians have witnessed and recorded the accounts of the many persecutions not only in Armenian histories, but in French, German, English, Italian, American and Turkish writings. David Lang in his book, Armenia, writes, "The quarter of a century from 1895 to 1920 was the most tragic in the long and checkered history of the Armenian people."
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