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| Eastern Legion / Armenian Legion | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1916–1920 |
| Country |  France |
| Size | Six battalions (1916) |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Commandant Louis Romieu |
TheArmenian Legion (French:Légion Arménienne;Armenian:ֆրանսիական Հայկական Լեգիոն) was a volunteer unit that was raised by theAllied Powers to serve in theMiddle East Theatre duringWorld War I. Trained and led by French army commanders, theLégion d'Orient (Eastern Legion), as the unit was originally known, was created in 1916, its ranks chiefly drawn from Levantine and Armenian exiles and refugees from theOttoman Empire. In 1919, it was renamed theLégion Arménienne (Armenian Legion).
The establishment of an Armenian fighting force was first proposed byBoghos Nubar, the head of the Armenian National Delegation in Paris, during the landing of Allied forces to Alexandretta (İskenderun) in 1914, to British military planners. The British government rejected the plan, on the basis that such a plan would lead to the massacres of local Armenians. However, appeals by the Armenian National Defense Committee continued into 1915. French authorities also rejected the plan at the end of 1915. In 1916, British and French authorities revisited the idea of forming an Armenian unit within the Allied armies in the Middle East, not least due to the British burden in hosting Armenian refugees fromMusa Dagh atPort Said in Egypt. The French military agreed to shoulder the costs of training and arming such a fighting force and began preparations. Boghos Nubar and other Armenian leaders in turn expressed some hesitation, but by October of that year came around the idea of supporting the Allied initiative and signed an agreement to that effect.[1] The decision to form the legion became possible only after Britain and France settled their designs over the region in theSykes-Picot Agreement.[2]
Negotiations of Boghos Nubar with French political and military authorities culminated in the formation of the French Armenian Legion.[citation needed]
The Legion was established officially inCairo,Egypt in November 1916, with the accord of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and an Armenian delegation. Several Armenian organizations pledged contributions to form several battalions under the planned Armenian Legion.[citation needed]
The parties agreed to the following:[citation needed]
Signed inParis by GeneralPierre Roques, Minister of War, and GeneralMarie-Jean-Lucien Lacaze, Minister of Navy, the official decision regarding the establishment of the Armenian Legion was signed on 15 November 1916 in Paris.[citation needed]
According to this initial decision,[citation needed]
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The number of volunteers was an equivalent of 6 battalions, each containing 800 volunteers, and another 6 battalions were planned to be formed. Armenian committees were organizing to recruit these soldiers in France and the United States.[citation needed]
The Legion included Ottoman Armenian refugees, former prisoners of war, and permanent residents of Egypt, America, and Europe, and was 95% Armenian in composition. The majority of the soldiers were said to be recruited from the Armenian-American community or survivors of the battle ofMusa Dagh who were living in refugee camps inPort Said, Egypt, at the time.[citation needed]
After the initial training in Cyprus, the Armenian Legion joined theDétachement Français de Palestine et de Syrie, taking part in theSinai and Palestine campaign against theOttoman army and itsGerman ally. The twobattalions of the legion were supplemented by anInfantry company of recruits from Syria and a platoon of two 37mm infantry guns.[3]
Under the command of GeneralEdmund Allenby, the Legion, fighting in Palestine, Syria, and, finally, Cilicia, won the plaudits ofClemenceau’s government[by whom?] and its Entente allies.[4] The Armenian Legion assisted the British and French in winning the decisiveBattle of Arara and has been credited[by whom?] with making General Allenby's victory possible.[5]
Following this campaign, the Armenian Legion was deployed in Anatolia (Asia Minor) according to the initial decisions. They were active around the cities ofAdana andMersin and involved in skirmishes with local civilians and unorganized Turkish militia.