Bitlis uprising (1914)

Bitlis uprising
	Bitlis Bitlis uprising (1914) (Turkey)
Date	Early March – 4 April 1914
Location	Bitlis, Ottoman Empire
Result	Ottoman victory Uprising suppressed;
Belligerents
Kurdish rebels; Supported by:; Russian Empire; Armenians	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Mullah Selim; Sayyid Ali; Sheikh Şahabeddin ; Abd al-Salam Barzani ; Simko Shikak	Unknown
Strength
"Thousands"	Garrison at Bitlis:; Unknown, but less than the Kurds; Reinforcements:; Unknown

The Bitlis uprising^[a] was a Kurdish uprising in the Ottoman Empire in early 1914.^[4] It was supported by the Russian Empire.^[4] and Armenians It was fought concurrently with an unrelated Kurdish uprising in Barzan in the Mosul Vilayet, which was also supported by Russia.^[4] Later Kurdish nationalist historiography portrayed the uprising as part of a Kurdish nationalist struggle, but its actual causes laid in opposition to conscription and taxation.^[4] The uprising began in early March, with a skirmish between Kurdish fighters and Ottoman gendarmes, where the latter was forced to retreat.^[4] The Kurds subsequently laid siege to the city of Bitlis, and captured the city on 2 April.^[4] Ottoman forces were then dispatched from Muş and Van and suppressed the uprising.^[4] After the defeat of the uprising on 4 April, one of the rebel leaders, Mulla Selim, successfully sought asylum in Russia.^[4]

Notes

^ Turkish: Bitlis Ayaklanması
Kurdish: Şoreşa Bitlisê

References

^ Alp Ateş, Melik. "1806–1978 Kürt İsyan ve Hareketleri". Academia.edu. Retrieved 2025-10-19.
^ ^a ^b ^c Demirtaş, Mehmet (2018). "1914 Tarihli Bitlis İsyanının Osmanlı Arşiv Belgelerindeki Yansımaları-Cezalar, Mükâfatlar". dergipark.org.tr. p. 433. The leaders of the insurrection were Mullah Selim, Sayyid Ali and Sheikh Şahabeddin who were the religious scholars of Hizan Province.
^ Islam and Competing Nationalisms in the Middle East, 1876-1926, Kamal Soleimani, 2016, pp. 234, ISBN 9781137599407
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Henning, Barbara (2018-04-03). Narratives of the History of the Ottoman-Kurdish Bedirhani Family in Imperial and Post-Imperial Contexts: Continuities and Changes. University of Bamberg Press. pp. 322–327. ISBN 9783863095512.

External links

Demirtaş, Mehmet (2018). "1914 Tarihli Bitlis İsyanının Osmanlı Arşiv Belgelerindeki Yansımaları-Cezalar, Mükâfatlar". dergipark.org.tr.

[5] Turkish: Bitlis Ayaklanması
Kurdish: Şoreşa Bitlisê

[1] Alp Ateş, Melik. "1806–1978 Kürt İsyan ve Hareketleri". Academia.edu. Retrieved 2025-10-19.

[:1-2] Demirtaş, Mehmet (2018). "1914 Tarihli Bitlis İsyanının Osmanlı Arşiv Belgelerindeki Yansımaları-Cezalar, Mükâfatlar". dergipark.org.tr. p. 433. The leaders of the insurrection were Mullah Selim, Sayyid Ali and Sheikh Şahabeddin who were the religious scholars of Hizan Province.

[3] Islam and Competing Nationalisms in the Middle East, 1876-1926, Kamal Soleimani, 2016, pp. 234, ISBN 9781137599407

[:0-4] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Henning, Barbara (2018-04-03). Narratives of the History of the Ottoman-Kurdish Bedirhani Family in Imperial and Post-Imperial Contexts: Continuities and Changes. University of Bamberg Press. pp. 322–327. ISBN 9783863095512.

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