The directory «Plots»

Zohrab (Զոհրապ) Krikor
(1861—1915)

Krikor Zohrab (or Grigor Zohrap) was an influential Armenian writer, politician, lawyer and philanthropist, living in Constantinople. At the onset of Armenian Genocide he was ordered to appear a martial court in Diyarbakir. En route he was murdered by a known band of brigands led by Cherkes Ahmet, Halil and Nazım, at a locality called Karaköprü or Şeytanderesi in the outskirts of Urfa, some time between 15 July and 20 July 1915.

Zohrab was born into a wealthy family in Beşiktaş, Istanbul in 1861. His early education was completed at a local Armenian Catholic school. He received a civil engineering degree from Galatasaray Institute, but did not work in that field. Instead, he enrolled in a newly opened law school, the Imperial University of Jurisprudence, and received his law degree in 1882. He was a revered lawyer in the courts of the Ottoman Empire. He became a professor at the university, teaching law. At the age of 27, he married Clara Yazejian, and fathered two daughters and two sons. One of the daughters, Dolores Zohrab Liebmann, eventually became an American philanthropist.

Krikor Zohrab defended successfully many Armenians charged with a variety of political and criminal offenses between 1895-96. As a result of his defense of a Bulgarian revolutionary in the course of which he accused a Turkish official of torture, he was disbarred and forced to live abroad.

In 1908, following the revolution of the Young Turks, he became a member of parliament in the Ottoman Council, and also served his community as an Armenian councilor.

Zohrab was a great intellectual that lived a very busy life. He had to balance his professional life with his personal life. He had a rich personality along with a generous heart. He loved life and its pleasures. Although he usually was open to progressive ideas he was steadfastly conservative to women’s role in society. He believed that women should keep their traditional roles and not venture further.

Ever since he was a teenager, Zohrab showed great interest in national work and contributed heavily to his community. At the age of 30 he was chosen to be part of the national council of Constantinople and served on the council until his death.

From 1908 onwards, Zohrab was a member of parliament and known for his eloquent speeches. He vehemently defended Armenian interests and rights inside the council and at all levels of the government. In 1909 during the Adana massacre, he strongly criticized the Turkish authorities for their actions and demanded that those responsible be brought to justice. Soon after the start of the Armenian Genocide on April 24, 1915, he personally pleaded to Talat Pasha for the immediate cessation of the massacres, but to no avail.

To serve the Armenian cause, he wrote an influential paper in French called “The Armenian question in light of the documents.” In 1913, the paper was published in Paris and dealt with many aspects of the hardships endured by the Armenian populace and denounced the government’s inaction.

Zohrab wrote many articles in daily newspapers such as Masis, Fatherland, and East. One of his famous articles was entitled “Broom” in which he criticized Armenian nationals and works saying they needed some “sweeping” to bring them back to order.

One of his characteristics was that he would regularly express himself in a provocative fashion with disregard to the Turkish state's repressive authority. He had condemned the state on countless occasions for their many shortcomings.

Armenia, 2011, Krikor Zohrab

Armenia, 2011.12.23, Yerevan. Krikor Zohrab