Shattered Dreams of Revolution: From Liberty to Violence in the Late Ottoman Empire

by Bedross Der Matossian

The Ottoman revolution of 1908 is a study in contradictions—a positive manifestation of modernity intended to reinstate constitutional rule, yet ultimately a negative event that shook the fundamental structures of the empire, opening up ethnic, religious, and political conflicts. Shattered Dreams of Revolution considers this revolutionary event to tell the stories of three important groups: Arabs, Armenians, and Jews. The revolution raised these groups' expectations for new opportunities of inclusion and citizenship. But as post-revolutionary festivities ended, these euphoric feelings soon turned to pessimism and a dramatic rise in ethnic tensions.

The undoing of the revolutionary dreams could be found in the very foundations of the revolution itself. Inherent ambiguities and contradictions in the revolution's goals and the reluctance of both the authors of the revolution and the empire's ethnic groups to come to a compromise regarding the new political framework of the empire ultimately proved untenable. The revolutionaries had never been wholeheartedly committed to constitutionalism, thus constitutionalism failed to create a new understanding of Ottoman citizenship, grant equal rights to all citizens, and bring them under one roof in a legislative assembly. Today as the Middle East experiences another set of revolutions, these early lessons of the Ottoman Empire, of unfulfilled expectations and ensuing discontent, still provide important insights into the contradictions of hope and disillusion seemingly inherent in revolution.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

264 pages, Paperback

First published October 8, 2014

Reviews

[Enes Yapar · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most meticulous works on the development of the Young Turk revolution of 1908 and its aftermath, this work provides a lengthy analysis of how these political developments had been received by different ethnoreligious groups, especially Armenians, Jews, and Arabs. Reminding us of the impossibility of generalizing the identities and tendencies of these groups in current nation-state standards, he succeeds in collecting as much evidence from the newly flourishing press as possible to reflect the common standpoints shared by the members and elite of these communities.

Providing the reader with the vibrant and euphoric aura of this time period is not an easy objective: Oftentimes the developments leading to the revolution as well as the chaotic incidents following this revolution are seen to have been overhauled by international developments such as Balkan Wars, Turco-Italian War and many other crises. However, Matossian's extensive archive of the ethnic press with many periodicals both makes the reader aware of the awe and excitement aroused in different communities and vitalizes the discussions that took place in the new Ottoman parliament after 1908, which are overlooked or marginalized. As the author underscores on many occasions, this political experiment was unprecedented from many aspects and fortunately, he could make use of every tiny bit of comment or discussion both within and without parliament with the help of young but promising Ottoman "print capitalism".

For readers from Turkey, this book has special importance. Significance and the unprecedented quality of the Young Turk revolution are usually ignored inside the national curriculum and debates surrounding the last years of the Ottoman Empire, not to mention the strong cultural, political and social presence of non-Muslim components of the country that this country has turned its back to. Understanding the painful transition to nation-statism and helpless attempts to consolidate democracy in a pluralist way is fundamental.

[Славея Котова · Rating 4 out of 5]

Много добро книжле, разглеждащо революцията от 1908г. през погледа на различните етнически групи в ОИ, главно арменци, араби и евреи. Последната глава и заключението, правещо паралели между 1908 и арабската пролет, са страхотни!

[Leroy Erickson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was another difficult book to read. It's short, only 178 pages of actual content, and covers just a two year period in the history of the Ottoman Empire, 1908-1909. This period covers the transition from the government of the sultan through a short constitutional democracy to the "constitutional dictatorship" of the CUP party. The author, Bedros Der Matossian, gives a very detailed explanation of what was happening in the various parts of the empire and among the various ethnic groups. It has helped me to understand what led to what happened six years later, the Armenian genocide, and also helps to explain what is still happening in the Middle East today.

[Chase · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bedross Der Matossian’s Shattered Dreams of Revolution is an examination of the complex ethnic politics that resulted in the failure of the Young Turk constitutional revolution of 1908. The proverbial “last gasp” of Westernizing political reform for the Ottoman Empire, Matossian argues that while the Young Turks pushed for Western models of constitutional parliamentarianism, their principal concern was centralizing the Empire and constructing a new “Ottoman” identity (3). This meant that in the wake of implementing the constitution in 1908 and the enthusiasm of revolution, the Young Turks were unable to accept the ethnic and religious political conflicts that the modern constitution brought to life. The liberalization of the political system, instead of uniting the empire around a new centralized Ottoman identity, as the Young Turks desired, allowed the diverse communities of the Ottoman Empire a stage to push for their ideas of reform, voice, and identity. The inability of the Young Turks, and their new system, to properly accept and deal with these new divisions, results in the failure of Ottoman constitutionalism and what Matossian had coined the “shattered dream” of revolution.