- Stepan Zorian
Stepan Zorian (Armenian: _hy. Ստեփան Զորեան) better known by his "
nom de guerre " Rosdom ( _hy. Ռոստոմ), (1867-1919) was one of the three founders of theArmenian Revolutionary Federation alongChristapor Mikaelian andSimon Zavarian , also part ofArmenian national liberation movement .Founding of the ARF
Rosdom was born in the village Tzghna of Goghtn (
Eastern Armenia ). He attended the Village Administration college ofMoscow but dropped out before graduating. He eventually went toTiflis , Georgia where he became an activist and revolutionary. There he met fellow revolutionariesChristapor Mikaelian andSimon Zavarian . Together, they co-founded the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) in 1890. Their newpolitical party had a major impact on Armenians. It gained support by demanding reforms and taking up arms to defend Armenian citizens of theOttoman Empire .Works and travels
Rosdom eventually moved to
Geneva, Switzerland where he managed the "Droshak " (Troshag) newspaper, as the editor. InGarin , pretending to be a teapot salesman because ARF party members were banned in Turkey, he established student unions.He later settled in
Bulgaria to create cooperation between ARF and theInternal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization in its struggle againstAbdul Hamid II . He also opened an Armenian school there with his wife, Lisa Melik Shahnazarian.Post Constitution days
During the 1908 Constitutional revolution in
Turkey , he moved to Garin. In 1914,World War I broke out, he moved to Europe and then to theCaucasus . There he participated in the Armenian-Tatar wars. During the Iranian revolution, he participated in the revolution alongside Persian revolutionaries. He also directs the fight of self-defense inBaku ,Azerbaijan . After a calamitous result, he fled toIran with thousands of Armenians.Death
Rosdom died in 1919, in the city of
Tiflis at the age of 52. He was the only one of the three founders of the ARF to see an independent Armenia, which was one of the party's primary goal's.References
* [http://www.jdemirdjian.com/Armenians/Armenian_Heroes/Rosdom.htm Rosdom biography in Armenian and English]
* Translated from the Armenian: Mihran Kurdoghlian, Badmoutioun Hayots, C. hador [Armenian History, volume III] , Athens, Greece, 1996, pg. 34.See also
*
Armenian Revolutionary Federation
*Democratic Republic of Armenia
*Christapor Mikaelian
*Simon Zavarian
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