Soghomon Tehlirian: Murderer or Hero? (Winter 08)

Marine Dermadzhyan
marined@ucla.edu

Soghomon Tehlirian was born on April 2, 1897 in Pakarij, present-day Turkey. At the young age of 18, Tehlirian was one of the few survivors of the Armenian Genocide. The rest of his immediate family was not so lucky. Being witness to the heinous crimes committed against his family caused Tehlirian to have random nervous breakdowns in which he would lose consciousness and have trouble remembering the events shortly before or after. Beginning 1916, Tehlirian began to wander all across Europe, attempting to get medical attention while studying various languages. While he was in Paris, newspapers revealed to him the three people responsible for the Genocide: Talaat, Enver, and Djemal Pasha.

By 1921, Tehlirian arrived in Berlin, Germany. While in Germany, he claimed to have seen many dreams about his mother who informed him that Talaat was also in Berlin and scorned Tehlirian for not yet having taken his revenge. Therefore, on March 15, 1921, Tehlirian followed Talaat on his daily walk and shot him, point blank, on the head in front of many shocked spectators. Soon after, Tehlirian was arrested and put on trial for murder. The case took place in Berlin and after it had been covered, it took the jury just a little over an hour to acquit Tehlirian of all charges on the grounds of temporary insanity.

From the time of the trial until today, the image of Tehlirian is one of controversy. Thousands of Armenians admire him as a national hero because he had taken revenge of the man responsible for killing, not only his family, but all Armenians who suffered in the Genocide. For this reason, a monument dedicated to Soghomon Tehlirian stands tall at the Ararat Cemetery in Fresno, California. Thousands of others, however, condemn him as a cold blooded murderer because, even after taking Talaat’s life, he stated, "I feel a great sense of satisfaction."

So, at the end, do we blame Tehlirian’s mental instability for the act he committed? Do we ignore the fact that his eyes were filled with the blood of his people and mark him as a psychopath? Or, do see him with the same admiration our grandparents did, as a man who feared his enemies, yet had the courage to stand up against them? Murderer or Hero, you decide. My only wish is to leave you with the thoughts of Raphael Lemkin, who found it interesting that it was a crime to kill a man but not an entire people.