Assyrians, Kurds, and Ottomans: Intercommunal Relations on the Pe ...

4. Mar Shimun as a Refugee at Mosul

At this early stage, Canning sympathised with Mar Shimun’s desire to return to his homeland enjoying limited privileges under Turkish sovereignty.¹¹ When Bedr Khan Beg had attacked the district of Diz, Mar Shimun, with a few of his followers, had succeeded in fleeing the scene of the massacre and headed to Mosul. On arriving on 29 July, he had taken refuge at the British vice-consulate.¹² After his arrival, he appealed to Canning at Constantinople, placing himself and his nation under the protection of Her Majesty’s Government. In his appeal, he stressed the need for assistance for him and his people to return to their homeland and the removal of the occupying Kurdish forces. He also asked Canning to use his good offices to free the large number of captives and to get back the loot that Bedr Khan had carried away, which represented all the tribes’ possessions.

Rassam repeatedly reminded Canning that Mar Shimun had thrown himself and his nation on the protection of Her Majesty’s Government. He begged Canning to provide him with instructions on how to secure their right to return to their homeland. He further asserted that Mar Shimun was willing to make his submission to the sultan and had shown himself willing to go to Constantinople if the ambassador guaranteed his safety. The patriarch was also begging him to advocate their case with the Porte and urging him to interfere to free the captives and have them returned to their homes.¹³

The British ambassador was the Assyrian tribes’ only advocate in their tragedy. He intervened on several levels, which eventually made Great Britain a major party in the whole issue. Among other matters, Canning was also pressing the sultan’s government to take measures to resolve the issue within the general framework of the Turkish policy of centralisation. Thus it was the ambassador’s involvement that succeeded in getting the Porte to dispatch a delegation to Mosul to inquire into the issue of the tribes and the emerging power of Bedr Khan Beg.