Bloxham challenges the common view that Imperial Germany was a direct architect of the genocide, instead portraying their role as one of tactical neglect or limited influence during the war. 📖 Book Structure
The study investigates how Western powers used the "Armenian Question" for their own gain, often withdrawing support when it no longer served their geopolitical interests.
by Donald Bloxham (2005) is a major scholarly study of the Armenian genocide. It analyzes how international politics, imperial competition, and rising nationalism led to the systematic destruction of the Ottoman Armenian population during World War I. 🔍 Core Arguments
Bloxham links the genocide to the 19th-century competition between Great Powers (like Britain and Russia) for influence over the declining Ottoman Empire.
He describes the Ottoman Empire as a "shatterzone" where the shift toward ethnic-nationalist states led to the stigmatization and eventual removal of "problem" minorities to create a homogeneous majority.
The book moves beyond simple explanations to examine the genocide within a broader global and historical framework: