A German General and the Armenian Genocide

An enlightening reassessment of the German General, Otto Liman von Sanders’ life, this book uses original archival materials to present a more nuanced insight into Liman von Sanders’ role in the Armenian genocide, in order to explore wider ethical questions concerning the nature of morality and justice in military conflict.

Muriel Mirak-Weissbach is a graduate of Wellesley College and a Fulbright scholar, who completed her graduate studies at the State University of Milan. She has published articles on politics and culture in the Arab and Islamic world, and on Armenia, as well as essays on literature and philology. Her recent publications include; Through the Wall of Fire, Armenia - Iraq – Palestine: From Wrath to Reconciliation (2013), and Madmen at the Helm: Pathology and Politics in the Arab Spring (2012). In 2012 she and her husband established the Mirak-Weissbach Stiftung, a small foundation supporting cultural, educational, and social projects in Armenia.

Muriel Mirak-Weissbach is a graduate of Wellesley College and a Fulbright scholar, who completed her graduate studies at the State University of Milan. She has published articles on politics and culture in the Arab and Islamic world, and on Armenia, as well as essays on literature and philology. Her recent publications include; Through the Wall of Fire, Armenia - Iraq – Palestine: From Wrath to Reconciliation (2013), and Madmen at the Helm: Pathology and Politics in the Arab Spring (2012). In 2012 she and her husband established the Mirak-Weissbach Stiftung, a small foundation supporting cultural, educational, and social projects in Armenia.

“This is a very valid inquiry into a multifaceted, fascinating German general during a late-Ottoman era of extremes… Based on primary sources, the author succeeds in giving a sober, but poignant portrait of a man of “honor” in times of disregard for human dignity.” • Hans-Lukas Kieser, University of Newcastle, Australia

“The author frames her story as an effort to salvage the reputation of this remarkable person, which she does. Her account of his repeated refusals to obey deportation orders from the Young Turk regime is well-documented, gripping, and fast-paced; the behind-the-scenes drama of his imprisonment on Malta appears here for the first time. A book devoted to Liman von Sanders and his “honor” is ideal to assign in upper-level classrooms, for it provokes the question: What would it take to stop genocide?” • Margaret Lavinia Anderson, University of California Berkeley