After this the Armenians in Armenia enjoyed a comparative rest of over eighty years. They had some time to repair their churches and schools, monasteries and homes. They did all these and they also recuperated and raised a new and sturdy posterity to meet the hardships of the eighteenth century. During the early part of the eighteenth century some disturbances in Persia and Armenia made the Armenians in both of these countries greatly to suffer. Then again the Turks and the Persians were not always at peace with one another. The Russians, moreover, were slowly moving southward and preparing to enter into the contest. They contended with the Persians over the northwestern portion of Armenia and other provinces belonging to the latter from 1772-1828. In their contest the Armenians rendered a signal service to the Russians and decided the victory for them. “From 1813 to 1829 the Armenians appear to think their emancipation at hand. Russia stood in need of them to make a diversion against the Ottoman forces and held out to them the hope of becoming an independent principality, under the protection of the Czar. Her promises were believed, and, in their devotion to their destined liberator, they withstood for more than six weeks an army of eighty thousand Persians who were marching against Russia, and prevented them from crossing their frontier; but these services reaped a poor reward, for not only were the Russians faithless to their promises, but they seized the opportunity of some trifling disturbance in the country to lay violent hands on the venerable Archbishop Narses, who was dragged first to St. Petersburg and afterward banished to Bessarabia, whilst several of the Armenian chiefs were scattered in exile through foreign countries, or carried off to Russia, to be heard of no more.”[68] Russia also wrested from the degenerate Turkish Empire at times, especially in 1878, a large territory and the important city of Kars of Armenia, and now the Russian armies are occupying almost all of Armenia, and it is hoped that not a foot of ground in Armenia will be returned to the “unspeakable Turk.” FOOTNOTES: [62] Milner, “The Turkish Empire,” pp. 6-7. [63] Milner, “The Turkish Empire,” pp. 18-20. [64] Milner, “Turkish Empire,” p. 33. [65] Happily, Luther did not live in the days of William II of Germany. [66] In his campaign against Syria and Egypt, Selim captured Cairo, deposed the last Caliph Al-mutawakkel. Selim was invested with the dignity by the sheriff of Mecca, who consigned the keys of Kaaba to his custody. He added the title of defender of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. His successors have since been regarded as the supreme chiefs of the orthodox Moslem world. Milner, “Turkish Empire,” p. 105. [67] Milner, “The Turkish Empire,” pp. 135, 138. [68] Ubicini, “Letters on Turkey,” Vol. II, p. 340. VIII A GENERAL SURVEY