The Baghdad Railway and Mardin

Abstract

The present article offers a glimpse into the city of Mardin, in the Ottoman Empire, at the beginning of the 20th century. Poised to become an important stop along the Baghdad Railway, Mardin was of great interest to Germany, in particular due to its agricultural capacity and fertile soils, reasons for the acceleration of German charity, religious and economic interests in the Armenian community, through the mediation of the German Oriental Mission ('Deutsche Orientmission') founded in 1886. The paper will focus on the persona of German entrepreneur Pul Rohrbach in the context of expanding German imperialism into the region at the time of the Baghdad Railway's construction. Rohrbach’s own account sheds light on German regional ambitions and aspirations, as well as on the divided local perceptions with regard to the great infrastructure project of the Baghdad Railway motivated by economic, colonial, ethical and religious ambition. The most influential Christians in the region, the Armenian community, wishing for a change in their societal status, urged that the Baghdad Railway should be completed; in contrast, the Kurds set themselves against this project which, to their view, would severely limit their own autonomy and power in the region.