Monte Melkonian facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Monte Melkonian
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Melkonian during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in Martuni, January 1993
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| Born | November 25, 1957 Visalia, California, United States |
| Died | June 12, 1993 (aged 35) Merzili, Agdam District, Nagorno-Karabakh |
| Buried |
Yerablur
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| Allegiance |  ASALA Nagorno-Karabakh |
| Service/ |
 Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army |
| Years of service | 1979–1993 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Commands held | Martuni Detachment |
| Battles/wars | Iranian Revolution Lebanese Civil War 1982 Lebanon War First Nagorno-Karabakh War |
| Awards | National Hero of Armenia |
| Alma mater | University of California, Berkeley |
| Spouse(s) | Seda Melkonian |
| Relations | Markar Melkonian (brother) |
| Other work | The Right to Struggle (selected writings printed posthumously in 1993) |
Monte Melkonian (Armenian: Մոնթէ Մելքոնեան; November 25, 1957 – June 12, 1993) was an Armenian-American who became a military leader. He was a commander in the Armenian army during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in the early 1990s. This war was fought between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Melkonian left the United States in 1978 and went to Iran. He joined protests against the Shah, who was the ruler at the time. After the Shah's government fell, he traveled to Lebanon during its civil war. There, he served in an Armenian group in Beirut. He was involved in planning an attack on the Turkish consulate in Paris in 1981. Later, he was arrested and sent to prison in France.
In 1989, Melkonian was released from prison. The next year, he got a visa to travel to Armenia. He had no official military experience before leading about 4,000 men in the First Nagorno-Karabakh War. He gained his military skills by fighting in Lebanon with a group called ASALA in the late 1970s and 1980s. Melkonian fought against different groups in the Lebanese Civil War and against the Israeli army in the 1982 Lebanon War.
Monte Melkonian used several different names during his life. His troops in Nagorno-Karabakh knew him as Avo (Armenian: Աւօ). Other names he used included 'Abu Sindi' and 'Timothy Sean McCormack'. His last years were spent fighting with the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army. Monte was killed by Azerbaijani soldiers on June 12, 1993, while he was looking at the village of Merzili after a battle. He was buried at Yerablur cemetery in Yerevan and was declared a National Hero of Armenia in 1996.
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Monte Melkonian's Early Life
Growing Up in California
Monte Melkonian was born on November 25, 1957, in Visalia, California. His parents were Charles and Zabel Melkonian. He was the third of four children. His father was a cabinetmaker, and his mother was a teacher. Monte was a typical American child. He joined the Boy Scouts and played baseball in Little League. He also played the clarinet.
His parents did not often talk about their Armenian background. They called the place where their ancestors came from the "Old Country." Monte's interest in his heritage began when he was eleven. This was in 1969, when his family took a year-long trip to Europe.
While taking Spanish classes in Spain, his teacher asked him where he was from. Monte said "California," but the teacher asked, "Where did your ancestors come from?" His brother Markar Melkonian later wrote that this question made them realize they were seen differently than they saw themselves. Monte thought about this question for a long time.
That same year, his family traveled through Turkey to visit Merzifon. This was the town where Monte's mother's parents were from. In 1915, almost all of the 17,000 Armenians in Merzifon were killed during the Armenian genocide. Monte learned that the few Armenian families who survived did so because one family head helped Turkish authorities identify other Armenians. Monte later told his wife that he was "never the same after that visit." He saw the place that had been lost.
Education and Travels
When Monte returned to California, he continued his education. He was very good at school and needed new challenges. Instead of finishing high school early, he decided to study abroad in East Asia. At 15, Monte went to Japan to study martial arts and the Japanese language.
While in Japan, he taught English to pay for his travels through several Southeast Asian countries. This experience taught him about new cultures, ideas, and languages. He also gained skills that would be useful later as a soldier. For example, he traveled through Vietnam shortly before the Fall of Saigon.
After returning to the United States, he finished high school. He then went to the University of California, Berkeley on a scholarship. He studied ancient Asian history and Archeology. In 1978, he helped organize an exhibit of Armenian cultural items at the university library. The part of the exhibit about the Armenian genocide was removed by the university. This happened after the Turkish consul in San Francisco asked for it to be removed. However, after student protests, the display was put back. Monte finished his university studies in less than three years. He was accepted into a graduate program at the University of Oxford for archeology. But Monte chose not to go. Instead, he decided to dedicate his life to the Armenian cause.
Leaving Home and Joining the Fight
Teaching in Iran
After graduating from university in 1978, Monte went to Iran. He taught English there and joined the movement to overthrow the Shah. He helped organize a teachers' strike at his school in Tehran. He was near Jaleh Square when the Shah's soldiers shot at protesters. Many people were killed or injured. Later, he went to Iranian Kurdistan, where Kurdish fighters made a strong impression on him. Years later, he sometimes wore the uniform of the Kurdish peshmerga that he received in Iran.
Fighting in Lebanon's Civil War
In late 1978, Monte traveled to Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. He arrived in time to help defend the Armenian area against right-wing forces. While living in East Beirut, Monte worked with members of Armenian and Lebanese political parties. He joined an Armenian group that defended areas in and around Bourj Hammoud. He was part of this group for almost two years. During this time, he fought in several street battles against right-wing groups. He also began working secretly in areas controlled by the other side. By this time, he had learned to speak Armenian fluently. This was his fourth or fifth language, after Spanish, French, and Japanese. He also spoke some Arabic, Italian, Turkish, Persian, and Kurdish.
Joining ASALA
In the spring of 1980, Monte joined the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA). He moved secretly to West Beirut. For the next three years, he was an ASALA member and wrote for their journal, Hayastan. During this time, several Palestinian groups gave him military training.
Monte carried out operations in Rome, Athens, and other places. He helped plan and train commandos for the "Van Operation" on September 24, 1981. In this operation, four ASALA members took over the Turkish embassy in Paris and held it for several days. In November 1981, French police arrested a young man with a Cypriot passport named "Dimitri Georgiu." After several bombs went off in Paris to get him released, "Georgiu" was sent back to Lebanon. There, he revealed his true identity as Monte Melkonian.
Arrest and Time in Prison
After a split within ASALA in 1983, Monte went into hiding for over two years. He was first in Lebanon and then in France. In November 1985, he was arrested in Paris. He was sentenced to six years in prison for having fake documents and an illegal handgun.
Monte spent over three years in Fresnes and Poissy prisons. He was released in early 1989 and sent from France to South Yemen. There, he met his girlfriend Seda again. They spent a year and a half living secretly in different countries in eastern Europe. They lived in relative poverty as many governments in that region were changing.
Returning to Armenia
On October 6, 1990, Monte arrived in what was then still the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. For the first eight months in Armenia, Melkonian worked at the Armenian Academy of Sciences. He prepared a research paper on ancient cave tombs, which was published after his death.
Monte wrote in a letter that he found a lot of confusion among his people in Armenia. Armenia faced huge problems with its economy, politics, and environment. These problems had been growing for decades. New political groups wanted to break up the Soviet Union. Monte believed this would make Armenia's problems worse. He felt that "a national blunder was taking place right before his eyes."
Monte realized that the Soviet Union would not last. He knew the coming years would be dangerous for the Armenian people. So, he focused his energy on Nagorno-Karabakh. He believed that if Karabakh was lost, it would be the end of their people's history. He thought that if Azerbaijani forces forced Armenians out of Karabakh, they would then attack other regions of Armenia. This idea proved to be true later. He saw the future of Nagorno-Karabakh as very important for the safety of the entire Armenian nation.
Fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh
On September 12 or 14, 1991, Monte went to the Shahumian region, north of Karabakh. He fought there for three months in late 1991. He helped capture the villages of Erkej, Manashid, and Buzlukh.
On February 4, 1992, Melkonian arrived in Martuni as the regional commander. When he arrived, things quickly changed. Civilians began to feel safer because Azerbaijani armies were pushed back. It became harder for them to attack Martuni's homes with missiles.
In April 1993, Melkonian was one of the main military leaders. He planned and led the operation to fight Azerbaijani forces and capture the region of Kalbajar in Azerbaijan. This area is located between Armenia and the former Nagorno-Karabakh region. Armenian forces captured the area in four days of heavy fighting. They had far fewer deaths than the enemy.
Monte Melkonian's Death and Legacy
Monte was killed in the abandoned village of Merzili on June 12, 1993. This happened during the Battle of Aghdam. According to his older brother, Markar Melkonian, Monte died from enemy fire during an unexpected fight with some Azerbaijani soldiers who had likely gotten lost.
Monte was buried with full military honors on June 19, 1993. His coffin was brought from a church in Yerevan to the Yerablur military cemetery. Between 50,000 and 100,000 people attended his funeral. This included the Armenian President, government officials, and members of parliament.
The town of Martuni in Karabakh was renamed Monteaberd (meaning "Fort Monte") in his honor. In 1993, the Monte Melkonian Military Academy was started in Yerevan. In 2021, the village of Shahumyani Trchnafabrika was renamed Monteavan. In November 2021, a statue of Melkonian was unveiled in Vardenis.
Public Image and Reputation
Monte became a legend in Armenia and Karabakh by the time he died. Because of his international socialist and Armenian nationalist views, one writer described him as a mix between an early 20th-century Armenian military leader named Andranik and a revolutionary named Che Guevara.
Historian Thomas de Waal called him a "professional warrior and an extreme Armenian nationalist." He is also described as "the most celebrated Armenian commander" of the Nagorno-Karabakh War. Raymond Bonner wrote in 1993 that Monte had a special charm and good discipline. This is why he "rapidly became the most highly regarded commander in the Karabakh War." Historian Razmik Panossian wrote that Monte was "a charismatic and very capable commander."
Monte Melkonian's Views and Beliefs
Political Ideas
Melkonian was an Armenian nationalist and believed in revolutionary socialism. Throughout his life, he supported Marxism–Leninism, which was also the main idea of ASALA. His writings show he was an Armenian nationalist and a strong socialist. According to his brother, he "had not always been a communist, but he had never been an ex-communist."
Melkonian hoped that the Soviet Union would "reform itself, become more democratic, and promote personal freedoms." He did not give up hope for Soviet Armenia until it seemed clear the Soviet era would end. One author wrote that his career shows a big change in radical ideas, from revolutionary Marxism to nationalism. This author added that in the 1980s, his ideas clashed with growing nationalism. He found it harder to fit the Armenian question into his left-wing beliefs. For example, he thought Armenia becoming independent from the Soviet Union would be a terrible mistake.
In the 1980s, he supported the idea of the Soviet Union taking over areas of Turkey that used to have Armenian populations. He wanted these areas to unite with Soviet Armenia. Yet, he also believed that the best way to live in "Western Armenia" was to join the revolutionary struggle in Turkey. He considered the idea of Armenians having self-rule within a revolutionary Turkish or Kurdish state. In the 1980s, while in a French prison, he called for creating a fighting force in eastern Turkey. This force would unite Kurdish rebels, left-wing Turks, and Armenian revolutionaries.
While in Poissy prison, Monte wrote a political plan for his idea of an "Armenian Patriotic Liberation Movement." In this plan, he listed seven main principles:
- Revolutionary internationalism (working with revolutionaries from other countries)
- Democracy and self-determination (people deciding their own future)
- Socialism (a system where the community owns and controls production)
- Feminism (equal rights for women)
- Environmentalism (protecting the environment)
- Anti-imperialism (opposing powerful countries controlling weaker ones)
- Peace and disarmament (reducing weapons)
By the early 1990s, he saw Karabakh as a "sacred cause." He is quoted as saying, "If we lose Karabakh, we turn the final page of our people's history."
Monte also believed in internationalism. In an article called "Imperialism in the New World Order," he supported socialist movements in Palestine, South Africa, Central America, and other places. He also supported environmentalism from an anti-capitalist point of view. His economic ideas were influenced by an Armenian Marxist economist named Alexander Yenikomshian.
Monte's sister, Maile Melkonian, wrote that Monte was never connected with or supported the views of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation.
Monte Melkonian's Personal Life
Monte Melkonian married his long-time girlfriend, Seda Kebranian, at the Geghard monastery in Armenia in August 1991. They had first met in the late 1970s in Lebanon. In a 1993 interview, Monte said they had not had time to start a family. He stated, "We'll settle down when the Armenian people's struggle is over."
As of 2013, Seda, who is an activist and lecturer, lived in Anchorage, Alaska. She lived there with her husband, Joel Condon, who is a professor of architecture.
Awards and Honors
Monte Melkonian received several awards for his service:
| Country | Award | Date | |
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| Nagorno-Karabakh |
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Order of the Combat Cross of the First Degree | 23 November 1993 |
 Armenia |
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National Hero of Armenia | 20 September 1996 |
 Nagorno-Karabakh |
Hero of Artsakh | 21 September 1999 | |
Images for kids
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Melkonian during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in Martuni, January 1993
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Monte Melkonyan's tomb at Yerablur military cemetery
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Melkonian's bust at the Victory Park, Yerevan.
See also
In Spanish: Monte Melkonian para niños
