US historian: "Millions of Turks suffered during the Ottoman Empire's collapse"

A map prepared by Justin McCarthy, professor of history at the University of Louisville in the United States, shows that the breakup of the Ottoman Empire set thousands upon thousands of forlorn refugees on the move – including Ottoman Muslims. Since most Western histories of this era focus only on the Christians who suffered, the Washington-based Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) has published an annotated map showing the travels of 5 million Ottoman Muslims who were displaced from the Balkans, the Caucasus, and Crimea from 1770 to 1923. The map also records and provides historical context for the 5 million Ottoman Muslims who died from 1864 to 1922 in wars that were fought to dismantle the Ottoman Empire. "The peoples of the Ottoman Empire suffered some of the worst disasters in history," said McCarthy. "They were forced from their lands – never to return – and died in great numbers. All groups suffered, but those who suffered most were the Muslims, especially the Turks. I hope that this map will demonstrate the disastrous fate of all those peoples."