allowed to help in Musa Dagh's offense—go on a rampage. As Ter Haigasun prepares to celebrate a mass to ask for God's help, the deserters set the altar on fire and the resulting conflagration destroys much of the Town Enclosure, before the uprising is suppressed by Bagradian's men. The Ottomans see the fire and prepare for the final assault. Oskanian leads a suicide cult, for those who do not want to die in enemy hands, given the Turks′ reputation for violent reprisals. The little teacher refuses to jump off a cliff, after fending off the last of his followers. Soon after, he discovers the large Red Cross distress flag, the Armenians flew to attract Allied ships and sights the French cruiser Guichen in the fog. It had diverted course after its watch spotted the burning of the Armenian camp on Musa Dagh. As Oskanian waves the flag, the warship begins shelling the coast. Soon more ships come. The Turks withdraw and the Armenians are rescued. Bagradian remains behind after ensuring that the people he led, Juliette and Iskuhi are safely aboard the French and British ships. His reasons are complex and can be traced throughout the novel to the realization that he cannot leave and go into exile again in an internment camp in Port Said, Egypt. He now imagines that Iskuhi follows him back up Musa Dagh from the sea. On the way, he experiences a divine presence and confronts the cross on his son's grave. He is followed by a skirmishing party of Turkish troops. They approach in a crescent—which alludes to the battle formations of the Ottoman armies of the past—and kill him. Background Werfel had previous military experience in Galicia and used his knowledge when writing battle scenes. Characters Gabriel Bagradian - An Armenian from the local village who was raised in France Juliette Bagradian - Gabriel's French wife. She experiences an illness but survives and is taken on the ship to Port Said. Stephan Bagradian - Gabriel's young son. He defends the village and is killed by Turkish soldiers. Sarkis Kilikian also known as "The Russian" Release Initial reception and censorship The Forty Days of Musa Dagh received much critical praise from Austrian and Swiss reviewers when the book, over 900 pages long, was published in two volumes in November 1933. For several years the novel could be read in Nazi Germany despite book burnings