29 October 1923-10 November
1938
Mustafa Kemal, founder of the Turkish Republic,
was born in Saloniki on the l9th May 1881 of humble background. His
father started out as a customs officer, later becoming a timber
merchant. Following his sudden death he left behind a family having to
fend for itself.
As a child Mustafa finished primary school in
Saloniki, going on to secondary education at Rucholigè School. Despite
opposition from his uncle, who had taken on the responsibility of
looking after the widow and her two children following the death of his
brother, Mustafa entered military school, completing his military
training in Istanbul. He succeeded in entering the Military School (Harbiye)
where he completed his studies with flying colours, after which he was
accepted into the School of the General Staff. In December 1905 he was
commissioned as General Staff Captain.
Throughout his studies Mustafa Kemal
consistently proved himself a conscientious, aspiring and diligent
student who liked to interest himself with particularly difficult and
complex problems. Whilst at military school in Saloniki, he
distinguished himself in mathematics and literature. At the same time,
and due mainly to his own efforts he started to learn French, in which
he made considerable progress. Yet another trait of character which
began to show through in his early youth was Mustafa's ability to show
initiative and exceptionally his ability to give orders, whilst at the
same time maintaining a sense of fraternity with his comrades. In the
School of the General Staff he pondered long and hard over the hardship
caused by the dictatorial rule of Abdullamid, who from within his famous
Yildiz Palace spread fear throughout the whole country. Just like his
comrades at the school, Mustafa harboured the same feelings of disgust
and rebelliousness towards the political regime of the Sultan. For this
reason he did not hesitate for one moment about taking part in the
secret underground activities going on at the General Staff School,
directed towards the overthrow of the Yildiz Regime.
Between the years 1905 and 1918 Mustafa Kemal
was deservedly awarded high ranking posts in the military chain of
command. He became Chief of General Staff of the army that was sent out
from Saloniki to put down the uprising of the l3th April 1909, a
movement designed to return the country to Hamadic Absolutism and which
had started with the non recognition of the Constitution that had been
declared on the 23rd July 1908. Mustafa proved to have special qualities
in the organisation and management of this army of oppression, known as
the Army of the Movement. In 1910 he lead the Turkish Forces during
military manoeuvres in the Province of Picardy in France. In 1911 he
fought in Tripoli against the Italians, and in 1914 whilst serving as
Military Attaché in Sofia, he successfully drew the governments
attention to the catastrophic results connected with Turkey's entry into
the war with Germany and its allies.
During World War I Mustafa fought against the
Allied Forces at the Dardanelles, the Russians on the Mus Front, in the
east and against the British in Syria and Iraq. During the war he
visited Germany as Military Adviser, together with hereditary Prince
Vahdettin. At the time of signing the Armistice Declaration on the 30th
October 1918 Mustafa Kemal remained at the head of his troops, a command
given to him by the German General Liman von Sanders. In the years
between 1918 and 1923 Mustafa Kemal was at the forefront of the Turkish
War of Independence and involved with the eradication of the antiquated
institutions of the Osmanic Empire and in laying the foundations of the
new Turkish State. He approached the National Congresses of Erzurum and
Sivas to organise and lift the morale of the people in its determined
opposition to the Forces of the Entente who were occupying Anatolia.
By the end of these conventions he had managed
to convey the message that the idea and the ideals of outdated
imperialism ought be dropped so that people within the national
boundaries could make decisions in accordance with the principles and
general guidelines of an effective national policy. After the occupation
of Istanbul by the Forces of the Entente he laid the foundations for the
new Turkish State when in 1920 he united the Great National Assembly in
Ankara. With the government of the Great National Assembly, of which he
was President, Mustafa Kemal fought the Forces of the Entente and the
Sultan's army which had remained there in collaboration with the
occupying forces. Finally, on the 9th September 1922 he succeeded in
driving the Allied Forces back to Izmir, along with the other forces
which had managed to penetrate the heartland of Anatolia. By this action
he saved the country from invasion by foreign forces.
On the 24th July 1923 the States of the Entente
were obliged to recognise the territorial integrity of Turkey in the
Treaty of Lausanne. So it came to pass that in quite a spectacular
fashion Mustafa Kemal had achieved the first step in his reform
programme, the creation of a sovereign and independent state.
From 1923 to 1938 Mustafa Kemal's main work lay
in leading the Turkish State and its people along the path in the
direction of the outside civilised world. The ideal of an independent
fatherland within national boundaries had already been achieved before
1922 and therefore the idea of a truly modern state, whose role relied
on the sovereignty of its people, could be developed by the most
rational means available during this period.
Following their separation, Sultanat was
abolished in 1922, whilst Khalifat continued to exist. At the
Proclamation of the Republic on the 29th October 1923 this emporia
institution proved to be superfluous and it was likewise abolished. This
also resulted in the disbandment of other theocratic institutions on
which Khalifat was founded. By the same token all similar types of
organisations and theological institutions which had regulated the role
of the individual and society in general were closed. Finally by
amendment to the constitution, the principle of (secularism) - that all
so important factor in community life - was introduced as an anchor of
the new democratic and republican constitution. As a result of this new
direction, all laws, rules and regulations, institutions and methods of
a theological nature that had been an influence on the dealings of state
and social order were abolished and various political and social reforms
introduced along Western lines, suitably adapted to meet national
security and interests.
In brief are mentioned here some of the
important reforms introduced under Kemal: the international calendar and
time were adopted (1923).
in place of the traditional head garment, the
fez, introduced under the rule of Sultan Nahmond II, the West's style of
hat became obligatory (1925).
Swiss civil law was introduced adapted to the
conditions and needs of the country (1926).
the Latin alphabet was adopted (1928).
The Civil Code, Penal Statute Book and the Trade
Law Book were introduced.
The legal position of women and their place in
society in the new republic was greatly improved (for example the active
and passive voting right at national and local elections).
Only due to the efforts of this great man, which
he maintained with exceptional strength of character and persistence,
helped along by his ability to work methodically, was it possible to
introduce all these reforms. Thanks to his great organising talent he
led the country to considerable prosperity and down the path of
civilisation and peace.
Kemal laid the foundations of a truly modern
Turkey, a democratic, republican and independent state based on national
sovereignty. Although these ideas originated from him and were paramount
in the foundation of the new state they remain today an integral part of
the republican government of our country. The foundation stone, or
perhaps even the very soul of Ataturk's spiritual and intellectual
philosophy, was the thought of universal peace and although the biggest
part of his life was taken up by war, he always considered it a crime.
According to Ataturk war can only be just or
justified if it is fought out of sheer necessity or for reasons of
national defence, or pursued by a people awaiting their sovereignty,
their very lives depending on it.
To live freely and be independent is both a holy
right of the individual and of the nation, this right being stronger
than power itself. Only by his own personal conviction was he able to
frame the all inspiring guiding principle of the Republic of Turkey -
"Peace in the country, peace in the world." This principle points with
absolute clarity and determination the way forward for the country's
future home and foreign policy.
From the ideas that Ataturk held the idea of
civilisation should not be overlooked as it is no less important. In the
course of his short life he never ceased repeating the fact that views
which are based broadly on regional perspective's of the West or East,
or on religious perspective's, be they Islam or Christian, often weaken
the thoughts of civilisation, as they fail to manifest the small or
special characteristics. Civilisation is something whole and exclusively
human, a universal property. It therefore goes without saying, that the
share every nation in the world has in civilisation is considerable.
In the view of this inspired reformer, mankind
has a duty to constantly adapt himself to the needs that reason demand.
His guide in life should be science. Following on from these basic
beliefs Kemal took it upon himself to provide everyone in the country
with an education, at the heart of which lay the creation of citizens
having special qualities, or in other words, the sense and direction of
the education he wanted to give to the people was very clear in that the
Republic needed to produce generations of people whose thinking, beliefs
and education were totally free. Not to mention his view of egoism being
wholly incompatible with the idea of civilisation "Egoism, whether
individual or national is to be condemned". He reminds us that all
nations of the world form one large family and that whenever a disaster
strikes one of its members, then it is felt by the rest - like the pain
felt from a needle penetrating a part of the body and felt throughout
the whole body.
With the intention of spreading his ideas within
the educational sector, and supported by national campaigns, Kemal
continued to put forward his form of humanitarian education, with the
aim of producing an enlightened people free from prejudice and
intolerance. The desired objective being simply to develop citizens of
the world, free from desires such as envy, revenge and conspiracy. In a
world inhabited by such communities it might be possible to find an
instrument, an organisation that stands above individual states, or in
other words: "a body of united nations", whose main purpose is to
maintain peace.
In this respect Ataturk's ideas date from the
time between the World Wars, particularly that before World War II but
are nevertheless topical because in a way Ataturk had predicted the
concept of the United Nations.
Furthermore, it was at a time when the
ideological battle had reached its climax and for this reason such views
were of a prophetic nature.
For a man who had set himself the task of
building up a country based on the most convincing human achievements
and under the banner of reason.
The Inauguration of the Monument to the
"Unknown Soldier" held in Dumlupınar on the 30th August 1924
Mustafa Kemal was again dressed very well, his eyes sparkling
and radiant with happiness over the "Great Victory" and accompanied by
his wife Latife Hanim and wartime comrades. He talked to the crowd, his
beloved people, saying; "A country may be conquered forcibly, but that
in itself is not enough to govern its people. As long as its soul has
not been conquered, its determination and resolution cannot be destroyed
and it is a nation impossible to rule"
. "Undoubtable, the foundation
laid will give to the new Turkish Republic and state its stability. The
eternal life of the Turkish Republic has been crowned here. The Turkish
blood shed on the battlefields and the souls of the martyrs in heaven
will be the immortal guardians of our state and republic"
. "Gentlemen,
the most important effect of this great victory is that the Turkish
Nation has gained absolute control of its independence. If we remember
the years of suffering under the reign of khans, monarchs, sultans and
caliphs, we can now understand the importance of gaining independence."
In connection with the nations independence Mustafa Kemal stated;
"Gentlemen, the nation's independence is a power that breaks chains and
burns crowns and thrones. Unions which were based on the slavery of
nations, will always be condemned to decline."
On the Cal Plain, Ataturk expressed his opinion
about the sultans and caliphs saying: "My friends, expelling from Turkey
those who sat in their palaces relying on nothing other than (Turkishness),
and who marched with our enemies against Anatolia and against (Turkishness)
has proved an even greater mission than that of removing the enemy from
our country. (!) Absolute control of the Turkish Nation, our country and
ancestral heritage, could only be achieved following the closure of
these superfluous and harmful offices.
Ataturk in expressing his opinion about
technology and science stated; "Our country not only needs cultural
development and wealth but also science, technology, civilisation,
freedom of thought and a free ideology. Our honour, independence and
existence must support us in the basic and important work necessary to
achieve the interests of the nation.
The people who ruled Turkey for centuries
thought of everything except Turkey itself! Our nation is unselfish in
its desire for independence and land and this has been proven. Our
nation is the guardian of reform. A nation encompassing such high values
cannot therefore be led astray by others."
At midnight on Thursday the 3rd September 1936,
during the Balkan Festival at the Beylerbeyi Palace, Ataturk honoured
the gala with a visit. Yugoslavian, Bulgarian, Romanian and Turkish
delegations and folk groups took part. When Ataturk arrived all the
groups sang together; "Welcome, Mustafa Kemal Pasa". General Kazim Dirik
read out Ataturk's speech to the guests; "The fortunes of mankind must
be realised by moving closer together, by loving each other and by
meeting each other with pure feelings and thoughts. A symbol of this
high human ideal is our being here together this night. For this reason,
I express my great appreciation to our important guests."
Later, a Turkish child communicated Ataturk's
notes to the guests. "A nation is able to carry out reforms in many ways
and to succeed in them. The reformation of music however reflects the
exceptional development of a nation.
