Mustafa Kemal Ataturk: Father of the Turks - Essay Example

Mustafa Kemal Atatrk: Father of the Turks There are two Mustafa Kemals. One is the flesh-and-bone Mustafa Kemal who now stands before you and who will pass away. The other is you, all of you here who will go to the far corners of our land to spread the ideals which must be defended with your lives if necessary. I stand for the nation's dreams, and my life's work is to make them come true (Kemal as quoted in Ocak 1). These words spoken by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk exemplify one of the world's greatest statesmen's basic premises of life. He was first and foremost a citizen of Turkey and placed its sovereignty above any personal dreams or desires. In a few short years he led the fight for independence and building of a nation. This is his story. No one could have predicted that the son born in 1881 to Ali Riza Efendi and his wife Zubeyde Hanim in Salonika, a town near the Greek-Ottoman border would grow up to become the most beloved leader of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal. Ali Riza was a customs officer in the Ottoman Empire where he worked in the lumber trade. Along with his wife, the couple lived a rather non-descript life. Ali Riza had spent a brief career in the military before assuming role as a customs broker. Prior to Mustafa Kemal's birth the couple had had three other children who all died. In effect, according to Itzkowitz et. al., Ataturk was a "replacement" child (10). Mustafa Kemal attended school during his childhood in Salonika, which according to Sansal is now Thessaloniki in modern Greece, at the school of Semsi Efendi. However, when Mustafa Kemal was eight years old his father died and unable to support herself and her two small children, Zubeyde was forced to have Kemal leave school and the two moved into the countryside to reside with Kemal's uncle. Kemal worked alongside his mother at the farm for several years, but her growing concern for her son's education led Zubeyde to make the difficult decision to send Kemal back to Salonika to live with her sister. There she knew Kemal would be able to attend school there. Kemal attended middle school and in 1895 graduated from there. However, Kemal had a growing fascination for the military and his enthrallment with the military uniform and allure of the military life propelled Kemal, without the knowledge or consent of his mother, to take the placement test for the Military Academy. He was accepted and enrolled in Askeri Idadis Military High School in Manastir after Zubeyde reluctantly gave her consent. This was the beginning of a military education for Kemal which lasted for 13 years ("Presidency"). Upon graduation from high school in 1899, Kemal moved to Istanbul where on March 13th of that year he enrolled in the War College in the infantryman division. It was during this time that Kemal began to show the development and refinement of his political ideology. He was, according to the Republic of Turkey Presidency Website, "deeply inspired by liberal-nationalist literature, in particular by Namk Kemal, known at the time as 'the poet of liberty'" (1). In 1902 Kemal entered the General Staff College after his successful completion of the Military Academy War College and graduated January 11, 1905 as a Captain (Sansal). During his military education Kemal was an intense student excelling in his studies. He was distinguished academically among his peers. Kemal read extensively and to the then current standards was far advanced when compared to his contemporaries. He was deeply affected through his readings with the precepts of the French revolutionary ideology and "would prove to be more consistently inclined to this nationalist, libertarian and essentially secular experience than most of his contemporaries in the years to come" ("Presidency" 1). During his first military assignment in 1906 Kemal was stationed in Damascus. Perhaps a precursor to what was to come occurred that year when Kemal along with his friends stationed in Damascus formed a group called 'Vatan ve Hurriyet' which when translated means Fatherland and Freedom a revival of the "clandestine liberal-nationalist opposition groups ... [such as] the liberal-nationalist opposition organized as the Committee for Union and Progress (CUP) [which] ended the repressive era under Sultan Abdulhamid II and restored the constitutional order in 1908 ("Presidency 1). Kemal was not one to sit idle. When war broke out with Italy in 1911 upon their invasion of Derne-Cyrenaica in Libya Kemal requested transfer to Tripoli where he could be actively involved in the war effort in both Derne and Tobruk. When the Balkan War erupted Kemal was still in Libya. He went on to lead the troops there from 1912 to 1914 as Commander being promoted in 1913 to Lieutenant-Colonel of the Ottoman Army. During this time, Kemal led his men through a successful campaign. His military successes did not go unnoticed and at the culmination of the Balkan Wars, Kemal became the Military Attach in Sofia. During World War I, Kemal was assigned as the 19th Division Commander of the Ottoman Army in Gallipoli. Under his command the 19th Division repelled the Allied landing during August of 1915 at Anafartalar, a major victory for the new Commander which captured the attention of his superiors. Kemal was appointed as the Commander of the 7th Army in Syria for two consecutive years, 1917 and 1918. During this period the 7th Army under Kemal's command was able to hold off the British advance. By October of 1918, however, World War I came to a culmination for Kemal with the signing of the armistice with the allied forces ("Presidency, 1). With the armistice signed, Kemal was assigned duty as Group Commander of the Lightning Armies which covered the complete southeastern front. The Ottoman Army was at this time being dissolved and the CUP government had crumbled. Turkey teetered on the brink of extinction. Kemal, none the less, saw this as opportunity to inspire his nation and unite the people with one voice to resist the impending annexation and dissection of his homeland at the culmination of World War I. Turkey would not become a 'spoil' of war. With his position within the Ottoman Army, Kemal knew that the majority of country had not yet seen invasion and annexation immediately following the signing of the armistice. He also knew that without immediate action it would soon occur. The Greeks were already rumbling about invading. Seizing the opportunity, Kemal traveled through Anatolia, what is now the western peninsula of Turkey, upon transfer to Samsun in central Turkey arriving on May 19, 1919. This date would later be recognized as the birthday of Turkey's war for independence. "Kemal, himself, adopted this date as his birthday" ("Presidency" 1). With the country in turmoil after World War I, the centralized government in collapse and fear of invasion and annexation by the mass population, unorganized pockets of resistance began forming. They began to organize themselves as the Society for the Defense of National Rights (SDNR) setting up branches of the resistance movement throughout the country. The SDNR began organizing localized congresses to oversee the resistance efforts and support the peasants' guerilla warfare tactics against the encroaching Greeks who were attempting to annex Asia Minor (Anatolia). Seeing the mass populous uniting to preserve their country, Kemal traveled to Anatolia. In June of 1919 Kemal sent a telegram, which came to be known as the Amasya Circular, to all governors and army commanders stating detailing that the central government in Istanbul had fallen and was useless. He further explained that in order to preserve the country a nationwide entity needed to be established that was devoid of foreign control and pressure. Lastly, he encouraged that each province select three delegates to represent the masses and travel to Sivas to participate in their first congress. "This was the first time that the will of the nation was called to duty to exercise its sovereignty" ("Presidency" 1). What remained of the central government was tiring of Kemal. On August 9, 1919 Kemal resigned from all his government/military appointments to remain as he put it "a member of the nation" ("Presidency" 1). He had been elected by the masses as the leader of the eastern district of the SDNR and organized and presided over the first Anatolia-wide congress in June of the same year. This congressional meeting of the SDNR forced the hand of the centralized government who under pressure from the group conceded to holding elections in December of 1919. Kemal's political rise was set as he was elected to the position of deputy from Ezurum in the new nationalist government which had won the elections. As one of their first acts "the new parliament adopted on 17 February 1920 a National Pact reaffirming the declarations made by the Erzurum and Sivas congresses, proclaiming the political boundaries to be preserved as at the time of the armistice, rejecting invasion and foreign infringement on national independence" ("Presidency" 1). Shortly after this the Allied governments from World War 1 arrived in Istanbul to occupy the government. In March of 1919 allied forces dissolved the newly formed parliament. Many of the exiled members journeyed to Ankara where they joined forces with Kemal. Together they formed the National Assembly April 23, 1920. "Finally, the will of the nation found a place to independently express itself and exercise its sovereignty, under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal as its speaker" ("Presidency" 1). During this same time period the central government under the tutelage of the then Sultan in Istanbul folded under the pressure exerted by the Allied forces. On August 10, 1920 the Sultan signed the Treaty of Sevres which, in effect, dissected the country. There would be several allied zones of occupation, Greek control of the western territory and establishment of Armenian and Kurdish states. Enraged by the prospect of the piecemeal destruction of their nation, the Grand National Assembly led by Kemal vehemently rejected the Treaty of Sevres and called for a war for independence. The assembly and its loyalist had a daunting task ahead of them - the Greeks to the west invading, the Armenians to the east and the French embedded to the south. The nationalist group gathered all their resources to begin the battle for freedom. Flanked on all sides the Turk nationalists finally repelled the Armenian invaders to their east and in December of 1920 the Treaty of Gumru was signed. This was soon followed by the signing of the Treaty of Friendship in December of 1921 of the Treaty of Kars in the same month. These treaties signaled a partnership with Russia granting the Turks financial support and a secure eastern border with the nation. The situation with the Greek invasion, however, was reaching critical conditions. They had launched and invasion in January of 1921 but had been repelled. Their second wave however in July of the same year saw the Greeks seize control of Eskisehir and they were fast approaching Ankara, being only 100 miles outside the city limits. Kemal was once again thrust into military service. This time, however, the GNA had named him as Commander-in-Chief. With the impending disaster that a Greek victory would mean to Turkey, Kemal and his men repelled the Greeks at the Battle of Sakarya. This stunning victory earned him the rank of Marshal. Soon following their victory over the Greek invaders, -the French troops withdrew from Turkey upon the signing of the Turco-French Accord in October of 1921. Finally on August 26, 1922, the final battle of Turkey's quest to remain an autonomous government ended. The Turks routed the Greek army and by September of that year the Greeks completely retreated from Asia Minor. Turkey had been preserved. Seeing that the Turkish people had overwhelmingly thwarted all their attempts at dissecting the country, they signed a peace agreement with the Turkish nationalists in October of 1922 ("Presidency" 1). The GNA promptly dissolved the sultanate and the then current sultan, the last to ever rule, was whisked away on a British battleship. Left with a 'leaderless' country the allied occupation forces negotiated the Lausanne Peace Treaty with the nationalists and it was signed into affect on July 24, 1923 recognizing Turkey as a sovereign state. On October 29, 1923 the assembly of Turkey after holding new elections proclaimed the existence of the Republic of Turkey naming Kemal as its first President. Kemal was determined to ensure his country remained stable and secure and moved forward as a progressive thriving sovereignty. He implemented many progressive changes and reforms in order to accomplish this. In 1924, the caliphate, religious courts and school system were abolished, Ottoman dynasty was exiled, a new Republican constitution was adopted based on national sovereignty. In 1925, Muslim brotherhoods and their lodges were closed, fez banned. In 1926, a brand new civil code granting equal civil rights to women, and a modern criminal code were enacted. In 1928, the constitutional reference to Islam was removed and the secular character of the Republic was reaffirmed. In the same year, international numerals and a new Latin alphabet was adopted, Mustafa Kemal declared as the head teacher of the nation. These were followed, among others, by a new commercial code (1929), voting and electoral rights to women in local elections (1930) and later in parliamentary elections (1934), adoption of international weights and measures (1931), first recitation of call to prayer in Turkish (1932), banning of clerical dress outside places of worship (1934), adoption of surnames (1935), opening of a state conservatoire in Ankara (1936) and other overarching reforms" ("Presidency" 1). From his early days as a military leader through his political career as President of the Republic of Turkey, Kemal progressed to that of an excellent statesman. He understood that his new nation must not dwell on its past and worked very hard to develop good relationships with their neighboring countries as well as Europe and beyond. Kemal as quoted in "Presidency" stated the principles upon which his country would prosper in its post war development - "peace at home, peace in the world" (1). This noble statesman developed diplomatic ties with Britain, France, Russian and Greece, among many others. In 1932 under his firm and fair guidance the Republic of Turkey was invited and joined the League of Nations confirming once again their place in world leadership and Kemal's exemplary leadership and diplomatic skills. Much of Kemal's life was devoted to his nation. Although he was briefly married from 1923 to 1925 his first and true love was his country and its sovereignty. Elected as President of the Republic three times he was and is much beloved by the Turkish people. In November of 1934, upon enactment of the law which made surnames compulsory for all citizens the Assembly of Turkey bestowed upon him the name Ataturk (Father of the Turks) a fitting name for the man who had lived his entire life to preserve the nation. On November 24, 1938 with failing health Mustafa Kemal Ataturk died in Istanbul. Mourned by his fellow citizens and the world his funeral was attended by dignitaries from around the world. 15 years later his remains were moved to Anitkabir, his final resting place ("Presidency"). In closing, perhaps better than any words I could conjure up, are the memories a Turkish elementary school student shared about his meeting of Ataturk in 1937 when he visited the school the child attended. Guran, that student, over 50 years later, recalled the events of that day vividly. Sharing the awe, the respect and the high esteem that not only he but an entire nation held for the man; Guran, the child, still recalled all those years later and Guran, the now scholar, reflected on that day so many years ago when Ataturk visited his classroom: To look at him directly is difficult. To look in his eyes is impossible. If you look at any more than his chin, you will be dazzled by the reflections from his eyes and lose consciousness as though you were struck by lightning. This was common folk wisdom so I didn't dare raise my head to look at his face the Devil made me suddenly glance a little higher. Reflections and lightning were exaggerations but the stare from those eyes was unusual. The eyes stared into space; they seemed to focus at great distances and peer into wide chasms. Even a child could not fail to notice that nothing escaped those eyes. No one could deceive this man. He was unimpressed by bombast. He was extraordinary. Nobody was required to tell him what needed to be done. Those who attempted to deceive him appeared to be merely superfluous, thoughtless, unseemly or presumptuous I am still convinced today of the correctness of those childhood impressions (205). That was Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. His body may have died, but his legacy lives on forever in the hearts of Turkish people. Works Cited Guran, Azmi. "Mustafa Kemal Ataturk: A Childhood Recollection." Contemporary Review 273.1593, (October 1998): 205. Itzkowitz, Norman, Volkan, Vamik D., Winer, Jerome A. and Anderson, James William. "Psychobiography: Terminable and Interminable." Annual of Psychoanalysis 31, (2003): 7-20. Ocak, Kagan U. "Mustafa Kemal Ataturk." 19 June 2001. Kagan Home Page. University of Utah Website. 21 April 2007 . "Presidency of the Republic of Turkey: Mustafa Kemal Ataturk." Undated. Republic of Turkey Website. 21 April 2007 . Sansal, Burak. 2007. "Ataturk's Life." All About Turkey Website. 21 April 2007 . Read More