Everything about Mustafa Kemal Pasha totally explained
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (b.
1881 in
Selânik,
Ottoman Empire – d.
November 10,
1938 in
Istanbul,
Turkey) was an army officer, revolutionary
statesman, and
founder of the Republic of Turkey as well as its first President.
Mustafa Kemal established himself as a successful and extremely capable military commander while serving as a division commander at the
Battle of Gallipoli. He later fought with distinction on the eastern Anatolian and Palestinian fronts, making a name for himself during
World War I. Following the defeat of the
Ottoman Empire at the hands of the
Allies, and the subsequent plans for its partition, Mustafa Kemal led the
Turkish national movement in what would become the
Turkish War of Independence. Having established a provisional government in
Ankara, he defeated the forces sent by the
Entente powers. His successful military campaigns led to the liberation of the country and to the establishment of the
Republic of Turkey.
As the first President of Turkey, Atatürk embarked upon a major programme of political, economic and cultural
reforms. An admirer of the
Enlightenment, Atatürk sought to transform the ruins of the Ottoman Empire into a modern,
democratic,
secular,
nation-state. The principles of
Atatürk's reforms are often referred to as
Kemalism and continue to form the political foundation of the modern Turkish state.
Early life
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was born in the
Ottoman city of
Salonika (; modern-day Thessaloniki in
Greece) in the spring of 1881 to
Ali Rıza Efendi, his father, and
Zübeyde Hanım, his mother. Born as
Mustafa, his second name
Kemal (meaning
Perfection or
Maturity) was given to him by his
mathematics teacher in recognition of his academic excellence. In his early years, his mother encouraged Mustafa to attend a religious school (the
Şemsi Efendi Mektebi), though a reluctant Mustafa completed only a brief stay there; eventually enrolling into a military junior high school in Selânik (the
Selânik Askerî Rüştiyesi) in 1893. In 1896 he enrolled into a military high school (the
Manastır Askerî İdadisi) in the Ottoman city of Manastır (today's
Bitola, in the
Republic of Macedonia.) In 1899 he enrolled into the War College (the
Mekteb-i Harbiye-i Şahane) in
Istanbul and graduated in 1902. He later graduated from the War Academy (the
Erkân-ı Harbiye Mektebi) on January 11, 1905.
Military career
After his graduation in 1905, he was assigned to
Damascus as a
lieutenant. He joined a small secret revolutionary society of reformist officers called "
Motherland and Liberty." In 1907, he was promoted to the rank of
captain and assigned to Manastır. He joined the
Committee of Union and Progress (CUP). However, in later years he became known for his opposition to, and frequent criticism of, policies pursued by the CUP leadership. In 1908, the
Young Turk Revolution seized power from
Abdülhamid II. He played a role in this revolution. In 1910, he took part in the Picardie army maneuvers in
France. In 1911, served at the Ministry of War for a short time. Later in 1911, he was posted to the Ottoman province of Trablusgarp (present-day
Libya) to oppose the
Italian invasion. He returned to capital in October 1912 following the outbreak of the
Balkan Wars. During the
First Balkan War, he fought against the Bulgarian army at Gallipoli and Bolayır on the coast of
Thrace. In 1913, he was appointed military attaché to
Sofia and promoted to the rank of
lieutenant colonel in 1914.
Ottoman Empire entered
World War I and engaged with the
Allies in the
Middle Eastern theatre. Mustafa Kemal was given the task of organizing and commanding the 19
th Division attached to the
5th Army during the
Battle of Gallipoli. The Gallipoli campaign became a disastrous defeat for the Allies. Mustafa Kemal became the outstanding front-line commander and gained much respect from his former enemies for his chivalry in victory. Following the Battle of Gallipoli, Mustafa Kemal served in
Edirne until the
January 14,
1916.
He was assigned to the command of the XVI
th Corps of the
2nd Army and sent to the
Caucasus Campaign. The massive Russian offensive reached to the Anatolian key cities. On
7 August, Mustafa Kemal rallied his troops and mounted a counteroffensive. Two of his divisions captured not only
Bitlis but the equally important town of
Muş, greatly disturbing the calculations of the Russian Command. On
March 7,
1917, Mustafa Kemal was appointed from the command of the XVI Corps to the overall command of the 2
nd Army. The
Russian Revolution erupted and the Caucasus front of the
Czar's armies disintegrated.
Leadership During the War of Independence
Mustafa Kemal's active participation in the national resistance movement began with his assignment as a General Inspector to oversee the demobilisation of remaining Ottoman military units and nationalist organizations. On
May 19,
1919, he departed from Istanbul to
Samsun. The first goal in his mind was the
establishment of an organised national resistance movement against the occupying forces. In June 1919, he and his close friends issued the
Amasya Circular, which stated that the independence of the country was in danger. Ottoman government issued a warrant for the arrest, later condemning him to death. He resigned from the Ottoman Army on
July 8.
Mustafa Kemal called for a national election to establish a new Turkish Parliament that would have its seat in
Ankara. On
12 February, 1920, the last Ottoman Parliament gathered in Istanbul. Parliament dissolved by the British forces after the declaration of the
National Pact (
Turkish:
Misak-ı Milli). Mustafa Kemal used this opportunity to establish the "
Grand National Assembly of Turkey" (GNA) gathered on
April 23,
1920, with Mustafa Kemal as
the speaker of the parliament. On
August 10,
1920 Grand Vizier
Damat Ferid Pasha signed the
Treaty of Sèvres, which finalized the plans for the
partitioning of the Ottoman Empire including what Turkish nationals accepted as their heartland. Kemal Insisted on complete independence and the safeguarding of the interests of the Turkish majority on Turkish soil. He persuaded the GNA to gather a National Army. The National Army faced the
Allied occupation forces and fought on three fronts: in the
Franco-Turkish,
Greco-Turkish and
Turkish-Armenian wars. After a series of initial battles during
Greco-Turkish war, the Greek army advanced as far as the
Sakarya River, just eighty kilometers west of the GNA. On
August 5 1921, Mustafa Kemal was promoted to
Commander in chief of the forces . The
Battle of Sakarya from August 23 to September 13, 1921 ended with the defeat of the Greeks. The Allies, ignoring the extent of Ankara's successes, hoped to impose a modified version of the Serves treaty as a peace settlement on Ankara. Kemal rejected their proposal. The final battle, the
Battle of Dumlupınar, was fought during August and September of 1922. He launched an all-out attack on the Greek lines at
Afyonkarahisar.
The
Conference of Lausanne began on
November 21 1922. In accordance with the directives of Mustafa Kemal,
İsmet İnönü refused any proposal that would compromise Turkish sovereignty while discussing matters regarding the control of Turkish finances and justice, the
Capitulations, the
Turkish Straits and the like. On
July 24 1923, the
Treaty of Lausanne was signed. Ten weeks after agreement was reached the Allied forces left Istanbul. The final outcome of the independence war was the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey on
October 29 1923.
Presidency, 1923–1938
» For conceptual analysis, see Kemalist ideology and Atatürk's Reforms
The
Treaty of Lausanne ended the
Turkish War of Independence and recognized the new nation's independence. However, efforts to modernise the country had just started; institutions and constitutions of Western states such as France, Sweden, Italy, or Switzerland were yet to be analyzed and adopted according to the needs and characteristics of the Turkish nation. Mustafa Kemal was 42 years old when the
Republic of Turkey was formed. Highlighting the public's lack of knowledge regarding Kemal's intentions, the public cheered:
"We are returning to the days of the first caliphs". In order to establish
reforms Mustafa Kemal placed
Fevzi Çakmak,
Kazım Özalp and
İsmet İnönü in the important positions. Mustafa Kemal capitalized on his reputation as an efficient military leader and spent the following years, up until his death in 1938, instituting wide-ranging and progressive political, economic, and social reforms, transforming Turkish society from perceiving itself as Muslim subjects of a vast Empire into citizens of a modern,
democratic, and
secular nation-state.
A basic political principle for Kemal was the complete independence of the country, for him the total independence of the country wasn't negotiable,. However, he was well aware that independence couldn't be maintained solely by the military force. His view of independence was expressed in a statement, saying that:
"…by complete independence, we mean of course complete economic, financial, juridical, military, cultural independence and freedom in all matters. Being deprived of independence in any of these is equivalent to the nation and country being deprived of all its independence." Thus, as the backbone of the legislative, judicial, and economic structures were put in place, Atatürk led wide ranging reforms in the social, cultural, economical aspects of life in Turkey.
Domestic policies
In forging the new republic, the Turkish revolutionaries turned their back on the perceived corruption and decadence of cosmopolitan Istanbul and its Ottoman heritage. For instance, Ankara, then some provincial town deep in Anatolia which was turned into the center of the independence movement, became the country's new capital. The revolutionaries regularly faced challenges from the supporters of the old Ottoman regime, and also from the supporters of relatively new ideologies such as
communism and
fascism. Mustafa Kemal saw the consequences of fascist and communist doctrines in the 1920s and 1930s and rejected both, preventing the spread of
totalitarian party rule which held sway in the Soviet Union, Germany and Italy. Some perceived his opposition and silencing of these ideologies as a means of eliminating competition, others believed it was a necessary means to protect the young Turkish state from succumbing into the instability of new ideologies and competing factions.
The backbone structures of the state, such as nationalism, populism and etatism were defined in the early period under the name of "Six Arrows". The Six Arrows became a guide and banner to mark the changes between the old Ottoman and the new Republican rule. The fundamentals set by Kemal were not new, neither in the world politics nor among the elites of Turkey. What made the Six Arrows unique was that these fundamentals, which are interrelated to each other, were formulated specifically for Turkey's needs. A good example is the definition and application of secularism. The Kemalist secular state significantly differed from the application of secularism in other states that were predominantly Christian. The
Kemalist ideology ("Six Arrows"), based on Atatürk's conception of
realism and
pragmatism, has been the defining ideology of the Republic of Turkey.
Single-party state
Mustafa Kemal's private journals show that, even before the establishment of the republic in 1923, he believed in the importance of the sovereignty of the people, as opposed to the sovereignty of the absolute
monarch, which was the case in the Ottoman Empire. He wanted a "direct government by the Assembly" and visualized a
parliamentary sovereignty (a
representative democracy), where the National Parliament would be the ultimate source of power. However, in the following years, Kemal took the position that the country needed an immense amount of reconstruction, and "direct government by the Assembly" couldn't survive in this environment.
The GNA was established during the Turkish War of Independence upon the call of Mustafa Kemal, the
lower house of the last Ottoman Parliament (Heyet-i Mebusan), which had previously been assembled in Istanbul, convened on April 23, 1920, in Ankara. During this period, the role of deputies at the GNA were to be the voice of the Turkish society by expressing its political views and preferences. The elections were free, and the system was an egalitarian electoral system, based on general ballot. Abolishing the
sultanate was easier, as the survival of the Caliphate at the time satisfied the partisans of the sultanate. This produced a two-headed system: The new republic on one side and an Islamic form of government with the Caliph on the other side. Atatürk and İnönü worried that "it nourished the expectations that the sovereign would return under the guise of Caliph... " The Caliph
Abdülmecid II, who was seated after the abolishment of the sultanate (1922), had his own personal treasury which wasn't bound to the republican treasury. His personal service included guards (military personnel). Mustafa Kemal said that there was no "religious" or "political" justification for this, as Caliph Abdülmecid II appeared to be following in the steps of the sultans in domestic and foreign affairs: accepting and responding to foreign representatives and reserve officers, and participating in official ceremonies and celebrations. Mustafa Kemal wanted to integrate the powers of the
Caliphate into the powers of the GNA, and his initial activities began on
January 1, 1924. Mustafa Kemal acquired the consent of İnönü, Çakmak and Özalp before the abolition of the Caliphate. On
March 1 1924, at the Assembly, Mustafa Kemal said
"the religion of Islam will be elevated if it'll cease to be a political instrument, as had been the case in the past." The Caliph made a statement to the effect that he wouldn't interfere with political affairs. A "Caliphate Conference" was held in Cairo in May 1926 and a resolution was passed declaring the Caliphate "a necessity in Islam", but failed to implement this decision.
The removal of the Caliphate was followed by the complete separation of the governmental and religious affairs. The education reform was one corner stone. Kemal linked the educational reform to the liberation of the nation from the
dogma, which he believed was even more important than the
Turkish war of independence.
Unlike any other "
Public school" systems of today, there were three main horizontal institutions closed to each other in 1923. The first and most common one was local schools and medreses based on Arabic, Koran and memorizing. The second was reformist schools of Tanzimat called as idadî and sultanî and the third was schools educating in foreign language like colleges and minority schools. Under Kemal the old
medrese education was modernized. Mustafa Kemal initiated his
public education reforms to enhance public literacy and thus better prepare citizens for roles to public life. He wanted to institute compulsory
primary education for both girls and boys; since then this effort has been an ongoing task for the Republic. Mustafa Kemal pointed out that one of the main targets of "
Education in Turkey" had to be raising a generation nourished with what he called the public culture. Public culture aimed that state schools (public education) have a common
curriculum. Common curriculum became known as the "unification of education."
Unification of education was put into force on
3 March 1924 by the law of "National Education No: 430". Unification of education in its treatment of students was inclusive, organized and operated to be a deliberate model of the civil community. The schools submitted their curriculum to what was named as "
Ministry of National Education" which was a government agency modeled after other
Ministry of Educations of its time. Ministry of National Education draw a contemporary route to the traditional social structure; by causing or gaining contemporary citizen consciousness.
The law of "National Education No: 430" passed on the same day as the abolishment of Caliphate and, concurrently, the Republic abolished the two ministries and subordinated the clergy to the
department of religious affairs. The change was one of the foundations of
secularism in Turkey. The unification of education under one curriculum was the end of "clerics or clergy of the Ottoman Empire" even if it wasn't the end of religious schools as they were moved to higher education until consequent governments pulled back to
secondary education after Mustafa Kemal's death.
During this period, the conservative elements were not satisfied and launched attacks on the Kemalist reformists.
There were also members of the GNA who were not happy with the changes. At a private meeting of the CHP there were so many members who were denounced as opposition sympathizers that Mustafa Kemal expressed his fear that he'd be among the minority in his own party. Mustafa Kemal decided not to purge this group. The RPR wasn't against Mustafa Kemal's main positions as declared in its program. The program supported the main mechanisms for establishing secularism in the country and the civic law, or as stated, "the needs of the age" (article 3) and the uniform system of education (article 49). The principles were set by the leaders at the onset, but the only legal opposition became a home for all kinds of differing views.
On March 4, 1925, to deal with the Sheikh Said Rebellion, the "Maintenance of Public Order Law" was passed, which gave the government exceptional powers. The law, which was repelled on March 4, 1929, included all the tools and authority to shut down subversive groups. During 1926 a plot to assassinate Mustafa Kemal was uncovered in İzmir. It was found to originate with a former deputy who had opposed the abolition of the Caliphate and had a personal grudge. Quickly the trail turned from inquiry of planners of this attempt to an investigation carried out ostensibly to uncover subversive activities and actually used to undermine those with differing views regarding the cultural revolution. The sweeping investigation brought before the tribunal a large number of political opponents, including Karabekir, the leader of PRP. A number of surviving leaders of the
Committee of Union and Progress, who were at best second-rank in the Turkish movement, including Cavid, Ahmed Şükrü, and Ismail Canbulat were found guilty of treason and hanged. During these investigations there was a link, a support, that was uncovered among the members of the PRP to the Sheikh Said Rebellion. The PRP was dissolved following the outcomes of the trial. The pattern of organized opposition, however, was broken. This action was the only broad political purge during Atatürk's presidency. Mustafa Kemal's saying "
my mortal body will turn into dust, but the Republic of Turkey will last forever" was regarded as a will after the assassination attempt.
Modernization efforts
Islamic courts were closed and
Islamic canon law was replaced with a
secular civil code modeled after the
Swiss Civil Code and a penal code modelled after the
Italian Penal Code. Kemal said on one occasion that:
"We must liberate our concepts of justice, our laws and our legal institutions from the bonds which, even though they're incompatible with the needs of our century, still hold a tight grip on us." Mustafa Kemal recognized the need of time to establish the structures of civic law. New judges had to be trained, new institutions had to be established. Under these conditions, the inclusion of the principle of
laïcité in the constitution had to wait until
February 5 1937, just more than a year before his death.
Kemal wanted to solve the literacy problem. Literate citizens, who comprised as little as 10% of the population, used the
Ottoman Language written in
Arabic script with Arabic and Persian loan vocabulary..
On
August 11,
1930, Mustafa Kemal decided to try a
multi-party system once again. He assigned
Ali Fethi Okyar to establish a new party. In his letter to Ali Fethi Okyar,
laïcité was insisted on. At first, the brand-new
Liberal Republican Party succeeded all around the country. But once again the opposition party became the center for those who were against Atatürk's reforms, particularly regarding the role of religion in public life. Finally, seeing the threat of rising Islamic fundamentalism and being a staunch supporter of Atatürk's reforms himself, Ali Fethi Okyar decided to close the party and Mustafa Kemal never succeeded in establishing a long lasting multi-party parliamentary system.
Another important part of Mustafa Kemal's emphasis was on establishing institutions to advance Turkish language and history. The establishment of the
Turkish Language Association was archived in 1931 for conducting research works on
Turkish language. The establishment of the
Turkish Historical Society was archived in 1932 for conducting research works on
history. Many teachers were employed in Turkish History and Language Institutions. Mustafa Kemal declared that the advancement of education called for the endeavors of the private sector and he summoned society to take part in the effort. Kemal established the
Turkish Education Association on January 1st, 1928
Kemal personally engaged with the translation of scientific terminology. Kemal wanted the Turkish language reform based on a methodological base. The Turkish language has an integral structure and without modelling this structure any attempt to 'clean' the Turkish language from foreign influence was inherently wrong for him. Mustafa Kemal personally engaged with the
Sun Language Theory, which was a
linguistic theory proposing that all human
languages are descendants of one
Central Asian primal language. Kemal's interest started with the works by the
French scientist Hilaire de Baranton entitled "
L'Origine des Langues, des Religions et des Peuples", that all languages originated from
hieroglyphs and
cuneiform used by
Sumerians and the paper of
Austrian linguist Dr. Hermann F. Kvergić of
Vienna entitled "
La psychologie de quelques elements des langues Turques" ["thepsychology of some elements of the
Turkic Languages"]. Kemal introduced the Sun Language Theory into Turkish political and educational circles in
1935, at the high point of attempts to 'cleanse' the Turkish language of foreign influences. After 1936, Kemal saw the extremist aspects of the purification campaign and corrected them Even though, at times, he didn't appear to be a democrat in his actions, Atatürk always supported the idea of eventually building a democratic state. In one of his many speeches about the importance of democracy, Mustafa Kemal said in the year 1933:
"Republic means the democratic administration of the state. We founded the Republic, reaching its tenth year it should enforce all the requirements of democracy as the time comes."
Foreign policies
Kemal's foreign policy was aligned with his motto “peace at home and peace in the world.” Kemal's perception of peace wasn't simply the absence of war but linked to his project of civilization and modernization. The base and the expected outcome(s) of Kemal's policies depended on the power of the parliamentary sovereignty (justice, moral superiority, and social structure of the nation) that was established by the Republic. The Turkish War of Independence was the last time Kemal used his military might in dealing with other countries. The foreign issues were resolved by peaceful methods during his presidency.
Issue of Mosul
The "Issue of Mosul" was a dispute over the control of the
Mosul Province with
Great Britain.
Mosul was one of the first foreign affairs related controversies of the new Republic. Some three days after the
Armistice of Mudros, General Marshall, following the instruction "every effort was to be made to score as heavily as possible on the Tigris before the whistle blew" from the British War Office, captured Mosul. In 1920, the
Misak-ı Milli, which consolidated the perceived "Turkish lands" based on a common past, history, concept of morals and laws, declared that the Mosul Province was a part of the historic Turkish heartland. In 1923, with the
Treaty of Lausanne, the arbitration of the
League of Nations over the Mosul issue was accepted. Mustafa Kemal tried to persuade the GNA that accepting the League of Nations arbitration didn't mean giving up Mosul, but rather waiting for a time when Turkey might be stronger. The artificially drawn border had an unsettling effect on the population. Later on it was claimed that Turkey began where the oil ends as the border was drawn by the British geophysicists based on the oil reserves. Kemal didn't want this separation. The British were in a precarious situation with the Issue of Mosul, and were adopting almost equally desperate measures to protect their interests. The
Iraqi revolt against the British was put down by the
RAF Iraq Command during the summer of 1920. Presumably, from a British perspective, if Mustafa Kemal succeeded in securing the stability in his side, he'd have turned his attention to recovering Mosul and penetrate into Mesopotamia, where the native population would probably join him, thus an insurgent and hostile Muslim nation would be brought up to the very gates of India. The British Foreign Secretary attempted to disclaim any existence of oil in the Mosul area. On January 23, 1923, Lord Curzon argued that the existence of oil was no more than hypothetical.
While three inspectors from the League of Nations Committee was sent to the region to oversee the situation in 1924, the
Sheikh Said rebellion, beginning in 1924 and escalating until 1927, broke out to establish a new government positioned to cut Turkey's link to Mesopotamia. The relationship between the rebellion and British support was questioned. The British assistance was sought realizing that the rebellion, or its expected outcome, couldn't stand by itself.
In 1925, the League of Nations formed a three-member committee to study the case while the Sheikh Said Rebellion was on the rise. Partly because of the continuing uncertainties along the Northern frontier [Northof Iraq], the committee recommended that the region should be connected to Iraq with the condition that the UK would hold the
British Mandate of Mesopotamia. By the end of March 1925, the necessary troop movements were completed, and the whole area of the rebellion was encircled. The revolt was put down. Britain, Iraq and Kemal made a treaty on
June 5,
1926, that mostly followed the decisions of the League Council. In 1926, Kemal faced growing opposition to his reform policies, a continuing precarious economic situation, and a defeat in the Mosul issue. A big section of the Kurdish population along with the
Iraqi Turkmens were left at the other side of the border. The Sheikh Said Rebellion hastened both the imposition of the Republican Party and the speed of Atatürk's reforms. In 1925, the population was largely illiterate and disparate, Turkey was in ruins, reconstruction was difficult, poverty was everywhere and people were in pain, which easily fed separatist violence. Mustafa Kemal attributed the rebellion to certain notables rather than a section of the population, who had been found guilty by the courts (kanunen mucrim olan bazi muteneffizan) and who used the mask of religion to conceal the interests of landlords, feudal tribal leaders and other 'reactionaries' on
March 7,
1925.
Treaty of Saadabad
One of the main goals of the Mustafa Kemal was to establish security and peace on the eastern border of the new republic. The states at the eastern border had high stakes in preserving their common frontiers, and consulting together in all matters of common interest rather than keeping the channels closed.
Treaty of Saadabad became the highest point in this goal.
Mustafa Kemal, who was implementing Atatürk's reforms, found a cooperative Afghanistan. Afghanistan was in reformation period with the
reforms of Amanullah Khan and civil war as part of
European influence in Afghanistan. However, during late 1920s Anglo-Afghan relations soured over British fear of an Afghan-Soviet friendship. Afghan Foreign Minister
Mahmud Tarzi, using Kemal Atatürk's domestic policy, encouraged the
Amanullah Khan's interest in social and political reform but urged that it be gradually built upon the basis of a strong government. The Anglo-Afghan politics gained a positive perspective on
May 20 1928, Amanullah Khan and the Queen was accepted by Mustafa Kemal in Istanbul. This meeting was followed by Turkey-Afghanistan Friendship and Cooperation pact on
May 22 1928. Mahmud Tarzi received Mustafa Kemal's personal support until died on
November 22,
1933 in Istanbul. Mustafa Kemal supported Afghanistan's integration to international organizations. Afghanistan joined the League of Nations in 1934 and its relations with the international community gained a huge boost. In 1937, King
Zahir Shah become the signature to the Treaty of Saadabad.
Mustafa Kemal and
Reza Shah had a common approach to international politics, especially regarding British imperialism and its influence in the region. This climate created a slow but continuous rapprochement between Ankara and Tehran. During the Turkish war of independence, both governments sent diplomatic missions and messages of friendship to each other. The policy of the Ankara government in this period was to give moral support in order to assure Iranian independence and territorial integrity. Mustafa Kemal feared the occupation and dismemberment of Iran as a multi-ethnic society by Russia or Great Britain. Reza Shah wanted to secure Iran's borders, so Kemal. Reza Shah visited Mustafa Kemal in 1934. In 1935 the draft of what will be known as Saadabad Pact was paragraphed in Geneva but the signing of it was delayed because of border dispute between Iran and Iraq.
On July 8, 1937
Saadabad Pact was signed at Teheran by delegation of Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan. The signatories undertook to preserve their common frontiers, to consult together in all matters of common interest and to commit no aggression against one another’s territory. Treaty united common points between the Afghan King’s call for greater Oriental-Middle Eastern Cooperation, Reza Shah's goal in securing the relations with the Turkey (a third force) that would help Iran free herself from Soviet and British influence, and Mustafa Kemal's foriegn policy based on common interest to secure the stability in the region. The immediate outcome, for Mustafa Kemal, was to deter Mussolini from adventures in the region. The pact didn't survive too long after Kemal and only four years after his death the pact died too.
Issue of Hatay
In 1936 Atatürk raised the "Issue of Hatay" at the League of Nations. Hatay was based on the old administrative unit of the Ottoman Empire named the
Sanjak of Alexandretta. On behalf of the League of Nations, the representatives of France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium and Turkey prepared a constitution for Hatay, which established it as an autonomous sanjak within Syria. Despite some inter-ethnic violence, in the midst of 1938 an election was conducted by the local legislative assembly and it was convoked. The cities of
Antakya (Antioch) and
İskenderun (Alexandretta) joined Turkey in 1939.
Economic policies
» For the conceptual analysis see Economic reforms
Mustafa Kemal instigated economic policies not just to develop small and large scale businesses, but also to create social strata (industrial bourgeoisie along the
peasantry of Anatolia) that were virtually non-existent during the Ottoman Empire. The primary problem faced by the politics of his period was the lag in the development of political institutions and social classes which would steer such social and economic changes. The Mustafa Kemal's vision regarding early Turkish economic policy was apparent during the
İzmir Economic Congress of 1923 which was established before the signing of the
Lausanne Treaty.
State intervention, 1923–1929
The initial choices of Mustafa Kemal's economic policies were a reflection of the realities of his period. After
World War One, due to the lack of any real potential investors to open private sector factories and develop industrial production, Kemal's activities regarding the economy included the establishment of many state-owned factories for agriculture, machinery, and textile industries. Mustafa Kemal and İsmet İnönü had a national vision in their pursue of the state controlled economical polices. Kemal and İsmet wanted to knit the country together, eliminate the foreign control of the economy, and improve communications. Istanbul, a trading port with international foreign enterprises, was deliberately abandoned and resources were channeled to other, relatively less developed cities, in order to establish a more balanced development throughout the country.
For Mustafa Kemal, as for his supporters, tobacco remained wedded to his policy in the pursuit of the economic independence.
Turkish tobacco was an important industrial crop, where its cultivation and manufacture were French monopolies under
capitulations of the Ottoman Empire. The tobacco and cigarette trade was controlled by two French companies the "Regie Compagnie interessee des tabacs de l'empire Ottoman", and "Narquileh tobacco." Ottoman Empire gave the tobacco monopoly to the
Ottoman Bank as a limited company under "
Council of the Public Debt". Reigie, as part of Council of the Public Debt, had the control over production, storing, distribution (including export) with an unchallenged price control and Turkish farmers were depended on the company for their livelihood. In 1925, this company was taken over by the state and named as "
Tekel." The second biggest industrial crop was cotton. Cotton planting during this period was promoted to furnish raw material for the new factory settlements in Turkey. One of these factory settlements was in
Nazilli. Nazilli beginning with the establishment of
Cotton mills and then followed by the first Turkish cotton print factory "Nazilli
Calico print factory (1935)" become a major center. The control of tobacco was the biggest achievement of the Kemalist political machinery's "
nationalization" of the economy for a country that didn't produce oil. They accompanied this achievement with the development of cotton related industry.
Atatürk considered the development of a national
rail network as another important step for industrialization, and this was addressed by the foundation of the
Turkish State Railways in 1927, setting up an extensive railway network in a very short time. The road network was 13,885 km ruined surface roads, and 4.450 km stabilized roads, and 94 bridges. This stayed the same until 1935. In 1927 Kemal ordered the integration of road construction goals into development plans. In 1935 a new entity was established under the government named "Sose ve Kopruler Reisligi" which will be the driving force of the new roads after the World War II. However in 1937 total roads inside the boarders were 22,000 km which were mainly a system to aid the railways.
There was a growing and deeply rooted sentiment signaling the need for a truly national establishment and the birth of a banking system which was capable of the financing means to back up economic activities, managing funds accumulated as a result of policies providing savings incentives and where necessary extending resources which could trigger industrial impetus, as a result with the initiative of Kemal the first Turkish bank
İş Bankası established in 1924. Kemal was the first member of İş Bankası. The
Ottoman Bank's role during the initial years as a central bank remained, however it was extended on a temporary basis due to the Kemals's intention to establish
Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, which was realized in 1931. Along the İş Bankası, banks like
Sümerbank (specialized in industrial agriculture products) and
Etibank (specialized in mineral and related industries) were also founded during this period.
The national group who had Kemal as the leader developed many projects within the first decade of the republic, but the Anatolian economy was based on agriculture, with primitive tools and methods; roads and transportation facilities were far from sufficient; and the management of the economy was inefficient. The Great Depression brought many changes to this picture.
The Great Depression, 1929–1931
The young republic like the rest of the world, found itself in a deep economic crisis during the
Great Depression: the country couldn't finance essential imports; its currency was shunned; and zealous revenue officials seized the meager possessions of peasants who couldn't pay their taxes.
Liberalization and planned growth, 1931–1939
The first two of "five year economic plans" were performed under the supervision of Mustafa Kemal. However, with the death of Kemal and the rise of
World War II changed the use of economic plans drastically. Governments from then on [deathof Kemal] began to take measures which harmed the economic productivity in various ways.
Mustafa Kemal had to deal with the turbulent economic issues with a "high debt" which was known as
Ottoman public debt. Turkish private business can not acquire-exchange credits and it was impossible to integrate Turkish economy without a solution. Atatürk pursued a treaty signed in 1929 with the Ottoman Debt Council. While paying the Ottoman debt, Kemal's economic policies got recognition by the very first foreign borrowing credited from a private USA company amounting to 10 million dollars in 1930. This slowly followed with the replacement of previously isolated-economic policies to the integrated economic policies. At Atatürk's request,
Celal Bayar became Minister of Economy and served from 1932 to 1937. Celal Bayar was a liberal economist who was raised from small a business practice who became a major industrialized player of his time. During this period of mixed economy with private initiative, textile, sugar, paper and steel factories as well as many industrial establishments, power plants, banks [suchas the Halk Bank], and insurance companies were established. On October 25, 1937 Mustafa Kemal appointed
Celal Bayar as the prime minister of the 9th government. Integrated economic policies reached its peak with the signing of the 1939 Treaty with Britain and France which signaled another turning point in the Turkish history. Atatürk supported the development of automobile industry that hadn't existed before. He didn't just want to initiate an industry but an industry that would be a center to its region. The motto of the
Turkish automobile association, as supplied by Atatürk, is, "The Turkish driver is a man of the most exquisite sensitivities." Atatürk realized the important role of aviation, summing it up in the words, "the future lies in the skies".
Turkish Aeronautical Association was founded by the directive of Mustafa Kemal, in 1925. Mustafa Kemal also ordered the establishment of Turkish Aircraft Association Lottery to found the projects. Instead of the traditional raffle prizes, this new lottery paid money prizes but the major part of its income transferred to establishment of a new factory. Kemal watched the first national aircraft (MMV-1) in 1932. Mustafa Kemal didn't see the flight of the first Turkish military aircraft build at the factory but soon after his death before the onset of
World War Two, American Curtiss Hawk fighters were operational.
During 1935, Turkey was coming up as an industrial society on the Western European model with the guides set out by Atatürk. In his death, most regions of Turkey had viable micro-economic stability and macro economic stability was in a viable state. The sign of sound economic policies were marked by the first-ever emergence of the local banks. However, the gap between Mustafa Kemal’s goals in his speeches and the achievements of the socio-political structure of the country wasn't aligned.
Women's rights
» For the conceptual analysis see Women’s rights
One of Atatürk’s goals was to improve the status of Turkish women and integrate them thoroughly into the society. He saw secularism as an instrument to achieve this goal. Mustafa Kemal didn't consider the gender as a factor in social organization. According to his view, society marched towards its goal with all its women and men together. It was scientifically impossible for him to achieve progress and to become civilized if the gender separation continued as in the Ottoman times. During a meeting in the early days of the newly proclaimed republic, addressing to the women, he declaimed:
The place of women in Mustafa Kemal's cultural reforms was best expressed in the civic book which was prepared under his supervision. Mustafa Kemal said that
Turkish legislators had accepted the Swiss civil code which defined the rights of women in a marriage as equal to those of men. The reforms instituted legal equality between the sexes and the granting of full political rights to women on
December 5,
1934, well before
several other European nations. However, the change wasn't easy. In the the 1935 elections, which was the last election Atatürk had the chance to observe, there were only 18 female MPs out of a total of 395 representatives.
Culture
Mustafa Kemal believed in the supreme importance of culture; which he expressed with the phrase
"culture is the foundation of the Turkish Republic." His view of culture included both his own nation's creative legacy and what he saw as the admirable values of global civilization, putting an emphasis on
humanism above all. He once described modern Turkey's ideological thrust as
"a creation of patriotism blended with a lofty humanist ideal."
In 1934, upon Mustafa Kemal's order the first ever Turkish opera work "Özsoy" composed by
Adnan Saygun and leaded by
Semiha Berksoy staged at the People's House in Ankara.
To assist in the creation of such a synthesis, Atatürk stressed the need to utilize the elements of the national heritage of the Turks and of
Anatolia, including its ancient indigenous cultures as well as the arts and techniques of other world civilizations, both past and present. He emphasized the study of earlier civilizations, foremost of which being the
Sumerians, after whom he established "Sümerbank", and the
Hittites, after whom he established "Etibank", as well as other
Anatolian civilizations such as the
Phrygians and
Lydians. The pre-Islamic
culture of the Turks became the subject of extensive research, and particular emphasis was laid upon the fact that, long before the
Seljuk and
Ottoman civilizations, the Turks have had a rich culture. Atatürk also stressed the folk arts of the countryside as a wellspring of Turkish creativity.
The
visual and the
plastic arts, whose developers had, on occasion, been arrested by some Ottoman officials claiming that the depiction of the human form was
idolatry, were now highly encouraged and supported by Atatürk, and these flourished in the new Turkish Republic. Many museums were opened, architecture began to follow modern trends, and
classical Western music,
opera, and
ballet, as well as the
theatre, also took greater hold. Several hundred "People's Houses" (Halk Evi) and "People's Rooms" (Halk Odası) across the country allowed greater access to a wide variety of artistic activities, sports, and other cultural events. Book and magazine publications increased as well, and the film industry began to grow.
Decree on dress
» For the conceptual analysis see Dress code
The Decree on dress targeted the religious insignia used outside times of worship. Kemal passed a series of laws beginning from 1923, especially the Hat Law of 1925 which introduced the use of Western style hats instead of the
fez, and the Law Relating to Prohibited Garments of 1934, which emphasized the need to wear modern suits instead of antiquated religion-based clothing such as the veil and turban. The guidelines for the proper dressing of students and state employees (public space controlled by state) was passed during his lifetime. Mustafa Kemal regarded the
fez (in Turkish "fes", which Sultan
Mahmud II had originally introduced to the Ottoman Empire's dress code in 1826) as a symbol of oriental backwardness and banned it. He encouraged the Turks to wear modern European attire. He was determined to force the abandonment of the sartorial traditions of the Middle East and finalize a series of dress reforms, which were originally started by
Mahmud II.
Religious freedoms
Atatürk effectively abolished the centuries-old traditions by means of reforms to which much of the population was unaccustomed but nevertheless willing to adopt. In some cases, these reforms were seen as benefiting the urban elites rather than the generally illiterate inhabitants of the rural countryside, where religious sentiments and customary norms tended to be stronger. In particular, Atatürk's strict religious reforms met with some opposition, and they continue to generate a considerable degree of social and political tension to this day. In the future, political leaders would draw upon dormant forces of religion in order to secure positions of power, only to be blocked by the interventions of the powerful military (as in 1960 when Prime Minister
Adnan Menderes was overthrown by the military).
In Mustafa Kemal's world there was no dualism. He enforced his ideas to full extent. According to Mustafa Kemal, a progressive nation also was progressive in understanding its belief system. Mustafa Kemal commissioned the translation of the
Quran into Turkish and he'd it read in front of the public in 1932.
Notwithstanding the Islamic prohibition against the consumption of
alcoholic beverages, he encouraged domestic production of alcohol and established a state-owned spirits industry. He was known to have an appreciation for the national beverage,
rakı, and enjoyed it in vast quantities.
Personal Life
Mustafa Kemal married
Latife Uşaklıgil. They divorced after 3 years of marriage. Ataturk adopted seven daughters and a son. In his leisure time, he enjoyed reading, horseback riding, chess and swimming. He was also an avid dancer and enjoyed both the waltz and traditional Zeybek folk dances. Ataturk published many books and kept a personal journal. The "
Nutuk," a thirty-six hour speech written and given by Mustafa Kemal to the Grand National Assembly over the course of six days that describes events leading to the formation of the Republic of Turkey, was first published in 1927 and then has been re-published several times.
During 1937, indications of Atatürk's worsening health started to appear. In the early 1938, while he was on a trip to
Yalova, he suffered from a serious illness. He was recommended to go to İstanbul for treatment, where he was diagnosed with
cirrhosis of the liver. During his stay in İstanbul, he made an effort to keep up with his regular lifestyle for a while. He died on
November 10,
1938, at the age of 57. Atatürk's funeral called forth both sorrow and pride in Turkey, and seventeen countries sent special representatives, while nine contributed with armed detachments to the cortège. On November 1953, Mustafa Kemal's remains were taken from the
Ethnography Museum of Ankara. Ataturk finally came to rest at his mausoleum, the
Anıtkabir. In his
will, he donated all of his possessions to the Republican People's Party, bound to the condition that, through the yearly interest of his funds, his sister Makbule and his adopted children will be looked after, the higher education of the children of İsmet İnönü will be funded, and the
Turkish Language Association and
Turkish Historical Society will be given the rest.
Legacy
Peace at home, peace in the world
Mustafa Kemal said;
"what particularly interests foreign policy is the internal organization of the state. It is necessary that foreign policy should agree with the internal organization." He eternalized this view with his famous motto
"peace at home, peace in the world." He worked to establish his vision, which was evident in his funeral. highlighting the mutual respect between the two leaders. Atatürk was visited in 1931 by General
Douglas MacArthur of the
United States, during which the two exchanged their views on the state of affairs in Europe which would eventually lead to the outbreak of
World War II. MacArthur expressed his admiration of Atatürk on many occasions and stated that he
"takes great pride in being one of Atatürk's loyal friends."
Turkey
His successor, İsmet İnönü, fostered a posthumous Atatürk
personality cult which has survived to this day, even after Atatürk's own Republican People's Party lost power following democratic elections in 1950. Atatürk's face and name are seen and heard everywhere in Turkey: his portrait can be seen in all public buildings, in schools, in all kinds of school books, on all
Turkish banknotes, and in the homes of many Turkish families. Even after so many years, on
November 10, at 09:05 a.m. (the exact time of his death), almost all vehicles and people in the country's streets will pause for one minute in remembrance of Atatürk's memory.
He is commemorated by many memorials throughout Turkey, such as the
Atatürk International Airport in
Istanbul,
Atatürk Bridge over the
Golden Horn (Haliç),
Atatürk Dam,
Atatürk Stadium, and
Anıtkabir, the mausoleum where he's now buried. Giant Atatürk statues loom over
Istanbul and other Turkish cities, and practically any larger settlement has its own memorial to him. In 1981, the Turkish Parliament issued a law (5816) outlawing insults to his legacy or attacks to objects representing him.
Worldwide
In 1981, the centennial of Atatürk's birth, the memory of Atatürk was honored by the
United Nations and
UNESCO, which declared it
The Atatürk Year in the World and adopted the
Resolution on the Atatürk Centennial.
There are several memorials to Atatürk internationally. The Atatürk Memorial in
Wellington,
New Zealand (which also serves as a memorial to the ANZAC troops who died at Gallipoli); the
Atatürk Memorial in the place of honour on ANZAC drive in
Canberra,
Australia; the Atatürk Forest in
Israel; and the Atatürk Square in
Rome,
Italy, are only a few examples. He has roads named after him in several countries, like Kemal Atatürk Avenue in
Dhaka,
Bangladesh, the Atatürk Avenue in the heart of
Islamabad in
Pakistan, and Mustafá Kemal Ataturk street in the central and upscale Naco district of
Santo Domingo,
Dominican Republic. His statues have been erected in numerous parks, streets and squares of many different countries in the world. The famous
Madame Tussauds Museum in
London has a wax statue of Atatürk.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Mustafa Kemal Pasha'.
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