Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.html



Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
1st President of Turkey
In office 29 October 1923 – 10 November 1938
Succeeded by	İsmet İnönü
1st Prime Minister of Turkey
In office 3 May 1920 – 24 January 1921
Succeeded by	Fevzi Çakmak
1st Speaker of the Parliament
In office 24 April 1920 – 29 October 1923
Succeeded by	Ali Fethi Okyar
1st Leader of the R.P.P.
In office 1919 – 1938
Succeeded by	İsmet İnönü
Born	May 19, 1881(1881-05-19) Selânik (Thessaloniki)
Died	10 November 1938 (aged 57) Dolmabahçe Palace, İstanbul
Nationality	Turkish
Political party	Republican People's Party
Spouse	Lâtife Uşaklıgil (1923–25)
Religion	Muslim
Signature

Military Service	Ottoman Empire (1893 - 8 July 1919) Turkey (9 July 1919 - 30 June 1927)
Branch	Army
Rank	Ottoman Empire: General Republic of Turkey: Mareşal
Unit
Commands	19th Division - XVI corps - 2nd Army - 7th Army - Thunder Groups Command
Battles/wars	Tobruk - Anzac Cove - Chunuk Bair - Scimitar Hill - Sari Bair - Bitlis - Sakarya - Dumlupınar -
Awards	List (24 medals)
Graphical Timeline Detailed Chronology

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (19 May 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, and founder of the Republic of Turkey as well as its first President.

Mustafa Kemal established himself as an intelligent 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.¹ 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

Main article: Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's personal life

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was born in the Ottoman city of Salonika (Turkish: Selânik; 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.² In his early years, his mother encouraged Mustafa to attend a religious school (the Mahalle Mektebi (translated as Neighborhood School)), though a reluctant Mustafa completed only a brief stay there. Then he had a fight with one of his teachers and left home, his father had him go to Şemsi Efendi school,which gave modern education. His parents wanted him to have education in trade, but he secretly entered an exam for getting 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 Constantinople (modern Istanbul) and graduated in 1902. He later graduated from the War Academy (the Erkân-ı Harbiye Mektebi) on 11 January 1905.

Military career

Main article: Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's 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 the 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.

Mustafa Kemal in Gallipoli with his soldiers, 1915

The 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 5^th 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 14 January 1916.

He was assigned to the command of the XVI^th Corps of the 2^nd Army and sent to the Caucasus Campaign. The massive Russian offensive had reached the Anatolian key cities. On 7 August, Mustafa Kemal rallied his troops and mounted a counteroffensive.³ Two of his divisions captured not only Bitlis but the equally important town of Muş, greatly upsetting the calculations of the Russian Command.⁴ On 7 March 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.³ Mustafa Kemal had already left the region and was assigned to the command of the 7^th Army at the Sinai and Palestine Campaign.

He returned to Aleppo on 28 August 1918, and resumed his command. Liman von Sanders had lost the Battle of Megiddo. Nothing stood between General Allenby's forces and Mustafa Kemal. Concluding that he didn't have enough men to engage the British forces, Mustafa Kemal retreated towards Jordan to establish a stronger defensive line. He was appointed to the command of Thunder Groups Command (Turkish: Yıldırım Orduları Gurubu), replacing Liman von Sanders. Mustafa Kemal's position became the base line for the Armistice of Mudros.

Kemal's last active service to the Ottoman Army was organizing the return of the troops that were left behind the south of his line. At the end of the war, he was 37 years old. Mustafa Kemal returned to an occupied Constantinople on 13 November 1918. Along the established lines of partitioning of the Ottoman Empire, British, Italian, French and Greek forces began to occupy Anatolia. The occupation of Constantinople along with the occupation of İzmir mobilized the establishment of the Turkish national movement and the Turkish War of Independence.⁵

Leadership during the War of Independence

Main article: Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's leadership of the independence war

TIME 24 March 1923. Atatürk, the title reads 'Where is a Turk his own master?'

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 19 May 1919, he departed from the Ottoman capital 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 declared that the independence of the country was in danger. He resigned from the Ottoman Army on 8 July. The Ottoman government issued a warrant for his arrest. Later he was condemned to death.

Mustafa Kemal called for a national election to establish a new Turkish Parliament that would have its seat in Ankara.⁶ On 12 February 1920, the last Ottoman Parliament gathered in the capital. This parliament was dissolved by British forces after it declared the National Pact (Turkish: Misak-ı Milli). Mustafa Kemal used this opportunity to establish the "Grand National Assembly" (GNA). On 23 April 1920, the GNA opened with Mustafa Kemal being the speaker. On 10 August 1920, Grand Vizier Damat Ferid Pasha signed the Treaty of Sèvres. It finalized the plans for the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire including the regions 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 Army faced the Allied occupation forces and fought on three fronts: in the Franco-Turkish, the Greco-Turkish and the Turkish-Armenian wars. After a series of initial battles during the Greco-Turkish war, the Greek army advanced as far as the Sakarya River, just eighty kilometers west of the GNA. On 5 August 1921, Mustafa Kemal was promoted to Commander in chief of the forces.⁷. The Battle of Sakarya from 23 August to 13 September 1921 ended with the defeat of the Greeks. The Allies, ignoring the extent of Kemal's successes, hoped to impose a modified version of the Sèvres 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 21 November 1922. In accordance with the directives of Mustafa Kemal, İsmet İnönü refused any proposal that would compromise Turkish sovereignty,⁸ major matters regarding the control of Turkish finances, the Capitulations, the Turkish Straits, justice, and the like. On 24 July 1923, the Treaty of Lausanne was signed. The final outcome of the independence war came with the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey on 29 October 1923.

Presidency

For conceptual analysis, see Kemalist ideology and Atatürk's Reforms

In 1930 leaving the parliament after the 7th year celebration meeting

The Treaty of Lausanne ended the Turkish War of Independence and recognized the new nation's independence. Mustafa Kemal was 42 years old when the Republic of Turkey was formed. 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 adapted according to the needs and characteristics of the Turkish nation. Highlighting the public's lack of knowledge regarding Kemal's intentions, the public cheered: "We are returning to the days of the first caliphs".⁹ 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.

Domestic policies

A basic political principle for Kemal was the complete independence of the country; the independence of the country was not negotiable for him.¹⁰ He was well aware that independence could not be maintained solely by use of physical power. He clarified his position:

...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."¹¹

—Mustafa Kemal

He led wide ranging reforms in the social, cultural, economical aspects, and as a result the new Republic's backbone of legislative, judicial, and economic structures were put in place.

Mustafa Kemal created a banner to mark the changes between the old Ottoman and the new Republican rule. Each concept was symbolized as an arrow. The fundamentals on nationalism, populism and etatism were defined under this banner. The new citizens of the Republic, who were just a couple of years ago the subjects of the Ottoman Empire, carried this banner to remind them about the major concepts of this new establishment. It become the defining ideology of the Republic of Turkey. It is referred to as the "Six Arrows" or Kemalist ideology. Kemalist ideology was based on Mustafa Kemal's conception of realism and pragmatism.¹² These fundamentals were not new in world politics, or among the elites of Turkey. What made them unique was that these interrelated fundamentals were formulated specifically for Turkey's needs. A good example is the definition and application of secularism. The Kemalist secular state significantly differed from predominantly Christian states.

Emergence of the state, 1923-1924

A political satire of the single-party period depicting Mustafa Kemal, the leader of RPP, choosing the party candidates for the MPs. In the single-party state, the candidates had only one party's (RPP) list to join.

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. In forging the new republic, the Turkish revolutionaries turned their back on the perceived corruption and decadence of cosmopolitan Istanbul and its Ottoman heritage.¹³ 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. He wanted a "direct government by the Assembly"¹⁴ and visualized a parliamentary sovereignty (a representative democracy), where the National Parliament would be the ultimate source of power.¹⁵ However, in the following years, He took the position that the country needed an immense amount of reconstruction, and "direct government by the Assembly" could not survive in this environment. 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,¹⁶ preventing the spread of totalitarian party rule which held sway in the Soviet Union, Germany and Italy.¹⁷ 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 to the instability of new ideologies and competing factions.

The heart of the new republic, GNA, was established during the Turkish War of Independence upon the call of Mustafa Kemal.¹⁸ 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.¹⁸ The GNA had the right to select and control both the government and the Prime Minister. The GNA acted as a legislative power, controlled the executive and, if necessary, acted as an organ of scrutiny.¹⁸ The Turkish Constitution of 1924 set a loose separation of powers between the legislative and the executive organs of the state, whereas the separation of these two within the judiciary system was a strict one. The President, then Mustafa Kemal, occupied a powerful position in this political system.

The single-party regime was established de facto in 1925 after the adoption of the 1924 constitution. The only political party of the GNA was the "Peoples Party" that was founded by Mustafa Kemal at the initial years of the independence war. Later it was renamed as the Republican People's Party (Turkish "Cumhuriyet Halk Fırkası") on 9 September 1923.

Civic independence and the Caliphate, 1924-1925

In 1924 during the Bursa speech.

Abolition of the Caliphate was an important dimension in Mustafa Kemal's drive to reform the political system and to promote the national sovereignty. Caliphate was the core political concept of Sunni Islam, by the consensus of the Muslim majority in the early centuries.¹⁹ Abolishing the sultanate was easier. 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. Kemal and İnönü worried that "it nourished the expectations that the sovereign would return under the guise of Caliph...²⁰ " The Caliph Abdülmecid II was seated after the abolishment of the sultanate (1922). The Caliph had his own personal treasury. It was not bound to the republican treasury. His personal service included 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.²¹ He wanted to integrate the powers of the Caliphate into the powers of the GNA. His initial activities began on 1 January 1924.²² He acquired the consent of İnönü, Çakmak and Özalp before the abolition of the Caliphate. The Caliph made a statement to the effect that he would not interfere with political affairs.²³ On 1 March 1924, at the Assembly, Mustafa Kemal said

The religion of Islam will be elevated if it will cease to be a political instrument, as had been the case in the past."²⁴

—Mustafa Kemal

On 3 March 1924, the Caliphate was officially abolished and its powers within Turkey were transferred to the GNA. The debate as to the validity of Turkey's unilateral abolition of the Caliphate was taken up by other Muslim nations in order to decide whether they should confirm the Turkish action or appoint a new Caliph.²³ 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.²³ Two other Islamic conferences were held in Mecca (1926) and Jerusalem (1931), but failed to reach a consensus.²³ Turkey did not accept the re-establishment of the Caliphate and perceived it as an attack to its basic existence; while Mustafa Kemal and the reformists continued their own way.²⁵

The removal of the Caliphate was followed by an extensive effort in establishing the separation of the governmental and religious affairs. Education was the corner stone in this effort. In 1923, three main horizontal institutions existed, which were closed to each other. It was unlike any other "Public school" system of today. The first and most common institutions were local schools and medreses based on Arabic, Koran and memorizing. The second were reformist schools of Tanzimat called idadî and sultanî. The third were schools educating in foreign languages, like colleges and minority schools. Under Kemal the old medrese education was modernized.²⁶ Mustafa Kemal changed the classical Islamic education with a vigorously promoted reconstruction of educational institutions along the line of an enlightened pragmatism.²⁶ 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.

Today, our most important and most productive task is the national education [unification and modernization] affairs. We have to be successful in national education affairs and we shall be. The liberation of a nation is only achieved through this way."²⁷

—Mustafa Kemal

In the summer of 1924, Mustafa Kemal invited American educational reformer John Dewey to advise him on ideas for reforms and recommendations aimed at modernizing the Turkish educational system.²⁶ His public education reforms aimed to enhance the public literacy and thus better prepare citizens for roles in 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. He 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'. The state schools, public education, established a common curriculum. The 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". With the new law, education became inclusive, and organized and operated on a deliberate model of the civil community. In this new design all schools submitted their curriculum to the "Ministry of National Education." It was a government agency modeled after other Ministry of Educations of its time. It established 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 the Caliphate. 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." It was not the end of religious schools. They were moved to higher education until consequent governments pulled them back to secondary education after Mustafa Kemal's death.

In 1925, Atatürk with his Panama hat just after the Kastamonu speech

In the fall of 1925, Mustafa Kemal encouraged the Turks to wear modern European attire.²⁸ 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.²⁸ Fez was established by Sultan Mahmud II in 1826 as part of the Ottoman Empire's modernization effort. The Hat Law of 1925 introduced the use of Western style hats instead of the fez. Mustafa Kemal first made the hat compulsory to the civil servants.²⁸ The guidelines for the proper dressing of students and state employees (public space controlled by state) was passed during his lifetime. After most of the relatively better educated civil servants adopted the hat with their own free will, in 1925 Mustafa Kemal wore his "Panama hat" during a public appearance in Kastamonu, one of the most conservative towns in Anatolia, to explain that the hat was the headgear of civilized nations. The last part of reform on dress emphasized the need to wear modern suits instead of antiquated religion-based clothing such as the veil and turban in the Law Relating to Prohibited Garments of 1934.

Even though he personally promoted modern dress on women, Mustafa Kemal never made specific reference to women’s clothing in the law. In the social conditions of the period, he believed that women would adapt to the new way with their own will. He was frequently photographed on public business with his wife Lâtife Uşaklıgil, who originally covered her head in accordance with Islamic tradition, but then threw off the hijab and urged Turkish women to do the same.²⁹. He was also frequently photographed on public business with women wearing modern clothes. But it was Atatürk's adopted daughters like Sabiha Gökçen and Afet İnan who provided the real role model for the Turkish women of the future. He wrote: "The religious covering of women will not cause difficulty ... This simple style [of headcovering] is not in conflict with the morals and manners of our society."³⁰

In 1923, with members of Mevlana order before its institutional expression become illegal and their dervish lodge into Mevlana Museum. The Mevlevi order managed to transform itself into a nonpolitical organization which still exits.

On August 30 1925, Mustafa Kemal's view on religious insignia used outside times of worship introduced at Kastamonu speech. This speech also had another position. He said:

In the face of knowledge, science, and of the whole extent of radiant civilization, I cannot accept the presence in Turkey's civilized community of people primitive enough to seek material and spiritual benefits in the guidance of sheiks. The Turkish republic cannot be a country of sheiks, dervishes, and disciples. The best, the truest order is the order of civilization. To be a man it is enough to carry out the requirements of civilization. The leaders of dervish orders will understand the truth of my words, and will themselves close down their lodges [tekke] and admit that their disciplines have grown up. ¹⁰

—Mustafa Kemal, Kastamonu Nutku

On September 2, the day Mustafa Kemal talk to the leaders at the parliament, the government issued a decree closing down the all Sufi orders, and the tekkes. Bektashis moved to Albania. Soon after in 1929, the Bektashi order hold their third Bektashi Congress in the southern city of Korca and decided to relocate the headquarters to Tirana. Mustafa Kemal ordered the dervish lodges to be converted to museums, such as Mevlana Museum in Konya. The institutional expression of Sufism was simply become illegal in Turkey, but the politically neutral form of Sufism, functioning as social associations, given permission to exist. The orders which can make this transform like the Mevlevi order still exits. After Mustafa Kemal's death, the 1950s government legalized the Mevlevi order as an association.

The abolition of the Caliphate and other cultural reforms faced with a fierce opposition. The conservative elements were not happy and they launched attacks on the Kemalist reformists.²³

Opposition, 1924-1927

Atatürk during one of his Anatolian tours

In 1924, while the "Issue of Mosul" was on the table, Sheikh Said Piran began to organize the Sheikh Said Rebellion. Sheikh Said Piran was rich, Kurdish hereditary, and chieftain (Tribal chief) of a local Naqshbandi order. Said Piran emphasized the issue of religion; he not only opposed the abolition of the Caliphate, but also the adoption of civil codes based on Western models, the closure of religious orders, the ban on polygamy, and the new obligatory civil marriage. Said Piran stirred up his followers against the policies of the government, which he considered to be against Islam. In the name of the restoration of the Holy Law using the Islamic green banner, Said Piran's forces moved through the countryside, seized government offices and marched on the important cities of Elazığ and Diyarbakır.³¹ Members of the government saw the Sheikh Said Rebellion as an attempt of a counter-revolution. They urged immediate military action to prevent its spread. The "Maintenance of Public Order Law" was passed to deal with the rebellion on March 4 1925, which gave the government exceptional powers. The law was repealed on 4 March 1929. The law included all the tools and authority to shut down subversive groups.

There were also parliamentarians in the GNA who were not happy with these changes. There were so many members who were denounced as opposition sympathizers at a private meeting of the CHP that Mustafa Kemal expressed his fear of being among the minority in his own party.³² He decided not to purge this group.³² A censure motion gave the chance to have a breakaway group. Kazım Karabekir, along with his friends, established the break-away group on 17 October 1924. The censure became a confidence vote at the CHP for Mustafa Kemal. On 8 November the motion was rejected by 148 votes to 18, and 41 votes were absent.³² CHP held all but one seat in the parliament. The majority of the CHP chose him against his critics regarding all the arguments.³² Mustafa Kemal said "the Turkish nation is firmly determined to advance fearlessly on the path of the republic, civilization and progress" on 1 November 1924.³²

On 17 November 1924, the breakaway group officially established the Progressive Republican Party (PRP) with 29 deputies. The first multi-party system began. The PRP's economic program suggested liberalism, in contrast to state socialism of CHP, and its social program was based on conservatism in contrast to modernism of CHP. Leaders of the party strongly supported the Kemalist revolution in principle, but had different opinions on the cultural revolution and the principle of secularism.³³ The RPR was not 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).³² These principles were set by the leaders at the onset. The only legal opposition became a home for all kinds of differing views.

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.³⁴ 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

—Mustafa Kemal

was regarded as a will after the assassination attempt.³⁵

Modernization efforts, 1927-1930

Atatürk contributed to the progress of his adopted daughter Sabiha Gökçen to become the world's first female combat pilot

Mustafa Kemal said

We must liberate our concepts of justice, our laws and our legal institutions from the bonds which, even though they are incompatible with the needs of our century, still hold a tight grip on us.³⁶

—Mustafa Kemal

On March 1, 1926 the Turkish penal code was passed. It was modeled after the Italian Penal Code. On October 4, 1926, Islamic courts were closed. Establishing the civic law needed time, so instead of insisting early on, he delayed the inclusion of the principle of laïcité until February 5, 1937.

He began to develop the concepts of his social reforms very early, as was evident in his personal journal. He and his staff constantly discussed issues like abolishing the veiling of women and the integration of women to social life. The Ottoman practice discouraged the social interaction between men and women aligned with the sex segregation and Islam. The clue on how he was planning to tackle the issue was stated in his journal on November 1915;

The social change can come by (1) educating capable mothers who are knowledgeable about life; (2) giving freedom to women; (3) a man can change his morals, thoughts, and feelings by leading a common life with a woman; as there is an inborn tendency towards the attraction of mutual affection.³⁷

—Mustafa Kemal

In 1927, during the opening of the State Art and Sculpture Museum

Mustafa Kemal needed the civil code to establish his second major step in giving freedom to women. First one was education of girls. It was established as part of unification of education. On October 4, 1926, the new Turkish civil code passed. It was modeled after the Swiss Civil Code. He did not consider gender a factor in social organization. According to his view, society marched towards its goal with all its women and men together. He believed that it was scientifically impossible for him to achieve progress and to become civilized if the gender separation continued as in the Ottoman times.³⁸ During a meeting he declaimed:

To the women: Win for us the battle of education and you will do yet more for your country than we have been able to do. It is to you that I appeal.
To the men: If henceforward the women do not share in the social life of the nation, we shall never attain to our full development. We shall remain irremediably backward, incapable of treating on equal terms with the civilizations of the West.³⁹

—Mustafa Kemal

In 1927 the State Art and Sculpture Museum (Turkish: Ankara Resim ve Heykel Müzesi) advocated by Mustafa Kemal opened its doors. The State Art and Sculpture Museum, like other institutions he supported, aimed to establish collections for inspiration and learning for society. He believed that "culture is the foundation of the Turkish Republic."⁴⁰ and described modern Turkey's ideological thrust as "a creation of patriotism blended with a lofty humanist ideal." He included both his own nation's creative legacy and what he saw as the admirable values of global civilization. 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. He instigated the policy of studying the Anatolian civilizations such as the Phrygians and Lydians, foremost of which being the Sumerians and Hittites. To link the cultural signatures of the past into public attention, he personally named the "Sümerbank" (1932) after Sumerians, and "Etibank" (1935) after the Hittites. He also stressed the folk arts of the countryside as a wellspring of Turkish creativity.

October 1928 issue of L'Illustration showing Atatürk introducing the new Turkish alphabet to the people of Sinop

On 24 May 1928, the Turkish alphabet was decreed replacing the Arabic script as an extension of Mustafa Kemal's solution to the literacy problem. Dewey noted that learning on how to read and write in Turkish with Arabic script took roughly three years on the elementary level with rather strenuous methods.²⁶ Literate citizens comprised as little as 10% of the population at the time. They used the Ottoman Language written in Arabic script with Arabic and Persian loan vocabulary.²⁶ The creation of the new Turkish alphabet as a variant of the Latin alphabet was undertaken by the Language Commission (Turkish: Dil Encümeni) at the initiative of Atatürk.²⁶ The tutelage was received from an Ottoman-Armenian calligrapher.⁴¹ The first Turkish newspaper was published with the use of the new alphabet on December 15 1928. Kemal himself actively encouraged people. He made many trips to the countryside in order to teach the new alphabet. The new alphabet adapted very quickly. Beginning with 1932, the People's Houses (Turkish: Halk Evleri) opened throughout the country. Older population received help at People's Houses. There were congresses for discussing the issues of copyright, public education and scientific publishing. The literacy reform was also supported by strengthening the private publishing sector with a new Law on Copyrights.

Mustafa Kemal promoted the modern teaching methods in primary education in which Dewey took a place of honour.²⁶ Dewey presented "Report and Recommendation for the Turkish educational system" which was a paradigmatic recommendation for an educational policy of developing societies moving towards modernity at the time.²⁶ Besides general education, he was interested in forming a skill base in the country through adult education. As mentioned before, his adult education ideas found their way in People's Houses. Turkish women taught not only child care, dress-making and household management, but also the tools which they could use to become part of general economy. His new "unified" educational system designated a responsible citizen as well as a useful and appreciated member of the society.²⁶ Turkish education become a state supervised system which was designed to create a skill base for the "social" and "economic" progress of the country.⁴² Turkish education became an integrative force, alleviation of poverty and force for a gender equality using female education.

During this period Mustafa Kemal constantly tried to generate mediums to propagate modern education. He instigated official education meetings named "Science Boards" and "Education Summits." At these meetings the quality of education, training issues and certain basic educational principles were discussed. He said "Our schools [curriculum] should aim to provide opportunities for all pupils to learn and to achieve" and personally engaged with the development of two textbooks. The first one was "Turkish: Vatandaş İçin Medeni Bilgiler" (1930). The second one was the "Geometry" (1937) for high schools. The "Vatandaş İçin Medeni Bilgiler" ("Civic knowledge for the citizens") introduced the science of comparative government and explained about means of administering public trust by explaining the rules of governance as applied to the new state institutions. His vision of education of the public while developing the functions and responsibilities of these new institutions was an extraordinary vision and a brave move for his time and context.

Opposition, 1930-1931

On 13 August 1930, Liberal Republican Party leader Ali Fethi Okyar, his daughter and Atatürk in Yalova

On August 11, 1930, Mustafa Kemal decided to try a multiparty movement once again. He asked Ali Fethi Okyar to establish a new party. He insisted on the protection of secular reforms. The brand-new Liberal Republican Party succeeded all around the country. Generally, a two party system becomes a dichotomous division of the political spectrum with an ostensibly right and left party, Republicans vs. Democrats. The system established became Republican vs Liberal Republican. Without the establishment of real political spectrum, once again, the party became center to opposition of Atatürk's reforms, particularly in regard to the role of religion in public life.

On December 23, 1930, Menemen Incident was a chain of incidents starting with the rebellion of Islamic fundamentalists in Menemen, a small town in the Aegean region. It was considered a serious threat against secular reforms.

In November 1930, seeing the rising fundamentalist threat, Ali Fethi Okyar dissolved his own party. Mustafa Kemal never succeeded in establishing a long lasting multi-party parliamentary system. The lasting Multi-party period of the Republic of Turkey established in 1945 and in 1950 the RPP released the majority position to Democratic Party. He sometimes dealt sternly with the opposition in pursuing his main goal of democratizing and modernizing the country. The issues did not resolve durably by dialogue which leaded to compromise and to mutual understanding. He did not compromise from secularism. There are arguments that he did not promote direct democracy by dominating the country with his single party rule. The reason behind the failed experiments with the pluralism during this period was that not all groups in the country had agreed to a minimal consensus regarding shared values (mainly secularism), which tie the different groups to society, and shared rules for conflict resolution (dominant form was uprising). In response to such criticisms, his biographer Andrew Mango: "between the two wars, democracy could not be sustained in many relatively richer and better-educated societies. Atatürk's enlightened authoritarianism left a reasonable space for free private lives. More could not have been expected in his lifetime."⁴³ Even though, at times, he did not appear to be a democrat in his actions, he always supported the idea of eventually building a Civil society. A system of totality of voluntary civic and social organizations and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society as opposed to the force-backed structures of the 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."⁴⁴

—Mustafa Kemal

Modernization efforts, 1931-1938

In 1931 at the establishment of Turkish History Institution

In 1931, for conducting research works on Turkish language Mustafa Kemal took the lead in establishment of the Turkish Language Association (Turkish: Türk Dil Kurumu). The institutional advancement of Turkish language followed by history. The establishment of the Turkish Historical Society (Turkish: Türk Tarih Kurumu) was archived in 1932 for conducting research works on history of Turkey. Many teachers were employed in Turkish History and Language Institutions. He declared that the advancement of education called for the endeavors of the private sector and he summoned society to take part in the effort.⁴⁵ On 1 January 1928, he established the Turkish Education Association.⁴⁵ Association become active in the field of education, supporting intelligent and hard-working children in financial need as well as making material and scientific contributions to the educational life.

Atatürk visits the Istanbul University after its reorganization

In 1933, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk ordered the reorganization of the Istanbul University into a modern institution and later established the Ankara University in the capital city to make sure that the principles that are the expressions of a modern society, such as science and enlightenment, are held dear and protected.⁴⁶

Mustafa Kemal personally engaged with the translation of scientific terminology.⁴⁷ Atatürk 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 Atatürk personally engaged with the Sun Language Theory (Turkish: Güneş Dil Teorisi), which was a linguistic theory proposing that all human languages are descendants of one Central Asian primal language. Atatürk'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 Sumerians⁴⁸ and the paper of Austrian linguist Dr. Hermann F. Kvergić of Vienna entitled "La psychologie de quelques elements des langues Turques" ["the psychology of some elements of the Turkic Languages"].⁴⁹ Atatürk 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, Atatürk saw the extremist aspects of the purification campaign and corrected them.⁴⁷

Atatürk at the library of Çankaya Presidential Residence in Ankara

Beginning with 1932 several hundred "People's Houses" (Turkish: 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. 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. Book and magazine publications increased as well, and the film industry began to grow.

The original print of the first Quran in Turkish language ordered by Atatürk.

In 1932, the first Quran in Turkish language was read in front of the public.⁵⁰ Mustafa Kemal commissioned a Qur'an translation from Elmalılı Hamdi Yazır into Turkish. His highest goal in the religious field was the translation of the Quran into Turkish.⁵¹ He wanted to "teach religion in Turkish to Turkish people who had been practicing Islam without understanding it for centuries"⁵¹ Turkish Quran was faced with a fierce opposition by religious people. The translation of Qur'an and prayers for centuries did not achieved for Turkish speaking people on the idea that they must always be in Arabic. It was only in 1935 the version read in public published in print⁵² However there was a polyglot (Arabic, Persian, Turkish and Latin) in tetrapla style of the Koran prepared by the savant Andrea Acolutho of Bernstadt and printed at Berlin in 1701, in foli.⁵³ This book is very rare. The rare translations was not accessible by public. In Mustafa Kemal's world there was no dualism. He enforced his ideas to the full extent. A progressive nation was also progressive in understanding of its belief system according to him. Understanding of religion was too important to be left to a small group of people. This included the central religious text of Islam. Besides all the opposition toward Turkish Quran, a survey established that Quran was translated to 102 languages by 1936.⁵⁴ However, it took Mustafa Kemal to bring it to Turkish language. There is a debate if the Turkish Quran is Mustafa Kemal's first. Arguments concentrate on the previous rare translations, which used a variant of Turkish language the Ottoman Turkish language, were understandable (accessible) by common Turkish people. His objective was to make it accessible and modernize (bring it to present). The debate on religious translations and modernization is not unique and the same arguments were debated up to 19^th century by the Christians of the Ottoman Empire during translation of the Bible in the modern Bulgarian language and its Macedonian dialect.

In 1934, upon Mustafa Kemal's order the first ever Turkish opera work "Özsoy" composed by Adnan Saygun and led by Semiha Berksoy staged at the People's House in Ankara.⁵⁵

Eighteen female MPs joined the Turkish Parliament with the 1935 general elections

On December 5, 1934, Turkey moved for granting of full political rights to women. It was well before several other European nations. The the rights of women in a marriage as equal to those of men was passed earlier with the Turkish civil code modeled after Swiss civil.⁵⁶ The place of women in Mustafa Kemal's cultural reforms was best expressed in the civic book which was prepared under his supervision.⁵⁷ Mustafa Kemal said that

There is no logical explanation for the political disenfranchisement of women. Any hesitation and negative mentality on this subject is nothing more than a fading social phenomenon of the past. ...Women must have the right to vote and to be elected; because democracy dictates that, because there are interests that women must defend, and because there are social duties that women must perform."⁵⁸

—Mustafa Kemal

However, the change was not easy. In 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.

Foreign policies

Atatürk's foreign policy was aligned with his motto “peace at home and peace in the world.” Atatürk's perception of peace was not simply the absence of war but linked to his project of civilization and modernization.⁵⁹ 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.⁶⁰ The Turkish War of Independence was the last time Atatürk used his military might in dealing with other countries. The foreign issues were resolved by peaceful methods during his presidency.

Issue of Mosul

During the visit of Abdullah I of Jordan

The "Issue of Mosul" was one of the first foreign affairs related controversy of the new Republic. It was the dispute with Great Britain over the control of the Mosul Province. General Marshall at Mesopotamian campaign 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 three days after the signature of Armistice of Mudros (30 October 1918) that ended the hostilities in the Middle Eastern theatre .⁶¹ In 1920, the Misak-ı Milli, which consolidated the "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. 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 Atatürk succeeded in securing the stability in his side, he would 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. In 1923, Mustafa Kemal tried to persuade the GNA that accepting the arbitration of the League of Nations at Treaty of Lausanne over the Mosul did not mean giving up Mosul, but rather waiting for a time when Turkey might be stronger. The artificially drawn border had an unsettling effect on both sides of 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. Atatürk did not want this separation.⁶² The British Foreign Secretary attempted to disclaim any existence of oil in the Mosul area. On 23 January 1923, Lord Curzon argued that the existence of oil was no more than hypothetical.⁶¹ However, according to Armstrong, "England wanted oil. Mosul and Kurds were the key."⁶³

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, could not stand by itself.⁶⁴

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 [North of 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 Sheikh Said rebellion was encircled.⁶⁵ The revolt was put down. Britain, Iraq and Kemal made a treaty on 5 June 1926, which 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.⁶⁶ 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 7 March 1925.⁶⁷

Relations with the Soviet Union

During a reception at the USSR Embassy in Ankara, on 7 November 1927

Mustafa Kemal wanted positive relations with his country's northern neighbor. Relations extended to the period neither the Republic of Turkey, nor the Soviet Union was established. He signed the Treaty of Moscow with the Bolshevist Russia. The relations were cordial but had a distinct character of the common interests. The basic character of the relations during Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's leadership of the independence war established on the fact that they were fighting against a common Enemy: England and the West.⁶⁸ He cooperated with Soviets during the war of independence in order to establish the new state.

“Friendship with Russia” said Mustafa Kemal, is not to adopt their ideology communism for Turkey⁶⁸. He declared: “Communism is a social issue. Social conditions religion and national traditions of our country confirm the opinion that Russian Communism is not applicable in Turkey.⁶⁹” On November 1 1924 in a speech “Our amicable relations with our old friend the Soviet Russian Republic are developing and progressing every day. As in past our Republican Government regards genuine and extensive good relations with Soviet Russia as the Keynote of our foreign policy. ⁶⁸”

The cordial relations were tested during the "Issue of Mosule." Curzon insisted during Lozan conference (1923) that Mosul belonged to Iraq, and it would be under British Mandate of Mesopotamia. In 1923, Kemal refused to accept this position, and on the same day signed a Pact of Non-Aggression and Security with Soviet Russia in Paris. This conceived postponing the issue to the League of Nations to be resolved in 1925. The Non-Aggression and Security with Soviet Russia remained in effect until unilaterally abrogated by the Soviet Union in 1945.

During the visit of Voroshilov