A Profile of a Hero

If you didn't know before it won't be long before you learn something about the 'Father of the Türks,' MUSTAFA KEMAL ATATÜRK. His portrait, bust or statue is in all civil buildings and parks, and many private businesses also proudly hang up a portrait. And yet this man died nearly fifty years ago on 10th November 1938.

He was a man of incredible foresight and intelligence. It is because of this man and this man only that you see Turkey as it is today. Without his courage and determination Turkey would be like its Islamic neighbours, with less material and social progress and no democratic standing.

He was born in 1881 in Salonika, a city of Ottoman Macedonia (now the Greek city of Thessalonika) his family, minor Turkish bureaucrats. His teacher gave him the nickname of Kemal, meaning excellence, on noting his talent for mathematics. This name remained with him throughout his school, college and war days, until it was assumed to be his birth name.

He passed through the military academy and college with distinction, earning himself the title of ´hot head` from his peers when serving as an officer. By the time of the Battle of Gallipoli (1915) he was the promising Lieutenant Colonel everyone expected him to be. The successful defence is said to be his personal victory, his superiors having very little to do but sanction his strategic moves. The capital was saved from a British conquest and as a result Mustafa Kemal became an Ottoman folk hero.

His superiors were also pleased and promoted him to the rank of Paşa (General), however, they feared his popularity and strength and tried to control his 'dangerous element.' Quite rightly too as once the W.W.I was lost and the Empire was on the verge of collapse, Mustafa Kemal Paşa began his revolution to 'free' the Turks and their land. He started establishing resistance on 19 May 1919. Holding many meetings and conferences to rally the people, he began to initiate democratic institutions and held off several invading armies (French, Italian and Greek) all simultaneously and with severely limited means. He was extremely lucky to achieve his dream; many of his friends and advisers had been ready to escape but never himself, unfalteringly he proceeded.

On April 23rd, 1920, at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara, Mustafa Kemal was elected President and invested with executive power. The War of Independence was fought between June 1920 and September 1922, the Greeks very nearly reached Ankara, the nationalist capital, but were held back desperately. Then a year later the Turks began their counter-offensive and pressed the Greek armies to Smyrna (now Izmir) where the battle was finally won.

This victory made Mustafa Kemal even more of a national hero. The Sultanate and the Ottoman Empire were abolished, the treaties of W.W.I, which had left the Turks with virtually no country, were re-negotiated, Turkey was declared an independent state under the treaty of Lausanne and in 1923 he became the first President of the new Republic of Turkey. During his fifteen years of presidency he achieved great heights. Europeans no longer feared an invasion of Europe by the 'Terrible Turks;' the new Turks were positive, proud and modern in attitude. He introduced reforms and directed the country's development with outstanding ability.

Some of the reforms were:

• adopting a constitution
• abolishing polygamy
• in 1925, the famous hat law. Believed to be a mark of Ottoman backwardness he banned the wearing of the fez, announcing 'the headgear of civilised people' to be a western style hat.
• civil marriage ceremonies were made law.
• the studying of the Koran in schools was banned.
• Islam was removed as the state religion making Turkey a secular country.
• many city names were changed e.g.: Constantinople to Istanbul, Angora to Ankara, Smyrna to Izmir.
• in 1934 women obtained the right to vote and later were given the right to serve in Parliament
• the Arabic alphabet was replaced with a Latin based alphabet, changing the language in just six weeks.
• Sunday became the official day of rest replacing the Moslem Holy Day of Friday.
• in 1935 surnames were introduced, thus the name Atatürk 'The father of the Turks.'

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is undoubtedly the most exceptionally forward thinking leader the Twentieth century has seen. He was and still is cherished by the people of Turkey and so it was an extremely sad day when on 10 November 1938 at 09.05 he died in his room at the Dolmabahçe Palace on the Bosphorous, Istanbul. If you visit the palace you'll see that every clock in every room has been stopped at 09.05 in remembrance of him and every year on the 10 November at this precise time, the entire country stands still in commemoration to salute this great man.