The Military Career of Ataturk

This paper will discuss the military career of Mustafa Kemal, later known as Ataturk, during the First World War. The first part of the paper will briefly describe Kemal's life up until the war. The second part of the paper will examine the Gallipoli campaign, during which Kemal established his reputation. The third part of the paper will briefly describe his actions during the last years of the war, particularly his command of an army in Syria during the last month of the war. The basic thesis of this paper is that Kemal's reputation was based upon his accomplishments as a commander during the First World War and that this reputation was responsible for his rise to political power in Turkey. Consequently, this was one of the most important periods of his life since it defined his character to the Turkish people.

Mustafa Kemal was born in 1881 in the town of Salonika in Macedonia, a Balkan province controlled by Turkey. His father, Ali Riza, died when Mustafa was seven years old, after working as a minor government clerk and later failing as an independent businessman. Mustafa's mother, Zübeyde, was therefore one of the main influences throughout his life. A devout Muslim who had originally sought a religious education for her son, Zübeyde was the object of both devotion and conflict on the part of Mustafa. While he virtually doted on her when he was with her, he fought against most of which she believed,

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control of the Straits and to occupy Istanbul, thereby destroying Turkey's ability to aid the Central Powers. It was hoped, in turn, that the defeat of Turkey would weaken Germany's position seriously enough to break the stalemate in France and Belgium without having to mount a costly offensive. The brainchild of Winston Churchill, Britain's First Lord of the Admiralty, the operation represented an attempt to avoid or circumvent military confrontations with Germany in Western Europe by opening new fronts in Southern Europe and the Middle East. The initial bombardment in March, while a relative disaster for the Allies in terms of the men and ships which were lost, precipitated panic in Istanbul. Much of the government administration left, as did the families who could afford to do so. Those who stayed lived in a state of fear, spreading rumors as soon as they were created and numbly preparing for Allied occupation. The troops of the Fifth Army, while buoyed by the success of the coastal artillery, became almost resigned to the prospect of defeat as they awaited the expected invasion. It was into this situation that Kemal was thrust. As events turned out, he had two months to train and reorganize his troops before the A
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3020
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page)

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