| Kazim Karabekir |
Article Index for Kazim |
Information AboutKazim Karabekir |
|
EARLY YEARS Kazım was born 1882 as son of an Ottoman General Mehmet Emin Pasha in the Kocamustafapaşa quarter of İstanbul , Turkey. He toured several places in the Ottoman Empire due to his father’s duty in the military. He returned to İstanbul in 1893 with his mother after his father’s death in Mecca . They settled in the Zeyrek quarter of İstanbul. Kazım was put into Fatih military secondary school the next year. After finishing his school, he attended Kuleli military high school, from which he graduated in 1899 . He continued his education at the military college in İstanbul, which he finished on December 6 , 1902 as the best MILITARY CAREER After two months, the junior officer was commissioned in January 1906 to the Third Army in the region around Bitola in Macedonia . There, he was involved in fights with Greek and Bulgarian guerrillas. For his successful service, he was promoted to the rank of a Senior Captain in 1907 . In the following years, he served in İstanbul and again in the Second Army in Edirne. On April 15 , 1911 Kazım applied to change his family name from Zeyrek to Karabekir. Until that time, he was called Kazım Zeyrek, after the place where he lived with his mother, a custom in the Ottoman Empire as family names were not used. From then on he adopted Karabekir, the name of his ancestors. Balkan Wars During his service in Edirne, Karabekir was promoted to the rank of a Major on April 27 , 1912 . He took part in the First Balkan War against Bulgaria n forces, but was captivated during the Battle of Edirne-Kale on April 22 , 1913 . He remained a POW until the Armistice signed on October 21 , 1913 . World War I Before the outbreak of World War I , Karabekir served a while in İstanbul and then was sent to some Europe an countries like Austria , Germany , France and Switzerland . In July 1914 , he returned home, as the signs for the upcoming of a World War were not inconspicuous. Back in İstanbul, Karabekir was assigned the chief of Intelligence at the General Staff. Soon, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel . After a short time at the southeastern front, he was sent to the Dardenelles . As commander of the 14th Division, Karabekir fought in the Battle Of Gallipoli in the summer months of 1915 . In October 1915, he was appointed chief staff officer at the First Army in Istanbul. Then, he was commissioned to Iraq i front to join the Sixth Army. For his success in military activities in Gallipoli , he was decorated in December 1915 both by the Ottoman and German Command, and was contemporaneously promoted to Colonel rank. In April 1916 , he took over the command of the 18th Corps, which gained a great victory over the British forces led by General Charles Townshend during the Siege Of Kut-al Amara in Iraq. Karabekir was appointed commander of the 2nd Corps at the Caucasia n front and fought bitterly against the Russia n and Armenia n forces almost ten months. In September 1917 , he was promoted to Brigadier General by a decree of the Sultan . Turkish War of Independence According to the Treaty Of Sevres , which ended the World War I, Ottoman Sultan Mehmet Vahdettin gave Karabekir the order to surrender to Entente Powers , which he refused. He stayed in the region and joined with his forces the Turkish republican movement led by Mustafa Kemal . On November 15 , 1920 Turkish Army under the command of Karabekir decisively defeated Armanian forces, and took the forts Kars , Sarıkamış and Gümrü back. He then set his signature under a peace treaty with Armenia on December 2 , 1920 in Gümrü . He was designated by the newly formed Parliament in Ankara to sign also the friendship agreement Treaty Of Kars with the Soviet Union on October 23 , 1921 . After defeating Greek forces in Western Anatolia, Republic Of Turkey was proclaimed. Kazım Karabekir Pasha moved to Ankara in October 1922 , and continued to serve in the parliament as Deputy of Edirne. He was still the acting commander of the Eastern Army as he was elected Deputy of İstanbul on June 29 , 1923 . Six months later, he was appointed Inspector of First Army. The parliament awarded him the highest Turkish "Order of Independence" for his meritorious and distinguished service in military and politics during the War Of Independence . He retired from his final military service on October 26 , 1924 . POLITIC CAREER Karabekir had difference of opinion with Mustafa Kemal about the realization of Atatürk’s Reforms , one of the most important being the abolition of Caliphate . Even though he agreed on the subject, he was of another opinion as Mustafa Kemal insisted on the immediate action. For Karabekir, the timing was improper, because British forces stood at the border of southeastern Turkey , claiming Kerkük in today's Iraq . Karabekir thought that the caliphate should not be abolished before solving that problem. Kurds , very radical at their Shafi - Sunni Islamic believes, began to rise up against the government, because they thought the government was about lifting the religion after the abolition. Struggling with this rebellion, Turkey agreed to leave Kerkük to Iraq, which was under the mandate of England . Such conflicts made Karabekir and Mustafa Kemal offended each other. On November 17 , 1924 , Karabekir co-founded the political movement "Terakkiperver Cumhuriyet Fırkası" (Developement Seeking Republic Party), and became its leader. After Mustafa Kemal blamed Karabekir because of the Kurdish Rebellion and the assassination attempt made to himself in İzmir , the party was closed on June 5 , 1925 by the government, and Karabekir was sued with many of his party members. Following these developments, all relations were broken between Karabekir and Mustafa Kemal. Karabekir retired from politics and devoted himself writing his memories on the Turkish War Independence and the reforms. However, all of his works were collected and burned. Karabekir lived under the pressure of the police and the government until the death of Mustafa Kemal in 1938 . İsmet İnönü Pasha, who was his close friend, repatriated him. In 1939, Kazım Karabekir returned to the parliament as Deputy of İstanbul. He was even elected president of the parliament on August 5 , 1946 . Still in office, he died at age of 66 on January 26 , 1948 in Ankara following a heart attack. Kazım Karabekir was succeeded by his wife İclal and three daughters Hayat, Emel and Timsal. The four-storey mansion in Erenköy quarter of Kadıköy district in İstanbul, where he lived almost 15 years under house arrest, was converted in 2005 to a museum. HIS WORKS
All books by Emre Yayınları and in Turkish REFERENCES
EXTERNAL LINKS |
|
|