When Was The Republic of Turkey Founded?

The Republic of Turkey was founded on October 29, 1923 after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire following World War I. The founder and first president of the new republic was Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Understanding the history leading up to the establishment of the Republic of Turkey provides important context on this pivotal moment in the country’s history.

The Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was a powerful Islamic state that controlled much of Southeastern Europe, Western Asia, and Northern Africa between the 14th and early 20th centuries. It was centered in modern-day Turkey, with its capital in Constantinople (now Istanbul).

The Ottoman sultans ruled the empire for over 600 years. However, by the 1800s, the empire began to decline due to political instability, territorial losses and technological backwardness compared to Western Europe. A series of reform efforts aimed to modernize the empire but these were ultimately unsuccessful in reversing its fortunes.

The Young Turks and WWI

In 1908, a reformist group known as the Young Turks seized power from Sultan Abdul Hamid II and reinstated a constitutional government. The Young Turks entered the Ottoman Empire into World War I in 1914, siding with Germany and Austria-Hungary against Britain, France, and Russia

The war was disastrous for the Ottoman Empire. It suffered major territorial losses and went bankrupt. Arab provinces broke away and came under British and French control. Anatolia, the empire’s heartland, was occupied by Allied forces after the war ended in Ottoman defeat in 1918.

Turkish National Movement

As the Allied powers began to partition Anatolia, a Turkish nationalist movement emerged under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Pasha (later known as Atatürk). Kemal established a provisional government in Ankara and organized local resistance forces.

In 1919, the Greeks occupied Izmir believing the Turkish nationalist movement would be short-lived. This triggered the Turkish War of Independence led by Kemal against the Allied occupying powers. Turkish forces eventually drove out the foreigners and secured Turkey’s independence.

Abolition of the Sultanate

In 1922, the Sultanate was formally abolished by the new nationalist Turkish parliament. Sultan Mehmed VI fled into exile, bringing an end to the Ottoman dynastic line. The last vestige of the Ottoman Empire, the Islamic caliphate, was also eliminated in 1924.

Founding of the Republic

On October 29, 1923, the Republic of Turkey was proclaimed with Mustafa Kemal Atatürk as its first president. It was established in the boundaries of the remaining Turkish core of the Ottoman Empire.

Atatürk introduced a series of sweeping reforms to establish Turkey as a modern, democratic, secular nation-state. The capital was moved from Istanbul to Ankara, an interior city seen as more Turkish and better suited as the seat of government.

The Surname Law of 1934 required all Turkish citizens to adopt modern surnames. That same year, women were granted full political rights and able to hold elected office. State and religious matters were separated, removing Islam from public institutions. The Western calendar, metric system, and clothing styles were adopted.

One-Party Rule

Turkey was a one-party state for the first decades of its existence. Atatürk’s Republican People’s Party held power throughout the 1930s until his death in 1938. The party won multi-party elections held between 1946 and 1950, although these were criticized for irregularities.

In 1950, the Democratic Party won the first free elections, ending single-party rule. The transition to a truly multi-party democracy took time, however, hampered by military coups in 1960, 1971, and 1980. It was not until the 1990s and 2000s that Turkey firmly established itself as a functioning multi-party state.

Modern Turkey

The Republic of Turkey has become an increasingly influential regional power and an important U.S. ally in the decades since its founding. It has gone through periods of political instability, but has become more democratic over time.

While some leaders have tried reversing Atatürk’s secular legacy, the basic foundations and orientation of the Turkish state remain tied to its founding as a Western-modeled republic in 1923. The republic’s nearly 100 years of existence testify to the success and endurance of Atatürk’s vision.