---
title: "Turkish War of Independence Begins"
year: 1919
country: "Turkey"
canonical: "https://recap.at/1919/turkish-war-independence"
slug: "turkish-war-independence"
recapType: "global_event"
startDate: "1919-01-01"
---

# Turkish War of Independence Begins

> Kemal's nationalists torched the Ottoman order and built a modern state from the ashes.

After World War I, Turkish nationalists led by military officer Mustafa Kemal fought to resist Allied occupation and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. From 1919 to 1923, Turkish forces battled Greek armies, Armenian militias, and other opponents across Anatolia in a brutal conflict that killed hundreds of thousands. The Turkish victory ended centuries of Ottoman rule and established a new, secular Turkish state.

## Summary

The Turkish War of Independence began in 1919 as a nationalist uprising against the Ottoman Empire's collapse and subsequent Allied occupation. Mustafa Kemal, an Ottoman military officer, emerged as the dominant figure, organizing resistance forces and establishing a provisional government in Ankara that rejected the Sultan's authority in Istanbul. The war pitted Turkish nationalists against Greek forces (backed by Western powers), Armenian militias, and other regional actors, with fighting concentrated in Anatolia and eastern territories.

Kemal's Grand National Assembly, established in April 1920, functioned as both a legislative and military command structure. The nationalist forces gradually gained ground through 1920 and 1921, with Turkish victory at the Battle of Sakarya in August 1921 marking a decisive turning point. The conflict devastated the region-estimates place the death toll at 300,000 to over 1 million, including combat casualties, disease, and massacres.

The war concluded with the Treaty of Lausanne in July 1923, which recognized Turkish independence and established modern borders. This treaty superseded the earlier Treaty of Sèvres (1920), which the nationalists had rejected as punitive. The conflict formally ended Ottoman imperial rule, which had persisted for over 600 years, and established the Turkish Republic under Kemal's leadership.

The war's outcome reshaped the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East. Greece withdrew from Anatolia, and Turkey's Christian minorities were largely displaced through violence and forced population exchanges. Kemal consolidated power and implemented radical secularization and Westernization reforms, transforming Turkish society and governance in the decades that followed.

## Key facts

- **Start date**: May 19, 1919 (Mustafa Kemal lands in Samsun)
- **End date**: July 24, 1923 (Treaty of Lausanne signed)
- **Key leader**: Mustafa Kemal (later Atatürk)
- **Main adversaries**: Greece, Armenia, France, Italy, British-backed forces
- **Estimated deaths**: 300,000 to over 1 million
- **Decisive battle**: Battle of Sakarya (August 23–September 16, 1921)
- **Provisional government established**: April 23, 1920 (Grand National Assembly in Ankara)
- **Treaty recognizing independence**: Treaty of Lausanne (July 24, 1923)

## Timeline

- **1919-05-19** - Mustafa Kemal lands in Samsun
  Mustafa Kemal arrives in the Black Sea port city to begin organizing nationalist resistance against Allied occupation and Ottoman authority.
- **1919-07-23** - Erzurum Congress convenes
  Nationalist leaders gather in eastern Anatolia to coordinate resistance and establish organizational structure for the independence movement.
- **1920-04-23** - Grand National Assembly established in Ankara
  Mustafa Kemal's nationalist government convenes in Ankara, rejecting Ottoman Sultan's authority in Istanbul and claiming legitimate Turkish sovereignty.
- **1920-08-10** - Treaty of Sèvres signed
  Ottoman government signs punitive treaty with Allies that nationalists reject as unacceptable; territorial losses fuel continued resistance.
- **1921-01-28** - First battle of İnönü
  Turkish nationalist forces defeat Greek army in western Anatolia, providing early military success and boosting nationalist morale.
- **1921-08-23** - Battle of Sakarya begins
  Turkish forces under Kemal engage Greek army in decisive battle lasting nearly a month; Turkish victory marks major turning point in war.
- **1922-09-09** - Great Offensive succeeds
  Turkish nationalist forces capture Smyrna (İzmir) from Greek occupation, effectively ending Greek military presence in Anatolia.
- **1923-07-24** - Treaty of Lausanne signed
  International treaty recognizes Turkish independence, establishes modern Turkish borders, and supersedes Treaty of Sèvres; war formally concludes.
- **1923-10-29** - Turkish Republic proclaimed
  Mustafa Kemal's Grand National Assembly formally abolishes Ottoman sultanate and declares Turkey a republic with Kemal as president.

## Relationships

- **responded to**: treaty-of-versailles - The Treaty of Versailles (June 1919) imposed harsh terms on Ottoman Empire; Turkish nationalists rejected the sultanate's acceptance and launched war in May 1919 to prevent implementation of partition clauses that dismembered Anatolia.
- **happened during**: october-revolution-1917 - Soviet Russia's seizure of power and withdrawal from WWI created a power vacuum in the Caucasus and eastern Anatolia; Kemal exploited this by securing Soviet military support and avoiding simultaneous conflict on the eastern frontier during 1919–1923.
- **responded to**: league-of-nations-established - The League of Nations (established 1920) initially sanctioned Ottoman partition and Allied occupation; Turkish nationalist war effectively repudiated League authority over Anatolia and forced renegotiation at Lausanne outside League framework.

## Consequences

- **1923 - Treaty of Lausanne Signed**: Replaced the punitive Treaty of Sèvres; recognized Turkish independence and established borders that remain largely unchanged today. Kemal secured international legitimacy and the evacuation of Allied forces.
- **1923 - Turkish Republic Proclaimed**: Mustafa Kemal abolished the Ottoman sultanate on November 1, 1922, and declared the republic on October 29, 1923. Ankara became the new capital, symbolizing a break with Ottoman Constantinople.
- **1924 - Kemalist Reforms Begin**: Kemal implemented sweeping secularization: abolition of the caliphate, adoption of European legal codes, and replacement of Arabic script with Latin alphabet by 1928. These reforms transformed Turkey's institutional and cultural foundation.
- **1923 - Population Exchange with Greece**: The Treaty of Lausanne mandated compulsory exchange of Turkish Muslims from Greece and Greek Orthodox Christians from Turkey. Over 1.2 million people were displaced, reshaping demographics across both nations.
- **1925 - Kurdish Nationalist Movements Suppressed**: Sheikh Said Rebellion in southeastern Turkey was crushed by Ankara. Kemal's centralist vision eliminated regional autonomy, setting a precedent for decades of Kurdish-Turkish tensions.

## Then vs now

- **Ottoman Territory**: 1919: Anatolia occupied by Greeks, Italians, French, British; Armenian territories claimed by Soviet Union → 2024: Turkish Republic controls core Anatolia and Eastern Thrace; borders recognized internationally - War reclaimed roughly 750,000 km² of Turkish-majority land and ejected occupiers within four years.
- **Political System**: 1919: Ottoman sultanate and caliphate; religious law alongside secular codes → 2024: Secular republic with constitution; caliphate abolished since 1924 - Kemal's victories enabled institutional secularization that persists in Turkish governance frameworks.
- **Capital City**: 1919: Istanbul (Constantinople), seat of Ottoman power for nearly 500 years → 2024: Ankara, founded 1923 as symbol of national rebirth - The relocation signified complete ideological rupture with the Ottoman past.
- **Military Strength**: 1919: Ottoman army defeated and dissolved; Allied occupation forces present across Anatolia → 2024: Turkish military ranks among NATO's largest; 2nd-largest army in alliance - Nationalist forces rebuilt military capability from near-zero within three years of war's start.

## Impact

On May 19, 1919, Mustafa Kemal launched armed resistance against Allied occupation and the Ottoman sultanate's capitulation, setting in motion a three-year conflict that would birth the modern Turkish state and redraw the map of the eastern Mediterranean. The war shattered the 600-year Ottoman Empire, established secular nationalism as the organizing principle for Turkey, and demonstrated that a defeated power could negotiate its way back to sovereignty through organized military resistance.

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Canonical: https://recap.at/1919/turkish-war-independence