This voice was the soul of this land for 13 years! The voice of Islam, but he came and strangled that voice. This is Turkey in Kemal. When the British, French, Italians, and Greeks were ready to pick at its corpse like vultures, Turkey was helpless. At that time Mustafa Kemal came and woke the nation and became the fate of Turks. But this was the same Mustafa who made decisions that shook the entire Muslim world. Mustafa was born in 1881 in Salonica, which is now part of Greece. His original name is Mustafa but later given the name Kamal by a teacher. His father’s name is “Ali Raza Effendi”. He went to military schools. In this shape, his early training, he graduated as a captain in 1905.
Role in the war of Gallipoli:
Mustafa achieved a historic victory at the Battle of Gallipoli. In World War I, Ottomans, Germany and Hungary were on one side, and Britain, France, Italy, and Russia on the other side. Everyone’s eyes were on the crown jewel, Istanbul. Only one power has the strength to take it, that is the British Empire. Britain landed a massive army on Gallipoli Peninsula.
Over 50,000 soldiers, Mustafa Kemal believed, the enemy would target two hills in the west. Without waiting for order, he took his division towards those hills where a small Turkish unit was retreating. They said they were out of ammo and the enemy was about to take over. Then Mustafa gave the historic order which is still taught in Turkish military academies.
“If you do not have bullets, you have bayonets, fix them and lie down. I am not ordering you to attack, I am ordering you to die. But by the time we die, enough time will have passed for our soldiers to take over from
This war continued till one year, but Mustafa Kemal’s army did not give even a single inch of theirland to the enemy. This victory made Mustafa a household name and called the “Lion of Gallipoli.”
Role in the War of Independence and Rise of Leadership:
After World War I, when the Ottoman Empires were defeated, he declared the resistance against the Empire and became leader of resistance. It is the beginning of Turkey’s War of Independence. It lasted till 3 years against the Greek Army, which was supported by Britain. The French on the other side, was Mustafa Kemal’s broken army which had former citizens and former soldiers. After declaring rebellion, Mustafa announced a new government in Ankara which was named the Grand National Assembly. The public of that time spotted not the Sultan but their general.
In 1922 the Greek army was about to reach Ankara. When the Turkish army launched a counterattack which is known in history as the Great Offensive. The Turkish army defeated the Greek solely by the power of spirit. After this victory, Mustafa tore up the territory of Severus and signed the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, and Turkey was formed which is known today. Mustafa Kemal was no longer just their general now he was Ghazi Mustafa Kemal Pasha.
Foundation of Political Party:
After the Turkish War of Independence Mustafa Kemal Atatürk founded his political party, the Republican People’s Party in Turkish language (Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi), on 9 September 1923. After the Turkish War of Independence, Atatürk believed that the new nation needed a modern and organized political structure. He first created the People’s Party, which later became the CHP in 1935. The party aimed to transform Turkey from an old Ottoman monarchy into a secular, democratic, and modern republic. Through this party, Atatürk introduced major reforms in education, law, language, women’s rights, and governance. CHP became the leading force behind Turkey’s modernization and the creation of the new Turkish state.
Founding of Republic and Political Leadership:
After the war, Mustafa took his first step. In 1922, his Grand National Assembly passed a law, under which the Ottoman Empire was abolished. Now, the Republic of Turkey would rule here to save Khilafat. Muslims of India started the Khilafat Movement to save their Khilafat. Finally, Mustafa’s party made the most controversial decision on March 3, 1924, and passed Allah, by which they abolished the institution of Caliph forever and expelled their Ottoman family. Why did Mustafa do this? Because for him Khilafat was a political burden and it does not hold political power to unite Muslims.
Vision of Mustafa Kamal:
He believed in Western-style nation-state. He did not accept the identity of any Ummah and religion. In his view, there was only one identity, that was truth. So that’s why he started work on completely removing Islam from state laws, education, as well as from public life.
Reforms of Mustafa Kemal:
- Established radical secularism in Turkey (1924).
- Replaced Islamic/Muslim family laws with the Swiss Civil Code.
- Abolished religious courts and closed madrassas.
- Removed Islamic teachings from school curriculum.
- Closed Sufi shrines (1925).
- Introduced the “Hat Law” (1926) banned the traditional Turkish “Fez” and promoted Western-style hats.
- Placed restrictions on hijab in public institutions.
- Replaced old “Ottoman Turkish script”, which used Arabic letters, with new alphabets based on “Latin letters”.
Results and Reactions of Mustafa’s Reforms:
Many people welcomed his reforms, seeing them as necessary for modernizing Turkey and strengthening national unity. On the other hand, traditional and religious groups felt they were disruptive. Despite their resistance, the reforms continued and reshaped Turkish society in lasting ways. Many protests were ruthlessly crushed, and key leaders were hanged.
Death of Mustafa Kemal:
Due to Ataturk’s habit of drinking, his health started deteriorating in 1937. His liver was completely damaged and passed away in November 1938 at the age of just 57.
Legacy of Mustafa Kemal:
His legacy is a divided nation, and his reforms gave birth to such a country which is now fighting with itself after 100 years, where on one side is modern secular, western-style elite which considers Ataturk a saviour. On the other hand, the huge population believes that he snatched away their Islamic identity and values.
