In one of the greatest defense battles in history, the Ottomans triumphed against enemies vastly superior in numbers and firepower with resilience and self-sacrifice. The Ottomans thwarted the British plan, leading to the fall of the Tsarist regime in Russia and prolonging World War I. We have highlighted key aspects of the Gallipoli Victory, one of the last major successes of the Ottoman Empire
◾ The Gallipoli Campaign, one of the last great wars of the Ottoman Empire, was a decisive battle— a life-or-death struggle. Losing the front line meant losing the capital.
◾ For this reason, the Ottoman army fought with determination, resisting to the last drop of blood and the last bullet. With their heroic efforts, the Ottomans inflicted a devastating defeat on the Entente Powers, who had underestimated them.
◾ The Entente forces at Gallipoli were not only comprised of British and French soldiers, but also thousands of young men brought from their colonies to fight in Gallipoli.
◾ Facing the last fortress of humanity, the Ottoman Empire, were thousands of Indian, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand soldiers. The fact that some Indians were Muslim added a personal tragedy to the battle.
◾ The attacking Allied fleet and army at Gallipoli had firepower thousands of times superior to that of the Ottomans, with bombs falling by the ton on every square meter.
◾ The ships rained death, and machine guns continuously fired upon Ottoman trenches. For the first time in history, two bullets collided in mid-air during the Gallipoli Campaign.
◾ Upon hearing that the enemy had reached Gallipoli, thousands of high school and university students rushed to defend their homeland without hesitation.
◾ In 1915, all the students who enrolled in the Medical School (Tıbbîye) became martyrs. Schools like Konya, Izmir, and Galatasaray could not graduate a single student in 1915.
◾ The land battles were fought on three separate fronts: Anafartalar group, North (Arıburnu) group, and South (Seddülbahir) group.
◾ Despite the enemy's superior firepower, our forces conducted tactical withdrawals but halted the enemy's advance through sheer determination.
◾ One of the most famous military units in the Gallipoli Campaign was the 57th Regiment, which resisted eight fully equipped enemy battalions with superior firepower, sacrificing many of its soldiers. Their heroism and willingness to face death have immortalized them in the history of the front.
◾ The enemy could not pass through Gallipoli due to the unmatched heroism and resistance of the Ottoman soldiers. Seyit Onbaşı is one of the first names that comes to mind in this regard.
◾ Seyit Onbaşı, who carried a 276-kilogram artillery shell on his back and used it to severely damage and sink a British battleship, became one of the first names associated with Gallipoli.
◾ The victories at Gallipoli were communicated to the world's Muslims via embassies, bringing immense joy to Muslims in Asia.
◾ The negative results of Gallipoli seriously threatened Britain's control over its colonies, prompting them to instigate the Hussein Revolt to weaken the Sultan's caliphate powers.
◾ One of the key factors in making Gallipoli impassable for the Allies was the precautions taken by Sultan Abdulhamid II. He had foreseen the looming global war and made preparations.
◾ Protecting Istanbul in the event of war was a priority for Sultan Abdulhamid II. For this reason, the cannons and batteries in the Dardanelles were renewed, and new forts were constructed, with the Hamidiye Battery playing a significant role in the defense.
◾ The defense of the homeland at Gallipoli deeply impacted our nation. Both Sultan Mehmed VI and national poet Mehmet Akif wrote poems dedicated to Gallipoli.
◾ Akif's famous poem, with the lines "You, who would turn to stone in the tomb... / Alas, this horizon will never come to you, this world won't accept you... / O martyr's son of a martyr, do not ask me for a grave, / The Prophet's embrace is wide open for you," was written for the Gallipoli martyrs.
◾ The Gallipoli Campaign, a proud resistance against imperialist, colonial, and brutal mentalities, was humanity's triumph over barbarism. The Ottomans stopped the shameless assault on Istanbul.
◾ The so-called "invincible armada," which could not reach Istanbul, would soon be sidelined as Russia, one of their greatest allies, fell from the war, and Gallipoli became one of the defining battlefronts of the 20th century.
