A Changing TideAfter the War, foreign powers began seizing Ottoman lands, imposing unbearable terms. The Sultan began to comply. Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk) led the War of Independence (1919-22) to drive out foreign powers.
“The freedom of the Nation shall be restored with resolve and determination of the nation itself.” |
On April 23rd 1920, the Grand National Assembly (GNA) gathered, concluding they must "liberate the Sultan". In August 1920, the Sultan signed the Treaty of Sèvres with the Allies to divide Anatolia. The GNA renounced the treaty. The Sultan’s right to rule was discredited, and the GNA gained power.
After a two-year battle over Anatolia, all threats vanished. The War of Independence ended July 24, 1923 when the Treaty of Lausanne, which established the borders of modern Turkey, was signed. Free from foreign pressure, Turkey could focus inwardly to reform its society. |
Turkey alone of the nations defeated in 1918 was able to reverse the decision within a few years and to negotiate as an equal with the Allied Powers for a new peace treaty. She was not, like Czechoslovakia, a beneficiary of the Allied victory, nor was she, like Germany or Russia, inherently a great power which could be expected to grow in strength.
Roderic Davison, (1972; 172)