BAŞBUĞ

Atatürk, who served in the Ottoman army during World War I, was appointed as a lieutenant in the Çanakkale Front and as the commander of the Yıldırım Army Group in the Sinai and Palestine Front. At the end of the war, he pioneered and led the Turkish National Movement, symbolized by the War of Independence that followed the defeat of the Ottoman Empire. He established the Ankara Government during the Turkish War of Independence, and received the title of "gazi" on September 19, 1921, due to his success in the Battle of Sakarya as the Commander-in-Chief of the Turkish Armies, and was promoted to the rank of marshal. He won against the Allied Powers and their supporters with his military and political actions. After the war, he founded the Republican People's Party under the name "People's Party" and became its first leader. He was elected president after the Proclamation of the Republic on October 29, 1923. He held this office for four terms until his death in 1938 and is the longest-serving president in Turkey to date. Ataturk; He carried out secularist and nationalist innovations in the political, economic and cultural fields in order to establish a modern, progressive and secular nation state. Economic privileges granted to foreigners were abolished and their means of production and railways were nationalized. With the Tevhîd-i Tedrîsât Law, education came under the control of the Turkish government. Secular and scientific education was taken as basis. Thousands of new schools were built. Primary education was made free and compulsory. Foreign schools were placed under state control. The heavy taxes imposed on the peasants were reduced. Some changes were made to men's dressing gowns and clothing. Changes were made to the calendar, hours and measurements. The Mecelle was abolished and the secular Turkish Civil Code was put into effect instead. Women's civil and political rights were recognized before many Western countries. Polygamy was banned. Women's testimony and inheritance rights were made equal to those of men. Similarly, in Turkey, before most countries in the world, women were given the right to vote and be elected first in local elections (1930) and then in general elections (1934). Secular laws were put into effect in criminal and debt law. Industrial Incentive Law was accepted. Efforts were made for land reform. The new Turkish alphabet based on Latin letters was adopted instead of the Ottoman alphabet based on Arabic letters. An education campaign was launched to make the people literate. University Reform was carried out. The First Five-Year Industrial Plan was put into effect. Nicknames and titles that discriminated against class and status were abolished and surnames were introduced. Turkification policy was carried out to create a cohesive and united nation. The Republic of Turkey State Railways, Turkish Airlines, General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration, Hygiene Institute, Türkkuşu, Sümerbank, Etibank, Turkish Historical Society, Turkish Language Association, Presidency of Religious Affairs and many other public institutions were founded by Atatürk or with his support. It supported the development of domestic agriculture, textile,[5][6][7] machinery, aircraft[8][9][10] and automobile[11] industries. Despite all this, the gap between Atatürk's goals and the country's sociopolitical structure has not closed.