UNIT FIVE ATATÜRK : THE FOUNDER OF TURKISH REPUBLIC THE INDEPENDENCE WAR 1 What do you think about the Armistice of Moudros? 2 How was the Ottoman Empire after the World War I? 3 What is the National Oath (Misak-ı Milli)? 4 What do you know about the Treaty of Sevres? 5 What are the qualities of great hero, Atatürk? 6 What do you think about the Turkish women role in the Independence War? 7 What brought victory to our homeland in the Independence War? 8 What was the role of well-organized army in the victory? 52 READING 1 Look at the picture of Atatürk. Answer the questions. 1. What does he look like? 1. _________________________________________ 2. What are his personal qualities? 2. _________________________________________ 2 Read the biography of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. While reading, circle the correct option. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was born in 1) Salonika / İstanbul. His father was Rıza Efendi, his mother was Zübeyde Hanım. They got married in 1871. When Mustafa Kemal was born, his mother was almost 2) thirty / fifty. She didn’t get any education, but she was a sensible woman. Mustafa Kemal was an energetic child with 3) blond / black hair and blue eyes. When he was 5 or 6 years old, he caught everybody’s attention with his cleverness. So, his mother and father sent him to school 4) early / late. He began his primary education at the local school but soon he started Şemsi Efendi School. In 1888 he had to move to Rapla to live on his 5) auntie’s / uncle’s farm because his father died. A few years later he came back to 6) Rapla / Salonika to go on his education. In 1889, he started Military Junior School in Salonika. Although his mother, Zübeyde Hanım didn’t give him permission, he attended the exam of the school. But he took the exam and passed it, so his mother said “OK.” to him. After that, he attended Monastir Military School. Later. he finished İstanbul Military School. Then, he went on his education at İstanbul Military Academy in 1902 and graduated there with the rank of lieutenant. He was reading the works by Namık Kemal and by famous French writers. He learnt French by himself. He 7) graduated / started from the Academy in 1905 as a captain. After his graduation, his first service was in 8) Damascus / Tripoli. He had a successful career after that. The Ottoman Empire declared war against the Allies Powers on November 11, 1914. He defended homeland against the British and French troops in the Dardanelles. Mustafa Kemal gave the Ottoman Empire a successful service until the end of the World War 9) I / II. Then, he started doing many things on the way to our independence. On June 22, 1919 he declared the Amasya Circular. He highlighted that the people’s hardworking and determination would save the homeland in the circular. Then, he held congresses in Erzurum and Sivas. On April 23, 1920 the Turkish Grand National Assembly met for the 10) first / second time and they chose him as the Speaker of the House and the head of the government. 53 On October 29, 1923 the Turkish Grand National Assembly declared the Republic of Turkey and voted for Mustafa Kemal as its first president. In 1934, the Grand National Assembly 11) gave / took him the surname Atatürk with the Family Surname Law. Atatürk was a great hero. He was a great lover of nature; a good horse-rider and swimmer. He was trendy and neat. He was determined, persistent and self-sacrificing. He died of liver disease in Dolmabahçe Palace in 12) November / December in 1938. 3 Read the text again. Write T for true or F for false statements. 1. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk graduated from a local primary school. __________ 2. His mother was a sensitive woman. __________ 3. His father died when he was a child. __________ 4. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk didn’t get his mother’s permission when he took the exam of Military Junior School. __________ 5. He declared the Amasya Circular after Erzurum and Sivas Congresses. __________ 6. He gave a good service to the Ottoman Empire until the end of the World War I. __________ 7. He founded the Turkish Republic on October 29, 1920. __________ 8. He was staying in Dolmabahçe Palace when he died. __________ 4 Read the text. Find Atatürk’s personal qualities mentioned in Atatürk’s biography. List his personal qualities. When the Independence War started, they told Atatürk: — How will it be possible? We have no army! Atatürk replied soon: — We can settle it. — But we need money for this... We haven’t got any. — We can find money. — Imagine we have money, our enemies are both stronger and bigger! — They can be, but we can defeat. He did all what he said. He never told anything he couldn’t do. Atatürk’s Personal Qualities 1. __________________________________________________________________________________ 2. __________________________________________________________________________________ 3. __________________________________________________________________________________ 5 Work in pairs. Ask and answer the question. Discuss. Which personal qualities of Atatürk helped him to get success? 54 LISTENING 6 Look at the pictures in the activity 8. Work in groups. Discuss. Then write the answers. 1. What do they remind you? 1. _________________________________________ 2. Do you know the history of your country? 2. _________________________________________ 3. What makes you proud in your history? 3. _________________________________________ 4. Who is your great hero in your recent history? 4. _________________________________________ 5. What qualities should a hero have? 5. _________________________________________ 6. What disadvantages has a war got? 6. _________________________________________ 7 Listen to the CD. Find what it is about. 8 Listen to the CD and put the pictures in order. a b c d e f g 55 9 Listen to the CD again and fill in the blanks İpek : Yes, my friends. I have a presentation today. I’ve prepared a slide show. It is my film for you. Look at these photos, please. What do they 1) ________ you of? Class : War. İpek : Yes. Today I’m going to tell you about my country’s 2) _________ war. After the Armistice of Moudros 30 October, 1918, the Ottoman Empire was too weak. With this armistice, Allies started to 3) _________ our country. Claire : Did they occupy İstanbul? İpek : Yes, On 4) ____________ , 1918 French Army entered the city. Then, the British, French and Greek ships came. Mustafa Kemal Pasha tried to meet the Sultan and 5) ____________ politicians, but he couldn’t. He decided to go to 6) ___________ . Alan : What did the people do against the Allies? İpek : They 7) ______________ them. They had meetings and sent telegraphs to them. Hasan Tahsin 8) __________ the first bullet at a Greek soldier when Greeks began to occupy İzmir. Claire : Did the people have a well-organized army and munitions? İpek : Yes, we had two well-organized armies in May 1919. Allies got our munitions. But we 9) __________ took our munitions to Anatolia from İstanbul. Mustafa Kemal and his friends left İstanbul and went to Samsun. Susan : When did they 10) ________ Samsun? 56 10 Then, answer the questions using ‘and’, but’ and ‘because’. 1. What is İpek’s slide show about? ___________________________________________________ 2. What disadvantages did the Armistice of Moudros give the Ottoman Empire? ___________________________________________________ 3. Did the Allies keep their promise? ___________________________________________________ 4. Why did Mustafa Kemal go to the Anatolia? ___________________________________________________ 5. Did the army have enough munitions? ___________________________________________________ 6. What did the people do against the Allies’attacks? ___________________________________________________ 7. Why did M. Kemal call the governors and commanders? ___________________________________________________ 8. When did he open the Grand National Assembly? ___________________________________________________ 11 Work in pairs. What do you know about your recent history? Ask and answer questions about the Independence War. Sample Dialogue: S1 : When did the World War I break out? S2 : It broke out in 1914 and it ended in 1918. What happened, then? S1 : The Ottoman Empire and the Allies of World War I signed the Armistice of Moudros on 30 October, 1918, but this armistice led a new war. S2 : Why did it lead to a new war? S1 : Because the Allies occupied many places in Anatolia. 57 READING, WRITING AND SPEAKING 12 Look at the picture. Then, answer the questions. 1. Who are they? 1. _______________________________________ 2. What makes them special? 2. _______________________________________ 3. What do the medals on their jackets symbolize? 3. _______________________________________ 4. Have you ever met a veteran? 4. _______________________________________ 58 13 Read the interview. Who is Yakup Satar? What is he talking about? Find the answers. Peter is a journalist. He interviewed Yakup Satar before he died in September 2006. Yakup Satar : Those days were really tough. We didn’t have enough food, equipment and munitions in the fronts. We could spend a day with a few crubs of bread with a glass of ayran maybe. We heard the Armenians attacked Van, Bitlis, Erzurum, Kars and Nahçıvan, and the Turkish Army under the control of Kâzım Karabekir could defeat the Armenian. It was a big victory. The Armenian government had to want peace with the Turkish. The Armenian and the Turkish signed the Gümrü Peace Treaty on 2 and 3 December, 1920. Peter : Was it the first international treaty and political success of the Grand National Assembly, wasn’t it? Yakup Satar : Yes. Peter : How could your soldiers find the munitions? I know the Allies took your munitions and sent the army after The Armistice of Moudros. You got your own weapons out secretly from İstanbul to the Anatolia. How could you manage to do? Yakup Satar : Actually, all the people, from the young to the elderly, could carry the munitions on their shoulders or on their oxen-driven carriages.