Turkish War of Independence

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The Turkish War of Independence (1919–1923) was Turkey’s struggle to form a new, independent state after World War I. After the Ottoman Empire lost the war, Allied powers occupied large parts of Anatolia and eastern Thrace. In May 1919, Greek forces landed in Smyrna (Izmir), which sparked a nationalist resistance led by Mustafa Kemal Pasha (Atatürk).

Kemal and his supporters organized the movement from Ankara. They held the Erzurum and Sivas congresses in 1919 and created the National Pact, calling for Turkish sovereignty and the unity of lands within Ottoman borders. The Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara, established in 1920, became the new, legitimate government, replacing the Ottoman government in Constantinople.

Turkish forces, first organized as local militias (Kuva-yi Milliye) and later as a regular army, fought Greek forces on the western front. They achieved important early successes at the battles of İnönü and, after a long stand at the Sakarya River, halted the Greek advance. In 1922, the Turks launched a decisive push, recaptured western Anatolia, and İzmir (Smyrna) was taken, ending the Greek occupation.

During the war, the Allies also pressed Turkish authorities with various occupations and plans for partition. In 1920, the Ottoman Parliament in Constantinople was dissolved by the Allies, and nationalist leaders were briefly arrested in what became known as the Malta exiles. The Turkish movement, however, solidified its authority in Ankara and pushed toward full independence.

In November 1922, the sultanate was abolished, ending the Ottoman monarchy, and the caliphate was eventually dissolved as well. The war ended with the Treaty of Lausanne (1923), in which major Allied powers recognized the sovereignty of the new Turkish Republic and confirmed its borders. The Republic of Turkey was proclaimed on 29 October 1923, and Mustafa Kemal Pasha became its first president.

The conflict also involved efforts against Armenian and Kurdish groups and in Syria, and it led to large-scale population movements and violence in the region. The war marked the end of the Ottoman Empire and the birth of a modern, secular Turkish state, setting the stage for significant reforms under Atatürk.