TillArmisticedouspart:TheEnd, 1918
InadditiontothedarkesthoursoftheGerman-Ottomanallianceinthelast
phaseofthewar,thestrategicsituationoftheCentralPowersbecamehopeless.
AttheIraqandPalestinefrontsin1 91 7,theOttomanarmysufferedseveralde-
featsbythesuperiorBritishforces.TheGermanassistancecorps,theYıldırım
armygroupF,couldnotchangethedefensivesituation.Itscommandinggeneral,
ErichvonFalkenhayn,ignoredthefactthattheOttomanforceswerenolonger
abletoconductanyoffensiveoperations.Falkenhaynbelievedindefeatingthe
BritishforceswithhisGermanunits,supportedbythebattle-testedOttoman
troopstransferredfromGaliciatoPalestineforthispurpose.ManyOttomansol-
diersevadedservicebydesertingtheirunitsduringredeploymentthroughAna-
tolia.Inaddition,theOttomanofficercorpswasoutragedbythefactthat 53 out
of 64 officersonFalkenhayn’sstaffwereGerman.³²⁸
ThereforeGeneralMustafaKemal,atthistimememberofFalkenhayn’sstaff,
complainedaboutthisunbearablesituationinareporttotheGrandVezier.The
OttomanforcesinPalestinewereunderstrength,andthemajorityofthesoldiers
wereeitherbelowtheageof20orover45yearsold.Henceforthnomoresoldiers
weretobedeployedoutsidetheOttomanEmpire.Thiswasanindirectcritiqueof
sendingofOttomansoldierstoeasternandsoutheastEuropeantheatersofwar
since 1916 ,whichhealsorepeatedonseveraloccasionsafterthewar.Falken-
haynwasnotinterestedinthefateoftheOttomanstate.MustafaKemalaccused
theGermansofhavingmadepreparationsforthecolonizationofOttomanterri-
torybyweakeningtheOttomanarmy.MustafaKemalconcluded:“Andforthis
purposeGeneralFalkenhaynwillemploythegoldonouraccountandthelast
TurkishbloodbroughtfromAnatolia.”³²⁹
MustafaKemalresigned,sincetheOttomanleadershipwasnotinterestedin
changinganythingandtherebyprovokingtheGermanallyinthiscriticalsitua-
tion.TheassumptionsoftheOttomanGeneralprovedcorrectandinNovember
191 7thefrontcollapsedduringthebattleofGaza.BydecisionoftheGerman
HighCommand,FalkenhaynwasreplacedbyLimanvonSandersinFebruary
Afflerbach,Falkenhayn,4 74 – 47 6.
MustafaKemal’sreport,dated 20 September 1333 /1 91 7inAtatürk’ünTamim,TelgrafveBe-
yannameleri, 1917 – 1938 [AtatürkʼsNotes,TelegramsandDeclarations,1 917 – 19 38],ed.Türkİnkı-
lâpTarihiEnstitüsü,vol4(Ankara:AnkaraÜniversitesiBasimevi,1954),7.Forasimilarviewon
GermanwaraimsbythelastAustrianPrimeMinisterHeinrichLammaschseeStefanZweig,Die
Weltvongestern:ErinnerungeneinesEuropäers.2nded.(FrankfurtamMain:Fischer,1 98 2):298.
Lammaschwasharshlycriticizedforthisposition;cf.HeinrichFriedjung,“DieGegnerdesBünd-
nissesmitDeutschland,”NeueFreiePresse,17March1918,2.
TillArmisticedouspart:TheEnd, 1918 99