toobservedisciplineandpunctuality.²⁶¹ThustheTurkishnationhadallthepre-
requisitesforformingamodernarmy.Itmerelyhadtoadaptsomesmallthings
fromtheGermansystem.
Inhisthirdarticle,Erenconcentratedonhisimpressionsfromaheavyma-
chineguncompanyfieldexercise.Forthis purpose,hedirectlyquotedthe
speechoftheGermaninstructor(8thcompanyoftheInfantryRegiment 67 )in
Berlin-Spandau.Indoingso,Erenintendedtogiveakindofcompendiumfor
Turkishdrillinstructors.²⁶²
Eren’slastsentencehintedattherealityintheGermaninfantrybyquoting
thecompanycommander:“ThismydearErenismyprinciple.ThemoreImake
thesoldiersoccupiedandtiredthebetteritisformeandthem!”²⁶³TheTurkish
guestheldtheGermanarmyinhighesteemandignoredthedownsideofthepar-
tiallyunhumandrill.InsomeWehrmachtinfantryunits,therecruitswerebullied
andbrokendownpsychologically.²⁶⁴Moreover,thearmyascribedtotheracist
policyoftheNationalSocialistregime.Soldiersof‘Non-Aryan’decent,mainly
officers,wereexcludedfromthearmedforcesin 1934 .Activesoldierswerenot
allowedtomarrywomenwhose‘Aryan’pedigreewasuncertain.²⁶⁵Inhisexcite-
mentfortheGermanarmy,Erenturnedablindeyetothispolicy.²⁶⁶
However,thesearticlesservedasevidenceofEren’sexcellentknowledgeof
theGermanlanguageandhisadmirationfortheWehrmacht.Theywereoflim-
itedpracticaluseinTurkishbarracks.²⁶⁷FortheTurkishmilitaryenvironment,a
quitedifferentapproachwasproposed.Contemporaryconsiderationswhatother
Turkishofficersthoughtaboutadequatemilitarybasetrainingdeserveacloser
look.Accordingtooneofficer,soldiershadtobetreatedwithcareandshould
Eren,“AlmanOrdusundaNelerGördüm.No.2,” 156 – 157 .Theastonishmentatthoselinesis
comparabletoLieutenantMustafa’samazement;cf.Mustafa,“AlmanOrdu’daMüşahedatım,”
386 – 38 7.
AsimEren,“AlmanAğırMakinalıtüfekBölüğündeBirTatbikatGünü”[AManeuverDayina
GermanHeavyMachineGunCompany],PM 12 – 101 (1937),3 5 – 54.
Eren,“AlmanAğırMakinalıtüfekBölüğündeBirTatbikatGünü.” 54.
HansJoachimSchröder,“‘MankamsichdavorwieeinStückDreck.ʼSchikaneinderMil-
itärausbildungdesDrittenReichs,”inDerKriegdeskleinenMannes:EineMilitärgeschichtevon
unten,ed.WolframWette(Munich:Piper,1 99 2),1 83 – 198.
Absolon,DieWehrmachtimDrittenReich,vol.1, 154.
Yet“[...]itissafetosuggestthatthesympathiesofmanyTurkishofficerslaywiththeGer-
manapproachtonationalandmilitarypreparation,eveniftheydidnotnecessarilyagreewith
thedetailsoftheNaziideology.”Sencer,OrderandInsecurityinGermanyandTurkey,63.
SeethemuchmorepracticalguidanceinTevfik,“TalimveTerbiyedeBuldurmaUsulü”[The
‘let-the-soldier-find-out-the-right-answer-himself’MethodinTrainingandEducation],PM 10 – 91
(1934), 18 – 35.
220 4German-TurkishMilitaryCooperationafter 1918