Happy 99th Anniversary of the Founding of the Republic

On October 29, 2022, the 99th Anniversary of the Founding of the Republic of Turkey, Happy Republic Day to the Turkish Nation. The 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Turkey in 2023 is of great importance for the Turkish nation. The Great Leader Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk declared 99 years ago on October 29, 1923 at 20.30 on October 29, 1923, "The most suitable form of government for the character and customs of the Turkish Nation is the republic." The Republic, an administration with high moral values and qualities, was proclaimed in the Grand National Assembly. With the victory of the National Struggle, a new era in Turkish history was opened with the proclamation of the Republic, which he kept as a "national secret in his conscience". It took its own will into its own hands by electing the people who would govern the state and the sovereignty unconditionally belonged to the Turkish Nation.

The first steps for the Republic were taken with the National Struggle. During the period of the National Struggle, while fighting for "Full Independence" against imperialism, at the same time, the struggle for the Republic, which was based on "National Sovereignty" against the palace / Sultan, put an end to the sultanate order that had lasted for more than 1000 years. When Ataturk crossed into Anatolia on May 19, 1919, he thought of "establishing a new fully independent Turkish State based on National Sovereignty". In the Amasya Circular; "The independence of the nation will be saved by the determination and decision of the nation". In the Erzurum Congress; "It is essential to make the national will effective and national forces dominant". The vital importance and value of the principle of National Sovereignty was revealed and the determination of the Turkish Nation to live free and independent was declared to the world. At the Sivas Congress, where the foundations of the war of independence and the Republic were laid; The National Struggle was launched with the motto "Either Independence or Death". With its decisions, the future regime marched towards the goal of "Republic" with the words "I was obliged to carry the great development ability that I felt in the conscience and future of the nation in my conscience like a national secret and gradually implement it to a whole society". On April 23, 1920, the Grand National Assembly of Turkey was opened in Ankara and "National Sovereignty" was realized with the decision "There is no power above the Assembly" and was established with the understanding of unity of powers. In Article 1 of the Constitution of January 20, 1921; "Sovereignty belongs unconditionally to the nation. The method of government is based on the principle that the people personally and actively manage their destiny". The Constitution defined the undeclared Republic.

At the abolition of the Sultanate on November 1, 1922, Ataturk said: "Sirs, sovereignty and sultanate are not given to anyone by anyone through discussion and debate as a matter of science. Sovereignty and Sultanate are taken by force, by force, by force. They seized the sovereignty and sultanate of the Turkish Nation by force. The Turkish Nation has rebelled against these aggressors and has de facto taken its sovereignty and sultanate into its own hands". With the abolition of the Sovereignty and the Sultanate, the Nation emphasized that it would take the government directly into its own hands. With National Sovereignty, the people were freed from being the servants of the palace and became free individuals of the Republic.

It was thrown into the sea in Izmir. In this process of the establishment of the Republic, the Turkish army won the Battle of Inonu, the Battle of Sakarya and the Battle of the Commander-in-Chief, the occupying imperialist states on September 9, 1922, the Mudanya Armistice on October 11, 1922 and the Lausanne Peace Treaty on July 24, 1923 with the states we fought in World War I, and Turkey's independence was accepted by the world states. On the night of July 7-8, Atatürk told Mazhar Müfit Kansu in Erzurum that it was time to realize one of his five main goals, which he wanted to be kept secret, that the form of government would be a "Republic". On October 13, 1923, Ankara became the seat of government of the State of Turkey. It was necessary to reveal the name of the existing regime with all its clarity and to elect the president of the new state. It was no coincidence that the Republic, the greatest revolution in Turkish history, was proclaimed 16 days after Ankara was chosen as the capital.

In the Nutuk, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk has put forward in an understandable and simple way the decision of the Republic, the emergence of the new state, which he called "My greatest work is the Republic". On August 9, 1923, at the opening congress of the People's Party, negotiations began under Atatürk's presidency. On August 11, the 286-member 2nd Parliament was opened and Atatürk was elected as the president. Upon Rauf Orbay's resignation as Prime Minister, Fethi Okyar, who had replaced him, formed the government and assumed the post of Minister of Interior. The opposition heavily criticized Prime Minister Fethi Okyar and his ministers, which led to major problems. While these events were taking place, Atatürk said; "The time had come for the implementation of an idea that I had been waiting for. Let me confess this". With his words, he said that the time had come for the establishment of the Republic. Fethi Okyar, whom he had asked to leave his post as the Minister of Interior, resigned on October 24 and Ali Fuat Cebesoy resigned as the 2nd Speaker of the Parliament on the same day. Atatürk convened the cabinet in Çankaya on October 26 to intervene in the events and after examining the situation, he decided that the cabinet should resign except for the Chief of General Staff Fevzi Çakmak, who was in charge of the armies.

On October 27, the government resigned, but there were great difficulties in forming a government. In the Nutuk, he describes this process as follows: "We leave the dissident group completely free to form a government. We see no harm in them forming a Council of Ministers and governing the country as they wish without involving any deputy in the Cabinet. But we are sure that they cannot form a government and govern the country". He expressed his concerns with his words. Again; "Since it would not be permissible to continue the crisis and confusion in the event that the group of mischief-makers who were trying to deceive the Assembly failed to form a government, I thought that I would intervene personally at that time and settle the matter once and for all by doing what I had envisioned, that is, by declaring the Republic". When the efforts to form a government failed to materialize, the party executive board, which convened on the evening of October 28, 1923 under the chairmanship of Fethi Okyar, requested Atatürk to be called to the meeting in order to get his opinion and solve the problem. Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk; "Late on October 28, 1923, I was invited by the Party Executive Board, which was in a meeting. Fethi Bey was the chairman. Mr. Fethi said that they had invited me to their meeting because a list of candidates for the Government had been prepared by the Board of Directors on behalf of the Party and since I was the Chairman of the Party, they deemed it right to ask my opinion on this matter. I took a look at the list. I said that I thought it was positive, but that it was necessary to get the consent of the people on the list. My suggestion was approved." He observed that he could not form a definite list because some of the people on the list of the Council of Ministers did not want to be on the list, and he advised the members of the Executive Board to determine a definite list and left the group.

While returning to Çankaya from the Assembly, Atatürk decided that the moment had arrived and invited İsmet İnönü, Kazım Özalp, Fethi Okyar, Ekrem and Ruşen Eşref Beys, Fuat Bulca, Kemalettin Sami and Halit Karsıalan to dinner at Çankaya on the evening of October 28th and they came together at the table and had the last dinner before the proclamation of the Republic. In the Nutuk, he describes that night as follows: "On October 28, as I was leaving the Parliament building at night to go to Çankaya, I came across Kemalettin Sami and Halit Pasha waiting for me in the corridors. I had read in the newspaper of that day under the title "A farewell and a welcome" that they had come to Ankara while Ali Fuat Pasha was leaving Ankara. When I realized that they were waiting there until late to talk to me, I informed them to come to dinner through Kâzım Özalp Pasha, the Minister of National Defense. I told İsmet İnönü Pasha, Kâzım Pasha and Fethi Okyar Bey to come to Çankaya with me. When I went to Çankaya, I met Rize Deputy Fuat Bulca and Afyonkarahisar Deputy Ruşen Eşref Ünaydın, who had come to see me. I took them to dinner as well. During dinner, I said, "Tomorrow we will declare the Republic." The friends present there immediately agreed with me. We stopped eating. From that moment on, I made a short program on how to act and assigned it to my friends. Sirs, in order to decide on the proclamation of the Republic, I did not see any need or necessity to invite all my friends in Ankara to meet and discuss with them. Because I did not doubt that they actually and naturally thought as I did. However, some people who were not in Ankara at that time considered the fact that the Republic was proclaimed without their authorization, without informing them, without their opinion and consent as a reason for resentment and separation from us". He explained how the Republic would be proclaimed and those present at the dinner agreed with his idea. From that moment on, he made a program on how to act and assigned his friends. On Monday, October 29, at the Group meeting to be held on Monday, Kemalettin Sami Pasha made a motion to invite Atatürk to the group.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, while sitting in his chair, remembered the night when he said "we will not be hopeless" in his house in Şişli and after that night, he lived 4 years in great struggle. From Gallipoli to Tripoli, from Yemen to Sinai, from the Caucasus to Eskişehir and Afyonkarahisar, there was no geography he did not fight in. He swept imperialism into the sea, gave sovereignty to the will of the people and put an end to the sultanate. In Lausanne, he took the title deed of the country and created a free and fully independent state. Thinking that it was time to move towards the goal he had set in his mind, he dreamed of boarding the Bandırma Ferry, saying "We are at the edge of the abyss, they want to throw us alive into the grave, the last dare may save us, we are going to Anatolia". After dinner, he asked İsmet İnönü to stay at the mansion and they went to the study together. In Nutuk; "The friends we were with left early. Only İsmet Pasha was a guest at Çankaya. In this draft, I added the sentence "The form of government of the State of Turkey is a Republic" at the end of Article 1 of the Constitution of January 20, 1921. Article 3 reads as follows: "The State of Turkey shall be governed by the Grand National Assembly. The Assembly shall administer the branches of government from which the government is separated through the Ministers. The President of Turkey shall be elected by the General Assembly of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey from among its members for an election term and the President of Turkey shall be the head of state." Articles 8 and 9, which are among the basic articles, have been added. The provision that the Prime Minister would be appointed by the President from among the members of the Assembly and that other ministers would be selected by the Prime Minister from among the members of the Assembly and then submitted to the Assembly for approval by the President.  Prime Minister Fethi Okyar was unaware of all these developments. İsmet İnönü said of that night when Turkey's destiny changed: "After seeing off the guests, Atatürk asked me to stay. We first discussed the text of the law. A comparison was made between the old and the new on each article. Atatürk dictated the result. After the framework was completed, I read it again, he listened carefully, thought about it, and said, "The preparation is done". The next morning we reviewed the text again and went to the parliament together." Two heroes of the National Struggle set out to change the regime of the country.

On Monday, October 29, 1923, the People's Party Group convened at 10:00 a.m. under the chairmanship of Fethi Okyar and the list prepared by him was discussed. No consensus could be reached on the proposed list and the Council of Ministers could not be formed. In order to find a solution, Atatürk was asked for his opinion and Kemalettin Sami Pasha's motion to solve the problem was accepted. Atatürk, who was called to the meeting, took the floor and said: "I was at my home in Çankaya during the negotiations. I was invited to the meeting upon the acceptance of Kemalettin Sami Pasha's motion. I entered the meeting hall and went straight to the rostrum and put forward the following opinion and proposal. Sirs, it has been understood that there is confusion in the selection of the members of the government and that there is no consensus. Allow me about an hour. I will present the solution I will find". He said that the difficulty encountered in forming a government stemmed from the fact that the deputies had to choose the ministers one by one and that the necessary regulation should be made in the constitution. This proposal submitted by Fethi Okyar was accepted. Thereupon, at the meeting held at 13.30 under the chairmanship of Fethi Okyar, Atatürk said: "Dear friends. I believe that the reason and cause of the problem we are having difficulty in solving has been understood by all our friends. The defect is in the method and manner we are following. Your high committee has entrusted me with the solution of this problem. If my proposal is accepted, it will be possible to form a strong and cohesive government. It is necessary to clarify some points of the Constitution, which determines the form and nature of our State and which is an aim for all of us. My proposal is as follows." The bill he submitted to the clerk of the parliament consisted of a 5-article amendment draft he had prepared 4 months earlier, stating that the true form of the state was "Republic". 

The Grand National Assembly of Turkey convened at 18.00 on October 29th and the "Legislative Proposal" prepared by the members of the Constitutional Commission was duly examined by the President İsmet İnönü and proposed to the Assembly to be discussed first. On the minutes prepared upon the acceptance of the proposal, Antalya Deputy Rasih Kaplan said, "The most appropriate form of government in terms of religion is the Republic. Long live the Republic" and. The oldest member of the Assembly, Istanbul Deputy Abdurrahman Şeref Bey said, "It is unnecessary to list the forms of government one by one. Sovereignty belongs unconditionally to the nation. No matter who you ask, this means republic. It is the name of the child born. But this name is unpleasant to some, so be it". They expressed their views with these words. İsmet İnönü said: "The nation has de facto taken its supremacy and future into its own hands. Then why do we hesitate to express this legally? It would be illegal to propose the election of a prime minister without a president. Gazi Pasha's proposal must become law." After these speeches, the minutes of the Constitutional Commission stated that: "Since the unconditional and unconditional ownership of sovereignty by the Nation and the form of government based on the principle of the Nation's personal and real management of its future already means a Republic, it has been deemed legally and importantly appropriate to use this sentence, which absolutely rejects the personal sultanate, and to explain that the form of government of the State of Turkey is a Republican Government by adding a section to the relevant article of the Constitution. After the establishment of a Republic, it is natural that a Presidency, which is the representative of this Republic, should be established. It is necessary for the President of the Republic to appoint the Prime Minister, who will form the Government, in order to determine responsibility. Therefore, in order to determine the current form of the State, a special article has been drafted to amend and correct the relevant articles of the Constitution and to state that the religion of our State is Islam and our language is Turkish." It was prepared and read to the members of the parliament.

The Proposed Law on the amendment of some articles of the Constitution, which was drafted thereupon, read as follows: "Article-1; Sovereignty belongs unconditionally to the nation. The form of administration is based on the principle that the nation manages its own destiny personally and de facto. The form of government of the State of Turkey: Republic. Article-2; Religion of the State of Turkey: Islam. The official language is Turkish. Article-4: The President of the Republic of Turkey shall be elected by the Grand National Assembly of the State of Turkey and from among its members for one election term. The presidency continues until the election of the new President. Re-election is possible. Article-11: The President of Turkey is the Head of State. In this capacity, he presides over the Assembly and the Council of Ministers as deemed necessary.  Article-12: The Prime Minister and the President shall be elected by the President and by the members of the Assembly." It was prepared and submitted to the Parliament for approval. 

The bill was finalized with the speeches of the deputies in the Parliament, which were applauded with the voices of "Long Live the Republic!". President İsmet İnönü said, "I now put the whole law to your vote. Those in favor, raise your hands." All 158 deputies in the Assembly voted yes, and the Speaker announced the result with the words "The bill has been accepted unanimously". He announced the result with his words. With the announcement of the declaration of the Republic on October 29, 1923 at 20.30 with 101 rounds of cannon fire, the excitement was carried to the streets of Ankara and the Turkish people celebrated with great enthusiasm. Turks attained the form of government they deserved, became a Republican State and took their place among the most modern countries. The Great Leader Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who said, "The most appropriate form of government for the character and customs of the Turkish Nation is the republic", declared that the sovereignty belonged to the Turkish Nation after centuries with the declaration of the Republic by the Grand National Assembly. The Republic, as an administration with high moral values and qualities, the Turkish Nation has taken its will into its own hands by electing the people who will govern the state.

Afterwards, a vote was taken in the Parliament for the election of the President. İsmet İnönü, sitting at the presidency, announced the result to the General Assembly at 20.45: "One hundred and fifty-nine people participated in the voting for the Presidency of Turkey and one hundred and fifty-eight members unanimously elected Mustafa Kemal Paşa Hazretleri, Deputy of Ankara, as President of Turkey." The only abstention was Atatürk's own vote. At the age of 42, "Long live Gazi. Long live Mustafa Kemal Pasha", he became the President of the Republic of Turkey.  In his speech to the parliament, Atatürk said: "Esteemed friends, due to the adoption of the draft law proposed to your high committee by the special commission established to clarify some articles of the Constitution, which is a valuable document to the true vigilance and consciousness of our esteemed nation in the face of important and extraordinary events around the world, the nature of the Turkish State, which is already known and should be known all over the world, has been named by its international name. As a natural consequence of this, you are entrusting this duty, which until today you have entrusted directly to your friend, who has been the President of the Assembly, to this same friend, this humble friend, with the title of President. On this occasion, you have once again demonstrated the love, sincerity and trust you have shown for me until now, and proved your high appreciation. Therefore, I express my sincere thanks to your honorable delegation with all the sincerity of my heart. In recent years, the ability, will and insight that our nation has demonstrated in practice have proved very well that those who think badly of themselves are the most ignorant and short-sighted people, who are deceived by appearances. Our nation will be able to show its qualities and values to the civilized world much more easily under the new name of the government. The Republic of Turkey will prove with its works that it is worthy of its place among the states of the world. Friends, the victory of the Turkish nation, which has created this high regime, in the last four years will be manifested several times over in the future. I am obliged to present a need that I consider very important. That need is the continuation of the love, trust and support that your honorable delegation has shown towards me. Only in this way, and with God's help, I hope that I will be able to fulfill the duties you have entrusted to me and will entrust to me in the best possible manner. I will work by clinging very sincerely and firmly to the hands of my esteemed colleagues, and by not considering myself a moment removed from their personalities. Always relying on the love and trust of the nation, we will go forward together. The Republic of Turkey will be happy, successful and victorious." He thanked his friends with his sincere, sincere, clear and concise words.

On the first day of the Republic, Atatürk, the first President of the Republic, wrote to İsmet İnönü on Tuesday, October 30, 1923: "Dear pasha, I am thinking of you as the first Prime Minister of the Republic. Wait, don't object at all. Now you will understand why I chose you. A great war awaits us again. As the Commander of the Front and Chief Delegate to Lausanne, of course you know part of our situation. You told us on the return from Lausanne that the great powers, looking at this miserable situation, thought we would give up in a short time. I will now summarize the general situation, which is even more pathetic than you know. It is a pity that we inherited a backward, indebted and diseased homeland from the Ottoman Empire. We are a poor peasant state.  We have almost no roads that can be used in all seasons. There are about 4,000 kilometers of railroads. Not even one meter of it is ours. And they are inadequate. We must connect the north to the south, the west to the east, and ensure the integrity of the country. Our maritime industry is in a pitiful state. We must land our peasants and make them farmers by giving them a pair of oxen and a plow. The tribal, bey, agha, sheikh system in the east is incompatible with the Republic and humanity. We must correct this situation and save the people. Everywhere, usurers are oppressing the people. We are supposedly an agricultural country, but we import most of our bread flour from abroad. Cattle plague is killing our livestock. We have 337 doctors and 43 health officers in the whole country. 150 districts do not have a single health worker. We have forty-odd thousand villages, the number of midwives is 136. Few cities have pharmacies. Epidemics are crushing our people. Three million of our people have trachoma. Malaria, typhus, tuberculosis, syphilis, typhoid are epidemic. Lice is a serious problem. Half of our population is sick. Infant mortality rate exceeds 60%. 80% of the population lives in rural areas. A significant part of this is nomadic. There are no telephones, motors, machines. We buy industrial products from abroad. We even import tiles. Electricity is only available in some districts of Istanbul and Izmir. The number of villages burned by the enemy is 830. The number of burned buildings is 114.408. We almost have to rebuild the country. The number of immigrants coming from Greece will exceed 400,000. Our economic and educational situation is deplorable. We have very few economists. 

We can educate only a quarter of children of compulsory school age. Public education has never been solved. However, we must prepare the human material of the Republic and strengthen the front of honor. Cultural artifacts have been and continue to be smuggled. The reports contain more detailed and painful information. Give them to the ministers and the party executive committee. Let them know the general situation. Our budget and income are insufficient. I have an idea I have developed to get out of the economic deadlock. We will talk about this idea when the day comes. Our goal is a national economy, and economic independence must be our basic principle in order to maintain our independence. The Ottoman Empire realized this reality too late. When it realized it was too late. We need a constitution suitable for the Republic. We have neither an example nor an experiment to show how to get out of this difficult situation. But we must not give up, we must not be satisfied with cheap, temporary remedies, we must solve problems to save the people, we must develop, we must progress, we must create a civilized and free society based on national sovereignty, we must reach the level of our century, in short, we must modernize, we must fully achieve this great ideal. We have come this far by protecting this ideal. From now on, we have to walk faster. We will seek and find the necessary method and path together. We will set an example for the poor and captive countries. This is a sacred duty that fate has imposed on our generation. I wanted to share the weight and honor of this great task with you." With these words, he revealed the situation of Turkey at the time of the proclamation of the Republic.

With the election of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk as the President of the Republic, İsmet İnönü was appointed as the Prime Minister after Fethi Okyar's resignation. İsmet İnönü, the first government of the Republic and the first Prime Minister of the Republic, took office on October 30 after receiving a vote of confidence from the parliament. Fethi Okyar was elected as the Speaker of the Parliament. The Republic of Turkey emerged from the ashes of the fire and set out to realize the miracle of a civilized and modern state. The governance system of the new Turkish state was officially designated as "Republic" and the name of the regime and the form of the state were determined. Now it is time to move towards the goals of the reforms to be carried out in the coming years.  The steps to be taken in this direction will be reform moves that will fundamentally change the centuries-old administrative, political and cultural structure of Turkish society. With the proclamation of the Republic, the principle of republicanism, one of Atatürk's principles, was put into practice. All deputies of Kurdish origin in the Turkish Grand National Assembly sided with the Republic and against Sheikh Said.

There were those who were uncomfortable with the Republican administration, such as Rauf Orbay, who served at the highest levels of the state, and who could not digest it. Atatürk said to these thinkers: "Gentlemen, the meaning of these writings and the purpose of these thoughts are easily understood today. Tomorrow it will be understood more clearly. Do not think that future generations will be surprised to see that on the day the Republic was proclaimed in Turkey, those who attacked it most ruthlessly were those who said, "I am a Republican". On the contrary, the enlightened and republican children of Turkey will have no hesitation in analyzing and determining the real thoughts of such pretended republicans." Rauf Orbay stated that the proclamation of the Republic had been rushed and that some irresponsible people had acted on impulse.

Two days after the abolition of the Caliphate, a circular was sent to the mufti offices with the decision of the Council of Ministers: "From now on, pray for the happiness of the Republic without mentioning any names in the sermons." Because in the Ottoman Empire, the sermon was read in the name of the sultan and the caliph in every Friday prayer. Since the caliphate continued after the abolition of the sultanate, the khutba continued to be read in the name of the caliph. However, since the caliphate was abolished, it was no longer necessary to mention the caliph's name in the sermons. Unfortunately, this circular, which was sent to the mufti offices in 1924, was distorted by Atatürk's enemies in an effort to mislead the society at a time when we will celebrate the 100th century of the Republic. May 19, April 23, August 30, September 9 and October 29 will not mention Atatürk's name on national holidays.

İsmet İnönü convened the Council of Ministers in the Governorate building and Atatürk, who honored the first meeting, said: "There is a thousand years of experience behind the middle age we are trying to destroy. It knows a thousand dirty tricks. Our Republic is a newborn child. They can easily strangle the Republic. Therefore, be very careful and vigilant. Choose your colleagues carefully. I saw some officials coming from Istanbul. They don't seem to realize that they have come to the capital of a revolution. The great Ottoman ship did not sink for no reason. Indifferent, lazy, unexcited, small minds like these have a great responsibility. Bad civil servants alienate citizens from their state. The Ottoman Empire gave positions in the state to minorities, but not to Alevi citizens in the last two hundred years. We put an end to this irrational and inhumane situation as soon as the National Struggle began. We will carefully maintain this attitude. Whoever is in Anatolia, we are all one nation. We are brothers of homeland and destiny. This is how we conducted the National Struggle, and this is how we will govern the Republic. We will not allow this understanding to be broken. We know well what happens when it is broken. Our ideal is to create a civilized society and state based on national sovereignty. At no stage will we lose sight of this ideal. There are many problems. We will not have enough time to solve them all. Our patriotic children will complete what we cannot reach. Our main principle will be to respect, enlighten and educate the people, to protect their health and to ensure that they live in security."

After Atatürk left, İsmet İnönü put the report files to the members of the Council of Ministers and started his speech by recalling Lord Curzon's words in Lausanne; "Every time I remember Curzon's face and demeanor when he said that, my heart aches. If we ask for loans, help, support, they will again ask us for privileges, priorities, rights, they will again look at us with contempt, they will again humiliate us. We have all seen and learned what this means by living in the past. We will again become a cash cow, and we will be feeding the rights of our nation to foreigners. So, while solving all these problems, we will not expect any help from outside, we will not ask for a single penny. We will roast with our own spoonful of oil. We will not indulge in waste, ostentation and luxury in any field, and we will not be reckless. We will spend even a single penny thoughtfully. Our job is to achieve the impossible. And fast." What he said that day is always vivid in my memory and will remain as vivid until the end of my life.

In his speech in 1925, Atatürk said: "Today's government, our state organization is a state organization and government directly made by the nation on its own, spontaneously, and its name is the Republic. There is no longer any separation between the government and the nation as in the past. The members of the government have now fully realized that they are not other than the nation and that the nation is the master. I wish success for the progress and rise of the nation, which is the master of all of us, and for the civil servants who serve it." Again, in his speech in 1927; "We were trying to centralize the state administration in such a way that it was moving towards the Republic at every moment within the principles of national sovereignty, without mentioning the Republic." He believed that the most suitable regime for the Turkish nation was the Republic and expressed this idea with the words; "The administration that is most suitable for the nature and style of the Turkish nation is the Republican administration." He stated that the Republic, in every sense of the word, is the Turkish nation's own and cherished property. With the proclamation of the Republic, which he kept as a "national secret in his conscience" until the National Struggle was won, a new era in Turkish history was opened and the idea that National Sovereignty belonged to the nation unconditionally, which was taken as a basis during the National Struggle, was officially realized.

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk said on the tenth anniversary of the Republic: "Turkish Nation! We are in the 15th year of the beginning of the War of Independence. Today is the greatest holiday of our republic's tenth anniversary. Congratulations! At this moment, as a member of the great Turkish nation, I am in the deepest joy and excitement of reaching this blessed day. My fellow citizens! We have done much and great things in a short time. The greatest of these deeds is the Republic of Turkey, the foundation of which is Turkish heroism and high Turkish culture. The foundation of the Republic was established in the conscience, mind and consciousness of the great Turkish nation and our great army composed of its heroic sons. Its principles were also born from the spirit of the nation. We owe this success to the determination of the Turkish nation and its valuable army to march with determination as one and together. But we can never consider what we have done sufficient. Because we are obliged and determined to do more and greater works. We will raise our country to the level of the most prosperous and civilized countries of the world. We will provide our nation with the widest means and sources of prosperity. We will raise our national culture above the level of contemporary civilization. For this, the measure of time should not be considered according to the slackening mentality of past centuries, but according to the concept of speed and movement of our century. Compared to the past, we will work harder. We will accomplish greater things in less time. I have no doubt that we will be successful in this too. Because the Turkish nation has a high character. The Turkish nation is hardworking. The Turkish nation is intelligent. Because the Turkish nation knows how to overcome difficulties with national unity and solidarity. Because the torch that the Turkish nation holds in its hands and minds on the path of elevation and civilization is positive science. It is also important to note that a historical characteristic of the Turkish nation, which is a high human society, is to love and excel in fine arts. For this reason, it is our national ideal to develop our nation's high character, tireless industriousness, creative intelligence, devotion to science, love for fine arts and sense of national unity by continuously nurturing them through all means and measures. This ideal, which suits the Turkish nation very well, will make it successful in fulfilling its civilized duty to provide true comfort to all mankind. Great Turkish Nation, you have heard many of my words promising success in the endeavors we have undertaken for the last fifteen years. Today, I say with the same conviction and certainty that the whole civilized world will soon recognize once again that the Turkish nation, which is marching towards the national ideal with complete unity, is a great nation. I have no doubt that the forgotten great civilized quality and great civilized capability of Turkishness, with its further development, will rise like a new sun on the horizon of the high civilization of the future. Turkish Nation! I sincerely wish you to celebrate this great national holiday with greater honors, happiness, peace and prosperity in every decade that flows into eternity. I am happy to be a Turk"! He evaluated the decade with these words.

Ataturk, on the 10th anniversary of the Republic, three days were declared as a holiday; "The republican regime means a form of state with a democratic system. We have established the republic. As it turns ten years old, it should put into practice all the requirements of democracy as it comes to its turn." Development was achieved in dimensions admired by the world and this miracle development was achieved without borrowing a penny from abroad. From this day on, the squares where festivals were celebrated were named "Republic Square", 101 rounds of cannon were fired in every city and a minute's silence was observed for the martyrs. On the tenth anniversary of the Republic, the "Tenth Year Anthem" was written by Faruk Nafiz Çamlıbel and Kemal Çağlar and composed by Cemil Reşit Bey. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk crossed out the last line of the motto and wrote "We wove the motherland with iron nets from the four corners". On the 10th anniversary of the Republic, a general amnesty was issued and Nazım Hikmet, who had been imprisoned in Bursa prison for 1.5 years on charges of communist propaganda and sentenced to four years in prison, was released.

Atatürk; "I have full confidence that the beloved republic, which is the precious work of national heroism and consciousness, will rise and become stronger every moment in the iron hands of today's and tomorrow's generation". "The result we have reached today is the result of the vigilance created by the national devastation suffered for centuries and the reward for the blood that irrigates every corner of this beloved homeland. I leave this result as a sacred gift to the Turkish youth. O rising new generation. You are the future. We founded the Republic, it is you who will raise it and keep it alive. "O Turkish youth! Your first duty is to preserve and defend Turkish Independence and Turkish Republic forever. The strength you need is in the noble blood in your veins". He entrusted the Republic to the youth. Because he believed that the value of our freedom and independence would be well known by the modern educated, high-minded, self-sacrificing youth. The Republic was not established easily and much blood was shed to establish it.

In his speech in 1937, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk said: "You can be sure that among the nations that have lived and are living in the world, the Turks are the only nation born democratic in spirit. We Turks are a nation born democratic in spirit. But the Osmanids, who ruled our nation for centuries, tried to dull and numb these intellectual traits of our ancestors in order to protect themselves and their gilded thrones. This is the main reason and cause of our backwardness in every field." The connection between democracy and the Republic is explained in the book Civilized Knowledge: "The complete and obvious form of government of democracy is the Republic."  Again in the same book; "The Republic of Turkey is a state based on democracy." With these words, he showed the basis on which the Republic is based. The Democratic Republic realized by Turkey was the result of an anti-imperialist war and a diplomatic victory against the imperialist states after that war.

On March 17, 1937; "Man should think about the peace and welfare of all the nations of the world as much as he thinks about the existence and happiness of the nation he belongs to", one of the most fundamental principles of the Republic of Turkey is "Peace at Home, Peace in the World". The leader of the 21st century and the leader of world peace, the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk not only transformed the Turkish people into a modern, contemporary, civilized, free and independent nation, but also led and guided the oppressed and exploited countries. He fought for full independence against imperialism. Because he saw that where there is imperialism, there can be no real peace. Atatürk, who spent his life in the battlefields, said, "Peace is the best way for nations to achieve prosperity and happiness. The salvation of humanity must be determined by civilized, humanitarian and peaceful ideals. All oppressed nations will destroy and ruin the oppressors. Then the words oppressor and oppressed will disappear from the face of the earth, and humanity will attain a social state worthy of itself."  In today's world, the cruel behavior of the imperialist states, their aim to seize and share energy and oil resources have replaced peace in our region with war, bringing blood, violence and fear.

After winning the National Struggle, Atatürk established a lasting peace with the Treaty of Lausanne. With the Balkan Treaty, the Sadabat Pact and Soviet friendship, he created the largest peace belt extending from the Balkans to South Asia, from Siberia to the Mediterranean. It solved major problems such as the control of the sovereignty of the Straits and the annexation of Hatay to the territory of the country through peace without war.  The Republic, founded under the leadership of the Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, was realized after a life and death war against the most powerful states in the world. The Republic is virtue, Turkey's greatest revolution, civilization, modernization, freedom and independence. It is the most advanced and modern form of state and government. It is the most appropriate form of government for the nature and structure of the Turkish nation.  It is the way to progress in every field and to live humanely and reach the level of contemporary civilization. The first goal of the Republic is democracy.  The Republic of Turkey is primarily an "Enlightenment Revolution" and its spirit is secular. The proclamation of the Republic first and foremost changed the source of sovereignty. Religious sovereignty was replaced by secular sovereignty. The reign of the palace was ended and sovereignty was given to its rightful owner, the nation. "Secular Revolutions" were made that created an individual from a servant and a nation from a nation, and a modern, contemporary, civilized and civilized state based on "Reason" and "Science" was established. With the Republic, the individual from the servant, the nation from the ummah, the Republic from the sultanate and the principle of "Democratic, Secular, Social and Legal" state were created. "My humble body will surely one day become dust. But the Republic of Turkey will remain forever". The Founding Philosophy and Core Values of the Republic, which Atatürk said would "live forever", will always "rise" and "live forever" in the hands of the young children he entrusted. The salvation of Turkey is only possible by protecting the independent and secular republic and establishing true democracy. The only way to fight against the threats and dangers to the Republic is to adhere to the Republic and its founding philosophy.

References:

ATATÜRK, Gazi Mustafa Kemal, “NUTUK (1919-1927)”, 2006.

AYDEMİR, Şevket Süreyya, Tek Adam, Mustafa Kemal (1922-1938), Remzi Kitapevi, 1987.

AYDOĞAN, Metin, Atatürk ve Türk Devrimi, İnkılâp Yayınevi, 2006.

İNAN, Afet, Medeni Bilgiler ve Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’ün El Yazıları, Atatürk Araştırma Merkezi, 2017.

LEWİS Bernard, Modern Türkiye’nin Doğuşu, Türk Tarih Kurumu, 2007.

MEYDAN, Sinan, ATATÜRK Etkisi, İflas-İşgal-Direniş-Kurtuluş, İnkılâp Yayınevi, 2018.

ÖYMEN, Onur, Çöküşten Zafere Lozan, Remzi Kitapevi, İstanbul, 2022.