May 19, 1919, is an important date to commemorate: The date Mustafa Kemâl Paşa (subsequently give the name of “Atatürk” by the grateful nation of Turkey) landed in the Black Sea port of Samsun to start the Turkish Independence Movement.
The Ottoman Empire had made the great mistake of entering World War I (1914–1918) on the side of Germany against the Allied Countries (Great Britain, France and Russia, also assisted by Italy and several Balkan states), and was defeated. Two developments created a desperate situation:
The Armistice of Moudros was signed between the Allied Powers and the Ottoman Empire on October 30, 1918, forcing the Empire to surrender its garrisons outside Anatolia, to demobilize, to transfer the control of the Straits of Dardanelles and Bosporus to the Allied Powers, and to occupy the Imperial capital Istanbul.
With the insistence of the British, the Allied Powers allowed Greek garrisons to land in Izmir and occupy the city and its surrounds on May 15, 1919.
These events triggered local reactions among the Turkish public in several parts of Anatolia. During this period, Mustafa Kemâl Paşa was in İstanbul; having gained national acclaim in the successful defense of the Dardanelles, he had connections with the Ottoman Government and Armed Forces, as well as with the Sultan. His ambition was to be appointed to a position in Anatolia, where he believed a national resistance movement could be sparked. Indeed, he managed to be appointed as the Inspector of the 9th Army Corps, to identify and organize the remaining Ottoman forces to quell any potential public uprising. On May 16, 1919, together with 18 appointed assistants, he left İstanbul on the steam ship Bandırma, heading for the city of Samsun on the Black Sea coast of Anatolia.
On May 19, 1919, Mustafa Kemâl Paşa landed in Samsun, and was greeted by a large crowd. On May 22, 1919, he sent a telegram to the Grand Vizier Damat Ferid Paşa, informing him that the unrest in the area was being instigated by the Greek guerillas, and that the occupation of İzmir by the Greek Forces was not acceptable to him or the Turkish public in the area. With the anticipation that the British navy may react to this message, on May 25, 1919, he moved about 50km inland, to Havza.
In Havza, on May 28, 1919, he issued the “Declaration of Havza,” an important announcement for the military and civil officers in Anatolia, using his authority as the Inspector of the 9th Army Corps, which in summary stated: “It is necessary to create national defense units (Units of the Nationalist Forces) immediately in order to stop regional occupations. If this is not possible, then the occupations should be protested by organized regional meetings in various places.” As a consequence of the Declaration of Havza, the formation of the units of Nationalist Forces gained more speed; protest meetings were organized and national consciousness was awakened. According to Mustafa Kemâl Pasha, the initiative and performance should now continue in a manner to ensure the unity and organization of the nation, rather than on a personal basis or in groups. Mustafa Kemâl left Havza on June 12, 1919, and transferred his headquarters further inland to Amasya, where some activities for unification appeared to be in progress.
Mustafa Kemâl Pasha arrived in Amasya on June 13, 1919. In the mean time, national societies were starting to get established independent of each other. Meetings had been scheduled in Kars, Trabzon and Erzurum. Uniting these regional national societies would more likely succeed in neutralizing the plans of the Allies aiming to divide the Turkish mainland, to allow the Greeks to take over the western Anatolia, the Armenians the eastern Anatolia, and the Rums in the Black Sea region. During the night of June 21–22, 1919, he dictated to his adjuvant Cevat Abbas Bey an announcement to be distributed throughout Anatolia: the “Amasya Circular”. He signed the document as the Inspector of the 9. Army Corps. On June 22, 1919, the circular was distributed by telegram to all commanders of the army corps and divisions, province governorships and districts. The main points of this Circular, which was the first important step on the way to establishing a new Turkish state are as follows:
- The unity of the land and the independence of the nation are under danger.
- The government in Istanbul is failing to fulfill its responsibilities. This situation makes our nation appear vanished.
- The independence of the nation can only be saved by the determination and decisiveness of the nation.
- The presence of a national committee that is free from any kind of pressure or control is essential in order to implement what is required to deal with the conditions faced by the nation, and to announce loudly to the world its rights.
- The decision has been made to hold an urgent national meeting in Sivas, considered to be the safest place in Anatolia.
- To implement this decision, three trustworthy representatives from each district (sanjak) of all provinces should start traveling to Sivas in the shortest time possible.
- As a precautionary measure, this initiative should be kept as a national secret, and the representatives should travel to the destination while hiding their identity.
- A congress representing the Eastern Provinces will convene on July 23 in Erzurum. The representatives of the planned meeting in Sivas could consider also attending the Erzurum Congress on their way to Sivas.
The Amasya Circular was an alert for national awakening, calling the Turkish nation to start a movement for national independence and sovereignty. It can be considered as the first attempt to establish the power of the nation as a substitute for the powerless behavior of the Sultan.
The history shows that the national unity has indeed materialized at the Erzurum Congress on July 23 – 7 August 7, 1919, followed by the Sivas Congress September 4 – 14, 1919, culminating in the formulation of the “Oath of the Nation” (Misak-ı Milli), and ultimately the establishment of the 1st Turkish Grand National Assembly on April 23, 1920, in Ankara.