"SOLDIER"
World War 1, Germany has been fighting Britain and France in the western front,
Russia in the east, However, Russia's collapse is imminent,
If Russia collapses, Germany will be able to focus its power on just one front,
Britain and France have to help their ally Russia, immediately,
The path of help to Russia, passes through the Gallipoli strait,
04:47 AM, 10 AUGUST 1915 Conk Bayiri, Gallipoli
Oh, we set this sacred homeland afire,
We scattered its spirit and fire to the sky,
Her favorites shut away, their to be blinded eyes,
Enemy's dagger thrusting motherland's bosom shy,
No one to save our hapless mother, why?
Nurturing with her gifts them men,
For she wretchedly has gone, crying away with her glory,
On stones, mark with pure blood this eulogy,
Enemy's dagger thrusting motherland's bosom shy,
No one to save our hapless mother, why?
Once upon a time, sultans of a future bright,
Masters of the world we were, now set alight,
We fell victim to a blood drinker as delight,
Enemy's dagger thrusting motherland's bosom shy,
One surely will rise, and save the hapless mother, nigh,
Allah, Allah!
Allah is with us! Don't stop!
No giving in! No dying! The victory is ours!
Mustafa! Mustafa!
-Soldier? -Medic!
-Medic! Hurry!
All right, Mustafa!
Father!
Don't! Don't torch them! Please stop!
Burn everywhere! Burn everywhere!
Don't! Don't torch them! Please stop!
Shut up!
Aren't you going to do something?
-What do you want me to do Ali Rıza? -I lost count!
-I am done being extorted by the bandits, -Hold your horses Ali Rıza,
Maybe you shouldn't have resigned from your government job at the customs,
This is business,
You win some, you lose some,
Don't we have the right to do business?
Are only foreigners allowed to thrive in this country?
-How is that relevant! -On the contrary,
Had I been dealing this business on behalf of an Englishman, or a Frenchman,
you would have chased after the bandits with battalions of soldiers,
We are working in this country, only to make them rich,
Enough, Ali Rıza,
If you can't handle two bandits, you should not be trading at all,
You only chase after journalists, just because they criticize the Crown,
Get out! Don't make me throw you in jail!
Ottoman!
As if there is anything left of it, Come on, Mustafa,
-Shall I turn it upside down? -It's a sin,
Nuri, Salih, I saw a bandit, A real one,
My father told me, They attacked Uncle Ali Rıza,
-Were you frightened? -I wasn't, but they had guns,
I wouldn't be frightened, They can kill me,
Why do you have to die?
I will go to heaven,
They say there is a huge villa there, A military villa,
Who are you going to fight to death?
Russians will supposedly chase us from here,
Fuck'em, We will chase them,
-We could, if we were janissaries, -Let's race!
Mustafa! I'm faster than you!
These glasses, If I wasn't wearing them,
Mustafa,
Come here, have some yogurt!
-He ran, -Where did he go?
-Doesn't he eat yogurt? -He should, Call him so he does,
He says, "Your money burned with those logs" Zübeyde, He says no,
As if it's your fault, for the love of god!
What a way to end a partnership!
He said, "I took you as an associate because you were a customs officer,"
He told me, he thought bandits would be afraid of me,
What about the rest of our money?
Should I ask my brother Hüseyin to talk to him? He respects him,
So, he doesn't respect me but him,
If you'd like, I'll go and beg your brother Hüseyin!
My Zübeyde, My spring,
We will surely find a way,
Not as if our bread is in Cafer's hands,
Don't worry,
Mustafa,
This son of yours will kill me, He plays with the sword,
although I told him not to, many times, Come answer your father!
-Let the kid be, -He goes swimming without permission,
What if he gets drowned?
A roof tile fell on a poor child the other day, They are playing at the ruins,
Then lock him up like the princes and watch him lose his mind,
I buried three of my babies,
Isn't that enough for the heavens?
I don't want them out of my sight,
I'll go, check the dinner,
Üftade!
How is he, doctor sir?
He is not well, How long has he been like this?
He had sudden pains occasionally, I told him not to drink that poison,
It's not that, Sorrow, that's making him sick, Ms, Zübeyde,
He must avoid stress,
Let's not talk here,
It's the business, he can't figure it out, It hurts his pride,
He won't leave the house,
Is there no remedy for this, doctor sir?
Son,
-What does the doctor say? -He says it is because of sorrow,
Did I upset you father?
Mustafa, How could that ever be?
But I do upset my mother,
I can only be proud of you,
Would you like me to be even more proud of you?
I would,
Then, I will give you a responsibility,
Don't forget,
The burden of responsibility
is heavier than death,
You will go to school, Mustafa, You will study,
You will become a great man,
You will not let anyone look down on you,
You will not,,,
,,,fall like I did, You will not be defeated,
Promise me,
I promise, father,
May Allah be with you,
"Ali Rıza and Zübeyde's daughter Fatma"
"Ahmed, son of Ali Rıza"
"Ömer, son of Ali Rıza"
Mustafa! Mustafa!
Where are you going?
Come here, Mustafa!
45
44
Why did my father die?
He was sick, Mustafa,
The doctor says it was sorrow, It was because of those bandits,
And that commander,
Look, Mustafa,
In business you win some, you lose some,
Your father knew that,
Did my father himself torch the logs?
Did he invite those bandits to set them on fire?
You are right,
The administration was also negligent in this matter,
Who is the administration? Is it that captain?
He is, As is the governor, and the commander,
Who made them governor, or commander?
Grand vizier,
Who made him the grand vizier?
Our honorable sultan,
Who made him the sultan?
His father,
His father was also a sultan,
My father is dead,
What will I become?
-Where have you been? -Zübeyde, it's all right,
-Get in there, now, -Zübeyde,
-You will not leave this room! -I will,
-You will not go anywhere! -I will,
You will go to the local school, will become a preacher,
-I will not, -Let the boy be, Zübeyde!
He is an orphan, an orphan!
What future does an orphan have?
You'll see what future I'll have!
Mustafa, what are you doing?
-What are you doing, Mustafa? -Zübeyde, it's all right,
Mustafa!
Don't! Don't torch them! Please stop!
-On land and sea -On land and sea
-in war and peace -in war and peace
-wherever I may be requested -wherever I may be requested
I will serve our army's great commander in chief, our sultan,
the honorable with honesty and loyalty at all times,
Are you ready?
Thank you,
Nuri, Did you blink?
My pasha!
My pasha,
I hope that Allah will let us see you as a pasha,
-Amen, -My lion brother, look at his stature,
-I am not any less good looking myself, -Brother Nuri, You look great too,
May Allah grant the most beautiful and noble accomplishments to you, son,
Mother, let me introduce Ali Fuat, we are classmates,
-It's an honor ma'am, -Masallah,
Allah almighty has blessed the imperial army,
With a golden generation such as yourselves,
Mother, you haven't said anything about Mr, Nuri's new glasses,
They look good Mr, Nuri, son, They look good,
Thank you, mother,
Mother, you should go to Ms, Üftade's,
I'll come and take you to the train station myself,
-When will you come? -I'll come in the evening,
-Don't keep me worrying, my pasha, -All right, mother,
-God bless you all, -You too,
Good bye, boys,
Bismillah,
My pasha,
-Goodbye pashas, goodbye, -To Şişli,
Yes sir,
The country ended, you or me fight prevails,
No bigger enemy than us in such guise,
Ömer Naci is at it again,
We are among enemies, children of the nation,
Set aside futile ambition,,,
And she prevails,
-Is this poem his too? -Yes, it is,
Nation's poet,
Namık Kemal,
By the order of the Sultan, it is forbidden to read,
If our honorable sultan the glorious, caliph the righteous
has forbidden it, he must have good reason to do so,
He surely does,
Because these men want a country where administrators are held accountable,
and the rule of science and reason prevail,
They don't want the homeland
be in the hands of a man, who is only there because his father was a sultan too,
They also don't want these spoken words to be forbidden,
So, they say "let there be law and order,
let there be freedom!" Brother!
Who are they?
They are, Namık Kemals, Mehmet Emins,,,
Our Voltaires, our Rousseaus,
They are the architects of our intellectual revolution, and our future,
However, some people don't want the young generation to learn these names,
-Why? -29 years ago,,,
When Abdülhamid was crowned the sultan, he made a promise,
We were going to have a constitution,
we were going to hold elections, There was supposed to be a parliament,
Newspapers, magazines, all sorts of printed press were to be independent,
Here,
This is the situation now,
"What happened in Bosnia - How did we lose Egypt?"
What does it write here?
You will never learn,
What happened in Bosnia? How did we lose Egypt? You will never find out,
All the while you think the throne has not lost an inch of soil,,,
Who are you going to object to?
Do you have any kind of representation in the government, a deputy? A parliament?
What do you want then?
We,,,
All we want, is Abdülhamid to honor his promise which he made when he was crowned,
And open up the parliament, That's all,
The name is Enver,
Remember this name,
What a show, every time,
We need to make copies of some of these, Nuri, will you take care of it?
I'll take care of it,
The money we collected,
-It needs to be delivered to Thessaloniki, -I'll take them with me,
All the details, to whom, and how much to pay is in here,
Meet your mother and sister at the train station,
We have to be cautious, They might follow you,
Good idea, I will inform Zübeyde mother,
Let our battle be blessed,
Long live the nation, Long live the homeland,
You are coming with us,
-Who are you? -We'll talk at the police station,
-On whose orders? -We'll explain at the police station,
Mr, Nuri, son,
Put the luggage in the twelfth compartment,
Mother,
-Where is my Mustafa? -Mustafa has been appointed dear mother,
Weren't you informed by our friend who took you here?
-He did not, -No, brother Nuri, Nobody said anything,
We were told he'd be here,
That was the plan, but he won't make it, He sent me,
Did they appoint him so soon? Won't he come?
What did you think, Ms, Zübeyde? Did you really think the great state would
return its product back to his mother? Why not wrap him in baby clothes as well?
-Oh! Come on Nuri, -You should be proud mother,
-Hug my Mustafa like this, -I will mother,
Allow me to see you off,
-God bless you, -Thank you mother, This way,
Mustafa Kemal, Thessaloniki,
You will write down your statement on this,
About your committee membership,
your anarchist activities,
Your plot to assassinate our Sultan Abdülhamid,
Write them in full detail,
Note that there is no probability of leaving this room without a signature,
Admit your crime, and disclose your collaborators,
Don't touch the face,
-Our guys have been arrested, -Which ones?
Ali Fuat, Mustafa Kemal, and a few others,
They cannot touch Ali Fuat, his father is a pasha,
They can push Mustafa Kemal, thinking he is all alone,
Do you think he would talk?
We should shut this place down, We pushed our luck too far,
What are we going to do?
Anyone who can, should go to Thessaloniki, We will reorganize there,
What about our friends?
There is nothing we can do,
I told you that you were going nowhere without a signature,
You did not to believe me,
How long can you endure this?
All you need to do, is to write down a few names,,,
I will personally assure your release, And immediately,
Think of your mother, waiting for good news from you,
I could personally have her brought to to Istanbul,
and help her relieve some of the longing she has for you,
You, speaking of my dear mother,
befittingly describes the swamp you're stuck in,
However, allow me to explain the circumstances you are in, in more detail,
No one you've arrested has spoken, they won't,
Your accusations and slanders are out of place,
No one among us,
has an agenda as to assassinate Sultan Abdülhamid, and never had,
Yet, go ahead and put us to trial,
I see,
You made your choice,
There is also this other issue,
Our Sultan should also take into consideration that,
if and when we are convicted or executed,
who will fight for "our great state" at the fronts?
So called pashas who have never seen a battleground in their lives
never even have left the palace, wearing decorations
earned by rubbing shoulders with the sultan and his entourage?
Those palace fools, who at the first opportunity would back stab each other?
You just mentioned my dear mother's
longing for me, Well Mr, Officer, you,,,
Would you let your child go to war under their command?
You can leave now,
-Mustafa Kemal, Thessaloniki, -Yes, Commander,
-We had summoned you hours ago, -I bathed, Commander,
So, you bathed?
I have been locked up for the last two months, commander,
I did not want to appear before you in that condition,
As per the prosecution, although your opposing actions are obvious,
,,,no trace, or evidence has been found for the crimes attributed upon you,
Your commander in charge, Esat Pasha,
is in your favor, and has persuaded us as such,
Thank him, Thank you,
Therefore, this meeting is arranged to decide your next appointment,
Where do you want to serve?
Every inch of soil in our Great State, is equally sacred to me,
Where do you think you will be most beneficial? Be clear,
Many revolts have broken out in my homeland,
Considering my good command of the Greek and Bulgarian languages
and lay of the land and knowledge of its people
I think, I could be of greater use in Thessaloniki, with the 3rd Army,
Revolts, Yes,
We confront many,
I have no doubt that you will be successful in such cases,
You are now,
assigned to 5th Army, tasked for suppressing the Druze riots,
Your place of duty will be Damascus province,
I hear they have exceptional baths,
You will bathe often,
Yes, commander,
Indeed pasha, wouldn't he be more useful in Rumelia?
"Appoint to a remote location, far away from his homeland"
If you have objections, you know the way to Yildiz Palace, pasha,
He obviously is the ringleader, Didn't you see how he carried himself?
It is as if, he is the pasha, and we are his captains,
Cheers,
I went to Golden Scissors to collect my uniform, It was then I found out that
-you had not picked up yours, -How did they take you in?
A car pulled over as I was walking in Karaköy,
It was Ahmet Refik Pasha, He took me in, He questioned me on the way,
-Then? Once you didn't talk? -He took me directly to Yıldız Palace,
There, Kabasakal Mehmet Pasha questioned me,
I refused to talk to him too, they sent me directly to jail,
-When did they let you go? -A week before your release,
They have nothing better to do but tail us, and plan our exiles,
What are they supposed to do? There is no one else but us to be frightened of,
-What does that mean? -Well, are they supposed to be
frightened of Europeans? Europeans are very pleased with them,
Such an Ottoman government is God's gift to them,
Take Egypt from her hands, not a word, Take Tunisia, not a word,
Take Bosnia, not a word, Mind you, without firing a bullet,
The homeland is depleted, spiraling in debt,
And your leash is in "Düyun-i Umumiyye" hands,
If a hard working patriot Grand Vizier like Mithat Pasha emerges,
they'll behead him before the enemy can even get their hands on him,
Come on! Mithat Pasha died of carbuncle, You are mistaken,
What more would you wish for as a foreigner?
-You ruined our mood, -He's telling the truth, And the remedy,
Listen friends, The imperialists have one thing in their minds,
To have a single person at the table whom they can bargain with,
whom has supreme authority over the rest,
If there are different ideas, representation, like they do,
Then no one can exile us,
Homeland is ours, And freedom is our right,
Say we're exiled to Damascus,,,
Even Fizan,,,
Fizan is much closer than where he's been exiled to,
So true,
Cheers, beautiful ladies and nice gentlemen!
Cheers,
I am sorry, My apologies,
Not at all,
February 17th, 1905, Syria
"MARCH 31"
Langaza, Thessaloniki 1889
Well done, Mustafa,
Stop right there, I'm coming,
Stop, Wait, Mustafa,
Great aim, Mustafa,
I told you to wait, because birds of prey are no joking material,
If it is still alive, it can bite your fingers off,
Do we kill them because they attack our pigeons at the farm?
Yes,
What if this one didn't? What if it was another falcon who attacked?
The nature of the beast is always the same, my Mustafa,
If it sees a pigeon it will attack,
-What do you mean nature? -Its character, temperament,
What about the nature of men, does that change?
Men are pigeons to falcons,
and falcons to pigeons,
25 JULY 1908 CORPS, THESSALONIKI
Gentlemen Cemal and Talat, Commander,
-The hero of liberty, -My brother!
Sit down gentlemen,
If not tomorrow, the day after,
Abdülhamid will be in the newspapers with this statement!
Read,
Please, read it out loud,
"Today, all nation is reformist,
and I am their leader,"
We will spread the news via telegrams immediately,
Need be, we will go door to door, telling everybody that it was us
who made the revolution
and Abdülhamid had no choice but to reopen the parliament,
We will explain that it is us who claimed the constitution back,
Especially in Istanbul, if we can't explain this, we are ruined,
-Right! Well said! -Let's do it!
The members of the parliament should be informed one by one,
No matter which faction they are from, or which party they belong to,
All deputies should be reminded that liberty was achieved by us
that the parliament was reopened thanks to us,
They should be reminded that they cannot rely on Abdülhamid,
and that he will do to them what he did to Mithat Pasha at the first opportunity,
We will take all these measures,
We will not let Abdülhamid brag as if he declared liberty himself,
I, as a precaution, decided to send the light infantry battalion to Istanbul,
What will the light infantry battalion do in Istanbul?
Whatever it takes to preserve and uphold liberty, captain,
In what capacity will they do this?
I don't understand, What are you trying to say?
Liberty has been our dream for years,
There are those of us who were imprisoned, tortured,
deported for the sake of it, You should know best,
If constitution is what we hold up, even to the point of sacrificing our lives,
on what grounds, based on the constitution, are we making this decision?
Are you not ignoring the sensitivity of this matter?
Contrarily,
If we do not demonstrate this sensitivity, nobody will,
If we want the people to obey
law and order, we have to set an example,
What do you recommend we do, Captain Mustafa Kemal?
In my opinion,
Committee of Union and Progress
should continue as a political party from now on,
And those who want to take office in this party, should resign from military service
those who want to stay in the military must resign from the party!
He's telling the truth!
Friends!
Sit!
He pulled the rug under us at the congress,
-What if we give him a title? -I have no confidence in him,
His lifestyle is no secret,
Am I going to lose sleep over, about whom he delivers my secrets to?
-Mustafa Kemal wouldn't do such a thing, -You're being unfair,
No one tells you to trust him with your secrets,
Give him a title, Keep him close,
That only works for the idiot bunch, Not with Mustafa Kemal,
They expelled him to Damascus, just to make him behave and get paid,
He even stirred the army up over there about some corruption case,
They were fed up with him,
Well, you admit it yourself, he is a man of duty,
Are we going to start spending men
upon suspicion and delusion just like Abdülhamid?
How many officers are there as talented,
and honorable as Mustafa Kemal?
We are walking on a plank, Ömer Naci,
It is not our intention to continue
Abdülhamid's supine policy of the last thirty years,
We will make the Ottoman great again,
We will bring back the times
when she dominated the world, to the days when the Turks inspired awe,
We intent to be like The Conqueror, The Magnificent,,,
I won't go into politics,
And also, I cannot explain the relevance of each of my decisions to Mustafa Kemal,
God knows to whom and where he is talking behind my back right now,
Enver! Enver! Enver!
It is not right to glorify him this much,
Don't be jealous of him, He took his fight to the mountains for liberty,
Can't you see?
All those praises, speeches will spoil him so much,
he will become full of himself,
and eventually it will cost the whole nation dearly,
Alright, brother,
-Calm down, -What did they say?
They will keep the deputies on check! Sending infantry to Istanbul!
-Calm down, Quiet, -Quiet!
Why! Don't we have the liberty, brother! Did we not declare liberty?
Did we not do so, to speak freely?
-Well, all right, Talk, -I surely will!
Because, we should,
Did we declare liberty, to pick on each other over dinner?
Long live the nation, long live the homeland!
How will the homeland live?
Without reform, how will people live?
Why are you so angry, Kemal?
Time is running out, Fuat,
A war will breakout!
Europe, the great nations, they are ready to attack with their claws sharpened!
Reforms must be made, friends!
What reforms will you make?
I will dissolve all ranks in the military above the rank of major,
No way!
Generals, pashas, No more!
Let's put them to test, and see how meritorious they are,
No excuses for those who collect medals by kissing the Sultan's feet!
You don't have any self confidence, Even I,
have more confidence in you,
If I made you the Minister of Foreign affairs,
Who could represent us better than you?
If I appointed you as the Minister of War, wouldn't you
succeed? Of course you would,
If I appointed you as the head of Military Schools,
Who could train officers better than you?
He's laughing, What are you laughing at?
What will you be?
Well, I'll be the person who puts you to these tasks,
Kemal,,,
You didn't appoint me,
Oh! You, Salih,
You sit and wait beside me,
I should go to the men's room,
He's telling the truth,
Why look for the remedy in someone else?
Why should it be someone else?
Why not us?
-Enough, I will explain, -Good morning, dear mother,
-Good morning, brother, -Good morning Makbush,
It means the world to me,,,
-I'll bring your soup, -,,,when I have you around,
Me too, mother,
Well?
Makbule's age has come, and even passing,
Her friends got married already, Even though I tell her,
-first your brother then you,,, -Please mother, don't start again,
-Why, son? -My future is uncertain and you want me
-to drag along a poor woman along? -Why uncertain, son?
You have a great profession, Why don't you give me grandchildren?
The country is in turmoil, mother, It will get worse,
If you don't meddle with anyone's business,
-no one will meddle with yours, son, -Oh dear mother,
Whose business did my father meddle with to bring hell on himself?
Makbule, quick!
Makbule has a suitor,
-Is it someone you know? -His name is Lütfü,
He looks like a nice man,
-What do you want me to do? -You know, meet him, talk,
Not my cup of tea,
-She is your sister, -I'm here,
-Enjoy, -Thanks,
-Brother, -Yes,
Would you introduce Lütfü to those from your reform party?
Maybe they could arrange a government job for him,
I'm leaving,
Sit down and eat, my pasha,
What did I say to make you angry? All I want is a little bit of happiness,
How dare you ask of me this? Have I ever asked favors for someone in my life?
What if you do it for your sister?
-When asked I tell them I have a brother! -I cannot,
-And I will not, -Makbule! Enough, sit,
-What favor have I seen from him? -Sit down, pasha,
-It's all homeland, the nation, liberty! -Step aside,
What is going on in this house?
At least, you've learned what my problem is!
Step aside!
You just couldn't wait! Only if you could keep it shut!
Favors!
Insolence!
Commander,
You have a new assignment,
All right,
Was this the right thing to do?
He should be thankful for this much,
Commander,
At ease sergeant,
-What is your name? -Seyfettin, commander, Welcome!
Glad to be here,
I am assigned here,
So I heard, Let me show you around,
This is our telegram room,
There are a few technical equipment,
The lamp, kerosene and so on are here,
This room is for the guards, We have a kitchenette too,
And this humble room is for you,
So, we'll work here together,
I'd love to captain, However, I am retiring,
So, I am your replacement,
It came to me as a surprise too,
Forgive me for asking,
Why would they appoint a staff captain as a station commander?
I'd better make you coffee, How do you like it?
-With little sugar, -As you wish,
"Customs officer Ali Rıza, Thessaloniki, May he rest in peace"
Lütfü,
Where do you plan to live?
Do you have any thoughts of moving away with Makbule?
No, commander, Here in Thessaloniki,
Did you go to school?
I went to high school,
-What do you have in mind, business wise? -A government position would be,,,
No!
You will stay away from the government, the reformists, committees, and such,
Take this, Set up a business with it, It will be enough,
-How could I ever accept this? -Then, forget about Makbule,
-But commander,,, -These are my terms,
In our line of work, no task is small, Isn't it so, sergeant?
Yes commander,
-I'll make coffee, -Sure,
"Combat Practice For The Battalion by General Karl Litzmann"
Come in,
"Ismail Muhtar Pasha was shot in the middle of the street"
"Signature for Istanbul" "German interest over Istanbul"
"CUP dissident journalist Ahmet Samim assassinated!"
"Dissident journalist Hasan Fehmi was shot on Galata bridge!"
"Istanbul Police Department" "Mr, Resid and Cemil Pasha's departure"
"Liberty, Justice, Equality"
Good luck with your new assignment,
Remember, you told me to wait, Well, here you go,
Go on, Make fun of me, Mr, Salih,
Von der Goltz, one of the Prussian Army's Field Marshals,
will honor a military exercise with his presence,
We will need a volunteer to accompany him during the exercise, and keep records,
I am told,
The enemy has positioned its entire troops by the edges of the hill,
Your forces however, are on the open,
They have the field and elevation advantage,
What is your retreat plan?
When is the best time to execute it?
A two hour progressive retreat would be ordered after sundown,
It is best practice for the center command to retreat first,
and then the flanks may retreat while guarding the center,
Artillery fire will provide cover for the units as they retreat,
If we have to retreat,
Do you speak German?
To the best of my ability,
Your military prowess is better than your German,
Please elaborate,
The mentioned emplacement is suitable to be a swamp,
The enemy will risk losing advantage if they attack,
There is no need to retreat,
Your captain gave the next best answer,
But it isn't the correct answer,
Let's call it a trick question,
Like your prophet Muhammad said if I am not mistaken,
"War is deception,"
Great words,
I beg your pardon,
In such a situation,
just as you mentioned, there is a balance of power,
Both sides are grounded,
However,
just when a retreat is expected from you,
you can change the fate of the war,
Moment of surprise!
Come in,
You are expected to report to the Corps, commander,
It is best to not get involved, Nuri,
Kemal?
Captain, Lieutenant Colonel Cemal and Mr, Talat are expecting you urgently,
We're coming,
-What is it? -There is an uprising in Istanbul,
The light infantry battalions Enver had sent,
-Against who? -Against Enver,
They revolted, asking for Sharia law,
It escalated to executing their own commanders,
-Where does Abdülhamid stand in this? -They don't know yet,
Enver?
He is in Berlin, They informed him, but I don't know if he will come or not,
-What other option does he have? -Maybe this is the end of the road,
They may announce Enver, Cemal and Talat as traitors, who knows?
Enver wouldn't make a move before securing himself first,
It was obvious all along, Why are we called in?
Cemal and Talat have called everyone since the morning,
They are looking for a way out,
Did they ask us before?
Like when they suspended you?
Listen, gentlemen, We won't get involved,
Everybody knows that we opposed them since the beginning,
If someone needs to answer for it, they should,
They want to escape, let them escape,
The reforms?
What about the reopening of the parliament?
We played our part, Kemal,
They didn't want us in the good days,
-they cannot ask for our help now, -Gentlemen!
We're waiting for you!
I asked for cadre lists of the light infantry battalions,
They are here, sir,
What's the situation in Sirkeci Telegram post?
Which one of these? What are the dates on these?!
They are not yet classified sir!
Then do so and bring them back!
Come in! Welcome!
Gentlemen Ismet, Rauf and Kazım,
You are aware of the situation,
We're trying to find out the scope of the rebellion,
The admiralty commander Riza Pasha is wounded,
They killed the deputy of Lazkiye, Emir Arslan,
The commander of Asar-i Tevfik,
Ali Kabuli was killed with bayonets in front of the palace,
Let's remove light infantry commanders from service,
Useless, There are no commanders left already,
Let's publish a memorandum,
To be printed in all Istanbul press,
Let's announce that collaborators will be punished harshly,
Seems hard, while Istanbul newspapers blame the C,U,P
for the murdered journalists,
Wake up!
If this uprising is not suppressed, all our efforts will go to waste,
Liberty will cease existing even before it has begun! Us too!
Nothing can be achieved without marching on Istanbul,
What you all propose will only work then,
Are we going to confront the army against itself?
Not with the current army,
A new army can be formed for this task,
An army formed by reformist officers,
There is no time for that, Captain,
Correct, commander, Yet, there is an operation which I planned in detail,
Based on the possibility of a rebellion breaking out in Istanbul,
I called it the "Army of Action", At your discretion,
How? When did you plan such a thing?
I had ample time at the recent post you've deemed appropriate for me, Mr, Talat,
We are listening,
"ÇATALCA"
-Yıldız Palace is of utmost importance, -Yes,
First we arrive in Istanbul,
We will not enter immediately, First, we'll publish a memorandum,
Not a memorandum that threatens the people of Istanbul,
But a memorandum that clearly states that we are with them
and that our goal is to defend liberty,
We will seek support from the parliament, and the senate,
After the people calm down, we will enter,
Necessary precautions will be taken,
Criminals will be punished,
31 March Incident was suppressed by the Action on 27 April 1909,
70 rebels were executed, 420 were arrested Abülhamid II, was dethroned,
''TO THE VICTORY!''
Thessaloniki, 1887
The upheaval has reached such a level, they've eventually revolted,
There is big unrest in Arabia,
What now? Will this thing get out of hand?
If corruption continues like this why not, Zübeyde?
Soon, same will happen here,
Today it is the Arabs, God knows who next,
God help us!
Why did they revolt, father?
Forget about it, son, Don't think about it,
You cannot understand yet,
Please tell me father, Please,
The administration is corrupt, Mustafa,
What does the administration do?
They are being unfair son, Would you like someone who is unfair?
No,
Why are they being unfair to them?
What's their fault?
I buy roasted chickpeas, and sesame bars from the Arabs all the time,
They are all nice women,
And I saw them just yesterday,
You are wrong, father,
Don't worry, Mustafa,
As you said, they are nice people,
Who is being unfair, father?
I told you, it's the administration,
Is the administration not our administration?
It is ours,,,
It is our administration,
So, why revolt?
First, they will attack with artillery,
Just like in the previous time,
Then with infantry, (January 1912 Derne-Tripoli)
We will wait, again,
Alright! No rush!
Until they are within the artillery range!
When they get closer! Do you understand!
They have a machine! An airplane!
It flies!
It comes from the skies! It is very big, like this!
From the skies! But made of iron,
Yet!
But made of iron,
Like a bird!
Plane, like a bird!
It is a machine, a machine!
Shoot like you would shoot a bird!
Bang! Bang!
Like a bird!
Do you understand?
To hell with Italy! Long live the nation! Come on, get ready! Move!
Nice demonstration,
Oh! Come on,
-You are something, Nuri, -It's hard with this bunch,
They will attack again,
They shouldn't have been allowed to fortify on the shore,
See how they are fortifying now?
How are we supposed to fend them off?
Let's assume we did,
Let's assume, Italians take this place, What then?
They won't just sit in the middle of the dessert, What will the French say?
If they head east towards Egypt, they will stumble into the British,
These are the precursors of a big war,
How big?
Unprecedented,
Peace be upon you brothers!
Peace be upon you!
May your battle be blessed!
Amen,
Yakup,
Major,
-Nuri, -Major,
Sheikh,
this is Major Mustafa, commander of Derna,
Captain Nuri,
Your presence encourages us,
God bless you,
Thank you, This is our duty,
Let me introduce you to my close friend, Omar al-Mukhtar,
Glad to meet you,
Sheikh,
Journalists are waiting,
We need to make a statement,
Dear journalists!
We are here
due to our brotherhood ties which dates back hundreds of years!
No Italian infidel's, or crusader reject's foot,
will step on this sacred, thousand year old Muslim land!
Tripoli is as sacred for us
as İstanbul, Bursa and Edirne! It is our homeland!
Abandoning it
without fighting to the last drop of our blood is unthinkable!
Omar-Al Muhtar,
May I?
Of course, you are welcome,
Thank you,
Why don't you eat with the soldiers?
You need some distance from the soldiers,
Or else it would be hard to make them obey,
At times we send them to death,
So, they don't go willingly?
Who has ever asked them what their will is?
Having your own will
sounds rather like,
European sensation, doesn't it?
Do you consider the idea of liberty as a European sensation?
We have lived our lives
as companionson a path, drawn with faith, for thousands of years, Major,
Unity is power,
Yes but,,,
What if that power is not used for the sake of that unity?
What if it becomes an instrument for the personal ambitions of others?
Isn't the most important command of God, is serving him and no one else?
Is it not a definition of liberty in itself?
We can see the stars when we look up,
However, there are many more planets than the stars, Yet we don't see them,
God creates each of his vessels as a star,
So that they don't need anyone else other than themselves,
However not everyone preserves that light,
They solidify, and cool down,
What would the ones who can't preserve their light do?
They will hold onto the one who can,
Just like the French who rid themselves of the King by chanting for liberty,
only to give in to Napoleon in a matter of decades,
The matter is not believing a person
but believing an idea, which eternally can keep its light bright, Major,
Holding on to people is easier than holding on to ideas,
Otherwise, the God would have sent the book itself, rather than the prophet,
What is your profession?
I am a teacher,
I can tell,
Come, let's eat together with the kids whom we'll send to death tomorrow,
Omar Mukhtar is coming,
-Sit down, -Here you go, Omer Mukhtar,
Sit down,
Serve them soup,
Come on! Quick!
In range! Nuri!
-Fire! -In range!
Fire!
You stay here!
-What happened? -It got stuck in the sand,
-The wheel must have broke, -All together,
One, Two, three!
-We cannot stop them, We must retreat! -No retreat!
One, two, three!
Help me!
Oh, mama!
It hurts!
For God's sake help me!
It hurts so much!
You were having a nightmare,
A shrapnel hit your eye, They said only time will tell how it will heal,
Thankfully we are alive, The battle?
We repelled them, But they will attack again,
Our fight is in vain,
Maybe,
Why did you come here, on Enver's word?
You were almost dead,
This, Yakup, is what you don't understand,
Just because I criticize does not mean I will not serve,
I have bad news for you,
What?
The Greek have attacked,
Thessaloniki has fallen,
We cannot counter Italian's air raids,
Is it true?
-Why are you not in bed? -Step aside, Nuri! Step aside!
Commander! Is it true?
Yes,
Without even firing a single bullet?
Thessaloniki, my beautiful home has fallen, Did I hear right?
I'll make them pay, major, Believe me,
When?
We are going back to Istanbul, Whatever is necessary will be done!
What will happen here?
Why did we come here then? Where are we going next?
As sacred as Istanbul, Bursa, and Edirne?
Let's go there too,
Get out, all of you!
Out!
-What do you want, Major? -What I want is clear!
What do you want, Enver?
If you were going to deliver Thessaloniki to a bunch of unqualified officers,
why did you bestow so much power to yourself?
-I did my best to,,, -If you wanted to marry the daughter
of the sultan which succeeded the one you replaced, and to have
a taste of royalty, why did we
dethrone the previous one?
I forbid you from bringing Sultan Naciye into this discussion,
-Why? -We, the well read types,
can dream of liberty, But don't forget, for the common man, state is the Crown,
As I said, I'll make them pay,
January 23rd, 1913 Vizierate Building, Istanbul
What is happening? What are you doing? Traitors,
Sign your resignation, Grand Vizier Kamil Pasha!
-Hello, -Welcome, Nuri,
Hello,
How is the eye?
Get up, I'll take you somewhere, Let's change your mood,
Ali Fethi has resigned from the army,
-Enver,,, -Alright, alright,
Enough,
-Shouldn't we talk, Mustafa? -Talk about what, Nuri?
What?
They've sold Thessaloniki,
They've fled without firing a bullet,
not looking back,
Bulgarians have taken Edirne,
The papers are all about his love story with Naciye Sultan,
Talk about what?
Will getting worked up like this, help solve anything?
When asked
my title is Major Mustafa Kemal of Thessaloniki,
No more Thessaloniki, right?
Only, Major Mustafa Kemal,
I should resign, just like Fethi did, For good,
So, you will resign?
Our neighbor
took pity for a street cat, and adopted it,
However the cat never ate from the bowl,
And? What was the cat doing?
It was first scattering the food all over, and was eating from the floor,
You can take the cat from the street,
but taking the street out of the cat is hard,
You are born a soldier, You will die a soldier,
I cannot even go visit my mother and Makbush,
Mustafa,
Go on,
Go ahead, tell me, Did something happen?
Don't you want it at all Mustafa?
To get married and have your own family,
A wife waiting for you at home? Food on the table,
I am your brother, Don't be angry with me, I am worried about you,
Was there any time for that, during all those wars?
Come on, for God's sake, We all found the time,
Don't you want to have a son?
Oh, Nuri, How did it come to this?
Come to what?
I should order a few bites, Is no one attending our table? Hilmi! Over here,
-Welcome, -Hello,
-Where are we? -This is the new trend, The houses,
Who are all these people?
Poets, artists, envoys, intelligence officers, politicians, You name it,
-Would you have some? -Thank you,
Is that Fethi?
Where have you been?
You said you were bringing him immediately,
We talked, It was great,
-Nice, Welcome, -Hello,
You look happy, Despite the news I just received,
Why bother with Enver?
Talat Pasha wants to appoint me as the ambassador in Sofia,
-How nice! -What are you talking about, Fethi?
How can you be so comfortable? Tell me!
Let's not talk about it now, Come on,
If not now, when are we going to talk?
I don't know who these people are,
But I assume they don't care about our future,
Since they can sing and dance at such a time,
Shame on you too, Nuri, As if you don't know me at all!
If you'll excuse me,
Will you leave before we can offer you anything?
Our hostess, Madame Corrine,
Major Mustafa Kemal, Thessaloniki,
Glad to meet you,
Some other time, I hope, If you'd excuse me,
At least, let me entertain you with a song then,
So that our negligent image fortifies in your eyes before you leave,
Nuri, you'll give her my regards,
Kemal,
Her husband was a Turkish officer,
He fell in the Balkan War,
Why are you crying, my little girl?
What is your name?
Vasfiye,
Where are you parents, Vasfiye?
I don't know,
Dear God, we have to look after this girl,
You look after us,
Come here, Come,
May 11th, 1914 Sofia
Dear Ambassador, What is your opinion on the rise of Enver?
Enver Pasha, works harder than ever for our Great State,
Is it not unusual to have three promotions in less than one year?
Is it also not unusual that he is now Minister of War
and married the Sultan's niece?
Extreme times call for extreme measures, sir,
Have a lovely evening, sir,
-Thank you, -Thank you,
-What is he saying? -He asks about Enver,
What did you say?
I told him he says hi, What else?
Where is Mustafa Kemal?
I want to leave already,
-Enough, -Where do you get these ideas from?
I just do,
The British ambassador asked about Enver before you arrived,
What did you say?
I told him that he is busy,
He didn't buy it of course,
He wants intel on whom the Bulgarians are talking to, The Germans or the British?
Enver?
But he is not sending any money,
So, I cannot use any of my resources,
The treasury is broke, Kemal,
It's only enough for luxuriating their lives,
Who's that girl?
The one in the middle?
General Kovachev's daughter, Miti,
Let's not see Enver's lack of funds as our sole excuse,
If you'd excuse me,
Would you
the beautiful mademoiselle spare me this dance?
You are a very good dancer,
Thank you for your kind compliments,
Do you speak Bulgarian?
Not good enough to express your beauty,
"Austrian Army bombs Belgrade"
Welcome!
Hello,
My father is an urgent meeting,
Some other time, maybe,
No, no, He is here, home,
I want you two to meet, very much,
He has been informed about your arrival,
We shouldn't have bothered him,
Daddy,
Lieutenant Colonel Mustafa Kemal,
Star of the costume party,
King Ferdinand is still telling his friends about you,
It is an honor sir,
I am in an important meeting with my friends,
Please excuse me tonight,
Please excuse me for my untimely visit,
Not at all,
Miti, you will entertain our guest alone,
I don't think he will complain,
It is an honor to have you in my house,
The honor is mine, Thank you very much,
If you'd excuse me,
Germans want us to do whatever they say,
The British are no different,
At least the British supported us against the Ottomans,
Not for the sake of friendship though,
Ultimately they will attack the Ottomans,
And we will be stuck in between,
It's too early to decide,
We need detailed intelligence,
We must be prepared for every outcome,
Maybe you should check on your guest,
As far as I can see, Miti is quite into this young, and handsome officer,
Miti is very young,
And I must admit, the officer is quite charismatic,
The costume show he put on at the national day will be remembered
for quite a while,
Could it be said that you approve of this, General?
Could a bright, young Ottoman officer become your son in law?
As I said,
Miti is still very young,
I am sure she will have other affairs in the future,
And also
I will decapitate myself rather than watch her marry a Turk,
"Exclusive for General Kovachev"
Kemal!
Kemal! Open the door, It's me!
Thank you,
Kemal!
Brother! Look at me! Are you all right?
Call a doctor!
I am fine, Fethi, I am fine,
Thank God,
Come,
They cannot win,
Germans will be trapped between the Russians and the French,
We have already declared war,
We allied with the Germans,
Yesterday, two German ironclads
donned the Ottoman flag in the Black Sea and bombarded Sevastopol,
Idiot!
Enver is denying any involvement,
but it is too late,
I am going back to Istanbul,
What are you going to do in Istanbul? You can't even get up yet,
I will request a post in a front, What do you think?
You are pushing the limits of your health,
Tell them to get my ticket, Fethi,
Will you go the the battlefront in this condition?
You go ahead,
Mr, Ali Fethi informed me of your arrival,
Where?
I won't let you settle in a hotel room in such condition,
Maybe you will tell me about the Sofia mission,
Or should I call it the Sofia escapade?
There are complaints about you,
You are accused of being cruel towards the people in the eastern provinces,
It's better, rather than your defeat,
that my cruelty is the talk,
There is no defeat,
That's what I am saying,
I am telling all newspapers not to report Sarikamis,
Come in!
Sir! The general staff headquarters
is inquiring about Mustafa Kemal's deployment orders,
I told them to deploy him with the 19th division,
The 19th division consists of reserves,
It isn't certain that they will ever be deployed to the front, they replied,
Commander, they say 19th is a problematic division,
19th it is,
Yes sir,
Now leave,
19th Divisional, 57th Regiment February 2nd, 1915 - Yerçeşme, Tekirdağ
-Sergeant Hüseyin, -Yeah?
Some soldiers won't partake in the exercises, They don't want to,
-Which ones? -There, They have a ringleader,
Show them to me,
Everyone line up!
Get up, quick,
I said get up, Are you deaf? Get up, now!
Who am I talking to?
We are cold,
-My brothers are sick, -Soldier!
Final warning!
If you don't get up you will be punished,
Get up!
-Corporal! Get him up! -Yes, sir,
-Get up, soldier! -Let go!
Get up!
Stop! Corporal!
At ease,
Sit down,
Sit down!
I could use a bowl of soup too, sergeant,
Yes, commander,
And, whatever scraps you have for Alp,
He is not a picky eater,
The kids are right, It is cold, sergeant,
But we won't die from it, Am I wrong?
It was, in Sarikamis, sir,
It killed my uncle and my brother,
You know what cold reminds me of?
Here, sir,
Thanks,
The hearth at my father's house,
When I was little, sometimes I woke up early,
Summer or winter, it didn't matter,
I'd feel cold until mother fired it up,
What would a hearth in a kitchen heat?
Definitely not the whole house,
Regardless,
When it was lit,
I would feel warm,
The world's largest navy is coming here, kid,
The British and the French gathered the seven nations behind them,
They call themselves the great nations,
Great nations!
If we cannot stop them over there, in the strait of Dardanelles,
do you know what will follow?
Where are you from?
Bitlis, commander,
Remember that hearth back in your father's house in Bitlis,
It will die,
-Where are you from? -Aydin, commander,
Yours will also die out,
-You, kid? -Kırşehir, commander,
Yours too,
Yours will too! And yours!
All will die out,
I promise you cold!
I promise you hunger!
I promise you misery!
And I promise you
death, Death!
I, Lieutenant Colonel Mustafa Kemal!
I promise you victory,
so that your father's hearth wouldn't die!
If the great nations dare to come,
they will bear our wrath,
Are you with me?
We are with you!
-I can't hear you, soldier! -We are!
-Will you march with me? -We will!
-To death! -To death!
-To victory! -To victory!
-May our battle be blessed! -Amen!
Dedicated to the Regiment of Martyrs, The 57th,