Turkish-German Military Relations in the Early Years of the Republic and the Activities of General Hilmar von Mittelberger in Military Academy Cover Image

Erken Cumhuriyet Dönemi Türk-Alman Askerî İlişkileri ve General Hilmar von Mittelberger’in Harp Okullarındaki Faaliyetleri
Turkish-German Military Relations in the Early Years of the Republic and the Activities of General Hilmar von Mittelberger in Military Academy

Author(s): Resul Alkan
Subject(s): Military history, Political history, Interwar Period (1920 - 1939), WW II and following years (1940 - 1949)
Published by: Gazi Akademik Bakış
Keywords: General Hilmar von Mittelberger; Turkish-German military relations; Turkish Military Academy;memoirs;

Summary/Abstract: The Prussian tradition in Ottoman military modernization began with Captain Helmuth von Moltke. Approximately a century after the activities of the delegation headed by Helmuth von Moltke in the Ottoman army, advisors from Germany were re-assigned by the Republic of Turkey at various levels of the army. Compared to previous military delegations, German consultants, whose duties were limited to lecturing at military academies on paper, resigned from their official duties in Germany. They have signed special agreements with the Turkish Armed Forces that do not bind their own countries and military institutions, and have served in Turkey for a wage higher than the salary they earned in their country. Between 1925 and 1939, apart from the military attachés in the German embassies in Turkey, 36 German served in Turkish Military and Naval War Schools. Among these, Hilmar von Mittelberger is the most prominent name with his works that he left behind in a short period of 7 years, with his last position in Germany with the rank of lieutenant general. The German general, who returned to his country with the beginning of the Second World War, attended the talks about Turkey at the headquarters of his country’s general staff, where he informed the generals of the German army about Turkey’s defense power.

  • Issue Year: 14/2021
  • Issue No: 28
  • Page Range: 95-113
  • Page Count: 18
  • Language: Turkish