Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (Turkish: Mustafa Kemal Atatürk; circa 1881 – November 10, 1938), known as Mustafa Kemal Pasha until 1934 (Ottoman Turkish: مصطفی كمال پاشا; Turkish: Mustafa Kemal Paşa, a Turkish military general, reformer and writer, the first president, prime minister and speaker of the Grand National Assembly of the Republic of Turkey, is known as the father of modern Turkey. Kemal was born in Salonika (now in Greece). He was persecuted in his early years for opposing the rule of Sultan Abdulhamid II, and participated in organizations such as the United Progress Committee and the Young Turks. He participated in the Italian-Turkish War and the Balkan War, and gained fame by commanding the 19th Division in the Battle of Gallipoli in World War I. With the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire, he led the Turkish National Movement with outstanding ability to form an independent government in Ankara, defeated the Allied forces, and established the Turkish Republic. The government he led has also been controversial for the ethnic cleansing and massacre of Armenians and Greeks during this period. After Kemal became the supreme leader, he implemented a benevolent dictatorship and initiated a series of political, economic and cultural reforms, enlightening Turkey and making Turkey a modern and secular country. Kemal's efforts to modernize Türkiye are known as Kemalism, which also included reducing the influence of Islam on politics and education. He died in Dolmabahçe Palace, Istanbul, on November 10, 1938, at the age of 57.