12-16-2022, 04:59 PM
CHECK THIS OUT THE BANNED ISLAMIC HISTORY OF EUROPE SHOWN ON TURKISH TV WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES. TIME TO REVEAL THE PAST AND TIME FOR RESURRECTION.
CAN MUSLIMS THRIVE WITHOUT A KHALIFATE
PAYITAHT ABDULHAMID
Season 1 Episode 1 (English Subtitles)
Payitaht Abdulhamid takes us back in time to the fight for the existence of the Ottoman Empire. The story depicts the life of Sultan Abdulhamid Han who ascended the throne in 1876 and remained on the post for 33 years. It also follows the events that took place in the Ottoman State and around the world during the time of the “Almighty Sultan”.
THE ABOLITION OF THE OFFICE OF THE CALIPH IS MARKED
AS A TURNING POINT IN HISTORY
https://www.heritagetimes.in/last-ottoman-caliph/
On the day 3 March, 1924, the Caliphate was officially abolished by the Turkish Republic under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The last #Ottoman caliph, #AbdülmecidII, was sent into exile in France along with the rest of the Ottoman family. #OttomanEmpire #OttomanCaliphate
The Sultan along with 156 members of the Ottoman family were forced into exile. They were given just 3 days to leave. They wanted to go to Egypt and Syria which were formerly under Ottoman control but they were prevented. They settled in French-controlled Beirut and across Europe.
Princess #DurruShehvar was the daughter of #AbdülmecidII the last Caliph of the Muslim world. She married to the eldest son of #NizamofHyderabad speaks about a deep and warm relationship between #OttomanKhilafat and Muslim political leaders of pre-partition India.
I will start a little over 150 years before WW1, because understanding the events leading up to the destruction of the Ottoman Caliphate allows us to understand why WW1 happened when it did. Let’s remember the events leading up to and including WW1, but from the perspective of the Ottoman Caliphate, which was carved into pieces, unlike any of the other losing states after the war.
– 1747 to 1757, the Saudi tribe rebels against the Ottoman Caliphate and annexes lands. Muhammad bin Saud takes in Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab and the Saudi-Wahhabi movement begins spreading, treating other groups as deviant and “not authentic Islam.” They attack the Ottoman Caliphate from within, taking the lands of Al-Dir’iyyah and Al-Ihsaa’. The movement goes into stagnation for 30 years for unknown reasons.
– 1787, the Wahhabi movement resumes activity once again. Muhammed ibn Saud is dead (1765), and his son Abdul-Aziz is leading the tribe. He establishes an Emirate and a hereditary rule via a ceremony led by Muhammed ibn Abdul-Wahhab.
– 1788, the Saudi Wahhabi movement sets up a large military raid against the Caliphate, seizing Kuwait. This was done as an attempt to remove the “Bid’ah” of other Madhhabs and to “purify” the Muslim lands.
– 1792, Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab dies.
– 1811 to 1818, the Ottomans send their Wali (governor) from Egypt, Muhammad Ali, to deal with the Saudi Wahhabi attacks. Muhammad Ali defeats them, and takes Madinah back under Ottoman control (the Saudi tribe remains in exile until 1902, where they finally strike at the Caliphate during its weakest days leading to the establishment of modern-day Saudi Arabia in 1932 under British approval).
– 1831, Muhammad Ali, after defeating the Saudi Wahhabi rebellion, turns around and betrays the Ottoman Caliphate, agreeing to work with France, and attacks Al-Shaam. He occupies Palestine, Lebanon and Syria, and attempts to move towards Anatolia. The Ottomans send a large force against him. He is forced back to Egypt.
– 1839, the Caliph Abdul-Mejid I, who was only 16 years old, is guided by Britain and France to introduce the Kalkhana as law, the first direct attempt to introduce man-made law into the Calipate. Muslims deem it contradictory to Islam and it is rejected entirely.
– 1842 to 1875, the Beirut Centre is established. British collaborators work with Christian locals to instil nationalist and secular tendecies within the Arab world. Most associations failed, as they only appealed to non-Muslims. Success is found through Arab-exclusive associations, which spread the idea that the Turkish Ottomans were occupiers, calling them “Turks,” and called for Arab nationalism as a new basis for unity.
– 1889 to 1907, the Istanbul Centre is established, where British and French collaborators set up the “Committee of Union and Progress,” which later became known as “The Young Turks.” This party originally started in Paris, France, where they were taught admiration and loyalty to the French revolution.
– 1902, Abdul-Aziz bin Saud, leader of the Saudi tribe, returned from exile in Kuwait to resume the conflict in the region, seizing Riyadh. This is the first of a series of attacks that ultimately lead to the creation of the modern state of Saudi Arabia in 1932 under British approval.
– 1908, the Young Turks stage a coup and take control of the Ottoman Caliphate, becoming the “official party” of the state, leaving the Caliph as a figurehead similar to the Queen of England.
– 1913, the “Decentralization Committee” was formed, splitting the administration of the Arabs from the Turks within the Caliphate, establishing the first-ever official nationalistic division within the state.
– 1914, the Caliphate is being torn from within by nationalistic and secular movements. British and French influences have a strong hand in these events.WW1 begins. The “official” cause of such a large-scale war is ambiguous.
– 1915, the British seize Gallipoli during the Dardanelles campaign, but end up at a deadlock and cannot progress further into Ottoman lands. The Battle of Galipolli is a genuine military victory of Ottomans, They attempt to incite Jamal Pasha against the Ottoman Caliphate. He agrees with some conditions, including the preservation of the unity of the Caliphate, among other conditions. The British and French refuse.
– December 15th 1915, British troops retreat from Gallipoli. Mustafa Kamal presents his report to the German general commander with a watch damaged by a bullet, and he is hailed a national hero for his defeat of the British.
– 1916, Mustafa Kamal uses his new fame to influence the Ottoman State to withdraw from the war and sign a peace treaty with the British. He fails and is banished from political discussions for a year.
– 1917, Baghdad falls to the British, and they march towards Mousul. This worries the Ottoman government. They appoint Mustafa Kamal to lead the defence force.
– 1918, Mustafa Kamal, continually attempting to convince the government to withdraw from the war and surrender, devises a plan to hand Aleppo to the British. On Sepember 19th 1918, he withdraws from the area, and retreats to the River Jordan and then continues all the way to Damascus. He recommends to the German High Commander Liman von Sanders that they should abandon the whole of Syria. Sanders replies by refusing to take responsibility for such a thing, and Mustafa Kamal agrees to take full responsibility. They retreat.
– October 1918, Al-Shaam falls under British and French control, as do many other areas. Anwar Pasha reluctantly agrees to a truce.
– October 30th 1918, the British refuse to discuss the peace treaty with Tal’at and Anwar Pasha, because they claim that these men were responsible for plunging the Ottomans into war, and demand a new government be formed. This destabilizes the government further.
November 1918, WW1 officially ends
– December 1918, the British begins to deal with the spoils of war. The Germans are dealt with according to international law. The Ottomans, on the other hand, were dealt with according to a secret plan that was formed in 1916 called the Sykes-Picot Agreement. This agreement stated that if the Triple Entente were to defeat the Ottomans in WW1, they would divide their lands according to these lines, similar to carving a turkey at a Thanksgiving dinner. Britain proceeded to implement this agreement in violation of international law, as they took the action unilaterally, before even signing the peace treaty, and without any input from the Allies or from the regions that were being carved out.
Interesting facts regarding what took place during WW1 in 1915, the British promised the district of Antalya and the surrounding area along the Mediterranean to the Italians. One year later, in 1916, the British, the French, and the Russians agreed to the Sykes-Picot Agreement.
In 1917, the British promised Herzl and his Zionist movement the land of Palestine. All this took place before the war was even close to ending.
– 1918 to 1920, after a long period of a political vacuum, Mustafa Kamal gains significant control of the now-British-influenced government, and rallied nationalistic tendencies among the people in Turkey. He attempted to form an independent government in Ankara, but the Caliphate responded with a large force that defeated him and wiped out his authority.
– 1920 to 1922, with Mustafa Kamal’s life and authority about to end, suddenly the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres, which was signed at the end of WW1 with the British, was made public and announced all over Turkey. This turned the population against the Caliphate, as they were seen as traitors. This saved Mustafa Kamal’s life, and gave him unrestricted access to every area of the government. But this treaty was never signed by Sultan Vahdettin and damat Ferit Pasha. Reza Tevfik (senator), Hadi Pasha and the Ottoman Ambassador of Bern Reshad Halis Bey signed this treaty.
– October 29th 1923, Mustafa Kamal gives a speech calling for a vote to abolish the Caliphate and turn Turkey into a republic. This vote was not expected, and only 40% of voting deputies were in attendance. The vote passed and Mustafa Kamal was elected as the first president of Turkey. This was met with a huge uproar from the absent deputies, and the Muslims of the #Ottoman #Caliphate rallied around the Caliph Abdul-Mejid. This led to Mustafa Kamal having one of the protesting deputies assassinated, and began to threaten any dissenting voices.
– March 1st 1924, Mustafa Kamal gives a speech about the necessity of destroying the Caliphate. He is met with fierce opposition and protests. He responded to the protests by saying “We must at all costs safeguard the endangered republic and make her rise upon solid scientific bases. The Caliph and the legacies of the Ottoman Family must go, the dilapidated religious courts and their laws must be replaced by modern courts and laws, and the clerics schools must concede their place to governmental secular schools.”
– March 3rd 1924, despite the protests, the Greater National Assembly approves the abolishment of the Caliphate and the separation of Islamic law from the state. The Caliph Abdul-Mejid is given notice to leave, and the Caliphate is officially dissolved.
– July 24th 1924, the Treaty of Lausanne is made effective. Britain recognises Turkey’s independence, and evacuates Istanbul and the straits.
Over a century of effort and scheming finally completed. The Khilafah is finally destroyed.
The abolishment of the Office of the Caliph on March 3rd, 1924 is marked as a turning point in history. To fully appreciate the significance of this anniversary, we must take ourselves back to Istanbul.
The year is 1924, sometime after midnight. A single light, coming from the library is on, in the Dolmabahçe palace. There, an old man sits quietly and reads the Qur?an, pondering over the state of his Ummah (i.e. the Muslim nation). His name is Abdülmecid II and he is the 101st Caliph of Islam. Two years prior, his cousin Sultan Mehmed VI Vahdeddin had been exiled to Italy (where he later starved to death) and the Ottoman Sultanate had been abolished by the Grand National Assembly. The end of the Ottoman Empire had finally come to an end, however, the Office of the Caliph was not so easily dismantled, due to fears of a massive backlash that would ensue. A campaign of violence and intimidation began to ensure that all those who supported the Caliph were removed. Then, on the night of March 3rd, the final move was made. A young army messenger opened the door to the library of the Dolmabahçe palace. The hunched over Caliph continued to read from the Qur?an. The messenger was initially taken aback by the sight, but he forced himself and read out the proclamation from the Grand National Assembly. The Caliph refused to leave Istanbul, but his staff were worried that they would all be killed by the army that had now surrounded the palace and had him and his family, including women and children at gunpoint. After weighing the few options he had, he reluctantly packed some of his clothes and went into exile.
Before morning prayer, the Caliph was taken to the main train station at gunpoint where he and his family were put on the Orient Express bound for Switzerland. An envelope containing £2000 was given to the man who left behind entire palaces full of diamonds, emeralds and gold. The station master quickly took the Caliph and his family into his small house adjoining the train station to shelter them from the cold on the platform while they awaited the train to start on its journey. As they drank tea, the Caliph thanked him for his hospitality. The station master, a Jewish man, began to cry. “How can you thank me?” he asked especially knowing that it was the Caliphs/Sultans of Islam who had preserved the life and dignity of the Jewish people whenever they were persecuted elsewhere in the world (e.g. Spain). Instead, he thanked the Caliph for the honour of being able to serve him even if for the briefest moment. In the morning, citizens awoke to the news that they had scarcely believed would ever happen – the Caliphate had been abolished.
There were isolated riots and uprisings in various regions, but the army quickly put them down. The last Caliph spent his days walking along the promenade in Paris, France. There, he lived a humble life until he died in 1944 during the Nazi occupation of France. As no Caliph had ever been buried in non-Muslim lands, Abdülmecid II’s body was eventually transported to, and buried in Jannat Al-Baqi cemetery in Madinah, Arabia. The major political and spiritual office of Caliph had also been buried with him as well, an office which, to this day, remains to be filled, leaving a lasting impact on present-day Muslim lands and the Middle East, and fracturing the unity and peace that Muslims once possessed in their neighbourhoods.
Source : Ottoman Imperial archives & Mazin AbdulAdhim
THE BITTER STORY OF THE OTTOMAN DYNASTY’s EXILE
Ekrem Bugra Ekinci
https://www.dailysabah.com/feature/2015/...stys-exile
On March 3, 1924, the leaders of the newly-formed Turkish Republic ordered the exile of the members of the Ottoman royal family. This did not just mean deportation, but also meant the beginning of a journey that included harsh living conditions in different parts of the world
When the Ottoman sultanate and caliphate was abolished, 156 people belonging to the royal family were denied Turkish citizenship with a law that entered into force on March 3, 1924, and were deported in the following three days. With those who were exiled with their parents or children, even though they were not subjected to the law, and the servants who did not want to leave their masters, the number of exiled people reached the hundreds. The law forbade them to even pass through Turkey in transit. They were also told to liquidate their assets within a year or they would be seized by the Treasury. Sultan Mehmed VI went into exile earlier. Sultan Abdülmecid II and his family were deported within 24 hours, even before the law became effective, and they boarded a train in Çatalca instead of Sirkeci as officials feared demonstrations. The Jewish director of the train station was the last person to show respect to the sultan in his homeland.
Although women were banned from ruling a country in the Ottoman-Islam tradition, women and their children, even grooms and brides, from the Ottoman family were exiled. None of the dynasties of European empires that were overthrown by revolution were treated in such a manner; only the monarchs were exiled and their belongings and assets were returned to them after a short time. Only the tsar and tsarina in Russia were slaughtered along with their children, and that was because the tsarist White Army was close to rescuing the tsar and his family.
The members of the Ottoman family were given one-way passports. They wanted to go to Egypt, one of the countries that was once located within the borders of the Ottoman Empire, however neither the British, who ruled the region, nor King Fuad, who was jealous of the Ottomans, let them settle there. When they wanted to go to Syria, as it was close to their homeland, the newly established Republic of Turkey prevented it. Hence, some of the members of the Ottoman family settled in Beirut under the rule of the French and the rest scattered around Europe. Their palaces were ransacked under the supervision of the police even before they left. Some could sell their homes, antiques and valuable artworks for almost nothing and some gave them to those whom they trusted. Some of these "trusted" people betrayed them and took all their money and belongings while the rest of the assets were seized by the state and their right of succession, which was inherited from their grandfathers, was rendered invalid. Thus, a cruelty that has not been experienced so many times in the world was deemed proper for the decedents of Osman, the founder of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman family, which descended from the legendary Oghuz Khagan and was one of the oldest dynasties in the world, was forced off from the political stage.
The Ottoman family could not believe what was happening. They had heard rumors about the abolishment of the sultanate on the eve of the exile, but they thought that the public still loved and favored them and did not even presume such a thing. Once they were banished, they thought the exile was a temporary situation. As a matter of fact, most of them did not take all their belongings with them as they believed they would return to their homes within a few months. However, the exile lasted 30 years for the women and 50 years for the men. All of them lived in exile with a country and a passport. The princes were trained in the military, which they could not make use of during the exile. It was not possible for the elderly sultans to work for a living. These people who were used to donating money to charities did not have money in banks or any cash with them. When they were exiled from the Turkish Republic, each family was given TL 1,000, which only covered their travel expenses and maintenance for a month. After they undersold their jewelry, they fell in the gutter. There were members of the royal family who washed dishes at hotels, begged for many or looked for something to eat from trash cans. Some lived with aid from Ottoman Armenians who also fled to Europe while some died of hunger.
Muslim nobles such as Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII, the ruler of Hyderabad, which is located in present day India, Egyptian Prince Ömer Tosun and the King of Hejaz Husain ibn Ali tried to help the members of this fallen dynasty financially, but most of the aid did not reach those in need as the royal family was scattered around the world. Moreover, the government in Ankara reacted to the marriages between foreigners and members of the royal family and monitored their every step in exile. As a result, France did not grant citizenship to descents of Süleyman the Magnificent who rescued French King Francis I, but gave them passports that allowed them to travel freely. The Ottoman family was faced with poverty, deprivation and illnesses in addition to homesickness and the pain of injustice. Those whose last resting place is a cemetery of the nameless were the lucky ones as the bodies of some royals were lost or thrown into the sea. However, they all lived in dignity and with their honor. They were hurt by the treatment they experienced, but they never worked against their country. The women of the Ottoman family were granted amnesty in 1952 by the government led by Adnan Menderes and general amnesty, which entered into force in 1974, allowed Ottoman princes to return to their homeland. However, one cannot help but think whether they waited to grant amnesty to the royal family until those who knew the ways of the Ottoman court died or not. Apparently, the Republic of Turkey was still afraid of these desperate people. When general amnesty was put into practice, very few returned to Turkey. Young people settled down in exile and started families. Those who returned were not given Turkish citizenship immediately and were followed by undercover police officers for a while.
People who care so much about the Tomb of Süleyman Shah better look at the state of his descendants. The sons and daughters of a dynasty, which achieved great victories in Ottoman and Islamic history, were deprived of speaking their own language, learning their religion, breathing the air of the country and dying in their homeland. Today, the Ottoman family does not expect goodness or favors from anyone. A pardon was given to the royal family, however, many people were born in exile and established new lives in their new homes. Regarding the current situation, the exile still continues, and this is a shame for Turkey and those who live in this region. If the cruelties in the pasts of people, families and nations are not atoned in any way, it prevents any good deeds. If a state does not compensate the injustices it caused in the past, it cannot look to the future with hope.
The return and the recovery of the assets that were confiscated back then is something expected from the state. Moreover, it is a national debt to pay a monthly salary to every member of the Ottoman family to maintain their livelihood in Turkey until their belongings are safely returned. A foundation should be established to carry out this mission and it should also be supported by the state so that the state can bear a hand to those who are in need. Thus, the new generation of the Ottoman royal family would be brought up and get married in Turkish Islamic culture and the elderly would be able to spend the rest of their lives in peace in their homeland. When they die, they will be laid to rest with a funeral service proper for the glory of their family.
CAN MUSLIMS THRIVE WITHOUT A KHALIFATE
PAYITAHT ABDULHAMID
Season 1 Episode 1 (English Subtitles)
Payitaht Abdulhamid takes us back in time to the fight for the existence of the Ottoman Empire. The story depicts the life of Sultan Abdulhamid Han who ascended the throne in 1876 and remained on the post for 33 years. It also follows the events that took place in the Ottoman State and around the world during the time of the “Almighty Sultan”.
THE ABOLITION OF THE OFFICE OF THE CALIPH IS MARKED
AS A TURNING POINT IN HISTORY
https://www.heritagetimes.in/last-ottoman-caliph/
On the day 3 March, 1924, the Caliphate was officially abolished by the Turkish Republic under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The last #Ottoman caliph, #AbdülmecidII, was sent into exile in France along with the rest of the Ottoman family. #OttomanEmpire #OttomanCaliphate
The Sultan along with 156 members of the Ottoman family were forced into exile. They were given just 3 days to leave. They wanted to go to Egypt and Syria which were formerly under Ottoman control but they were prevented. They settled in French-controlled Beirut and across Europe.
Princess #DurruShehvar was the daughter of #AbdülmecidII the last Caliph of the Muslim world. She married to the eldest son of #NizamofHyderabad speaks about a deep and warm relationship between #OttomanKhilafat and Muslim political leaders of pre-partition India.
I will start a little over 150 years before WW1, because understanding the events leading up to the destruction of the Ottoman Caliphate allows us to understand why WW1 happened when it did. Let’s remember the events leading up to and including WW1, but from the perspective of the Ottoman Caliphate, which was carved into pieces, unlike any of the other losing states after the war.
– 1747 to 1757, the Saudi tribe rebels against the Ottoman Caliphate and annexes lands. Muhammad bin Saud takes in Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab and the Saudi-Wahhabi movement begins spreading, treating other groups as deviant and “not authentic Islam.” They attack the Ottoman Caliphate from within, taking the lands of Al-Dir’iyyah and Al-Ihsaa’. The movement goes into stagnation for 30 years for unknown reasons.
– 1787, the Wahhabi movement resumes activity once again. Muhammed ibn Saud is dead (1765), and his son Abdul-Aziz is leading the tribe. He establishes an Emirate and a hereditary rule via a ceremony led by Muhammed ibn Abdul-Wahhab.
– 1788, the Saudi Wahhabi movement sets up a large military raid against the Caliphate, seizing Kuwait. This was done as an attempt to remove the “Bid’ah” of other Madhhabs and to “purify” the Muslim lands.
– 1792, Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhab dies.
– 1811 to 1818, the Ottomans send their Wali (governor) from Egypt, Muhammad Ali, to deal with the Saudi Wahhabi attacks. Muhammad Ali defeats them, and takes Madinah back under Ottoman control (the Saudi tribe remains in exile until 1902, where they finally strike at the Caliphate during its weakest days leading to the establishment of modern-day Saudi Arabia in 1932 under British approval).
– 1831, Muhammad Ali, after defeating the Saudi Wahhabi rebellion, turns around and betrays the Ottoman Caliphate, agreeing to work with France, and attacks Al-Shaam. He occupies Palestine, Lebanon and Syria, and attempts to move towards Anatolia. The Ottomans send a large force against him. He is forced back to Egypt.
– 1839, the Caliph Abdul-Mejid I, who was only 16 years old, is guided by Britain and France to introduce the Kalkhana as law, the first direct attempt to introduce man-made law into the Calipate. Muslims deem it contradictory to Islam and it is rejected entirely.
– 1842 to 1875, the Beirut Centre is established. British collaborators work with Christian locals to instil nationalist and secular tendecies within the Arab world. Most associations failed, as they only appealed to non-Muslims. Success is found through Arab-exclusive associations, which spread the idea that the Turkish Ottomans were occupiers, calling them “Turks,” and called for Arab nationalism as a new basis for unity.
– 1889 to 1907, the Istanbul Centre is established, where British and French collaborators set up the “Committee of Union and Progress,” which later became known as “The Young Turks.” This party originally started in Paris, France, where they were taught admiration and loyalty to the French revolution.
– 1902, Abdul-Aziz bin Saud, leader of the Saudi tribe, returned from exile in Kuwait to resume the conflict in the region, seizing Riyadh. This is the first of a series of attacks that ultimately lead to the creation of the modern state of Saudi Arabia in 1932 under British approval.
– 1908, the Young Turks stage a coup and take control of the Ottoman Caliphate, becoming the “official party” of the state, leaving the Caliph as a figurehead similar to the Queen of England.
– 1913, the “Decentralization Committee” was formed, splitting the administration of the Arabs from the Turks within the Caliphate, establishing the first-ever official nationalistic division within the state.
– 1914, the Caliphate is being torn from within by nationalistic and secular movements. British and French influences have a strong hand in these events.WW1 begins. The “official” cause of such a large-scale war is ambiguous.
– 1915, the British seize Gallipoli during the Dardanelles campaign, but end up at a deadlock and cannot progress further into Ottoman lands. The Battle of Galipolli is a genuine military victory of Ottomans, They attempt to incite Jamal Pasha against the Ottoman Caliphate. He agrees with some conditions, including the preservation of the unity of the Caliphate, among other conditions. The British and French refuse.
– December 15th 1915, British troops retreat from Gallipoli. Mustafa Kamal presents his report to the German general commander with a watch damaged by a bullet, and he is hailed a national hero for his defeat of the British.
– 1916, Mustafa Kamal uses his new fame to influence the Ottoman State to withdraw from the war and sign a peace treaty with the British. He fails and is banished from political discussions for a year.
– 1917, Baghdad falls to the British, and they march towards Mousul. This worries the Ottoman government. They appoint Mustafa Kamal to lead the defence force.
– 1918, Mustafa Kamal, continually attempting to convince the government to withdraw from the war and surrender, devises a plan to hand Aleppo to the British. On Sepember 19th 1918, he withdraws from the area, and retreats to the River Jordan and then continues all the way to Damascus. He recommends to the German High Commander Liman von Sanders that they should abandon the whole of Syria. Sanders replies by refusing to take responsibility for such a thing, and Mustafa Kamal agrees to take full responsibility. They retreat.
– October 1918, Al-Shaam falls under British and French control, as do many other areas. Anwar Pasha reluctantly agrees to a truce.
– October 30th 1918, the British refuse to discuss the peace treaty with Tal’at and Anwar Pasha, because they claim that these men were responsible for plunging the Ottomans into war, and demand a new government be formed. This destabilizes the government further.
November 1918, WW1 officially ends
– December 1918, the British begins to deal with the spoils of war. The Germans are dealt with according to international law. The Ottomans, on the other hand, were dealt with according to a secret plan that was formed in 1916 called the Sykes-Picot Agreement. This agreement stated that if the Triple Entente were to defeat the Ottomans in WW1, they would divide their lands according to these lines, similar to carving a turkey at a Thanksgiving dinner. Britain proceeded to implement this agreement in violation of international law, as they took the action unilaterally, before even signing the peace treaty, and without any input from the Allies or from the regions that were being carved out.
Interesting facts regarding what took place during WW1 in 1915, the British promised the district of Antalya and the surrounding area along the Mediterranean to the Italians. One year later, in 1916, the British, the French, and the Russians agreed to the Sykes-Picot Agreement.
In 1917, the British promised Herzl and his Zionist movement the land of Palestine. All this took place before the war was even close to ending.
– 1918 to 1920, after a long period of a political vacuum, Mustafa Kamal gains significant control of the now-British-influenced government, and rallied nationalistic tendencies among the people in Turkey. He attempted to form an independent government in Ankara, but the Caliphate responded with a large force that defeated him and wiped out his authority.
– 1920 to 1922, with Mustafa Kamal’s life and authority about to end, suddenly the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres, which was signed at the end of WW1 with the British, was made public and announced all over Turkey. This turned the population against the Caliphate, as they were seen as traitors. This saved Mustafa Kamal’s life, and gave him unrestricted access to every area of the government. But this treaty was never signed by Sultan Vahdettin and damat Ferit Pasha. Reza Tevfik (senator), Hadi Pasha and the Ottoman Ambassador of Bern Reshad Halis Bey signed this treaty.
– October 29th 1923, Mustafa Kamal gives a speech calling for a vote to abolish the Caliphate and turn Turkey into a republic. This vote was not expected, and only 40% of voting deputies were in attendance. The vote passed and Mustafa Kamal was elected as the first president of Turkey. This was met with a huge uproar from the absent deputies, and the Muslims of the #Ottoman #Caliphate rallied around the Caliph Abdul-Mejid. This led to Mustafa Kamal having one of the protesting deputies assassinated, and began to threaten any dissenting voices.
– March 1st 1924, Mustafa Kamal gives a speech about the necessity of destroying the Caliphate. He is met with fierce opposition and protests. He responded to the protests by saying “We must at all costs safeguard the endangered republic and make her rise upon solid scientific bases. The Caliph and the legacies of the Ottoman Family must go, the dilapidated religious courts and their laws must be replaced by modern courts and laws, and the clerics schools must concede their place to governmental secular schools.”
– March 3rd 1924, despite the protests, the Greater National Assembly approves the abolishment of the Caliphate and the separation of Islamic law from the state. The Caliph Abdul-Mejid is given notice to leave, and the Caliphate is officially dissolved.
– July 24th 1924, the Treaty of Lausanne is made effective. Britain recognises Turkey’s independence, and evacuates Istanbul and the straits.
Over a century of effort and scheming finally completed. The Khilafah is finally destroyed.
The abolishment of the Office of the Caliph on March 3rd, 1924 is marked as a turning point in history. To fully appreciate the significance of this anniversary, we must take ourselves back to Istanbul.
The year is 1924, sometime after midnight. A single light, coming from the library is on, in the Dolmabahçe palace. There, an old man sits quietly and reads the Qur?an, pondering over the state of his Ummah (i.e. the Muslim nation). His name is Abdülmecid II and he is the 101st Caliph of Islam. Two years prior, his cousin Sultan Mehmed VI Vahdeddin had been exiled to Italy (where he later starved to death) and the Ottoman Sultanate had been abolished by the Grand National Assembly. The end of the Ottoman Empire had finally come to an end, however, the Office of the Caliph was not so easily dismantled, due to fears of a massive backlash that would ensue. A campaign of violence and intimidation began to ensure that all those who supported the Caliph were removed. Then, on the night of March 3rd, the final move was made. A young army messenger opened the door to the library of the Dolmabahçe palace. The hunched over Caliph continued to read from the Qur?an. The messenger was initially taken aback by the sight, but he forced himself and read out the proclamation from the Grand National Assembly. The Caliph refused to leave Istanbul, but his staff were worried that they would all be killed by the army that had now surrounded the palace and had him and his family, including women and children at gunpoint. After weighing the few options he had, he reluctantly packed some of his clothes and went into exile.
Before morning prayer, the Caliph was taken to the main train station at gunpoint where he and his family were put on the Orient Express bound for Switzerland. An envelope containing £2000 was given to the man who left behind entire palaces full of diamonds, emeralds and gold. The station master quickly took the Caliph and his family into his small house adjoining the train station to shelter them from the cold on the platform while they awaited the train to start on its journey. As they drank tea, the Caliph thanked him for his hospitality. The station master, a Jewish man, began to cry. “How can you thank me?” he asked especially knowing that it was the Caliphs/Sultans of Islam who had preserved the life and dignity of the Jewish people whenever they were persecuted elsewhere in the world (e.g. Spain). Instead, he thanked the Caliph for the honour of being able to serve him even if for the briefest moment. In the morning, citizens awoke to the news that they had scarcely believed would ever happen – the Caliphate had been abolished.
There were isolated riots and uprisings in various regions, but the army quickly put them down. The last Caliph spent his days walking along the promenade in Paris, France. There, he lived a humble life until he died in 1944 during the Nazi occupation of France. As no Caliph had ever been buried in non-Muslim lands, Abdülmecid II’s body was eventually transported to, and buried in Jannat Al-Baqi cemetery in Madinah, Arabia. The major political and spiritual office of Caliph had also been buried with him as well, an office which, to this day, remains to be filled, leaving a lasting impact on present-day Muslim lands and the Middle East, and fracturing the unity and peace that Muslims once possessed in their neighbourhoods.
Source : Ottoman Imperial archives & Mazin AbdulAdhim
THE BITTER STORY OF THE OTTOMAN DYNASTY’s EXILE
Ekrem Bugra Ekinci
https://www.dailysabah.com/feature/2015/...stys-exile
On March 3, 1924, the leaders of the newly-formed Turkish Republic ordered the exile of the members of the Ottoman royal family. This did not just mean deportation, but also meant the beginning of a journey that included harsh living conditions in different parts of the world
When the Ottoman sultanate and caliphate was abolished, 156 people belonging to the royal family were denied Turkish citizenship with a law that entered into force on March 3, 1924, and were deported in the following three days. With those who were exiled with their parents or children, even though they were not subjected to the law, and the servants who did not want to leave their masters, the number of exiled people reached the hundreds. The law forbade them to even pass through Turkey in transit. They were also told to liquidate their assets within a year or they would be seized by the Treasury. Sultan Mehmed VI went into exile earlier. Sultan Abdülmecid II and his family were deported within 24 hours, even before the law became effective, and they boarded a train in Çatalca instead of Sirkeci as officials feared demonstrations. The Jewish director of the train station was the last person to show respect to the sultan in his homeland.
Although women were banned from ruling a country in the Ottoman-Islam tradition, women and their children, even grooms and brides, from the Ottoman family were exiled. None of the dynasties of European empires that were overthrown by revolution were treated in such a manner; only the monarchs were exiled and their belongings and assets were returned to them after a short time. Only the tsar and tsarina in Russia were slaughtered along with their children, and that was because the tsarist White Army was close to rescuing the tsar and his family.
The members of the Ottoman family were given one-way passports. They wanted to go to Egypt, one of the countries that was once located within the borders of the Ottoman Empire, however neither the British, who ruled the region, nor King Fuad, who was jealous of the Ottomans, let them settle there. When they wanted to go to Syria, as it was close to their homeland, the newly established Republic of Turkey prevented it. Hence, some of the members of the Ottoman family settled in Beirut under the rule of the French and the rest scattered around Europe. Their palaces were ransacked under the supervision of the police even before they left. Some could sell their homes, antiques and valuable artworks for almost nothing and some gave them to those whom they trusted. Some of these "trusted" people betrayed them and took all their money and belongings while the rest of the assets were seized by the state and their right of succession, which was inherited from their grandfathers, was rendered invalid. Thus, a cruelty that has not been experienced so many times in the world was deemed proper for the decedents of Osman, the founder of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman family, which descended from the legendary Oghuz Khagan and was one of the oldest dynasties in the world, was forced off from the political stage.
The Ottoman family could not believe what was happening. They had heard rumors about the abolishment of the sultanate on the eve of the exile, but they thought that the public still loved and favored them and did not even presume such a thing. Once they were banished, they thought the exile was a temporary situation. As a matter of fact, most of them did not take all their belongings with them as they believed they would return to their homes within a few months. However, the exile lasted 30 years for the women and 50 years for the men. All of them lived in exile with a country and a passport. The princes were trained in the military, which they could not make use of during the exile. It was not possible for the elderly sultans to work for a living. These people who were used to donating money to charities did not have money in banks or any cash with them. When they were exiled from the Turkish Republic, each family was given TL 1,000, which only covered their travel expenses and maintenance for a month. After they undersold their jewelry, they fell in the gutter. There were members of the royal family who washed dishes at hotels, begged for many or looked for something to eat from trash cans. Some lived with aid from Ottoman Armenians who also fled to Europe while some died of hunger.
Muslim nobles such as Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII, the ruler of Hyderabad, which is located in present day India, Egyptian Prince Ömer Tosun and the King of Hejaz Husain ibn Ali tried to help the members of this fallen dynasty financially, but most of the aid did not reach those in need as the royal family was scattered around the world. Moreover, the government in Ankara reacted to the marriages between foreigners and members of the royal family and monitored their every step in exile. As a result, France did not grant citizenship to descents of Süleyman the Magnificent who rescued French King Francis I, but gave them passports that allowed them to travel freely. The Ottoman family was faced with poverty, deprivation and illnesses in addition to homesickness and the pain of injustice. Those whose last resting place is a cemetery of the nameless were the lucky ones as the bodies of some royals were lost or thrown into the sea. However, they all lived in dignity and with their honor. They were hurt by the treatment they experienced, but they never worked against their country. The women of the Ottoman family were granted amnesty in 1952 by the government led by Adnan Menderes and general amnesty, which entered into force in 1974, allowed Ottoman princes to return to their homeland. However, one cannot help but think whether they waited to grant amnesty to the royal family until those who knew the ways of the Ottoman court died or not. Apparently, the Republic of Turkey was still afraid of these desperate people. When general amnesty was put into practice, very few returned to Turkey. Young people settled down in exile and started families. Those who returned were not given Turkish citizenship immediately and were followed by undercover police officers for a while.
People who care so much about the Tomb of Süleyman Shah better look at the state of his descendants. The sons and daughters of a dynasty, which achieved great victories in Ottoman and Islamic history, were deprived of speaking their own language, learning their religion, breathing the air of the country and dying in their homeland. Today, the Ottoman family does not expect goodness or favors from anyone. A pardon was given to the royal family, however, many people were born in exile and established new lives in their new homes. Regarding the current situation, the exile still continues, and this is a shame for Turkey and those who live in this region. If the cruelties in the pasts of people, families and nations are not atoned in any way, it prevents any good deeds. If a state does not compensate the injustices it caused in the past, it cannot look to the future with hope.
The return and the recovery of the assets that were confiscated back then is something expected from the state. Moreover, it is a national debt to pay a monthly salary to every member of the Ottoman family to maintain their livelihood in Turkey until their belongings are safely returned. A foundation should be established to carry out this mission and it should also be supported by the state so that the state can bear a hand to those who are in need. Thus, the new generation of the Ottoman royal family would be brought up and get married in Turkish Islamic culture and the elderly would be able to spend the rest of their lives in peace in their homeland. When they die, they will be laid to rest with a funeral service proper for the glory of their family.