Madam Atatürk : The First Lady of Modern Turkey
Madam Atatürk : The First Lady of Modern Turkey
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Author(s): Calislar, Ipek
ISBN No.: 9780863563355
Pages: 366
Year: 202002
Format: Trade Paper
Price: $ 21.98
Dispatch delay: Dispatched between 7 to 15 days
Status: Available

1MeetingIt was an autumn evening in 1919 when a smartly dressed Frenchmanalighted before the White Mansion in Izmir''s Göztepe district.The blockade sentry strode threateningly towards the gate, wherethe closed phaeton flying the tricolour had come to a stop. His determinationto bar the visitor''s path only earned him a rebuke:''I am the French Consul, here to play bridge with Muammer Bey.''Although the soldier spoke no French, he drew his rifle to one side:the documents the diplomat pulled from his pocket impressed himenough to make him retreat.Izmir''s Turks had been suffering untold hardship under Greekoccupation since 15 May. Yet, mused the consul, gazing at the housewistfully as he walked down the rose garden, he had singularly failedto convince his friend to hoist the French flag. Why couldn''t hehave followed the example of Turks from Damascus? They raised thetricolour, and they were spared Greek harassment.The door opened before he reached the bell: Izmir''s celebratedmerchant Muammer Ussakizade, smartly turned out in his customarycrisp white jacket, greeted his friend at the door, and the two menembraced.


Spotting the suitcases as his feet followed the familiar routeto the reception room, the consul knew the family were ready.Prominent Turks had been under pressure to collaborate with theoccupation, and Muammer was the most influential merchant in allIzmir. He had confided the last time they spoke freely, ''They''re insistingI become mayor; neither does a day pass but that I don''t receive deaththreats.''Both men were freemasons, and their friendship, which had begunat the Bridge Club, predated the occupation by some time. The WhiteMansion in Göztepe was something of a second home for the consul.14 Madam AtatürkHe was genuinely terrified at the risk of death Muammer faced, andhad repeatedly urged expediency, adding how he had already assistedsome of his Turkish friends to escape from Izmir.All being well, Muammer and his family would leave for Marseilleson a boat sailing that night. The consul had arranged for tickets andpassports for the entire family; these documents were hidden in a secretcompartment of the case in his hand.


''Is Makbule Hanim coming? What have you decided?''''No,'' replied Muammer, ''my mother begs to stay behind: she says sheis too old to travel. Travel is more risky for her than staying in Göztepe.''''The passports are ready. Here: Latife, Adeviye, ismail, Ömer, Münci,Rukiye, Vecihe and yours . Here''s one for your mother, too; shemight still change her mind, don''t you think?''Adeviye entered, a glum-looking Latife beside her.''Please don''t sulk, Latife; these Greeks are only here temporarily,''mumbled Muammer.''My grandmother,'' explained Latife, ''she won''t come along. It''s noteasy leaving her behind.


''The consul tried to placate her. ''But we are here right beside her.Should anything go wrong, you could be back in three days. This curfewcan''t last for ever, and the resistance is spreading . Everyone hasgreat confidence in Kemal Pasa. He''s certainly impressed our lot; theyrefer to him as a military genius.''The bridge table was set in the garden, as usual. ismail and Latifejoined in to make up the four.


Talk was loud, as usual, and Latife hada good run of aces and kings. The bridge party went on until nightfall.A sumptuous dining table had been laid, again as usual. The servantsbusied themselves with their tasks, as the household followed routine.Adeviye gathered a few more items that had been overlooked andchecked Münci''s medicines. Their youngest son had contracted polio;how he would cope with the journey was a real worry.The family boarded the phaeton in the dark, careful not to bespotted by the sentries. Latife was the first to leave the house, followedby the rest as Muammer took leave of his friend.


Makbule came out, acrystal pitcher in hand, and poured water at the roots of the old wisteria,Meeting 15honouring an ancient custom that bids travellers a smooth journey anda speedy return.The phaeton was not big, so the younger boys had to lie on the suitcasesand one of the girls sat on the other''s lap. They followed the lastfew passengers boarding the French ship when they reached the port.Once through passport control safely, they all gazed at Izmir one lasttime from the deck.The consul sank into a book he had drawn at random after the departureof the fugitives; he would read all night, the mansion ablazewith lights. The Greek soldiers were accustomed to all night long bridgeparties at the White Mansion.He was whistling as he left in the morning, again as usual, albeit alittle tense on this occasion, and walked out between the unsuspectingsentries. He had rescued his dear friend Muammer and his family.


Three years laterLatife was standing on the deck of the boat leaving Marseilles, her gazefixed on the deep blue sea. She was on her way back to Izmir, then stillunder Greek occupation. Their worst fears had come true, and badnews did travel fast: her grandmother Makbule was ailing. The youngwoman stopped her father, who was preparing to return:''Father, they''d kill you; it''s best I return instead.''Once she made her mind up, that was that. Muammer''s influenceproved invaluable once more, and a French passport duly arrived, bearinga note: ''Under special protection.''The Greeks were losing to the Nationalists on all fronts. Latife hadbeen following news of the resistance and trusted Mustafa Kemal toliberate Izmir.


She was wearing his portrait - cut from a newspaper - ina locket for good luck.The boat was destined for Istanbul, where she would spend a daybefore making her way to Izmir. Three years earlier, she had, in fact,been actively engaged in the resistance; this time, she had some papersto collect in Istanbul.She had planned her every move during the passage. Collecting the16 Madam Atatürkdocuments at the address she had been given proved no problem at all;she boarded the Izmir boat without opening her case. Unusually forher, she was dressed in a çarsaf this time, taking special pains to avoida search. Her passport might identify her as a French citizen, but shestill was the daughter of a prominent Izmir family well known to theoccupation.She arrived in Izmir on 17 June 1922, as Mustafa Kemal met hismother in Adapazari, an event witnessed by an emotional crowd.


Thegeneral had taken the opportunity of a visit with a diplomat to arrangeto meet Zübeyde Hanim. He knew he had been neglecting her, rushingfrom one battlefront to the next; the time had come to take her to liveclose to him.In a strange coincidence, Mustafa Kemal and his mother had alsospent three years apart. Chance would throw these people together afew months later.It was Latife''s twenty-third birthday. Returning to her birthplacewas not as straightforward as entering Istanbul had been. Suspiciousof this Turkish girl travelling on a French passport, Greek officialswanted to search her. She was defiant: how could they search a Muslimwoman? Haughtily she denied them permission to even touch herçarsaf, when, all the while, resistance documents were concealed in herundergarments.


The soldiers gave up on this covered girl and flung her into a cellinstead.''No food or water'' was the order.News spread instantly: the celebrated businessman UssakizadeMuammer Bey''s daughter had returned. Yet there was no sign of her. TheFrench had provided entrance documents, but could do little throughdiplomatic channels now. What if they compromised their earlier rolein the entire family''s escape? So they took the next best course of action:making sure people learned of her arrival and immediate incarceration.It was not long before the entire city knew: ''Ussakizade Latife hasreturned, but is in custody.''Her maternal uncle Ragip Pasa had been warned before her departure.


When she failed to turn up, he reached out to his influential contactsMeeting 17amongst the occupying forces. The solitary confinement of a Muslimgirl increased the tension. Risk of an even greater reaction ultimatelyforced their hand, and the Greeks had no choice but to release her onthe third day. Latife had indeed made it to her grandmother''s bedsidewithin the week.Sadly, their troubles were not yet over. An inflamatory letter she hadwritten to a leading Izmir official in the early days of the occupation(''The enemy might well have occupied these lands, but the time willcome when Mustafa Kemal will liberate the country, and we will allbe free'') had fallen into Greek hands, sparking her next ordeal. Nowmarked as a troublemaker, she was placed under house arrest.1The brace of sentries posted at the Ussakizade gate checked up on herhourly.


To spite them, she frequently covered up in a çarsaf, pretendingto be the ironing woman, going out and coming back as she pleased.Oppressed by the occupation, she had confided in a friend, ''You knowwhat I''m going to do? I''m going to marry the commander who liberatesIzmir.'' Liberating commanders graced the dreams of many an Izmir girl.Latife said much later, ''It was an interminable nightmare; theycould have executed me at any point. I never once considered escape; Iwas so convinced of our ultimate liberation.'' And encouraging news didindeed trickle in from the front.She vowed to host Mustafa Kemal Pasa - whose valour she hadfound awe-inspiring - at her home, were he to enter Izmir victoriously.As the Nationalist forces liberated the Aegean region step by step,Greek propaganda persisted in promising imminent victory.


The truthwas very different, however. Not even the Allies harboured any delusionsof the Greeks'' ability to last one more winter in Izmir.In spite of the war raging in the interior, life in Izmir had been curiouslyunaffected, even carefree, until the last days of August 1922.The city was the centre of the nation''s commercial and agriculturallife, and although trade with the interior was diminished, t.


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