Life After Sevres: A Timeline

LIFE AFTER SEVRES
Great tradegies begin with great intentions


"If only God had spared him from his fate, then this calamity might not have befallen our people"
- Ismet Pasha, referring to his friend Mustafa Pasha, shortly before his death in 1938

"We Will Never Forget The Great Betrayal"
- Motto of the Pan-Turkic Revolutionary Army


Hey everyone!

So, i'm starting my first After 1900 thread proper with Life After Sevres, a timeline that will delve into a world where the Treaty of Sevres is implemented successfully on the Ottoman Empire. For this to happen, the following points of divergence will take place:


1. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk is killed at the Battle of Aleppo

2. The U.S Senate votes 'Yes' on supporting a Mandate for Armenia and to send troops.

3. The genocides committed by the Turks are received more by the public than they are in real life, sparking more anger.



I look forward to writing the first (proper) post for this and kicking this bad boy off.
 
Last edited:
Part One: Death of a Hero

Mustafa_Kemal_Atat%C3%BCrk_(1918).jpg

The circumstances around the death of Mustafa Kemal Pasha are debated wide and large in the historical. He inspires the imagination, a cool-headed patriot who never lost an engagement except for his last one. The official story is as follows: Kemal had moved to Aleppo's citadel from the original site of his headquarters in the town's main administrative district, where he was to move out at night. It was as he began to move out for a new rally point that the Arabs attacked the Citadel again, with more men this time. As always, Kemal led his men from the front and entered the fighting with them. The Arabs got close this time around, into hand-to-hand combat on the ramparts of the damaged citadel. As they were being pushed back, two bullets struck the General but kept fighting until the Arabs had been pushed back from the Citadel again. The General, bleeding from his wounds, was able to lead his men out of the city as the British reinforcements descended upon them and regrouped the remnants of the Ottoman Army before dying from his wounds. However, history has shown that there is no definitive answer as to what actually happened that night on the 25th and early hours of the 26th, all that we know is that Mustafa Kemal Pasha died from the fighting, when he died or even how he got into the situation where he met his end is another question in its entirety.​

(Excerpt from 'The Life and Death of a Pasha: The Biography of Mustafa Kemal Pasha)

*****


"He died like an Arab, on his feet and fighting"
- Colonel Nuri Bey, after hearing of the death

*****

You know, Cyril, I think the historians should call this the ‘Great Turkish Marathon’, because never in my life have I seen so many men run a race before
- Major General H. J. Macandrew, Commander of the 15th Imperial Service Cavalry, after being told by his subordinate, Brigadier General Cyril Harbord, of the Turkish retreat from Haritan following Kemal’s death.

*****


A British advisor in the camp of Nuri Bey had come to inform the Major General [H.J Macandrew] that his Arab allies were planning to attack at night instead of at the designated time as was planned. You should have seen the look on Macandrew’s face, it wasn’t so much that he was angry or disappointed but more looked like a cousin had dropped his pants infront of the in-laws. He sighed to me and I remember him saying ‘like hell I’ll let some nomad from the desert beat me to the prize’. Feeling that Nuri Bey would make a right royal mess of things, he decided to launch his attack early. By the time that we arrived, the Arabs had already entered the city, brawling with the Turks in the streets. They had tried to take the citadel but the Turks had pushed them out of it by the time the first of our lads got into the fight.

The Turks who didn’t get away either surrendered or were pushed back.

It is actually rather amusing in hindsight that it was the old boy and not Nuri Bey who made a mess of things. My armoured cars, along with the others, pushed up through the south as originally intended with and Brigadier General Harbod’s cavalry hitting the Turks rearguard, though I don’t know how successfully. The Turks were in full retreat at that point, trying to get out of the city as quickly as possible through whatever avenue that they could. Some were organized, some looked like a panicked mob with uniforms on trying to get out of a burning house.

Though this is not to say that we didn’t get any fight, for that we did. The Turks who chose to stay fought tooth and nail to keep Aleppo. We had to clear houses with our machine guns and tell our infantry to clear those homes if we couldn’t get off a shot. We hadn’t seen this kind of fight from the Turks since Megiddo…maybe even before that.

The Turkish General who led them, some chap called Kemal, had died fighting with his men at the Citadel. I didn't see what happened then or afterwards, too busy in the streets, but from what i've been told we let the survivors take his body out of the city. They had him covered under a flag and carried him out, like he was some bloody hero or something.

I'll keep writing to you when I know more, we're moving out tomorrow to give chase to the rest of them.



Sincerely,
Richard


Captain R.H.M. McIntyre, commander of the 7th Light Cars Patrol, writing to a friend in the Desert Mounted Corps following the victory at Aleppo.

*****

The Turks have regrouped at Deir el Jemal, establishing a defensive line with what’s left of the Army Group. The British and the Arabs seemed to have caught Mustafa by surprise in the night, from what I’ve been told by my countrymen who were there, it was gruelling hand-to-hand combat. With the report I have been told that Mustafa Kemal Pasha died from wounds he sustained in the fighting for the city.

Of all the Turks who deserved to die in this horrible war, he was not amongst them. Yet God seems to have chosen him for the afterlife and left his miserable countrymen to suffer without him. It is a pity, truly, that most of his countrymen are not like him. Passion and fire the Turk has, sure, but they are not as clever as he was nor as driven. Maybe I shouldn’t have ordered him to hold Aleppo, maybe I should have told him to come and join me at our defensive line, defence is seemingly all the Turks are good for these those curs. Though, the pathetic state of which the Ottoman Army is in now probably would have only been more of a hindrance than any substantial defence. If only there had been more Germans down the line, perhaps he could have held for longer.

I will write my report back to my superiors, I know in my bones that the war is almost over and it is we who are the defeated. We shall prepare for what is to come of us, but if we cannot contain the Turk’s savagery and they turn on us then we shall fight them and die fighting like Germans should. God help us all.


Signed,
Otto Liman von Sanders
October 28th, 1918




____________________________________________________________________________​

OOC:

Another (minor) point of divergence: In the real life Battle of Aleppo, Colonel Macandrew did not attack Aleppo, but reinforced it in the morning because his planned assault had been aborted early by Nuri Bey’s pre-emptive strike on Aleppo.

Also, this is how the TL will go, mixed in diary entries, excerpts from books after the facts, 'quotes' and then probably stories from average people on all sides.
 
Last edited:
Part Two: Angered Response


929801819-turkish-army-turkish-soldier-turkish-military-ottoman-empire.jpg

Cavalry procession at the funeral of Mustafa Kemal Pasha

Reactions to the death of Mustafa Kemal Pasha were different across the entirety of the Empire. His death had made him a household name, prayers dedicated to him were given at the mosques of Izmir. In his hometown of Salonica, Greek Muslims gave silent prayer to him and hoped for his rest in the afterlife. It is said that the Sultan said nothing when news came back to him, a single tear fell from his eye and went into deep reflection. Others, were less than civil. Cevat Çobanlı, while his forces were still stationed in Cilicia, shot an Arab officer in blind rage at the news. Divisions began to open up within the Ottoman ranks, for the first time it appeared, the matter of religion was giving way to matters of race. Cevat wrote to Ismet Pasha, the underling to Kemal, that he regretted the incident but that he was beginning to think that the Arabs within his ranks were to blame for many of the failings of the Ottoman Army. Enver Pasha, who still resided in the Ottoman Empire at the time of his death, published writings openly praising a man that, in life, had shared a bitter rivalry with. But he seemed to have been loved, as his funeral in the capital showed thousands of attendants and many generals who had come to see the man one last time.

(Excerpt from Chapter One of 'The Anatolian Tragedy: A History of Turkey from 1918 to 1945')

*****


Dear friend,

I know that the death of Kemal has sunk all of our hearts, but know that he stands in paradise next to Allah and the Prophet (PBUH). We must remain strong in his name, we must do our part to continue our duty to the Sultan and to our people.

You should have come to Istanbul, my friend. The wailing of tears from the people and the honourable generals and chiefs who had served with him bow to his coffin. Even the politicians and the princelings and the hypocrits who spat on him in life are now calling him 'The Great Lion'. You should have been at the funeral, it was something out of a history book, honoured as if he were a Grand Vizier under Suleiman the Magnificent. That buffoon, Enver, decided to give a speech at his funeral, vomiting his usual rubbish. But this time it meant something, the call for vengeance and to bring justice to those who had struck down such a great man hit the hearts of many

His death gave much commotion, a great Turkish General dead at the hands of the British and their Arab slaves. Rioters went through the street, looting businesses and vandalising homes and...other unfortunate events. Bismillah, they should have stayed at home.

Inform the command that I will be returning to Cilicia and the Eighth Army by the end of the week for review.


Ismet Pasha, writing to Kıvanç Bilgi, a Captain in the 25th Division of the Ottoman Army's III Corps, November 4th, 1918


*****


William Baldry and his family of five lived in the Pera district of Constantinople. History would have forgotten him, his wife and children as they had lived rather insignificant lives. He was an English teacher and former worker at the Embassy before his decision to leave in 1910. They had lived there for over ten years and despite a few minor incidents that had occurred during the Great War, they were able to live there peacefully. That was until November 2nd of 1918.

Riots had broken out in the city after the funeral of Mustafa Kemal Pasha, a renowned Ottoman general who had died only a week before. Homes were burnt, businesses looted and many British individuals who still lived there copped much abuse. The Baldry family at the time were hosting family friends, Hamid and Kasim, two brothers who owned a carpet shop down the road, Benjamin and Abarrane Fauceux, French Jews who visited the city every year around this time and had been friends with the Baldry family for some time and Terrence Whiston, a friend of William's wife Maggie.

Sometime during the night, William decided to go for a leisurely stroll through the neighbourhood when he was set upon by two panicking Arab men. He told them of shelter at his home from the riots that were breaking out across the capital. He took them back to his residence and they had chosen to shelter two Arab men who had been set upon by Turkish rioters. Sometime after that, the rioters arrived into their street having been informed by a Turkish family that a British family had lived there and had taken in Arabs. The stage was set for what would become the Pera Murders.

(Excerpt from The London Times, article 'Remember the Baldry Family', June 8th 1921)
 
Part Three: The Pera Murders

If I hear the name 'William Baldry' one more time, I may very well shoot someone
- Arthur Balfour, Foreign Secretary, after the protests outside the foreign office​


Report filed by Charles Ashmore, Attache to the Consulate General in Athens, Greece, sent to Constantinople to investigate November 2nd Incident.

To Consul General

Preliminary Report.

Death toll: 12
Six citizens from the United Kingdom
Two from the Republic of France
Four from the Ottoman Empire (Two unidentifiable)

The deaths of the French and Ottoman citizens are being dealt with by their respective organisations.

List of British casualties:

Baldry, William Robert, Age 38

Baldry, Margaret Jane (née Peters), Age 32

Baldry, Thomas William, Age 19

Baldry, Elizabeth, Age 13

Baldry, Heather, Age 12

Whiston, Terrence Gerard Douglas, Age 40


Culprits: Rioters, reports indicate that most were former soldiers in the Ottoman Army, some of whom were Arab, and not regular civilians as originally reported back. It appears that the soldiers were after the two unidentifiable individuals and that the attack was not directed at British citizens.

Incident:


Sometime after 9pm, rioters had located the home of Mister Baldry after he had, reportedly, taken in the two unidentifiable men of supposedly Arab origin. The rioters started immediate vandalisation of the property. In an attempt to calm the rioters, Mister Baldry opened the door to his home and tried to open a dialogue with them. Upon discovery that he was an Englishman, a member of the crowd shot Mister Baldry and proceeded to execute his wife, Margaret Jane, after she came out to assist him. Rioters entered the home and proceeded to psychically assault those inside the household. The two unidentifiable men were dragged outside and summarily executed. There are unconfirmed reports thus far that the women within the household were also sexually assaulted but those reports cannot be confirmed at this time.

After the assault, the establishment was set on fire with the corpses of the two unidentifiable males and Mr and Mrs Baldry. All occupants died from smoke inhalation.

Initial conclusion:

The attack was not originally intended against Mr Baldry, his family and guests but rather against the two unidentifiable men. This should not be indicative of Ottoman policy or of the Ottoman state overall. I would advise caution upon reporting back to the Foreign Office and await further, more conclusive investigation into these events.

Article in The Telegraph, November 8th, 1918

MURDER IN CONSTANTINOPLE:

Reports are coming in from Constantinople that in-fact British citizens have been killed in the rioting.

Initial reports are saying that the rioters had come to attack the British family whilst hosting family friends on the night after the funeral for a Ottoman general killed in action in Ottoman Syria. The attacks appear to be motivated by the death of Mustafa Kemal Pasha at the hands of British forces during a battle around the city of Aleppo on October 25th. This is not the only incident of violence against British citizens and those of Anglo-Saxon blood but this is the first account of murderous intent.

A representative from the Foreign Office has said that there will be an immediate investigation of the incident once diplomatic channels have reopened with the Ottoman state and when British officials can arrive to investigate these events with local police.

The Constantinople Riots have targeted British and French citizens, alongside Greeks, Armenians and Jews and reports of violence against Arabs are coming in as well.
 
I am really intrigued by the POD and how you are developing things. I like your style and will look forward to the updates. :)
 
Top