1923 Wall Map of Turkey in Ottoman Turkish

This is an enormous 1923 wall map of Turkey in Ottoman Turkish, published the year the modern Republic of Turkey was founded. The cartographer uses different colors to mark Turkey's extreme topography. Shades of brown illustrate elevation changes, while areas of green highlight river valleys and other fertile zones.

The Republic of Turkey

After the Allies defeated the Ottoman Empire in World War I, the Armistice of Mudros granted the Allied powers the right to further occupy Anatolia. The British and French started occupying the remaining unoccupied Anatolian regions within days. This occupation, along with the persecution of Muslims by Greek and Armenian irregulars, ignited a Turkish revolutionary movement that resulted in the foundation of the Republic of Turkey. Founded on October 29, 1923, the Republic of Turkey was essentially a single-party state led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881 - 1938) and his colleagues. Over the next ten years, Atatürk introduced a program of Westernization, including the discontinuation of religious and other titles, the closure of Islamic courts, the introduction of a secular civil code, the latinization of written Turkish, equality between the sexes, and full political rights for women. Atatürk died on November 10, 1938 and was succeeded by Ismat Inönü. The current multi-party system was established in 1945.

Publication History

This map was printed and published in Turkey in 1923. This is the only known example.