Cemal Gürsel

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Cemal Gürsel (October 13, 1895— September 14, 1966), a statesman and a soldier, was a Turkish army officer, political leader and the 4th president of Turkey.

Contents 1 Early life 2 Military career 3 Head of state 4 Statesman 5 Illness 6 Legacy 7 About him 8 Media 9 References

[edit] Early life

He was born in Erzurum as the son of a Turkish Ottoman army officer and the grandson of a Pasha (general) in 1895. After the elementary school in Ordu and the military middle school in Erzincan, he graduated from the Kuleli military high school in İstanbul. He was a popular figure and was therefore nicknamed “Cemal Ağa” (big brother Cemal) since his childhood school years and onwards all his life.

He served in the Army for 45 years. During World War I , he participated in the Battle of Çanakkale in Dardanelles, Gallipoli as a lieutenant of the First Battery of the First Artillery Brigade in 1915 and received the War Medal. He later fought at the Palestine and Syria fronts in 1917 and became a prisoner of war by the British while suffering malaria during the command of his 5th Battery of the 41st Brigade on 19 September 1918. He was kept as a POW in Egypt until 06 October 1920. During his presidency much later, when interviewed by the foreign press as to why he had not learned English during his captivity, he somewhat regretfully recalled that he was so frustrated to be a captive, he protested and studied French in the British camp instead.

After his release, he returned to Anatolia to re-join Mustafa Kemal subsequent to Erzurum Congress and took part in all the western front campaigns in the Turkish War of Independence between 1920-1923. He was promoted for gallantry in the First Division that fought the Sakarya Battle and was later awarded the Medal of Independence by the first Parliament for his combat service in the Final Offensive.

He was married, in 1927, to Melahat, the daughter of a navy officer who served on Frigate Hamidiye, and they had one son, Muzaffer.

[edit] Military career

Gürsel attended the military academy and graduated in 1929 as a staff officer. From 1946 on, he served in all general ranks up to four-star general including chief of intelligence and was appointed as the Commander of Land Forces in 1958 when he was in command of the 3rd Army.

He, as an easy-going and fatherly figure with a fine sense of humor, was well-liked both nationally and in NATO circles, and had earned the respect and confidence of both the nation and the armed forces with his professional knowledge and demeanor. A patriotic memorandum he sent on May 3, 1960 to the Minister of Defense in an effort to establish checks and balances on ongoing affairs, reflecting his personal views in continuation of the chat they had the night before, expressing his support to the prime minister Adnan Menderes and belief that the Prime Minister should become the next President to bolster a much needed national unity, resulted in his suspension from his post, forcing early retirement instead of becoming the next chairman of the joint chiefs of staff.

A farewell letter by him, advocating and urging the army to stay out of politics, was forwarded to all units of the armed forces at the time of his departure on leave. He went to İzmir where he became the president of the Anti-Communism Association of Turkey.

[edit] Head of state

The military overthrew the government without the participation or leadership of Cemal Gursel on May 27, 1960 after continuing civilian and academia unrests throughout the country. Because of his immense popularity among the public and military ranks, Gürsel was subsequently chosen and brought in to the chairmanship of the military coup as the only leader in the world who became so without any contribution to a military takeover. He, while still in his pajamas, was escorted to Ankara in the military C47 transport plane only by a captain who was the youngest officer of the radical coup team that, by that time, had already sent President Celal Bayar, Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, Chief of Staff General Rustu Erdelhun and some other members of the ruling Demokrat Parti (The Democratic Party) to a military court on Yassıada in the Sea of Marmara, accusing them for violence of constitution. The day after the coup, he was declared the commander in chief, Head of state, Prime minister and Minister of Defense of the 24th government on May 30, 1960, in theory giving him more absolute powers than even Kemal Atatürk had ever had.

Gürsel freed 200 students and nine newsmen, licensed 14 banned newspapers to start publishing again and fetched seven professors from Istanbul University to help draft a provisional constitution (Time, June 6, 1960). He appointed General Ragıp Gümüşpala, the commander of the 3rd Army, as the new Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff who, upon his retirement in two months, was succeeded by General Cevdet Sunay and, Gümüşpala was further directed by Gürsel to form the new Adalet (Justice) Party to bring together the former members of the Democratic Party.

A simple and conservative sort, General Gürsel became Turkey's most popular figure, forbade display of his picture alongside Atatürk's in government offices, rode about in an open Jeep touring rural communities, talking to the peasants almost as if they were his children (Time, January 6, 1961).

His plea for forgiveness and attempts along with several other world leaders for the reversal of the execution sentences and for the release of most of the arrested politicians were rejected by the Junta. Cemal Gürsel resisted pressure to continue military rule, was wounded as a result of a military assassination attempt on his life (forgave the colonel who shot him), thwarted subsequent multiple military coup attempts, appointed the organizers of the coup to overseas posts and played an important role in the preparation of a new constitution and return to the democratic order in Kemalist vision.

[edit] Statesman

Cemal Gürsel rescheduled and attended the previously cancelled Türkish and Scottish national football teams' game in Ankara on June 8, 1960 (Turkey 4, Scotland 2) which was followed by a National Football Tournament, The Cemal Gürsel Cup, that helped boost the national morale in the post-coup weeks with finals in Istanbul on July 3 (Fenerbahce 1, Galatasaray 0). He took an active role in extensive modernization of Turkish Armed Forces and the staunch defense of the free world and Europe during the cold war, in particular during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The declaration of independency of Cyprus according to the prior agreements and the deployment of a Turkish military unit to Cyprus took place in August 1960. He hosted the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Ankara in early 1961 and the visit of the vice president Lyndon Johnson in 1962.

He obtained, with the coordinated work of Sir Bernard Burrows, and granted permission of the ruling military National Unity Committee (NUC) for British military combat aircraft to overfly Turkish airspace on their way to support Kuwait, which was under threat of invasion by Iraq in July 1961.

When questioned by a German journalist regarding his intentions on becoming the next president upon proposal of the interim parliament, he responded that he was ready to serve only if asked by the nation, not by the interim house. He neither put his own candidacy forward for the president nor lobbied for his election or against any other candidate in any way. He offered his endorsement of candidacy of several high rank academicians in Medicine and Sciences in Ankara for both the interim prime minister and future president positions. He placed a special emphasis on participatory democracy with the promotion of the full interests of the nation's minorities, appointing Turkish Citizen ethnic leaders Hermine Kalustyan of Armenian, Kaludi Laskari of Greek and Erol Dilek of Jewish origin as his "Deputy Representatives of Head of State" and the full members of the interim House of Representatives. The editor of Shalom, Avram Leyon, accompanied him to his travels and foreign state functions.

The constitution, which brought for the first time a full text of civil and political rights under constitutional protection along with an improved system of checks and balances in Turkish history, was approved by a referendum held on October 10, 1961. With the establishment of the first Court of Constitution in 1961 and the addition of a Senate to the parliamentary system, the Turkish Grand National Assembly was re-opened after the general elections, nominated and voted him as the fourth president of Turkey. The President of the Turkish Republic Cemal Gürsel assigned the mandate to form and serve as the Prime Minister of the new government to İsmet İnönü on November 1961, June 1962 and December 1963, to senator Suat Hayri Ürgüplü on February 1965 and, following the general elections, to Suleyman Demirel of Justice Party on October 1965.

With the reduction of tensions between the West and the Soviet bloc, he sought improved relations for his county’s population of 27.8 million with the Soviet Union, such as the initiation of a telephone line agreement, as with the other members of the Western alliance while initiating new credit agreements with the US and the UK as well as bilateral technical and investment relations with Germany in 1960s.

The atomic reactor in Istanbul became operational in 1962 along with his establishment of the first Research and State Library of the government in two years after his administration started. He promoted the grant of the freedom of and the legal rights to form unions and to go on strike in the country. Cemal Gürsel granted presidential pardon for the life sentences of the previous president Celal Bayar and the former chief of general staff Rustu Erdelhun whose prior execution sentence was also revoked by the National Unity Committee upon Gursel's appeals. He initiated the new era of planned economy in Turkey, formed a State Institute of Statistics, launched the State Planning Organization (DPT) that implemented "The First 5-Years Development Plan" and moved Turkey, through his close and personal diplomatic dialogues with Charles DeGaulle and Konrad Adenauer, into the direction of European Union membership with Ankara Agreement, signed with France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Luxembourg in 1963, resulting in associate membership the following year and a large Turkish workforce migration to Germany and the west Europe to assist their postwar industrial development.

When the Cypriot leader who was exiled out of the UK previously in 1956 on the basis of his "support on terrorism and being the greatest obstacle on the path of peace", threatened in November 1963 to amend basic articles of the 1960 constitution guaranteeing the rights of ethnic Turks on the island, communal violence ensued and Turkey, Great Britain and Greece, the guarantors of the agreements which had led to Cyprus' independence, wanted to send a [NATO] force to the island under the command of General Young.

Gursel reformed the "Teskilat-i Mahsusa", the "Special Organization" of clandestine security services to a modern National Intelligence Agency in response to and preparation against escalating international terrorism trends in 1963. He paved the way to Middle Eastern countries and Pakistan to concentrate on economic and cultural matters of mutual interest and Ankara recognized Syria following the breakup of the old United Arab Republic in 1961, further reestablishing diplomatic relations with Egypt in 1965. In July 1964, Pakistani President Ayub Khan, Turkish President Cemal Gursel, and Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi of Iran announced in Istanbul the establishment of the Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD) organization to promote transportation and joint economic projects also envisioning Afghanistan and possibly Indonesia joining at some time in the future.

He brought the Microwave Telecommunications Network into operation increasing telephone and teletype capacity along with a High-Frequency Radio Link connecting London and Ankara with Rawalpindi, Karachi, Tehran and Istanbul. He laid the foundations of the new agricultural and structural development plans for the south-eastern Anatolian regions in early 1960s for the first time. He added the first Ministry of Culture and Tourism to the cabinet. He started the new procedure of returning the law proposals presented for the President's approval back to the Parliamentary re-discussions in 1963. Gursel founded The National Security Council (MGK) as well as the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) in 1963, appointing Professor Cahit Arf as its first director, officially charging TUBITAK primarily with governmental advisory duty by legislation. In addition to the foundation of the Turkish Radio and Television Institution (TRT) as a government agency in 1964 under his administration, opening of The School of Press and Broadcasting at the College of Political Sciences in Ankara followed in November 1965. The country's new initiative of Planning of Population Growth Control was put in effect in 1965. The production of the first domestic Turkish automobile, Devrim (Revolution), took place with his directive which sparked the initiation of an automotive industry in the republic in the following few years. The first use of a computer in the country, iron and steel mass production growth, the thermic power plant and a petrol pipeline structuring took place during his presidency.

[edit] Illness

Because of a paralysis that started in early 1961 and progressed quickly in 1966, Cemal Gürsel was flown February 2 to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C on the private airplane "BlueBird" sent by US President Lyndon B. Johnson. One week later, he fell into a coma there after suffering a series of new paralytic strokes. The government decided he return to Turkey on March 24. In addition to issuing the following statement, President Johnson went by helicopter from the White House to Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, near Washington D.C., to pay his respects to President Gursel on his departure to home. 'Our distinguished friend, President Cemal Gursel of Turkey, came to the United States on February 2 for medical treatment. There was hope that new therapeutic procedures only recently developed in this country would be useful in treating his illness of several years. We were initially encouraged by his progress at Walter Reed Hospital, only to be shocked by the news on February 8 that his health had suffered a grave new blow. Our best talent, coupled with the skill of the eminent Turkish doctors who accompanied the President, was exerted to the utmost in the hope that the President might return to his home in fully restored health. We are saddened that this hope was not to be realized. We have been deeply honored to have President Gursel come to our country to seek medical treatment. As he returns to his homeland, our prayers go with him'. With a report of a medical committee by Gülhane Military Hospital in Ankara, the parliament ruled on March 28, 1966 that his presidency be terminated due to ill health in accordance with the constitution . He died of apoplexy at 0645hrs on September 14, 1966 in Ankara. He left behind no directives or last will. He was laid to rest at the "Freedom Martyrs Memorial" section in the yard of the mausoleum of Atatürk. His body was transferred on August 27, 1988 to a permanent burial place in the newly built Turkish State Cemetery.^[1]

[edit] Legacy

Among all of his achievements and great modesty in his down-to-earth plain demeanor, he tried to place the most emphasis on the need for a well-educated youth and a hard-working population with high standards of ethics for a westernized democratic progress in Atatürk's tradition (commentary by Imran Oktem, Chief Supreme Court Justice - Yargitay, 1966). His portrait as a statesman and soldier remained next to Atatürk's in most homes in Turkey for a long time. The Stadium in Erzurum, some schools and streets were named after him.

[edit] About him

• "I took over the administration of the state to stop the tragic course of events." (Cemal Gursel, radio address on the evening of May 27, 1960)

• "The network was ready. I personally did not want the army to intervene and had been stopping the attempts (of takeover) of my younger friends. Things reached to such a state that despite my belief that the army should not interfere I let them free in their duties. Now my only goal is to reinstate an administration built on the principles of justice and ethics." (Cemal Gursel, An interview. Cumhuriyet, July 16, 1960)

• "Those who follow Atatürk will not be left behind." (Cemal Gursel, from the address on the occasion of anniversary of Atatürk's death, November 10, 1963)

• "General Gursel may be described as the father of the second Turkish Republic similar to Atatürk being the father of modern Turkey. At a time of deep division, Gursel earned and maintained the respect of the Turkish Nation that regarded him as the symbol of national unity. When he passed away, he had the identity of the trusted father of the nation." (Prof. Bernard Lewis, September 15, 1966)

• "A few days before the coup, it was known that the coup was imminent but General Cemal Gursel was dismissed as a non-political general. No leading role by General Cemal Gursel was determined despite the foreknowledge of the plot." (The CIA; The Inside Story by Andrew Tully, pages 51, 53. Crest books, 1962)

• "On May 27, he (Cemal Gursel) was hurriedly requested to come (from his residence in İzmir) to the capital (Ankara) to assume the leadership of National Unity Committee." (The Turkish Revolution, Aspects of Military politics. By Walter Weiker. pages 121, 122. The Brookings Institution, 1963)

• "When May 27 revolt occurred, Cemal Gursel was not a participant. He was invited to become the head due to the circumstances and he willingly accepted." (Burhan Felek, Milliyet, Page 2, September 18, 1971)

• "General Gursel was brought in to the NUC chairmanship by the revolution team when he was in retirement preparation. In actuality he was in the position of a chairman found in last minute with a hurried search. He never was the responsible leader for a true leader is not to be appointed but is self-appointed." (By a leading member of the NUC)

• "One of the core players of the coup, Orhan Erkanli told that they revolted on May 27 without knowing what to do on May 28. No one, including Cemal Gursel knew who and how many would be forming the NUC. In actuality, even Cemal Gursel was brought in later." (Years of Ismet Pasha of our Democracy, 1960-61 by Metin Toker, page 25. Bilgi. 1998)

• "It is now known that the coup was the result of years of planning on the part of conspirators, a number of radical colonels and ranks below in their early forties. He (Cemal Gursel) was not involved in the details of the organization of the coup d’etat. When the coup had succeeded, he was brought to Ankara." (Turkey, A modern History by Erik Zurcher. pages 253,254. I.B. Tauris, 2003)

• "We just see that a few very important lines in his letter (to the Minister of Defence) had been censored. That means we are going without learning the true history, without knowing who knows what facts and what true pictures of turning points." (Çetin Altan, Author, Journalist, September 2006)
  

  

  Head of State

• "An extremely important document that sheds light on the past has been revealed. Testimony from eyewitnesses at the time helped make known that the letter had been modified after May 27, but the location of the original letter was unknown. This important document adds a new dimension to the May 27 revolution. We have come face to face with a new document that changes our written history. It was my greatest wish to obtain just such a document; not for my own satisfaction, but for my father, to prove this reality and obtain genuine evidence. I was thrilled when I heard about this." (Mr Aydın Menderes, Author, the Son of Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, September 2006)

• "They cut off our phone lines. Adnan Menderes was hung against the regulations. I was supposed to oversee the execution. The revolution tribunal's chief prosecutor Altay Egesel conducted the execution despite not being authorized. İsmet İnönü and Cemal Gürsel were already phoning for him (Adnan Menderes) not to be executed but the telecommunications' office cut off the lines and Egesel made use of the (communication) gap to conduct the execution." (Mehmet Feyyat, District Attorney General, Istanbul Province Prosecutor General 1961, The Administrator of the Imrali Prison, The Lawyer of the Year, Senator. (Reported by Özkan GÜVEN, STAR Newspaper, November 13, 2006 with a summary in Turkish at Law in the Capitol)

• "Where are we now and where are the nations such as Portugal, Greece and Spain with whom we departed for the competition of development in 1960s? While we still crawl around $5000 per capita income, they have caught $20K pci a long while ago. Embarrassment, with one word." (Hasan Cemal, Milliyet, October 2006)

• "We built an automobile with the mentality of the West and we forgot to put gasoline in it with the mentality of the East." (Cemal Gursel, President, on the Anniversary of the Turkish Republic, 29 October 1963)

• "January 9, 1961

Dear General Gursel:

It is a great pleasure for me to send greetings to you and to the Turkish people on the occasion of the opening of the Turkish Constituent Assembly. This historic event is a further tangible demonstration of Turkish dedication to democratic ideals and of its determination to build a solid foundation for the future. Please extend my best wishes to the members of this Assembly for the success of the important work on which they are embarking. Sincerely,"

Dwight D. Eisenhower

• October 29, 1961
  

  

  Record released by Presidents Kennedy and Gursel on the 40th Anniversary of the Turkish Republic

"Dear Mr. President:

I congratulate you on your election as President of the Republic of Turkey. I also wish to congratulate, in the name of the United States Government and its people, the Turkish Government and people for their success in promulgating a new constitution and in establishing a freely-elected Grand National Assembly. As you assume your Presidential responsibilities, let me assure you of my country's dedication to the firm friendship and co-operation which have consistently characterized Turco-American relations. We are united in our aims of preserving the security of our homelands and creating a world where mankind can live in peace and freedom. In these cherished causes, we are proud to work side by side with the Government and people of Turkey. Please accept my warmest greetings and best wishes. Sincerely,"

John F. Kennedy

• October 25, 1963

"Dear Mr President Gursel:

I send warm greetings to you and the Turkish people on this fortieth anniversary of the founding of the Republic. The United States is proud of its association with Turkey in an alliance that rests on common aspirations and mutual interests. The American people admire the resolute spirit and manifest courage of the Turkish people. To this end, we welcome Turkey's new five-year development program, and wish it the fullest success. We will continue to hold firmly to this policy of cooperation, which has so greatly advanced our common interests and added so much to the defensive strength of the free world. Sincerely,"

John F. Kennedy

• November 22, 1963
  

  

  TheTimes

The Times, London

President Cemal Gursel described President Kennedy on the radio tonight as “a pioneer in the great struggles of humanity, a determined fighter for world peace and a firm friend of the Turkish Nation. Every Turkish family feels a personal grief at this horrible crime” he said.

• Message to President Sunay of Turkey

"Dear Mr. President:

I extend to you and to the government and people of Turkey my condolences and those of my fellow Americans on the passing of former President Cemal Gursel. We are all saddened at the loss of this good man, whose ideals and accomplishments we have long respected. He was a wise and valiant leader, dedicated to the preservation of democracy and the safety of his nation and the Free World. The close ties of friendship existing between our two countries make us feel the more deeply Turkey's loss. Our hearts are with you in your sorrow. Sincerely,"

Lyndon B. Johnson

• Message to Mrs. Cemal Gursel

"Dear Mrs. Gursel:

Mrs. Johnson and I extend our heartfelt sympathy on the passing of your distinguished husband. The memory of his lifetime as a soldier and statesman in the service of the highest ideals will be a legacy of inspiration to us all. We in America share your bereavement in the loss of this great and good man. You can be assured that our thoughts and prayers were always with him in his illness and that they are now with you in your grief. Sincerely," Lyndon B. Johnson

A number of people from those of the old

And a few from those of later times

Brothers facing each other on thrones of dignity

No pettiness will they hear in there

And not even a little of sinful talk

Only the saying “Peace! Peace!” (56:13-26; 15:47)

Gursel at the Office stairs	Hosting Shah Reza Pahlavi	Hosting HRH Queen ElizabethII	Gürsel and İnönü at Army Maneouvers
Exchanging remarks with Ismet Inonu	Saluting the Public during the Republic's Anniversary.	Inspecting the Honor Guards of the Parliament.	Gursel's Presidential Convoy in central Ankara
Voting during general elections	His inauguration as the President.	His room at the Walter Reed AMC	His initial burial site at the periphery of Anıtkabir.

[edit] Media

• Image:JFKennedy November1963.ogg The sound file of the message by President John F. Kennedy on Kemal Atatürk, 1963
• Image:JFKennedy1963 text.pdf The Text of the message by President John F. Kennedy on Atatürk
• Image:CemalGursel1963.ogg The sound file of the message by President Cemal Gürsel on Kemal Atatürk, November 10, 1963
• Image:CemalGursel1963 text.pdf The Text of the message by President Cemal Gürsel on Atatürk

[edit] References

• Song of The Pharaohs — The Kings of the East and the West
• 1960-1962 Landmarks of Turkish History
• 1963-1966 Landmarks of Turkish History
• The full text of Cemal Gursel's letter in WikiSource
• Cemal Gursel's Memorandum Revealed
• His photograph at the President's Web Page
• 60's video montage
• U.S. Presidential Messages search Cemal Gursel
• Text of Ankara Agreement

Preceded by Adnan Menderes	Prime Minister of Turkey 1960–1961	Succeeded by Emin Fahrettin Özdilek
Preceded by Celal Bayar	President of Turkey 1961–1966	Succeeded by Cevdet Sunay