BY JOHN HAYNES, PH.D.
For years the history of Turkey was a monotonous tale of domestic disorder and foreign intervention. There was endless turmoil among the warring races and religions of Macedonia, and from time to time some dreadful outrage against the Armenians of Asiatic Turkey. The nations of Europe were constantly seeking reparation for wrongs done to their citizens or urging reforms for the benefit of the Sultan’s Christian subjects. It seemed only a question of time when Turkey would be blotted from the map by the powers of Europe.
Suddenly in July, 1908, it was announced that the constitution of 1876, which was “suspended” after being in force a short time, had been restored. Only the party known as the Young Turks were prepared for such an occurrence. For thirty years they had labored for the overthrow of the misrule of Sultan Abdul Hamid II. Their headquarters had been in Paris, but since 1904 they had been forming revolutionary organizations in Turkey under a central body called the Committee of Union and Progress. The support of the movement came from the professional classes and from progressive officers in the army, without whose help it could not have succeeded. Some days before the proclamation of the constitution, the Sultan learned of disaffection in the army of European Turkey, and vainly tried to quell it. Then being informed that unless he granted a constitution thirty thousand soldiers would march upon Constantinople, he yielded. A new ministry was formed under Kiamil Pasha, and many of the tools of the Sultan fled the country. In many cities there were extravagant manifestations of rejoicing, in which Moslems and Christians participated together.
The constitution of 1876 is the work of Midhat Pasha, the first Grand Vizier of Abdul Hamid. It provides for personal liberty, freedom of speech and of the press, and equality of Moslems and Christians before the law. The Parliament consists of a Senate, whose members are appointed by the Sultan, and a Chamber of Deputies chosen by the people indirectly through electors. Under this constitution a parliament was chosen and opened in December by the Sultan in person.
For a time all seemed to go well, but Abdul Hamid was plotting for the overthrow of the new régimé which had been forced upon him. The first sign of this was the appointment of two ministers suspected of being hostile to the progressive program. The Chamber of Deputies voted want of confidence in the ministry, and Hilmi Pasha was made Grand Vizier in accordance with the wish of the Young Turks, who thus imposed a new ministry upon the sovereign after the manner of the British House of Commons. But this did not end the matter. For months the Sultan’s money had been corrupting the army, and in April, 1909, the troops in Constantinople mutinied, declaring the Young Turks tyrants. Tewfik Pasha, a reactionary, was put at the head of the ministry. At the same time terrible massacres of Christians, believed to have been inspired by the Sultan, took place in Adana and vicinity.
But this counter-revolution was short-lived. The Macedonian division of the army under Chevket Pasha soon marched upon Constantinople, took the city without serious opposition, occupied the royal palace (Yiediz Kiosk), and made the Sultan a prisoner. Abdul Hamid was formally deposed by decree of the Sheik-ul-Islam, the religious head of the Moslems, and the action was confirmed by the Parliament. A brother, who by Turkish law, was the heir apparent, was chosen in his place, and now rules as Mehmet V. Hilmi Pasha was restored as Grand Vizier. Many participants in the counter revolution were executed. The new Sultan, who was sixty-four at his accession, has lived the secluded life of a political prisoner.
The future of Turkey is almost as much a problem as it was before this remarkable revolution. The Young Turks, who are now in power, stand for internal reform and the integrity of the empire. But they have to face the fact that the great majority of Moslems are reactionary, and that their power is dependent on the support of the army. The people as a whole are not fitted for self-government. One of the charges brought against Abdul Hamid was that the Turkish dominions were dismembered during his reign, but since the revolution of July, 1908, Turkey has lost its nominal sovereignty over Bulgaria and Bosnia and Herzegovina. She has also been on the point of losing her small hold on Crete. Though there are Christians in the Parliament and two in the cabinet, the Young Turks do not have the complete co-operation of the Christian population, many of whom will never be satisfied while any of Europe remains under Turkish rule. Besides, their sincerity as protectors of the Christians is doubted. The action of the court martial on the Adana massacres is not satisfactory. Few Moslems have been severely dealt with. Scores of Christian girls, who were carried away as booty during the massacres, have not been returned to their families nor their captors punished. The Patriarch of the Armenian Catholic Church declares that the Young Turks propose to make the Christians give up their educational institutions and send their children to Turkish schools. The greater part of the foreigners resident at Constantinople, while sympathetic with the new order, are not confident of the future. On the other hand, there are persons thoroughly conversant with Turkish affairs who feel sure that a new day of freedom and progress has really dawned. The future only can tell.