The nation commemorated the 109th anniversary of the Sarıkamış campaign, praising the Turkish soldiers' unparalleled heroism and sacrifice in the eastern region of Kars.
Kars Governor and Deputy Mayor Ziya Polat honored and remembered all the martyrs of the campaign with reverence and gratitude.
The Sarıkamış offensive was launched to repel the advance of Russian forces upon the empire's eastern borders during World War I undertaken by the Ottomans. The offensive, which began in December 1914, quickly succumbed to the weather with scores of troops lost in blizzards.
After suffering tragic losses, only a few units reached Sarıkamış, which was under Russian occupation. Records from the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) show some 60,000 soldiers died from cold, hunger and hypothermia because the soldiers weren't wearing suitable uniforms.
Despite the Ottoman defeat, the Russian command was alarmed enough to call for help from its allies, who subsequently initiated the famous Gallipoli campaign where Ottoman forces emerged victorious.
The Gallipoli campaign paved the way for the Turkish War of Independence under the command of Mustafa Kemal Pasha, the commander at the Battle of Gallipoli who later founded the Republic of Türkiye.
Today, the Sarıkamış tragedy of the crumbling Ottoman Empire is etched in the memory of the Turkish public as one of the last patriotic sagas of early 20th century Türkiye, apart from the Gallipoli campaign. It highlights the victory of the Turkish army that they achieved despite all odds and without defying orders.
Images from the Russian archives reveal that although Ottoman troops made some progress on the front, its forces struggled a lot. Foreign and Turkish soldiers who survived later recalled that conditions were so severe that it was almost impossible to bury the bodies of martyrs because of the frozen soil.
Despite the freezing weather, soldiers weren't allowed to light fires because of safety measures. Besides, those who survived later shared that they made it through by placing flammable mushrooms in their pockets to feel warm and placing warmers under their arms and legs.
To make matters worse, the units were cut off from much-needed supplies as horse carts and gun carriages struggled to move through the storms. A total of 5,000 Ottoman soldiers went missing or were taken prisoner by the Russians over the course of the campaign.
“Türkiye is not a country that was liberated easily. For every inch of the country, several lives were sacrificed. It's because of our veterans that we are proudly celebrating the centenary of the republic,” Polat said.
