The truth revealed for the first time about the 57th Regiment, the heroic unit of the Gallipoli Wars

Although 109 years have passed since the Gallipoli Wars, new truths about the period are emerging.

ÇOMÜ AÇASAM Deputy Director Dr. İsmail Sabah revealed new facts about the 57th Regiment in his doctoral study, which he recently prepared after 5 years of study.

Pointing out that the 57th Regiment became one of the symbol regiments of the Gallipoli Battles with the critical battle it fought and Atatürk’s order to die on April 25, 1915. Sabah said, “It is perhaps the most well-known regiment in Turkish history and the Gallipoli Battles. I recently prepared a doctoral thesis about the 57th Regiment at Istanbul University under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Ali Fuat Örenç. During this study, the 57th Regiment We made some findings that were not available in the literature regarding the establishment of the 1st Regiment. Until now, it was stated that the 57th Regiment was established in Tekirdağ on February 1, 1915. However, during this study, the wars of the 3rd Corps and the 1st Corps were reported. “When we examined the documents, we saw that the establishment was actually carried out in a different way than what is known,” he said..

‘WE DETECTED THAT IT WAS FOUNDED IN GELİBOLU’

Reminding that the first attack on the Dardanelles took place on November 3, 1914, Dr. Sabah said:
“It is a date when we gave the first martyrs of the Gallipoli Wars. The 8th Division, another division of the 3rd Corps, is ordered to move to the place vacated by the 7th Division, that is, Tekirdağ. But in Egypt, the British When it was decided that the 4th Army under the command of Cemal Pasha would carry out an operation against the army, it was decided that the 8th Division, which was affiliated with the 3rd Corps, would be placed under the command of the 4th Army. In a letter bearing the phrase ‘, he asks the 3rd Corps for their opinion on the establishment of a new division to replace the 8th Division, which will be separated from it. Thus, for the first time, studies or correspondence regarding the establishment of a new division within the 3rd Corps began.

‘WE CAN SAY THAT THE FIRST ESTABLISHMENT ACTIVITIES STARTED IN GALIBOLU’

Dr. stated that when the documents were examined, they came to the conclusion that the first establishment efforts of the 57th Regiment started in Gallipoli. Sabah continued his words as follows:

“When the dates come to January 21, 1915, 1st Army Commander Liman Von Sanders gives the final order for the establishment of a new division in the 3rd Corps. With the order given on January 21, the 3rd Corps in Gallipoli will receive the number 19. The point that draws our attention here is that when the order for the establishment of a new division was given, the 3rd Corps headquarters was already in Gallipoli. Therefore, the Sofia Military Attaché Mustafa Kemal Bey, who was appointed as the division commander, was making preparations for the establishment of the division in Gallipoli. It is carried out by the 3rd Corps. When we look at the records of the 3rd Corps, we can say that the first establishment activities of both the 19th Division and the 57th Regiment, which is one of the regiments of the 19th Division, definitely started in Gallipoli. “When it came to 1915, this is also the date when the British decided to open a front in Çanakkale,” he said..

‘WE DETERMINED THAT HE TAKEN THE DIVISION FROM GALIBOLU AND TAKEN IT TO TEKİRDAĞ’

Dr. Sabah stated that the 19th Division was established in Gallipoli and said, “On January 28, 1915, the 1st battalion of the 57th Regiment was formed in Gallipoli. In fact, sacrifices were made and prayers were recited for this. When we come to January 31, 1915, the 19th Battalion was formed in Gallipoli. We see that Staff Lieutenant Colonel Mustafa Kemal Bey, who was appointed as the Commander of the 1st Division, came to Gallipoli for the first time and saw the 19th Division and 57th Regiment, which would become famous in the Gallipoli Wars, here for the first time. We understand that it moved to Tekirdağ on the evening of January 31 and reached Tekirdağ on February 1, 1915. In fact, we understand that the 19th Division, which was thought to have been established in Tekirdağ by this time and that Mustafa Kemal Bey met for the first time in Tekirdağ. “We have determined that the 57th Regiment was actually established in Gallipoli, and that the division commander, Mustafa Kemal Bey himself, came to Gallipoli and took the division from here to Tekirdağ,” he said..

‘WE HAVE ACHIEVED VERY DIFFERENT RESULTS FROM THOSE KNOWN’

Dr. Sabah said that another determination regarding the 57th Regiment in the research was about the commander of the regiment, Hüseyin Avni Bey.

Dr. Sabah said, “When we look at the literature when the 57th Regiment was established, it is stated that Hüseyin Avni Bey was seen as the regiment commander on February 1, 1915. However, when we examined the records of the 57th Regiment, we saw that the first commander of the 57th Regiment when it was established was another officer named Major Ali.” In fact, with this study, we have seen that Hüseyin Avni Bey took the regimental command of the 57th Regiment, with the arrangement made on 22 February 1915, 3 days before his arrival in Çanakkale. “We have actually reached results that are very different from those known in the literature,” he said.