Project to uncover hidden stories of Gallipoli campaign

ÇANAKKALE

In a coordinated effort between Türkiye’s cultural and military authorities, research teams are conducting a comprehensive analysis of archives concerning soldiers who fought in the Gallipoli campaign during World War I in 1915.

Although it is widely known that hundreds of thousands of soldiers participated in the wars that resulted in a pivotal victory in Turkish history, only 77,000 fatalities have been definitively verified, with the fate of thousands still remaining unknown.

In an effort to unearth further insights into the historic battlefield and attain comprehensive records of all soldiers, officials from the "Martyr Information Gateway" project, launched in 2024, deepened their investigative endeavors.

Through extensive work conducted in the Presidential State Archives, over 10,000 documents have been uncovered, including casualty statistics, letters and personal records of fallen officers, hospital ledgers, medical incident tables, company-level health logs and military diagrams illustrating medical installations.

These documents, written in Ottoman Turkish, have since been meticulously translated into Turkish.

The Ottoman Empire employed a script divergent from modern Turkish, utilizing a language heavily influenced by Arabic and Persian.

Approximately five years after the founding of modern Türkiye, a language revolution ensued, culminating in the adoption of the Latin alphabet, emphasizing a more Turkish-centric lexicon.

Many of these historical documents are now being read and analyzed by historians and specialists proficient in Ottoman Turkish, contributing significantly to research projects.

According to information obtained by daily Hürriyet, the extensive examination of these documents yielded the discovery of records of numerous soldiers not listed in the Defense Ministry’s official martyr records.

This discovery offers a crucial source of information for the descendants of soldiers whose fates had long remained unclear.

Detailed data concerning the soldiers' final moments, their treatment in medical facilities and the reasons for their demise continue to surface, alongside comprehensive reports on soldiers buried outside the battlefield.

Through the project, a website will enable the public to access detailed accounts of soldiers. Upon entering basic information about a soldier, users will be able to retrieve comprehensive details about the soldier's experience, including the date of their demise.