Ataturk - Father of the Turkish Nation

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was literally the father of modern Turkey. Bronze statues or busts of him are found all over Turkey. Turkey was on the losing side of WWI, but Atartuk was the only undefeated commander at the end of the war. His military leadership resulted in him winning the battle at Gallopoli against England and troops from Australia and New Zealand. His leadership proved important in winning independence for Turkey after that war when allies were attempting to carve up Turkey (no pun here).

There is no equivalent leader in our country that quite matches what he did for Turkey. He was more like a Washington, Jefferson, Eisenhower, and Kennedy all rolled into one.

He brought sweeping reforms including replacing the Sultantate with a secular based government of which he was the first president.

We visited his grave site and memorial at Anitkabar outside of the capital city of Ankara. It is an impressive site, and in a very respectful way is a wonderful tribute to the man so important to all Turks. Here are a few photos at the site: