On March 18, 2026, a panel titled “Mustafa Kemal Pasha and the Gallipoli Campaign” was organized within the Faculty of Literature to commemorate the 111th anniversary of the campaign. The panel was moderated by Prof. Dr. Mehmet Mercan, Dean of the Faculty and a faculty member of the Department of History, and featured Assist. Prof. Dr. Emre Koç and Assist. Prof. Dr. Nazik Betül Güney as speakers.

In the opening session, Prof. Dr. Mehmet Mercan provided an overview of the Gallipoli Campaign based on reliable and scholarly sources, offering reading recommendations for researchers and students interested in the subject. He also presented a comprehensive assessment of the general condition of the Ottoman army during the campaign.

In his presentation, Assist. Prof. Dr. Emre Koç examined the critical role of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in the Gallipoli land battles. He emphasized Mustafa Kemal’s leadership qualities, particularly his willingness to assume responsibility and take initiative under challenging circumstances, which significantly influenced the course of the conflict. Koç also highlighted the impact of his famous order, “I am not ordering you to attack, I am ordering you to die,” on troop morale. Furthermore, he analyzed Mustafa Kemal’s own accounts of the campaign alongside interpretations found in both domestic and international historiography.

Assist. Prof. Dr. Nazik Betül Güney, in her presentation, focused on the defensive strategies employed during the naval phase of the Gallipoli Campaign. She noted that Cevad Çobanlı Pasha, Commander of the Dardanelles Fortified Zone, considered existing defense plans inadequate and developed an alternative strategy, which effectively utilized minefields and coastal artillery. She also drew attention to relatively underrepresented figures in the literature, including Selahaddin Adil Bey, Captain Hakkı Bey of the minelayer Nusret, and Group Mine Commander Hafız Nazmi Bey, emphasizing their decisive contributions to the course of the campaign. In addition, Güney evaluated the strategic approaches of key British political and military figures involved in the opening of the Gallipoli front, including Lord Kitchener, Lord Fisher, Winston Churchill, and Admiral Carden.

The panel concluded with a question-and-answer session followed by general evaluations.