99 years of the liberation of Istanbul from enemy occupation. Today will be celebrated with various ceremonies. Every year, October 6, the Liberation of Istanbul is celebrated with some events held in the city. As Veteran Mustafa Kemal Atatürk said, this persecution came to an end with an important foresight based on the phrase 'They go as they come'.
The Allied navies anchored in front of Haydarpaşa on 30 November 1918 based on the Armistice of Mudros signed on 13 October 1918 and entered Istanbul. The actual occupation turned into an official occupation on March 16, 1920.
After the Turkish Army entered Izmir, the 5th Cavalry Corps under the command of Fahrettin Pasha began to advance towards the neutral zone under the control of the Entente Powers. Thereupon, the French and Italian troops in the Allied forces withdrew immediately. British troops in Çanakkale took a defensive position on the orders of General Harington.
England began to seek ways of agreement with the Ankara Government. The Ankara Government requested the control of the Istanbul and Çanakkale Straits. British prime minister Lloyd George refused these requests. He ordered the troops to take up combat positions. But Harington gave the order not to open fire. Turkish troops entered the neutral zone without encountering British resistance and began to advance towards the Dardanelles. A group of ministers led by Winston Churchill, who did not want war with the Turks, resigned.
On the other hand, after the Liberation of Izmir, Damat Ferit Pasha fled the country on September 21, 1922. Refet Pasha, at the request of Mustafa Kemal Pasha, as the person who will represent Turkey while the Thrace lands are delivered in accordance with the Mudanya Armistice; Selahattin Adil Pasha, the General Secretary of National Defense, was appointed as the commander of Istanbul. On October 19, Refet Pasha left Mudanya on the Gülnihal ferry with a force of 100 people from the GNAT Guard Group and came to Istanbul. Then, Selahattin Adil Pasha, as the “Commander of Istanbul”, came to Istanbul with the 81st Regiment. Despite the arrival of Refet Pasha and Selahattin Adil Pasha, the occupation did not end. Because, according to the armistice, the occupation forces would evacuate Istanbul immediately after the signing of the peace treaty.
After the Lausanne Peace Treaty on July 24, 1923, the Entente forces began to leave Istanbul on August 23, 1923. The last Entente unit left the city by saluting the Turkish flag at a ceremony held in front of the Dolmabahçe Palace on October 4, 1923.
On October 6, 1923, the 3rd Corps under the command of Şükrü Naili Pasha entered Istanbul and the occupation officially ended. The occupation lasted 4 years, 10 months and 23 days. Thus, the 6th of October of each year was determined as the liberation day of Istanbul and started to be celebrated.
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