In early 1915, the British responded to a Russian plea for help against the Ottomans by shelling the Dardanelles. In the months that followed, the War Cabinet, spurred by Winston Churchill, approved a plan to land large numbers of soldiers at Gallipoli in an effort to open a sea route to Russia and perhaps force the Ottoman Empire to quit the war.
Listen:
Playlist:
Fanfare
Opening War Theme
Turkish Street Music
Recorded in Istanbul by Freesound.org user xserra, and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 license. Source.
The Crown of India
Composed in 1912 by Edward Elgar. Public domain.
Performed by The United States Marine Band. Public domain recording. Source.
“Venus, the Bringer of Peace,” from The Planets
Composed in 1916 by Gustav Holst. Public domain.
Performed by The United States Air Force Heritage of America Band. Public domain recording. Source.
Closing War Theme
Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2016, 2017, 2018 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Photograph by Nedim Ardoğa used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 license. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.
As a turkish person, sometimes I find your choice of words funny, to say the least…
at 3:10 — “….when the british declared war on the empire, they dispensed with the formalities and took the full responsibility for administering egypt…..” How nice of them.. But, in this part of the world, we call it “british illegally occupied egypt..”
My choice of words was intended to be ironic, in exactly the same way you were being ironic when you said, “How nice of them.”
How did the prior Ottoman occupation of Egypt differ, in legal terms, from the later British one ?
Your point is well taken. I expect an Egyptian would say that both Ottoman and British rule of Egypt were illegitimate.
Well, for starters, Egyptians were equal citizens in the ottoman empire. They had all the rights and duties the other ottoman peoples had. Can you say the same for Egyptians under the British rule?
For example, there were 5 delegates from Egypt in the Ottoman parliament of 1877. In contrast, how many Egyptian delegates were there in the British parliament?
But that is not the issue.. When the occupier is not british, it is always “a brutal occupation”. But when the occupier is british, it is always “…The British took the responsibility for administration of the natives..”. The tone suddenly changes. It is almost as if the British did it against their own will, and only for the good of the occupied people.. It is like “taking responsibility” of an orphan and feeding/clothing him out of pure altruism..
And I am not blaming Mark. This is such a widespread pattern in modern history that people do it as a gag reflex. Even turkish historians do it..
Make no mistake. British occupation is one of the cruellest fates that may befall on a people. Look at the history of india. Look at how many famines occured in india after the british came. Look at how many indians died at 1857 revolt. Look at the opium trade. Look at the fate of American Indians.
I am sorry if my choice of words offended. “Taking responsibility” was not the best way to say it, and I should have phrased it more carefully. But I reiterate that I was being ironic, and did not intend for my description of the British takeover to be taken at face value. I understand what you are saying about different Imperial rules being judged by different standards, and your point is valid.
I have spoken critically of British imperial rule in other episodes. And I did talk about the opium trade. I described Britain as “China’s drug pusher.”
I have not yet had an opportunity to delve into Indian history in detail, but I intend to.
I am glad to hear there were Egyptian representatives in the Ottoman parliament of 1877. It is my understanding that the Sultan prorogued that parliament three months later, and for the next thirty years there were the same number of Egyptians sitting in the Ottoman parliament as in the British parliament, i.e, none. So I’m not sure that’s your strongest argument. You are of course perfectly correct that the British did not grant other peoples under their rule the same rights and privileges as British subjects. And that the treatment of Native Americans in the US and elsewhere in the New World was deplorable.
Excellent episode, though I must point out that Constantinople actually fell twice, not just once (as much as it pains me as a Byzantinophile). I wouldn’t perhaps count the recapture by the Palaiologos, but both the dreadful attack by the crusaders and the final Ottoman blow must certainly count.
You are correct, of course. I was thinking of the Ottoman conquest in 1453, but the 1204 capture of the city by the Crusaders should also be counted.