The Rise and Fall of Ismail Enver
Ismail Enver was a Turkish military officer as well as a leader of the Young Turk revolution. Ismail Enver didn’t stop there though; he eventually became the main leader of the Ottoman Empire during the duration of World War I. Though his given name was Ismail Enver Europeans knew him as Enver Pasha or Enver Bey during his political career.
Ismail Enver was destined for greatness if you look at his background. He was born to a very wealthy family in Istanbul in 1881 and he would grow to study in Germany and eventually became quite interested in German military theories, strategy, and organization. When Ismail Enver returned from Germany he wasted no time enlisting in the Ottoman army and he studies and interests helped up rise through the ranks quite quickly. By 1913, at the young age of 32 Ismail Enver became a Pasha. Ismail had ideas about what could make Turkey a better place and felt strongly about building a Greater Turkey, which meant he wanted the removal of all non-Turks from Turkish land.
Ismail got his first taste of political victory in April of 1912, though it was short lived. The Young Turks, officially called the Committee of Union and Progress, won an election with an overwhelming majority, though they ended up losing the province of Libya to Italy. This was a major setback for the Committee of Union and Progress as it eroded support and moral to the extent that the Committee of Union and Progress had to yield to a rival political coalition known as the Liberal Unio.
The Committee of Union and Progress didn’t stay down for long, though. In January of 1913 in a coup the Committee of Union and Progress overthrew the Liberal Unio and quickly put a military dictatorship into place. Within a few months the leaders of this military dictatorship emerge as the “Three Pashas” one of which was Enver Pasha or Ismail Enver as well as Talat Pasha and Djemal Pasha. Ismail Enver managed to have the two other Pashas look to him before any decisions were made, even though he had not real superiority over them in the way of rank. Ismail Enver was just starting to recognize his ability to manipulate and control people, even the supposed co-leaders of the new military dictatorship.
Ismail Enver didn’t wait long to move himself up in the ranks a bit more, just a week before declaring war on Russia Enver gave himself a new title, Vice-Generalissimo. This new title effectively made him the dictator of the Ottoman government, which is remarkable because he was just a man of 34 at the time. While Enver had great plans, his ability to plan ahead was not all that impressive. As soon as the war started Ismail Enver ordered that all men of military age needed to report to army offices to enlist. Unfortunately, there was no process in place and long lines and delays occurred. Pulling all the men from the crops to wait in lines ruined the crops for the year, which had a terrible impact on economy as well as the overall moral of the land.
Ismail Enver had an inflated ego by this time, and he considered himself a great military leader though he had only the title of minister of war in his military portfolio. Military advisors thought that Ismail Enver was a joke and not at all credible, though they were required to carry out his plans. Unfortunately, Ismail Enver planned very complicated attacks on the Russians, attacks that the army was not capable of following through on without great leadership. Of course, Ismail Enver placed himself in control of the Third Army and needless to say they were defeated at the Battle of Sarikamis in December and January of 1914 and 1915. Ismail Enver assumed that his large army could take the weaker Russian army, but poor planning and leadership made it the most costly loss in the way of lives in World War I.
Ismail Enver was willing to accept responsibility for the loss, and he said so publicly. Though he admitted that he was responsible, Ismail Enver was nervous that there was going to be an uprising in response to the loss and he ordered that all Armenian and Lebanese recruits should be disarmed and taken to labor camps. When these recruits were taken to the labor camps they were immediately executed.
After the defeat Ismail Enver returned to the capital and resumed his control in and around the area. During the rest of his reign Ismail Enver proved time and time again that he was not a good leader. The Germans constantly had to provide aide to the Ottoman government during Enver’s military dictatorship reigned. It’s estimated that the Ottoman government experienced an inflation rate of 1600% in just four years due to their inability to pay for the war. Eventually the Three Pashas fled the country seeking protection from other countries
Ismail Enver continued to seek victory in numerous battles though he had been
ousted from his own government, and suffered a somewhat befitting death. Ismail
Enver died on August 4, 1922 in battle. Ismail Enver had actually been tried
in absentia in his own country and was sentenced to death for his crimes, so
it’s interesting that he spent his final days in war, something he thought
he was good at.
