Today in History – 13 October

Ankara is named capital

After the Grand National Assembly approved the Treaty of Lausanne, the occupying forces began to evacuate İstanbul. The liberation of the former Ottoman capital led to debates over the location of the new government center. On October 9, 1921, İsmet Pasha and 14 colleagues submitted to the Assembly the proposal to name Ankara the new capital. According to İsmet Pasha, the proposition was based on several internal and external factors:

I met with the delegates, specialists, and diplomats of the West in Lausanne. They are highly familiar with the government and milieu of İstanbul and wish for the new government to be established with the people of that milieu. I could understand that from the way they acted.

There are more important and different aspects on our side. First of all, in the militaristic sense, the Straits are unsafe and open to attack. The historic conditions and the results of the Treaty of Lausanne give us concern. Furthermore, we want to be positioned at the center of Anatolia and run the new state as an Anatolian government.

According to İsmet Pasha, naming Ankara as the new capital had nothing to do with the presence of the caliphate. Nonetheless, many still believed that İstanbul ought to remain as the center of governance. Following extended proceedings and deliberations, the Assembly voted on the proposal on October 13, 1923 and, with the majority of votes in favor, Ankara was named capital.