1938: the death of Turkey's founding father

On November 10, 1938, Mustafa Kemal - the founder of modern Turkey and the first president of the Turkish Republic - died. He left a legacy, however, that endures to this day; his impact and influence on modern Turkey are difficult to overstate. His people endearingly call him "Ataturk" - the father of the Turks.

Mustafa Kemal's legacy began at the end of World War I. With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Turkey was threatened with the prospect of colonization at the hands of England, France and Italy. Kemal - a general in the Ottoman army - rallied the Turks and defeated the imperialist powers, securing independence for his people and declaring the birth of the Turkish Republic from the ashes of the Ottoman Empire.

Having secured his country's future through military means, Kemal set aside his fatigues and became a statesman. Under his direction, the Turkish government passed and implemented a radical series of reforms, aimed at transforming the country into a modern, secular state modeled after the nation states of Western Europe. These reforms affected the daily lives of ordinary Turks in astonishing ways. One reform changed the weekend from Thursday-Friday (the Muslim day of worship is Friday) to Saturday-Sunday, in line with the Christian West. Another outlawed traditional dress and hats, mandating instead the adoption of Western style dress.

But not all reforms involved abandoning Ottoman-Turkish cultural traditions in favor of Western ones. Modern civil codes, economic reform (including industrialization), and political reform were also crucial to Mustafa Kemal's vision of a modern Turkish state. While his rule was autocratic and he wielded absolute power during his lifetime, Kemal viewed Turkey eventually developing into a vibrant democracy, one in which the Turkish people would carry on his vision of reform and modernization.

This transition began in 1950, twelve years after his death, when the first multi-party elections were held. The opposition party won handily - evidence that the elections were fair and free. Turkey's subsequent political history is far from smooth, marked by periods of violence and military intervention in politics. Today, however, Turkey's economy is five times that of Egypt, and its political system is still democratic - a testament to the enduring strength of Turkey's founding father.