Italo-Turkish War
Date September 29, 1911 – October 18, 1912 Location Libya Result Italian victory, start of the First Balkan War Territorial changes Libya and Aegean Sea
Belligerents
Kingdom of Italy	Ottoman Empire
Commanders
Libyan theater: Augusto Aubry Carlo Caneva Aegean theater: Marcello Amero D'Aste Giovanni Ameglio	Libyan theater: Neşet Bey Ismail Enver Mustafa Kemal
Strength
100,000	28,000
Casualties and losses
3,380 dead 4,220 wounded	14,000 dead 5,370 wounded

The Italo-Turkish or Turco-Italian War (also known in Italy as guerra di Libia, "the Libyan war", and in Turkey as Trablusgarp Savaşı) was fought between the Ottoman Empire and Italy from September 29, 1911 to October 18, 1912. Events 522 BC - Darius I of Persia kills the Magian usurper Gaumâta securing his hold as king of the Persian Empire. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 pitted the Balkan League ( Serbia, Montenegro, Greece, and Bulgaria Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Etymology In ancient times there were various explanations for the name Aegean. The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Marquess Marcello Amero D'Aste-Stella ( April 1 1853 - September 17 1931) was an Italian admiral of the Regia Marina (Royal Italian İsmail Enver ( Ottoman Turkish: اسماعيل انور ( November 22, 1881 in Constantinople - August 4 Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (19 May 1881 &ndash 10 November 1938 was an army officer revolutionary Statesman The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish The Kingdom of Italy ( Italian: Regno d'Italia) was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom Events 522 BC - Darius I of Persia kills the Magian usurper Gaumâta securing his hold as king of the Persian Empire. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting

Italy seized the Ottoman provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, together forming what became known as Libya, as well as the Isle of Rhodes and the Greek-speaking Dodecanese archipelago near Anatolia. Tripolitaniajpg|thumb|250px|Tripolitania]] Tripolitania or Tripolitana ( Arabic: طرابلس, Transliterated: Tarābulus) is a historic Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Rhodes (Ρόδος Ródos, ˈɾo̞ðo̞s Rodi ردوس Rodos; Ladino: Rodi or Rodes) is a Greek island Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία The Dodecanese ( Greek Δωδεκάνησα Dodekánisa 'twelve islands' are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black

Although minor, the war was an important precursor of the First World War as it sparked nationalism in the Balkan states. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation Seeing how easily the Italians had defeated the disorganized Ottomans, the members of the Balkan League attacked the Empire before the war with Italy had ended. The Balkan League was the alliance of Serbia, Montenegro, Greece and Bulgaria against the Ottoman Empire during the Balkan Wars The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 pitted the Balkan League ( Serbia, Montenegro, Greece, and Bulgaria

The Italo-Turkish War saw numerous technological advances used in warfare; notably the aeroplane. Second generation warfare is a term created by the US military in 1989 referring to the tactics of warfare used after the invention of the Rifled musket and Overview Fixed-wing aircraft range from small training and recreational aircraft to Wide-body aircraft and military cargo aircraft. On October 23, 1911, an Italian pilot flew over Turkish lines on a reconnaissance mission, and on November 1, the first ever aerial bomb was dropped on Turkish troops in Libya. Events 4004 BC - Creation of the world begins according to the calculations of Archbishop James Ussher 42 BC - Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Reconnaissance (also scouting) is a military and medical term denoting exploration conducted to gain information Events 996 - Emperor Otto III issues a deed to Gottschalk Bishop of Freising which is the oldest known document using the name Ostarrîchi An airstrike is a Military strike by Air forces on either a suspected or a confirmed enemy ground position Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab ^[1]

Background

The claims of Italy over Libya dated back to discussions after the Congress of Berlin in 1878, in which France and Great Britain had agreed to the occupation of Tunisia and Cyprus respectively, both parts of the then declining Ottoman Empire. See also Berlin Conference (1884-85 re Africa and Berlin Conference of 1954 (Cold War The French Third Republic (in French, La Troisième République, sometimes written as La IIIe The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927 Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. Cyprus (Κύπρος transliterated: Kýpros,; Kıbrıs officially the Republic of Cyprus (Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία Kypriakī́ Dīmokratía When Italian diplomats hinted about possible opposition by their government, the French replied that Tripoli would have been a counterpart for Italy. Tripolis ( Arabic: طرابلس Ṭarābulus - also طرابلس الغرب Ṭarā-bu-lus al-Gharb Libyan vernacular: In 1902, Italy and France had signed a secret treaty which accorded freedom of intervention in Tripolitania and Morocco. Tripolitaniajpg|thumb|250px|Tripolitania]] Tripolitania or Tripolitana ( Arabic: طرابلس, Transliterated: Tarābulus) is a historic Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa ^[2] However, the Italian government did little to realize the opportunity and knowledge of Libyan territory and resources remained scarce in the following years.

The Italian press began a large-scale lobbying campaign in favour of an invasion of Libya at the end of March 1911. For a full treatment of the Italian invasion of 1911 see Italian invasion of Libya. It was fancifully depicted as rich in minerals, well-watered, and defended by only 4,000 Ottoman troops. Also, the population was hostile to the Ottoman Empire and friendly to the Italians. The future invasion was described as little more than a "military walk".

The Italian government was hesitant initially, but in the summer the preparations for the invasion were carried out and Prime Minister Giovanni Giolitti began to probe the other European major powers about their reactions to a possible invasion of Libya. Giovanni Giolitti ( October 27, 1842 &ndash July 17, 1928) was an Italian statesman The Socialist party had strong influence over public opinion. The Italian Socialist Party ( Partito Socialista Italiano, PSI was a democratic socialist / social democratic political party founded in Genoa However, it was in opposition and also divided on the issue. It acted ineffectively against a military intervention. (Ironically, the future Fascist leader Mussolini - at this time still a left-wing Socialist - took a prominent anti-war position. Fascism is a totalitarian nationalist and corporatist ideology )

An ultimatum was presented to the Ottoman government of Committee of Union and Progress (CUP) on the night of 26-27 September. The Committee of Union and Progress (CUP (İttihat ve Terakki Cemiyeti initially a secret society established as the "Committee of Ottoman Union" (İttihad-ı Osmanî Cemiyeti Through Austrian intermediation, the CUP replied with the proposal of transferring control of Libya without warring, maintaining a formal Ottoman suzerainty. Suzerainty (ˈsjuːzərənti RP or /ˈsjuːzəreɪnti/ RP) (/ˈsuːzərənti/ GA) is a situation in which a Region or people is a Giolitti refused, however, and war was declared on September 29, 1911. Events 522 BC - Darius I of Persia kills the Magian usurper Gaumâta securing his hold as king of the Persian Empire. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year

Military actions

Italian dirigibles bomb Turkish positions on Libyan Territory. The Italian -Turkish war of 1911-1912 was the first in history in which air attacks (carried out here by dirigible airships) determined the outcome.

Despite the time it had had to prepare the invasion, the Italian Army was largely unprepared when the war broke out. The Regio Esercito (English Royal Army) was the army of the Kingdom of Italy from the unification of Italy in 1861 to the birth of the Italian Republic The Italian fleet appeared off Tripoli in the evening of September 28, but only began bombarding the port on October 3. Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's The city was conquered by 1,500 sailors, much to the enthusiasm of the interventionist minority in Italy. Another proposal of a diplomatic settlement was rejected by the Italians, and the Turks determined therefore to defend the province.

Italian Troops firing on the Turks in Tripoli. 1911

The first disembarkation of troops occurred on October 10. Events 680 - Battle of Karbala: Shia Imam Husayn bin Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, is decapitated The Italian contingent of 20,000 troops was deemed sufficient to accomplish the conquest at the time. Tobruk, Derna and Homs were easily conquered, but the same was not true for Benghazi. Tobruk or Tubruq (طبرق also transliterated as Tóbruch, Tobruch, Ţubruq, Tobruck) is a Town, Seaport For the historical Libyan city of Derna see Darnah Derna (Felsőderna is a commune in northeastern Bihor County, Romania For military actions near the city see Battle of Homs. Homs ( حمص,, anciently called Emesa (ἡ Ἔμεσα or "La Chamelle" Benghazi or Bengasi ( Arabic بنغازي, transliterated Banġāzī,) is the second largest city in Libya and the The first true setback for the Italian troops happened on October 23, when poor placement of the troops near Tripoli led them to be almost completely encircled by more mobile Arab cavalry, backed by some Turkish regular units. Events 4004 BC - Creation of the world begins according to the calculations of Archbishop James Ussher 42 BC - The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on The Ottoman Second Army protected the south eastern parts of the Ottoman Empire. The attack was portrayed as a simple revolt by the Italian press, but it nearly annihilated much of the Italian expeditionary corps. Rebellion is a refusal of obedienceIt may therefore be seen as encompassing a range of Behaviours from Civil disobedience and mass Nonviolent resistance The corps was consequently enlarged to 100,000 men who had to face 20,000 Arabs and 8,000 Turks. The araB gene Promoter is a bacterial promoter activated by e L-arabinose binding The war turned into one of position, and even the first use of aviation in a modern war had little effect.

Italian troops landed at Tobruk after a brief bombardment on December 4th, 1911 and occupied the seashore and marched towards the hinterlands facing weak resistance. Tobruk or Tubruq (طبرق also transliterated as Tóbruch, Tobruch, Ţubruq, Tobruck) is a Town, Seaport In military terminology resistance or organized resistance refers to the ability of a military unit to continue to oppose an attack ^[3] Small numbers of Turkish soldiers and Libyan volunteers were later organized by Captain Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk). The 22 December Battle of Tobruk resulted in Mustafa Kemal's victory. Events 1790 - The Turkish fortress of Izmail is stormed and captured by Suvorov and his Russian armies Battle of Tobruk ( 1911) or Nadura Hill Battle was a conflict in the Italo-Turkish War. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (19 May 1881 &ndash 10 November 1938 was an army officer revolutionary Statesman ^[4] With this achievement, he was assigned to Dernah War quarters to coordinate the field on 6 March 1912. The city of Darnah is the location of the historical city of Derna Events 1079 - Omar Khayyám completes the Iranian calendar. 1454 - Thirteen Years' War: Delegates of Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting

The 3 March 1912, near Dernah, 1,500 Libyan volunteers attacked Italian troops who were building trenchs. Events 1284 - Statute of Rhuddlan incorporated the Principality of Wales into England 1575 - Indian Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide (as opposed to a wider Gully or Ditch Italians - less in number, but superior in weapons - held the line. Lack of coordination between Italian units sent from Dernah in reinforcement and intervention af Turkish artillery put in crisis Italian line and Arabs attempted to surround Italian troops. Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine Further Italian reinforcements stabilized situation and battle ended in the afternoon.

On September 14, Italian command sent three columns of infantry to disband Arab Turkish camp near Dernah. Events 81 - Domitian becomes Emperor of the Roman Empire upon the death of his brother Titus. The Infantry is the oldest and most numerous of the Combat Arms in the Armed forces, and consists Troops occupied a plateau, breaking off Turkish supply lines. In Geology and Earth science, a plateau, also called a high plateau or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting Military supply chain management is a cross-functional approach to procuring, producing and delivering products and services The broad Three days later, Turkish commander Enver Bey attacked Italian positions on the plateau. İsmail Enver ( Ottoman Turkish: اسماعيل انور ( November 22, 1881 in Constantinople - August 4 The larger Italian fire drove back Turkish soldiers, who were surrounded by a battalion of Alpini and suffered heavy losses. The Alpini, meaning "the Alpines quot, are the elite Mountain warfare soldiers of the Italian Army. A later Turkish attack had the same outcome.

After that, operations in Cyrenaica stopped, until the end of the war.

Moves towards a peace

1912 Italian-American chromolithograph showing a fanciful depiction of the Italian-Turkish Peace treaty. Titled, 'LA PACE ITALO-TURCA'.

With a decree of November 5, 1911, Italy declared its suzerainty over Libya, although it controlled only some coastal stretches which were almost under siege by the local troops, with the exception of Tripoli. Events 1499 - Publication of the Catholicon in Treguier ( Brittany) Italian authorities adopted many repressive measures against the rebels, such as public hanging. Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death

Italy, however, maintained total naval supremacy and could extend its control to almost all of the 2,000 km of the Libyan coast between April and early August of 1912. Italy began operations against the Turkish possessions in the Aegean Sea with the approval of the other powers that were eager to end a war that was lasting much longer than expected. Etymology In ancient times there were various explanations for the name Aegean. Italy occupied twelve islands in the sea, the so-called Dodecanese, but this raised the discontent of the Austro-Hungarian Empire who feared that this could fuel the irredentism of nations such as Serbia and Greece, causing unbalance in the already fragile situation in the Balkan area. The Dodecanese ( Greek Δωδεκάνησα Dodekánisa 'twelve islands' are a group of 12 larger plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Irredentism is any position advocating Annexation of territories administered by another State on the grounds of common Ethnicity or prior historical possession Serbia (Србија Srbija) officially the Republic of Serbia (Република Србија Republika Srbija) is a Landlocked Country Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία

The only other relevant military operation of the summer of 1912 was an attack of five Italian torpedo boats in the Dardanelles on July 18. This article describes three distinct but related terms military operations Operations as military events and operational level of war A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval Ship designed to carry Torpedoes into battle See also [[Hellespont]] The Dardanelles ( Turkish: Çanakkale Boğazı Greek: Δαρδανέλλια Dardanellia) formerly Events 390 BC - Roman - Gaulish Wars Battle of the Allia - a Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, In September, Bulgaria, Serbia and Greece prepared their armies for the war against the Ottoman Empire, taking advantage of its difficulties in the war against Italy. The state of Bulgaria (България transliterated bg-Latn ''Balgaria'' The country preserves the traditions (in ethnic name language and alphabet of the First Bulgarian Serbia (Србија Srbija) officially the Republic of Serbia (Република Србија Republika Srbija) is a Landlocked Country Greece (Ελλάδα transliterated: Elláda, historically, Ellás,) officially the Hellenic Republic (Ελληνική Δημοκρατία On October 8, Montenegro declared war against the Turks, starting the Balkan Wars. Events 314 - Roman Emperor Licinius is defeated by his colleague Constantine I at the Battle of Cibalae, and loses Montenegro ( British English) Montenegrin / Serbian: PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE THE LANGUAGES WITHOUT CONSENSUS ON THE TALK PAGE! The Balkan Wars were two wars in South-eastern Europe in 1912–1913 in the course of which the Balkan League ( Bulgaria, Montenegro, Greece

Treaty of Lausanne

Italian diplomats decided to take advantage of the situation to obtain a favourable peace deal. A treaty was signed at Lausanne at 16. Lausanne ( pronounced, Losanna is a city in Romandy, the French -speaking part of Switzerland, situated on the shores of Lake Geneva 45 on October 18, 1912. Events 1009 - The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a Christian church in Jerusalem, is completely destroyed by the Fatimid ^[5][6]The terms were formally equal to those requested by Istanbul at the beginning of the war and maintained a formal Ottoman suzerainty over Libya, which received only an autonomous status under the judiciary rule of Qadis elected by the Sultan. Istanbul (historically Byzantium and later Constantinople; see the other Names of Istanbul) is the largest city of Turkey Qadi (also known as Qazi or Kazi or Kadi) (قاضي is a judge ruling in accordance with the Sharia, Islamic religious law Sultan (سلطان is an Islamic title with several historical meanings

Aftermath

Mustafa Kemal and Libyan bedouins

The invasion of Libya was a costly enterprise for Italy. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (19 May 1881 &ndash 10 November 1938 was an army officer revolutionary Statesman The Bedouin, (from the Arabic (ar بدوي pl badū) are a desert-dwelling Arab Nomadic pastoralist, or previously Instead of the 30 million lire a month judged sufficient at its beginning, it reached a cost of 80 million a month for a much longer period than was originally estimated. The lira (plural lire) was the Currency of Italy between 1861 and 2002 This caused economical unbalance at home. From a political standpoint, it showed that the lobbying power of an active and organized minority could have great power in the country, as the advent of Fascism would show after World War I. Fascism is a totalitarian nationalist and corporatist ideology World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All

As for Libya, the Italian control over much of its territory remained ineffective until the late 1920s, when forces under Generals Pietro Badoglio and Rodolfo Graziani waged punitive pacification campaigns which turned into brutal and bloody acts of repression. Pietro Badoglio 1st Duke of Addis Abeba ( 28 September 1871 &ndash 1 November 1956) was an Italian soldier and politician Rodolfo Graziani Marchese di Neghelli ( August 11, 1882 &mdash January 11, 1955) was an officer in the Italian Royal Resistance petered out only after the execution of the rebel leader Omar Mukhtar on September 15, 1931. Omar Mukhtar ( Arabic عمر المختار ‘Umar Al-Mokhtār) ( 1862 - September 16, 1931) was from the tribe Events 668 - Eastern Roman Emperor Constans II is assassinated in his bath at Syracuse Italy. Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Concerning the Dodecanese, because of WWI it remained under Italian military occupation. Belligerent military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army. According to the Treaty of Sevres, most of the islands (except Rhodes) had to be ceded to Greece, in exchange for a vast zone of influence in southwest Anatolia. The Treaty of Sèvres ( 10 August 1920) was the Peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War Rhodes (Ρόδος Ródos, ˈɾo̞ðo̞s Rodi ردوس Rodos; Ladino: Rodi or Rodes) is a Greek island Anatolia (Anadolu Ανατολία Anatolía) or Asia minor, comprising most of modern Turkey, is the geographic region bounded by the Black

The Greek defeat in the Greco-Turkish War and the foundation of modern Turkey made this solution impossible. With the Treaty of Lausanne the Dodecanese was then formally annexed by Italy. The Treaty of Lausanne ( July 24, 1923) was a Peace treaty signed in Lausanne that settled the Anatolian part of the Partitioning

Bibliography

• Paolo Maltese, "L'impresa di Libia", in Storia Illustrata #167, October 1971
• "1911-1912 Turco-Italian War and Captain Mustafa Kemal". Ministry of Culture of Turkey, edited by Turkish Armed Forces-Division of History and Strategical Studies, pages 62-65, Ankara, 1985.
• The Italian Turkish War 1911-1912

Notes

See also

• History of Italy
• Italian rule in Libya
• Italian Empire
• History of Turkey
• History of the Ottoman Empire
• Balkan Wars
• Treaty of Lausanne