the beginnings of ottoman-german partnership - Bilkent University

alliance as the only means of assuring the Empire’s survival. 201 He believed that the
Ottoman Empire should take advantage of the German alliance in order to reconstruct
the country. He was aware of the seriousness of the situation, but he did not want the
Empire to miss the chance of allying with a great power. 202 These views prevailed as
Enver and Talat had the real power in the Ottoman government at the time.
The Grand Vizier and the other ministers were either hesitant or opposed to
the alliance. They could not oppose or get involved in the decisions, however, either
because for fear of the CUP which supported Enver and Talat, or because the
decision-makers had successfully hidden the entire procedure from them.
The long term German and Ottoman expectations from the alliance differed
considerably. A survey of the literature on the Ottoman-German partnership reveals
that the expectations on both sides were considerably different. Whereas the
Ottomans saw the alliance as an opportunity for survival, the Germans felt the
alliance assured them of control of the Ottoman Empire as a satellite state that would
ease their military campaigns and economic future. Before 1914, the main instrument
for German economic aims was the Baghdad Railroad. In the summer of 1914,
however, the Baghdad Railroad did not seem to offer a bright future. The Deutsche
Bank, the main sponsor of the project, was on the verge of bankruptcy, and “the
(Baghdad) line was neither capable of dominating economic life nor suitable
instrument for exerting political pressure on the Porte”. 203
201 Corrigan, p. 147. Talat said “Turkey was in the position of a man in a forest beset by robbers. He
would willingly give up his clothes, his money, his goods and his chattels, if only his life and perhaps
his shirt were saved”.
202 Henry Morgenthau, Ambassador Morgenthau’s Story, (New York: Doubleday, Page& Company,
1918), p. 34. Talat told Morgenthau that: “We understand that (turning Turkey into a colony like
Egypt) is Germany’s programme. We also know that we cannot put this country on its feet with our
own resources. We shall, therefore, take advantage of such technical and material assistance as the
Germans can place at our disposal. We shall use Germany to help us reconstruct and defend the
country until we are able to govern ourselves with our own strength. When that day comes, we can say
good-bye to the Germans within twenty-four hours”.
203 Trumpener, Germany and the Ottoman Empire: 1914-1918, p. 8.
82