Wasti, S. T. "The 1912-13 Balkan Wars and the Siege of Edirne"

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64 MIDDLE EASTERN STUDIEScombined with the increase in population would create enormous problems.The administration had, in fact, begun to encourage women, invalids andforeign nationals to leave the confines of Edirne voluntarily. Therequisitioning of available wagons and beasts of burden had also begun.The first sounds of gunfire reached Edirne on 21 October; the war wasinching closer, and though morale remained high, womenfolk were often seenboarding the train for Istanbul.The train also brought the latest newspapers from the capital to an Edirnestarved of news, because the postal services were no longer functioning. Ertürsays he was depressed by the optimistic reports of the war given bynewspapers published far from the front. In Edirne, wounded Turkish soldiershad already begun to arrive on 23 October. 49 By 25 October, army unitsrepositioned themselves within the confines of Edirne in preparation for asiege like Plevna. No word was to be had about the army units supposed to becoming from the east to relieve the pressure on Edirne. Rakım Ertür and afriend, Mazhar by name, went to the French hospital to visit a mutual friend,an artillery captain called İsmail Hakkı, who had been wounded in anencounter in which he showed great bravery. Although İsmail Hakkı hadtaken his guns to within pistol range of the enemy and routed their positions,he had much respect for the Bulgarian fighters, calling them ‘the Japs of theBalkans’. While intermittent heavy skirmishing continued all around, thenext blow fell on 4 November when the Bulgarians cut off the water supplyof Edirne, forcing people to use water from the river and from wells. A warmwater bath became a luxury. Sugar and salt were the next ‘casualties’ of thesiege – their disappearance from the shops was occasioned by the threat thatblack marketeers would be court-martialled. On 9 November, while on a getwellvisit to the house of the artillery captain İsmail Hakkı, Ertür had theopportunity of encountering both Remzi Bey and Fuat Bey, who arrived toenquire after the captain. The officers discussed military matters in French fora while and though Rakım Ertür knew no French, he found out that the armyhad decided to pull back tactically to Çatalca. This caused him muchdespondency. On 15 November, a Bulgarian plane flew over the Edirne skies,showering leaflets below containing the following message:We have surrounded Edirne with a thousand guns. Come and surrender.O people of Edirne, we shall save you from your despotic officials. TheBulgarian armies are victorious everywhere. 50It was in response to this propaganda that Şükrü Pasha issued his ownproclamations. 51On 16 November, long queues were observed for the first time for thepurchase of bread from the various ovens and bakeries. Black marketeering
1912–13 BALKAN WARS 65and hoarding of foodstuffs and tobacco products developed. As a man witha strong religious background, Ertür is extremely critical about those who,with a city under bombardment and fires breaking out everywhere, canforget their morals and decency in the selfish desire to make a fast buck.The Muslim feast of ‘Id al Adha took place on 20 November and moreanimals than usual were sacrificed because hay and fodder were no longeravailable for the animals. 52 Expeditions conducted by small guerilla groupsoutside the precincts of the fortified city in order to obtain foodstuffs andfodder usually met with no success, but often came under heavy enemy fire.The first shells from the Bulgarian guns whistled over the fortifications andfell within the confines of Edirne on 21 November creating explosions andsmoke. The bombardment was to continue with increasing intensity andfrequency in succeeding days and weeks, creating a movement of thepopulation within the walled areas to houses which were relatively safer.The heavy shelling led Şükrü Pasha to issue a fresh proclamation which,according to Ertür, did little to raise the spirits of the population. 53 For thepoor soldiers being besieged the bombardment was like a round the clockvigil, but even for ordinary citizens, the incessant one-sided bombardmentslowly turned into a routine. Fires broke out, soldiers and civilians werewounded, and those who died, whether from the shelling or from naturalcauses, were carried to their graves.Ertür’s journal on 24 November records that after days of consumingsaltless food and bread he learned to prize even such a humble commodityas salt. Of course, he does not fail to mention that the size of the breadloaves continued to shrink, and their quality to deteriorate. People beganto carry sugar in little paper bags in their pockets, because cafes whichserved tea and coffee had no stocks of sugar left. The hopelessness oftheir condition led to occasional loss of appetite, but the craving fortobacco never disappeared, and asserted itself whether one was happy ormiserable.On 2 December, along with an interlude in the bombardment, there wererumours of a possible ceasefire. News was telegraphed from Istanbul that aBulgarian military delegation would arrive for some negotiations with theEdirne command. Major Kâzım was instructed to receive the delegation andErtür later learned that the Bulgarians had asked the Turkish forces tosurrender the fortress of Edirne with full honour. Major Kâzım was alsoasked to deliver an envelope to Şükrü Pasha, but he refused scornfully,saying:We have not yet given battle for the control of the fortress, and willdefend it till the last man. We have not sought this meeting. We wouldlike to face either a real friend or a serious enemy.
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Wasti, S. T. "The 1912-13 Balkan Wars and the Siege of Edirne"

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