Newsletters
A three-year archival study by Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University (COMU) historian Mithat Atabay has brought to light the story of Burhanettin Tek'er, a man who served as a private at the Gallipoli front headquarters during the Canakkale battles and was appointed governor of Canakkale 30 years later.
Atabay, a faculty member in the Department of History at COMU's Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, said he came across the details while researching governors of Canakkale at the Presidency of State Archives as part of a book project.
He said he was surprised to find the life story of Burhanettin Tek'er, who became the province's sixth governor.
Atabay said Burhanettin served in Canakkale after being drafted during mobilization, before the fighting began.
During the war years, he worked at headquarters as a private alongside the staff officers, making his later appointment to the same province historically striking.
He also noted that Burhanettin adopted the surname Tek'er after the Surname Law came into force on Jan. 2, 1935. By 1945, which marked the 30th anniversary of the Canakkale battles, he was assigned as governor of Canakkale in what Atabay described as a remarkable historical example.
Burhanettin Tek'er remained in office in Canakkale for 15 months. During that time, he oversaw one March 18 commemoration related to the Canakkale battles, and Atabay said it became the most extensive program held up to that point.
According to Atabay, Tek'er put in a special effort that year, and many university students came to Canakkale from Istanbul and Ankara. The March 18 commemoration was held over three days, while noted scholar Ahmet Caferoglu gave a speech on the impact of the Canakkale battles on the Turkic world.
Atabay said participants later went on to visit the Nara and Hasan Mevsuf martyrs' cemeteries. He also said a former private who had served on the Nusret Mine Ship attended the ceremony and shared his memories from the war years.
After leaving Canakkale, Burhanettin Tek'er was appointed governor of Tekirdag in 1946 and later moved on to Kocaeli. Atabay said that during the March 18 ceremonies held in Kocaeli in 1951, Tek'er shared one of his memories from Canakkale.
He said the event took an emotional turn when another attendee said he, too, had served at the same headquarters as an orderly. Atabay said the two men then experienced a deeply emotional moment together.
Atabay said Burhanettin Tek'er retired in 1951 and later settled in Istanbul. He died of a heart attack in 1956.
The historian said the discovery stood out during his broader research into the governors who served in Canakkale, turning up a story that linked frontline military service in one of Türkiye's defining wartime campaigns with provincial leadership decades later.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
4 min read
