22 Aralık 2018 Cumartesi

TNT 8th Anniversary Edition: Matchbox Diary - A Turkish POW in Russian Prison Camp (1915-1918)/Part I

//Ed. Note: On the occasion of its 8th anniversary, TNT is 
starting today with the presentation of the diary of M.Fuad
Tokad, a Turkish officer captured by Russian Cossacks in
February 1916 in Erzurum on the Caucasus Front of WWI.

Fuad bey wrote his diary in two tiny notebooks that he hid
inside a matchbox. TNT's English version of the diary 
will appear every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the
next few months.//

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Summary memoir of the time from departure from İstanbul…
to the front line and captivity

8 January 1915
I came home from school. It was the last day at home. We were at Hacı 
Mustafa Efendi's in our Ishak Paşa neighborhood for our evening meal. 
We walked a bit. Since it was the last day I looked at everything a bit 
differently. At night we sat at home for quite a while and  I chatted with 
my mother, brother and father.

9 January 1915
I got up early in the morning and ate the meal my mother had prepared. I
kissed my parents' hands and my brother’s eyes and said farewell to our
home. My mother was secretly crying. I tried to comfort her, saying that 
I'd return safe and sound...I went directly from home to school where they
discharged myself and ten of my friends.  From there we all went to the 
War Ministry, leaving one fellow behind to arrange for a wagon to take 
our things. The other fellow showed up and we waited with our things 
until mid-afternoon firstly in the mosque room at the Central Command.
Then they put a guard at the door, limiting our movements and making 
us feel like prisoners. We fumed. At night they gave us each four lira for
travel expenses. At school we had also gotten 95 kuruş for 33 days 
per diem. We slept on beds of wooden boards that night.


 haydarpaÅŸa tren garı 1915 ile ilgili görsel sonucu
    Haydarpaşa train station in Kadıköy, Istanbul, 1915.
  
10 January  1915
We awoke early in the morning, put our things on our backs and in our
hands and headed for the ferry. We couldn't find a cart. We did find some
bread as we ferried over to Haydarpaşa and boarded the train. A bit later 
we said farewell and departed  Istanbul. The names of my friends: me, 
Sabri, Zekai, Nazım, Şevki, Ethem, Nail, Sabri (from Çorlu), Refet 
(from Aksaray), Vecihi, İzzet (from Erenköy). On the train I thought 
about home and two friends I left back at school -Emin (from Yenişehir 
and Darüşşafaka 9th grade) and İsmail (from Karahisar-i Şarki and 
Sabuncuzadeler). I drafted a letter in French to  Emin about his work in 
French. Late at night we arrived at Eskişehir and I sent my father a card
from here. After a couple of hours we set out again. Morning was
breaking. Earlier, I had sent my father a card from the bridge before we
had passed over to Haydarpaşa.

11 January  1915
We were proceeding ahead from Eskişehir. So far the train ride was 
going well. We passed Karahisar Sahib and a few other stations along 
the way and arrived late in the night at Konya. Near the station at 
Göçmenler we had tea at a coffeehouse...the train waited for about four 
hours. Once again toward morning, we left from here.

12 January  1915
We were progressing ahead after departing Konya. After passing 
Karaman, Ereğli and a few other stations we reached Ulukışla a couple 
of  hours after sunset. Here we got off the train. What an awful place. 
Everything is old and run-down. Because of the rain, there was mud 
everywhere. No place to stay either. We spent the night at a crummy 
coffeehouse. Conversation there was a bit unusual...some things about 
politics, ideas...the Konya Plain is quite vast but unfortunately not a 
tree in sight.

 istanbul ulukışla haritası ile ilgili görsel sonucu
Turkey's railway system in 1936. In 1915, the train only went 
east to Ankara and to Ulukışla from Istanbul.

 
13 January  1915
İn the morning we got a couple of springed carts from the Ulukışla 
Command and five of us got on and departed. No snow anywhere, but 
there was frost. To the south the Toros range was in sight in all its 
majesty, covered in white. We walked on foot for quite a ways. Toward
evening we saw the city of Bor from a distance and we made it to Niğde
a couple of hours after sunset. There was a storm, which shook us up a
bit. We found a place to stay and went to sleep.
  
14 January  1915
We rested for the day in Niğde. İ found it quite backward but of course,
the view was beautiful. There was just about noplace in town one would
call nice...we walked around for a while. İ wrote a letter again.

15 January  1915
İn the morning we found a couple of carts (from Tekalif/tax office) and 
set out from Niğde.  In mid-afternoon  we came to a boarding house 
named Arabi Han and settled in there. Halil Rüşdi Bey, a major who had 
been assigned by the Sivas Range Command picked us up and led us out
on the road. At night we reached the town center of Develi Karahisar. 
The villagers split us up into two groups and housed us. They offered us
things too, which made an impression on me. We passed the night there.
We said nothing but nice things to the villagers and tried to enlighten
them.

 erciyes dağı 1915 ile ilgili görsel sonucu
               Mt. Erciyes in back of Kayseri (Cesarea).

16 January 1915
İn the morning we boarded the carts and departed from here. We saw 
the great Erciyes Mountain in all its majesty. The upper half  was all 
white. Soon after noontime, we came to the township of Incesu. The 
official offices were more backward and run-down than at Develi 
Karahisar. But besides being old and backward, Incesu was quite filthy. 
There was even human excrement on the wall of the Government 
Offıce, which is enclosed by a wall...anyway we stayed for a while 
and then departed. We reached Kayseri at night and settled into a 
building that had been a French school before it was confiscated. 
We passed the night here.

17 January  1915
Again, in the morning we left here (Kayseri) in carts. Although every 
place around here is cheap, Kayseri is cheaper. The road was quite 
rocky at first. Toward evening we entered the town of Sultanhanı where
the villagers met us with a display of mounted javelin play. Again we 
were offered things. Of course, this place is completely backward...
as we advanced some fellows caught up with us. They had left school
and came behind us in another train. Among them was my townsfellow
from Ankara, Sayid Efendi, whom I had met for the first time at the 
coffeehouse in Ulukışla. He is from the transport class and like us is
headed for Erzurum with his friends.

18 January 1915
Once again, we departed Sultanhanı  in carts. We reached Gemerek
township at noontime. We got off at the central neighborhood and were
offered eggs, butter, honey and coffee. Compared to other places, this 
place was rather developed, 1800 buildings. Unfortunately, one in six 
were Moslems.  The others are all Armenian. The Armenians have a 
private secondary school. The Gemerek headman is a smart young man.
 Singing songs, we departed from here.  At 4 at night, Turkish time, 
we came to Şarkışla (Tenus) town center. We got off at the home of 
tax collector Nuri Efendi and were met with great hospitality.

 enver paÅŸa ata binerken ile ilgili görsel sonucu
When Fuad bey encountered Enver Paşa east of Şarkışla,
Enver was returning from the disastrous Battle of 
Sarıkamış.
Sarıkamış click here for a recent related TNT report.

19 January  1915
At morning we boarded the carts and left Şarkışla. We rested at the first
village we encountered, Kayadibi, and filled our stomachs. Two 
kilometers ahead from here we encountered Enver Paşa who was 
surrounded by villagers. We got down from our carts and saluted him. 
Late in the afternoon the land suddenly became higher. Small hills and
rocky areas...up to this point (this year) we saw snow on the ground for
the first time. İn the evening we reached Yenihan, around Cami Hanı.
We spent the night.


şarkışla 1915 ile ilgili görsel sonucu
                                            Şarkışla

//End of Part I//

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