The
Turkish Army or
Turkish Land Forces is the main branch of the
Turkish Armed ForcesThe Turkish Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. They consist of the Army, the Navy , and the Air Force...
responsible for
land-based militaryAn army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
operations. The modern history of the army began with its formation after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Significant events since the foundation of the Army include combat in the
Korean WarThe Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
and in the 1974
Turkish invasion of CyprusThe Turkish invasion of Cyprus, launched on 20 July 1974, was a Turkish military invasion in response to a Greek military junta backed coup in Cyprus...
, and acting as a
NATO bulwark along
Cold WarThe Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
frontiers through 1992. Today it is the second-largest army of NATO with 402,000 personnel.
The army holds the preeminent place within the armed forces. It is customary for the
Chief of the
General Staff of the Republic of TurkeyThe General Staff of the Republic of Turkey presides over the Armed Forces of the Republic of Turkey, comprising the Army, Navy and Air Force...
to have been the Commander of the Turkish Land Forces prior to his appointment as Turkey's senior ranking officer. Alongside the other two armed services, the Turkish Army has frequently intervened in
Turkish politicsPolitics of Turkey takes place in a framework of a strictly secular parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Turkey is the head of government, and of a multi-party system...
, which has now been regulated to an extent with the reform of the
National Security CouncilThe National Security Council comprises the Chief of Staff, select members of the Council of Ministers, and the President of the Republic...
. The current commander of the Turkish Land Forces is General
Hayri Kıvrıkoğlu-Career:In 1969, Kıvrıkoglu attended the Turkish Military Academy and graduated from the engineering school in 1970.After several successive promotions he was promoted to Brigadier in 1996, joining the 3rd Army Command Operations Staff...
.
War of Independence
The modern Turkish Army has its foundations in nine remnant
Ottoman ArmyThe history of military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years between 1300 and 1453 , the classical period covers the years between 1451 and 1606 , the reformation period covers the years between 1606 and 1826 ,...
corps
[I, III, XII, XIII, XIV, XV, XVII, XX, XXV corps] after the
Armistice of MudrosThe Armistice of Moudros , concluded on 30 October 1918, ended the hostilities in the Middle Eastern theatre between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies of World War I...
at the end of
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. After the rise of
Turkish resistancesThe Turkish National Movement encompasses the political and military activities of the Turkish revolutionaries which resulted in the creation and shaping of the Republic of Turkey, as a consequence of the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I....
(
Kuva-yi MilliyeKuva-yi Milliye refers to Turkish irregular forces or guerilla forces in the early period of the Turkish War of Independence. These irregular forces emerged after the occupation of the country by the forces of the Allies, after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I...
) in
AnatoliaAnatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
,
Mustafa KemalMustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
and his colleagues formed the
Grand National AssemblyThe Grand National Assembly of Turkey , usually referred to simply as the Meclis , is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Constitution. It was founded in Ankara on 23 April 1920 in the midst of the Turkish War of Independence...
(GNA) in Ankara on April 23, 1920,
Kâzım KarabekirMusa Kâzım Karabekir was a Turkish general and politician. He was commander of the Eastern Army in the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I and served as Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey before his death.-Early years:Karabekir was born in 1882 as the son of an Ottoman General,...
's XV Corps was the only corps which at that time had any combat value. On November 8, 1920, the GNA decided to establish a
standing armyA standing army is a professional permanent army. It is composed of full-time career soldiers and is not disbanded during times of peace. It differs from army reserves, who are activated only during wars or natural disasters...
(
Düzenli ordu) instead of
irregular troopsIrregular military refers to any non-standard military. Being defined by exclusion, there is significant variance in what comes under the term. It can refer to the type of military organization, or to the type of tactics used....
(
Kuva-yi Milliye,
Çerkes EthemÇerkes Ethem was a Turkish militia leader of Circassian origin who initially gained fame for fighting against the Allied powers invading Anatolia in the aftermath of the World War I and afterwards during the Turkish War of Independence....
's
Kuva-yi Seyyare etc.). On August 26, 1922, the Army of the Grand National Assembly (
Büyük Millet Meclisi Ordusu) launched the general offensive known as the Great Offensive (
Büyük Taarruz) against the Greek forces around
Kara Hisâr-ı SâhipAfyonkarahisar is a city in western Turkey, the capital of Afyon Province. Afyon is in mountainous countryside inland from the Aegean coast, south-west of Ankara along the Akarçay River. Elevation...
.
NureddinNureddin Pasha , often called Bearded Nureddin , was a Turkish military officer, who served in the Ottoman Empire during World War I and in the Turkish army during the Greco-Turkish War...
's 1st Army and
Yakub ShevkiYakup Şevki Subaşı, also known as Yakub Shevki Pasha was a general of the Ottoman Army and the Turkish Army.-Sources:...
's 2nd Army encircled the main body of Major General
Nikolaos TrikoupisNikolaos Trikoupis was a Greek general and politician.Born in Mesolongi in 1869 to Themistoklis Trikoupis, he entered the Greek Army Academy, which he graduated in 1888 as an Artillery Second Lieutenant. He furthered his studies in France, where he remained from 1889 to 1895. He competed at the...
's group and defeated it near
DumlupınarThe Battle of Dumlupınar Muharebesi or Başkumandanlık Meydan Muharebesi; literally "All-out battle of Supreme military commands") was the last battle in the Greco-Turkish War...
.
FahreddinFahrettin Altay was an Ottoman officer and Turkish general.He was born to Ismail Bey and Hayriye Hanım in İşkodra ....
's V Cavalry Corps entered Smyrna (
IzmirIzmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
) on September 9, 1922.
Şükrü NailiŞükrü Naili Gökberk was an officer of the Ottoman Army and the general of the Turkish Army.-Sources:...
's III Corps entered Constantinople (
IstanbulIstanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
) peacefully on October 6, 1923. Subsequently to the founding of the Republic of Turkey, the Army of the GNA was reorganized into three army inspectorates (
ordu müfettişliği, 1st, 2nd and 3rd army inspectorate).
During
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Turkey mobilized more than 1 million personnel. The
Turkish Army order of battle in 1941This is the order of battle of the Turkish Army in June 1941. The formation named 941-A Seferî Kuruluş was as follows:First Army *Thrace Area**X Corps ***46th Infantry Division***K.Gr.**2nd Cavalry Division...
shows a number of formations. The command of the Turkish Army was formed on July 1, 1949 and Nuri Yamut was appointed as the first commander of the Turkish Army.
Korean War
The Turkish Army participated in the
Korean WarThe Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
as a member state of the
United NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, suffering 731 deaths in combat out of the 5000 soldiers of the
Turkish BrigadeThe Turkish Brigade was a Turkish Army Infantry Brigade that served under United Nations command during the Korean War between 1950 to 1953. Attached to the U.S...
there, which fought at battles of
Kunu-riThe Battle of Wawon , also known as the Battle of Wayuan , was a series of delay actions of the Korean War that took place from November 27–29, 1950 near Wawon in present-day North Korea...
(
Kunu-ri) where it was credited with saving the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division from encirclement. The brigade fought also at
Gimnyangjang-niOperation Thunderbolt, also known as the Defensive Battle of the Han River Southern Bank , was a US offensive during the Korean War. It represented the first offensive under the new commanding officer of the 8th US Army, General Matthew Ridgway...
(
Kumyangjang-ni), '
Operation RipperOperation Ripper was a United Nations military operation conceived by the commander US Eighth Army, General Matthew B. Ridgway, during the Korean War. The operation was intended to destroy as much as possible of the Chinese communist People's Volunteer Army and North Korean military around Seoul...
,' or the Fourth Battle of Seoul, and
VegasThe third Battle of the Hook was a battle of the Korean War that took place between a United Nations force, consisting mostly of British troops, supported on their flanks by American and Turkish artillery units against a predominantly Chinese force...
(
"Vegas").
After Turkey joined
NATO on February 18, 1952, the government initiated a comprehensive modernization program for its Armed Forces.
Invasion of Cyprus
In July 1974, Turkey invaded
CyprusCyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, following a coup organized by EOKA-B and led by
Nikos SampsonNikos Sampson was the de facto president of Cyprus who succeeded Archbishop Makarios, President of Cyprus, in 1974. Sampson was a journalist and a member of EOKA, which rose against the British colonial administration, seeking Enosis of the island of Cyprus with Greece...
who ousted the democratically elected Cypriot President
Archbishop Makarios IIIMakarios is a Greek given name. The old-Greek word Μακάριος makarios is a prolonged form of the poetical μάκαρ makar ; supremely blessed; by extension fortunate, well off: - blessed, happy....
in order to establish
EnosisEnosis refers to the movement of the Greek-Cypriot population to incorporate the island of Cyprus into Greece.Similar movements had previously developed in other regions with ethnic Greek majorities such as the Ionian Islands, Crete and the Dodecanese. These regions were eventually incorporated...
(Union) between Greece and Cyprus. The coup was backed by the Greek military junta in Athens.
The
Turkish invasion of CyprusThe Turkish invasion of Cyprus, launched on 20 July 1974, was a Turkish military invasion in response to a Greek military junta backed coup in Cyprus...
can be divided into two distinct Turkish offensives, the first being "Atilla 1", which commenced in the early hours of July 20, 1974, with an amphibious landing force forming a beachhead at
KyreniaKyrenia is a town on the northern coast of Cyprus, noted for its historic harbour and castle. Internationally recognised as part of the Republic of Cyprus, Kyrenia has been under Turkish control since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974...
's Five Mile Beach (sa comprised only infantry troops, but was supported by rolling air and naval artillery attacks, and met with limited resistance from the Cyprus National Guard, which was in disarray as a result of the July 15, 1974 coup. The majority of fighting ceased on the 23rd of July, though sporadic clashes continued after this date until the 14th of August. "Atilla 1" successfully achieved its objective of forming a bridgehead with the Turkish Cypriot enclave of Agyrta-Nicosia.
The second Turkish offensive began on August 14, 1974, as Greek and Turkish Cypriot representatives met in
GenevaGeneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
to discuss the situation on the island. Turkish pleas for international intervention having failed and very slow diplomatic progress, in addition to being confined to an undefensible and non-viable region in Cyprus, Turkish Armed forces took action again. Despite a UN ceasefire in place (several had already been disregarded), the Turkish Army, massively reinforced from weeks of build-up, launched an all-out surprise attack on ill-prepared Greek Cypriot and Greek units. With little answer to the masses of armour, mechanised units, artillery and air support that the Turks could bring to bear, virtually all Greek Cypriot defences collapsed in a matter of days, and by August 16, 1974, Turkish forces, spearheaded by the 28th and 39th Infantry Divisions, had extended to capture some 37% of the island, including the towns of
FamagustaFamagusta is a city on the east coast of Cyprus and is capital of the Famagusta District. It is located east of Nicosia, and possesses the deepest harbour of the island.-Name:...
,
VaroshaVarosha may refer to:* The Varosha quarter in Famagusta, Northern Cyprus* The Varosha quarter in Lovech, Bulgaria* The Varosha quarter in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria* The Varosha architectural complex in Razgrad, Bulgaria...
and
Morphou.
The conflict in Cyprus resulted in the de-facto division of the island between the Turkish Cypriot controlled north and the Greek Cypriot controlled south. Turkey still maintains troops in Cyprus, since a political solution could not yet be achieved and since many members of the Turkish Cypriot community fear a return to the intercommunal violence which occurred between 1963 and 1974.
Units and equipments
According to official British military reports in 1974, the Turkish Army included the First Army (II, III, V, and XV Corps), Second Army (IV, VI, and VII Corps) and Third Army (VIII, IX, and XI Corps). There were also three Interior Zones with three recruit training divisions and four recruit training brigades. For a long period, these formations were grouped under the
NATO headquarters LANDSOUTHEAST at
IzmirIzmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
, led by a Turkish Army four-star General. After the fall of the Soviet Union the headquarters became Joint Command Southeast for a period, before becoming Allied Air Component Command Izmir in 2004.
In 1981/82, the Army had 1 armoured division, 2 mechanised infantry Divisions, and 14 Infantry Divisions, with 3000
M47M47 or M-47 may refer to:* M47 Dragon, an American anti-tank missile system* M-47 , a state highway in Michigan* M47 Patton, an American main battle tank* BMW M47, a 1999 advanced BMW diesel engine...
MBTs, 500
M48The M48 Patton is a medium tank that was designed in the United States. It was the third and final tank to be officially named after General George S. Patton, commander of the U.S. Third Army during World War II and one of the earliest American advocates for the use of tanks in battle It was a...
MBTs, as well as 70 Leopard 1A3 on order, for a total of 3570 tanks.
Until the dissolution of the
Warsaw PactThe Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
in 1990, the Army had a static defense mission of countering any possible attack on Thrace by Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces and any attack by the Soviet Transcaucasus Military District on the Caucasus frontier. The Third Army was responsible for holding the Caucasus line with about one third of the Army's total strength of one armoured, two mechanised, and fourteen infantry divisions (1986 data). When the General Staff attempted to shift 120,000 troops to the frontier with Iraq in 1990, they discovered, the writers of the U.S.
Library of Congress Country StudiesThe Country Studies are works published by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress , freely available for use by researchers. No copyright is claimed on them; therefore, they have been dedicated to the public domain and can be copied freely. Note that not all the pictures used...
said, that there were serious deficiencies in the Army's ability to respond to crises that could erupt suddenly in distant regions. The Army was even less prepared for a situation requiring the deployment and logistical support of forces in operations beyond Turkey's borders.
Modernization
Towards the end of the 1980s, a restructuring and modernization process has been initiated by the Turkish Armed Forces, which still continues today. The final goal of
TurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
is to produce indigenous military equipment and to become increasingly self-sufficient in terms of military technologies.
The then-Army Commander said of further modernization efforts in 2006:
Gen. BüyükanıtGeneral Mehmet Yaşar Büyükanıt was the 25th Chief of the Turkish General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, from 28 August 2006 to 28 August 2008.-Biography:...
, who sent crucial messages regarding the future of the Land Forces, said that the country's own instabilities should also be taken into consideration. He reported that the land forces will shrink considerably within the next eight years. But he said that despite this process, the force's capacities will be increased.
"The Land Forces aim at being equipped with new opportunities and capabilities in order to carry out its duty in full strength against a large variety of threats, varying from classical threats to asymmetrical ones.
"The targets for our land forces are to be realized through 'Forces 2014' project. This project aims to shrink the forces without undermining its combat capabilities. On the contrary, under the plan the efficiency of the force will increase.
"Within this period of time the Land Forces will gradually decrease by 20 to 30 percent in terms of number of personnel and forces formations. It will be equipped with modern arms and war devices as the distinct features of this new formation. Thus the battle capability will be given to high-ranking brigades. Moreover with the Combat Zone Management System, the land tactical map will be numerically formed in real-time or close to real-time and a constant tracking will be provided," said Büyükanıt. (The New Anatolian, Evren Değer, 10 August 2006)
At present, the primary
main battle tankA main battle tank , also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the heavy direct fire role of many modern armies. They were originally conceived to replace the light, medium, heavy and super-heavy tanks. Development was spurred onwards in the Cold War with the development...
s of the Turkish Army are the Leopard 2A4 and the
M60TThe Sabra is an extensively upgraded M60 Patton tank developed by Israel Military Industries. A version of this upgrade package was selected for the Turkish Army's main battle tank modernization program. The Sabra is known as the M60T in Turkish service....
. There are also around 400 Leopard 1 and 750
M60 PattonThe 105 mm Gun Full Tracked Combat Tank, M60, also known unofficially as the M60 Patton, is a first-generation main battle tank introduced in December 1960. It was widely used by the U.S. and its Cold War allies, especially those in NATO, and remains in service throughout the world today...
variants in service (excluding the M60T which were upgraded with the 120 mm MG253 guns), but the Turkish Army retains a large number of older vehicles. More than 2,800
M48 PattonThe M48 Patton is a medium tank that was designed in the United States. It was the third and final tank to be officially named after General George S. Patton, commander of the U.S. Third Army during World War II and one of the earliest American advocates for the use of tanks in battle It was a...
s are still in service (upgraded with the 105 mm
M68The Royal Ordnance L7 is the basic model of Britain's most successful tank gun. The L7 was a 105 mm L/52 rifled design intended for use in armoured fighting vehicles...
guns) though only around 1,300 of these are stored as reserve MBTs, while the rest are mostly transformed into other types of military vehicles (such as cranes, MBT recovery vehicles and logistical support vehicles) or used as spare parts hulks.
Turkey plans to build a total of 1,000 new MİTÜP Altay MBTs, in four separate batches of 250 units, with the MİTÜP Turkish National Tank Project. The tanks will be produced by the Turkish firm
OtokarOtokar, a sub-division of Koç Holding, is a Turkish manufacturer of buses and military vehicles headquartered in Sakarya, Turkey.-History:Otokar began business in 1963 as Turkey's first intercity bus manufacturing company under the license of Magirus Deutz of Istanbul. Otokar was noted for...
, and share some of the systems that are used in the K2 Black Panther main battle tank of
South KoreaThe Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
.
Turkey has inked a deal with the US to buy six CH-4 helicopters, or Chinooks, for $400 million. Because of financial constraints, however, the Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry, or SSM, Turkey’s procurement agency, later wanted to buy only six CH-47Fs, five for the Army and one for the Special Forces Command, leaving a decision on the remaining eight platforms for the future. Contract negotiations between the SSM, the U.S. government and Boeing were launched last year.
ConscriptionIn Turkey, compulsory military service applies to all male citizens from twenty to forty one years of age. Those who are engaged in higher education or vocational training programs prior to their military drafting are allowed to delay service until they have completed the programs or reach a...
may be changed.
Structure
The structure of the Turkish Army has historically had two facets: operational and administrative. The operational chain consists of the field fighting formations, and the administrative the arms and service branches - infantry, armour, artillery etc.
Operational organisation
The Turkish Army has since the mid 1960s operated on a corps-division-brigade system, with a varying number of divisions and brigades assigned to a corps. The IISS Military Balance 1966-67 recorded a total strength of 360,000, with 16 infantry divisions (14 NATO assigned), 4 armoured brigades (Zırhlı tugay) with
M47 PattonThe M47 Patton is an American medium tank, the second tank to be named after General George S. Patton, commander of the U.S. Third Army during World War II and one of the earliest American advocates of tanks in battle. It was a further development of the M46 Patton tank.-History:The M47 was the U.S...
tanks, armoured cavalry regiments, and two parachute battalions. At some point in the 1960s the Army apparently utilised the
PentomicPentomic refers to a structure for infantry divisions adopted by the U.S. Army in 1957 in response to the perceived threat posed by tactical nuclear weapons use on the battlefield....
structure for a period, before adopting the American ROAD divisional organisation. Back in the early 1970s, there was a 6th Infantry Division based at Istanbul.
The army's 14 armoured brigades are the most powerful brigades in the restructured organisation; each includes two armoured, two mechanised infantry and two self-propelled artillery battalions. The 17 mechanised brigades each have two armoured, two mechanised and one artillery battalion. The army's nine infantry brigades each have four infantry battalions and one artillery battalion, while the four commando brigades have three commando battalions.
From 1992 the Army began to change from a corps-division-regiment structure to a corps-brigade arrangement, with divisions remaining on Cyprus and for certain special other cases, such as for NATO's reaction forces. In accordance with NATO’s new strategy in the early 1990s, Turkey agreed to commit forces to NATO’s
ACE Rapid Reaction CorpsThe Headquarters Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation High Readiness Force Headquarters ready for deployment worldwide within five to thirty days.-History:...
. 'Therefore, the decision was made to create a new division. Thus, the old 1 Inf Div which had been abolished many years ago was reactivated and renamed as 1 TU Mech Inf Div and attached to 4 TU Corps on 30 November 1993.’ This division was later disbanded, and appears to have been replaced within III Corps by the 52nd Armoured Division, formed later on.
The Military Balance, 1994-1995 also lists the following units: the
Presidential GuardPresidential Guard may refer to:*Evzones, the Greek Presidential Guard, formerly the Royal Guard.*Presidential Guard *Presidential Guard *Presidential Guard *Presidential Guard Brigade...
regiment, an infantry regiment, five border defense regiments (Brigades (?)), and twenty-six border defense battalions. The fate of these independent units under the reorganization remains unclear.
In late 2002 the III Corps, with its headquarters near Istanbul, was certified as one of the six
NATO High Readiness Force-Land (HRF-L) headquarters and gained the additional title of the Rapidly Deployable Turkish Corps (RDTC). A year later, Jane's Defense Weekly reported on 9 July 2003 that as part of force restructuring, its four existing armies would be reorganized into a Western Army, in Istanbul, and the Eastern Army would replace 2nd Army in Malatya. This plan does not appear to have been carried out.
The Army announced plans in mid 2004 to abolish four brigades across Turkey. The arms and equipment of the brigades closed will be kept in depots. The plan involves the disbandment of:
- The 33rd Mechanized Brigade in Kırklareli
Kırklareli is the capital of Kırklareli Province in Eastern Thrace, on the European part of Turkey. The province has a coastline on the Black Sea. There is a Jewish community.-Name:It is not clearly known when the city was founded, nor under what name...
on the north-west border with Greece and Bulgaria
- The 7th Mechanized Brigade in Kars
Kars is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. The population of the city is 73,826 as of 2010.-Etymology:As Chorzene, the town appears in Roman historiography as part of ancient Armenia...
/KağızmanKağızman is a town and district of Kars Province in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey. The population is 17,144 as of 2010. The mayor is Mehmet Alkan.-References:...
near the eastern border with Armenia
- The 10th Infantry Brigade in Van
Van is a city in southeastern Turkey and the seat of the Kurdish-majority Van Province, and is located on the eastern shore of Lake Van. The city's official population in 2010 was 367,419, but many estimates put this as much higher with a 1996 estimate stating 500,000 and former Mayor Burhan...
/ErcişErcis may refer to:* Erciş, a district of Van province in the east of Turkey* European Research Center for Information Systems...
on the eastern border with Iran
- The 9th Armoured Brigade in Çankırı
-Agriculture:Various produce like wheat, corn, beans, apple etc. are grown in the farms, and fields that are rich of water.-Industry:Most of the industry is located near the city center and Korgun. Other towns that are in the industrial map of the city are Şabanözü, Çerkeş, Ilgaz, Kurşunlu, and...
in central Anatolia
The IISS and the Turkish Army's website give differing figures as to the number of formations in the Army. The official site gives totals of 9 Army Corps, 1 Infantry Division, 2 Mechanized Infantry Divisions, 1 Armored Division, 1 Training Division, 11 Infantry / Motorized Infantry Brigades, 16 Mechanized Infantry Brigades, 9 Armored Brigades, 5 Para-Commando Brigades, 1 Army Aviation Brigade, 2 Artillery Brigades, 5 Training Brigades and one Humanitarian Aid Brigade.
The IISS Military Balance 2008 lists the Turkish Land Forces with four Army HQ, 10 corps HQ, 17 armoured brigades, 15 mechanised infantry brigades, two infantry divisions, 11 infantry brigades, 1 Special Force command HQ, five commando brigades, one combat helicopter battalion, four aviation regiments, three aviation battalions (totalling 1 tspt and 2 trng battalions), and four training/artillery brigades.
Force structure
The Turkish Army is organised into the following commands: The information below is unconfirmed and may be out of date; it seems likely now that the Training and Doctrine Command controls all the artillery and infantry training brigades.
- Land Forces Command - Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
- 1st Army
The First Army of the Republic of Turkey is one of the four field armies of the Turkish Army. Its headquarters is located at Selimiye Barracks in Istanbul. It guards the sensitive borders of Turkey with Greece and Bulgaria, including the straits Bosporus and Dardanelles...
Command - IstanbulIstanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
- 2nd Corps Gelibolu
Gelibolu, also known as Gallipoli , is the name of a town and a district in Çanakkale Province of the Marmara region, located in Eastern Thrace in the European part of Turkey on the southern shore of the peninsula named after it on the Dardanelles strait, two miles away from Lapseki on the other...
(4th Mechanized Brigade, KeşanKeşan is the name of a district of Edirne Province, Turkey, and also the name of the largest town in the district. Keşan has a population of 54,314 during the winter; in the summer this increases to 70,000 because of an influx of tourists...
, 18 (Çanakkale), 54, 55, 65 Brigades)
- 3rd Corps (Turkey) at Ayazaga, Şişli
Şişli is one of 39 districts of Istanbul, Turkey. Located on the European side of the city, it is bordered by Beşiktaş to the east, Sarıyer to the north, Eyüp and Kağıthane to the west, and Beyoğlu to the south...
in Istanbul (the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps - Turkey) 3rd (TU) Corps was established at KirklareliKırklareli is the capital of Kırklareli Province in Eastern Thrace, on the European part of Turkey. The province has a coastline on the Black Sea. There is a Jewish community.-Name:It is not clearly known when the city was founded, nor under what name...
on March 14, 1911. It took part in the First Balkan WarThe First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
, the Second Balkan WarThe Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 29 June 1913. Bulgaria had a prewar agreement about the division of region of Macedonia...
, the Gallipoli Campaign, operations in the Caucasus 1916-1917, and operations in Palestine in 1918. It then took part in the Battles of KutahyaThe Battle of Afyonkarahisar–Eskişehir was fought between June 27 and July 10, 1921 when the Greek army defeated the Turkish troops commanded by İsmet Pasha in defence of the line of Kara Hisâr-ı Sahib -Kütahya-Eskişehir...
and SakaryaThe Battle of Sakarya , also known as the Battle of the Sangarios , was an important engagement in the Greco-Turkish War and Turkish War of Independence....
in 1921, and the 'Great Attack' of 1922.
- 52nd Armoured Division (Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
/Hadımköy)
- 1st, 2nd Armoured Brigades, 66th Mechanised Infantry Brigade
- 5th Corps at Çorlu
Çorlu is a northwestern Turkish city in inland Eastern Thrace that falls under the administration of the Province of Tekirdağ. It is a rapidly developing industrial center built on flatland located off the E80 highway between Istanbul and Turkey's border with Greece and Bulgaria. As of the 2000...
(3, 95 Armd Bdes, 8 Mech Inf Bde)
- 2nd Army
The Second Army of the Turkish Army has the headquarters in Malatya. It protects Anatolia and it patrols the border with Syria, Iraq and Iran.- Order of battle, August 30, 1922 :On August 30, 1922, the Second Army was organized as follows:...
Command - MalatyaMalatya ) is a city in southeastern Turkey and the capital of its eponymous province.-Overview:The city site has been occupied for thousands of years. The Assyrians called the city Meliddu. Following Roman expansion into the east, the city was renamed in Latin as Melitene...
- 6th Corps at Adana
Adana is a city in southern Turkey and a major agricultural and commercial center. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, 30 kilometres inland from the Mediterranean, in south-central Anatolia...
(5 Armd, 39 Mech Inf Bdes)
- 7th Corps at Diyarbakır
Diyarbakır is one of the largest cities in southeastern Turkey...
- 3rd Infantry Division HQ at Yüksekova
Yüksekova is a district of Hakkari Province of Turkey, situated close to the border with Iran. Its location on the trade route between Iranian Azarbaijan and eastern Turkey made it an important juncture for travelers and the location of several ethnic groups that were active in regional trade....
- 6th Mechanised Brigade
- 16th Mechanised Brigade
- 70th Mechanised Infantry Brigade
The 70th Mechanized Infantry Brigade is a brigade of the Turkish Army based in the Southeastern Anatolia Region in the town of Kiziltepe of the province of Mardin...
, MardinMardin is a city in southeastern Turkey. The capital of Mardin Province, it is known for its Arabic-like architecture, and for its strategic location on a rocky mountain overlooking the plains of northern Syria.-History:...
,
- 6th Infantry Brigade
- 8th Corps at Elazığ
Elâzığ is a city in Eastern Anatolia, Turkey and the seat of Elâzığ Province. It has a population of331,479 according to the 2010 census, and the plain on which the city extends has an altitude of 1067 metres....
(20th, 172nd Armoured Bdes; 172nd Armd Bde now at SilopiSilopi is a district of Şırnak Province in Turkey's Southeastern Anatolia Region, close to the border with Iraq. The district, composed of Silopi center, 3 depending townships with own municipalities and 23 villages has an urban population of 73,400 .The Habur frontier gate, the only major...
)
- 3rd Army
The Turkish Third Army is a field army of the Turkish Army and is the country's largest army.In the days of the Soviet Union the Third Army was stationed on the Caucasus border to counter any Soviet attack by the Transcaucasus Military District. When the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union broke up...
Command - Erzincan-Trivia:Erzincan has the largest man made of Portrait of Atatürk, located north of the city, 176m×43m. It covers 7,500 square meter. Turkish Army made it 1982, in 29 days by 3,000 soldier, 100 tons of black and white paint was used...
- 9th Corps at Erzurum
Erzurum is a city in Turkey. It is the largest city, the capital of Erzurum Province. The city is situated 1757 meters above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 361,235 in the 2000 census. .Erzurum, known as "The Rock" in NATO code, served as NATO's southeastern-most air force post during the...
(4, 1st Mech Inf http://nusret2.azbuz.com/readArticle.jsp?objectID=5000000002074311, 12, 14, 25, 2, 9 Mech Inf Bdes, 34, 48, 49, 51, 59 Bdes)
- 4th Corps at Mamak
Mamak may refer to:* Mamak, a term, considered pejorative by some, used in Malaysia to describe the Indian Tamil Muslim community and culture* Mamak stall, a type of food establishment that serves mamak food...
(1 Inf, 28 Mech Inf, 58 Arty Bde, Trng Div/Armd School)
- Aegean Army
The Aegean Army or Fourth Army is one of the four main formations of the Turkish Army. It covers the entire west coast of the Anatolia peninsula and has its headquarters in İzmir. It was organised in the 1970s in response to political tensions with Greece - the ongoing Aegean dispute.Its stated...
Command - İzmirIzmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
(also called the 4th Army)
- 57th Artillery Training Brigade (Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
), 19th Infantry Brigade (EdremitEdremit may refer to:* Edremit , Balıkesir, Turkey* Edremit , Van, Turkey* Edremit, Turkish name for Trimithi, Northern Cyprus...
), 11th Motorised Infantry Brigade (DenizliDenizli is a growing industrial city in the Southwestern part of Turkey and the eastern end of the alluvial valley formed by the river Büyük Menderes, where the plain reaches an elevation of about a hundred meters. Denizli is located in southwestern Turkey, in the country's Aegean Region.The city...
), 3rd Infantry Training Brigade (AntalyaAntalya is a city on the Mediterranean coast of southwestern Turkey. With a population 1,001,318 as of 2010. It is the eighth most populous city in Turkey and country's biggest international sea resort.- History :...
), 1st Infantry Training Brigade (ManisaManisa is a large city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province.Modern Manisa is a booming center of industry and services, advantaged by its closeness to the international port city and the regional metropolitan center of İzmir and by its fertile hinterland rich in...
).
- Cyprus Turkish Peace Force
The Turkish Armed Forces in Northern Cyprus officially the Cyprus Turkish Peace Force is the Turkish military garrison on Cyprus...
Command (within the Agean Army command structure) - KyreniaKyrenia is a town on the northern coast of Cyprus, noted for its historic harbour and castle. Internationally recognised as part of the Republic of Cyprus, Kyrenia has been under Turkish control since the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974...
, Northern Cyprus
- 28th and 39th Divisions, 14th Armoured Brigade (in Paşaköy (Asha), Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
)
- Training and Doctrine Command (Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
)
- Logistics Command (Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
)
- Turkish Military Academy
The Turkish Military Academy, , is a four year co-educational military academy located in the center of Ankara. Its mission is to develop cadets mentally and physically for service as commissioned officers in the Turkish Army...
(AnkaraAnkara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
)
- Army Aviation Command (operates the fleet of helicopters and UAVs used by the Turkish Army)
- General Staff controlled units (Güvercinlik Army Air Base, Ankara)
- Special Aviation Group Command
- General Staff Electronic Systems (GES) Aviation Group Command
- Mapping General Command
- Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Center Command (Batman Air Base)
- Army Aviation Command
- Army Aviation School Command (Güvercinlik Army Air Base)
- 5th Main Maintenance Center Command
- 1st Army Aviation Regiment (Güvercinlik Army Air Base)
- 2nd Army Aviation Regiment (Malatya Erhaç Airport
Erhaç Airport or Malatya Erhaç Airport is a military and small public airport in Malatya, Turkey. The airport, opened in 1941, is located from Malatya.In 2006, Malatya Erhaç Airport served 3,878 aircraft and 406,425 passengers...
)
- 3rd Army Aviation Regiment (Gaziemir Air Base
Gaziemir Air Base is an airbase of the Turkish Air Force located south of Izmir, Turkey. It is owned by the Turkish Air Force and operated by the Air Force Training Command.The airport is situated at an elevation of above mean sea level...
, Izmir)
- 4th Army Aviation Regiment (Samandıra Army Air Base, Istanbul)
- 7th Army Aviation Group Command (Diyarbakır Air Base
Diyarbakır Airport is a military airbase and public airport located in Diyarbakır, Turkey.Diyarbakır Airport is home to the 8th Air Wing of the 2nd Air Force Command of the Turkish Air Force...
)
- Northern Cyprus Turkish Army Aviation Unit Command (Karter Air Base, Pınarbaşı)
It is not fully clear whether the Cyprus Turkish Peace Force in Northern Cyprus was actually designated XI Corps. It appears that XV Corps, formerly in the First Army, has disbanded.
There are 5 Commando Brigades also known as Blue Berets in the Turkish Army. Commandos are special trained soldiers with 6 month additional land warfare trainings in known schools as Foça, Burdur, Egirdir or Kayseri Commando School. In Eğirdir (Isparta) there is a Commando training school specialized in mountain climbing and mountain warfare. In Kayseri there is an Air Mobile Commando school specialized in airborne landings. In Foça, there is a commando school specialized in combined arms. All soldiers graduated will have a blue beret. The Commando brigades include:
- 1st Commando Brigade Kayseri
Kayseri is a large and industrialized city in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It is the seat of Kayseri Province. The city of Kayseri, as defined by the boundaries of Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality, is structurally composed of five metropolitan districts, the two core districts of Kocasinan and...
(Airborne)
- 2nd Commando Brigade Bolu
- Places of interest :The countryside around Bolu offers excellent walking and other outdoor pursuits. There are hotels in the town for visitors. Sights near the town include:* The 14th century mosque, Ulu Camii...
- 3rd Commando Brigade Siirt
- External links :* * * *...
- 4th Commando Brigade Tunceli
- Mountain and Commando Brigade Hakkâri
Hakkâri , is a city and the capital of the Hakkâri Province of Turkey. The name Hakkâri is derived from the Syriac word, Akkare, meaning farmers...
.
Administrative branches
Combatant
- General Staff
- Infantry
- Cavalry
- Armoury
- Army aviation
Battle Supporting
- Artillery
- Bulwark
- Air defence
- Correspondence
- Intelligence
Battle Supporting & Service
- Communications
- Ordnance
- Supplies
- Personnel
- Cartography
- Transportation
- Finance
- Instructor
- Judge
- Military Band
- Medical, Dental and Pharmaceutical Corps
- Veterinary Corps
- Engineer, Chemist and Technician Corps
External links
Official Turkish General Staff website Official Turkish Army website