Witness to the Wars
From Çanakkale to Korea — the sons a young village, founded in 1907, gave on every front.
Only a few years after its founding, Mesudiye village faced the bloodiest wars of its history. As a young muhacir village it gave martyrs at Çanakkale and veterans on the fronts; half a century later it made its name heard in Korea too.
1915
Çanakkale Martyrs
Mehmet oğlu İzzet
Gallipoli Martyr
Grandchildren
- (late) Asiye Gündüz
- (late) Zekeriya Ay
- (late) Hüseyin Ay
- (late) Rahime Ay
- (late) Raziye Çotuk
- Ayşe Özşahines
Ahmet oğlu Karani
Gallipoli Martyr
Grandchildren
- (late) Rabia Çay
- (late) Osman Çotuk
- Hasan Çotuk
- (late) Zeynep Çotuk
- Münir Çotuk
Kazım oğlu Karani
Gallipoli Martyr
Grandchild
- Hürrem Alkan
Abdullah oğlu İsmail
Gallipoli Martyr (1887–1915)
İbrahim oğlu Mustafa
Gallipoli Martyr (1887–1915)
1914–1918
World War I Veterans
İbrahim Ay
son of Mutallip · b. 1879, Rumelia — d. April 1942, Mesudiye
Iraq front (Baghdad–Basra line), against the British
In the First World War he fought against the British on the Iraq front, around Baghdad and Basra.
Galip Ay
Featuredson of Mutallip · b. 1896, Rumelia — d. 14 February 1967, Mesudiye
Yemen & Iraq fronts (WWI), Afyon front (War of Independence)
In the First World War he fought against the British on the Yemen and Iraq fronts, and in the War of Independence against the Greeks on the Afyon front.
In the First World War he was taken prisoner by the British. Exactly 7 years after he left for the army, he returned to his home in our village.
After his captivity ended and he had come back to our village, he went to the front again. This time the war he joined was the War of Independence. He joined the War of Independence with his horse and his cart.
Abdullah Akan
son of Mehmet Ali · b. 1896, Rumelia — d. 3 July 1969, Mesudiye
Yemen front, against the British
In the First World War he fought against the British on the Yemen front. In the war he was wounded in the forehead and the chest by shrapnel.
İdris Bayraktar
son of Selim · b. 1887, Rumelia — d. 3 November 1966, Mesudiye
World War I veteran
During the war two fingers of his right hand were severed.
İsmail Bayraktar
son of Selim · b. 1879, Rumelia — d. 14 December 1958, Mesudiye
World War I — medical corps (sıhhiye)
In the First World War he served in a medical unit. Because he had served alongside surgeons in the treatment of wounded soldiers, in civilian life he treated a great many patients. The treatments he used are still passed on by word of mouth in our village.
Because he was one of the best wrestlers in our village, he is remembered by the nickname “Pehlivan Ağa” (master wrestler).
1897
1897 Ottoman-Greek War
The village's oldest known soldier
Mehmet Cankara
son of İbrahim · b. 1878, Rumelia — d. 25 June 1952, Mesudiye
Ottoman-Greek War veteran — cavalryman
While our forefathers were still in Rumelia, he took part as a cavalryman in the Ottoman-Greek War that took place in 1897. The war, which began in April 1897, ended in the victory of the Ottoman State with the armistice signed on 20 May 1897.
1919–1922
War of Independence Veterans
Eşref Cıvataş
son of Ömer · Rumelia — d. 1963, Mesudiye
War of Independence veteran — cavalryman
He fought as a cavalryman in the War of Independence. After the war he settled in Istanbul. When the Surname Law was passed in 1934, he was given the surname CIVATAŞ. In his old age he returned to our village.
İsmail Gezici
son of Hüseyin · b. 1894, Rumelia — d. 20 March 1966, Mesudiye
War of Independence veteran
In the War of Independence he fought against the Greeks on the Kütahya-Dumlupınar front.
1950–1953
Korean War Veteran
Ömer Özşahines
Featuredson of Salih · mother: Saliha
b. 15 February 1929, Mesudiye — d. 25 February 2003, Mesudiye
Korean War (1950–1953)
He went off to military service in 1949. He took part in the Korean War. He was taken prisoner in the war. He remained a prisoner in Korea for about 3 years.
He was one of only 234 men taken prisoner out of the 21,000–23,000 soldiers sent from Turkey to Korea.
Note: In the time of the Ottoman State, the region where countries such as today's Bulgaria, Greece and Albania lie was generally called Rumelia (Rumeli). In official records, our ancestors' birthplaces are given as Rumelia.