The Sick Man of Europe: A Empire in Decline
By the early 20th century, the Ottoman Empire had earned its infamous moniker as “the sick man of Europe.” A series of military defeats—first against Italy in the 1911-1912 Italo-Turkish War, then against the Balkan League in 1912-1913—had stripped the empire of nearly 40% of its territory in just five years. The losses were not merely strategic but deeply humiliating, as European powers openly schemed to partition remaining Ottoman lands.
The human toll was catastrophic. Hundreds of thousands of Muslim refugees fled ethnic cleansing campaigns in the Balkans, while Ottoman Turks retaliated by persecuting Christian minorities in Anatolia and Thrace. Internally, the empire unraveled: Kurdish tribes in the southeast pledged loyalty to Russia, Arab nationalists conspired in Damascus, and the emerging Saudi-Wahhabi alliance challenged Ottoman authority in Islam’s holy heartland. To many observers, the empire’s collapse seemed imminent.
A Desperate Search for Allies
Facing existential threats, Ottoman leaders recognized that survival required a powerful European ally. As Abdurrahman Cami Baykut, founder of the Turkish National Constitutional Party, declared in April 1914: “For the Ottomans to grow strong, they must ally with Germany and adopt a defensive stance against Russia and the Slavs of the Balkans.” This became the cornerstone of Ottoman strategy.
Germany, under Kaiser Wilhelm II, was a natural partner. Both empires shared a fear of Russian expansionism. Russia’s population and economy were booming, and its military reforms—including plans to triple its peacetime army by 1917—threatened to overwhelm both German and Ottoman defenses. Meanwhile, Russia’s naval ambitions in the Black Sea directly endangered Constantinople and the strategic Dardanelles.
Military Reforms and the Liman von Sanders Crisis
To rebuild its shattered forces, the Ottoman Empire turned to Germany for military modernization. In December 1913, a German military mission led by General Otto Liman von Sanders arrived to reorganize the Ottoman army. However, when Sultan Mehmed V appointed Liman as commander of the Ottoman First Army—effectively placing a German officer in charge of defending Constantinople—Russia erupted in outrage.
The “Liman von Sanders Crisis” brought Europe to the brink of war in early 1914. Russia mobilized troops along the Caucasus border, while German diplomats scrambled to defuse tensions. A compromise was reached: Liman was promoted to inspector-general but relinquished direct command. Though the crisis passed, it underscored Russia’s determination to weaken the Ottomans and Germany’s growing influence in Constantinople.
Naval Arms Race and the Shadow of War
Simultaneously, the Ottomans embarked on a naval buildup to counter Greek and Italian dominance in the Aegean. Two state-of-the-art dreadnoughts, Sultan Osman I and Reşadiye, were ordered from British shipyards, with delivery expected by mid-1914. These ships promised to shift the balance of power in the eastern Mediterranean—alarming Russia and Greece alike.
Yet diplomacy remained precarious. Ottoman envoys pleaded for alliances with Britain, France, and Germany, but only Berlin showed tentative interest. When Britain abruptly seized the completed dreadnoughts in July 1914 (citing wartime needs), Ottoman resentment boiled over. Germany seized the opportunity, offering two cruisers as replacements—and secretly negotiating a formal alliance.
The Fateful Alliance and the Road to War
On August 2, 1914, Germany and the Ottoman Empire signed a secret treaty. Though the Ottomans initially declared neutrality, German pressure and British provocations (including the dreadnought seizure) pushed them toward war. In October, Ottoman warships—including the German-donated Yavuz Sultan Selim—bombarded Russian ports, triggering a Russian declaration of war. The empire was now locked into World War I.
Legacy: The End of an Empire
The German-Ottoman alliance proved disastrous. Despite early victories like Gallipoli, the war exhausted Ottoman resources. By 1918, the empire collapsed entirely, giving way to the modern Republic of Turkey. Yet the 1914 decision to align with Germany was not irrational—it reflected a desperate bid to survive in an era of imperial predation.
Today, the episode serves as a cautionary tale about the perils of great-power rivalries and the fragile nature of declining empires. The Ottomans’ final gamble reshaped the Middle East, leaving a legacy of borders, conflicts, and nationalist movements that endure to this day.