Through this blog, I wish to list articles, poems, research papers, travelogues, books, podcasts, movies, documentaries, and every available form of content relating to the contributions made by Indians to the Turkish freedom movement; beginning from the late 18th Century and up to and beyond the partition of the sub-continent. Material pertaining to the covert help received from the Turkish government to help in the Indian Freedom Movement will also be listed.
This blog will, primarily, document my own notes and observations which will eventually go to form my thesis on the subject of Indian Contributions to the Turkish Nation, in fulfillment of the requirements for a Masters Degree in the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). My guide and coach in this endevour is the learned Dr. Arshad ul Islam, head of department of History in IIUM.
The Indian contributions to Turkey started of as a mass movement to help save the Khilafat in Turkey, but continued well after the Turkish nationalists abolished the office of the Khalifa. The abolishment of the Khilafa was a great emotional blow to the Muslims of the sub-continent. Despite this unexpected and rather rude shock, Indian Muslims continued their brave stand in supporting the Turks, especially during the Balkan wars and during the battles waged by the Western powers to wipe out Turkey (for example, the Battle of Gallipoli which began in 1915)
My journey in getting to know more about this great initiative of Indians, in supporting their Turkish brethren, begins with the ‘Safarnama e Rum wa Sham wa Misr’ of Allama Shibli, a great Islamic scholar from Aligarh, UP, India. The Safarnama, now considered a classic, written in Urdu, and interspersed with Persian poetry, is a moving account of this great scholar’s trip to Turkey, and to a lesser extent, to parts of Syria and Egypt.
For Urdu readers, I have added links in the Urdu Resources Section.
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