BİRİNCİ DÜNYA SAVAŞINDA OSMANLI ORDULARININ GALİÇYA CEPHESİ'NE GÖNDERİLMESİ VE CEPHE GERİSİNDE YAŞANANLAR

The Ottoman Empire sent Turkish troops to the Austria-Hungarian Empire to help in the First World War. Actually the Ottoman Empire had close contacts with Austria-Hungary, mainly in educational and commercial fields, since its foundation. During the First World War period these contacts turned into military co-operation because of the alliance. According to the treaty of alliance, when the Ottoman soldiers went to Galician Front, their medical and communication services would be organized by the Austria-Hungarian General Staff. But these services weren't provided regularly due to bad organisation and therefore some problems occurred. Thus, the Ottoman General Staff appointed Hulusi Fuad (Tugay) as an inspector to solve these problems. Tugay went to Vienna and prepared a detailed report about the health conditions of the Turkish soldiers. Furthermore, he began to organize social and cultural activities for the Ottoman soldiers who were being treated in the Austria-Hungarian hospitals. In this period the Ottoman soldiers had considerable experiences concerning the modern European life. Tugay's report and documents present valuable information about the Ottoman soldiers in Galicia during the war. This article will be based on these Tugay's documents and also help us to have a better understanding of an unknown aspect of the war.