Today in History – 2 July

The First Turkish Congress of History begins

As the national history policy of the Republican regime, the “Turkish History Thesis” was presented for the first time at the First Turkish Congress of History at Ankara People’s House between July 2 and 11, 1932. One of the two objectives of the congress was to convey to history teachers the new methods and information to be used in history instruction and the other was to officially announce the Turkish History Thesis. Therefore, the congress predominantly focused on subjects concerning history instruction and the history of the Turks.

According to Yusuf Akçura, who presided over the congress, the most important case the Turkish Historical Society set forth at the congress was as follows: “Turks are not secondary peoples that lived as migrants and invaders in ancient times and the Middle Ages without being able to reach a higher level of civilization, but they were among the first ones in the history of humanity to establish civilization and carry its torch since ancient times.”

Apart from President Mustafa Kemal and Prime Minister İsmet Pasha, numerous statesmen, politicians, and historians participated in the congress. After this momentous first event, the Turkish Congress of History continued at certain intervals. The most recent one, namely the 17th History Congress, convened in 2014.