Battle of Sakarya

The Battle of Sakarya (Turkish: Sakarya Meydan Muharebesi), also known as the Battle of the Sangarios (Greek: Μάχη του Σαγγάριου), was an important engagement in the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) and Turkish War of Independence.

The battle went on for 21 days from August 23 to September 13, 1921, close to the banks of the Sakarya River in the immediate vicinity of Polatlı, which is today a district of the Ankara Province. The battle line stretched over 62 miles (100 km).

It is named as the "Officers’ Battle" (Subaylar Savaşı) in Turkey because of the unusually high casualty rate (70-80%) among the officers.

The Battle of Sakarya is considered as the turning point of the Turkish War of Independence. A Turkish observer, Turkish writer and literary critic İsmail Habip Sevük, later described the importance of the battle with the words, "the retreat that started in Vienna on 13 September 1683 stopped 238 years later".

Read more about Battle Of Sakarya:  Operational Theater, Battle, Aftermath, Gallery

Famous quotes containing the word battle:

    That we can come here today and in the presence of thousands and tens of thousands of the survivors of the gallant army of Northern Virginia and their descendants, establish such an enduring monument by their hospitable welcome and acclaim, is conclusive proof of the uniting of the sections, and a universal confession that all that was done was well done, that the battle had to be fought, that the sections had to be tried, but that in the end, the result has inured to the common benefit of all.
    William Howard Taft (1857–1930)