Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, (May 19, 1881 (postulated) – November 10, 1938) was an army officer, revolutionary statesman, and founder of the Republic of Turkey as well as its first President.

Mustafa Kemal established himself as a successful and extremely capable military commander while serving as a division commander at the Battle of Gallipoli.

Turkey (2005) 5 Lira (front)- Portrait of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk

He later fought with distinction on the eastern Anatolian and Palestinian fronts, making a name for himself during World War I. Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire at the hands of the Allies, and the subsequent plans for its partition, Mustafa Kemal led the Turkish national movement in what would become the Turkish War of Independence.
Having established a provisional government in Ankara, he defeated the forces sent by the Entente powers. His successful military campaigns led to the liberation of the country and to the establishment of the Republic of Turkey.

In 1981, the centennial of Ataturk's birth, the memory of Ataturk was honored by the United Nations and UNESCO, which declared it The Ataturk Year in the World and adopted the Resolution on the Ataturk Centennial as follows:-
"Convinced that personalities who worked for understanding and cooperation between nations and international peace will be examples for future generations, Recalling that the hundredth anniversary of the birth of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic, will be celebrated in 1981, Knowing that he was an exceptional reformer in all fields relevant to the competence of UNESCO, Recognizing in particular that he was the leader of the first struggle given against colonialism and imperialism, Recalling that he was the remarkable promoter of the sense of understanding between peoples and durable peace between the nations of the world and that he worked all his life for the development of harmony and cooperation between peoples without distinction of color, religion and race, It is decided that UNESCO should collaborate in 1981 with the Turkish Government on both intellectual and technical plans for an international colloquium with the aim of acquainting the world with the various aspects of the personality and deeds of Ataturk whose objective was to promote world peace, international understanding and respect for human rights."

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Mustafa Kemal Ataturk" and "Ataturk Centennial"