Ottoman Empire Enters the War
On 29 October 1914, Ottoman warships — including two German vessels transferred to Ottoman command, the Yavuz Sultan Selim and the Midilli — bombarded the Russian Black Sea ports of Odessa, Sevastopol, and Novorossiysk. The attack was orchestrated by the pro-German faction within the Ottoman government, led by War Minister Enver Pasha, without full cabinet approval. Russia, Britain, and France responded by declaring war on the Ottoman Empire in early November 1914. The Ottomans simultaneously declared a jihad against the Entente powers, hoping to inspire Muslim populations across the British and Russian empires to revolt. The response was muted, but Ottoman entry opened new fronts that would stretch Allied resources: the Dardanelles and Gallipoli (1915), the Mesopotamian campaign, and the Palestine campaign. It also cut the Allied sea route to Russia through the Bosphorus, worsening Russia's already severe supply crisis.
- Year: 1914 CE
- Category: Political
