Sekine Evren (née Kankotan; 1922 – 3 March 1982) was the First Lady of Turkey from 12 September 1980 until her death on 3 March 1982 during the

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified by a ...

of her husband

Kenan Evren Ahmet Kenan Evren (; 17 July 1917 – 9 May 2015) was a Turkish politician and military officer, who served as the seventh President of Turkey from 1980 to 1989. He assumed the post by leading the 1980 military coup. On 18 June 2014, a Turkish ...

. Sekine Kankotan was born as the first daughter of a vine grower in

Alaşehir Alaşehir (), in Antiquity and the Middle Ages known as Philadelphia ( el, Φιλαδέλφεια, i.e., "the city of him who loves his brother"), is a town and district of Manisa Province in the Aegean region of Turkey. It is situated in the va ...

Manisa Manisa (), historically known as Magnesia, is a city in Turkey's Aegean Region and the administrative seat of Manisa Province. Modern Manisa is a booming center of industry and services, advantaged by its closeness to the international port cit ...

, then

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, in 1922. She had three younger sisters. She could not complete her education. She married

Senior lieutenant Senior lieutenant is a military grade between a lieutenant and a captain, often used by countries from the former Eastern Bloc. It is comparable to first lieutenant. Finland ( sv, premiärlöjtnant) is a Finnish military rank above ( sv, löjt ...

in 1944 without the permission of her parents. She lost her first child at birth as her husband was assigned to the

Turkish Brigade The Turkish Brigade ( code name ''North Star''; tr, Şimal Yıldızı or ''Kutup Yıldızı'Kutup Yıldızı – Kore Savaşı'nın 50. Yıldönümü'' (''"North Star: the 50th Anniversary of the Korean War"'', TRT İzmir, Director: Ismail Ra ...

during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

(1950–1953). She gave birth to three daughters Şenay, Gülay and Miray. Evren became diabetic at an early age. During a trip in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, Belgium in May 1980, she contracted a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

and became paralyzed. On 12 September 1980, the

Turkish Armed Forces The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF; tr, Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri, TSK) are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. Turkish Armed Forces consist of the General Staff, the Land Forces, the Naval Forces and the Air Forces. The current Chi ...

under the leadership of

Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Afg ...

four-star general Kenan Evren staged a

military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such ...

. The

military junta A military junta () is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the national and local junta organized by the Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion of Spain in ...

overturned the government, and appointed Kenan Evren head of state. Sekine Evren rejected to move in the presidential residence

Çankaya Mansion The Çankaya Mansion (in Turkish: ''Çankaya Köşkü'') is the official residence of the vice president of Turkey, and previously the official residence of the president of Turkey from 1923 to 2014. The property is located in the Çankaya di ...

because her husband was self-proclaimed President and was not legitimately selected. She remained residing in the military lodging. Sekine Evren died on 3 March 1982. She was interred following a

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of Etiquette, protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive ...

held at the

Hacı Bayram Mosque Hacı Bayram Veli Camii is a mosque in old Ankara. Along with Kocatepe Mosque it is one of the best known mosques in Ankara. Hacı Bayram Mosque was built during the Ottoman Empire period. It was named after the Turkish Sufi and poet Hacı Bayra ...

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evren, Sekine 1922 births People from Alaşehir First Ladies of Turkey 1982 deaths Burials at Cebeci Asri Cemetery