The Yildirim Army Group or Thunderbolt Army Group of the

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) ...

(

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

: ''Yıldırım Ordular Grubu'') or Army Group F (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

: ''Heeresgruppe F'') was an

Army Group An army group is a military organization consisting of several field armies, which is self-sufficient for indefinite periods. It is usually responsible for a particular geographic area. An army group is the largest field organization handled ...

of the

Ottoman Army The military of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nun silahlı kuvvetleri) was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire. Army The military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. While being an Ottoman unit, it also contained the

Asia Corps The Asia Corps (German: ''Asien-Korps'' or ''Levantekorps'') was a detachment of the German Army, sent to assist the Ottoman Army during World War I. Pasha I The first German troops despatched to assist the Ottoman Army in 1914 and 1915 were P ...

. Starting in June 1917, the Yildirim Army Group's first commander in chief was the former Prussian Minister of War and Chief of Staff Erich von Falkenhayn. Von Falkenhayn was replaced by General of the Cavalry Otto Liman von Sanders on 25 February 1918. After the

Armistice of Mudros Concluded on 30 October 1918 and taking effect at noon the next day, the Armistice of Mudros ( tr, Mondros Mütarekesi) ended hostilities in the Middle Eastern theatre between the Ottoman Empire and the Allies of World War I. It was signed by ...

on 30 October 1918, Mustafa Kemal took command until the Group's dissolution a few days later.

Tactics

The army group included troops who used the latest Western-Front infiltration tactics; were equipped with close-combat gear, such as

Stahlhelm The ''Stahlhelm'' () is a German military steel combat helmet intended to provide protection against shrapnel and fragments of grenades. The term ''Stahlhelm'' refers both to a generic steel helmet and more specifically to the distinctive Germa ...

s and stick-grenades; and were supported by artillery and machine guns.

World War I

Order of Battle, August 1917

In August 1917, the army group was structured as follows:Edward J. Erickson, ''Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', Greenwood Press, 2001, , p. 170. * Yildirim Army Group ( Müşir Erich von Falkenhayn) ** Seventh Army, Syria (

Mirliva ''Mirliva'' or ''Mîr-i livâ'' was a military rank of the Ottoman Army and Navy. It corresponds to a brigadier general ( modern Turkish: ''Tuğgeneral'') in the modern Turkish Army. ''Mirliva'' is a compound word composed of '' Mir'' (command ...

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, or Mustafa Kemal Pasha until 1921, and Ghazi Mustafa Kemal from 1921 until 1934 ( 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish field marshal, revolutionary statesman, author, and the founding father of the Rep ...

) *** III Corps **** 24th Division ****

50th Division 50th Division or 50th Infantry Division may refer to: Infantry divisions: * 50th Division (1st Formation)(People's Republic of China) * 50th Infantry Division (German Empire) * 50th Reserve Division (German Empire) * 50th Infantry Division Regina ...

*** XV Corps **** 19th Division **** 20th Division *** German Asia Corps ** Sixth Army,

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

(Mirliva

Halil Kut Halil Kut (1881 – 20 August 1957) was an Ottoman Turkish military commander and politician. He served in the Ottoman army during World War I, notably taking part in the military campaigns against Russia in the Caucasus and the British in Mes ...

) *** XIII Corps **** 2nd Division **** 6th Division *** XVIII Corps **** 14th Division **** 51st Division **** 52nd Division *** 46th Division with the * 42nd Division * 48th Division * 59th Division ** XX Corps at Huj *** 16th Division *** 54th Division *** 178th Infantry Regiment *** 3rd Cavalry Division ** XXII Corps at Gaza *** 3rd Division *** 7th Division *** 53rd Division

Order of Battle, January 1918

In January 1918, the army group was structured as follows:Edward J. Erickson, ''Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', Greenwood Press, 2001, , p. 181. * Yildirim Army Group (Müşir Erich von Falkenhayn) ** Seventh Army (Mirliva

Fevzi Çakmak Mustafa Fevzi Çakmak (12 January 1876 – 10 April 1950) was a Turkish field marshal ('' Mareşal'') and politician. He served as the Chief of General Staff from 1918 and 1919 and later the Minister of War of the Ottoman Empire in 1920. He lat ...

) *** III Corps **** 1st Division, 19th Division, 24th Division *** XV Corps **** 26th Division, 53rd Division *** 3rd Cavalry Division *** German Asia Corps ** Eighth Army ( Ferik Cevat Çobanlı) *** XXII Corps **** 3rd Division, 7th Division, 20th Division *** 16th Division, 54th Division, 2nd Caucasian Cavalry Division

Order of Battle, June 1918

In June 1918, the army group was structured as follows:Edward J. Erickson, ''Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', Greenwood Press, 2001, , p. 188. * Yildirim Army Group (Müşir Otto Liman von Sanders) ** Seventh Army (Mirliva

) *** III Corps **** 1st Division, 24th Division, 3rd Cavalry Division *** XV Corps **** 26th Division, 53rd Division, 19th Division *** German Asia Corps ** Eighth Army (Ferik Cevat Çobanlı) *** XXII Corps **** 3rd Division, 7th Division, 20th Division *** 16th Division *** 54th Division *** 2nd Caucasian Cavalry Division

Order of Battle, September 1918

In September 1918, the army group was structured as follows:Edward J. Erickson, ''Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', Greenwood Press, 2001, , p. 197. * Yildirim Army Group (Müşir Otto Liman von Sanders) ** Fourth Army (

Cemal Mersinli) *** II Corps ( Miralay Galatalı Şevket Bey) **** 62nd Division, Provisional Division x 3 *** Jordan Group **** 24th Division, 3rd Cavalry Division *** VIII Corps (Miralay Yasin Hilmi Bey) **** 48th Division, Umman Provisional Division ** Seventh Army (Mirliva

) *** III Corps (Miralay

İsmet İnönü Mustafa İsmet İnönü (; 24 September 1884 – 25 December 1973) was a Turkish army officer and statesman of Kurdish descent, who served as the second President of Turkey from 11 November 1938 to 22 May 1950, and its Prime Minister three ti ...

) **** 1st Division, 11th Division *** XV Corps (Miralay Ali Fuat Cebesoy) **** 26th Division, 53rd Division ** Eighth Army (Ferik Cevat Çobanlı) *** XXII Corps (Miralay Refet Bele) **** 7th Division, 20th Division *** Left Wing Corps (

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swe ...

Gustav von Oppen) **** 16th Division, 19th Division **** German Asia Corps *** 2nd Caucasian Cavalry Division

After Mudros

Order of Battle, November 1918

In November 1918, the army group was structured as follows:Edward J. Erickson, ''Order to Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', Greenwood Press, 2001, , p. 202. * Yildirim Army Group (

) ** Second Army (Mirliva

Nihat Anılmış Nihat Anılmış (1876 in Filibe (Plovdiv) – May 31, 1954 in Istanbul) was an officer of the Ottoman Army (1861–1922), Ottoman Army and a general of the Turkish Army. See also *List of high-ranking commanders of the Turkish War of Independen ...

) *** XII Corps **** 23rd Division *** XV Corps **** 41st Division, 44th Division ** Seventh Army (Mirliva Ali Fuat Cebesoy, deputy) *** III Corps **** 11th Division, 24th Division *** XX Corps **** 1st Division, 43rd Division

Yildirim Troops Inspectorate, May 1919

In April 1919,

Şevket Turgut Pasha Shevket Turgut Pasha ( tr, Şevket Turgut Paşa; 1857–1924) was an Ottoman army general with the rank of ''mirliva'' (major general), who also held the governmental title of ''pasha'' (lord). He went to the Prussian military school. Biography ...

, Cevat Çobanlı and

hold a secret meeting in

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth ( Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

. They prepared a report called "Trio Oath" (''Üçler Misâkı'') and decided to establish army inspectorate for the defense of homeland. In late April, Fevzi Çakmak submitted this report to the Minister of War Şakir Pasha. On April 30, 1919, the War Ministry and Sultan Mehmed VI ratified the decision about the establishing of army inspectorates that had been accepted by the Chief of General Staff And then the First Army Troops Inspectorate (stationed in Constantinople,

), the Yildirim Troops Inspectorate (stationed in

Konya Konya () is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium (), although the Seljuks also called it D ...

, Cemal Mersinli, later Second Army Inspectorate) Inspectorate, the Ninth Army Troops Inspectorate (stationed in

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. The city uses t ...

, later Third Army Inspectorate) was formed. Additionally, the Rumeli Military Troops Inspectorate (

Nureddin Pasha Nureddin Ibrahim Pasha ( tr, Nurettin Paşa, Nureddin İbrahim Paşa; 1873 – 18 February 1932), known as Nureddin İbrahim Konyar from 1934, was a Turkish military officer who served in the Ottoman Army during World War I and in the Turki ...

) would be established and the XIII Corps would be under the direction of the Ministry of War. In May 1919, the army inspectorate was structured as follows:Zekeriya Türkmen, ''Mütareke Döneminde Ordunun Durumu ve Yeniden Yapılanması (1918–1920)'', Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, 2001, , pp. 110–111. * Yildirim Troops Inspectorate (''Yıldırım Kıt'aatı Müfettişliği'',

, Inspector: Ferik Cemal Mersinli) ** XII Corps (

Niğde Niğde (; grc, Νίγδη; Hittite: Nahita, Naxita) is a city and the capital of Niğde province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey at an elevation of 1,299 m. In 2017 the city population was 141,010 people. The city is small with plent ...

, Miralay Selâhaddin Bey) *** 11th Division *** 41st Division *** 7th Cavalry Regiment *** 20th Cavalry Regiment ** XX Corps (

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, mak ...

Ali Fuat Cebesoy) *** 23rd Division *** 24th Division ** XVII Corps (Smyrna, Mirliva

Ali Nadir Pasha ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam. ...

, transferred from the First Army Troops Inspectorate after the Occupation of Smyrna) *** 56th Division *** 57th Division

References

External links

{{Ottoman Forces during World War I Army groups of the Ottoman Empire Military units and formations of the Ottoman Empire in World War I