Hüseyin Hilmi Bey or İştirakçi (Socialist) Hilmi (1885 – 16 November 1922) was one of the early

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

socialists Socialism is an economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes the economic, political, and socia ...

. He was the founder and first General Chairman of the

Ottoman Socialist Party The Ottoman Socialist Party (, OSF) was the first Turkish socialism, socialist political party, founded in the Ottoman Empire in 1910. History Before the formation of the party, socialist parties or groupings only existed among the Ottoman Emp ...

and the

Socialist Party of Turkey The Ottoman Socialist Party (, OSF) was the first Turkish socialist political party, founded in the Ottoman Empire in 1910. History Before the formation of the party, socialist parties or groupings only existed among the Ottoman Empire's minor ...

Early years

Hüseyin Hilmi was born in

İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

. Hilmi's birth date is not clearly known. He worked as a

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

in İzmir.

Early political career

In İzmir, Hilmi published a newspaper named ''Serbest İzmir'' (Free İzmir or Liberal İzmir) in 1907. He was a supporter of the

Ottoman Liberty Party The Ottoman Liberty Party () was a short-lived liberal political party in the Ottoman Empire during the Second Constitutional Era. It was founded by Prince Sabahaddin, Ahmet Samim, Suat Soyer, Ahmet Reşit Rey, Mehmet Tevfik Bey and Nureddin F ...

and

Mehmed Sabahaddin Sultanzade Mehmed Sabahaddin (13 February 1879 – 30 June 1948) was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman prince, Sociology, sociologist, and intellectual. Because of his threat to the ruling House of Osman, of which he was a member, and his political a ...

. He received an inheritance from his father and went to

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

in the following years. In Romania, Hilmi was affected by labour movements and he became a socialist. Hilmi started publishing the ''İştirak'' on 13 February 1909. Thereafter, he was known with the epithet İştirak, and he was called İştirakçi Hilmi.

Ottoman Socialist Party era

The

() was founded by Hüseyin Hilmi, Namık Hasan, İbnül Tahir İsmail Faik, Baha Tevfik and Hamit Suphi in August 1910. İştirak became a periodical for the defense of socialism among Ottoman intellectuals. ''İştirak'' introduced different branches of socialism to its readers. It was the first time that Marxism was advocated for in the Ottoman Press. The Ottoman Socialist Party was closed in 1912. After the assassination of

Mahmut Şevket Pasha Mahmud Shevket Pasha (, ; 1856 – 11 June 1913)David Kenneth Fieldhouse: ''Western imperialism in the Middle East 1914-1958''. Oxford University Press, 2006 p.17 was an Ottoman military commander and statesman. During the 31 March Incident ...

, Hilmi was exiled to

Sinop Fortress Prison Sinop Fortress Prison () was a state prison situated in the inside of the Sinop Fortress in Sinop, Turkey. As one of the oldest prisons of Turkey, it was established in 1887 within the inner fortress of the centuries-old fortification located on ...

in 1913.

Ottoman Socialist Party in Paris Branch

The Paris branch of the OSF was founded by Doctor Refik Nevzat in the 1910s. After the closing of the party in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

and the exiling of Hilmi, Refik Nevzat became the only representative person of the party. He published 3 brochures for OSF named ''Siyaset-i Hazıra-i Meş'ume'' (Current Sinister Politics), ''Sosyalizm ve Rehber-i Amele'' (Socialism and Vanguard Workers) and ''Haraç Mezat Satıyoruz'' (Auctions Sell Tribute).

Socialist Party of Turkey

After the

Armistice of Mudros The Armistice of Mudros () ended hostilities in the Middle Eastern theatre between Ottoman Turkey and the Allies of World War I. It was signed on 30 October 1918 by the Ottoman Minister of Marine Affairs Rauf Bey and British Admiral Somerset ...

() Hüseyin Hilmi returned to Istanbul. On 20 February 1325 (1919), the

() was founded by Hüseyin Hilmi and another 13 persons.Full list of founders: Hüseyin Hilmi (General chairman), Mustafa Fazıl Çun (general secretary), Namık Hasan, Mehmet Ali Bilgişin, Hasan Sadi Birkök, Doctor Refik Nevzat, Sadrettin Celal, Mustafa Kazım Kip from Van, Suphi Nuri İleri, Salih, Çopur Rıza Kiper, Rasim Şakir, Doctor İhsan Özgen, Mehmet Nurettin Compared to the Ottoman Socialist Party, the Socialist Party of Turkey was positioned more to the left. Also TSF was a member of the

Second International The Second International, also called the Socialist International, was a political international of Labour movement, socialist and labour parties and Trade union, trade unions which existed from 1889 to 1916. It included representatives from mo ...

. The Party published the newspaper ''İdrak''.

Strikes and TSF

In Istanbul, in 1920, the Ottoman worker class launched several strikes for occupation of the country, poor wages, and other reasons. In this atmosphere, TSF became popular among Istanbul workers.

Second Congress and dissolution

On 31 October 1920 Party prepared a second congress. In this congress Hüseyin Hilmi became ''founder and unchangeable leader''.Old Turkish: ''Fırkanın unvanı "Türkiye Sosyalist Fırkası" olup müessisi evveli Hüseyin Hilmi arkadaş lâyenazil ve daimi residir'' / English: Name of this party is "Socialist Party of Turkey" and our founder and unchangeable leader is Hüseyin Hilmi friend (comrade). With this, the opposition tried to exile Hilmi and friends. But Hilmi and Hilmi's friends survived this opposition. With this, the opposition split from the party and founded the Independent Socialist Party. After the split, the party lost power.

Third Congress and exiling of Hilmi

On 8 March 1922, the party prepared a third congress. In this congress, Hilmi and supporters were exiled from the party. The party was democratic again but it did not have any effect on the outcome. The party was dissolved.

Death

On 16 November 1922, Hüseyin Hilmi was

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

by a police officer named Ali Haydar. At the first, Ali Haydar said Hilmi was trying to rape him so then he killed him. But he changed his statement afterwards and said ''Hilmi was killed by unknown men''.

References

* Y. Doğan Çetinkaya and Foti Benlisoy, “İştirakçi Hilmi,” ''Modern Türkiye’de Siyasi Düşünce, Sol,'' Vol. VIII, İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, 2007, pp. 165-18
pdf
* Y. Doğan Çetinkaya, “Sosyalizmi ''İdrak'' Etmek: Bir Mütareke Dönemi Gazetesi,” ''Mete Tunçay’a Armağan'', İstanbul: İletişim Yayınları, 2007, pp. 499-53
pdf
* Erdem, Hamit, Osmanlı Sosyalist Fırkası ve İştirakçi Hilmi

Footnotes

References

External links

Original PDF scans of Ishtirak (''İchtirak'')
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huseyin Hilmi 1922 deaths Assassinated Turkish politicians Turkish socialists Politicians from İzmir 1885 births Politicians assassinated in the 1920s Socialism in the Ottoman Empire