science

Germany–Turkey relations

Germany–Turkey relations is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Germany–Turkey relations rather than just read about it. In short: Germany–Turkey relations (German: Deutsch-türkische Beziehungen; Turkish: Almanya-Türkiye ilişkileri) have their beginnings in the times of the Ottoman Empire and they have culminated in the development of strong bonds with many facets that include economic, military, cultural and social relations. With Turkey as a candidate for the European Union, of which Germany is the largest member, and the existence of a signi…

Key takeaways

Germany–Turkey relations belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Germany–Turkey relations to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Germany–Turkey relations from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Germany–Turkey relations (German: Deutsch-türkische Beziehungen; Turkish: Almanya-Türkiye ilişkileri) have their beginnings in the times of the Ottoman Empire and they have culminated in the development of strong bonds with many facets that include economic, military, cultural and social relations. With Turkey as a candidate for the European Union, of which Germany is the largest member, and the existence of a significant Turkish diaspora in Germany, these relations have become more and more intertwined over the decades. Relations with Turkey significantly deteriorated after the 2016–17 Turkish purges including the arrest of journalists such as Die Welt's Deniz Yücel. Both countries are members of the Council of Europe and NATO. Germany opposes Turkey's European Union membership. Germany has an embassy in Ankara and a consulate-general in Istanbul, and Turkey has an embassy in Berlin.

History

Medieval and Early Modern periods

Wars between the Holy Roman Empire and Sultanate of Rum Crusade of 1101 (1101) Battle of Dorylaeum (1147) Battle of Philomelion (1190) Battle of Iconium (1190)

Wars between the Holy Roman Empire and Ottoman Empire

Battle of Nicopolis (1396) Battle of Mohács (1526) First Turkish Siege of Vienna (1529) Little War in Hungary (1530–1552) Italian War of 1536–38 Siege of Buda (1541) Italian War of 1542–46 Siege of Esztergom (1543) Siege of Nice (1543) Italian War of 1551–59 Long Turkish War (1591–1606) Turkish Siege of Érsekújvár (1663) Battle of Saint Gotthard (1664) Great Turkish War (1683–1699) Second Turkish Siege of Vienna (1683) Battle of Párkány (1683) First Holy League Siege of Buda (1684) Holy League Siege of Érsekújvár (1685) Second Holy League Siege of Buda (1686) Siege of Pécs (1686) Second Battle of Mohács (1687) Holy League Siege of Belgrade (1688) Turkish Siege of Belgrade (1690) Battle of Slankamen (1691) Battle of Lugos (1695) Battle of Ulaş (1696) Battle of Zenta (1697)

Late 19th century and World War I

Baghdad Railway Ottoman–German Alliance Pursuit of Goeben and Breslau Middle Eastern theatre of World War I Germany and the Armenian genocide In the late 19th century, the Ottoman Empire suffered defeats in the Russo-Turkish and Greek-Ottoman Wars, and sought to reform their military. Many army officers ended up training in Germany. The Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Abdulhamid II (1876–1909), asked the Prussians for military support, and the GMC (German Military Commission) was established in 1882, and operated until the end of WW1. The Ottoman Empire wanted an alliance with Germany because Germany was one of the few powers in Europe that did not seek Turkish territory, unlike Russia and Britain. Otto Von Bismarck visited the Ottoman Empire and declared himself a "friend of Muslims", and it was the German government's position that Turkey could be used to incite revolt in India, and could "tie up" the British army and navy. "Colmar von der Goltz, head of the German military mission from 1883 to 1895, trained Ottoman army officers and wrote textbooks for them." He also befriended many important members of the young Turks movement. The German proposals to build a railway system toward Baghdad alarmed the British, for it threatened British control over the links to India. However, these issues were peacefully resolved in February 1914, and did not play a role in the July Crisis that ended in the Great War. The Ottoman–German Alliance was an alliance between the German Empire and the Ottoman Empire made on August 2, 1914, shortly following the outbreak of World War I. The alliance was created as part of a joint-cooperative effort that would strengthen and modernize the failing Ottoman military, as well as provide Germany safe passage into neighboring British colonies. The treaty came from the initiative of the Ottomans. It was replaced in January 1915 by a full-scale military alliance that promised Ottoman entry into the war. The Central Powers of World War I would eventually be made up of both the Germans and the Ottomans, as well as the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Bulgaria. German General Otto Liman von Sanders was given command of the Ottoman Fifth Army defending Gallipoli. Generals Erich von Falkenhayn and Otto Liman von Sanders commanded the Ottoman Yildirim Army during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign.

World War II

During World War II, Turkey maintained diplomatic relations with Germany until August 1944. The German–Turkish Treaty of Friendship was signed on 18 June 1941. In October 1941, the "Clodius Agreement" (named after the German negotiator, Dr. Carl August Clodius) was achieved, whereby Turkey would export up to 45,000 tons of chromite ore to Germany in 1941–1942, and 90,000 tons of the mineral in each of 1943 and 1944, contingent on Germany's supplies of military equipment to Turkey. The Germans provided as many as 117 railway locomotives and 1,250 freight rail cars to transport the ore. In an attempt to prevent the supply of this strategic mineral to Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom went on a spree of what was termed "preclusive buying", buying out Turkish chromite even if they did not need so much of it. As a part of the "package deal”, the Anglo-Americans bought Turkish dried fruit and tobacco as well. In August 1944, the Soviet Army entered Bulgaria and cut overland contact between Turkey and the Axis powers. Turkey severed its diplomatic and commercial relations with Germany, and on February 23, 1945, declared war on Germany.

Political relations

Accession of Turkey to the European Union

Germany's support to the Turkish bid has not been consistent in the German political arena. Support has varied over time; for example one former Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, expressed opposition on the issue, while another, Gerhard Schröder, was seen to be a staunch supporter.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel advocated a "vaguely defined partnership" and has opposed full membership of Turkey to the EU. Then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in response in July 2009, "We will never accept a privileged partnership. We want full membership into the EU. We don't want anything else other than full membership." In 2006, Merkel said "Turkey could be in deep, deep trouble when it comes to its aspirations to join the European Union" regarding its refusal to open up its ports to European Union member Cyprus. She added:

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Germany–Turkey relations

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Germany–Turkey relations claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Germany–Turkey relations before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Germany–Turkey relations ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Germany–Turkey relations

In research: Germany–Turkey relations appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Germany–Turkey relations in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Germany–Turkey relations is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Bilateral relations of Germany, Bilateral relations of Turkey, Germany–Turkey relations, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Germany–Turkey relations outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Germany–Turkey relations in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Germany–Turkey relations means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Germany–Turkey relations out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Germany–Turkey relations in simple terms?

Why does Germany–Turkey relations matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Germany–Turkey relations?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Germany–Turkey relations.