Author Klaus Wolf’s military career in the Bundeswehr took him to Turkey on three NATO assignments, during which he researched the military cooperation between Turkey and Germany both before and during World War I. First published in 2008 and translated into English by the Gallipoli Association, this volume is lavishly illustrated with maps and photographs.
German involvement in the Ottoman empire dates from the mid–18th century, though its presence in the early 20th century proved key. Wolf profiles several pivotal figures from the period. Among the more complex was Field Marshal Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz, who reached Constantinople in 1909 and whom Wolf describes as “half scholar, half military, half German, half Turk, half aristocrat, half democrat, half general, half boy scout.” Arriving in May 1913 was Lt. Gen. Otto Liman von Sanders, “adroit and versatile in the art of war,” his task to reorganize the Turkish army. While more recent Turkish sources have downplayed the role the German military played in Gallipoli, their involvement was undeniably significant, from tactics to training, leadership and munitions.
