Mustafa Fehmi Kubilay (November 15, 1906 – December 23, 1930) was a Turkish military officer and teacher. He is a symbolic figure of the series of events known as the Kubilay Incident, which began with the killing of lieutenant Kubilay, guard Hasan, and guard Şevki by an anti-republican group in

Menemen Menemen () is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 573 km2, and its population is 200,904 (2022). The district extends on a fertile plain formed by the alluvial soil carried by the Gediz River. Adjacent distric ...

on December 23, 1930. The events continued with the trial of the perpetrators (and those considered to be involved) and spanned the months of January and February 1931.

Biography

Kubilay, the son of Hüseyin and Zeynep, who were

Cretan Turks The Cretan Muslims or Cretan Turks ( or , or ; , , or ; ) were the Muslim inhabitants of the island of Crete. Their descendants settled principally in Turkey, the Dodecanese Islands under Italian administration (part of Greece since 1947), S ...

, was born Mustafa Fehmi in

Kozan, Adana Kozan, formerly Sis (), is a municipality and district of Adana Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,903 km2, and its population is 132,703 (2022). It is northeast of Adana, in the northern section of the Çukurova plain. The Kilgen River, a tri ...

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in 1906. His parents had fled to Turkey prior to the population exchange to escape massacres and persecution. He received his basic education in

Aydın Aydın ( ''EYE-din''; ; formerly named ''Güzelhisar; Greek: Τράλλεις)'' is a city in and the seat of Aydın Province in Turkey's Aegean Region. The city is located at the heart of the lower valley of Büyük Menderes River (ancient ...

from 1913 to 1919, and began a tailors apprenticeship. During his apprenticeship he passed the examination for enrollment into teachers training, he received his teachers credentials in 1926. Mustafa Fehmi adopted a surname after graduation in accordance with

Kemalist Kemalism (, also archaically ''Kamâlizm'') or Atatürkism () is a political ideology based on the ideas of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder and first president of the Turkey, Republic of Turkey.Eric J. Zurcher, Turkey: A Modern History. Ne ...

policies and chose the name Kubilay. Kubilay taught in

and later at Zafer Elementary School in Menemen. He was posted in Menemen during his compulsory military service. Kubilay was married to Fatma Vedide in a civil ceremony in Aydın. He had a son, Vedat Aktuğ.

Kubilay Incident

Lieutenant Kubilay was killed and beheaded by the

Naqshbandi Naqshbandi (Persian: نقشبندیه) is a major Sufi order within Sunni Islam, named after its 14th-century founder, Baha' al-Din Naqshband. Practitioners, known as Naqshbandis, trace their spiritual lineage (silsila) directly to the Prophet ...

(Turkish: Nakşibendi) order

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

protesters after the troops he commanded fired with wooden bullets into the crowd of armed demonstrators in the Menemen Incident. Kubilay was beheaded, his head impaled on a flagstaff and was paraded around Menemen by the insurgents. The rioters, who sought the return to

Sharia Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on Islamic holy books, scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran, Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' ...

law and the

Caliphate A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

were all soon arrested and tried by courts-martial. Kubilay became a secular martyr for Atatürk's new republic.

Legacy

Zafer Elementary School in Menemen where Kubilay taught was renamed Kubilay Elementary School (Turkish: ''Kubilay İlkokulu'') in his honor. Kubilay Secondary School (Turkish: ''Kubilay Ortaokulu'') in Menemen is also named in his memory. A memorial parade is held by the army annually on 23 December at (the) Martyr Kubilay Memorial (Turkish: Şehit Kubilay Anıtı) located on a hill overlooking

; in remembrance of Kubilay and the two municipal watchmen; Bekçi Hasan and Bekçi Şevki who were also killed in the incident. The monument features a tall sculpture by Ratip Aşir Acudoğlu which was erected in 1932. The Kubilay Memorial is a part of Kubilay Barracks, but open to the public. A military honor guard stands continuous watch at the memorial site, which contains the graves of several Turkish soldiers who were killed in the line of duty.

References

* *
Radikal, ''1930 Menemen Olayı bir Nakşibendi tertibi miydi.'' Ayşe Hür, 30/12/2014
*
Kubilay Secondary School official site. T.C. MİLLÎ EĞİTİM BAKANLIĞI İZMİR - MENEMEN - KUBİLAY ORTAOKULU
*
M. Fehmi Kubilay. Official Menemen municipal website
retrieved 21 June 2014. *
Hurriyet Ege, news article 24 December 2000. ''We commemorate the martyr Kubilay''
retrieved 21 June 2014. *

retrieved 21 June 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kubilay, Mustafa Fehmi Turkish schoolteachers Turkish Army officers 1906 births 1930 deaths Military personnel from İzmir People killed by Islamic terrorism Deaths by decapitation