Discussions on the Ottoman proclamation of the Great Jihad (Cihad-ı Ekber) in World War i usually focus only on its repercussions on the Muslim communities living outside Anatolia and tend to take Anatolian Muslims for granted. In fact, the Ottoman Jihad propaganda had a very important Anatolian dimension as well.¹ From its declaration of general...Read More

Why did the Ottoman empire proclaim Jihad in November 1914 and who was the proclamation’s genuine author? Did the impetus come from Kaiser Wilhelm ii, the German emperor, whose faith in Jihad stemmed from the desire to undermine Berlin’s rival empires, Britain, France, and Russia, who all ruled over large Muslim populations? Or did the...Read More