Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1912-10-16
Turkish Army
The Best
War Correspondents Describe
It as a Perfect Fighting
Machine.

N tOAI pOpuIaClOQ turkey exceeUS
the four Kingdoms leagued against
her, but to reach this result it Is
necessary to include Turkey in
Asia, with its 100000 people, for
Turkey In Europe has an estimated
population Of only about 100000. OF
these 100000 only about 100000 are
Mohammedans, the remainder being
Albanians, Greeks, Bulgars, Waila-
chians, etc. It is expected that at least
part Of the 100000 Albanians will
turn against their Turkish masters.
AS for the two armies, it has been
estimated that the Balkan states, .ex-
elusive Of Roumania, could throw $780,
600 troops into the field. The peace
strength of the Turkish army, accord
ing to Whitaker's Almanack, is esi-
mated at 100000 for European Turkey
and Anatolia and 10000 more for Ara
bia.
Turkish Statistics.
The following from the Internation-
al Year Book gives Turkeys present
military strength:
Military service in Turkey is COM
pulsory for all Mussulmans, who are
liable to serve in the nizam, or regular
army; the redif, or landwehr, and the
mustafiz, or landsturm. Christians
and certain other sects may pay an ex-
emption tax, while from various parts
Of the empire such nomadic troops as
the Arabs fail to furnish recruits, and
the Kurds are apt to avoid military
service, which consequently falls
heavy and mainly upon the Osmanlis,
or Turks proper. The new organiza-
ton adopted in 1910 was being car
ried out in 1911. This provided for a
regular army consisting of fourteen
army corps, grouped in four army in
spection commands, and of six indie
pendent divisions, of which three are
under the second army command,
though not included in any army corps,
while three-Tripoli, Assyr and He'd
jaz-are entirely independent.
I'm all there are forty-three regular
divisions, varying in composition, but
in time of peace those of the first class
consist Of three infantry regiments Of
three battalions each, one rifle bat
TALON, one company Of mounted infan-
try, one regiment of field artillery,
with 619 batteries. One of the three
battalions Of one regiment is only
'calre' unit. so that on the peace basis
there are seventeen active battalions
in division, and on war footing
there are ten. 1t will be apparent that
the principle underlying the organiza-
ton Of the Turkish army is of groups
of three-three battalions making
regiment, three regiments a division
and three divisions making a corps.
In fact. the normal organization of an
army corps consists of three divisions
of infantry, one regiment of rifles, one
brigade of cavalry, one battalion of
heavy Howitzers. with four companies,
each of two battalions of mountain ar
tillery, one battalion Of engineers, one
telegraph company and one train bat
talon. In the Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth
and Thirteenth army corps there are
but two divisions of infantry.
1.-THE cavalry is organized in bri
gades, one of which is essential to
each army corps, while the field ar
tillery is organized in brigades, which
consist Of two regiments of three four
gun batteries each. The organization
of the Turkish army, which is the
work of Field Marshal Won der COLI,
is unique in that the infantry brigade
formation was abolished, and there Is
no unit in the command between the
division and the regiment, leading per-
haps to difficulty of control for the
commander Of division in active op-
erations. On the other hand, for linn
tied operations the new plan was
thought we'll suited to the Turkish
troops.