1921, November 17th, Thursday.
Constantinople awoke on Thursday, November seventeenth, to a city transformed. The subtle, creeping unease of the past week had erupted into overt, menacing tension. Allied military patrols, no longer just routine, were visibly augmented, their steel helmets and bayoneted rifles glinting with a new, aggressive purpose at every major intersection. Checkpoints had sprung up overnight, manned by grim-faced British, French, and Italian soldiers, snarling traffic and subjecting Ottoman citizens to brusque questioning and searches. The skies above buzzed more frequently with the drone of Allied reconnaissance aircraft. The message was unmistakable: the occupying powers were furious, and they intended for the Sultan's government, and the city's populace, to feel the full weight of their displeasure.
Sultan Murad VII received the first reports from Ferik Fevzi Pasha and Kolağası Esad Bey in his study at Yıldız Palace before sunrise. The palace itself felt like an island in a suddenly hostile sea, though Fevzi's Hassa Ordusu detachments, now armed with their newly acquired Mosin-Nagant rifles and Maxim guns, had reinforced the regular palace guard, their presence a quiet reassurance amidst the external storm. "Your Imperial Majesty," Fevzi reported, his voice tight, "Allied forces have established a virtual cordon around the central government district, including the Sublime Porte and most ministries. My men at those locations report being heavily outnumbered but are holding their positions, under strict orders to avoid any provocation but to resist any attempt to forcibly enter or disarm them. General Harington appears to be making a direct show of force." Esad Bey added, "My operatives confirm significant troop movements within all Allied barracks. Off-duty leave has been cancelled. There are also reports of Allied naval vessels in the Bosphorus taking up more… aggressive anchorages, their guns perhaps more overtly trained on the city. The High Commissions are clearly preparing for, or attempting to precipitate, a major crisis. Furthermore, local newspapers known to be sympathetic to Damat Ferid Pasha or directly funded by Allied interests are already beginning to print articles condemning 'irresponsible actions by unnamed elements within the Ottoman administration that jeopardize public safety.' They are trying to shape the narrative before the truth of our dossier can even emerge." "They are indeed," Murad said, his voice calm despite the grim news. "They react with brute force and propaganda because they fear the truth. It confirms we struck a nerve."
The anticipated diplomatic summons was not long in coming. An urgent, almost peremptory, note arrived from the British High Commission, demanding the immediate presence of Grand Vizier Tevfik Pasha at a joint meeting with all three Allied High Commissioners at their main headquarters. Not the Foreign Minister this time, but the head of government himself. Tevfik Pasha, though visibly aged by the unfolding crisis, met Murad's gaze with unwavering resolve. "I will go, Your Majesty. Reşid Akif Pasha will accompany me. We will hear their outrage. We will reiterate our position. We will not yield." "You carry with you the dignity of this Empire, Tevfik Pasha," Murad said, placing a hand briefly on the old man's shoulder. "They will bluster and threaten. Do not let them break your composure. Remind them, if necessary, that a government which has lost the moral authority to rule, as their Port Commission clearly has, often resorts to such displays of force to mask its own corruption."
The meeting, as Tevfik Pasha and Reşid Akif Pasha recounted to Murad later that afternoon, was even more tempestuous than anticipated. General Harington, flanked by a visibly agitated General Pellé and a theatrically sorrowful Marquis Garroni, had launched into a furious tirade. "He accused us, Your Majesty," Tevfik reported, his voice weary but firm, "of 'an act of unprecedented treachery and irresponsibility.' He claimed the information we had 'maliciously disseminated' – for they clearly suspect, though cannot yet prove, the international leaks – was a collection of 'defamatory falsehoods and forgeries' designed to undermine Allied authority and incite public disorder. He demanded an immediate public retraction from your government, the dismissal and punishment of all officials involved in this 'conspiracy,' including Reşid Akif Pasha and Cavit Bey by name, and an unconditional reaffirmation of all existing treaty obligations, particularly concerning the Port Authority." "And if we refused?" Murad asked. "He threatened," Reşid Akif interjected, his diplomatic calm barely concealing his own indignation, "'the gravest possible consequences.' He spoke of a complete Allied takeover of all remaining Ottoman administrative functions, the imposition of martial law throughout Constantinople enforced by Allied troops alone, the cutting off of all international financial credits and essential supplies to the city, and even… the 'reconsideration of the very existence of the Ottoman Sultanate and Caliphate.'" General Pellé, Reşid Akif added, had been particularly incensed by the earlier protest regarding his dragoman, Dubois, furiously denying any official French involvement in internal Ottoman agitation while simultaneously accusing Murad's government of attempting to sow discord amongst the Allies. Marquis Garroni had wrung his hands, lamenting the 'breakdown of trust' and urging the Ottomans to 'return to the path of reason and cooperation before it is too late.' "And your response, Your Highnesses?" Murad inquired. "Tevfik Pasha was magnificent, Your Majesty," Reşid Akif said with genuine admiration. "He listened to their tirades with profound patience. He then calmly stated that His Imperial Majesty's government had acted only to protect the legitimate interests and sovereign rights of the Ottoman people against proven corruption and exploitation. He reiterated that we had first sought redress through private diplomatic channels, offering them the opportunity to reform the Port Commission internally, an offer they had contemptuously rejected. He stated that the Ottoman government stands by the truth of the information it possesses and has no intention of retracting facts or punishing honest ministers for doing their duty. He concluded by saying that if the Allied Powers chose to respond to legitimate concerns about corruption with brute force and the collective punishment of an entire city, then the world would see for itself who was truly acting irresponsibly and in bad faith." Murad felt a surge of pride in his aged Grand Vizier. "Well said, Tevfik Pasha. You spoke for all of us. You spoke for Turkey."
The rest of the day passed under this heavy cloud of Allied fury and threat. Esad Bey's operatives worked tirelessly, monitoring Allied troop movements, trying to gauge the reality behind the bluster. "They are certainly making a show of force, Your Majesty," Esad reported. "Patrols are aggressive, checkpoints are numerous. But as yet, there is no sign of a coordinated move to, for instance, seize Yıldız Palace or arrest the entire government. Their forces seem primarily focused on intimidation and containment within the city center. It is possible General Harington's more extreme threats do not yet have the full consensus of Pellé and Garroni, or perhaps even of his own government in London, who might be wary of the international fallout if he overplays his hand before the full story of the Port corruption is known globally." This was a crucial insight. The international dissemination of the "Ledger of Lies" was Murad's primary counter-weapon. He pressed Esad, "What news from your couriers? Has any part of the story broken yet in the European press?" "It is still very early, Your Majesty," Esad cautioned. "The couriers to Paris and London would only have arrived late last night or this morning. Responsible newspapers will need time to verify such explosive information, to seek comment, to prepare their articles. We are monitoring the international telegraph wires and any foreign newspapers that reach the neutral legations here. I expect the first… inklings might appear tomorrow or the day after, if our chosen contacts are as courageous and independent as we hope."
Internally, Fevzi Pasha's Hassa Ordusu remained on high alert, their presence around Yıldız Palace and key ministries now a visible, if discreet, symbol of Ottoman resolve. There had been a few tense stand-offs between Hassa Ordusu patrols and aggressive Allied patrols in the city, but Fevzi's men, under strict orders, had maintained discipline and avoided escalation, merely holding their ground. The news of the arms shipment having successfully arrived had spread like wildfire within their ranks, significantly boosting their morale. Cavit Bey, meanwhile, was working with Tevfik Pasha on emergency contingency plans should the Allies make good on their threats to cut off financial credits or essential supplies. "We have very limited reserves, Your Majesty," he stated bluntly. "But we can implement stringent rationing, appeal for public donations of hoarded goods, and perhaps even attempt to open discreet trade channels through Black Sea ports not under direct Allied control, using what little gold we possess. It would be a desperate struggle, but not an impossible one for a short period." Sheikh-ul-Islam Nuri Efendi, through his network of Ulema, was quietly preaching calm and steadfastness to the populace, urging them to trust in Allah and the Sultan's leadership, and to avoid any actions that might give the Allies a pretext for harsher measures. The mood in the city, as reported by Esad Bey's informants, was a volatile mixture of fear of Allied retaliation and a burgeoning, defiant pride in their government's stand. The sermons and Murad's earlier Jumu'ah appearance had laid a foundation of popular moral support.
As night fell on November seventeenth, Constantinople was a city under siege, not by a foreign army at its gates, but by the overweening power of its occupiers from within. The storm unleashed by Murad's defiance had broken with full force. His government was isolated, threatened, and facing immense pressure. Yet, they had not broken. They had stood their ground, spoken their truth, and cast their hopes on the power of that truth to resonate beyond the Bosphorus. Murad knew these were perhaps the most dangerous hours of his young reign. He had made his move. Now, the world, and his own people, waited to see the consequences. He prayed that the seeds of truth scattered by Esad Bey's couriers would find fertile ground quickly. The fate of his Empire, and his own, now hung precariously in that balance.