Mehmed Şefik (1877 - 6 February 1964) known as Mehmed Şefik Aker after the 1934 Surname Law, was an officer of the Ottoman Army and the Turkish Army. He is best known for his service during the Gallipoli campaign and in particular the defense he led during the first day of the Allied landing on 25 April 1915. He subsequently served in a number of senior roles during the rest of World War I and during the War of Independence.
Career
Early life
Şefik was born an Albanian family in 1877 to Selim Bey in Kesriye which was part of the Province of Manastir of the Ottoman Empire in what is now Western Macedonia in modern Greece.
He entered the Ottoman Military College in Istanbul in April 1894 where he was a successful student, though his achievements were not high enough upon his graduation with the rank of Lieutenant on 17 August 1896 for him to be selected to attend General Staff College. Following his graduation Şefik was appointed to lead a platoon in Debre in Albania. He served with distinction in the Greco-Turkish War of 1897 and as a result was made a staff officer at the headquarters of the 28th Brigade in Istanbul.
As Sefik preferred a more active command this lead him to volunteer for the Yemen Expeditionary Force on 8 March 1900, although he did not receive the combat command position he sought. By now he had been promoted to the rank of Yüzbaşı (Captain). For two years Şefik served in Yemen on the staff of the 14th Division, including a brief period as the Chief of Staff. During this often brutal counterinsurgency campaign 5efik fell seriously ill which led to him returning in 1902 to Istanbul. Between 1903 and 1911 Şefik served in company and battalion command positions in the North Aegean region. These appointments gained him promotion to the rank of Kolağası (Major) on 18 July 1908. Upon the commencement in 1911 of the Italo-Turkish War he volunteered for combat and was allocated the command of local volunteers. Şefik sought service with his former unit during the Balkan Wars. but was unable to obtain a post until the final stages of the war.
Taking up his appointment as the commanding officer of the Ezine Reserve Battalion he was assigned to the Suvla region on the Aegean coast of the Gallipoli peninsula, which gave him first-hand experience of the region and the soldiers he would command during the Gallipoli campaign. Şefik was able to avoid the large-scale purge of the Ottoman army officer corps at the end of the Balkan war and was appointed to command of the 3rd Battalion of the 25th Regiment in the 9th Division which was stationed in the Dardanelles area at Çanakkale in February 1914.
Gallipoli campaign
Following the appointment of Lieutenant Colonel Irfan to command the Menderes Detachment on 10 November 1914 Şefik was appointed to replace him as commander of the 27th Infantry Regiment of the 9th division. On 29 November 1914 he was promoted to the rank of Binbaşı (Lieutenant Colonel). By this time he was a respected though uncompromising serious officer though with a reputation as a difficult subordinate. While its officers were from various parts of the Ottoman Empire most of the conscripts and NCOs of the 27th Regiment came from the Gallipoli Peninsula which had a diverse ethnic composition. Due to the Ottoman authorities being suspicious of the reliability of its Greek and Armenians citizens most of the regiments combat soldiers were local Muslims, though non-Muslims made up half of its auxiliary and support staff. At the time that took over command the regiment was responsible for the southern region of the Gallipoli Peninsula (including Helles, Kabatepe and Suvla). The regiment was soon assigned the specific task of defending the coastline between Ece Bay and Kakabtepe. He began a program of digging and fortification of trenches in order to avoid his men being caught out in the open by naval shellfire. He also made it plain to his officers that the forward units were not to retreat when attacked but instead to be prepared to sacrifice their lives in order to gain time for reserve units to arrive.