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Turkish Maps

The Şevki Paşa maps

The Şevki Paşa maps maps are more officially known as the Çanakkale tâhkimât haritasi, the Çanakkale Fortification Maps, a set of 43 very detailed maps drawn on a scale of 1:5,000 immediately after the evacuation of the Gallipoli peninsula. All are available on TrenchMapper. A lot more detail here.

The British and Anzac forces evacuated the Gallipoli peninsula after their disastrous campaign; those in the north in the Suvla Bay and Anzac areas left before dawn on 20th December 1915 and the last troops in the south left Cape Helles in the early hours of 8th January 1916.

Very quickly afterwards the Turks started a survey of the whole battlefield to record what was left before time and the elements covered over the remains. The project was commanded by Brigadier General Mehmet Şevki Paşa, a man noted for his skills in cartography and geodesy.

Preparation of the 43 base maps was substantially complete by February 1916 and the addition of an amazing amount of battlefield detail was completed by the end of September 1916.

Before this but in time for use during the campaign, on 5th May 1915 the Turkish had published a set of 36 maps at 1:25,000 prepared by detachments of the First and Second Army. It is likely these were used to produce what were to become known as the Şevki Paşa maps, the Çanakkale tâhkimât haritasi.

As with pre-war Ottoman maps, they were drawn using Bonne projection with the Prime Meridian through the Dome of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. This reflects the French origins in cartographic Turkish training although nearer to the war the influence was more from German practice.

1:25,000 series from 1912-1913

The peninsula was surveyed prior to the war by the Turks and a set of maps drawn to 1:25,000 on the Bonne projection was published in May 1915. 62 of these maps are available on TrenchMapper.

Index for Şevki Paşa maps. Click for larger versions

Index for 1:25,000 series maps.

To see a specific map in TrenchMapper, note that map ID. Goto the main page, right click and choose Gallipoli. Right click again and choose Map ID jump and insert the map ID.

 

 

 

 

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