Adnan Menderes was one of the Turkish premiers
(1950-60) and lived between 1899-1961. In January 1946, he formed the Democratic
party, the first legal opposition party
in Turkey, after Atatürk's
party CHP. When his party
came to power in 1950, Menderes became premier,
and in 1955 he also assumed the duties of foreign minister. In May 1960,
an army coup under General Cemal Gürsel toppled
the government, and Menderes was arrested, charged with violating the
Constitution,
and executed.
Today his mausoleum is in Istanbul, next to Turgut Özal's. His son, Aydin Menderes, was in the Turkish Parliament until last elections in 2002.
Cemal Gürsel was a Turkish army officer and political leader and lived
between 1895-1966. He fought in World War I and in most of the military
campaigns during the War of Independence (1920-23)
led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Gürsel remained
in the army and in 1958 became commander of Turkish ground forces. A popular
army figure, he led the military coup of May,
1960, which overthrew the government of premiere
Adnan Menderes. Gürsel resisted attempts to continue military rule and
was elected president of the republic in 1961. Because of illness, he was
succeeded as president by Cevdet Sunay in March, 1966, and died in September of
the same year.
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