1st government of Turkey


The 1st government of Turkey was the first government formed in the Republic of Turkey. In reality, there were other governments between 23 April 1920 and 29 October 1923, but the republic was proclaimed on 29 October 1923, and the governments were numbered only after this date.

Background

The first prime minister was İsmet İnönü of the Republican People's Party. Although İnönü was a successful general during the Turkish War of Independence, he had also proved himself an able politician during the talks of Armistice of Mudanya and the Treaty of Lausanne.

The government

In the list below, the cabinet members who served only a part of the cabinet's lifespan are shown in the column "Notes".
TitleNameNotes
Prime Minister and Ministry of Foreign Affairsİsmet İnönü
Ministry of Sharia and the FoundationsFevzi Sarhan
Minister of General StaffFevzi Çakmak
Ministry of JusticeSeyit
Ministry of National DefenseKazım Özalp
Ministry of the InteriorAhmet Ferit Tek
Ministry of FinanceHasan Fehmi Ataç
Abdülhalik Renda
30 October 1923 – 2 January 1924
2 January 1924 – 6 March 1924
Ministry of National EducationSefa Özler
Ministry of Public WorksAhmet Muhtar Cilli
Süleyman Sırrı
30 October 1923 – 19 January 1924
19 January 1924 – 6 March 1924
Ministry of Health Refik Saydam
Ministry of Exchange Construction and SettlementMustafa Necati Uğural
Ministry of EconomyHasan Saka

In 1923–1924, surnames were not in use in Turkey, which would remain true until the Surname Law. The surnames given in the list are the surnames the members of the cabinet assumed later.

Aftermath

Ministry of Shariah was taken over from the Ottoman Empire, and the Ministry of General Staff was a temporary ministry which was active during the war of independence. Both ministries were abolished on 3 March 1924, and İsmet İnönü resigned to form a new government.