Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (indeterminate - 1881–10 November 1938) was the leader of the Republic of Turkey as well as its first President. Mustafa Kemal became known as an extremely capable military officer during World War I. Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal led the Turkish national movement in what would become known as the Turkish War of Independence. Having established a provisional government in Ankara, he defeated the forces sent by the Allies. His successful military campaigns led to the liberation of the country and to the establishment of the Republic of Turkey. During his presidency, Atatürk embarked upon a program of political, economic, and cultural reforms. An admirer of the Age of Enlightenment, Atatürk sought to transform the former Ottoman Empire into a modern, democratic and secular nation-state. The principles of Atatürk's reforms, which modern Turkey was established on, are referred to as Kemalism.

Born as Mustafa, his second name Kemal (meaning Perfection or Maturity) was given to him by his mathematics teacher in recognition of his academic excellence. In his early years, his mother encouraged Mustafa to attend a religious school, something he did reluctantly and only briefly. Later, he attended the Şemsi Efendi school at the direction of his father. His parents wanted him to have education in a trade, but without consulting them he took an entrance exam for a military junior high school in Salonika in 1893. In 1896, he enrolled into a military high school in the Ottoman city of Manastır (modern Bitola, Republic of Macedonia). In 1899, he enrolled at the War College in Istanbul and graduated in 1902. He later graduated from the War Academy on 11 January 1905.

Following graduation, he was assigned to Damascus as a lieutenant. He joined a small secret revolutionary society of reformist officers called Vatan ve Hürriyet ("Motherland and Liberty"). In 1907, he was promoted to the rank of captain and assigned to Manastır. He joined the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP, 'Young Turks'). However, in later years he became known for his opposition to, and frequent criticism of, policies pursued by the CUP leadership. In 1908, he played a role in the Young Turk Revolution which seized power from Abdülhamid II. In 1910, he took part in the Picardie army maneuvers in France. In 1911, he worked at the Ministry of War for a short time. Later in 1911, he was posted to the Ottoman province of Trablusgarp (present-day Libya) to fight in the Italo-Turkish War. He returned to the capital in October 1912 following the outbreak of the Balkan Wars. During the First Balkan War, he fought against the Bulgarian army at Gallipoli and Bolayır on the coast of Thrace. In 1913, he was appointed military attaché to Sofia and promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in 1914.