Salih Bozok

Turkish politician

Salih Bozok

Born	December 1881 Salonica, Ottoman Empire (present-day Thessaloniki, Greece)
Died	25 April 1941(1941-04-25) (aged 59–60) Istanbul, Turkey
Buried	Cebeci Askerî Şehid
Allegiance	Ottoman Empire Turkey
Years of service	Ottoman Empire: 1903 – November 1918 Turkey: 1920–?
Rank	Lieutenant colonel
Commands held	Chief aide-de-camp of the commander of the Second Army Chief aide-de-camp of the commander of the Seventh Army
Battles/wars	Balkan Wars World War I Turkish War of Independence
Spouse(s)	Düriye Bozok Pakize Bozok
Other work	Member of the TBMM Member of the administrative board of the Türkiye İş Bankası

Salih Bozok (1881 – April 25, 1941) was an officer of the Ottoman Army, later the Turkish Army and a politician of the Republic of Turkey. He was the chief aide-de-camp of Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk), the founder of modern Turkey.^[1]

Bozok was a close childhood and lifelong friend of Atatürk, both having been born in 1881 in Thessaloniki and having attended the Monastir Military High School together. On November 10, 1938, upon witnessing the dead body of Atatürk in the latter's bedroom of Dolmabahçe Palace, a distraught and stunned Bozok stepped outside and shot himself through the chest with a pistol. However, the bullet narrowly missed his heart, and Bozok did not succumb to his fatal wound until April 1941.

Bozok's life and friendship with Atatürk was depicted in the successful 2010 Turkish film Veda.

Works

(Salih Bozok - Cemil S.Bozok), Hep Atatürk'ün Yanında", ATATÜRK VAKFI YAYINLARI, Istanbul 2019,
(Can Dündar), Yaveri Atatürk'ü Anlatıyor, Doğan Kitapçılık, Istanbul, 2001.
(Cemil S. Bozok), Hep Atatürk'ün Yanında, Çağdaş Yayınları, Istanbul, 1985.

Medals and decorations

Medal of Independence with Red Ribbon

References

^ Türk Parlamento Tarihi Araştırma Grubu, TBMB - II. Dönem 1923-1927 - III. Cilt: II. Dönem Milletvekillerin Özgeçmişleri, Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi Vakfı Yayınları, Ankara, 1995, ISBN 975-7291-04-8, pp. 155-156.