Significance of the Gallipoli Campaign in terms of the development led to the outbreak of First World War

The Gallipoli Campaign symbolizes the deadlock reached in the Eastern Question over the Straits, the Bosphorus and Dardanelles (hereafter referred to as the "Straits"). Even though the motive that led to the opening of the Gallipoli front seemed to be stalemate in Flanders, in fact the roots of the Gallipoli Campaign can be traced back to the first plans for the dissolution of the Fertile Crescent in the 19th century. Main motto of the Eastern Question, which is also the problematic behind the dissolution of Ottoman Empire, is, the recession of the political-economic and military strength of the Ottoman Empire. With the recession period of the Ottoman Empire, political influence of the Great Powers becomes more effective. The very reason of the lack of a cooperation scheme between the Great Powers on this issue of the dissolution of Ottoman lands these powers inevitably use at-accompli politics. These policies by a fait accompli by any actor/group of actors were always evaluated by third parties as having elements detrimental to their interests. During any period of escalation of the Eastern Question, the Great Powers did not behave logically or in coordination. They usually acted according to the principles of opportunism. Even if the Great Powers aimed to penetrate Ottoman territory within an imperialistic framework by peaceful methods, they only achieved practical gains rather than structural ones. None of the Great Powers, even those bound by binding treaties, based her relations on an imperialistic base and formed permanent spheres of influence. For this reason the actors in the Eastern Question could only consent to the interests of each by means of "secret agreements", starting with Sykes-Picot. Main element that maintains the political balance in the region's the territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire. Ottoman Empire as a weak sovereign over the region is not only beneficial for the individualistic gains of the Great Powers but also maintains the stability of the international system that supports their prosperity. At the beginning of the 19th century none of the Great Powers, is powerful to end theIV Ottoman Empire and control the whole region. But also none of the Great Powers want to coalesce and to end the Ottoman Empire together. This reality is also a contributor of the continuation of the territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire. The vital point of the Eastern Question is the north point of the Fertile Crescent, which is the Turkish Straits. Any kind of regime that can sustain the interests of the Great Powers over the Turkish Straits, will be the key for the solution of the Eastern Question. However, The Great Powers recognized that there were so many conflicting interests in the Fertile Crescent that it would be very difficult to divide Ottoman territory into clear-cut spheres of influence. Because of this reason they, unavoidably, turn to the policy of the dissolution of the Ottoman lands. This was or of the main reasons behind the opening of Gallipoli Front. In other words to evaluate the Gallipoli Campaign only within the framework of the deadlock at the Flanders in 1914 will be an inadequate examination. In short, Gallipoli Campaign was one of the most crucial events for the solution of the Eastern Question by aiming at the dissolution of the Ottoman lands and maintaining a new regime for the Turkish Straits through the rapid dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. The diplomatic events those paved the way for the opening of Gallipoli Front can also be examined according to the different aspects of International Relations Theories rather than constituting axioms. Evaluating the political-military developments through different international relations theories depends on the belief that, examination of social occurrences by single theorems will cause inadequacy in the analysis. That's why a pluralistic approach was taken into consideration.