THE SARIKAMIŞ OPERATION (DECEMBER 22, 1914 - JANUARY 5, 1915) Going down in history as a disasterous pitched battle, the Sarıkamış Operation constitutes an important precedent in Turkish history for it has taken place in very harsh climatic circumstances; moreover for its consequences, it holds important and remarkable lessons within. Entering the First World War actively by Yavuz and Midilli incidents, was followed by the Russian-Caucasian army attacking the Turkish border on November 1, 1914. Köprüköy and Azap battles took place during the period which Turkish and Russian armies were fighting until November 22, 1914. These battles were back and forth transactions and formed no clear results for each sides. Before going on with the exposition of the Sarıkamış Operation, studying the land structure of the operation area and the logistics and gear of both sides will be worthwhile.

General Structure of Land: Erzurum-Sarıkamış-Kars fulcrum is the most important fulcrum in the area bordered by the Allahuekber Mountains and Çakırbaba Mountain in the North and the Aras-Karasu range in the South. Allahuekber Mountains and Çakırbaba Mountain extending to the West was the region hindering the thought of any possible Turkish attack from that zone which the Russian forces leaned their northern sides against. Considering the winter circumstances this steep terrain area gave the idea that the northern side of the Russians is safe. At North, the approach trench providing foray through envelopment was the Erzurum-Tortum-Kale Passage -Oltu-Penek-Kosor Passage -Sarıkamış fulcrum. The biggest obstacle of this fulcrum was to pass the Allahuekber Mountains. The other direction was the road passing over Kosa-Partonos-Çakırbaba Mountain and approaching Bardız-Sarıkamış; which was suitable for the passage of foot soldiers, pack animals and the mountain cannoneer. These were directions no squad could bear an envelopment without special training and gear. As for logistic aid, where the army was in need of 88 thousand tons of grain, it had 1250 tons. Therefore the soldiers could approach in just about 6-8 days. The Russian army on the other hand, was in better condition in terms of weapons, gear and logistic aid. Power of The Parties Before the battle, the arrangement of the parties was like this: Enver Paşa and 2nd Chief of General Staff Colonel Hafız Hakkı Bey were planning a new Tanenberg by an instant strike at the Russian, at any cost. They decided to make an enveloping attack through the North, taking into consideration the conviction that the Russian-Caucasion army was weak and sensitive especially against enclosure manoeuvres. According to the plan, the 11th Corps and 2nd Regular Cavalcade would identify the enemy from the front, the 9th Corps would follow the cudgeling direction on the Çatak-Pitkir route, and the 10th would surmount Oltu. Becoming corps commander, Colonel Hafız Hakkı Bey suggested that after the 9th Corps walks to the direction of Bardız, the 9th and 10th Corps move forward on the Sarıkamış Selim Sarıkamış route and cut the road to Kars with an enclosure. For this reason and his actions through the battle, the army was moved farther east at least 15 kilometres, and coerced to execute the operation in the snowy Allahuekber mountains.

1. Lack of operation capacity,
2. Shortage of equipment and supplies,         
3. and the snow-capped mountain roads, brought the estimations that the outcome of the operation would be dark, their situation would be appalling in case of failure, and the winter attack could not be possible. Therefore before the operation, Enver Paşa removed the colonel from office. Commanded by Enver Paşa himself, the operation took place as the following:

First Day (December 22, 1914): While the 11th Corps attacked from its front line, the 9th Corps captured their first targets stretching till Lafsor. The 10th Corps accessed West Oltu-Narman route with difficulty.
Second Day (December 23, 1914): In response to the enemy's counter-attack with 4P.A, the 11th Corps flang all its energy into the battle. At the same time, the 9th Corps accessed the Çatak-Piktir route. Acquiring the supplies from the surrounding and sparing the ammunition was commanded to the 9th Corps. On the other hand, some field guns were extremely cold and couldn't be pushed further because of winter circumstances. Thus the second day of the operation, supply and transportation difficulties had started. The 10th Corps managed to capture Oltu with superhuman efforts like walking on the trackless field day and night, under extremely cold and snowy weather conditions.
Third Day (December 24, 1914):Enemy continued conter-attack on the 11th Corps front. The 9th Corps accessed Bardiz. The 10th Corps was commanded to follow the sıtomin brigade on the Kosor direction with its 30th and 31st divisions, and to go forward towards Bardiz with one division. This Corps, undertaking a wide enclosure on the Kosor direction with most of its divisions, resulted in delay and failure of gathering superior battle force in the final field, and consequently the Sarıkamış Disaster.
Forth Day (December 25, 1914):The enemy began to move its forces towards the 11th Corps in Sarıkamış. The 11th Corps was not able to identify this force. The 9th Corps was becoming debris for supply and transportation difficulties. They even left the field guns on the roads. Enver Paşa didn't know that the 10th Corps was moving towards Kosor; the corps was expected on its Beyköy route on the same day's night.
According to former reports however, the 10th Corps was occupied with surmounting the Allahuekber mountains which was a 3 thousand metre trackless snow desert, to get down to Beyköy from Kosor. Numerous attacks of the unaccompanied 9th Corps resulted with failure. Too many had died and the 9th Corps was falling.
Finally, Enver Paşa decided the attack must be done with the 9th and 10th Corps together, and for this, the 9th had to wait for the 10th. The 10th Corps was corrupted in the Allahuekber mountains though. Number of troops were down to 150-200. Enver Paşa didn't know about the disasterous condition of the 10th Corps. The attack with the 9th and 10th Corps starting on December 29 continued until January 3rd, 1915. The 9th Corps was left with 450, and the 10th 1500-2000 soldiers. The army was taken back to their initial bases when the Russian counter-attack started.
Lessons Taken From the Sarıkamış Operation
1. The plan proposed for the destruction of Russion forces was appropriate in general, but the enclosure arcs were kept too wide.
2. Wide enclosure arcs resulted in loss of time, and this gave way for the enemy to withdraw and take precautions.
3. Because the field and climate weren't taken into account, the troops had to fight nature instead of the enemy.
4. The army's shortage of training and winter and mountain equipment resulted in disaster.
5. The logistic aid operation was far from getting sponsored.
6. Changing the commanders right before the operation was a mistake.

Some of The Historical Remains in Sarıkamış and The Surrounding

MICINGERT CASTLE
This castle ascends at the east of Inkaya village, taken its name in 1960, standing in the old Ottoman-Russian Boundary, ancillary to the Karaurgan subdistrict. At the center of the geography known as Lower Pasin, built on top of an integral rock mass, this castle holds a rectangular form. The builders and the time it was built in is not known. However, it contains architectural and stone garnishing characteristics of the XII-XIII. centuries, and also features belonging to former centuries.
ZİVİN CASTLE
It is a castle at 35 km. northwest of Sarıkamış, standing at the east of the Zivin village, which is nowadays called Süngütaşı village. This village layout is at the same time ancillary to the Karaurgan subdistrict, with Erzurum-Kars railway bypassing it.
The building time of the Zivin Castle is also unknown. However, by position and architecture it holds the characteristics of the Urartu castles.
According to the information given by F.V. König, information about the castle exists on an Urartuian stel found in Zivin and taken to the Tbilisi Museum.
KÖROĞLU CASTLE
It is a castle built on the natural rock cliff at the northwest of Köroğlu village ancillary to the Karaurgan subdistrict. Built on the high point of land, the castle overlooks the valley right beside it.
According to local hearsay, the castle, its construction date also unknown, takes its name from the national hero called Köroğlu, who lived between 481-510 and was famous for his encounters with the Iranian Shah during the war of Oğuzlar against the fire-worshipping Iranians. Clues for a residential area dating back to prehistoric periods exist in the area, but it is not possible today to detect these clearly. By its position, material and building technique the building reminds of the Mıcıngirt and Zivin Castles, but it is built in smaller scales.
The north route is taken while climbing the castle on the natural rock cliff resembling an eagle nest. A defense dike is made by channelling all around the bottom of the natural rock cliff. The entrance door at the north has been reinforced with bastions at both sides. It is understood that the rectangular stone piece at the southeast corner is the main bastion, and the interior of the bastion was used for sheltering.

KIZLAR CASTLE
It is a castle built in the forest southeast of Sarıkamış, in the Keklik Stream site; installed on the steep and high hill where the Keklik Stream at east and another stream at west conjugate. The position and architectural characteristics of this castle also resembles the Urartu castles. The building consisting of one internal and one external castles, is built on the direction of north-south, and holds a steep and solid outlook.
There is the internal castle on the northeast direction, and the external castle ramparts on the southwest.
Inside the castle ramparts, there is a small chapel with smooth cut stone material, round and embedded into the wall on the inside, and having a straight apsis on the outside. It resembles the chapel in the Şeytan Castle in Çıldır, considering its plan and architecture.
By the grounding traces found in the castle, it is understood that various completely demolished places existed inside. Ceramics reflecting traces from the past were found in the area where external castle ramparts encircle. This shows that the castle has passed through many hands in various periods, and has been subject to some supplementation and restoration.
Like the Mıcıngert and Zivin Castles, this one also consists of smooth cut stone material on the outside, rubble stone inside, filling and a kind of daub like the Horasan daub in between.


THE MICINGERT CUPOLA
It is a twelve sided pyramidal conical building, as is understood from extremely demolished but existent trails from the twelve sided prismal cupola at the east foot of the Mıcıngert Castle. Right under the mukarnas series forming the eaves of the cupola, a geometrical strap made of flat kavtans encircles the body. It is possible to find these characteristics of the tomb, in XII-XIII. century Anatolia cupolas. The two-coloured cut stone material used in the body of the cupola, is considered as a local feature.

KAZIM KARABEKİR MOSQUE
The building placed next to the government house and across the post office, was made in 1907 by Russian Czar Nikola II. Today the building is turned into a mosque and it is named Kazım Karabekir Camii. After the Russians left Sarıkamış in 1917 this place was first transformed into a theather called "Eastern Front Lesson Ground" by the Eastern Front Commander Kazım Karabekir Paşa; later it was turned into a cinema, and then a mosque.
It is built in the form of a 3-nave basilical plan on the East-West direction. The middle nave was kept wider and taller than the side naves. The apsis is round in the inside and rectangular from the outside. The original entrance and nartex was closed while transforming into a mosque; the apsis direction also was closed; a niche to the south, a minaret to the north of the apsis, and a fountain was added and a door was opened across the niche. The apsis section is reached through a columned entrance from the south of the apsis. As it was turned into a mosque, the inside has lost all its originality. The crenellate windows illuminating the inside, branch out from outside to inside. Covered with smooth cut stone material, the building holds two-coloured stone work. The broken tracks formed by many windows and plaster, constitute the cornice, and give the building a brisk look.
The vertical half ranks formed with horizontal tracks on the sides and smooth cut stones, compose an equipoise between horizontal and vertical, as well as animating the side views.


Scenic Beauties, Geological Features and Structure of Sarıkamış
A charming district of Kars, the border city of the Eastern Anatolia Region, holds within itself many miraculous qualities along with its history, culture, social structure, geographical position, climate, forests and flora.
Standing on the transition roads from the Caucasus and Iran to Anatolia, Sarıkamış was on the route of various tribes throughout history. For that reason historical and archeological places are quite various and rich.
Some of these are: Köroğlu, Bardız, Zivin, Kızlar, Verişan, Mıcıngert Castles, The Seven Churches, The Cube Church, Oğuz Cemeteries, housings for religious orders like Sanamer and Hünkar Düzü, rock caves of the stony Güney village and again Sarıkamış Yazılı Rocks belonging to the Urartus.
The district is ancillary to Kars city in the Erzurum-Kars section of the Eastern Anatolia Region. It is surrounded by Kağızman (Kars) at the east, Eleşkirt (Ağrı) at the south, Horosan (Erzurum) at the southwest, Şenkaya (Erzurum) at the northwest, and Selim (Kars) at the north. Its area is 1751 km2. It is between the 40 18 min. North latitudes and 42 31 min. East longitudes. It is 2225 metres high above sea level.
In summer a terrestrial climate, in winter a harsh and cold climate is dominant. Months of summer are usually dry, but rich rainfall is seen during autumn and spring. In the Karakurt and Karaurgan subdistricts ancillary to Sarıkamış, spring comes 1 month early, and winter 1 month late. This situation becomes important in harvest, threshing and meadow stockfarming.

GEOLOGICAL FEATURES
It is usually mountainous and bumpy, and the mountains are covered with forests. The field is roughly in the form of plateau and there are ridges and hills which are as high as 2600 metres. At the north the Kumru mountain is 2487 m, at the west Çember 2605 m, at the south Suphan 2909 m, at the southeast Balıklı 2885 m; which are the surrounding hills of this block.