Allies in Propaganda: The Ottoman–German Campaign Against the British Empire in World War I | Ceren Uçan

On August 2, 1914, the Ottoman and German Empires concluded an alliance, and on October 29, the Ottoman Empire entered World War I as part of the Central Powers. Soon thereafter, the Ottoman Sultan proclaimed jihad, while from December 1914, the German Foreign Office began promoting uprisings against the Allies. Throughout the war, Ottoman and German authorities produced a wide range of propaganda materials, including pamphlets, leaflets, and newspapers. This talk examines the largely overlooked Ottoman–German propaganda campaign against the British Empire, exploring how it sought to mobilize Muslim opinion and challenge British imperial authority.

Ceren Uçan is an Assistant Professor of History at Dokuz Eylül University, Turkey, and currently a Fulbright Visiting Scholar at Stanford University. She received her PhD in History from Bilkent University and her MA in Political Science from the University of Toronto. She holds a BA from Bilkent University and a BSc in Global and International Affairs from Binghamton University, State University of New York. She has previously been a Visiting Scholar at University College London’s Institute of Advanced Studies. Her research examines the Ottoman and British Empires, with a particular focus on World War I, propaganda, and the formation of public opinion.