Abstract:

As of the second half of the 19th century, Ottoman/Turkish intellectuals sought ways to stop the decadence that was taking place in the State and in the social structure. One of such remedies was the movement of idea called Solidarism which emerged in France and sought an answer to the question “How the structure of society and the State should be like?” Having been influential in France, the movement also found followers in the Ottoman State and in many other countries. France was taken as an exemplary in the reform movements that took place in the Ottoman State as of the 19th century. Therefore, Solidarism influenced the ideas of the Ottoman/Turkish intellectuals soon after its emergence in France. Various types of Solidarism including religious, ethnical, sectarian ones etc. could be found in the mentioned period. Solidarism was also very influential in the shaping of the “intellectual infrastructure” of the İttihat ve Terakki Cemiyeti (Committee of Union and Progress) which made its mark in the last era of the Ottoman State. It is also possible to observe the same influence in the shaping of the intellectual infrastructure of the Turkish Republic in its establishment period. As it is understood in the first years of the Republic that the ideas adopted by Solidarism did not fully meet the need in the social life and in the State, the principles of Corporatism (cooperation in the State and social life) were also appealed. Thus the ideological infrastructure of the new republic expressed itself as Solidarist Corporatism. This ideological infrastructure targeted the cooperative development of the social structure and the State. This study explains the influence of the Solidarism and Corporatism movements on the Ottoman State and its intellectuals. The study examines the contribution of these movements to the constitutional works that were carried out for organizing the State and the social structure in the first years of the Republic of Turkey.

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