the tribes in eastern Anatolia the following year, Bediuzzaman said:

"...I observed a situation similar to this in the 31st of March Incident. For Islam's constitutionalism-cherishing and patriotic devotees were suggesting ways of applying certain details in order to adapt to the Seriat the divine bounty of constitutionalism, which they knew to be the very essence of life, and direct those involved in government towards the kible in the prayer of justice, to uphold the sacred Seriat with the strength of constitutionalism, and perpetuate constitutionalism with the strength of the Seriat, and to impute all the former evils to opposition to the Seriat. Then supposing, God forbid, the Seriat to be conducive to despotism, those who could not distinguish right from left started saying: `We want the Seriat!' like parrots and in that situation the real purpose could not be understood. In any case, the plans had been laid. So then a number of villains who had donned masks of false patriotism attacked the sacred name [the Seriat]..."

That is to say, Bediuzzaman is saying that plans had been laid to incite just such a revolt. And when the 31 st of March Incident broke out, it was exploited to the full in order to attack the Seriat, and reduce the power of Islam within the State. Indeed, the historian Cemal Kutay described the military courts set up afterwards as "a cleansing operation", and their purpose, not to carry out justice, but "to eliminate a mentality and a system."

• Bediuzzaman Calls For Order

We learn of Bediuzzaman's own movements during the revolt and how he did all he could to reestablish order within the Army from his defense speech to the court martial. He told the court:
"I watched the fearful activity on the day of the 3l st of March for two or three minutes from the distance. I heard numerous demands... I understood the matter was bad; obedience was spoilt, advice would have been ineffective. Otherwise like always I would have attempted to quench the fire. But the people were many, my fellow-countrymen heedless and naive, and I would have been conspicuous because of my undeserved fame. I left after three