Makbule Atadan

Who was Makbule Atadan?

Makbule Atadan was the sister of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey. She was the only one surviving sister of Atatürk, while the other four siblings died at early ages.

Born 1885 in Thessaloniki, then in the Ottoman Empire, and grew up there, she moved along with her mother Zübeyde Hanım to Istanbul after the Balkan Wars.

Following the foundation of the republic in 1923, she moved with her mother to Ankara, summoned by her brother, who became the first president of Turkey. Later, she lived in the Camlı Köşk, a villa built 1936 within the garden of presidential Çankaya Palace especially for her.

In 1930, she entered the political scene joining the newly established "Serbest Cumhuriyet Fırkası" of Fethi Okyar. However, her political life ended soon following the closure of the party by Okyar himself some months later.

Makbule married Mecdi Boysan, a member of the parliament in 1935.

She published her memories with her brother Atatürk in her books "Büyük Kardeşim Atatürk" and "Ağabeyim Mustafa Kemal".

She died on January 18, 1956 in Ankara at the age of 71, and was laid to rest in the Cebeci Asri cemetery.