Date of Award

12-1988

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

History

First Advisor

Dr. John D. Treadway

Second Advisor

Dr. Emory C. Bogle

Abstract

This study of the tobacco trade between Turkey and the United States provides new perspectives on two major themes in Turkish-American relations between 1923 and 1929: the effect of Turkish nationalism on American interests in Ataturk's Turkey, and the effort to restore Turkish- American diplomatic ties broken during World War I. The marked rise in American cigarette consumption after World War I made the tobacco trade a crucial link between Turkey and America because it required the importation of aromatic tobacco. During the Turkish Republic' s first decades, the value of American tobacco imports from Turkey exceeded the value of all American exports to that country. The tobacco trade survived Turkish nationalism and unsatisfactory diplomatic relations because of the financial benefits it brought to both states. This analysis of the events affecting the Turkish-American tobacco trade between 1923 and 1929 is an inquiry into the interplay of commerce and diplomacy. The study reveals the neglected importance of economic factors in Turkish-American relations.

Download

Share

COinS