Forestry Academy from the Ottoman to the Republic (1909-1934)
Ahmet NizamoğluThe Forestry School was established in 1858 under the leadership of French experts in order to administer forestry with scientific and technical methods in the Ottoman Empire. The school, losing its independent structure in 1880, was restructured as the Forest and Mining School. In 1893, following the closure of the school, forestry education was integrated into the Halkalı Agricultural and Veterinary School with a few courses. With the advent of the Second Constitutional Era, forestry education was restructured under the leadership of Ali Rıza Efendi, leading to the establishment of the Forestry Academy in 1909. Despite the harsh conditions of World War I, reforms were implemented in the school, with Bauer being employed for this purpose. During the Armistice Period, the school faced challenging times but continued to graduate students. Following the declaration of the Republic, significant efforts were made to improve the educational, operational, and physical conditions of the school. Reports from Saby and Bernhard played a pioneering role in introducing innovations. This study examines the period from the establishment of the Forestry Academy, which was founded with the aim of training forest science officers (forest engineers), to its transformation into a faculty affiliated with the Ankara Higher Agricultural Institute in 1934. Ottoman and Republican archival documents, regulations, minutes, periodicals, copyrighted and research works were utilized in this study.
Osmanlıdan Cumhuriyete Orman Mekteb-i Âlisi (1909-1934)
Ahmet NizamoğluOsmanlı Devleti’nde ormancılığın bilimsel ve teknik yöntemlerle idare edilmesi amacıyla Fransız uzmanların öncülüğünde 1858’de Orman Mektebi kurulmuştur. Mektep 1880 yılında müstakil yapısını kaybederek Orman ve Ma’âdin Mektebi olarak yapılandırılmıştır. 1893 yılına gelindiğinde ise bu mektep kapatılarak ormancılık eğitimi Halkalı Ziraat ve Baytar Mektebi’nin içerisinde birkaç ders ile geçiştirilmiştir. II. Meşrutiyet ile ormancılık eğitimi Ali Rıza Efendi öncülüğünde yeniden yapılandırılarak 1909’da Orman Mekteb-i Âlisi kurulmuştur. I. Dünya Savaşı’nın ağır şartlarına rağmen mektepte reformlar yapılması için Bauer istihdam edilmiştir. Mütareke Dönemi’nde mektep zor günler yaşamasına rağmen mezun vermeye devam etmiştir. Cumhuriyet’in ilanının ardından mektebin eğitim-öğretim ve fiziki şartlarının düzeltilmesi için yoğun çaba harcanmıştır. Özellikle Saby ve Bernhard’ın raporları yeniliklerin öncüsü olmuştur. Bu çalışmada orman fen memuru (orman mühendisi) yetiştirmek amacıyla kurulan Orman Mekteb-i Âlisi’nin 1934’te Ankara Yüksek Ziraat Enstitüsü’ne bağlı bir fakülteye dönüştürülmesine kadar olan süreç incelenmiştir. Çalışmada Osmanlı ve Cumhuriyet arşiv belgeleri, düstur, zabıt cerideleri, süreli yayınlar ve telif-tetkik eserlerden yararlanılmıştır.
In the Ottoman Empire, the establishment of vocational and technical education institutions commenced with the Tanzimat reforms. In this context, the Forestry School was founded in 1858 under the guidance of French experts to advance Ottoman forestry. This school, however, produced a limited number of qualified students. Following the return of French experts in 1878, forestry education faced a setback, and in 1880, the school lost its independent structure and was restructured as the Forest and Mining School. As of 1893, this institution was closed, and forestry education was incorporated into the Halkalı Agricultural and Veterinary School [Halkalı Agricultural School (1894) / Halkalı Agricultural and Forestry School (1903)], encompassing a few courses.
Following the declaration of the Second Constitutional Era, there emerged a discussion about the need to reform forestry education. During this period, Ali Rıza Efendi communicated his aspiration to establish an independent and high-level forestry school separate from the Halkalı Agricultural and Forestry School to the relevant authorities. With the support of the Minister of Forestry, Mines, and Agriculture, Mavrokordato Pasha, the Forestry Academy was founded in 1909. However, due to the renovation of the school building, education was temporarily conducted under inadequate conditions. While the teaching and administrative staff of the school were deemed sufficient for a newly established institution, the two-year duration of the education was considered inadequate for a high-level school. An elaborate curriculum was prepared to compensate for this deficiency. On the other hand, the regulation prepared at the establishment of the school was revised in a more organized and functional manner in 1914. The internal and external political and economic problems faced by the Ottoman Empire led to challenging times in the education of the Forestry Academy. Particularly, the outbreak of the Italo-Turkish War, the Balkan Wars, and World War I hindered the desired stability in education. Besides the war conditions, budgetary constraints resulted in a lack of quantity and quality in terms of productivity from the school. Nevertheless, despite the difficult circumstances of World War I, forestry education was not neglected. The employment of Dr. Bauer from Germany as the Director of Studies in 1917 led to many reforms in the school. Following Bauer's report, the duration of education was extended from 2 to 3 years, and reforms were made to the curriculum.
The defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I and the subsequent occupation of İstanbul marked a challenging period for the Forestry Academy. During the Armistice Period, the attempts of Greek residents of Bahçeköy to take over the school building caused distress for the school administration and students. Shortly thereafter, with British support, the Greeks succeeded in evacuating the school building. Despite facing deprivation in terms of infrastructure and education during this period, the school managed to graduate a limited number of students.
After the proclamation of the Republic in 1924, the Forestry Academy was run by a director who previously came to be administered by a rector and was entrusted with the management of the Belgrad Forest as a model forest. Investments in the school started to increase regularly in the subsequent period. Accordingly, many innovations, such as establishing laboratories, procuring equipment, afforestation activities, etc., were implemented. In 1926, reports prepared by two important experts, Saby and Bernhard, directed the course of forestry education at the school. Consequently, in 1927, the school was officially recognized as a specialized institution, admitting only high school graduates. Numerous new regulations, including admission requirements and the curriculum, were implemented. With the simplification of language, the school's name was changed to the Higher Forestry School, which started in 1930, and an affiliated Middle Forestry School was also established. Despite increasing interest in the school, the number of graduates declined to 4-5 individuals. In 1934, the Forestry Faculty was included in the faculties established within the Ankara Higher Agricultural Institute. Thus, a new era began for forestry education.