Antarah ibn Shaddad al-Absi was a pre-Islamic Arab slave knight who fought for his freedom and is considered the first anti-apartheid activist in Arabic literature. His story is one of the most important folk stories in the Arab world. Part of its importance lies in the fact that it crossed the borders of the Arab world and attracted wide interest in both Islamic and nonIslamic countries, to the point of being called an Arabic Iliad. Thus, it has become the focus of attention for students of comparative literature. Turks were one of the first nations to translate The Romance of Antarah into their language as early as the 15th century. Even though the Turkish translators of that period were focused primarily on religious texts, Sirat Antar ibn Shaddad not only was translated into the language of the Empire but also gained surprising popularity. That led to a total of three translations being completed. The first one stems back to the 15th century, with the exact year unknown. Worth mentioning is the fact that the original translator appears not to have been proficient in Arabic which led to numerous mistakes. The second translation was finished in 881 AH/1477 AD at the order of sultan Mehmet II (835 AH/1430 AD-886 AH/1581 AD), during whose reign scientific life - (835 AH/1430 AD-886 AH/1581 AD), during whose reign the scientific life - including the translation movement. It was hugely based on the first version, which was clearly outlined in the introduction. This makes the second Turkish version of The Romance of Antarah not only an improved translation of an Arabic tale but also one of the first translation criticism texts published in the Ottoman Empire. The translator who carried out the second translation was aware of different Sirat Antar ibn Shaddad versions that existed in Arabic. When reviewing the first Turkish translation, he found out that it not only failed to include most of the original stories and poems but also hugely mistranslated parts that did get included. Therefore his work began with translating the omitted parts, correcting what could be fixed and retranslating everything that needed retranslating. He completed his work in two years. This article adopts a descriptive approach and begins by referring to the importance of The Romance of Antarah before introducing its Turkish translation and the circumstances and reasons behind it. It also attempts to find the reason why one of the greatest sultans of the Ottoman Empire had ordered the translation of a popular story of an Arab knight who had lived before Islam. Also, it indicates the content of the story, its urge for good manners, and its role in instilling values and raising the morale of people and soldiers in particular to have been among the possible reasons for the Sultan ordering it to be translated into Turkish. Raising the fighting spirit and urging soldiers to be brave in combat are important activities for a warrior state and a warrior sultan like sultan Mehmet II. This is confirmed by the comments and notes on some manuscript copies indicating that soldiers and military personnel had read this story. The article shows the importance of this translation and its place in the translation movement between Arabic and Turkish. It also discusses how the translation of The Romance of Antarah was received in Ottoman Turkish society after it had been read in palaces, public councils, and cafes. It won the admiration of the Turkish public, which loved the hero and his adventures. This response occurred between the 15th-19th centuries AD, as indicated in the comments and notes on the margins of the different copies of the story. The article also shows the impact that this translation has had on Turkish culture in general, as well as on ancient and modern Turkish literature in particular. The character of Antarah began to infiltrate Turkish epics at an early stage. For example, Saltuknâme, which was compiled in 1480, mentions the name of Antarah and stories related to Antarah. The name Antarah is also mentioned in classical and modern Turkish poetry