Ottoman Rifle Companies/Platoons?

[Doc Twilight]

Hello, everyone.

Again seeking information on a fairly obscure subject. Has anyone got information on what would be involved in an Ottoman Rifle Platoon, or failing that a Rifle Company? Again, trying to get some stuff together for "Through Mud and Blood", and coming up blank with information.

-Doc

[Doc Twilight]

Well, I did manage to find a few bits and piece. Here's what I can share, at the moment.

According to Tiger Miniatures, this would be the basic structure of the Ottoman Division (at least a division of Anatolian Turks) during the Balkan Wars (1911-1913).

Anyway, again according to Tiger Miniatures, the rough composition of an Ottoman Infantry Division:

3 Brigades of Infantry

A Brigade had 3 battalions of Infantry of 800 men and a Machine Gun Company of 4 Machine guns

A Battalion had 4 companies of 200 men.

A company had 4 platoons of 50 men.

A platoon had 4 sections of 15 men.

Artillery Brigade of 24 guns in 2 Battalion each of 3 Battery's of 4 guns.

Support - Marksman Battalion, 1 squadron of mounted Infantry, a Pioneer Company and a Telegraph company.

...

The "Marksman Battalion" would have been referred to as a Rifle Battalion in the Ottoman Army. They were supposed to be sharpshooting light infantry (so Rifles in the 18th/19th century.) So far as I know they were disbanded after 1913, so probably wouldn't show up in a WW1 era force.

As is the case with most armies of the period, I suspect that the individual makeup of the sections is up to broad interpretation, particularly given that the Turks began to reorganize right before the Balkan Wars along German lines. And, whilst the weapons deployed would probably vary, I strongly suspect that the overall structure would not have changed radically.

One other point of interest that may be useful. I know that the Ottomans had significantly increased the number of Machine Guns by 1916, but according to the information I have in a few scattered notes from various sources, equipment shortages were quite acute during the 1914-1915 phase of the war (they never were completely solved, but matters did improve somewhat in 1916-1917 in terms of automatic weapons). So far as I know, the Ottomans never made widespread use of Light Machine Guns. At any rate, my point here is that the relatively small number of machine guns available to a division would probably have significantly increased by the time of the major campaigns of 1916-1918.


-Alex

[Stecal]

Ordered to Die has some info on this, but I dont think he goes down to the company level.  (I will check when I get home) On the subject of Hvy & Lt MG, Ottoman strength returns in 1917-18 show a surprisingly high number of Light Machineguns, nearly equal to the HMG count (still in very deficient numbers), but whether these are German supplied or captured Russian or British is not indicated.

[Hastati]

Just to add a smidge to the above, one thing to remember is that at the start of the war many regiments did not have any HMGs.  So, in game terms for Mud and the Blood, it would be rare to see an HMG at company level in 14-15.  This deficiency was never fully addressed.  For your section/platoons, they are basically rifle armed right through to the end of the war.  The Turks did create the equivalent of "storm trooper" units in 17-18, but they never really used LMGs or SMGs.  They were still primarily armed with rifles and lots of grenades.

[Stecal]

Post Balkan war the Ottoman army was reoganized with German help.  At the wars outbreak each regt of 3 bns & a mg co., each bn of roughly 900 men divided into 4 companies.
(Ordered to Die)

Company organization much harder to find.  David Cameron in his very detailed book on the 1st day of Gallipoli, 25 April 1915 says the Turkish Companies consisted of 3 platoons each commanded by a 2nd Lt., each platoon had 9 sections of 9 men each, all armed with Mausers & 2 grenades each

Further evidence that the make up of a 1915 gallipoli platoon had 83 men:  probably an officer, platoon sgt & 81 riflemen, presumably in 9 sections.  Per Prof. Mesut Uyar,

“But an Ottoman platoon had 83 soldiers. That’s 83 experienced soldiers, with Mauser rifles, able to fire 10 bullets per minute – if you think about the effect on the Anzacs below, of course they would think they were facing machine guns.”

http://uniken.unsw.edu.au/features/cover-story-%E2%80%93-meet-our-ottoman-fellow