Sivas Congress was an assembly of the Turkish National Movement

Turkish National Movement

The Turkish National Movement encompasses the political and military activities of the Turkish revolutionaries which resulted in the creation and shaping of the Republic of Turkey, as a consequence of the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I....

 held from 4 September to 11 September 1919 in the city of Sivas, in central-eastern Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

, that united delegates from all Anatolia

Anatolia

Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...

n provinces of the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

, which was defunct at the time in practical terms. At the time of the convention, the state capital (İstanbul

Istanbul

Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

) as well as many provincial cities and regions were under occupation. The call for the congress had been issued by Mustafa Kemal Pasha with his Amasya Circular

Amasya Circular

Amasya Circular was a joint circular issued on 22 June 1919 in Amasya by Fahri Yaver-i Hazret-i Şehriyari Mirliva Mustafa Kemal Pasha , Hüseyin Rauf Bey , Miralay Refet Bey and Mirliva Ali Fuad Pasha...

 three months before and the preparatory work had been handled during Erzurum Congress

Erzurum Congress

Erzurum Congress was an assembly of Turkish Revolutionaries held from 23 July to 4 August 1919 in the city of Erzurum, in eastern Turkey, in accordance with the previously issued Amasya Circular...

. The congress at Sivas took a number of vital decisions which were fundamentally to shape the future policy to be conducted in the frame of the Turkish War of Independence

Turkish War of Independence

The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...

.