Look at a map of Turkey and you will see something unusual. The country straddles two continents. Most of Turkey sits in Asia, on a large piece of land called Anatolia. A small but important piece sits in Europe, across a narrow waterway called the Bosporus Strait. This geographic position has made Turkey a crossroads of cultures, trade, and history for thousands of years. Before Turkey existed as a country, the region was the heart of the Ottoman Empire, one of the largest empires in history. But after World War I, the empire collapsed. Other countries -- including Britain, France, Greece, and Italy -- moved to occupy parts of the land. On May 19, 1919, a military officer named Mustafa Kemal arrived at the Black Sea port of Samsun. His official mission was to oversee the disbanding of Ottoman forces. Instead, he began organizing resistance. Kemal traveled across Anatolia, rallying support from towns and villages. After years of fighting, the Turkish forces won their independence. In 1923, the Republic of Turkey was officially established with Kemal as its first president. He later took the surname Ataturk, meaning "Father of the Turks." Today, May 19 is celebrated in Turkey as a national holiday honoring youth and sports.