This month Recep Tayyip Erdogan, president of Turkey, attended commemorations for the anniversary of the death of Kemal Ataturk, the general who beat Britain and its allies at Gallipoli and went on to found the Turkish republic. The day is designed to humble any living Turkish leader. Erdogan walked behind soldiers carrying a wreath picked out with the Turkish flag through the neo-classical promenade and plaza of Anitkabir, Ataturk’s mausoleum in the heart of Ankara.

In the sarcophagus hall, he bowed his head to the body of the only man who still rivals him in Turkey, as the Last Post and the national anthem were played. The soldiers saluted Ataturk, not Erdogan.

But as he walked back outside, the tables turned. A chorus went up…