Özet:
The telegraph is a good example of the concretization of scientific and technical developments, which has
been increasing since the beginning of the 19th century, and its transformation into technological devices. Thanks
to the invention of the telegraph, communication over long distances became possible for short periods. Telegraph
lines, which previously ran across the continents via copper cables laid on poles erected on the ground, provided
the opportunity for communication on land and submarine, with the addition of submarine telegraph lines to these
lines in a short time, in parallel with technological transitions. However, the development and regular maintenance
of the lines were vital to the global communication network. By the 1850s, a strong communication network
consisting of telegraph lines and hundreds of telegraph stations had been established in many European countries
such as England, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, and Germany, with telegraph lines of over 4000 km. This
infrastructure, used effectively in both world wars, starting from the Crimean War, also formed the basis of military
communication. Industrialized countries such as Great Britain have dramatically increased their global influence
by using these technological developments, thus gaining a great military, political, and economic advantage by
directing the logistical support provided by communication to the real political field. The brilliant ideas developed
on telegraphy during this time would be significant for today's digital communication infrastructure.
This study, employing the document analysis method, distinguishes itself from previous research on land
and submarine telegraph lines that primarily rely on Ottoman archive documents. It focuses on the subject of
submarine telegraph lines, especially in the Eastern Mediterranean, based on British archive documents.
In this context, in our study, using British archival documents, we tried to reveal, in parallel with the
technological development of telegraphy, scientific studies carried out to lay submarine telegraph lines, established
submarine telegraph companies, and their activities, the process of laying submarine telegraph lines in the areas
from the Eastern Mediterranean basin to the Indian Ocean and Australia especially during the second half of the
19th century and finally how this communication network infrastructure contributed to the construction of the
contemporary today's world.
