We can think of rationalizations and reasons all day long, but at the end of it all, they failed to do their duty. They were Ottoman Pashas, reclining on divans and being fed grapes by slave girls and eunuchs, but didn’t they look magnificent in their uniforms?
“Oath? What oath? Constitution? Oh, that old rag....”
True. They exchanged patriotism for their base desires. Bottom line.