Approximately one century ago, on 3 March 1924, the grand National Assembly of Ankara decided to abolish the Ottoman caliphate. While protests were limited and short-lived, the decision sparked a lively intellectual debate. This lecture addresses some of the controversies preceding and following the decision to abolish the caliphate, the debates within pan-Islamic congresses concerning the fate of the institution, and British policymakers perceptions of caliphal authority. These are some of the issues explored by the book The Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate, 1924: Debates and Implications [https://www.routledge.com/The-Abolition-of-the-Ottoman-Caliphate-1924-Debates-and-Implications/Giunchi-Melis/p/book/9781032613376] (Routledge, 2024) edited by Elisa Giunchi and Nicola Melis.