The Constitution of the Ottoman Empire (; ) was in effect from 1876 to 1878 in a period known as the First Constitutional Era, and from 1908 to 1922 in the Second Constitutional Era. The first and only

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, it was written by members of the

Young Ottomans The Young Ottomans (; ) were a secret society established in 1865 by a group of Ottoman intellectuals who were dissatisfied with the '' Tanzimat'' reforms in the Ottoman Empire, which they believed did not go far enough. The Young Ottomans soug ...

, particularly Midhat Pasha, during the reign of Sultan

Abdul Hamid II Abdulhamid II or Abdul Hamid II (; ; 21 September 184210 February 1918) was the 34th sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1876 to 1909, and the last sultan to exert effective control over the fracturing state. He oversaw a Decline and modernizati ...

(). After Abdul Hamid's political downfall in the 31 March Incident, the Constitution was amended to transfer more power from the sultan and the appointed

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

to the popularly-elected lower house: the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

. In the course of their studies in Europe, some members of the new Ottoman elite concluded that the secret of Europe's success rested not only with its technical achievements but also with its political organizations. Moreover, the process of reform itself had imbued a small segment of the elite with the belief that constitutional government would be a desirable check on autocracy and provide it with a better opportunity to influence policy. Sultan Abdulaziz's chaotic rule led to his deposition in 1876 and, after a few troubled months, to the proclamation of an Ottoman constitution that the new sultan, Abdul Hamid II, pledged to uphold.

Background

The Ottoman Constitution was introduced after a series of reforms were promulgated in 1839 during the

Tanzimat The (, , lit. 'Reorganization') was a period of liberal reforms in the Ottoman Empire that began with the Edict of Gülhane of 1839 and ended with the First Constitutional Era in 1876. Driven by reformist statesmen such as Mustafa Reşid Pash ...

era. The goal of the Tanzimat era was to reform the Ottoman Empire under the auspices of Westernization. In the context of the reforms, Western-educated Armenians of the Ottoman Empire drafted the Armenian National Constitution in 1863. The Ottoman Constitution of 1876 was under direct influence of the Armenian National Constitution and its authors. The Ottoman Constitution of 1876 itself was drawn up by Western-educated Ottoman Armenian Krikor Odian, who was the advisor of Midhat Pasha. Attempts at reform within the empire had long been made. Under the reign of Sultan

Selim III Selim III (; ; was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807. Regarded as an enlightened ruler, he was eventually deposed and imprisoned by the Janissaries, who placed his cousin Mustafa on the throne as Mustafa IV (). A group of a ...

, there was a vision of actual reform. Selim tried to address the military's failure to effectively function in battle; even the basics of fighting were lacking, and military leaders lacked the ability to command. Eventually his efforts led to his assassination by the

Janissaries A janissary (, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops. They were the first modern standing army, and perhaps the first infantry force in the world to be equipped with firearms, adopted du ...

. This action soon led to

Mahmud II Mahmud II (, ; 20 July 1785 – 1 July 1839) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1808 until his death in 1839. Often described as the "Peter the Great of Turkey", Mahmud instituted extensive administrative, military, and fiscal reforms ...

becoming Sultan. Mahmud can be considered the "first real Ottoman reformer",Devereux, Robert (1963). ''The First Ottoman Constitutional Period: A Study of the Midhat Constitution and Parliament''. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press. p. 22. since he took a substantive stand against the janissaries by removing them as an obstacle in the

Auspicious Incident The Auspicious Incident or Auspicious EventGoodwin, pp. 296–299. ( in Constantinople; , "Event of Malignity" in the Balkans) was the forced disbandment of the centuries-old Janissary Corps by Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II on 15 June 1826.Kinross, ...

. This led to what was known as the Tanzimat, which lasted from 1839 to 1876. This era was defined as an effort of reform to distribute power from the Sultan (even trying to remove his efforts) to the newly formed government led by a parliament. These were the intentions of the

Sublime Porte The Sublime Porte, also known as the Ottoman Porte or High Porte ( or ''Babıali''; ), was a synecdoche or metaphor used to refer collectively to the central government of the Ottoman Empire in Istanbul. It is particularly referred to the buildi ...

, which included the newly formed government.Devereux, Robert (1963). ''The First Ottoman Constitutional Period: A Study of the Midhat Constitution and Parliament''. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press. p. 21 The purpose of the Tanzimat era was reform, but mainly, to divert power from the Sultan to the Sublime Porte. The first indefinable act of the Tanzimat period was when Sultan Abdülmecid I issued the Edict of Gülhane. This document or statement expressed the principles that the liberal statesmen wanted to become an actual reality. The Tanzimat politicians wanted to prevent the empire from falling completely into ruin. During this time the Tanzimat had three different sultans: Abdülmecid I (1839–1861),

Abdülaziz Abdulaziz (; ; 8 February 18304 June 1876) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 25 June 1861 to 30 May 1876, when he was 1876 Ottoman coup d'état, overthrown in a government coup. He was a son of Sultan Mahmud II and succeeded his brother ...

(1861–1876), and Murad V (who only lasted three months in 1876). During the Tanzimat period, the man from the Ottoman Empire with the most respect in Europe was Midhat Pasha.Devereux, Robert (1963). ''The First Ottoman Constitutional Period: A Study of the Midhat Constitution and Parliament''. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press. p. 30 Midhat dreamed of an Empire in which "there would be neither Muslim nor non-Muslim but only Ottomans". Such ideology led to the formation of groups such as the

and the

Committee of Union and Progress The Ottoman Committee of Union and Progress (CUP, also translated as the Society of Union and Progress; , French language, French: ''Union et Progrès'') was a revolutionary group, secret society, and political party, active between 1889 and 1926 ...

(who merged with the Ottoman Unity Society). These movements attempted to bring about real reform not by means of edicts and promises, but by concrete action. Even after Abdulhamid II suspended the constitution, it was still printed in the , or yearbooks made by the Ottoman government.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire", p. 32. Johann Strauss, author of "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire: Translations of the ''Kanun-ı Esasi'' and Other Official Texts into Minority Languages", wrote that the

Constitution of Belgium The Constitution of Belgium (; ; ) dates back to 1831. Since then Belgium has been a parliamentary monarchy that applies the principles of ministerial responsibility for the government policy and the separation of powers. The most recent major ...

and the Constitution of Prussia (1850) "seem to have influenced the Ottoman Constitution".Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire", p. 36.

Aim

The Ottoman Porte believed that once the Christian population was represented in the legislative assembly, no foreign power could legitimize the promotion of her national interests under pretext of representing the rights of these people of religious and ethnic bonds. In particular, if successfully implemented, it was thought that it would rob Russia of any such claims. However, its potential was never realized and the tensions with the Russian Empire culminated in the

Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) The Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) was a conflict between the Ottoman Empire and a coalition led by the Russian Empire which included United Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, Romania, Principality of Serbia, Serbia, and Principality of ...

Framework

After Sultan Murad V was removed from office,

became the new Sultan. Midhat Pasha was afraid that Abdul Hamid II would go against his progressive visions; consequently he had an interview with him to assess his personality and to determine if he was on board. The Constitution proposed a bicameral parliament, the General Assembly, consisting of the Sultan-selected

and the generally elected

(although not directly; the populace chose delegates who would then choose the Deputies). There were also elections held every four years to keep the parliament changing and to continually express the voice of the people. This same framework carried over from the Constitution as it was in 1876 until it was reinstated in 1908. Ultimately, the framework on the Constitution did little to limit the Sultan's power. Some of the retained powers of the Sultan were: declaration of war, appointment of new ministers, and approval of legislation.

Implementation

Although talks about the implementation of a constitution were in place during the rule of Murad V, they did not come to fruition.Berkes, Niyazi. The Development of Secularism in Turkey.Montreal: McGill University Press, 1964. pp. 224-225,242-243, 248-249. A secret meeting between Midhat Pasha, the main author of the constitution, and

, the brother of the sultan, was arranged in which it was agreed that a constitution would be drafted and promulgated immediately after

came to the throne. Following this agreement, Murat V was deposed on 1876 by a fetva on the grounds of insanity. A committee of 24 (later 28) people, led by Midhat Pasha, was formed to work on the new constitution. They submitted the first draft on 13 November 1876 which was obstreperously rejected by

's ministers on the grounds of the abolishment of the office of the Sadrazam. After strenuous debates, a constitution acceptable to all sides was established and the constitution was signed by

on the morning of December 13, 1876.

Language versions

According to Strauss, the authorities seemed to have had prepared multiple language versions of the constitution at the same time prior to release as their publication year was 1876: he stated that such release "apparently occurred simultaneously". They were officially published in various newspapers, owned by their respective publishers, according to language, and there were other publications that re-printed them.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 34 (PDF p. 36/338). Strauss divides the translations into "Oriental-style" versions - ones made for adherents of Islam, and "Western-style" versions - ones made for Christian and Jewish people, including Ottoman citizens and foreigners residing in the empire.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 50 (PDF p. 52/338).

Versions for Muslims

The constitution was originally made in Ottoman Turkish with a Perso-Arabic script. The Ottoman government printed it, as did printing presses from private individuals. There are a total of ten Turkish terms, and the document instead relies on words from Arabic, which Strauss argues is "excessive". In addition, he stated that other defining aspects include "convoluted sentences typical of Ottoman chancery style", izafet, and a "deferential indirect style" using

honorifics An honorific is a title that conveys esteem, courtesy, or respect for position or rank when used in addressing or referring to a person. Sometimes, the term "honorific" is used in a more specific sense to refer to an honorary academic title. It ...

. Therefore Strauss wrote that due to its complexity, "A satisfactory translation into Western languages is difficult, if not impossible." Max Bilal Heidelberger wrote a direct translation of the Ottoman Turkish version and published it in a book chapter by Tilmann J Röder, "The Separation of Powers: Historical and Comparative Perspectives." A Latin script rendition of the Ottoman Turkish appeared in 1957, in the

Republic of Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, in ''Sened-i İttifaktan Günümüze Türk Anayasa Metinleri'', edited by Suna Kili and A. Şeref Gözübüyük and published by Türkiye İş Bankası Kültür Yayınları. In addition to the original Ottoman Turkish, the document had been translated into Arabic and Persian. Language versions for Muslims were derived from the Ottoman Turkish version, Page from

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical charac ...

. In Chapter no. 7. Volume 18 of Birmingham Byzantine and Ottoman Studies. Old . and Strauss wrote that the vocabularies of the Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, and Persian versions were "almost identical".Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 49 (PDF p. 51/338). Despite the Western concepts in the Ottoman Constitution, Strauss stated that "The official French version does not give the impression that the Ottoman text is a translation of it."Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 35 (PDF p. 37/338). The Arabic version was published in '' Al-Jawā ́ ib''. Strauss, who also wrote "Language and power in the late Ottoman Empire," stated that the terminology used in the Arabic version "stuck almost slavishly" to that of the Ottoman Turkish, with Arabic itself "almost exclusively" being the source of the terminology; as newer Arabic words were replacing older ones used by Ottoman Turkish, Strauss argued that this closeness "is more surprising" compared to the closeness of the Persian version to the Ottoman original, and that the deliberate closeness to the "Ottoman text is significant, but it is difficult to find a satisfactory explanation for this practice." From 17 January 1877 a Persian version appeared in '' Akhtar''. Strauss stated that the closeness of the Persian text to the Ottoman original was not very surprising as Persian adopted Arabic-origin Ottoman Turkish words related to politics.

Versions for non-Muslim minorities

Versions for non-Muslims included those in

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

, Bulgarian,

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

, and

Judaeo-Spanish Judaeo-Spanish or Judeo-Spanish (autonym , Hebrew script: ), also known as Ladino or Judezmo or Spaniolit, is a Romance language derived from Castilian Old Spanish. Originally spoken in Spain, and then after the Edict of Expulsion spreading ...

(Ladino). There was also a version in

Armeno-Turkish The Armeno-Turkish alphabet is a version of the Armenian script sometimes used to write Ottoman Turkish language, Ottoman Turkish until 1928, when the Latin-based modern Turkish alphabet was introduced. The Armenian script was not just used by ...

, Turkish written in the

Armenian alphabet The Armenian alphabet (, or , ) or, more broadly, the Armenian script, is an alphabetic writing system developed for Armenian and occasionally used to write other languages. It is one of the three historical alphabets of the South Caucasu ...

.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 33 (PDF p. 35/338). These versions were respectively printed in '' Masis'', '' Makikat'', '' Vyzantis'', De Castro Press, and '' La Turquie''. Strauss stated that versions for languages used by non-Muslims were based on the French version, being the "model and the source of the terminology".Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 51 (PDF p. 53/338). Strauss pointed to the fact that

and other linguistic features in Ottoman Turkish were usually not present in these versions. In addition each language version has language-specific terminology that is used in place of some terms from Ottoman Turkish.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 41 (PDF p. 43/338). Different versions either heavily used foreign terminology or used their own languages' terminologies heavily but they generally avoided using the Ottoman Turkish one; some common French-derived Ottoman terms were replaced with other words.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 50-51 (PDF p. 52-53/338). Based on the differences between the versions for non-Muslims and the Ottoman Turkish version, Strauss concluded that "foreign influences and national traditions – or even aspirations" shaped the non-Muslim versions, and that they "reflect religious, ideological and other divisions existing in the Ottoman Empire." Since the Armenian version, which Strauss describes as "puristic", uses Ottoman terminology not found in the French version and on some occasions in lieu of native Armenian terms, Strauss described it as having "taken into account the Ottoman text".Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 47 (PDF p. 49/338). The publication ''Bazmavep'' ("Polyhistore") re-printed the Armenian version. The Bulgarian version was re-printed in four other newspapers: '' Dunav/Tuna'', '' Iztočno Vreme'', ''Napredŭk'' or ''Napredǎk'' ("Progress") and ''Zornitsa'' ("Morning Star").Strauss, Johann. "Twenty Years in the Ottoman capital: the memoirs of Dr. Hristo Tanev Stambolski of Kazanlik (1843-1932) from an Ottoman point of view." In: Herzog, Christoph and Richard Wittmann (editors). ''Istanbul - Kushta - Constantinople: Narratives of Identity in the Ottoman Capital, 1830-1930''.

Routledge Routledge ( ) is a British multinational corporation, multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, academic journals, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanit ...

, 10 October 2018. , 9781351805223. p. 267. Strauss wrote that the Bulgarian version "corresponds exactly to the French version"; the title page of the copy in the collection of Christo S. Arnaudov (; Post-1945 spelling: Христо С. Арнаудов) stated that the work was translated from Ottoman Turkish, but Strauss said this is not the case.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire," p. 46 (PDF p. 50/338). Strauss stated that the Greek version "follows the French translation" while adding Ottoman synonyms of Greek terminology and Greek synonyms of Ottoman terminology. Strauss wrote that "perhaps the Judaeo-Spanish – version may have been checked against the original Ottoman text". Strauss also wrote "There must have also been a Serbian version available in /nowiki>Bosnia Vilayet">Bosnia_Vilayet.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Bosnia Vilayet">/nowiki>Bosnia Vilayet/nowiki>". Arsenije Zdravković published a Serbian translation after the

Young Turk Revolution The Young Turk Revolution (July 1908; ) was a constitutionalist revolution in the Ottoman Empire. Revolutionaries belonging to the Internal Committee of Union and Progress, an organization of the Young Turks movement, forced Sultan Abdul Hamid II ...

Versions for foreigners

There were versions made in French and English. The former was intended for diplomats and was created by the Translation Office (''Terceme odası''). Strauss stated that a draft copy of the French version had not been located and there is no evidence that states that one had ever been made. The French version has some terminology originating from Ottoman Turkish.Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire: Translations of the ''Kanun-ı Esasi'' and Other Official Texts into Minority Languages," p. 38 (PDF p. 40/338). A 1908 issue of the '' American Journal of International Law'' printed an Ottoman-produced English version but did not specify its origin. After analysing a passage from it, Strauss concluded "Clearly, the “contemporary English version” was also translated from the French version."Strauss, "A Constitution for a Multilingual Empire: Translations of the ''Kanun-ı Esasi'' and Other Official Texts into Minority Languages," p. 46 (PDF p. 48/338). Strauss wrote "I have not come across a Russian translation of the ''Kanun-i esasi''. But it is highly probable that it existed."

Terminology

Versions in several languages for Christians and Jews used variants of the word "constitution": ''konstitutsiya'' in Bulgarian, σύνταγμα (''syntagma'') in Greek, ''konstitusyon'' in Judaeo-Spanish, and ''ustav'' in Serbian. The Bulgarian version used a term in Russian, the Greek version used a

calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language ...

from the French word "constitution", the Judaeo-Spanish derived its term from the French, and the Serbian version used a word from Slavonic. The Armenian version uses the word ''sahmanadrut‘iwn'' (). Those in Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, and Persian used a word meaning " basic law", ''Kanun-i esasi'' in Turkish, ''al-qānūn al-asāsī'' in Arabic, and ''qānūn-e asāsī'' in Persian. Strauss stated that the Perso-Arabic term is closer in meaning to "

Grundgesetz The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany () is the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany. The West German Constitution was approved in Bonn on 8 May 1949 and came into effect on 23 May after having been approved by the oc ...

European influence

As European power increased over the 18th century, the Ottomans saw a lack of progress themselves. In the

Treaty of Paris (1856) The Treaty of Paris of 1856, signed on 30 March 1856 at the Congress of Paris (1856), Congress of Paris, brought an end to the Crimean War (1853–1856) between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the United Kingdom of G ...

, the Ottomans were now considered part of the European world. This was the beginning of intervention by Europeans (i.e. the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) in the Ottoman Empire. One of the reasons they were taking a step into Ottoman territory was for the protection of

Christianity in the Ottoman Empire Under the Ottoman Empire's millet system, Christians and Jews were considered ''dhimmi'' (meaning "protected") under Ottoman law in exchange for loyalty to the state and payment of the jizya tax. Eastern Orthodoxy, Orthodox Christians were the ...

. There had been perennial conflict between Muslims and non-Muslims in the Empire. This was the focal point for the Russians to interfere, and the Russians were perhaps the Ottomans' most disliked enemy. The Russians looked for many ways to become involved in political affairs especially when unrest in the Empire reached their borders. The

history of the Russo-Turkish wars The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...

was long, for many different reasons. The Ottomans saw the Russians as their most fierce enemy and not one to be trusted.

Domestic and foreign reactions

Reactions within the Empire and around Europe were both widely acceptable and potentially a cause for some concern. Before the Constitution was enacted and made official, many of the

Ulema In Islam, the ''ulama'' ( ; also spelled ''ulema''; ; singular ; feminine singular , plural ) are scholars of Islamic doctrine and law. They are considered the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam. "Ulama ...

were against it because they deemed it to be going against the Shari'a. However, throughout the Ottoman Empire, the people were extremely happy and looking forward to life under this new regime. Many people celebrated and joined in Muslim-Christian relations which formed, and there now seemed to be a new national identity: Ottoman. However many provinces and people within the Empire were against it and many acted out their displeasure in violence. Some Muslims agreed with the Ulema that the constitution violated Shari'a law. Some acted out their protests by attacking a priest during mass.Devereux, Robert, The First Ottoman Constitutional Period A Study of the Midhat Constitution and Parliament, The Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore, 1963, Print, p. 85 Some of the provinces referred to in the constitution were alarmed, such as Rumania, Scutari and Albania, because they thought it referred to them having a different change of government or no longer being autonomous from the Empire. Yet the most important reaction, only second to that of the people, was that of the Europeans. Their reactions were quite to the contrary from the people; in fact they were completely against it—so much so that the United Kingdom was against supporting the Sublime Porte and criticized their actions as reckless. Many across European saw this constitution as unfit or a last attempt to save the Empire. In fact only two small nations were in favor of the constitution but only because they disliked the Russians as well. Others considered the Ottomans to be grasping for straws in trying to save the Empire; they also labeled it as a fluke of the Sublime Porte and the Sultan.

Initial suspension of the constitution

After the Ottomans were defeated in the

a truce was signed on 31 January 1878 in

Edirne Edirne (; ), historically known as Orestias, Adrianople, is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the Edirne Province, province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders, Edirne was the second c ...

. Fourteen days after this event, on February 14, 1878,

took the opportunity to prorogue the parliament, citing social unrest. This allowed him to avoid new elections.

, increasingly withdrawn from society to the

Yıldız Palace Yıldız Palace (, ) is a vast complex of former imperial Ottoman Empire, Ottoman pavilions and villas in Beşiktaş, Istanbul, Turkey, built in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was used as a residence by the List of sultans of the Ottoman ...

, was therefore able rule the most part of three decades in an absolutist manner.Cf. Jean Deny: 'Abd al-Ḥamīd. In: The Encyclopedia of Islam. New Edition. Vol. 2, Brill, Leiden 2002, pp. 64-65.

Second Constitutional Era

The Constitution was put back into effect in 1908 as

came under pressure, particularly from some of his military leaders.

's fall came as a result of the 1908

, and the

Young Turks The Young Turks (, also ''Genç Türkler'') formed as a constitutionalist broad opposition-movement in the late Ottoman Empire against the absolutist régime of Sultan Abdul Hamid II (). The most powerful organization of the movement, ...

put the 1876 constitution back into effect. The second constitutional period spanned from 1908 until after World War I when the Ottoman Empire was dissolved. Many political groups and parties were formed during this period, including the

(CUP).

Final Suspension of the Constitution

On 20 January 1920, the Grand National Assembly met and ratified the Turkish Constitution of 1921. However, since this document did not clearly state whether the Ottoman Constitution of 1876 was superseded, consequentially, only provisions contradictory to the 1921 Constitution became null and void (

lex posterior derogat legi priori Statutory interpretation is the process by which courts interpret and apply legislation. Some amount of interpretation is often necessary when a case involves a statute. Sometimes the words of a statute have a plain and a straightforward meani ...

). The rest of the constitution resumed its implementation up until 20 April 1924, when both the Constitutions of 1876 and 1921 were replaced by an entirely new document, the Constitution of 1924.

Significance of the constitution

The Ottoman Constitution represented more than the immediate effect it had on the country. It was extremely significant because it made all subjects Ottomans under the law. By doing so, everyone, regardless of their religion had the right to liberties such as freedom of press and free education. Despite the latitude it gave to the sovereign, the constitution provided clear evidence of the extent to which European influences operated among a section of the Ottoman bureaucracy. This showed the effects of the pressure from Europeans on the issue of discrimination of religious minorities within the Ottoman Empire, although, Islam was still the recognized religion of the state. The constitution also reaffirmed the equality of all Ottoman subjects, including their right to serve in the new

. The constitution was more than a political document; it was a proclamation of

Ottomanism Ottomanism or ''Osmanlılık'' (, . ) was a concept which developed prior to the 1876–1878 First Constitutional Era of the Ottoman Empire. Its proponents believed that it could create the Unity of the Peoples, , needed to keep religion-based ...

and Ottoman patriotism, and it was an assertion that the empire was capable of resolving its problems and that it had the right to remain intact as it then existed. It officially established the subjects of the Empire as "Ottomans," with the Sultan being titled "

Padishah Padishah (; ) is a superlative sovereign title of Persian origin. A form of the word is known already from Middle Persian (or Pahlavi) as ''pātaxšā(h)'' or ''pādixšā(y)''. Middle Persian ''pād'' may stem from Avestan ''paiti'', and is ...

and Sovereign of all Ottomans," rather than "of the Turks." The Ottoman Constitution of 1876 was preceded by the Nationality Law of 1869, which created a common and equal citizenship for all Ottomans, regardless of race or religion. The constitution built upon those ideas and expanded on them, well focusing on keep the state together. Ultimately, although the constitution created an elected chamber of deputies and an appointed senate, it only placed minimal restriction on the Sultan's power. Under the constitution, the Sultan retained the power to declare war and make peace, to appoint and dismiss ministers, to approve legislation, and to convene and dismiss the chamber of deputies. The sultan remained the theocratic legitimized sovereign to which the state organization was made-to-measure. Thus, despite a de jure intact constitution, the sultan ruled in the absolutist manner. This was particularly evident in the closure of Parliament only eleven months after the declaration of the Constitution. Although the basic rights guaranteed in the constitution were not at all insignificant in Ottoman legal history, they were severely limited by the pronouncements of the ruler. Instead of overcoming sectarian divisions through the institution of universal representation, the elections reinforced the communitarian basis of society by allotting quotas to the various religious communities based on projections of population figures derived from the census of 1844. Furthermore, in order to appease the European powers, the Ottoman administration drafted an exceedingly uneven representational scheme that favored the European provinces by an average 2:1 ratio.

Notes

References

*
info page on book
at

Martin Luther University Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (), also referred to as MLU, is a public research university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg. It is the largest and oldest university in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. MLU offers German and i ...

)

Reference notes

External links

* - About the constitution
Article on the Kanûn-ı Esâsî
; Copies of the constitution * English translations: ** - Translation inclosed in dispatch No. 113 in the MS. Records, U.S. Department of State, dated December 26, 1876
PDF version
*

including the "Tanzimat Fermani -- The Rescript of Gülhane – Gülhane Hatt-i Hümayunu 3 November 1839", at Bilkent University *
Full text of the First Ottoman Constitution (1876)
- Translation posted by the Atatürk Institute of Modern Turkish History of

Boğaziçi University Boğaziçi University (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Boğaziçi Üniversitesi''), also known as Bosphorus University, is a Public university, public research university in Istanbul, Turkey, historically tied to a former American educational insti ...

, identity of the translator not stated
Alternate link with text of 1908 amendmentsAlternate link of regular version at

European University Institute The European University Institute (EUI) is an international postgraduate and post-doctoral research-intensive university and an intergovernmental organisation with juridical personality, established by its founding member states to contribu ...

Original Ottoman Turkish version
(basis of translation into languages used by Muslims)- at the website of the

Constitutional Court of Turkey The Constitutional Court of Turkey ( Turkish: ''Anayasa Mahkemesi'', sometimes abbreviated as ''AYM'') is the highest legal body for constitutional review in Turkey. It "examines the constitutionality, in respect of both form and substance, of law ...

Modern Turkish transliteration
(Ankara, 1982) wit

* French translation (the basis of translation into non-Muslim languages) published in: ** Annotated version:
PDF file
**
PDF document
page
281298
545 ** - In the section "Documents historiques" (February, Chapter 10 which begins on page 319)
PDF document
page
332343
1073 **
Read onlineText available
- Online on 17 January 2011 * Non-Muslim languages
GreekPDF file
) from the Turkish, published by Voutyras Press, at the Veria Digital Library - From Sismanoglio Megaro of the Consulate Gen. of Greece in Istanbul
Bulgarian
** Note the Greek is in the

Katharevousa Katharevousa (, , literally "purifying anguage) is a conservative form of the Modern Greek language conceived in the late 18th century as both a literary language and a compromise between Ancient Greek and the contemporary vernacular, Demotic ...

style; for a portion in modern Demotic Greek see - Translated from the Boğaziçi English version by Professor Spyros Marketos, released in 2006 ; Other * {{Authority control Constitutions of former countries Law of the Ottoman Empire 1876 in the Ottoman Empire 1876 in law 1876 documents Constitutions of Bulgaria