The Revolution of 1908 and its Aftermath

The period that starts with the restoration of the constitutional regime on July 23, 1908 - also called the 1908 Revolution, the Young Turk Revolution-has been considered a landmark in the history of modern Turkey.

The constitutional revolution incited profound changes in the Ottoman political, economic, social and administrative system. The revolution introduced a modern political system based on representation in which the Assembly got priority over the traditional ruling center, namely, the palace.

There were two most noteworthy developments prelude to the 1908 Revolution in this regard. The first was the merger of the Paris faction of the Committee of Union and Progress with the Ottoman Freedom Society founded in Salonika that had a wide network in Macedonia with the goal of restoring the constitution in 1907.

The second development was the convention of the Second Young Turk Congress in Paris, in December 1907. It was a new effort to secure cooperation through reconciliation of different groups against the absolutist rule of the Sultan.

The Russian tsar and the king of Britain met in June 1908 at Reval in the Baltic to settle some problems that hindered their cooperation against their common fear; namely, Germany. A proposal suggesting the settlement of the Macedonian question on the basis of foreign control that would implement an extensive reform program leaving the Ottoman rule as a formality was one of the resolutions of this meeting. The news of the Reval meeting was considered a sign of forthcoming intervention of foreign powers into the Ottoman affairs by the Unionists.

The era that started with the Revolution of 1908 promised ‘liberty, equality, fraternity and justice’, the slogan of the revolution, to all Ottoman citizens. Instead of the absolute regime of Abdülhamid II, the revolutionaries stood for a constitutional monarchy based on the rule of law. They aimed to install a parliamentary democracy led by a responsible government.

Committee of Union and Progress’ first interference came early in August 1908 when the sultan insisted on his right to appoint the ministers of war and navy directly himself in violation of the constitution.

The most notable political development in the remaining months of 1908 was the elections which were held in November and December. Eligible voters were the tax-paying males who were over the age of twenty-five. Deputies, who would be elected had to be at least thirty years old and should have knowledge of the Turkish language.

Osmanlı Ahrar Fırkası (The Party of Ottoman Liberals), a new party that had been founded after the revolution by Prince Sabahaddin’s followers was the only rival party to the Committee of Union and Progress in the elections.

This party defended decentralization as the principle means of maintaining the empire. However, unlike the Committee, this party did not have an effective countrywide organization. The Committee of Union and Progress before the revolution had a strong provincial organization in the European provinces of the Empire.

The main issues of discussion during the election campaign revolved around westernization, centralization, decentralization, Islamism, Turkism and aspirations of the minorities.

While the Ottomans were occupied with the elections, Austria annexed Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria declared independence and Greece annexed Crete. It seemed that the restoration of the constitution and promises of liberty and equality could not offer a solution to the territorial losses of the Ottoman Empire. Despite such unfavorable developments, the elections resulted in an overwhelming victory for the Committee of Union and Progress.

The elections resulted in an overwhelming victory for the Committee of Union and Progress. 288 deputies were elected; nearly half of the seats (147) were held by the Turks. The rest of the seats were distributed among 60 Arabs, 27 Albanians, 26 Greeks, 14 Armenians, 10 Slavs, and 4 Jews.

The Grand Vizier Kâmil Pasha who had a reputation as a liberal resented the Committee’s pressure behind the scenes. When he attempted to remove the ministers of war and navy and appoint his men in their seats in February 1909, his relations with the Committee became strained. The Committee interpreted this attempt as a bid for personal power. The pro-Unionist press interpreted this action as a coup d’état against the parliament and a violation of the constitution. On February 14, Kâmil Pasha was removed from the office by vote of no confidence in the parliament and was replaced by Hüseyin Hilmi Pasha, who was close to the Committee.

The second type of opposition against the Committee of Union and Progress came from the conservative religious circles, specifically the lower ulema (Muslim scholars) and the heads of the dervish orders. These people were critical of the secular characteristics of the new regime as well as the Western style of life that it had introduced. As early as October 1908, they had demonstrated their discontent for the constitutional regime and the Committee of Union and Progress. On the occasion of protesting annexation of Bosnia- Herzegovina by Austria, they made calls for the abolition of the constitution, the restoration of the şeriat (religious law), the closing of drinking houses and theatres, the prohibition of photography and the restriction of participation of women in the social life (Zürcher, 1993, p. 96). They were also disturbed by the principle of equality offered to non-Muslims.

Opposition to the Committee of Union and Progress gained impetus in the next two months that followed Kâmil Pasha’s fall in mid-February 1909. At the beginning of April, the religious fundamentalists established an umbrella organization called İttihad-ı Muhammedi (Muhammadan Union) and targeted the secularist policies of the Committee of Union and Progress. This organization directed its appeal mainly to the conservative and religious groups.

Six demands were presented by their spokesmen to the chief of police sent by the government:

Among the several causes of the insurrection, four are prominent in retrospect:

1. Discontent of different groups; especially, those who lost their jobs, because of the new regime. As Abdülhamid II’s spy network collapsed after the revolution, hundreds of people earning their living from activities of espionage lost their income. The same was valid for those who benefited from the nepotism of the old regime. Hundreds of civil servants who did not have the qualifications for the positions they occupied but only loyal to the sultan, lost their jobs.

2. In the army, there was a friction between the alaylı officers, who had risen through ranks and favored by the old regime, and the mektepli officers, who had been trained in military schools and the military academies. The latter were the driving force behind the 1908 revolution. Most of the alaylı officers lost their status after the revolution and the system of promotion from the ranks ended. It was this friction in the army that inflamed the insurrection.

3. The constitutional regime brought about a change of atmosphere, the secularization of social life which threatened the position of the lower ulema. A particular discontent arose among the students of theology whose right of exemption from military service was made conditional to a certain degree of success in exams made by the ministry of war. Students who failed to pass the threshold level were to be recruited to military service.

4. The discontent of the opposition party. The Party of Ottoman Liberals viewed the Unionist policies as irresponsible and disliked their attempt to monopolize power. This resentment was a significant factor in creating the circumstances favorable for the break out of the insurrection.

The common expectations of both non-Muslim and non-Turkish Muslim groups from the constitutional regime was a decentralized government allowing a degree of self-rule where they could preserve their communal privileges that had been granted previously.

The first was the outbreak of a large-scale insurrection in Albania where the demand for autonomy was strong. The insurrection began as a resistance against the taxation and recruitment, continued as a protest against centralization measures of the Committee of Union and Progress and ended with the independence of Albania in 1912.

Three types of opposition against the Committee of Union and Progress could be seen during the 1909-1911 period. The first were the Liberals who were the traditional, old-established rivals of the Committee. They initially organized themselves as new parties called Mutedil Hürriyetperveran Fırkası (Party of Moderate Liberals) and Islahat-ı Esasiye-i Osmaniye Fırkası (Party of Fundamental Ottoman Reforms).

The second type of opposition emerged from within the Committee itself. Disturbed by secular policies of the Committee and the central role of the military in politics, the dissident Unionists –some favored a more liberal and some more conservative line- founded the Ahali Fırkası (the People’s Party) in 1910 and the Hizb-i Cedid (New Party) in 1911 respectively.

Finally, there was the opposition of non-Muslim and non-Turkish Muslim communities who were disaffected by the centralization and modernization attempts of the Committee.

During and after the wars, Ottomanism was heavily criticized by prominent intellectuals, such as Ziya Gökalp. Ottomanism was to be blamed because it delayed the development of a national idea among the Turks. It also prevented a forward social and economic development. In order to overcome the threats that the state had to face, the nation has to be awakened.