31 MARCH INCIDENT REFLECTIONS IN TÜRKİYE

March 31 Incident (Insurrection, Rebellion, Uprising, Incident), II. It was a major uprising and coup attempt against the government in Istanbul after the declaration of the Constitutional Monarchy. It was called by this name because it started on March 31, 1325 (April 13, 1909) according to the Rumi calendar.

The uprising lasted thirteen days, II. It is considered one of the most important events of the Constitutional Monarchy period. Although it emerged as a military rebellion, it later became religious as a result of the propaganda of the religious people involved in the rebellion. It is not clear whether this incident, the reasons for which cannot be fully determined, was a planned and conscious action. On the first day of the rebellion, the government resigned and rebel soldiers dominated Istanbul for seven days.

The rebellion, in which a member of parliament, a minister and an undetermined number of soldiers and civilians lost their lives, was suppressed by the arrival of the "Action Army", consisting of soldiers from the Third Armies in Thessaloniki and the Second Armies in Edirne, with the voluntary participation of the Rumelian people, to Istanbul. After three days of clashes, martial law was declared, and Sultan II. Abdulhamid was dethroned and Mehmed V Reşad ascended to the throne. Participants and supporters of the rebellion were tried, 70 people were executed and 420 people were sentenced to various prison terms.

It is accepted that the concept of reactionism entered Turkish political history with this event. However, some researchers evaluate the incident as a military coup attempt that failed to achieve its goal rather than a reactionary uprising.

A national monument named Abide-i Hürriyet was built in Istanbul in memory of those who died in the March 31 Incident