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The Constitutional Revision of 1911

After the revolt of 1909 in Goudi, the "Military Society" invited Eleftherios Venizelos to participate actively in the politics of Hellas. A fundamental element of Venizelos' policy at that time was the revision of the Constitution, a proposal that was accepted by the King, the Military Society and the rest of the political parties.

The revision of 1911 was proposed as a solution to the political crisis, even though it did not aim at the transformation of the regime or its organization. The main mission of the constitution was to safeguarde the individual rights and the introduction of new patterns in state administration.

The articles of the revised constitution of 1911 tried to support and protect the individual liberties, the individual property, the freedom of the press with the provision of more legal guarantees against the state arbitrariness; to establish an obligatory free elementary education; to establish the permanence of the civil servants.


Elftherios Venizelos

Through these transformations, the constitution tried to secure the liberal democratic regime. Even though the new constitution was not radical, it introduced several reforms that aimed at the consolidation of the principle of legitimacy of the state and at establishing better relationships between individuals and the state.

The so-called National Schism ("Ethnikos Dichasmos") of 1915 destroyed the democratic and liberal character of the state. The clash between the Prime Minister Venizelos and King Constantin was depicted in the continuing involvement of the Crown in the parliamentary procedures. This interference was leading to the breaking of the Parliament. The debate was focused on who was going to have the leading role in the Royal Democracy system: the King or the people? The results of the National Schism ("Ethnikos Dichasmos") were dramatic and the conflicts continued even after the dramatic developments in Asia Minor.


King Constantine in the Parliament