Young Turk Revolution of 1908 — 1908 restoration of constitutional rule in the Ottoman Empire
The 1908 Young Turk Revolution forced Sultan Abdul Hamid II to restore the Ottoman Constitution, ending autocratic rule and initiating the Second Constitutional Era.
Key Facts
- Date of Revolution
- July 24, 1908
- Key Organization
- Committee of Union and Progress (CUP)
- Sultan Compelled to Act
- Abdul Hamid II
- Constitutional Era Duration
- 1908–1912
- Revolution's Starting Point
- Ahmed Niyazi's flight into Albanian highlands
- Subsequent Deposition
- Abdul Hamid II deposed after 31 March incident (1909)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The revolution emerged from growing instability in the Hamidian regime, the ongoing Macedonian Struggle, and the organizational efforts of the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), whose members networked with local Albanians and officers of the Salonica-based Third Army to build a broad coalition against autocratic rule.
CUP member Ahmed Niyazi fled into the Albanian highlands in July 1908, soon joined by İsmail Enver and other Unionist officers. A combination of military revolt and assassinations by Unionist Fedai pressured Sultan Abdul Hamid II into restoring the Constitution, recalling parliament, and scheduling elections, ending the suspension of constitutional rule.
The revolution inaugurated the Second Constitutional Era and triggered immediate regional consequences: Bulgaria declared independence from the Ottoman Empire, and Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia sparked the Bosnian Crisis. By 1913, the constitutional regime had given way to Unionist dictatorship, and Abdul Hamid II was deposed in 1909 following a failed monarchist uprising, with Mehmed V succeeding him.