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Türkiye is marking the 106th anniversary of the opening of the Grand National Assembly, the body that laid the groundwork for the Republic and became the center of authority during the country’s war for independence.
The Turkish Parliament, officially known as the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye (TBMM), opened in Ankara on April 23, 1920, at a time when the country was facing foreign occupation after World War I. Its inauguration stood out as a decisive turning point, bringing together political legitimacy and national resistance under one roof.
The road to that moment had begun to take shape after the Ottoman Empire, despite military successes such as Gallipoli, came under growing pressure following the Armistice of Mudros, the agreement that ended Ottoman participation in World War I. As the occupation expanded, Mustafa Kemal Pasha arrived in Samsun on May 19, 1919, setting in motion what would develop into the Turkish War of Independence.
In the months that followed, key political gatherings and declarations helped set out the principle that would define the new movement. Through the Amasya Circular and the Erzurum and Sivas congresses, the idea was firmly established that “national sovereignty belongs unconditionally to the nation.”
That political shift gathered pace with elections held in the fall of 1919, which led to the reconvening of the Ottoman Chamber of Deputies in Istanbul on Jan. 12, 1920. During a closed session later that month, the chamber adopted the Misak-i Milli, or National Pact, a declaration setting out the national will and the principle of independence.
The situation changed sharply after Allied forces occupied Istanbul on March 16, 1920, and moved against lawmakers who supported the independence movement. As arrests followed, many deputies and intellectuals made their way to Ankara. The Ottoman Parliament then held its final session on March 18 before being indefinitely adjourned.
This created the conditions for a new legislative body to be set up in the Anatolian capital. On March 19, 1920, Mustafa Kemal issued a circular calling for the formation of an “Assembly with extraordinary powers” in Ankara. The plan called for newly elected representatives to join forces with deputies who had escaped from the dissolved Ottoman Parliament.
Out of that process, 84 deputies came together in Ankara to form the new Grand National Assembly. Just one day before its opening, on April 22, Mustafa Kemal declared that the assembly would serve as the only legitimate authority and that all civil and military officials would take their orders from it.
The assembly officially opened on April 23, 1920, following Friday prayers at Hacibayram Mosque and a ceremonial sacrifice in Ankara. That day went on to mark one of the most important milestones in the political and institutional path that would lead to the foundation of the Republic of Türkiye.
April 23 later became a national holiday in Türkiye, observed as National Sovereignty and Children’s Day.
The date commemorates not only the opening of parliament that helped steer the independence struggle, but also the country’s commitment to future generations.
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