Era of Silence

The period began with the preemptive self-coup of 12 March 1934, which Estonian Prime Minister Konstantin Päts carried out to avert a feared takeover of the state apparatus by the popular Vaps Movement (a nationalist political organization of war veterans).

Claiming the existence of such an imminent threat, the then Prime Minister Konstantin Päts, using the authority of the newly adopted Constitution of 1933, proclaimed a national state of emergency on 12 March.

He then appointed general Johan Laidoner, a popular leader of the War of Independence and a known opponent of the Vaps Movement's leadership, as commander of the armed forces.

[citation needed] The term "Era of Silence" was first introduced by Kaarel Eenpalu, the country's prime minister from 1938 to 1939 and a strong supporter of Päts, the Estonian head of state during that period.

The "Era of Silence" is usually considered to have ended with either the new Estonian constitution coming into force on 1 January 1938 or with the parliamentary elections held in February 1938.