Armenian National Constitution

This involved a revival of classical Armenian learning, and the interpretation of new ideas coming from Western Europe, particularly the Enlightenment and the events of the French Revolution.

With the start of the 19th century there was also the influence of American and English missionaries, which eventually spawned the creation of the small Armenian Protestant millet.

On the eve of the Tanzimat era, the patriarch was dominated by the wealthy Armenian urban aristocracy: the amira.

[3] Newly rich artisans found their new wealth not translated into political influence, and pushed for reform in civil administration.

The Armenian college question, during which the Gülhane Edict was issued, was a reflection of the tension between the artisans and banking amira, sarrafs.

In 1844, Patriarch Matteos II attempted to resolve the issue by establishing a council that included both tradesmen and bankers.

In 1847, Matteos created, and the Porte sanctioned, two councils: one civil and one ecclesiastical, to manage millet affairs, which continued for ten years.

[5] The 1856 Imperial Reform Edict, which sought to bring equality among all Ottomans, also caused discontentment in the Armenian Patriarchate.

[6] The first draft (of three) of the Armenian constitution was written by a bourgeois leadership which previously served on an educational committee in 1853.

In 1862 Aali Pasha and the acting Patriarch Stepan Maghakyan initiated the formation of another constitutional committee, but when the Porte didn't immediately accept it, a mob of Armenian tradesmen stormed the Patriarchate and vandalized furniture, until Turkish troops were sent to restore order.

Despite the lack of provincial representation, the National Assembly was the most visible place for deputies to voice complaints of tax reforms and Kurdish marauding.