Republic Day (Turkey) Republic Day (Turkey) The Republic Day of Turkey () is one of the public holidays in Turkey commemorating the proclamation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. It lasts 35 hours, starting each year at 1:00 pm on 28 October. The holiday commemorates the events of 29 October 1923, when Mustafa Kemal Atatürk declared that Turkey was henceforth a republic. Turkey had "de facto" been a republic since 23 April 1920, the date of the establishment of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, but the official confirmation of this fact came only three-and-a-half years later. On 29 October 1923, the
Senate of the Republic (Turkey) Republic, or Senate for short. The name Grand National Assembly of Turkey () referred to the entire parliament including both houses. However, the activities of the both houses of the parliament were suspended after the 1980 Turkish coup d'état. Under the 1982 constitution, the Senate was abolished. The Senate was composed of 150 elected members and 15 members appointed by the president. There were also senators known as "natural members", who were the former presidents (including the president of Hatay Republic) and the 22 members of the 1960 coup d'état committee members (). In the first year, the Senate was