Greek Senate

The Greek Senate was the upper chamber of legislature in Greece. It was established in 1864, reestablished in 1927, and abolished again in 1935.

First Senate

The Second National Assembly of the Hellenes took place in Athens (1863–64) and dealt both with the election of a new sovereign as well as with the drafting of a new Constitution, thereby implementing the transition from constitutional monarchy to Crowned Democracy.

Following the refusal of prince Alfred of Great Britain (who was elected by an overwhelming majority in the first referendum of the country in November 1862) to accept the crown of the Greek kingdom, the government offered the crown to the Danish prince George Christian Willem of the House of Holstein – Sonderburg – Glucksbourg, who was crowned constitutional King of Greece under the name "George I, King of the Hellenes".

The Constitution of 1864 was drafted following the models of the Constitutions of Belgium of 1831 and of Denmark of 1849, and established in clear terms the principle of popular sovereignty, since the only legislative body with reversionary powers was now the Parliament. Furthermore, article 31 reiterated that all the powers stemmed from the Nation and were to be exercised as provided by the Constitution, while article 44 established the principle of accountability, taking into consideration that the King only possessed the powers that were bestowed on him by the Constitution and by the laws applying the same.

The Assembly chose the system of a single chamber Parliament with a four-year term, and hence abolished the Senate, which many accused for being a tool in the hands of the monarchy. Direct, secret and universal elections was adopted as the manner to elect the MPs, while elections were to be held simultaneously throughout the entire nation.

In addition, article 71 introduced a conflict between being an MP and a salaried public employee or mayor at the same time, but not with serving as an army officer.

The Constitution reiterated various clauses found in the Constitution of 1844, such as that the King appoints and dismisses the ministers and that the latter are responsible for the person of the monarch, but it also allowed for the Parliament to establish "examination committees". Moreover, the King preserved the right to convoke the Parliament in ordinary as well as in extraordinary sessions, and to dissolve it at his discretion, provided, however, that the dissolution decree was also countersigned by the Cabinet.

econd Senate

On January 2nd, 1924, the Fourth National Assembly convened and decided on the abrogation of the dynasty as well as on the abolition of the crowned democracy (a decision which was ratified by referendum on April 13th, 1924).

Whilst the Fourth Constitutional Assembly was working towards the completion of the new Constitution, the coup d'etat of General Th. Pangalos took place. After the fall of his dictatorship in 1926, the "Parliament of the First Term" was elected, which, finally, voted through the Constitution of 1927.

Legislative power was exercised by the Parliament and the Senate. The Parliament was made up of 200-250 members elected for a four-year term by direct, secret and universal ballot. The Senate was composed of 120 members elected for a nine-year term, but its synthesis was renewed every three years by 1/3. At least 9/12 of the senators were elected by the people, 1/12 by the Parliament and the Senate in a common session at the onset of each Parliamentary term, whereas the remaining 2/12 were elected on the basis of a principle of representation of the professions.

In the event of disagreement between the two chambers in the voting of a law, the Constitution established the supremacy of the Parliament's vote.

Another significant element was the explicit institution of the parliamentary system. For the first time, the Greek Constitution included a clause stating that the Cabinet must "enjoy the confidence of the Parliament".

The Second Hellenic Republic lasted until 1935. That year, as a result of a failed coup by the supporters of Venizelos, the Constitution of 1927 was abolished, the Constitution of 1911 was re-instated, and in the midst of extreme political instability King George came back to the throne by referendum. In August 1936 the parliamentary prime minister I. Metaxas declared a dictatorship, which lasted until the occupation of Greece by German forces in 1941.