National holidays and calabrations during the Democrat Party priod (1950 1960)

The date of declaration of the 2th Constitutional Monarchy was accepted as the Republic Day in 1909, depending on the ideas of nationalism in the last years of Ottoman Empire. Republic Day that, was followed by the national holidays accepted in the early Republic years, is the first national holiday in the modern sense. National Sovereignty and Children's Day, Republic Day, Victory Day, The day of Youth and Sports are national holidays accepted in the first years of the republic. Apart from these, the Land Day was accepted in 1945 in terms of the adoption of the Land Law to the public. It is not coincidental that the national holidays, which were accepted in the first years of the Republic, were chosen among the historical milestones during the War of Independence. The founders of the Republic ensured that those historical days were kept alive in the minds of the society, the regime was adopted and integra-ted with the people through the holidays. It is important to learn how these national holidays are celebrated during the Democratic Party Period, in terms of revealing the differences in the celebrations during the Atatürk Period and after. This study has been carried out in order to not have a general examination of national holidays in the Democratic Party Period. The change and transformation experienced by the society with the transition to multi-party life was also reflected in the national holiday celebrations. Although there are similarities in the celebrations, the differences have become evident over time. The Democrat Party which, celebrated national holidays as the continuity of previous years, came to power in 1950. However, the conflicts between the govern-ment and the opposition were sometimes reflected in the festival celebrations and the holidays were overshadowed by the tensions experienced. The aim of this study is to reveal the activities and actions for the celebrating of national holidays by the Democrat Party that, was the ruling party with the general elections held on May 14, 1950. Keywords: Democrat Party, National Sovereignty and Children's Day, Republic Day, Victory Day, The day of Youth and Sports