Liberal Revolution

The Liberal Revolution was a movement in the early 1880s to liberalize the country.

Background
In 1852, King Cristian I modernized the political system by making the office of President an elected body. When he died in 1859, his son Johan I, a diehard conservative, wanted to get rid of the post of president. He found lots of resistance and found it hard to do this. In the summer of 1870, he dissolved the post, but Royal Guard planned to turn against him and he undid his move.

The coup
In 1881, it appeared King Johan planned to do the same thing he did in 1870. Upon hearing this, there was intense debate, with Pieter II and the president, Pieter Van Neyt opposed to this. On January 26, 1881, King Johan dissolved Congress and ordered the army to arrest his son and Van Neyt. Upon hearing this, most of the Royal Guard quickly deserted Johan. The future King Pieter II and The Guard made it to the palace and planned to arrest the king. But, he quickly escaped the palace and left by boat to Europe. Pieter was proclaimed the king and re-established congress that month.