The Second National Assembly at Astros was the second Greek National Assembly

Greek National Assembly

The Greek National Assemblies are representative bodies of the Greek people. During and in the direct aftermath of the Greek War of Independence , the name was used for the insurgents' proto-parliamentary assemblies...

, a national representative body of the Greeks who had rebelled

Greek War of Independence

The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...

 against the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

.

It convened at Astros

Astros, Greece

Astros is a town near the Argolic Gulf in the northeast Peloponnese in eastern Arcadia. The name and the settlement both date back to ancient times, when it was known as Astron. Astros is the seat of North Kynouria municipality , which is the largest in Arcadia and has the greatest number of...

 between 29 March and 18 April 1823 under the chairmanship of Petros Mavromichalis

Petros Mavromichalis

Petros Mavromichalis , also known as Petrobey , was the leader of the Maniot people during the first half of the 19th century. His family had a long history of revolts against the Ottoman Empire, which ruled most of what is now Greece...

. Its most important task was the revision of the Constitution of Epidaurus

Greek Constitution of 1822

The Greek Constitution of 1822 was a document adopted by the First National Assembly of Epidaurus on January 1, 1822. Formally it was the Provisional Regime of Greece , sometimes translated as Temporary Constitution of Greece...

, adopted in the First National Assembly. The new Constitution was voted on April 13, and was called the Epidaurus Law

Greek Constitution of 1823

Greek Constitution of 1823 is the second constitutional text adopted during the Greek War of Independence, which started in 1821. In the spring of 1823 took place the 2nd National Assembly, which adopted the new constitution, named "Law of Epidauros"...

to stress its continuity with the one of 1822. It was legally more articulate as compared to its predecessor. It allowed a slight superiority to the Legislative power as opposed to the Executive, given the fact that the latter's veto power was circumcised from an absolute to a suspending one. The new Constitution also marked an improvements as far as the protection of human rights

Human rights

Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...

 was concerned: property was protected, as was the honor and the security not only of Greeks but of all persons on Greek territory; it established the freedom of the press

Freedom of the press

Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the freedom of communication and expression through vehicles including various electronic media and published materials...

 and abolished slavery

Slavery

Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...

. It also abolished local governments

Greek local statutes

The Greek Local Statutes were the local assemblies of Greece during the Greek War of Independence who codified certain 'proto-constitutions' ratified by local assemblies with the aim of eventually establishing a centralized Parliament under a...

. However, the great disadvantage of the yearly term of the Administrative branches remained unaltered, a result of the ever-growing distrust between politicians and the military. The Assembly of Astros passed a new electoral law, according to which the right to vote was bestowed to men rather than to seniors, while the voting age went down from 30 to 25 years.