| The first Act on the National Assembly of Serbia was passed on October 28, 1858 . Based on this Act, the St. Andrew's Day Assembly was convened, and held from November 30, 1858 to January 31, 1859 in Belgrade. Thus the institution of National Assembly was made legal, and foundations were laid for a system of popular representation in Serbia.
Common-law assemblies were held from the beginning of the 19th century until 1858. They were convened either by the Prince or by the Council whenever they saw fit. They were also held during the First and Second Serbian Uprisings, from 1804 to 1815 ("Popular assemblies in times of uprisings"). The participants in these assemblies, except for a few rare cases, were invited by the Prince or by the Council, rather than elected by the people. Common-law assemblies were almost always held under the open sky, and thousands of people would attend. At one of them, the Sretenje Assembly, held on the day of the Serbian Orthodox Church religious holiday, the first Serbian constitution - Sretenje Constitution - was ratified. In early September of 1842, the "Defenders of the Constitution" headed by Toma Vucic-Perisic, aided by the Assembly, deposed Prince Mihailo and put Aleksandar Karadordevic in his place. Sixteen years later, at the St. Andrew's Day Assembly, they performed a dynastic coup and returned the Obrenovic family to the throne. |