The Constitution of the Polish People's Republic (also known as the July Constitution or the Constitution of 1952) was a supreme law passed in communist-ruled Poland on 22 July 1952. It superseded the post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

provisional Small Constitution of 1947, which in turn replaced the pre-war

April Constitution The April Constitution of Poland ( pl, Ustawa konstytucyjna 23 IV 1935 or ''Konstytucja kwietniowa'') was the general law passed by the act of the Polish Sejm on 23 April 1935. It introduced in the Second Polish Republic a presidential syste ...

of 1935. The 1952 constitution introduced a new name for the Polish state, the

Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic ( pl, Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL) was a country in Central Europe that existed from 1947 to 1989 as the predecessor of the modern Republic of Poland. With a population of approximately 37.9 million ne ...

(''Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa'', PRL), replacing the previously used Republic of Poland (''Rzeczpospolita Polska''). The communist-led ''

Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...

'' (

legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known ...

) was declared to be the highest state authority. The real source of supreme state power, the

Polish United Workers' Party The Polish United Workers' Party ( pl, Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza; ), commonly abbreviated to PZPR, was the communist party which ruled the Polish People's Republic as a one-party state from 1948 to 1989. The PZPR had led two other lega ...

(PZPR), was not regulated by the constitution; it was ruled by its own statute. The constitution legalized many practices that had been introduced in Poland, in the wake of the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

and the

Polish People's Army The Polish People's Army ( pl, Ludowe Wojsko Polskie , LWP) constituted the second formation of the Polish Armed Forces in the East in 1943–1945, and in 1945–1989 the armed forces of the Polish communist state ( from 1952, the Polish Pe ...

defeat of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

in 1944–1945, by Polish-communist governmental bodies, including the

Polish Committee of National Liberation The Polish Committee of National Liberation (Polish: ''Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego'', ''PKWN''), also known as the Lublin Committee, was an executive governing authority established by the Soviet-backed communists in Poland at the la ...

(PKWN) and its successors. Instead of the traditional

separation of powers Separation of powers refers to the division of a state's government into branches, each with separate, independent powers and responsibilities, so that the powers of one branch are not in conflict with those of the other branches. The typi ...

, the constitution introduced the Soviet concept of "unity of the state's power". While the ultimate power was reserved for the

dictatorship of the proletariat In Marxist philosophy, the dictatorship of the proletariat is a condition in which the proletariat holds state power. The dictatorship of the proletariat is the intermediate stage between a capitalist economy and a communist economy, whereby the ...

, expressed as "the working people of towns and villages", the ''Sejm'' was granted on paper the paramount authority in government; it oversaw both the

judicial The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

and

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive di ...

branches. However, the ''Sejm'' in practice exercised little or no real power. Under the constitution, the

Polish Council of State The Council of State of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Rada Państwa) was introduced by the Small Constitution of 1947 as an organ of executive power. The Council of State consisted of the President of the Republic of Poland as chairman, the Marsha ...

replaced the office of the

President of Poland The president of Poland ( pl, Prezydent RP), officially the president of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Prezydent Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), is the head of state of Poland. Their rights and obligations are determined in the Constitution of Pola ...

as the

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and ...

organ. The constitution was amended twenty-four times, with the most contentious

amendment An amendment is a formal or official change made to a law, contract, constitution, or other legal document. It is based on the verb to amend, which means to change for better. Amendments can add, remove, or update parts of these agreements. The ...

being that of 10 February 1976. It was significantly amended during the Polish transformation, in

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

and

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engin ...

; from 29 December 1989 the document was known as the Constitution of the Republic of Poland. It was superseded by a new

Constitution of Poland The current Constitution of Poland was founded on 2 April 1997. Formally known as the Constitution of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Konstytucja Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), it replaced the Small Constitution of 1992, the last amended version of ...

on 17 October 1997.

Legislative branch

In the 1946 Polish people's referendum the

Senate of Poland The Senate ( pl, Senat) is the upper house of the Polish parliament, the lower house being the Sejm. The history of the Polish Senate stretches back over 500 years; it was one of the first constituent bodies of a bicameral parliament in Europ ...

had been abolished with the ''Sejm'' remaining the sole legislative body in Poland. Under the 1952 constitution, the ''Sejm'' officially became the "supreme organ of state power" under article 20. The ''Sejm'' of the Polish People's Republic started with 425 members in 1952 (one deputy represented 60,000 citizens). However, as the population grew, the number of deputies increased. By 1960 the constitution was amended, dropping the calculation and stabilizing the ''Sejm'' at 460 deputies. A "proportional" attribute was dropped from the five-point electoral law previously used. An article in the constitution stated that deputies were responsible to the people and could be recalled by the people, although this article was never used. Legislation was passed by

majority vote A majority, also called a simple majority or absolute majority to distinguish it from related terms, is more than half of the total.Dictionary definitions of ''majority'' aMerriam-Websternational plans as proposed by the executive. The ''Sejm'' deliberated in sessions, which were called by the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

elected by the ''Sejm'' from its members. The ''Sejm'' also chose a Presidium from its members, with the

Marshal of the Sejm The Marshal of the Sejm , also known as Sejm Marshal, Chairman of the Sejm or Speaker of the Sejm ( pl, Marszałek Sejmu, ) is the speaker (chair) of the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish Parliament. The office traces its origins to the 15th ...

always being a member of the United People's Party. During its first session the ''Sejm'' nominated the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

together with other ministers (the

Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...

), and members of the Council of State. Many other government officials were also chosen, including the head of the Supreme Audit Office (''Najwyższa Izba Kotroli'', NIK), members of the State Tribunal (''Trybunał Stanu'') and Constitutional Tribunal (''Trybunał Konstytucyjny''), as well as the

Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

(''Rzecznik Praw Obywatelskich'') (the latter three institutions were created in the 1980s). In practice, like its counterparts in other communist regimes, the ''Sejm'' did little more than rubber-stamp decisions already made by the PZPR.

Executive branch

Executive power was held by the Council of Ministers and the Council of State. The Council of State replaced the previous Polish head of the state, the

(which terminated the presidency of Bolesław Bierut). Article 29 provided that Council of State members were elected at the first session of the ''Sejm'' for the term of the ''Sejm'' (established at four years by Article 28). The council was composed of members of the ''Sejm''; they were usually chosen from the dominant Polish United Workers' Party, although occasionally other deputies were chosen. The council acted as the

(in practice the body was represented by the Chairman of the Council of State). Article 30 of the constitution set out the authority of the Council of State, including representing the Polish People's Republic in

foreign relations A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through m ...

and in ratification of international

treaties A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...

. The council also voted in matters related to the military. It granted citizenship and could invoke pardon. The council not only had legislative initiative under Article 25, but could issue administrative

decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used ...

s under Article 31. However, those decrees had to be confirmed by the ''Sejm'' in its next session. The council also defined the interpretation of laws, which in many countries is reserved to the

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

. The Council of Ministers also had legislative initiative under Article 25. The composition of the Council of Ministers was set forth in Article 39. The Council of Ministers developed the state budget and socio-economic plans and presented them to the ''Sejm'' for approval. After approval the Council of Ministers oversaw the execution of the plans and the budget.

Judiciary

The

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

was the overseer of all other courts, which were divided into regional (

voivodeship A voivodeship is the area administered by a voivode (Governor) in several countries of central and eastern Europe. Voivodeships have existed since medieval times and the area of extent of voivodeship resembles that of a duchy in western medieval ...

) and particular (administrative and military). In 1980, the Supreme Administrative Court was introduced. In 1982, the State Tribunal (which also existed in the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of the First World ...

), the Constitutional Tribunal, and the

office were introduced.

Amendments

During its forty-five years of service, the Constitution of the Polish People's Republic was subject to many changes, with its text amended 24 times. The most controversial amendment was that of 10 February 1976. The proposed amendment declared that Poland was a

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

country, the PZPR was the leading force in the building of socialism and Poland shared "unshakable fraternal bonds" with the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

. The amendment caused protests resulting in the Letter of 59, asking for inclusion of

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

as stated in the

Helsinki Accords The Helsinki Final Act, also known as Helsinki Accords or Helsinki Declaration was the document signed at the closing meeting of the third phase of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) held in Helsinki, Finland, betwee ...

. The government backed off somewhat, and the final amendment deleted the phrase "citizens' rights depend upon fulfillment of civic duties", changed "unshakable fraternal bonds" to "strengthening of friendship" and made other conciliatory changes, but after the revised amendment passed there were still protests from the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

and intellectuals. The constitution was heavily amended during the period of political transformation. The amendments purged the document of its state socialist phrasing. Among the more important changes were: * In April 1989, the

April Novelization The April Novelization ( pl, Nowela kwietniowa) was a set of changes (constitutional amendments) to the 1952 Constitution of the People's Republic of Poland, agreed in April 1989, in the aftermath of the Polish Round Table Agreement. Among key ...

was passed, restoring the

and the office of

Wojciech Jaruzelski Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski (; 6 July 1923 – 25 May 2014) was a Polish military officer, politician and ''de facto'' leader of the Polish People's Republic from 1981 until 1989. He was the First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party b ...

, elected in 1989, became the first president of Poland since 1952. * In December 1989, the

Contract Sejm Contract Sejm ( pl, Sejm kontraktowy) is a term commonly applied to the Sejm ("parliament") elected in the Polish parliamentary elections of 1989. The ''contract'' refers to an agreement reached by the Polish United Workers' Party and the Soli ...

changed the official name of the country from the Polish People's Republic to the Republic of Poland and removed references to Poland being a socialist state.See Article 1, Section 4, paragraph 1 and Article 1, section 8, * On 17 October 1992, much of the constitution was replaced by the Small Constitution of 1992.

Synopsis

The

1936 Constitution of the Soviet Union Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

was an exemplar act and the Russian translation of the draft text of the 1952 Constitution was personally reviewed and corrected by

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet Union, Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as Ge ...

; his modifications were inserted into the Polish text by

Bolesław Bierut Bolesław Bierut (; 18 April 1892 – 12 March 1956) was a Polish communist activist and politician, leader of the Polish People's Republic from 1947 until 1956. He was President of the State National Council from 1944 to 1947, President of Po ...

. The chief role of the 1952 Constitution was to ratify and secure communist rule in Poland, however, it failed to regulate the main source of power – the

communist party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel ...

(PZPR). The constitution served as a propaganda tool, proclaiming the "Polish People's Republic", and in theory establishing many rights for its citizens. In the 1970s and 1980s, the provisions of the constitution enabled opposition activists to challenge the authorities and accuse them of not complying with the constitution.

References

Sources

* * *

External links

English Translation of 1952 Constitution
from Sejm Library {{Authority control 1952 in law 1952 in Poland Constitutions of Poland Defunct constitutions Polish People's Republic Stalinism in Poland Legal history of Poland 1952 documents