Poland Celebrates 1791 May 3rd Constitution, Europe’s First Modern Bill

TIRANA – Poland has celebrated the 229th anniversary of the passage of its historic 1791 May 3rd Constitution, the first document of its kind in Europe, which historians call as Europe’s first modern constitution.

Top politicians including President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki attended on Sunday the Constitution Day mass at Warsaw’s St. John Cathedral, amidst strict security measures. All the participants wore face masks and kept a distance of two meters apart from one another. But the traditional military parade was cancelled due to coronavirus threat.

The May 3 Constitution was passed on May 3, 1791, by the Great Sejm (grand parliament) of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and was the first document of its kind in Europe, predating the famous French Constitution and following the American one by only four years. It introduced a hereditary constitutional monarchy (in place of the free election of kings), religious tolerance and the division of power into the legislative, executive and judicial branches, among other provisions.

Addressing a ceremony in Warsaw’s Castle Square, Duda recalled the circumstances surrounding the May 3rd Constitution, and reminded that it had been authored by Polish patriotic forces who wanted to reform and strengthen the Polish state. He added that although the Constitution had come into being amidst controversies, later history had passed a positive judgment on it.

Duda said that the ideas of independence and reconstruction that underlay the 1791 constitution were especially worthy of remembrance in light of Poland’s current battle against the coronavirus epidemic, which also called for a constitutional order.

Duda reminded that May 1 and 2 marked International Labour Day and Polish National Flag Day, and said that while the May 1 holiday was used for propaganda purposes in the communist era, it now celebrated the Poles’ common work for the good of their country.

The President also mentioned the May 1-falling 16th anniversary of Poland’s EU accession, stating that it was the beginning of “a new phase on the path to building our prosperity.” Duda said that since its accession to the Community, Poland has managed to raise its living standards considerably, even overtaking some longer-established EU members in this respect.

“Since then we have managed to achieve a lot. In recent times Poland has even begun to overtake some western countries in this respect, countries which have belonged to the Community for a much longer time,” Duda said. He added that a major driving force behind Poland’s prosperity leap were the present government’s large-scale welfare programmes like the 500 Plus child benefit and the recently-introduced 13th retirement pension payment.

Duda also said that May 2 marked Polish Diaspora Day, and in this context said that Poles had been frequently forced to emigrate from their country throughout history, which made them better able to appreciate the importance of national unity. “We are one community, and together we want to strive for our common good, a free Republic,” the president said.

Referring to the coronavirus epidemic, Duda said he was deeply impressed by the conduct of Poles in this situation and said that in today’s difficult times poles needed order and unity that the current Constitution protects and safeguards, so that the government can continue to undertake efficient steps against the epidemic and protect the safety of citizens.

“I am deeply impressed by how wonderfully Poles are behaving in face of the epidemic. Today I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to you for this. We are a wide and mature people, we are justly proud of our achievements. We love freedom, we want to make use of freedom, develop, prosper and be happy with our lives. But when we stand confronted by such a huge challenge, which we can only deal with together, we behave rationally, we are disciplined, we pool our forces and help one another in our daily problems,” Duda said.

May 3rd Constitution a pioneering act…

Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki called the May 3rd Constitution a pioneering act, which reflected Poland’s ambitions for modern statehood, in a Facebook statement marking the anniversary on Sunday. He added that it was built upon a heritage handed down by previous Polish generations.

“We must view the May 3rd Constitution observations not only as an anniversary of a modern state reform, but as the expression of a much broader, magnificent and unique heritage passed down by (…) generations of our predecessors,” Morawiecki said in his comment.

Marking the 229th anniversary of the 3 May Constitution Polish Foreign Ministry said on Twitter on Sunday: “It was Europe’s first and the world’s second modern constitution. The authors were inspired by the political thought and philosophy of the European Enlightenment and the American Constitution.”

Poland also celebrated a scaled-down National Flag Day on 2 May due to the coronavirus pandemic, but white and red colours adorned streets, public transportation and buildings.

The largest Polish flag in the country, at 500 square metres, was raised on the lighthouse in Swinoujscie, North-Western Poland. In Lodz, central Poland, parachuters celebrated National Flag Day, jumping with white-red parachutes.

National Flag Day was established in 2004. It aims to popularise knowledge about Polish identity and national symbols. The red and white colours were first recognised as national colours on 3 May 1792, on the first anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of 3 May. They were officially adopted as the colours of the Polish State by the Sejm of the Kingdom of Poland in 1831 during the November Uprising. /argumentum.al