Centro partijų koalicija Steigiamajame Seime ir 1922 metų Lietuvos valstybės Konstitucija

Abstract

The article analyses the importance of the Coalition of central parties, which was active during the period of drafting the Constitution of 1922, and its influence to the content of the Constitution. This Coalition integrated the two top political powers of the Constituent assembly – the Christian Democrats representing the central right position, and the Peasants Populists representing the central left position. Attitude of the Coalition partners towards the fundamental constitutional principles did not differ substantially. The Christian Democrats who dominated in the Constituent assembly spoke for the parliamentary democracy along with the President of the Republic and the Cabinet of ministers accountable to Seimas. Although the Peasants Populists supported the principal provisions of the left powers striving to make Seimas the sole authority, replacing Government with appropriate parliamentary commissions, and establishing the position of Chairman of Seimas instead of President, they did not object to going into compromise with the Christian democrats. The both sides could not, however, agree on the attitude towards certain fundamental values, i.e. the attitude towards the cross-relationship between the church and the state, and towards the questions concerning education and religion. Constitutional freedom of conscience was a particularly important and sore topic, that the programs of the Christians democrats and of all the left positions suggested to deal with in different ways.