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ANDRZEJBISZTYGA
wasnolongeranassemblyofnoblemen,butoftheirrepresentatives,andanew
legislativebody.3miswasaccompaniedbytheemergenceoftheSenate,which
stemsfromanearlierinstitution,theKing’sCouncil,whichwasanadvisory
body.megeneralSejm,orparliament,wouldnowbeformedfromthreeele-
ments:theHouseofRepresentatives,theSenate,andtheKing.meKingwould
presideovertheSenate,appointingsenatorsforaperpetualtermofoIce.Over
thecenturies,thenumberofsenatorswouldchange,reachingamaximumof
150.meSenateoftheRepublicofPolandfunctioneduntil1794,i.e.,untilthe
anti-RussianKuściuszkoinsurrection.In1795,followingthethirdpartitionof
PolandbyRussia,Prussia,andAustria,Polandlostindependencefor123years.
InthesubstitutesofthePolishstate,i.e.theDuchyofWarsaw(1807–1815)and
theKingdomofPoland(1815–1831),thePolishparliamentretaineditsbicam-
eralstructure,withtheSenateasoneofthehouses.
OneoftheconsequencesofPolandregainingindependencein1918was
therestitutionofabicameralparliament,includingtheSenate.meSenatewas
providedforinbothPolishinterwarconstitutions,theMarchConstitutionof
1921andtheAprilConstitutionof1935.AfterWorldWarII,theSenateofthe
RepublicofPolandwasabolishedbythecommunistauthoritiesfollowingthe
manipulatedreferendumof1946.mecommunistconstitutionaldoctrinene-
gatedtheneedforaSenate,asitwasperceivedasthehousewhereconservative
powerswouldconcentrate.
mepoliticaltransformationstartedinPolandbytheSolidaritymovement
broughtaboutsignificantchangesinCentralEurope,startingfrom1989.Inline
withthePolishtraditionofliberty,oneoftheconsequencesofthisdemocratic
processwastherestitutionoftheSenate.OnJune4,1989,thefirstfreeand
democraticelectionstotheSenateoftheRepublicofPolandwereheld.Inthe
dramatichistoryofPolishstatehood,thebicameralstructureoftheparliament
hasalwaysbeenapermanentelement.WheneverPolandenjoyedindependence,
theSenateexisted.
II.Inaccordancewiththedominantpoliticaltradition,afunctioningPolish
parliamentisabicameralparliament.meSejm,referredtoasthefirstchamber
dominates,whiletheSenateisthesecondchamber.Polishparliamentarybi-
cameralismisclassifiedasnon-egalitarianbicameralism.misisaconsequence
ofadilerentiationoftasksandcompetencesofbothchambersandtheirasym-
metryincarryingoutthefunctionsoftheparliament.
3
W.Czapliński,Dziejesejmupolskiegodoroku1939,Warszawa1984,p.25.
