Politický systém Druhé polské republiky (1918–1939)
The Political System of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1939)

Summary/Abstract: This article deals with the complicated and multifaceted topic of Polish politics between the two world wars. This time period was characterized not only by a “classical” political instability but, much more importantly, also by the instability of the whole political system. The democratic regime created in 1919 was weak and was abolished by force in 1926. The subsequent political system was authoritarian (but not totalitarian) and survived until the end of the Polish state in October 1939, when Poland was attacked and occupied by the German and Soviet armies. The questions posed by the article are manifold. Why did Poland introduce democracy in the hardship years of 1918–1919, but did so for only a few years? Why was not democracy successful? Why did Poland accept authoritarianism and what were the political and constitutional consequences of that step?

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