Constitution Day: when is it celebrated, is it a day off, history, congratulations. Fighting opponents of the new constitution

11.10.2019

December 5, 2018 marks 82 years since the adoption of the "Stalinist constitution". Today many people try not to remember this "Basic Law". If they do mention it, they portray it as a "smokescreen" designed to hide the mass repressions that had been prepared in advance. Interesting facts about this important document, known to few, read in our material.

The new Constitution as a defense of the USSR

In his book about Stalin, Edward Radzinsky wrote: "Before the New Year, Stalin arranged a holiday for the people: he gave him the Constitution, written by poor Bukharin." This short phrase contains several factual errors.

First, the Constitution was adopted not “just before the New Year,” but on December 5, 1936. Secondly, the new Constitution was not "given" from above. Its adoption was preceded by many months of nationwide discussions of the draft Constitution. Thirdly, Bukharin was not the author of the Constitution, but only headed one of the subcommissions on its preparation.

Until 1936, the Constitution of 1924 was in force in the USSR, which consisted of the Declaration and the Treaty on the Formation of the USSR and consolidated the power of the Soviets, built on the principle of delegation - the subordinate Soviets formed the higher ones. The electoral system of the Soviets was not that important, because since the 1920s they have been the facade of the communist regime. However, the "power of the Soviets" was the pride of the Bolsheviks, since it differed from the "parliamentary talking shop" of the bourgeois countries. In Western countries, the Soviet system was considered a sign of the undemocratic nature of the USSR, since no general elections were held in the "land of the Soviets".

The ideas of political reforms were ripe with Stalin from the beginning of the 30s, and finally took shape after Hitler came to power, that is, at the end of 1933. It was when it became clear that a mortal danger was ripening over the country. Initially, the most important changes were supposed to be carried out in foreign policy. And then what had to happen was something that Stalin was not warning about under the cover: a wide change in the leadership of all levels of power.

The new foreign policy provided for a refusal to incite the world revolution, the conclusion of defensive treaties with capitalist countries, a refusal to fight the Social Democrats, an appeal to the communists of other countries to switch from the policy of boycotting elections to participating in them.

However, all attempts to create an anti-fascist coalition in the early 1930s failed. England, Poland and France, on which the greatest hopes were pinned, abandoned the military anti-fascist alliance with the USSR. This was the defeat of the "new foreign policy", and by no means the fault of the USSR.

Heading towards democracy

At the Congress in 1936, Stalin first spoke of democracy: "The ruling classes of the capitalist countries are diligently destroying or nullifying the last remnants of parliamentarism and bourgeois democracy that can be used by the working class in its struggle against the oppressors." This is an absolutely new motive in the speeches of the Soviet leadership, which should not be underestimated.

Some of the provisions of bourgeois democracy were to be reflected in the new Constitution. But the main goal of its creation is to replace a significant part of the partocrats with specialists, and then gradually limit the power of the party and demonstrate to the whole world the change in the policy of the Soviet Union towards liberalization. Unfortunately, none of these goals have been fully achieved.

Stalin intended to remove the party from real power altogether. Therefore, I first conceived a new Constitution, and then, on its basis, alternative elections. After that, he intended to adopt a new Party Program and Charter. There is reason to believe that party reforms could have been even bolder. Stalin, speaking at a plenum in 1936, said: "We have no different parties. Fortunately or unfortunately, we have one party."

And, as you know, Stalin did not express rash thoughts. To limit the power of the party, to equate it with the Soviets is a pipe dream of a dictator. Although it was not possible to accomplish this task in the 1930s, it excited Stalin's imagination all his life. The leader tried to implement this idea after the war, but did not have time.

Everyone has the right to choose

If you carefully read the Stalinist Constitution of 1936, it is easy to see that the party appears there only once in Article 125, this is an article about public organizations. It said that the party is the core of public organizations. Not the leading force of the country and society, which it became in the Brezhnev Constitution, but just the core of the social strata.

There was not even a hint of a "world revolution" in the new Constitution. Elections to the Supreme Soviet must be held by secret ballot. Prior to that, they were carried out in the workplace and were carried out by a simple show of hands. The new Constitution provided for ballot papers and ballot boxes. It is interesting that at first they even wanted to introduce envelopes, that is, the ballots had to be put into envelopes, and then dropped into the ballot box.

There have never been equal elections in the country. The workers' quota was five times higher than that of the peasants. And many categories of citizens (kulaks, priests, former landowners, gendarmes and generals) were generally deprived of voting rights. Under the new Constitution, electoral rights were returned to everyone - this affected the interests of more than two million people, elections became equal and direct, that is, without electors, as was always the case in Russia.

At the suggestion of the Prosecutor General of the USSR A. Vyshinsky, the Politburo approved the decision to remove the convictions from collective farmers convicted of petty embezzlement under the so-called law of three ears. As a result, in the year of the adoption of the Constitution and on the eve of the proposed elections to the Supreme Soviet, about a million people returned from prison. At the same time, the pressure of the punitive machine on the population was sharply reduced. So, speaking at the VIII Extraordinary Congress of Soviets, Vyshinsky cited the following data: "If the number of convicts in the first half of 1933 is taken as 100, then in the RSFSR in the first half of 1936 the number of convicts would be 51.8 percent."

Limit party power

“Stalin was not interested in the party nomenklatura as such, he needed control over the secretaries of regional committees, regional committees and national republics. and aimed at it, "- writes researcher Yuri Zhukov in his book" Another Stalin ".

Perhaps that is why Stalin decided to pass a norm that would allow several candidates in the elections for one seat in the Supreme Soviet. In this case, the first secretary of the regional committee would have to compete with one or two opponents. And since by the mid-30s the secretaries had already done a lot of things in their fields, their competitors could have won out with a high probability. Accustomed to the "leather jacket and the Mauser" since the Civil War, the party apparatchiks were incapable of leading activities and should, according to Stalin's idea, be released "as having lost contact with the masses." In this way, bloodlessly and democratically, the problem of replacing incompetent leaders in their posts would be solved.

Stalin carefully concealed his fundamental idea from the majority of the members of the Central Committee. But he understood that someday this issue would still have to be brought up for discussion at the Plenum and his Byzantine tricks would be unraveled. In order not to discuss this key idea at the closed Areopagus, but to immediately enlist the support of the masses, he chose an unusual path.

For the first time, he publicly announced the decisive addition to the draft of the new Constitution in an interview he gave to one of the leaders of the American newspaper association Scripps-Howard Newspapers, Roy Wilson Howard, on March 1, 1936.

Stalin said: "... the electoral lists for the elections will be presented not only by the Communist Party, but also by all kinds of non-party public organizations." Further, he formulated his secret plan, until that moment hidden from the majority of the members of the Central Committee: "General, equal, direct and secret elections in the USSR will be a whip in the hands of the population against poorly working government bodies."

Work on a new Constitution

At the beginning, A. Yenukidze, secretary of the Central Executive Committee, worked on the draft Constitution. But he began to challenge many provisions, in particular, he objected to the provision on the separation of powers and the election of judges. Realizing that you couldn't cook porridge with him, Stalin created an editorial commission, which, by the way, included Bukharin. It is curious that Bukharin strongly objected to equal voting rights for workers and peasants.

But in the end, Stalin got tired of arguing, and he entrusted the work on the project to two heads of departments of the Central Committee, Stetsky and Yakovlev. They did all the main work - they wrote the drafts of the Constitution and the electoral law. The final version of the Constitution was written by Stalin himself. He revised it many times before submitting the final text for public discussion. Thus, Article 126, which deals with the right of citizens to unite, Stalin wrote longer than others. In total, he personally wrote eleven of the most significant articles of the Basic Law of the USSR.

The draft Constitution of the USSR was published in all newspapers of the country, broadcast on the radio, published in separate brochures in 100 languages of the peoples of the USSR with a circulation of over 70 million copies. The scope of the nationwide discussion of the project is evidenced by the following data: more than 50 million people (55% of the country's adult population) took part in it; about two million amendments, additions and proposals to the project were made. The latter circumstance testifies to the fact that the discussion of the draft was not formal.

It was assumed that simultaneously with the Constitution, a new electoral law would be adopted, according to which the nomination of candidates to the Supreme Soviet would immediately begin. Stalin intended to hold the elections the same year. Samples of ballots have already been approved, money has been allocated for campaigning and elections.

In his report on November 25, 1936, the leader of the party condemned those who insisted on continuing to "deprive clergymen, former White Guards and persons not engaged in generally useful labor, or, in any case, to restrict the voting rights of individuals. this category, giving them only the right to elect, but not to be elected. " Rejecting this position, Stalin referred to the changes that had occurred with these groups of people. Without abandoning the thesis about the intensification of the class struggle as he moved towards socialism, Stalin at the same time proceeded from the fact that in a renewed Soviet society the degree of influence of hostile forces on the consciousness of Soviet people could not be significant.

He stated: "Firstly, not all former kulaks, White Guards or priests are hostile to Soviet power. Secondly, if the people here and there elect hostile people, this will mean that our propaganda work is done very badly and we deserve that shame. " So Stalin proclaimed a turn in political life from prohibitions to the removal of social and political restrictions.

Stalin's new beginnings were embodied in the political organization of Soviet society. And although in the future he did not succeed in obtaining elections with several candidates, the sample of the ballot paper did not change until the end of Soviet power. Therefore, when elections were held in 1989 with several candidates, the form of the ballot, approved by Stalin and other members of the Politburo in 1937, did not have to be changed.

Fight against opponents of the new Constitution

The adoption by the Extraordinary VIII All-Union Congress of Soviets of the Constitution of the USSR was greeted with enthusiasm by the overwhelming majority of Soviet people. December 5 - the day of the adoption of the Stalinist Constitution - was declared a holiday.

However, many leaders from the leading cadres of the party resisted the adoption of the new Constitution. Of course, there were no open speeches by party apparatchiks, but the closer the deadline for the adoption of the new Constitution approached, the more signs of latent resistance from the broad party leadership appeared. In particular, it in every possible way avoided discussing the provisions of the basic law in the open press and at plenary sessions of the Central Committee, and thus generally distanced itself from the "new course."

Perhaps Stalin underestimated the bureaucratic elite of the party, its ability to resist. And he was punished for it. The party democracy made a strong move: the Constitution was approved on December 5, 1936, and the adoption of the electoral law was postponed for a year. Thus, the elections to the Supreme Soviet were automatically postponed also for a year.

June 1937. Finally, the Plenum of the Central Committee, without amendments, approves the new electoral law with alternative candidates. The day before the closing of the Plenum, Robert Eikhe, secretary of the West Siberian Regional Committee, an ardent Latvian revolutionary who several years earlier had unleashed terrible repressions on the village during grain procurements, submitted a note to the Politburo stating that the NKVD was doing poorly in the region.

"The Chekists uncovered the anti-Soviet rebel kulak organization, but they did not completely defeat it, arresting only the top. And on the eve of the elections, which are scheduled for December, it is necessary to crack down on the entire anti-Soviet organization, arrest and convict everyone," Eikhe said in a note. To speed up the process, he asks to be allowed to organize a troika, already tested against the peasants. He will be at its head, together with the prosecutor and the head of the regional NKVD.

There is reason to believe that Eikhe acted not only on his own behalf, but expressed the demands of a significant group of first secretaries. It is difficult to abandon the assumption that this initiative was a "trial balloon", a way to test their strength and the determination of the "narrow leadership".

In this regard, the following fact deserves attention. Regional secretaries usually rarely visited Stalin's office. And here, judging by the visit log, one day Stalin was visited by five first secretaries, the next day four more.

Of course, no one will know what was discussed during these meetings - all the visitors soon died. However, they supported Eikhe's initiative, turning it into an ultimatum: either Stalin accepts their proposal, or the Plenum will consider the issue of his resignation as a "deviator." At this time, Stalin did not have a majority in the Central Committee, and he was forced to accept an ultimatum.

Eikhe by decision of the Politburo received permission to create a troika. Next, other secretaries were vested with similar rights. Within a month, everyone sent telegrams, where they asked for the right to create troikas and immediately indicated how many people they were going to send and how many they were going to shoot. Six of the nine secretaries who attended Stalin's reception were the first to send them.

Perhaps Stalin was influenced by the conspiracy in which the highest military leaders participated, uncovered on the eve of the Plenum, or something else. But this something had to be very serious. So, if before the Plenum he rarely authorized the arrests of repentant oppositionists, then after him on telegrams with similar requests from the secretaries, he invariably wrote: "I agree."

What was the 1936 Constitution for the people?

The new Constitution reflected the realities of "victorious socialism," a country of "workers and peasants." For the first time in Soviet times, all citizens were recognized as equal and could participate in general, direct, equal elections by secret ballot. The new law guaranteed the observance of the freedoms and rights of citizens, adding to them the right to work and rest, the inviolability of the person and home.

The most important provision of the Constitution was that it proclaimed the basis of the economy socialist property (state and cooperative-collective farm) and allowed "small private farming" with the prohibition of the exploitation of other people's labor.

The significance of the Stalinist Constitution was that it was the first Constitution of a truly socialist state in our national and world history.

It was only in the Stalin Constitution that the formulations of socio-economic guarantees were first heard, which we have always perceived as absolutely merged with the socialist way of life: citizens of the USSR have the right to work, to rest, to material security in old age and, in case of disability, to free education for all. types, including higher education, for free medical care. In this form, it existed until 1977, after which the definition of the Communist Party as "the main driving and determining force of society" was enshrined in the "Brezhnev Constitution".

One of the holidays is approaching, which during the existence of the Soviet Union and then the Russian Federation wandered so much on the calendar that many still do not know when to celebrate it. Of course you guessed that this holiday is Constitution Day.

When is the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation

Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation is celebrated 12 December, it is not a day off in Russia.

history of the holiday

The basic law, according to which our country lives today, was adopted by a popular vote December 12, 1993 under the president Boris Yeltsin therefore the current constitution is sometimes called Yeltsin's.

Constitution Day on December 12 has become not only a holiday, but also a day off since 1994. Then Boris Yeltsin adopted two decrees: "On the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation" and "On the non-working day of December 12".

Alas, since 2005, December 12 has ceased to be a day off. This happened after the State Duma adopted the relevant amendments to the Labor Code of Russia in December 2004.

The first Russian constitution

With the constitution in the Russian Empire, things were always so-so. Repeated attempts by advanced political forces to limit the power of the monarch by law, as a rule, remained only intentions that, for various reasons, could not be implemented (despite the fact that the Polish Kingdom, which was part of the Russian Empire, had a constitution).

The first Russian constitution, in fact, was the Basic State Laws of the Russian Empire, adopted in 1905-1906 at the behest of the emperor NicholasII... This document was granted by the monarch and was not approved either by a popular vote or by the then Duma.

Lenin's, Stalin's and Brezhnev's constitutions

After the October Revolution, the monarchy was abolished, and Russia became first a bourgeois, and then a Soviet republic.

In 1918 it was adopted the first Constitution of Soviet Russia.

Then it was adopted USSR Constitution of 1924... This document was approved by the Second Congress of Soviets of the USSR and became the first fundamental law of the newly formed Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The 1924 Constitution consolidated the state structure of the USSR on the basis of Soviet power and the dictatorship of the proletariat and reflected the multinational character of the Soviet Union.

The 1924 Constitution was replaced by the famous "Stalin's constitution", which, with minor changes, existed from 1336 to 1977. The USSR Constitution of 1936 (it was also called the "Constitution of Victorious Socialism") was adopted by the VIII All-Union Extraordinary Congress of Soviets on December 5, 1936. Therefore, in the Soviet Union, Constitution Day was celebrated 5th of December and it was a day off.

In 1977, the "Stalinist" one was replaced by "Brezhnev Constitution", which was officially called the "Constitution of Developed Socialism". It was adopted by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on October 7, 1977, so the Constitution Day holiday moved from December 5 to October 7th.

The "Brezhnev Constitution" existed from 1977 to 1991, losing its force with the disappearance of the Soviet Union.

Congratulations on the Constitution Day on December 12

***
Freedom, equality and fraternity
For everyone and everyone in the country.
An opportunity for everyone to get together,
Learn both for you and for me.

Have children and build a house,
Create, work and breathe.
Think freely, argue enough ...
What, tell me, still dream about?

Happy Constitution Day, friends!
May this holiday in every home
Brings order and freedom
And faith in the Basic Law.

***
Constitution Day - what kind of holiday?
A holiday of laws, a holiday of freedoms.
Constitution Day is an important holiday
The day when all the Russian people are happy.

The highest value is you, man!
On Constitution Day, always and forever.
On a holiday, we honor our main law,
It became a memorable date for us.

Constitution Day, a big holiday,
All Russians will celebrate with heart.
We celebrate this day for a reason,
This day is December 12!

December 12 is the holiday that used to be the red day of the calendar. Now it is an ordinary working day, but it has not lost the status of a holiday. The fact is that on December 12 the whole country celebrates the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. A recent poll by the Levada Center showed that only 40% of Russians have read the Russian Constitution. By the way, with the help of ours you can check whether you are one of these eleven selected percent of the country's population;)

Probably, when December 12 was a day off, the holiday was loved more, but the site nevertheless decided to arrange a small educational program and remind us what we celebrate and why.

What kind of holiday is this, Constitution Day?

Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation is celebrated 12 December. Despite the fact that the holiday is given fairly wide publicity, it is not a day off in Russia. The basic law, according to which our country lives today, was adopted by popular vote on December 12, 1993 under President Boris Yeltsin. Therefore, the current constitution is sometimes called "Yeltsin's".

When was Constitution Day a day off and when did it stop

Constitution Day on December 12 has become not just a holiday, but also a red day of the calendar (day off) since 1994. Then Boris Yeltsin adopted two decrees: "On the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation" and "On the non-working day of December 12".

Unfortunately, after 11 years (since 2005) December 12 is no longer a day off. This happened after the State Duma adopted the relevant amendments to the Labor Code of Russia in December 2004. The red day of the calendar was canceled, but the holiday remained - according to its status, it is a memorable date.

What was Constitution Day in the USSR

The first constitution of the USSR was adopted on January 31, 1924. It was in it that the victory of socialism was proclaimed. In fact, the 24-year constitution legislatively consolidated the formation of the USSR: a state that included union republics. The next Soviet constitution, "Stalin's", was adopted on December 5, 1936. It is curious that she not only identified a fairly wide range of socio-political issues facing the country, but also proclaimed the end of the main stage in the construction of socialism in the USSR. In the period from 1937 to 1977, the Day of the Constitution of the USSR was celebrated on December 5.

The "Stalinist" constitution was in effect for a long time, until 1977, when it was replaced by the "Brezhnev" constitution, popularly known as "stagnant". The day of the constitution was postponed to December 7, the date of its adoption. In fact, the "stagnant" constitution was in effect until 1993.

What are the holidays on December 5 in Russia? This day is not officially recognized as a day off. However, if people do not celebrate, then they remember exactly three holidays and one important event that happened on the fifth day of winter. This is World Volunteer Day, the day of the start of the offensive of Russian troops in the battle near Moscow, Prokopiev Day, International Day of Soils.

International Volunteer Day

On December 5th, countries around the world celebrate a holiday dedicated to people who help others free of charge. At the fortieth session in 1985, the UN recommended that other states celebrate International Volunteers Day. On this date, they usually congratulate those who are ready to work unconditionally and free of charge for the benefit of people and animals. This remarkable holiday has a longer title: International Day of Volunteers for Economic and Social Development. Its organizers focus on volunteers who do not participate in military operations and hostilities. The main characters are those people who unselfishly work for the sake of social, cultural and economic development.

The Universal Declaration of Volunteers says that volunteers can give their time and energy to social and individual actions without expecting material rewards. Nowadays, noble deeds are a rarity that is highly valued. Therefore, on December 5, it is necessary not only to say kind words to all volunteers in the world, but also to think about our own selfless actions.

This day officially became a memorable date in 1995 (approved by the law of the Russian Federation). The battle opened the second stage of the battle for Moscow. The Nazis were at that time better in all respects, but could not overcome the defense. Then everything happened the other way around, the Soviet troops went on the offensive. They forced the German army to look for new ways to retreat. The battle near Moscow is of significant importance both militarily and politically, since the enemy was able to flee and break morally. Now, many years later, on December 5, people in memory of the events of those years hold various patriotic events, lay flowers at monuments and memorials, and organize evenings for veterans.

What is the Orthodox holiday on December 5 in Russia people celebrate

On this day, Orthodox Christians around the world remember Saint Procopius. There is not much information about him. He lived in the IV century in the capital of Israel, had the nickname "reader", as he held such a post in the Caesarean church. His responsibilities included:

interpretation of the Holy Scriptures;
translation of the teaching into the Syrian language;
casting out demons.

Procopius decided not to return to paganism and refused to worship idols, for which he was tortured and deprived of his head. In Ancient Russia, it was believed that from that moment a good snow cover was formed, which made it possible to freely ride on sleds. Also, what holidays does the church celebrate on December 5 in Russia?

On this day, Christians proclaim the Apostle Archippus and the Martyr Apphia, and also venerate the Blessed Prince Mikhail Yaroslavich of Tver and Prince Yaropolk Vladimir-Volynsky.

World soil day

The development of civilization, as well as the existence of all mankind, largely depends on the quality of the soil. She is the nurse. Plants are grown in the land, animals are grazed on it, minerals are mined, etc. World Soil Day is celebrated annually. The corresponding resolution was adopted in 2013, but this day is not a day off. The holiday of December 5 in Russia and in the world is intended to draw the attention of the entire population of the Earth to the role of soil resources in the life of states and individuals, as well as in the ecosystem of the planet as a whole. Only the awareness of the importance of preserving this resource can influence the consumer trend prevailing in the world. The main tasks of this day of events are educational in nature. Are created by ecologists, scientists and certain programs, the purpose of which is to preserve soil resources.

Incredible facts:

More than 95% of insects have a bond with the soil.
Geological scientists have found that one hectare of soil contains almost two hundred kilograms of various microelements.

Birthday

Among the Orthodox names:

Boris.
Alexey.
Prokop.
Fedor.
Vladimir.
Paraskeva.
Maksim.
Alexander.
Mark.
Gerasim.

What holidays are not celebrated on December 5 in Russia, but are celebrated in other countries of the world? On this date, people also celebrate Father's Day in Thailand and Statistics Workers Day in Ukraine.

Father's Day in Thailand

Thais celebrate this wonderful holiday on the birthday of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who was considered the direct heir to the royal dynasty, which has ruled since 1782. Bhumibol ascended the throne in 1946, and his rule over the beautiful country lasted 70 years (until 2016).

The ruler received the title of the Great from the people, known as Rama IV. He is considered the longest reigning monarch in the entire history of Thailand.

Statistics Workers Day in Ukraine

This date has been officially celebrated as a professional holiday since 2002, the decree of the head of state was issued on December 2. It was introduced in order to support the initiative of the State Statistics Committee of the country, taking into account the huge contribution of workers in this industry to the development of the economy.

Historical events

In 1925, on December 5, the premiere of the first silent film "Battleship Potemkin", directed by Sergei Eisenstein at the Mosfilm film concern, took place.

In 1909, a duel between Maximilian Alexandrovich Voloshin and Nikolai Stepanovich Gumilev took place on the Black River. The poetess Elizaveta Dmitrieva was to blame.

In 1936, the USSR Constitution was adopted, which was unofficially called "Stalinist", or "Constitution of victorious socialism."

And from year to year, by decrees of the President of Russia ("On the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation" and "On the non-working day of December 12"), December 12 was declared a public holiday.