| Constitution of the Soviet Union | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Congress of Soviets of the Soviet Union | |
| |
| Territorial extent |  Soviet Union |
| Enacted by | Congress of Soviets of the Soviet Union |
| Signed by | Vladimir Lenin |
| Effective | 31 January 1924; 101 years ago (1924-01-31) |
| Repealed | 5 December 1936; 88 years ago (1936-12-05) |
| Repealed by | |
| 1936 Constitution of the Soviet Union | |
| Status:Repealed | |
The1924 Constitution of the Soviet Union was thecommunist state constitution adopted on 31 January 1924.
The 1924 Constitution was the firstconstitution of theSoviet Union and ratified by theSecond Congress of Soviets. The 1924 Constitution legitimized the December 1922Treaty on the Creation of the USSR between theRussian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, theUkrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, theByelorussian Soviet Republic, and theTranscaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic founding the Soviet Union. In essence, the 1924 Constitution was an expansion and generalization of the 1922 Treaty, with most of the major parts already specified by the treaty, and also allowed for a potential expansion of the Soviet Union.[1]Whereas the original Treaty had only 26 articles, the 1924 Constitution now had 72 divided into eleven chapters. The 1924 Constitution replaced theRussian Constitution of 1918 which served as a precursor and influenced the main principles of the Union-wide constitution.
The 1924 Constitution established theCongress of Soviets to be the supreme body of Soviet state authority, with theCentral Executive Committee having this authority during the interims and serving as the country'scollective presidency. The Central Executive Committee also elected theCouncil of People's Commissars, which served as theexecutive branch of the government. The Central Executive Committee, effectively the legislature, was divided into theSoviet of the Union representing theconstituent republics, and theSoviet of Nationalities representing directly the interests ofnationality groups. ThePresidium supervised the government administration between sessions of the Central Executive Committee.[2]
The 1924 Constitution survived six editions until it was replaced by the1936 Constitution of the Soviet Union on 5 December 1936.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. Country Studies.Federal Research Division. -Soviet Union