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TheEstonian Constituent Assembly (Estonian:Asutav Kogu) was elected on 5–7 April 1919,[1] called by theEstonian Provisional Government during theEstonian War of Independence.
The 120 members of the Constituent Assembly met at the opening session on 23 April 1919, the birthday of the Estonian Parliament[1] and elected the chairman, Social DemocratAugust Rei. On 7 May, the Assembly passed the Public Elementary Schools Act: The principle of compulsory and free primary 6-year elementary school education was established.[2]
On 8 May 1919, the Estonian provisional government resigned, and the first fully democratically electedGovernment of Estonia headed byPrime MinisterOtto Strandman (Estonian Labor Party) took office. On 15 May, the assembly reaffirmed theEstonian Declaration of Independence, aimed at the international community for recognizing Estonia as an independent state.
On 4 June 1919, the Assembly adopted a temporaryConstitution of Estonia, and on 10 October 1919, theLand Reform Act was passed, which confiscated and redistributed theBaltic German estates, ending the 700 years possession of the regions that the Germans had gained after theLivonian Crusade.[3]
On 13 February, thePeace Treaty of Tartu was ratified, signed by Estonia andRussian SFSR on 2 February. The first Constitution of Estonia was adopted on 15 June 1920. After the constitution had entered into effect and thefirst parliamentary elections were held, the Constituent Assembly disbanded itself on 20 December 1920.[4]