Silesian Parliament or Silesian Sejm ( pl, Sejm Śląski) was the governing body of the Silesian Voivodeship (1920–1939), an autonomous voivodeship of the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of ...

between 1920 and 1945. It was elected in democratic elections and had a certain influence over the usage of taxes collected in Silesia. It consisted of 48 deputies (24 from 1935).

History

The eastern part of Upper Silesia became part of the Second Polish Republic following the Silesian Uprisings throughout the Upper Silesian region between 1918 and 1921, and

Upper Silesia Plebiscite The Upper Silesia plebiscite was a plebiscite mandated by the Versailles Treaty and carried out on 20 March 1921 to determine ownership of the province of Upper Silesia between Weimar Germany and Poland. The region was ethnically mixed with bot ...

. The land was subsequently divided by an allied commission and the League of Nations, leaving the Katowice region on the Polish side. Together with Cieszyn Silesia it formed Silesian Voievodeship with significant autonomy (Silesian Parliament as a constituency and Silesian Voivodship Council as the executive body).

Building

Designed by architect , the Silesian Parliament was built in 1925–1929 in the Stripped Classicist style. For a very long time it was the biggest structure in Poland. Currently it hosts the offices of the

Silesian Voivodship Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province ( pl, województwo śląskie ) is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centered on the historic region known as Upper Silesia ('), with Katowice serving as its capital. Despite the Silesian V ...

. The building has seven floors and contains one of four paternoster lifts currently in use in Poland. The Polish architect Adolf Szysko-Bohusz announced a competition for the design of the new Silesian Parliament in 1925, who wished the building to espouse the local Polish cultural identity of the region, instead of the more customary German/ Prussian style. When the building was inaugurated in May 1929, Michal Grazynski, President of the Province of Upper silesia, called the building a "material symbol of Polish culture and power". The building is one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments ('' Pomnik historii''), as designated on October 22, 2012 and tracked by the

National Heritage Board of Poland The National Institute of Cultural Heritage of Poland ( pl, Narodowy Instytut Dziedzictwa NID) is a Polish governmental institution responsible for documenting cultural property and the intangible cultural heritage, as well as for supporting and ...

Composition

1922

1930 (I)

1930 (II)

1935

Leadership

Leadership (1922-29): * Marshal of the Sejm: Konstanty Wolny; * Deputy Marshal of the Sejm: Józef Biniszkiewicz, Michał Grajek, Eduard Pant, Kazimierz Rakowski, Edward Rybarz. Leadership (1930): * Marshal of the Sejm: Konstanty Wolny; * Deputy Marshal of the Sejm: Emil Caspari, Włodzimierz Dąbrowski, Eduard Pant. Leadership (1930-35): * Marshal of the Sejm: Konstanty Wolny; * Deputy Marshal of the Sejm: Włodzimierz Dąbrowski, Eduard Pant, Emil Gajdas, Jan Kędzior. Leadership (1935-39): * Marshal of the Sejm: ; * Deputy Marshal of the Sejm: Włodzimierz Dąbrowski, Alojzy Kot.

References

Literature

* Nowak Jerzy (kier.): Przewodnik po Katowicach, Wydawnictwo „Śląsk”, Katowice 1962, s. 228; * Rechowicz Henryk: Sejm Śląski 1922−1939, Wydawnictwo „Śląsk”, Katowice 1971; * Sala Sejmu Śląskiego to dla nas ważne miejsce (pol.) www.katowice.naszemiasto.pl ostęp 2011-05-19 * Wojciech Janota: Katowice między wojnami. Miasto i jego sprawy 1922–1939. Łódź: Księży Młyn, 2010, s. 11, 12. . {{Authority control Silesian Voivodeship (1920–1939) Sejm