Constitution of Prussia (1920)

The Constitution of Prussia of 1920 was adopted on 30 November 1920 by the Prussian State Assembly with 280 votes in favor, replacing the Constitution of 1850 and forming the legal framework for the Free State of Prussia from 1920 until its de facto end during the Nazi period and formal abolition in 1947. It established Prussia as a republic and a member state of the German Reich on parliamentary principles, introducing universal suffrage for men and women alike. Legislative power rested with a Landtag elected by proportional representation, alongside a State Council, or Staatsrat, that represented Prussia's provinces and functioned as a kind of second chamber. Unlike the contemporary Weimar Constitution, the Prussian charter provided for no separate president: executive authority rested with a State Ministry headed by a minister president who was elected by and answerable to the Landtag, set policy guidelines and held authority comparable to a British prime minister. The constitution helped keep Prussia comparatively stable through much of the Weimar era before Nazi encroachment eroded its effect.