Research On 《Constitution Of Hunan Province》(1920-1926)

《Constitution of Hunan Province》 was the only one constitution promulgated and implemented by one province in the united-province autonomy movement in the 1920s. It was the propagandized result of autonomy theory in the movement which launched by intellectuals at that time. It was also the product of the hunan local warlords' using the autonomy requiring mentality of human hoi polloi and making use of the constitution to set up a separatist regime. The establishment of the 《Constitution of Hunan Province》 is advanced by Tan Yankai in July 1920, and began the first signs of Hunan autonomy, And then Zhao Hengti established a steering committee to take charge of the legislation of constitution. The whole procedure can be divided into three parts: experts draft; professional censor committee go through; the whole Hunan populace decide openly. It was promulgated officially and brought into effect in January 1st 1922. And then Zhao Hengti Presided over the amendment of the constitution and promulgated in January 1925. It was indicated the formal end of the Hunan autonomy movement that the announcement of abolishment of the provincial constitution. As far as the implementation was concerned, the provincial constitution was defeated in very short time because of the effects of many outer and inner factors along with the instrumental constitutional view of hunan local warlords. But on the legislation process, the contents of the constitution and the practical effect, it acquitted itselfvery good in the constitutional and political history of bourgeoisie democracy in China, and at the mean time it led the way of the legislation of constitution in other provinces.