Grzegorz M. Kowalski

The aim of the article is to show the transformation that took place in the Romanian constitutionalism in the interwar period. The basis for the author’s considerations are selected provisions of the two fundamental laws in force in Romania during this period, that is, the constitutions adopted in 1923 and 1938. These acts have created the foundation for two entirely different political systems – a parliamentary democracy (a parliamentary-cabinet system of government) and authoritarianism (breaking with the principle of the separation of powers for the sake of concentrating all the power in the hands of one authority, that is, the monarch). The political evolution that took place in Romania is part of the broader phenomenon of the crisis of parliamentary democracy in interwar Europe. The dictatorship, proclaimed in 1940 by General Antonescu, with the suspension of the Fundamental Law, defi nitively ended the constitutional period in Romania. The state was transformed into a totalitarian country. In addition, the article also briefl y presents the fundamental laws in force in Romania during the rule of the Communist Party. A broader reference to the practice of governance is made in the summary, in particular as regards the period after the Constitution of 1938 entered into force.

Criminal Case of SS-Oberscharführer Franz Langner, a Member of the KL Auschwitz Garrison, before the Court of Appeal in Cracow (1949–1952)

The aim of the dissertation is to present the course of court proceedings in the criminal case against Franz (Franciszek) Langner, born in 1891, a Polish volksdeutsch, and member of the SS KL Auschwitz crew, who was tried in Poland from 1949 to 1952. During the Second World War Langner renounced his Polish nationality and joined the SS. He was sent to KL Auschwitz, where he served from April 8, 1942 to January 20, 1945. He performed various functions among the watch-keeping troops, achieving the rank of SS-Oberscharführer. After the war, Langner was arrested and criminal proceedings were instituted against him. Initially, this was related to his declaration of belonging to the German nationality, and then - when his service in the SS came to light - to the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The crimes that Langner was accused of changed several times. The trial was held at the Court of Appeal in Cracow. By virtue of a judgment of 5 April 1950, Langner was sentenced to death. After Langner filed an appeal, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Poland partly annulled, in the verdict of November 13, 1950, the verdict of the Court of Appeal in Cracow, and remanded the case for reconsideration. On April 13, 1951, the Provincial Court in Cracow (established in place of the Court of Appeal) sentenced Langner to a joint penalty of 10 years imprisonment. The Supreme Court upheld this judgment in a judgment of January 29, 1952. Langner ultimately died in prison on February 2, 1952. Due to the prisoner’s death, the criminal proceedings were discontinued.