Syrian Basic Law of 1920

Basic Law of the Arab Kingdom of Syria
Overview
Original title	القانون الأساسي للمملكة السورية العربية
Jurisdiction	Arab Kingdom of Syria
Presented	July 5, 1920 (1920-07-05)
Ratified	July 13, 1920 (1920-07-13)
Date effective	July 13, 1920 (1920-07-13)
System	Parliamentary constitutional monarchy
Government structure
Branches	Three (executive, legislative and judiciary)
Head of state	King
Chambers	Bicameral (Congress: Senate, Chamber of Deputies)
Executive	Prime Minister
Judiciary	Supreme Court
Federalism	No
First legislature	None
Repealed	July 25, 1920 (1920-07-25)
Author	Syrian National Congress
Full text
Constitution of Syria (1920) at Wikisource
القانون الأساسي للمملكة السورية العربية at Arabic Wikisource

The Syrian Basic Law of 1920 was the first constitution of Syria, adopted during the brief existence of the Arab Kingdom of Syria under King Faisal I. Drafted and adopted by the Syrian National Congress, it established Syria as a secular, constitutional monarchy with a representative parliamentary system, separation of powers, and national sovereignty. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} The constitution remained in force only for a few days before the French occupation of Damascus following the Battle of Maysalun and the imposition of the French Mandate, which annulled the constitutional order. ^[4] Despite its short lifespan, the 1920 constitution is regarded as a foundational document in the development of modern Syrian constitutional thought. ^[5]

The consistution also established pan-Arab motivations across modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Transjordan, who were previous referred to as the "vilayets of Damascus, Aleppo, Beirut, and the sanjaks of Jerusalem and Deir Ezzor" as Ottoman provinces. ^[6]

References

1. Thompson, Elizabeth F. (2020). How the West stole democracy from the Arabs: the Syrian Arab Congress of 1920 and the destruction of its historic liberal-Islamic alliance (First Grove Atlantic hardcover ed.). New York: Atlantic Monthly Press. ISBN   978-0-8021-4820-9.
2. "Constitutional history of Syria". ConstitutionNet. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
3. باروت, محمد جمال (2013). "المؤتمر السوري العام 1919-1920، الدستور السوري الأول: السياق، الطبيعة والوظائف، المراحل والقضايا". تبين (in Arabic). 2 (3): 23–48. doi:10.31430/SGWS5483. ISSN   2305-2465.
4. "Syria's Journey Toward Democracy - C4SSA". c4ssa.org. 2025-05-13. Retrieved 2026-01-14.
5. "تجربة متقدمة.. كيف كتب السوريون دستورهم الأوّل عام 1920؟". تلفزيون سوريا (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 2025-01-20. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
6. Karim Atassi (13 April 2018). "Syria: The Strength of an Idea". Cambridge University Press.