Constitution of the Duchy of Warsaw

Constitution of the Duchy of Warsaw was promulgated by Napoleon on 22 July 1807 in Dresden. Together with the Napoleonic Code it was a significant reform of the Polish law and government in the new Duchy of Warsaw. The constitution provided for a bicameral Sejm and for a Council of Ministers. The new laws abolished serfdom and legal distinction by social classes (nobility, peasantry, townsfolk) by introducing a principle that all people are equal before the law. Serfdom was abolished, and personal liberty guaranteed. Duchy of Warsaw was a satellite state of France, with no diplomacy of its own. King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony became Duke of Warsaw, and had control over foreign policy; a French representative was to reside in Warsaw and had significant influence over Duchy government. The duchy's army was subordinate to the French Army. It was, nonetheless, considered a liberal constitution for its time.