page_title: Kazimierz Bartel
section_title: First term in office, first government (1926)
hierarchical_section_title: Kazimierz Bartel / Political and diplomatic career / First term in office, first government (1926)
caption_attribution_description: Kazimierz Bartel, Primer Minister of Poland
context_page_description: Kazimierz Władysław Bartel was a Polish mathematician, freemason, scholar, diplomat and politician who served as 15th, 17th and 19th Prime Minister of Poland three times between 1926 and 1930 and the Senator of Poland from 1937 until the outbreak of World War II.
  Bartel was appointed Minister of Railways between 1919 and 1920, in 1922–1930 he was a member of Poland's Sejm. After Józef Piłsudski's May Coup d'état in 1926, he became prime minister and held this post during three broken tenures: 1926, 1928–29, 1929–1930. Bartel was the Deputy Prime Minister between 1926–1928 and Minister of Religious Beliefs and Public Enlightenment, when Piłsudski himself assumed the premiership, however, Bartel was in fact "de facto" prime minister during this period as Piłsudski did not concern himself with the day-to-day functions of the cabinet and the government.
  In 1930 upon giving up politics, he returned to the university as professor of mathematics. In 1930 he became rector of the Lwów Polytechnic and was soon awarded an honorary doctorate and membership in the Polish Mathematical Association. In 1937 he was appointed a Senator of Poland and held this post until World War II.
context_section_description: On 15 May 1926, after the resignation of the government led by Wincenty Witos and president Wojciechowski following the May Coup, Bartel was appointed by Marshal of the Sejm and the acting head of state Maciej Rataj as the prime minister of the Second Polish Republic, although, Bartel later stated in his inauguration speech that he would only be the head of government until the election of a new president. His decision was possibly influenced by the fact that he suffered from kidney and stomach problems and was constantly in pain. One member of the parliament stated that "He was a cheerful and ambitious man, but always in pain. Even his opponents in the Sejm admitted that in personal relationships, it is extremely hard not to be in favour of a man like Bartel. As prime minister, he tried to aid every man possible, even the men and women that opposed his policies and the government, but he was not able to help himself, which led to his early decline in politics and diplomacy of the Polish Republic. He was of weak stature and of weak health and would hardly make a good impression on the public, especially the socialists or communists in the east and therefore, this would not make him an influential Prime Minister nor a diplomat supporting democracy."
  Bartel's new government consisted mostly of people not connected with any political parties (four of those politicians already were occupied ministerial positions). Bartel was described as ideologically centrist – Prime Minister's newly established office was occupied by both the right-wing leaders and left. Bartel himself took over the Ministry in turn, and Piłsudski the Minister of War. Such a system churned mainly the Polish Socialist Party, which supported the May Coup. On 16 May 1926, Prime Minister Bartel made a statement in which he highlighted the principles of his policies. Bartel stated that the cabinet took power in accordance with the law, without any prejudice to the constitutional order. He also called for peace, hard work and dedication to the Polish nation. At the same time he promised the immediate removal of incompetent and corrupt politicians from any high posts that could negatively influence the future economic growth of the Second Polish Republic. Bartel's closest personal advisor in politics and diplomacy was Marshal Józef Piłsudski, who was in favour of the new minister.
  Bartel suggested that Ignacy Mościcki should become a candidate for the post of head of state (president), who was also a professor at the Lwów Polytechnic. Bartel's first government was one of the most active in the history of Poland; the politicians and members of parliament gathered every second day and on occasions everyday to discuss political matters. On 4 June 1926 Ignacy Mościcki was elected the president of the Second Polish Republic and subsequently Bartel resigned along with the entire cabinet, however, soon after being appointed President Mościcki designated him again to become Prime Minister.
caption: Prime Minister Kazimierz Bartel, 1928
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