{"id":5352,"date":"2026-06-26T15:18:54","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T12:18:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/?page_id=5352"},"modified":"2026-09-10T14:50:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-10T11:50:22","slug":"6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/","title":{"rendered":"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The bicameral 6th Riigikogu \u2013 the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council \u2013 represented the Estonian people in the period from 7 April 1938 to 5 July 1940. The actual work of the parliament ended already in April 1940. The impact of the 6th Riigikogu on domestic and foreign political development was modest, the national representative body remained in the shadow of the President and the Government. On 24 April 1938, Konstantin P\u00e4ts was elected President of the Republic at the joint sitting of the Riigikogu and the assembly of representatives of local governments. The Amnesty Act was passed in May the same year.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Elections<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The elections of the 6th Riigikogu were held on 24\u201325 February 1938. The country was under martial law which is popularly known as the silent era, and the activities of political parties were prohibited. The then Riigikogu was bicameral and it consisted of the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Riigikogu was bicameral and it consisted of the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under the election regulation, citizen groups could nominate their candidates from 19 to 26 January, that is, during only eight days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Every candidate had to pay a security of&nbsp;<span data-tooltip=\"In 1938, the average salary was ca 60 kroons. Indirectly, that is, calculated on the basis of purchasing power, the rate was 1 kroon = 7 euro. In the present currency, the amount of the security was equal to about 1500 euro.\" class=\"has-tooltip\">250 kroons<\/span>&nbsp;and collect signatures of 150 supporters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The 80 members of the Chamber of Deputies were elected in general elections based on the majority principle. 214 candidates were nominated. As a result of the elections, the election coalition \u201cThe National Front for the Implementation of the Constitution\u201d, established by the Government, won 46 of the 80 seats of the Chamber of Deputies, that is, the absolute majority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The National Council, the second chamber of the Riigikogu, consisted of 40 members. Local governments of rural municipalities and cities, corporate chambers, etc., elected 24 members, 6 were members by virtue of their office and 10 members were appointed by the President-Regent under a special right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-style-info is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Initially the elections of the 6th Riigikogu were due in April 1934, but with a decree of the State Elder, the elections were postponed until the end of martial law. Under the new Constitution passed in the National Assembly, the national representative body was already bicameral, and the elections of the Chamber of Deputies, the first chamber of the 6th Riigikogu, were held in February 1938.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Legislation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 5 May 1938, the Riigikogu passed the Amnesty Act, under which, among other things, many political prisoners were released.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 26 September 1939, an extraordinary sitting of the Government was held to discuss the ultimatum demands of the USSR. On the same day, a joint sitting of the foreign affairs committees and the national defence committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council was held, where the Commander-in-Chief of the military forces Johan Laidoner recommended to fulfil the demands of the USSR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 28 September 1939, Estonia was forced, under the threat of war, to sign the agreement on mutual assistance between the URRS and Estonia that allowed the military bases of the Red Army to be established on the territory of Estonia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 23 January 1940, the Riigikogu passed the Public Health Organisation Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On 9 April 1940, the Riigikogu passed the Information Centre Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Workplace of the Board of the Chamber of Deputies in the Riigikogu Session Hall in 1938.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The bicameral 6th Riigikogu \u2013 the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council \u2013 represented the Estonian people in the period from 7 April 1938 to 5 July 1940. The actual work of the parliament ended already in April 1940. The impact of the 6th Riigikogu on domestic and foreign political development was modest, the national representative body remained in the shadow of the President and the Government. On 24 April 1938, Konstantin P\u00e4ts was elected President of the Republic at the joint sitting of the Riigikogu and the assembly of representatives of local governments. The Amnesty Act was passed in May the same year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"parent":4994,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-5352","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council) &#8211; Riigikogu<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council) &#8211; Riigikogu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The bicameral 6th Riigikogu \u2013 the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council \u2013 represented the Estonian people in the period from 7 April 1938 to 5 July 1940. The actual work of the parliament ended already in April 1940. The impact of the 6th Riigikogu on domestic and foreign political development was modest, the national representative body remained in the shadow of the President and the Government. On 24 April 1938, Konstantin P\u00e4ts was elected President of the Republic at the joint sitting of the Riigikogu and the assembly of representatives of local governments. The Amnesty Act was passed in May the same year.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Riigikogu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/riigikogu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-10T11:50:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wpcms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@riigikogu\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/\",\"name\":\"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council) &#8211; Riigikogu\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/02\\\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-26T12:18:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-10T11:50:22+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/02\\\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/02\\\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Introduction and history\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"History of the Riigikogu\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/en\\\/introduction-and-history\\\/history-riigikogu\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council)\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/\",\"name\":\"Riigikogu\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Riigikogu\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/riigikogu__m2rk_RGB.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/riigikogu__m2rk_RGB.jpg\",\"width\":1360,\"height\":940,\"caption\":\"Riigikogu\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.riigikogu.ee\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/riigikogu\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/riigikogu\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/riigikogu\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/meieriigikogu\\\/\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council) &#8211; Riigikogu","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council) &#8211; Riigikogu","og_description":"The bicameral 6th Riigikogu \u2013 the Chamber of Deputies and the National Council \u2013 represented the Estonian people in the period from 7 April 1938 to 5 July 1940. The actual work of the parliament ended already in April 1940. The impact of the 6th Riigikogu on domestic and foreign political development was modest, the national representative body remained in the shadow of the President and the Government. On 24 April 1938, Konstantin P\u00e4ts was elected President of the Republic at the joint sitting of the Riigikogu and the assembly of representatives of local governments. The Amnesty Act was passed in May the same year.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/","og_site_name":"Riigikogu","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/riigikogu","article_modified_time":"2026-09-10T11:50:22+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wpcms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@riigikogu","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/","url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/","name":"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council) &#8211; Riigikogu","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-26T12:18:54+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-10T11:50:22+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Riigivolikogu-juhatuse-m%C3%B6%C3%B6bel-1938-1024x722.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/6th-riigikogu-chamber-deputies-national-council\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Introduction and history","item":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"History of the Riigikogu","item":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/introduction-and-history\/history-riigikogu\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"6th Riigikogu (Chamber of Deputies and National Council)"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/","name":"Riigikogu","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/#organization","name":"Riigikogu","url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/riigikogu__m2rk_RGB.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/riigikogu__m2rk_RGB.jpg","width":1360,"height":940,"caption":"Riigikogu"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/riigikogu","https:\/\/x.com\/riigikogu","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/riigikogu","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/meieriigikogu\/"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5352"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35433,"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5352\/revisions\/35433"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riigikogu.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}