Land parliaments in Germany (3) - Germany / Federal Republic of Germany 1999 - 110 Pfennig

The special postage stamp series »Land parliaments in Germany« continues the series of contemporary topics. With a view to the 50th anniversary, the public should be made more aware of the young and recent history and the federal structure of the Federal Republic of Germany. Seat of the state parliament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is the former residence castle in Schwerin. The castle, decorated with numerous domes and towers, rebuilt from 1843 to 1857, displays Gothic, Baroque and Renaissance style elements. The restoration of countries and the establishment of a parliamentary democracy in the territory of the former GDR was a direct consequence of the political change of the autumn of 1989. On October 29, 1990, the Diet of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern met in Schwerin Castle for its constituent meeting. It was the first parliament to meet in the historic building, based on truly free elections. One of the first decisions of the new state parliament was the decision for Schwerin as state capital. Thus the Schwerin castle had again become the center of the country. As a former residence of the Mecklenburg dukes and grand dukes firmly anchored in the consciousness of the population, the building is considered an important landmark of Mecklenburg with identity-creating importance. This constitutional rank of a parliament building, which is unique in the Federal Republic of Germany, was confirmed on June 12, 1994 as part of a referendum on the state constitution. The vote gave the members of the Landtag as elected representatives of the people the opportunity to design the century-old symbol of political power as the center of the new, parliamentary democracy and to use it as a place of political decision-making.