First Slovak State Parliament

On January 18, 1939, the CSR issued an overprinted stamp commemorating the opening of the first Slovak state parliament. The stamp was only valid for franking until January 31, 1939, in the Slovak part of the country. There are two possible explanations for the short period of validity. Firstly, the so called Hlinka guideline which was part of the autonomy declaration ended on January 31, 1939.

 

The guideline stated the prohibition of negotiating the split-off of the Slovak part from the CSR. This political fact could have been the trigger to only have the validity of the stamp restricted to such a short period. Secondly, on Januayr 31, 1939, the domestic political situation changed on the Slovak side such that all political parties except the Hlinka's Slovak People's Party (HSL'S), the German Party and the United Hungarian Party were banned.

 

This development possibly triggered the withdrawal of the stamp since the composition of the state parliament would be affected.

Slovak Parliament 1939 Hlinka
Slovak Parliament 1939 Hlinka

 

Two times stamp with short duration of validity

Slovak Parliament 1939 Hlinka

 

First Day Cover with stamp