Historical preconditions of democratic changes in the context of the formation and development of Ukrainian statehood

Abstract

The article examines the democratic origins of the social and state system in different historical periods. Important state-building legal sources are considered: Magdeburg law, Lithuanian statutes, the Constitution of Philip Orlyk, which had a decisive influence on the establishment of the foundations of the republican democratic state governed by the rule of law. The order of origin and acceptance of the privileges of the Magdeburg law by the cities of Ukraine is clarified. The democratic principles of the state and local system in different periods from the times of Kievan Rus, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, to the Cossack state were revealed. The peculiarities of the administrative-territorial system during the stay of the Ukrainian lands as part of the Russian Empire, as well as the centralized system of the Soviet period, are considered. The role of civic self-government as the basis of local government, the process of change of power as the basis of democracy is defined. It is proved that Ukrainian statehood has democratic foundations and roots, including due to the influence of the Western political and legal space. In this regard, systemic changes, especially at the local government level, are aimed at restoring and reviving lost democratic roots and building a developed local government system.

Keywords

• democracy, chamber, community, law, privileges, self-government, statute.