Chambre des Pairs

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The meeting room of the Chambre des Pairs in the Palais du Luxembourg (1841)
The 7th Marquis de Vibraye in the blue and white uniform of a member of the Chambre des Pairs

The Chambre des Pairs was the upper house of the French Parliament from 1814 to 1848 . The parliament also comprised the lower house , called the Chambre des Députés ( Chamber of Deputies ), and the monarchs themselves. The Chambre des Pairs consisted of two classes, whose members were not determined by general elections, namely archbishops and bishops of the Catholic Church in France , which were designated as Spiritual Pairs ( Pairs Spiritual ), as well as from Pairs , which were called Secular Pairs ( Pairs Temporel ). The ecclesiastical pairs held their seats as long as they held their ecclesiastical offices; the secular pairs, on the other hand, had their seat for life.

The Chambre des Pairs was introduced with the Constitution of the Kingdom of France of June 4, 1814 and existed almost continuously until 1848. It was abolished in 1848 by the revolutionary government that came to power during the February 1848 revolution . However, the powers were always small and it was endowed with fewer powers than the Chambre des Députés . The House of Lords had no influence on any laws regulating financial issues, including the state budget . Further reforms were carried out in the course of the July monarchy of 1830, which eliminated the automatic inheritance law of the hereditary pairs at the seat in the upper house. Only a small number of hereditary pairs retained their seats because they held one of the grand offices of the French Crown ( Grand office de la couronne de France ). Further pairs were appointed to the upper house by the king from a number of citizens.

The Chambre des Pairs once had judicial powers. The judicial functions of the House of Lords were not exercised by the entire Chamber, but by a very small group of members with legal experience. Among other things, she imposed a death sentence on Field Marshal Michel Ney for high treason on December 6, 1815, which was carried out by shooting in the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris .

The Chambre des Pairs met in the Palais du Luxembourg , which is now the seat of the French Senate .

history

The title pair ( French from Latin par 'equal' ) has been used since the 13th century to denote politically privileged nobility in France . The status of a pair of France was the highest in the French nobility and was bestowed by the king . The title was abolished for the first time in 1789 at the beginning of the French Revolution , but reintroduced during the Restoration of the Bourbons with the charte constitutionnelle of 1814.

After the fall of Napoleon, proclaimed on April 3, 1814 by the Senate and the Legislative Assembly, and his abdication in Fontainebleau, Louis XVIII prepared himself. to ascend the throne of France. After long discussions, the charte constitutionnelle came into being , which was issued on June 4, 1814. This charter replaced the Napoleonic senate with a chamber of peers, the members of which were appointed by the king. The Chamber had a theoretically unlimited number of members who were either nominated for life or had a hereditary seat. The Princes of the Blood were Pairs from birth. The preamble to the charter declared the Chamber of Peers as a symbolic bridge between the ancien regime and the new ideas of the revolution.

As a sign of continuity there were several leading personalities of the Napoleonic era in the upper house: of 149 pairs, 103 were former senators or marshals of the fallen empire. Regardless of whether the system was new or old, all pairs swore their loyalty to the king in the first session of the Chamber on June 4, 1814 and the announcement of the constitutional charter. The former royal secondary residence Palais du Luxembourg was chosen as the seat. The chairman was the Chancellor of France . In his absence he was represented by a peer who was appointed by the king for the long term.

The Charter established a parliamentary system in which legislative power was exercised by the King, the Upper House and the Chamber of Deputies. The king was able to introduce laws that were then discussed by both chambers. However, the state budget had to be discussed by the Chamber of Deputies. This bicameral system established itself permanently in French politics from then on.

On March 9, 1819, King Louis XVIII appointed Sixty new pairs in a pair push to secure a majority for Duke Élie's reforms in the chamber.

definition

Articles 24–34 of the constitution defined the role, composition and laws for the chamber of peers. The chamber was the representative body of the nobility and thus involved in the legislative process. It could be convened by the King at the same time as the Chamber of Deputies. The sessions began and ended at the same time for both chambers. A meeting of the Chamber of Peers outside the session of the Chamber of Deputies was not permitted unless it was ordered by the King. The king appointed the peer either for life or conferred hereditary dignity. A pair could be recalled by the king. A pair had access to the chamber at the age of 25, and he would only receive a deliberative vote at the age of 30. Members of the royal family and princes of the blood were pairs by their birthright. However, the princes could only take their seat for one session on the orders of the king. Meetings of the chamber were secret until 1830, i.e. not accessible to the public. The chamber also had a judicial function, as it could rule on the crime of high treason and the endangerment of state security. A pair enjoyed immunity from criminal investigations, but could be arrested and judged by the chamber itself.

literature

  • Jean-Baptiste Honoré Raymond Capefigue: Histoire de la Restauration et des causes qui ont amené la chute de la branche aînée des Bourbons . Dufey, 1831, 2nd edition. [lire en ligne];
  • The Chamber of Peers in Paris . In: Illustrirte Zeitung . No. 29 . J. J. Weber, Leipzig January 13, 1844, p. 35-38 ( books.google.de ).
  • Heinz-Gerhard Haupt : From the French Revolution to the end of the July Monarchy (1789–1848) . In: Ernst Hinrichs (ed.): Little history of France . Federal Agency for Civic Education, Bonn 2005, ISBN 3-89331-663-9 , pp. 285f., 299f.
  • Markus J. Prutsch: The revision of the French constitution in 1830. On the question of the validity of the constitutional system of the “Charte constitutionnelle” of 1814 . In: The State . Journal for state theory and constitutional history, German and European public law . 47 Vol., 2008, H. 1, pp. 85-107.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Guillaume de Bertier de Sauvigny: Metternich, 1996, ISBN 3-424-01341-2 , p. 346, for the names and biographies of the new pairs see also: Tablettes biographiques de la Chambre des pairs: pour servir d'explication à tous les tableaux statistiques de cette chambre, 1821, online
  2. ↑ Article 25 http://www.verfassungen.eu/f/fverf14-i.htm
  3. ↑ Article 26.
  4. ↑ Art. 27.
  5. ↑ Art. 28.
  6. ↑ Art. 30.
  7. ↑ Art. 31.
  8. ↑ Art. 32.
  9. ↑ Art. 33.
  10. ↑ Article 34