Edict of Saint-Cloud

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The Edict of Saint-Cloud was issued by Napoleon on June 12, 1804 under the title "Décret Impérial sur les sépultures" in his residence Saint-Cloud . In the edict , all previously applicable rules and regulations for the burial of the deceased are summarized in one corpus . Napoleon's State Secretary Hugues-Bernard Maret , who co-signed the document, was involved in the formulation of the decree .

history

Before the edict, it was also customary in France to bury the dead in churches or in their immediate vicinity. From 1804 onwards, all burials outside the respective city limits had to be carried out in enclosed places. Burials in and around churches, chapels, hospitals, etc. The like were forbidden, only the erection of epitaphs or gravestones was allowed. In addition to hygienic reasons, the burial of all deceased on a public property should counteract discrimination. The edict also became valid for the Kingdom of Italy from September 5, 1806.

A forerunner of Napoleon's edict were the reform ordinances on funerals issued by Joseph II in the so-called Josephine court decrees from 1782 to 1784 .

The Edict of Saint-Cloud was valid in some European municipalities into the 21st century. The state of North Rhine-Westphalia only repealed the edict with the law on cemeteries and funerals (Bestattungsgesetz - BestG NRW) of June 17, 2003.

Legal sources

  • Décret impérial sur les sépultures au Palais de Saint-Cloud le 23 Prairial an XII, in: Bulletin des lois. No 5. Full text
  • Decret imperial sur les sépultures 12 June 1804 . Reproduction du document d'époque: Décret impérial du 18 may 1806 concernant le service dans les églises et les convois funèbres. Full text
  • Décret impérial du 18 may 1806 concernant le service dans les églises et les convois funèbres . Full text

literature

  • Daniel Ligou: L'Evolution des cimetières The Evolution of Cemeteries , in: Archives de sciences sociales des religions. Vol. 39, 1975. pp. 61-77.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Père Lachaise 1804-1824 , accessed May 5, 2019
  2. ↑ Gabriele Klein, Annette Treibel (ed.): Skepticism and engagement. Festschrift for Hermann Korte. Hamburg: Lit 2000. p. 308
  3. ↑ Memorial of the country: Kaiser Joseph II. , Accessed on May 5, 2019
  4. ↑ Applicable laws and ordinances (SGV. NRW.) As of 1.5. 2019 , accessed May 5, 2019