Franz Durrer

Franz Durrer (born September 7, 1790 in Stans , † December 20, 1857 in Baden ) was a Swiss politician . From 1851 to 1854 he was a member of the National Council, from 1815 until his death he was a member of the government of the canton of Nidwalden without interruption .

biography

Franz Durrer was the son of Stans church meister Valentin Durrer. In 1815 he became a member of the cantonal government and took over the management of the police department. He held this office for over three decades, which is why he was also referred to as the "eternal police director". Despite his persistence, he initially had little influence. This changed in the 1840s as a result of the disputes over the free group trains and the Sonderbund . Within the government, Durrer swung himself to the head of the Catholic-conservative "Sonderbund party" and successfully opposed the pragmatic line of the aristocrats. From 1844 to 1847 he represented Nidwalden as envoy to the Diet .

The canton of Nidwalden was one of the losers after the Sonderbund War of November 1847, but this did not stop Durrer from continuing his ascent. He skilfully took advantage of the mood in the population and foiled a liberal attempt at overthrowing the Landsgemeinde in December 1847. Strengthened by this success, he agitated against the Federal Constitution and was able to get the Landsgemeinde to reject it on August 27, 1848 (which ultimately did not change the overall result).

Durrer was President of the Constitutional Council and was instrumental in ensuring that the revised cantonal constitution largely met the demands of the Catholic Conservatives. In 1850 he was Nidwalden Landammann for the first time , as well as in 1852, 1854 and 1856. Durrer ran successfully in the National Council elections in 1851 . As a member of the opposition, however, he could not do much against the liberal superiority. In 1854 he did not stand for re-election.

Web links

• Erich Aschwanden: Durrer, Franz. In: Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz .