Gustav Muheim (politician, 1851)

Gustav Muheim: Painting by Adolf Müller-Ury

Gustav Muheim (born September 11, 1851 in Altdorf ; † April 4, 1917 there , entitled to live in Altdorf) was a Swiss politician ( KVP ).

biography

Gustav Muheim came from a wealthy family and was the son and grandson of Urner Landammännern ( Alexander Muheim , 1809–1867; Dominik Epp , 1776–1848). He attended the primary and canton school in Altdorf , and then the grammar school in Altdorf and in Freiburg im Üechtland . From 1869 to 1873 he studied philosophy and law at the universities of Würzburg , Heidelberg and Zurich . In 1891 he became an honorary member of the Swiss Student Association . He was the founder, co-owner and editor of the Urner Wochenblatt .

In 1884 Gustav Muheim married Anna Arnold (1859–1899), daughter of the Landammann Josef Arnold . This marriage alliance ended the conflict between the two families who a. had feuded in their own newspaper titles.

From 1874 to 1882 Gustav Muheim received his first political mandate, namely as district administrator of the canton of Uri . Only a year after assuming this office, he was mayor of Altdorf and remained so until the year 1870. In 1877, he was in the Senate voted, where he in 1891 as Senate President officiated until 1901 and retired from this office. In between he was a member of the government from 1882 to 1903 , where he headed first the Justice and Military Department, then the Justice and Police Department, and finally the Finance Department. From 1884 to 1888, 1892 to 1896 and from 1898 to 1902 he was Landammann . In the parliamentary elections in 1905 , the people of Uri elected Muheim to the National Council , of which he was a member until 1911.

In 1891 he was traded as a candidate for the Federal Council and would also have been accepted by the liberals. However, for family reasons, Muheim decided not to run. In the United Federal Assembly , he presided over the Catholic-Conservative parliamentary group from 1892 to 1895 and headed the conference in Lucerne , from which the Catholic People's Party emerged in August 1894. He presided over this new party from 1894 to 1895.

At the national level, Gustav Muheim campaigned for federal support for the ancient collections, the establishment of the State Museum and the State Library, and the Swiss Federal Polytechnic in Zurich (ETH) . He was responsible for many cantonal laws. He played a key role in the Uri constitutional revision of 1888. As President of the Constituent Assembly , he prepared the draft and got the Landsgemeinde to adopt the changes. He played a leading role in their implementation. During his time as Finance Director, he always tried to keep the state budget balanced. Muheim campaigned for the restoration of the Uri monuments, the founding of the Association for the History and Antiquities of Uri, the founding of the cantonal college in Altdorf and the establishment of an educational institution for poor and neglected children. His greatest principle has always been the rule of law.

Gustav Muheim also held various board memberships . This is the case with the Gotthard Railway , the Lake Lucerne Shipping Company and the Uri savings fund .

He was promoted to major in the Swiss Army in 1887 .

literature

• Hans Muheim: Muheim, Gustav. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . 2009
• Johann J. Stadler: Landammann and Councilor of States Gustav Muheim (1851–1917) von Altdorf: an example of conservative politics at the turn of the century . Association for the History and Antiquities of Uri, 1973.
• Erich Gruner : Federal Assembly 1 . S. 301 .