Electoral Hessian Estates Assembly

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Estates building in Kassel

The Kurhessische estates assembly was created after the unrest of 1830 in the same year as a constituent assembly of estates for the deliberation and adoption of a constitution. The constitution came into force in 1831. The assembly lasted until the state was annexed by Prussia in 1866. Since 1836 the seat of the state house in Kassel has been .

prehistory

In the Landgraviate of Hessen-Kassel, the Landgraviate of Hesse continued to exist formally, even if they were no longer of any importance. In the restored Electorate of Hesse , Elector Wilhelm I declared all decisions made in the Kingdom of Westphalia to be invalid in 1813 . Legally, the status from 1805 should be reset. This ended the history of the imperial estates of the Kingdom of Westphalia . However, the elector refused to reinstate the estates of the Landgraviate of Hesse. Instead, he convened a state parliament on March 1, 1815 with a patent dated December 27, 1814. This should include: Hereditary Marshal Carl Georg Riedesel zu Eisenbach , two representatives of the prelates , 5 representatives of the knighthood , 8 representatives of the cities and 5 of the peasantry. The state parliament demanded a return to the old constitution and rejected the financial policy. Despite the devaluation of the bonds of the Kingdom of Westphalia and the arbitrariness of the restitution of the property expropriated under French rule, the financial situation of the electorate was poor. The state parliament refused to accommodate the elector in financial matters and was initially postponed and then dissolved by a rescript of May 2, 1816.

Apart from the failed Landtag in 1815/16, there was no parliament and no constitution in the restored Electorate of Hesse, although Article 13 of the German Federal Act required the establishment of a state constitution. Both Elector Wilhelm I and his successor Wilhelm II rejected constitutionalism . In connection with the July Revolution of 1830 , unrest broke out in Kurhessen in autumn of that year. Economic and social problems also played a role alongside longstanding political dissatisfaction. The unsuitable relationship between the elector and his mistress also contributed to the protests. The unrest reached such proportions that the German Confederation planned a federal intervention . The elector was forced to convene a parliament and to grant a constitution. A constituent assembly of the estates met on October 16, 1830. The constitutional committee was chaired by Sylvester Jordan . On January 5, 1831, the new constitution came into force.

Structure in the pre-march

The new constitution was one of the most progressive of its time. The one-chamber instead of the usual two-chamber parliament was exceptional. The right to vote was also remarkable: there was completely free male suffrage for sixteen MPs from town and country communities. There were no census barriers for these. The right to stand as a candidate, however, remained limited. Servants, journeymen, workers and comparable professions were excluded from eligibility.

In total, the parliament consisted of 53 members. Of these, 20 seats were allocated to the princes of the ruling house, the noblemen , the prelates and knights or their representatives. The cities and the University of Marburg were entitled to 17 mandates . There were also 16 mandates for representatives of the farmers.

The chamber consisted in detail according to § 63 of the constitution

Parliament had to approve all laws. In addition, unlike the other state parliaments in the German Confederation, it had the right to initiate legislation. Parliament had extensive budget rights and the right to request information from the authorities about the expenditure. Also, only in the Electorate of Hesse was there the right and even the duty to prosecute ministers if the ministers were guilty of a breach of the constitution; however, the elector was able to dissolve parliament and thus prevent ministerial charges.

In the constitutional reality, the state assembly developed into a forum for the opposition. As a representative of the population, it became a corrective to governments.

Changes after 1848

The second Kurhessian constitution of April 13, 1852

The composition of parliament changed due to the abolition of privileges during the revolution of 1848/49 . With the electoral law of April 5, 1849, hereditary privileges of the nobility were replaced by sixteen representatives of the highest taxed.

Parliament was dominated by the opposition even after the revolution. This led to the constitutional conflict in the Electorate of Hesse in 1850. On the other hand, there was federal intervention by the German Confederation and the occupation of the state by the so-called penal Bavaria .

At the time of the reaction , a new enforced constitution was enacted on April 13, 1852 . This introduced a bicameral parliament. The princes, knights, prelates and the University of Marburg sat in the new first chamber. Parliament also largely lost the right to initiate legislation and the right to prosecute ministers, and had to accept restrictions on budget law.

But even contrary to the electoral influence by the governments, the assembly of states remained a refuge for the opposition. This intensified after 1859. Parliament was now dominated by the opposition forces organized in political groups. This also began an intensified agitation for the restoration of the constitution of 1831 and the rights of the assembly of estates. The government was unable to resolve the far-reaching conflict despite several dissolution of parliament. Finally, the German Confederation intervened: In March 1862, the Bundestag approved an Austro-Prussian motion that the old constitution should be restored, with the exception of articles contrary to the Confederation. The unwilling electoral Hesse government threatened Prussia with military occupation. Prussian troops were already at the border. Kurhessen gave way. However, the majority of the chamber and the government continued to face each other as conflicting parties until the end of the state in 1866.

President

Parliament president Term of office annotation
State Parliament of
Hessen-Kassel		 Carl Georg Riedesel zu Eisenbach 1815/1816 From 15 February 1816 to 10 May 1816, he settled through of Heywolff Friedrich Wilhelm represented
Constituent
Parliament		 August Riedesel zu Eisenbach 1830 as Hereditary Marshal
1st state parliament Burkhard Wilhelm Pfeiffer 1831 Since his mandate was declared invalid, he resigned. He was confirmed in the by-election, but was then a simple MP
1st state parliament Friedrich Heinrich Ludwig Wilhelm von Trott zu Solz May 1831-1832 Became a minister
1st – 2nd Parliament Ludwig Georg Karl Wilhelm von Baumbach (-Ropperhausen) 1832-1833
3rd to 5th Parliament Carl Schomburg 1833-1838
6th state parliament Johannes Daniel Wilhelm Ludwig Schwarzenberg 1838
7th-8th Parliament Moritz Ernst von Baumbach (-Kirchheim) 1839-1844
9th state parliament Friedrich August Wilhelm Nebelthau 1846-1846
10th state parliament Friedrich Heinrich Ludwig Wilhelm von Trott zu Solz 1847- March 1848
10th state parliament Ludwig Carl Wilhelm von Baumbach (-Kirchheim) 1848
11-12 Parliament Johannes Daniel Wilhelm Ludwig Schwarzenberg November 1848-June 1850
13th state parliament Karl Theodor Bayrhoffer 1850
14th Landtag,
1st Chamber		 Ferdinand von Schutzbar called Milchling 1852-1854
15th Landtag,
1st Chamber		 Ludwig Riedesel zu Eisenbach 1855-1857
16.-18. Landtag
1st Chamber		 Ferdinand von Schutzbar called Milchling 1858-1861
14th Landtag
2nd Chamber		 Friedrich Heinrich Ernst Leopold Scheffer 1852-1854
15.-16. Landtag
2nd Chamber		 Georg Heinrich surcharge 1855-1860
17th to 20th Landtag
2nd Chamber		 Friedrich August Wilhelm Nebelthau 1860-1862
21st state parliament Friedrich August Wilhelm Nebelthau 1862-1866

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Georg Leopold von Zangen : The constitutional laws of German states in a systematic compilation: a manual for businessmen. Volume 1, 1828, pp. 13-15. books.google.de
  2. ↑ Karl Heinrich Ludwig Pölitz: The European constitutions since 1789 up to the most recent time . 2nd Edition. tape 1 , 1832, Constitution of 1830, p. 621 ff . ( Full text in Google Book Search).
  3. ^ Ernst Rudolf Huber: German constitutional history since 1789. Volume III: Bismarck and the realm. 3rd edition, W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart [u. a.] 1988, pp. 440-443.