Silesian Princes' Day

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Silesian Princes' Day was the meeting of the estates of the duchies in Silesia who were directly subordinate to the Bohemian king . It originated in the 15th century and is comparable to the state parliaments in other early modern territories and empires.

composition

In the Duchy of Silesia , which had been divided into numerous partial principalities since the 13th century, initially only their dukes were allowed to appear at the meetings of estates convened by the king, hence the name Fürstentag. In addition, the capital Wroclaw sent its own representatives and the Bishop of Wroclaw was a member of the Princely Congress because he owned the Principality of Neisse . As the passage of time some family branches of the Silesian Piast dynasty extinct and their lands as a completed fief to the King of Bohemia fell back , the Ritterschaften these territories were allowed to participate with delegates at the princely days.

Convocation and Powers

The Prince's Day was convened either by the Bohemian King or by the Governor of Silesia. The governor was responsible for chairing the meeting. This was often the Bishop of Breslau, at times also the Protestant princes of Liegnitz , Brieg , Münsterberg - Oels and Münsterberg- Bernstadt as well as the Catholic princes of Glogau , Teschen , Jägerndorf and Freudenthal .

The Silesian state order issued under King Vladislav II in 1500 contains some provisions on the Prince's Day.

The meeting of the estates was able to discuss all matters of interest to them. Each time she had to pass resolutions on the propositions presented by the king . The Fürstentag had the right to approve taxes.

The End

After the conquest of Silesia by the Prussians after the First Silesian War in 1742, the prince's day was abolished in its old form. In Austrian Silesia it continued to exist in a modified form and was converted into the Silesian Convention in 1848 .

Sources and literature

  • The Fürstlichen Graffschaff Görtz umb hülff ... against the Turk to the Lords Ober and Nider Slesien; On the prince's day held on the 5th anniversary of this 1540th jars at Breslau
  • Artickel, so held on the Prince's Day, Monday after All Saints, which was the fifth November of the 65th year, by the princes and Stenden in Upper and Lower Silesia, unanimously decided, and on jezo, the XXX. January of the 74th year, by Hoch and Wolthought Lord Princes and Stenden, again revalued and publicized. Wroclaw 1574
  • The Rom. Kays. May. Instruction, what the same propose from inciting bad councils and the Kingdom of Boheimb enemies at the most recently held Prince’s Day in the city of Bresslau to the princes and estates in Silesia. (from Emperor Matthias) Prague 1618.
  • Rudolf Fricke: Maximilian II and the Prince's Day at Breslau in December 1563 . Univ.-Diss. Wroclaw 1878.
  • Hermann Palm (Ed.): Acta publica. Negotiations and correspondence between the Silesian princes and estates [1618–1628]. 8 vols. Breslau 1865-1916.
  • Felix Rachfahl : The organization of the entire state administration of Silesia before the Thirty Years War . Leipzig 1894.