Constitution of Hessen-Homburg

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The constitution of Hessen-Homburg of 1850 was the only constitution of the Landgraviate of Hessen-Homburg . It was lifted again in 1852.

history

Contrary to the provisions of the Federal Act , no constitution was granted in the Landgraviate of Hessen-Homburg for a long time. On January 28, 1841 , on the initiative of Johann Georg Hamel, the city council of Homburg sent a petition to Landgrave Philipp asking for a provisional electoral law for a state parliament in Hesse-Homburg . Similar requests came from Friedrichsdorf and other rural communities. In his answer, the Landgrave declared that he wanted to enact a constitution for the country, but did not implement any measures. When asked again in 1844, the Landgrave referred to the difficulties of a constitution for such a small state made up of two parts of the country, Homburg and Meisenheim , and otherwise remained passive.

It was not until the March Revolution that Landgrave Gustav took action under pressure from the population and in March 1848 commissioned Heinrich Karl Jaup to draw up a draft constitution. This was published in the government gazette on February 20, 1849, and the state parliament was convened to deliberate at the same time. The state parliament met from April 12 to May 11, 1849 and again from November 26, 1849 and passed the constitution, among other things. It was listed in the state parliament's resolution of December 28, 1849 and signed by the landgrave on January 3, 1850 and published in the government gazette.

At the end of September 1850, the election for the first ordinary parliament under this constitution took place. The 16 members were convened to the state parliament on May 1, 1851. A few days later the state parliament was suspended again without it having any effect.

On April 20, 1852, Landgrave Ferdinand's constitution was suspended by landgrave decree .

content

The constitution consisted of 52 articles, which were divided into six sections:

  1. Of the Landgraviate and its government in general
  2. From the national assembly
  3. From the state budget
  4. From domestic and citizenship law
  5. Basics of the legislation of the Landgraviate
  6. From the guarantee of the constitution

Section five contains a catalog of basic rights, which includes the following points: equality before the law, personal freedom, inviolability of the home, guarantee of the legal judge, inviolability of property, right to emigrate, freedom of belief and conscience, civil marriage, state school supervision, press , Freedom of assembly and association, right of petition, judicial independence, the principle of the public, tithe replacement and communal self-government.

literature

  • Barbara Dölemeyer: Die Landgrafschaft Hessen-Homburg 1848 , in: Klaus Böhme, Bernd Heidenreich (Ed.): "Unity and Law and Freedom" - The Revolution of 1848/49 in the State of Hesse , Westdeutscher Verlag, Opladen / Wiesbaden 1999, ISBN 3 -531-13383-7 , pp. 123-156.
  • Constitutional document of the Landgrave Hesse dated January 3, 1850 , in: Landgräflich Hessisches Regierungs-Blatt dated 1850 , No. 1 v. January 6, 1850, p. 4.