DOCSLIB.ORG

In the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
In the Supreme Court of Appeal of South Africa IN THE CONSTITUTIONAL COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA Case No: CCT3/07 In the matter between: TINYIKO LWANDLAMUNI PHILLIA MAMITWA SHILUBANA First Applicant WALTER MBIZANA MBHALATI Second Applicant DISTRICT CONTROL OFFICER Third Applicant THE PREMIER: LIMPOPO PROVINCE Fourth Applicant MEC FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND HOUSING Fifth Applicant HOUSE FOR TRADITIONAL LEADERS Sixth Applicant CHRISTINA SOMISA MAMITWA Seventh Applicant MATHEWS T N MAMITWA Eighth Applicant BEN SHIPALANA Ninth Applicant ERNEST RISABA Tenth Applicant STONE NGOBENI Eleventh Applicant and SIDWELL MAMITWA Respondent APPLICANTS WRITTEN ARGUMENT Page 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ITEM PAGE NO. 1. Introduction 3 2. Factual Background 6 3. Legislative Framework 13 4. Status of Customary Law 18 5. The Principle of Male Primogeniture 25 6. Comparative Treatment of Succession to Traditional Leadership 27 7. Application of the Law to the Facts 31 8. The Findings of the Court A Quo 35 9. Questions Raised in the Court’s Directions 40 10. Application for Condonation 47 11. Application for Leave to Appeal 48 12. Appropriate Relief and Conclusion 49 13. Authorities 53 14. Applicants Chronology of Relevant Events 55 13. Copy of Supreme Court of Appeal Judgment 57 Page 3 INTRODUCTION 1. On 1 December 2006, the Supreme Court of Appeal (“the court a quo”) delivered judgment in the above matter dismissing with costs the Applicants appeal. This is an application for condonation for the late filing of the Applicants application for leave to appeal, and in the event that the condonation is granted, an application for leave to appeal the whole judgment and order of the court a quo, and if that is granted, to argue the merits of the appeal. 2. On 14 March 2007, the Court issued revised directions (“the Court’s directions”) in this matter that the written argument must include argument on the merits of the appeal, and must also address the following issues: 2.1 Does the Royal family have the authority to develop the customs and traditions of the Valoyi community so as to outlaw gender discrimination in the succession to traditional leadership?; 2.2 In the course of developing the customs and the traditions of a community, does the Royal family have the authority to restore the position of traditional leadership to the House from which it Page 4 was removed by reason of gender discrimination, even if this discrimination occurred prior to the coming into operation of the Constitution?; 2.3 Are the provisions of the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act, 2003 (“the Framework Act”) applicable to these proceedings?; 2.4 If the provisions of the Framework Act are applicable, is the dispute relating to the restoration of traditional leadership, the kind of dispute that ought to be dealt with by the Commission as required by Section 21(1)(b) read with Section 21(1)(b) of the Framework Act? 3. In these written submissions, we: 3.1 deal with the factual background to the dispute; 3.2 address the relevant legislative framework; 3.3 consider the proper context within which the status of customary law is to be approached; 3.4 discuss the principle of primogeniture; Page 5 3.5 refer to comparative treatment of succession to traditional leadership; 3.6 apply the law to the facts in this matter; 3.7 critically look at the findings of the court a quo and the reasons thereof; 3.8 make submissions relating to questions raised in the Court’s Directions; 3.9 attend to the application for condonation, as well as the leave to appeal, and finally, 3.10 argue the appropriate relief and conclusion. Page 6 FACTUAL BACKGROUND 4. The following facts have been found by the court of first instance, as well as the court a quo to be correct, that: 4.1 for five generations, the chieftainship of the Valoyi community was patrilineal and according to primogeniture;1 4.2 the first of the Hosis was a Hosi Mamitwa, who was married to four wives. Two of his children from the first wife were females and the other two, males. It is unknown what became of the two sons;2 4.3 Hosi Mamitwa was succeeded by Hosi Mahwahwa, who was the eldest son from his second wife;3 This was as a result of the two sons from the first wife having not returned from the war; 1 Record, Vol 1, Founding Affidavit, pg 11 – 12, para 3; Vol 7, pg 605, line 17 – 26, pg 606, line 1 – 15; Judgment of the court of first instance; Judgment of the court a quo para 5 2 Record, Vol 8, pg 674 & 675; Judgment of the court of first instance, pg 605; Judgment of the court a quo para 5 3 Record, Vol 7 pg 605, lines 21 – 24, Judgment of the court of first instance: Vol.7. p.605, lines 16 to 23; Judgment of the court a quo, para 5 Page 7 4.4 Hosi Mahwahwa also married four wives. From his first marriage he sired six children. The first was female, second and fifth males. Upon his death, he was succeeded by Hosi Mahlebezulu who was second in order of birth but the first male from his first wife;4 4.5 at the death of Hosi Mahlebezulu Mamitwa, Hosi Rufus Mamitwa who was a brother to Hosi Mahlebezulu Mamitwa acted as a Hosi since Hosi Fofoza Mamitwa was a minor. The latter was the second born child (the first being a female) but eldest male from the marriage of Hosi Mahlebezulu Mamitwa to his first wife;5 4.6 when Hosi Fofoza Mamitwa came of age, he took over the chieftainship on 26 May 1948. He reigned until his death on 24 February 1968. He was the father to the first respondent. He was also the elder brother of Hosi Richard Mamitwa (the father to the applicant);6 4 Record, Founding Affidavit Vol 1 para 3, line 1 -8; Answering Affidavit, para 17 pg 88; Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 605-606, lines 25-32; Judgment of the court a quo, para 5 5 Record, Founding Affidavit, Vol 1 para 3.1.1, pg 11; Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 606, line 25-32; Judgment of the court a quo, para 5. 6 Record, Vol 1, Founding Affidavit, para 3.1.1, pg 11, lines 12-15; Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 606, lines 7-15; Judgment of the court a quo, para 5. Page 8 4.7 during the illness of Hosi Fofoza Mamitwa, Hosi Richard Mamitwa was appointed acting chairman of the Valoyi Tribal Authority on 25 January 1968. He was later appointed as acting Hosi on 26 March 1968. He was finally appointed a Hosi on 24 October 1968;7 4.8 on 22 December 1996 there was a meeting of the Royal family attended, amongst others, by the late Chief Richard Mamitwa, the Respondent and the First Applicant;8 4.9 various resolutions were adopted including conferring chieftainship of the Valoyi to the First Applicant because she is the first born of chief Fofoza Mamitwa together with his wife Queen Favazi. The Council unanimously accepted that resolution;9 7 Record, Founding Affidavit para 3.3, pg 12; Answering Affidavit, para 19, pg. 89, Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol. 7, pg 606, lines 11-15, Judgment of the court a quo, para 5 8 Record, Founding Affidavit, para 5, pg 14, Answering Affidavit, para 21, pg 92; Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 608, lines 1-6; Judgment of the court a quo, para 5. 9 Record, Founding Affidavit, paras 5.1 and 5.2 pg. 15; Answering Affidavit, para 21 pg. 92; Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 608, lines 6-10; Judgment of the court a quo, para 6 Page 9 4.10 the Council also revealed that though in the past it was not permissible by the Valoyis that a female child be heir, in terms of democracy and the Republic of South Africa Constitution, it is now permissible that a female child be heir since she is also equal to a male child;10 4.11 the Council further resolved “the matter of chieftainship and regency will be conducted according to the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and according to the acceptance of the Commission”;11 4.12 the First Applicant did not want Chief Richard Mamitwa removed and requested that he wait for her and continue until she finishes with her responsibilities in Parliament. Chief Richard Mamitwa died on 1 October 2001. The Royal Family requested the Commission for traditional leadership to support the resolution;12 10 Record, Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 608, lines 13-17 11 Record, Founding Affidavit, parag 5.3, pg 15, Answering Affidavit, para 21, pg 92, Answering Affidavit, para 32, pg 97, Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 608, lines 17-25, Judgment of the court a quo, para 6, pg 4 12 Record, Founding Affidavit, parag 5.3, pg 15, Answering Affidavit, para 21, pg 92, Answering Affidavit, para 32, pg 97, Judgment of the court of first instance, Vol 7, pg 608, lines 17-25, Judgment of the court a quo, para 6, pg 4 Page 10 4.13 Chief Richard Mamitwa, in writing, invited the Chief Magistrate, Ritavi District, to attend the meeting of the Royal Council on 17 July 1997 and in the presence of the Chief Magistrate and 26 witnesses, Chief Richard Mamitwa acknowledged, in writing, that the First Applicant is the child of the eldest wife of Chief Fofoza Mamitwa and is now heiress to the Valoyi chieftainship.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Reshaping a Tradition. Founding the Habsburg-Lorraine Dynastic State in the 18Th Century
    Исторические исследования www.historystudies.msu.ru _____________________________________________________________________________ Лебо К. Reshaping a tradition. Founding the Habsburg-Lorraine dynastic state in the 18th century Аннотация: В статье исследуются компоненты власти в композитарной монархии Габсбургов и конструирование политической легитимности посредством управленческих практик, сочинений, речей и изображений. Монархия Габсбургов в XVIII в. не представляла собой однородного целого, объединяя территории с различной степенью интеграции. Выборность корон и их переходы от одной ветви рода к другой создавали сложную ситуацию, в которой Габсбургам удавалось утвердить свое господство, сочетая следование традиции и изменения. Административные реформы поддерживались символическим дискурсом. Династический дискурс пришел на смену истории правящего дома и стал способом утвердить принцип государственного интереса. Власть династии была основана на доминировании над территорией. Новые вертикальные связи исходили от Марии Терезии, распространяя ее господство за пределы владений Австрийского дома. На своих более чем двухстах портретах Мария Терезия всегда изображалась с регалиями, вид которых варьировался в зависимости от места, где картина должна была находиться, с тем, чтобы подчеркнуть своеобразие каждой территории и единство монархии, связь между правителем и подвластной территорией. Ключевые слова: династическое государство, дом Габсбургов, империя, институциональные реформы, композитарная монархия, наследственная монархия, символический
    [Show full text]
  • Japanese Monarchy: Past and Present Ben-Ami Shillony, Louis
    Japanese Monarchy: Past and Present Ben-Ami Shillony, Louis Frieberg Chair in East Asian Studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem Will an empress save the Japanese monarchy? p.1 Antony Best, London School of Economics A royal alliance: Anglo-Japanese Court Relations, 1900-41 p.18 The Suntory Centre Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines London School of Economics and Political Science Discussion Paper Houghton Street No. IS/06/512 London WC2A 2AE November 2006 Tel: 020-7955-6699 Preface A symposium was held on 23 February 2006 in the Michio Morishima room at STICERD to discuss aspects of Japanese and British royalty. Professor Ben-Ami Shillony discussed the future succession to the Japanese throne in the light of the current debate about female succession, outlined in his recent book Enigma of the Emperors (Folkestone: Global Oriental, 2005). Dr Best analysed the changing Anglo-Japanese court relationship which had originally been underpinned by the Anglo-Japanese alliance but had become a secondary factor by the 1930s. November 2006 Abstracts Shillony: Paper examines how Japan’s imperial dynasty dependent on the male line of succession has lasted so long and analyses how it will overcome its present difficulties. An Advisory Panel was created to recommend future policy to the Koizumi cabinet but its report in 2005 was criticized. The impasse over the Panel’s report was broken by the birth of a son in September 2006 to Princess Kiko, wife of Prince Akishino. Best: Paper explains why the royal relationship with Japan became so important to Britain. During the Anglo-Japanese Alliance (1902-23), relations between the two Courts were cordial.
    [Show full text]
  • The Law Library Serves the Needs of the U
    Hereditary Monarchies and Inherited Titles Bhutan • Denmark • Fiji • Japan • Kuwait • Bahrain Norway • Sweden • Tonga • United Kingdom February 2008 LL File No. 2008-00589 LRA-D-PUB-000151 The Law Library of Congress, Global Legal Research Directorate (202) 707-5080 (phone) • (866) 550-0442 (fax) • [email protected] • http://www.law.gov This report is provided for reference purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice and does not represent the official opinion of the United States Government. The information provided reflects research undertaken as of the date of writing. It has not been updated. 2008-00589 LAW LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HEREDITARY MONARCHIES AND INHERITED TITLES BHUTAN In 1724, Jigme Dakpa was recognized as Druk Shabdung and King in 1728. Since then the line of succession to the King has been hereditary. In 1973, when the King volunteered to surrender some of his powers, the subjects of the King refused to let him. His son surrendered some powers, including giving the National Assembly the right to force a monarch to abdicate in favor of his successor, in 1998, against similar opposition from the Bhutanese people.1 In 1907, the Wangchuck family was acknowledged as the ruling dynasty of Bhutan, creating an hereditary monarchy. In 1952, when the second Wangchuck King died, Bhutan was an absolute monarchy.2 Since that time, the Kings have moved toward creating a constitutional monarchy. Under the new constitution being drawn up, it is stated that the Throne of Bhutan shall vest in the legitimate descendants of the Druk Gyalpo Ugyen Wangchuck.3 A photocopy of the full succession rules suggested in Article 2 of the third, and latest, Draft Constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan, in English, is attached, which was obtained from http://www.constitution.bt/ (official source).
    [Show full text]
  • The Imperial Throne of Japan, Enjoying the Grace of Heaven and Everlasting from Ages Eternal in an Unbroken Line of Succession
    The Imperial Throne of Japan, enjoying the Grace of Heaven and everlasting from ages eternal in an unbroken line of succession, has been transmitted to Us through suc- cessive reigns. The fundamental rules of Our Family were established once for all, at the time that Our Ancestors laid the foundations of the Empire, and are even at this day as bright as the celestial luminaries. We now desire to make the instructions of Our Ancestors more exact and express and to establish for Our posterity a House Law, by which Our House shall be founded in everlasting strength, and its dignity be forever maintained. We hereby, with the advice of Our Privy Council, give Our Sanction to the present Imperial House Law, to serve as a standard by which Our descendants shall be guided. [His Imperial Majesty's Sign-Manual.] [Privy Seal.] The llth day of the 2nd month of the 22nd year of Meiji. THE IMPERIAL HOUSE LAW. •E*-»o*orJfe*?-*- CHAPTER I. SUCCESSION TO THE IMPERIAL THRONE. ARTICLE I. The Imperial Throne of Japan shall be succeeded to by male descendants in the male line of Imperial Ancestors. ARTICLE II. The Imperial Throne shall be succeeded to by the Imperial eldest son. ARTICLE III. When there is no Imperial eldest son, the Imperial Throne shall be succeeded to by the Imperial eldest grandson. When there is neither Imperial eldest son nor any male descendant of his, it shall be succeeded to by the Imperial son next in age, and so on in every successive case. ARTICLE IV. For succession to the Imperial Throne by an Imperial descendant, the one of full blood shall have precedence over descendants of half blood.
    [Show full text]
  • Is the Japanese Monarchy in Crisis Due to Its Gender Bias?
    2020 VII Is the Japanese Monarchy in Crisis Due to Its Gender Bias? Masako Kamiya Article: Is the Japanese Monarchy in Crisis Due to Its Gender Bias? Is the Japanese Monarchy in Crisis Due to Its Gender Bias? Masako Kamiya GAKUSHUIN UNIVERSITY Abstract: Japanese monarchical succession is restricted to male offspring of imperial lineage, with the order of succession being primogeniture. This rule is not written in the 1947 Constitution—which prohibits sex discrimination in Article 14—but rather in the Imperial House Law of 1947. Given the current gender composition of the imperial family, it is not difficult to imagine a future in which the existence of the imperial system is threatened by a lack of legitimate male heirs. The article takes this reality as its starting point and evaluates the divergent attitudes of fundamentalist, orthodox, and egalitarian monarchists towards male-line primogeniture and the case for a gender-neutral monarchy in Japan. The article advocates an egalitarian view of monarchy as being most consistent with international law, Japan’s 1947 Constitution, comparative practice in contemporary monarchies, and the historical record that includes eight Japanese empresses who ruled in their own right. The article then turns to consider the contemporary role of the Emperor. Although the Japanese monarchy is comparable to others due to its exclusively symbolic and religious nature, the article notes its uniquely gendered aspects, such as the lack of public involvement and visibility of female members of the imperial family. Politicians, however, are reluctant to amend the Imperial House Law, which presents a structural barrier to gender-neutral monarchy.
    [Show full text]
  • MONARCHY July 28, 2008
    CONSTITUTIONMAKING.ORG OPTION REPORTS MONARCHY July 28, 2008 The following report is one of a series produced by the Constitutional Design Group, a group of scholars dedicated to distributing data and analysis useful to those engaged in constitutional design. The primary intent of the reports is to provide current and historical information about design options in written constitutions as well as representative and illustrative text for important constitutional provisions. Most of the information in these reports comes from data from the Comparative Constitutions Project (CCP), a project sponsored by the National Science Foundation. Interested readers are encouraged to visit constitutionmaking.org for further resources for scholars and practitioners of constitutional design. Note that the dates provided herein for constitutional texts reflect either the year of initial promulgation or of a subsequent amendment, depending on which version was used for analysis. For example, Brazil 2005 refers to the Brazilian Constitution of 1988, as amended through 2005. Copyright © 2008 ConstitutionMaking.org. All Rights Reserved. Option Report – Monarchy 1 1. introduction We describe trends in constitutional monarchies, identify the set of modern (post-1944) cases, present summary data on powers across these cases, and provide excerpts from representative or illustrative text. Some of the findings regarding the powers of monarchs are preliminary, since such powers are often highly conditional on either formal or informal rules. Our data will ultimately allow us to elaborate upon these conditions, at which point we can say something more authoritatively about the various constraints on monarchical power. 2. DATA SOURCE(S) The analysis reported below is based on data the Comparative Constitutions Project (please see the appendix to view the question text).
    [Show full text]
  • The Monarchy in Lithuania History, Rights and Prospects
    Carmelo Curró Troiano The Monarchy in Lithuania History, Rights and Prospects Presentation and modified by Salvatore Ferdinando Antonio Caputo Page 1 of 15 BRIEF HISTORY – SALVATORE FERDINANDO ANTONIO CAPUTO First known habitation of Lithuania dates back to the final ice age, 10 000 BC. The hunter’s gatherers were slowly replaced by farmers. The origin of Baltic tribes in the area is disputed but it probably dates to 2500 BC. These forefathers of Lithuanians were outside the main migration routes and thus are among the oldest European ethnicities to have settled in approximately current area. The word “Lithuania” was mentioned for the first time in the annals of Quedlinburg (year 1009) where a story describes how Saint Bruno was killed by the pagans “on the border of Lithuania and Russ”. These Baltic peoples traded amber with Romans and then fought Vikings. In the era only one small tribe from area around Vilnius was known as Lithuanians but it was this tribe that consolidated the majority of other Baltic tribes. This process accelerated under king Mindaugas (ca. 1200– 12 September 1263) who became a Christian and received a crown from the Pope in 1253. Mindaugas was the first and only crowned king of Lithuania. In the early 13th century, Lithuania was inhabited by various pagan Baltic tribes, which began to organize themselves into a state – the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. By the 1230s, Mindaugas emerged as the leader of the Grand Duchy. In 1249, an internal war erupted between Mindaugas and his nephews Tautvilas and Edivydas. As each side searched for foreign allies, Mindaugas succeeded in convincing the Livonian Order not only to provide military assistance, but also to secure for him the royal crown of Lithuania in exchange for his conversion to Catholicism and some lands in western Lithuania.
    [Show full text]
  • Hurdles for a Female Successor to the Throne
    KEEPING UP WITH THE TIMES urdles for Ha Female Successor to the Throne By Matsunaga Tsutomu ITHIN the Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii cases where the first W Mountain Range, a World Heritage site in central Japan, is a child is a girl for a mountain sacred to the Shugendo sect, a mixture of mountain wor- subsequent brother to ship and Buddhism. This particular Mt. Omine is closed to women. succeed to the family The national sport of Grand Sumo has a similar prohibition. When line. Hence one can official tournaments are held in Osaka, the Governor of Osaka – who assume that while an happens to be a woman – is not allowed to enter the ring even to Empress might be present an award to the tournament champion. accepted, some will The Imperial family, the world’s longest dynasty, have a history of call for a male to take 125 generations, and there have been eight reigning Empresses. the role “if possible.” However, it has been more than 240 years since the last Empress It is possible to give took the throne in the Edo period. In the Meiji era, the Imperial priority to males over females and establish an order of succession House Law stipulated that only males could rise to the throne and among the direct descendants of the current Emperor. However, was upheld even after World War II, despite the fact that equality of this makes it difficult to foresee exactly who will eventually rise to males and females was guaranteed by the new Constitution.
    [Show full text]
  • 5500-5579.Pdf
    DOI : 10.14746/pp.2015.20.3.7 Marcin £UKASZEWSKI Poznań Microstate and monarchy in the face of the challenges of the modern world. The political system of Liechtenstein and its specificity (an outline of the problem )1 Abstract: The p is an attempt to analyse the functioning of the political system of monarchy and microstate in the conditions of modern processes of integration and globalisation with which we are dealing in Europe. The author attempts to analyse the functioning of the state based on an interview with the main political actor of the Duchy - HSH Alois, who since 2004, under Article 13 bis of the Constitu­ tion of the Principality, fulfils the duties of head of state. The author is also tries to draw attention to the specific features of the political system of Liechtenstein. Key words: Liechtenstein, microstate, monarchy, political system iechtenstein is a monarchy which is certainly unique on the European scale. LThe specificity of the structure of the political system of this country manifests itself in the strong political position of the head of state. This State remains, next to Monaco and the Vatican City State, as the last monarchy on the European conti­ nent, in which the monarch plays an important role in ongoing political life and does not play only a symbolic function, as with the monarchies of Scandinavia or, as is the case in recent decades, also in the Benelux monarchies (Marxer, 2013, p. 65; Foulkes, 2012). In view of the process of democratisation of the modern monarchy after the constitutional referendum in 2003, the citizens of Liechtenstein consolidated their specific system based on relatively strong princely power and agreed to create unique, specific constitutional institutions such as, among others, the possibility of the monarch receiving a vote of no confidence from the citizens.
    [Show full text]
  • The Legitimate of Non Reigning Royal Families
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR Don Salvatore Ferdinando Antonio Caputo was born in a noble family in 1942 when Italy was a kingdom ruled by the House of Savoy, kings of Italy since the Risorgimento (The Resurgence. The movement for the liberation and political unification of Italy, beginning about 1750 and lasting until 1870), and previously rules of Savoy. However, four years after his birth, monarchy was abolished by popular referendum in June 2, 1946. Italy became a republic. At the age of 15, he was brought up in Canada where after he spends his life traveling worldwide and worked in Brazil, Guatemala and Philippines as a prominent director of multinational Corporations. Since he became conscious of politics, there has not been a president who he felt was a satisfactory symbol of the countries visited, and who he could admire as a focus for non-partisan patriotism. This is essentially why he came to support monarchy…..although his enthusiasm for royalty dates from childhood. He speaks and writes fluently Italian, English, Spanish, and Portuguese, read French and was educated in Italy, Canada and USA. Don Salvatore is a monarchist that believes that a hereditary Monarchy, with a Sovereign, non-corrupt one with religious values and culture and tradition, conducted with immense kindness and whose role was thrust upon him by accident of birth rather than by being a politician, is the most perfect form of government in a nation. Contrary to a Republic's President (like France, USA etc.) the Sovereign will insure the continuity in a time schedule. He/she is always aware about important files and he/she acts to push these files up to their conclusion.
    [Show full text]
  • “Das Schulwesen Aber Ist Und Bleibet Allezeit Ein Politicum”: the Felbiger General School Ordinance and School Reform in the Eighteenth-Century Habsburg Monarchy
    2 “Das Schulwesen aber ist und bleibet allezeit ein politicum”: The Felbiger General School Ordinance and School Reform in the Eighteenth-Century Habsburg Monarchy Martin Viehhauser On December 6, 1774, Austrian Empress Maria Teresa signed a school act that made elementary schooling compulsory for all children from age six to twelve in the hereditary lands of the Habsburg Empire. Te school act, consisting of 24 paragraphs, became known as Allgemeine Schulordnung (General School Ordinance) and was mainly formulated by Johann Ignaz Felbiger (1724–1788), a Catholic abbot from Silesia, a region of mixed Catholic and Protestant creeds that was conquered by Prussia in the mid-eighteenth century.1 Te ordinance’s core con- cern was frst and foremost the literacy of the people. Reading, writ- ing, arithmetic, and, of course, religious education were among the main subjects to be taught, with additional subjects for city schools. However, at the same time—and when observed within the contempo- rary historical context—the school act was a tool to integrate the diverse dominions of the empire into one political sphere. From the perspec- tive of state-building, which in this chapter will be the main framework for my interpretation of the ordinance, the school act helped to limit M. Viehhauser (*) Fribourg University of Teacher Education, Fribourg, Switzerland e-mail: [email protected] © Te Author(s) 2019 17 J. Westberg et al. (eds.), School Acts and the Rise of Mass Schooling, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13570-6_2 18 M. Viehhauser the political infuence of the Catholic Church and to install a political system via the institutionalization of public elementary schooling.
    [Show full text]
  • Constitutional Monarchs in Parliamentary Democracies
    Constitutional Monarchs in Parliamentary Democracies International IDEA Constitution-Building Primer 7 Constitutional Monarchs in Parliamentary Democracies International IDEA Constitution-Building Primer 7 Elliot Bulmer © 2017 International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) Second edition First published in 2014 by International IDEA International IDEA publications are independent of specific national or political interests. Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the views of International IDEA, its Board or its Council members. The electronic version of this publication is available under a Creative Commons Attribute-NonCommercial- ShareAlike 3.0 (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0) licence. You are free to copy, distribute and transmit the publication as well as to remix and adapt it, provided it is only for non-commercial purposes, that you appropriately attribute the publication, and that you distribute it under an identical licence. For more information on this licence visit the Creative Commons website: <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/> International IDEA Strömsborg SE–103 34 Stockholm Sweden Telephone: +46 8 698 37 00 Email: [email protected] Website: <http://www.idea.int> Cover design: International IDEA Cover illustration: © 123RF, <http://www.123rf.com> Produced using Booktype: <https://booktype.pro> ISBN: 978-91-7671-112-5 Contents 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................. 3 Advantages
    [Show full text]