Landtag of Prussia
TheLandtag of Prussia(German:Preußischer Landtag) was therepresentative assemblyof theKingdom of Prussiaimplemented in 1849, abicamerallegislature consisting of the upperHouse of Lords(Herrenhaus) and the lowerHouse of Representatives(Abgeordnetenhaus). AfterWorld War Iand theGerman Revolution of 1918–19theLandtagdiet continued as the parliament of theFree State of Prussiabetween 1921 and 1934, when it was abolished by the Nazi regime.
History
[edit]Kingdom of Prussia
[edit]In the course of the1848 Revolution,KingFrederick William IV of Prussiaand his Minister PresidentGottfried Ludolf Camphausenhad agreed to call for the general election of a national assembly in allPrussian provinces.ThePrussian National Assemblyhowever was dismissed by royal decree of 5 December 1848 and the King imposed the1848 Constitution of Prussia.It contained a catalog of fundamental rights that included freedom of religion, speech and the press, and provided for abicameralparliament consisting of a First Chamber (Erste Kammer,called House of Lords from 1855), as well as a Second Chamber (Zweite Kammer,from 1855 House of Representatives) whose members were elected by universal manhood suffrage according to thethree-class franchisesystem that weighted votes based on amount of taxes paid. Both houses and theKing of Prussiahad the right to introduce bills, although the king remained the most powerful element in the government.[1]The first Parliament, which met in 1849, modified the constitution in mostly minor ways. The resulting1850 Constitution of Prussia,[2]amended numerous times, remained Prussia's basic law until 1918.
Under the regency of PrinceWilliam Iand hisliberalprime minister PrinceKarl Anton von Hohenzollernfrom 1858 (the "New Era" ), the House of Representatives led by the newly establishedGerman Progress Partygradually developed into a serious political actor, culminating in a constitutional conflict in 1861: William I, who had just acceded to the Prussian throne, and his war ministerAlbrecht von Roonrequested approval for an increment of the military budget, which the deputies refused. Roon urged the king to appointOtto von BismarckasMinister President.Bismarck acted on an alleged gap in the constitution (Lückentheorie) and openly sidestepped anypower of the purseof the Prussian representatives, saying that "not by speeches and votes of the majority are the great questions of the time decided (...) but byiron and blood."The assembly raised a blistering protest and over the following years Bismarck's cabinet had to govern without agovernment budgetpassed by the legislature. In September 1866 the Minister President, at a peak of his power after theBattle of Königgrätz,reached the passage of the Indemnity Act (Indemnitätsgesetz) subsequently legalising his budget management. The balloting led to the split-off of theNational Liberal Partywhich became a loyal supporter of Bismarck's policies.[citation needed]
Free State of Prussia
[edit]During the German Revolution of 1918–19 the new Prussian government ofMajority Social Democrats(MSPD) andIndependent Social Democrats(USPD) underPaul Hirschhad the bicameral legislature abolished. Aconstitutional convention(Preußische Landesversamlung) was elected on 26 January 1919, after the introduction of equal franchise for all men and women. After the failedKapp Putschof 1920, the assembly confirmed the first cabinet of Minister-presidentOtto Braunand finally adopted the new Prussian constitution on 30 November. ThePreußischer Landtagwas re-established as the parliament of theFree State of Prussiain 1921. The provinces were represented in thePrussian State Council,which succeeded the formerHerrenhausas a kind of upper house. TheColognemayorKonrad Adenauerserved as its president until 1933.[3]
A legislative period lasted for no longer than four years. The parliament could be dissolved early by joint resolution of the prime minister and the presidents of the Landtag and the State Council or by aplebiscite.In 1931 just such a referendum, intended todissolve the Prussian Landtag,took place on the initiative ofthe "Stahlhelm"veterans' organization, with the support of theNazi Partyand theGerman Communist Party.[4]The referendum failed. Landtag elections took place on20 February 1921,7 December 1924,20 May 1928,24 April 1932,and5 March 1933.The last Prussian Landtag convened on 22 March 1933, and again on 18 May 1933 for the final time. A year after coming to power in Germany, the Nazi Party passed the "Law on the Reconstruction of the Reich,"effective on 30 January 1934. Directed at replacing the German federal state with a unitary government, this law abolished the Prussian Landtag, along with all other provincial diets.[5]
Building complex
[edit]
In 1899, the House of Representatives (Abgeordnetenhaus) moved into a building onPrinz-Albrecht-StraßeNo. 5 (present-day Niederkirchnerstraße), close toPotsdamer Platzand situated opposite to theMartin Gropius Bau.During the German Revolution of 1918–19 theReichsrätekongress(nationalWorkers' and Soldiers' Council) held its assemblies here from 16 to 20 December 1918.[6]: 136 On 1 January 1919, theCommunist Party of Germanywas founded here. Since 1993 the building has been the seat of theAbgeordnetenhaus of Berlin:colloquially it is still namedPreußischer Landtagjust as the nearby building accommodating theBundestagis still generally referred to as theReichstag.
The seat of the Prussian House of Lords onLeipziger Straßewas inaugurated in 1904. Both buildings were built back-to-back according to plans designed byFriedrich Schulze,they intercommunicate via a common restaurant wing. Upon the NaziMachtergreifung,theHerrenhausbuilding served as an annex of the neighbouringMinistry of AviationandHermann Göring'sPreußenhausfoundation. AfterWorld War IIit housed several departments of the (East)German Academy of Sciencesand since 29 September 2000 is the seat of the GermanBundesrat.
Presidents of the Prussian Landtag (Free State of Prussia)
[edit]| Portrait | Name | Political Party | Term of Office | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| President of the Preußische Landesversammlung | ||||
|
Robert Leinert | Social Democratic Party of Germany | 1919–1921 | |
| Presidents of the Landtag of Prussia | ||||
|
|
Robert Leinert | Social Democratic Party of Germany | 1921–1924 | |
|
Friedrich Bartels | Social Democratic Party of Germany | 1924–1928 | |
| 1928–1931 | ||||
|
Ernst Wittmaack | Social Democratic Party of Germany | 1931–1932 | |
|
Hanns Kerrl | National Socialist German Workers' Party | 1932–1933 | |
| 1933 | ||||
See also
[edit]- Elections in the Free State of Prussia
- List of presidents of the State Council of Prussia
- List of presidents of the House of Deputies of Prussia
- Prussian House of Representatives
- Prussian House of Lords
Literature
[edit]- Hans Wilderotter:Das Haus der Abgeordneten: Ein Denkmal preußischer und deutscher Geschichte in der Mitte Berlins.Philo Fine Arts, Dresden 2001,ISBN3-364-00378-5
External links
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^"[oktroyierte] Verfassungsurkunde für den preußischen Staat vom 5. Dezember 1848"[[imposed] Constitutional Charter for the Prussian State of 5 December 1848].documentArchiv.de(in German).Retrieved4 April2023.
- ^– viaWikisource.
- ^"Konrad Adenauer".Konrad Adenauer Stiftung.Retrieved10 April2023.
- ^Harsch, Donna (2000).German Social Democracy and the Rise of Nazism.Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. p. 129.
- ^"Nazi conspiracy and aggression".avalon.law.yale.edu.Retrieved28 June2020.
- ^Haffner, Sebastian (2002).Die deutsche Revolution 1918/19 (German).Kindler.ISBN3-463-40423-0.
52°30′29″N13°22′55″E/ 52.50806°N 13.38194°E
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