Constitution of Luxembourg
Encyclopedia
The Constitution of Luxembourg is the supreme law of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
. The modern constitution
was adopted on 17 October 1868.
Whilst the constitution of 1868 marked a radical change in Luxembourg's constitutional settlement, it was technically an amendment
of the original constitution. That original constitution was promulgated
on 12 October 1841, came into effect
on 1 January 1842, and was acutely amended on 20 March 1848, and again on 27 November 1856.
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
. The modern constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
was adopted on 17 October 1868.
Whilst the constitution of 1868 marked a radical change in Luxembourg's constitutional settlement, it was technically an amendment
Constitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment is a formal change to the text of the written constitution of a nation or state.Most constitutions require that amendments cannot be enacted unless they have passed a special procedure that is more stringent than that required of ordinary legislation...
of the original constitution. That original constitution was promulgated
Promulgation
Promulgation is the act of formally proclaiming or declaring a new statutory or administrative law after its enactment. In some jurisdictions this additional step is necessary before the law can take effect....
on 12 October 1841, came into effect
Coming into force
Coming into force or entry into force refers to the process by which legislation, regulations, treaties and other legal instruments come to have legal force and effect...
on 1 January 1842, and was acutely amended on 20 March 1848, and again on 27 November 1856.
List of amendments
- 15 May 1919 - National sovereigntySovereigntySovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
was transferred from the monarchGrand Duke of LuxembourgThe Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the sovereign monarch and head of state of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has been a grand duchy since 15 March 1815, when it was elevated from a duchy when placed in personal union with the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
to the nation (Article 32). The monarch's powers to commandCommander-in-ChiefA commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
the armed forcesMilitary of LuxembourgThe Luxembourg Army is the national military of Luxembourg. Luxembourg has no navy, as the country is landlocked, or air force, although it does have aircraft. The Luxembourg Army was integrated into the Force Publique which included the Gendarmerie and the Police. The Gendarmerie was merged...
and to sign treatiesTreatyA treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
were reaffirmed, provided that the treaty was not secretSecret treatyA secret treaty is a treaty between nations that is not revealed to other nations or interested observers. An example would be a secret alliance between two nations to support each other in the event of war...
and that the Chamber of DeputiesChamber of Deputies of LuxembourgThe Chamber of Deputies , abbreviated to the Chamber, is the unicameral national legislature of Luxembourg. 'Krautmaart' is sometimes used as a metonym for the Chamber, after the square on which the Hôtel de la Chambre is located....
ratifiedRatificationRatification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent where the agent lacked authority to legally bind the principal. The term applies to private contract law, international treaties, and constitutionals in federations such as the United States and Canada.- Private law :In contract law, the...
it (Article 37). All changes to Luxembourg's territory were required to be ratified by law (Article 37). - 28 April 1948 - The Grand Duchy was defined as a 'free, independent, and indivisible state' , removing reference to, and therefore ending, its long-standing political neutralityNeutral countryA neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
(Article 1). - 6 May 1948 - The regulation of language use in legal and judicial affairs became regulated by statute, rather than requiring the equal treatment of FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
(Article 29). - 15 May 1948 - SuffrageSuffrageSuffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...
was restricted to Luxembourgers living in Luxembourg, aged over 21 and in possession of their full political rights, whereas candidates were required to be 25 years old (Article 52). - 21 May 1948 -
- 27 July 1956 -
- 25 October 1956 -
- 27 January 1972 -
- 13 June 1979 -
- 25 November 1983 -
- 20 December 1988 -
- 31 March 1989 -
- 20 April 1989 -
- 13 June 1989 -
- 16 June 1989 -
- 19 June 1989 -
- 23 December 1994 -
- 12 July 1996 -
- 12 January 1998 -
- 29 April 1999 -
- 2 June 1999 -
- 8 August 2000 -
- 18 February 2003 -
- 19 December 2003 -
- 26 May 2004 -
- 19 November 2004 -
- 21 June 2005 -
- 1 June 2006 -
- 13 July 2006 -
- 29 March 2007 -
- 24 October 2007 -
- 31 March 2008 -
- 23 October 2008 -
- 12 March 2009 - Sovereign only promulgates, not approves / authorises, laws