Corps législatif
Encyclopedia
The Corps législatif was a part of the French legislature during the French Revolution
and beyond. It is also the generic French term used to refer to any legislative body.
foresaw the need for a corps législatif. During the period of the French Directory
, beginning in 1795, the Corps législatif referred to the bicameral legislature of the Conseil des Cinq-Cents (Council of Five Hundred
) and the Conseil des Anciens (Council of Ancients
).
Later, under Napoleon's
Consulate
, the Constitution of the Year VIII
(1800) set up a Corps législatif as the law-making body of the three-part government apparatus (alongside the Tribunat
and the Sénat Conservateur
). This body replaced the Conseil des Cinq-Cents, established by the Constitution of the Year III of the Directory period as the lower house of the French legislature, but its role consisted solely of voting on laws deliberated before the Tribunat. The Constitution of the Year X
continued the corps' existence, but Napoleon grew more impatient with its slow deliberations and stripped it of much of its power in 1804. It was finally abolished by Louis XVIII
on 4 June 1814, to be replaced by the Chambre des députés (though a Chambre des représentants was briefly set up during the Hundred Days
).
When Napoleon III
gained power, he re-constituted the Corps as France's lower chamber through the Constitution of 1852
, with members elected by direct universal suffrage for terms of 6 years. The elections occurred in February 1852, June 1857, 31 May 1863 and May 1869. Faced with an omnipotent executive – ministers appointed by Napoleon III were only dependent on him – the elected corps législatif of the Second Empire shared its reduced legislative powers with the executive Conseil d'État, made up of functionaries, and the Sénat, whose members were named for life.
The name was finally changed to Chamber of Deputies
by the Third Republic
.
.
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
and beyond. It is also the generic French term used to refer to any legislative body.
History
The Constitution of the Year IFrench Constitution of 1793
The Constitution of 24 June 1793 , also known as the Constitution of the Year I, or the The Montagnard Constitution , was the constitution instated by the Montagnards and by popular referendum under the First Republic during the French Revolution...
foresaw the need for a corps législatif. During the period of the French Directory
French Directory
The Directory was a body of five Directors that held executive power in France following the Convention and preceding the Consulate...
, beginning in 1795, the Corps législatif referred to the bicameral legislature of the Conseil des Cinq-Cents (Council of Five Hundred
Council of Five Hundred
The Council of Five Hundred , or simply the Five Hundred was the lower house of the legislature of France during the period commonly known as the Directory , from 22 August 1795 until 9 November 1799, roughly the second half of the period generally referred to as the...
) and the Conseil des Anciens (Council of Ancients
Council of Ancients
The Council of Ancients or Council of Elders was the upper house of the Directory , the legislature of France from 22 August 1795 until 9 November 1799, roughly the second half of the period generally referred to as the French Revolution.The Council of Ancients was the senior of the two halves of...
).
Later, under Napoleon's
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
Consulate
French Consulate
The Consulate was the government of France between the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire in 1804...
, the Constitution of the Year VIII
Constitution of the Year VIII
The Constitution of the Year VIII was a national constitution of France, adopted December 24, 1799 , which established the form of government known as the Consulate...
(1800) set up a Corps législatif as the law-making body of the three-part government apparatus (alongside the Tribunat
Tribunat
The Tribunat was one of the four assemblies set up in France by the Constitution of Year VIII . It was set up officially on 1 January 1800 at the same time as the...
and the Sénat Conservateur
Sénat conservateur
The Sénat conservateur was a body set up in France during the Consulate by the Constitution of the Year VIII. With the Tribunat and the Corps législatif, it formed one of the three legislative assemblies of the Consulate...
). This body replaced the Conseil des Cinq-Cents, established by the Constitution of the Year III of the Directory period as the lower house of the French legislature, but its role consisted solely of voting on laws deliberated before the Tribunat. The Constitution of the Year X
Constitution of the Year X
The Constitution of the Year X was a national constitution of France adopted during the Year X of the French Revolutionary Calendar...
continued the corps' existence, but Napoleon grew more impatient with its slow deliberations and stripped it of much of its power in 1804. It was finally abolished by Louis XVIII
Louis XVIII of France
Louis XVIII , known as "the Unavoidable", was King of France and of Navarre from 1814 to 1824, omitting the Hundred Days in 1815...
on 4 June 1814, to be replaced by the Chambre des députés (though a Chambre des représentants was briefly set up during the Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
).
When Napoleon III
Napoleon III of France
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte...
gained power, he re-constituted the Corps as France's lower chamber through the Constitution of 1852
French Constitution of 1852
The French Constitution of 1852 was enacted on January 14, 1852 by Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte . Slightly modified later that year, on December 25, 1852 the constitution became the basis for the creation of the French Second Empire....
, with members elected by direct universal suffrage for terms of 6 years. The elections occurred in February 1852, June 1857, 31 May 1863 and May 1869. Faced with an omnipotent executive – ministers appointed by Napoleon III were only dependent on him – the elected corps législatif of the Second Empire shared its reduced legislative powers with the executive Conseil d'État, made up of functionaries, and the Sénat, whose members were named for life.
The name was finally changed to Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of France
Chamber of Deputies was the name given to several parliamentary bodies in France in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries:* 1814–1848 during the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the Chamber of Deputies was the Lower chamber of the French Parliament, elected by census suffrage.*...
by the Third Republic
French Third Republic
The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...
.
See also
A corps législatif also existed in the Republic of FrankfurtFree City of Frankfurt
For almost five centuries, the German city of Frankfurt am Main was a city-state within two major Germanic states:*The Holy Roman Empire as the Free Imperial City of Frankfurt...
.