The Golden Charter of Bern (also: ''

Golden Bull A golden bull or chrysobull was a decree issued by Byzantine Emperors and later by monarchs in Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, most notably by the Holy Roman Emperors. The term was originally coined for the golden seal (a ''bull ...

'', in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

: ''Goldene Handfeste'' or ''Berner Handfeste'') is a medieval

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

purporting to have been issued by

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

Frederick II. It establishes the

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

Bern german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese , neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen , website ...

(now the capital of

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

), making it an

Imperial Free City In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...

and, effectively, an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

state. The charter is dated to 1218, but is now believed by most scholars to be a Bernese forgery from the middle of the 13th century. The charter's 54 articles provided for extensive privileges, including the free election of the Schultheiss (i.e.,

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

) and the right to autonomously legislate. It also provided for the establishment of an Imperial

Mint MiNT is Now TOS (MiNT) is a free software alternative operating system kernel for the Atari ST system and its successors. It is a multi-tasking alternative to TOS and MagiC. Together with the free system components fVDI device drivers, XaAES g ...

, which was established in 1228 at the latest, to coin ''Berner

Pfennig The 'pfennig' (; . 'pfennigs' or ; symbol pf or ₰) or penny is a former German coin or note, which was the official currency from the 9th century until the introduction of the euro in 2002. While a valuable coin during the Middle Ages, i ...

e''. These rights were formally confirmed by King

Rudolf I Rudolf I (1 May 1218 – 15 July 1291) was the first King of Germany from the House of Habsburg. The first of the count-kings of Germany, he reigned from 1273 until his death. Rudolf's election marked the end of the Great Interregnum which h ...

in 1274, and the issue of the charter's authenticity thus made moot. The charter is called "golden" due to its impressive (and undoubtedly authentic) golden bull, or

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

. Its face shows Frederick on the throne with his Emperor's

regalia Regalia is a Latin plurale tantum word that has different definitions. In one rare definition, it refers to the exclusive privileges of a sovereign. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and dress accessories of a sovereign ...

, circumscribed "Frederick, by the Grace of God Roman King, ever increasing the Empire,

King of Sicily The monarchs of Sicily ruled from the establishment of the County of Sicily in 1071 until the "perfect fusion" in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies in 1816. The origins of the Sicilian monarchy lie in the Norman conquest of southern Italy which occ ...

." The issue of whether the charter — regarded as Bern's founding document for centuries — is authentic has been contentious among historians since the 1860s. Modern researchers now seem to agree that it is a forgery done on behalf of Bern's government during the middle of the 13th century, done to establish in writing the rights the city had in practice seized decades previously. They point out that the exceptional liberties granted by the charter were very atypical for the time, and that the writing seems to match that of one writer in the Frienisberg monastery. Monasteries, at that time, were masters of the ''

pia fraus Pious fraud is used to describe fraud in religion or medicine. A pious fraud can be counterfeiting a miracle or falsely attributing a sacred text to a biblical figure due to the belief that the " end justifies the means", in this case the end of in ...

'', the "pious fraud" of falsifying documents to match a dead benefactor's supposed intent. On the other hand,

X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...

analysis in 2002 did not reveal any indication that (as had been assumed) the authentic bull had been removed from an authentic document and then re-affixed to the Bernese charter.

References

Literature

* Rainer C. Schwinges, ''Erfolgreich gefälscht — die Goldene Handfeste'' in: Rainer C. Schwinges (ed.), ''Berns mutige Zeit: Das 13. und 14. Jahrhundert neu entdeckt'', Bern, Schulverlag blmv AG und Stämpfli Verlag AG, Bern 2003, and , p. 231–232. * Barbara Spalinger, ''Die Goldbulle der Handfeste im Röntgenbild'', in: Schwinges (2003), op.cit., p. 233. * Karl H. Flatt, ''Das Bernbiet im Früh- und Hochmittelalter'', in: Peter Meyer (ed.), ''Berner — deine Geschichte'', Büchler Verlag, Bern 1981, , p. 58. * * {{HDS, 209, Bern: Municipal constitution 1210s in law Golden Bulls History of Bern Political charters Medieval charters and cartularies 1210s in the Holy Roman Empire 1218 in Europe

See also

References

Literature