Julius Anton Glaser (born Joshua Glaser 19 March 1831 – 26 December 1885) was an Austrian jurist and classical-liberal politician. Along with Joseph Unger he is considered to be one of the founders of modern Austrian jurisprudence. He joined the Auersperg cabinet as Minister of Justice in 1871. Upon resigning this office in 1879, he was appointed attorney-general at the Vienna Court of Cassation, a position he held until his death. Glaser was a prominent representative of Austrian High Liberalism, with a particular emphasis on the cultural and political preeminence of the German part of the Empire. He was responsible for several liberal penal law reforms, most notably the 1873 Austrian Code of Criminal Procedure, and he advocated the abolition of the death penalty.

Life

Born in Postelberg, Bohemia to a family of Jewish traders of humble means, Glaser later converted to Christianity. In 1849, at the age of 18, he attained his doctorate of philosophy at the

University of Zürich The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 f ...

and gained a reputation as a criminalist thanks to a monograph on English and Scottish criminal procedure (''Das englisch-schottische Strafverfahren'', Vienna, 1850). In 1854, after also obtaining a doctorate of law in Vienna, he achieved habilitation as '' Privatdozent'' for Austrian criminal law at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hist ...

. In 1856 he was appointed associate professor of criminal law, and in 1860, ordinary (tenured) professor. In 1871 he entered the Auersperg cabinet as Minister of Justice. Resigning this office in 1879, he was appointed Attorney-General at the Vienna Court of Cassation, which position he held until his death. From 1871 to 1879 he represented Vienna in the House of Representatives as a member of the Liberal party, and later became a member of the House of Lords. A prominent representative of Austrian High Liberalism, he particularly emphasized the cultural and political preeminence of the German part of the Empire. He died in 1885 of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

, leaving behind a widow, Wilhelmine (''née'' Löwenthal), a son and two daughters. They obtained the hereditary title of ''

Freiherr (; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , literally "free lord" or "free lady") and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire ...

'' to which Glaser's decorations had entitled him.

Legacy

Described as a "liberal reformer of Austrian penal law", along with Joseph Unger he is considered to be one of the founders of modern Austrian jurisprudence. Glaser's principal legislative accomplishment was the 1873 Austrian Code of Criminal Procedure, the first Austrian code to introduce the principles of immediacy and publicity,

trial by jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significan ...

, and trial based on specific charges (''Anklageprinzip''). As a scholar, he is best remembered for his Handbook of Criminal Procedure (1883/85), a systematic overview of German criminal procedure with wide-ranging comparative and historical notes. He advocated introducing jury courts and opposed the death penalty. Among other decorations, he was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Leopold and made a Knight of the

Order of the Iron Crown The Order of the Iron Crown ( it, link=no, Ordine della Corona Ferrea) was an order of merit that was established on 5 June 1805 in the Kingdom of Italy by Napoleon Bonaparte under his title of Napoleon I, King of Italy. The order took its name ...

. A marble relief portrait by Zumbusch adorns the Arcaded Courtyard of the University of Vienna, the first statue to be placed there.

Noted works

* ''Anklage, Wahrspruch und Rechtsmittel im englischen Schwurgerichtsverfahren''. Erlangen, Enke, 1866, reprinted 1997, *
Das englisch-schottische Strafverfahren
Vienna, 1850 *''Abhandlungen aus dem österreichischen Strafrecht'', Vienna 1858 *''Anklage, Wahrspruch und Rechtsmittel im englischen Schwurgerichtsverfahren'', Erlangen, 1866 *''Gesammelte kleinere Schriften über Strafrecht, Zivil- und Strafprozeß'', Vienna, 1868 *''Studien zum Entwurf des österreichischen Strafgesetzes über Verbrechen und Vergehen'', Vienna, 1871 *''Schwurgerichtliche Erörterungen'', Vienna, 1875 *''Beiträge zur Lehre vom Beweis im Strafprozeß'', Leipzig, 1883

References

;Bibliography * * * * * * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Glaser, Julius Anton 1831 births 1885 deaths People from Postoloprty People from the Kingdom of Bohemia Czech Jews Converts to Christianity from Judaism German Bohemian people Constitutional Party (Austria) politicians Justice ministers of Austria Members of the Austrian House of Deputies (1870–1871) Members of the Austrian House of Deputies (1871–1873) Austrian jurists University of Zurich alumni University of Vienna alumni Academic staff of the University of Vienna