The French Constitution of 1852 was enacted on 14 January 1852 by

Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

(Napoleon III). Slightly modified later that year, on 25 December 1852 the constitution became the basis for the creation of the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Empire, Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the French Second Republic, Second and the French Third Republic ...

Adoption

Louis Napoléon effectively brought an end to the

Second French Republic The French Second Republic (french: Deuxième République Française or ), officially the French Republic (), was the republican government of France that existed between 1848 and 1852. It was established in February 1848, with the February Revo ...

by the coup d'état of 2 December 1851. The same day, he had posters issued that proclaimed to the French people (''Appel au peuple'') his desire to restore the "system created by the

First Consul The Consulate (french: Le Consulat) was the top-level Government of France from the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire on 10 November 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire on 18 May 1804. By extension, the term ''The Con ...

" — his uncle and inspiration

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. His coup was ratified by

plebiscite A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

on 22 and 23 December 1851. This vote was heavily rigged; 92 percent were announced as voting in favour. Backed by this strong success, he encouraged counsellors Rouher, Baroche and Troplong to quickly write the new constitution which was enacted on 14 January 1852. The constitution was modified by the French Senate (by a "senatus-consulte") on 7 November 1852 to permit the re-establishing of the Empire, with the crown to be hereditary in Louis-Napoléon and his family. The amended document was approved in another heavily rigged plebiscite (97 percent voted yes). The Second Empire was proclaimed on 2 December 1852 and the Imperial Constitution was enacted on 25 December 1852, without any significant change to the 14 January constitution.

The Prince-President

The constitution rejected the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

and the post-revolutionary restoration monarchies with

census suffrage Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

. It referred directly to the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

– saying that it "recognizes, confirms and guarantees the principles proclaimed in 1789" – and especially to the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Eu ...

. Louis Napoléon was persuaded that democracy needed to be incarnated in a man, and the Constitution of 1851 was a return to the democratic

Caesarism Caesarism is an authoritarian or autocratic political philosophy inspired by Julius Caesar. It has been used in various ways by both proponents and opponents as a pejorative. Historical use of the term The first documented use of the word is ...

of his uncle

Napoléon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. The regime was characterized by a strong personal power backed by

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political stanc ...

; the French people remained "sovereign", and in this way the Second Empire was different from the earlier constitutional monarchies.

Division of powers

Personal government

The constitution extended the president's term to 10 years, with no term limits. Under the provisions of the constitution, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was automatically reelected to a fresh term as president. The president was vested with sweeping executive and legislative powers. He was commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and had the powers of clemency and amnesty, as well as the ability to enact and sign treaties. He also appointed and dismissed governmental ministers and dissolved the Legislative Body. He was assisted by the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

(Conseil d'État) which he controlled and presided, and whose job it was to write and support legislation. Under Article 4 of the constitution, he could initiate, sign or veto any legislation or senate decree ("senatus-consulte"). In practice, so much power was concentrated in the president's hands that when the Second Empire was proclaimed, the only substantive changes were the replacement of the word "president" with the word "emperor," and the provision that the emperor's post was hereditary.

Weakened assemblies

The two French parliamentary assemblies were highly controlled and had limited powers. The

Corps législatif The 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. History The Constitution of the Year I foresaw the need for a ''corps législatif''. ...

, or Legislative Body (the same name had been used for the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the French legislature during the

French Consulate The Consulate (french: Le Consulat) was the top-level Government of France from the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire on 10 November 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire on 18 May 1804. By extension, the term ''The Con ...

and

from 1799–1814), comprised 260 deputies (representatives) elected for 6 years by direct

, but

gerrymandering In representative democracies, gerrymandering (, originally ) is the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a party, group, or socioeconomic class within the constituency. The m ...

of the election districts ("circonscriptions") and the system of "official candidates" favored partisans of the president/emperor. The Legislative Body could neither amend laws nor censure the actions of the ministers, and had no legislative autonomy, as its president and its rules were designated by the government. The

French Senate The Senate (french: Sénat, ) is the upper house of the French Parliament, with the lower house being the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, the two houses constituting the legislature of France. The French Senate is made up of 34 ...

was composed of from 80 to 150 members appointed for life by the president. It had the right to issue decrees, or ''senatus-consulte'', to modify institutions and to verify the constitutionality of laws.

Evolution towards a parliamentary regime

Over time, various decrees and the "senatus-consulte" modified the constitution and progressively increased the power of the assemblies. In 1860, Napoleon III permitted the Senate and Legislative Body to once again have the right to air their opinions and grievances on the acts of the government. In 1861, the Legislative Body began to publish its debates; in 1867 it gained the power to direct questions to the government; in 1869, it gained the power to initiate and amend legislation.

Timeline of French constitutions

References

:''This article is based on the article Constitution de 1852 from the

French Wikipedia The French Wikipedia (french: Wikipédia en français) is the French-language edition of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia. This edition was started on 23 March 2001, two months after the official creation of Wikipedia. It has article ...

, retrieved on 20 October 2006.''