Philippe-Antoine Merlin, known as Merlin de Douai (, 30 October 1754 – 26 December 1838) was a French politician and lawyer.

Personal and public life

Early years

Merlin de Douai was born at

Arleux Arleux () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Geography The river Sensée joins the Canal du Nord at Arleux. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 648 communes of ...

, Nord, and was called to the Flemish bar association in 1775. He collaborated in the ''Répertoire de jurisprudence'', the later editions of which appeared under Merlin's superintendence, and contributed to other important legal compilations. In 1782 he purchased a position as royal secretary at the chancellery of the Flanders parlement. His reputation spread to Paris and he was consulted by leading magistrates. The Duke of Orléans selected him to be a member of his privy council. As an elected member of the States-General for the

Third Estate The estates of the realm, or three estates, were the broad orders of social hierarchy used in Christendom (Christian Europe) from the Middle Ages to early modern Europe. Different systems for dividing society members into estates developed and ...

Douai Douai (, , ,; pcd, Doï; nl, Dowaai; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord département in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe some from Lille and from Arras, Dou ...

, he was one of the chief of those who applied the principles of liberty and equality embodied in the National Constituent Assembly's '' Tennis Court Oath'' of 4 August 1789.

Career

On behalf of the committee, appointed to deal with '' Ancien Régime'' nobility rights, Merlin de Douai presented to the Assembly reports on

manorialism Manorialism, also known as the manor system or manorial system, was the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of Europe, notably France and later England, during the Middle Ages. Its defining features included a large, sometimes forti ...

and the subjects of redistribution with compensation, and topics associated with that (hunting and fishing rights, forestry, etc.). He carried legislation for the abolition of primogeniture, secured equality of inheritance between relatives of the same degree, and between men and women. He also prepared the report for the Assembly which argued that no compensation should be paid to the German princes whose lands in Alsace were forfeit when France incorporated them. His numerous reports were supplemented by popular exposition of current legislation in the ''Journal de legislation''. On the dissolution of the Assembly, he became judge of the criminal court at Douai.

Convention

Although not always an advocate of violent measures, as deputy to the National Convention with The Mountain, Merlin de Douai voted for the

execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Louis XVI, and then, as a member of the council of legislation, he presented to the Convention the '' Law of Suspects'' (17 September 1793), permitting the detention of suspects, (a document backed by Georges Couthon and Maximilien Robespierre). He exercised missions in his native region, and accused General Charles François Dumouriez of having betrayed the country during the Campaign of the Low Countries (after the battle of Neerwinden). Merlin de Douai was closely allied with his namesake Merlin of Thionville and, after the start of the

Thermidorian Reaction The Thermidorian Reaction (french: Réaction thermidorienne or ''Convention thermidorienne'', "Thermidorian Convention") is the common term, in the historiography of the French Revolution, for the period between the ousting of Maximilien Robespie ...

which brought about the fall of Robespierre in 1794, he became president of the Convention and a member of the Committee of Public Safety. His efforts were primarily directed to the prevention of any new gathering of powers by the Jacobin Club, the

Commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

, and the

Revolutionary Tribunal The Revolutionary Tribunal (french: Tribunal révolutionnaire; unofficially Popular Tribunal) was a court instituted by the National Convention during the French Revolution for the trial of political offenders. It eventually became one of the ...

. Merlin de Douai convinced the Committee of Public Safety to agree with the closing of the Jacobin Club, on the ground that it was an administrative rather than a legislative measure. Merlin de Douai recommended the readmission of the survivors of the Girondin party to the Convention, and drew up a law limiting the right of insurrection; he had also a considerable share in the foreign policy of the French Republic. Merlin de Douai had been commissioned in April 1794 to report on the

civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...

and criminal legislation of France, and, after eighteen months work, he produced the ''Rapport et projet de code des délits et des peines'' ( 10 Vendémiaire, an IV). Merlin's code abolished

confiscation Confiscation (from the Latin ''confiscatio'' "to consign to the ''fiscus'', i.e. transfer to the treasury") is a legal form of seizure by a government or other public authority. The word is also used, popularly, of spoliation under legal forms, ...

, branding, and life imprisonment, and was based chiefly on the penal code drawn up in September 1791.

Consulate and Empire

Merlin de Douai had no share in

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 wh ...

's '' 18 Brumaire'' coup. Under the

Consulate A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of diplomatic mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth c ...

, Merlin de Douai accepted a minor position in the '' Cour de cassation'', where he soon became ''procureur-général'' (Attorney General).Chronicle of the French Revolution, Longman Group 1989 p.669 Although he had no share in drawing up the '' Napoleonic code'', he was very involved in matters regarding its application. He became a member of the '' Conseil d'État'', Count of the Empire, and '' Grand Officier de la Légion d'honneur''.

Exile and the July Monarchy

Having resumed his functions during the Hundred Days, he was one of those banished on the Second Bourbon Restoration. The years of Merlin de Douai's exile were devoted to his ''Répertoire de jurisprudence'' (5th ed., 18 vols., Paris, 1827–1828) and to his ''Recueil alphabétique des questions de droit'' (4th ed., 8 vols., Paris, 1827–1828). At the 1830 July Revolution, he was able to return to France, and re-entered the '' Institut de France'', of which he had been an original member, being admitted to the

Academy of Political and Moral Sciences An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

by the

Orléans Monarchy The July Monarchy (french: Monarchie de Juillet), officially the Kingdom of France (french: Royaume de France), was a liberal constitutional monarchy in France under , starting on 26 July 1830, with the July Revolution of 1830, and ending 23 F ...

. Merlin de Douai died in Paris.

Personal life

Merlin de Douai's son, Antoine François Eugène Merlin (1778–1854), was a well-known general in the

French army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

, and served through most of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

Notes

References

* ''In turn, it gives the following reference:'' ** François Auguste Alexis Mignet, ''Portraits et notices historiques'' (1852), vol. I

External links

Bio at the Académie française
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merlin De Douai, Philippe-Antoine 1754 births 1838 deaths People from Nord (French department) Counts Merlin

Deputies to the French National Convention A legislator (also known as a deputy or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people of the state. Legislatures may be supra-national (for ex ...

Directeurs of the First French Republic French jurists 17th-century French lawyers Members of the Académie Française Members of the Council of Ancients Knights of the First French Empire Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Members of the Académie des sciences morales et politiques Expelled members of the Académie Française People on the Committee of Public Safety University of Douai alumni Représentants en mission Presidents of the National Convention State ministers of France Members of the Chamber of Representatives (France)