Markus Büchel (; 14 May 1959 – 9 July 2013) was a lawyer and politician from Liechtenstein who served as

Prime Minister of Liechtenstein The head of government of Liechtenstein (), known informally as the prime minister, is the chief executive of the Government of Liechtenstein and chairs the cabinet of Liechtenstein. They are appointed by the sovereign prince of Liechtenstein ...

in 1993. Serving for just under 7 months, he is the shortest serving prime minister in Liechtenstein's history.

Early life

Büchel attended high school in

Eschen Eschen (; High Alemannic: ''Escha'') is a municipality in the north of Liechtenstein. It covers an area of , and is one of the five communes in the Unterland electoral district. As of 2024, it has a population of 4,629 inhabitants. Etymolog ...

from 1972 to 1975 before completing an internship in the law firm of Alfred Bühler in

Vaduz Vaduz (; or ; High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' ...

. From 1981 he studied law in the

University of Bern The University of Bern (, , ) is a public university, public research university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern. It was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the canton of Bern. It is a comprehensive university offering a br ...

and the

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

, where he graduated in 1986.

Prime Minister of Liechtenstein

Büchel was in office as

from 26 May to 15 December 1993. The February 1993 Liechtenstein general election resulted in a win for the

Progressive Citizens' Party The Progressive Citizens' Party in Liechtenstein (, FBP) is a Conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Liechtenstein, political party in Liechtenstein. The FBP is one of the two major party, major List of political parties in Liech ...

and Büchel was appointed as prime minister. Soon after taking office, Büchel was the subject of controversy over the composition of his cabinet, specifically within his own party. As prime minister, he co-signed the

Constitution of the Princely House of Liechtenstein The Constitution of the Princely House of Liechtenstein of 26 October 1993 is the basic document that governs the Princely House of Liechtenstein. It was signed by the reigning prince Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein and Markus Büchel Hea ...

, though notably without consultation from the

Landtag of Liechtenstein The Landtag of the Principality of Liechtenstein () is the unicameral parliament of Liechtenstein. Qualifications Citizens who have attained the age of 18, have permanent residency in the country and have lived in the country for at least on ...

. On 14 September 1993, the Landtag passed a

motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...

against him following a request by the Progressive Citizens' Party to do so. The following day,

Hans-Adam II Hans-Adam II (Johannes Adam Ferdinand Alois Josef Maria Marco d'Aviano Pius; born 14 February 1945) is the Prince of Liechtenstein, reigning since 1989. He is the son of Prince Franz Joseph II and his wife, Countess Georgina von Wilczek. He al ...

dismissed both the government and the Landtag. Following the October 1993 Liechtenstein general election, Büchel was succeeded by his deputy Mario Frick. Serving for just under 7 months, Büchel is the shortest-serving prime minister in Liechtenstein's history.

Later life and death

From 1997 Büchel worked as a lawyer. In 2002, he became Honorary Consul of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

in Liechtenstein. He died in on 9 July 2013 in

Ruggell Ruggell (; dialectal: ''Ruggäll'') is a municipality of Liechtenstein. It is the northernmost and lowest elevated municipality. As of 2019, it has a population of 2,322. History Ruggell has an ancient history, with evidence of human activity pre ...

, aged 54 years old.

Honours

* : Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Principality of Liechtenstein (1994)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Buchel, Markus Heads of government of Liechtenstein 20th-century heads of government of Liechtenstein 1959 births 2013 deaths Honorary consuls for Russia Progressive Citizens' Party politicians University of Bern alumni Finance ministers of Liechtenstein Liechtenstein lawyers 21st-century Liechtenstein people Recipients of the Order of Merit of the Principality of Liechtenstein People from Ruggell Education ministers of Liechtenstein Culture ministers of Liechtenstein

Early life

Prime Minister of Liechtenstein

Later life and death

Honours

See also

References