THE CONSTITUTIONAL IMPORTATION AND THE POLITICAL MODERNIZATION OF THE ROMANIAN STATE / L’IMPORTATION CONSTITUTIONNELLE ET LA MODERNISATION POLITIQUE DE L’ÉTAT ROUMAIN
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24193/subbeuropaea.2023.1.08Keywords:
constitutional import; the Belgian Constitution of 1831; the Romanian Constitution of 1866; foreign prince; modernization and political independence; modern liberal constitutionalismAbstract
This article has as its starting point the genesis of Romanian constitutionalism. Developed according to the Belgian model, the Constitution of 1866 allowed the birth of a democratic system of government and consolidated the autonomy of Romania, in the context where, after the abdication of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza, there was an inherent need for governmental stability. However, the decision to adopt a prestigious constitutional model was guided by the idea of international legitimacy. The predominantly liberal character of the Belgian Constitution of 1831 influenced the process of drafting fundamental laws in several European states, not only in Romania (Greece, Italy, Prussia, etc.). The constitutional import process is inevitable, but extremely difficult and rarely impossible. The inevitability of this process stems from the fact that overarching constitutional ideas and mechanisms are generally limited. This type of transfer occurs when constituent assemblies face a particular problem and choose to focus on already functioning constitutions.
References
Alecsandri, Vasile, Opere (Corespondență 1861-1870) [Ouvrages (Correspondance 1861-1870)], vol. IX, Bucharest, 1982.
Berindei, Dan, Societatea românească în vremea lui Carol I (1866-1876) [La Société Roumaine au temps de Charles I (1866-1876)], Bucharest: Editura Militară, 1992.
Berindei, Dan, “Documente inedite privind începuturile domniei principelui Carol I” [Documents Inédits concernant les Débuts du Règne du Prince Charles I] in Memoriile Secţiei de Ştiinţe Istorice şi Arheologie, vol. XX, no. IV, 1995.
Butleritchie, David, “The Confines of Modern Constitutionalism” in Pierce Law Review, vol. 3, no. 1, 2004, 1-32.
Carol I, Cuvântări și scrisori [Discours et Lettres], tome I, Bucharest: Institutul de Arte Grafice Carol Göbl, 1909.
Carp, Radu, Responsabilitate ministerială [Responsabilité Ministérielle], Bucharest: All Beck, 2003.
De Visscher, Paul, “La constitution belge et le droit international” in Revue Belge de Droit International, no. 1, 1986, 5-58.
Dippel, Horst, “Modern Constitutionalism: An Introduction to a History in Need of Writing” in The Legal History Review, vol. 73, no. 1-2, 2005, 153-170.
Documente privind istoria României. Războiul pentru independență [Documents concernant l'Histoire de la Roumanie. La Guerre d'Indépendance], vol. I, part II, Bucharest, 1954.
Epstein, Lee and Knight, Jack, “Constitutional Borrowing and Nonborrowing” in International Journal of Constitutional Law, vol. 1, no. 2, 2003, 196-223.
Espagne, Michel, Les transferts culturels franco-allemands, Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1999.
Filitti, Ioan C., Conservatorii și junimiștii în viața politică românească [Conservateurs et Junimistes dans la Vie Politique Roumaine], Bucharest: Institutul de Arte Grafice Lupta, 1936.
Guțan, Manuel, Transplant constituțional și constituționalism în România modernă: 1802-1866 [Transplantation constitutionnelle et constitutionnalisme dans la Roumanie moderne: 1802-1866], Bucharest: Hamangiu, 2013.
Independența României. Documente [L'Indépendance de la Roumanie. Documents], vol. II, part I, Bucharest, 1977.
Iordache, Anastasie, Originile conservatorismului politic în România, 1821-1882 [Les Origines du Conservatisme Politique en Roumanie, 1821-1882], Bucharest: Editura Politică, 1987.
Kahn-Freund, Otto, “On Uses and Misuses of Comparative Law” in Modern Law Review, vol. 37, no. 1, 1974.
Kogălniceanu, Mihail, Discursuri parlamentare [Discours parlementaires], Bucharest: Minerva, 1994.
Les Archives Nationales de la Roumanie, le Fond Charles I, inventaire no. 1453, dossier no. I/6.
Les Archives Nationales de la Roumanie, Desbaterile Senatului, Sesiunea Ordinară [Les Débats du Sénat, Session ordinaire], 1870-1871.
Les Archives Nationales de la Roumanie, Desbaterile Senatului, Sesiunea Ordinară [Les Débats du Sénat, Session ordinaire], 1872-1873.
Maiorescu, Titu, Istoria contemporană a României [L'Histoire Contemporaine de la Roumanie], Bucharest: Socec, 1925.
Maiorescu, Titu, Discursuri parlamentare cu priviri asupra dezvoltării politice a României sub domnia lui Carol I, 1866-1876 [Discours Parlementaires sur le Développement Politique de la Roumanie sous le Règne de Charles I, 1866-1876], vol. I, Bucharest: Socec,
Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989.
Nolan, James Jr., Legal Accents, Legal Borrowing. The International Problem Solving Court Movement, Princeton et Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2009.
Osiatynski, Wictor, “Paradoxes of Constitutional Borrowing” in I·CON, vol. 1, no. 2, 2003, 244-268.
Pencovici, Alexandru, Desbaterile Adunarei constituante din anul 1866 asupra constituţiunei şi legii electorale din România [Les Débats de l'Assemblée Constituante de 1866 sur la Constitution et la Loi Electorale en Roumanie], Bucharest: Curtea Şerban Vodă, 1883.
Ritchie, David, “Critiquing Modern Constitutionalism” in Appalachian Journal of Law, vol. 3, 2004, 37-49.
Sajo, Andras, Limiting Government. An Introduction to Constitutionalism, Budapest: Central European University Press, 1999.
Tully, James, Strange Multiplicity: Constitutionalism in an Age of Diversity, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Studia Universitatis Babeș-Bolyai Europaea
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
