Karl Ludwig von Haller
Encyclopedia
Karl Ludwig von Haller was a Swiss
jurist
. He was the author of Restauration der Staatswissenschaften (Restoration of the Science of the State, 1816–1834), a book which Hegel strongly criticized in Elements of the Philosophy of Right
. This work, which was burnt during the Wartburg festival
, opposed nationalism and the bureaucracy of extensive government (including democratic governments).
, and son of the statesman and historian Gottlieb Emmanuel von Haller. He did not, however, receive an extensive education, but only some private lessons and a few classes at the Gymnasium
, he was compelled at the age of fifteen to enter the chancery of the Republic of Berne. He studied by himself and so filled out the gaps in his education. At the age of nineteen he was appointed to the important office of Kommissionsschreiber, or clerk of a public commission. In this capacity he obtained an insight into methods of government, practical politics, and criminal procedure. As secretary of the Swiss diet held in Baden
and Frauenfeld
, he became familiar with the conditions of things in the Swiss Confederation.
A journey to Paris in 1790 made him acquainted with new revolutionary ideas. As secretary of legation he served several important embassies, for instance, one to Geneva
in 1792, about the Swiss troops stationed there; to Ulm
in 1795, regarding the import of grain from southern Germany; to Lugano
, Milan
, and Paris in 1797, regarding the neutral attitude of Switzerland towards the warring powers. These journeys acquainted him with leading personalities of the day including Napoleon, Talleyrand, and others. When the old Swiss Confederation was threatened he was dispatched to Rastatt
to allay the storm. It was too late, however, and when he returned in February, 1798, the French army was already on Bernese territory. Even his pamphlet, "Projekt einer Constitution für die schweizerische Republik Bern", was unable to stay the dissolution of the old Swiss Republic.
But he soon renounced the principles expressed in this pamphlet, and became uncompromising opponent of the Revolution. Thereupon he resigned the government office he had held under the revolutionary authorities and established a paper, the Helvetische Annalen, in which he attacked their excesses and legislative schemes with such bitter sarcasm that the sheet was suppressed, and he himself had to flee to escape imprisonment. Henceforth, von Haller was a reactionary and a divisive figure.
After many wanderings, he came to Vienna, where he was court secretary of the council of war, from 1801 till 1806. Public opinion at home resulted in his being recalled by the Bernese Government in 1806, and appointed professor of political law at the newly founded higher school of the academy. When the old aristocratic regime was reinstated, he became a member of the sovereign Great Council, and soon after also of the privy council of the Bernese Republic. But in 1821, when his return to Catholicism became known, he was dismissed. This change of religion caused great controversy, and the letter he wrote to his family from Paris, explaining his reasons for the step he had taken, went through about fifty editions in a short time, was translated into nearly every modern language, and called forth numerous rejoinders and apologies.
In this document he made known his long-felt inclination to join the Catholic Church and his growing conviction that he must bring his political opinions in harmony with his religious views. His family soon followed him; with them he left Berne for ever and took up his residence in Paris. There the Foreign Office invited him to assume the instruction of candidates for the diplomatic service in constitutional and international law. After the July Revolution
of 1830, he went to Solothurn and, from that time until the day of his death, was a contributor to political journals, including the Neue preussische zeitung and the Historisch-Politische Blätter. In 1833 he was again elected to the Grand Council of Switzerland and exercised an important influence in ecclesiastical affairs which constituted the burning question of the hour. In connection with his other work, Haller had propounded and defended his political opinions as early as 1808 in his Handbuch der allgemeinen Staatenkunde, des darauf begründeten allgemeinen Rechts und der allgemeinen Straatsklugheit nach den Gesetzen der Natur. This, considered by some his most important work, impelled Johannes von Müller
to offer Haller the chair of constitutional law at the University of Göttingen. In spite of the great honour involved in this offer, he declined it.
, however, was the Restauration der Staatswissenschaft oder Theorie des naturich-geselligen Zustandes, der Chimare des kunstlich-burgerlichen entgegengesetzt. It was published in Winterthur
in six volumes from 1816 to 1834. In this he uncompromisingly rejects the revolutionary conception of the State, and constructs a natural and juridical system of government, arguing at the same time that a commonwealth
can endure and prosper without being founded on the omnipotence of the state and official bureaucracy. The first volume, which appeared in 1816, contains his history and his rejection of the older political theories, and also sets forth the general principles of his system of government. In the succeeding volumes he shows how these principles apply to different forms of government: in the second to monarchies; in the third (1888) to military powers; in the fourth (1820) and fifth (1834) to ecclesiastical states; and in the sixth (1825) to republics. It was written primarily to counteract Jean-Jacques Rousseau
's The Social Contract. The book in its entirety was translated into Italian, part of it into French, and an abridged version into English, Latin and Spanish. All his later writings are influenced by the ideas here set forth, and oppose vigorously the revolutionary tendencies of the times and the champions of liberalism in Church and State.
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
. He was the author of Restauration der Staatswissenschaften (Restoration of the Science of the State, 1816–1834), a book which Hegel strongly criticized in Elements of the Philosophy of Right
Elements of the Philosophy of Right
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel's Elements of the Philosophy of Right was published in 1820, though the book's original title page dates it to 1821...
. This work, which was burnt during the Wartburg festival
Wartburg festival
The first Wartburg festival on 18 October 1817 was an important event in German history that took place at the Wartburg Castle near Eisenach....
, opposed nationalism and the bureaucracy of extensive government (including democratic governments).
Early life
He was a grandson of the famous poet Albrecht von HallerAlbrecht von Haller
Albrecht von Haller was a Swiss anatomist, physiologist, naturalist and poet.-Early life:He was born of an old Swiss family at Bern. Prevented by long-continued ill-health from taking part in boyish sports, he had the more opportunity for the development of his precocious mind...
, and son of the statesman and historian Gottlieb Emmanuel von Haller. He did not, however, receive an extensive education, but only some private lessons and a few classes at the Gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
, he was compelled at the age of fifteen to enter the chancery of the Republic of Berne. He studied by himself and so filled out the gaps in his education. At the age of nineteen he was appointed to the important office of Kommissionsschreiber, or clerk of a public commission. In this capacity he obtained an insight into methods of government, practical politics, and criminal procedure. As secretary of the Swiss diet held in Baden
Baden, Switzerland
Baden is a municipality in the Swiss canton of Aargau, on the west bank of the river Limmat, located in the Limmat Valley , northwest of Zürich. It is the seat of the district of Baden...
and Frauenfeld
Frauenfeld
Frauenfeld is the capital of the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland.-Early history:The earliest trace of human settlement are several La Tène era graves to the east of Langdorf. The Roman road from Oberwinterthur to Pfyn ran through what is now the Allmend in Frauenfeld. Two Roman villas were...
, he became familiar with the conditions of things in the Swiss Confederation.
A journey to Paris in 1790 made him acquainted with new revolutionary ideas. As secretary of legation he served several important embassies, for instance, one to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
in 1792, about the Swiss troops stationed there; to Ulm
Ulm
Ulm is a city in the federal German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the River Danube. The city, whose population is estimated at 120,000 , forms an urban district of its own and is the administrative seat of the Alb-Donau district. Ulm, founded around 850, is rich in history and...
in 1795, regarding the import of grain from southern Germany; to Lugano
Lugano
Lugano is a city of inhabitants in the city proper and a total of over 145,000 people in the agglomeration/city region, in the south of Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, and Paris in 1797, regarding the neutral attitude of Switzerland towards the warring powers. These journeys acquainted him with leading personalities of the day including Napoleon, Talleyrand, and others. When the old Swiss Confederation was threatened he was dispatched to Rastatt
Rastatt
Rastatt is a city and baroque residence in the District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located on the Murg river, above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 50'000...
to allay the storm. It was too late, however, and when he returned in February, 1798, the French army was already on Bernese territory. Even his pamphlet, "Projekt einer Constitution für die schweizerische Republik Bern", was unable to stay the dissolution of the old Swiss Republic.
But he soon renounced the principles expressed in this pamphlet, and became uncompromising opponent of the Revolution. Thereupon he resigned the government office he had held under the revolutionary authorities and established a paper, the Helvetische Annalen, in which he attacked their excesses and legislative schemes with such bitter sarcasm that the sheet was suppressed, and he himself had to flee to escape imprisonment. Henceforth, von Haller was a reactionary and a divisive figure.
After many wanderings, he came to Vienna, where he was court secretary of the council of war, from 1801 till 1806. Public opinion at home resulted in his being recalled by the Bernese Government in 1806, and appointed professor of political law at the newly founded higher school of the academy. When the old aristocratic regime was reinstated, he became a member of the sovereign Great Council, and soon after also of the privy council of the Bernese Republic. But in 1821, when his return to Catholicism became known, he was dismissed. This change of religion caused great controversy, and the letter he wrote to his family from Paris, explaining his reasons for the step he had taken, went through about fifty editions in a short time, was translated into nearly every modern language, and called forth numerous rejoinders and apologies.
In this document he made known his long-felt inclination to join the Catholic Church and his growing conviction that he must bring his political opinions in harmony with his religious views. His family soon followed him; with them he left Berne for ever and took up his residence in Paris. There the Foreign Office invited him to assume the instruction of candidates for the diplomatic service in constitutional and international law. After the July Revolution
July Revolution
The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution or in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X of France, the French Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown...
of 1830, he went to Solothurn and, from that time until the day of his death, was a contributor to political journals, including the Neue preussische zeitung and the Historisch-Politische Blätter. In 1833 he was again elected to the Grand Council of Switzerland and exercised an important influence in ecclesiastical affairs which constituted the burning question of the hour. In connection with his other work, Haller had propounded and defended his political opinions as early as 1808 in his Handbuch der allgemeinen Staatenkunde, des darauf begründeten allgemeinen Rechts und der allgemeinen Straatsklugheit nach den Gesetzen der Natur. This, considered by some his most important work, impelled Johannes von Müller
Johannes von Müller
Johannes von Müller was a Swiss historian.-Biography:He was born at Schaffhausen, where his father was a clergyman and rector of the gymnasium. In his youth, his maternal grandfather, Johannes Schoop , roused in him an interest in the history of his country...
to offer Haller the chair of constitutional law at the University of Göttingen. In spite of the great honour involved in this offer, he declined it.
Restauration
Haller's magnum opusMasterpiece
Masterpiece in modern usage refers to a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or to a work of outstanding creativity, skill or workmanship....
, however, was the Restauration der Staatswissenschaft oder Theorie des naturich-geselligen Zustandes, der Chimare des kunstlich-burgerlichen entgegengesetzt. It was published in Winterthur
Winterthur
Winterthur is a city in the canton of Zurich in northern Switzerland. It has the country's sixth largest population with an estimate of more than 100,000 people. In the local dialect and by its inhabitants, it is usually abbreviated to Winti...
in six volumes from 1816 to 1834. In this he uncompromisingly rejects the revolutionary conception of the State, and constructs a natural and juridical system of government, arguing at the same time that a commonwealth
Commonwealth
Commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has sometimes been synonymous with "republic."More recently it has been used for fraternal associations of some sovereign nations...
can endure and prosper without being founded on the omnipotence of the state and official bureaucracy. The first volume, which appeared in 1816, contains his history and his rejection of the older political theories, and also sets forth the general principles of his system of government. In the succeeding volumes he shows how these principles apply to different forms of government: in the second to monarchies; in the third (1888) to military powers; in the fourth (1820) and fifth (1834) to ecclesiastical states; and in the sixth (1825) to republics. It was written primarily to counteract Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of 18th-century Romanticism. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological and educational thought.His novel Émile: or, On Education is a treatise...
's The Social Contract. The book in its entirety was translated into Italian, part of it into French, and an abridged version into English, Latin and Spanish. All his later writings are influenced by the ideas here set forth, and oppose vigorously the revolutionary tendencies of the times and the champions of liberalism in Church and State.