Origins
Before World War I, politics in Luxembourg was in the era of notables and census suffrage: public political life was restricted to a small minority. The notion of a "party" did not exist in the modern sense; the word referred to political schools of thought, loose groupings of like-minded people, and sometimes, committees organised shortly before elections. [1]
There was, then, no Catholic party in the strict sense, even though there was a group in the Chamber of Deputies appealing to this tendency. The members of this opposition group, numbering 17 Deputies (out of 52) in 1912, came primarily from rural cantons. [1] They consisted of notables grouped around strong personalities, such as Émile Prüm (from Clervaux) or Philippe Bech (from Grevenmacher). [1]
In 1902, the Luxemburger Zeitung identified two currents among the "reactionaries": the clerical-agrarians, and the Christian-socials. It identified the heads of the clerical-agrarians as Émile Prüm, Joseph Brincourt and Philippe Bech. The Christian-social stream included Émile Reuter, A. Kayser and Auguste Thorn. [1]
At the start of the century, Émile Prüm tried, in vain, to introduce the concept of a "Catholic party" or "Catholic people's party" (”Katholische Volkspartei”). Neither the foundation of the Social Democratic Party in 1902 (the modern-day Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party), nor that of the Liberal League in 1904 prompted the creation of an organised Catholic party in response. [1]
Foundation
The conservative PD was founded on 16 January 1914. [2] Present at the founding were Émile Reuter, Émile Prüm, Mgr. Schiltz, Albert Philippe, Pierre Dupong, Joseph Bech and Mgr. Jean Origer. The founding of the party in 1914 was a reaction to the formalisation of the other ideological alliances within the Chamber of Deputies. The Social Democratic Party formed in 1902, whilst the dominant Liberal League was founded in 1904. [3] The party's foundation also took part in a climate of Kulturkampf. [2] When the Education Law of 1912 was passed by a majority in the Chamber of Deputies, several right-wing figures became convinced that it was necessary to organise themselves into a political party. [2]
The name "Catholic People's Party" had initially been suggested, but was later rejected in favour of the term "Party of the Right", so as to be able to appeal to non-Catholics as well. [2]
Overview
The PD benefited from the break-up of the Socialist-Liberal alliance after the death of Paul Eyschen, [4] and soon became the dominant party, strengthened by the introduction of universal suffrage in 1918. [5] The leader of the Party of the Right would serve as the prime minister from the end of the First World War until the start of the Second, except for a fourteen-month period in the mid-1920s. [6]
The three prime ministers from the Party of the Right were Émile Reuter (1918–1925), Joseph Bech (1926–1937), and Pierre Dupong (1937–1944); the latter two would go on to serve as prime minister as heads of the CSV. It is also notable that the PD cabinet of 1921–1925 was the only cabinet in Luxembourgian history that included politicians of only one party. [7]
The historian Gilbert Trausch distinguished two streams within the party: on the one hand, agrarian conservatives, who defended the interests of farmers and traditional values, and were ambivalent or hostile towards the world of industry. These rural notables were also hostile towards universal suffrage. On the other hand, were the innovators, generally slightly younger than the first group, and who were inspired by Christian social ideas, and the conviction that social reforms were necessary; this second group was more favourable towards universal suffrage. Émile Prüm and Philippe Bech belonged to the former of these groups, while Emile Reuter and Pierre Dupong represented the latter. [8]
The close relationship between the Catholic Church and the party was illustrated by the presence in the party of the priest Jean Origer, the director of the Luxemburger Wort, and head of the party in the Chamber of Deputies; and of Jean-Baptiste Esch, a writer for the Luxemburger Wort. [9]
The Christian Social People's Party, abbreviated to CSV or PCS, is the largest political party in Luxembourg. The party follows a Christian-democratic and conservative ideology and, like most parties in Luxembourg, is strongly pro-European. The CSV is a member of the European People's Party (EPP) and the Centrist Democrat International (CDI).
The Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party, abbreviated to LSAP or POSL, is a social-democratic, pro-European political party in Luxembourg. The LSAP sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum.
Joseph Bech was a Luxembourgish politician and lawyer. He was the 15th prime minister of Luxembourg, serving for eleven years, from 16 July 1926 to 5 November 1937. He returned to the position after World War II, and served for another four years as the 17th prime minister, from 29 December 1953 until 29 March 1958. The 1982–1983 academic year at the College of Europe was named in his honour.
Pierre Dupong was a Luxembourgish politician and statesman. He was the 16th prime minister of Luxembourg, serving for sixteen years, from 5 November 1937 until his death, on 23 December 1953, and was also responsible at different times for the ministries of finance, the army, agriculture, labour and social matters. He founded the Christian Social People's Party (CSV) as the main conservative party after the Second World War, having been a founding member of the Party of the Right (PD) in 1914.
Pierre Prüm was a Luxembourgish politician and jurist. He was the 14th prime minister of Luxembourg, serving for a year, from 20 March 1925 until 16 July 1926.
The Liberal League was a political party in Luxembourg between 1904 and 1925. It was the indirect predecessor of the Democratic Party (DP), which has been one of the three major parties in Luxembourg since the Second World War.
The Independent National Party, abbreviated as PNI, was a populist political party in Luxembourg in the interwar period.
Luxemburger Wort is a German-language Luxembourgish daily newspaper. There is an English edition named the Luxembourg Times. It is owned by Mediahuis Luxembourg.
François Altwies was a Luxembourgian politician. He sat in the Chamber of Deputies, of which he served as President from 1917 until 1925.
The Bech-Bodson Ministry was the government of Luxembourg between 29 December 1953 and 29 March 1958. It was a coalition between the Christian Social People's Party (CSV), and the Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP).
The Dupong-Bodson Ministry was the government of Luxembourg between 3 July 1951 and 23 December 1953. It was a coalition between the Christian Social People's Party (CSV), and the Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP). It was formed after the general election of 1951.
The Dupong-Schaus Ministry was the government of Luxembourg between 1 March 1947 and 3 July 1951. It was a coalition between the Christian Social People's Party (CSV), and the Democratic Group.
The following lists events that happened during 1948 in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
The Luxembourgish government in exile, also known as the Luxembourgish government in London, was the government in exile of Luxembourg during the Second World War. The government was based in London between 1940 and 1944, while Luxembourg was occupied by Nazi Germany. It was led by Pierre Dupong, and also included three other Ministers. The head of state, Grand Duchess Charlotte, also escaped from Luxembourg after the occupation. The government was bipartite, including two members from both the Party of the Right (PD) and the Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP).
The Prüm Ministry took office in Luxembourg on 20 March 1925. It was formed after the Chamber elections of 1 March 1925 and was supported by the Independent National Party, the Liberals, the Socialists and elements of the Party of the Right. It resigned on 16 July 1926, as the Liberals and Socialists could not agree over a bill for workers' holiday.
The Dupong-Krier Ministry took office in Luxembourg on 5 November 1937 after the resignation of the prime minister Joseph Bech, due to the result of a referendum on the so-called Maulkuerfgesetz.
The Bech Ministry was the government of Luxembourg that came into office in Luxembourg on July 16, 1926 after the resignation of the Prüm Ministry, and was headed by Joseph Bech. It was reshuffled on April 11, 1932 and on December 27, 1936. It stepped down after the referendum on the so-called Maulkuerfgesetz, in which the majority of voters decided against the law.
The Reuter Ministry was the government in office in Luxembourg from 28 September 1918 until 20 March 1925. It resulted from the Chamber elections of 28 July and 4 August 1918 and was reshuffled on 5 January 1920 as a result of the elections of 26 October 1919. There was a further reshuffle on 15 April 1921, when the Liberals left the government.
The Maulkuerfgesetz was a proposed 1937 law in Luxembourg. Officially, it was entitled the "Law for the Defence of the Political and Social Order" but was nicknamed Maulkuerfgesetz by its opponents. The law would have allowed the Luxembourgish government to ban the Communist Party and dissolve any political organisation which they believed might endanger the constitutional institutions. The members of these parties or organisations would be stripped of their political offices and could not be employed by the state or by local governments.
