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Print Sources for Historical Constitutions
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 February 2019
Extract
This paper examines the print sources for English language texts of historical constitutions, both national and subnational. Some of these sources are still reasonably current at the time of writing, but they will be examined here because they will in due course become part of historical collections.
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References
1 For a useful examination of non-English language sources for early European Constitutions, see Bertram Hill, “The Constitutions of Continental Europe 1789–1813” (1936) 8 Journal of Modern History 82. Among the more notable sources are: Francois Rudolphe Dareste, Les Constitutions Modernes (Paris: Challamel Aine, 1883; 2nd ed 1891; 3rd ed 1913; 4th ed 1928); Karl H L Pölitz, Die Europäischen Verfassungen seit dem Jahre 1789 bis auf die neueste Zeit (2nd ed, Leipzig: Brockhaus, 1832, 1847; repr Hildesheim: Olms, 1999).Google Scholar
2 There are also other fundamental laws such as the Dutch Charter of the Kingdom, which has a higher status than the national constitution. See Art 5(2), Charter of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (29 October 1954), Staatsblad 503. Despite its fundamental importance, it is not easy to find an up to date English translation of the Charter.Google Scholar
3 A superb example is the translation of the Lebanese Constitution appearing in (1997) 12 Arab Law Quarterly 224.Google Scholar
4 Eg Charles E Martin and William H George, Representative Modern Constitutions; France, Switzerland, Czecho-Slovakia, Mexico, Canada, Italy, Germany, Japan, Russia (Los Angeles: Times-Mirror Press, 1923); B Shiva Rao, Select Constitutions of the World (Myalpore: Madras Law Journal, 1934); Durga Das Basu, Select Constitutions of the World (4th ed, New Delhi: Wadhwa Nagpur, 2003); Gokulesh Sharma, World Constitutions (New Delhi: Deep and Deep, 2005).Google Scholar
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