Illustration showing emperor Pedro II holding the balance between the Liberal and Conservative parties while pointing to the Fortress of Humaitá; Henrique Fleiuss, 1865

The Moderating power (Portuguese: Poder moderador) in the Empire of Brazil was the fourth state branch instituted by the 1824 Brazilian Constitution alongside the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary. It was the most innovative and original item conceived by the 1824 Constitution.

This fourth branch, exclusively exercised by the emperor, served as a "mechanism for absorbing the attrition between the legislative and executive branches"[1] and in its role as "keeper of the balance", it granted emperor Pedro II throughout his reign "that situation of primacy which he exercised with so much pleasure and peace".[2]

When analyzing the Moderating Power and the parliamentary government, Tobias Barreto explained the reason for the adoption of both by arguing that:[3]

"[The] institutions that are not a product of customs, but rather a product of reason, do not withstand the test of experience for a long time and soon break up against the facts".

Galvão Sousa argued that, thanks to the Moderating Power, Brazil was able to "open a valve through which it could escape parliamentary anarchy".[4] According to historian João Camilo Torres, the reason for the existence of the Moderating Power was due to the fact that "the monarch, due to dynastic continuity, not being part of groups, classes, nor having regional connections, owing his power to parties or economic groups, having electoral promises to keep, not needing to 'think ahead' – as the future of his family will be guaranteed if peace and national grandeur are preserved – since he is not subject to the temptation to avail himself of a quick passage through his government to take personal benefits and advantages at the expense of the nation, leaving the burden to his successors", as his "successor is his own son, and History often charges grandchildren with crimes committed by their grandparents".[5]

Prerogatives

Article 99 of the 1824 Brazilian Constitution declared that "the person of the Emperor is inviolable and sacred; he is not subject to any responsibility".[6] Such declaration was not a unique feature of the Brazilian constitutional regime in the 19th century and still exists in several parliamentary monarchies.[7][8][9][10][11]

The powers reserved for the Moderating Power should be exercised only after the Council of State had been consulted. Such prerogatives, which were listed in Article 101, were identical, for the most part, to the attributions reserved for current monarchs, such as:

  1. Convene the General Assembly (Parliament) extraordinarily between sessions;[12]
  2. Enact the decrees and resolutions of the General Assembly, so that they have the force of law;[13]
  3. Prolong or postpone the General Assembly and dissolve the Chamber of Deputies, calling another immediately to replace the previous one;[14]
  4. Freely appoint and dismiss Ministers of State;[15]
  5. Pardon and moderate sentences imposed on defendants and grant amnesty.[16]

The other prerogatives were: to suspend magistrates for complaints against their persons, but only after holding a hearing with them, collecting all pertinent information and listening to the Council of State; approving or suspending the resolutions of Provincial Councils (as the State Chambers of Deputies were called) and nominating senators through a list of the three candidates with the most popular votes.[6]

According to Paulo Bonavides, the Moderating Power "can only be estimated in the incomparable consequences it had for the consolidation of national unity and for the stability of the Empire's political system",[17] in a "continent politically plagued by civil hatred and pulverized into weak and rival republics".[18] For Galvão Sousa, the Moderating Power under Pedro II, "gave rise to the famous 'dictatorship of honesty'. It soon became the personal power of the monarch, always exercised with a high public spirit".[19]

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Faoro 2001, pp. 343–344.
  2. ↑ Sodré 2004, p. 91.
  3. ↑ Sousa 1962, p. 126.
  4. ↑ Sousa 1962, p. 125.
  5. ↑ Torres 2017, pp. 105–106.
  6. 1 2 "Constituição Politica do Imperio do Brazil". Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  7. ↑ "The Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway". Retrieved 18 April 2022. The King's person cannot be censured or accused. The responsibility rests with his Council.
  8. ↑ "Luxembourg 1868 (rev. 2009)". Constitute. Retrieved 18 April 2022. The person of the grand Duke is inviolable.
  9. ↑ "Netherlands 1814 (rev. 2008)". Constitute. Retrieved 18 April 2022. The Ministers, and not the King, shall be responsible for acts of government.
  10. ↑ "Denmark's Constitution of 1953" (PDF). Constitute. Retrieved 18 April 2022. The King shall not be answerable for his actions; his person shall be sacrosanct. The Ministers shall be responsible for the conduct of the government; their responsibility shall be determined by Statute.
  11. ↑ "The Spanish Constitution" (PDF). Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. Retrieved 18 April 2022. The person of the King is inviolable and shall not be held accountable. His acts shall always be countersigned in the manner established in Article 64. Without such countersignature they shall not be valid, except as provided under Article 65,2.
  12. ↑ "The Spanish Constitution" (PDF). Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. Retrieved 18 April 2022. It is incumbent upon the King: to summon and dissolve the Cortes Generales and to call elections under the terms provided in the Constitution
  13. ↑ "The Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway". Retrieved 18 April 2022. If the King assents to the Bill, he appends his signature, whereby it becomes law.
  14. ↑ "Netherlands 1814 (rev. 2008)". Constitute. Retrieved 18 April 2022. 1. Each of the Houses may be dissolved by Royal Decree. 2. A decree for dissolution shall also require new elections to be held for the House which has been dissolved and the newly elected House to meet within three months.
  15. ↑ "Denmark's Constitution of 1953" (PDF). Constitute. Retrieved 18 April 2022. The King shall appoint and dismiss the Prime Minister and the other Ministers. He shall decide upon the number of Ministers and upon the distribution of the duties of government among them. The signature of the King to resolutions relating to legislation and government shall make such resolutions valid, provided that the signature of the King is accompanied by the signature or signatures of one or more Ministers. A Minister who has signed a resolution shall be responsible for the resolution.
  16. ↑ "Luxembourg 1868 (rev. 2009)". Constitute. Retrieved 18 April 2022. The Grand Duke has the right to remit or reduce the penalties pronounced by the judges, save that which is established concerning the members of the Government.
  17. ↑ Bonavides 1978, p. 233.
  18. ↑ Bonavides 2002, p. 145.
  19. ↑ Sousa 1962, p. 127.

Bibliography

  • Faoro, Raymundo (2001). Os Donos do Poder (PDF) (in Portuguese). Globo. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 August 2016.
  • Sodré, Nelson Werneck (2004). Panorama do Segundo Império (in Portuguese) (2 ed.). Rio de Janeiro: Graphia.
  • Sousa, Galvão (1962). História do Direito Político Brasileiro (in Portuguese) (2 ed.). São Paulo: Saraiva.
  • Torres, João Camilo de Oliveira (2017). A democracia coroada (PDF) (in Portuguese). Brasília: Câmara dos Deputados. ISBN 978-85-402-0667-0.
  • Bonavides, Paulo (1978). Reflexões; política e direito (in Portuguese) (2 ed.). Fortaleza: Imprensa Universitária.
  • Bonavides, Paulo (2002). Ciência Política (in Portuguese) (10 ed.). São Paulo: Malheiros.
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