The teaching oflegal history in

Hungary(1635-2011)

Dr. Gergely Gosztonyi

gosztonyi@ajk.elte.hu

Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE)

1. Oldest continuously existing university in Hungary

(„first university of Hungary”)

Established in 1635 by Cardinal Péter Pázmányin Nagyszombat (today: Trnava, Slovakia)

2. Largest science university in Hungary ~ 32000 students, ~ 6000 staff3. First ranked university in Hungary in most fields Assessment of the leading Hungarian economical journal HVG

1667: Faculty of Law1777: The university moved to Buda1780: Was declared a Royal University1921: New name: Pázmány Péter University1950: Renamed to Eötvös Loránd University

baron Loránd Eötvös (1848-1919), physicist

Nagyszombat (Trnava), 12 May 1635

The Deed of Foundation

Faculty of Philosophy

1635

Faculty of Law1667

Faculty of Theology

1635

Faculty of Medicine

1769

Diploma Inaugurale, 1780, Maria Theresia

Faculty of Science (1950)

Faculties of Eötvös University (ELTE) 2011

Faculty of Arts(1635)

Faculty of Informatics

(2003)

Faculty of Psychology

(2003)

Faculty of Social Sciences

(2003)

Faculty of Elementary andNursery School Teachers

(2000)

Faculty of Law

(1667)

Faculty of SpecialEducation

(2000)

Teaching Hungarian legal history at the Faculty of Law

...sorry about the long introduction....

• 1667: 3 departments (1 for roman law, 2 for Hungarian law – 4 professors)

• 17th Century: legal history = law in force, ~ ‘applied science’, teaching the Tripartitum

• Maria Theresia: planned reorganisation based on the structure of University of Vienna

• 1775: Planum iuridicae facultatis (5 professors, history of roman law)

• 1777, 1806: (1st, 2nd) Ratio Educationis (new subject: Introduction to the critics and diplomacy of the history and law of Hungary) – was not obligatory

• 1820: 1st textbook: Epitomae instiutionum iuris Hungarici privati (by János Markovics)

• Legal history at that time = descriptive presentation of different Acts in chronological order

Ignác Frank

• 1827: professor at ELTE

• 1st person to say that legal history is more than just a descriptive method

Gusztáv Wenzel 1855: Teaching of the

history of law and state as a university subject

The first lectures on the history of law of the German Empire were held by him and later on this subject was extended and became the history of the universal European law.

Later on under this title in fact he taught Hungarian legal history.

Imre Hajnik

• 1872: professor at ELTE

• The first professor of the history of Hungarian law (solely)

• Comparative legal history

• “Legal history is the foundation of the law in force”

• 1890: the birth of the Department of the History of Hungarian Law

• Teaching of history of Hungarian law and universal European law were separated

• (1946: Department of the History of universal European Law)

• Ákos Timon• Ferenc Eckhart• Kálmán Kovács• Mihály T. Révész• Barna Mezey

Nowadays

• Conferences• Publications• PhD-programme• Joint summer seminars (with

universities in Germany and Switzerland)

• ERASMUS-programme (Heidelberg, Hamburg, Jena, Gottingen, Vienna, Amsterdam, Basel, etc)

The Fundamental Law of Hungary

(25 April 2011)• The Fundamental Law of Hungary (i.e.

the Constitution) shall take effect on 1 January 2012

• Article Q (3) The provisions of the Fundamental Law shall be interpreted in accordance with their purposes, the National Avowal and the achievements of our historical constitution.