Germanic Confederation.* Presidency of Austria at Diet.

ART. LVII. Austria shall preside at the Federative Diet. Each State of the Confederation has the right of making propositions, and the presiding State shall bring them under deliberation within a definite time.

Germanic Confederation.* Composition of the General Assembly.†

ART. LVIII. Whenever fundamental laws are to be enacted, changes made in the fundamental laws of the Confederation, measures adopted relative to the Federative Act itself, and organic institutions or other arrangements made for the common interest, the Diet shall form itself into a General Assembly, and, in that case, the distribution of votes shall be as follows calculated according to the respective extent of the individual States :

1871.

Altered by subsequent Constitutions of 1th June, 1867, and 16th April,

Austria consented to be excluded from the New Organisation of Germany by her Treaty with Prussia, signed at Prague, 23rd August, 1866.

* Certain districts belonging to Bavaria were ceded to Prussia by the Treaty of 22nd August, 1866.

+ Annexed to Prussia by Decree dated 20th September, 1866. The King of Hanover protested against this annexation, on the 23rd September, 1866. Certain districts belonging to the Grand Duchy of Hesse were ceded to Prussia by the Treaty of 3rd September, 1866.

§ In January, 1864, war broke out between Austria, Prussia, and Denmark; and by the Treaty of Peace signed at Vienna on the 30th October, 1864, certain Rights over the Duchies of Holstein and Schleswig were secured to Austria. In June, 1866, war ensued between Prussia and Italy against Austria, and by the Treaty of Peace, signed at Prague on the 23rd August, 1866, the Duchies of Holstein and Schleswig were annexed to Prussia, "on the condition that the Populations of the northern districts of Schleswig should be ceded to Denmark, if, by free vote, they expressed a wish to be united to Denmark." By the Law of 24th December, 1866, those Duchies were united with the Prussian Monarchy.

Became extinct on the death of the Duke of Anhalt-Bernburg on the 19th August, 1863, when all the territories of Anhalt were united under one head as the Duchy of Anhalt.

Became extinct on the death of the Duke of Anhalt-Köthen, 23rd November, 1847, when its territories were united to Anhalt-Dessau by Patent of 22nd May, 1853.

The Diet in deliberating on the organic laws of the Confederation, shall consider whether any collective votes ought to be granted to the ancient Mediatised States of the Empire.

Germanic Confederation. Arrangements relating to the Diet. ART. LIX. The question, whether a subject is to be discussed by the General Assembly, conformably to the principles above established, shall be decided in the Ordinary Assembly by a majority of votes. The same Assembly shall prepare the drafts of resolutions which are to be proposed to the General Assembly, and shall furnish the latter with all the necessary information, either for adopting or rejecting them.

The plurality of votes shall regulate the decisions, both in the Ordinary and General Assemblies, with this difference, however, that in the Ordinary Assembly, an absolute majority shall be deemed sufficient, while, in the other, two-thirds of the votes shall be necessary to form the majority.

When the votes are even in the Ordinary Assembly, the Pre-. sident shall have the casting vote; but when the Assembly is to deliberate on the acceptance or change of any of the fundamental laws, upon organic institutions, upon individual rights, or upon

The Administration of the Principalities of Waldeck and Pyrmont was transferred to Prussia by the Treaty of 18th July, 1867.

Annexed to Prussia by Decree of 20th September, 1866, and Patent of 3rd October, 1866.

The Constitution of the North German Confederation of 14th June, 1867, was officially published as Law by the Senate of Hamburgh, to take effect from the 1st July, 1867.

[Vienna Congress Treaty.]

affairs of religion, the plurality of votes shall not be deemed sufficient, either in the Ordinary or in the General Assembly.

The Diet is permanent: it may, however, when the subjects submitted to its deliberation are disposed of, adjourn for a fixed period, which shall not exceed four months.

All ulterior arrangements relative to the postponement or the dispatch of urgent business which may arise during the recess shall be reserved for the Diet, which will consider them when engaged in preparing the organic laws.

Germanic Confederation. Order of Voting in Diet.

ART. LX. With respect to the order in which the members of the Confederation shall vote, it is agreed, that while the Diet shall be occupied in framing organic laws, there shall be no fixed regulation; and whatever may be the order observed on such an occasion, it shall neither prejudice any of the members, nor establish a precedent for the future. After framing the organic laws, the Diet will deliberate upon the manner of arranging this matter by a permanent regulation, for which purpose it will depart as little as possible from those which have been observed in the ancient Diet, and more particularly according to the Recès of the Deputation of the Empire in 1803.* The order to be adopted shall in no way affect the rank and precedence of the members of the Confederation except in as far as they concern the Diet.

Germanic Confederation. Diet to assemble at Frankfort. ART. LXI. The Diet shall assemble at Frankfort on the Maine. Its first meeting is fixed for the 1st of September, 1815.

Germanic Confederation. The Framing of Fundamental Laws.

ART. LXII. The first object to be considered by the Diet after its opening shall be the framing of the fundamental laws of the Confederation, and of its organic institutions, with respect to its exterior, military, and interior relations.

Germanic Confederation.

Maintenance of Peace in Germany. Disputes to be settled through Mediation of the Diet, or by an Austregal Court.

ART. LXIII. The States of the Confederation engage to defend not only the whole of Germany, but each individual State of the Union, in case it should be attacked, and they mutually guarantee See Appendix.

[Vienna Congress Treaty.]

to each other such of their possessions as are comprised in this Union.

When war shall be declared by the Confederation, no member can open a separate negotiation with the enemy, nor make peace, nor conclude an armistice, without the consent of the other members.

The Confederated States engage, in the same manner, not to make war against each other, on any pretext, nor to pursue their differences by force of arms, but to submit them to the Diet, which will attempt a mediation by means of a Commission. If this should not succeed, and a juridical sentence becomes necessary, recourse shall be had to a well organized Austregal Court (Austrägalinstanz), to the decision of which the contending parties are to submit without appeal.

Germanic Confederation. Particular Arrangements.

ART. LXIV. The Articles comprised under the title of Particular Arrangements, in the Act of the Germanic Confederation, as annexed to the present General Treaty, both in original and in a French translation, shall have the same force and validity as if they were textually inserted herein (No. 26).

Territories forming the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Recognition by Austria of Royal Dignity in House of Orange-Nassau.*

ART. LXV. The ancient United Provinces of the Netherlands and the late Belgic Provinces, both within the limits fixed by the following Article, shall form,-together with the countries and territories designated in the same Article, under the Sovereignty of His Royal Highness the Prince of Orange-Nassau, Sovereign Prince of the United Provinces,-the Kingdom of the Netherlands, hereditary in the order of succession already established by the Act of the Constitution of the said United Provinces. The title and the prerogatives of the Royal dignity are recognised by all the Powers in the House of OrangeNassau.

Boundaries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.*

ART. LXVI. The line comprising the territories which com

*The Union between Holland and Belgium was dissolved by the Treaties of 15th November, 1831, and 19th April, 1839.