Parlement

Quick Facts: Who was Parlement?

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Parlement

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Provincial appellate courts under the Ancien Régime, wielding significant judicial power in France.

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Origins & Early Life

Under the French Ancien Régime, a parlement (French pronunciation: [paʁləmɑ̃] ) was a provincial appellate court of the Kingdom of France. In 1789, France had 13 parlements, the original and most important of which was the Parlement of Paris. Though both the modern French term parlement (for the legislature) and the English word "parliament" derive from this French term, the Ancien Régime parlements were not legislative bodies and the modern and ancient terminology are not interchangeable. Parlements were judicial organizations consisting of a dozen or more appellate judges, or about 1,100 judges nationwide. They were the courts of final appeal of the judicial system, and typically wielded power over a wide range of subjects, particularly taxation.

Career & Major Achievements

Laws and edicts issued by the Crown were not official in their respective jurisdictions until the parlements gave their assent by publishing them. The members of the parlements were aristocrats, called nobles of the robe, who had bought or inherited their offices, and were independent of the King. Sovereign councils (conseils souverains) with analogous attributes, more rarely called high councils (conseils supérieurs) or in one instance sovereign court (cour souveraine), were created in new territories (notably in New France). Some of these were eventually replaced by parlements (e.g. the Sovereign Council of Navarre and Béarn and the Sovereign Court of Lorraine and Barrois). As noted by James Stephen: There was, however, no substantial difference between the various supreme provincial judicatures of France, except such as resulted from the inflexible varieties of their various local circumstances.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

From 1770 to 1774 the Chancellor of France, Maupeou, tried to abolish the Parlement of Paris in order to strengthen the Crown. However, when King Louis XV died in 1774, the parlements were reinstated. The parlements spearheaded the aristocracy's resistance to the absolutism and centralization of the Crown, but they worked primarily for the benefit of their own class, the French nobility. Alfred Cobban argues that the parlements were the chief obstacles to any reform before the Revolution, as well as the most formidable enemies of the French Crown. He concludes that the Parlement of Paris, though no more in fact than a small, selfish, proud and venal oligarchy, regarded itself, and was regarded by public opinion, as the guardian of the constitutional liberties of France.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1770: 1770 Milestone — From 1770 to 1774 the Chancellor of France, Maupeou, tried to abolish the Parlement of Paris in order to strengthen the Crown.
2. 1774: 1774 Milestone — However, when King Louis XV died in 1774, the parlements were reinstated.
3. 1789: 1789 Milestone — In 1789, France had 13 parlements, the original and most important of which was the Parlement of Paris.

Notable Quotes by Parlement

“The Parlement of Paris... regarded itself, and was regarded by public opinion, as the guardian of the constitutional liberties of France.”

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Parlement

True or False: “The Ancien Régime parlements were primarily legislative bodies responsible for creating all royal laws.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): They were judicial organizations that served as the courts of final appeal; while they could register edicts, they were not the primary legislative body.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Parlement