Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg)

The Chamber of Deputies (D'Chamber, Chambre des Députés, Abgeordnetenkammer), abbreviated to the Chamber, is the unicameral national legislature of Luxembourg. Krautmaart (French: Marché aux herbes, English: "Herb Market") is sometimes used as a metonym for the Chamber, after the square on which the Hôtel de la Chambre (Luxembourgish: Chambergebai, English: "Hall of the Chamber of Deputies") is located. The Chamber is made up of 60 seats. Deputies are elected to serve five-year terms by proportional representation in four multi-seat constituencies. Voters may vote for as many candidates as the constituency elects deputies. The constitution of 1841 created the Assembly of Estates (Assemblée des États), consisting of 34 members. Under the absolute monarchy of William II, King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg, the legislature's powers were very restricted: it could not take decisions and had a purely advisory role with respect to the monarch. Its consent was necessary in very few matters. Only the sovereign could propose laws. The assembly was only in session 15 days a year, and these sessions were held in secret. In a climate marked by the democratic revolutionary movements in France and elsewhere, a new constitution was drafted in 1848 by a Constituent Assembly. This introduced a constitutional monarchy: the King-Grand Duke only retained those powers specifically enumerated in the Constitution. The parliament, now called the Chambre des Députés, had the legislative power: it had the right to propose and amend laws. It would decide the budget, and received the power to investigate. The government became accountable to the Chamber. In addition, its sessions were now public. In 1853, William III called on the government to write a new constitution to limit the powers of the Chamber. The latter refused to approve the government's revisions, and the Grand Duke dissolved the legislature. There was then a brief return to absolutist monarchy, in what became known as the Putsch of 1856.