Charles-Mathias Simons

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Charles-Mathias Simons

Prime Minister of Luxembourg
In office 23 September 1853 – 26 September 1860
Monarch	William III
Preceded by	Jean-Jacques Willmar
Succeeded by	Victor de Tornaco
Personal details
Born	27 March 1802 Bitburg, Prussia
Died	5 October 1874 Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Political party	Independent

Charles-Mathias Simons (27 March 1802, in Bitburg – 5 October 1874) was a Luxembourgian politician and jurist. He was the third Prime Minister of Luxembourg, serving for seven years, from 1853 until 1860.

He received his Doctorate of Laws in 1823 from the University of Liège. The year after, he registered at the bar of the court of first instance of Diekirch. In 1831 he was a delegate at the Belgian National Congress in Brussels, and helped to draft the new Belgian constitution.

In 1836-1837 he was a member of the provincial council, and in 1841 became a member of the Assembly of Estates. In 1843-1848 he was a member of the cabinet and in 1848 of the Assemblée constituante. From 1 August to 2 December 1848 he became Administrator-general of communal affairs in the de la Fontaine Ministry.

After the Willmar government had been deposed by the governor Prince Henry, at the wish of William III, Charles-Mathias Simons was appointed prime minister on 23 September 1853.

Simons' time as head of government saw the revision of the constitution of October 1856, which the King-Grand-Duke had pushed through against the wishes of the parliament, which strengthened his powers while curtailing those of the parliament, and which imposed the Council of State as a control mechanism on the already weakened parliament. This period also saw the opening of the first railway line in Luxembourg (4 October 1859) and the founding of the first banks, the Banque Internationale à Luxembourg and the Banque et Caisse d'Épargne de l'État.

Simons resigned on 26 September 1860, as opposition to his "coup d'état" government grew too strong in parliament after new elections.

From 1860 to 1874 he was a member of the Council of State and from 5 January 1869 until 5. January 1870 he was its president. He died on 5 October 1874 in Luxembourg City.

External links

Les gouvernements du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg depuis 1848 (2006 edition, Government of Luxembourg) (French)

Political offices
Preceded by Jean-Jacques Willmar	Prime Minister of Luxembourg 1853–1860	Succeeded by Baron de Tornaco
Preceded by Jean-Jacques Willmar		Succeeded by Baron de Tornaco
Director-General for Foreign Affairs 1853–1860
Preceded by Guillaume-Mathias Augustin	Director-General for Justice 1859	Succeeded by Édouard Thilges
Preceded by G T I de la Fontaine	President of the Council of State 1869–1870	Succeeded by François-Xavier Wurth-Paquet

v t e Prime Ministers of Luxembourg

Gaspard-Théodore-Ignace de la Fontaine Jean-Jacques Willmar Charles-Mathias Simons Baron de Tornaco Emmanuel Servais Baron de Blochausen Édouard Thilges Paul Eyschen Mathias Mongenast Hubert Loutsch Victor Thorn Léon Kauffman Émile Reuter Pierre Prüm Joseph Bech Pierre Dupong Joseph Bech Pierre Frieden Pierre Werner Gaston Thorn Pierre Werner Jacques Santer Jean-Claude Juncker Xavier Bettel

Persondata
Name	Simons, Charles-Mathias
Alternative names
Short description	Belgian politician
Date of birth	27 March 1802
Place of birth	Bitburg, Germany
Date of death	5 October 1874
Place of death	Luxembourg City

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