Items25The creator’s order
  1. 1Julius CaesarJulius CaesarCaesar's appointment as dictator in perpetuity in 44 BC turned an office associated with exceptional, temporary command into a continuing personal position. The title appeared on coins, making the change publicly visible. His assassination that March ended his tenure rather than restoring a stable…0i
  2. 2SullaSullaSulla received an extraordinary dictatorship in 82 BC with a mandate to make laws and reconstitute the republic. It lacked the ordinary short time limit, allowing him to reshape the Senate and reduce the tribunes' power amid violent proscriptions of his opponents. He eventually relinquished the…0i
  3. 3Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnBorn 12 Feb 1809Lincoln's wartime suspension of habeas corpus brought executive detention into direct conflict with judicial authority. Chief Justice Taney, sitting as a circuit judge in 1861, held that the suspension power belonged to Congress. Congress authorised suspension for the duration of the war in 1863,…0i
  4. 4Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin D. RooseveltBorn 30 Jan 1882Roosevelt closed the banks by proclamation in March 1933, then obtained Congress's retrospective approval and a broader statutory basis for emergency financial regulation. Banks began reopening within days, but the legal change extended beyond that brief closure: the Emergency Banking Act widened…0i
  5. 5Harry S. TrumanHarry S. TrumanBorn 8 May 1884Truman invoked the Korean War emergency to justify taking control of steel mills in 1952 to prevent a strike. The Supreme Court rejected the seizure in Youngstown because the claimed power lacked sufficient constitutional or statutory authority. This case changed the discussion of emergency…0i
  6. 6Friedrich EbertFriedrich EbertEbert repeatedly used Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution during the republic's early crises, including the economic turmoil of 1923. Emergency decrees allowed action without the normal legislative process. His use of temporary measures while defending the republic must be distinguished from his…0i
  7. 7Paul von HindenburgPaul von HindenburgBorn 2 Oct 1847Under Hindenburg, emergency decrees increasingly sustained governments without their own parliamentary majorities from 1930 onwards. Article 48 worked alongside the presidential power to dissolve the Reichstag, shifting effective government away from legislative coalition-building. The significance…0i
  8. 8Adolf HitlerAdolf HitlerBorn 20 Apr 1889Hitler's government exploited the Reichstag fire to secure Hindenburg's emergency decree of February 1933, suspending fundamental rights and enabling the detention of political opponents. The subsequent Enabling Act allowed legislation without normal parliamentary approval. The emergency decree…0i
  9. 9Charles de GaulleCharles de GaulleBorn 22 Nov 1890De Gaulle invoked Article 16 during the generals' revolt in Algeria in April 1961, concentrating exceptional powers in the presidency. Measures extended into matters normally requiring legislation, including criminal procedure and military tribunals. The invocation continued until September, well…0i
  10. 10Pierre TrudeauPierre TrudeauBorn 18 Oct 1919Trudeau's government invoked the War Measures Act during Canada's October Crisis in 1970, enabling extraordinary arrest and detention powers. Temporary replacement legislation expired in April 1971, so this was not an indefinite continuation of the same emergency. The wider framework was eventually…0i