Great Bull of 1811

The Great Bull of 1811 was an act proclaimed by Niall V, Apostolic King of Urcea in 1811. The Great Bull, one of the last issued by an Apostolic King, deals with the civil rights of Urceans. The Bull both codified existing long-held rights as well as introduced new guarantees as part of Niall's overall liberalizing reform efforts. The Great Bull is considered one of the fundamental texts of the Constitution of Urcea. It is often referred to as the "Urcean Bill of Rights".

Text

The Great Bull of 1811 consists of a preamble which establishes its historical context. It also includes a discourse on Urcean views on the role of government within the context of Catholic social teaching and expressing a general set of principles that have been described as both organic and crown liberal in nature. The preamble is followed by nine "that" clauses, known as the ten "statements", each of which guarantees a different civil liberty. The final "that" clause binds the Apostolic King of Urcea and his descendants to the contents and guarantees of the Bull.

As God has invested authority and His Divine Trust in the Apostolic King of Urcea, Niall the fifth, of the House de Weluta, Elector of Canaery, et cetera, We, as King, have determined that the following be true: that this authority is of granted stewardship and not inherited ownership; that God has placed Us on this throne as a subject of his Emperor and his Pope for the benefit and protection of the lands in the Apostolic Kingdom to protect said lands granted to mankind as a whole since the dawn of time and to our ancestors, some of which inhabited the land granted to him since before the life of our Divine Lord; that the people of the Apostolic Kingdom, though subject to Us, our ancestors, and our descendants, are fundamentally participants in the Freedom of Christ and have an inherent dignity as human persons that no King, no Earthly authority, may abrogate, and; as King, though We have Earthly authority over the Kingdom and its subjects, have an obligation as a steward of God to defend and recognize the dignities of Our people and respect the boundaries of their rights as created beings of God. With these ideas affirmed and understood, We, therefore, solemnly resolve and decree this binding declaration for Ourselves and for Our descendants until the end of time:

THAT the subjects of the Apostolic Kingdom reserve the ability to all commentary in the public and private sphere even beyond the confines of that which is considered to be tasteful, including blasphemy, though the latter rightfully and shall be discouraged by whatever means of law necessary though under no pain of death or imprisonment;

THAT peaceable assembly of the subjects of the Kingdom is permitted by an authority higher than Our own and shall not be abrogated except to defend against heresy;

THAT the subjects of the Apostolic Kingdom shall have no obligation to quarter the armies of His Imperial Majesty and that We and Our descendants shall take every measure to prevent such occurrence, and that no soldier in Our service shall be quartered in the home of a subject of the Apostolic Kingdom except in times of domestic war;

THAT the teaching of the Church and tradition of the Empire be affirmed that no subject of the Kingdom may be held in slavery to another, and that no subject of the Kingdom, in territories foreign or domestic, within the Empire or without, may hold another man as a slave as it is incongruent with the dignity of the human person;

THAT We, as much as practicable, shall resolve to, whenever possible, respect the subsidiary order of society and make no measure to impose on the subjects of the Kingdom whatever is unnecessary relative to their own ability and capacity for enterprise and industry, and that such resolution will be respected to the best of Our knowledge and Our ability and that of Our descendants until the end of time;

THAT the Holy Catholic Church shall never be attacked, abrogated, or otherwise molested in any capacity, affirming the vow We took upon coronation and the obligation of Our position as Defender of the Faith, and that the Kingdom, to the best of its ability, shall work to enhance the position of the Faith within the Kingdom, within the Empire, and throughout the world, and that We and our descendants shall endeavor to further the Faith of our people through charity, good works, construction of churches and church schools, and any other measure necessary;

THAT the subjects of the Apostolic Kingdom shall, except for treason or heresy, be guaranteed a trial either by jury of their peers or by a Royal judge upon their choice, and that such trial shall be as speedy as possible;

THAT We and our descendants shall never abrogate or otherwise seize the land of a subject of the Kingdom except for treason without compensation or without due process of law, and further that We recognize the fundamental good of ownership and particularly land ownership, and that We and our descendants shall endeavor, on Royal lands, to ensure fair, reasonable, and broad ownership of lands;

THAT the subjects of the Apostolic Kingdom shall have a new tax or taxes imposed on them only by consent of a common council of the people; and

THAT We, as Apostolic King of Urcea, and Our descendants, shall bind ourselves to these solemn resolutions in the eyes of God and man, and that We shall endeavor to uphold these God-given and affirmed rights to the best of Our ability, and that We shall not forget these obligations as steward ordained by God.

Analysis

Besides the preamble and tenth statement, the nine central statements of the Great Bull each deal with a different social or political right.

Fourth Statement

THAT the teaching of the Church and tradition of the Empire be affirmed that no subject of the Kingdom may be held in slavery to another, and that no subject of the Kingdom, in territories foreign or domestic, within the Empire or without, may hold another man as a slave as it is incongruent with the dignity of the human person;

The Fourth Statement deals with the legality of slavery, which it prohibits. In the Holy Levantine Empire of which Urcea was a part, slavery had been banned in large part since the early medieval period with the exception of galley slavery. Slavery was not legally prohibited abroad, however, prior to the promulgation of the Great Bull, and it was legally permisible to keep non-Christians in bondage in some circumstances. When the Bull was promulgated, it had the effect of banning slavery in New Archduchy, Urcea's only overseas possession where slavery was used by 1811. Courts have generally held that this Statement refers to both indentured servitude and chattel slavery specifically and does not relate to the use of prison labor.