The Kingdom of Tunisia (; ) was a short-lived monarchy established after Tunisian independence and the end of the French protectorate period. It lasted for a period of one year and five months between 20 March 1956, the day of the independence, until 25 July 1957, the day of the declaration of the republic. Its sole monarch was Muhammad VIII al-Amin (also known as Lamine Bey) who appointed the prime ministers Tahar Ben Ammar and Habib Bourguiba.
On 25 July 1957, the monarchy was abolished with Tunisia reorganizing as a republic. The National Constituent Assembly, the country's legislature, appointed Bourguiba as head of state until the 1959 general elections, which Bourguiba won.
History An independence movement lasting many decades eventually prevailed, leading to the end of the French protectorate (commenced in 1881). In 1954 the Tunisian struggle and consequent civil disturbances resulted in the start of negotiations for autonomy between France and the Neo Destour political party (essentially under Habib Bourguiba) supported by the Tunisian labor unions and by the Arab League. The agreed Convention of April, 1955, stated that France would retain control of the army and foreign affairs while granting autonomy, which was to begin the following year. Bourguiba was released from prison by the French to a tumultuous welcome. This compromise, however, split the Neo Destour; eventually it led to suppression of its left wing, and expulsion of its radical, pan-Arab leader Salah ben Youssef, who later fled to Egypt. This resolution of intra-party strife signalled that Neo Destour would pursue a moderate path. The French then terminated their protectorate over Morocco, in order to concentrate their forces in Algeria. In reaction, and following the strong public opinion voiced by Tunisians, Bourguiba pressed for independence. The French, overcoming the heated objections of the French settlers, eventually acceded and protocols were drafted. On 20 March 1956, Tunisia achieved its full sovereignty. In July Tunisia's application for membership in the United Nations was accepted.
Independence The French conceived an independent Tunisia as a constitutional monarchy ruled by the Bey of Tunis, Muhammad VIII al-Amin.
The prior Bey Muhammad VII al-Munsif had been a popular nationalist, but Amin Bey was both considered by some to be compromised by the French, by others to be a youssefist, or follower of Ben Youssef. Already scheduled elections were held on 25 March 1956; due to secret arrangements negotiated by Bourguiba with the Bey the voters choose only party lists, not candidates. This arrangement made it easier for the Neo Destour party to keep out any youssefist or other dissidents, and to maintain party discipline.Cf., Geyer, Tunisia (London: Stacy 2003) at 41. Geyer notes the "pyramidal structure" of the Neo Destour, nonetheless she praises Bourguiba's "flexibility and moderation". The elections were then swept by the Neo Destour party, whose leader Habib Bourguiba became prime minister.
Government
The Kingdom of Tunisia was a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with legislative power being exercised by the Parliament.
King The King is considered the leader of the Husainid dynasty that reigned over Tunisia since 1705. He is the head of state, the symbol of its unity, and the protector of its independence.
The King had a very limited role since the Parliament abolished all privileges, exemptions and immunities which had previously been accorded to the Ruling Family. They became simply ordinary citizens.
The Royal Family and the state were also separated by modifying the national emblems and removing any reference to the Husainid dynasty.Décret du 21 juin 1956 sur les armoiries du Royaume, Journal officiel de la République tunisienne, No. 50, 22 juin 1956,
The government removed the King's prerogative to pass regulations, transferring this to the Prime Minister.
Other decrees followed, compelling the King to turn over various properties to the state. These measures served to greatly reduce the remaining prestige of the King.Victor Silvera, « Le régime constitutionnel de la Tunisie : la Constitution du 1er juin 1959 », Revue française de science politique, vol. 10, No. 2, 1960, Nonetheless King Muhammad VIII was the first person to be honoured, on 19 December 1956, with the decoration of the new Order of Independence.
The king no longer had any significant role and he did not have any executive power, which all became in the hands of the government.
There is no longer a Royal Guard for the king also after it was replaced by the Tunisian armed forces by the government a few days before the proclamation of the republic.
Prime minister After the declaration of independence, the role of the prime minister in Tunisia became very important, as he became the ruler of the country replacing the king, as he was the one who signed the independence treaty between Tunisia and France.
What increased its value was that it was named according to the elections that were held in March 1956, meaning that Tunisia became a constitutional parliamentary monarchy.
During the Kingdom era, the Prime Minister was able to start numerous reforms aiming to modernize Tunisian society and change their mentalities. On 31 May 1956, he abolished royal privileges, which made royal princes and princesses equal to other citizens and punishable by law. The same day, he suppressed the property legislation of habous, deeply rooted in Islamic traditions. He also ended Zitouna Mosque's education purposes by creating Zitouna University, which taught Islamic knowledge under the supervision of the ministry of Education. Likewise, Koranic schools were, from that moment on, under governmental oversight, the ministry preparing a detailed program and managing them. Furthermore, free education was proclaimed and teachers trained. He also started a gender equality campaign, advocating for women rights including: universal education for girls equally with boys, women admission to employment under the same conditions as men, free consent to marriage and veil removal. Even though, conservatives were strongly opposed to his reforms, the campaign ended to be a huge success. The prime minister's power was confirmed successfully by the adoption of the Code of Personal Status, a major legislation that reorganized families. Therefore, repudiation was replaced with divorce while woman had to consent to their marriages, suppression paternal agreement. In addition, Polygyny was prohibited and equality between fathers and mothers but also between children was part of the law. The government also reformed the judicial system, suppressing religious courts and initiating governmental ones.
Legislature
The National Constituent Assembly () was the legislature of Tunisia during the monarchy. It served as a unicameral parliament consisting of 98 members elected on 25 March 1956, five days after the proclamation of the independence of Tunisia.
The National Union, an alliance of the Neo Destour led by Habib Bourguiba, the Tunisian General Labour Union, the Tunisian Union of Agriculture and Fisheries and the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts, won all the seats, with 98% of the votes cast for a participation of 83.6%.
The speaker of the Constituent Assembly have to the apply of the rules of procedure, the decisions taken during the plenary sessions and the decisions of the office. He chairs the meetings of the office of the assembly as well as the plenary sessions.
The first incumbent was Habib Bourguiba, elected by the constituent assembly on 9 April 1956. On 15 April, following the assembly's decision to appoint him as Prime Minister, he was replaced by Jallouli Fares, until the adoption of the constitution on 1 June 1959.
This proved the importance given to the Constituent Assembly since the appointment of the prime minister came from it.
In addition to its duties of adopting a constitution for the country, the Assembly took on decisive decisions in the country's history, including voting unanimously for the abolition of the monarchy, and the proclamation of the Republic on 25 July 1957 and the appointment of Bourguiba as the first president of the Tunisian Republic.
Subdivisions
The governorate system was set up by the decree of June 21, 1956 by the Prime minister of the Kingdom of Tunisia Habib Bourguiba. The latter organized the regional administration, henceforth carried out by governors, general secretaries and delegates. The framework law, adopted accordingly, removes the charges for:
38 caïds in office including Sheikh El Medina of Tunis; 49 kahias in office and five in excess; 77 active khalifas and 18 in excess.
The body of governors which takes over from the Caidal authorities is chosen from among the Neo-Destour executives. The Makhzen, made up of families who controlled the regional administration, is dismantled. Justifying the decision, Prime Minister Habib Bourguiba declared, before the National Council of Neo-Destour, on June 23, 1956:
"We felt it necessary to purify these frameworks to ensure cooperation based on reciprocal respect between the State personified in its representatives and the people who must respect in them, no longer the agents of colonization, but the servants of the public interest. For the vast majority of executives affected by the cleansing, the blow was hard. Some suffer terribly from it. But we were in an inescapable necessity."
Fourteen governorates emerged with independence which are: Béja Governorate Bizerte Governorate Gabès Governorate Gafsa Governorate Jendouba Governorate Kairouan Governorate Kasserine Governorate Le Kef Governorate Médenine Governorate Nabeul Governorate Sfax Governorate Sousse Governorate Tozeur Governorate Tunis Governorate
Reforms of the kingdom Prime Minister Bourguiba, since the first months of independence, carried out radical reforms in Tunisian society. On 13 August 1956, he issued the Code of Personal Status in Tunisia that banned polygamy and mandated the courts to consider divorce requests while endowments were dissolved and the judiciary unified. On the administrative level, in June 1956, the "al-Kiyadat" (Caïds) was abolished and replaced by 14 governorates consisting of delegations. In the same month, the National Army was dispatched and, before that, in April 1956, security came under Tunisian leadership. The government also made relentless efforts to rest the state structures. He also issued an order on 31 May 1956, which stipulated the suspension of the financial privileges that were spent on members of the royal family.
On 21 June of the same year, an order was issued to alter the emblem of the Kingdom of Tunisia, according to which all references to the Husainid dynasty were deleted. On 3 August 1956, another order was issued transferring the executive powers from the king to his prime minister. The Royal Guard was also replaced by a unit of the newly formed Tunisian army.
On confirmation of this, Bourguiba worked to gradually reduce the influence of the king, who by this point only exercised ceremonial functions and a small part of the legislative authority, such as putting his stamp on and signing orders, decisions and decrees presented to him by his prime minister every Thursday, thus leading to a type of governance resembling a parliamentary system similar to the British monarchy.
Declaration of the republic