English summary: The importance of the role of Hugo Preuss in our constitutional history is only now being fully recognized. Starting out with Otto von Gierke's cooperative theory Preuss realized its democratic potential, which was something that von Gierke himself had failed to see. His work on the constitutional work of the Weimar Republic is impressive in terms of its internal consistency and continued relevance. In contrast to the mystifying concept of state sovereignty he developed a multi-layered model that is ...
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English summary: The importance of the role of Hugo Preuss in our constitutional history is only now being fully recognized. Starting out with Otto von Gierke's cooperative theory Preuss realized its democratic potential, which was something that von Gierke himself had failed to see. His work on the constitutional work of the Weimar Republic is impressive in terms of its internal consistency and continued relevance. In contrast to the mystifying concept of state sovereignty he developed a multi-layered model that is rooted in democracy at the local and state level and sees in international law a component part of a country's own legal system, which is relevant over and above the state as a whole. He was a precursor of modern theories of pluralism and recognized the essential role of political parties. However, he was aware that a democracy cannot be established merely on the basis of legal norms and saw that it also requires a corresponding political culture. German description: Die bedeutende Rolle von Hugo Preuss in unserer Verfassungsgeschichte wird erst jetzt ganz erfasst. Er ging von der Genossenschaftstheorie Otto von Gierkes aus und erkannte das in ihr steckende demokratische Potential, dem sich Gierke selbst allerdings verschloss. Seine Arbeit am Verfassungswerk von Weimar beeindruckt durch innere Konsistenz und Aktualitat: Im Gegensatz zur mystifizierten Staatssouveranitat hat er ein Mehrebenenmodell entwickelt, das nach unten in der Demokratie der Gemeinden und der Lander verwurzelt ist und oberhalb des Gesamtstaats im Volkerrecht einen Bestandteil der eigenen Rechtsordnung sieht. Er war ein Vorlaufer der modernen Pluralismustheorie und hatte die unerlassliche Rolle der politischen Parteien erfasst. Allerdings war er sich daruber klar, dass eine Demokratie nicht durch blosse Rechtsnormen eingefuhrt werden kann, sondern auch eine entsprechende politische Kultur verlangt.
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