Andorra

Abstract

The independence of the valleys of Andorra is of Carolingian origin. Their political status was regulated by the Paréage of 1278, according to which they were placed under the joint suzerainty of the Comte de Foix and of the Bishop of Urgel. The rights vested in the house of Foix passed by marriage to that of Béarn and, on the accession of Henri IV, to the French crown; they are now exercised by the President of the French Republic. The country consists of gorges, narrow valleys and defiles, surrounded by high mountain peaks of the Eastern Pyrenees. Its maximum length is 27.35 km. and its width 28.96 km.; it has an area of 307.32 square km. and a population of 5,231, scattered in 6 villages. The surface of the country is rough and irregular, with an altitude varying between 6,562 and 10,171 feet. The country is administered by a Council-General of 24 members elected for 4 years; half of the council is re-elected every 2 years. The council nominates a First Syndic (Syndic Procureur Général) to preside over its deliberations; in the First Syndic is vested the executive power. A Second Syndic is also nominated as deputy of the First Syndic. The judicial power is exercised in civil matters in the first instance by 2 civil judges (Bayles), one appointed by the Viguier de France and the other by the bishop. There is a judge of appeal appointed alternately by each co-prince, and in the third instance (Tercera Sala) the supreme court of Andorra at Perpignan or the ecclesiastical court of the Bishop at Urgel. Criminal justice is administered by the Tribunal des Corts, consisting of the 2 Viguiers, the judge of appeal, the Bayles, 2 members of the Council-General, an usher and 1 or 2 recorders.