Fritz Walser (16 November 1870 – 26 March 1950) was a politician from

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...

who served as President of the Landtag of Liechtenstein from 1919 to 1921. He also served in the Landtag of Liechtenstein from 1906 to 1914, 1918 to 1922, and again from 1930 to 1932. Additionally, he was also the mayor of Schaan from 1909 to 1912 and again from 1915 to 1918.

Early life

Walser was born on 16 November 1870 in

Schaan Schaan (; dialectal: ''Schaa'') is the largest Municipalities of Liechtenstein, municipality of Liechtenstein by population. It is located to the north of Vaduz, the capital, in the central part of the country. it has a population of 6,039, ma ...

as the son of

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

and community leader Ferdinand Walser and Josefa Schlegel as one of seven children.

Career

From 1887 to 1933 he was an agent for

Bâloise Bâloise Holding AG is a Swiss insurance holding company headquartered in Basel. The company employs approximately 9,000 employees across Europe and is the third-largest Swiss all-industry insurance service provider for individuals and businesses ...

against fire damage in Liechtenstein. From 1896 he was also a clerk at the regional court. In 1904 Walser took over the Schaan post office from his father-in-law as post administrator, and from 1906 to 1935 he became postmaster. From 1906 to 1909 he was a member of the Schaan school council, and its deputy head from 1912 to 1915. From 1907 to 1920 he was a member of the state school board. He was the mayor of Schaan from 1909 to 1912 and again from 1915 to 1918. From

1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...

to 1914,

1918 The ceasefire that effectively ended the World War I, First World War took place on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of this year. Also in this year, the Spanish flu pandemic killed 50–100 million people wor ...

to 1922 and again from

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be on J ...

to 1932 he served in the Landtag of Liechtenstein as a member of the

Progressive Citizens' Party The Progressive Citizens' Party in Liechtenstein (, FBP) is a Conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Liechtenstein, political party in Liechtenstein. The FBP is one of the two major party, major List of political parties in Liech ...

. Paul Vogt (1987). ''125 Jahre Landtag.'' Vaduz: Landtag of the Principality of Liechtenstein. In 1907, Walser, together with Karl Schädler and Jakob Kaiser, submitted a proposal to create a press law. He was committed to the issue of Liechtenstein stamps, which was made possible by the 1911 postal agreement with

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

Throughout

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Walser was an outspoken critic of Leopold Freiherr von Imhof, the Governor of Liechtenstein, as the war had brought economic devastation to the country. He played a key role in the November 1918 Liechtenstein putsch; he along with Wilhelm Beck and Martin Ritter, deeply dissatisfied by Imhof's handling of the economy and who wanted a Liechtensteiner head of state, proposed a

motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...

against him in the Landtag on 7 November. Imhof asked for a vote of confidence and at the same time agreed to submit his resignation. While the Landtag unanimously expressed its confidence in him it was decided, against the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

and the princely appointed Landtag members, to transfer the power of Governor to a Provisional Executive Committee led by Ritter and Johann II accepted Imhof's resignation on 13 November. He was subsequently appointed President of the Landtag of Liechtenstein in January 1919, serving until December 1921. Walser was a leading member of the foundation of the

in 1918. Despite previously wanting a Liechtensteiner head of state, when Johann II appointed Josef Peer Governor of Liechtenstein in 1920, Walser and the Progressive Citizens' Party supported his appointment in contrast to the Christian-Social People's Party as they believed the role should only be reserved for Liechtensteiners. Eventually it was agreed that Peer could take the position, but only for a 6-month period. He was a member of the committee for Liechtenstein's constitutional revision, creating the constitution of Liechtenstein, which was ratified on 5 October 1921. Zollanschlussvertrag

He was a member of the Liechtenstein delegation for in negotiations between Liechtenstein and Switzerland for forming closer economic ties, which cultivated in a

customs union A customs union is generally defined as a type of trade bloc which is composed of a free trade area with a common external tariff.GATTArticle 24 s. 8 (a) Customs unions are established through trade pacts where the participant countries set u ...

being formed between the two countries in 1924. In 1938 he was a member of negotiations between the Progressive Citizens' Party and Patriotic Union when they formed a

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

overseen by Franz Joseph II in the wake of the Anschluss of Austria. From 1939 he was a princley poastal councillor and from 1940 an honorary member of the Historical Association for the Principality of Liechtenstein.

Personal life

Walser married Julia Wachter-Wölfle (12 October 1880 – 19 August 1949) on 18 September 1899 and they had five children together. Walser died on 26 March 1950 in Schaan, aged 69 years old.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walser, Fritz Presidents of the Landtag of Liechtenstein Progressive Citizens' Party members of the Landtag of Liechtenstein Progressive Citizens' Party mayors of Liechtenstein 1870 births 1950 deaths People from Schaan Mayors of Schaan Members of the Landtag of Liechtenstein (1918–1922) Members of the Landtag of Liechtenstein (1928–1932) Vice presidents of the Landtag of Liechtenstein Members of the Landtag of Liechtenstein (1906–1910) Members of the Landtag of Liechtenstein (1914–1918) 20th-century mayors of places in Liechtenstein

Early life

Career

Personal life

See also

References