Censorship and Freedom of Expression in Europe: Ancient Greece – 1948

1. Censorship and Freedom of Expression in Europe:Ancient Greece – 1948 Luke Renegar

2. Censorship Censor (v.): “to suppress or delete as objectionable” – Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th ed., p. 200 The term censor derives from the Roman Republic Censorship in the modern sense is often political or religious in nature Source: Newth

3. The Roman Censors Censors were elected officials in the Roman Republic There were two of them at all times Their name derived from their supervision of the quinquennial census They were also responsible for the punishment of moral offenses Source: Smith

4. Ancient Censorship - Socrates • Socrates (Athenian philosipher) censored in 399 BC • Charges: • Religious nonconformity • “Corrupting the youth”1 – extremely nonspecific • Executed • Called “first martyr for free speech” (Linder) • Source: Linder

5. 12th -13th Centuries – Inquisitions Develop Inquisitions were Catholic Church courts established to prosecute alleged heresies They could coerce the cooperation of secular authorities in enforcing their orders 1231 – Pope Gregory IX officially establishes life imprisonment as punishment for repentant heretics, death for unrepentant ones Source: Van Helden

6. 1275 – English Censorship Begins De ScandalisMagnatum passed Prohibited defaming the Monarch or other “Great Men of the Realm” (“The Dangerous”) Cases arising from this law eventually were routed to the infamous Star Chamber Source: “The Dangerous Lives”

7. 1478 – Spanish Inquisition Established Established by Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile An outgrowth of the monarchs’ reconquista policies (so it really wasn’t all that unexpected...) Responsible for repression of heresy, Islam, Judaism, and philosophies the monarchs didn’t like generally Source: “The Spanish”

8. 1491 – First Formal Catholic Censorship Bishop of Treviso (with authority over Vencice) ruled that any book on religion required the approval of the diocese prior to publication “[D]escribed as the first printed regulation of the [Catholic] Church having to do with censorship.” (Putnam) Applied only to Venice Source: Putnam

9. 1501 – Inter Multiplices Issued by Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) Instructs rulers of certain German dioceses to carefully censor publications therein Very early example of systematic censorship of written works coming from Rome Source: Putnam

10. 1521 – Diet of Worms Martin Luther formally excommunicated in Jan. 1521 Declared outlaw for refusing to recant heretical teachings by the Diet of Worms under Holy Roman Emperor Charles V The Diet was a notable instance of civil consequences for religious speech Source: “Luther”

11. 1559 - Index LibrorumProhibitorum Published Index etc. is Latin for “Index of Forbidden Books” Published by the Catholic Church Listed books deemed heretical or injurious to public morality Last edition issued in 1948 Revoked in 1966 Source: “Index”

12. 1563 – Book Licensing in France Begins Charles IX of France required all books be approved prior to publication Early instance of widespread prior restraint (requiring approval before publication) Significant because of its massive scope (the entirety of France) Source: Newth

13. 1641 – Star Chamber Abolished English court Could ignore common law procedure and precedent (e.g., no juries) Frequently used to enforce (sometimes arbitrary) royal decrees Abolished by Long Parliament in 1641 Source: “Court”

14. 1643 – Licensing Order in England Order of Parliament Required both prior restraint of all printed material and registration of printed material with the Company of Stationers prior to publication Opposed by Milton in his Aeropagitica (1644) Sources: Parkinson, “Milton: Aeropagitica,” and “Milton: Parliament’s Licensing Order of 1643”

15. 1695 – Licensing Act Expires Marks the end of formal prior restraint in Britain Source: Emerson 651

16. 1766 – Swedish Press Freedom • Formal censorship of publications abolished • Notable exceptions (repealed in 1810): • Theological matters • The king • Also served as a freedom of information law, the earliest such law documented • Source: “Freedom”, “Sweden”

17. 1789 – Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen Guarantees freedom of speech Not qualified on the basis of religion Source: “Declaration”

18. 1792 – Libel Act (England) Major piece of libel reform in Great Britain Made the determination of what constituted libel a question for juries rather than judges Source: “Charles James Fox”

19. 1806 – Execution of Johann Palm Printer in Nuremburg who published material critical of Napoleon Napoleon sent an extraterratorial force in pursuit of Palm The force captured him, convicted him at a court-martial, and executed him Source: De Bourrienne 336-337

20. 1819 – Carlsbad Decrees • Passed in German Confederation in response to increasing radical and nationalistic activities • Censored many publications • Editors of banned publications faced a five year personal ban on publications • Restricted activities at universities • Sources: “Carlsbad”

21. 1870s – Bismarck’s Kulturkampf • German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck made every attempt to repress the Catholic Church in Germany • Bismarck: • Forbade priests from preaching political sermons • Abolished the Jesuit order • Inserted the state into institutions of Catholic theological education • Source: “Kulturkampf”

22. 1914 – WWI Censorship Freedom of press supsended in Germany and France British press remained somewhat free (subject to restrictions concerning military secrets), but British government controlled telegraphs Source: Jürgen

23. 1922 – Glavlit Established Primary Soviet censorship bureaucracy Charged with elimination of counterrevolutionary expression Systematically destroyed disfavored writers in USSR and occupied countries Source: Newth

24. 1938 - Kristallnacht German for “Night of Broken Glass” Nazi forces raided Jewish homes and businesses Censorship of Jewish ideas and customs through personal violence Source: “Kristallnacht”

25. 1948 – Universal Declaration of Human Rights Established by United Nations Adopted as a response to the atrocities of WWII Article 19 guarantees the right to freedom of expression Sources: “Universal” (2009), “Universal” (2007)

26. Works Cited "Carlsbad Decrees". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar 2014 . “Censor.” Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary. 11th ed. 2004. Print. "Censorship." Gale Encyclopedia of Everyday Law. Ed. Jeffrey Wilson. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 843-848. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Censorship." New Dictionary of the History of Ideas. Ed. Maryanne Cline Horowitz. Vol. 1. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2005. 290-295. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Charles James Fox". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar 2014 "Court of Star Chamber". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "The Dangerous Lives of Printers: The Evolution of Freedom of the Press." The E Pluribus Unum Project. E Pluribus Unum Project (Assumption College). Web. 22 Mar 2014. De Bourrienne, Louis Antoine Fauvelet. R.W. Phipps, ed. Memoirs of Napoleon Bonaparte. Vol. II. London: Bentley, 1885. Google Book Search. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, 26 August 1789." Liberty, Equality, Fraternity: Exploring the French Revolution. American Social History Productions, Inc, 2001. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Emerson, Thomas. "The Doctrine of Prior Restraint." Law and Contemporary Problems. 20.4 (1955): 648-671. Yale Faculty Scholarship Series. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Freedom of the Press Act of 1766". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Index LibrorumProhibitorum". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Jürgen, Wilke. "Censorship and Freedom of the Press." EGO European History Online. Leibniz Institute of European History, 05 Aug 2013. Web. 23 Mar 2014.

27. Works Cited (cont.) "Kristallnacht". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar. 2014. "Kulturkampf". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2014. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Linder, Doug. "The Trial of Socrates ." Famous Trials. University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, 2002. Web. 25 Mar 2014. "Luther, Martin." World Religions Reference Library. Ed. Julie L. Carnagie, et al. Vol. 4: Biographies. Detroit: UXL, 2007. 225-234. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Laursen, John Christian. "Milton: Aeropagitica." John Milton Reading Room. Dartmouth College. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Milton: Parliament's Licensing Order of 1643." John Milton Reading Room. Dartmouth College. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Newth, Mette. "The Long History of Censorship." Beacon for Freedom of Expression. National Library of Norway, 2010. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Parkinson, Sid, ed. "The Aeropagitica." St. Lawrence Institute for the Advancement of Learning. St. Lawrence Institute. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Putnam, George Haven. The Censorship of the Church of Rome. I. New York: Putnam, 1906. Google Book Search. Web. 23 Mar 2014. Smith, William, William Wayte, and G. E. Marindin, eds. "Censor." A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities. London: 1890. Perseus Digital Library. Web. 22 Mar 2014. "The Spanish Inquisition Is Founded: 1478." Global Events: Milestone Events Throughout History. Ed. Jennifer Stock. Vol. 4: Europe. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2013. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Mar. 2014. "Sweden." UCL Constitution Unit. UCL School of Public Policy, 30 Sept 2011. Web. 23 Mar 2014. "Universal Declaration of Human Rights." UXL Encyclopedia of U.S. History. Sonia Benson, Daniel E. Brannen, Jr., and Rebecca Valentine. Vol. 8. Detroit: UXL, 2009. 1611-1612. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Mar. 2014. "Universal Declaration of Human Rights." Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations. Ed. Timothy L. Gall and Jeneen M. Hobby. 12th ed. Vol. 1: United Nations. Detroit: Gale, 2007. Student Resources in Context. Web. 23 Mar. 2014. Van Helden, Albert. "The Inquisition." Galileo Project. Galileo Project (Rice University), n.d. Web. 23 Mar 2014.