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Is the Prefect an exception, surviving only in France and some countries influenced by Napoleon? No! This book tells the varied stories of the resilience, in most European States and under different names, of the prefectoral institution. It is the first comparative book in English studying these territorial administrators who have a go-between role in centre-periphery relations and a nodal role in territorial governance. Gathering a multidisciplinary team of scholars under the auspices of the European Group for Public Administration, this volume offers a fine-grained analysis of 17 national cases, examines cross-country data, and proposes a theoretical frame made of a Weberian ideal-type with three variants, to better comprehend and explain the permanence and changes of the prefectoral figure.
List of contents
Chapter 1. Variations on the prefectoral figure in Europe. Some research questions and an ideal-type for a comparison.- Part 1. Genesis and historicity.- Chapter 2. French prefects. Genesis and institutionalization of a State 'grand corps'.- Chapter 3. Studying the apparition of prefects in Italy between Napoleon and the Unification.- Chapter 4. Civil governors and Public Order in 19th century Spain. The case of Barcelona.- Chapter 5. Serving the King, serving the people. A historical outline of the Norwegian county governor.- Part 2. Facts & Figures.- Chapter 6. Social and educational backgrounds of the territorial representatives of the State in nowadays Europe.- Chapter 7. A profession or a position? Recruitments and careers of the territorial representatives of the State in nowadays Europe.- Part 3. A culture at work. Between incarnation, compromise & politicization.- Chapter 8. In the flesh. Giving the State bodily form in 19th-century Europe.- Chapter 9. Dealing with dualities. The daily life of a Dutch King's Commissioner.- Chapter 10. Being a (sub-)prefect in Paris. The self-legitimization of the prefectoral corps' members working within French core ministries, etc.
About the author
Gildas Tanguy is Associate Professor at Sciences Po Toulouse and deputy-director of the Laboratory of the Social Sciences of the Polity (LaSSP).
Jean-Michel Eymeri-Douzans is the President of the European Group for Public Administration (EGPA), and a Professor at Sciences Po Toulouse-LaSSP.
