Medicinska fakulteta Univerze v Ljubljani 1919–1945 - Univerza v ...

Ljubljana� Clarity about their organisation came only with the
Rules on the Organisation and Discipline of Central Schools in
Ljubljana as of 1 August 1810, which Janko Polecin and Fran
Zwitter justifiably term the statutes of the French university in
Ljubljana� The Rules distinguish between seven study courses
(cours d’études), i�e� for doctors, surgeons, pharmacists, engineers,
architects, land surveyors, lawyers and theologians� All study
courses had an identical first-year programme with the same
subjects: rhetoric (eloquence), metaphysics and physics� The
entire study, including the mentioned first year, took five years
for medical students and surgeons, four years for pharmacists,
engineers, architects, lawyers and theologians and three years
for land surveyors� The management of the central school was
entrusted to a Regent (Rector) and a Chancellor (Secretary
General)� The school was also supposed to have a library, a physics
and chemistry laboratory and a botanical garden� The learning
language was to be French or Italian and, if so required, this role
could also be assumed by Latin� The provisions concerning the
learning language stated that upon enrolment, students should be
familiar with French, Italian and Latin grammar and rhetoric as
well as logics and elementary mathematics�
On 5 November 1810, the management of central schools (Rector
Jožef Walland/Balant, Chancellor Matevž Ravnikar) called for
enrolment and ten days later, the school ceremoniously opened
its doors� In the first and only academic year of central schools of
Ljubljana, the 1810-1811 academic year, 11 professors taught 301
students of all faculties� In the first academic year of the academy,
the 1811-1812 academic year, there were 313 students and in the
next and final year of the academy, the 1812-1813 academic year,
the number dropped to 273 students� At the time, 300 students
was the average number for medium-sized universities, as only
the largest universities had around 600 students� Vlado Schmidt
emphasises that this clearly proves that “the French higher school
(university) was appropriate and needed in Ljubljana�”
The majority of new students (upon enrolment) were aged from
18 to 19 years old, which is about a year older than the European
average of the time� The average age of students at individual
faculties was 17 for law, 18 for medicine, 19 for technology and
20 for theology�
Marmont’s arrangement of education – which briefly made
Slovenian a taught subject and the learning language at the
unified primary and lower secondary level and its permanent
successor were Vodnik’s textbooks in Slovenian for the majority of
subjects taught in primary and grammar schools – was distinctly
temporary and was officially enforced only in the 1810-1811
academic year� In line with the strict economisation ordered by
Paris and the preparations for a gradual system integration with
the French Empire, reforms were already being prepared by the
end of the first school year� On 12 December 1811, Governor
General of the Illyrian Provinces Count Henri-Gratien Bertrand
signed a decree on the temporary regulation of Illyrian schools� A
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number of previous educational institutions were abolished, for
example some of the grammar schools which were not changed
into colleges became ordinary primary schools that of course
had to be maintained by municipalities� However, despite the
reforms, Ljubljana kept its higher education study with ten chairs
comprising the newly founded Ljubljana Academy (académie de
Laybach)� Following the order of Count Bertrand, Zelli prepared
detailed rules for the operation of colleges, private schools,
lycées and “faculties of the academy of Illyrian Provinces”, which
regulated the organisation of individual types of educational
institutions� The “Rules for the Faculties of the Academy of
Illyrian Provinces” foresaw the transformation of existing higher
education courses in Ljubljana, which Marmont’s decree united
into central schools, into a complete university in accordance
with the existing French understanding of the word� The
Academy of Illyrian Provinces with its headquarters in Ljubljana
as the organisation for the entire education with an appointer
Rector (recteur) and a ten-member Academy Council (conseil
académique) comprised five faculties: the Faculty of Philosophy,
of Technology, of Law and the Faculty of Medicine (with the
Higher School of Pharmacy) under the management of Deans�
In this respect, Janez Šumrada states that “in light of the statutes
on the division of the French Imperial University as of 18
October 1808, the Academy in Ljubljana was thus seen as being
of the highest or first category, which is completely in line with
the regulation of higher education in France at the time�” Illyrian
authorities also sent the rules on the operation of educational
institutions to Paris to be reviewed by the minister of the interior,
who in turn required the opinion of the Grand Teacher and the
University Council as well as the Office for Public Education
run by the ministry� The Imperial University confirmed that
the proposals of Illyrian authorities were in accordance with
the French laws and that no reasons exist for them not to be
confirmed� Janez Šumrada further states the opinion of the
Imperial University that “until Illyrian Provinces are not subject
to the same administrative forms as the remaining parts of the
Empire, it will not intervene in the management and control of
schools in Illyria�” On this basis, Janez Šumrada concludes that
“this never happened: the academy, individual faculties and
the lycée were never formally established� Lessons on higher
secondary and on higher education level were much different
than anticipated”, which individuals found already after the
repeated Austrian assumption of power�
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The rules on central schools, which Zelli signed on 1 August
1819, left no doubts in terms of organisation� They clearly stated
that central schools would be organised at faculty level and the
Regent’s and Chancellor’s tasks, disciplinary rules for students,
the duration of the academic year, holidays and exams were