Between the devil and the deep blue sea - University of Canterbury

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civilian authorities. They had to keep to the boundaries of the Gemeentewet (Municipal
Law) and Provincialevvet (Provincial Law).94
In November 1916, the government also tempered the powers of the "state of
siege", when it amended the jurisdiction of commanders to emergencies only. This decision
came after many objections to the powers of the "state of siege" in comparison to those of
the "state ofwar".95 After the November decree, local government bodies were held
responsible for all local matters, and any decisions made by commanders, which did not
deal specifically with defence or neutrality, had to be discussed with the municipal
authorities first. In effect, the government tempered the "state of siege" and brought its
jurisdiction much closer to that of the "state of war", where consultation was already
mandatory.96 Nevertheless, for matters concerning defence and neutrality, the powers of the
military in the "state of siege" remained all-encompassing.
The "state of war" and "siege" faced further challenges from High Court judges
through 1918. On 5 April, for instance, they ruled that the military could not detennine
what shopkeepers did with their goods, as smuggling and trade policy were the
responsibility of central government, not of municipal authorities. Because the "state of
siege" did not exist throughout the country, the anned forces could not exercise any
authority over national concerns. As a result, the govennnent had to compensate all
merchants affected by such regulations up to that date. 97 The ruling came two years after
new smuggling legislation had come into effect, which had specifically removed
responsibility for trade matters from the anned forces. However, the law of April 1916 did
not give enough powers to customs officials to stem smuggling, so the government had kept
94 High Court sentence, sitting 9 June 1916, in Militair-Rechtelijke Tijdschrift. 12, 1916, pp. 141 - 145.
95 Commander Fortified Position ofthe Mouths of the Maas River and the Schelde to Commander-in-Chief, 31
August 1916, in ARA, "Archieven van de Generale Staf' entry no. 2.13.70, inventory no. 436; Commander of the
Field Army, "Ervaring opgedaan bij de practische toepassing van de wet van 23 Mei 1899 (St.BI.No.128)"
[Experiences of the practical application of the law of 23 May 1899 (Staatsblad. no. 128)] date unknown [late 1915],
in ARA, "Achiefvan het Hoofdkwartier Veldleger" entry no. 2.13.16, inventory no. 179.
96 Article 7, "Instructie voor de Autoriteiten, overeenkomstig artikel 7 van de, sedert gewijzigde, wet van 23 Mei
1899 (Staatsblad No. 128), aangewezen voor de uitoefening van het militair gezag" Staatsblad. no. 488, 2 November
1916.
97 Commander Division IV, "Verslag ingevolge art. 6 van de Wet van 23 Mei 1899 (staatsblad No 128 betreffende de
uitoefening van het Militair Gezag in de provincien Noord- Brabant, Limburg en Gelderland bezuiden van den
Boven- Rijn (voor een dee! ook wei "Bijlandsche Ka113al" geheeten) en de Waal, buiten het gebied der Stellingen en
afzonderlijke Forten, alsmede in de Gemeenten Standdaardbuiten en Zevenbergen en in het gedeelte van de
Gemeente Rilland- Bath, gelegen op den N oord- Brabantschen wal van de Ooster- en Wester- Schelde" 5 May 1920,
p. 9, in ARA, "Archieven van de Generale Staf' entry no. 2.13.70, inventory no. 708 ..