GOLDEN BULL, an edict, or imperial constitution, made by the emperor Charles IV. reputed to be the magna charta, or the fundamental law of the German empire.
It is called golden, because it has a golden seal, in the form of a pope's bull, tied with yellow and red cords of silk: upon one side is the emperor represented sitting on his throne, and on the other the capitol of Rome. It is also called Caroline, on Charles IV's account. Till the publication of the golden bull, the form and ceremony of the election of an emperor were dubious and undetermined, and the number of the electors not fixed. This solemn edict regulated the functions, rights, privileges, and pre-eminences of the electors. The original, which is in Latin, on vellum, is preserved at Frankfort: this ordinance, containing thirty articles, or chapters, was approved of by all the princes of the empire, and remain still in force.