MOST SERENE REPUBLIC OF SAN MARINO Official name: Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino (Most Serene Republic of San Marino) Location: Western Europe International organisations: The Council of Europe, The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, The United Nations. Borders: Italy Coastline: None Land area: 61 Km2 Population: 29,000 Ethnicity: Italian Languages: Italian is the official language and the language of the population. Religion: Most Sammarinese are Catholic Christians. Form of government: Presidential democratic republic Capital: San Marino

Constitution: San Marino does not have a formal constitution. The Statutes of 1600, amended many times since, serve the functions of a constitution.
Heads of state: The Captains-Regent, two joint heads of state, chosen by the legislature for six-month terms.
Head of government: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Political Affairs, chosen by the legislature.
Legislature: San Marino has a unicameral legislature, the Grand and General Council (Consiglio Grande e Generale), which has 60 members elected by direct universal suffrage for five-year terms.
Electoral authority: None known
Freedom House rating: Political Rights 1, Civil Liberties 1

Political history

San Marino has been an independent state since the early Middle Ages - it was traditionally founded in 301 AD by Marinus, a Roman Christian, as a refuge from persecution. Its independence was recognised by the Pope in 1291 and its form of government dates from the 16th century. The Grand and General Council was controlled by the nobility until 1906, when a bloodless revolution expanded the franchise to all heads of families, and in 1920 universal franchise followed. In 1922, however, Mussolini's Italian fascist regime helped local fascists take power, which they retained until 1943. The Communists and Socialists then took power and retained it until 1957. Since then the local Christian Democrats and Socialists have alternated in control of the legislature.

Sammarinese politics are dominated by the Sammarinese Christian-Democratic Party, a moderate conservative party, the social-democratic Sammarinese Socialist Party and the liberal Party of Democrats. As in Italy, the Sammarinese Communist Refoundation maintains a dwindling Communist tradition.