Urbs - Magyar várostörténeti évkönyv 7. (Budapest, 2012)
Recenziók
Abstracts 597 At the time of the resettlement of the recaptured Buda those craftsmen, who met certain requirements for example pursued some so-called “supported” trades, had the chance to buy citizenship and properties with very little money. These trades were related to securing food supply and the building trade as well as the tanner trade which trade’s importance was stressed in the Kollonich country planning. The members of the Internal and the External Council which were elected after obtaining the free royal city status (1703) represent well the hierarchy of civil societly. Craftsmen did not take part in the work of the Internal Council which in fact consisted of mostly tradesmen and (mainly former state) officials as well as the representative of the contemporary entrepreneur-intellectuals. Tobias von Krempel, who was often called as a baker, was an imperial nobleman at the Internal Council. Having known his activity he was rather a mill-owner and a flour-trader, thus he was not at all an average trader from Buda. Craftsmen had interests primarily in the building industry and they were represented in the Internal Council. This, however, did not matter against the so-called “council oligarchy”, because craftsmen did not have the right to decide on the magistratus’ decisions. In reality, one’s Internal Council title refered to one’s ability to take part in the decisions of the Council and one’s commitment toward the other cities. Members of the External Council could be nominated to urban positions (such as vice-chamberlain, juryman, boatsmanwain’s mate) and could be given public function (guardian, committee member, appraisal reports and taking city orders etc) which where paying-jobs. From the last years of the Rákóczy’s War for Independence, the External Council and the citizens started to critise heavily the magistrate because of the serious economic crisis as well as the natural disters (such as plague, flood) which hit hard the whole civil population. The citizens’ complaints, which were sent to the ruler, where made by the members of the External Council who entered into an alliance with the dissatisfied citizens. These dissatisfied citizens were mainly neglected wealthy craftsmen. The citizens enumenarated their injuries at the same time they paid a lot of attention to listing all those disadvantages that the guild-masters had to face with. Those citizens, the so- called “civil party” or the “arme Comunität”, who were not satisfied with the work of the Internal Council, found a talented leader, Wilhelm Matthy, the tanner and his half- brother by the end of the 1710’s. Matthy’s financial situation was similar to those working for the Internal Council and he also had international trade connections. Hovever, Matthy had no consultative power because of his profession. In 1722 the junior Mat- they almost started a rebellion in the city, while his brother and brother-in-law agitated against the magistrate (like Stöcker, the joiner used to do in favour of Böseinger). The senior Matthey obtained the advocate position in the end of the 1720’s, and with his position he persistently demanded to start a royal enquiry against the abuse of Council Members. The attempts to bound the unrestricted power of Members of the Internal Council was successfully carried out by 1734.
