Alba Regia. Annales Musei Stephani Regis. – Alba Regia. A Szent István Király Múzeum Évkönyve. 32. 2002 – Szent István Király Múzeum közleményei: C sorozat (2003)

Tanulmányok – Abhandlungen - Demeter Zsófia: The History and the Situation of Serb Minority in the East-Transdanubian Region. p. 51–60.

especially when we know, that as a result of heavy settlement of Germans in Fejér County the Catholics became the majority. Mátyás Bél wrote in the 1730s, that there were only a few Serbs "who previously gave the name of the suburb". Not every Serb family lived in Ráctown, and not only Serbs lived in Ráctown, moreover, most inhabitants in the middle of the 19

th century were Hungarian craftsmen, peasants and later factory workers. Vlagyimid Bronyevszky, a Russian naval officer gave an interesting account of his stay in Székesfehérvár. He was most amazed when he learned that the delegation that greeted him were the leaders of the Orthodox church and could speak Slavic. Among the Serbs the tradesmen were the most numerous from the end of the 17

th century until the 1860s1870s. After them came the farmers. Their number evened up by the end of the 19

th century. The number of craftsmen and clerks always came after them. On October 3 in 1703 Leopold I. issued a decree confirming the state of Székesfehérvár as a royal free borough. In a paragraph he ordered that the burghers of Székesfehérvár could only be of Catholic religion. With the help of this order the officials of Székesfehérvár wanted to prevent the infiltration of Serbs in the downtown. In 1761 the Serbs were even forbidden to buy houses outside Ráctown and to trade with the inhabitants of Székesfehérvár. Moreover, they claimed again that the Serbs could not gain civil rights. The Rác merchants created important trades already in the period of the Turks. The most significant fairs were held in the marginal regions of the Turkish authority, where the western and Turkish goods were exchanged. Székesfehérvár also lay on this market chain although its significance diminished by that time. The Serb tradesmen had a leading role until the middle of the 19

th century, when Hungarian and later Jewish merchants were beginning to take their place. Their number was significant (there were 45 of them in 1784) despite the restricting regulations. Until the 1840s there had even been a Serb presidents who led the Trade Association of Székesfehérvár. From 1807 the Roman Catholic and Orthodox presidents traded their position every second year. Starting from 1819 there were 2 presidents leading the Association at the same time. Much effort was needed from both sides to keep this delicate balance of power. They decided to support evenly the Catholic and the Orthodox Church as well. In spite of their struggle the Rác tradesman were starting to lose ground. In 1809 a rich Serb tradesman from Veszprém called Lázár Ivanovics wanted to settle down in Székesfehérvár. The Association asked the local government to prevent him from joining the Association on the grounds that 'there are too many tradesmen'. Lázár Ivanovics and his family still managed to settle down in 1812. His later famous daughter, Katarina Ivanovics (1811-1882) studied painting in Pest, Vienna and Munich. After 1848 she returned to Székesfehérvár, where she dedicated herself to painting. She became the first woman painter of the Serbs. The Serb tradesmen were the most ardent supporters of their church. One can read the following inscription on the iconostasis in the Orthodox Church: 'erected by the people of the Serb community, the tradesmen'. Historic sources do not provide much data about the Serb craftsmen. According to some records from 1828, it turns out that the Rác craftsmen (there were 53 crafstmen at that time) had become poor by the 19

th century. The Orthodox Serbs also had a hard time joining the civil services. One can only find example for that in the 19* century: in 1807 György Ergovics was the first civil servant who worked for the mortgage registry. There were civil servants in the family of the Orthodox priest Malesevics: his son was chief prosecutor in 1849. Despite the local and corporative restrictions the laws of 1790-1791 made it possible for people of Orthodox and Protestant religion to gain political equality: they were given civil rights, they could vote and be voted, could practise their religions freely. At the Illyrian congress held in Temesvár in 1793 István Monaszterly was empowered by the 33 Rács of Székesfehérvár to represent their interests. With the establishment of the Illyrian Chivalry Legion and the Court Chancellery the Orthodox community set a common and specific tasks for itself. In 1767 the cost of the maintenance of the Legion was imposed on the Greek Orthodox community, it was divided and collected by the town. The Illyrian commissioner was elected by the inner council out of its members. Usually these tasks were carried out by the judge, the chief justice, deputy mayor or the captain. Out of the commissioners we know Domokos Korherr, György Hell, István Say, Pál Haáder, and János Niczky. After the death of István Say he was commemorated as a commissioner. Out of his 43 years of being an official, he was the chief justice for 23 years. In 1792 Domokos Korherr announced the printing of the new calendar to the Orthodox. He supervised the foundations and the handling of inheritance. He made a chart about these twice a year. In 1806 he collected the tax imposed on the community after the 29 Pravoslavic houses. György Hell collected the money to support schools and János Nicky collected the cost of the metropolitan election of Karlóca. Usually the commissioner installed the Greek Orthodox priests in office in the name of the council. However, respecting the independence of the Serbian Church, he did not intervene in their elections. In 1781 András Subies was installed in office and he was followed by Gábor Gregorovits in 1802 and Emánuel Malesevics in 1809. Malesevics was born in Székesfehérvár. In 1851 our town became a decanal center. At that time Teodor Odzsics, 62