Technikatörténeti szemle 14. (1983-84)
TANULMÁNYOK - Vámos Éva Katalin–Szabadváry Ferenc: A dél-német kereskedőházak szerepe a Felsőmagyarországi bányászatban közvetlenül a Fuggerek után (1548–1569)
E. K. VAMOS —F. SZABADVARY: THE ROLE OF THE SOUTH GERMAN TRADING FIRMS IN THE MINING OF UPPER-HUNGARY (1548—1569) When analysing the role of merchant capital in the mining of Upper-Hungary i. e. today Middle Slovakia it is natural that silver and copper mining is taken into consideration as these were the most important mining products of this area. Hungary of that time was the second biggest producer of these metals after Tyrol. Reading about mining after the Fuggers (i. e. after 1546) in this region in comprehensive works of economic history we either find that the mining realm reverted to the Treasury or that other firms from Augsburg entered the inheritance of the Fuggers. In their own way both opinions are true but not isolated only together. After 1546 the Treasury tried to take over mining in the region in their own management. After the failure if this attempt the Treasury entered into contract with the firm of Matthias Manlich in 1548. The Manlichs were interested in the mining of Upper-Hungary until 1568. Besides them Hans Paumgartner the head of an other famous trading firm was also interested in the contract with the fourth part. In 1560 a firm with the name „Melchior Manlich und Mitverwandte" was founded and as memeber of this one person from the Welser family and one from the Neidhart family established contact with the copper production in Upper-Hungary. When comparing the contracts we found that during the long presence of the south German merchant capital in the financing of the mining in Upper-Hungary it was only during the existance of the Fugger— Thurzó enterprise that merchant capital penetrated into production and thus also bacame industrial capital. The unity of mining, metallurgy and long-distance trade summarized under the name „Handel" disintegrated after 1546 when the Fuggers left and the Treasury intervened. Thus merchant capital withdraw into its original role of influence. After 1548 the south German firms interested in Hungarian mining did not take part any more in the production directly. They gave credit for the Treasury and did not finanace production itself.
