Káldy–Nagy Gyula: A budai szandzsák 1559. évi összeírása - Pest Megye Múltjából 3. (Budapest, 1977)

Nalogavaja regisztracija budajszkovo szandzsaka 1559-goda

THE TAXATION CENSUS IN 1559 OF THE SANJAK OF BUDA The Turks annexed the areas of Hungary formerly possessed by King János Szapolyai and organized them within the Ottoman Empire into the Beglerbegship of Buda consisting of twelve Sanjaks with Sulejman Pasha of Magyar origin in charge. Halil beg was appointed defterdár with a view to compiling the first census. The first decade of the territorial expansion and administrative organization of the Turkish rule in Hungary is insufficiently known even now owing to the dearth of creditable sources. The setting up of the administration tended to follow, with relative continuity the conquest of the areas. The forming of the Sanjak of Buda of which the taxation census constitutes the main subject of the present book, took place promptly after the capture of Buda in 1541. Sanjak censuses containing the names of the population were required, since the title to the land belonged to the ruler, that is, the treasury, as prescribed by old Mohammedan canons. Consequently effort was made to assess, as accurately as possible, the ruler's territorial income based on this title in areas recently subjected. Whereas the taxation base was constituted not by the land but by the productivity of those dwelling on it, of the rajas, the names of the respective inhabitants of particular settlements, the prospective one-tenths of their produce and the totals of taxes expected of them were registered in order to anticipate the income to be received. For the treasury only depending on Sanjak censuses thus compiled was in a position to determine which towns', villages', and pusztas' taxation and decimal income to retain as the sultan's khass property and which ones to transfer as timar, ziamet and khass properties, instead of salaries in cash, to military and civilian officials or, should the need arise, to the garrison of a fortress. The censuses of particular Sanjaks had to be repeated from time to time since the population strength was subject to change. As a rule, a new census was prepared every tenth year but, according to need, censuses were undertaken after shorter or longer periods of time. The second census of the Sanjak of Buda was prepared in 1559 together with those of other sanjaks by Dervish, the sanjak beg of Szeged. In instituting the new sanjak census, the census commissioner was given a copy of the previous census to enable him to identify with the guidance of the same, particular settlements and their inhabitants. Thus the commissioner appointed to Buda in 1559 took along, the copy of the previous, the 1546, census, from which the nominal roll of those registered was read out in every place and those present were questioned in respect of changes in their family status. Inquiries were made concerning those not answering the roll call and the causes of their absence such as "died", "disappeared", "absconded", "transferred to the city of Vác", were marked above the names. When the nominal roll of 1546 had been completed the names and family status of new arrivals were recorded. The previous, 1546, census thus corrected served as the basis 295