Zalai történeti tanulmányok - Zalai gyűjtemény 42. (Zalaegerszeg, 1997)

Horváth Zita: A tapolcai járás úrbéres viszonyai a Mária Terézia-féle úrbérrendezést megelőző évtizedekben

ZITA HORVATH:

SOCAGE CONDITIONS OF THE TAPOLCA-DISTRICT IN THE 18th CENTURY, IN THE DECADES PRECEDING THE SOCAGE CHARTER OF MARIA THERESE

Summary

In the period of socage regulations County Zala was laying in the south-west corner of Transdanubia, between the river Drava and the north-shore of Lake Balaton. This way the district, mentioned in the title, belonged to County Zala at that time. In the course of the administrative reorganisation of 1950 Keszthely and the Balaton region with the attached 119 communities were joined to County Veszprém. The possession conditions in the county and in the district presented a varied picture towards mid-18th century. The district, with a great number of communities and because of the mixed possession, seems to be appropriate for a complex analysis of the socage conditions.

The aspects of our analysis were the following:- who were the landowners (secular- church-lands, small-, mid- and large estates);- what regulated the system and the quantity of services (custom, contract, socage charter) before Maria Therese’ Socage Charter;- the peasants’ legal status (villein, cottar, perpetual serf or licentious);- the villeins’ services

The simultaneous analysis of these aspects can render a picture about the socage conditions. Finally we would like to analyse the Socage Charter issued and introduced by Maria Therese from that aspect whether it rendered the villeins’ position more difficult or it had created more favourable conditions.

There is no literature available concerning the district’s socage conditions. That is why the study is based on archival sources (urbarialis investigatio, socage charts).

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