Metadata : Vitebsk Regional Court (Vitebsk Governorate)
Collection
- Country:
- Latvia
- Holding institution:
- Latvian State Historical Archives
- Holding institution (official language):
- Latvijas Valsts vēstures arhīvs
- Postal address:
- Slokas iela 16, Rīga, LV-1048
- Phone number:
- +371 20 017 505
- Country:
- Latvia
- Holding institution:
- Latvian State Historical Archives
- Holding institution (official language):
- Latvijas Valsts vēstures arhīvs
- Postal address:
- Slokas iela 16, Rīga, LV-1048
- Phone number:
- +371 20 017 505
- Reference number:
- 710
- Title:
- Vitebsk Regional Court (Vitebsk Governorate)
- Title (official language):
- Vitebskas apgabaltiesa (Vitebskas guberņa)
- Creator/accumulator:
- Vitebsk Regional Court
- Date(s):
- 1843/1918
- Language:
- Russian
- Extent:
- 5,270 files
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
- The collection contains mainly civil proceedings that were considered by the Vitebsk Regional Court regarding the Latgalian territories. Among them there are judicial reviews of monetary claims, violation and approval of property rights, inheritance rights, adoption of children, custody, etc. The collection includes many Jewish-related materials predominantly from the 1890s until the beginning of the 20th century. Numerous Jewish-related materials in the court’s collection are related to inheritance rights and wills. These records include: approvals of inheritance rights; papers on division of an inheritance and on disputes of heirs regarding the property division; papers on the repudiation of an inheritance; requests on the prohibition of any deals with the property of the deceased and on the lifting of such a ban; letters of administration in relation to estate; papers on distribution of money received from the sale of the property of the deceased by the creditors, etc. Parties to such proceedings were not only individuals but sometimes financial institutions. For instance, in 1896 a request was submitted to the court to deduct a certain amount of money from the funds of the deceased Zelik Vovsi in favour of the Dvinsk City Bank (inventory 1, file 785). In addition, the collection includes numerous lawsuits, complaints and requests on various judicial issues. Such materials can shed light on the daily life of the Jews in Latgale and on the difficulties associated with their economic activities. In this context, materials pertaining to the relationship between Jews and non-Jews in the sphere of economic activity are particularly important. Such materials include, inter alia, various commercial contracts. For example, the case of 1891 consists of materials on the lawsuit of the Lieutenant-General Bozherianov’s wife against the Jewish merchant Shevel Gurvich on violation of a contract by Gurvich in accordance with which he obtained the rights of deforestation in the estate of Bozherianovs and of selling of wood (inventory 4, file 281). The materials in the collection also include: claims for unpaid loans; issues of monetary disputes between different persons; reviews of disputes over real estate ownership rights and requests regarding the recognition of land ownership rights; appeals against decisions of a lower courts, local courts and against actions of the Vitebsk Regional Court officials; complaints on the actions of authorities such as the Dvinsk City Board and the Vitebsk branch of the Ministry of Finance regarding real estate use rights and the calculation of fees payments; petitions for the adoption of children.
- Archival history:
- After World War I and the establishment of an independent Latvia the archival materials from the Tsarist period were consolidated into the newly organized Latvian State Archive which existed throughout the interwar period. In particular, the archive consolidated many of the records from Latgalia, the Latvian region of the Vitebsk governorate.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The Vitebsk regional court was the highest court in the governorate responsible for criminal and civil cases. The court consisted of the chairman, his deputy and the judges. All of them were appointed by the Tsar on the recommendation of the Minister of Justice. In criminal proceedings, jurors determined the defendant's guilt or innocence, and the punishment was imposed by the judges. Jurors were provided by representatives of all estates of a certain age and property qualification.
- System of arrangement:
- The collection consists of four inventories.
- Yerusha Network member:
- Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People
- Author of the description:
- Ilya Vovshin, Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People, 2018
- Reference number:
- 710
- Title:
- Vitebsk Regional Court (Vitebsk Governorate)
- Title (official language):
- Vitebskas apgabaltiesa (Vitebskas guberņa)
- Creator/accumulator:
- Vitebsk Regional Court
- Date(s):
- 1843/1918
- Language:
- Russian
- Extent:
- 5,270 files
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
- The collection contains mainly civil proceedings that were considered by the Vitebsk Regional Court regarding the Latgalian territories. Among them there are judicial reviews of monetary claims, violation and approval of property rights, inheritance rights, adoption of children, custody, etc. The collection includes many Jewish-related materials predominantly from the 1890s until the beginning of the 20th century. Numerous Jewish-related materials in the court’s collection are related to inheritance rights and wills. These records include: approvals of inheritance rights; papers on division of an inheritance and on disputes of heirs regarding the property division; papers on the repudiation of an inheritance; requests on the prohibition of any deals with the property of the deceased and on the lifting of such a ban; letters of administration in relation to estate; papers on distribution of money received from the sale of the property of the deceased by the creditors, etc. Parties to such proceedings were not only individuals but sometimes financial institutions. For instance, in 1896 a request was submitted to the court to deduct a certain amount of money from the funds of the deceased Zelik Vovsi in favour of the Dvinsk City Bank (inventory 1, file 785). In addition, the collection includes numerous lawsuits, complaints and requests on various judicial issues. Such materials can shed light on the daily life of the Jews in Latgale and on the difficulties associated with their economic activities. In this context, materials pertaining to the relationship between Jews and non-Jews in the sphere of economic activity are particularly important. Such materials include, inter alia, various commercial contracts. For example, the case of 1891 consists of materials on the lawsuit of the Lieutenant-General Bozherianov’s wife against the Jewish merchant Shevel Gurvich on violation of a contract by Gurvich in accordance with which he obtained the rights of deforestation in the estate of Bozherianovs and of selling of wood (inventory 4, file 281). The materials in the collection also include: claims for unpaid loans; issues of monetary disputes between different persons; reviews of disputes over real estate ownership rights and requests regarding the recognition of land ownership rights; appeals against decisions of a lower courts, local courts and against actions of the Vitebsk Regional Court officials; complaints on the actions of authorities such as the Dvinsk City Board and the Vitebsk branch of the Ministry of Finance regarding real estate use rights and the calculation of fees payments; petitions for the adoption of children.
- Archival history:
- After World War I and the establishment of an independent Latvia the archival materials from the Tsarist period were consolidated into the newly organized Latvian State Archive which existed throughout the interwar period. In particular, the archive consolidated many of the records from Latgalia, the Latvian region of the Vitebsk governorate.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The Vitebsk regional court was the highest court in the governorate responsible for criminal and civil cases. The court consisted of the chairman, his deputy and the judges. All of them were appointed by the Tsar on the recommendation of the Minister of Justice. In criminal proceedings, jurors determined the defendant's guilt or innocence, and the punishment was imposed by the judges. Jurors were provided by representatives of all estates of a certain age and property qualification.
- System of arrangement:
- The collection consists of four inventories.
- Yerusha Network member:
- Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People
- Author of the description:
- Ilya Vovshin, Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People, 2018
