Metadata: Vorarlberg files
Collection
- Country:
- Austria
- Holding institution:
- National Archive of Vorarlberg
- Holding institution (official language):
- Vorarlberger Landesarchiv
- Postal address:
- Kirchstrasse 28; 6900 Bregenz
- Phone number:
- +43 5574 511 45 012
- Email:
- landesarchiv@vorarlberg.at
- Title:
- Vorarlberg files
- Title (official language):
- Vorarlberger Akten
- Creator/accumulator:
- Stewardship of the Emperor of Austria in Innsbruck
- Date(s):
- 1405/1856
- Language:
- German
- Extent:
- 58 boxes
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
- The collection Vorarlberger Akten (Vorarlberg files) holds all the files that have connections to Vorarlberg. The records are mainly of the administrative and jurisdictional kind. They include files of communities, the church, and individuals as well as various files that address certain issues of the Jewish community of Hohenems, mainly questions concerning the “Schutzgeld” (protection money; a kind of special tax for Jews) or other questions of commerce and administration. Amongst others, these files contain correspondence concerning the so-called “Judenschutzgeld” (Jewish protection money) that date back to 1754. Besides the collection holds decrees about the door-to-door-selling of goods and the Jewish community in general. Amongst these letters is for example an appeal of abatement by Michael Levi dated 1807.
- Archival history:
- The collection was created in 1910 by Dr. Karl Kovac of the Archive of the Stewardship in Innsbruck. It was acquired in 1920.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The stewardship in Innsbruck was an administrative institution that governed the princely county of Tyrol and the land that today is called Vorarlberg from 1848 to 1918. In 1861 Emperor Francis Joseph I. was forced to introduce the constitution of 1861 (“Februarpatent” (February patent)). The constitution reintroduced Landtage (state diets) to the crown lands. Vorarlberg - initially not a crown land with full rights and duties - got a Landtag (state diet) and a Landesausschuss (state committee) but not a Landesregierung (government of the state). Nonetheless Vorarlberg was able to govern most of its own affairs. In 1918 Vorarlberg became a fully self-governing Bundesland (federal state) of the newly founded republic of Austria.
- Subject terms:
- Correspondence
- Jewish community
- Trade and commerce
- Access, restrictions:
- No restrictions on access.
- Finding aids:
- There are two finding aids. The first one is the Vorarlberger-Akten (Vorarlberg files). It's a tabularly list made of three columns: Schlagwort (keyword), Gegenstand (subject) and Laufende Nummer (sequential number). But it is recommended to use the finding aids at the archive, where helpful “Findbücher” can be consulted.
- Yerusha Network member:
- Jewish Museum Hohenems
- Author of the description:
- Severin Holzknecht, Jewish Museum of Hohenems, 2017