Metadata: Documents of the civil court (1722)1743-1848(1850
Collection
- Country:
- Hungary
- Holding institution:
- National Archives of Hungary, Csongrád County Archives, Szeged
- Holding institution (official language):
- Magyar Nemzeti Levéltár Csongrád Megyei Levéltára, Szeged
- Postal address:
- 6701 Szeged, Pf. 460
- Phone number:
- +36 62 425 199
- Web address:
- http://mnl.gov.hu/mnl/csml/mnl_csml_szeged
- Email:
- csml@mnl.gov.hu
- Reference number:
- IV.A.11.b
- Title:
- Documents of the civil court (1722)1743-1848(1850
- Title (official language):
- A polgári törvényszék iratai (1722)1743-1848(1850)
- Creator/accumulator:
- Csanád county
- Date(s):
- 1722/1850
- Date note:
- 1722/1743/1848/1850
- Language:
- Latin
- Hungarian
- German
- Extent:
- 2.6 linear metres (20 boxes)
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
-
The 'Regional Court Documents of Csanád County' collection is part of the fonds entitled 'Regional Court Documents of the Csanád county' from the feudal era. The 'Documents of the civil court (1722)1743-1848(1850)' of this description form a separate part of this collection. The document collection comprises documents from the civil court of Csanád county. In the 18th century, the records were maintained together with the documents (therefore, they were not classified into collection “a”). In contrast with the timeframe indicated in the title, the collection includes records until 1847, and documents relating to the period of 1848-1850 are solely available in the group of initiated, but incomplete lawsuits.
Given its type, this collection is somewhat mixed. It contains both civil and criminal court cases. In addition to the mixed documents, selections can also be found, e.g. the court trial against János Gerlicze, judge in Makó in 1766-1774. The subject matters of the general congregations include the following issues: leaseholders lawsuits, cases related to territories, issues of pasturing, debts, civil lawsuits involving noblemen (successions, pledge, property ownership, inventories, testaments, financial situations); appointment to the nobility, its certification, divorces, cases of infidelity, rents or duties, abuse or misuse), the construction of the county hall and hospital, tobacco cultivation, transport, takeover, credit associations, bankruptcy cases. The subject matters of criminal cases recorded here are the following: events in the life of those living in the wilderness (herdsmen, shepherds), cases of villains who became outlaws, public cases or crimes against the community (horse or cattle theft), highway robbery, robbery, manslaughter, adultery, bigamy, magic, witchcraft, infidelity, despotism, discord among noblemen. The documents were written mainly in Latin and Hungarian.
The records and documents in the collection do not separate the Jewish-related documents and source materials. Therefore, they are scattered in the collection. Jewish-related documents are maintained under heading 339. (Due to the methodology of archival cataloguing, certain headings might indicate a separated ‘orphan’ document, but in most cases files, i.e. a collection of multiple documents in the modern age.) Due to the classification methodology mentioned above, the documents are often maintained together with the records. The source file shows the Jews in various types of roles: victims (robbery, beatings and despotism), offenders (possession of stolen property, theft, incitement), partners in contracts (farming leases, parties to business transactions, suppliers), and witnesses of criminal cases. The majority of the sources deal with debt payment issues.
The majority of the documents are valuable sources for illustrating the economic participation of Jewish males and their relationship with other members of society. The document collection belongs to the civil case category; however, it comprises both civil and criminal proceedings. The sources include original petitions in a number of cases. The source material covers documents related to lawsuits among the members of both Jewish and non-Jewish society. The documents were written in Hungarian, Latin and German. The source material primarily depicts the court cases of the Jews in Csanád County. Geographically, as in previous decades, new files about the lives of inhabitants are available sporadically, mostly in the settlements of Makó, Sajtény, Tornya and Földeák.
- Archival history:
- The Csanád county archives were established in 1717. The document collection was maintained in the office building of the county seat, Makó. The turbulent past of the county and its territorial transformations (for example, it was merged with Békés and Csanád counties in the 1780s, and Szegvár became the new county seat) affected the placement of the collection. The new collection was stored in the new centre, and some selected old documents were transferred to Szegvár. Csanád County remained in Makó (although the counties were also temporarily transformed in the 19th century). September 1950 marked fundamental changes when Szeged became the new county seat, since Csanád County was merged into Csongrád county. The documents concerning the newly developed territory of the county were transported to Szeged, where they are available today. However, the municipality of Makó seeks to place the former Csanád county documents in its own archives building, and the collection might return to Makó again.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The main judicial body of the noble county in the 18-19th centuries was the sedes iudiciaria (county tribunal). The Csanád county tribunal had two parts: a civil and a punitive tribunal. It split into punitive and criminal tribunals in the 19th century. The records were kept by the notary. Although the documents were divided into civil and criminal proceedings, they were dealt with together. In the classification of the material the records were often maintained together with the documents.
- Subject terms:
- Crime
- Financial matters--Debt
- Legal matters
- Trade and commerce
- System of arrangement:
- The documents from before 1785 were categorised in the archives of the integrated archives of (Békés-Csanád-Csongrád) counties in 1786, and they were numbered from 1-114. (The relevant index is available in the first box.) From 1793 the documents were given serial numbers annually and per sessions.
- Access, restrictions:
- It is likely that this material will be moved to Makó, where it will be unavailable for an undefined period of time.
- Finding aids:
- The index book is available in collection ’a’. The materials of the civil and criminal courts are very variable in terms of classification and entries, and the index book is not always helpful.
- Yerusha Network member:
- University of Szeged
- Author of the description:
- Dr. Tibor Almási and Dr. Erzsébet Mislovics, University of Szeged, 2019
