THE ANATOMY OF A LAWSUIT: THE CONFLICT BETWEEN GEORGE SCHWARZ OF KOŠICE AND THE CITY OF BARDEJOV OVER A VINEYARD (1486–1496)

• Authors: Szabolcs Gulyás László
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

At the end of the Middle Ages, the city of Bardejov owned numerous vineyards in the Tokaj-Hegyalja region of Zemplén County. Their most valuable vineyard was purchased in early 1486 for 1,000 gold florins from the noble Kispalugyai family, originating from Liptov. However, later that same year, George Schwarz, who would subsequently become a member of the Košice city council, claimed preemption rights to the vineyard and challenged the city’s ownership. This resulted in a decade-long legal battle before secular and ecclesiastical courts: the first phase of the dispute unfolded before the palatine, the second under the authority of Angelo Pecchinoli, a papal legate, and the final phase before papally delegated judges. During these years, the lawsuit became one of the most significant events in the history of Bardejov. As a result, an excellent collection of sources related to the case has been preserved in the Bardejov archives, comprising more than 80 charters and other documents that detail the developments of the matter. Among these sources of varied types, the expense ledger in which the city meticulously recorded its expenditures for the case is particularly notable. This study examines the history of the lawsuit and the contents of the expense ledger.

Keywords

EN

MEDIEVAL URBAN HISTORY; BARDEJOV; KOŠICE; HISTORY OF VITICULTURE; TOKAJ-HEGYALJA REGION

• Publisher: Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice
• Journal: Mesto a dejiny
• Year: 2024
• Volume: 13
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 29 – 54

Contributors

author

Szabolcs Gulyás László

• Institute of History and Philosophy, University of Nyíregyháza, Hungary

• https://orcid.org/0009-0002-8175-405X

Identifiers

DOI

https://doi.org/10.33542/CAH2024-2-02