Money and Finance in Central Europe during the Later Middle Ages

by Zaoral, Roman

• ISBN13: 9781137460226
• ISBN10: 1137460229
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2015-11-30
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

The wealth of the Central European archives, particularly in urban records, has not been fully realised by Western European historians. However, the records are not always straightforward to use and many studies tackle the methodological problems inherent in gathering and analysing medieval sources.

This book presents an original review of past and present research of national historiographies on medieval financial history from Central Europe. Covering material ranging from the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries, it explores the eastern regions of the Holy Roman Empire, including Bohemia, Silesia, Austria and Germany, and extending to Poland and Hungary. The authors firstly discuss the monetary policy of the Holy Roman emperors during the Middle Ages, before moving on to wider aspects of state finance, including credit mechanisms used by rulers. The book then investigates civic records and what they reveal about urban life and trade. It lastly investigates the financial activities of the church, from papacy to the cathedral chapters in Prague.

Using numismatic and documentary evidence, Money and Finance in Central Europe during the Later Middle Ages provides an invaluable point of comparison with the financial conditions in Western Europe during the Middle Ages.

Author Biography

Roman Zaoral is Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, Czech Republic, where he also obtained an MA in History and PhD in Medieval History. His research interests centre on the economic, financial and numismatic history of central Europe during the Middle Ages.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures
Acknowledgments
Notes on Contributors
Editor´s Foreword
Introduction: Medieval Finances in the Central European Historiography: Roman Zaoral
PART I: MONEY AND MINTING
1. New Perspectives on the 14th-Century Imperial Coinage: Hendrik Mäkeler
2. The Reception of Imperial Monetary Reforms in 16th-Century Northern Germany: Michael North
3. The Kremnica Town Book of Accounts: The Economy of a Mining and Mint Town in the Kingdom of Hungary: Martin Štefánik
PART II: MEDIEVAL COURT FUNDING
4. Financiers to the Blind King: Funding the Court of John the Blind (1310-1346): Zdenek Žalud
5. The Financial Dimension of the Pledge Policy of King Sigismund of Luxembourg in Bohemia (1419-1437): Stanislav Bárta
6. The Pledge Policy of King Sigismund of Luxembourg in Hungary (1387-1437): János Incze
7. The Economic Background to and the Financial Politics of Queen Barbara of Cilli in Hungary (1406-1438): Daniela Dvoráková
8. The Economy of Journey: The Court Accounts of Prince Sigismund Jagiellon and Their Historical Context: Petr Kozák
PART III: TRADE AND TOWNS
9. Accounting Records of the Town Offices in Bohemia and Moravia: Methodology and Application: Pavla Slavícková – Zdenek Puchinger
10. Remnants and Traces: In Search of Wroclaw Accounting Books (The Late 14th – Early 16th Century): Grzegorz Mysliwski
11. Financial Obligations of the City of Gdansk to King Casimir IV Jagiellon and His Successors in the Light of the 1468–1516 Ledger Book: Beata Mozejko
12. Old Interpretations and New Approaches: The 1457-1458 Thirtieth Customs Registers of Pressburg (Bratislava): Balázs Nagy
PART IV: CHURCH AND MONEY
13. Financing a Legation: Papal Legates and Money in the Later Middle Ages: Antonín Kalous
14. St Vitus Building Accounts (1372-1378): The Economic Aspects of Building the Cathedral: Marek Suchý
15. 'De mandato dominorum divisorum…': Finances in the Life of Prague's Metropolitan Chapter: Martina Maríková
Index