Bergregal

The mountain shelf, also mine shelf, is the right to dispose of the undiscovered mineral resources. Historically, it was one of the regalia, which is originally the sovereign rights of the king designated (mountain sovereignty ). In addition to the mountain shelf holds the coin was also an important country wonderful privilege and was a result of the mountain shelf.

History

In the early Roman Empire of the landowners had the mining right for the Mineral Resources. The reason for this was that natural resources were considered at the time as fruits of the earth and now belonged once to the landowner. The first regalia already existed in the first millennium. However, there was not even on the property rights belonging mountain shelf. Emperors and kings, ruling over a territory nobility or the clergy made ​​this right for themselves. You could deduce this right only from the real property and a present there Bodenschatz. This was possible for the king or the lords without any problems, because they usually had it myself landowners. However, were not always right and law, but often the political and economic framework for the enforcement of the mountain shelf prevail.

In the Ronkalischen constitution, Emperor Barbarossa in 1158 the mountain shelf to hold first written in Germany. With the Ronkalischen constitution the right to extraction of mineral resources the landowner was deprived of the right had to be purchased from the King from this point on. By Ronkalische constitution the mineral rights came in the course of time in the possession of the lords. This led to arbitrary shelf pretensions of the princes. Because of the small states and the special position of the ecclesiastical principalities of the Holy Roman Empire, the imperial mountain shelf was hardly enforceable. In many cases it was therefore awarded to the territorial lord. Thus, Frederick I gave this privilege before 1185 to Otto the rich, the Margrave of Meissen. That was the basis for the foundation of his mints Freiberg and Leipzig. The Bishop of Chur already received the mountain shelf in 1349. Even the King of Bohemia was the owner of the mountain shelf before the Golden Bull.

1356 was in the Golden Bull enshrined in effect, that not the emperor, but the seven electors ( the Archbishops of Cologne, Mainz and Trier, King of Bohemia, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Saxony, Margrave of Brandenburg) occupied as rulers of this privilege. Previously taken enfeoffments to smaller dominions remained unaffected; usually the electors were tried but they will recover the mountain shelf of territorial rule.

With the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 was also the loss of the mountain shelf of the great rulers of the smaller territorial princes accompanied. To enforce the mountain shelf issued the rulers mountain systems, which govern in detail both the mining, sovereign taxes tithe and the structure of the mining authorities as well as the privileges of the miners.

In the 19th century the mountain shelf was set in the German states gradually through the mountain laws repealed. In Prussia the mountain shelf was ended by the General Mining Law for the Prussian States (ABG ) of 24 June 1865. The minerals that were removed from the right of disposal of the property owner, were clearly defined in the Mining Act. This process began with the Napoleonic conquests, as in many parts of Germany temporarily French law was put into effect, and was concluded with the adoption of the General Mining Act of the Kingdom of Saxony on 16 June 1868, essentially.

Legal consequences and possibilities

Due to the mountain shelf, there was a legal separation of land and mining rights. The landowners stood to the exploration and mining rights only for a few unimportant minerals. The sovereign had three ways in which he exercised the right under the mountain shelf:

The first option, ie, to operate the mines on behalf of the State, even in those countries was possible, where mining was regulated by free declaration. However, the sovereign had to have done expressly waiving the exploitation of mineral resources. A monopoly of the state in the mining industry has given it in any German state. Even in Europe, no Regent has declared the mining monopoly. The form of the award of mountain rights dates back to the time of feudalism. It not only particular individuals but also entire objects or cities have been awarded the mining privileges. In particular, cities in which long -time mining was carried out, were as mining towns special privileges and prerogatives. One of these privileges was the mountain freedom with the privileges associated with the miners and citizens. These privileges should serve to promote the mining industry and the growth of cities. However, the awards do not belong to the essential exercise of the mountain shelf, but they were based in the German states of the old German mine constitutions. In these old mine constitutions the mountain shelf was exerted by the declared free mining. It was also quite common that all three methods were used in the same country at the same time.

Distinction and demarcation

What minerals fell below the mountain shelf, was regulated differently in different mining countries, there were two divisions: the upper or higher and lower mountain shelf. The higher mountain shelf which included the mining of precious metals ( gold and silver) as well as salt and precious stones, remained almost exclusively in the country gentlemen. However, gems and salt were not available in all countries to the upper mountain shelf. The lower mountain shelf included the mining of lower metals such as iron, tin, copper, cobalt, lead and bismuth, as well as the minerals arsenic, sulfur, saltpetre and Spies glass. In many cases, this shelf was loaned to third parties or already granted to the lord in the mining order.

The mining of coal, lignite and peat was not under the mountain shelf and was subject to the control of the landlords, because these resources were among the fossils. The rulers but firmly established very quickly that the taxation of the coal industry brought money into the coffers. Thus, the mountain shelf in some German states was soon extended to coal. The degradation of peat was still excluded from the mountain shelf. Not under the mountain shelf fell ordinary pebbles, clay, marl and limestone. These minerals were to the property owner. In the Prussian states and semi-precious stones and gems were not covered by the mountain shelf when they were loose on one acre or were brought up by economic work, such as plowing.

Problems

With the mountain shelf, it also caused problems in the countries concerned. In the countries in which certain mineral resources were not under the mining law and have now been resolved with the new mountain shelf, there was fierce resistance by the affected mining company. This did not initially come to terms with the requirements of Mutens or the awarding of the mining property. The new taxes, such as the mine tithes and other taxes such as the mine Quatembergeld, led under the mining company to unrest. The recovery of coal tithes led to disputes frequently in the beginning. First 10 percent of coal production were separated for the coal tithe and heaped on a separate pile. This coal had first to be sold, the proceeds then went to the sovereign. Often, the carbon was stolen overnight. Added to this was the supervision of the operation by the mining authority. In Brandenburg mountain area, for example, why there was unrest, which required the intervention of the military.

Further problems were caused by the deposits themselves. If a deposit is distributed over two territories, it came in the area of ​​land borders with inconsistencies. The mining company came often in dispute. Since there were no other jurisdiction on either side of the border, this resulted in the problem that mountain court had jurisdiction and should handle the case. This meant that the ratio of the princes was also disturbed. Ultimately, these disputes also stressed the mining industry in the affected region. Changed only slightly on this situation, if the skills of a mountain court were higher than the competencies of the other mountain court.

Economics

The mountain shelf was a major source of income for the owners. The resulting entitled to a fixed percentage ( usually 10 %) ( at the beginning of mining usually salt or ore ) ( called mountain tithe or Fron ) of the extracted raw material each mine, was the basis for the wealth of the country gentlemen and financed their costly Hofstaaten. If necessary, the owner of the mountain shelf stood to a right of first refusal. This amounted to a monopoly. In this way, many regions reported economic basis for their further development and the rulers and territorial princes showed great interest in the promotion of the mines in their fields, whether through advances, grants or Mitbau, because a prostrate lying mining has also led to an empty state coffers.

Today's regulations

After the end of the mountain shelf corresponding mountain laws were created in the mining countries, which govern the extraction of mineral resources. In Germany the discovery and extraction of mineral resources in the Federal Mining Act is regulated. In Austria, the Mineral Resources Act regulates the mining and quarrying of mineral raw materials. In Switzerland, where one still speaks of the mountain shelf, but this is understood an economic prerogative of the state, the exploration for and the extraction of minerals is governed by cantonal law.