Royal free city

Free royal city (Latin civitas libera regia, Hungarian szabad királyi város, Slovak slobodné Kráľovské mesto, Croatian and Serbian slobodni kraljevski grad) was from the 15th century until 1871 ( also formally until the early 20th century ) associated with certain privileges of the official name for the main towns in the Kingdom of Hungary.

These were communities that were removed by the king from the influence of the rulers (hence the term " Royal " ), received by this certain privileges and self-government in relation to their internal affairs performing it ( hence the term "free" ). Royal cities there was in the Kingdom of Hungary since the 13th century, royal free cities since the 15th century.

Characteristics

It was " royal " and "free" cities, ie communities that have been taken out of the administration and the influence of country gentleman, " free" of these existed, were also provided by the king with certain privileges and (since ) 1405 Member of Parliament were approved. They practiced the self-administration in terms of their internal affairs in the rule itself.

A royal free town had (at least until the 17th century) in the rule:

  • A freely elected city judge (but approved by the King )
  • Own city organs (especially a city council ), which administered the city and independently over the city assets possessed
  • Full jurisdiction rights, which was exercised by the municipal judge or by the City Council ( Appeals was responsible to the king )
  • A freely chosen pastor
  • A free market ( the proceeds went to the king )
  • Economic privileges ( exemption from tolls in certain parts of the country or across the country, exemption from customs duties border, staple rights, privileges when selling products out of town, etc.)

Special rights (at least until the 17th century ) were:

  • The right to determine the applicable units in the city and to check their compliance with
  • To act the right as a country gentleman ( actually possessed many of the cities they imputed villages)
  • The right of citizens to bequeath their wealth to their descendants free

The duties included:

  • Control discharge to the King
  • Hospitality of the king, when he visited the city
  • New Year gifts for the King
  • Initially to satisfy even the duty soldiers for the royal army

History

13th Century

The first settlements ( de facto cities) in the Kingdom of Hungary received its city rights ( de jure towns) by the king in the 13th century (for example Schemnitz / Selmecbánya / Banská Štiavnica before 1238, Trnava / Nagyszombat / Trnava 1238 ) and were now and then referred to, among others, as " royal cities ". At first it was on closer inspection that usually German " hospites " ( "guests", ie recruited settlers ) who received these rights, but already in the same century there were already towns (for example Altsohl / Zólyom / Zvolen ), in which these rights have been granted to all residents. Most cities were on the territory of Slovakia, where the cities of the Zips in 1271 by the King even collectively received a single municipal law. In the Kingdom of Croatia were Perna ( 1225 ) and Zagreb ( 1242 ), the first royal free cities.

Already in the same century there were ( much more rarely) also cities that received their rights of sovereigns, especially church officials ( Archbishop, etc.). Their rights were still those of the royal cities of similar, only the person of the king in the city rights was replaced by that of the country gentleman. These cities are now referred to as "non- royal cities " (eg Jasov 1243 Heiligen-Kreutz/Garamszentkereszt/Žiar nad Hronom 1246 ). A partial special and initially fairly large group of royal and non - royal cities formed the mining towns (for example Schemnitz / Selmecbánya / Banská Štiavnica, Jasov / Jászó ). The first attempted to distinguish the legal status of the cities already existed in the 13th century, when some royal and non - royal cities over full ( Trnava / Nagyszombat / Trnava, Bratislava / Prešporok / Pozsony ( Bratislava) ... ), others only partially jurisdiction rights possessed ( Jasov ... ).

14th Century

In the 14th century, the autonomous position of the cities has increased, there was a city council with twelve members, there were city walls built (for which the cities of the king various discounts, etc. received ), the number of non - royal cities increased significantly and the development of the complicated system of the (then usually German ) city law was completed. To put it differ in this century already between:

  • Cities in the first category ( mainly Treasurer cities [see below], mining towns and Leutschau / Lőcse / Levoča ), that is, the future royal free cities and free mountain towns
  • Cities of the second category (especially other royal cities) and
  • Small towns ( especially non- royal cities)

Are mentioned as the four most important cities of the Kingdom of Trnava / Nagyszombat / Trnava, Pozsony / Bratislava / Pressburg, Schemnitz / Selmecbánya / Banská Štiavnica and oven / Buda 1308.

15th and 16th centuries

From the content of the concept fro can of " free royal cities" (ie, of the royal cities, and in a certain way " free" goods) are spoken since the beginning of the 15th century, especially after 1405 the representatives of the royal cities, non- royal cities ( and " free communities ") was allowed to participate in parliamentary sessions. In this century, the term " free city " appears systematically in the city of legal documents in the Latin form " civitas " to refer to (really) free provided with ramparts cities ( other cities were city walls failed ). All other designated cities ( royal and non - royal ) as " oppidum " ( small town ). From the end of the 15th century these terms were in fact also confirmed by decisions of the Diet:

Beginning of the 15th century there were in the UK for a total of 23 cities ( civitas ), including 15 free royal cities ( 7 of which in 1526 were part of the Ottoman Empire ) and 8 free mountain towns. In addition, there were about 750 small towns / stains (Latin oppidum, Hungarian mezöváros, slow. Městečko ), some of which were still referred to as "free cities " for the purposes of their legal rights. It should be noted that in the literature sometimes the free mountain towns (Latin liberae civitates montanae ) as a " free royal city " (ie, free royal mining towns ) are referred to.

In the 15th century lived in the royal free towns, only 2-3 % ( in Slovakia 4%) of the population. Compared to Western Europe, it was at most medium-sized cities. In the 15th - 17th Century, the Germans lost (but also Italians, French, etc.) successively the traditional upper hand in the cities in favor of Slovaks, Hungarians and other Slavs in the ethnic areas. About the situation in Transylvania, very little information is preserved.

Although since 1405 the royal free cities were allowed to participate in state legislatures, all cities had a total of only one vote, so at first they hardly participated. Since the 1440ern they took part more often, from 1490 to 1526 they visited the country again only days irregular, and even then their influence in Parliament was negligible.

The list of royal free cities has become, especially in the 16th and 17th centuries longer to some cities.

17th and 18th centuries

1608 was the right to receive from city rights from the king over to the state legislature. According to the law XVII/1687 the king was allowed to raise a city only with the consent of the Diet to a free royal town, but this was the part of the kings often ignored, so far as one only caught the consent retroactively.

Probably due to the particular development in the Kingdom of Hungary ( Royal Hungary) by fighting with the Turks remained the self-government rights of the free royal cities in this country compared with the cities in Western Europe receive relatively long. Only after the defeat of the anti-Habsburg Wesselényi Conspiracy (1670 ) began King Leopold I of Habsburg, to interfere in the affairs of the cities, and in particular to re-catholicize this, as the inhabitants of the cities in Royal Hungary since the 16th century, mostly Protestants were, however, the Habsburgs were Catholic. On Land Day to Sopron from 1681, religious freedom was indeed largely replaced ( after 1687 again partially restricted ), the condition that at least 50 % of the city councils of the royal cities of Catholics must be, but was enforced. 1714 passed the Diet in Pressburg a law according to which the cities the choice of offices without the presence of the Vienna sent to the individual free royal towns royal commissioners were prohibited. It often happened that the royal Commissioner annulled the election, when the favorite of the Habsburgs was not elected, or that it is equal to a candidate who was not a citizen of the city, appointed to the City Council.

18th century

In the 17th century there was in Royal Hungary (that is largely in today's Slovakia) three systems of city institutions:

  • In western Slovakia, including the meantime Hungarian capital Bratislava, there was a city councilor (12 people municipal judge ) and a so-called elected community (60 - to 100 - membered Council ), which were convened in solemn occasions. The cities concerned had a municipal judge, mayor and City captain, who were elected for one year. The City Council and local elected were elected for life. Were entitled to vote all the city- owners.
  • In the middle of Slovakia, there were the following changes: The City Council was smaller by a person who is selected communities were called outside councils (24 members) replaced and there was no mayor and captain.
  • In eastern Slovakia, the city council was elected only for one year and eligible to vote were only members of the so-called elected community. The selected community was selected in each case by the resigning councilor and elected after the new city council.

After about a hundred years, multiple efforts, it is in the 1750s, as Kosice / Kassa / Košice as the last free royal town finally gave way, the kings in Vienna managed to enforce a uniform system of city institutions and city organ choice in the cities. These were to the force in the capital Bratislava system, with the exception that only members of the elected community ( 40-100 members) were eligible to vote, the elected community for life and the city councils, municipal judge, mayor, tribunes of the people and city captains at least for two years were selected.

Since 1755 candidates for positions in the self-governing institutions were selected only among the City Council members, which is another important limitation of the old democratic traditions represented, since before any citizen could be a member of the self-governing bodies. 1765, the shape of the city council election was unified: It was now selected by inserting small, provided with the candidates' names balls in the ballot boxes.

Since the end of the 18th century, the royal free cities were the nobility (instead of to date by citizens, members of the guilds ) dominates, as a regulation of the Hungarian Chamber demanded that only people with good education, the languages ​​and justice are powerful city ​​representatives are what most citizens could not meet at that time. The regulation of the Hungarian Chamber also regulated the election of the organs of the royal free cities, the handling of funds in these cities and others of their affairs.

19th century

1848, the royal free cities were divided by law (Law XLIII/1848 ) according to their size into small ( under 12,000 inhabitants), medium ( 12000-30000 residents ) and large ( over 30,000 inhabitants).

1869 (Act IV/1869 ) was separated in the Kingdom of the case-law of the administration, with the royal free cities lost the case law.

1870, the Act XLII/1870 adjacent to the King free cities, the category of "Cities with municipium " ( " Munizipalstädte " Hungarian törvényhatósági JOGU városok, or " clothed with Munizipalrecht cities," Hungarian törvényhatósági joggal felruházott városok ) as a further category the so-called municipalities (Hungarian törvényhátoságok ) was created, which included 20 (from 1873) 25 cities. Municipalities was the name given to autonomous local authorities ( counties, Munizipalstädte and some special territorial units ) in the Kingdom of Hungary.

In 1877, with law XX/1876 a considerable part of the royal free cities and towns with municipium - concrete 28 free royal cities and 19 cities with Municipality - in townships ( " cities with errichtetem magistrate ," Hungarian rendezett tanácsú városok ) converted. The following cities remained from 1877 Royal cities of refuge (in brackets abbreviation of the country in which they are located today ):

  • Arad ( RO)
  • Budapest ( HU)
  • Debrecen / Debrecen (HU)
  • Five churches / Pécs (HU)
  • Kosice / Kassa / Košice (SK)
  • Cluj / Kolozsvár / Cluj ( Cluj- Napoca ) ( RO)
  • Komárom / Komárom / Komárno (SK)
  • Maria-Theresiopel/Szabadka/Subotica (RS)
  • Tirgu Mures / Marosvásárhely / Targu Mures ( RO)
  • Novi Sad / Újvidék / Novi Sad ( RS)
  • Sopron / Sopron (HU)
  • Pressburg / Prešporok / Pozsony / (Bratislava ) ( SK)
  • Raab / Győr ( HU)
  • Satu Mare / Szatmárnémeti / Satu Mare ( RO)
  • Schemnitz / Selmecbánya / Banská Štiavnica together with Dilln / Banská Bela (SK)
  • Sombor / ZomborSombor (RS)
  • Stuhlweißenburg / Székesfehérvár (HU)
  • Szeged (HU)
  • Timişoara / Temesvár / Timisoara ( RO)

The remaining 28 were converted into urban communities:

  • Altsohl / Zólyom / Zvolen (SK)
  • Bart field / Bártfa / Bardejov (SK)
  • Bösing / Bazin / Pezinok (SK)
  • Letter to the Gran / Breznobánya / Brezno (SK)
  • Eisenstadt / Kismarton (AT)
  • Eperies / Eperjes / Prešov (SK)
  • Elizabeth City / Erzsébetváros / Dumbrăveni ( RO)
  • Mrs. Bach / Nagybánya / Baia Mare ( RO)
  • Gran / Esztergom (HU)
  • Güns / Kőszeg (HU)
  • Carp / Korpona / Krupina (SK)
  • Kesmark / Késmárk / Kežmarok (SK)
  • Königsberg at the Gran / Újbánya / Nová Bana (SK)
  • Kremnitz / Körmöcbánya / Kremnica (SK)
  • Libethen / Libetbánya / Ľubietová (SK)
  • Leutschau / Lőcse / Levoča (SK)
  • Mittelstadt / FelsoBanya / Baia Sprie ( RO)
  • Modern / Mordor / Modra (SK)
  • Neusohl / Besztercebánya / Banská Bystrica (SK)
  • Neuschloss / Szamoshesdát / Gherla ( RO)
  • Punkanz / Bakabánya / Pukanec (SK)
  • Ruszt / Rust ( AT)
  • Sankt Georgen / Búrszentgyörgy / Jur (SK)
  • Skalitz / Szakolca / Skalica (SK)
  • Trenčín / Trencsén / Trenčín (SK)
  • Trnava / Nagyszombat / Trnava (SK)
  • White Castle / Gyulafehérvár / Alba Iulia ( RO)
  • Zeb / Kisszeben / Sabinov (SK)

These municipalities ( townships that were previously the title of a free royal town wore ) but kept purely formally called " free royal city " at. Up to Gran / Esztergom and Güns / Kőszeg all these townships are outside the present-day Hungary. In today's Austria were, as can be seen from the list, which was then to Hungary ( and now as part of the Burgenland to Austria ) belonging cities Kismarton / Eisenstadt and Ruszt / Rust free royal towns. They were recognized in 1926 as a statutory towns.

1886, referred to in the above list free royal towns were (except Budapest ) was converted with Law XXI/1886 in cities with municipium, which meant the end of the category of free royal city in the Kingdom of Hungary. Formal but kept these cities their title Royal Freistadt also after 1886 when. Budapest received a special position.

The list of cities with Municipality has no longer changed to 1918 ( the end of the Kingdom of Hungary) ( there were only 1907, the city of Miskolc added ).

Diet of Hungary Territorial lord
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