Kulm law

Kulm law

Kulm law, Culm law (German: Kulmer Recht; Latin: Jus Culmense vetus; Polish: Prawo chełmińskie) was a German legal constitution for a municipal form of government used in several Central European cities during the Middle Ages. The Handfeste was the copy handed out to the cities.

It was initiated on 28 December 1233 in the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights by Hochmeister Hermann von Salza and Hermann Balk when the towns of Thorn (Toruń) and Kulm (Chełmno) received German town law, in particular a modification of Magdeburg rights. Named after the town it was signed in, the original Kulmer Handfeste document was lost in 1244 when the townhall burned due to an attack by Swantopolk II, Duke of Pomerania. The renewed Erneuerte Kulmer Handfeste of 1 October 1251 was based on a copy in Thorn, but the rights were reduced.

This type of law was mostly granted by the Teutonic Order to cities within their monastic state, but also adopted by cities elsewhere, mainly in the neighboring independent Duchy of Masovia. In addition, the Kulm law was expanded, independently from the Knights, to a larger set of laws called Alter Kulm.

Cities located under Kulm law include:

In the Monastic state of Prussia In independent Duchy of Masovia
  • Kulm (Chełmno) - 1233
  • Thorn (Toruń) - 1233
  • Marienwerder (Kwidzyn) - 1233
  • Memel (Klaipėda) - 1258
  • Königsberg (Kaliningrad) - 1286
  • Graudenz (Grudziądz) - 1291
  • Deutsch Eylau (Iława) - 1305
  • Soldau (Działdowo) - 1344
  • Bütow (Bytów) - 1346
  • Allenstein (Olsztyn) - 1348
  • Baldenburg (Biały Bór) - 1395

See also

Literature

  • Jus Culmense ex ultima revisione, oder das vollständige culmische Recht, mit Anmerkungen, Danzig 1767 [1] [2]
  • Danuta Janicka: Nauka o winie i karze w dziejach klasycznej szkoły prawa karnego w Niemczech w 1 połowie XIX wieku, Toruń: Wydaw. Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika, 1998, ISBN 83-231-0985-0
  • Danuta Maria Janicka: Prawo karne w trzech rewizjach prawa chełmińskiego z XVI wieku, Toruń: TNT, 1992, ISBN 83-85196-50-1
  • Peter Johanek: Artikel 'Alter Kulm' in Kurt Ruh u.a. (Hg.): Die deutsche Literatur des Mittelalters. Verfasserlexikon Bd. 2, Berlin u.a. 2. Auflage 1978, Sp. 267-269
  • Alexander Rogatschewski: Zur Geschichte des 'Alten Kulms' und anderer preußischer Rechtsbücher nach St. Petersburger Quellen, in: R.G. Päsler/D. Schmidtke (Hg.): Deutschsprachige Literatur des Mittelalters im Östlichen Europa. Forschungsstand und Forschungsperspektiven, Heildelberg 2006, S. 199-244
  • Ralf G. Päsler: Deutschsprachige Sachliteratur im Preußenland bis 1500. Untersuchungen zu ihrer Überlieferung, Köln u.a. 2003, S. 197, 222-224 und 243-252

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Kulm — The name Kulm (or Culm) is a German language toponym which is derived from the Latin culmen , meaning hill. It may be used as follows:* the German language name of Chełmno, Poland **Kulm law, type of town charter **Kulmer Land * Kulm, North… …   Wikipedia

  • German town law — (German: Deutsches Stadtrecht) or German municipal concerns (Deutsches Städtewesen) concerns town privileges used by many cities, towns, and villages throughout Central and Eastern Europe during the Middle Ages. Contents 1 Town law in Germany 2… …   Wikipedia

  • List of towns with German town law — A list of towns in Europe with German town law. Year of law granting is listed when known.Schleswig law de. Schleswiger Recht) *SchleswigLübeck law( Lübisches Recht ) *Braniewo ( Braunsberg ), 1254 *Elbląg ( Elbing ), 1237 *Gdańsk ( Danzig ),… …   Wikipedia

  • Lübeck law — The Lübeck law [ de. Lübisches (Stadt)Recht] was the constitution of a municipal form of government developed at Lübeck in Schleswig Holstein after it was made a free city in 1226. The law provides for self government. It replaced the personal… …   Wikipedia

  • Danzig law — (German: Danziger Willkür;[1] in Polish: Gdański Wilkierz [2]) was the official set of records of the laws of city of Danzig (Gdańsk). Danziger Willkür means „Danzig s choice by free will“, as opposed to having been imposed from outside, as while …   Wikipedia

  • Chełmno — For the Nazi German extermination camp located near a village with a similar name, Chełmno nad Nerem, see Chełmno extermination camp. For the village in western Poland, see Chełmno, Szamotuły County. Chełmno Churc …   Wikipedia

  • Magdeburg rights — (German: Magdeburger Recht) or Magdeburg Law were a set of German town laws regulating the degree of internal autonomy within cities and villages granted by a local ruler. Modelled and named after the laws of the German city of Magdeburg and… …   Wikipedia

  • Olędrzy — (singular: Olęder, German: Holländer or Hauländer) is a Polish term used to describe persons, often of Dutch or German origin or ancestry, who lived in settlements in Poland organized under a particular type of law. The term Olędrzy has been used …   Wikipedia

  • Gdańsk — For alternative meanings of Gdańsk and Danzig, see Gdańsk (disambiguation) and Danzig (disambiguation) Gdańsk Collage of views of Gdańsk …   Wikipedia

  • Town privileges — City rights redirects here. See also: municipal charter. Town privileges or city rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. Judicially, a town was distinguished from the surrounding land by means of a… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”