in the past
The city court also provides examples of several interesting verdicts. In 1571, we find a record of a woman who confessed to witchcraft—under torture—and was burned at the stake. A year later, we encounter a sentence for an immoral lifestyle and the theft of 6 gulden. Anna Winkler was sentenced to death by drowning in a sack, and her body was to be buried by the gallows. Andrzej Holz was sentenced to have his tongue cut out and to be burned at the stake for insulting God and the City Council in a tavern. These were harsh sentences, considering that it was already the end of the 16th century.
At the beginning of the 17th century, the city’s finances were sufficiently sound for the City Council to expand its territory by purchasing nearby villages, which became fiefs of the City Council and generated income.
In 1601, for the sum of 17,500 thalers, the council bought the entire village of Bolesławice (part of it had been purchased earlier), and the customs officials paid homage to the council. This compelled the council to build a bridge over the Bóbr.
At the same time, in 1604, the City Council could afford to set a price list for local fishermen selling fish at the city market. It covered prices for eels, pike, trout and crayfish. (And to think that these fish were once caught in the Bóbr and in the surrounding ponds – ZB).
It was a good year for the City Council, as the city bought the lease on hunting rights from a private owner and required him to provide 14 hares, 7 foxes, 2 deer, 3 roe deer, 3 wild boars, 21 partridges, as well as other smaller birds, including 60 larks (!), free of charge from October 1605 onward.
The growing wealth of the burghers and favorable economic conditions led to manifestations of excessive displays of wealth.
In 1605, we find an interesting order in the records concerning a ban, punishable by a fine of 10 thalers, on decorating bridal wreaths with ducats, pearls, golden rosettes and other valuables during weddings, as well as on performing simple dances during the wedding feast and serving more than 8 dishes to wedding guests. Failure to comply with these orders threatened the bride, in addition to a fine, with the refusal to solemnize the marriage, public humiliation and even imprisonment. (It is interesting how the council monitored the enforceability of this order – ZB).
In a later period, the council itself began to move away from these regulations, because in 1616 we find a record of the beginnings of lavish patrician balls at the town hall. In the same year, the council issued strict regulations and penalties for provoking fights, knife-fighting, causing bodily injuries and insulting someone’s honor. At the same time, a pillory, a torture chair and a gallows were erected in front of the town hall. Unfortunately, this was a year of prosperity before the city’s development suffered a serious collapse caused by the Thirty Years’ War, which lasted from 1618 to 1648.
More on this in subsequent issues of “Głos”.