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INTRODUCTION
(CHAPTER I) CHAPTER
II
CHAPTER
III
CHAPTER IV
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The Guilds of the Armament Producers of Sibiu, Braşov and Cluj (XIVth-XVIth C.) Author: Ioan Marian
Ţiplic. ISBN 973-651-337-8, Editura
Universităţii „Lucian Blaga”, Sibiu 2001.
© copyright Institutul
pentru Cercetarea şi Valorificarea Patrimoniului Naţional în
Context European, Marian Ţiplic
Seria Bibliotheca
Septemcastrensis I, University “Lucian
Blaga” Sibiu, Institutul
pentru Cercetarea şi Valorificarea Patrimoniului Naţional în
Context European.
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Abstract –
III. The guilds of the armament producers of
Sibiu, Braşov şi Cluj. 3.1.
The guilds from Sibiu. First we
have to mention that at least at the beginning, the craftsmen who produced
arms were the blacksmiths. They became more qualified as the economic conditions
were better and there was a great need of arms as the towns developed. That
was why, for a while they had too many orders that they could handle. Later
on there appeared other guilds: those of sword makers, of shield makers and
of archers. Once these guilds improved their economic situation, they divided
in to separate guilds. The first documentary information on a guild or
on a blacksmiths's association is from 1291, during king Andrew the 3rd who
speaks of the craftsmen who were processing iron ore (ferri fabri) and of
iron foundry (ferri fusores). The guild of blacksmiths appeared, as it is
attested by documents in 1376 when the codes of law were renewed; its name
was Fabrorum fraternitatis. At that time, the blacksmiths were specialized in
different branches: knives makers,
bucket makers, locksmiths and sword makers (the latter were named gladiatores). Beginning with the latter half of the 15th
century the guilds develop more and more rapidly that is why a great number
of other guilds that detatched themselves from the guild of blacksmiths
appear. These branches were strictly specialized in producing armament. This
fact is illustrated in the Counting
register from Sibiu beginning with the 7th decade of the 15th century in
which a fairly great number of craftsmen: sword makers, archers, shield
makers, crossbow makers and armour producers are mentioned. In the 15th century sword and spur makers who
detached from the guild of blacksmiths reorganise in separate branches and
later on they will have the same privileges. A real proof of the foundatin of
separate guilds of sword and spur makers in Sibiu is the fact that the guilds
of locksmiths and spur makers from Cluj had as their model those from Sibiu.
At the end of the 15th century and at the beginning of the 16th century there
are mentioned light craftsmen (schwertfeger
or schwert-macher) in the Counting Register of Sibiu. Another guild that developed greatly and produced
unique and specific products is the one of shield makers. During the 15th
century this guild managed to impose itself on the markets in Transylvania
and later in Moldavia and Wallachia due to the high quality of their
products. At the end of the 15th century and at the beginning of the 16th
century in the Counting Register four great craftsmen - shield makers - are
mentined. As a proof of their importance in the economic and military field
in the latter half of the 16th century one of the towers of the fortress of
Sibiu was given to be taken care of to the shield makers. The Arches' guild was historically attested in
1492, they even owned one of Sibiu fortress' s towers. The production of
archers lasted until the former half of the 16th century when the arch was
replaced by the crossbow. As the archers craftsmen are mentioned as being isolated
towards the latter half of the 16th century it means that they were no longer
organized in a guild and they didn't have any economic power. In the Counting
Register of Sibiu, apart from the archers (sagitarii arcum), the crossbow makers (sagitarii balistarum) are mentioned towards the end of the 15th
century. At the end of the 15th centruy and beginning of the 16th century 9
archers craftsmen are mentioned in the Counting Register. As I already mentioned above, the arch was
gradually replaced by the crossbow, that was widely used in Transylvania in
the 15th and the 16th century. In the collection of the History Museum from
Sibiu there have been preserved 25 crossbow from the 15th century which were
produced by craftsmen from Sibiu, as J. Bielz believes, because of the badges
of Sibiu that were descovered on them. The crossbow makers are not mentioned
so constantly at the end of the 14th century
but in the following years their become more and more important. In the
Counting Register of the town, beginning with the year 1495 1 florin was
spent on saggitario ... dato.
Infomation about the price of crossbow we find in the Counting Register of
Braşov; in 1541 were spent pro 4 arcubus fl. 1 asp. 17 and pro 14
arcubus fl. 4. In the Counting Register of Sibiu we found a document on the
price of bolts of a crossbowfrom 1501 that attests the existance of the
crossbow makers: Clemens ...flor.1. During the 15th century and 16th century the
method of processing metals developed more and more and there appeared a new
trade foundry and consequently there appeared canons and arquebuses. A proof that Transylvania was important in the
production of arms is also the fact that the most ancient portable fire arm,
very well known in the history studies as the Loshult gun, was discovered in
Sweden, dating from the former half of the 14th century; as a result of
spectral analysis of the bronze that it was made of, it has been proved that
the raw material care from Transylvania, Apuseni Carpathians. Even though we
can discuss further more the place of its origin, the information above
confirms the existence of the ore of copper from Transylvania which was a
very important element in the development of the production of portable fire
arms. In the year 1370, in Sibiu, an armourer of the town is mentioned and
three years later the same armourer is attested as bombard maker; he provided
the town with fixed bombs and on wheels. In 1481, March 10th, in an
indulgence issued by the dean of Sibiu is mentioned a certain Johann Straws
kannonengiesser who received the dean's
forgiveness for his future sins as he was going to war against the
Turks. 3.2. The
guilds of the armourers from Braşov. It goes without saying that when we talk in general about the
researches from the Medieval Transylvania that we no longer have to mention
the importance of Braşov as the town was one of the most important
economic centers of trades from South Transylvania during three centuries.
Braşov's began to develop later than the other towns' from South but its
ascension is favoured by its strategic position at the crossroads between
Moldavia, Wallachia and the Black Sea coast and it managed to mentain close
relations with the principalities from East Carpathians and with those from
South Carpathians as well. Historically, such a guild is first attested only
in 1408, the year when we have the oldest Register of Guilds of Braşov, but
we have some craftsmen mentioned in the 14th century, a fact that makes us
believe that the organization of the guilds might date from at least at the
end of the 14th century. During the 14th
and 15th century the trades develop into 2 distinct periods, when the
production increased. Those period are:
Sigismund's reign and the one of Mattias Corvin. The king's support
consisted of numberless orders (especially military) but more importantly of
the concession of certain royal rights. In the 16th century trades develop a
great deal and in the year 1562 aproximante 43 guilds are attested and in the
Counting register many arm producers are attested as well. The
guild of blacksmiths. The
organization of the guild of blacksmiths is attested in the 15th century and
in the former half of the 16th century is attested the existence of a bastion
of the blacksmiths, a fact that proves that the guild was powerful enough
from economic point of view of they afforded the keeping of such a fortress.
At the end the 15th century, between 1480-1488, 23 blacksmiths are attested
in Braşov; they are distributed in the following: 8 craftsmen in quartal
Portica, 9 in quartal Corpus christi and 6 in quartal Catharina. The
guild of Shield makers. This
guild is mentioned in the 15th century, when the number of the shield makers
who paid taxes was relatively large; in the latter half of the 15th century
21 are mentioned and this number relatively is constant. The shields made in
Braşov were different from those made in other towns from Transylvania,
especially Sibiu, that was the main centre of production. These shields were
very much required especially on the market from beyond Carpathians. The
Archers' Guild. The trade of the
archers from Braşov is documentarly attested in 1397 in the Register of
taxes at the end of the 15th century, where 23 archer makers are mentioned.
In the first years of the 14th century the archers' guild renews its state, a
fact that proves that there had been others but due to the new socio-economic
conditions, it no longer corresponded; consequently we can say that the
archers' guild from Braşov was set up sometime in the former half of the
15th century and it developed mostly at the end of the century when the
number of its members was about 23. Their number increased in the former half
of the 16th century; this lead to the economic development of the guild and
eventually to the growth of its social and political importance. This latter
fact is illustrated in the Register of Expenses of Bran Castle, where on January,
10th 1524 is attested the election of Luca Czeresch as owner of the castle
beside Clemens. Obtaining a job of such importance it is obviously clear that
Clemens's economic position assured him a good place among the leaders of
Braşov at the beginning of the 16th century. From September 6th, 1547
when a new statute is drawn they preserved the one of the archers' guild from
Braşov, drawn out in August 25th, 1505 from the initiative of the
guild's leaders, Clemens, Stephen and Kristel. The
guild of crossbow makers. At
least until present, we have no documents to prove the existence of separate
guilds of crossbow makers but the large number of such craftsmen in the 16th
century makes us believe that they organized themselves separately from the
archers' guild. As far as the existence
of the crossbow makers in Braşov is concerned, they are attested
in the 16th century, more exactly in 1514, when in the Counting Register of
Braşov is mentioned a certain Michaelis armbruster who receives a carpet
which valued 36 florini. Between the years 1514-1555 in Braşov 7
craftsmen are attested. The
guild of sword makers. The trade
of making swords is attested even in the 13th century - the best example is
the hardware from Şelimbăr - but as an organized guild only in the
14th century, when within the trade centre (the blacksmiths' guild) they
produced swords. We do not have exact information about the existence of a
guild of sword makers in Braşov during the 14th century, but sometime at
the end of the 14th century and the beginning of the 15th century the sword
makers separated from the locksmiths'
guild, as in the year 1424 in the register of the furriers are mentioned two
craftsmen, Hanis and Jorg whose parents worked in the trade of making arms.
On the other hand, in the latter half of the 15th century an economic
relation between the sword makers in Braşov with Moldavia is attested -
as Ştefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great) sent for swords various times. In
the latter half of the 15th century, in Braşov, 20 swords makers
belonging to a guild are mentioned. Most of these craftsmen are mentioned too
in the Tax Registers in the former half of the 16th century beside several
new members of the guild. The
armourers's guild. The method of
moulding of cast iron in Braşov developed a great deal, Braşov
being one of the most important suppliers with armament of the prince Ioan de
Hunedoara, for Moldavia and Wallachia until these principalities became under
the power of Ottoman Empire. Information about the existence of this trade we
have even from the 14th century, when in Bistriţa is attested a certain
Andrei Bombardengiesser who can be identified with the craftsman Andrei -
magister Andreas -, native of Braşov and who at the same time moulded
many bells. Nevertheless, we must make a remark concerning this trade -
within the armourers' guild we have historically attested on one hand guns
and arquebus makers and on the other hand bombards and canon makers and
separately from those two, bell makers. And apart from those mentioned previously
we have several craftsmen who dealt with the moulding of bells. The
trade of arquebuses making is
attested in Braşov by a document in which Mattia Corvin orders 100 guns
(pixidae), 5 quintals of gun powder
and 100 canon balls, in 1471, during a military campaign operation. Other
proofs for the existence of this guild come from some receipts which attest
the payment for some arquebuses by a third person. The
guild of canon founders existed
in Braşov ever since the former half of the 15th century and to prove
that, we have some indirect information that comes from the Princely Office
of Transylvania and of the Royal Court and they refer to the interdictions of
fire arms export in the Romanian Principalities or refusal for canons, gun
powder and canon balls orders of the Prince of Transylvania or of the princes
of the other two principalities. The increasing development of this trade is
attested in the 16th century when in 1514-1547 the canon makers in
Braşov are mentioned. 3.3.
The armourers' guild from Cluj.
Once the Angevin Dynasty came to the throne of Hungary the political
situation within Transylvania is stabilized and there had been created a good
environment to the economic development of the towns due to the politic
support and counterbalance between the large feudal autonomous domains and
the main power - royalty. In these conditions there appeared and developed
the guilds from Cluj between the 14th and 16th centuries; the Income register
of the town in the year 1453 offered us the opportunity to know the structure
of the working population which was as the following: 6% tailors, 4% boots
and shoe makers, 2,64% blacksmiths, 2% bag hunter makers, 1,5% archers, 1,3%
arrow makers and 0,17% shields makers. There were approximately 4500-4800
workers who paid taxes and together with those who didn't pay taxes their
number was about 6000 inhabitants. The
blacksmiths' guild. In Cluj, the
blacksmiths are documentarily attested for the first time in the year 1362 in
a document, more exactlya sale contract of Nicolaus and Henlinus fabrice of a
yard that they owned together in Podului Street (nowsdays Horea Street). A
century later, in 1467, July, 20th
the Magistrate of Cluj approved the statutes of the guild at the
request of several blacksmiths: Antoniu, Simon, Ştefan and Ieronim;
their contents demonstrates that this guild is even older than we thought and
that it existed even earlier. The
guild of the sword makers. The
sword polishers are mentioned for the first time in Cluj in the document
dating from 1484, November, 12th when the magistrate of Cluj, Johannes Markus
certifies the statutes of several guilds reunited: of archers, saddle makers,
belts makers, sword makers, shield makers and arrow makers. In the year 1557
the sword makers asked the boots makers' permission to use their mill of
tannery in order to install a grindstone for sharpening and polishing their
swords. The
Archers' guild. Information
about this trade we have only from the 15th century when a certain Jacobo
literato the son of Gabriel, an archer is mentioned as a witness in a trial.
This document dates from 1432, April, 12th. Starting from this remark, we can
say that Gabrielis arcupis worked as an archer sometime between 1410-1460 if
we take into consideration that he could not become a deacon at an age less
than 20. An organization of the archers is not attested
until the end of the 15th century, more exactly until November, 12th, 1484
when they organize themselves in guilds beside the sword makers, spur makers,
shield makers, saddle makers and locksmiths. Beside, the representatives of
the other branches, there appeared 2 archers, Martinus Kufferbart and
Johannes Gabrielis who were of the main initiators of the text of the
statutes that is why we may draw the conclusion that, at that time, the
archers had a better economic situation than those from other branches who
wanted to found some new guilds. In the 16th century the archers are more and
more rarely mentioned in documents and gradually their place is taken by the
crossbow makers. The
guild of shield makers. This
guild is hardly attested in documents from the 14th century but this does not
prove that it was not organized as a guild and consequently it is not
mentioned in the documents at that time. A proof of its existence before the
15th century are many documents that attest the existence of the shield
makers in Cluj at the beginning and at the middle of the 15th century. A very
good example is the partial register of the people of hungarian origin who
paid taxes in 1453 where a certain Valentin paysgyarto appears. Towards the end of the 15th century the
shield makers' guild organizes itself and together with the archers, belt
makers, sword makers, etc. want to found a mixed guild. In the 16th century numberless shield makers are
still attested, altough the shield, as a defence arm was used less and less,
that is why these craftsmen had some other functions (for example they were
painters, too). The
armourers' guild. The
documentary material which abounds in mentions about fire arms and white arms
makes us think of the hypothesis that there existed in the 16th century of
the iron and bronze founders, of the craftsmen who produced arquebuses,
muskets, falconets. In the Counting Register of the town there are mentioned
a series of expenses for little canons (manuaria
bombardaria) and guns as well as the price paid for them. The existence
of an armourer (Hans Jorg Burghart) is clearly attested in 1585 when the
citizen in Bistriţa made an order for an armour (Stecharnisch). |
