Frantisek and his Bride Price

When I hear the term dowry, I often think of traditions where the bride's family makes a payment of money or goods to the groom. This payment can go the other way, too. This blog post will focus on the marriage contract between my third great grandparents, Frantisek Havel and Theresia Jiral, and what is termed the "bride price" which included cash and in-kind contributions that Frantisek provided to his bride Theresia. Even though summer is fast approaching Land Girl, my wife, surprisingly has not done anything I can think of on which to write a post about, so here I am once again writing my ancestors. I usually can count on her for a few blog posts a year, but right now that is not occurring. In the meantime, let us explore Frantisek's "bride price" and the marriage contract between him and Theresia Jiral, which provides a glimpse into their household and socio-economic situation.

The marriage contract was actually located by, transcribed from German and translated into English by Richard D' Amelio who I engaged to do some transcription and translation on some varied records I had located. Richard well knows his way around the digital archive, and in particular the land registers. The marriage contract is rather simple, and consists of three stipulations. Before, I get into the contract, and the dowry, a few events in family history are necessary to understand the situation.

Page 1 of Marriage Contract
Source: Trebon Archives

Theresia Jiral was born at house #18 in Dolni Chrastany, Bohemia on 26 Sept 1772. Her father was Mathias Jiral and her mother Katharina Ruesmueller. According to a land record, Mathias Jiral acquired the farm associated with 18 Dolni Chrastany at the time of his marriage to  Katharina in 1760 from Katharina's father Wenzel Ruesmueller, who was retiring from farming. Mathias was under contract to make installment payments of 120 Schock Groschen for the farm. Of this total purchase price 100 was paid to Wenzel Ruesmüller, and 20 to Wenzel's oldest daughter Maria. Wenzel obtained the farm from his father, Bernard. From the land records, it is safe to conclude that Theresia, Katharina, and Wenzel were all born in the same house. My great grandfather Martin and his father, my second great grandfather, Josef, would also be born at 18 Dolni Chrastany. 

Here is where it gets tricky. Mathias Jiral passed away in 1773, just shy of Theresia's one year birthdate, he was still holding farm debt of  60ß to Wenzel Ruesmuller and 12 to Maria. His widow, Katharina, as was customary at the time, remarried in January 1774 in order to keep claim to the property rights for one of her children. At the time of Mathias' death she had two living daughters, Maria and Theresia. Her second marriage was to Wenzel Fitzl, a relative of three degrees of consanguinity, which we know as the received dispensation is noted in their marriage record. Katharina Ruesmuller Jiral Fitzl passed away in 1793, and Wenzl Fitzl remarried a widow with the last name Mariana Mika, from the village of Hrbov (this relationship is interesting, and will be discussed in a bit more detail in a follow up post). Wenzel and Katharina had a marriage contract which named Katharina's and Mathias Jiral's two living children Maria and Theresia as possible heirs to the farm associated with18 Dolni Chrastany. The farm was held in trust by Wenzel for twenty years or until the children grew up (it would turn out to be over 22 years). Due to the "frail" nature of Mariana (Maria) she gave up rights to the property and passed such property rights to Theresia. Many children died at a young age, as was the case with at least three of Theresia's older siblings. I have found birth or death records for three siblings who are not listed in the handover contract between Wenzel and Katharina. Some of these deaths occurred around the time of, or the year after the famine caused by floods, of 1770 through 1771. While many children died at an early age, this also likely means that many other children who were born had at birth, or perhaps later developed, some type of debilitating condition(s) or underlying morbidity.  This was probably the case with Theresia's older sister Mariana. The final stipulation of a handover contract between Wenzel and Theresia identifies Mariana as "being frail on her feet." In the long and short of it, both of Theresia's parents died before her marriage to Frantisek, and she was only 21 years of age when her mother died. That means that Mathias Fitzl, her stepfather was the main person on which she and her sister could depend.

Marriage Contract, page 2
Source: Trebon Archives

Theresia Jiral, who really never knew her father, entered the bonds of holy matrimony with Frantisek Havel who hailed from Melhutka on October 25, 1796. She likely was walked down the aisle by her step-father, Wenzel Fitzl. The ceremony was either at the chapel in the village, but more likely in the parish church located in Netolice. Interestingly, this was an antenuptial agreement as it was signed on 3 November 1796 and ratified and incorporated into the marriage contracts register on 4 November of that year. The introductory statement of the contract makes the clear that the terms of the agreement were reached following the wedding ceremony, as, after identifying both parties, it says "...was agreed following the wedding ceremony:".  Frantisek's father Mathias and his mother Marie were still farming in Ratiborova Lhota (German name Melkutka) and were probably happy to see the eldest son take on, what appears to be a larger farm obligation than they themselves had. When Mathis passed away Frantisek's younger sibling Johann would take over the Havel farm in Ratiborova Lhota. In 1781 a patent was issued that allowed the serfs freedom to chose who to marry, that a Lord's permission was no longer required, that a serf could move where they wished, and were free to chose an occupation. Frantisek, unlike his father, enjoyed the freedom of not having to obtain permission from the lord of the domain to move from Ratiborova Lhota, or to marry a young lady in Dolni Chrastany. He did, however, continue the family tradition of farming. 

Cadastral Map of Dolni Chrastany, about 1830
Source: https://ags.cuzk.cz/archiv/

Frantisek and Theresia's marriage contract is basic and straight forward. The first stipulatory clause of the contract is perhaps the most touching, and reminds us of the basic tenants of the marriage vows. This reads, as translated from German: "First: The above-named bridal couple promise each other their conjugal love and fidelity, and agree not to part until death, rather instead to faithfully help each other in sharing the fortunes and in bearing the misfortunes which may lie ahead."  I find this a beautiful stipulation, and while perhaps invoking their vows of several days earlier when it gets to a specific contract on what is brought to the marriage they still saw fit to promise life-long fidelity, and work together through the bad times. Frantisek and Theresia would have seven children together and see at least three of the children die (of those of which I can locate death records) at a young age. Heartache, and trials of the times were never far away as the death of child was all too familiar. 

While the two faithfully enjoyed their marriage, Frantisek made dowry, or bride price, payments in both cash and animals to Theresia. The second stipulation is the guts of the contract. The clause has Frantisek bestowing upon his future wife (use of the word future seems to indicate that this was paid prior to their October marriage) 150 Rhenish gulden. In addition he provided four head of oxen valued at 110 Rhenish Gulden and two head of dairy cattle at 30 Rhenish gulden. The value of the oxen certainly give recognition to the importance of beasts of burden were to the farm operation. It may also indicate how his father, Mathias, met the required haulage robot labor--using oxen rather than draft horses. Robot haulage required either two draft horses or two pair (four) of oxen. The total value, of cash and animals totaled 290 Rhenish gulden. Frantisek would have been the one to use the oxen, and I suspect Theresia milked the cows. The last part of this clause is important. We know that death can come early to children and adults, after all Theresia's father was 41 years at the time of his death in 1773. This clause says: "...if the groom should die before the bride and no children have been born of the marriage, then she shall be the lawful heiress of the entire dowry (bride price), however if there are also bereaved children, it shall be divided into equal parts." This seems to me to function almost like a will and the payments as a life insurance policy--Theresia, and the children have some money to rely on, along with oxen to use in farm chores, and dairy cattle to provide milk, and make into butter and perhaps cheese. This bride payment is not so much to the bride as it is to this new family unit created by marriage of Theresia and Frantisek several days earlier. I am sure it must have taken some time for Frantisek to raise sufficient cash to make his payment of 150 Rhenish gulden. Or, perhaps there was a loan from his father. 

18 Dolni Chrastany, present time
Source: Mary B Hovel

In taking over the farm Frantisek had to make payments to Wenzel. According to the marriage contract Frantisek was required to pay Wenzel Fitzl 140 Rhenish gulden. These payments were made on an installment basis, according to a different land register (which will be explored in a later post). If Franz died before Theresia and the marriage did not produce any children, however, the farm would revert back to Wenzel Fitzl. While this did not occur, if it did Theresia would not have had any land on which to rely, nor to perhaps use to help land another husband. A widow with land had more value than one without property. It was a hard life, and economics was important. What is interesting to me is that the payments to Wenzel for the farm, 140 Rhenish gulden, was less than the 150 Rhenish gulden Frantisek paid as part of his bride price, or dowry. Add in the value of the oxen and dairy cows, and the total value of what Frantisek paid as his "bride price" is more than twice what he had to pay Wenzel Fitzl for the farm.  

Frantisek would continue to farm the property until the 1840's, when the ownership would move to his son, my second great grandfather, Josef.  After Theresia passed away in 1819, Frantisek would remarry. Josef, Anna Jodl, his wife and eight children (they had nine children but one died at about 6 months of age) would emigrate to the United States in 1868. The sale of the farm would be completed after Josef and Anna were already settled in Wisconsin. We know what Frantisek brought in terms of cash and livestock to the marriage, but what else was with the farm handover from Wenzel to Theresia and Frantisek?  The handover contract between Wenzel Fitzl and Theresia Jiral will be explored in a future post. Tune in to a future episode as we continue to explore the history of the Havel family.

Source: https://digi.ceskearchivy.cz/124713/169/6525/2703/9/0 (Images 169-170) Transcribed and translated (May 2022) by Richard D' Amelio of Bohemib Research Services.