testaments in premyslid bohemia 302 As is well known, the termtestamentumis ambiguous. First, it refers to a document as such, and second, it is used for the last will,1 i.e., a legal act by which the testator upon death transfers all or part of his possessions to another person or institution. This article deals with the testament, in the sense of the last will, in Czech lands during the first ruling dynasty, thePřemyslids (documented from the late 9th century, and ruling until 1306).2 It focuses on general testaments involving the entire property of the testator, as well as partial last wills, and perhaps even devotional donations upon death. While the termtestamentumfirst appeared in the Czech lands in the late 12th century,3 the handling of property in case of death was among the earliest legal provisions, apart from foundations of and donations to ecclesiastical institutions. These were not, however, wills according to Roman or canon law, which were revocable and for which, among other things, the number of witnesses was fixed.4 There were no precise provisions for gifts upon death under Land law; on the other hand, these gifts were irrevocable.5 In the oldest known provisions, however, only immovable property is included. Yet, immovable property could not be dealt with until there was at least a group of people that had property at their disposal. In the Czech lands, it was at first the nobility that inherited 1 Cf. Haberkern – Wallach 2001, vol. 1, p. 98 (Carta), vol. 2, p. 615 (Testamentum). Vocabulaire international de la diplomatique, records the term “testament” (no. 428) only in the sense of a last will. –This publication was supported by the Cooperatio Program provided by Charles University, research area “History”, implemented at the Faculty of Arts of Charles University. 2 On this period of Czech history, cf. especially Novotný 1912; Novotný 1913; Novotný 1928; Novotný 1937; Bláhová – Frolík – Profantová 1999; Vaníček 2000; Vaníček2002; Sommer –Třeštík – Žemlička 2009. 3 Friedrich 1904–1907, no. 358, p. 326; no. 364, p. 331. 4 Cf. Kincl – Urfus 1990, pp. 342–348, 355–358. 5 Cf. Boháček 1975, p. 101. Introduction Testaments of grandees and nobility
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