Działalność finansowa Pawła Olsztyńskiego ze Szczekocin herbu Odrowąż. Przyczynek do aktywności gospodarczej możnych małopolskich w XV wieku
Financial Activity of Paweł Olsztyński of Szczekociny, Arms-Bearing Odrowąż. A Contribution to Economic Activity of the Mighty of Lesser Poland...

Summary/Abstract: The subject of this article is the financial activity of Paweł Olsztyński of Szczekociny (d. 1492), a descendant of the gentry family of the Odrowąż coat of arms. He was a son of Piotr Woda, a vice-chancellor of the Kingdom of Poland, and a grandson of John, a castellan of Lublin. He inherited after his ancestors mortgages in King’s lands (łukowskie, olsztyńskie, and zawichojskie). Olsztyński did not hold any significant position. Neither did he play any important role. Olsztyńskie was seen as an inherited property by him and he took his name after the name of the castle. The main scope for activity was financial policy based on the royal properties in use. Owing to the efficient system of amassing capital, which was based on mortgages, Olsztyński could lend large amounts of money (since the 1480s) that brought him considerable profit. Financial means that he gained by basing his policy on the royal properties in use, allowed him to aspire to a high position in the social hierarchy, which was marked by the title “gentleman” (generosus) that he was addressed with. Paweł Olsztyński of Szczekociny manifested a tendency — characteristic of the gentry — to boast about his high position by using estate holdings (in this case the royal ones) that belonged to the Olsztyn castle.

• Details
• Contents