Fires and arson in Košice in 16th century Cover Image

Požiare a podpaľačstvo v Košiciach v 16. storočí
Fires and arson in Košice in 16th century

Author(s): Richard Papáč
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, History, Social Sciences, Economy, Geography, Regional studies, Economic history, Local History / Microhistory, Political history, Social history, Modern Age, 16th Century
Published by: Univerzita Pavla Jozefa Šafárika v Košiciach
Keywords: Fire; Town; Košice; 1556; Arson;

Summary/Abstract: The paper is divided into two parts together thematically related. The first part informs about fires occurring in Košice in 16th century on the basis of the literature, but most of the archival documents. The largest space is devoted to probably one of the biggest fires in the city dating to April 1556. The effort is not limited only to lay damages caused by this and other fires, but also points on the situation in the city after disaster, on the required financial and material assistance for the city from the emperor and from towns of Pentapolitana. The second part provides an insight into the incidence of arson in Košice, as one of the crimes against property, where output a specific perpetrators different management considerations and motives. It provides an informations about punishing offenders under the then existing regulations and laws. For both parts of the contribution the archival research was conducted in the Košice City Archives, to show the lesser known facts of the history of the city, as fires and other disasters have remarked economic and social face of this and later periods.

  • Issue Year: 2/2013
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 64-74
  • Page Count: 11
  • Language: Slovak