Noble Families and the Founding of Monasteries in the 13th Century - Aims, Trends, and Changes of Property
Abstrakt
The present study focuses on the gifts of Bohemian and Moravian nobility to the Church in the 13th century and in the beginning of 14th century. The pious gifts (donations to the Church) are fundamental for the understanding of medieval devotion and of some aspects of medieval society.
The donations were also part of one's care for their own soul and redemption in the Middle Ages. These gifts also expressed religious, economic, political, and representational intentions of the donors.
The pious gifts are, therefore, a good tool for researching these social aspects. The paper focuses on the dynamics of the process of donating to the Church and its association with the evolution of the aristocratic social groups.
The motivation of the founders is analysed and the comparison between both common and varying elements of their attitudes is made. The author focuses on the founding of monasteries in the 13th century and their further operation in connection to the founders.
The study highlights both the spiritual aspects of donations and the importance of foundations for the social status of the donors. It describes changes in trends in the choice of religious orders by the donors as well as the changes in the property of donors and their claims.
Then, the creation of social networks of supporters of individual religious houses is mentioned. The aim of the study is to describe the relations between noble donors and ecclesiastical institutions and to stress the importance of donations for the research of medieval society.