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Jewish taxes in the documents of the jewish commission in the 18th century

Publication at Faculty of Arts |
2023

Abstract

In the second half of 16th century and for the greater part of the 18th century, the pardon tax on commercial activities, together with the property tax, was the way of fulfilling the Jews' contributory obligations towards the state.

By Charles VI's decree of 1713, Prague and rural Jews were divided into six property classes, witch determined the amount of taxes they had to pay.

During the 18th century, the entire system of Jewish tax collectoin underwent major changes and modifications. Virtually everithing was taxed, from food, t handicrafts, to fees for weddings, funerals, renting shops, income from the Jewish baths, the burial society, etc. The changes in teh system of taxation are mainly documented by sources of a normative nature - patents and regulations prescribing and regulating the amount of tax obligations. The actual tax burden of the Jewish population and its changes over the years are illustrated by documents resulting from the activities of the Jewish commission, overview documents concerning the property relationships of the Jewish population and documents of an inventory nature.