The text of the medieval land right of Stellingwerf has been discovered in the Gelders Archive in Arnhem. It is very exceptional that medieval legal rules of an area are still found in our time. It is also important that no trace of its own medieval right was known from Stellingwerf, an area with its own historical development. The text was discovered by Dr Oebele Vries, assistant professor and researcher at the Frisian language and culture program at the University of Groningen. The text will be presented to the press on Friday 3 July 2009.
The text found is a Dutch translation from the late fifteenth century. The original text was in Latin. This must have been recorded in the fourteenth century, but when exactly is not known. The validity of the Stellingwerf land right ended in the year 1504, at the same time as that of Old Frisian law.
Rebellion
The old Stellingwerf area, which lives on in the municipalities of Oost- and West-Stellingwerf, now forms the southeastern part of the province of Friesland. It originally belonged to Drenthe/Overijssel, where the bishop of Utrecht ruled at the time. In the period 1309-1328 Stellingwerf revolted against the bishop. After this, it formed a free, self-governing rural municipality for almost two centuries, following the example of Friesland, where similar republics had already existed for some time. In 1498 the freedom of the Frisian rural municipalities came to an end, in 1500 also that of Stellingwerf. Duke Albrecht of Saxony then became the new lord. He incorporated the Saxon Stellingwerf into Friesland. To this day, however, it still forms an area within Friesland with its own signature.
Ten Rules of Law
The now discovered land law of Stellingwerf consists of ten legal rules. These have been laid down on behalf of the 'stelling', the judges/administrators of the rural municipality of Stellingwerf. These legal rules contain provisions in the field of criminal law and inheritance law. In particular, some criminal law provisions make an archaic impression. This applies in particular to the procedure of claiming a lump sum payment for a family member who has been killed. Very striking is the fine imposed for infringing on Frisian freedom.
700 years Stellingwerf
The discovery of this medieval land right happens to coincide with the celebration of the fact that Stellingwerf entered history seven hundred years ago. In this context, a large number of festivities will be organized in Oost- and West-Stellingwerf in the course of this year, such as a repeat of the 19th-century Bergfeesten in Appelscha, special village festivals with a medieval touch and a charter exhibition in the National Braid Museum. in Noordwolde.
Symposium
On September 18, 2009, the Stellingwarver Schrieversronte Foundation, Stellingwerf's institute for language, history and identity, is organizing a historical symposium about Stellingwerf at the beginning of the 14th century. Part will be a first exploration of the newly discovered land rights by Dr. Oebele Vries. Location:'t Vlechtwerk, Noordwolde. More about the symposium.