Collection ID: 0002 | Metadata type: TEI | TEI XML | Data

Title

Gründliche mit unverwerfflichen Documenten aus den ostfriesischen Landes Verträgen und Praejudiciis demonstrirte und befestigte Anweisung der vielfältigen Neuerungen des jetztlebenden ostfriesischen Hoffgerichts und dass Seiner hochfürstlichen Durchlaucht zu Ostfriessland, in Sachen die Regierung und ihre von kaijserllicher Maijestät habende und in denen Landes Verträgen bestätigte Regalia und Jura betreffend von dero im Lande bestelten Hoffgericht nicht institiabel, sondern in solchen Sachen Ihro kaijserlichen Maijestät derselben innige ordentliche Obrigkeit seije

Authors

• Mensshengen, Franz Wilderich von, 1663-1723
• Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, 1685-1740

Call number

Ms. Codex 1171
(Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, Rare Book & Manuscript Library)

Alternate identifiers

• bibid: 4303613
• http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/d/medren/4303613

Publisher

The University of Pennsylvania Libraries

Language

German, with interspersed passages in Latin (quotations from Livy, f. 6r-v; and from Johannes Althusius, 277r-280v)

Origin

Date

1719

Place

Ostfriesland

Summary

Copy of a legal argument and accompanying documentation concerning a court case in the principality of Ostfriesland, prepared by imperial counsel (Hofrat) Franz Wilderich von Mensshengen, dated 6 July (Communicentur replica sub termino duorum mensium, ex consilio imperiali aulico, Frantz Wildrich v. Menshengen; f. 3r, 369v), and submitted (insinuiret; f. 2r) 15 July 1719. The work was occasioned by the case of the imperial prince of Ostfriesland vs. the Landestände (estates), the Hofgericht (court of law associated with the estates), and Pastor Jacob Isebrand Harkenroht of Larrelt, a village within the district of Emden (f. 2v). Harkenroht had apparently published a book that was forbidden by the censor (f. 3v). At issue are questions about the proper jurisdiction of the Hofgericht vis-à-vis the chancellery of the imperial prince. The writer is defending the interests of the emperor and the prince in the case by refuting the argumentation of an exception issued by the Hofgericht; he also takes the opportunity to discount a report (so genandten illustrirten Bericht) recently issued by the Hofgericht in which it had sought to define the respective jurisdictions of itself and the princely chancellery. The 3 parts (dreijen Theilen) spelled out in the subtitle (f. 2r-v) describe a line of argumentation but do not seem to correspond to specific structural divisions within the text. Structurally, the manuscript consists of 2 main parts: a narrative text (f. 3v-215r); and an appendix (f. 218r-365r) of 47 numbered excerpts, references to which are noted in the margins of the preceding narrative. The narrative is divided into 128 paragraphs or sections (also noted in the margins); it makes its argument with support of citations from documents such as laws, court documents, and imperial decrees, dating as far back as 1588 (f. 44v). It begins with an introduction (Eingang; f. 3v), followed by a part 1 (Erster Theil, Antwordt auf die Vorrede in den Exceptionibus; f. 7r), and a part 2 (Zweijter Teil von der Hauptsache; f. 34r). The dates of the documents excerpted in the appendix range from 1589 (f. 291v) to 1718 (f. 365r); included are items authored by several ruling princes of Ostfriesland: Rudolph Christian (1602-1628; f. 325r, 338r, 340r), Christian Eberhard (1665-1705; f. 322r, 361r), and the prince at this time, Georg Albrecht (1690-1734; f. 324v).

Notes

• Ms. codex.
   
• Title from title page (f. 2r-v).
   
• Related manuscripts, designated Ms. German 62, Ms. German 63, and Ms. German 64, which contain copies of documents about the government of Ostfriesland dating from the first half of the 18th century and most likely in the same hand as this one, are found bound with printed material under call number GC 6F8578 662g, Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Pennsylvania.
   

Extent

371 leaves : 201 x 155 (170 x 118) mm. bound to 209 x 168 mm

Foliation

Paper, i + 369 + i (f. 216-217, 366-368 are blank). Modern foliation in pencil, upper right recto. Catchwords on both the recto and verso of f. 4-214, and on the verso only of f. 3, 218-364.

Support

Paper

Binding

Contemporary calf (Zacour-Hirsch).

Layout

Written in 19-23 long lines.

Script

Written in a German cursive hand.

Provenance

• Formerly owned by C. Oldenhove (e bibl. C. Oldenhove, Ms. VI; f. 1r).
   
• Sold by Gerstenbergsche Buchhandlung (Hildesheim, Germany), 1965.
   

Subjects topical

• Ostfriesland (Germany).--Hofgericht
• Censorship--Holy Roman Empire

Genres

• Codices
• Government records
• Legal documents
• Manuscripts, German--18th century
• Manuscripts, European

Licenses

• Text

  This description is ©2016 University of Pennsylvania Libraries. It is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License version 4.0 (CC-BY-4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. For a description of the terms of use see the Creative Commons Deed https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

  URL

  http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

• Text

  All referenced images and their content are free of known copyright restrictions and in the public domain. See the Creative Commons Public Domain Mark page for usage details, http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/.

  URL

  http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/