Women's noble court in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Saxon times. Structure, people, culture, functions
The Aricle about Correspondence of folwark officials in XVIII century
New article by dr hab Urszula Kicińska was published in Klio – Czasopismo Poświęcone Dziejom Polski i Powszechnym. The research title is: Correspondence of folwark officials under Marianna Potocka née Kątska, the wife of starosta of Lviv, as a contribution to the analysis of the foundations of economic life at manorial estates in the Saxon times.
Marianna Potocka née Kątska (d. 1768), the wife of the starosta of Lviv, is an extraordinary figure. She inherited the immense fortune of the Kątski, Denhoff and Szczuka families, which became the foundation for the economic power of the Potocki family. Nevertheless, little is known about Marianna Potocka’s entrepreneurship and engagement in economic activities aimed at embracing and multiplying the family fortune. Such information stems from the correspondence between court officials and their benefactress, which allows one to catch a glimpse of the social environment of the Potockis’ court and learn about its organisation and functioning, especially in connection with the relationship between Marianna and her staff – higher and lower grange (folwark) managers, administrators, and other minor subjects. The purpose of these considerations is therefore to analyse the economic and social foundations of the functioning of the generals’ estates, and to find answers to several of the most important questions in this respect, namely: Which branches of the economy successfully developed in the Potocki estate and became the basis for multiplying their extensive fortune? Where did the profits needed to maintain the manor come from? How was the cooperation between the benefactress and individual officials? What problems were addressed to the general? Furthermore, to what extent do the analysed responses offer a glimpse of Eustachowa’s influence on the estates she managed, especially during her husband’s absence? The nature of the following research is innovative due to the lack of studies on female magnate and noblewomen’s economic activity in the Saxon era and their real impact on the development and expansion of family fortunes
