Legal Aspects Regarding Dowry Right in Land in the Early Modern Era

Abstract

The submission focuses on the role of women in the Early Modern Era with emphasis on their right to dowry and counter-dowry. Different types of dowries are mentioned, as well as specific articles from the Land Ordonnances concerning the gain and loss of the dowry right. The paper focuses on the territory of the Bohemian Crown, which consisted of several conjunct territories, taking into account the main regions and comparing the differences between the provisions from the different Land Ordonnances. This paper also compares different cases taken from the land books examining the outlined frame of laws. We take a closer look at one case from Bohemia which demonstrates how the court proceeded in a case of doubt towards the woman’s justification in question of her dowry right.