Kulm law

Kulm law, Culm law or Chełmno Law (German: Kulmer Recht; Latin: Jus Culmense vetus; Polish: Prawo chełmińskie) was a legal constitution for a municipal form of government used in several Central European cities during the Middle Ages.

It was initiated on 28 December 1233 in the Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights by Hochmeister Hermann von Salza and Hermann Balk when the towns of Thorn (Toruń) and Chełmno (Kulm) received German town law, in particular as a modification of Magdeburg rights. Named after the town it was signed in, the original document (Kulmer Handfeste) was lost in 1244 when the town hall burned due to an attack by Świętopełk II, Duke of Pomerania. The renewed charter of 1 October 1251 was based on a copy in Thorn, but the rights were reduced.

This type of law was mostly granted by the Teutonic Order to cities within their monastic state, but also adopted by cities elsewhere, mainly in the neighboring Duchy of Masovia. In addition, the Kulm law was expanded, independently from the Knights, to a larger set of laws called Alter Kulm.

Cities and towns

Cities located under Chełmno Law are currently mostly located in northern and central Poland, in the regions of Masuria, Mazovia, Podlachia, Pomerania, Powiśle, Warmia, with some in neighbouring Lithuania and Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast). The largest are Polish capital Warsaw, major cities on the Vistula River Płock, Toruń and Grudziądz, and major port cities of Gdańsk, Kaliningrad and Klaipėda.

The historic centers of Toruń and Warsaw are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, with the historic centers of Chełmno,^[1] Gdańsk^[2] and Tykocin,^[3] and major landmarks of Grudziądz, Kwidzyn,^[4] Lidzbark Warmiński,^[5] Malbork, Olsztyn^[6] and Płock, additionally listed as Historic Monuments of Poland.

Cities include:

See also

• German town law
• Lübeck law
• Magdeburg rights
• History of Prussia
• Håndfæstning, Handfeste

References

Literature

• Jus Culmense ex ultima revisione, oder das vollständige culmische Recht, mit Anmerkungen. Danzig: Johann Friedrich Battels, 1767. [1]
• Janicka, Danuta. Prawo karne w trzech rewizjach prawa chełmińskiego z XVI wieku. Toruń: TNT, 1992. ISBN 83-85196-50-1
• Janicka, Danuta. Nauka o winie i karze w dziejach klasycznej szkoły prawa karnego w Niemczech w 1 połowie XIX wieku. Toruń: Wydaw. Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika, 1998. ISBN 83-231-0985-0
• Johanek, Peter. "Alter Kulm." In Die deutsche Literatur des Mittelalters. Verfasserlexikon, vol. 1, edited by Kurt Ruh, 267–269. Berlin: Auflage, 1978. ISBN 31-100-7264-5
• Rogatschewski, Alexander. "Zur Geschichte des 'Alten Kulms' und anderer preußischer Rechtsbücher nach St. Petersburger Quellen." In Deutschsprachige Literatur des Mittelalters im Östlichen Europa: Forschungsstand und Forschungsperspektiven, edited by R. G. Päsler and D. Schmidtke, 199–244. Heildelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, 2006. ISBN 38-253-5157-2
• Päsler, Ralf G. Deutschsprachige Sachliteratur im Preußenland bis 1500: Untersuchungen zu ihrer Überlieferung, 197, 222–224, 243–252. Köln: Bohlau, 2003. ISBN 34-121-5502-0
• Urban, William. The Prussian Crusade, 123–128. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1980. ISBN 08-191-1278-X

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