Money, Power, and Influence in Eighteenth-Century Lithuania : The Jews on the Radziwiłł Estates / Adam Teller.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Teller, Adam, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Radziwill family.

Jews--Lithuania--History--18th century.

Jews.

Jews--Lithuania--Economic conditions--18th century.

Latifundio--Lithuania--History--18th century.

Latifundio.

Lithuania--Ethnic relations--History--18th century.

Lithuania.

Lithuania (Grand Duchy)--History--18th century.

Lithuania (Grand Duchy).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (329 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Stanford, CA : Stanford University Press, [2020]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

It has often been claimed that Jews have a penchant for capitalism and capitalist economic activity. With this book, Adam Teller challenges that assumption. Examining how Jews achieved their extraordinary success within the late feudal economy of the eighteenth-century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, he shows that economic success did not necessarily come through any innate entrepreneurial skills, but through identifying and exploiting economic niches in the pre-modern economy—in particular, the monopoly on the sale of grain alcohol. Jewish economic activity was a key factor in the development of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and it greatly enhanced the incomes, and thereby the social and political status, of the noble magnates, including the powerful Radziwiłł family. In turn, with the magnate's backing, Jews were able to leverage their own economic success into high status in estate society. Over time, relations within Jewish society began to change, putting less value on learning and pedigree and more on wealth and connections with the estate owners. This groundbreaking book exemplifies how the study of Jewish economic history can shed light on a crucial mechanism of Jewish social integration. In the Polish-Lithuanian setting, Jews were simultaneously a despised religious minority and key economic players, with a consequent standing that few could afford to ignore.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

Note on Place Names and Transliteration

Introduction

One. Jewish Settlement on the Estates

Two. Jews and Jewish Communities in the Urban Economy

Three. The Economic Institutions of the Estates

Four. Jews as Estate Leaseholders

Five. Arendarze

Six. Jews and Trade in the Estate Economy

Conclusion

Notes

Glossary

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 23. Jul 2020)

ISBN:

9780804799874

0804799873

OCLC:

1178769000