Wojna, pieniądze, ziemia. Finansowe aspekty przygotowań do wojny przez szlachtę łęczycką (1407–1419)

The text addresses the problem of the impact of war on the development of landed estates. The source for this analysis is the land records of Łęczyca, which are kept in the Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw. A detailed query conducted for the period of the Great War (1409–1411), the Hunger War (1414) and the retreat expedition (1419) allowed for the identification of those landowners who during this period actively acquired further tracts of land, thus increasing their possessions. The sources show the activities of Mikołaj of Oporów, Stanisław of Bielawy and Pietrasz of Wroczyny. Moreover, they did not only actively acquire estates but also provided cash to the local nobility, which proves their great financial capabilities. The activities also showed that the noblemen – especially those who were not particularly wealthy – were constantly looking for a quick injection of cash, and such an opportunity was created by pledging goods or their perpetual sale. In fact, the nobility lived on constant credit, and therefore according to the sources examined, it becomes clear that intensive land trade was not always directly related to wartime, because even in times of peace, there was a large number of land-related operations. One needs to remember that the obligation of the noblemen to equip themselves at their own expense for an expedition as part of a common mobilisation, forced the nobility to look for money in order to fulfil it as best as possible.