A letter of donation

Translated letter:

Elizabeth, by the grace of God queen of Hungary, to all who will see the present letters, eternal greetings in the Lord.  Although we wish and are held to be present and to benefit all those hoping for our favor from the obligation of honor, we wish particularly to respond as we ought to those who have not been repaid, whose gracious merits induce us and excellent and distingished loyalties admonish [us].  This is what by the wording of the presents is made known, that we were anointed by the hand of the venerable father lord Paul, of good memory, formerly bishop of the church of Veszprém whose bishops, established at the time by the prerogative and extraordinary freedom of that church, anoint and crown the queens of Hungary; in that church is the reginal seat when we were anointed queen of Hungary and with God propitious we received also the reginal diadem, at that time we vowed a special vow in our heart, in the manner and example of other queens of Hungary,  according to the custom to provide to that church of Veszprém some things in posession as its special patron, as the right of patronage  pertains to us and to other queens of Hungary established at that time.  Desiring to bring this vow to the promised effect, out of pure generosity and certain queenly munificence, to that church of Veszprém from which church we remember and recognize that we received many temporal benefits in the times of our need, we gave, donated and conferred for the use and possession of the provost and the chapter of that church of Veszprém, to be possessed in perpetuity and peacefully, the whole land of our butlers and butchers from the territory of the great town of Berény, next to Sumberen in the county  of Somogy, namely in enclosed lands, to the cultivation of two ploughings, and in arable (campestris) lands, woods and groves, to a quantity sufficient for the use of three ploughs, and seven meadow-measures of hayfield in them, as the chapter of the church of Alba remanded to us in their letters at our command the number, quality and quantity of all the aforementioned, a site mostly mixed with other lands of that church in that territory of Berény, which that church of Veszprém is known to have possessed for a long time, and through the noble man count John, son of Zsidó, under the witness of that chapter of Alba, we have ordered and had introduced into corporal possession and perpetual holding of that land of Berény and all its uses and appurtenances, the provost and chapter of the said church of Veszprém, with no evident objection.  Except only the freedom of the vineyards remaining over that land about which we wish and ordered the provost and chapter of the church of Veszprém to be responsible; just as other people of that county of Somogy, possessing vineyards of others in those lands were accustomed to answer to the lords of the lands from ancient times.  Therefore, so that the contents of this donation and grant of ours may obtain the strength of perpetual force, and cannot be disturbed in the course of time, we have had the present letters reinforced by the protection of our double seal.  Dated by the hand of the prudent man Master Ladislaus provost of the church of Vaciens our loyal chancellor of our court.  In the one thousand two hundred eightieth year of our lord.

Original letter:

Elisabeth Dei gracia Regina Hungarie universis presentes literas inspecturis, salutem in Domino sempiternam.  Etsi cunctis de nostra sperantibus gracia adesse vel prodesse velimus et teneamur ex debito honestatis, illis tamen pro ceteris specialius respondere volumus repensis gratuitis, ut debemus, quorum nos inducunt merita graciosa, et monent fidelitates eximie et insignes.  Hinc est, quod universis tenore presencium innotescat, quod cum nos de manu venerabilis patris domini Pauli, bone memorie quondam  Episcopi Ecclesie Vesprimiensis, cujus Presules pro tempore constituti ex prerogativa ejusdem Ecclesie et eximia libertate, Reginas Hungarie inungunt et coronant, in qua quidem Ecclesia, est sedes Reginalis, in Reginam Hungarie inuncte fuissemus, et Deo propicio suscepissemus pariter Reginale dyadema, tunc temporis in corde nostro votum vovissemus speciale, eidem Ecclesie Vesprimiensi ad instar, et exemplum aliarum Reginarum Hungarie, juxta morem solitum in possessione aliqua providere tanquam ejus specialis patrona, cujus ad nos, et ad alias Reginas Hungarie constitutas pro tempore jus pertinet patronatus.  Cupientes itaque votum hujusmodi debitum producere ad effectum, totalem terram pincernarum et bochariorum nostrorum de territorio magne ville Bereen, juxta Sumberen in Comitatu Simeghiensi constitutam, videlicet in terris fimatis, ad culturam duorum aratrorum, et in terris campestribus, sylvis et nemoribus, ad quantitatem usus trium aratrorum sufficientem et fenetum septem falcastrorum in eadem existens, prout ad mandatum nostrum Capitulum Albensis Ecclesie nobis in suis literis remandavit, numerum qualitatem et quantitatem omnium premissorum, eidem Ecclesie Vesprimiensis ex mera liberalitate, et certa munificentia Reginali, a qua quidem Ecclesia in rebus temporalibus multa beneficia nos meminimus et recognoscimus necessitatis nostre in temporibus recepisse, ad utilitatem et proprietatem Prepositi, et Capituli ipsius Ecclesie Vesprimiensis dedimus, donauimus et contulimus perpetuo et pacifice possidendam, sitam mixtim per maxime cum alijs terris ejusdem Ecclesie in eodem territorio de Beren constitutis quas ab olim ipsa Ecclesia Vesprimiensis quiete dignoscitur hactenus possedisse, et per nobilem virum Comitem Johannem filium Sydou sub testimonio ejusdem Capituli Albensis Prepositum, et Capitulum Ecclesie Vesprimiensis prefate in corporalem possessionem et perpetuam tenutam ejusdem terre de Beren, et omnium utilitatum et pertinenciarum suarum, nullo contradictore apparente, jussimus et fecimus introduci.  Salva tamen libertate vinearum, super eadem terra existencium remanente, de quibus eisdem Preposito et Capitulo Vesprimiensis Ecclesie taliter volumus et ordinavimus responderi; quemadmodum populi de eodem Comitatu Simeghiensi, alij super terris aliorum vineas possidentes respondere terrarum dominis ab antiquo tempore, cujus non extat memoria, consueuerunt.  Vt igitur hujusmodi donacionis et collacionis nostre series robur obtineat perpetue firmitatis, nec possit processu temporis irritari, presentes literas duplicis sigilli nostri munimine dari fecimus roboratas.  Datum per manus discreti viri Magistri Ladislai Prepositi Ecclesie Vaciensis aule nostre Cancellarij, fidelis nostri.  Anno Domini MoCCo octuagesimo.

Historical context:

The queen makes a donation of land in Berény to the church and provost of Veszprém in gratitude for their support.

Printed source:

Árpádkori új okmánytár:  Codex diplomaticus Arpadianus continuatus, vols. I-XII, G. Wenzel ed. (Pest-Budapest: 1860-74), 4.221-22, #132.  Also in Az Árpád-házi hercegek, hercegnök és a királnék okleveleinek kritikai jegyzéke, Regesta ducum, ducissarum stirpis Arpadianae necnon reginarum Hungariae critico-diplomatica, E. Szentpétery, A. Zsoldos (Budapest, 2008), 117-119, #184 and 119-20, #185.  The second letter is a duplicate, except that it gives curriferorum rather than pincernarum.

Date: