A land grant in recompense

Translated letter:

Elizabeth by the grace of God queen of Hungary to all the faithful of Christ present and future who will look at the present writing, greetings in the savior of all.  We wish to make it manifest to the notice of all present and future by the contents of these:  that since a prudent man master Paul, cantor of the church of Buda, our faithful cleric, from the first years of his youth always showed pleasing and gentle service to our person with the zeal of indefatigable loyalty; especially when we were enclosed on the island of the Blessed Virgin at the cloister of the ladies, caused by the counsel of wicked people, and for not a short space of time under strice custody as if in the workhouse of a prison, for no compelling guilt, no cause of any kind found against us, by lord king Ladislaus, the consort of our bedchamber, and lady Elizabeth his sister, quite seriously supporting in that; that master Paul, submitting himself, his person and all his goods to the diverse and various chances of fortune, not fearing the dread of death, sustained us by the ministry, counsel and aid of his diligence, dashing around devotedly through the whole kingdom.  Giving little weight to the most strict order of our lord king that he should not show us anything of loyalty and service; because of which possessions which he had had were conferred on, handed over to another by that lord our king; and his person was attacked by that lord our king with continuous fear of death; and because he [the king] could not withdraw him from our service, he [Paul] freed [us] from the cloister of the religious, fleeing from jail with the help of God.  All of which more certainly we do not in any way doubt is known and revealed in this way to the venerable fathers archbishops and other prelates of the kingdom of Hungary, barons, and almost all nobles; and since for the immense loyalties of this kind and many others in the continuous difficulties which we bore which can hardly be enumerated because of their quantity, he should be exalted with multiple declaration of praises, we should respond for the exigency of loyalty; in some recompense for his services, we have conferred on that master Paul by perpetual right and irrevocably a certain reginal land of ours called Jutas within the lands of the nobles of Jutas in the county/ispánate of Veszprém, near Veszprém itself, on which our conditionaries, who are called Rendbuchar in the vulgate, resided and certain of them now reside, with all its uses and lands, namely arable, hayfield, brush, and whatever others, establishing by the authorities of the presents that that master Paul may have the ability of holding for himself, giving, selling, binding, to whomever he might wish, free always in his life and in death.  In memory and perpetual stability of which thing, we grant the present letters strengthened by the protection of our double seal.  Dated by the hand of the venerable father lord Benedict, by the grace of God bishop of Veszpém, our faithful chancellor of our court in the year of the Lord 1290.   

Original letter:

Elisabeth, Dei gratia, regina Hungarie, omnibus Christi fidelibus, tam presentibus, quam futuris, presens scriptum inspecturis, salutem in omnium Saluatore.  Vniuersorum presentium, futurorumque notitiae harum serie volumus fieri manifestum:  quod quia vir discretus Magister Paulus, Cantor Ecclesie Budensis, fidelis Clericus noster, a primaeuis iuuentutis sue temporibus studio indefesse fidelitatis gratum semper et placidum persone nostre exhibuit famulatum; presertim cum in insula B. Virginis apud Claustrum Dominarum, procurante iniquorum consilio, incluse fuissemus, et non modico temporis spacio sub arcta custodia, quasi in carceris ergastulo, non exigentibus culpis, nec inuentis contra nos causis aliquibus, per Dominum Ladislaum Regem, Thori nostri consortem, et Dominam Elisabeth sororem eiusdem, satis grauiter detente in eodem; idem Magister Paulus, personam suam et omnia bona sua, non verendo metum mortis, in diuersos et varios fortune casus se submittendo, per suae industriae ministerium, consilium et auxilium nos deuote per totum regnum discurrendo, sustentauit.  Districtissmum Domini nostri Regis mandatum, ne aliquid fidelitatis et seruitii nobis impendere deberet, pauci pendens, et non ponens breuiter in pretio aliquali; propter quae possessiones ipsius interdum huic, nunc alteri per eundem Dominum nostrum regem tradite, et collate; personam etiam suam, que metu mortis continuo ab eodem Domino nostro rege pulsabatur; eo quod ab ipso seruitio nostro ipsum reuocare non poterat, apud Claustrum religiosorum vix fuge presidio, cum Dei adiutorio, liberauit.  Quae omnia certo certius venerabilibus Patribus Archiepiscopis et aliis regni Hungariae Ecclesiarum Praelatis, Baronibus, Nobilibusque fere omnibus constare suo modo et esse notorie nota nullatenus dubitamus; et cum propter huiusmodi immensas fidelitates eiusdem, et alia multa, quae poropter[sic] sui prolixitatem numerari vix possunt, multiplici laudum preconio esset attollendus, nec ei iuxta fidelitatis exigentiam, propter continua incommoda, quae portauimus, potuerimus respondere; in aliqualem tamen recompensationem seruitiorum suorum, quamdam terram nostram reginalem Iutas vocatam, inter terras Nobilium de Iutas, in Comitatu Vesprimiensi prope ipsum Vesprim existentem, super qua conditionarii nostri, qui vulgariter Rendbuchar dicuntur, residebant, et quidam nunc resident, cum omnibus vtilitatibus suis, terris videlicet arabilibus, foeneto, virgulto et aliis, quibuscunque eidem Magistro Paulo iure perpetuo et irreuocabiliter duximus conferendum, auctoritate presentium statuentes, quod idem Magister Paulus tenendi pro se, donandi, vendendi, legandi, cuicunque voluerit, liberam semper in vita pariter et in morte possit habere facultatem.  In cuius rei memoriam, perpetuamque firmitatem, presentes concessimus litteras dupplicis sigilli nostri munimine roboratas.  Datum per manus Venerabilis Patris Domini Benedicti, Dei gratia Episcopi Vesprimiensis, aule nostre Cancellarii, fidelis nostri Anno Domini MCCXC.  L.S.

Historical context:

In gratitude for his selfless service to her while she was imprisoned by the king her husband, the queen grants a reginal land to the cleric Paul, cantor of the church of Buda, who had apparently been deprived of his lands  Paul may have later become her vice-chancellor, see Zsoldos, The Árpáds and Their Wives, 130.  Condicionarii are people who belong to the estate and are obliged to perform certain unspecified services, Zsoldos, The Árpáds and Their Wives, p.50.

Printed source:

Codex Diplomaticus Hungariae ecclesiasticus ac civilis, ed. G. Fejér (Budae, Regiae Vniversitatis Vngariae, 1829—44), 7.127-29, #388.

Date: