著者

佐保 吉一

出版者

北海道東海大学

雑誌

北海道東海大学紀要. 人文社会科学系 (ISSN:09162089)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.13, pp.119-134, 2000

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The purpose of this article is to verify the development of the Jutland Proprietors' Quarrel in 18th century Denmark and to consider the meaning of it. In Denmark in 1784,the reform-intentioned government was born and so-called "agricultural reform" had set its course. Soon major laws came out; the adjustment of the relations between landlord and farmer, to the advantage of the latter (1787), abolition of the Stavnsband (adscription) (1788), and so on. The consolidation of the farming land had gone further and already changed the scenery of the rural landscape. And two further measures that favored the peasant were the rights to trade in corn and to stallfeed oxen, which had hitherto been the exclusive privileges of the landowner. As the reform proceeded, 103 Jutland landowners in 1791 presented a petition to the Crown Prince for the abolition of the new measures as injurious to the country. "What is passed by Royal Order" retorted the Crown Prince, "cannot be changed." Later this petition was sent to the Danish Chanceller and the attorney general at that time, Christian Colbjornsen, published a critical pamphlet on the petition by the Jutland landowners. Finally, a survey committee had been set up and Colbjornsen brought a lawsuit against Luttichau, who was the one that handed the petition to the Crown Prince and criticized Colbjornsen harshly. The committee found out that there were some false signatures and Colbjornsen won the lawsuit. The Jutland landowners were defeated, which meant that the reformists won and the government acquired a confidence to go on further with the reform. In the meantime, the landowner-hating bourgoisie of Copenhagen favored the development. And there came a voice of erecting a monument in order to commemorate the introduction of these peasant reforms in the gratitude to King Christian VII. This brought the erection of the Liberty Memorial (completed in 1797). As far as the agricultural reform is concerned, the final goal was the abolition of the boonwork (hoveri) and this was the most critical issue that deprived the landowners of their social and economic power. The government was watching the development of the peasants' uprising and the landowners' response. At length government officials decided to slow down the reform by issuing some Royal Decrees that favored the landowner class. Standing in between, the position of the government became difficult and they took the course in between. And this compromising course was caused by the incident of this Jutland Proprietors' Quarrel.