[Preface] [Introduction] [Beginnings] [Antireformation] [Breakdown] [Dreams]
A Genealogy of a Czech millers´family Kysilka
Part Four
The second son of Vaclav Kysilko was called Vit - Vitus. He was born around the year 1622. He is mentioned for the first time in 1647, when he bought a farmstead with a field and "all what belonged to the farm from a long time ago" in Horni Ujezd from Jakub Hurt at 290 three-score of Meissner Groschen. Because of high debt and installments on the house, and because of an unpleasing war situation (Horni Ujezd was occupied by Swedish troops that year), Vit escaped from his farm which was sold then to another serf.
This is described in the Land Register Book, in a record of 24 May 1650: "Matej, son of Pavel Sykora, took hold of and bought the farmstead, deteriorated at the highest level by Vit Kysylko who run down, at 150 three-score of Groschen." But Vit did not escape too far away. He appears again somewhen in 1650 - 1651 A. D. when he married Mandalena (Magdalena), a daughter of a farmer and innkeeper Podlubnicky, who dwelled at the upper end of Horni Ujezd, where was a road to the neighboring village of Lubna.(Podlubnicky = who lives beneath Lubna). Vit then moved in the house of his father-in-law with his spouse.
For this period we have an excellent historic source, covering all the territory of Bohemia (with some exception). After a century of a religious freedom, when the most of inhabitants, no matter if nobility, their serfs, or town citizans (bourghers), addopted the protestant belief, in the years, following the Thirty-years-war a strengh and brutal re-catolization process began in the whole country. The catholic Habsburg´s government ordered to compile lists of all inhabitants of the kingdom, with the information on social position, age, children, and mainly the religious belief of the inhabitants. These rolls of inhabitants were compiled in 1654 A. D. and are called " Seznamy dle viry " - The Religious Rolls.
The roll of Horni Ujezd states a farmer Vit Podlubnicky (25 years old) and his wife Mandalena ( 24 years old). Why the surname changed from Kysilko to Podlubnicky ? We have to realize, that the surnames were not fixed that time and they were more nicknames or by-names, than real surnames as we know from novadays. Until the end of 18th century it was usual, that the original surname extincted or was changed by the marriage of its bearer, his moving or simply by an impact of some other event. In this case Vit Kysilko moved to the Podlubnicky´s farm and the neighbors started to address him Podlubnicky, same as his father-in-law.
This new surname is stated in land register books whereas in catholic vital registers appears the old surname Kysilko. In several years later Vit Podlubnicky is again given as Vit Kysilko, and thus the mistaken identity is excluded.
The father-in-law was probably deceased already in 1653 A. D., when Vit had the purchase of the farmstead (Hous No. 50 in Horni Ujezd today) written to the Land Register Book: " Actum Julius 11, 1653, Horni Ujezd. Vit Podlubnicky took of and bought the inn (?!) with the field ..... after l(ate) Jirik Podlubnicky, the house and fields both deteriorated, for a purchase price of 500 three-score of Groschen as previously agreed. Of which sum, because of the farm being devastated, he deducted 260 three-score (as a compensation) for hoisting a new dwelling. ... The installments should start in summer 1653, each 4 three-score until it is paid...." Despite of the fact this farmstead had been one of the wealthest in the village, long war years were signed on it as well. The house burnt up, as written in the record, and there were some debts on it. Vit had to pay to various creditors for many years. In 1674 his was better again.
For those who make research of family history in both Bohemia and Moravia, there is an important source that is called Berni role - The Taxation Rolls. Its importance can be compared with the Doomdays´ Book of the 13th century England. There is no other similar source in contemporary Europe at all. Farmstead by farmstead, village by village in all feudal estates throughout the country, they are enumerated and statistically processed for the levy purposses.
Thus, in the tax return in 1674, Vit Kysilko returns a rather big property: 50 "korecs" of fields, 2 horses, 2 cows, 2 heifers and 1 sow. Moreover, his brather Jan, who owned their father´s mill on the Hranicky, had to pay to Vit the succession inheritance in total 57 48/60 three-score of Groschen.
Vit Kysilko and Mandalena had in total 8 children. Some of them were already written in the Vital Register Books of the parish of Dolni Ujezd. Justina was born in 1657, followed by Salomena (1662) and Dorota (1664), who died soon after the birth. The last was Anezka (Agnes) in 1665. Besides, there were 4 children, whose baptismal records were not found: Baltazar, Rozina, Mikulas and Petr.
After the Thirty-Years-War the oppression of the serfs enormously increased not only in religious, but also in social - political views. The Count Johann Fridrich von Trautmannsdorf asked for more and more works, payments, services and duties. The subject people became real serfs or even slaves. Poverty, famine, wars, that all contributed to the decrease of the population. Many cottages and houses are burnt up, unhabited, the fields are neglected, there is a scarcity of working power in general.
On 1648 in Horni Ujezd 11 of 32 farmsteads are empty and 2 of 15 cottages vanished. The situation has not changed too much in next 25 years. In 1674, there were 7 neglected farmsteads in Lubna, 2 in Porici, still 5 empty in Horni Ujezd, six in both Osik and Sec. The landlord´s "Obrigkeit" (supermacy) - established their own large homestead, called the Trautmannsdorfer Yard in Dolni Ujezd on the land of their serfs - they confiscated the fields of 5 farmsteads in Dolni Ujezd, 2 in Osik and 2 in Rikovice. The area of this Trautmannsdorfer Yard in 1680 was 15 "lans". Another landlords´yard, called the Pernstein Yard, was created in the village of Litrbachy with a total area of 22 "lans". The town of Litomysl founded their own farmstead in Desna. All these yards needed the working power. More and more. The serfs had to work on the landlords´3 days in a week, during the field works (harvest) 6 days. Each serf´s farm had to offer one horse or bull team. Rich farmers could send their stable boys instead themselves, but the most of farmers and cottagers had to rub off on the landlords´ from early morning to the nightfall. The time for their own fields was only in the night. The oppression could not be born any more.
In 1680, on the Easter Tuesday, a peasant uprising arose on the whole Litomysl estate.On April 24 (Wednesday) some 500 peasans gathered in front of the Pernstein Yard and start negotiating with the landlord´s bailiff (hauptmann) and begged for a relief from their duties.Though there were even some shots, the situation calmed down, the hauptmann ordered to roll out several barrels of bier and the peasants broke and returned home. A month later the organizers of the uprizing were arrested and four of them sentenced to death. Among them Lukas Pakosta, a miller of Horni Ujezd, the neighbor of the Kysilkas.
The Peasant Uprising in 1680 A. D.
Painting byStanislav Hudecek
I tried to find in the archives, if anybody of the Kysilkas families was among the convicted, but the search was negative. Only Vaclav Kysilko, a son of the miller Kysilka, was interrogated as a witness of the Easter events. He said, he had heard that a man named Jirik Vajda had shoot against the hauptmann, but he did not know it exactly. He knows only, that Stanek, a son of Podhajsky of Osik, "aimed to the mob, where hauptmann stood, and shot."
Mandalena, Vitus´ wife died in 1685 and the widdower married to Alzbeta after late Jan Mares of Horni Ujezd.
On July 2, 1687, Baltazar or Balcar Kysilko, a Vitus´son became the new owner of the Podlubnicky farm. He bought it for a sum of 500 three-score of Groschen, having paid 200 three-score in cash to the father.
Vit Kysilko died on April 12, 1702 in the blessed age of 80 years (from here I guess that his birth years were around 1622).
Baltazar did not live much longer than his father. He died between 1702 - 1705 and the farm was taken over by his oldest son Jan. The same sold the farmstead to a man called Matej Purgkrabek in 1718. Jan Kysilka was 30 years old that year. Why did he sell one of the largest farmsteads in the village ? There is no mention about him anymore.
The second Vit´s son Mikulas is reminded between 1672 - 1677 in the neighboring village of Porici. After 1677 he returned with his wife Mandalena do Horni Ujezd and latest in 1681 he died. It seems it was because of pest that stroke all Bohemia that time.
The third son, Petr Kysilka, having married Anna, a widow after a miller Jan Karsky, settled down in the mill of Porici.And from his issue our direct ancestors originate.
The village of Porici is located up the stream of the Desna river of Horni Ujezd and Desna. There was a mill with a field and a meadow. The previous husband of Anna, Jan Karsky (the younger) inherited this mill after his father (Jan Karsky the older) in 1670 A. D. He died 14 years later ans since the mill needed a master, and the orphan Frantisek an foster-father, in November 1684 Anna Karsky, the widow, married our Petr Kysilka (this time written Kysylka), who became a master of the mill until 1706 A.D., when he ceded the property to the original owner´s hands, to Frantisek Karsky. Petr Kysylka with his spouse and two sons, Pavel and Jirik, kept dwelling in the mill.
The older son Pavel (*Jan. 14, 1686) made himself independant around 1707. Before 1711 he married Marianna, a daughter after late Jan Flidr of Horni Ujezd. His descendents were two girs Lidmila and Katerina and one boy named Jan. There is no more records about this issue.
The name of the younger Petr´s son was Jiri (Jirik, George). He was bor in the Porici mill on March 24, 1690. When he was twenty-one, he married his cousin Dorota Veselik of Desna. Because of being relatives of 3rd degree, they had to ask the Bishopric Consistory in Hradec Kralove for a "dispens", the ecclesiastic permission for wedding.
The Veseliks of Desna belonged to most esteemed and known families. The Local Judge Lukas Veselik was one of organizers of the mentioned peasants´ revolt in 1680 (was condemned to two years of compulsory works in chains), onother Vaclav Veselik in 1717 was condemned to same penalty, but only for 30 days, for his attendance at the secret protestant Lord´s Last Supper in the village of Sokolec in the middle Bohemian estate of Podebrady.
The Eastern Bohemia, mainly its mountanous part around Policka, Ujezd, Lubna, Svata Katerina, Budislav, etc., despite of the strong recatolization, became an important center of forming of the secret protestant belief. The religious parties, hidden protestant rites and unions were organized in remote houses of these villages. People were supported in their belief by incoming protestant priests from Silesia, Prussia and elsewhere. The period 1700 - 1740 was signed by a strong emigration of the Czech (Moravian) Brethren and Luterans to Saxony, Prussia, Silesia and later to America. It should be here remarked, that 19 persons from the village of Lubna left the country in 1732.
We meet Jirik Kysilka again in 1734. Meanwhile 5 children were born in the mill of Porici to him. The oldest Veronika died shortly after her birth. All other children followed in 3 - 5 years intervals: Alzbeta (1717), Veronika again (1720), Frantisek (1724) and Lidmila (1729). The father Jiri was already in middle ages and still without his own housekeeping. They still lived probably with the brother´s family and the family of the step-brother Frantisek Karsky in the mill at Porici.
In 1682, on the landlord´s soil,a new village (such a village established on the lord´s (dominical) property, was called dominikalni vesnice - a dominical village) of Kamenne Sedliste was founded. The subject people from neighboring villages left them and settled down in new lord´s cottages in Kamenne Sedliste, or with the lord´s approval built new houses for themselves.
On the northern part of "... Porici, alias Kamenne Sedliste, where a new village had been arisen..." a dominical (lord´s) mill with a saw appeared after 1680s (No. 41 in Kamenne Sedliste today). Its first master was certain Ondrej Pakosta in 1694. The Pakostas (also called the Kalibans - Kalibanka was the cattle drive road between Porici and Horni Ujezd) were the secret Moravian Brethren as well. Ondrej´s son Vavrinec Pakosta could not bear anymore the religious oppression and he flew in 1734 from the estate and from Bohemia to a Moravian community of Rixdorf near Berlin. He left with his wife, mother, children and his brother Jiri pakosta - the sawer with his complete family.
Thus the dominical mill in Kamenne Sedliste emptied and it was our Jirik Kysilko, who get there. The Land Register Book quotes: "Anno Domini 1734, dies 18. aprilis, Jirik Kysilko took over and purchased (for 335 three-score) the mill with a saw after Vevrinec Pakosta, who had escaped the estate for his belief along with his wife, four children and even with his mother." It is not possible to let to know, how it happened, that it was our ancestor Jirik Kysilko, who got the mill. It is highly probable, that the "Obrigkeit" needed a reliable miller on the rebels´ mill. Or - even worse - Jirik Kysilka had converted to the catholic faith, might have traited his religious brethren and and the mill was ceded him for his "merits".
