Legal and Tax Systems in Moldavia (Late 16th Century - 17th Century): The Case of the Dedicated Monasteries

The Ottoman regime in Moldavia, installed in the mid-16th century, influenced the quantum of internal duties as well, which followed the obligations to the Porte. We are referring to the augmentation of the number of fiscal obligations – of taxes, in Moldavia, particularly during the 17th century, and peaking in the 18th century. In this context, the old duties were converted into instalments coupled with the elimination of the tax immunities starting in the second half of the 16th century, the latter being reconsidered later on, in other forms. Under these circumstances changes also occurred in the way in which the defendants used to serve sentences, by tolerating financial restitutions instead of punishments. Even the most serious ones, like robbery (Romanian “jăcuire”, “tâlhăşug”), could be paid off or even pardoned, under certain conditions, by the Prince in his capacity of highest judge of the country. On the whole, the corporal and custodial punishments were more and more frequently transformed into pecuniary punishments. This practice became part of the general plan of collection of the necessary cash for the Court, in order the meet the Ottoman requirements, and on the other hand the way to apply it at the level of social structures, within the Orthodox majority group and the minority ones, from an ethnic and denominational perspective.