Dear Dave,
Thank you for the pictures and information on salt trade and the infrastructure around it. I would like to suggest some correction in that there were no salt mines in Tirol - those were largely in Salzburg, not part of Habsburg controlled territory before the end of the Napoleonic wars, and to some extent Upper Austria, from where Austria got and still gets its salt. However Hungary never got salt from these areas as there were and still are much larger salt mines up the Tisza river and its largest tributary, the Maros river in NE Hungary (present day Ukraine) and Transilvania (present day Romania). The Salzämter in the Banat as in the rest of Hungary were distributing salt from these mines, the longest part of the transport covered by boats. In all places mentioned, salt trade was a government monopoly.
Best regards,
Andras
Feladó: everybody@banat.groups.io <everybody@banat.groups.io>, Dave Dreyer <ddreyer@...> nevében
Elküldve: hétfő, december 9, 2024 4:41:20 de.
Címzett: AKdFF <akdff-l@...>; donauschwaben-L@... <donauschwaben-l@...>; Banat.io List <everybody@banat.groups.io>; David Dreyer <ddreyer@...>
Tárgy: [banat] Gr Betschkerek Salzamt
Elküldve: hétfő, december 9, 2024 4:41:20 de.
Címzett: AKdFF <akdff-l@...>; donauschwaben-L@... <donauschwaben-l@...>; Banat.io List <everybody@banat.groups.io>; David Dreyer <ddreyer@...>
Tárgy: [banat] Gr Betschkerek Salzamt
- Dave DreyerThe Hapsburg monopoly on salt-----white gold----- was an important source of income for the crown. Salt is an indispensable component in the human diet as well as in food preservation. The Hapsburg controlled most of the salt production in the empire, most of which was centered in the Tirol. Hungary and Croatia tended to be salt poor and these countries were important markets for Tirolian salt.As part of this salt trade a series of warehouses(Salzamts) were established in larger metropolitan areas for the distribution of Hapsburg salt. This distribution system in the Banat took the form of warehouses in larger metropolitan towns including Temeswar, Gr Betschkerek and perhaps Lugosch as well as Orowitz. The Salzamt in Gr Betschkerek still stands(as of 2015) although in a very derelict condition. At that time there was some debate among city authorities on the question of restoration or demolishing the structure. At this time, 2024, it appears that the city will likely demolish the structure which is regarded as beyond any practical salvage or restoration.An 1818 entry in the monthly reports of the XII Deutsch Banater Grenz Regiment records the dispatch of detachments consisting of a corporal and seven troopers for guard duty on the Gr Betschkerek Salzamt.Gr Betschkerek Salzamt Street view 2015Gr Betschkerek Salzamt 2015, View from the Hof1818 record from the monthly reports of the XII Deutsch Banater Grenz Regiment assigning guard duty detachments to the Gr Betschkerek Salzamt.