University of Tarty / Piirimäe

Pärtel Piirimäe, Professor of Intellectual History, Department of Philosophy and Semiotics, University of Tartu, partel.piirimae@ut.ee. https://ut-ee.academia.edu

CH-671

Pärtel Piirimäe, Professor of Intellectual History, Department of Philosophy and Semiotics, University of Tartu. His research interests include the history of early modern international law, history of European and Estonian political and moral thought, history of propaganda and the public sphere, history of historiography, and the formation of regional identities.

Bilthoven, 17 maart 2019

Dear Pärtel Piirimäe,

Thanks to Viktors Dabolins I came to read your articles about the Swedish times in Estland and Livland. I have a question that needs some explanation first. My first ancestor Johan Meijer belonged in 1480 to the gentry serving the Livonian Order. His grandson joined the Liffländska Adelsfanan to stop Ivan IV,. His grandson was commander of Fellin when Gustav II Adolf rushed towards Riga. His son was Chief Inspector over Oberpahlen and raised in Swedish nobility in 1674 with the name Meijerfeldt. His three sons where high ranking officers with Charles XII. In 1710 the family moved to Sweden. My assumption is that this family did not feel part of the Ritterschaft and had as small land-owner not been a victim of the reduction. You write about the submissive capitulation conditions of Peter the Great. Do you know of any permitted exodus of wifes and children to Sweden?
Thanks in advance for your response.

Best regards,

Hugo von Meijenfeldt

Bilthoven, 11 april 2019

Dear Partel Piirimae,

Through the website Academia.edu I posed a question to you about the Swedish emigrants after the capitulation of Riga in 1710.

Did this question reach you? If not, I will resend it to this e-mail address. If yes, can I expect a response?

Thank you in advance for any trouble taken,

Hugo von Meijenfeldt

Tartu, 12 april 2019

Hello Hugo,

my apologies – your letter did not come to my notice. As far as I know the capitulation conditions indeed permitted the Swedish officers to leave for Sweden but I have not looked at how it concerned the local noblemen. I recommend to have a look at the capitulation treaties, which are all published.

Die Kapitulationen der estländischen Ritterschaft und der Stadt Reval vom Jahre 1710 nebst deren Konfirmationen : nach den Originalen mit anderen dazu gehörigen Dokumenten und der Kapitulation von Pernau / herausgegeben von Eduard Winkelmann
Reval : Kluge, 1865

Die Capitulationen der livländischen Ritter- und Landschaft und der Stadt Riga vom 4. Juli 1710 nebst deren Confirmationen : nach den Originaldocumenten mit Vorausstellung des Privilegium Sigismundi Augusti und einigen Beilagen / herausgegeben von C. Schirren
Dorpat : Karow, 1865
Also available online: http://kpbc.umk.pl/dlibra/docmetadata?id=40728&from=publication

You could read about the content and background of the capitulations in the following book (which includes further references):
Die baltischen Kapitulationen von 1710 : Kontext, Wirkungen, Interpretationen / Karsten Brüggemann, Mati Laur, Pärtel Piirimäe (Hg.) Köln [etc.] : Böhlau, 2014

With best wishes,
Pärtel Piirimäe

Bilthoven,

Thank you very much Pärtel.

Schirren and Brüggemann were known to me. I will study Winkelmann.

All the best,
Hugo