Peasant Revolt of 1437-38

an uprising in Transylvania that began in the spring of 1437 with the refusal of Walachian and Hungarian peasants to pay the bishop’s tithe and other feudal imposts with full-valued money in a period of mass emission of devalued currency. The main centers of the revolt were Mount Bobilna (Babolna) near the village of Olpert, the Dej District, and the Cluj (Kolozsvar) District.

After an insurgent victory in July 1437 the feudal lords were forced to make such concessions as abolishing the tithe, reducing corvee, reducing payments in money, and reaffirming the peas-ants’ right to move to other land after paying their debts. How-ever, in January 1438, the revolt was crushed by the feudal lords and the patriciate of the towns of Saxony, which came to the aid of the lords.

The revolt in Transylvania was strongly influenced by the Hussite revolutionary movement (especially the Taborites), as evidenced by the distribution of Hussite literature in the area of the rebellion, the military organization of the insurgents on the Taborite model, and efforts to introduce communal ownership of property, organize communal consumption, and equalize distribution.