1862 French Manuscript Agreement for Sale of a Vineyard in Nancy, France
10219On offer is a beautiful example of an 1862 French Acquet (or Acquisition), an agreement for the sale of lands. It was prepared by Monsieur Crepin, Notary in the city of Nancy, in northeastern France.
The parties listed in the document include Monsieur Louis Dominique Chevallier, a baker in the village of Malzeville, outside of Nancy and Mademoiselle Anne Flaine, also of Malzeville. The agreement concerns a parcel of land. An excerpt follows:
un are de vigne ... le prix de cent huit francs la piece...
[Translation: a vineyard…at a price of one hundred and eight francs per piece...]
Note: un are = 100 m2
The real estate and mortgage markets in France were huge, even before the country was fully industrialized. In 1840, for instance, outstanding mortgage debt in France amounted to 28 percent of GDP, or about the same level relative to the size of the economy as in the United States in the 1950s.
And this mortgage market existed outside of the French banking system. Mortgages were most often arranged by ‘notaries’, men like “Crepin”. Notaries sat in the centre of a web of financial and debt information and acted as the primary bridge between lenders and borrowers.
The document bears seals that document its registration including a beautifully embossed French imperial eagle.
For a historian, this document shows how lands and property were exchanged and dealt with in mid- 19th century France. A social historian would note that one of the parties to the contract is a woman which speaks to their role in wider French society at the time. For a legal scholar, this is an excellent example of the type of legal documents that were drawn at the time. It gives a sense of the legal system that underpinned these types of contracts. For a genealogist, this document helps trace family lines and lands in and around this village a century and a half ago.
Drafted in 1862, this document comprises 4 pages inside an outer cover sheet. The cover is sewn onto the enclosed sheets. The document was folded in the centre to create a booklet format. The cover paper is a brilliant yellow. It bears the letterhead of the Notary firm and the names of the parties in a beautiful copperplate hand. The pages are in good condition with some wear along the edges. The handwriting is quite legible.
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