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== General Historical Background == | == General Historical Background == | ||
In general, church records in Poland have been kept since the mid-1600s, although a few parishes have records dating from about 1548. The efficient recording of baptisms, marriages, and deaths developed slowly. Record-keeping requirements were limited at first to baptisms, marriages, and confession registers. The Pope Paul the 5th demanded from the priests to keep five sets of records: baptism, confirmation, marriage, death, and status animarum–list of parishioners. The amount of information increased over time. For example, early records often failed to provide the mother’s full name. Catholics were the first to maintain church vital records, but Protestants followed soon after. Most parishes have records dating from at least the early 1700s. Sometimes Catholic parishes also kept records of people of other faiths. For more information about the churches in Poland, see [[Poland Church History]]. | |||
=== The following timeline shows important dates concerning church record-keeping in Poland: === | === The following timeline shows important dates concerning church record-keeping in Poland: === | ||
'''1563''' The Roman Catholic council of Trent required Catholic parishes throughout Europe to record baptisms and marriages. Few Polish parishes complied until the 1590s. | '''1563''' The Roman Catholic council of Trent required Catholic parishes throughout Europe to record baptisms and marriages. Few Polish parishes complied until the 1590s. | ||
'''1565''' The parish priests were asked to make at the end of each year the extracts of the previous year’s records and to send them to the bishop, whose responsibility was to keep them at his archive. | |||
'''1614 '''A revised church proclamation repeated the order to keep church books and added a requirement to maintain death registers. Many more parishes complied. | '''1614 '''A revised church proclamation repeated the order to keep church books and added a requirement to maintain death registers. Many more parishes complied. | ||
'''1781''' The Austrian Empire recognized | '''1781''' The Austrian Empire recognized religious rights of non-Catholics with the Edict of Toleration. | ||
'''1784''' The Austrian Empire began requiring civil transcripts of church records under Catholic supervision. | '''1784''' The Austrian Empire began requiring civil transcripts of church records under Catholic supervision. | ||