Leibzoll

The Leibzoll (German: "body tax") was a special toll that Jews had to pay in most European states from the Middle Ages to the 19th century.

In his capacity as Holy Roman emperor the king claimed the exclusive rights of the jurisdiction and taxation of the Jews, and retained responsibility for the protection of their lives and their property.

The first instance of the granting of one of these safe-conducts occurred under Louis le Débonnaire (814–840), and a specimen of it may be found among the documents preserved in the "Liber Formularum" of that period.

1, 70, Kiel, 1884; Scherer, "Rechtsverhältnisse der Juden," p. 110, Leipsic, 1901); the same is stated in the charter granted to the Jews of Worms, 1090 ("Zeitschrift für die Gesch.

As in the stipulations regulating the tolls of Raffelstetten [de], and as in the law of Frederick II, only customs duties for goods or slaves were mentioned: therefore a personal tax was unknown.

But these taxes continued as customs duties until, with the growing hostility of the free cities, and with the frequent expulsion from vast territories which became the rule in the fifteenth century, those rulers who had expelled the Jews from their domains determined on the adoption of a policy of keeping them away from their borders.

On the passports issued to them by their respective sovereigns they could engage in trade in the latter places, at least during the day, and, therefore, since the local governments wished to enforce the decrees excluding the Jews, they were driven to adopt new measures ("R. E.

Administrators soon recognized the financial utility of the Leibzoll, and the territorial rulers in the German empire levied such a toll from all traveling Jews, whether foreigners or their own subjects.

For example, an ordinance of Philip V of Spain (1703) fixes the toll for a wagon-load of merchandise, one head of cattle, or one Jew, when passing over the bridges of Luxembourg, at four sols ("R. E.

The Jews living within the territory of the Elector of Mainz were exempted from Leibzoll when they were traveling to attend one of the regular landtags, or to meetings of the district congregations (see Bamberger, "Histor.

Thus the Jews of Saxony were exempt from the Leibzoll by an order dated 16 April 1773 (Levy, "Geschichte der Juden in Sachsen," p. 71, Berlin, 1901).

Early in July, 1798, the French general Cacatte informed the members of the government at Nassau-Usingen that, at the order of the division commander Freitag, the special taxes of the Jews were to be abolished, as they were repugnant to justice and humanity.

At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Jews of Germany found a courageous champion in Wolf Breidenbach [de], who worked persistently for the abolition of this impost.

Perceiving that ample resources would be required to carry on his campaign, and not being personally able to command these, he invoked the aid of the German and foreign Jews in 1803, asking them to subscribe to the fund raised for this purpose.

He instituted negotiations with the minor German princes at the Diet of Ratisbon (1804), and, aided by Dalberg, the imperial chancellor, succeeded in obtaining free passage for the Jews throughout the Rhine provinces and Bavaria.

It was largely due to his efforts that the Leibzoll was abolished in Kurhessen, Hohenlohe, Neuwied, Wied-Runkel, Braunfels, Solms-Rödelheim, and also in Nassau (September, 1806).

In the area of today's Switzerland, as in the surrounding regions, Jews were subjected to the costly and humiliating practice of paying the body tax (Leibzoll), particularly between the 17th and 18th century.

In 1804, in a similar vein, the Small Council of Fribourg made a ruling to levy higher bridge tolls for all Jews who were not French citizens.

By order of Emperor Nicholas I this application was referred to the Grand Duke Constantine Pavlovich, then Viceroy of Poland, who stated that he considered the abolition of the tax inexpedient, but proposed decreasing its amount and regulating it according to age, sex, and business occupation.

In consequence of this report, Emperor Nicholas ordered the minister of finance to communicate with the proper authorities, and to draft the regulations for the introduction of the tax in question.

After a prolonged correspondence with the Polish authorities the minister found the proposed measure to be inexpedient, not only because of the decrease in the revenues which it would effect, but also because of possible complications and abuses in its enforcement.