Marta Kuc-Czerep
DOI: 10.21858/msr.56.01
Vol. no: 56
This article addresses the issue of the introduction of classificatory numbering for plots of land in the Warsaw urban area in 1784. The initiative for this undertaking came from the Chartering Commission, convened by King Stanisław August, whose aim was to estimate costs and raise necessary funds for building barracks for the Crown Foot Guard, the Crown Horse Guard, the Lithuanian Foot Guard and the Crown Artillery. The task of assigning numbers to plots of land was carried out by the Cobblestone Commission, chaired by Grand Marshal of the Crown Michał Jerzy Mniszech. As a result, in 1784 a handwritten schedule of the cubit tax was created, and a printed schedule of dues for barracks was published. The decision to assign numbers to plots of land in Warsaw was part of a trend in urban planning measures undertaken in Europe during the Enlightenment. On the one hand, this solution served to increase control over citizens and was intended to facilitate tax collection and conscription. On the other hand, it provided better orientation within the city, which was important for commercial activity and the operation of the real estate market.