Holop is a slave in Russia

When it speaks of slavery and slaves, the first association that arises is a slave society in Ancient Rome and Greece. Immediately before your eyes arise images of Spartacus and other gladiators. However, slaves were in Russia, and this is not serfs at all. They were called in a peculiar way the word "servant". They were people who had absolutely nothing. Therefore, they had to bend their backs in front of the owner for the sake of a piece of bread and fulfill all his whims. Such a relationship between the master and the servant slave was in feudal society. Their master could "land" on the ground, and then he became a serf.

In Russia, a servant is either a captive soldier of an enemy army, or a person who owes a large amount and is unable to pay. This status was also acquired after marriage or marriage with a slave. Since 1722 all the serfs began to be called serfs. This, in principle, did not change anything in their life. They could sell, buy, give, etc.

Holop in Russia

Part of the population of feudal Russia from the 10th to the 18th century, who did not own the shelter and any property, and was forced to carry out any work in the economy of his feudal lord, was called slaves. During wars, especially internecine wars, conducted with the aim of appropriating someone else's property and conquering new territories, these people automatically turned into slaves. Captive people and cattle were considered conquerors as the most valuable prey. Each landowner had huge free territories, and for their cultivation, naturally, a manpower was needed. The prisoners became prisoners. That is, in Russia it was believed that a servant is primarily a free labor force. These people were involved in both domestic and agricultural work.

The rights of servants in Russia

This part of the population was completely dependent on their masters. They did not have independent legal rights. Nevertheless, not all the serfs were in the same position. Some of them were called draft peasants. That is, a servant is a person who carries the entire burden of the state on his shoulders.

The position of the servant from a legal point of view

He was considered a thing, that is, private property, as well as the rest of the property: real estate, utensils, cattle, etc. Therefore, his actions and actions should be answered by his master. However, in the event that the servant inflicts personal insult to a free person, the offended person may kill him in revenge. A servant who witnessed a crime could not be summoned to the court to testify. The master could kill him, but if someone else killed a slave, he paid his master a fine.

In the judgment of 1550 restrictions were introduced. According to them, the slave's son, born before the father acquired the status of a slave, was considered free, and the father did not have the right to sell him to slavery. If a person became a slave as a result of captivity and managed to escape from captivity, he again gained freedom. He also was released from bondage after the death of his master. And there were also cases when free people, unable to feed or protect themselves, voluntarily became slaves. In the 17th century, a decree prevented this.