A Love Story
Romance
Marriage
Real
Life
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This actual document from 1799, is another
kind of agreement between two families. This contract between
a son-in-law and wife on the one hand, and the mother of the
wife on the other, made to recognize the terms of inheritance
of the wife's father who has died. What this document shows is
that the wife's mother receives the use but not the ownership
of her late husband's property. She in turn, permits the son-in-law
maintain control over a substantial sum of money that he was
given control over when he married the daughter, part of it being
her dowry. This show that the wife's dowry is controlled by her
husband: it was not his to keep or own outright, for it could
revert to the wife or her family in the case of her death. In
fact, though, husbands were able to be in firm control over movable
goods and cash; when it came to land, they needed the wife's
consent to sell it, though this was readily got via strong will,
and intimidation over his wife.
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Legal Document, 1799:
Mount Holyoke College Archives |
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Document Reads:
Today, the 21 day of Ventose,
Year 7 of the French Republic (1799), Citizen Jean Baptiste Francois
Pierre Pesquet of the Commune of St. Loup de Fribois, having
married Citizeness Marie Jeanne Victoire Prepetit, the party
of the first part, and Citizeness Leveyne widow of Citizen Prepetit
and mother of the said Marie Jean Victoire, have presented themselves
in a meeting relative to their rights with regard to the estate
of the father of this latter party.
It has been recognized:
- That after the death of Citizen
Prepetit inventories and memoranda were made of the movable goods
of the estate remaining in the hands of the said widow.
- That in addition to the objects
mentioned in the said inventories that the said estate stipulated
the recovery from Citizen Pesquet 1) a sum of eight thousand
livres (pounds) that had been conveyed to him by the said deceased
Citizen Prepetit; 2)the sum of eight thousand six hundred livres
(pounds) in assignants (paper bills issued by the Revolutionary
Government) which, according to a table of depreciation from
the Department of Calvados, are worth in hard currency (ecus)
the sum of three thousand seven hundred forty-nine livres, the
sum of which being added to that of eight thousand livres mentioned
above forms a capital of eleven thousand seven hundred forty-nine
livres.
With regard to the items in
this document, it has been agreed:
- To fulfill the request of
the widow Citizeness Prepetit with regard to the inheritance,
the said Presquet relinquished to her the use of all the real
estate as well as the movable goods of the estate of her husband
such as has been stipulated in the inventories and memoranda
mentioned above.
- For her part of Citizeness
widow Prepetit has consented that the said Citizen Pesquet will
keep in his hands and without payment of interest the said sum
of eleven thousand seven hundred forty-nine livres, the said
sum considered as forming part of the dowry of his wife.
- It is agreed nonetheless
that this contract, which is based on the desire of the Citizeness
widow Prepetit and her son-in-law that the harmonious relations
that exist between them be maintained, will cease to be in force
in case of the premature deaths of Citizeness Presquet and his
wife before the Citizeness widow Prepetit, who by this latter
reservation in case mentioned can reclaim all her rights of inheritance
from her husband by the terms of the law and her marriage contract.
Executed and signed in duplicate
after reading, at Caen (capital city of the Department of Calvados),
26 Ventos Year Seven.
-Signatures of widow
Prepetit, Prequet, and Victoire Prepetit.-
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