The paper examines origin and professional background of the scribes of the 18th century Bohemian manuscripts and follows the changes in the social structure of their readers, using the information from several hundred handwritten books and documents. Received data show that the number of scribes is rising immensely in the last decades of the 18th century. The most distinct growth might be observed within the number of scribes working in the rural areas. In the first half of the 18th century the most productive group of scribes are monks. In the last quarter of the century this role goes to teachers and parish priests. Their production, however, often has commercial or official character. Besides in the late period of the century strongly increases representation of craftsmen and farmers among the scribes. Also growth of the number of readers living in the countryside, especially women, might be observed. These changes seem to be the results of educational, administrative and Church reforms performed by Maria Theresa and Joseph II in the late 18th century., Dmitrij Timofejev., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
In the War of the Austrian Succession one of the major turning points was when Maria Theresa was crowned Queen of Bohemia, because this step strengthened the power of the Houseof Habsburg in Central Europe. For people who belonged to the Reformed Church in the Kingdom of Hungary, this meant that they had to live their lives under the rule of a Catholic monarch. Debrecen was the centre of the Reformed Church and the city prepared for this political situation: pastor Mihály Komáromi H. delivered a special sermon to celebrate the coronation. In this sermon he acknowledged the fact that the Habsburgs had right to the Hungarian throne and tried to use this political advantage to improve the situation of the Reformed Church. This sermon became so popular that a manuscript was made from it and it was a popular reading in the Reformed congregations of the countryside., Ádám Hegyi., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy