Folwark

Folwark (Belarusian: фальварак, Falvarak; German: Vorwerk; Lithuanian: Palivarkas) is a Polish word for a primarily serfdom-based farm and agricultural enterprise (a type of latifundium), often very large. Folwarks were operated in the Crown of Poland from the 14th century and in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since the 15th century, from the second half of the 16th century in the joint Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and survived after the partitions of the Commonwealth in the Russian Empire until the early 20th century. The purpose of folwarks was to produce surplus produce for export. The first folwarks were created on church- and monastery-owned grounds. Later they were adopted by both the nobility (szlachta) and rich peasants (singular: sołtys), but the sołtys positions were eventually taken over by the szlachta.

The term "folwark" came into the Polish language in the 14th century from the German "Vorwerk" (literally outside-works, analogously: outlying farm[house]). The English translation would be grange, the historical meaning of which is "an outlying farm with tithe barns belonging to a monastery or feudal lord".

Creation of the folwarks was boosted by growing demand for grain and the profitability of its export, both to Western Europe and inside the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This led to the exploitation of serfdom, when land owners discovered that instead of money-based rent and taxes it was more profitable to force the peasantry to work on folwarks. Folwark-based grain export was an important part of the economy of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

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