Archives of the Ancien Régime (1)

Central institutions of the former principalities

States of TournaisisXV^e century-XVI^e century (906 items).
Representative body of the Tournaisis bailiwick, formed at the same time as the Tournai States (city and suburbs) following the annexation of Tournai and Tournaisis to the Spanish Netherlands in 1522; abolished in 1795. The traditional division into three orders (clergy, nobility, communities) disappeared in the second half of the 16th century.^e The communities were practically excluded, as their representatives did not have voting rights and were not regularly convened until 1791. Presided over by the bishop or his delegate, the States of Tournaisis had essentially fiscal powers: granting aid and subsidies, distributing taxes and punishing offences. They also played an important role in the administration of the province and played a certain political role through their participation in the States General of the Netherlands. The collection currently held, which has sometimes been incorrectly referred to as the Tournai-Tournaisis States collection, only contains the Tournaisis States archives, as the Tournai States archives were merged with those of the municipal magistrate, which disappeared in 1940. Main series: Chartrier, 1558-1793 (219 charters); Résolutions et actes des assemblées, 1543- XVIII^e century; Relations with the States General, XVI^e-XVIII^e siècle; Dossiers, XVI^e-XVIII^e siècle; Affaires administratives, XVI^e-XVIII^e siècle; Affaires fiscales, XVI^e-XVIII^e century; Administration of the Tournai district, 1793-1795.
Find out more : (E. PONCELET), Inventaire sommaire des archives des États de Tournai-Tournésis, 1 vol. in-8^e (Brussels, 1903).
Sources : Les archives de l'état dans les Provinces, aperçu des fonds et collections, Les provinces Wallonnes, AGR, 1975