Abstract (eng)
The last wills from Stein an der Donau between 1525 and 1627, preserved in the series of the so-called testamentary registers in the Krems Municipal Archives, are used as a source for investigating confessional affiliations in this small Lower Austrian town. The analysis of pious legacies mentioned in these wills as well as of the wording used allows for a more nuanced description of piety practices and confessional belonging than presented by previous research so far. My study covers the period from the beginning of the confessional age around 1530, the gradual transition of the population of Stein to Protestantism around 1560, the Protestant period of Stein until the end of the 16th century up to the gradual return to Catholicism after 1600. In this study, both individual examples are introduced and interpretations concerning more general developments of religious belonging, are presented. This analysis, which covers the time span of a century, allows for distinguishing between different testamentary practices, partly influenced by the testator’s confession, and to depict both continuities and changes in piety practices. Both these analyses and the use of hitherto unconsidered sources represent new elements for a more comprehensive history of Stein in the context of the confessional age.