Lietuvos istorijos institutas

This article presents an aspect of 18th-century Vilnius history that has received little attention in historiography – the situation of beggars in urban society: the legal regulation of begging is analysed, looking at how it changed during the period, the opportunities of beggars to participate in religious life in Vilnius, the necessity of beggars for the rest of urban society and how the situation of this social class had changed in Vilnius towards the end of the century. Referencing mostly normative and other sources compiled by members of the Catholic Church, the author shows that the situation of beggars in the city was significantly transformed at the very end of the century – before then, the role of beggars in Vilnius society could be considered as typical of traditional medieval and early modern period Christian communities.