Urban Demography, Migrants and Masters – a case study of Cluj in the late Middle Ages

In this interview Agnes Flora, an archivist at the Romanian National Archives in Cluj, discusses her research into the city archives in Cluj in Transylvania, Romania.  She highlights the changes in urban demography that occurred due to inward migration, encouraged by the city council which needed both tax revenue and labour.  Agnes explains how Cluj promoted the inward movement of peasants from the city’s hinterland, and welcomed longer distance skilled craftsmen as migrants, and how these two migration movements impacted the style and business of the city.  She also offers fascinating insights into the working and personal life of one Italian migrant as he becomes a citizen of Cluj and finally a Guild Master and leading political figure within the city.This podcast is part of a series of interviews covering central Europe in the medieval period for MECERN and CEU Medieval Studies.