Widows’ and Orphans’ Funds at the End of the 18th Century. An Attempt of the Békés Reformed Diocese to Establish a Widows’ and Orphan’ Fund

Abstract

The system of widows’ pension, orphans’ benefit, and old-age pension was established at the end of the 19th century; however, self-funding also had its antecedents in the early modern period. In Protestant churches, there is evidence that pastors tried to care for their widows and orphans from the 16th century onward. The first fund for the widows and orphans of ministers was established in the Reformed Diocese of Békés in the southeastern part of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1790. The institution, however, could not survive due to lack of capital. Keywords: pension, widow, orphan, Reformed Church, Hungarian Kingdom, pauperism, pension fund, history of pension