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nor other natural water bodies could provide stable or considerably larger
revenues at that time. For that reason the practice of fishing in natural
water bodies gradually declined. The growing needs of that time could
only be satisfied by systematic fishing. Its main goal was a wholesale
fish supply to the market. Fish were reared in ponds, which were mentioned
in 11 Samogitian manors (11.3% of all the manor inventories under
analysis). Historians believe that the presence of more than one pond
at the manor may testify systematic fish farming. The analysis revealed
that the average of around 1.5 ponds fell per one manor, which makes one
pond less than in Poland at that time.
Though comparatively scarce in number but occasionally welldeveloped
pond systems show that fish breeding, which required considerable
expertise and efforts, was not only known but actually developed
in Samogitia. However, such fish farming was not affordable
to everyone but the manors of the largest economic capacities only.
Beekeeping known since the old times was highly appreciated and
even protected by the legal acts of the ruler. The lord did not need to
keep bees for a long time, because honey was available at the forest
from wild bees. However, with the growing demand for bee products
in foreign markets, manors became interested in beekeeping as well.
The need for these products at Samogitian manors was solved in several
ways. In some cases hives were kept in the village at the homesteads
of those people, who had the right to a portion of honey. In
other cases hives could be kept at the manor itself. A strict registration
of hives and manor control show that special attention was paid to
manorial beekeeping.
The forest, which was the source of raw materials and export revenues,
played an important role in the farming of that time as well. It
provided wood for constructions, fuel, meat, fur, honey, mushrooms
and berries. Cattle were pastured in forests; forest crafts were also
developed: extraction of potash, tar, coal. In the 16 th century, the forest
had already passed over to the legal disposition of the manor and it
was subsequently given over to peasants. The sources of Samogitian
manors do not include any data on forest crafts, such as extraction of
tar, potash or coal. It is most likely that the largest benefit was gener-
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