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48 Despite this there had already been some consolidation in the north-west. Even after laws had been passed there was much less consolidation in the south. In the south-west in particular, where peasant rights were strongly protected, there was opposition to the division of the common Welds. The system which evolved in the south was characterized by a relatively high population density, quite high reliance on non-agricultural earnings to supplement the income from the holding, few large estates but many smallholdings, and continuous division of holdings (not necessarily on inheritance—children could be given a share on reaching their majority).

For the landless labourers, however, the loss of common grazing was probably not outweighed by other gains. 5. 29 Morgen Source: Conrad (1891), 666. 47 Berthold (1978). 44 Sources of Inequality in Rural Germany (vi) Consolidation and the reforms in southern Germany In southern Germany the reforms started late and in one important respect were unsuccessful: there was relatively little consolidation of holdings. Fragmentation of holdings had been a fairly general consequence of the open Welds system practised over much of Germany in the eighteenth century.

2. 9 acres’ , but most commentators seem to assume that 4 Morgen ¼ 1 hectare. Source: Saalfeld (1963). The losses have to be set against the removal of labour services. 5 million Handdiensttage (days of labour service without animals) owed in 1816, 17 million had also been relieved. 41 It would have been a substantial gain to be free of this. The process by which the larger estates gained at the expense of peasant holdings was a complex one, in which free purchase played an important role. There was a high rate of turnover in the land market in the early part of the century, both for estates and peasant holdings.