A HALLEI FRANCKESCHE STIFTUNGEN INTÉZMÉNYRENDSZERÉNEK MAGYARORSZÁGI ÉS ERDÉLYI NEVELTJEI (1696–1787)

Halle’s appeal in the 18th century was due not only to its university, but also to the institutions of the Francke Foundations. The so-called “orphanage” was originally intended to take care of children, but it was successively expanded into schools at different levels. Two inventions made Halle attractive: the free canteen and the fact that orphanage schools employed university students as teachers and provided training for them. The orphanage thus had access to a large and cheap teaching staff, and the informants gained experience as well as being able to finance their university studies. It was therefore a place where talent and diligence could flourish. These social and pedagogical measures contributed greatly to the rise of the University of Halle. When the institutional system was fully developed and the written evaluation of informants became systematic, informative files were also produced on people who later played a decisive role in the history of schooling in Hungary and Transylvania.