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Kingdoms of Eastern Europe - Pomerania / Pommern
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The territory of Pomerania (Pommern in German) stretched along the
southern coast of the Baltic Sea, from the island of Rügen (now
within north-eastern
Germany)
to the mouth of the Vistula at Gdansk (now part of
Poland). In the
Bronze Age, prior to expansion of the Central European
Lusatian culture
around 1300-1200 BC, the Western
Balts seem to have covered
the whole of Pomerania to the lower Oder, and what is now eastern Poland
to the Bug and upper Pripet basins in the south. Archaeology later shows
that the same culture can be found here as the one that is widespread in
ancient Prussian lands.
The southern extent of the Prussians along the River Bug, a tributary of
the Vistula, is indicated by the Prussian river names.
Following the regionally-significant
Pomeranian
culture, Pomerania was occupied for a time by the
GermanicJutes and the
Rugii in the first century
BC (the latter tribe supplying the name of the island), and then the
Goths in the first
century AD. This pushed out the Balts, and perhaps they never managed
to return this far west. The Goths themselves did not remain, but instead
trickled south-eastwards during the course of the late second century and
early third, the early stages of the Migration Period of the fourth and
fifth centuries AD. However, when they went, and the neighbouring
Gepids, Rugii, and
Scirii followed them,
not everyone went with them. Elements of all the East Germanic tribes
stayed behind, forming what Jordanes later called the
Vidivarii. Despite
this, areas of Pomerania were largely depopulated and remained that way
into the seventh century.
By then, Slavic tribes who were closely related to the
Polish tribes were
migrating into central and western Poland and became known as Pomeranians.
These tribes included the Pyritzans and Volinians (not to be
confused with the Volhynians of what is now north-western Ukraine). To the
immediate west of them, in the ninth and tenth centuries, was the Veleti
Union, a confederation of ethnic
Celts which may have formed
out of the remnants of the widespread
Venedi. Buffeted
on either side by the Holy Roman
empire in the west and the early Polish states in the east, a number of
minor Pomeranian states rose and fell before a German duchy was established
towards the west of the region.
(Additional information by Karl-Heinz Gabbey, and from External Link:
The Balts, Marija Gimbutas (1963, previously available online thanks to
Gabriella at Vaidilute, but still available as a PDF - click or tap on link to
download or access it).)
8th - 9th cent
Slavic
tribes migrate and settle in the region and become known as Pomeranians, occupying
the main territory between the Oder and the Vistula. They number at least ten
tribes, two of which are the Pyritzans and the Volinians. To the
east of them are Baltic peoples,
while to the west are the Veleti group of
(Venedi)
Celtic tribes that are
rapidly becoming Slavicised, plus the Obotrites. Vast woodlands separate the
Pomeranians from the Poles
to their south.
Stettin in Pomerania was for a brief time controlled by Poland
789
The
Carolingian Frankish
king, Charlemagne, leads an expedition against Dragovit, king of the Veleti
(Venedi) on the opposite
bank of the Oder. Charlemagne defeats him and makes him a vassal in the only
venture he makes into what are now
Slavic lands - generally, at least. This
expedition shows that some earlier groups are still recognisable.
936
The
territory west of the Oder is incorporated into the March of the Billungs
and the
North March of the Holy Roman
empire, allowing the native regions to be conquered and settled by
Germans.
960s - 992
Pomerania is invaded by the Polish prince, Mieszko I, and
large areas are subdued and incorporated into the newly-formed
Polish state in the 960s. The period in which his son, Boleslaw I succeeds to the ducal throne is a confused one, but in 992 he is undisputed ruler
of territory which includes Greater Poland,
Mazovia, Kuiavia, and parts of
Pomerania, forming something close to the modern
Polish territory).
Germany in AD 962 may have had its new emperor to govern the
territories shown within the dark black line, but it was still a
patchwork of competing interests and power bases, most notably
in the five great stem duchies, many of which were attempting to
expand their own territories outside the empire, creating the
various march or border regions to the east and south (click or
tap on map to view full sized)
962
With the accession of Otto I, the power of the
Germanic Roman empire is
confirmed, and Otto is quite vigorous in establishing new counties and
border areas within and without the empire's borders.
Saxony gains
Hermann Billung as its duke, charged with maintaining the duchy's eastern
borders and expanding them further to the east, alongside the recently-created
North March.
Perhaps as a reaction to this or as the culmination of a process that is
already heading that way, the duchy of
Poland is formed around
the same time.
1000
On 7 to 15 March the Congress Of Gniezno (the capital of
Poland) is held. The
German Emperor Otto
III establishes an archbishopric in Gniezno (destroyed during a revolt of
Pomeranians in 1005) with three new bishoprics in
Krakow for Little Poland, Wroclaw for Silesia, and Kolberg (Kolobrzeg) for Pomerania
(albeit short-lived),
plus the reaffirmation of the old bishopric in Poznan. The revolt
effectively ends any real control Poland has in Pomerania.
1032
Poland is partitioned three ways, with Dytryk (Deitrich) probably in Pomerania.
1032 - ?
Dytryk
/ Deitrich
Prince of
Pomerania? Died after 1033.
c.1046
No native Pomeranian rulers are recorded until
Zemuzil.
Unnamed Pomeranian native
ruler. Defeated at Kolobrzeg.
1107
The third of these native rulers is mentioned but is not
named. He is besieged in Kolobrzeg, which is held by the
Swantiborides
branch of the Pomeranian dukes after it is conquered. The establishment of the
duchy of Pomerania leads to
more and more conquest of native lands and a gradual end to native rule.
Duchy of Pommern / Pomerania (Greifen) AD 1107 - 1637
A
Germanised duchy was established in Pomerania which gradually conquered the
remaining native tribes, turning them into vassals and Christianising them. It was
expanded into Circipania and Uckermark which lay to the south-west, and
competed with the margraviate of
Brandenburg for territory and formal overlordship of all of Pomerania.
As was typical of German feudal states, it was divided several times over
the course of its five hundred years of existence.
The ruling house was the Greifen, or house of Pomerania. The latter name was
probably used first. The griffin, in use as the emblem on the family
shield from 1194, only came to be synonymous with the name of the ruling
house in the fifteenth century. The family's origins are obscure, but they
were probably descended from local
Slavic nobility and became Germanised in
the eleventh century. The largely anonymous early twelfth century chronicler
known generally as 'Gallus Anonymus' referred to the the Griffins as 'close
cousins' of their contemporary in
Poland,
Boleslaw III, implying a close dynastic relationship with the Piasts. In all
probability the Griffins had been part of the same Slavic migrations into
northern areas of Central Europe as the Poles themselves. Wartislaw I was the first historical member of the
dynasty, and he accepted Christianisation at the hands of the
Poles who
controlled areas of the territory at this time.
(Additional information from Gesta principum Polonorum, Gallus
Anonymus (early twelfth century chronicler whose real name has been lost).)
Boleslaw III of
Poland gains dominance over Wartislaw, reducing him to a vassal.
In 1124-1125, Otto of Bamburg is brought in by Boleslaw to Christianise the
pagans, which he does, supported by the already Christianised Duke Wartislaw
I. Wartislaw also conquers vast territories to the west of the Oder,
defeating the weakened Liutizian tribes and incorporating them into
Pomerania. These new conquests are placed under the overlordship of Albert I
of
Brandenburg.
1137
Wartislaw is killed by pagans and leaves the duchy to his young sons. His
younger brother, Ratibor, steps in to manage the duchy. He is the founder of
the Ratiborides branch which rules the lands of Schlawe-Stolp (until it goes
extinct in 1227 and the territory is incorporated back into Pomerania), and
the branch also accounts for some of the missing reignal numbering in the Pomerania
list. The youngest of the three brothers, Swantibor, is the founder of the
Swantiborides, who are key figures in Pomerania.
Despite Pomerania already being Christianised, and
increasingly Germanised, bishops and dukes from the
Holy Roman empire
continue to mount expeditions into its lands. The Battle of Verchen in
1164 makes Pomerania a vassal of Henry the Lion of
Saxony, while Pomerania secures Circipania around the same time.
1168
After years of pirate attacks by the Wends, King Valdemar of
Denmark has been
persuaded by Absalon, bishop of Roskilde and the chief royal advisor (and
future archbishop of Lund), to launch a crusade against them. The Danes land
on Rügen and
besiege the capital city of Arkona. Once Valdemar's forces set fire to the
city's walls and buildings, the residents of Arkona surrender. The subsequent
surrender of the town of Karenz means that the island becomes a Danish
possession.
The Danish conquest of Rügen ended more than a millennium of
independence for the native people - a possible combination of
Celts, Germanics, and Slavs - pulling down their gods in the process
1180 - 1185
The
Holy
Roman Emperor, Frederick
Barbarossa, dispossesses Henry the Lion and assumes the overlordship of
Pomerania himself. This is lost in 1885 to a
Danish
invasion which makes them overlords of Pomerania.
1181/82 - 1187
Casimir is killed in battle without having any offspring.
His brother, Bogislaw, governs all of Pomerania for the remainder of his
life, after which it is formally partitioned into
Pommern-Demmin and
Pommern-Wolgast, with
Bogislaw's elder son gaining the latter.
Pommern-Demmin AD 1187 - 1264
This and Pommern-Wolgast were
the first divisions of the duchy of
Pomerania, with Pommern-Demmin bearing superiority.
Pomerania had already been informally partitioned under the joint rule of
the brothers, Bogislaw I and Casimir I, but this was formalised after their
deaths. The territory under Casimir II included Dievenow, Rega, Tollense,
and the Upper Peene.
Overlordship of Pomerania is recovered by the
Holy Roman empire from the
Danes.
1264
After losing much of its territory,
Pommern-Demmin is absorbed into Pommern-Wolgast
by Barnim I upon the death of Wartislaw.
Pommern-Wolgast AD 1187 - 1625
This and Pommern-Demmin were the
first divisions of the duchy of Pomerania, with Pommern-Woolgast the junior of the two. Pomerania had
already been informally partitioned under the joint rule of the brothers,
Bogislaw I and Casimir I, but this was formalised after their deaths. The
territory under Bogislaw II included the Lower Peene, Ihna, Oder, and Uecker.
Overlordship of Pomerania is recovered by the
Holy Roman empire from the
Danes.
1264
Barnim absorbs Pommern-Demmin on
the death of his cousin, Wartislaw III, reunifying the whole of Pomerania
for a short time.
1278 - 1295
Barnim II
Son of Barnim I.
1295
Pommern-Woolgast
is partitioned, with
Pommern-Stargard being created out of it for the youngest son of Barnim
I, Otto.
1295 - 1309
Bogislaw IV
Brother.
1308
Following
the conquest of the Prussians,
Nadruvians,
and Skalvs,
and the seizure of Pomerania in this year, the state ruled by the
Teutonic Knights
reaches from the Lower Vistula to Klaipeda (on the modern
Lithuanian coast),
which has been ceded to them by the
Livonian Knights.
1309 - 1326
Wartislaw IV
Son.
1320
On 20
January, all of Poland (except for Silesia, Pomerania, and
Mazovia) is reunited
into the Polish
kingdom with coronation of Wladyslaw.
1325
Pomerania gains the principality of
Rügen which
lies on the island of the same name off the coast.
Pommern-Woolgast
is further partitioned, with a second
Pommern-Stargard being
created for Bogislaw V, along with
Pommern-Stralsund for Wartislaw V. Bogislaw V's son, Casimir IV gains
the senior
Pommern-Stargard at the same time.
Pommern-Woolgast
is partitioned again, with
Pommern-Rügen being formed. The new division also controls the senior
division between 1377-1394 under Wartislaw VI.
Pommern-Stolp is created for one of the sons of Bogislaw V, while
Pommern-Traburg is created for
another.
King
Kazimierz of
Poland pursues
the Thirteen Year War against the
Teutonic Knights.
Ostensibly the reason for the war is the domination of
Prussia, which Poland
is determined to control. During the war, Poland takes Pomerania and Danzig,
and the Knights end up as their vassals.
1457 - 1478
Wartislaw X
Son of Wartislaw IX. In Rügen.
1457 - 1474
Eric II
Brother. In Wolgast.
1474 - 1523
Bogislaw X the Great
Son.
1474
Casimir VII
Son. Domains unknown, probably in Bath or Stolp. Died
1474.
1475
Wartislaw XI
Brother. Domains unknown, probably in Bath or Stolp. Died
1475.
1523
Following the death of Bogislaw the Great, Pommern-Woolgast
is partitioned again, with the former Pommern-Stargard being recreated as
Pommern-Stettin.
Yet
again, Pommern-Woolgast is partitioned, this time with John Frederick
gaining Pommern-Stettin
for himself following the death of its ruler, while fresh divisions are
created in Pommern-Barth, for
another of Philipp's sons, and
Pommern-Rügenwalde.
Pommern-Stargard was the first division of the reunited Pommern-Wolgast,
created in 1295 for the younger of Barnim's sons and located to the south of
Gdansk. Ultimately, it was also one of the longest-lasting
divisions. Although the ruling line failed in 1464, the division was
recreated as Pommern-Stettin in 1523.
On 20
January, all of Poland (except for Silesia, Pomerania, and
Mazovia) is reunited
into the Polish
kingdom with coronation of Wladyslaw.
The Gothic St Peter's & St Paul's Church in Stettin dates to the
early fifteenth century
1345 - 1368
Barnim III
Son.
1368
Pommern-Wolgast
is further partitioned, with a second
Pommern-Stargard being
created for Bogislaw V, along with
Pommern-Stralsund for Wartislaw V. Bogislaw V's son, Casimir IV gains
the senior
Pommern-Stargard at the same time.
King
Kazimierz of
Poland pursues
the Thirteen Year War against the
Teutonic Knights.
Ostensibly the reason for the war is the domination of
Prussia, which Poland
is determined to control. During the war, Poland takes Pomerania and Danzig,
and the Knights end up as their vassals.
1464 - 1523
Pommern-Stargard reverts to
Pommern-Wolgast in 1464, but in
1523, following the death of Bogislaw the Great, Pommern-Woolgast
is partitioned again, with the former Pommern-Stargard being recreated as
Pommern-Stettin.
1523 - 1569
Barnim XI
1569
After
Barnim's death,
Pommern-Wolgast is partitioned
again, this time with John Frederick gaining Pommern-Stettin for himself,
while fresh divisions are created in
Pommern-Barth and Pommern-Rügenwalde.
Pommern-Stralsund was created out of the second division of
Pommern-Wolgast in the west of
the duchy in 1368, along
with the intermediate
Pommern-Stargard. The division lasted only for the lifetime of its one
ruler, Wartislaw V, before being reabsorbed.
Pommern-Stolp was created as a division of
Pommern-Stargard on
the eastern border of the duchy for
another of the sons of Bogislaw V,
along with Pommern-Traburg.
Having promised to find a ruling king for the Scandinavian
nations under her control, Queen Regnant Margaret of
Denmark proclaims
her great-nephew, Bogislaw of Pommern-Stolp, king of
Norway with her
ruling alongside him as specifically agreed for Norway. He receives the more
acceptable Scandinavian name of Eric as he takes up his new position,
although he is still a minor, so Margaret returns to the role of regent.
In order to fully unite the three kingdoms under her
control and promote her aim of securing peace and prosperity for
Scandinavia, Queen Margaret convenes the Congress of the Realm at Kalmar in
June 1397. Eric is crowned king of
Denmark,
Norway, and
Sweden under the
terms of the Union of Kalmar. Margaret remains regent for the rest of her
lifetime so that even when Eric reaches his majority, she remains in
control.
1439 - 1449
Eric is removed from the throne by the nobles of
Denmark,
Norway and
Sweden in 1439 and
returns to
Pommern-Stolp
where he governs until his death. Following that, Pommern-Stolp is absorbed back into
Pommern-Wolgast.
Pommern-Traburg AD 1377 - 1403
Pommern-Traburg was created as a division of
Pommern-Stargard,
along with Pommern-Stolp.
The division lasted only for the lifetime of its one ruler, Barnim V, before
being reabsorbed.
Pommern-Traburg is absorbed into the senior (and
sole surviving) Pommern-Stargard.
Pommern-Rügen AD 1377 - 1454
Pommern-Woolgast was
partitioned again in 1377, with Pommern-Rügen being formed on the island of
that name off the coast for Wartislaw VI (the former principality of
Rügen had
survived there until 1325).
Wartislaw also controlled the senior division during his lifetime, but it
reverted to its own line of rulers after his death in 1394.
In 1569, Pommern-Woolgast was
partitioned, with Pommern-Rügenwalde being created as a fresh division on
the eastern coast of the suchy, north-west of
Stolp.
The division lasted only for the lifetime of its one ruler, Barnim XII,
before being absorbed into
Pommern-Barth.
1569 - 1603
Barnim XII
1600 - 1603
With
John Frederick's death, Pommern-Rügenwalde gains
Pommern-Stettin.
However, Barnim XII himself dies just three years later, and his holdings
pass to
Pommern-Barth.
Pommern-Barth AD 1569 - 1637
In 1569, Pommern-Woolgast was
partitioned, with Pommern-Barth being created as a fresh division for
Bogislaw XIII.
Brother and last duke. Also duke of Stettin. Killed.
1625 - 1637
Pommern-Barth absorbs Pommern-Woolgast,
meaning all of West Pomerania now falls under the control of Bogislaw XIV.
Unfortunately, despite his best attempts, Bogislaw is unable to avoid
becoming involved in the Thirty Years' War, and Pomerania is occupied by
Imperial and Swedish
troops who oppose one another. In 1634, Bogislaw suffers a stroke and abdicates,
leaving no clear successor, as he has no children of his own.
St Mary's Church in Stralsund was built mainly in the fourteenth
century
1637 - 1648
Bogislaw XIV is killed in the Thirty Years' War in 1637 and Pomerania
is taken by Sweden,
ending the duchy.
1648 - 1807
The near-constant warfare and rapid change brought about by the Reformation
and its Papal
response, the Counter Reformation, is finally ended by the Peace of
Westphalia, as is the Thirty Years' War. As part of the treaty's terms,
Pomerania is carved up, with Further-Pomerania going to
Brandenburg-Prussia
while Nearer-Pomerania remains in Swedish hands. The reward for Sweden
is gaining a seat in the imperial diet of the
Holy Roman empire.
1807 - 1809
The kingdom of
Prussia loses Further Pomerania to Napoleonic
France,
which also occupies Nearer-Pomerania, removing it from
Swedish
control.
1809 - 1815
France's
brief occupation of Pomerania ends when
Sweden
recaptures the region, holding it until the end of the Napoleonic
Wars.
1815 - 1918
As part of the Congress of Vienna, Pomerania is handed over to
Prussia, which
expands rapidly thanks to its post-war gains.
In 1918 the German
empire collapses as the kaiser is forced to abdicate and the First World War
victors divide the spoils. Western Pomerania is joined with Mecklenburg to
form the region of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in the new republic of
Germany. Eastern
Pomerania (Hinterpommern), the territory that lies towards the east of the
River Oder and which includes the Pomeranian seat of government - the city of
Stettin - remains an internationally-recognised German territory with a German
population.
1945 - 1970
Following the end of the Second World War, the
surviving German
population of Hinterpommern - as with that of
East Prussia
(Ostpreussen) and Silesia (Schlesien) - that has not already fled in advance
of the arrival of the
Soviet armies is terrorised, murdered, or removed with some level of
brutality which amounts to ethnic cleansing. Hinterpommern and Silesia fall
under Polish control -
the former as the West Pomerania region of Poland. The city of
Königsberg and East
Prussia in general fall under direct Soviet control, pending treaties with
an established post-war German government.
These German eastern territories, including Hinterpommern, do not officially
become Polish territory until Chancellor Willi Brand's Social Democratic
government of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) recognises the
loss in 1970 (locate Willi Brand's 1970 Warsaw speech to the Polish people
for details). The Soviet-dominated East German government which is not
recognised by the former western Allies -
Britain, France, and the
UnitedStates - has already recognised Poland's hegemony of Pommern (under duress
in 1949) when the Soviet Union had established the German Democratic Republic
(Deutsche Demokratische Republik), better known as the former East Germany.
