Principality of Rügen - Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Principality of RügenFürstentum Rügen (de)

Fyrstendømmet Rygien (da)

Vassal of DenmarkState of the Holy Roman Empire*

← 1168–1325 →

coat of arms[1]

13th century borders of the principality of Rügen

Capital Charenza (before1180)Rugard (1180–1325)

Government Principality

Historical era Middle Ages

- Wends conquered by Denmark 1168

- Princely lineextinct; to Pomerania 1325

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Principality of Rügen, Principality of Rugen orPrincipality of Rugia (German: Fürstentum Rügen) was aDanish principality consisting of the island of Rügen and theadjacent mainland from 1168 until 1325. It was governed by alocal dynasty of princes of the Wizlawiden (House of Wizlaw)dynasty. For at least part of this period, Rügen was subject to theHoly Roman Empire.

1 Danish conquest and Conversion

2 Rugia as Danish vassal

2.1 Population movements

2.2 Foundation of abbeys

2.3 Military expeditions

2.4 Territorial changes

3 Princes of Rügen

3.1 Tetzlav (1168–1170)

3.2 Jaromar I (1170–1218)

3.3 Barnuta (1218–1221)

3.4 Vitslav I (24 Nov 1221–1249)

3.5 Jaromar II (1249–1260)

3.6 Vitslav II (1260–1302)

3.7 Vitslav III (1303–1325) and Sambor III

3.8 Pomeranian dukes (House of Griffins)

4 Inheritance by the Dukes of Pomerania

5 Later history of the region

6 References

7 See also

The Danes conquered the Rani stronghold of Arkona in 1168.The rulers of the Rani became vassals of the Danish king, andthe Slavic population was gradually Christianized.

Principality of Rügen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principality_of_Rügen

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- Acquired by SwedishPomerania

1648

* Rügen may not always have been a state of the Empire,

but was continuously a fief of Denmark.

Slavic stone embedded in

St. Mary's walls, Bergen

auf Rügen, probably the

tombstone of Jaromar I

In the 12th century, the Duchy ofRügen not only functioned as abridgehead for Danish expansionsinto Vendland, but also Raniforces successfully participated inDanish raids into Circipania andareas conquered by Pomerania's Wartislaw I in the 1120s. After Pomerania hadbecome part of the Holy Roman Empire in 1181, she sent out a navy in 1184 tosubdue Rügen for the empire, too. A Danish and Rani counterattack destroyed thePomeranian navy in the Bay of Greifswald — granting Danish access to all of theWendish Baltic coast and making Denmark the predominant power until 1227. Inthis year's Bornhöved battle the Danes again lost all Wendish lands except forRügen.

After the Danish conquest, the princes moved their capital from Charenza tonearby Rugard (now incorporated in Bergen auf Rügen). While the island ofRügen was incorporated into the Danish Archdiocese of Roskilde, the mainlandportion was incorporated into the Saxon Bishopric of Schwerin as a compensation

for the Duchy of Saxony's aid in the conquest.

Tetzlav was mentioned by Saxo Grammaticus already in 1164 as a king. After the Danish conquest, he became a

prince, and in 1170 was succeeded by his brother, Jaromar I (d. 1218).[2]

After Jaromar, the succession of Slavic princes under Danish vasselage was as follows:

1218–1221 Barnuta (oldest son of Jaromar I, ancestor of the House of Gristow)[2]

24 November 1221 – 1249 Wizlaw I (Barnuta's brother)[2]

1249–1260 Jaromar II (son of Wizlaw I)[2]

1260–1302 Wizlaw II (son of Jaromar II)[2]

1303–1304 Sambor and Wizlaw III (sons of Wizlaw II, Sambor died in 1304)[2]

1304–1325 Wizlaw III[2]

Population movements

When Rügen became a Danish principality, not only religion changed. In the course of the Ostsiedlung, largeamounts of German settlers had been encouraged to come to Rügen by the Rani prince Jaromar I and hissuccessors. In the early 13th century, the mainland section of the duchy, which in large parts consisted ofwoodland, was settled by Germans, who established new villages and towns through large scale deforestationcampaigns as well as settling in existing Rani dwellings. The first German settlements are recorded in the Ryckvalley and the Tribsees area in the Trebel valley. The German settlement on the islands of Rügen started only inthe 14th century, when the mainland was already densely German settled. In the following centuries, Rani andGerman population mixed and shared a common fate. As the Rani language, culture and administration wastransformed into German in the 13th century, the Rani ceased to exist as a distinguishable ethnic group. Danes

and Danish property are recorded also.[3]


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Bishop Absalon topples the god Svantevit

at Arkona, by Laurits Tuxen

Foundation of abbeys

The Dargun Abbey, founded 1272 by the Pomeranian dukes, wasalso sponsored by the Rugian dukes with land. Ostsiedlung wasenhanced by abbeys founded on behalf of the princes of Rügen:

1193 Bergen Abbey

1199 Hilda abbey (later Eldena, erected by Danish monks from

Esrom Abbey that had been in Dargun Abbey before)

1231 Neuenkamp Abbey (erected by monks from Lower Saxon

Altenkamp)

1296 Hiddensee Abbey

The abbeys were granted vast lands, in part turned over from the former temple estates. Wittow had beenArkona's temple isle before the Danish conquest, and the other temples, e.g. in Charenza, also had richpossessions.

Towns were either built within a clearance or near an older Rani burgh and granted Lübeck law when grown toa respective size. The date Lübeck law was granted is given in the following list as it is usually seen as thetown's anniversary, even if the town itself was projected and built earlier:

1234 Stralsund

1255 Barth

1258 Damgarten

1270 Rügenwalde

1285 Grimmen

One exception is the town of Greifswald: While projected and built while within the Principality of Rügen, thearea was claimed by the Griffin Duchy of Pomerania before it was granted market rights in 1241 by the Rugianand Pomeranian dukes in common and granted Lübeck law not by the Rugians, but by the Pomeranian dukealone.

The other exception is the town of Schadegast: Founded close to Stralsund, the town had to be levelled onbehalf of the Stralsund burghers in 1269.

Military expeditions

After the 1168 Danish conquest, the Rugian dukes became a valuable ally to the Danes who participated inmany Danish expeditions:

1177 Rugian troops participate in Danish raids of Usedom, Wollin and the County of Gützkow

1178 Rugian troops participate in a Danish raid of the terra Wusterhusen and Wolgast

1184 Battle of the Bay of Greifswald: The Rugian navy encounters the Pomeranian navy on its way to


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conquer Rügen and entirely defeats it. This made way for the Danes to again loot Usedom and Wolgast.

1185 Rugian troops participate in Danish raids of the Peene river estituary and Cammin

1219 Rugian troops participate in Danish conquest of Estonia[2]

1259 Rugian troops raid Seeland aiding Christopher I of Denmark in a civil war with the archbishops of

Lund, the Rugians sacked Copenhagen, raided Skane and Lolland

1260 Rugian troops take Lilleborg fortress (Bornholm)

Territorial changes

In 1235, Wizlaw I gained half of the terra Wolgast, yet lost it to the Pomeranian dukes before 1250.[2] Wizlaw IIdid not succeed in inheriting Schlawe-Stolp from his mother, but gained the terra Loitz in 1275

Tetzlav (1168–1170)

In 1168 after the capture of the fortress and temple on Arkona and Charenza by Valdemar I of Denmark theRügen princes finally had to pay feudal homage to the Danes. In addition to handing over the temple treasure tothe Danes and transferring the estates owned by the temple to the Church, the Rügen princes were obliged torender knights' service in case of war, to pay annual taxes, to provide hostages and to adopt Christianity. Tetzlav(died 1170) who was described by Saxo Grammaticus in 1164 as king, was from then on titled the Prince ofRügen.

Jaromar I (1170–1218)

His brother and successor, Prince Jaromar I (died 1218), accepted Danish supremacy and promoted the adoptionof Christianity. By 1169, the Pope had placed the island of Rügen within the bishopric of Roskilde. In 1178, theBishopric of Schwerin, which was in Henry the Lion's domain and was involved in the Rügen campaign underBishop Berno, was given responsibility for all the mainland territories of Rügen apart from Ryck. Donations ofestates by the Pomeranian prince, Casimir I from the areas around Pütte and Barth to Dargun Abbey, founded in1172 by Danish monks, show that, at that time, Pomerania extended well into Rügen's mainland territoriesthrough the region of Borgwallsee to Barth.

In 1177, Rügen troops supported military campaigns by the Danes to Wollin, Usedom and Gützkow, and, in1178, to Wusterhusen and Wolgast Jaromar I resided from 1180 on the Rugard near Bergen. In 1182, when theDanish king, Knut VI, refused 1182 to pay feudal homage to the emperor Frederick Barbarossa, the Duke ofPomerania, Bogislaw I, is supposed to have contemplated forcing Knut VI to do so. But first he had to conquerRügen. However, in 1184, the Pomeranian navy was defeated in the Bay of Greifswald by the Danish-Rügenfleet. The Danes then plundered the areas around Wolgast, Usedom and Wollin. The following year they againravaged the countryside around the Peene estuary and Cammin and destroyed the castle of Groswin at Stolpe.

Finally, Bogislaw I was forced to submit to Danish suzerainty. Two years after Bogislaw I died in 1187, theDanish king appointed the Prince of Rügen, Jaromar I, as guardian of Bogislaw's minor sons. Jaromar I wasable to use this opportunity to considerably expand his domain, as gifts to Bergen Abbey, founded in 1193,indicate. These estates included both land around Barth and Tribsees as well as around Gützkow and Ziethen. Inthe border dispute between Jaromar I and the widow of Bogislaw I, Knut VI awarded the estates of Miserez


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(near Jarmen) and Loitz to Gützkow Castle which was in Rügen's hands. Jaromar was given Tribsees andWusterhusen as a fief. On the founding of the Hilda Abbey at the mouth of the Ryck in 1199, Jaromar I grantedlarge areas of land on both sides of the Ryck to the abbey. The sons of Bogislaw I, who were now of age,confirmed these grants in 1216 and 1219, after they had gained possession of Gützkow. Until 1240, the Ryckmarked the boundary between the Principality of Rügen and the Duchy of Pomerania.

Barnuta (1218–1221)

After Jaromar I's death in 1218, his son Barnuta became his successor. However, he stepped down in 1221,leaving the government of the principality to his brother, Vitslav I.

Vitslav I (24 Nov 1221–1249)

Vitslav I had taken part as early as 1219 in a military campaign by Waldemar II against Estonia. WhenValdemar II lost control of Danish possessions on the southern Baltic Sea coast following his defeat in theBattle of Bornhöved, only the Principality of Rügen remained under Danish suzerainty.

The first new settlements were established north of the Ryck by Eldena Abbey. In the area around Tribsees, too,the first German settlers were had already arrived by 1221. In the years that followed they also settled in thearea of Richtenberg. Vitslav I encouraged this development, by enabling Cistercian monks from the LowerRhine to found Neuenkamp Abbey in the region in 1231. The result was a rising influx of German settlers intoan area of forest in the southern part of Rügen's mainland territory, 300 hides in area, which had been donatedby the monastery with the aim of clearing and cultivating it. Two collateral branches of the princely house, thelords of Gristow and the family of Putbus also encouraged colonization by Germans of their estates in Reinbergand Brandshagen. This period also saw the granting of town rights to Stralsund in 1234, which evolved into animportant trading post. In Loitz Detlef von Gadebusch, who came into the area during when Mecklenburgadvanced against Pomerania, tried to establish vassal rule similar to that of the Jaczos of Salzwedel with Countyof Gützkow in Pomerania. It is probably that, in 1244, he also came under the Duchy of Pomerania. On theisland of Rügen itself, there was no significant German settlement at that time.

Jaromar II (1249–1260)

From 1246, Jaromar II was co-regent with his father, Vitslav I, who died in 1250. He strove, during his earlyyears in power, to achieve peaceful relations with his Pomeranian neighbours, especially the counts of Gützkow.He encouraged trade, especially with Lübeck, and abolished wrecking rights. The destruction of Stralsund in1249 by an army commissioned by the town of Lübeck led to four years of privateering against Lübeck-registered ships until Lübeck eventually backed down and paid compensation.

The estates of the monasteries were greatly expanded under Jaromar II. In 1252, he sold the present-dayMönchgut estate of Reddevitz on Rügen to Eldena Abbey, and he also promoted the establishment oftown-based monasteries in Stralsund. He gave town rights to Barth in 1255 and to Damgarten in 1258.

In 1259 he intervened in the conflict between the Danish king, Christopher I and the archbishops of Lund andlanded with a Rügen army on Zealand. He conquered Copenhagen, routed a peasant army raised by the QueenDowager, Margaret Sambiria, and devastated large parts of Zeeland, Scania and Lolland. In 1260, he landed onBornholm and destroyed the fort of Lilleborg. In the same year he was killed by a woman who stabbed him inrevenge.

Vitslav II (1260–1302)


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Vitslav II, who came to power at the age of 20 after the violent death of his father, tried to improve therelationship between Lübeck and Stralsund by renewing trade agreements. At the behest of Stralsund, he hadthe nearby town of Schadegard, founded in 1269, razed. In 1270, as a result of his mother's claims, he came intothe possession of the fiefdom of Schlawe and founded the city of Rügenwalde there. By in 1277 he had sold theestates and town to the margraves of Brandenburg. After the extinction of the line of Detlef von Gadebusch in1273 he inherited the region of Loitz.

In 1283 he formed an alliance with several North German towns and other princes in the Rostock Peace TreatyThe investiture of Vitslav II in 1283 by the German king, Rudolf, was probably only related to the mainlandterritory. The regular participation of Vitslav II in Danish royal councils and attestations indicates theperpetuation of the feudal relationship between Rügen and the Kingdom of Denmark.

In 1285, Grimmen was given town rights by Vitslav. In 1296, Neuenkamp Abbey founded a daughter monasteryon the island of Hiddensee. By granting trade monopoly on the island of Rügen and the rights to fish for herringto Wittow, hitherto reserved for Lübeck, he supported the town of Stralsund, but at the same time hampered thegeneral development of trade and commerce.

Vitslav III (1303–1325) and Sambor III

After Wizlaw II died during a visit to Norway in 1302, his sons, Vitslav III and Sambor III, became joint princesof Rügen. Sambor died, however, in 1304. At the instigation of his mother's relatives, Vitslav III had received acourtly, aristocratic education and was a minnesinger. Since his first marriage turned out to be childless, in 1310his liege lord, the King of Denmark Erik Menved, agreed a contract of inheritance with Vitslav III, whereby thecollateral branches of the princely houses of Putbus and Gristow renounced their succession in favour of theDanish crown.

Erik Menved tried to enforce his dominance over the developing trading towns in the southern Baltic region. Asa vassal of Erik Menveds, Wizlaw III tried to restrict Stralsund's privileges and Lübeck rights. The failure ofnegotiations eventually led to the siege of Stralsund in 1316 by an army under the leadership of Duke Eric I ofSaxe-Lauenburg. A night attack by Stralsund ended in a victory over the besieging army and the duke was takenprisoner. Vitslaw III, who had participated in the siege of the town from the seaward side, had to escape. In1317, there was a peace treaty between the town and its regional ruler. Vitslav III, whose financial situation hadbeen worsened by the war, awarded numerous privileges to Stralsund, gave them the right to his royal taxes andjurisdiction and sold his mint to the town.

Pomeranian dukes (House of Griffins)

1325–1326 Wartislaw IV

1326–1368 Bogislaw V, Wartislaw V and Barnim IV

1368–1372 Wartislaw VI and Bogislaw VI

1372–1394 Wartislaw VI

1394–1415 Wartislaw VIII

1415–1432/6 Swietobor II

1432/6-1451 Barnim VIII

1451–1457 Wartislaw IX

1457–1478 Wartislaw X


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While the main branch of the House of Wizlaw (House of Rügen) went extinct with the death of Wizlaw III,two branches remained:

The House of Gristow, ancestors of Barnuta. Barnuta resigned for unknown reasons and was entitled

"Herr" (Lord) of the Rugian terra Gristow north of the Ryck river. His descendants remained at

Gristow.[3]

The House of Putbus, a branch derived from the Rugian princes already in pagan times. The members of

this branch were entitled "Herr" of Putbus in Southeast Rügen, and in Prussian times were entitled "Fürst"

(prince). This branch still exists.[3]

The Principality of Rügen was inherited by the Griffins ruling the Duchy of Pomerania, after the last Rugianprince Wizlaw III died in 1325 and two wars were fought with Mecklenburg for Rügen inheritance (RügischerErbfolgekrieg).

Denmark at several occasions tried to again acquire the principality, yet without or only with temporary success.In 1625, a Danish offer of 150,000 riksdaler for Rügen was rejected. During the Swedish-Brandenburgian War(1675–79) Christian V of Denmark conquered the principality twice, but was unable to keep it afterwards. The

last time the principality was under Danish rule was from 1715 until 1721.[4]

The area of the principality retained some special status within the Duchy and later Province of Pomerania,where it was at times the splinter duchy of Pomerania-Barth, Swedish Pomerania and the RegierungsbezirkStralsund, then referred to as Neuvorpommern. Today, most of the area is administered as the districts ofVorpommern-Rügen and Vorpommern-Greifswald within the German federal state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

^ This is the coat of arms of Rugia as part of the duchy of Pomerania during the 16th century. It is likely that it

continues a 14th-century coat of arms of the dukes of Rugia, which may however have been slightly different.

1.

^ a b c d e f g h i Werner Buchholz, Pommern, Siedler, 1999, pp.100-101, ISBN 3-88680-272-82.

^ a b c Werner Buchholz, Pommern, Siedler, 1999, pp.102, ISBN 3-88680-272-83.

^ Martin Meier, Vorpommern nördlich der Peene unter dänischer Verwaltung 1715 bis 1721: Aufbau einer

Verwaltung und Herrschaftssicherung in einem eroberten Gebiet, 2007, ISBN 3-486-58285-2, ISBN

978-3-486-58285-7

4.

dominium maris baltici

List of Pomeranian duchies and dukes


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History of Pomerania

History of Denmark

Rani (Slavic tribe)

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