Gottschalk (Slavic prince)
Encyclopedia
Saint Gottschalk (died 6 June 1066) was a prince
of the Obotrite confederacy
from 1043 to 1066. He established a Slavic
kingdom on the Elbe
(in the area of present-day northeastern Germany
) in the mid-11th century. His object in life seems to have been to collect the scattered tribes of the Slavs into one kingdom, and to make that kingdom Christian.
"A pious and god-fearing man", Gottschalk effected the Christianisation of the Slavic tribes of the Elbe. He organised missions of German priests and founded monasteries at Oldenburg, Mecklenburg, Ratzeburg, Lübeck
, and Lenzen, erecting the first three into dioceses. He himself often accompanied the missionaries on their work and augmented their message with his own explanations and instructions. In all this, he was supported by the efforts of Adalbert, Archbishop of Hamburg. However, the Obotrite nobility and peasantry largely remained pagan.
) whose own father, Mistiwoi, had renounced the new religion for the old Slavic paganism. Udo sent his son to be educated at the monastery of St Michael at Lenzen
and later at Lüneburg
. After a Saxon murdered Udo in 1028, Gottschalk renounced Christianity and took over the leadership of the Liutizi to avenge his father. He killed many Saxons before he was defeated and captured by Duke Bernard II
of Saxony and his lands given to Ratibor
of the Polabians
.
Re-converted to Christianity, Gottschalk was released and sent to Denmark
with many of his people to serve King Canute the Great
in his wars with Norway
. He was sent to England
with Canute's son Sweyn.
Sven Estridson, Jarl of Denmark, desired independence from King Magnus I of Norway
in 1042. Because Magnus was supported by his brother-in-law, Bernard II, Sven achieved an alliance with the Obotrites through the mediation of Gottschalk. However, the Obotrite chief Ratibor was killed in a siege by Magnus in 1043. The death of Ratibor and his sons allowed Gottschalk, who married Sven's daughter Sigrid, to seek the inheritance of his father Udo as Prince of the Obodrites. During the so-called Liutizi Civil War (Lutizischer Bruderkrieg) of 1057, Gottschalk conquered the Circipani and Kessini. He secured the territory through the building of new fortresses; the old fortifications of the conquered tribes were removed. He subdued the Liutizi and the diocese of Bremen "feared him as king" and paid him tribute. He nurtured alliance with his Christian neighbours, Scandinavian and German, and joined in an alliance with Duke Bernard and King Magnus to defeat the Liutizi in battle.
Allied with the Liutizi, the Obotrites murdered Gottschalk in a 1066 rebellion, capturing the castle of Lenzen
and forcing his sons Henry and Budivoj
to flee to Denmark and to Lüneburg
respectively. He was replaced by the heathen Kruto
, whose power base was Wagria. Budivoj campaigned against Kruto with Saxon assistance, but was killed at Plön
in 1075. Henry succeeded in avenging his father's death by killing Kruto at a feast in 1090.
Gottschalk's feast is the day of his death according to the Carthusians of Brussels
in the Martyrology of Usuardus. The primary sources for his life are Adam of Bremen and Helmold
. "Had he lived, he would have brought all pagans to the Christian faith." His son Henry
later championed the missionary work of Vicelinus
.
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
of the Obotrite confederacy
Obotrites
The Obotrites , also commonly known as the Obodrites, Abotrites, or Abodrites, were a confederation of medieval West Slavic tribes within the territory of modern Mecklenburg and Holstein in northern Germany . For decades they were allies of Charlemagne in his wars against Germanic Saxons and Slavic...
from 1043 to 1066. He established a Slavic
Polabian Slavs
Polabian Slavs - is a collective term applied to a number of Lechites tribes who lived along the Elbe river, between the Baltic Sea to the north, the Saale and the Limes Saxoniae to the west, the Ore Mountains and the Western Sudetes to the south, and Poland to the east. They have also been known...
kingdom on the Elbe
Elbe
The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northwestern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia , then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 km northwest of Hamburg...
(in the area of present-day northeastern Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
) in the mid-11th century. His object in life seems to have been to collect the scattered tribes of the Slavs into one kingdom, and to make that kingdom Christian.
"A pious and god-fearing man", Gottschalk effected the Christianisation of the Slavic tribes of the Elbe. He organised missions of German priests and founded monasteries at Oldenburg, Mecklenburg, Ratzeburg, Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
, and Lenzen, erecting the first three into dioceses. He himself often accompanied the missionaries on their work and augmented their message with his own explanations and instructions. In all this, he was supported by the efforts of Adalbert, Archbishop of Hamburg. However, the Obotrite nobility and peasantry largely remained pagan.
Life
Gottschalk's father Udo was a poor Christian (male christianus according to Adam of BremenAdam of Bremen
Adam of Bremen was a German medieval chronicler. He lived and worked in the second half of the eleventh century. He is most famous for his chronicle Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum .-Background:Little is known of his life other than hints from his own chronicles...
) whose own father, Mistiwoi, had renounced the new religion for the old Slavic paganism. Udo sent his son to be educated at the monastery of St Michael at Lenzen
Lenzen
Lenzen is a small town in the district of Prignitz, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is part of the Amt Lenzen-Elbtalaue.-Overview:Lenzen is situated near the Elbe, approx. 20 km northwest of Wittenberge. It was the scene of an early victory by the Germans over the Wends in 929...
and later at Lüneburg
Lüneburg
Lüneburg is a town in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of fellow Hanseatic city Hamburg. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, and one of Hamburg's inner suburbs...
. After a Saxon murdered Udo in 1028, Gottschalk renounced Christianity and took over the leadership of the Liutizi to avenge his father. He killed many Saxons before he was defeated and captured by Duke Bernard II
Bernard II, Duke of Saxony
Bernard II was the Duke of Saxony , the third of the Billung dynasty, a son of Bernard I and Hildegard. He had the rights of a count in Frisia....
of Saxony and his lands given to Ratibor
Ratibor (Polabian prince)
Ratibor was a prince of the Obotrite confederacy from the Polabian tribe. His capital was Racisburg, which was named in his honor....
of the Polabians
Polabians (tribe)
The Polabians were a constituent Lechitic tribe of the Obotrites who lived between the Trave and the Elbe. The main settlement of the Polabians was Racisburg , named after their Prince Ratibor...
.
Re-converted to Christianity, Gottschalk was released and sent to Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
with many of his people to serve King Canute the Great
Canute the Great
Cnut the Great , also known as Canute, was a king of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden. Though after the death of his heirs within a decade of his own and the Norman conquest of England in 1066, his legacy was largely lost to history, historian Norman F...
in his wars with Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. He was sent to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
with Canute's son Sweyn.
Sven Estridson, Jarl of Denmark, desired independence from King Magnus I of Norway
Magnus I of Norway
Magnus I , known as the Good or the Noble, was the King of Norway from 1035 to 1047 and the King of Denmark from 1042 to 1047. He was an illegitimate son of king Olaf II of Norway, but fled with his mother in 1028 when his father was dethroned. In 1035 he returned to Norway and was crowned king at...
in 1042. Because Magnus was supported by his brother-in-law, Bernard II, Sven achieved an alliance with the Obotrites through the mediation of Gottschalk. However, the Obotrite chief Ratibor was killed in a siege by Magnus in 1043. The death of Ratibor and his sons allowed Gottschalk, who married Sven's daughter Sigrid, to seek the inheritance of his father Udo as Prince of the Obodrites. During the so-called Liutizi Civil War (Lutizischer Bruderkrieg) of 1057, Gottschalk conquered the Circipani and Kessini. He secured the territory through the building of new fortresses; the old fortifications of the conquered tribes were removed. He subdued the Liutizi and the diocese of Bremen "feared him as king" and paid him tribute. He nurtured alliance with his Christian neighbours, Scandinavian and German, and joined in an alliance with Duke Bernard and King Magnus to defeat the Liutizi in battle.
Allied with the Liutizi, the Obotrites murdered Gottschalk in a 1066 rebellion, capturing the castle of Lenzen
Lenzen
Lenzen is a small town in the district of Prignitz, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is part of the Amt Lenzen-Elbtalaue.-Overview:Lenzen is situated near the Elbe, approx. 20 km northwest of Wittenberge. It was the scene of an early victory by the Germans over the Wends in 929...
and forcing his sons Henry and Budivoj
Budivoj
Budivoj, Buthue, or Butue was the eldest son of Gottschalk, an Abodrite prince, by a mistress. He allied with the Dukes of Saxony in order to recover the power and position of his father, lost since Gottschalk's death to the pagan Kruto.-Meaning of the name:Budivoj or Budziwoj is an old Slavic...
to flee to Denmark and to Lüneburg
Lüneburg
Lüneburg is a town in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of fellow Hanseatic city Hamburg. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, and one of Hamburg's inner suburbs...
respectively. He was replaced by the heathen Kruto
Kruto
Kruto , son of Grin or Grinus, was a prince of Wagria. James Westfall Thompson believed his family belonged to the Rani of Rugia....
, whose power base was Wagria. Budivoj campaigned against Kruto with Saxon assistance, but was killed at Plön
Plön
Plön is the district seat of the Plön district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, and has about 13,000 inhabitants. It lies right on the shores of Schleswig-Holstein's biggest lake, the Great Plön Lake, as well as on several smaller lakes, touching the town on virtually all sides...
in 1075. Henry succeeded in avenging his father's death by killing Kruto at a feast in 1090.
Gottschalk's feast is the day of his death according to the Carthusians of Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
in the Martyrology of Usuardus. The primary sources for his life are Adam of Bremen and Helmold
Helmold
Helmold of Bosau was a Saxon historian of the 12th century and a priest at Bosau near Plön. He was a friend of the two bishops of Oldenburg in Holstein, Vicelinus and Gerold , who did much to Christianize the Polabian Slavs.Helmold was born near Goslar...
. "Had he lived, he would have brought all pagans to the Christian faith." His son Henry
Henry (Obotrite prince)
Henry was an Obotrite prince or king from the Nakonid dynasty; he was regarded by contemporaries as "King of the Slavs"...
later championed the missionary work of Vicelinus
Vicelinus
Saint Vicelinus was a German bishop of Oldenburg in Holstein who was considered the apostle of Holstein.Orphaned at an early age, Vicelinus received his primary education at Hamelin, his birthplace...
.
Sources
- Gwatkin, H. M., Whitney, J. P. (ed) et al. The Cambridge Medieval History: Volume III. Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
, 1926. pp 805–6.