Kessinians
Encyclopedia
The Kessinians, also known as Kessini, Chizzini (in Polish historiography also Kcynianie and Chyżanie) were a medieval West Slavic
tribe in what is now northeastern Germany
. They inhabited the territory between the Warnow
and Recknitz
rivers, today split between the districts of Rostock
and Vorpommern-Rügen
in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Their capitol and name-giving stronghold was a gard near modern Kessin
east of Rostock
. Linguistically, they belonged to the Polabian Slavs
.
Since the Slavic settlement of the region in the 8th and 9th centuries, the area was inhabited by the Veleti
. The area became part of the Billung march
of the Holy Roman Empire
's Duchy of Saxony
in 936. In the course of a successful uprising in 983, the Veleti made a transition to the Lutician federation, an alliance of several tribes based in Rethra. The Kessinians emerged as the northernmost of four tribes constituting the core of the federation, with the other three being Circipanes, Redarians, and Tollensians.
In 1056/57, the alliance broke apart due to internal struggles between these four tribes. The western neighbors of the Kessinians, the Obodrites, took advantage of the resulting civil war and subdued the Kessinians along with the Circipanes. Integrated in the Obodrite state during the following decades, the Kessinians lost their self-determination. However, overlordship of the Obodrite nobility backed by Saxons
and Danes
was not always accepted, as shown by two expeditions of Saxon duke Lothar von Supplinburg, who subdued the Kessinan prince Dumar and his son in 1114, and another Kessinian prince, Sventipolk, in 1121. The Circipanes, former Lutician allies of the Kessinians, are reported to have actively participated in the 1114 expedition with 300 light cavalry.
Finally, the Kessinian remains were assimilated by German settlers during the medieval Ostsiedlung
, who turned the successor of the Obodrites' state, the Duchy of Mecklenburg, into a German region during the 12th century.
West Slavs
The West Slavs are Slavic peoples speaking West Slavic languages. They include Poles , Czechs, Slovaks, Lusatian Sorbs and the historical Polabians. The northern or Lechitic group includes, along with Polish, the extinct Polabian and Pomeranian languages...
tribe in what is now 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...
. They inhabited the territory between the Warnow
Warnow
The Warnow is a river in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany. It flows into the Baltic Sea near the town of Rostock, in its borough Warnemünde....
and Recknitz
Recknitz
The Recknitz is a river in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in northeastern Germany. The Recknitz's glacial valley stretches as far south as the heights at Glasewitz near Güstrow. The river has no definite source, but rather builds up from streams and drainage ditches...
rivers, today split between the districts of Rostock
Rostock (district)
Rostock is a district in the north of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by the district Nordwestmecklenburg, the Baltic Sea, the district-free city Rostock and the districts Vorpommern-Rügen, Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Ludwigslust-Parchim...
and Vorpommern-Rügen
Vorpommern-Rügen
Vorpommern-Rügen is a district in the north of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by the Baltic Sea and the districts Vorpommern-Greifswald, Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Rostock...
in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Their capitol and name-giving stronghold was a gard near modern Kessin
Kessin
Kessin is a village and a former municipality in the district of Rostock, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Since 7 June 2009, it is part of the municipality Dummerstorf....
east of Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
. Linguistically, they belonged to the Polabian Slavs
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...
.
Since the Slavic settlement of the region in the 8th and 9th centuries, the area was inhabited by the Veleti
Veleti
The Veleti or Wilzi were a group of medieval Lechites tribes within the territory of modern northeastern Germany; see Polabian Slavs. In common with other Slavic groups between the Elbe and Oder Rivers, they were often described by Germanic sources as Wends. In the late 10th century, they were...
. The area became part of the Billung march
Billung March
The Billung March or March of the Billungs was a frontier region of the far northeastern Duchy of Saxony in the 10th century...
of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
's Duchy of Saxony
Duchy of Saxony
The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...
in 936. In the course of a successful uprising in 983, the Veleti made a transition to the Lutician federation, an alliance of several tribes based in Rethra. The Kessinians emerged as the northernmost of four tribes constituting the core of the federation, with the other three being Circipanes, Redarians, and Tollensians.
In 1056/57, the alliance broke apart due to internal struggles between these four tribes. The western neighbors of the Kessinians, the Obodrites, took advantage of the resulting civil war and subdued the Kessinians along with the Circipanes. Integrated in the Obodrite state during the following decades, the Kessinians lost their self-determination. However, overlordship of the Obodrite nobility backed by Saxons
Duchy of Saxony
The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...
and Danes
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...
was not always accepted, as shown by two expeditions of Saxon duke Lothar von Supplinburg, who subdued the Kessinan prince Dumar and his son in 1114, and another Kessinian prince, Sventipolk, in 1121. The Circipanes, former Lutician allies of the Kessinians, are reported to have actively participated in the 1114 expedition with 300 light cavalry.
Finally, the Kessinian remains were assimilated by German settlers during the medieval Ostsiedlung
Ostsiedlung
Ostsiedlung , also called German eastward expansion, was the medieval eastward migration and settlement of Germans from modern day western and central Germany into less-populated regions and countries of eastern Central Europe and Eastern Europe. The affected area roughly stretched from Slovenia...
, who turned the successor of the Obodrites' state, the Duchy of Mecklenburg, into a German region during the 12th century.