Grzymisław

Who he is

Name

Grzymisław (Grimislaus)

Title

prince (modern lists: duke) at Świecie and Lubiszewo; some modern lists number him Grzymisław II

Since

not pinned; he holds the land by 1198 (de.wikipedia reports the Starogard gift as allegedly made some 24 years before, which would put him there by about 1174)

Born

not pinned

Family

Origin disputed: a member of the Pomerelian princely house, a lord installed by the Polish dukes, or a native noble; the sources reached do not settle it. Genealogies summarised for the Pomerania map make Dobrosława of the Słupsk line wife first of Duke Bolesław of Kuyavia (Mieszko III's son, killed at Mozgawa, 13 September 1195) and then of Grzymisław, or else of Wartislaw of Gützkow. Children not known.

Confidence

medium

de.wikipedia (Starogard Gdański, Świecie, Pommerellen); en.wikipedia (Tczew, Starogard Gdański, Świecie); the Pomerania map's Schlawe and Stolp record (fmg.ac). Polish Wikipedia could not be reached.

Overlord

Not pinned: either Sambor I as ruling prince of Pomerelia, or the Polish dukes directly (his land borders Kuyavia).

What it holds

• Świecie castle and district at the mouth of the Wda on the Vistula, facing Chełmno across the river
• Lubiszewo castle with Tczew ('Trsow', 1198) on the Vistula
• The Vistula bank between, with Nowe and Gniew (castles attested later; included as the 13th-century Świecie and Lubiszewo shares)
• Starogard until 11 November 1198, when he gave it to the Knights of St John

Allies and rivals

The Knights of St John (his grantees). Sambor I at Gdańsk (relationship not known). Kuyavia across the forests to the south and the Chełmno land across the Vistula, both held for Casimir II's sons (maz).

How things stand that morning

Holds Świecie, Lubiszewo and Tczew so far as known; last attested 11 November 1198.

Wealth

The Vistula crossings and landings at Świecie, Nowe, Gniew and Tczew; tolls in kind; the merchants' road through Starogard (now the Hospitallers').

Military

Castles at Świecie and Lubiszewo; his retinue and district levies. No numbers in the sources.

Threats

• Prussian raids across the Vistula
• Polish dukes from Kuyavia and the Chełmno land
• The house of Sobiesław absorbing his land

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

1. Not pinned (after 11 November 1198, before the 1220s)His death or removal; Świecie and Lubiszewo pass to the house of Sobiesław.Depends on: his death without heirs Stopped by: an heir, or a Polish duke taking Świecie

Places of note

• Świecie castle: His seat at the mouth of the Wda; church of St Mary consecrated 1198.
• Lubiszewo castle: His second castle near Tczew; later Sambor II's seat.
• Tczew (Trsow): Settlement on the Vistula named in his charter of 1198.

Where the sources disagree

• The assignment lists Świecie, Lubiszewo and Tczew among Sambor's and Mestwin's castle districts; on the 1198 evidence they are Grzymisław's that winter.
• Perlbach's Pommerellisches Urkundenbuch (1882) marks a Grimislaus document (no. 10) as false in its seal index; whether that is the Starogard grant itself was not checked.

Evidence: Known from one charter of 11 November 1198 (whose form may be reworked) and later tradition.

On the map: His land is drawn from its 13th-century shares (Świecie, Lubiszewo); the 1198 charter itself gives no bounds.

Primary sources for Pomerelia

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of the Poles, by Master Vincent (Wincenty Kadłubek), Wincenty Kadłubek (about 1190 to 1208). Book 4 is a contemporary's account of the fight for the senior throne of Kraków. Read online
• The annals of the Kraków chapter and the other Polish annals (kept from the 11th century; the Kraków chapter annals continued to 1266). Short dated entries that fix the chronology Kadłubek blurs: the deaths of dukes and bishops, Mieszko the Old's captures of Kraków, Prussian raids on Masovia, church consecrations. Read online
• Pomeranian charter book, volume 1, 786 to 1253 (documents of 786 to 1253, edited 1868). All known charters for Pomerania and Rügen to 1253. Read online