Sambor I

Who he is

Name

Sambor I

Title

prince of the Pomeranians (princeps Pomoranorum) at Gdańsk; modern lists call him duke

Since

1177/1179 (German lists: 1187)

Born

about 1150 (about 49 or 50 years old)

Family

Son of Sobiesław I. Wife not named. Two sons who died young (German genealogies: Sobiesław II and Świętopełk I, under their uncle's guardianship after 1207; birth dates not pinned). Brother Mestwin I (Mestwin I), his heir.

Confidence

high

en.wikipedia and de.wikipedia (Sambor I, Samboriden); Oliwa necrology as reported by de.wikipedia.

Overlord

The Polish senior duke at Kraków in name: Mieszko III the Old that morning by the krakow record's reading; whether Sambor recognises him is not pinned (see Pomerelia).

What it holds

• Gdańsk castle and its district, with the port, the Vistula mouth and the delta west of the river
• The coast north of Gdańsk: Oksywie, the Puck bay and the Hel spit (Puck is first recorded in 1277)
• The western march on the Łeba: Białogarda, with the Lębork and Łeba country (the princes' ground; which brother held it in 1200 is not pinned)
• Patron of Oliwa abbey and of St Nicholas at Gdańsk

How it was acquired

Inherited from his father Sobiesław I in 1177/1179 and confirmed by Casimir II (Kadłubek).

Allies and rivals

His brother Mestwin, his heir. Grzymisław of Świecie and Lubiszewo to the south (relationship not known). The Ratibor line at Słupsk to the west. The Polish dukes (Kuyavia, ceded in 1198 to Casimir II's sons; Mieszko III at Nakło). The Prussians across the Vistula.

How things stand that morning

Rules Gdańsk and the north of Pomerelia; no war is recorded that winter.

Wealth

Gdańsk's port and tolls in kind at his castles; fisheries; his share of the Vistula trade. The bishop of Kujawy holds the tithe of grain and ships at Gdańsk.

Military

His retinue and the castle-district levies of Gdańsk and Białogarda. No numbers in the sources.

Threats

• Prussian raids across the Vistula (dated from 1224)
• Danish ambitions (1210)
• Polish dukes reasserting lordship
• No surviving son

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.

In 1200

1. About 1200 (not pinned)Builds a fortress at Tczew (en.wikipedia, Tczew).Depends on: Tczew coming into his hands from Grzymisław Stopped by: Grzymisław or an heir keeping it

Later, on the likely course

1. 7 February 1207 (after this year; about 1205 in other accounts)Dies; buried at Oliwa; Mestwin succeeds.Depends on: natural death Stopped by: a change in his circumstances in play

Places of note

• Gdańsk castle: His seat.
• Oliwa abbey: His Cistercian foundation (1186); later the burial place of the princes.
• Białogarda castle: Castle of the western march on the Łeba (holder in 1200 not pinned).

Where the sources disagree

• Death date: 7 February 1207 (Oliwa necrology) or about 1205.

Evidence: A few charters (some forged or reworked), Kadłubek and the Oliwa necrology. The extent of his own districts is reconstructed from 13th-century evidence.

On the map: Castle districts are drawn from their 13th-century extent; the forests between them are left to the realm outline.

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