Old royal palace town of the Ottonians and cathedral city of a small, poor see between the Saale and the Mulde, with the bishop's castle districts at Schkeuditz, Lützen and Lauchstädt (Church map).
Bishop Eberhard signed the Speyer declaration for Philip in May 1199. Coloured with the surrounding lands as the brief directs; the Wettin margrave of Meissen presses on the see from Leipzig, and the archbishop of Magdeburg's Halle lies just downstream.
Who holds it
- Name
- Bishop Eberhard of Merseburg (since 1171; dies 1201)
- Title
- Lord of the town
- Since
- 1171
- Confidence
- high
Lord in 1200
The bishop of Merseburg.
How things stand that morning
Quiet; Staufen bishop.
Council
None yet.
Communities
Cathedral clergy; merchants.
Walls and castle
The bishop's castle and cathedral on the hill above the Saale.
Trade and crafts
Saale crossing; market under the bishop.
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.
- 1201Bishop Eberhard dies; Dietrich (1201-1215) follows. Not 1200.Depends on: Eberhard's natural death
Where the sources disagree
- The Church map record says Eberhard's side is not pinned but likely Staufen; the Speyer declaration list names him.
Evidence: Bishop well attested.
Primary sources for Meissen
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.
- Annals of Jarloch (Gerlach), abbot of Milevsko, Jarloch of Milevsko (about 1200 to 1220). The last Bohemian narrative before 1200, continuing Vincentius of Prague. Read online
- Annals of Pegau; Annals of Magdeburg (12th and 13th centuries; Pegau continued to 1227). The annals of the Wettin lands and of Magdeburg. Read online
- Chronicle of the Lauterberg (Petersberg near Halle), Konrad of Lauterberg (about 1225). The house chronicle of the Wettin foundation on the Lauterberg, sharp-tongued and well informed on Saxony, Meissen and Magdeburg. Read online
- Chronicle of Reinhardsbrunn; Chronicle of St Peter's, Erfurt (Erfurt chronicle in the 13th century; Reinhardsbrunn compilation about 1340 to 1349 from older annals). The two Thuringian chronicles. Read online
- Royal Chronicle of Cologne (in stages from about 1175 to about 1250; the section on 1198 to 1220 written soon after the events). The fullest German narrative of the throne war from the Welf and Cologne side. Read online
- Deeds of the archbishops of Magdeburg (main text to 1142, continued in the 13th and 14th centuries). The Magdeburg house history, with a continuation covering Archbishop Ludolf of Kroppenstedt (1192 to 1205), a firm supporter of Philip who hosted the king's Christmas court at Magdeburg on 25 December 1199. Read online
- Charters and letters of the kingdom of Bohemia, volume 2, 1198 to 1230 (documents of 1198 to 1230, edited 1912). The critical edition of every Bohemian and Moravian charter and letter from Ottokar I's accession to 1230.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.