Bishopric of Hildesheim

Who rules

Name

Hartbert (called Hartbert of Dahlum in the campaign notes)

Title

Bishop (elect) of Hildesheim

Since

1199 (elected in place of Conrad of Querfurt)

Born

not pinned

Family

Not pinned; the campaign notes give 'of Dahlum'. The lists give only 'Hartbert'.

Confidence

medium

Tenure 1199-1216 from de.wikipedia (Liste der Bischöfe von Hildesheim; Hartbert von Hildesheim). His election date within 1199, his consecration and his side are not pinned.

Overlord

The king; which king Hartbert recognises on 1 January 1200 is not pinned.

What the realm holds

• Hildesheim, the cathedral city and its Altstadt; the Dammstadt suburb of Flemish settlers (about 1196, date fair)
• The bishop's lands on the Innerste and the lower Leine between Sarstedt and the Hildesheim forest
• Fiefs held by the counts of Wohldenberg, Poppenburg and others
• The Winzenburg rights (the castle's status in 1200 is not pinned)

Allies and rivals

The Welfs are the dangerous neighbours: Brunswick to the east, Hanover and Celle to the north, Göttingen and Northeim to the south. The lords of Peine (Ludolf's line), who turned Staufen after 1180 and whose castle Henry the Lion stormed about 1193, hold Peine between Hildesheim and Brunswick. Gunzelin of Wolfenbüttel, Otto's steward, takes Peine about 1202 after a feud with Hartbert.

The realm that morning

Hartbert is newly elected; his consecration and whether he has received the regalia from either king are not pinned. The campaign notes treat the case as thin. Conrad of Querfurt, who still controls the see's goodwill among Philip's men, is excommunicated and has lost Hildesheim. Allegiance: not pinned; the later feud with Otto's steward Gunzelin (about 1202) suggests Hartbert was not a Welf partisan.

Wealth

One of the richest sees of Saxony: tithes, the Hildesheim market and mint, salt rights (the saltworks at Salzdetfurth and Salzgitter-area springs; the Poppenburg salt near Hemmendorf), forests.

Military

The bishop's ministeriales and vassal counts; Hildesheim's walls round the cathedral hill and the old town. Few episcopal castles in 1200: the great Hildesheim castles (Steuerwald, Marienburg, Liebenburg) are later.

Threats

• Welf pressure on all sides
• A disputed or unconfirmed election
• Conrad of Querfurt's party

Officers and vassals

The cathedral chapter and the canons of St Moritz; the bishop's ministeriales (it was Hildesheim ministeriales who killed Count Hermann II of Winzenburg in 1152). Vassal counts: Wöltingerode-Wohldenberg (the Wohldenberg castle at the entry to the Ambergau), Poppenburg (Count Bernhard of Poppenburg appears in a Hartbert charter of 1199-1206), Dassel and others with Hildesheim fiefs; the Edelherren of Homburg. The high advocate of the see that winter: not pinned.

Relations with rome

The pope's quarrel with Conrad of Querfurt was over Hildesheim: Innocent insists on canonical elections and on no man holding two sees. A canonically elected Hartbert is in good standing with Rome as far as known.

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. During 1200Hartbert consolidates his see; his consecration date is not pinned.Depends on: Papal and metropolitan (Mainz) confirmation. Stopped by: A challenge to the election.

Later, on the likely course

1. About 1202 (not yet)Feud with Gunzelin of Wolfenbüttel, who seizes Peine.Depends on: Welf expansion west of Brunswick. Stopped by: A Welf-Hildesheim agreement.

Where the sources disagree

• The campaign notes call him Hartbert of Dahlum, elected in 1199 [thin]; the lists consulted give only Hartbert, 1199-1216. No source reached confirms 'of Dahlum'.
• The campaign notes say Conrad of Querfurt is excommunicated 'for keeping Hildesheim as well'. By 1 January 1200 he no longer holds Hildesheim: the chapter elected Hartbert in 1199 after Conrad gave the see up. His excommunication may still stand that morning (its date and lifting are not pinned here; he was later absolved and confirmed at Würzburg).

Evidence: Only the tenure dates and one charter are pinned; his family, side and officers are not.

On the map: The bishop's demesne in 1200 is not mapped in any source reached; this is the immediate country round the city.