Mecklenburg and Schwerin

Who rules

Name

Henry Borwin I

Title

lord (prince) of Mecklenburg, with his cousin the lord of Rostock and the counts of Schwerin

Since

30 December 1178 (death of his father Pribislav)

Born

not pinned

Family

son of Pribislav, the last Obodrite prince; married to Mathilde, a daughter of Henry the Lion (so a brother-in-law of Otto IV); sons Henry Borwin II (died 1226) and Nicholas II (died 1225), birth years not pinned

Confidence

medium

de.wikipedia Heinrich Borwin I.; de.wikipedia Schlacht bei Waschow

Overlord

King Canute VI of Denmark, 'king of the Danes and the Wends' (de.wikipedia Schlacht bei Waschow calls Borwin, Nicholas and the counts of Schwerin vassals of Canute)

What the realm holds

• the land of Mecklenburg (Borwin, see Mecklenburg (Borwin))
• Rostock and Kessin (Nicholas I, see Rostock)
• the county of Schwerin (see Schwerin)

How it was acquired

Henry the Lion restored Pribislav as his vassal in 1167 and created the county of Schwerin in 1160-61; Danish overlordship followed Henry's fall.

Allies and rivals

Allies: Canute VI and Duke Valdemar, Jaromar of Rügen, Otto IV. Rivals: Adolf III of Holstein, Adolf of Dassel, Bernhard of Saxony.

The realm that morning

Danish vassals, at peace among themselves for now, and harassed by raids from Ratzeburg and Holstein. Within months (25 May 1200) they will march together with Duke Valdemar against Adolf of Dassel.

Wealth

Land and tribute, the harbour at Wismar Bay, the Warnow crossing at Rostock.

Military

Castles of Mecklenburg, Ilow, Rostock, Kessin, Werle; Schwerin castle; Danish help on call.

Threats

• Holstein and Ratzeburg raids
• quarrels between the cousins

Consort

Mathilde, daughter of Henry the Lion (Borwin's wife)

Heirs

Borwin's sons Henry Borwin II and Nicholas II (birth years not pinned; both alive in 1200 as far as the sources show).

Court in 1200

Not pinned (Mecklenburg castle, Ilow).

Treaties

Danish overlordship since Borwin's capture (year not pinned; usually put in the 1180s).

Feuds

Raids from the county of Ratzeburg and Holstein (Adolf of Dassel, Adolf III, Bernhard of Saxony) on Danish lands (de.wikipedia Schlacht bei Waschow); the old quarrel between Borwin and Nicholas.

Throne war

Through the Danish king, on Otto IV's side; no prince here takes a direct part in the throne war in 1199. Allegiance recorded as denmark.

Relations with rome

Nothing known.

The host

Slav and German vassals and castle garrisons. No figures.

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. 25 May 1200 (some sources 1201)Battle of Waschow: Borwin, Nicholas and the counts of Schwerin, with Duke Valdemar, beat Adolf of Dassel; Nicholas is killed; Gadebusch and Wittenburg surrender; Borwin gets Rostock back as a Danish fief in 1200.Depends on: Canute's order to punish the raids from Ratzeburg Stopped by: a Holstein or Saxon relief army

Later, on the likely course

1. 1201-1204 (after this year)Borwin fights at Stellau (1201) and receives Gadebusch and Ratzeburg as fiefs (1203); the counts of Schwerin get Wittenburg and Boizenburg (1203 or 1204).Depends on: the Danish victories Stopped by: a Holstein recovery

Places of note

• Mecklenburg castle: the old Obodrite princely castle south of Wismar

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Danish overlordship in 1200 rests on de.wikipedia's account of Waschow (built on Arnold of Lübeck). The partition of the lands between Borwin and Nicholas in 1200 is not pinned.

On the map: The ground is drawn in the lord records Mecklenburg (Borwin), Rostock and Schwerin; the lands south and east (Parchim, Plau, Malchow, Güstrow) are anchored to this realm without a holder pinned.

Primary sources for this realm

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 Slavs, by Arnold of Lübeck, Arnold of Lübeck (about 1209 to 1210). Arnold continues Helmold and writes from Lübeck, close to Danish, Welf and Baltic affairs. Read online
• Chronicle of the Slavs, by Helmold of Bosau, Helmold of Bosau (about 1167 to 1172). Background only. Read online
• The Danish annals of Lund, Ryd and other houses (12th and 13th centuries; Lund continued to 1307, Ryd to 1288). Short dated entries from Lund, the archbishop's seat, and from Ryd in Schleswig. Read online
• Deeds of the Danes, Saxo Grammaticus (about 1185 to 1208). Saxo was writing at Lund in 1200 under Absalon, who died in March 1201, and his last books are an insider's history of Valdemar I and Knud VI to 1185: the Wendish wars, the taking of Rügen, the submission of Pomerania in 1185, the Danish fleet, Absalon's power and the Danish quarrel with the Empire. Read online
• The saga of the descendants of Knut (the kings of Denmark) (about 1250 to 1260). An Icelandic kings' saga of Denmark that draws on Saxo and Danish tradition and ends in 1187 with Knud VI and Absalon's Wendish wars. 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
• Charter books of Lübeck and of Hamburg (documents to 1226 (Lübeck vol. 1) and to 1300 (Hamburg vol. 1)). The charters of the two north German towns and of the archbishops of Bremen and Hamburg. Read online