Hołd lenny Mściwoja I złożony Danii w 1210 r. Próba rekonstrukcji epizodu z dziejów panowania pierwszych Sobiesławiców

Abstrakt

The homage of Mściwoj I made in 1210 to Waldemar II, the king of Denmark, is still one of the unexplained episodes of the history of medieval Pomerania. In the current scientific literature historians almost unanimously accepted that the inclusion of Eastern Pomerania by the influence of Denmark resulted from the armed expansion of the Danes, who forced Mściwoj I to pay them homage. However, the analysis of sources gives us reasons to suppose that events could actually follow a completely different path. The manner of recording the events in „Annales Waldemariani”, as well as political relations between the papacy, Denmark and Germany at the beginning of XIII century, seem to indicate that the feudal homage of the Eastern Pomeranian ruler was made voluntarily. Moreover, we can suppose that the initiative of such a political union came from Mściwoj I himself.

At the turn of XII and XIII century Eastern Pomerania was being in immediate danger of Danish expansion. The possessive intent of Waldemar II toward the Sobiesławice estate became apparent with the occupation of Słupsk by Denmark between 1202 and 1206. Couldn’t counting on support of the Polish princes, involved in conflicts with each other for supremacy, Sobiesławice probably decided to enter into agreement with Denmark. In exchange for recognition of the princes rights in Eastern Pomerania (Sobiesławice didn’t have a position equal to the rest of the Polish or even West Pomeranian rulers) Mściwoj I voluntarily accepted Danish supremacy in 1210. It is possible that it was also connected with his willingness to participate in the Danish conquest of the Prussian lands. Against this background, however, it came to some friction, because the head of the Prussian mission, Christian, probably cooperating with Denmark, blocked the actions of Mściwoj I aimed at subordinating Prussian neophytes to him, witch chilled the Danish‑Pomeranian relations. Christian’s monopol on actions among Prussians was also against the will of Polish princes, witch is why there was rapprochement between them and the ruler of East Pomerania. At the rally in Mąkolno in 1212 Mściwoj I involved himself into Polish plans of taking actions in Prussia ted by Denmark in 1210. Because of the source shortages, we are unable to determine whether after 1212 Mściwoj returned under authority of Poland. It is impossible to explicitly exclude such course of events. However, it is possible thet the Eastern Pomeranian ruler after 1212 could still remaind in a fief relation with Denmark, which was broken just after his death by imposing the Polish superiority on Świętopełk by Leszek the White. In such arrangement likely moment of the breakdown of Danish‑Eastern Pomeranian partnership is year 1220, when Mściwoj I died and Waldemar II was in Estonia on crusade.