Aleksander Pluskowski, The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonisation, Routledge, Abingdon 2013, xix + 428 pp. + illustrations and maps

Aleksander Pluskowski, The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonisation, Routledge, Abingdon 2013, xix + 428 pp. + illustrations and maps, ISBN 978-0-415-69171-0

Traktat dzierzgoński (1249 r.) a elementy religijności Prusów

The Treaty of Christburg, concluded in 1249, ended the Prussian uprising which began in 1242. At this time, the Prussians opposed to the politics of the Teutonic Order which had forced them to pay taxes, decided to unite with the prince of Pomerania, Świętopełk, and begin the fight. The tribes of the Pomezanians, Warmians and Natangians took part in the uprising. The treaty was concluded thanks to the mediation of the papal envoy and contained many compromising solutions. It isimportant to note that the Teutonic Order had already admitted in the preamble that the Prussians had accused them of ignoring the evangelical care of neophytes and the build of churches. The original document contradicted what the chronicler Peter of Dusburg wrote 80 years later, that the Prussians began the uprising, abandoned Christianity and returned to paganism. In the treaty of 1249, it was written that the Prussians were to accept Christian law – they established amongst themselves that it would be Polish law. They were to forsake the habit of having multiple wives and purchasing them, forsake the habit of killing children, cremating the dead and not professing faith in gods other than the Christian god. Thanks to the document, we know that one of their main deities was Curcho – the god of fertility. The Prussians were also to abandon the custom of the participation of “false priests” during funerals, called tulissones and ligassones who acted as guides of the souls of the dead cremated on pyres. In the article, this problem is described in a broad religious, linguistic and historical context. The author discusses Prussian religiosity and funerary customs in the context of the many problems concerning Prussian society during the pagan period and the early years of Christianisation

Theocratic rule, native agency and transformation: post-crusade sacred landscapes in the eastern Baltic

The crusades against eastern Baltic societies from the end of the twelfth century saw the reorganisation of the conquered territories into new Christian polities - Livonia and Prussia - largely ruled by a militarised theocracy consisting of the Teutonic Order, bishops and cathedral chapters. This was accompanied by the reconfiguration of land ownership and intensification in resource exploitation aimed at sustaining the new regime, alongside the growing urban and rural populations. An ecclesiastical administration was also imposed on the conquered territories, alongside the construction of churches and monasteries, confronting native religions which attached sacred importance to natural places and cemeteries. This paper compares the transformation of sacred landscapes in Livonia and Prussia and provides an interpretation of variability in relation to theocratic authority, native and migrant populations. Encompassing the role of settlements, cemeteries and the tempo of change, the paper is situated within a new archaeological framework contextualising religious transformation in the Middle Ages. It also provides the first detailed, comparative perspective for the two regions. The landscape was not uniformly transformed and its variability, particularly the post-crusade endurance and even proliferation of native sacred sites, reflects the limits of theocratic authority and the pragmatic necessities of ruling a conquered population. That strong contrasts exist in the nature and process of Christianisation in even superficially similar areas like Livonia and Prussia should serve as a warning to resist generalising across limited data sets

Ab humana memoria negocia mundi facilius elebuntur, que nec scripto eternatur... Uwagi w sprawie geografii historycznej i chronologii Pomezanii i Pogezanii w średniowieczu

In this article, the author focuses on the analysis of Mieczysław Józefczyk’s book: Kościół i społeczeństwo w Prusach krzyżackich. Teksty źródłowe do dziejów chrześcijaństwa w Pomezanii i Pogezanii (Church and Society in Teutonic Order Prussia. The Textual Sources for the History of Christianity in Pomesania and Pogesania), published by the Warmińskie Wydawnictwo Diecezjalne in Elbląg in 2017. A detailed criticism of the author’s methodology of the book is presented, with the correction of many errors related to the historical geography of medieval Prussia, medieval chronology and philology. The book, in which we find Polish translations of 548 documents, has numerous mistakes that distort the picture of the settlement in the area of Pomesania, Pogesania and Warmia. This article also highlights numerous errors in the translations from Latin and German. The medieval terminology used in the book is also corrected. There were many errors relating to the methodology of working with a medieval source

Leszek Gardeła, Scandinavian Amulets in Viking Age Poland, seria: Collectio Archaeologica Ressoviensis, t. XXXIII, Fundacja Rzeszowskiego Ośrodka Archeologicznego, Instytut Archeologii Uniwersytetu Rzeszowskiego, Rzeszów 2014, ss. 160 + 60 il. cz-b. i kolor.

Omówienie publikacji: Leszek Gardeła, Scandinavian Amulets in Viking Age Poland, seria: Collectio Archaeologica Ressoviensis, t. XXXIII, Fundacja Rzeszowskiego Ośrodka Archeologicznego, Instytut Archeologii Uniwersytetu Rzeszowskiego, Rzeszów 2014, ss. 160 + 60 il. cz-b. i kolor

The Neuhof (Biedaszki) Folwark according the 15th-16th century sources

Artykuł dotyczy folwarku Neuhof (Biedaszki) w XV-XVI wieku. W 1458 roku folwark został przekazany Wernhardowi Seyfersdorfowi, w XVI wieku stanowił na powrót własność krzyżacką, później należał do starosty z Kętrzyna (Rastemburga). O wyposażeniu folwarku informują inwentarze średniowieczne, które zostały opublikowane w zbiorze Das grosse Ämterbuch des Deutschen Ordens. Znacznie mniej wiadomo na temat folwarku Neuhof w okresie po 1525 roku. Opublikowany niżej inwentarz z 1532 roku wypełnia te braki. This paper concerns the Teutonic Orden Folwark in Neuhof (nowadays Biedaszki, district Kętrzyn). In the 1458 Folwark became a private property of Wernhard Seyfersdorf. In 16th century Neuhof has become the property of the Teutonic Orden and after 1525 Folwark Neuhof belong to the starost of Rastenburg (Kętrzyn). Its appearance and furnishings are documented in medieval inventories, published in the collection of the Das grosse Ämterbuch des Deutschen Ordens. Much less is known about the Folwark Neuhof in the period after 1525. The inventory from the 1532 which is published here aims to fill this gap.This paper concerns the Teutonic Orden Folwark in Neuhof (nowadays Biedaszki, district Kętrzyn). In the 1458 Folwark became a private property of Wernhard Seyfersdorf. In 16th century Neuhof has become the property of the Teutonic Orden and after 1525 Folwark Neuhof belong to the starost of Rastenburg (Kętrzyn). Its appearance and furnishings are documented in medieval inventories, published in the collection of the Das grosse Ämterbuch des Deutschen Ordens. Much less is known about the Folwark Neuhof in the period after 1525. The inventory from the 1532 which is published here aims to fill this gap. Artykuł dotyczy folwarku Neuhof (Biedaszki) w XV-XVI wieku. W 1458 roku folwark został przekazany Wernhardowi Seyfersdorfowi, w XVI wieku stanowił na powrót własność krzyżacką, później należał do starosty z Kętrzyna (Rastemburga). O wyposażeniu folwarku informują inwentarze średniowieczne, które zostały opublikowane w zbiorze Das grosse Ämterbuch des Deutschen Ordens. Znacznie mniej wiadomo na temat folwarku Neuhof w okresie po 1525 roku. Opublikowany niżej inwentarz z 1532 roku wypełnia te braki

Christian – the Bishop of Prussia and his activities in the context of the Cistercian mission

This article describes the role of Bishop Christian in the evangelization of the Prussians. Christian – a Cistercian monk continued his mission of converting Prussia to Christianity from Pomezania, Warmia and Lubawa, which began in 1207. Christian as Bishop of Prussia in agreement with the Pomeranian princes and Danish king Valdemar II pursued the policy of a peaceful mission, and it is also possible that he tried to subjugate the lands where he succeeded to the Holy See. Proof of the tribute paid to the Pope by the Prussian lands - terra Lubavia and terra Lansania, is provided by two bulls of 1216, in which the representatives of these lands after a prior agreement give themselves over to the care of the papacy. After 1216 the situation became increasingly difficult. There was a retaliatory action against the pagan regions of Prussia. Christian tried to organize with the Pope a crusade against the Prussians. Despite several military expeditions, they did not achieve much success. It was only after the arrival of the Teutonic Order who used Christian’s abduction and imprisonment by Prussian Sambians that the lands of the pagans were successfully conquered. After being freed, Christian tried to oppose the actions of the knights of the Teutonic Order, siding with the duke of Pomerania Swietopełk who was fighting against them and supporting the Prussian uprising of 1242–1249