- Western Pomerania is a translation of "Vorpommern" (also "Hither Pomerania"), both redirect here.
- For other uses, see Western Pomerania (disambiguation)
Western Pomerania or Hither Pomerania are terms used in English to translate the German Vorpommern (Low German: Vörpommern) – the western extremity of the historic region of the Duchy of Pomerania, nowadays divided between the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Poland. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Low German or Low Saxon (in Germany: Plattdüütsch or Nedderdüütsch; in Netherlands: Nedersaksisch or Nederduuts For all other principalities and duchies in Pomerania and lists of dukes see Pomeranian duchies and dukes The Duchy of Pomerania was a Germany (Deutschland is a Federal Republic consisting of sixteen States, known in German as Länder (singular Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, sometimes translated as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania or Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, is a state in Northern Germany comprising Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland
Forming part of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, its boundaries have changed through the centuries and its overlords have included Poland, Sweden, Denmark, and Prussia. The Baltic Sea is a Brackish inland sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N Latitude and from 20°E to 26°E Longitude. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Prussia ( Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Prūsija Prūsija Prusy Old Prussian: Prūsa) was most recently a historic state Before 1945, Vorpommern embraced the whole area of Pomerania west of the Oder River. The Oder (known in Czech and Polish as Odra) is a River in Central Europe. In 1945 the left-bank cities of Szczecin (German: Stettin) and Świnoujście (German: Swinemünde) passed to Poland (see Territorial changes of Poland after World War II), with the remainder of the region becoming part of East Germany. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Świnoujście (Swinemünde is a City and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, located in the extreme north-west of Poland The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. The territorial changes of Poland after World War II were very extensive The German Democratic Republic ( GDR; Deutsche Demokratische Republik DDR; commonly known in English as East Germany) was a Socialist state German Vorpommern now forms about one-third of the present-day north-eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Germany (Deutschland is a Federal Republic consisting of sixteen States, known in German as Länder (singular Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, sometimes translated as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania or Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, is a state in Northern Germany comprising
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Terminology
English texts vary in their rendering of the term Vorpommern (which in German means, loosely, "the nearer part of Pomerania"). Historically the name "Hither Pomerania" has been used, but in modern English the German region is more commonly called "Western Pomerania" or by its native name.
The Polish name for this region is Pomorze Przednie or Przedpomorze – corresponding in meaning to Vorpommern – even though from the Polish point of view the region is more distant than the rest of Pomerania. Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. Poland has a province called West Pomeranian Voivodeship (województwo zachodniopomorskie), which covers the west of that part of Pomerania which now belongs to Poland. West Pomeranian Voivodeship (also known by its Polish name of województwo zachodniopomorskie or simply Zachodniopomorskie) is a voivodeship
History
Early history and Middle Ages
In prehistoric times, the area was inhabited by megalith cultures. In the first half of the first millennium, the East Germanic Rugians [1] are reported in the area, who are known to later set up a kingdom far South in Pannonia in the 5th century. The Germanic tribes referred to as East Germanic constitute a wave of Migrants who may have moved from Scandinavia into the area between the Oder The Rugians (Rugii were an East Germanic tribe whose ultimate origins have been traced to Rogaland in Norway, whose population probably was the Pannonia is an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy,
By the 6th and 7th century, West Slavic people populated the region. The West Slavs are Slavic peoples speaking West Slavic languages. If they met a substantial Rugian population and whether and/or how these were assimilated by the Slavs is not known. The Slavic inhabitants, also referred to as part of the Wilzen/Veleti, divirged into several small tribes, listet from Northwest to Southeast: The Rujanes or Rani around Rügen, the Circipanes around the Pane (Peene) River, the Redarians around the temple of Rethra, the Wollinians on the isle of Wolin, the Tollensians around the Tollense River and the Ukranians around the Uecker River in the Uckermark. The Veleti (Wieleten Wieleci or Wilzi(ans (also Wiltzes; German Wilzen) were a group of medieval West Slavic tribes within the territory The Rani or Rujani (Ranen Rujanen) were a West Slavic Tribe based on the island of Rugia and the southwestern mainland across the Rügen (ˈʁyːgən or Rugia is Germany 's largest Island. It is located in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern For the settlement in England see Peene Kent, for the small river in France see Peene Becque, for the Flemish physician and playwright see Hippoliet van Peene The Veleti (Wieleten Wieleci or Wilzi(ans (also Wiltzes; German Wilzen) were a group of medieval West Slavic tribes within the territory Radegast, also called Radigost, Radhost, Radhošť, Redigast, is a hypothetical West Slavic god of hospitality fertility and crops The Tollense (tɔˈlɛnzə is a River in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in northeastern Germany, right tributary of the Peene. The Uecker or Ucker is a River in the northeastern German states of Brandenburg, where it is known as the Ucker, and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern The collective term Liutizians also covers some of these tribes, as they allied in late 10th century to secure their sovereignty. The Veleti (Wieleten Wieleci or Wilzi(ans (also Wiltzes; German Wilzen) were a group of medieval West Slavic tribes within the territory The Lutician alliances headquarters were at Rethra, where delegates from the independent allied tribes held their meetings. Whether or not the Rani were part of the Veleti or later the Lutizians is disputed. The Slavic tribes referred to as Pomeranians settled east of the Oder River. The Pomeranians (Pomeranen Pòmòrzónie Pomorzanie were a group of West Slavic Tribes who lived along the shore of the Baltic Sea between Oder The Oder (known in Czech and Polish as Odra) is a River in Central Europe.
In this era, large mixed Slavic and Scandinavian settlements were build at the natural havens of the bay-rich coast, the most important of which were Ralswiek (Rügen), Menzlin at the Peene River and Wolin, which is assumed to be identical with Vineta and Jomsborg. Ralswiek is a municipality in the district of Rügen, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Vineta or Wineta (sometimes held to be identical with Jomsborg) is an ancient and possibly legendary town believed to have been on the German or Polish Jomsborg was a legendary Viking settlement in territory at the Baltic Sea later referred to as Pomerania. Important pagan temple sites were Arkona and Rethra. Cape Arkona (Kap Arkona is a cape on the island of Rügen in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Other local strongholds were Dimin (Demmin) in the Circipan and Stetin (Szczecin) in the Pomeranian area. Demmin (dɛˈmiːn is a Town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany.
At the beginning of the second millennium, western Pomeranian tribes were surrounded by the expanding states of Denmark in the North, Piast Poland in the Southeast and the German Holy Roman Empire in the Southwest. The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in While the eastward expansion of the latter coud be halted for some time by a Slavic uprising of the Southern (Heveller) and Western (Obodrites) neighbors of the western Pomeranian tribes, which even was supported by the Liutizian alliance, the Pomeranians East of the Oder River were conquered by the Poles in the late 10th century and remained vassals of the Piasts until 1035, had to pay tribute to the Poles after 1042 and were conquered again in 1121. The Hevelli or Hevellians (sometimes Havolane; Heveller or Stodoranen; Hawelanie or Stodoranie; Havolané or Stodorané) were a The Obotrites (Abodriten also commonly known as the Obodrites, Abotrites, or Abodrites, were a confederation of medieval West Slavic tribes
In spite of his surrender or even with military help from the succeeding Poles, the Pomeranian duke Wartislaw I of the House of Griffins successfully started conquering the small lands west of Stettin the years after 1121. Wartislaw I was the first historical ruler of Pomerania and the founder of the Griffin dynasty The House of Pomerania, (Greifen Gryfici also known as House of Greifen or House of Griffins, was a Dynasty of dukes that ruled the Duchy These lands had experienced bad times before. The coast was raided by the Danes, which destroyed Jomsborg in 1043, shifting the power in the Oder delta South to Pomeranian Stettin. Rethra was raided and devastated by the Germans in winter 1068/69, the Lutizian alliance fell apart, instead the Lutizians fought against each other.
Wartislaw's aim was not only the expansion of his duchy, but also the spread of the Christian faith. In 1124, he invited Otto von Bamberg to mission in his duchy east of the Oder River. Saint Otto of Bamberg (Otto von Bamberg 1060 or 1061 - June 30, 1139) was a Medieval German Bishop and Missionary By 1128, Wartislaw I had expanded his duchy even to Circipania, and invited Otto von Bamberg again to mission in these pagan areas West of the Oder River, too. The dukes of the small western Pomeranian duchies became Kastellans under the Pomeranian duke and converted from their pagan to Christian religion in Usedom 1128. Usedom (Usedom, Uznam) is a Baltic Sea island on the border between Germany and Poland. So, except for the Ranes living North of the Ryck River and Demmin, all western Pomeranian territories were united and Christian. Wartislaw's dependency on Poland loosened in the years thereafter, and in 1135 with the death of Polish king Bogislaw III, Wartislaw's duchy regained independence. About ten years later, he was slain by pagans near Stolpe. Stolpe is a municipality in the Ostvorpommern district in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.
The 1147 Wendish Crusade (Wendenkreuzzug) initiated by the Holy Roman Empire ended when the Demmin and Stettin citizens persuaded the crusaders that they were already Christians. The Wendish Crusade (Wendenkreuzzug was an 1147 campaign one of the Northern Crusades and also a part of the Second Crusade, led primarily by the Kingdom of
By the middle of the 12th century, the other independent duchy in western Pomerania, the duchy of Rügen, remained the last pagan state in Central Europe. In 1168, a Danish fleet led by Roskilde archbishop Absalon sacked Rügen. Absalon (c 1128 &ndash March 21, 1201) was a Danish Archbishop and statesman The Arkona temple was sieged and destroyed. After this main temple's fall, Rügen's capitol Charenza (Venzer Burgwall) capitulated, all other temples were given to the Danes for destruction and Jaromar I duke of Rügen became a Danish vassal. prince Jaromar or Jaromir was Prince of Rügen ( Principality of Rugia) between 1170 and 1218 The Ranes then converted to Christianity.
From Rügen, which still had a strong navy and army, the Danish put pressure on Pomerania. Bogislaw I duke of Pomerania made his duchy a part of the Holy Roman Empire (HRE) in 1181, after he had allied with Henry the Lion since 1164. Henry the Lion ( German: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129 &ndash 6 August 1195) was a member of the Guelph dynasty and Duke of Saxony So, Pomerania became the first Slavic duchy of the HRE. But the new alliance did not prevent the Danes from successfully raiding and in 1186 conquering all of Pomerania. Danish rule ended when in 1227 the Danish navy was defeated in Bornhöved by the Germans, Pomerania except for Rügen (until 1345 with the last Rugian duke's death) fell to the HRE. Bornhöved (bɔʁnˈhøːfət is a municipality in the district of Segeberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
The Rügen and Pomerania dukes called in many German settlers and aristocrats in order to resettle parts of their duchies devastated in the wars before and to settle new areas by turning woodland into fields. Settlers came from North German Lower Saxony. Some settlers from the Harz mountains in central Germany settled near Stettin. The Harz is a mountain range in central Germany It is the highest mountain chain in northern Germany occupying parts of the German states of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt Cities and monasteries were founded. Between the beginning of the 12th century and the 13th century western Pomerania changed from a pagan Slavic to a Christian German country (Ostsiedlung). The Slavs were first excluded from the villages and privileges of the German settlers. They later merged with the German majority.
From that time onwards, the region shares a common history with Farther Pomerania. Farther Pomerania or Further Pomerania (Hinterpommern Pomorze Zachodnie is a Pomeranian region roughly stretching from the Oder River in the West The first political division of Pomerania into eastern and western parts occurred in 1532 with a separation into the duchies of Pommern-Wolgast (equivalent to West Pomerania, so named from the ducal seat) and Pommern-Stettin (East Pomerania, from the German name for today's Szczecin).
- See also: Rugians, Veleti, Rani (Slavic tribe), and Ostsiedlung
European conflict
Pomerania came under Swedish military control in 1630 during the Thirty Years War. The Rugians (Rugii were an East Germanic tribe whose ultimate origins have been traced to Rogaland in Norway, whose population probably was the The Veleti (Wieleten Wieleci or Wilzi(ans (also Wiltzes; German Wilzen) were a group of medieval West Slavic tribes within the territory The Rani or Rujani (Ranen Rujanen) were a West Slavic Tribe based on the island of Rugia and the southwestern mainland across the This article covers the medieval eastward migrations of Germans Swedish Pomerania (Svenska Pommern Schwedisch-Pommern was a Dominion under the Swedish Crown from the 17th to the 19th century situated on what is now the For the Mauritanian Thirty Years' War see Char Bouba war. For the band see The 30 Years War. Swedish sovereignty over Vorpommern, including Stettin, was confirmed by the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, and from that time onwards much of the region formed Swedish Pomerania. The term Peace of Westphalia refers to the two peace treaties of Osnabrück and Münster, signed on May 15 and October 24 of Swedish Pomerania (Svenska Pommern Schwedisch-Pommern was a Dominion under the Swedish Crown from the 17th to the 19th century situated on what is now the Possession of this region remained an issue of conflict in European politics and Swedish rule was a period marked by the ravages of warfare.
A part of the region south of the Peene river came under Prussian sovereignty by a peace treaty in 1720. For the settlement in England see Peene Kent, for the small river in France see Peene Becque, for the Flemish physician and playwright see Hippoliet van Peene Under the Peace of Kiel, Swedish Pomerania was transferred to Denmark in 1814, but this arrangement did not last long, with the 1815 Congress of Vienna ceding the territory to Prussia. The Treaty of Kiel was a settlement between Sweden and Denmark-Norway on January 14, 1814, whereby the Danish king a loser in the The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of the major powers of Europe, chaired by the Austrian statesman Clemens Wenzel von Metternich
Modern borders
At the end of World War II in 1945, a small area of Vorpommern including Stettin (thereafter renamed Szczecin) - the region's principal city - and Swinemünde (thereafter renamed Swinoujscie) was transferred along with Farther Pomerania to Poland. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Świnoujście (Swinemünde is a City and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, located in the extreme north-west of Poland Farther Pomerania or Further Pomerania (Hinterpommern Pomorze Zachodnie is a Pomeranian region roughly stretching from the Oder River in the West Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The bulk of Vorpommern became part of the newly constituted Land (state) of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, sometimes translated as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania or Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, is a state in Northern Germany comprising The word "Vorpommern" was deleted from the state's name at the insistence of the Soviet military administration in 1947 [2] and the entire state of Mecklenburg was abolished by East Germany in 1952. The German Democratic Republic ( GDR; Deutsche Demokratische Republik DDR; commonly known in English as East Germany) was a Socialist state
The 1945–1952 state was reconstituted, with minor border adjustments, as Mecklenburg-Vorpommern at the time of German reunification in 1990. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, sometimes translated as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania or Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, is a state in Northern Germany comprising German reunification (Deutsche Wiedervereinigung took place twice after 1945 first in 1957 the Saarland was permitted to join the Federal Republic of Germany
Geography
Vorpommern today is understood as comprising the islands of Rügen and Usedom and the nearby mainland, roughly matching the administrative districts of Rügen, Nordvorpommern, Ostvorpommern, Demmin and Uecker-Randow, though those districts' boundaries with Mecklenburg proper do not match the pre-1945 demarcation. German districts (de ''Kreise'' or de ''Landkreise'' in the states of Nordrhein-Westfalen and Schleswig-Holstein, singular de ''Kreis'' and de ''Landreis'' Rügen (ˈʁyːgən or Rugia is Germany 's largest Island. It is located in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Nordvorpommern ("North Western Pomerania" is a Kreis (district in the northern part of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Ostvorpommern is a Kreis (district in the eastern part of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Demmin (dɛˈmiːn is a Town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. Uecker-Randow is a Kreis (district in the eastern part of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany.
Consideration was given during a reform of district boundaries in 1994 to restoring the old boundary, but this was not implemented. The Ribnitz area of Nordvorpommern and the Malchin area of Demmin were both formerly part of Mecklenburg. The old western boundary line is preserved in the division between two churches of the Lutheran communion, the Evangelisch-Lutherische Landeskirche Mecklenburgs and the Pommersche Evangelische Kirche.
Major towns in Vorpommern include Stralsund, Greifswald, Demmin, Anklam, Wolgast, and Barth. Stralsund (ˈʃtʁaːlzʊnt is a city in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, situated at the southern Coast of the Strelasund (a sound Greifswald (ˈɡʁaɪ̯fsvalt from German: popular etymology Greif, "griffin" proper etymology akin to "grip a plot not yet cleared and taken Demmin (dɛˈmiːn is a Town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. Anklam is a town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, situated on the banks of the Peene river 8 km from its mouth in the Kleines Haff and Barth is a town in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated at a lagoon of the Baltic Sea at the opposite side of the Darß With Polish entry into the European Union and the opening of borders, Szczecin has resumed its place as a dominant city for southern parts of the region. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Vorpommern has almost no significant industry, although an energy complex is planned at the place near Greifswald where the Nord Stream gas pipeline is to come ashore. Nord Stream (Северный поток Nordeuropäische Gasleitung Gazociąg Północny former names North Transgas and North European Gas Pipeline; also The region is noted chiefly for tourism, with its Baltic beaches a popular summer holiday destination.
See also
Link
References and notes
- ^ H. Swedish Pomerania (Svenska Pommern Schwedisch-Pommern was a Dominion under the Swedish Crown from the 17th to the 19th century situated on what is now the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, sometimes translated as Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania or Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, is a state in Northern Germany comprising Pomerania is a geographical region in northern Poland and Germany, on the south coast of the Baltic Sea. J. Janzen, History of Pomerania (in German)
- ^ No author, timeline of state history
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