Chronicon Holtzatiae
Encyclopedia
The Chronicon Holtzatiae auctore presbytero Bremensi is a Latin universal chronicle from the year 1448, but concentrating on the County of Holstein (the terra Holsacie) and written by an anonymous presbyter
of Bremen
originally from Holstein. It has received three modern editions, the first by the famous Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz in 1698. Other than that it has been rather neglected by medievalists; its Latin is poor and its author imaginative.
For the years before 1170 the principal source for the anonymous presbyter is Helmold's Cronica Slavorum. After this date he has no discernible source. He describes himself as a scriba hujus patrie (scribe of this fatherland), probably indicating a low-level position in the comital chancery, then in its earliest stages. An analysis of the Chronicon suggests that he had access to comital documents and that he participated in the 1447 negotiations at Lübeck
between Adolf VIII of Holstein and Schleswig and the free people of the Dithmarschen
, wedged between Holstein and the sea.
The Chronicon pays especially close attention to the west of the county (the Ditmarschen, Kremper, and Wilstrer Marschen), and particularly to Itzehoe
. This suggests that the anonymous presbyter may have hailed from the western country, or maintained links with the Cistercian monastery of Saint-Laurent/Notre Dame at Itzehoe. The majority of counts of Holstein were buried there and since 1421 their memory was preserved through various memorial masses and other services rendered by the monks. The author of the Chronicon may have been one of the twenty vicars assigned special roles in this regard.
The Chronicon, interpreted in the political context of its compilation, was a propaganda tool for the dynasty of the Schauenburg-Rendsburg. The house of Schauenburg had ruled Holstein since Adolf I
acquired it in 1101. Though six different cadet branches ruled the county divided after 1261, these were all, save the Pinneberg, reunited under the Rendsburg branch by 1390. At the time of the Chronicons compilation Adolf VIII was childless and facing a succession crisis in both Holstein and Schleswig, a fief of the Kingdom of Denmark
that was often in dispute between the Holsteiner counts and Danish kings. When Christian of Oldenburg, who had married Adolf's sister in 1421, succeeded the Danish throne as Christian I
in 1448, the succession problem and the problem of Danish interference in Holstein were suddenly resolved in favour of the Rendsburg interests. The maintenance of the high status of Itzehoe and the denigration of the claims of the Pinneburgs to the county of Holstein fuelled the anonymous presbyter of Bremen to compose his chronicle at this time. In the anonymous's own words: ad complementum cronice quam pie recordacionis frater Helmoldus [...] de Holzacorum principibus et vicinis eorum fideliter composuerat ("to complement the chronicle that brother Helmold of pious memory faithfully composed of the princes of Holstein and their neighbors").
References
Bibliography
Notes
Presbyter
Presbyter in the New Testament refers to a leader in local Christian congregations, then a synonym of episkopos...
of Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
originally from Holstein. It has received three modern editions, the first by the famous Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz in 1698. Other than that it has been rather neglected by medievalists; its Latin is poor and its author imaginative.
For the years before 1170 the principal source for the anonymous presbyter is Helmold's Cronica Slavorum. After this date he has no discernible source. He describes himself as a scriba hujus patrie (scribe of this fatherland), probably indicating a low-level position in the comital chancery, then in its earliest stages. An analysis of the Chronicon suggests that he had access to comital documents and that he participated in the 1447 negotiations at Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
between Adolf VIII of Holstein and Schleswig and the free people of the Dithmarschen
Dithmarschen
Dithmarschen is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Nordfriesland, Schleswig-Flensburg, Rendsburg-Eckernförde, and Steinburg, by the state of Lower Saxony , and by the North Sea.-Geography:The district is located on the North Sea...
, wedged between Holstein and the sea.
The Chronicon pays especially close attention to the west of the county (the Ditmarschen, Kremper, and Wilstrer Marschen), and particularly to Itzehoe
Itzehoe
Itzehoe is a town in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.As the capital of the district Steinburg, Itzehoe is located on the Stör, a navigable tributary of the Elbe, 51 km northwest of Hamburg and 24 km north of Glückstadt...
. This suggests that the anonymous presbyter may have hailed from the western country, or maintained links with the Cistercian monastery of Saint-Laurent/Notre Dame at Itzehoe. The majority of counts of Holstein were buried there and since 1421 their memory was preserved through various memorial masses and other services rendered by the monks. The author of the Chronicon may have been one of the twenty vicars assigned special roles in this regard.
The Chronicon, interpreted in the political context of its compilation, was a propaganda tool for the dynasty of the Schauenburg-Rendsburg. The house of Schauenburg had ruled Holstein since Adolf I
Adolf I of Holstein
Adolf I was the first Count of Schauenburg from 1106 and the second Count of Holstein from 1111. He made an important contribution to the colonisation and Germanisation of the lands north of the Elbe....
acquired it in 1101. Though six different cadet branches ruled the county divided after 1261, these were all, save the Pinneberg, reunited under the Rendsburg branch by 1390. At the time of the Chronicons compilation Adolf VIII was childless and facing a succession crisis in both Holstein and Schleswig, a fief of the Kingdom of Denmark
Kingdom of Denmark
The Kingdom of Denmark or the Danish Realm , is a constitutional monarchy and sovereign state consisting of Denmark proper in northern Europe and two autonomous constituent countries, the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic and Greenland in North America. Denmark is the hegemonial part, where the...
that was often in dispute between the Holsteiner counts and Danish kings. When Christian of Oldenburg, who had married Adolf's sister in 1421, succeeded the Danish throne as Christian I
Christian I of Denmark
Christian I was a Danish monarch, king of Denmark , Norway and Sweden , under the Kalmar Union. In Sweden his short tenure as monarch was preceded by regents, Jöns Bengtsson Oxenstierna and Erik Axelsson Tott and succeeded by regent Kettil Karlsson Vasa...
in 1448, the succession problem and the problem of Danish interference in Holstein were suddenly resolved in favour of the Rendsburg interests. The maintenance of the high status of Itzehoe and the denigration of the claims of the Pinneburgs to the county of Holstein fuelled the anonymous presbyter of Bremen to compose his chronicle at this time. In the anonymous's own words: ad complementum cronice quam pie recordacionis frater Helmoldus [...] de Holzacorum principibus et vicinis eorum fideliter composuerat ("to complement the chronicle that brother Helmold of pious memory faithfully composed of the princes of Holstein and their neighbors").
References
- Mathieu Olivier. 2005. Le prince et l'histoire dans le comté de Holstein, au miroir du Chronicon Holtzatiae Auctore Presbytero Bremensi. Médiévales, 48:99–122.
Bibliography
- Mathieu Olivier. 2002. "Nemet iuwe Saxen!": l'identité régionale dans le comté de Holstein au xve siècle à partir du Chronicon Holtzatiae Auctore Presbytero Bremensi. MPhil diss. J.-M. Moeglin, dir. University of Paris.
Notes