The Bishopric of Cammin (also Kammin, Kamień Pomorski) was both a former Roman Catholic

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...

in the Duchy of Pomerania from 1140 to 1544, and a secular territory of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

( Prince-Bishopric) in the Kolberg (Kołobrzeg) area from 1248 to 1650. The diocese comprised the areas controlled by the

House of Pomerania The House of Griffin or Griffin dynasty (german: Greifen; pl, Gryfici, da, Grif) was a dynasty ruling the Duchy of Pomerania from the 12th century until 1637. The name "Griffins" was used by the dynasty after the 15th century and had been take ...

in the 12th century, thus differing from the later territory of the Duchy of Pomerania by the exclusion of the Principality of Rügen and inclusion of

Circipania Circipania (german: Circipanien, Zirzipanien) was a medieval territory in what is now northeastern Germany. The name derives from Latin ''circum'' (around) and ''Pane'' (the Peene River). The region was enclosed roughly by the upper Recknitz, Treb ...

Mecklenburg-Strelitz The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy in northern Germany consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district (the former Lordship of Stargard), ...

, and the northern Uckermark and

New March The Neumark (), also known as the New March ( pl, Nowa Marchia) or as East Brandenburg (), was a region of the Margraviate of Brandenburg and its successors located east of the Oder, Oder River in territory which became part of History of Polan ...

. The diocese was rooted in the

Conversion of Pomerania Medieval Pomerania was converted from Slavic paganism to Christianity by Otto von Bamberg in 1124 and 1128 (Duchy of Pomerania), and in 1168 by Absalon (Principality of Rügen). Earlier attempts at Christianization, undertaken since the 10th ce ...

Otto of Bamberg Otto of Bamberg (1060 or 1061 – 30 June 1139) was a German missionary and papal legate who converted much of medieval Pomerania to Christianity. He was the bishop of Bamberg from 1102 until his death. He was canonized in 1189. Early life Th ...

in 1124 and 1128, and was dissolved during the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

, when the Pomeranian nobility adopted

Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

in 1534 and the last pre-reformatory bishop died in 1544. The Catholic diocese was succeeded by the Pomeranian Evangelical Church and suppressed until 1945, when its new incarnation, the Apostolic Administration of Kamień (''Cammin''), Lubusz and the Prelature of Piła was re-established, succeeded by the Diocese of Szczecin-Kamień in 1972, elevated to

Archdiocese of Szczecin-Kamień In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

in 1992. The secular territory of the former diocese continued to exist as a prince-bishopric and

principality A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall under ...

within the Duchy of Pomerania, and was dissolved in 1650 when it fell to

Brandenburg-Prussia Brandenburg-Prussia (german: Brandenburg-Preußen; ) is the historiographic denomination for the early modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenz ...

, becoming part of Brandenburgian Pomerania. The area of the former principality was administered as ''Fürstenthum county'' within the Prussian Province of Pomerania until its division in 1872.

History

After Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth of Poland had conquered Pomerania until 1121/22, Saint

between 1124 and 1128 Christianised the area. Otto's first mission in 1124 followed a failed mission by eremite Bernard in 1122, and was initiated by Bolesław with the approval of both Lothair III, Holy Roman Emperor, and

Pope Callixtus II Pope Callixtus II or Callistus II ( – 13 December 1124), born Guy of Burgundy, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 February 1119 to his death in 1124. His pontificate was shaped by the Investiture Controversy, ...

. Otto's second mission in 1128 was initiated by Lothair after a pagan reaction. Wartislaw I, Duke of Pomerania supported and aided both missions. Between the missions, he had expanded his duchy westward, up to Güstrow.Jan M Piskorski, ''Pommern im Wandel der Zeiten'', 1999, p. 41, These former Lutician areas were not subject to Polish overlordship, but claimed by the

.Kyra Inachim, ''Die Geschichte Pommerns'', Rostock: Hinstorff, 2008, p. 17, Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 11, Otto during his lifetime did not succeed in founding a diocese, caused by a conflict of the archbishops of Magdeburg and Gniezno about ecclesiastical hegemony in the area.Kyra Inachim, ''Die Geschichte Pommerns'', Rostock: Hinstorff, 2008, p. 15, : "Zunächst waren die kirchlichen Verhältnisse noch ungeordnet, da sowohl Gnesen als auch Magdeburg Ansprüche auf die neue Kirchenprovinz erhoben. Erst nach dem Tod des Pommernapostels Otto von Bamberg (1139) bestätigte Papst Innozenz II. 1140 das pommersche Landesbistum und unterstellte die ''Pomeraniae ecclesia'' dem Schutz des Heiligen Petrus. Es entstand ein unabhängiges pommersches Bistum mit Sitz in Wollin (Jumne)." Otto died in 1139.

Pope Innocent II Pope Innocent II ( la, Innocentius II; died 24 September 1143), born Gregorio Papareschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 February 1130 to his death in 1143. His election as pope was controversial and the fi ...

founded the diocese by a papal bull of 14 October 1140, and made the church of St. Adalbert at ( Julin (Wollin/Wolin) on Wollin/Wolin island the see of the diocese.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 14, In the bull, the new diocese was placed "under the protection of the see of the Holy Peter", thwarting ambitions of the archbishops of Magdeburg and Gniezno, who both wanted to incorporate the new diocese as

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...

into their archdioceses.

Adalbert Adalbert is a German given name which means "noble bright" or "noble shining", derived from the words ''adal'' (meaning noble) and ''berht'' (shining or bright). Alternative spellings include Adelbart, Adelbert and Adalberto. Derivative names inclu ...

, a former chaplain of Saint Otto who had participated in Otto's mission as an interpreter and assistant, was consecrated bishop at Rome.Werner Buchholz, ''Pommern'', Siedler, 1999, p. 29, Adalbert and

Ratibor I Ratibor or Ratiboř may refer to: People *Ratibor (Polabian prince) (died 1043), a prince of the Obotrite confederacy from the Polabian tribe *Ratibor I, Duke of Pomerania (1124–1156), duke of the House of Pomerania (Griffins) *Ratibor II, Duke o ...

founded

Stolpe Abbey Stolpe Abbey (german: Kloster Stolpe; founded 1153, dissolved 1534) was the first monastery in Pomerania. It was located on the southern bank of the Peene River between Gützkow and Anklam near the village of Stolpe an der Peene. Ratibor I, Du ...

at the side of Wartislaw I's assassination by a pagan in 1153, the first monastery in Pomerania. The bishops held the title of ''Pomeranorum'' or ''Pomeranorum et Leuticorum episcopus'', referring to the tribal territories of the Pomeranians and Luticians merged in the Duchy of Pomerania.Wolfgang Wilhelminus et al., ''Pommern: Geschichte, Kultur, Wissenschaft'', University of Greifswald, 1990, p. 57 In the late 12th century the territory of the

Griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late Latin, Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail ...

dukes was raided several times by

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

troops of Henry the Lion and Danish forces under King Valdemar I. The initial see of in

Wollin Wolin (; formerly german: Wollin ) is the name both of a Polish island in the Baltic Sea, just off the Polish coast, and a town on that island. Administratively, the island belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. Wolin is separated from th ...

was moved to Grobe Abbey on the island of Usedom after 1150.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, pp. 14–15, At the same time Wollin economically decayed and was devastated by Danish expeditions, which contributed to the move to Grobe.Jan M Piskorski, ''Pommern im Wandel der Zeiten'', 1999, p. 48, The see was again moved to Cammin, now Kamień Pomorski, in 1175,Kyra Inachim, ''Die Geschichte Pommerns'', Rostock: Hinstorff, 2008, p. 16, where a cathedral chapter, chapter was founded for the Cathedral of ''St. John the Baptist''. All this time, the question of subordinance of the Pomeranian diocese as suffragan to an archdiocese remained unsolved. Since 1188, when the pope accepted the move of the see, the bishopric was referred to as "Roman Catholic Diocese of Cammin", while before it was addressed as ''Pomeranensis ecclesia'', Pomeranian diocese.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 15, The pope furthermore placed the bishopric as an Exemption (church), exempt diocese directly under the Holy See. Since 1208, the bishops held the title ''Caminensis episcopus''. The area of the diocese resembled the area controlled by Wartislaw I and his brother and successor,

. The northern border was defined by the coastline and the border with the Principality of Rügen (Ryck river). In the West, the diocese included

up to Güstrow. In the Southwest, the border of the diocese ran south to a line Güstrow-Ivenack-Altentreptow in a near straight west–east orientation, then took a sharp southward turn west of Ueckermünde to include Prenzlau. The border then turned east to meet the Oder river south of Gartz (Oder), Gartz and followed the Oder to the Warta, Warta (Warthe) confluence to include Zehden. In the South, the diocese border ran immediately north of the Warthe to include Landsberg an der Warthe, Landsberg and Soldin. The southeastern border left the Warthe area with a sharp turn running straight north to Dramburg, then turned eastwards south of the town to include Tempelburg. Then, after a southeast turn, it turned northeast towards Bütow. The eastern border ran east of Bütow and west of Lauenburg in Pomerania to meet the seacoast east of Revekol.Jan M Piskorski citing Hermann Hoogeweg, ''Pommern im Wandel der Zeiten'', 1999, p. 98, When Emperor Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick I Barbarossa deposed Henry the Lion in 1180 he granted Pomerania under Bogislaw I, Duke of Pomerania, Bogislaw I the status of an Imperial state, Imperial duchy, but from 1185 it was a Danish fief until the 1227 Battle of Bornhöved (1227), Battle of Bornhöved. In 1248, the Cammin bishops and the House of Pomerania, Pomeranian dukes had interchanged the ''terrae'' Burg Stargard, Stargard and Kolberg, leaving the bishops in charge of the latter. In the following, the bishops extended their secular reign which soon comprised the Kolberg (now Kołobrzeg), Köslin (also Cöslin, now Koszalin) and Bublitz (now Bobolice) areas.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 16, When in 1276 they became the sovereign of the town of Kolberg also, they moved their residence there. Bishop Hermann von Gleichen founded the towns of Koszalin, Köslin (Koszalin) in 1266 and Maszewo, Massow (Maszewo) in 1278. The administration of the episcopal secular state was done from Köslin. The bishops at multiple occasions tried to exclude their secular reign from ducal overlordship by applying for Imperial immediacy (''Reichsunmittelbarkeit''). The House of Pomerania, Pomeranian dukes successfully forestalled these ambitions, and immediacy was granted only temporarily in 1345. The addition of profane territory would be the basis for later turning the status of the diocese into a prince-bishopric. The episcopal territory of secular reign remained a subfief of ducal Pomerania, and did not become an immediately imperial fief. The

reached Pomerania during the Early Modern Age, Pomerania in the early 16th century, mostly starting from the cities, and

was made the Duchy of Pomerania's religion in 1534 by the diet of Trzebiatów, Treptow upo Rega (Trzebiatów). The Pomeranian reformator Johannes Bugenhagen, appointed bishop of Cammin by 1544, did not assume the office, the cathedral chapter elected instead Bartholomaeus Suawe, Bartholomaeus Swawe, the former chancellor of Duke Barnim XI of Pomerania-Stettin, who promptly renounced Cammin's imperial immediacy. From 1556 on the Griffin dukes held also the office of a titular bishop ruling in Cammin's secular territory. In 1650 the last bishop Ernst Bogislaw von Croÿ resigned and the diocese was secularised. With Farther Pomerania it fell to

forming its Province of Pomerania (1653–1815), Province of Pomerania.

Bishops of Cammin

Catholic bishops

* 1140–1162: Adalbert of Pomerania * 1163–1186: Conrad I of Salzwedel * 1186–1202: Siegfried I * 1202–1219: Siegwin * 1219–1223: Conrad II von Demmin * 1223–1245: Conrad III von Gützkow

Prince-Bishops

* 1245–1252: Wilhelm * 1252–1288: Hermann von Gleichen * 1288–1298: Jaromar Prince of Rugia (son of Prince Wizlaw II) * 1298: Peter * 1299–1317?: Heinrich von Wachholz * 1317?–1324: Conrad IV * 1324–1329: Wilhelm II ** 1324–1326: Otto (anti-bishop) ** 1326–1329: Arnold von Eltz (anti-bishop) * 1329–1343: Friedrich von Eickstedt * 1344–1372: John of Saxe-Lauenburg, John I of Saxe-Lauenburg, son of Eric I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg * 1372–1385: Philipp von Rehberg * 1386–1394: Johann Wilkins, John II Wilken von Kosselyn ** 1386–1392: Bogislaw VIII, Duke of Pomerania, diocesan administrator, ruling Pomerania-Stargard 1377–1417 * 1394–1398: Bogislaw VIII, Duke of Pomerania, bishop elect, rivalling John III * 1394–1398: Jan Kropidło, John III Kropidło, Duke of Duchy of Oppeln-Strehlitz, Oppeln-Strehlitz, rivalling Bogislaw VIII * 1398–1410: Nikolaus Bock * 1410–1424: Magnus of Saxe-Lauenburg (prince-bishop), Magnus of Saxe-Lauenburg, prince-bishop of Hildesheim, 1424–1452 * 1424–1449: Siegfried II von Bock * 1449–1469: Henning Iwen * 1449–1471: sede vacante * 1471: Henning Kessebogen * 1471–1479: Count Ludwig von Eberstein-Naugard * 1479: Nicolaus von Tüngen, also Prince-Bishop of Ermland (Warmia) 1467–1489 * 1479–1482: Marinus Freganus * 1482–1485: Angelo Geraldini, also Bishop of Sessa Aurunca 1462–1486 * 1486–1498: Benedikt von Waldstein ** 1486–1488: Nikolaus Westphal, diocesan administrator * 1499–1521: Martin Karith * 1521–1544: Erasmus von Manteuffel-Arnhausen, after 1532 he lost influence in the diocesan territory except of the episcopal secular area around Kolberg

Lutheran Bishops and Superintendents

* 1544–1549: Bartholomaeus Suawe, bishop, only for the Lutheran state church in the secular episcopal area * 1549–1556: Martin Weiher von Leba (:de:Martin von Weiher, de), bishop, only for the Lutheran state church in the secular episcopal area * 1556–1558: vacancy, the succeeding administrators, colloquially called bishops, lacked any theological skills * 1558–1567: Georg von Venediger, Georg Venetus, Stiftssuperintendent (i.e. superintendent of the Hochstift/prince-bishopric) * 1568–1602: Petrus Edeling, superintendent of the prince-bishopric * 1605–1620: Adam Hamel, superintendent of the prince-bishopric * 1622–1645: Immanuel König, superintendent of the prince-bishopric

Pomeranian Prince-Administrators ("Bishops")

* 1556–1574: John Frederick, Duke of Pomerania, † 1600 * 1574–1602: Casimir VI, Duke of Pomerania, Casimir IX, Duke of Duchy of Pomerania-Wolgast, Pomerania-Wolgast, † 1605 * 1602–1618: Francis, Duke of Pomerania, Francis, Duke of Duchy of Pomerania-Barth, Pomerania-Barth, † 1620 * 1618–1623: Ulrich, Duke of Pomerania, Ulrich, Duke of Pomerania-Barth * 1623–1637: Bogislaw XIV, Duke of Pomerania * 1637–1650: Ernst Bogislaw von Croÿ, Prince of Croÿ, † 1684

Notes

External links

Bishop list
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bishopric Of Cammin States and territories established in 1248, Cammin prince-bishopric States and territories disestablished in 1650, Cammin prince-bishopric Former Roman Catholic dioceses in Germany, Cammin Religious organizations established in the 1140s, Cammin diocese Roman Catholic dioceses established in the 12th century, Cammin diocese 1544 disestablishments, Cammin diocese