The Lordship (or Principality) of Parchim-Richenberg (german: (Fürstentum) Herrschaft Parchim-Richenberg) was a short-lived state 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 ...

which existed during the 13th century. It arose from the

first partition of Mecklenburg During its history, the state of Mecklenburg has been repeatedly partitioned into various successor states ( lordships, duchies, grand duchies). Modern historians distinguish three main Partitions of Mecklenburg: First partition of Mecklenburg ...

after the death of

Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg (1170 – 5 June 1226) was a member of the House of Mecklenburg, was a Prince of Mecklenburg from 1219 to 1226 and Lord of Rostock (1225-1226). Life Henry Borwin II was a son of Henry Borwin I, Lord of ...

in 1226. Initially it was named after its capital

Parchim Parchim (; Mecklenburgisch: ''Parchen'') is a town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is the capital of the Ludwigslust-Parchim district. It was the birthplace of Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, to whom a monument was erected in 1876. Found ...

. Later, following the transferral of the seat to Richenberg, the name shifted to Richenberg. The Lordship comprised the lands of Parchim (included Brenz and Rosengarten), the rural area of Ture and the later

Vogt During the Middle Ages, an (sometimes given as modern English: advocate; German: ; French: ) was an office-holder who was legally delegated to perform some of the secular responsibilities of a major feudal lord, or for an institution such as ...

eis of

Plau Urokinase, also known as urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA), is a serine protease present in humans and other animals. The human urokinase protein was discovered, but not named, by McFarlane and Pilling in 1947. Urokinase was originally i ...

Goldberg Goldberg or Goldberger may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Goldberg Ensemble, a British string ensemble * ''Goldberg Variations'', a set of 30 keyboard variations by Johann Sebastian Bach * ''The Goldbergs (broadcast series)'', American radio ...

, Sternberg and finally Richenberg (on the

Warnow The Warnow () is a river in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany. It flows into the Baltic Sea near the town of Rostock, in its borough Warnemünde. The source of the Warnow is in Grebbin, a small village north of Parchim, at the wes ...

near

Langen Brütz Langen Brütz is a municipality in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in ...

). It was the shortest-lived of the four partitioned principalities of Mecklenburg.

Pribislaw I

The first prince of Parchim-Richenberg was

Pribislaw I Pribislaw I, Lord of Parchim-Richenberg (between 15 February and 3 June 1224 – after 12 February 1275), was Lord of Parchim-Richenberg from 1238 to 1256. He was the youngest son of Prince Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg of Mecklenburg. ...

from the

House of Mecklenburg The House of Mecklenburg, also known as Nikloting, is a North German dynasty of Slavic origin that ruled until 1918 in the Mecklenburg region, being among the longest-ruling families of Europe. Queen Juliana of the Netherlands (1909–2004), ...

(

Obotrites The Obotrites ( la, Obotriti, Abodritorum, Abodritos…) or Obodrites, also spelled Abodrites (german: Abodriten), were a confederation of medieval West Slavs, West Slavic tribes within the territory of modern Mecklenburg and Holstein in norther ...

), the youngest son of Henry Borwin II. He grew up at the court of his brother

John I, Lord of Mecklenburg John I, Lord of Mecklenburg, nicknamed ''the Theologian'' ( – 1 August 1264) was Lord of Mecklenburg from 1234 until his death. Life He was the eldest son of Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg. He ruled Mecklenburg jointly with his bro ...

. Since Pribislaw was still too young, John managed the lordship for his brother until 1238. Soon after he assumed his full position, border conflicts with the

Counts of Schwerin Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

erupted, and he had to cede Brenz and

Neustadt-Glewe Neustadt-Glewe is a German town, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, in the district of Ludwigslust-Parchim. History Neustadt-Glewe was mentioned for the first time in a document in 1248. Hans Axel Holm, a Swedish writer and journalist, documente ...

. After this feud he managed to stabilise the territory economically by founding the towns of Goldberg and Sternberg, and through the settlement of Jews in Parchim. He bestowed the ' (Parchim

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

) on

Lübz Lübz is a town in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated on the river Elde, 12 km northeast of Parchim. It is home to the Mecklenburgische Brauerei Lübz, the largest local employer and o ...

, Goldberg and Sternberg. In 1249 Parchim New Town was founded on the western shore of the

Elde The Elde () is a river in northern Germany (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and a few km in Brandenburg), a right tributary of the Elbe. Its total length is . The Elde originates near Altenhof, south of Malchow. It first flows southeast towards the southe ...

. In 1248 Pribislaw relocated his residence from Parchim to the newly built castle of Richenberg on the Warnow near the village of Kritzow. Thereafter the lordship was also known as Parchim-Richenberg. The reasons for the move are unknown. After disputes with Rudolf, Bishop of Schwerin Pribislaw was captured and taken to him. Pribislaw was removed from power in 1255 and the Principality was divided between his brothers and his brother-in-law, the Count of Schwerin. Pribislaw went into exile in

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

and received the

Lordship of Belgard A lordship is a territory held by a lord. It was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas. It originated as a unit under the feudal system during the Middle Ages. In a lordship, the functions of eco ...

Farther Pomerania Farther Pomerania, Hinder Pomerania, Rear Pomerania or Eastern Pomerania (german: Hinterpommern, Ostpommern), is the part of Pomerania which comprised the eastern part of the Duchy and later Province of Pomerania. It stretched roughly from the Od ...

as compensation.

References

* {{cite web, url=http://mvdok.lbmv.de/resolve/id/mvdok_document_00000781, last=Beyer, first=Wilhelm Gottlieb, title=Urkundliche Geschichte des Fürsten Pribislav I. von Parchim-Richenberg und seiner Nachkommen, language=German

Parchim-Richenberg The Lordship (or Principality) of Parchim-Richenberg (german: (Fürstentum) Herrschaft Parchim-Richenberg) was a short-lived state of the Holy Roman Empire which existed during the 13th century. It arose from the first partition of Mecklenburg afte ...