Casimir VI (also known as Casimir IX; 22 March 1557 – 10 May 1605) was a member of 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 ...

who ruled as Lutheran Administrator of the

Prince-Bishopric of Cammin The Bishopric of Cammin (also Kammin, Kamień Pomorski) was both a former Roman Catholic diocese in the Duchy of Pomerania from 1140 to 1544, and a secular territory of the Holy Roman Empire ( Prince-Bishopric) in the Kolberg (Kołobrzeg) area f ...

Life

Casimir was born in

Wolgast Wolgast (; csb, Wòłogòszcz) is a town in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the bank of the river (or strait) Peenestrom, vis-a-vis the island of Usedom on the Baltic coast that can be ...

. He was the tenth child of Duke

Philip I Philip(p) I may refer to: * Philip I of Macedon (7th century BC) * Philip I Philadelphus (between 124 and 109 BC–83 or 75 BC) * Philip the Arab (c. 204–249), Roman Emperor * Philip I of France (1052–1108) * Philip I (archbishop of Cologne) (1 ...

of Pomerania-Wolgast and his wife Maria of Saxony. Philip I died in 1560; he was survived by five of his sons. Apart from Casimir VI, they were John Frederick (born: 1542),

Bogislaw XIII Bogislaw XIII (Bogusław XIII) of Pomerania (9 August 1544 – 7 March 1606, Stettin; ''Polish'': Szczecin), son of Philip I and Maria of Saxony, was a prince of Stettin and Wolgast, and a member of the Griffins. Bogislaw studied at the Univer ...

(born: 1544), Ernest Louis (born: 1545), Barnim X (born: 1549). Initially, the Lord High Stewart

Ulrich von Schwerin Ulrich von Schwerin, also spelled Huldrych von Schwerin or Huldricus Schwerinus ( – ) was Hofmeister in the Duchy of Pomerania-Wolgast and one of the most influential men of his time. He was a member of the noble Schwerin family, who origi ...

, acted as regent. He was supported by an eleven-member regency council. On 25 July 1569, the elder brothers wrote the Treaty of Jasenitz, dividing Pomerania among themselves. For Casimir, it was planned that he would later become the Lutheran administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Cammin. In 1574, John Frederick renounced that position, and Casimir took over the diocese, aged just 17 years. In 1578, he undertook a

Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tuto ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. As Bishop of Cammin Casimir had many disputes with the city of Kolberg, the capital of the prince-bishopric. He left the business of government mostly to his advisers, including Joachim Damnitz. His areas of interest were fishing, banquet and tours. In 1602, Casimir renounced the administration of Cammin Prince-Bishopric and took over the rule in the

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

duchy of Pomerania- Rügenwalde from his older brother Barnim X, who in turn took over the duchy of

Pomerania-Stettin The Duchy of Pomerania-Stettin, also known as the Duchy of Stettin, and the Duchy of Szczecin, was a feudal duchy in Farther Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Szczecin. It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty.B. Dopierała, ''Po ...

after John Frederick had died. Later, he added the district of Bütow. When Barnim X died in September 1603, it was Casimir's turn to rule Pomerania-Stettin, but he was seriously ill and did not take up government. In 1604, he renounced his ascension. In May 1605, Casimir was suffering from

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

and was bedridden for several days. He died on 10 May 1605, between 20:00 and 21:00 at his Neuhausen Palace near Rügenwalde. On 18 June 1605 his body was brought to

Stettin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin language, Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Po ...

and buried there on 20 June in the Ducal Castle Church. He remained unmarried.

Numeral

The counting of the rulers of the

House of Griffins 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 ...

has always been complicated. From time immemorial there exists an imbalance, which causes some confusion.Martin Wehrmann, ''Genealogie des pommerschen Herzogshauses'', Stettin: Leon Sauniers Buchhandlung, 1937, p. 15. The modern numbering counts only the members of the House of Griffins who have reached adulthood and reigned. Under that system, the subject of this article is Casimir VI. If one also takes into account family members who never reigned, which was common in the older literature, he would be Casimir IX.

References and sources

* Martin Wehrmann, ''Genealogie des pommerschen Herzogshauses'', Stettin: Leon Sauniers Buchhandlung, 1937, p. 124. * Martin Wehrmann, ''Geschichte von Pommern'', second edition, Gotha: Friedrich Andreas Perthes, 1921, vol. 2, (reprint: Augsburg: 1992, )

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Casimir VI, Duke of Pomerania Dukes of Pomerania 16th-century German people 17th-century German people 1557 births 1605 deaths People from Wolgast Lutheran administrators of Cammin Prince-Bishopric