Barnim III the Great (14 August 1368) was a Pomeranian duke from the
House of Griffin
The House of Griffin or Griffin dynasty, (; , ; Latin: ''Gryphes''), or House of Pomerania (see ), 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 ...
.
Life
He ruled Pomerania-Stettin in the years 1344–1368, although he had been a co-regent of his father
Otto I
Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...
since 1320, taking a prominent part in the defence and government of the duchy. Aiming for independence from the
Margraviate of Brandenburg
The Margraviate of Brandenburg () was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 that, having electoral status although being quite poor, grew rapidly in importance after inheriting the Duchy of Prussia in 1618 and then came ...
, he allied himself with
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
and
Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
. In 1338, Brandenburg relinquished supremacy over Pomerania, and in 1348
Charles IV recognized the duchy as a
fiefdom
A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...
of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
, which helped to protect it from the Brandenburg margraves. The civil war in Brandenburg in the years 1349–1354 allowed Barnim III to extend his duchy by conquest. He was first ''dux Cassuborum'' Duke of
Kashubians
The Kashubians (; ; ), also known as Cassubians or Kashubs, are a Lechitic ( West Slavic) ethnic group native to the historical region of Pomerania, including its eastern part called Pomerelia, in north-central Poland. Their settlement area is ...
.
Marriage and issue
Barnim III married Agnes ( – before or in 1371), a daughter of Duke
Henry II
Henry II may refer to:
Kings
* Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014
*Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154
*Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...
of Brunswick-Grubenhagen. They had four children:
* Otto (d. 1337)
*
Casimir III (1348 – 24 August 1372)
*
Swantibor III ( – 21 June 1413)
*
Bogislaw VII (before 1366 – 1404)
Ancestry
See also
*
List of Pomeranian duchies and dukes
This is a list of the duchies and dukes of Pomerania.
Dukes of the Slavic Pomeranian tribes (All Pomerania)
The lands of Pomerania were firstly ruled by local tribes, who settled in Pomerania around the 10th and 11th centuries.
Non-dynastic
...
*
History of Pomerania
The history of Pomerania starts shortly before 1000 AD, with ongoing conquests by newly arrived Polans (western), Polan rulers. Before that, the area was recorded nearly 2000 years ago as Germania, and in modern times Pomerania has been split betw ...
*
Duchy of Pomerania
The Duchy of Pomerania (; ; Latin: ''Ducatus Pomeraniae'') was a duchy in Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, ruled by dukes of the House of Pomerania (''Griffins''). The country existed in the Middle Ages between years 1121–11 ...
*
House of Pomerania
The House of Griffin or Griffin dynasty, (; , ; Latin: ''Gryphes''), or House of Pomerania (see ), 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 ...
External links
Barnim III
Attribution:
*
*
14th-century births
1368 deaths
Dukes of Pomerania
People from Szczecin
14th-century German nobility
House of Griffins
Year of birth uncertain
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