Jaxa Of Köpenick
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Jaxa of Köpenick (sometimes ''Jaksa'' or ''Jacza of Copnic'', , Jaksa being an early Sorbian and/or Polish form of ''
James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...
'') (
fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...
1151–1157) was a prince of the West Slavic Sprevan Principality of Copnic. He was an opponent of
Albert the Bear Albert the Bear (; 1100 – 18 November 1170) was the first margrave of Brandenburg from 1157 to his death and was briefly duke of Saxony between 1138 and 1142. Life Albert was the only son of Otto, Count of Ballenstedt, and Eilika of Sa ...
during the formation of
Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...
in 1157.


Slavic rebellion and war for Brandenburg

Jaxa, a prince of the
Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...
Sprevani The Sprevane or Sprevani (; Slavonic: ''Sprevjane'') were a Slavic tribe who lived around the river Spree, where Berlin is now, in the Brandenburg area of eastern Germany. They were first recorded in 948 and again in 965 as living in the territo ...
in
Köpenick Köpenick () is a historic town and locality (''Ortsteil'') in Berlin, situated at the confluence of the rivers Dahme and Spree in the south-east of the German capital. It was formerly known as Copanic and then Cöpenick, only officially ado ...
(present day borough of
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
) was probably a relative of the
Hevelli The Hevelli or Hevellians/ Navellasîni (sometimes ''Havolane''; or ''Stodoranen''; or ''Stodoranie''; or ''Stodorané'') were a tribe of the Polabian Slavs, who settled around the middle Havel river in the present-day Havelland region of Bra ...
(Stodoran) prince Pribislav and as a result had a claim to rule over the Stodrans after Pribislav's death. Unbeknownst to Jaxa and most of the Stodoran nobility, Pribislav, around 1140, had made an agreement with
Albert the Bear Albert the Bear (; 1100 – 18 November 1170) was the first margrave of Brandenburg from 1157 to his death and was briefly duke of Saxony between 1138 and 1142. Life Albert was the only son of Otto, Count of Ballenstedt, and Eilika of Sa ...
, bequeathing the lands of the Stodorans to the latter. Pribislav died in 1150, and his widow sent for Albert. In the meantime she hid the duke's corpse, afraid that if the testament became known before Albert took control of Brenna (Brandenburg) a general rebellion would break out. However Albert was delayed, and the stench of the decomposing corpse gave away his death. The nobility of the Stodorans deliberated as to their next step, while Jaxa was also informed. Albert arrived first and took control of Brenna, with Jaxa showing up shortly afterward on the same day. The circumstances of the transfer of power in Brenna, and the duplicity of Pribislav's widow in the end did provoke a Slavic uprising (although many German peasants joined) against German rule. The region of Köpenick and Brenna stood astride the main land routes from west of the Oder into the
Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...
. For this reason who controlled these lands was of central importance to Polish rulers. Hence, Mieszko the Old, Duke of
Greater Poland Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; ), is a Polish Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed by Kalisz, the oldest city in Poland. The bound ...
(later High Duke of Poland) actively supported Jaxa and the Slavic rebellion, fully aware that as long as German nobles were busy fighting Slavs to the west, they could not intervene into Polish affairs. Other Polish regional dukes also sent armed contingents to support Jaxa. In early 1151 Jaxa besieged Brenna. Albert the Bear, having anticipated this move, had strengthened the defenses of the city and stocked it with additional provisions. Unsure of his support he expelled the inhabitants, retaining the wealthiest of them as hostages. Still wary of the loyalties of his own men, Albert left the town before the siege started. Consequently, the Slavic warriors in his service defected to Jaxa's side, killed the German soldiers that served alongside them, and opened up the gates to the Sprevani prince. The capture of Brenna contributed to the spread of the uprising. Jaxa gained the support of all still pagan Slavs and many of the already Christian Lutici. Additionally, even German peasants who had recently come to the area as colonists joined his uprising for economic reasons. Most troubling for Albert, even rank and file knights deserted his army to join Jaxa, justifying their actions by saying that they were not aiding a pagan chief but rather a "Polish prince". Small scale operations and minor battles between two sides occurred until 1156. Sometime between 1154 and 1156 Albert made a failed attempt at re-seizing Brenna through a surprise attack. Major operations did not begin until 1157 when Albert received troops and other support from
Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...
Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 115 ...
. Frederick was planning an expedition against Poland, and putting down the uprising was a necessary preliminary move. The Poles, in an attempt to avoid war with the Emperor and placate him, withdrew their troops which had been part of Jaxa's army. As a result, in June 1157, according to the
chronicle A chronicle (, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events ...
of Helmold, Albert took Brenna from Jaxa's forces. The capture of the town is generally regarded as the beginning of 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 ...
.


Historical identification

The exact identity of Jaxa of Köpenick, the leader of the Slavic revolt, has been subject of dispute, partly because there might have been several individuals with the unusual name "Jaxa" (or its variants) alive at the time. This is complicated by the fact that it is also not clear whether Jaxa was a pagan or if he had converted to Christianity. While Jaxa led a pagan revolt, some sources claim that he himself was a Christian, having converted through the Polish Bishopric of Lebus. Likewise the coins issued by a ''Jacza de Copnic'' show a ruler holding a cross, however it is not clear that Jacza and Jaxa were the same person, although undoubtedly both were associated with Köpenick. Other sources on the other hand refer to Jaxa as a pagan or a heathen. The Polish
numismatist A numismatist is a specialist, researcher, and/or well-informed collector of numismatics, numismatics/coins ("of coins"; from Late Latin , genitive of ). Numismatists can include collectors, specialist dealers, and scholar-researchers who use coi ...
Marian Gumowski identified Jaxa with a Polish noble from
Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name ''Małopolska'' (; ), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a separate cult ...
, Jaksa of Miechów, who in 1145 married a daughter of
Piotr Włostowic Herb ŁabędźPiotr Włostowic (or Włost; 1080 – 1153), also known as Peter Wlast, was a Polish noble, castellan of Wrocław, and a ruler (''możnowładca'') of part of Silesia. From 1117 he was voivode (''palatyn'') of the Duke of Poland Bol ...
, the castellan of
Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...
and ''palatyn'' to Polish Duke Bolesław Wrymouth. According to this version Jaxa/Jaksa did not become prince of Stodorans until 1154. If the identification is correct then Jaxa's death can be placed at around 1176. Marek Cetwiński also identified Jaxa, prince of Kopenick, with Jaksa of Miechów. According to this thesis Jaksa's coins could have been fabricated at silver mines of Rozbark and
Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian language, Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', ) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital. It is one ...
. This thesis has been disputed by other scholars, for example the Polish historian
Gerard Labuda Gerard Labuda (; 28 December 1916 – 1 October 2010) was a Polish historian whose main fields of interest were the Middle Ages and the Western Slavs. He was born in Kashubia. He lived and died in Poznań, Poland. Life Labuda was born in N ...
, who argued that the two were distinct persons. In this Labuda followed the Polish Renaissance chronicler
Jan Długosz Jan Długosz (; 1 December 1415 – 19 May 1480), also known in Latin as Johannes Longinus, was a Polish priest, chronicler, diplomat, soldier, and secretary to Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki of Kraków. He is considered Poland's first histo ...
who had posited that there were in fact three different Jaxas alive during this period. According to British historian
Norman Davies Ivor Norman Richard Davies (born 8 June 1939) is a British and Polish historian, known for his publications on the history of Europe, Poland and the United Kingdom. He has a special interest in Central and Eastern Europe and is UNESCO Profes ...
Jaxa was most likely a Sorb or Lutician.


Commemoration

A monument for him can be found on the Schildhorn peninsula in the
Havel The Havel () is a river in northeastern Germany, flowing through the States of Germany, states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Berlin and Saxony-Anhalt. The long Havel is a right tributary of the Elbe. However, the direct distance from ...
.


References


External links


Bibliography at LitDok East Central Europe
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jaxa Of Kopenick Princes of the Holy Roman Empire 12th-century births Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Margraviate of Brandenburg History of Berlin Polabian Slavs