Mestwin I ( or , ; c. 1160 – 1/2 May 1219 or 1220) was Prince of

Pomerelia Pomerelia, also known as Eastern Pomerania, Vistula Pomerania, and also before World War II as Polish Pomerania, is a historical sub-region of Pomerania on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland. Gdańsk Pomerania is largely c ...

(styled himself as ''princeps Pomoranorum'') from about 1205 until his death. Mestwin was a member of the

Samborides The Samborides () or House of Sobiesław () were a ruling dynasty in the historic region of Pomerelia. They were first documented about 1155 as governors (''princeps'') in the Eastern Pomeranian lands serving the royal Piast dynasty of Kingdom o ...

dynasty, the son of Duke Sobiesław of Gdańsk and younger brother of Sambor I, whom he succeeded in

. In the tables of Oliwa Abbey, outside Gdańsk, he is recorded as ''pacificus'' ("the Peaceful"). As Mestwin I, ''dei gracia princeps in Gdanzk'', he had founded a convent of nuns (probably the

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular in the Catholic Chur ...

abbey of

Żukowo Żukowo (, , ) is a town in Kartuzy County, in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of northern Poland in the cultural region of Kashubia, with 6,236 inhabitants (2005). It is located along the Radunia river in the historic Pomerelia, about southwest of G ...

), the castellany of Białogarda at the border with the Pomeranian

Lands of Schlawe and Stolp The Schlawe and Stolp Land (also known as Słupsk and Sławno Land) is a historical region in Pomerania, centered on the towns of Sławno (''Schlawe'') and Słupsk (''Stolp'') in Farther Pomerania (Eastern Pomerania), present-day Poland. The are ...

on the

Łeba river Łeba (, ; ) is a seaside town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of northern Poland. It is located in the region of Gdańsk Pomerania (Pomerelia), near Łebsko Lake and the mouth of the river Łeba on the Slovincian Coast of the Baltic Sea. History ...

, and several villages between the rivers Radunia and

Słupia Słupia () is a river in north-western Poland, a tributary of the Baltic Sea, with a length of 138 kilometres and the basin area of 1,623 km². Cities: * Słupsk Towns: * Ustka Affluents: * Bytowa See also: Rivers of Poland, List of ri ...

. After King

Valdemar II of Denmark Valdemar II Valdemarsen (28 June 1170 – 28 March 1241), later remembered as Valdemar the Victorious () and Valdemar the Conqueror, was King of Denmark from 1202 until his death in 1241. In 1207, Valdemar invaded and conquered Bishopric of L� ...

had conquered the southern coast of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

with ''Gdanzk'' during a

crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

against the

Old Prussians Old Prussians, Baltic Prussians or simply Prussians were a Balts, Baltic people that inhabited the Prussia (region), region of Prussia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea between the Vistula Lagoon to the west and the Curonian Lagoon ...

, Duke Mestwin in 1210 had to accept Danish overlordship, but was able to free himself again the next year. He was married to Swinisława (d. 1240), formerly referred to as a daughter of Duke Ratibor I of Pomerania. They had eight children: # Hedwig, married Duke Władysław Odonic 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 ...

# Swietopelk II, Duke of Pomerania, succeeded his father as Duke of Pomerelia, from 1227 of Pomerelia-Gdańsk # Mirosława, married Bogislaw II, Duke of

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

Stettin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major seaport, the largest city of northwestern Poland, and se ...

# Witosława, prioress of Żukowo Abbey # Warcisław, Duke at

Świecie Świecie (; ) is a town in northern Poland with 24,841 inhabitants (2023), capital of Świecie County in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship. It is located within the ethnocultural region of Kociewie in the historic region of Pomerania. Founded ...

from 1227 # Sambor II, Duke at Lubiszewo from 1233 # Ratibor, Duke at Białogard from 1233 # Milosława, nun at Żukowo Abbey

References

:;Specific: :;General: * *

Literature

* Theodor Hirsch, Max Töppen, Ernst Gottfried Wilhelm Strehlke: Scriptores Rerum Prussicarum:
Die Geschichtsquellen der preussischen Vorzeit
' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mestwin I, Duke Of Pomerania 1160s births 13th-century deaths Dukes of Pomerania Samborides Year of birth uncertain