Hermann Billung

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hermann at the side of Otto I the Great . Illustration from the Saxon World Chronicle around 1270, Gotha, Research Library , Cod. Memb. I 90, fol. 89 r.

Hermann Billung († March 27, 973 in Quedlinburg ) from the group of relatives of Widukind's descendants was a duke in Saxony . The common nickname Billung may not be contemporary.

After he came to power in 936, King Otto I appointed Hermann as his new military leader (princeps militiae) . The decision caused an uproar among the Saxon nobility. In particular, Hermann's older brother Wichmann I felt ignored and temporarily joined a revolt against the king. Despite his sensational preference, Hermann is only attested in the sources almost 20 years later: In the course of the Liudolfin uprising from 953 to 955, Otto I appointed him his deputy (procurator regis) in Saxony for the duration of his absence due to the war . The narrative sources refer to Hermann as Duke (dux) from then on , without reporting any authority over the Saxon nobility. In northern Saxony he got caught up in a power struggle with his nephews, whose inheritance he had appropriated after the death of his older brother. There, Hermann made Lüneburg the center of his rule and founded the St. Michaelis monastery , the burial place of the Billung family named after Hermann . Toward the Elbe Slavic Abodrites , he pursued a policy aimed at balancing and bonding. When Otto I reappointed him as his deputy before leaving for Italy in 961, Hermann was the most powerful man in Saxony. Towards the end of his life he could even have reached for the rule when he illegally used the royal ceremonial in Magdeburg for everyone to see . Hermann died in Quedlinburg at Easter 973, just a few weeks before Otto the Great. His male descendants were the dukes of Saxony for four generations in a straight line.

Hermann's constitutional position in particular has been discussed in the research. As early as 1866, Ludwig Weiland came to the conclusion that Hermann was the first among equals in Saxony to not be a "real" duke. Instead he lacked the authority to command the Saxon nobility. This view continues to this day and is expressed in Hermann's restrictive designation as "Duke in Saxony". In 1984 Gerd Althoff was able to prove that Hermann, as a member of the family of Widukind's descendants, belonged to the most important gender association in Saxony. In 1996 Matthias Becher made Hermann the nucleus of the crystallization of the emergence of a Saxon tribal consciousness. To this day, Hermann is also considered a margrave of the Slavs in the northeast.

Life

Origin and family

Hermann Billung and his wife Hildegard von der Westerburg. Drawing based on a wooden relief on the cheek piece of the former monastery church in Palatinate Pöhlde . Unknown master around 1280, today Lower Saxony State Museum Hanover
In the Liber Ordinarius, the chapter book of St. Blaise with the most important documents of the monastery, the family tree of the Billunger, Welfen , Askanier and Staufer can be found . The basis was the compilation in the Chronicle of Albert von Stade . Hermann Billung and his wife Hildegard are placed at the beginning of the family tree. On the right-hand side of the family tree, the lineage of the Ascanians up to Mechthild's marriage with Otto the child is shown. The bottom row lists the four children of Frederick II and then the nine children of Otto, the child with Mechthild. Braunschweig around 1300, Lower Saxony State Archives - Wolfenbüttel State Archives, Inv. No. VII B Hs 129, fol 47v.

Hermann's origins have not been passed down through contemporary sources. Later reports, which describe him partly as the son of poor people, partly as a noble descendant of a Billung or Billing, belong in the realm of legend or are considered dubious due to the large time lag. The first group includes, in particular, the news of Adam from Bremen about an alleged "lower birth" and the story in the Lüneburg Chronicle about Hermann's origins from a Meyerhof in Stübeckshorn near Soltau . The assumption that he is the son of a Billung is based on a corresponding entry in the house chronicle of the St. Michael Monastery in Lüneburg from the period between 1229 and 1233. Today only Hermann's membership of by far the most influential and distinguished group of relatives of the north is considered certain Saxony, the descendants of Widukind. Counts Ekbert and Bernhard von Borghorst are named as closest relatives from the parents' generation , without the family relationship to them being able to be determined with certainty.

Hermann had two older brothers, Wichmann I the elder and Amelung , Bishop of Verden .

Hermann's marriage with Oda von Sachsen had at least four children. The eldest son Bernhard I became Duke of Saxony after the death of his father in 973. Little is known about his brother Liutger (Liudger). The daughter Mathilde I married Balduin III in 961 . of Flanders and after his early death around the year 963 Gottfried the prisoners . Suanhilde (Schwanhild) was first married to the Margrave Thietmar I of Meißen and then to his successor, the Margrave Ekkehard I. Imma II, abbess of the Herford canonical monastery , often referred to as Hermann's daughter , is mentioned in a document of Otto III. referred to as the daughter of Bernhard I.

A second marriage between Hermann and Hildesuith (or Hildegard) is doubtful. The countess of this name, who is listed on a family table of the Billunger family that was created between 1071 and 1086 in the St. Michael monastery in Lüneburg, may also be the otherwise unknown first wife of Hermann's son Bernhard I.

The surname “Billung” is, according to widespread opinion, a research construct that was chosen to distinguish the group of relatives from other noble families after the alleged progenitor Billung. On the other hand, Ruth Bork found as early as 1951 that the name could be contemporary, because the abodritic velvet ruler Mistiwoj, allied with Hermann, bears the baptismal name Billug in the Hamburg church history of the Bremen cathedral choirmaster Adam von Bremen from around 1070 .

The order to become a military leader

Hermann is mentioned for the first time in connection with a Saxon campaign against the Redarians in the autumn of 936. Widukind von Corvey reports in his history of Saxony from around 968 that after the death of King Henry I , his son and successor Otto I decided to appoint a new military leader (princeps militiae) . The office became vacant with the death of Count Bernhard von Borghorst around the turn of the year 935/936. The king's choice fell on Hermann, who invaded the land of the Redarians with his forces and defeated them. Despite this success, Hermann's appointment led to violent reactions from the Saxon nobility, which ultimately resulted in an uprising against the king. Research does not look for the reasons for this outrage in the person of Hermann, but in the king's motives for the appointment of the army commander and in the office which he entrusted to him.

The reaction of the Saxon nobility

In response to Hermann's appointment, his older brother Wichmann left the army with his followers before the campaign began. He faked an illness as the reason. Indeed, he saw himself neglected in his rank and injured in his honor. He was the head of the most powerful and richest gender association in northern Saxony. This gave him a higher rank within the clan than his much younger brother. His position earned him great prestige among the Saxon nobles. This is reflected in a praise to Widukind von Corvey, who describes him as a powerful and brave man, experienced in the war and of exceptional education. Conversely, Adam von Bremen exaggerates Hermann's relative insignificance when he describes him as the son of poor parents who inherited only seven hooves of land from his father. Wichmann's connections extended to the royal family through his marriage to a sister of Queen Mathilde who had already died at this point in time. His massed possessions in the Bardengau , the border area with Slavs and Danes, gave him additional political weight. Against this background, Wichmann was obviously not ready to accept the disgrace suffered in front of the assembled Saxon nobility of his neglect of the hitherto insignificant brother. In the following year he joined the uprising around Otto's half-brother Thankmar and the Franconian Duke Eberhard against the king.

Wichmann's outrage over the king's interference in the hierarchical structure of the gender association, which from his point of view was not justified by anything, was shared by large sections of the Saxon nobility. Widukind reports that the other Saxon big players also disapproved of the decision.

One of these greats by the name of Ekkehard, presumably a cousin of the king, felt the appointment of Hermann as such a humiliation that he left the army against the king's orders and attacked a Slavic castle on his own in order to gain Otto I's favor win or die glorious. He and his colleagues were killed in front of the castle.

The motives of King Otto I.

Otto I's motives for appointing Hermann are puzzling. According to Widukind, he was no better suited for the office than his older brother. Research therefore agrees that Otto primarily decided against Wichmann. Since Widukind gives no reason for Hermann's preference, various research hypotheses were put forward. For Gerd Althoff , bypassing Wichmann was a measure to “enforce sovereign decision-making power”. Otto I wanted to demonstrate the new royal self-image, according to which, as ruler, he was not bound by inheritance claims of the nobility to certain positions when awarding offices. Matthias Becher provides another explanation : Within the royal family, there was no consensus in the choice of Heinrich I's successor. Queen Mathilde's favorite for the succession to the throne was her favorite son Heinrich . Wichmann had stood in Mathilde's camp as the queen's brother-in-law, who, like him, belonged to the group of relatives of Widukind's descendants. By resetting Wichmann, Otto eliminated a potential opponent. Ernst Schubert and Johannes Laudage go one step further . In their opinion, Otto intended to split the entire gender association in order to weaken it in this way. In fact, such a split can be seen in the subsequent arguments between Hermann and Wichmann's sons Wichmann II , Ekbert and Brun , about which Widukind reports extensively.

The office of the princeps militiae

Research sees a further reason for the outrage of the Saxon nobility against Hermann's appointment as princeps militiae in the associated special rights. In the literal translation , princeps militiae simply means army commander. Accordingly, it was occasionally assumed that Hermann's powers as princeps militiae were limited to those of a military leader in the campaign against the Redarians. In the meantime, however, research has unanimously come to the conclusion that Hermann was given additional powers with the office of military leader. The name had been used 50 years earlier in the Annales Fuldenses for Count Heinrich from the Babenberg family , to name him as the leader of the noble followers (militia) Ludwig III. to describe the younger . In addition, the fierce reactions of the Saxon nobility to Hermann's appointment show that the position was far more important than that of a military commander appointed due to the situation.

On the other hand, there is no consensus on the answer to the question of what these additional powers might have been. A widespread opinion is that with the appointment of Hermann as military leader, the king also gave him the task of permanently securing the northeast border of Eastern Franconia against the Danes and Elbe Slavs. This office was previously held by Hermann's relative Bernhard, who died in 935/936, the victorious general in the battle of Lenzen . On the other hand, according to Albert K. Hömberg's assessment, the award of the title of general represented the establishment of a Saxon duchy. Matthias Becher came to a conclusion similar to that of Hömberg: with the appointment of a princeps militiae , Otto I set up an intermediary body between the nobility and royalty by permanently transferring his own authority to Hermann. The Saxon greats were then obliged to take orders from Hermann, who had hitherto been completely insignificant. In contrast, Gerd Althoff pointed out in 1999 that the written sources do not contain any reference to Hermann's further powers, such as the supreme command over other nobles or the exercise of jurisdiction.

Rule in the northeast

After the successful Redarian campaign, Hermann initially played no role at the imperial level. In contrast, his older brother Wichmann reconciled with the king in 939 and is likely to have presided over the powerful family association until his death in 944. But it wasn't until almost ten years after Wichmann's death that there was more and more news about Hermann, who was only mentioned once in the written sources until 953. Noticeably, Hermann no longer fought on the side of the king. He stayed away from the fighting of the Liudolfini uprising in 953. Hermann did not take part in the two great battles of 955 - on the Lechfeld against the Hungarians and on the Raxa against the Slavs. Instead, he consolidated his claim to rule over the gender association and the huge estates in the northeast in a series of fights against the sons of his brother Wichmann. Towards the Slavs on the lower Elbe, namely the Abodrites , he pursued a policy aimed at compromise and dynastic ties. He chose a different approach than the Margrave Gero on the middle Elbe. When Hermann received representation in Saxony from the king for the duration of his Italian campaign in 961, he was probably already the most powerful great man in Saxony.

The captive general

The only reliable mention of Hermann up to the year 953 comes from a source from the first half of the 11th century, the Norman history of Dudos of Saint-Quentin . According to Dudo's report, Hermann came into Danish captivity at an unknown time before the year 942, in which he also learned the Danish language. Matthias Becher deduces from this message that Hermann acted on royal orders. Otto I had planned to politically integrate the Danish mainland more closely into the Reichsverband. In this context, Hermann and the royal army made an unsuccessful attempt to subjugate Jutland , which was controlled by Gorm or his son Harald Blauzahn , and ended up in captivity. In fact, Widukind von Corvey reports for the year 939 that Saxony had to suffer from the Danes in the north. However, none of the sources know of a campaign by Hermann against the Danes - and even on a royal commission.

The struggle for power

After the death of Wichmann I, Hermann used the immaturity of his nephews Wichmann II and Ekbert to attempt to establish himself as the head of the gender association by appropriating his brother's extensive possessions. Thereupon the Wichmannsons began a decades-long struggle for their inheritance, about which Widukind von Corvey reported in detail in his Saxony history. The two brothers accused Hermann of having betrayed their inheritance and publicly described him as a robber of their treasures, although they did find support among the Saxon nobility. During the Liudolfini uprising in 953, Wichmann II ran over to Liudolf's camp, who had promised him support in the dispute with Hermann. After the failure of the uprising, Wichmann II and Ekbert initially unswerved their fight against Hermann until they were finally captured. Hermann led his nephews before the king, who let Ekbert go and Wichmann II only put under house arrest. After Wichmann II had escaped, the brothers seized some castles in their ancestral home in the winter of 954/955. However, they were unable to hold this against Hermann and had to withdraw with their followers across the Elbe to Slavic territory. There they entrenched themselves with the approval of abodritischen Samtherrschers Nakon on the otherwise unknown castle Suthleiscranne. Nakon's approval could have been the result of an alliance of friendship with the late Wichmann I. After Hermann had raised an army, he advanced in March 955 to the castle defended by the brothers without being able to take it. In return, Wichmann II invaded Saxon territory after Easter as the leader of what was now a predominantly Slavic following. The population fled to Cocarescemier Castle, which was then besieged. Hermann, whose army had apparently already disbanded after the failure in front of Suthleiscranne Castle, did not provide relief in view of the overwhelming force. He advised the trapped against the will of his followers to negotiate. It was agreed that the castle and all belongings should be handed over to the besiegers against the promise of free withdrawal, but after the gates opened there was a tumult in the castle, whereupon the besieged were massacred and enslaved by the victors without being Hermann hurried to their aid.

The siege of Starigard Castle

Location of Starigard Castle in the northeast of the Wagrier settlement area marked in brown

In 967, Widukind von Corvey reports that Hermann intervened in the structure of the Elbe Slavic Wagrians , whose prince Selibur he deposed. This was preceded by a dispute between Selibur and another Elbe Slav petty king , the later Abodritic velvet ruler Mistivoy . Hermann sided with Mistivoy and sentenced Selibur to pay 15 talents of silver. When Selibur rebelled against Hermann, he penetrated Wagrien and conquered Selibur's castle, probably the Starigard , today's Oldenburg in Holstein . He then deposed the rebellious Selibur and appointed his son Sederich to prince of the Wagrians. Although at first glance it is about the exercise of Hermann's direct rule, this has been questioned. First of all, Widukind reports that Mistivoy was besieging the castle and that Hermann and his army did not arrive there until later. From this it was concluded that Selibur did not revolt against Hermann, but against Mistivoy. Hermann did not want to enforce his own claim to power, but rather he rushed to the aid of Mistivoy, whose supremacy Selibur wanted to get rid of after the death of Mistivoy's predecessor Nakon. Erich Hoffmann , on the other hand, assumes that Selibur was under both Mistivoy's and Hermann's suzerainty at the same time. A whole bundle of motives was decisive for Hermann's intervention in the intra-Arab conflict. In addition to securing his own claim to power, he supported Mistivoy not least because Selibur had allied himself with Hermann's arch enemy Wichmann II.

Deputy to the King

For the duration of his stays in Italy 961–966 and 966–973, Otto I. appointed Hermann as his representative (procurator regis) . Hermann had already performed this task for a short time in 953 during the Liudolfini uprising . Whether he was appointed deputy because he was already a duke in Saxony, or grew into the office of duke through the deputies or remained limited to the function of procurator , has not been conclusively clarified in the research.

Representatives

With the elevation of Henry I to King of Eastern Franconia, the constitutional situation in Saxony had fundamentally changed: the Saxon duke was now also king. Otto I also held both offices in personal union. He appointed deputies for the duration of his absence from Saxony. Whether and to what extent he gave these representatives ducal or even royal rulership and judicial powers so that they could fulfill their duties with official authority is difficult to answer due to the inconsistent sources. The royal court chancellery avoided the designation Hermanns as dux ( duke ) and used the title comes ( count ). In contrast, Hermann is referred to as dux in contemporary narrative sources .

Initially, Otto I. had installed Siegfried von Merseburg , the older brother of the later Margrave Gero , as a deputy for the time of his absence. After Siegfried's death in the summer of 937, no deputy was initially appointed. Only during the Liudolfin uprising was a new procuration made. In July 953 Otto I moved with an army to Mainz, where his rebellious son Liudolf had holed up with an army. Otto I left Hermann in Saxony as his deputy. Possibly he gave him the right to raise troops, because after weeks of fighting in front of Mainz that were costly for both sides, Otto asked Hermann to send a replacement army. Hermann put this force on the march under the leadership of his nephew Wichmann II, who was still loyal at the time, and Count Dietrich von Haldensleben , while he himself remained in Saxony.

In August 961 Otto set out on his second march to Italy, on February 2, 962 he let himself be by Pope John XII. crowned emperor in Rome . During his absence he had appointed Hermann as his deputy in Saxony. Hermann performed this task until the emperor's return in 966.

Before he set off again for Italy, the Emperor appointed Hermann again as his deputy in Saxony at the Worms farm conference in August 966. However, this by no means proved to be the emperor's compliant governor. Obviously, with the increasing absence of Otto, he was less and less willing to exercise the office of procurator Saxoniae exclusively in the interests of his principal. Instead, he began to represent the positions and claims of the Saxon nobility as well as his own interests vis-à-vis royalty independently and confidently.

In the second year of his representation he openly opposed the instructions of the emperor at the tribal meeting in Werla 968, which he chaired . The latter asked Hermann and Thietmar in a letter not to grant the Slavic Redariern peace, but to attack them again after their recent defeat. The letter was read to the assembled Saxon nobles. However, in the face of an impending Danish attack, they decided not to break the peace that had long been granted and not to split up their forces. Much more problematic than this refusal to give orders, however, was another decision that Hermann made at the regular meeting in Werla. With Hildeward von Halberstadt, the Halberstadt chapter had chosen a declared opponent of Otto's plan to establish an archbishopric in Magdeburg to succeed Bishop Bernhard von Hadmersleben , who died in February . Hermann confirmed this choice without consulting the Kaiser.

In March 972, Hermann, as Otto I's deputy, convened a tribal assembly in Magdeburg, which at that time was the political and religious center of Otto's royal rule north of the Alps. As agreed, Hermann was received there by his relative, the Archbishop of Magdeburg , Adalbert , like a king: Adalbert led him into the brightly lit church in a procession to the ringing of bells by the hand. After the service, Hermann demonstratively took the emperor's place at the table in front of the people present, both clergy and secular, and then spent the night in the emperor's house, where he slept in the emperor's bed. The exercise of the royal ceremonial was intended to make clear to the emperor, who was staying in Italy, his displeasure with his long absence from the Saxon homeland. So that Otto I found out, Hermann sent his adversary Heinrich von Stade to Italy. Otto is said to have reacted to the news with an outburst of anger, but understood the message and returned to Saxony.

Duke in Saxony

The research is mainly limited to the finding that Hermann exercised the position of duke in Saxony towards the end of his life. He is said to have "grown into" this position without being formally appointed by Otto I, as there is no record of an appointment as Duke. From the year 953 onwards, Widukind called him Duke (dux) in his history of Saxony . Adam von Bremen reports that Hermann was the first Duke of the Saxons. From this, Ernst Schubert concluded that Hermann's contemporaries perceived him as a duke because of his reputation and his power in the north, far from the king.

In contrast, Matthias Becher put forward the thesis that Otto I decided in 953, in view of the threat to his rule from the Liudolfin uprising, to elevate Hermann Billung, a proven follower, to the position of Duke of Saxony. The aim of this formal appointment was to clear the back for the fight against the insurgents in Eastern Franconia and Bavaria. As a duke, Hermann also used Otto's long-term arguments and stays in Italy to expand his position more and more. In the end he even appeared like a “duke of the same king”. As evidence, Becher cites Hermann's appearance at the assembly of the Saxon greats in Werla, the appointment of the Halberstadt bishop and the usurpation of the royal ceremonial when entering Magdeburg. Since none of this would have been possible without the consent of the Saxon nobility, Herrmann must be recognized as the new representative of Saxony, which the “Saxon people” had been lacking since Otto I turned away from his home province.

Death and remembrance

Grave slab in the St. Michaelis Church in Lüneburg

Hermann died on March 27, 973 ( Holy Saturday ) in Quedlinburg. His body was buried in the church of the Michaeliskloster on the Kalkberg in Lüneburg.

After his return from Italy, Emperor Otto I gathered the greats of the empire in Quedlinburg to celebrate Easter with them. Hermann also seems to have participated in the celebrations. Four days after Easter, the sources record his death on March 27, 973 in Quedlinburg. His son Bernhard I arranged for the body to be transferred to Lüneburg, where it was to be buried in the church of the Michaeliskloster founded by Hermann. This was located in the Billunger castle on the Lüneburg Kalkberg until 1376, before it was demolished and moved to the city. However, Hermann Funeral failed initially at a Verden by the bishop Brun pronounced against him excommunication . The reason for this ban is not known. Brun may have acted for personal reasons: he could be a brother of Wichmann the Younger and Ekberts the One-Eyed Man, who had accused Hermann of depriving them of their paternal inheritance. The ban could not have lasted, as the chronicle in the necrology of the Church of St. Michael in Lüneburg reports of a burial of Hermann. Possibly the repeal took place after the death of Bishop Brun in the year 976, so that Hermann could only be buried years after his death medio monasteri , i.e. in the collegiate church of the Michaelis monastery.

Memorial entries in his memory can be found next to the entry in the necrology of the Church of St. Michael in Lüneburg in the books of the dead of Fulda, Merseburg, Vreden , Xanten and the Möllenbeck Monastery .

Sources

Despite the lack of sources in the 10th century, the sources are relatively cheap. The Corvey monk Widukind reports in great detail and from a decidedly Saxon perspective in his Saxon history of Hermann and his family arguments, written in 967–973. His portrayal seems to be influenced by a kinship-based affection for Wichmann I and his sons. Further contemporary information can be found in some mentions in royal documents as well as the necrologists of Lüneburg and Merseburg and various annals . There are abundant sources from the 11th century with the chronicle of Thietmar von Merseburg, written between 1012 and 1018, and the Hamburg church history of Adam von Bremen, written around 1070; however, Adam's credibility is dubious because of many legendary decorations. There is also a late source, the imperial chronicle of the Annalista Saxo , which dates from the 12th century but is based on numerous older models for the 10th century .

Research Perspectives

The research has primarily dealt with Hermann's constitutional position, also against the background of his supposed margrave office ; In addition, personal historical studies are also dedicated to him.

Constitutional position

Under the title Hermann Duke of Saxony , the archivist of the St. Michaelis monastery in Lüneburg, Anton Christian Wedekind , presented one of the first scientific papers on Hermann in 1817. In it he came to the conclusion that Hermann had been appointed hereditary Duke of Saxony before the second Italian move in 961. He had only powers of power connected with this office - that is, none additionally conferred by the king. Ernst Steindorff supplemented this result in his dissertation published in 1863 with an investigation of Hermann's relationship to the Saxon nobles. Among them he was only first among equals. Neither did he alone represent the tribe vis-à-vis the king, nor vice versa, the king vis-à-vis the tribe. Thereupon Ludwig Weiland stated that Hermann's Duchy did not correspond to the nature of the ducal office. This thesis of the "fake duchy" of Hermann and his descendants influences research to this day. Karl Jordan saw in Hermann's acquisition of the ducal office the starting point of a development, at the beginning of which the duke represented the king against the Saxon tribe, while Hermann's successors developed into representatives of the tribe against the king. As early as 1966, Jordan had characterized the constitutional position of Hermann and his descendants by designating them as dukes not of, but in Saxony.

In his habilitation thesis published in 1994, Matthias Becher dealt with Hermann's rise to the position of Duke of Saxony. In his opinion, Hermann was appointed permanent viceroyal duke for Saxony in 953. In his biography of Otto the Great, published in 2014, Becher repeated this assessment, which, despite an initially friendly reception by the critics, has so far not been widely received. In 1997 Ernst Schubert took a different perspective. In his opinion, the constitutional designations of the sources do not express what powers Otto I had granted Hermann, but what Hermann had made of his position as princeps militiae and head of the most powerful gender association in the north and what rank he therefore in the eyes of contemporaries was granted.

Personal history

After the Second World War, Ruth Bork presented a dissertation on the personal history of the Billungers, in which she dealt with Hermann and his family in detail. Among other things, she found that Hermann was married to Oda and not to Hildegard and that the Herford abbess Imma is not Hermann's daughter, but his granddaughter. Gerd Althoff gained an even deeper insight into the inner structures of Hermann's family in 1984 by evaluating the Lüneburg and Merseburg books of the dead. After that, Hermann, as a member of the family of Widukind's descendants, belonged to the most important gender association in Saxony, but the entries in the necrology of the St. Michaelis monastery in Lüneburg primarily reflect the memorial relationships of his older brother Wichmann, those through Hermann or even through his son and successor Bernhard I. were transferred to Lüneburg from another memorial site.

Margrave of the Slavs

Hermann is considered to be the "prime example" of an Ottonian margrave of the Slavs for the greater part of research. As early as 936, Otto I. Hermann had permanently entrusted the security of the border in the northeast, even if he had not yet been called a margrave. In addition to the neighboring Wagriern and Abodrites, the Redarians who settled around 200 km east of the Elbe are said to have been subject to his margravial power. Hermann kept the Slavic tribes "tightly dependent" on the empire and exercised "a kind of indirect rule" over their princes.

In fact, Hermann is referred to as a margrave in a royal document from 956. The authenticity of the text of the document is, however, doubtful. A Mark Hermann is completely unknown to the written sources. The diffuse area designation " Mark der Billunger " is a word created in the 19th century. The assumption, based on a message from Widukind and often found, of Hermann's supremacy over the Vagrian petty king Selibur and the later Abodritic velvet ruler Mistiwoj is not compelling in view of the strong position of the Abodritic velvet rulers. The historian Andrea Stieldorf has pointed out that the idea of ​​a Mark Hermann goes back to outdated constitutional views of the legal historian Georg Waitz from the 19th century. Waitz had transferred 19th century concepts to the Middle Ages and assumed that the Ottonian rulers had systematically divided the border zones of their empire into brands. These areas were subordinated to margraves whom the ruler had given special military powers for border defense. In Stieldorf's opinion, Hermann pursued a more integrative policy towards the largely independent Elbe Slavs in the northeast. His strong position in the border area was not based on special military powers granted by the king, but on the huge possessions in the Lüneburg area, which Hermann defended in his own interest. Ernst Schubert also believes that the aim of his policy was not “over-domination” and tribute, but rather a peaceful coexistence with the neighboring Elbe Slavs, restored by Hermann if necessary with military force.

swell

  • Theodor Sickel (Ed.): Diplomata 12: The documents Konrad I., Heinrich I. and Otto I. (Conradi I., Heinrici I. et Ottonis I. Diplomata). Hanover 1879 ( Monumenta Germaniae Historica , digitized version )
  • Paul Hirsch , Hans-Eberhard Lohmann (ed.): Widukindi monachi Corbeiensis rerum gestarum Saxonicarum libri tres. = The Saxon history of the Widukind von Korvei (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica . Scriptores. 7: Scriptores rerum Germanicarum in usum scholarum separatim editi. Vol. 60). 5th edition. Hahn, Hanover 1935, ( digitized ).
  • Robert Holtzmann (Ed.): Thietmari Merseburgensis episcopi chronicon. = The chronicle of Bishop Thietmar von Merseburg and its Korveier revision (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Scriptores. 6: Scriptores rerum Germanicarum. Nova Series Vol. 9). Weidmann, Berlin 1935, ( digitized version ).

literature

Overview representations

Investigations

  • Gerd Althoff : Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 (also: Freiburg (Breisgau), university, habilitation paper, 1981; digitized ; review by Rudolf Schieffer ).
  • Matthias Becher : Rex, Dux and Gens. Investigations into the development of the Saxon duchy in the 9th and 10th centuries (= historical studies. Vol. 444). Matthiesen, Husum 1996, ISBN 3-7868-1444-9 (at the same time: Paderborn, University, habilitation paper, 1994/1995).

Remarks

  1. ↑ Comprehensive compilation of later sources by Rudolf Köpke : Kaiser Otto der Große. Completed by Ernst Dümmler . Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig et al. 1876, p. 570 f.
  2. ^ Adam II, 8: pauperibus ortus natalibus ; on the lack of credibility of the message and the later chronical traditions derived from it Bernd Schneidmüller : Billunger - Welfen - Askanier. A genealogical table from the Braunschweiger Blasius-Stift and the noble family consciousness in Saxony around 1300. In: Archive for cultural history . Vol. 69, No. 1, 1987, pp. 30-61, here p. 45, doi : 10.7788 / akg.1987.69.1.30 .
  3. ↑ Ernst Schubert : The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here p. 155.
  4. ↑ Chronicon Sancti Michaelis Luneburgensis in: MGH SS 23, 1874, pp. 391-397 here p. 394 : filio comitis Billingi .
  5. ^ Gerd Althoff : Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 , p. 73.
  6. ↑ Gerd Althoff: The Billunger in the Salierzeit. In: Stefan Weinfurter (Ed.): Salier, Adel und Reichsverfassungs (= The Salier and the Reich. Vol. 1). Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1991, ISBN 3-7995-4133-0 , pp. 309-329, here p. 311.
  7. ↑ Christian Hanewinkel describes the assumption: The political significance of the Elbe Slavs with regard to the changes in rule in the East Franconian Empire and in Saxony from 887–936. Political sketches of the eastern neighbors in the 9th and 10th centuries. Münster 2004, p. 217 , Hermann's descent from the legate Bernhard.
  8. ↑ The sons Bernhard and Liutger are documented by a mention by Annalista Saxo a.A. 1037 : Machtildis, que filia fuit Herimanni ducis Saxonum de Liuniburch, soror Bennonis Sive Bernhardi ducis et Liudigeri comitis.
  9. ↑ Annalista Saxo a. A. 978
  10. ↑ Hans-Joachim Freytag: The rule of the Billunger in Saxony (= studies and preparatory work for the Historical Atlas of Lower Saxony. Vol. 20, ISSN  0933-2960 ). Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1951, p. 48; Günther Bock: Hammaburg and cathedral in the early centuries of Hamburg - attempt at a historical reassessment. In: Rainer-Maria Weiss, Anne Klammt (ed.): Myth Hammaburg. Archaeological discoveries at the beginning of Hamburg (= publication of the Helms Museum, Archaeological Museum Hamburg, Stadtmuseum Harburg. Vol. 107). Archaeological Museum Hamburg, Hamburg 2014, ISBN 978-3-931429-27-0 , pp. 291–302, here p. 293.
  11. ^ DO III, 179.
  12. ↑ The Tabula gentis Billingorum, printed in MGH SS 13, 344 .
  13. ^ Gerd Althoff: Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 , p. 376.
  14. ↑ Nathalie Kruppa: The Billunger and their monasteries. Examples of the extensive connections in early medieval Saxony. In: Concilium medii aevi . Vol. 12, 2009, pp. 1–41, here p. 4, note 8, ( digital version (PDF; 554 kB) ).
  15. ↑ Ruth Bork: The Billunger. With contributions to the history of the German-Wendish border area in the 10th and 11th centuries. Greifswald 1951, p. 26, (Greifswald, University, dissertation, 1951; typed); following her Bernhard Friedmann: Studies on the history of the Abodritic Principality up to the end of the 10th century (= Eastern European Studies of the State of Hesse. Series 1: Giessen Treatises on Agricultural and Economic Research in the European East. Vol. 197). Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1986, ISBN 3-428-05886-0 , p. 244.
  16. ↑ Gerd Althoff: Amicitiae and Pacta. Alliance, suitability, politics and prayer commemoration in the early 10th century (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Schriften. 37). Hahn, Hannover 1992, ISBN 3-7752-5437-4 , p. 121, considers Hermann's identity with Herimann, who is recorded in a commemorative entry in the St. Gallen fraternity book, to be possible and dates the entry to the time before the year 930.
  17. ↑ The more detailed definition of the Slavic opponent, referred to in Widukind by Corvey II, 4 merely as a barbarian, as a redarian results from their express mention in DO I, 2 of October 14, 936.
  18. ↑ Widukind II, 4.
  19. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155-164, here p. 156.
  20. ↑ Widukind II, 4: Wichmannus vir potens et fortis, magnanimus, belli gnarus et tantae scientiae, ut a subiectis supra hominem plura nosse predicaretur.
  21. ↑ Adam II, 9; Gerd Althoff: Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 , p. 85. Not so recently Günther Bock: Hammaburg and Cathedral Church in the early centuries of Hamburg - attempt at a historical reassessment. In: Rainer-Maria Weiss, Anne Klammt (ed.): Myth Hammaburg. Archaeological discoveries at the beginning of Hamburg (= publication of the Helms Museum, Archaeological Museum Hamburg, Stadtmuseum Harburg. Vol. 107). Archaeological Museum Hamburg, Hamburg 2014, ISBN 978-3-931429-27-0 , pp. 291–302, here p. 295, according to whom Adam von Bremen wanted to discredit the origin of the descendants of Hermann who were hostile to the Bremen church.
  22. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155-164, here p. 156.
  23. ^ Gerd Althoff: Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 , pp. 85 and 376.
  24. ↑ Eduard Hlawitschka : 'Don't you notice that you are missing the fourth wheel on the car?' On Ekkehard's candidacy for the throne of Meissen (1002) after Thietmar, Chronicon IV c. 52. In: Karl Hauck , Hubert Mordek (Ed.): Historiography and intellectual life in the Middle Ages. Festschrift for Heinz Löwe on his 65th birthday. Böhlau, Cologne et al. 1978, ISBN 3-412-05178-0 , pp. 281-311, here p. 293.
  25. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here p. 155.
  26. ↑ Gerd Althoff: The Ottonians. Royal rule without a state (= Kohlhammer-Urban pocket books. 473). 3rd, revised edition. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart et al. 2013, ISBN 978-3-17-022443-8 , p. 81.
  27. ↑ Matthias Becher : Loyalty or Opposition? The Saxons and the succession to the throne in Eastern Franconia (929–939). In: German royal palaces. Contributions to their historical and archaeological exploration. Volume 7: Caspar Ehlers , Jörg Jarnut, Matthias Wemhoff (eds.): Centers of stately representation in the High Middle Ages. History, architecture and ceremonial (= publications by the Max Planck Institute for History. 11, 7). Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2007, ISBN 978-3-525-36521-2 , pp. 69–86, here p. 80.
  28. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here p. 159; also Johannes Laudage : Otto the Great (912–973). A biography. Pustet, Regensburg 2001, ISBN 3-7917-1750-2 , p. 123.
  29. ↑ Widukind III, 19, 24, 25, 29, 50, 52, 53, 59, 60.
  30. ↑ Ruth Bork: The Billunger. With contributions to the history of the German-Wendish border area in the 10th and 11th centuries. Greifswald 1951, p. 52, (Greifswald, University, dissertation, 1951; typed).
  31. ↑ Annales Fuldenses a. A. 866 and 880.
  32. ^ Matthias Becher: Rex, Dux and Gens. Investigations into the development of the Saxon duchy in the 9th and 10th centuries. Matthiesen, Husum 1996, ISBN 3-7868-1444-9 , p. 254.
  33. ^ Matthias Becher: Rex, Dux and Gens. Investigations into the development of the Saxon duchy in the 9th and 10th centuries. Matthiesen, Husum 1996, ISBN 3-7868-1444-9 , p. 256.
  34. ↑ Hans-Werner Goetz : The Duchy of Billunger - A special Saxon path? In: Lower Saxony Yearbook for State History . Vol. 66, 1994, pp. 167-197, here p. 168, ( online ); Gerd Althoff: The Billungers in the Salier era. In: Stefan Weinfurter (Ed.): Salier, Adel und Reichsverfassungs (= The Salier and the Reich. Vol. 1). Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1991, ISBN 3-7995-4133-0 , pp. 309-329, here p. 311; Johannes Laudage : Otto the Great (912–973). A biography. Pustet, Regensburg 2001, ISBN 3-7917-1750-2 , p. 226.
  35. ^ Albert K. Hömberg : Westphalia and the Saxon Duchy (= writings of the Historical Commission of Westphalia. 5, ISSN  0933-2502 ). Aschendorff, Münster 1963, p. 85 f .; refusing Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here p. 159.
  36. ^ Matthias Becher: Rex, Dux and Gens. Investigations into the development of the Saxon duchy in the 9th and 10th centuries. Matthiesen, Husum 1996, ISBN 3-7868-1444-9 , p. 258.
  37. ^ Gerd Althoff: Saxony and the Elbe Slavs in the Tenth Century. In: The New Cambridge Medieval History . Volume 3: Timothy Reuter (Ed.): C. 900 - c. 1024. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge et al. 1999, ISBN 0-521-36447-7 , pp. 267-292, here p. 285.
  38. ^ It is doubtful whether the Herimmannus comes mentioned in DO I, 72 of December 29, 945 is Hermann.
  39. ↑ Dudo, Gesta Normannorum chap. 23  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.hsaugsburg.de  
  40. ↑ Matthias Becher: Otto the Great. Emperor and Empire. A biography. Beck, Munich 2012, ISBN 978-3-406-63061-3 , p. 156.
  41. ↑ Widukind II, 20.
  42. ^ Gerd Althoff: Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 , p. 78.
  43. ↑ Reflections on the location of the castle by Wolfgang Brüske: Studies on the history of the Lutizenbund. German-Wendish relations of the 10th – 12th centuries Century (= Central German Research. Vol. 3). 2nd edition increased by one epilogue. Böhlau, Cologne et al. 1983, ISBN 3-412-07583-3 , p. 220 f .; if the name is a depravity of the Slavic Suislegrad (Süsel Castle) , the Süseler Schanze comes into consideration.
  44. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hanover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here pp. 160 f.
  45. ↑ On the location of this castle Wolfgang Brüske: Investigations on the history of the Lutizenbund. German-Wendish relations of the 10th – 12th centuries Century (= Central German Research. Vol. 3). 2nd edition increased by one epilogue. Böhlau, Cologne et al. 1983, ISBN 3-412-07583-3 , p. 198 f.
  46. ↑ Widukind III, 68.
  47. ↑ Wolfgang H. Fritze : Problems of the abodritic tribal and imperial constitution and its development from a tribal state to a ruling state. In: Herbert Ludat (ed.): Settlement and constitution of the Slavs between the Elbe, Saale and Oder. W. Schmitz, Gießen 1960, pp. 141-219, here p. 159; Peter Donat : Mecklenburg and Oldenburg in the 8th to 10th centuries. In: Mecklenburgische Jahrbücher. Vol. 110, 1995, ISSN  0930-8229 , pp. 5-20, here p. 17.
  48. ^ Christian Lübke : Eastern Europe. Siedler, Munich 2004, ISBN 3-88680-760-6 , p. 181 interprets the arrival of Hermann Billung as targeted support from Mistiwoj.
  49. ↑ Erich Hoffmann : Contributions to the history of the Obotrites at the time of the Naconids. In: Eckhard Hübner, Ekkehard Klug , Jan Kusber (eds.): Between Christianization and Europeanization. Contributions to the history of Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages and early modern times. Festschrift for Peter Nitsche on his 65th birthday (= sources and studies on the history of Eastern Europe. Vol. 51). Steiner, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-515-07266-7 , pp. 23–51, here p. 27.
  50. ^ Gerd Althoff : Saxony and the Elbe Slavs in the Tenth Century. In: The New Cambridge Medieval History. Volume 3: Timothy Reuter (Ed.): C. 900 - c.1024. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge et al. 1999, ISBN 0-521-36447-7 , pp. 267-292, here p. 268: Henry I's elevation to kingship at Fritzlar in 919 had a less-noticed consequence for the Saxon people: its duke was now king.
  51. ^ So in DO I, 72, 174, 308, 309 and 440.
  52. ^ Widukind von Corvey II, 11 and III, 6, 23, 50, 51, 52, 64, 68, 70, 75 as well as Continuator Reginonis a. A. 949.
  53. ↑ Widukind II, 2 describes him as "second behind the king and best of the Saxons".
  54. ↑ Gerd Althoff: The King's Bed in Magdeburg. On Thietmar II, 28. In: Helmut Maurer , Hans Patze (ed.): Festschrift for Berent Schwineköper. For his seventieth birthday. Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1982, ISBN 3-7995-7020-9 , pp. 141–153, here pp. 149 f.
  55. ↑ Gerd Althoff: The King's Bed in Magdeburg. On Thietmar II, 28. In: Helmut Maurer, Hans Patze (ed.): Festschrift for Berent Schwineköper. For his seventieth birthday. Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1982, ISBN 3-7995-7020-9 , pp. 141–153, here p. 146, with reference to the family ties between Hermann and Adalbert.
  56. ↑ Thietmar II, 28.
  57. ↑ Gerd Althoff: The Ottonians. Royal rule without a state (= Kohlhammer-Urban pocket books. Vol. 473). 3rd, revised edition. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart et al. 2013, ISBN 978-3-17-022443-8 , p. 133.
  58. ↑ Adam II, 7.
  59. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here p. 161.
  60. ^ Matthias Becher: Rex, Dux and Gens. Investigations into the development of the Saxon duchy in the 9th and 10th centuries (= historical studies. Vol. 444). Matthiesen, Husum 1996, ISBN 3-7868-1444-9 , p. 277; Matthias Becher: Popular education and duchy in Saxony during the 9th and 10th centuries. In: Communications from the Institute for Austrian Historical Research . Vol. 108, 2000, pp. 67-84, here p. 83; Matthias Becher: Otto the Great. Emperor and Empire. A biography. Beck, Munich 2012, ISBN 978-3-406-63061-3 , p. 203.
  61. ↑ Gerd Althoff: Noble and royal families in the mirror of their memorial tradition. Studies on the commemoration of the dead of the Billunger and Ottonen (= Münster medieval writings. Vol. 47). Fink, Munich 1984, ISBN 3-7705-2267-2 , p. 39, note 144.
  62. ↑ Chronicon Sancti Michaelis Luneburgensis in: MGH SS 23, 1874, pp. 391–397 here p. 396: Eisdem etiam temporibus inclitus vir, dux Hermannus obiit et in medio monasterio, quod ipse construxit, sepultus est.
  63. ↑ Ruth Bork: The Billunger. With contributions to the history of the German-Wendish border area in the 10th and 11th centuries. Greifswald 1951, p. 57, (Greifswald, University, dissertation, 1951; typed).
  64. ^ Anton Christian Wedekind : Hermann Duke of Saxony. First preparatory work on the history of the Kingdom of Hanover. Herald and electoral staff, Lüneburg 1817.
  65. ^ Anton Christian Wedekind: Hermann Duke of Saxony. First preparatory work on the history of the Kingdom of Hanover. Herold and Wahlstab, Lüneburg 1817, pp. 41 , 44 .
  66. ^ Anton Christian Wedekind: Hermann Duke of Saxony. First preparatory work on the history of the Kingdom of Hanover. Herold and Wahlstab, Lüneburg 1817, p. 53 .
  67. ^ Ernst Steindorff : De ducatus, qui Billingorum dicitur, in Saxonia origine et progressu. Schade, Berlin 1863.
  68. ^ Ernst Steindorff: De ducatus, qui Billingorum dicitur, in Saxonia origine et progressu. Schade, Berlin 1863, pp. 90-98.
  69. ^ Ludwig Weiland : The Saxon duchy under Lothar and Heinrich the lion. Contribution to German constitutional history in the Middle Ages. Academic bookstore, Greifswald 1866, pp. 1, 3 f.
  70. ^ Matthias Becher: Rex, Dux and Gens. Investigations into the development of the Saxon duchy in the 9th and 10th centuries. Matthiesen, Husum 1996, ISBN 3-7868-1444-9 , p. 13.
  71. ^ Karl Jordan : Saxony and the German royalty in the Middle Ages. In: Historical magazine . Vol. 210, No. 3, 1970, pp. 529-559, here p. 541, JSTOR 27615963 .
  72. ↑ Karl Jordan: The Saxon Duchy and the area on the upper Weser during the High Middle Ages. In: Art and culture in the Weser area. 800-1600. Volume 1: Contributions to History and Art. Aschendorff, Münster 1966, pp. 127–133, here p. 127, ( digitized version (PDF; 564 kB) ).
  73. ↑ Klaus Nass: Review of Matthias Becher: Rex, Dux, Gens. In: German Archive for Research into the Middle Ages . Vol. 55, 1999, pp. 731-732 .
  74. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, Part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here pp. 159 f.
  75. ↑ Ruth Bork: The Billunger. With contributions to the history of the German-Wendish border area in the 10th and 11th centuries. Greifswald 1951, p. 60, (Greifswald, University, dissertation, 1951; typed)
  76. ↑ Ruth Bork: The Billunger. With contributions to the history of the German-Wendish border area in the 10th and 11th centuries. Greifswald 1951, p. 146, (Greifswald, University, dissertation, 1951; typed)
  77. ^ Quote from Andrea Stieldorf : Brands and Margraves. Studies on border security by the Frankish-German rulers (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Schriften. 64). Hahn, Hannover 2012, ISBN 978-3-7752-5764-0 , p. 177.
  78. ^ Gerd Althoff: Saxony and the Elbe Slavs in the Tenth Century. In: The New Cambridge Medieval History. Volume 3: Timothy Reuter (Ed.): C. 900 - c. 1024. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge et al. 1999, ISBN 0-521-36447-7 , pp. 267-292, here p. 285.
  79. ^ Ulrich Mattejiet: Hermann Billung, Duke in Saxony († 973). In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages . Volume 4: Arch Chancellor to Hiddensee. Artemis, Munich et al. 1989, ISBN 3-7608-8904-2 , Sp. 2160-2161; Hans-Joachim Freytag: Hermann Billung. In: New German Biography. Volume 8. Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1969, p. 640 f .; Matthias Becher: Otto the Great. Emperor and Empire. A biography. Beck, Munich 2012, ISBN 978-3-406-63061-3 , p. 153; Johannes Laudage: Otto the Great (912–973). A biography. Pustet, Regensburg 2001, ISBN 3-7917-1750-2 , p. 226; Erich Hoffmann: Contributions to the history of the Obotrites at the time of the Naconids. In: Eckhard Hübner, Ekkehard Klug, Jan Kusber (eds.): Between Christianization and Europeanization. Contributions to the history of Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages and early modern times. Festschrift for Peter Nitsche on his 65th birthday (= sources and studies on the history of Eastern Europe. Vol. 51). Steiner, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-515-07266-7 , pp. 23–51, here p. 25; Andrea Stieldorf: Brands and Margraves. Studies on border security by the Frankish-German rulers (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Schriften. 64). Hahn, Hannover 2012, ISBN 978-3-7752-5764-0 , p. 498.
  80. ↑ Quoted from Hans-Joachim Freytag: Hermann Billung. In: New German Biography. Volume 8. Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1969, pp. 640 f.
  81. ↑ Fred Ruchhöft: From the Slavic tribal area to the German bailiwick. The development of the territories in Ostholstein, Lauenburg, Mecklenburg and Western Pomerania in the Middle Ages (= archeology and history in the Baltic Sea area. Vol. 4). Leidorf, Rahden (Westphalia) 2008, ISBN 978-3-89646-464-4 , p. 123.
  82. ↑ Donation deed for the Lüneburg Monastery DO I, 183: per interventum Herimanni marchionis .
  83. ↑ In the later confirmation documents DO I, 308 and 309 Hermann is not referred to as a margrave, but as a count. In addition Andrea Stieldorf: Brands and Margraves. Studies on border security by the Frankish-German rulers (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Schriften. 64). Hahn, Hannover 2012, ISBN 978-3-7752-5764-0 , p. 239.
  84. ^ Andrea Stieldorf: Brands and Margraves. Studies on border security by the Frankish-German rulers (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Schriften. 64). Hahn, Hannover 2012, ISBN 978-3-7752-5764-0 , p. 114.
  85. ^ First from Anton Christian Wedekind: Hermann Herzog von Sachsen. First preparatory work on the history of the Kingdom of Hanover. Herold and Wahlstab, Lüneburg 1817, p. 18 , who understood it as "the over-Elbian Saxony" ( northern Albingia ) and the Bardengau bordering on the Wendland .
  86. ↑ Widukind III, 67: Erant duo subreguli Herimanno duci, ...
  87. ↑ Erich Hoffmann: Contributions to the history of the Obotrites at the time of the Naconids. In: Eckhard Hübner, Ekkehard Klug, Jan Kusber (eds.): Between Christianization and Europeanization. Contributions to the history of Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages and early modern times. Festschrift for Peter Nitsche on his 65th birthday (= sources and studies on the history of Eastern Europe. Vol. 51). Steiner, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-515-07266-7 , pp. 23–51, here p. 27.
  88. ^ Andrea Stieldorf: Brands and Margraves. Studies on border security by the Frankish-German rulers (= Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Schriften. 64). Hahn, Hannover 2012, ISBN 978-3-7752-5764-0 , p. 501.
  89. ↑ Ernst Schubert: The Billunger. In: Hans Patze (founder): History of Lower Saxony. Volume 2, part 1: Ernst Schubert (Ed.): Politics, Constitution, Economy from the 9th to the end of the 15th century (= publications of the Historical Commission for Lower Saxony, Bremen and the former states of Hanover, Oldenburg, Braunschweig and Schaumburg-Lippe . 36). Hahn, Hannover 1997, ISBN 3-7752-5900-7 , pp. 155–164, here p. 161.
personal data
SURNAME Hermann Billung
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Margrave and temporarily deputy of Otto I in the Duchy of Saxony
DATE OF BIRTH 900 or 912
DATE OF DEATH March 27, 973
Place of death Quedlinburg
This article was added to the list of excellent articles on April 24, 2018 in this version .