Deed of foundation of the diocese of Havelberg
The alleged deed of foundation is the text of a deed that was allegedly issued by King Otto I for the diocese of Havelberg in 946. It's probably a 12th century fake.
Problem
The deed of foundation is only received in a copy from 1667 in the house book of the cathedral monastery Havelberg. It includes the endowment of possessions and rights for the diocese by Otto I. The text contains some inconsistencies that exclude a draft for the specified year.
Specified year of issue
The text indicates the year DXDXLVI as the date of issue. However, this notation does not produce a conclusive number. Therefore a write error is assumed for DCDXLVI, which means 946. However, this year number contradicts the stated reign of Otto I and the indiction. Therefore, the year 948 was taken as the correct date. The Diocese of Brandenburg was also founded in this year, the witnesses and parts of the text show a great deal of agreement with its founding document. This re-dating was contradicted in the 1980s and 1990s. So it is not certain at what point in time a possible deed of foundation for the diocese of Havelberg could have been created.
Content contradictions
The terms castrum et civitas , burgwardium and marchio inferior were not yet in use in the 10th century. The specified northern border with Mecklenburg also raises questions.
It is therefore assumed that the deed was made in the 12th century, possibly between 1150 and 1179. The intention was to secure tithe rights of the diocese, as well as claims to the castle and town of Havelberg and a wide expansion of the diocese to the north. The template could have been a real document from the 10th century.
Manuscripts
A copy is in the Brandenburg State Main Archive in Potsdam.
Prints
text
- Theodor Sickel (Ed.): Diplomata 12: The documents Konrad I., Heinrich I. and Otto I. (Conradi I., Heinrici I. et Ottonis I. Diplomata). Hannover 1879, p. 155 ( Monumenta Germaniae Historica , digitized version ) No. 76.
Regest
- Emil von Ottenthal: The regests of the empire under the rulers of the Saechsischen house 919-1024. (= Regesta Imperii, II). Volume 1. Innsbruck 1893. p. 68 No. 134 .
literature
- Joachim Hoffmann: The medieval building history of the Havelberg cathedral. Lukas Verlag, Berlin 2012. pp. 48–50 .
- Walter Schlesinger : Comments on the so-called Deed of foundation of the Diocese of Havelberg from 946 May 9. In: Yearbooks for the history of Central and Eastern Germany . Volume 5. 1956. pp. 1-48. ( PDF ); again in: Ders. (Ed.): Central German contributions to the German constitutional history of the Middle Ages. Göttingen 1961. pp. 413–464,
- Fritz Curschmann : The deed of foundation of the diocese of Havelberg . In: New archive of the society for older German history . Vol. 28, 1903, pp. 393-434 ( digitized version )