The Bishopric of Cammin (also Kammin, Kamień Pomorski) was both a former Roman Catholic

diocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associa ...

in the

Duchy of Pomerania The Duchy of Pomerania (german: Herzogtum Pommern; pl, Księstwo Pomorskie; 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 ha ...

from 1140 to 1544, and a secular territory of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

( Prince-Bishopric) in the Kolberg (Kołobrzeg) area from 1248 to 1650. The diocese comprised the areas controlled by the

House of Pomerania The House of Griffin or Griffin dynasty (german: Greifen; pl, Gryfici, da, Grif) 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 and had been tak ...

in the 12th century, thus differing from the later territory of the

by the exclusion of the

Principality of Rügen The Principality of Rügen; da, Fyrstendømmet Rygien; pl, Księstwo rugijskie; la, Rugia was a Danish principality, formerly a duchy, consisting of the island of Rügen and the adjacent mainland from 1168 until 1325. It was governed by a loc ...

and inclusion of Circipania, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, and the northern

Uckermark The Uckermark () is a historical region in northeastern Germany, straddles the Uckermark District of Brandenburg and the Vorpommern-Greifswald District of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Its traditional capital is Prenzlau. Geography The region is nam ...

and New March. The diocese was rooted in the Conversion of Pomerania by Otto of Bamberg in 1124 and 1128, and was dissolved during the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

, when the Pomeranian nobility adopted

Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

in 1534 and the last pre-reformatory bishop died in 1544. The Catholic diocese was succeeded by the

Pomeranian Evangelical Church The Pomeranian Evangelical Church (german: link=no, Pommersche Evangelische Kirche; PEK) was a Protestant regional church in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, serving the citizens living in Hither Pomerania. The Pomeranian Evangelical C ...

and suppressed until 1945, when its new incarnation, the Apostolic Administration of Kamień (''Cammin''), Lubusz and the Prelature of Piła was re-established, succeeded by the Diocese of Szczecin-Kamień in 1972, elevated to Archdiocese of Szczecin-Kamień in 1992. The secular territory of the former diocese continued to exist as a prince-bishopric and principality within the

, and was dissolved in 1650 when it fell to Brandenburg-Prussia, becoming part of Brandenburgian Pomerania. The area of the former principality was administered as ''Fürstenthum

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

'' within the Prussian Province of Pomerania until its division in 1872.

History

After Duke

Bolesław III Wrymouth Bolesław III Wrymouth ( pl, Bolesław III Krzywousty; 20 August 1086 – 28 October 1138), also known as Boleslaus the Wry-mouthed, was the duke of Lesser Poland, Silesia and Sandomierz between 1102 and 1107 and over the whole of Poland between ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

had conquered Pomerania until 1121/22, Saint Otto of Bamberg between 1124 and 1128 Christianised the area. Otto's first mission in 1124 followed a failed mission by eremite Bernard in 1122, and was initiated by Bolesław with the approval of both

Lothair III, Holy Roman Emperor Lothair III, sometimes numbered Lothair II and also known as Lothair of Supplinburg (1075 – 4 December 1137), was Holy Roman Emperor from 1133 until his death. He was appointed Duke of Saxony in 1106 and elected King of Germany in 1125 before ...

, and Pope Callixtus II. Otto's second mission in 1128 was initiated by Lothair after a pagan reaction. Wartislaw I, Duke of Pomerania supported and aided both missions. Between the missions, he had expanded his duchy westward, up to Güstrow.Jan M Piskorski, ''Pommern im Wandel der Zeiten'', 1999, p. 41, These former Lutician areas were not subject to Polish overlordship, but claimed by the

.Kyra Inachim, ''Die Geschichte Pommerns'', Rostock: Hinstorff, 2008, p. 17, Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 11, Otto during his lifetime did not succeed in founding a diocese, caused by a conflict of the archbishops of

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebu ...

and

Gniezno Gniezno (; german: Gnesen; la, Gnesna) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. One of the Piast dynasty's chief cities, ...

about ecclesiastical hegemony in the area.Kyra Inachim, ''Die Geschichte Pommerns'', Rostock: Hinstorff, 2008, p. 15, : "Zunächst waren die kirchlichen Verhältnisse noch ungeordnet, da sowohl Gnesen als auch Magdeburg Ansprüche auf die neue Kirchenprovinz erhoben. Erst nach dem Tod des Pommernapostels Otto von Bamberg (1139) bestätigte Papst Innozenz II. 1140 das pommersche Landesbistum und unterstellte die ''Pomeraniae ecclesia'' dem Schutz des Heiligen Petrus. Es entstand ein unabhängiges pommersches Bistum mit Sitz in Wollin (Jumne)." Otto died in 1139. Pope Innocent II founded the diocese by a papal bull of 14 October 1140, and made the church of St. Adalbert at ( Julin (Wollin/Wolin) on Wollin/Wolin island the see of the diocese.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 14, In the bull, the new diocese was placed "under the protection of the see of the Holy Peter", thwarting ambitions of the archbishops of

and

, who both wanted to incorporate the new diocese as suffragan into their archdioceses. Adalbert, a former chaplain of Saint Otto who had participated in Otto's mission as an interpreter and assistant, was consecrated bishop at Rome.Werner Buchholz, ''Pommern'', Siedler, 1999, p. 29, Adalbert and Ratibor I founded Stolpe Abbey at the side of Wartislaw I's assassination by a pagan in 1153, the first monastery in Pomerania. The bishops held the title of ''Pomeranorum'' or ''Pomeranorum et Leuticorum episcopus'', referring to the tribal territories of the Pomeranians and

Luticians The Lutici or Liutizi (known by various spelling variants) were a federation of West Slavic Polabian tribes, who between the 10th and 12th centuries lived in what is now northeastern Germany. Four tribes made up the core of the federation: th ...

merged in the

.Wolfgang Wilhelminus et al., ''Pommern: Geschichte, Kultur, Wissenschaft'', University of Greifswald, 1990, p. 57 In the late 12th century the territory of the Griffin dukes was raided several times by Saxon troops of

Henry the Lion Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180. Henry was one of the most powerful German p ...

and Danish forces under King Valdemar I. The initial see of in Wollin was moved to Grobe Abbey on the island of Usedom after 1150.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, pp. 14–15, At the same time Wollin economically decayed and was devastated by Danish expeditions, which contributed to the move to Grobe.Jan M Piskorski, ''Pommern im Wandel der Zeiten'', 1999, p. 48, The see was again moved to Cammin, now Kamień Pomorski, in 1175,Kyra Inachim, ''Die Geschichte Pommerns'', Rostock: Hinstorff, 2008, p. 16, where a chapter was founded for the Cathedral of ''St. John the Baptist''. All this time, the question of subordinance of the Pomeranian diocese as suffragan to an archdiocese remained unsolved. Since 1188, when the pope accepted the move of the see, the bishopric was referred to as "Roman Catholic Diocese of Cammin", while before it was addressed as ''Pomeranensis ecclesia'', Pomeranian diocese.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 15, The pope furthermore placed the bishopric as an exempt diocese directly under the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

. Since 1208, the bishops held the title ''Caminensis episcopus''. The area of the diocese resembled the area controlled by Wartislaw I and his brother and successor, Ratibor I. The northern border was defined by the coastline and the border with the

(

Ryck The Ryck is a river in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. From its source near Bartmannshagen, part of the Süderholz community northeast of Grimmen, the Ryck flows for about to the east, reaching Greifswald shortly before its mouth. The larger ...

river). In the West, the diocese included Circipania up to Güstrow. In the Southwest, the border of the diocese ran south to a line Güstrow- Ivenack-

Altentreptow Altentreptow () is a town in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated on the river Tollense in Western Pomerania, 15 km north of Neubrandenburg. Until 1939 the city's name was '' ...

in a near straight west–east orientation, then took a sharp southward turn west of Ueckermünde to include

Prenzlau Prenzlau (, formerly also Prenzlow) is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, the administrative seat of Uckermark District. It is also the centre of the historic Uckermark region. Geography The town is located on the Ucker river, about north of Be ...

. The border then turned east to meet the Oder river south of Gartz and followed the Oder to the Warta (Warthe) confluence to include Zehden. In the South, the diocese border ran immediately north of the Warthe to include Landsberg and Soldin. The southeastern border left the Warthe area with a sharp turn running straight north to

Dramburg Drawsko Pomorskie (until 1948 pl, Drawsko; formerly german: Dramburg) is a town in Drawsko County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland, the administrative seat of Drawsko County and the urban-rural commune of Gmina Drawsko Pom ...

, then turned eastwards south of the town to include

Tempelburg Czaplinek (german: Tempelburg; csb, Czôplënkò) is a town in Drawsko County, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, with 7,012 inhabitants as of December 2021. The former name of ''Tempelburg'' refers to the Templar Knights, which settled near ...

. Then, after a southeast turn, it turned northeast towards Bütow. The eastern border ran east of Bütow and west of

Lauenburg in Pomerania Lauenburg (), or Lauenburg an der Elbe ( en, Lauenberg on the Elbe), is a town in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated on the northern bank of the river Elbe, east of Hamburg. It is the southernmost town of Schleswig-Holstein ...

to meet the seacoast east of Revekol.Jan M Piskorski citing Hermann Hoogeweg, ''Pommern im Wandel der Zeiten'', 1999, p. 98, When Emperor

Frederick I Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt o ...

deposed Henry the Lion in 1180 he granted Pomerania under Bogislaw I the status of an Imperial duchy, but from 1185 it was a Danish fief until the 1227 Battle of Bornhöved. In 1248, the Cammin bishops and the

Pomeranian 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 ...

had interchanged the ''terrae'' Stargard and Kolberg, leaving the bishops in charge of the latter. In the following, the bishops extended their secular reign which soon comprised the Kolberg (now Kołobrzeg),

Köslin Koszalin (pronounced ; csb, Kòszalëno; formerly german: Köslin, ) is a city in northwestern Poland, in Western Pomerania. It is located south of the Baltic Sea coast, and intersected by the river Dzierżęcinka. Koszalin is also a county-sta ...

(also Cöslin, now Koszalin) and

Bublitz Bobolice (; formerly german: Bublitz) is a town in northwest Poland, part of Koszalin County, West Pomeranian Voivodeship. As of December 2021, it has a population of 3,896. Notable residents * Paul Kleinschmidt (1883–1949), German painter an ...

(now Bobolice) areas.Norbert Buske, ''Pommern'', Schwerin: Helms, 1997, p. 16, When in 1276 they became the sovereign of the town of Kolberg also, they moved their residence there. Bishop Hermann von Gleichen founded the towns of Köslin (Koszalin) in 1266 and Massow (Maszewo) in 1278. The administration of the episcopal secular state was done from Köslin. The bishops at multiple occasions tried to exclude their secular reign from ducal overlordship by applying for

Imperial immediacy Imperial immediacy (german: Reichsfreiheit or ') was a privileged constitutional and political status rooted in German feudal law under which the Imperial estates of the Holy Roman Empire such as Imperial cities, prince-bishoprics and secular pri ...

(''Reichsunmittelbarkeit''). The

successfully forestalled these ambitions, and immediacy was granted only temporarily in 1345. The addition of profane territory would be the basis for later turning the status of the diocese into a prince-bishopric. The episcopal territory of secular reign remained a subfief of ducal Pomerania, and did not become an immediately imperial fief. The

reached Pomerania in the early 16th century, mostly starting from the cities, and

was made the

's religion in 1534 by the diet of Treptow upo Rega (Trzebiatów). The Pomeranian reformator

Johannes Bugenhagen Johannes Bugenhagen (24 June 1485 – 20 April 1558), also called ''Doctor Pomeranus'' by Martin Luther, was a German theologian and Lutheran priest who introduced the Protestant Reformation in the Duchy of Pomerania and Denmark in the 16th ce ...

, appointed bishop of Cammin by 1544, did not assume the office, the cathedral chapter elected instead Bartholomaeus Swawe, the former chancellor of Duke Barnim XI of

Pomerania-Stettin The Duchy of Pomerania-Stettin, also known as the Duchy of Stettin, and the Duchy of Szczecin, was a feudal duchy in Farther Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Szczecin. It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty.B. Dopierała, ''Po ...

, who promptly renounced Cammin's

imperial immediacy Imperial immediacy (german: Reichsfreiheit or ') was a privileged constitutional and political status rooted in German feudal law under which the Imperial estates of the Holy Roman Empire such as Imperial cities, prince-bishoprics and secular pri ...

. From 1556 on the Griffin dukes held also the office of a titular bishop ruling in Cammin's secular territory. In 1650 the last bishop

Ernst Bogislaw von Croÿ Ernst Bogislaw von Croÿ (26 August 1620, in Finstingen (Fénétrange) – 7 February 1684, in Königsberg) was a Lutheran Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Cammin and official in the service of Brandenburg-Prussia. Family Ernst Bog ...

resigned and the diocese was secularised. With

Farther Pomerania Farther Pomerania, Hinder Pomerania, Rear Pomerania or Eastern Pomerania (german: Hinterpommern, Ostpommern), is the part of Pomerania which comprised the eastern part of the Duchy and later Province of Pomerania. It stretched roughly from the Od ...

it fell to Brandenburg-Prussia forming its Province of Pomerania.

Bishops of Cammin

Catholic bishops

* 1140–1162: Adalbert of Pomerania * 1163–1186: Conrad I of Salzwedel * 1186–1202: Siegfried I * 1202–1219: Siegwin * 1219–1223: Conrad II von Demmin * 1223–1245: Conrad III von Gützkow

Prince-Bishops

* 1245–1252: Wilhelm * 1252–1288: Hermann von Gleichen * 1288–1298: Jaromar Prince of Rugia (son of Prince Wizlaw II) * 1298: Peter * 1299–1317?: Heinrich von Wachholz * 1317?–1324: Conrad IV * 1324–1329: Wilhelm II ** 1324–1326: Otto (anti-bishop) ** 1326–1329: Arnold von

Eltz The House of Eltz was a noted German noble family of the ''Uradel''. The Rhenish dynasty has had close ties to the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia since 1736. History Though older sources mentioned one Eberhard zu Eltz, a Frankish citizen of Trier ...

(anti-bishop) * 1329–1343: Friedrich von Eickstedt * 1344–1372: John I of Saxe-Lauenburg, son of

Eric I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg Eric I of Saxe-Lauenburg (c.1280–1360) was a member of the House of Ascania who ruled as one of the dukes of Saxony from 1282 until 1338. Early life Eric was a son of John I, Duke of Saxony, and Ingeborg Birgersdotter of Småland (*ca. ...

* 1372–1385: Philipp von Rehberg * 1386–1394: John II Wilken von Kosselyn ** 1386–1392:

Bogislaw VIII, Duke of Pomerania Bogisław VIII ( – 11 February 1418),Werner Buchholz, Pommern, Siedler, 1999, p.149, a member of the House of Griffins, was Duke of Pomerania ruling in Pomerania-Stolp from 1395 until his death. He also served as administrator of the Prince ...

, diocesan administrator, ruling Pomerania-Stargard 1377–1417 * 1394–1398: Bogislaw VIII, Duke of Pomerania, bishop elect, rivalling John III * 1394–1398: John III Kropidło, Duke of Oppeln-Strehlitz, rivalling Bogislaw VIII * 1398–1410: Nikolaus Bock * 1410–1424: Magnus of Saxe-Lauenburg, prince-bishop of Hildesheim, 1424–1452 * 1424–1449: Siegfried II von Bock * 1449–1469: Henning Iwen * 1449–1471:

sede vacante ''Sede vacante'' ( in Latin.) is a term for the state of a diocese while without a bishop. In the canon law of the Catholic Church, the term is used to refer to the vacancy of the bishop's or Pope's authority upon his death or resignation. Hi ...

* 1471: Henning Kessebogen * 1471–1479: Count Ludwig von Eberstein-Naugard * 1479: Nicolaus von Tüngen, also Prince-Bishop of Ermland (Warmia) 1467–1489 * 1479–1482: Marinus Freganus * 1482–1485: Angelo Geraldini, also

Bishop of Sessa Aurunca The Diocese of Sessa Aurunca ( la, Dioecesis Suessana) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in southern Italy. Since 1979 it has been a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Naples.Erasmus von Manteuffel-Arnhausen Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...

, after 1532 he lost influence in the diocesan territory except of the episcopal secular area around Kolberg

Lutheran Bishops and Superintendents

* 1544–1549: Bartholomaeus Suawe, bishop, only for the Lutheran state church in the secular episcopal area * 1549–1556: Martin Weiher von Leba ( de), bishop, only for the Lutheran state church in the secular episcopal area * 1556–1558: vacancy, the succeeding administrators, colloquially called bishops, lacked any theological skills * 1558–1567: Georg Venetus, Stiftssuperintendent (i.e. superintendent of the

Hochstift In the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic Church, the German term (plural: ) referred to the territory ruled by a bishop as a prince (i.e. prince-bishop), as opposed to his diocese, generally much larger and over which he exercised only spir ...

/prince-bishopric) * 1568–1602: Petrus Edeling, superintendent of the prince-bishopric * 1605–1620: Adam Hamel, superintendent of the prince-bishopric * 1622–1645: Immanuel König, superintendent of the prince-bishopric

Pomeranian Prince-Administrators ("Bishops")

* 1556–1574:

John Frederick, Duke of Pomerania John Frederick (german: Johann Friedrich; 27 August 1542 – 9 February 1600) was Duke of Pomerania from 1560 to 1600, and Bishop of Cammin (Kamień) from 1556 to 1574. Elected bishop in 1556 and heir of the duchy in 1560, he remained under tutel ...

, † 1600 * 1574–1602: Casimir IX, Duke of

Pomerania-Wolgast The Duchy of Pomerania-Wolgast, also known as the Duchy of Wolgast, and the Duchy of Wołogoszcz, was a feudal duchy in Western Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Wolgast. It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty.Edward Rymar, ''R ...

, † 1605 * 1602–1618: Francis, Duke of Pomerania-Barth, † 1620 * 1618–1623:

Ulrich Ulrich (), is a German given name, derived from Old High German ''Uodalrich'', ''Odalric''. It is composed of the elements '' uodal-'' meaning "(noble) heritage" and ''-rich'' meaning "rich, powerful". Attested from the 8th century as the name of Al ...

, Duke of Pomerania-Barth * 1623–1637:

Bogislaw XIV, Duke of Pomerania Bogislaw XIV (31 March 1580 – 10 March 1637) was the last Duke of Pomerania. He was also the Lutheran administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Cammin. Biography Bogislaw was born in Barth as a member of the House of Pomerania. He was the thir ...

* 1637–1650:

, Prince of Croÿ, † 1684

Notes

External links

Bishop list
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bishopric Of Cammin Cammin prince-bishopric Cammin prince-bishopric Cammin Cammin diocese Cammin diocese Cammin diocese