Anselm of Meissen (, died no later than 1278 in Elbing (Elbląg)) was a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

of the

Teutonic Order The Teutonic Order is a religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious institution founded as a military order (religious society), military society in Acre, Israel, Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Sa ...

and the first actual Bishop of Warmia (Varmia, Ermland, or Ermeland). As his name suggests, Anselm originated from

Meißen Meissen ( ), is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden and 75 km (46 mi) west of Bautzen on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, th ...

. He became a priest in or before 1245. In Prussia, which was still mainly inhabited by heathen

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 ...

, the

Prince-Bishopric of Warmia The Prince-Bishopric of Warmia (; ) was a semi-independent ecclesiastical state, ruled by the incumbent ordinary of the Warmia see and comprising one third of the then diocesan area. The Warmia see was a Prussian diocese under the jurisdictio ...

had been created in 1243 by the

papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title '' legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Catho ...

William of Modena William of Modena ( – 31 March 1251), also known as ''William of Sabina'', ''Guglielmo de Chartreaux'', ''Guglielmo de Savoy'', ''Guillelmus'', was an Italian clergyman and papal diplomat.

, along with bishoprics of Culm,

Pomesania Pomesanians were a Prussian clan. They lived in Pomesania (; ; ), a historical region in modern northern Poland, located between the Nogat and Vistula Rivers to the west and the Elbląg River to the east. It is located around the modern towns ...

, and Samland. These four dioceses came under the rule of the appointed Archbishop of Prussia. Several bishops at that time, including Anselm, were priests of the

which undertook the ongoing

Prussian Crusade The Prussian Crusade was a series of 13th-century campaigns of Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Crusades, crusaders, primarily led by the Teutonic Knights, to Christianization, Christianize Forced conversion, under duress the Prussian mythol ...

in the East. Heinrich of Strateich, the first elected Bishop of Warmia, was unable to claim his office. On 28. August 1250

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB; ) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences between 1875 and 1912 in 56 volumes, printed in Lei ...

br>Anselm (Bischof von Ermland)
/ref> in

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

(Flanders), Anselm of Meissen was consacred by Petrus de Collemed (Pietro of Albano), and at least since 27. April 1251, Anselm was present in Warmia. The bishop ruled one-third of his exempt bishopric also as a secular ruler for his support. His status as a prince of the Holy Roman Empire was confirmed in the Golden Bull of Emperor Charles IV. The other part was governed by the Order, with the bishop having clerical jurisdiction there. The borders were drawn in 1254. This was confirmed by the

Golden Bull of 1356 The Golden Bull of 1356 (, , , , ) was a decree issued by the Imperial Diet at Nuremberg and Metz ( Diet of Metz, 1356/57) headed by the Emperor Charles IV which fixed, for a period of more than four hundred years, important aspects of the con ...

. The chapter with 16 canons had the right to elect independently the bishop. It resided at Braunsberg (Braniewo), with the St. Andreas church having become the bishops cathedral in 1260. Following attacks by heathen

in 1262, the see was eventually moved to Frauenburg in 1280 by Anselm's successor, Heinrich Fleming. In 1261,

Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV (; c. 1195 – 2 October 1264), born Jacques Pantaléon, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1261 to his death three years later. He was elected pope without being a cardinal; he was the fi ...

appointed Anselm as legate to Bohemia and Moravia,

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

, Gnesen and

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

. Anselm recruited Germans from lower Germany, Moravia and Silesia to settle in Prussia. During the Prussian uprising, he remained in Silesia, and also performed duties there, in Reichenbach, Breslau and in Olmütz (

Olomouc Olomouc (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants, making it the Statutory city (Czech Republic), sixth largest city in the country. It is the administrative centre of the Olomouc Region. Located on the Morava (rive ...

). Anselm died in 1278 in Elbing, where he was buried in the St. Anna chapel in the castle of Elbing.

References

Literature

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Anselm of Meissen People from the State of the Teutonic Order 13th-century German Roman Catholic bishops Bishops of Warmia Year of birth missing 13th-century births 1278 deaths

See also

References

Literature