Christian of Oliva
Encyclopedia
Christian of Oliva also Christian of Prussia (died 4 December(?) 1245) was the first missionary bishop of Prussia
Prussia (region)
Prussia is a historical region in Central Europe extending from the south-eastern coast of the Baltic Sea to the Masurian Lake District. It is now divided between Poland, Russia, and Lithuania...

.

Christian was born about 1180 in the Duchy of Pomerania
Duchy of Pomerania
The Duchy of Pomerania was a duchy in Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, ruled by dukes of the House of Pomerania ....

, possibly in the area of Chociwel
Chociwel
Chociwel is a town in Poland, in West Pomeranian Voivodeship, in Stargard County. It has 3,279 inhabitants .Prior to World War II Chociwel was in Germany and known as Freienwalde. It had a population of 3,406 in 1939. After the death and dislocation associated with the war, its population was...

 (according to Johannes Voigt
Johannes Voigt
Johannes Voigt was a German historian who was born in Bettenhausen, which today is situated in the district of Schmalkalden-Meiningen. He studied history, theology and philology at the University of Jena, where two of his instructors were Heinrich Luden and Johann Jakob Griesbach...

). Probably as a juvenile he joined the Cistercian Order at newly established Kołbacz (Kolbatz) Abbey and in 1209 entered Oliwa
Oliwa
Oliwa, also Oliva is one of the quarters of Gdańsk. From east it borders Przymorze and Żabianka, from the north Sopot and from the south with the districts of Strzyża, VII Dwór and Brętowo, while from the west with Matarnia and Osowa...

 Abbey near Gdańsk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...

, founded in 1178 by the Samboride
Samborides
The Samborides or House of Sobiesław were a ruling dynasty in the historic region of Pomerania. They were first documented about 1155 as governors in the eastern Pomerelian lands serving the royal Piast dynasty of Poland, and from 1227 ruled as autonomous princes until 1294, at which time the...

 dukes of Pomerelia
Pomerelia
Pomerelia is a historical region in northern Poland. Pomerelia lay in eastern Pomerania: on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea and west of the Vistula and its delta. The area centered on the city of Gdańsk at the mouth of the Vistula...

. At this time the Piast
Piast dynasty
The Piast dynasty was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. It began with the semi-legendary Piast Kołodziej . The first historical ruler was Duke Mieszko I . The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir the Great...

 duke Konrad I of Masovia
Konrad I of Masovia
Konrad I of Masovia , from the Polish Piast dynasty, was the sixth Duke of Masovia from 1194 until his death and High Duke of Poland from 1229 to 1232.-Life:...

 with the consent of Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III was Pope from 8 January 1198 until his death. His birth name was Lotario dei Conti di Segni, sometimes anglicised to Lothar of Segni....

 had started the first of several unsuccessful Prussian Crusade
Prussian Crusade
The Prussian Crusade was a series of 13th-century campaigns of Roman Catholic crusaders, primarily led by the Teutonic Knights, to Christianize the pagan Old Prussians. Invited after earlier unsuccessful expeditions against the Prussians by Polish princes, the Teutonic Knights began campaigning...

s into the adjacent Chełmno Land
Chełmno Land
Chełmno land or Chełmno region is a historical region of Poland, located in central Poland, bounded by the Vistula and Drwęca rivers....

 and Christian acted as a missionary among the Prussians
Old Prussians
The Old Prussians or Baltic Prussians were an ethnic group, autochthonous Baltic tribes that inhabited Prussia, the lands of the southeastern Baltic Sea in the area around the Vistula and Curonian Lagoons...

 east of the Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....

 River. In 1215 he is recorded as abbot of Łekno Abbey near Gniezno
Gniezno
Gniezno is a city in central-western Poland, some 50 km east of Poznań, inhabited by about 70,000 people. One of the Piasts' chief cities, it was mentioned by 10th century A.D. sources as the capital of Piast Poland however the first capital of Piast realm was most likely Giecz built around...

 in Greater Poland, most but not all authors identify him with Godfrey of Łękno.
In 1209, Christian was commissioned by the Pope to be responsible for the Prussian missions between the Vistula and Neman
Neman River
Neman or Niemen or Nemunas, is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipėda. It is the northern border between Lithuania and Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast in its lower reaches...

 Rivers and in 1212 he was appointed bishop. In 1215 he went to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

 in order to report to the Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...

 on the condition and prospects of his mission, and was consecrated first "Bishop of Prussia" at the Fourth Council of the Lateran
Fourth Council of the Lateran
The Fourth Council of the Lateran was convoked by Pope Innocent III with the papal bull of April 19, 1213, and the Council gathered at Rome's Lateran Palace beginning November 11, 1215. Due to the great length of time between the Council's convocation and meeting, many bishops had the opportunity...

. His seat as a bishop remained at Oliwa Abbey on the western side of the Vistula, whereas the pagan Prussian (later East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...

n) territory was on the eastern side of it.

The attempts by Konrad of Masovia to subdue the Prussian lands had picked long-term and intense border quarrels, whereby the Polish lands of Masovia
Duchy of Masovia
The Duchy of Masovia with its capital at Płock was a medieval duchy formed when the Polish Kingdom of the Piasts fragmented in 1138. It was located in the historic Masovian region of northeastern Poland...

, Cuyavia and even Greater Poland became subject to continuous Prussian raids. Bishop Christian asked the new Pope Honorius III
Pope Honorius III
Pope Honorius III , previously known as Cencio Savelli, was Pope from 1216 to 1227.-Early work:He was born in Rome as son of Aimerico...

 for the consent to start another Crusade, however a first campaign in 1217 proved a failure and even the joint efforts by Duke Konrad with the Polish High Duke Leszek I the White
Leszek I the White
Leszek I the White , also listed by some sources as Leszek II the White, was Prince of Sandomierz and High Duke of Poland from 1194 until his death, except for the short periods following when he was deposed as Polish ruler...

 and Duke Henry I the Bearded
Henry I the Bearded
Henry I the Bearded , of the Silesian line of the Piast dynasty, was Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1201 and Duke of Kraków and thus High Duke of all Poland - internally divided - from 1232 until his death.-Heir of Wroclaw:...

 of Silesia in 122/23 only led to the reconquest of Chełmno Land but did not stop the Prussian invasions. At least Christian was able to establish the Diocese of Chełmno east of the Vistula, adopting the episcopal rights from the Masovian Bishop of Płock, confirmed by both Duke Konrad and the Pope.

Duke Konrad of Masovia still was not capable to end the Prussian attacks on his territory and in 1224 began to conduct negotiations with the Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...

 under Grand Master Hermann von Salza
Hermann von Salza
Hermann von Salza was the fourth Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1210 to 1239...

 in order to strengthen his forces. As von Salza initially hesitated to offer his services, Christian created the military Order of Dobrzyń
Order of Dobrzyn
The Order of Dobrzyń or Order of Dobrin , also known as the Brothers of Dobrzyń , was a military order created in the borderland of Masovia and Prussia during the 13th century Prussian Crusade to 'defend against Baltic Prussian raids'.In Latin the knights were known as the Fratres Milites Christi...

 (Fratres Milites Christi) in 1228, however to little avail.

Meanwhile von Salza had to abandon his hope to establish an Order's State in the Burzenland
Burzenland
The Burzenland is a historic and ethnographic area in southeastern Transylvania, Romania with a mixed population...

 region of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...

, which had led to an éclat with King Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II the Jerosolimitan was King of Hungary and Croatia . He was the younger son of King Béla III of Hungary, who invested him with the government of the Principality of Halych...

. He obtained a charter by Emperor Frederick II
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II , was one of the most powerful Holy Roman Emperors of the Middle Ages and head of the House of Hohenstaufen. His political and cultural ambitions, based in Sicily and stretching through Italy to Germany, and even to Jerusalem, were enormous...

 issued in the 1226 Golden Bull of Rimini
Golden Bull of Rimini
The Golden Bull of Rimini was a Golden Bull issued by Emperor Frederick II, at his court in Rimini in March 1226 to confirm the Teutonic Knights' possessions in Prussia...

, whereby Chełmno Land would be the unshared possession of the Teutonic Knights, which was confirmed by Duke Konrad of Masovia in the 1230 Treaty of Kruszwica. Christian ceded his possessions to the new State of the Teutonic Order and in turn was appointed Bishop of Chełmno the next year.

Bishop Christian continued his mission in Sambia
Sambia
Sambia or Samland is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea. The Curonian Lagoon and the Vistula Lagoon demarcate the peninsula. Prior to 1945 it formed an important part of East Prussia.-Names:Sambia is named after the Sambians, an extinct...

 (Samland), where from 1233 to 1239 he was held captive by pagan Prussians, and freed in trade for five other hostages who then in turn were released for a ransom of 800 Marks
Mark (money)
Mark was a measure of weight mainly for gold and silver, commonly used throughout western Europe and often equivalent to 8 ounces. Considerable variations, however, occurred throughout the Middle Ages Mark (from a merging of three Teutonic/Germanic languages words, Latinized in 9th century...

, granted to him by Pope Gregory IX
Pope Gregory IX
Pope Gregory IX, born Ugolino di Conti, was pope from March 19, 1227 to August 22, 1241.The successor of Pope Honorius III , he fully inherited the traditions of Pope Gregory VII and of his uncle Pope Innocent III , and zealously continued their policy of Papal supremacy.-Early life:Ugolino was...

. He had to deal with the constant cut-back of his autonomy by the Knights and asked the Roman Curia for mediation. In 1243, the Papal legate William of Modena
William of Modena
William of Modena , also known as William of Sabina, Guglielmo de Chartreaux, Guglielmo de Savoy, Guillelmus, was an Italian clergyman and papal diplomat. He was frequently appointed a legate, or papal ambassador by the popes Honorius III and Gregory IX, especially in Livonia in the 1220s and in...

 divided the Prussian lands of the Order's State into four dioceses, whereby the bishops retained the secular rule over about on third of the original territory:
  • Bishopric of Chełmno (Chełmno Land
    Chełmno Land
    Chełmno land or Chełmno region is a historical region of Poland, located in central Poland, bounded by the Vistula and Drwęca rivers....

    , Ziemia Chełminska)
  • Bishopric of Pomesania
    Bishopric of Pomesania
    The Bishopric of Pomesania was a diocese in the Prussian regions of Pomesania and Pogesania. It was founded as a Roman Catholic diocese in 1243 by the papal legate William of Modena. The bishops, whose seat was Riesenburg , possessed one-third of the bishopric's territory...

     (Pomesania
    Pomesania
    Pomesanians were one of the Prussian clans. 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 of Elbląg and Malbork...

    )
  • Bishopric of Warmia
    Archbishopric of Warmia
    The Prince-Bishopric of Warmia was a semi independent ecclesiastical state, a Prussian bishopric under the jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Riga that was a protectorate of the Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights and a protectorate of Kingdom of Poland, later part of the Polish-Lithuanian...

     (Ermland)
  • Bishopric of Samland
    Bishopric of Samland
    The Bishopric of Samland was a bishopric in Samland in medieval Prussia. It was founded as a Roman Catholic diocese in 1243 by papal legate William of Modena. Its seat was Königsberg, until 1523 the episcopal residence was in Fischhausen. The bishopric became Lutheran in the 16th century during...

     (Sambia
    Sambia
    Sambia or Samland is a peninsula in the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea. The Curonian Lagoon and the Vistula Lagoon demarcate the peninsula. Prior to 1945 it formed an important part of East Prussia.-Names:Sambia is named after the Sambians, an extinct...

    )

all suffragan diocese
Suffragan Diocese
A suffragan diocese is a diocese in the Catholic Church that is overseen not only by its own diocesan bishop but also by a metropolitan bishop. The metropolitan is always an archbishop who governs his own archdiocese...

s under the Archbishopric of Riga. Christian was supposed to choose one of them, but did not agree to the division. He possibly retired to the Cistercians Abbey in Sulejów
Cistercians Abbey in Sulejów
Sulejów Abbey was a Cistercian abbey founded in 1176 by the duke Kazimierz II the Just. The town of Sulejów grew up round it. The most notable parts of the abbey are:* the Romanesque church of Saint Thomas Becket of Canterbury...

, where he died before the conflict was solved.

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