ABSTRACT
Two special circumstances shaped the path of the lords of Mecklenburg and dukes of Pomerania to become imperial princes. First, Mecklenburg and Pomerania became part of the Reich relatively late and continued to lie on its periphery. And secondly, their inhabitants, like their lords, were originally Slavic pagans, who were only lastingly Christianised in the course of the twelfth century. The Danish conquests were probably recognised in 1202 by the Welf Otto IV and certainly a dozen years later by the Staufen Frederick II. According to this document, issued at Metz in December 1214, the de facto transfer of this region of the Reich to the Danish king – including Mecklenburg and Pomerania – was linked to a legal claim that it would continue to remain part of the kingdom. Eastern settlement had a lasting impact on the lordships of the Christianised lords of Mecklenburg and dukes of Pomerania from late twelfth and the first half of thirteenth century, respectively.
