Anu Mänd & Marek Tamm (eds), Making Livonia: Actors and Networks in the Medieval and Early Modern Baltic Sea Region (original) (raw)
Related papers
2022
The Baltic Crusades in the thirteenth century led to the creation of the medieval Livonia. But what happened after the conquest? The contributors to this volume analyse the cultural, societal, economic and technological changes in the Baltic Sea region c. 1200–1350. The chapters focus on innovations and long-term developments which were important in integrating the area into medieval European society more broadly, while also questioning the traditional divide of the Livonian post-crusade society into native victims and foreign victors. The process of multilateral negotiations and adaptions created a synthesis which was not necessarily an outcome of the wars but also a manifestation of universal innovation processes in northern Europe.
Remapping the Political Terrain of Baltic Medieval Studies
Studies on Art and Architecture / Kunstiteaduslikke Uurimusi , no. 32:1-2, 2023
This is a book review of Kersti Markus' important book, VISUAL CULTURE AND POLITICS IN THE BALTIC SEA 1100−1250. East Central and Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 450–1450. Volume 63. Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2020.
Prior to the high Middle Ages, the Baltic Rim was largely terra incognita-but by the late Middle Ages, it was home to diverse small and large communities. But the Baltic Rim was not simply the place those people lived-it was also an imagined space through which they defined themselves and their identities. This book traces the transformation of the Baltic Rim in this period through a focus on the self-image of a number of communities: urban and regional, cultic, missionary, legal, and political. Contributors look at the ways these communities defined themselves in relationship to other groups, how they constructed their identities and customs, and what held them together or tore them apart. THE BOOK IS OPEN ACCESS, AVAILABLE through JSTOR services.
The Clash of Cultures on the Medieval Baltic Frontier
2016
Saints' cults played a crucial role in medieval society. Although we know very little about the beliefs and rituals of the indigenous peoples of Livonia, either before or after the thirteenth-century conquest, we may assume that the process of Christianization must have caused major changes in their religious practices.! How quickly these changes took place, and how deep they were, is a question which is difficult to answer, given the scarcity of sources describing the attitudes of the indigenous peoples towards the Christian faith, or dealing with their religious customs. This is valid not only for the thirteenth century but also for the rest of the medieval period. There exist, of course, brief complaints in documents such as church statutes about the ignorance and superstition of the 'non-Germans', but these texts were written by and from the point of view of the ruling elites and not that of non-Germans themselves, who did not possess a written culture before the nineteenth century. One may also assume that complaints about such matters were a commonplace in other newly Christianized countries as well. However, it is not only the beliefs and customs of the native inhabitants of Livonia that we are interested in, but also those of the 'newcomers' in the country, that is, the (predominantly German) upper and middle classes. The location of Livonia between the Roman Catholic West and the Russian Orthodox East (not to mention the neighbouring Lithuanians who remained pagan until the late fourteenth century) makes this region an interesting melting pot of different cultural and religious influences. The political, economic and cultural connections to Germany, Denmark and Sweden, the role of the Hanseatic League, the presence of the military orders (first the Sword Brethren, then the Teutonic Order) and the monastic orders (most notably the Cistercians and the Dominicans) must all have had a significant impact on the development oflocal religious life. This chapter explores only one aspect of religious life in Livonia, namely the cults of saints. This is perhaps most conspicuously reflected in the choice of the patron saints of the churches, towns and other institutions. However, the study is hindered by the scarcity of sources: there are very few surviving calendars and dedication charters of churches and altars. In the majority of cases we do not know when a church or altar was founded and by whom. This makes it difficult This article was written under the auspices of grant no. 6900 awarded by the Estonian Science Foundation. See Marek Tamm and Tönno Jonuks, 'Religious Practices of the Estonians in the Medieval Written Sources (11th to 15th centuries)', in Estonian Mythology, ed. Mare Köiva (Helsinki, forthcoming).
In the late Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, Northern Europe was a crucible of political, maritime and economic activity. Ships from ports all around the Baltic Sea as well as from the Low Countries plied the Baltic waters, triggering market integration, migration flows, nautical innovations and the dissemination of cultural values. This archival guide in three volumes (788 + 822 + 718 pp.) is an essential research tool for scholars studying these Baltic connections, providing descriptions of almost 1000 archival collections concerning trade, shipping, merchants, commodities, diplomacy, finances and migration in the years 1450-1800. These rich and varied sources kept at more than 100 repositories in Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia and Sweden are herewith collected for the first time.
The vast majority of writings dealing with Viking maritime activity concentrate on movements in the western or southern direction, paying much less attention to the east -which can be seen as a reflection of recent political realities. The present Baltic States in particular have often been left out in discussions of Viking Age communications and sea routes. The Cold-War-era border running along the Baltic Sea created a situation where Baltic archaeologists faced several constraints induced by the Soviet system, primarily the lack of exact maps and restricted access to the sea. Society gradually accepted the subconscious concept that sea-faring is a complicated venture, with the sea hindering rather than favouring communication with neighbouring areas. Scandinavia, on the other side of the Baltic Sea, and even Finland, which is in places less than 100km from the northern coast of Estonia, seemed to be at an unreachable distance. This political situation of the recent past was erroneously projected back in history, creating an over-romantic vision of one-time brave seafarers and pirates.