Henry Borwin I, Lord of Mecklenburg

Henry Borwin I
Seal of Henry Borwin I
Lord of Mecklenburg
Reign	1178–1219
Predecessor	Pribislav
Successor	Henry Borwin II
Spouse(s)	Matilda of Saxony Adelaide
Issue Nicholas II, Lord of Mecklenburg Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg Elisabeth
Noble family	House of Mecklenburg
Father	Pribislav of Mecklenburg
Mother	Woizlava of Pomerania
Died	28 January 1227

Henry Borwin I, Lord of Mecklenburg (died 28 January 1227), was the ruling Lord of Mecklenburg from 1178 until his death. Sometimes a Latinized version of his name is used (Borwinus or Burwinus); the form Buruwe is also found, as are Henricus Buruwi, Heinricus Buriwoi, Hinricus Burwy.

Henry Borwin I was a son of Pribislaw and his wife Woizlava of Pomerania. Pribislav was an Obotrite prince and was the first Lord of Mecklenburg. He died on 30 December 1178 of the wound he received during a tournament at the court of Henry the Lion in Lüneburg, and Henry Borwin I succeeded him as Lord of Mecklenburg. Shortly before Pribislav's death, Henry Borwin I married Matilda, a daughter of Henry the Lion.

For several years, Henry Borwin I fought a war with his cousin Nicholas I. His father-in-law was unable to assist him during this war. This lack of outside assistance attracted the attention of King Canute VI of Denmark, who used the situation to expand his position on the Baltic Sea coast. The Danes took Henry Borwin I prisoner. He had to cede Rostock to Denmark and accept Canute VI as his liege lord. In 1200, Canute returned Rostock to him as a fief. In 1202, he fought on the Danish side in the Battle of Stellau. The Danes won, and Henry Borwin was rewarded with two more fiefs: Gadebusch and Ratzeburg.

In 1218 and 1219, he assisted in the Danish conquest of Estonia, and from 1225 to 1227, he assisted them in a war against Schauenburg.

Henry Borwin I revived the cities of Rostock and Wismar and founded the abbeys of Dobbertin, Tempzin and Sonnenkamp.

Marriage and issue

Henry Borwin I married twice. His first wife was Matilda, a daughter of Henry the Lion. With her, he had two sons:

• Nicholas II, Lord of Mecklenburg (d. 1225)
• Henry Borwin II, Lord of Mecklenburg (d. 1226)

His second wife was Adelaide. With her, he had a daughter:

• Elisabeth (d. 1265), abbess of Wienhausen Abbey from 1241

References

• Ludwig Fromm (1876), "Heinrich Borwin I.", Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB) (in German) 3, Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot, p. 183

External links

• Genealogy of the House of Mecklenburg