Jeden z dziesięciu. Pomorskie kontyngenty dla Krzywoustego według relacji Herborda
One in Ten. Pomeranian Contingents for Bolesław Iii Krzywousty (Wrymouth) According to Herbord’s Account

Summary/Abstract: This article covers the interpretation of Herbord’s account, in which the author describes the size of the military contingents which the Pomeranians were supposed to provide to Bolesław III. There are three main interpretations of this source. The first one relies on understanding “patres familias” as the upper class or magnates. The second interprets the same phrase as a group of slave warriors specialised in raids. According to the author of this article, the literary interpretation is the most appropriate one. The size of the Pomeranian contingents was most commonly compared to the reality of Carolingian and Ottonian monarchy. One may also use comparable sources from Denmark and Polabia. The Danish military organisation included maritime expeditionary levy. The Polabian Slavs mobilised their troops based on territorial rules but it is not certain whether they were select levy as in Pomerania. The one in ten ratio seems to be probable but it should be noted that Herbord was a hagiographer and wanted to emphasize the symbolic meaning of the numbers rather than their accuracy.

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