Primary Source Analysis of The Chronicle of Henry of Livonia

Ruth Williamson

 

SCAND 344, Spring 2002

 

Author: Henry, a German-educated Christian priest born in 1188, either in Germany or Livonia, and educated in a German monastery school (evidenced by his thorough mastery of Latin and frequent use of language taken directly from the Latin Vulgate bible and other Latin liturgical texts). He joined the household of Bishop Albert in Livonia in 1205 and was ordained in 1208. He was assigned to a parish in the district of Imera, built a church at Papendorp and lived out his life there, with infrequent interruptions.

 

Why he wrote the Chronicle: It is believed that Henry wrote this history of the church in Livonia as a report to the papal legate William of Modena, to whom he was assigned as interpreter in 1225 through 1227. The legate was in Livonia to mediate an internal church dispute that had been building between the Christian order of knights called the Order of Swordbrothers and the Christian bishoprics of Livonia.

 

The intended audience: Henry’s audience was William of Modena, other papal representatives, other educated Christian churchmen and possibly the pope himself.

 

Unspoken assumptions contained in the text: The major underlying assumption of Henry’s writing is that Christian beliefs and values are superior to those of the native Livonians, Letts, and Estonians.

 

Are there detectable biases in the source: Yes, Henry uses words and phrases that indicate value judgments based on the assumption mentioned above in referring to the native people. He frequently refers to the “treachery” (Chapter X, verse 12) of “this untamed people, overly given to pagan rites…” (Chapter IX, verse 13), and using similar terms such as “deceitful”, “trickery”, makes reference to the need for the Germans to be careful in their dealings with these people.

 

When was the source composed and what is the historical context in which the source was written and read: The Chronicles were written in 1225 and 1226. Henry states, and based on the autobiographical flavor of the writing there is strong reason to believe it is true, that he either witnessed the events himself or heard of them from someone who did—“What we have not seen with our own eyes, we have learned from those who saw it and who were there.” (Chapter XXIX, verse 9). Henry wrote it as a practicing, believing Christian living in the time or just after the time of the events he writes about. It is the story of how the German Christians conquered and converted first the Livonians and Letts and then the Estonians in the first quarter of the 13th century. It was read by the Christian, literate audience mentioned above immediately after he wrote it, since it was a report for the papal legate.

 

Are there other contemporary sources to compare against this one: Other chronicles of this period include those of Peter of Dusburg, Nicholaus of Jerschin, and the Rhymned Chronicle of Livonia, which were Christian chronicles composed to be read to knights during mealtime.