early medieval stronghold in Garz, Germany

#archeology #dronevideo #djimini4pro #germany #stronghold
📜 history of the object:
The capital city of the Rani tribe was supposed to be 'Charenza' or 'Karyntia' (according to the chronicler Saxo Grammaticus) or 'Karenz' (this name is given by the Icelandic Knýtlinga). It was the seat of political authorities (princes) of this tribe. There are disputes in the literature as to which object exactly was supposed to be this 'Charenza'. Some researchers point to a stronghold in the northern part of Rügen, east of the town of Trent. Others locate 'Charenza' in the area of ​​the town of Ralswiek. Most historians, however, believe that this spectacular stronghold in the town of Garz was precisely this capital 'Charenza'. This is supported by the large size of the complex, appropriate for a capital town. However, the sources mentioned above describe that the Danish bishop Absalon, who was besieging Arkona at the time, embarked some of his troops on ships and sailed to 'Charenza' during one night in June. He was greeted at the port by a delegation of princes and nobles, who surrendered the stronghold. After the fall of Arkona, princes Jaromir and Tesław submitted to Christianization and became vassals of the Danish king. Meanwhile, Garz is located in the southern part of the island, at a considerable distance from Arkona, and even relatively far from the coast itself (approx. 4 km). Regardless of the above considerations, the stronghold in Garz is one of the largest Slavic settlements in the area of ​​Rügen. The structure has a diameter of approx. 100 meters. It was surrounded by a wooden and earth rampart. Saxo describes: 'Charenza is surrounded on all sides by marshes and swamps, and there is only one way to get to it, by a ford, which is also marshy and difficult, and if one carelessly goes down one of its sides, he is sure to drown in it. When a man had crossed this quagmire, he entered a path which led between the marsh and the rampart to the gate. In order to give a solemn character to their surrender, the inhabitants of Charenza, six thousand in number, came out armed through the gate and lined up with spearheads stuck in the ground on either side of the road by which the Danes were to arrive. In times of peace, the city was rather empty, but now it was filled with people who had built themselves houses of three stories, so that the lowest story supported the middle and highest. They stood so close together that there was not a single piece of ground on which a stone could fall in case the city was fired upon by catapults. But the houses, on account of the filth that reigned there, were so full of stench that it tormented the bodies as much as fear tormented the souls, so that it became clear to the Danes that the inhabitants would not be able to withstand a siege'. This description basically fits the castle in Garz. It is surrounded by a number of watercourses, and probably also swamps in the past. The short-term simultaneous presence of as many as 6,000 people on the area of ​​the settlement, which covers an area of ​​approx. 2.5 hectares, is not excluded. Moreover, during archaeological research conducted in the 1920s and 1930s, traces of three structures were found, probably of a temple nature. Saxo described that in 'Charenza' there were three temples dedicated to the gods Rugievit, Porevit and Porenut. This would therefore be another minor argument in favour of the capital function of the stronghold in Garz.

[@Widsith83]

Rugia! Świetnie👍👏Dziękuję.