BERNONE, VESCOVO DI SCHWERIN

BERNONE, bishop of SCHWERIN. — A Cistercian from the monastery of Amelungsborn on the Weser. Almost nothing is known of him before his election as bishop of Mecklemburg (1155) by the Saxon prince Henry the Lion. Having subdued the Obotrites (one of the Slavic tribes, known under the name of Wends), the prince wished to restore the pre-existing bishoprics, entrusting that of Mecklemburg to B., who received consecration in Rome from Adrian IV. At first, the attempt to convert the Obotrites bore little fruit and was dangerous, for they conflated Christians with the conquering Saxons, so much so that B. had to transfer the episcopal see to Schwerin, where Saxon colonists were already settled. From there, with the favor of Prince Pribislao, a pagan but married to a Christian, Woislawa, he was able to spread his zeal in the city and over a wide surrounding area. He baptized the prince (1163), consecrated the cathedral (9 Sept. 1171), where he held the first synod (1177); he ventured into the Ciripian region, into Pomerania, and as far as the island of Rügen, converting its inhabitants. He went to Rome twice, in 1178 and 1187, where he obtained confirmation of his bishopric, and in 1179 he took part in the Third Lateran Council. He died at Schwerin on 27 Jan. 1190 or 1191.