Lower Saxony

Sources from old books

1635. Historia mundi: or Mercator's atlas. London. by Gerhard Mercator.

THE LOWER SAXONIE. (Book Lower Saxony) SAxonie was so called from the Saxons.* 1.1 Their originall as also of other Nations, not only the Monkes ignorant in Antiquities, but moderne judicious writers, have wrapped up in fabulous inventions: some suppose that they were so called from Saxo the sonne of Negno, and the brother of Vandalus; others à Saxca natura from their stony nature, others from the remainder of the Macedonian Army, some from their skeines or short swords, as appeareth by these verses in Engelhusins:

Quippe brevis gladius apud illos Saxa vocatur,Vnde sibi Saxo nomen traxisse putatur.A cuttell or a short-sword they Saxon call,Whence the name of Saxon takes originall.

But the learned C•pino doth derive it from the Phrygians: Let every one take which of these coniectures hee pleaseth, for I doe not purpose to refute their opinions. But I embrace their opinion, who suppose that the Saxons did descend from the Sacians, a people of Germany, and that they were so called as it were Sacasones; that is, the sonnes of the Sacurians; and that comming out of Scythia or Sarmatia, together with Getes, Sueuians, Dacians, and others, they spread themselves by degrees over Europe, which opinion is probable, which bringeth the Saxons out of Asia. For Strabo writeth that these Sacians, as the Cimmerians before, did make many invasions, and called part of Armenia after their owne name Saracena; and Ptolomie also placeth the Sassonians, the Suevians, the Massagetians, and the Dasians, in that part of Scythia; and Cisnerus observeth, that these Nations did still keepe the same vicinitie, which was betweene them. Moreover albeit Saxonie is the greatest Countrie in all Germanie, yet it is not now so large as it was heretofore. For auncient Saxonie was extended betweene the Rivers Albis and Rhene, the Germaine Sea, and the River Eydera, even to Hassia and the confines of Turingia, and Brunswick was the Center of it: and so also Westphalia, Marchia Vetus, Misnia, Lusatia, Mansfield, and many other Countries were called Saxonie. Now it is not bounded with such naturall limits, as Rivers and Mountaines, but with the confining dominion of others Principalities. The ayre of this Country is dry, pure, and wholesome, except the marshes doe moysten it too much. Saxonie hath abundance of all things, except Wine. It hath great store of Barly and Wheate of which they make very white Bread, and very browne drinke. It hath divers kindes of m••talls, especially in the Mountaine Melibocus, which reacheth from the Catti to the Saxones. There is found also in the same Mountaine a blacke kinde of stone, which hath much pitch and bras•e in it, and it shineth with Veines of Gold and Copresse. They digge out great store of this Oare, which they melt and resine into mettall. In this stone there are divers lineaments and proportions of living creatures, and especially of these that doe live in the neighbouring Lake, as Eeles, Carpes, Frogs, and sometimes also cockes, who have strange three double Combes. Also G•slaria hath Mines of brasse, gold, and silver, and rich Fountaines of salt, like those at Halla and Luneburg. And in other places the Mountaines doe yeeld plenty of Marble. It is sayd that Otto the first found Mines of silver, neere Goslaria, which yeelded him a great revennew. But the Cittizens abusing it, God suffered the pit to fall downe, which killed an hundred men that were working in it. And since that time, there was never found any silver or gold, but blacke Lead. First they make a kinde of shooemakers Inke or blacking, and afterward they boyle Lead & silver out of it. But they report that the mettall in G•slaria was thus found out. A certaine Noble man tyed his horse, called Ramelus, to a bough of a tree, on the Mountaine; who beating and s••iking the ground with his •oofes that were •hod with iron, did at last beate and weare away the earth, so that the veines of blacke Lead did appeare; like the winged Pegasus, who as Poets faine, with a stroake of his hoofe, on the Mountaine, did open the spring of Helicon on Parnassus. And as the fountain was from thence named Hipp••rene, that is, the horse-fountaine; so the Saxons doe call the mountaine Ramelus, which doth now yeeld great store of Lead. The chiefe Cittie of this Country is Halla, which is derived from a Greek word. But Goropius would have it derived not from the Greeke, but from the great store of salt which commeth from thence; as Halla in Suevia and in other Citties. For as the River Halis in Armenia, (as Strabo saith) was so named from the Greeke word, because it is salt. So Halla seated by the River Sala, a faire River in Saxonie, was so called from the great store of salt that came from thence. Whose salt Fountaines were first found out by the Wendians before Christs birth, whom wee may ca•l Hermandurians; and when the neighbouring nations did perceive what benefit might arise by them, they began to labour about them as if they had beene gold Mines. Now the Marquesse of Brandeburg, resideth at Halla. There belongeth also to Lower Saxonie the Dukedomes of Lauwenburg, Lun•burg, Brunswick, and the Dukedome of Meckelburg. In the Dukedom of Lun•burg there is the famous Cittie of Lun•burg, which was so called, from the Idoll of the Moone, which was heretofore set up upon the Mountaine Calcis: or else from the River gliding by it, which is now called Elmena, or di• Almenow, as it were Elven Ow, from the eleven Rivers which doe slow into it, and heretofore it was called Luno, or Lunow, by Isis, as they faine, who travailed this way to her kinsman Granbrivius. It is a Cittie well fortified with Trenches and Rampires, being almost foure-square: It hath a rich Fountaine of salt. For salt is the chiefe commoditie of these Citties, which they transport by Land and Sea, into farre remote Countries; yet the Merchants of Hamburg doe buy up the most part of it, and doe get much by it. It hath sixe Churches for confession: and also an Hospitall for the sicke. The Inhabitants of this Cittie are divided after the Romane manner, into Cittizens, Patricians or Senators, and Plebeians. It flourisheth for Politicke government, learning, justice, peace, and concord betweene the Clergie, and the Governours of the commonwealth, amongst whom the Patricians have the chiefest power. I passe by the other Townes for brevitie sake, because I intend to speake something concerning the Dukedome of Meckelburg. The Dukedome of Meckelburg, was heretofore a part of a Province belonging to the King of Vandalia, lying neere unto the Baltick Sea, but now it is one of the chiefe Dukedomes of Germanie and a member of the Empire: it hath on the East Pomerania: on the West the River commonly called de Elve: on the South it hath the auncient Marca: on the North, the Balticke Sea. It is a very fruitfull Country, abounding with Wheate, Apples, Wood, and Fish. There are also divers sorts of living creatures, and great store of Oxen and Cattell, and wilde beasts. Moreover Aritbert being descended of the royall stocke, and having lived some while in Charles the Greats Court, marryed the Emperours sister, by whom he had Billingus, a man powerfull yet milde and mercifull, whom the Sarmatians and Vandalls, even from Vistula to Visurgis, and from Odera to Holsatia did obey; he had his Pallace at Meckelburg. But his two sonnes Mizilaus and Mislevus degenerating from their fathers piety and goodnesse, began to persecute the Christians. But concerning these and other Princes of Meckelburg you may reade Munster. The first inhabitants of this Country, Authors doe call Herulians or Obotritians, and by a generall word Vandalians. It is a Country well replenished with citties, townes, castles, and villages. In this Dukedome there is the auncient cittie Surinum, which was built before Lubecke, Sundius, and Wismaria. The figure thereof is fouresquare, and so as if it were foure citties, it hath foure names. The first is called Senerinus, the second Neapolis, the third is named from the Cataract, the fourth from the Marshes. The Village Fichela which standeth by the Lake Suerinus, is but 5 miles distant from the Balticke Sea: the vicinitie whereof made them bestow much labour in vaine to make a ditch out of the Lake into the Balticke sea, as in like manner there was an attempt made, to cut through the Peloponnesian Isthmus. Rostochium commonly called Rostocke, and heretofore Lacinium, and corruptly Rhodopholis and Laciburg, is a sea cittie: it was first a castle, after, Godscall the sonne of Endo did change it into a cittie; and afterward it was enlarged by Primislaus the second, the sonne of Nicolottus. It hath now a flourishing Vniversitie, which the Princes of Meckelburg did erect and constitute in the yeere 1415. The ayre here is wholesome, and there is great plenty of provision for food, and very cheape. There is also Wismaria, which some imagine was so called from Wismarus King of the Vandalls, in the flourishing reigne of Constantine the Great: some doe affirme, that a Colonie of the Gothes was brought thither out of Visbina, the Metropolis of Gothland. But Crantzius Antiquities, and Charters of the commonwealth, dated after the yeare 1250, doe shew that it was built before the yeare 1240, out of the ruines of the great auncient Cittie Mecklenburg, which gave the name to the whole Countrie, by Gunzelinus, Earle of Suerinus. But in a short time, this Cittie did wonderfully encrease by the traffike and trading of other Nations, having a convenient Haven on the Balticke shore, to receive shippes of great burden, where they may lye safely without letting fall any anchors: whence it is likely that the Cittie was named, from the safety and conveiance of the Haven. It is compassed round about with small townes; who doe bring plentie of provision thither, and doe furnish themselves againe from thence: Moreover this ninth circle of the Empire called Nider Saxon, doth consist of three orders, the first whereof is the Clergie, the second are the Princes and Secular Lords, the third are the free Citties. In the first there are the Archbishops of Bremes and Magdeburg: the Bishops of Hildesheim, of Lubeck, of Suerinus, of Ratzenburg, and Schleswick: the second containeth the Princes and saecular Lords: as the Dukes of Lauwenburg, of Brunswicke, of Luneburg, of Mecklenburg, and of Holstein: the Earles of Roffain, and Delmenhorst. In the third there are the free Citties: as Lubeck, Hamburg, Mulhausen in Duringen, and Northhausen, Goslaria and Gottinga.