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Concept
Sambians
Summary
The Sambians were a Prussian tribe. They inhabited the Sambia Peninsula north of the city of Königsberg (now Kaliningrad). Sambians were located in a coastal territory rich in amber and engaged in trade early on (see Amber Road). Therefore, they established contacts with foreign nations before any other Prussians. However, as all other Prussians, they were conquered by the Teutonic Knights, and, exposed to assimilation and Germanization, became extinct sometime in the 17th century.
The Sambians bordered the Natangians in the south, and the Nadruvians in the east.
Engaged in the amber trade, Sambia was the richest and most densely populated region of Prussia. It provides a wealth of artifacts from the Bronze Age, including imported goods from the Roman Empire. Sambians, unlike other Prussians, did not cremate their dead. They built earth barrows above graves and surrounded them with stone circles. The name of the clan was first mentioned in 1073 by Adam of Bremen, who calls them "most humane people". Warfare with Danes continued from the mid-9th century to beginning of the 13th century. It is known that there was Wiskiauten, a Viking settlement in Sambia, that flourished for about 300 years. Swedes maintained more peaceful relations and fostered trade.
The 13th century saw the rise of another enemy, the Teutonic Knights, a crusading military order from the Holy Roman Empire. Its goal was to conquer all pagans and convert them to Roman Catholicism. The conquest of Sambia during the Prussian Crusade was delayed by the First Prussian Uprising that broke out in 1242. The uprising technically ended in 1249 by signing the Treaty of Christburg, but skirmishes lasted for four more years. Only in 1254–1255 could the Knights arrange a large campaign against the Sambians. King Ottokar II of Bohemia participated in the expedition and as a tribute the Knights named the newly founded Königsberg Castle in his honor. The Sambians rose against the Knights during the Great Prussian Uprising (1260–1274), but were the first ones to surrender.
Official source
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