Karantania
Karantania (also
Carantania,
Carentania, in old
Slovenian onomastics Korotan, or
Karantanija) was a
Slavic principality that emerged in the
7th century and was centered on the territory of contemporary
Carinthia. Having lasted almost 300
years, it is considered one of the first
Slavic state forms.
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Hypothetical borders of Karantania around 828 |
Karantania's capital was most likely
Karnburg (Slovenian
Krnski grad) in the
Zollfeld (Slovenian
Gosposvetsko polje), north of modern
Klagenfurt (Slovenian
Celovec). Apart from the territory of modern Carinthia, it included parts of today's
East Tyrol,
Styria, the
Lungau and
Ennspongau regions of
Salzburg, and parts of southern
Upper Austria and
Lower Austria. It is not certain whether it also included parts of modern
Slovenia. The few existing historical sources distinguish two separate principalities: Karantania and
Carniola; the latter appears in historical record in late
8th century and was situated in the central part of modern
Slovenia.
The borders of the later Karantania, which was under the feudal overlordship of the
Carolingians and their successors as part of
Bavaria (
826-
976), as well as of the later
Duchy of Carinthia (from 976), extended beyond historical Karantania.
In
568,
Langobards receded into Northern
Italy. Subsequently, in the last decades of the
6th century,
Slavs, with the help of their
Avar overlords, gradually settled in the Eastern Alpine region. After
591 they conquered the area along the upper
Drava river and fought with the
Bavarians.
In
623,
Slavs joined
Samo's Tribal Union (
623-
626), also known in historical sources as
Marca Vinedorum. The Union was ruled by the duke
Valuk (
Wallux dux Winedorum). In
658, Samo died and his Tribal Union disintegrated. The name
Karantania begins to appear after
660.
The claim of whether Karantania was the first
Slavic state is a topic of some controversy. According to some interpretations, that title should be attributed to
Great Moravia which was established in
833.
In
745, Karantania lost its independence and became part of the semifeudal
Frankish empire (which was ruled by king
Charlemagne (
742-
814) from
771 to
814), due to pressing danger of
Avar tribes from the east.
In
828, following the rebellion of
Ljudevit Posavski, Karantania became a
margraviate of the
Frankish empire. In
843 it passed into the hands of
Louis the German (
804-
876). In
887 Arnulf of Carinthia (
850-
899) a grandson of Louis the German, assumed his title of King of the East
Franks and became the first Duke of Carinthia.
|
Church of Maria Saal (Gospa Sveta) |
The principality of Karantania is particularly notable for the ancient ritual of installing Karantanian
dukes, a practice that continued in the later
Duchy of Carinthia. It was last performed in
1414, when the
Habsburg Ernest the Iron was enthroned as Duke of
Carinthia.
The ritual took place on the
Prince's Stone (Slovenian
Knežji kamen, German
Fürstenstein), an Ancient
Celtic column near
Krnski grad (now
Karnburg) and was performed in the
Slovenian language by a free
farmer selected by his peers. The farmer questioned the new Duke about his integrity.
After Karantania had been incorporated into the Duchy of Carinthia, this ancient ritual was continued. The Coronation of Carinthian Dukes consisted of three parts: first, a ritual in
Slovenian language was performed at the Prince's Stone; then a mass was held at the cathedral of
Maria Saal (
Gospa Sveta); and subsequently, a ceremony took place at the
Duke's Chair (Slovenian
Vojvodski stol, German
Herzogsstuhl), where the new Duke had to swear an
oath in German and where he also received the homage of the
estates. The Duke's Chair was located at
Zollfeld (Slovenian
Gosposvetsko polje), north of
Klagenfurt (Slovenian
Celovec) in modern
Carinthia,
Austria.
The Ducal Coronation is described in
Jean Bodin's book
Six livres de la Republique. Also,
Thomas Jefferson learnt about it from that book.
Latin authors named Karantania as
Carantanum.
Dante Alighieri (
1265-
1321) mentions Karantania as
Chiarentana. The same name was also used by Florentines, such as the poet Fazio degli Uberti (circa
1309-
1367), the famous chronicler
Giovanni Villani (c.
1275-
1348), and
Giovanni Boccaccio (
1313-
1375), who wrote that the
river Brenta rises from the mountains of Karantania, a land in the
Alps dividing
Italy from
Germany.
The population of Karantania had a polyethnic structure. The upper classes of the state were Alpine Slavs, and, for a time, probably also
Avars. The remaining population consisted of romanized
Celts (
Noricans) and descendants of
Romans who had dwelt in the region earlier.
The people of Karantania are considered to have been among the precursors and ancestors of modern
Slovenians.
*
Hans-Dietrich Kahl,
Der Staat der Karantanen : Fakten, Thesen und Fragen zu einer frühen slawischen Machtbildung im Ostalpenraum, Ljubljana, 2002.
*
Karantanians*
Timeline of Slovenian history*
The Ducal Coronation
