Ukraine; Dalmatia;
| From the middle ages, the Croats controlled the northern and central part of Dalmatia at the time, and by the 10th century became an independent kingdom which persisted until the turn of the 12th century. The southern sections of inland Dalmatia were more fragmented, with the Principalities and Duchies of Pagania (Narenta or the Principality of Narentines), Zahumlje (Hum), Travunia and Doclea/Zeta being occasionally prominent, especially in the later periods. The Serbian state of Rascia expanded at the expense of Travunia and Pagania in the 10th century. Zahumlje became a vassal of the new Croatian Kingdom in the early 10th century, while the Paganians joined the Croats in statehood in 1050. After the fall of Serbia in the second half of the 10th century, Duklja took over the leadership in the region creating a large Dalmatian Kingdom since 1077. The name of the Croats is met in many places throughout Ukrainian soil. It is contained in Ukrainian written documents since the 2nd century until the end of the 10th century. The famous Ukrainian chronicler Nestor from Kiev (in his "Povest vremennyh let", 1113) mentioned also the White Croats inhabiting early-medieval Old-Ukrainian empire, known as the Kiev Rus'. According to a very old legend, one of the three brothers who founded the Ukrainian capital Kiev was Horiv, whose name might be at least hypothetically related to the Croatian name: Horvat. |  |
| Even today some of the Ukrainian citizens say for themselves to be the White Croats. There are many proofs that the Croats once lived in common with Ukrainian and Slovak people: their language (very widespread ikavian dialects in Croatia and Slovakia, ikavian language in Ukraine), legends, customs, many common toponyms etc. | |
In about 1078 Venetian sailors rescued Constantine Bodin from captivity and returned him to his father Michael I of Zeta. Shortly afterwards, in 1081, Michael died, and Constantine Bodin succeeded his father as king. King Constantin Bodin of Duklja and Dalmatia accepted the crusaders of the Crusade of 1101 in Shkodër. After numerous dynastic struggles, Shkodër become a part of Zeta, an entity subjected to the Grand Principality of Rascia in the 12th century. It later fell to the hands of the Albanian feudal family of the Balsha followed afterwards by the Dukagjini control who surrendered the city to the Venetian rule, forming a coalition against the Ottoman Empire with many neighboring Albanian tribes.
The Slavnik family had its coins with inscription Mulin Civitas, issued by Duke Sobjeslav (?-1004), the oldest son of Slavnik. This confirms that the fortress of Mulin near Kutna Hora (west of Prague in Bohemia) was a part of their territory. It is assumed that the Slavnik's were the leading tribe of the Croats in the 10th century in that region. Their main seate was in the town of Libica, west of Prague (near Kutna Hora). Thus we had two parallel Croatian states in that period: White Croatia in Central Europe and Dalmatian-Panonian Croatia near the Adriatic sea. |  | |
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By the 12th Century the peoples inhabiting the lands now known as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania formed a pagan wedge between increasingly powerful Christian states. During a period of more than 150 years leading up to the arrival of German crusaders in the region, Estonia was attacked thirteen times by Russian Principalities and by Denmark and Sweden as well. Estonians for their part made viking raids on Denmark and Sweden. The Northern Crusades, or Baltic Crusades, were undertaken by Christian leaders of Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and their allies against the "still heathen" (i.e., non-Christian) people of Northern Europe around the southern and eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. The Confederation of Cinque Ports (cinque is the French for five), rather like those of the Hanseatic Ports, was formed probably in the early 11th century. The origins of the Hanseatic League to the foundation of the town of Lübeck, established in 1158/1159 after the capture of the area from the Count of Schauenburg and Holstein by Henry the Lion, the Duke of Saxony.
The official starting point for the Northern Crusades was Pope Celestine III's call in 1193; The non-Christian peoples who were of the campaigns at various dates included: the Wends and Rugians, of Rügen, Pomerania and Mecklenburg (in 1147 by the Danes, later also by Saxons and Poles), the peoples of present-day Finland in 1154 (Finland Proper; disputed), 1249? (Tavastia) and 1293 (Karelia) (by the Swedes, although christianization from Novgorod had started earlier), Estonians, Latgalians and Livonians (by the Germans and Danes, 1193–1227), Lithuanians (by the Germans, unsuccessfully), early 13th century-1316), Curonians and Semigallians, Old Prussians, Polabian Wends and Abotrites (between Elbe and Oder). The first campaigns were launched in parallel with the Second Crusade to the Holy Land in the mid-1100s, and continued irregularly right up until the 16th century.