Page "Mieszko I of Poland" Paragraph 57

In 982 Emperor Otto II suffered a disastrous defeat against the Saracens in Italy.

The resulting weakness of the imperial power was exploited by the Lutici, who initiated a great uprising of the Polabian Slavs in 983.

The German authority in the area ceased to exist and the Polabian tribes began to threaten the Empire.

The death of Otto II at the end of that year contributed further to the unrest.

Ultimately the Lutici and the Obotrites were able to liberate themselves from the German rule for the next two centuries.