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{{Short description|Baltic state, 1200s–1561}}
The '''Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights''' ({{lang-de|Ordensstaat}}, ]: ''Państwo Zakonne'') was formed after the ] conquered the pagan Baltic ] in the 13th century.
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox country
| native_name = {{native name|gml|Stat des Diutschen Ordens}}<br>{{native name|la|Civitas Ordinis Theutonici}}
| conventional_long_name = State of the Teutonic Order
| common_name = Teutonic Order
| image_flag = Flag of the State of the Teutonic Order.svg
| image_coat = Insignia Germany Order Teutonic.svg
| symbol_type =
| era = ]
| status = State
| empire =
| status_text = Sovereign state {{small|(1230–1466)}}<br>] and part<br>{{small|(Prussia only)}} of <br>]{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=96–97, 214–215}} {{small|(1226–1230, 1466–1525)}}
| government_type = ] ]
| image_map = TeutonicOrder1422.png
| image_map_caption = The State of the Teutonic Order in 1422
| year_start = 1226
| year_end = 1561
| date_start = March
| date_end = 28 November
| event_start = ]
| event1 = ]
| date_event1 = 08 November 1308
| event2 = ]
| date_event2 = 15 July 1410
| event3 = ]
| date_event3 = 1454–1466
| event4 = ]
| date_event4 = 19 October 1466
| event5 = ]
| date_event5 = 1519–1521
| event6 = ] (end of the Prussian branch)
| date_event6 = 10 April 1525
| event_end = ] (end of the Livonian branch)
| p1 = Old Prussians
| p2 = Duchy of Estonia (1219–1346){{!}}Duchy of Estonia
| p3 = Yotvingians
| p4 = Kingdom of Jerusalem
| flag_p4 = Flag of Kingdom of Jerusalem.svg
| s1 = Duchy of Prussia
| flag_s1 = Flag of Ducal Prussia.svg
| s2 = Duchy of Courland and Semigallia
| flag_s2 = Flag of Courland (state).svg
| s3 = Duchy of Livonia
| s4 = Duchy of Estonia (1561–1721){{!}}Swedish Estonia
| flag_s4 = Flag of the Swedish Empire.svg
| s5 = Royal Prussia
| flag_s5 = Flag_of_Prussia_(1466-1772)_Lob.svg
| capital = ] {{small|(1308–1454)}}<br>] {{small|(1454–1525)}}
| common_languages = {{ubl|] (popular)|]|], later ] (minor areas)|]|]|]|]|]}}
| religion = ]
| currency = ]
| leader1 = ] {{small|(first reigning Grand Master)}}
| year_leader1 = 1226–1239
| leader2 = ] {{small|(last reigning Grand Master and Land Master of Prussia)}}
| year_leader2 = 1510–1525
| leader3 = ] {{small|(last reigning Land Master of Livonia (])}}
| year_leader3 = 1559–1561
| title_leader = ] (until 1308); <br />Grand Master and ] (until 1525); <br />] (until 1561)
| legislature = ]<ref name="ds">{{cite book |first=Daniel |last=Stone |title=A History of Central Europe |publisher=University of Washington Press |year=2001 |isbn=0295980931 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LFgB_l4SdHAC&pg=PA18 |pages=18–19 }}</ref>
| footnotes =
| demonym = ]
| area_km2 =
| area_rank =
| GDP_PPP =
| GDP_PPP_year =
| HDI =
| HDI_year =
| today =
}}
The '''State of the Teutonic Order''' ({{langx|la|Civitas Ordinis Theutonici}}){{efn|{{langx|de|Staat des Deutschen Ordens}}, {{IPA|de|ˈʃtaːt dɛs ˌdɔʏtʃn̩ ˈʔɔʁdn̩s|pron|De-Staat des Deutschen Ordens.ogg}}; {{langx|lt|Vokiečių ordino valstybė}}; {{langx|pl|Państwo zakonu krzyżackiego}}), also called '''{{lang|de|Deutschordensstaat}}''' ({{IPA|de|ˈdɔʏtʃʔɔʁdn̩sˌʃtaːt|pron|De-Deutschordensstaat.ogg}}) or '''{{lang|de|Ordensstaat}}''' ({{IPA|de|ˈɔʁdn̩sˌʃtaːt|pron|De-Ordensstaat.ogg}}<ref>{{cite book |last=France |first=John |title=The Crusades and the Expansion of Catholic Christendom, 1000–1714 |year=2005 |publisher=Routledge |location=New York |isbn=0415371287 |page=380 }}</ref>}} was a ] located along the southeastern shore of the ] in northern Europe. It was formed by the knights of the ] during the early 13th century ] in the region of ]. In 1237, the ] merged with the Teutonic Order of Prussia and became known as its branch – the ] (while their state, '']'', covering present-day ], ], and a small part of ], became part of the State of the Teutonic Order). At its greatest territorial extent during the early 15th century, the State encompassed ], ], ], ], ], ], ] (]), Prussia and ]<!--i.e. territories nowadays located in ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]-->.


Following the battles of ] and ], the State fell into decline. After losing extensive territories in the imposed ] in 1466, the extant territory of its Prussian branch became known as '''Monastic Prussia''' ({{langx|pl|Prusy zakonne}}) or '''Teutonic Prussia''' ({{langx|pl|Prusy krzyżackie|links=no}}) and existed until 1525 as a part and ] of the ].{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=96–97, 214–215}} The Livonian branch joined the ] and continued to exist as part of it until 1561.
The conquest of ] began in ] after ] suffered from attacks in his province of ] from ]. In reaction Konrad called for help from the ]. The results were edicts calling for crusades against the "marauding, heathen" Prussians. Many of Europe's knights joined in these crusades, which lasted sixty years.


== Overview ==
The pope installed the Teutonic Knights as rulers of the area. Under their governance, woodlands were cleared and marshlands made arable. Many cities and villages were founded upon those lands, including Marienburg (]) and Königsberg (]).
Established in ] and the Polish ]n ] in the 13th century, the state expanded mostly as a result of the 13th-century ] against the pagan ] and the 14th-century invasions of neighboring Christian countries of Poland and ].<ref name=pwn/> The conquests were followed by ] and ] colonization.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bieszk|first=Janusz|year=2010|title=Zamki Państwa Krzyżackiego|language=pl|location=Warszawa|publisher=Bellona|page=76|isbn=978-8311118089}}</ref> In addition, the ] controlling ] were incorporated into the Teutonic Order as its autonomous branch, the ] in 1237.<ref>{{cite book |title=Eastern Europe: An Introduction to the People, Lands, and Culture |last=Frucht |first=Richard C. |year=2005 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=1576078000 |page=69 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lVBB1a0rC70C&pg=PA69 }}</ref> In 1346, the ] was sold by the ] for 19,000 ]s to the ]. The shift of sovereignty from Denmark to the Teutonic Order took place on 1 November 1346.<ref>{{cite book |title=Danish Medieval History & Saxo Grammaticus |last=Skyum-Nielsen |first=Niels |year=1981 |publisher=Museum Tusculanum Press |isbn=8788073300 |page=129 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EUFCkqua7dUC }}</ref> At the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries, the Teutonic Order temporarily acquired the territories of ] and ], which, however, it sold in the following decades.


Throughout its history, the Teutonic state waged numerous wars with Poland<ref name=pwn>{{cite web|url=https://encyklopedia.pwn.pl/haslo/wojny-polsko-krzyzackie;3997560.html|title=wojny polsko-krzyżackie|website=Encyklopedia PWN|access-date=7 November 2020|language=pl}}</ref> and Lithuania, encouraging the two countries to form a close alliance and ], which eventually led to the creation of the ] in the 16th century. Following its defeat in the ] in 1410 the Teutonic Order fell into decline, the region of ] was restored to ].<ref>{{cite book |title=The later Crusades, 1274–1580 |last=Housley |first=Norman |year=1992 |isbn=0198221363 |page=371 |publisher=Oxford University Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JQP2F2q9xDkC&pg=PA371 }}</ref>
==History==


The Prussian branch of the Teutonic Order returned ] (the previously Polish regions of ] and ]) and ceded the western part of Prussia (], as well as parts of ] and ]) to Poland after the ] in 1466.{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=88–92, 206–210}} The territories ceded to the ] formed the Polish province of ], while the eastern part remained under Teutonic Order rule,{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=93–94, 212}} known thereafter as the '''Monastic Prussia''' ({{langx|pl|Prusy zakonne}}) or '''Teutonic Prussia''' ({{langx|pl|Prusy krzyżackie}}), as a feudal ] and integral part of the Kingdom of Poland.{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=96–97, 214–215}} The ] state of the Order's main (Prussian) branch was secularized in 1525 during the ] to become the ] ruled by the ], remaining a fiefdom of the Polish Crown and later the ].
]


The Livonian branch continued as part of the ''']''' established in 1422–1435, which became a protectorate of the ] in 1559, and was finally secularised and split into the ], as well as the ] in 1561, both duchies being fiefs of the ].
===13th century===


== Background ==
In ] the Teutonic Knights absorbed the ] (established ] in ]), increasing their lands by the territories of today's ] and ].
===Poles in Old Prussia===
The Old Prussians had withstood many attempts at conquest preceding that of the Teutonic Knights. ] began the series of unsuccessful conquests when he sent ] in 997. In 1147, ] attacked Prussia with the aid of ] but was unable to conquer it. Numerous other attempts followed, and, under Duke ], were intensified, with large battles and crusades in 1209, 1219, 1220 and 1222.<ref name="p45">{{cite book |first=Edward Henry |last=Lewinski Corwin |author-link=Edward Henry Lewinski Corwin |url=https://archive.org/details/politicalhistor00corwgoog |quote=lizard union. |title=The Political History of Poland |year=1917 |publisher=The Polish Book Importing Company |page= }}</ref>


{{History of Brandenburg and Prussia}}
In ], the Papal legate ] divided Prussia into four ], ], ], ], and ] under the ] under the mother city of ] on ].
The West Baltic Prussians successfully repelled most of the campaigns and managed to strike Konrad in retaliation. However, the Prussians and the ] in the south had their territory conquered. The land of the Yotvingians was situated in the area of what is today the ] of Poland. The Prussians attempted to oust Polish or Masovian forces from ], which by now was partially conquered, devastated and almost totally depopulated.

===Papal edicts===
Konrad of Masovia had already called a crusade against the Old Prussians in 1208, but it was not successful. Konrad, acting on the advice of Christian, first bishop of Prussia, established the ], a small group of 15 knights. The Order, however, was soon defeated and, in reaction, Konrad called on the Pope for yet another crusade and for help from the ]. As a result, several edicts called for ]s against the Old Prussians. The crusades, involving many of Europe's ]s, lasted for sixty years.

In 1211, ] enfeoffed the Teutonic Knights with the ]. In 1225, Andrew II expelled the Teutonic Knights from ], and they had to transfer to the ].

Early in 1224, Emperor ] announced at ] that ], Prussia with ], and a number of neighboring provinces were under ]. This decree subordinated the provinces directly to the ] and the ] as opposed to being under the jurisdiction of local rulers.

At the end of 1224, ] announced to all Christendom his appointment of Bishop ] as the Papal Legate for Livonia, Prussia, and other countries.

As a result of the ] in 1226 and the Papal ] of 1234, Prussia came into the Teutonic Order's possession. The Knights began the ] in 1230. Under their governance, woodlands were cleared and marshlands made arable, upon which many cities and villages were founded, including ] and ] (]).

===Cities founded===
Unlike the newly-founded cities between the Rivers ] and ], the cities founded by the Teutonic Order had a much more regular, rectangular sketch of streets, indicating their character as planned foundations.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 55">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 55. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> The cities were heavily fortified, accounting for the long lasting conflicts with the resistive native Old Prussians, with armed forces under command of the knights.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 55"/> Most cities were prevailingly populated with immigrants from ] and ], where many knights of the order had their homelands.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 54">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 54. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>

The cities were usually given ] ], with the one exception of ], which was founded with the support of ] and thus was awarded ].<ref name="Dollinger 1998 55"/> While the Lübeckers provided the Order important logistic support with their ships, they were otherwise, with the exception of Elbing, rather uninvolved in the establishment of the Monastic State.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 55"/>

==History==
{{see also|Terra Mariana#History}}

===13th century===
In 1234, the Teutonic Order assimilated the remaining members of the ] and, in 1237, the Order of the ]. The assimilation of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword (established in ] in 1202) increased the Teutonic Order's lands with the addition of the territories known today as ] and ].

In 1243, the Papal legate ] divided Prussia into four ]: ], ], ] and ]. The bishoprics became ]s to the ] under the mother city of ] on ]. Each diocese was fiscally and administratively divided into one-third reserved for the maintenance of the capitular canons, and two-thirds were where the Order collected the dues. The ] ] of Culm, Pomesania and Samland were simultaneously members of the ] since the 1280s, ensuring a strong influence by the Order. Only ]'s diocesan chapter maintained independence, enabling to establish its autonomous rule in the capitular third of Warmia's diocesan territory (]).
]


===14th century=== ===14th century===
====Danzig and the Hansa====
]
At the beginning of the 14th century, the ], a neighboring region, plunged into war with ] and the ] to the west. The Teutonic Knights ]. The Order had been called by King ] of Poland to help repel a Brandenburgian invasion; however, the Teutonic Knights themselves began to occupy the city and the region. The Teutonic Knights then carried out a massacre of the inhabitants of the city, killing up to 10,000 people according to medieval sources, although the exact number of victims is a subject of disputes. In September 1309, Margrave ] of Brandenburg-Stendal sold his claim to the territory to the Teutonic Order for the sum of 10,000 Marks in the ]. This marked the beginning of a series of conflicts between Poland and the Teutonic Knights as the Order continued incorporating territories into its domains.
While the Order promoted the Prussian cities by granting them extended surrounding territory and privileges, establishing courts, civil and commercial law, it allowed the cities less outward independence than ] enjoyed within the ].<ref name="Dollinger 1998 54"/><ref name="Dollinger 1998 123">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 123. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>


The members of the ] did consider merchants from Prussian cities as their like, but also accepted the ''Grand Master''<ref>in German: ''Hochmeister'', literally "High Master".</ref> of the Order as the sole territorial ruler representing Prussia at their Hanseatic ].<ref name="Dollinger 1998 55"/> Thus Prussian merchants, along with those from ], were the only beneficiaries of a quasi membership within the Hansa, although lacking the background of citizenship in a fully autonomous or free city.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 124">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 124. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> Only merchants from the six Prussian Hanseatic cities of ], ], ], ], Königsberg and ] were considered fully fledged members of the league, while merchants from other Prussian cities had a lesser status.<ref>Cf. Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 123. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>
At the beginning of the 14th century, the neighboring region of ] was plunged into war involving Poland and ] to the west. Brandenburg ruled ] in the 1250s and had a treaty of ] ] between Brandenburg's rulers and ], which promised the ] territory to the ]n crown in exchange for Eastern Pomerania.


] (1331) was a major battle of the ] (19th-century painting by ])]]
During the course of the war, the Polish city of ] was seized (November ]) by the Teutonic Knights, called in by King ] of Poland. Based on the subsequent stagnation and reversal in the development of Gdańsk, some historians claim that all the inhabitants of the city, both Polish and German, were slaughtered, but this massacre is disputed by other historians. The Teutonic Order continued incorporating territories into its domains. In September 1309, Margrave ] of Brandenburg had to sell his claim to the territory to the Teutonic Order for 10,000 marks. This was also the start of a series of conflicts between Poland and the Teutonic Order.
The Teutonic Order's annexation and possession of Gdańsk (Danzig) and the surrounding region was consistently disputed by the Polish kings ] and ] – claims that led to the ] and, eventually, lawsuits in the papal court in 1320 and 1333, which ruled in favor of Poland, however, the Teutonic Knights did not comply and continued to occupy the annexed Polish territories.<ref name=pwn/> The Teutonic Knights even invaded Poland further and briefly occupied the regions of ] and ].<ref name=pwn/> A peace was concluded at ], Kuyavia and Dobrzyń Land were restored to Poland, and the Teutonic Order agreed that Poland should rule Pomerelia as a ] and Polish kings, therefore, retained the right to the title ''Duke of Pomerania''. The title referred to the Duchy of Pomerelia. Unlike in English, German, Latin or Lithuanian language Polish uses the term ''Pomorze'' for Pomerania (a fief of Poland, Saxony and Denmark in the ], and first briefly in 1181, but since 1227 a permanent fief within the Holy Roman Empire) and Pomerelia alike. Both duchies were earlier ruled by related dynasties, thus the semantic title was Duke of Pomerania rather than Duke of Pomerelia, as it was referred to in other languages.


====Second Danish-Hanseatic War====
Possession of ] by the Teutonic Order was disputed by the Polish kings Władysław I and ] and led to a series of bloody wars and legal claims in the papal court in ] and ]. Finally in ] peace was concluded when the Teutonic Knights accepted that they should rule Eastern Pomerania as a ] of the Polish crown. Polish kings retained the right to the title ''Duke of Pomerania'', (Pomerania having been under the ] directly from 1181 to 1806 and the emperors passed on fiefs.)
In the ] on the trade in the Baltic, King ] had held the Hanseatic city of ].<ref name="Dollinger 1998 96">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 96. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> However, the members of the Hanseatic league were undecided whether to unite against him.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 97">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 97. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> But when Valdemar IV then captured Prussian merchant ships in the ] on their way to ], Grand Master ] travelled to ] to propose a war alliance against Denmark, accepted with some reluctance only by the important cities forming the Wendish-] third of the Hanse.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 98">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 98. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>

Since Valdemar IV had also attacked ships of the Dutch city of ] and other destinations in the ], Prussia and Dutch cities, such as Kampen, ] and ], allied themselves against Denmark.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 98"/> This resulted in the Hansa calling up a diet in ] in 1367 and convening the afore-mentioned non-member cities including ] and ]. The upshot was the founding of the ] as a war alliance to counter the Danish threat.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 99">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 99. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> More cities, from the Lower Rhine area in the west to Livonia in the east, joined.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 99"/>

Of the major players only ] and ] refused to send forces, but contributed financially.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 100">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 100. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> Besides Prussia, three more territorial partners, ], ], and the latter's son ], joined the alliance, attacking via land and sea, forcing Denmark to sign the ] in 1370.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 100"/> Several Danish castles and fortresses were then taken by Hansa forces for fifteen years in order to secure the implementation of the peace conditions.

====English Merchant Adventurers====
The invasions of the Teutonic Order from Livonia to ] in 1367 had caused the Russians to recoup themselves on Hansa merchants in ], which again made the Order block exports of salt and herring into Russia.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 109seq">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, pp. 109 seq. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> While the relations had eased by 1371 so that trade resumed, they soured again until 1388.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 110">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 110. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>

During the ] of 1369/1370, ending with the Teutonic victory in the ], Prussia enjoyed considerable support from English knights.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 104">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 104. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> The Order welcomed English ], starting to cruise in the Baltic, competing with Dutch, Saxon and Wendish Hanseatic merchants, and allowed them to open outposts in its cities of Danzig and Elbing.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 103seq">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, pp. 103 seq. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> This necessarily brought about a conflict with the rest of the Hansa, which was in a heavy argument with ], over levies of higher dues. The Merchants struggled to achieve an unsatisfactory compromise.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 104"/>

Dissatisfied Richard II's navy suddenly attacked six Prussian ships in May 1385 – and those of more Hanse members – in the ],<ref name="Dollinger 1998 105">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 105. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> Grand Master ] immediately terminated all trade with England.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 105"/> When in the same year the Hansa evacuated all their Danish castles in fulfillment of the Treaty of Stralsund, Prussia argued in favour of a renewal of the Cologne Federation for the deeply concerned about the ensuing conflict with England, but could not prevail.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 102">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 102. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>

The cities preferred to negotiate and take retaliatory actions, such as counter-confiscation of English merchandise.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 105"/> So when in 1388 Richard II finally reconfirmed the Hanseatic trade privileges, Prussia once again permitted merchant adventurers, granting permissions to remain; for this action they were renounced once again by the Grand Master ] in 1398.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 105"/>

In the conflict with the ] ] on the Hansa privileges in the ] cities the positions of the Hanseatic cities and Prussia were again reversed. Here the majority of the Hansa members decided in the Hanseatic Diet on 1 May 1388 for an ] against the Flemish cities. Meanwhile, Prussia could not prevail with its plea for further negotiations.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 107">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 107. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref>

====Trading====
The Order's ''Großschäffer'' was one of the leading functionaries of the order. The word translates roughly as "chief sales and buying officer" with procuration. This officer was in charge of the considerable commerce, import, export, crediting, real estate investment etc., which the Order carried out, using its network of ]s and agencies which spanned much of Central, Western and Southern Europe as well as the Holy Land. The other Großschäffer in Marienburg had the grain export monopoly. As to imports, neither was bound to any particular merchandise. From Königsberg, holding the monopoly in ] export, achieved the exceptional permission to continue amber exports to Flanders and textile imports in return.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 108">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 108. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> On the occasion of the ban on Flemish trade, the Hansa urged Prussia and Livonia again to interrupt the exchange with Novgorod as well, but with both blockades Russian and Flemish commodities could not reach their final destinations.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 110"/> In 1392 it was Grand Master ] who supported the Flemish to achieve an acceptable agreement with the Hansa resuming the bilateral trade;<ref name="Dollinger 1998 108"/> while a Hanseatic delegation under ] reopened trade with Novgorod in the same year, after reconfirmation of the previous mutual privileges.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 110"/>

Since the late 1380s grave ] by ]s, promoted by ] actually directed against ], blocked seafaring to the herring supplies at the ]; thus fish prices tripled in Prussia.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 113">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 113. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> The Saxon Hansa cities urged Prussia to intervene, but Conrad of Jungingen was more worried about a Danish victory.<ref name="Dollinger 1998 113"/> So only after the cities, led by Lübeck's burgomaster ], had liaised{{clarify|date=August 2023}} the ] (1395), Albert's defeat manifested{{clarify|date=August 2023}}, so that Prussia finally sent out its ships, led by Danzig's city councillor ].<ref name="Borzestowska / Borzestowski 2005">, 17 October 2005, retrieved on 8 September 2011.</ref><ref name="Dollinger 1998 114">Philippe Dollinger, ''Die Hanse'' , ] for bibliographical details, p. 114. {{ISBN|3-520-37105-7}}.</ref> Until 1400 the united Teutonic-Hanseatic ] then thoroughly cleared the Baltic Sea of pirates, the ], and even took the island of ] in 1398.<ref name="Borzestowska / Borzestowski 2005"/><ref name="Dollinger 1998 114"/>

{| class=wikitable
|+Commodity selling prices of Teutonic Order in Prussian Marks, 1400<ref>W.Bonhke, Der Binnenhandel des Deutschen Ordens in Preusen, in Hansische Geschichtsblatter, 80 (1962), pp. 51–53</ref><br>{{Quantify|reason=This is meaningless without stating the quantity of these commodities that could be bought for these prices.|date=January 2024}}
|Saffron||7040||Hungarian iron||21
|-
|Ginger||1040||Trave salt<br>{{clarify|date=August 2023}}||12.5
|-
|Pepper||640||Herring||12
|-
|Wax||237.5||Flemish salt||8
|-
|French wine||109.5||Wismar beer||7.5
|-
|Rice||80||Flour||7.5
|-
|Steel||75||Wheat||7
|-
|Rhenish wine||66||Rye||5.75
|-
|Oil||60|||Barley||4.2
|-
|Honey||35||Ash woad||4.75
|-
|Butter||30
|}


===15th century=== ===15th century===
]


====Konrad von Jungingen====
In ], with the death of the German king ], war broke out between the Teutonic Knights and a Polish-Lithuanian alliance supported by ]n and ] auxiliary forces, in which Poland and Lithuania were the winners following their victory at the ] (]). The Order assigned Henry XIII, duke of Reuss-Plauen, to defend Pomerania. He moved rapidly to bolster the defence of Marienburg in Prussia, was elected vice-grand master and saved the Marienburg headquarters. He then became grand master and in 1411 concluded the ] with King ].
At the beginning of the 15th century, the State of the Teutonic Order stood at the height of its power under ]. The Teutonic navy ruled the Baltic Sea from bases in Prussia and Gotland, and the Prussian cities provided tax revenues sufficient to maintain a significant standing force composed of Teutonic Knights proper, their retinues, Prussian peasant levies, and German mercenaries.


In 1402, the ], which ruled the ], reached an agreement with ] in ], according to which Poland was to purchase and re-incorporate the region of ].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Rogalski|first=Leon|year=1846|title=Dzieje Krzyżaków oraz ich stosunki z Polską, Litwą i Prussami, poprzedzone rysem dziejów wojen krzyżowych|volume=II|language=pl|location=Warszawa|pages=59–60}}</ref> Later that year, however, the Luxembourgs gave the region in pawn to the Teutonic Order despite prior arrangements with Poland, and the Order kept it until Brandenburg redeemed it again in 1454 and 1455, respectively, by the ]. Though the possession of this territory by the Order strengthened ties between the Order and their secular counterparts in northern Germany, it exacerbated the already hostile relationship between the Order and ].
]


In March 1407, Konrad died from complications caused by ]s and was succeeded by his younger brother, ]. Under Ulrich, the Teutonic State fell from its precarious height and became mired in internal political strife, near-constant war with Polish–Lithuanian union, and crippling war debts.
In March ], the Hanseatic cities of Gdańsk, ], and ] and gentry (mainly from ]) founded the ] with other Prussian cities to free themselves from the overlordship of the Teutonic Knights. They asked King ] to support their revolt and incorporate Prussia into Poland (February ]), and when he agreed the War of the Cities or ] started. The resulting ] (October ]) provided for the Teutonic Order's cession to the Polish crown of its rights over the western half of its territories, which became the province of ]. None of this was agreed to by pope or the emperor, and the ] (priests war) of 1467-79 ensued.


====Losses to Poland, Polish suzerainty====
===16th century===
] (1410) marked the start of decline of the State of the Teutonic Order (19th-century painting by ])]]
In 1408, Conrad Letzkau served as a diplomat to Queen Margaret I and arranged that the Order sell Gotland to Denmark.<ref name="Borzestowska / Borzestowski 2005"/> In 1409, the Teutonic Order invaded Poland's Dobrzyń Land again, and the ] broke out,<ref name=pwn/> in which the Teutonic Knights were supported by the ], and the ] was supported by ]n, ] and ]n allies and auxiliary forces. Poland and Lithuania triumphed following a victory at the ] (]), which marked the start of the decline of the State of the Teutonic Order, and the rise of the Polish–Lithuanian union as a major power in ].<ref>{{cite book| first=Sven |last=Ekdahl |chapter=The Battle of Tannenberg-Grunwald-Žalgiris (1410) as reflected in Twentieth-Century monuments| editor=Victor Mallia-Milanes |title=The Military Orders: History and Heritage |volume=3 |publisher= Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. |year=2008 |isbn= 978-0-7546-6290-7 |page=175|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dSM_w4Q1sUwC&pg=PA175}}</ref>


The Order assigned ] to defend Teutonic-held Eastern Pomerania (]), who moved rapidly to bolster the defence of ] in ]. Heinrich von Plauen was elected vice-grand master and led the Teutonic Knights through the ]. Eventually von Plauen was promoted to Grand Master and, in 1411, concluded the ] with King ] of Poland.
During the ] endemic religious upheavals and wars occurred, and in ], the last Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, ], a member of a cadet branch of the house of ], resigned his position, adopted the ] faith and assumed the title of "Duke of Prussia." In a deal partially brokered by ], ] became the first Protestant state. The ]-led ] continued holding claim on Prussia and furnished grandmaster, administrators of Prussia. In ] the duchy of Prussia passed to the senior Hohenzollern branch, the ruling ]s of ] whose descendents became the ] in the 18th century.

The next major ] was fought in 1431–1435, after the Teutonic Knights invaded Poland again, and was ended in the ], which was favorable for Poland.<ref name=pwn/>

In March 1440, gentry (mainly from ]) and the Hanseatic cities of Danzig, ], ], ] and other Prussian cities founded the ] to free themselves from the overlordship of the Teutonic Knights. Due to the heavy losses and costs after the ], the Teutonic Order collected taxes at steep rates. Furthermore, the cities were not allowed due representation by the Teutonic Order.

] of the ]]]
In February 1454, the Prussian Confederation asked King ] to support their revolt and to incorporate the region to the ]. King Casimir IV agreed and signed the act of incorporation in ] on 6 March 1454.{{sfn|Górski|1949|p=54}} The ], the longest of the Polish–Teutonic wars, (also known as the ''War of the Cities'') broke out. Various cities of the region pledged allegiance to the Polish King in 1454.{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=71–72, 76, 79}}

The ] in October 1466 ended the war and provided for the Teutonic Order's cession of its rights over the western half of its territories to the Polish Kingdom,{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=88–92, 206–210}} which became the Polish province of ] and the remaining part of the Order's land became a ] and ] of ], considered part of one and indivisible Kingdom of Poland.{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=96–97, 214–215}} In accordance to the peace treaty, from now on, every Grand Master was obliged to swear an oath of allegiance to the reigning Polish king within six months of taking office, and any new territorial acquisitions by the Teutonic Order, also outside Prussia, would also be incorporated into Poland.{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=96–97, 215}} The ] became a prince and counselor of the Polish king and the Kingdom of Poland.{{sfn|Górski|1949|pp=96, 103, 214, 221}}

]

====Formation of a new nobility====
While the Knights of the Teutonic Order formed a thin ruling class by themselves, they extensively used mercenaries, mostly German, from the Holy Roman Empire, to whom they granted lands in return. This gradually created a new class of landed nobility. Due to several factors, among which was the high rate of early death in battle, these lands became concentrated over time in the hands of a relatively small number of noblemen each having a vast estate. This nobility would evolve to what is known as the ].<ref>Rosenberg, H. (1943). "The Rise of the Junkers in Brandenburg-Prussia, 1410–1653: Part 1." ''The American Historical Review'', 49(1), 1–22.</ref>

===16th century and aftermath===
====Transformation to Ducal Prussia====
During the ], endemic religious upheavals and wars occurred across the region. In 1525, during the aftermath of the ], ], King of Poland, and his nephew, the last Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, ], a member of a cadet branch of the ], agreed that the latter would resign his position, adopt ] and assume the title of ]. Thereafter referred to as '']'' ({{langx|de|Herzogliches Preußen, Preußen Herzoglichen Anteils}}; {{langx|pl|Prusy Książęce}}), remaining a Polish fief.

] of 1525 established ] as a vassal duchy of the Kingdom of Poland, in place of the State of the Teutonic Order]]
Thus in a deal partially brokered by ], ] Teutonic Prussia was transformed into the ], the first Protestant state. Sigismund's consent was bound to Albert's submission to Poland, which became known as the ]. On 10 December 1525 at their session in Königsberg the ] established the ] Church in Ducal Prussia by deciding the ].<ref name="Juška 1997 2-Reformatorische Anfänge">Albertas Juška, ''Mažosios Lietuvos Bažnyčia XVI–XX amžiuje'', Klaipėda: 1997, pp. 742–771, here after the German translation (section: 2. Reformatorische Anfänge; {{in lang|de}}) on: , retrieved on 28 August 2011.</ref>

The ]-led ] continued to hold its claim to Prussia and furnished grand masters of the Teutonic Order, who were merely titular administrators of Prussia, but managed to retain many of the Teutonic holdings elsewhere outside of Prussia.

==Archaeology==
Fortifications of the Teutonic State have been examined through archaeological excavation since the end of ], especially those built or expanded during the 14th century. Fortifications are generally the best preserved material legacy of the Order's presence in the Baltic today, and timber and earth, as well as brick examples, are attested in the archaeological record.

The earliest castles in the Teutonic State consisted of simple buildings attached to a fortified enclosure, and the ] would come to typify convent buildings, single-wing castles would continue to be built alongside timber towers.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonization|last=Pluskowski|first=Aleksander|publisher=Routledge|year=2013|pages=149}}</ref> Where they followed the conventional layout, castles included a connected set of communal spaces such as a dormitory, refectory, kitchen, chapter house, a chapel or church, an infirmary, and tower projecting over the moat.

===Marienburg fort===
Construction began on Marienburg during the third quarter of the 13th century, and work continued on it until the mid-15th century. A settlement developed alongside the castle, which together enclosed 25 hectares. Granted town rights in 1286, its castle is larger than any other built by the Order. Since 1997, the ] has been thoroughly excavated and dates to the mid-1350s. Preserved at Marienburg was a polychrome statue of Mary about 8 m high, made of artificial stone and originally decorated with mosaic tiles. Sinc Mary was the most important patron of the knights and central to the liturgy of the Teutonic Order, it is not surprising to find such striking representations of her at its most prominent castle.

===Coins===
Coins were minted from the late 1250s. They were often simple in design, stamped with the cross of the Order on one side, but support the notion that crusading, colonisation, and a supporting infrastructure went hand in hand from the earliest years of the Prussian Crusade.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonization|last=Pluskowski|first=Aleksander|publisher=Routledge|year=2013|pages=110}}</ref>


==See also== ==See also==
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==Notes==
*]
{{notelist}}
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{{reflist|2}}
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== References ==
* {{cite book|first=Philippe|last=Dollinger|title=Die Hanse (La Hanse (XII<sup>e</sup>–XVII<sup>e</sup> siècles, Paris, Aubier, 1964)| language=de|orig-year=1966|editor=Hans Krabusch and Marga Krabusch (trls.)|place=Stuttgart: Kröner|date=1998|publisher=Kröners Taschenbuchausgabe|volume=371|isbn=3-520-37105-7}}
* * {{Cite book|last=Pluskowski|first=Aleksander|title=The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonization|location=London|publisher=Routledge|year=2013|isbn=978-0415691710}}
* {{Cite book|last=Górski|first=Karol|title=Związek Pruski i poddanie się Prus Polsce: zbiór tekstów źródłowych|year=1949 |publisher=Instytut Zachodni|location=]|language=pl,la}}

== External links ==
{{commons category-inline|State of the Teutonic Order}}
* : cities, castles and landscapes of the Teutonic Knights {{in lang|de}}
* (at worldstatesmen)

{{pomeranian history|adm}}
{{Fiefs of the Polish Kingdom}}
{{Crusader States}}
{{Germanic peoples}}
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Latest revision as of 13:25, 25 December 2024

Baltic state, 1200s–1561

State of the Teutonic OrderStat des Diutschen Ordens (Middle Low German)
Civitas Ordinis Theutonici (Latin)
1226–1561
Flag of Teutonic Order Flag of Teutonic Order Coat of arms
The State of the Teutonic Order in 1422The State of the Teutonic Order in 1422
StatusSovereign state (1230–1466)
Fief and part
(Prussia only) of
Poland (1226–1230, 1466–1525)
CapitalMarienburg (1308–1454)
Königsberg (1454–1525)
Common languages
Religion Roman Catholicism
Demonym(s)Teuton
GovernmentTheocratic elective monarchy
Grand Master (until 1308);
Grand Master and Land Master of Prussia (until 1525);
Land Master of Livonia (until 1561)		 
• 1226–1239 Hermann von Salza (first reigning Grand Master)
• 1510–1525 Albert, Duke of Prussia (last reigning Grand Master and Land Master of Prussia)
• 1559–1561 Gotthard Kettler, Duke of Courland (last reigning Land Master of Livonia (Terra Mariana)
LegislatureEstates
Historical eraMiddle Ages
• Golden Bull of Rimini March 1226
• Teutonic takeover of Gdańsk 08 November 1308
• Battle of Grunwald 15 July 1410
• Thirteen Years' War 1454–1466
• Second Peace of Thorn 19 October 1466
• Polish–Teutonic War 1519–1521
• Prussian Homage (end of the Prussian branch) 10 April 1525
• Treaty of Vilnius (1561) (end of the Livonian branch) 28 November 1561
CurrencyMark
Preceded by Succeeded by
Old Prussians
Duchy of Estonia
Yotvingians
Kingdom of Jerusalem
Duchy of Prussia
Duchy of Courland and Semigallia
Duchy of Livonia
Swedish Estonia
Royal Prussia

The State of the Teutonic Order (Latin: Civitas Ordinis Theutonici) was a theocratic state located along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea in northern Europe. It was formed by the knights of the Teutonic Order during the early 13th century Northern Crusades in the region of Prussia. In 1237, the Livonian Brothers of the Sword merged with the Teutonic Order of Prussia and became known as its branch – the Livonian Order (while their state, Terra Mariana, covering present-day Estonia, Latvia, and a small part of Russia, became part of the State of the Teutonic Order). At its greatest territorial extent during the early 15th century, the State encompassed Chełmno Land, Courland, Gotland, Livonia, Estonia, Neumark, Pomerelia (Gdańsk Pomerania), Prussia and Samogitia.

Following the battles of Grunwald in 1410 and Wilkomierz in 1435, the State fell into decline. After losing extensive territories in the imposed Peace of Thorn in 1466, the extant territory of its Prussian branch became known as Monastic Prussia (Polish: Prusy zakonne) or Teutonic Prussia (Polish: Prusy krzyżackie) and existed until 1525 as a part and fiefdom of the Kingdom of Poland. The Livonian branch joined the Livonian Confederation and continued to exist as part of it until 1561.

Overview

Established in Prussia and the Polish Masovian Chełmno Land in the 13th century, the state expanded mostly as a result of the 13th-century Prussian Crusade against the pagan Baltic Prussians and the 14th-century invasions of neighboring Christian countries of Poland and Lithuania. The conquests were followed by German and Polish colonization. In addition, the Livonian Brothers of the Sword controlling Terra Mariana were incorporated into the Teutonic Order as its autonomous branch, the Livonian Order in 1237. In 1346, the Duchy of Estonia was sold by the King of Denmark for 19,000 Cologne marks to the Teutonic Order. The shift of sovereignty from Denmark to the Teutonic Order took place on 1 November 1346. At the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries, the Teutonic Order temporarily acquired the territories of Gotland and Neumark, which, however, it sold in the following decades.

Throughout its history, the Teutonic state waged numerous wars with Poland and Lithuania, encouraging the two countries to form a close alliance and personal union, which eventually led to the creation of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th century. Following its defeat in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410 the Teutonic Order fell into decline, the region of Samogitia was restored to Lithuania.

The Prussian branch of the Teutonic Order returned Pomerelia (the previously Polish regions of Chełmno Land and Gdańsk Pomerania) and ceded the western part of Prussia (Warmia, as well as parts of Pomesania and Pogesania) to Poland after the Peace of Thorn in 1466. The territories ceded to the Kingdom of Poland formed the Polish province of Royal Prussia, while the eastern part remained under Teutonic Order rule, known thereafter as the Monastic Prussia (Polish: Prusy zakonne) or Teutonic Prussia (Polish: Prusy krzyżackie), as a feudal fief and integral part of the Kingdom of Poland. The monastic state of the Order's main (Prussian) branch was secularized in 1525 during the Protestant Reformation to become the Duchy of Prussia ruled by the House of Hohenzollern, remaining a fiefdom of the Polish Crown and later the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

The Livonian branch continued as part of the Livonian Confederation established in 1422–1435, which became a protectorate of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1559, and was finally secularised and split into the Duchy of Courland and Semigalia, as well as the Duchy of Livonia in 1561, both duchies being fiefs of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Background

Poles in Old Prussia

The Old Prussians had withstood many attempts at conquest preceding that of the Teutonic Knights. Bolesław I of Poland began the series of unsuccessful conquests when he sent Adalbert of Prague in 997. In 1147, Bolesław IV of Poland attacked Prussia with the aid of Kievan Rus' but was unable to conquer it. Numerous other attempts followed, and, under Duke Konrad I of Masovia, were intensified, with large battles and crusades in 1209, 1219, 1220 and 1222.

History of Brandenburg and Prussia
Present

The West Baltic Prussians successfully repelled most of the campaigns and managed to strike Konrad in retaliation. However, the Prussians and the Yotvingians in the south had their territory conquered. The land of the Yotvingians was situated in the area of what is today the Podlaskie Voivodeship of Poland. The Prussians attempted to oust Polish or Masovian forces from Yotvingia, which by now was partially conquered, devastated and almost totally depopulated.

Papal edicts

Konrad of Masovia had already called a crusade against the Old Prussians in 1208, but it was not successful. Konrad, acting on the advice of Christian, first bishop of Prussia, established the Order of Dobrzyń, a small group of 15 knights. The Order, however, was soon defeated and, in reaction, Konrad called on the Pope for yet another crusade and for help from the Teutonic Knights. As a result, several edicts called for crusades against the Old Prussians. The crusades, involving many of Europe's knights, lasted for sixty years.

In 1211, Andrew II of Hungary enfeoffed the Teutonic Knights with the Burzenland. In 1225, Andrew II expelled the Teutonic Knights from Transylvania, and they had to transfer to the Baltic Sea.

Early in 1224, Emperor Frederick II announced at Catania that Livonia, Prussia with Sambia, and a number of neighboring provinces were under imperial immediacy. This decree subordinated the provinces directly to the Roman Catholic Church and the Holy Roman Emperor as opposed to being under the jurisdiction of local rulers.

At the end of 1224, Pope Honorius III announced to all Christendom his appointment of Bishop William of Modena as the Papal Legate for Livonia, Prussia, and other countries.

As a result of the Golden Bull of Rimini in 1226 and the Papal Bull of Rieti of 1234, Prussia came into the Teutonic Order's possession. The Knights began the Prussian Crusade in 1230. Under their governance, woodlands were cleared and marshlands made arable, upon which many cities and villages were founded, including Marienburg (Malbork) and Königsberg (Kaliningrad).

Cities founded

Unlike the newly-founded cities between the Rivers Elbe and Oder, the cities founded by the Teutonic Order had a much more regular, rectangular sketch of streets, indicating their character as planned foundations. The cities were heavily fortified, accounting for the long lasting conflicts with the resistive native Old Prussians, with armed forces under command of the knights. Most cities were prevailingly populated with immigrants from Central Germany and Silesia, where many knights of the order had their homelands.

The cities were usually given Magdeburg law town privileges, with the one exception of Elbing (Elbląg), which was founded with the support of Lübeckers and thus was awarded Lübeck law. While the Lübeckers provided the Order important logistic support with their ships, they were otherwise, with the exception of Elbing, rather uninvolved in the establishment of the Monastic State.

History

See also: Terra Mariana § History

13th century

In 1234, the Teutonic Order assimilated the remaining members of the Order of Dobrzyń and, in 1237, the Order of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword. The assimilation of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword (established in Livonia in 1202) increased the Teutonic Order's lands with the addition of the territories known today as Latvia and Estonia.

In 1243, the Papal legate William of Modena divided Prussia into four bishoprics: Culm (Chełmno), Pomesania, Ermland (Warmia) and Samland (Sambia). The bishoprics became suffragans to the Archbishopric of Riga under the mother city of Visby on Gotland. Each diocese was fiscally and administratively divided into one-third reserved for the maintenance of the capitular canons, and two-thirds were where the Order collected the dues. The cathedral capitular canons of Culm, Pomesania and Samland were simultaneously members of the Teutonic Order since the 1280s, ensuring a strong influence by the Order. Only Warmia's diocesan chapter maintained independence, enabling to establish its autonomous rule in the capitular third of Warmia's diocesan territory (Prince-Bishopric of Warmia).

Teutonic state in 1260

14th century

Danzig and the Hansa

At the beginning of the 14th century, the Duchy of Pomerania, a neighboring region, plunged into war with Poland and the Margraviate of Brandenburg to the west. The Teutonic Knights seized the Polish port city of Gdańsk in November 1308. The Order had been called by King Władysław I of Poland to help repel a Brandenburgian invasion; however, the Teutonic Knights themselves began to occupy the city and the region. The Teutonic Knights then carried out a massacre of the inhabitants of the city, killing up to 10,000 people according to medieval sources, although the exact number of victims is a subject of disputes. In September 1309, Margrave Waldemar of Brandenburg-Stendal sold his claim to the territory to the Teutonic Order for the sum of 10,000 Marks in the Treaty of Soldin. This marked the beginning of a series of conflicts between Poland and the Teutonic Knights as the Order continued incorporating territories into its domains. While the Order promoted the Prussian cities by granting them extended surrounding territory and privileges, establishing courts, civil and commercial law, it allowed the cities less outward independence than free imperial cities enjoyed within the Holy Roman Empire.

The members of the Hanseatic League did consider merchants from Prussian cities as their like, but also accepted the Grand Master of the Order as the sole territorial ruler representing Prussia at their Hanseatic Diets. Thus Prussian merchants, along with those from Ditmarsh, were the only beneficiaries of a quasi membership within the Hansa, although lacking the background of citizenship in a fully autonomous or free city. Only merchants from the six Prussian Hanseatic cities of Braunsberg (Braniewo), Culm (Chełmno), Danzig (Gdańsk), Elbing (Elbląg), Königsberg and Thorn (Toruń) were considered fully fledged members of the league, while merchants from other Prussian cities had a lesser status.

The Battle of Płowce (1331) was a major battle of the Second Polish–Teutonic War (19th-century painting by Juliusz Kossak)

The Teutonic Order's annexation and possession of Gdańsk (Danzig) and the surrounding region was consistently disputed by the Polish kings Władysław I and Casimir III the Great – claims that led to the Polish–Teutonic War (1326–1332) and, eventually, lawsuits in the papal court in 1320 and 1333, which ruled in favor of Poland, however, the Teutonic Knights did not comply and continued to occupy the annexed Polish territories. The Teutonic Knights even invaded Poland further and briefly occupied the regions of Kuyavia and Dobrzyń Land. A peace was concluded at Kalisz in 1343, Kuyavia and Dobrzyń Land were restored to Poland, and the Teutonic Order agreed that Poland should rule Pomerelia as a fief and Polish kings, therefore, retained the right to the title Duke of Pomerania. The title referred to the Duchy of Pomerelia. Unlike in English, German, Latin or Lithuanian language Polish uses the term Pomorze for Pomerania (a fief of Poland, Saxony and Denmark in the High Middle Ages, and first briefly in 1181, but since 1227 a permanent fief within the Holy Roman Empire) and Pomerelia alike. Both duchies were earlier ruled by related dynasties, thus the semantic title was Duke of Pomerania rather than Duke of Pomerelia, as it was referred to in other languages.

Second Danish-Hanseatic War

In the conflict between the Hanse and Denmark on the trade in the Baltic, King Valdemar IV of Denmark had held the Hanseatic city of Visby to ransom in 1361. However, the members of the Hanseatic league were undecided whether to unite against him. But when Valdemar IV then captured Prussian merchant ships in the Øresund on their way to England, Grand Master Winrich of Kniprode travelled to Lübeck to propose a war alliance against Denmark, accepted with some reluctance only by the important cities forming the Wendish-Saxon third of the Hanse.

Since Valdemar IV had also attacked ships of the Dutch city of Kampen and other destinations in the Zuiderzee, Prussia and Dutch cities, such as Kampen, Elburg and Harderwijk, allied themselves against Denmark. This resulted in the Hansa calling up a diet in Cologne in 1367 and convening the afore-mentioned non-member cities including Amsterdam and Brielle. The upshot was the founding of the Cologne Federation as a war alliance to counter the Danish threat. More cities, from the Lower Rhine area in the west to Livonia in the east, joined.

Of the major players only Bremen and Hamburg refused to send forces, but contributed financially. Besides Prussia, three more territorial partners, Henry II of Schauenburg and Holstein-Rendsburg, Albert II of Mecklenburg, and the latter's son Albert of Sweden, joined the alliance, attacking via land and sea, forcing Denmark to sign the Treaty of Stralsund in 1370. Several Danish castles and fortresses were then taken by Hansa forces for fifteen years in order to secure the implementation of the peace conditions.

English Merchant Adventurers

The invasions of the Teutonic Order from Livonia to Pskov in 1367 had caused the Russians to recoup themselves on Hansa merchants in Novgorod, which again made the Order block exports of salt and herring into Russia. While the relations had eased by 1371 so that trade resumed, they soured again until 1388.

During the Lithuanian Crusade of 1369/1370, ending with the Teutonic victory in the Battle of Rudau, Prussia enjoyed considerable support from English knights. The Order welcomed English Merchant Adventurers, starting to cruise in the Baltic, competing with Dutch, Saxon and Wendish Hanseatic merchants, and allowed them to open outposts in its cities of Danzig and Elbing. This necessarily brought about a conflict with the rest of the Hansa, which was in a heavy argument with Richard II of England, over levies of higher dues. The Merchants struggled to achieve an unsatisfactory compromise.

Dissatisfied Richard II's navy suddenly attacked six Prussian ships in May 1385 – and those of more Hanse members – in the Zwin, Grand Master Conrad Zöllner von Rothenstein immediately terminated all trade with England. When in the same year the Hansa evacuated all their Danish castles in fulfillment of the Treaty of Stralsund, Prussia argued in favour of a renewal of the Cologne Federation for the deeply concerned about the ensuing conflict with England, but could not prevail.

The cities preferred to negotiate and take retaliatory actions, such as counter-confiscation of English merchandise. So when in 1388 Richard II finally reconfirmed the Hanseatic trade privileges, Prussia once again permitted merchant adventurers, granting permissions to remain; for this action they were renounced once again by the Grand Master Conrad of Jungingen in 1398.

In the conflict with the Burgundian Philip the Bold on the Hansa privileges in the Flemish cities the positions of the Hanseatic cities and Prussia were again reversed. Here the majority of the Hansa members decided in the Hanseatic Diet on 1 May 1388 for an embargo against the Flemish cities. Meanwhile, Prussia could not prevail with its plea for further negotiations.

Trading

The Order's Großschäffer was one of the leading functionaries of the order. The word translates roughly as "chief sales and buying officer" with procuration. This officer was in charge of the considerable commerce, import, export, crediting, real estate investment etc., which the Order carried out, using its network of bailiwicks and agencies which spanned much of Central, Western and Southern Europe as well as the Holy Land. The other Großschäffer in Marienburg had the grain export monopoly. As to imports, neither was bound to any particular merchandise. From Königsberg, holding the monopoly in amber export, achieved the exceptional permission to continue amber exports to Flanders and textile imports in return. On the occasion of the ban on Flemish trade, the Hansa urged Prussia and Livonia again to interrupt the exchange with Novgorod as well, but with both blockades Russian and Flemish commodities could not reach their final destinations. In 1392 it was Grand Master Conrad of Wallenrode who supported the Flemish to achieve an acceptable agreement with the Hansa resuming the bilateral trade; while a Hanseatic delegation under Johann Niebur reopened trade with Novgorod in the same year, after reconfirmation of the previous mutual privileges.

Since the late 1380s grave piracy by privateers, promoted by Albert of Sweden and Mecklenburg actually directed against Margaret I of Denmark, blocked seafaring to the herring supplies at the Scania Market; thus fish prices tripled in Prussia. The Saxon Hansa cities urged Prussia to intervene, but Conrad of Jungingen was more worried about a Danish victory. So only after the cities, led by Lübeck's burgomaster Hinrich Westhof, had liaised the Treaty of Skanör (1395), Albert's defeat manifested, so that Prussia finally sent out its ships, led by Danzig's city councillor Conrad Letzkau. Until 1400 the united Teutonic-Hanseatic flotilla then thoroughly cleared the Baltic Sea of pirates, the Victual Brothers, and even took the island of Gotland in 1398.

Commodity selling prices of Teutonic Order in Prussian Marks, 1400
Saffron 7040 Hungarian iron 21
Ginger 1040 Trave salt
 12.5
Pepper 640 Herring 12
Wax 237.5 Flemish salt 8
French wine 109.5 Wismar beer 7.5
Rice 80 Flour 7.5
Steel 75 Wheat 7
Rhenish wine 66 Rye 5.75
Oil 60 Barley 4.2
Honey 35 Ash woad 4.75
Butter 30

15th century

Teutonic state in 1410

Konrad von Jungingen

At the beginning of the 15th century, the State of the Teutonic Order stood at the height of its power under Konrad (Conrad) von Jungingen. The Teutonic navy ruled the Baltic Sea from bases in Prussia and Gotland, and the Prussian cities provided tax revenues sufficient to maintain a significant standing force composed of Teutonic Knights proper, their retinues, Prussian peasant levies, and German mercenaries.

In 1402, the Luxembourg dynasty, which ruled the Margraviate of Brandenburg, reached an agreement with Poland in Kraków, according to which Poland was to purchase and re-incorporate the region of New March (Neumark). Later that year, however, the Luxembourgs gave the region in pawn to the Teutonic Order despite prior arrangements with Poland, and the Order kept it until Brandenburg redeemed it again in 1454 and 1455, respectively, by the Treaties of Cölln and Mewe. Though the possession of this territory by the Order strengthened ties between the Order and their secular counterparts in northern Germany, it exacerbated the already hostile relationship between the Order and Polish–Lithuanian union.

In March 1407, Konrad died from complications caused by gallstones and was succeeded by his younger brother, Ulrich von Jungingen. Under Ulrich, the Teutonic State fell from its precarious height and became mired in internal political strife, near-constant war with Polish–Lithuanian union, and crippling war debts.

Losses to Poland, Polish suzerainty

The Battle of Grunwald (1410) marked the start of decline of the State of the Teutonic Order (19th-century painting by Jan Matejko)

In 1408, Conrad Letzkau served as a diplomat to Queen Margaret I and arranged that the Order sell Gotland to Denmark. In 1409, the Teutonic Order invaded Poland's Dobrzyń Land again, and the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War broke out, in which the Teutonic Knights were supported by the Duchy of Pomerania, and the Polish-Lithuanian alliance was supported by Ruthenian, Tatar and Moldavian allies and auxiliary forces. Poland and Lithuania triumphed following a victory at the Battle of Grunwald (Tannenberg), which marked the start of the decline of the State of the Teutonic Order, and the rise of the Polish–Lithuanian union as a major power in Central and Eastern Europe.

The Order assigned Heinrich von Plauen to defend Teutonic-held Eastern Pomerania (Pomerelia), who moved rapidly to bolster the defence of Marienburg Castle in Pomesania. Heinrich von Plauen was elected vice-grand master and led the Teutonic Knights through the Siege of Marienburg in 1410. Eventually von Plauen was promoted to Grand Master and, in 1411, concluded the First Treaty of Thorn with King Władysław II Jagiełło of Poland.

The next major Polish–Teutonic war was fought in 1431–1435, after the Teutonic Knights invaded Poland again, and was ended in the Peace of Brześć Kujawski, which was favorable for Poland.

In March 1440, gentry (mainly from Culmerland) and the Hanseatic cities of Danzig, Elbing, Kneiphof, Thorn and other Prussian cities founded the Prussian Confederation to free themselves from the overlordship of the Teutonic Knights. Due to the heavy losses and costs after the war against Poland and Lithuania, the Teutonic Order collected taxes at steep rates. Furthermore, the cities were not allowed due representation by the Teutonic Order.

The Polish–Teutonic peace treaty of 1466 made the Teutonic state a fief of the Kingdom of Poland

In February 1454, the Prussian Confederation asked King Casimir IV of Poland to support their revolt and to incorporate the region to the Kingdom of Poland. King Casimir IV agreed and signed the act of incorporation in Kraków on 6 March 1454. The Thirteen Years' War, the longest of the Polish–Teutonic wars, (also known as the War of the Cities) broke out. Various cities of the region pledged allegiance to the Polish King in 1454.

The Second Peace of Thorn in October 1466 ended the war and provided for the Teutonic Order's cession of its rights over the western half of its territories to the Polish Kingdom, which became the Polish province of Royal Prussia and the remaining part of the Order's land became a fief and protectorate of Poland, considered part of one and indivisible Kingdom of Poland. In accordance to the peace treaty, from now on, every Grand Master was obliged to swear an oath of allegiance to the reigning Polish king within six months of taking office, and any new territorial acquisitions by the Teutonic Order, also outside Prussia, would also be incorporated into Poland. The Grand Master of the Teutonic Order became a prince and counselor of the Polish king and the Kingdom of Poland.

Teutonic state in 1466

Formation of a new nobility

While the Knights of the Teutonic Order formed a thin ruling class by themselves, they extensively used mercenaries, mostly German, from the Holy Roman Empire, to whom they granted lands in return. This gradually created a new class of landed nobility. Due to several factors, among which was the high rate of early death in battle, these lands became concentrated over time in the hands of a relatively small number of noblemen each having a vast estate. This nobility would evolve to what is known as the Prussian Junker nobility.

16th century and aftermath

Transformation to Ducal Prussia

During the Protestant Reformation, endemic religious upheavals and wars occurred across the region. In 1525, during the aftermath of the Polish-Teutonic War (1519–1521), Sigismund I the Old, King of Poland, and his nephew, the last Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach, a member of a cadet branch of the House of Hohenzollern, agreed that the latter would resign his position, adopt Lutheran faith and assume the title of Duke of Prussia. Thereafter referred to as Ducal Prussia (German: Herzogliches Preußen, Preußen Herzoglichen Anteils; Polish: Prusy Książęce), remaining a Polish fief.

The Prussian Homage of 1525 established Ducal Prussia as a vassal duchy of the Kingdom of Poland, in place of the State of the Teutonic Order

Thus in a deal partially brokered by Martin Luther, Roman Catholic Teutonic Prussia was transformed into the Duchy of Prussia, the first Protestant state. Sigismund's consent was bound to Albert's submission to Poland, which became known as the Prussian Homage. On 10 December 1525 at their session in Königsberg the Prussian estates established the Lutheran Church in Ducal Prussia by deciding the Church Order.

The Habsburg-led Holy Roman Empire continued to hold its claim to Prussia and furnished grand masters of the Teutonic Order, who were merely titular administrators of Prussia, but managed to retain many of the Teutonic holdings elsewhere outside of Prussia.

Archaeology

Fortifications of the Teutonic State have been examined through archaeological excavation since the end of World War II, especially those built or expanded during the 14th century. Fortifications are generally the best preserved material legacy of the Order's presence in the Baltic today, and timber and earth, as well as brick examples, are attested in the archaeological record.

The earliest castles in the Teutonic State consisted of simple buildings attached to a fortified enclosure, and the quadrangular red-brick structure would come to typify convent buildings, single-wing castles would continue to be built alongside timber towers. Where they followed the conventional layout, castles included a connected set of communal spaces such as a dormitory, refectory, kitchen, chapter house, a chapel or church, an infirmary, and tower projecting over the moat.

Marienburg fort

Construction began on Marienburg during the third quarter of the 13th century, and work continued on it until the mid-15th century. A settlement developed alongside the castle, which together enclosed 25 hectares. Granted town rights in 1286, its castle is larger than any other built by the Order. Since 1997, the outer bailey has been thoroughly excavated and dates to the mid-1350s. Preserved at Marienburg was a polychrome statue of Mary about 8 m high, made of artificial stone and originally decorated with mosaic tiles. Sinc Mary was the most important patron of the knights and central to the liturgy of the Teutonic Order, it is not surprising to find such striking representations of her at its most prominent castle.

Coins

Coins were minted from the late 1250s. They were often simple in design, stamped with the cross of the Order on one side, but support the notion that crusading, colonisation, and a supporting infrastructure went hand in hand from the earliest years of the Prussian Crusade.

See also

Notes

  1. German: Staat des Deutschen Ordens, pronounced [ˈʃtaːt dɛs ˌdɔʏtʃn̩ ˈʔɔʁdn̩s] ; Lithuanian: Vokiečių ordino valstybė; Polish: Państwo zakonu krzyżackiego), also called Deutschordensstaat (pronounced [ˈdɔʏtʃʔɔʁdn̩sˌʃtaːt] ) or Ordensstaat (pronounced [ˈɔʁdn̩sˌʃtaːt]
  1. ^ Górski 1949, pp. 96–97, 214–215.
  2. Stone, Daniel (2001). A History of Central Europe. University of Washington Press. pp. 18–19. ISBN 0295980931.
  3. France, John (2005). The Crusades and the Expansion of Catholic Christendom, 1000–1714. New York: Routledge. p. 380. ISBN 0415371287.
  4. ^ "wojny polsko-krzyżackie". Encyklopedia PWN (in Polish). Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  5. Bieszk, Janusz (2010). Zamki Państwa Krzyżackiego (in Polish). Warszawa: Bellona. p. 76. ISBN 978-8311118089.
  6. Frucht, Richard C. (2005). Eastern Europe: An Introduction to the People, Lands, and Culture. ABC-CLIO. p. 69. ISBN 1576078000.
  7. Skyum-Nielsen, Niels (1981). Danish Medieval History & Saxo Grammaticus. Museum Tusculanum Press. p. 129. ISBN 8788073300.
  8. Housley, Norman (1992). The later Crusades, 1274–1580. Oxford University Press. p. 371. ISBN 0198221363.
  9. ^ Górski 1949, pp. 88–92, 206–210.
  10. Górski 1949, pp. 93–94, 212.
  11. Lewinski Corwin, Edward Henry (1917). The Political History of Poland. The Polish Book Importing Company. p. 45. lizard union.
  12. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 55. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  13. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 54. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  14. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 123. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  15. in German: Hochmeister, literally "High Master".
  16. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 124. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  17. Cf. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 123. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  18. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 96. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  19. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 97. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  20. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 98. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  21. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 99. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  22. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 100. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  23. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, pp. 109 seq. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  24. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 110. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  25. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 104. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  26. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, pp. 103 seq. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  27. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 105. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  28. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 102. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  29. Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 107. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  30. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 108. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  31. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 113. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  32. ^ Natalia Borzestowska and Waldemar Borzestowski, "Dlaczego zginął burmistrz", 17 October 2005, retrieved on 8 September 2011.
  33. ^ Philippe Dollinger, Die Hanse , see references for bibliographical details, p. 114. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  34. W.Bonhke, Der Binnenhandel des Deutschen Ordens in Preusen, in Hansische Geschichtsblatter, 80 (1962), pp. 51–53
  35. Rogalski, Leon (1846). Dzieje Krzyżaków oraz ich stosunki z Polską, Litwą i Prussami, poprzedzone rysem dziejów wojen krzyżowych (in Polish). Vol. II. Warszawa. pp. 59–60.
  36. Ekdahl, Sven (2008). "The Battle of Tannenberg-Grunwald-Žalgiris (1410) as reflected in Twentieth-Century monuments". In Victor Mallia-Milanes (ed.). The Military Orders: History and Heritage. Vol. 3. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 175. ISBN 978-0-7546-6290-7.
  37. Górski 1949, p. 54.
  38. Górski 1949, pp. 71–72, 76, 79.
  39. Górski 1949, pp. 96–97, 215.
  40. Górski 1949, pp. 96, 103, 214, 221.
  41. Rosenberg, H. (1943). "The Rise of the Junkers in Brandenburg-Prussia, 1410–1653: Part 1." The American Historical Review, 49(1), 1–22.
  42. Albertas Juška, Mažosios Lietuvos Bažnyčia XVI–XX amžiuje, Klaipėda: 1997, pp. 742–771, here after the German translation Die Kirche in Klein Litauen (section: 2. Reformatorische Anfänge; (in German)) on: Lietuvos Evangelikų Liuteronų Bažnyčia, retrieved on 28 August 2011.
  43. Pluskowski, Aleksander (2013). The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonization. Routledge. p. 149.
  44. Pluskowski, Aleksander (2013). The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonization. Routledge. p. 110.

References

  • Dollinger, Philippe (1998) . Hans Krabusch and Marga Krabusch (trls.) (ed.). Die Hanse (La Hanse (XII–XVII siècles, Paris, Aubier, 1964) (in German). Vol. 371. Stuttgart: Kröner: Kröners Taschenbuchausgabe. ISBN 3-520-37105-7.
  • * Pluskowski, Aleksander (2013). The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonization. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0415691710.
  • Górski, Karol (1949). Związek Pruski i poddanie się Prus Polsce: zbiór tekstów źródłowych (in Polish and Latin). Poznań: Instytut Zachodni.

External links

Media related to State of the Teutonic Order at Wikimedia Commons

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