A Brief History Of The Teutonic Knights During The Middle Ages

The Teutonic Knights (or the Teutonic Order) were one of the most important military-religious chivalric orders of the Late Middle Ages in Central Europe and significant large parts of Eastern and Northeastern Europe respectively. As such, the Teutonic Knights had an important territorial foothold in the area around the Baltic Sea in the contemporary Baltic states of Estonia and Latvia, so much so, in point of fact, that they even had their own state there. Conversely, in Eastern Europe, the Teutonic Knights had an important presence on the territory of present-day Romania, most notably in south-eastern Transylvania (known in German as ‘Siebenbürgen‘, i.e., seven castles) but also a little bit outside the Carpathian arch, both in Moldavia and in Wallachia, where they previously built fortresses (e.g., one on a hill near Siret, a small town situated in Bukovina, Suceava County, north-eastern Romania and another one, according to some researchers, also situated on a hill, called ‘The Saxon’s Hill’, Dealul Sasului originally in Romanian, in Oratea, present-day Argeș County. Muntenia, south-eastern Romania). At some point, the Teutonic Knights posed such a threat (well, at least theoretically and in the mind of the Hungarian monarch) that they could had also established another state in Transylvania, a rather powerful one, strategically located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Nonetheless, the King of Hungary, Andrew II at that time, permanently evicted the Teutonic Knights in 1225 (but the German-speaking colonists known as Transylvanian Saxons, officially referred to as Saxones in Latin in the documents issued by the royal Hungarian chancellery, Siebenbürger Sachsen in German as well as Sași transilvăneni in Romanian respectively, they had brought with them in the historical/ethnographic region of Burzenland/Țara Bârsei remained beyond their eviction). In the neighbouring Principality of Moldavia, it is highly possible that the Teutonic Knights were also present in Târgu Neamț (known in German as Niamtz) and built the imposing Neamț Fortress.

The Teutonic Knights were one of the most engaged military-religious chivalric orders in the Crusades. As their name clearly points out, the Teutonic Knights were a German ethnic order and they were of Catholic faith. In German, they are referred to as ‘Deutscher Orden’ (i.e., the German Order), ‘Deutschritterorden’ (i.e., the German Knights’ Order), or ‘Deutsche Ritter’ (i.e., the German Knights). The order had received lands and privileges granted by the Popes Celestine III and Innocent III in present-day Germany and beyond. Their garments were adorned with a black cross which is the order’s symbol. The coat of arms of the Teutonic Order is represented by the aforementioned black cross inscribed on a shield. As peculiar as it might seem to some, the order is still active to this day, but, very much unlike its heyday, nowadays it has a rather symbolic status (surviving as a hospital order since 1834 onwards). Their anthem is Christ ist Erstanden (i.e., Christ is risen).

The most important medieval landmarks of the Teutonic Order is undoubtedly the imposing Malbork Castle which is situated in northern Poland, more specifically in the proximity of the city of Gdańsk and the Baltic Sea respectively. Malbork Castle is the largest castle in Europe by total area covered. This large castle was built in brick and in the traditional form of other Teutonic strongholds, namely as a Ordensburg (i.e., Order castle). In December 1997, the castle was recognised and listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage SIte.

Below you can watch a thorough animated history of the Teutonic Order, with its rise and fall across Europe throughout the passage of time (credits for this animated production go exclusively to Qarol Mapping on YouTube):

Documentation sources and external links:

• Teutonic Order on www.britannica.com (Encyclopædia Britannica)
• Malbork Castle on www.britannica.com (Encyclopædia Britannica)
• The Teutonic Knights on Romanian Territories (on Radio România Internațional’s website, in English)
• Oratea Fortress, Echoes from the 13th Century, 100-Word Story by Romanian author Patricia Furstenberg on www.alluringcreations.co.za