The Teutonic Knights: Crusaders of the North - full documentary

[Music] 1197 a force of German Crusaders arrives in the Holy Land there they find that the order of the hospital of st. Mary of the Germans established only a few years earlier during the Third Crusade is flourishing caring for the ill and providing lodging for pilgrims many of the brothers of the order are trained Knights who have abandoned a military life for a religious vocation of helping the sick and the poor however the Christian states on the coast of Syria and Palestine facing the powerful Saracen AU bids to their east suffer from a chronic shortage of fighting men the German Crusaders conclude that the brothers of the hospital of st. Mary should begin taking on military duties the Holy Roman Emperor Heinrich vi believes that a German military order will help focus and maintain German interest in the Holy Land in 1197 Heinrich sends a request to Pope Celestine the third to reincorporate the German hospital as a Military Order the Pope agrees issuing the order a new charter in 1198 a new Military Order is born essentially a German incarnation of the heavily French Knights Templar this order the brothers of the German house of st. Mary is better known to the world as the Teutonic Knights [Applause] the Teutonic Knights model themselves closely after the Templars adopting their rule virtually word-for-word the rule is written down in German so that all members can understand it easily although they retain their hospital function they are now primarily a military organization their membership is dominated by Knights who require horses weapons equipment and support staff like the Templars they devote themselves to celibacy poverty and obedience as well as to the cause of the crusade they are fighters warriors who will ride into battle against the enemies of Chris Ando [Applause] the earliest history of the Teutonic Knights is obscure although they possess a few estates in the Holy Land the early death of Heinrich the six in 1197 leaves the order small and obscure for many years during their first decade of existence no more than two dozen fully fledged brother Knights occupied their ranks its in 1210 on the election Hermann von salza as the orders Grand Master that their history as a major force in the Crusades begins Hermann von salsa is one of those rare men of equal vision and ability his origins are humble his family is of the ministerial and class that is Knightly but not quite noble generations before one of Herman's ancestors raised the family status through valor competence or both parents birth could prevent him from rising through the ranks of the Templars or the hospital errs but a small order like the Teutonic Knights presents him with clear opportunity there his affable personality and keen organizational abilities immediately stand out while still in his 30s he's elected Grandmaster in 1215 the new Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich the second names Herman a prince of the Empire and gets the orders privileges confirmed and extended in 1217 Hermann joins the fifth crusade an expedition meant to conquer Egypt a power center of the a ubud Sultanate during the Third Crusade in the eleven 90s Richard the Lionheart envisioned a conquest of Egypt which would enable the Christians to hold Jerusalem long term the 5th crusade is meant to put that plan into effect launched from Crusader controlled Cyprus the army of the Fifth Crusade besieges Damietta the port that guards the Nile Delta although he commands only a few Knights Herman stands out among the leadership council of the crusade ultimately the Fifth Crusade ends in failure but over the course of the campaign Herman wins many donations and privileges for his order [Music] many blame the failure of the Fifth Crusade on the Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich the second failed to personally bring aid to the Crusaders in their hour of need but Herman maintains strict loyalty to the Emperor throughout this criticism he knows well that his plans for his orders expansion will require the Emperor's goodwill during the twelve 20s Herman accompanies Friedrich Imperial business demonstrating his competence as a diplomat when the emperor announces his plans to at last lead his own crusade Herman seizes the opportunity to promote the Teutonic order as the leading force in the German Crusader effort during the sixth crusade which is led by Friedrich to second the Teutonic Knights provide a large contingent in support of the Emperor throughout the crusade Herman proves to be a crucial diplomatic and military resource for the Emperor after long negotiations with the Sultan of Egypt Friedrich achieves a questionable surrender of Jerusalem leaving the holy city insecurely in Christian hands but in terms of the Holy Roman Empire's relations with the Templars the hospital errs and the local barons of the Crusader States the crusade is a disaster Friedrich ignores the laws of the Crusader States and attempts to force Imperial rule which provokes resistance from the nobles and military orders resident in the Holy Land Herman avoids antagonizing the local powers and thus spares the Teutonic Knights reprisals after the Emperor departs by now no man is closer to the Emperor whether as advisor or as friend than Herman von salsa it's a remarkable rise for the son of the humblest of Knightly families also by now the Teutonic order has grown considerably in addition to being generously rewarded by friedrich ii the knights are attracting donations from across Christendom after his experiences in the 5th and 6th Crusades Herman has come to the conclusion that his orders future likely does not lie primarily in the Holy Land he's received an intriguing offer from duke conrad of masovia who's polish borderlands are suffering raids from the pagans oppression wilderness Duke Conrad wants to tonic knights on his frontier as a buffer against Prussian raids Hermann responds favorably dispatching a contingent of knights to establish a presence in Prussia by now crusading is already well underway in the baltic north but no large military order as yet entrenched itself on this front already Hermann is beginning to contemplate the idea of a major Teutonic effort in the area east of the Vistula River thick forest covered most of the land from the Baltic coast to the Western Russian highlands much of this territory was impenetrable miles of dead wood dense undergrowth swamps lakes and hills limited human settlement to the coast and the river valleys grazing ground was hemmed in by dense woods of maple Elm oak linden and ash bison bear elk and the now extinct Hawks roamed the wilderness like the Lithuanians to their east the medieval Prussians were bolts by 1100 they had been in the region some 3,000 years linguists have identified long enduring words related to bees horses and wagons disproving the notion that Baltic culture was primitive nevertheless Russian society was far behind Christian Europe in many areas feudal structures were essentially non-existent dramatically limiting the capacity of the Prussians to unify for the purpose of defense commerce or agriculture Prussian territory stretched along the Baltic coast to the Vistula River in the southwest eleven tribal groups dominated 11 regions the Sam lenders and the pseudo viens were the most warlike and powerful of these historians today estimate that medieval Prussia as the Teutonic Knights founded contained around 170,000 people they built forts in which they could settle during wartime and though these structures were nothing like the castles of the Christians they were nevertheless adequate prior to the northern Crusades the various Prussian tribes were never known to act as one Prussian religion was an offshoot of indo-european nature worship comparable to early Greek Roman Celtic and Germanic folk ways contact with Vikings and Christians had influenced Russian ideas in the 10th century Western missionaries began interacting with the Prussian tribes but to little effect however the remoteness of Prussian territory discouraged travelers and invaders alike let us leave the Prussians with the brute beasts wrote the first chronicler of Poland in the 12th century [Music] [Applause] [Music] the ruling class among the Prussians was their warrior elite the clans organised communal life assembled armies and dispensed justice historian William urban states that newborn females were often abandoned and so Prussian women were rare allowing fathers to command a high bride price nevertheless polygamy was practiced and high ranking males kept multiple wives it was not uncommon for Prussian warriors to raid neighboring lands for women the Prussian Nobles bathed regularly in sauna like structures German chroniclers report that they did not spice their foods and did not sleep in soft beds their houses were scattered throughout the woods surrounded by their fields always close to a log fort for refuge the weapons wielded by the average Prussian warrior were quite poor clubs and stones could be effective in ambushes but they were virtually useless in pitched battle against enemies with horses armor and swords such arms were available to the Prussian nobility who functioned as light cavalry with spears swords helmets and male shirts this was inferior to the equipment of the average Western Knight but it was effective in the swampy lowlands and rugged hills of the Prussian territory William urban doubts that Prussian Nobles would have adopted Western military gear even if it were available to them the Prussian warrior nobility lived off hunting warfare and the labor of slaves women and children taken in raids were pressed into household service used as concubines or sold in regional slave markets men were considered useless as slaves since they could easily escape while working in the small forest clearings women were viewed as the ideal laborers [Music] slave raids were cited by Christians in Poland and vomer elia as the primary reason for waging war against the pagan Prussians some modern writers have dismissed this as an excuse for aggressive expansion but it's far more realistic to recognize the complexity of the issue christian regions were driven both by an interest in conquest and a desire to eliminate prussian slave raids similar motivations would bring Germans from the Holy Roman Empire into the conflict for the Teutonic Knights Stern warrior monks Christianisation of the region was a keen motivating factor in entering the Prussian crusade in the early 13th century the Teutonic Knights history's most famous Germanic Military Order first entered Prussia at the invitation of a Polish Duke conrad of the soviet conrad was concerned about his order which had often been harassed by the pagan tribes that inhabited the prussian wilderness at the time the Teutonic order was firmly committed to its mission in the Holy Land however the Grand Master Hermann von salza felt that he could not refuse Duke Conrad's request Hermann was a man of considerable vision and he grasped that the prussian frontier could hold the key to his orders future in 12:30 a small force of Teutonic Knights arrived on the fringes of the Prussian forests they were commanded by konrad von Landsberg whose mission was to establish a foothold in the lands granted by the Duke of masovia lands Burke's contingent was made up of younger newer recruits as well as brothers to ill or injured to join the Grand Master for the Holy Roman emperors Holy Land Crusade on the south bank of the Vistula River the Teutonic Knights established their first Prussian fortress called Vogelsong that is birdsong so named by the German Crusaders because their sang many a wounded man not as the nightingale sings but with a sorrowful song that the Swan sings as he is killed soon reinforcements arrived under the command of master Hermann bulk a highly competent warrior who would lead the Prussian crusade for many years [Music] by 1231 the teutonic order had built another castle called thorn opposite the site of Vogelsong two years later an army of German and polish Crusaders gathered here marching north east to establish the fortress of merry inverter in Palma Sanya about halfway between thorn and the sea some of the Crusaders remained into the winter when they were joined by The Dukes spent Appel and sambar of Palmer alia for an invasion of Pakistani Anna at the Battle of Rison on the frozen surface of the river the Crusaders confronted a force of Prussian warriors the pagans advanced in a phalanx formation but they were panicked by the appearance of Palmer Elian Knights at their rear the Prussians tried to flee but they were destroyed by an ambush put in place by Sveta Belkin these early campaigns established a pattern each year a crusader army generally composed of Germans and poles arrived to join the Teutonic brothers in an attack on the Prussians each year the result was the same the Teutonic Knights expanded their territory with new fortresses often being built the Prussian warriors showed remarkable courage and tenacity mustering year after year to oppose the annual invasion however the pagans simply could not stand up to the heavy Western cavalry once the Crusader army had dispersed for the season the Teutonic brothers would retire to their castles where they were safe from Prussian counter-attacks the polish crusaders provided the numbers necessary for the annual campaigns of conquest while the Teutonic Knights garrison the castles during the offseason as celibate monks the Teutonic brothers were willing to man the fortresses through the wet months and the bitter winter nights the Teutonic Knights continued to expand their monastic state in Prussia throughout the 12 30's in the eastern hinterland of the vistula river forts were established at Raiden in 1234 and christ's birth in 1237 these Crusader outposts attracted colonists from Poland and Germany as well as Dominican missionaries eager to spread Christianity among the Prussians Teutonic brothers even began carving out rural estates for secular Knights willing to settle and commit their swords long term to the crusade after participating in a seasonal crusade the Margrave of Meissen gifted master Herman bulk to large boats the order then used these vessels to strike out north from Marion verdure and established the fortress of L being on the Delta of the Vistula in 1237 immediately citizens from Lubich colonized Elving from there the crusaders pressed northeast towards Sam land severing the Prussians from the coast and establishing the castle of Volga in 12:39 cut off from their main trade route the pomace on Ian's and Pakistani ins two major Prussian tribal groups came to terms with the German brother Knights by now the Teutonic order was poised to encircle the remaining defiant pagans and link their prussian lands with their territory in Livonia creating a Latin Christian block from Prussia to Estonia but pushback was coming and not just from the pagan Prussians [Music] the rapid success of the order roused the ire of one of their old allies Dukes vent Appel katpa Morelia spenta Belk felt that the new trading centers at meri inverter and Elle Bing were competing with his own merchants in 1242 he forged an alliance with the pagans Russians and together they ravaged Teutonic ports and destroyed the settlements in comer land this turned into a ten-year war spent Appel could build his own forts to oppose the Teutonic castles and used his river fleet 20 ships to harass the German settlements meanwhile the pagan Prussians unable to overcome the Teutonic Knights in open battle perfected a technique of ambush that allowed them to pin down cut off and annihilate Teutonic contingents however the Teutonic brothers maintained their war effort and the conflict seemed to devolve into a stalemate the balance was tipped by other polish princes who wanted to join the German order in dislodging spenta fell from the mouth of the Vistula also the Pope preached a crusade against vente filk accusing him of interfering with the church's work in the region faced with this opposition spent Appel relented and agreed to share the Vistula Delta with the Teutonic Knights the setbacks of the 12 40s prompted the Teutonic order to prepare for a long grueling war of repression to deal with the guerrilla tactics of the pagans they began recruiting native Prussian militiamen who proved quite effective at disrupting coordinated Prussian attacks converted Prussian Nobles were even incorporated into the Christian cavalry and are described in the sources as native Knights but most importantly Pope Innocent the fourth granted the Teutonic brothers the privilege of a perpetual crusade in 1245 allowing the order to recruit volunteers for the holy war year-round the Treaty of Christ's birth in 1249 afforded the converted native Prussians Civil Liberties provided they adhered to Christian law [Music] the 12 50s were a time of resurgence for the Teutonic Knights on their livonian front one of their major enemies Minda gasps of Lithuania converted to Christianity the Teutonic brothers respected his conversion ceased attacking his territories and embraced the opportunity to make him an ally meanwhile the pagan Prussians suffered their greatest setback from 1254 to 1256 with the arrival of a massive German Crusader army led by King Otto Gahr ii of bohemia the single most powerful ruler in the holy roman empire the bohemian king's army was so large that the pagan natives realized that resistance was futile Otto Gahr built the fortress of königsberg named in his honor and secured Teutonic control over Somme land this appeared to be the decisive moment Latin christening seemed poised to triumph completely in the Baltic however the 1260s would see the Prussian tribes unite in an uprising of hitherto unknown power and coordination this revolt known to history as the great Prussian uprising would bring the Teutonic order in the Baltic to the brink of destruction the year is 1240 - the place lake peipus between modern-day Estonia and Russia there amid these vast frozen waters a battle is about to take place on one side the army of the Russian Republic of Novgorod led by the 21 year-old Alexander Nevsky a courageous young warrior Prince just recalled from exile in time to defend his people on the other side the livonian branch of the Teutonic Knights fierce warrior monks arrayed in heavy armor atop their powerful war horses the Teutonic Knights are the main muscle of the northern Crusades Latin christened domes project to subdue and convert the pagan peoples of the Baltic but today the enemy they're facing is also Christian though of a different right Alexander and his people are Eastern Orthodox the battle that's about to take place represents more than a clash between two competing powers it's a contest between Western and Eastern Christianity the outcome will determine which of the two will hold sway in this region since 1217 the Teutonic Knights have been engaged in a long war to subdue the pagan tribes of Prussia recently their influence is expanded in 1237 Pope Gregory the 9th dissolves another order of fighting monks the sword brothers whose lands and Livonia he grants to the Teutonic Knights this increases the domain of the Teutonic order in the baltic and effectively puts them in control of the northern crew say but Pope Gregory the ninth wants something in return help with his latest project a crusade against the Russians the expansion of Teutonic power in the Baltic has not gone unnoticed by the nearby Russian Republic Novgorod previously now garroted exercised hegemonic dominion over the let's and the Estonians both of whom are now ruled by the Westerners this leads to border clashes between Novgorod Ian and Western armies initially the Pope thinks to remedy the issue by sending missionaries to Novgorod but the Russians are not interested in converting to Latin Christianity things heat up in 12:34 when Prince Yaroslav leads a novgorodian army on a raiding expedition that devastates the Latin mission in Finland after this attack Pope Gregory the 9th decides he's done sending missionaries he dispatches a papal leggett to the Teutonic Knights with instructions to organize a crusade to conquer Novgorod a Teutonic order is not exactly eager to take on another war their numbers are stretched thin Manning the castles of Livonia and waging regular campaigns to hold and expand their territory in Prussia but 1240 seems like the ideal time for the Westerners to strike civil conflict plagues Novgorod Prince Alexander is battling for control with other Russian princes after defeating an attack from Sweden Alexander is exiled by his own subjects meanwhile the Teutonic Knights advance into novgorodian territory in September they occupy his vorse campus qov by early 1241 they capture wad and ingria a territory between novgorod and the finnish gulf the citizens of novgorod alarmed by this invasion begged their exiled Prince to resume power and lead the defense Alexander Nevsky answers the call it assumes command [Music] initially Alexander leads a small force to disrupt the Teutonic Knights occupation of Novgorod western frontier he expels the garrison at and occupies all the roads right up to piss golf he even penetrates into the Latin Diocese of doorbot but a contingent of Western nights under Bishop Herman of d'Or pet routes the novgorodians and forces Alexander to retire Bishop Herman is one of the most important magnates in Livonia as much Prince as Bishop with the Teutonic order he assembles an army to challenge Alexander's counter-attack meanwhile Alexander gathers the forces of Novgorod to oppose them it is April 12 42 when the Western and Eastern army stand face to face at lake peipus as it is his territory being invaded Alexander is able to select a site of the encounter Alexander understands that the greatest weapon of the Teutonic order is the charge of their heavily armoured mounted Knights he believes that the vast frozen lake will blunt the effectiveness of this charge giving the edge to his forces which are larger in number Bishop Herman and the Teutonic Knights lead a force of perhaps 2,500 all they were able to spare without compromising their positions in Livonia and Prussia the largest portion of their army is made up of around 1,000 Estonian infantry bishop herman leads a few hundred German and Danish mounted Knights only around 100 heavily armoured brother Knights of the livonian branch of the Teutonic order are present though they are the Army's most formidable element on the other side of the lake Alexander is at the head of around 5,000 troops on his flanks he positions his own cavalry retinue nava God's most prized warriors the center is made up primarily of number God's militia troops as well as Alexander's own infantry to the right he places a small contingent of horse archers Alexander establishes his army in a solid formation and awaits the advance of the enemy Bishop Herman begins the battle by ordering a cavalry charge with which he hopes to break the Russian Center the heavy Western Knights formed the spearhead of a column bolstered by light cavalry and infantry initially this charge inflicts severe casualties on the Russian vanguard but as the lighter Western forces advance to bolster their heavy cavalry the Russian center holds the fighting is brutal with infantry on both sides sustaining heavy casualties however Alexander's own elite cavalry has been kept in reserve on the flanks Alexander now leads his Knights in a pincer movement which envelops the numerically inferior Western forces the Westerners break in disordered retreat and Alexander's Knights devastate the Estonian infantry most of the brother Knights escape with only around 20 falling in battle the victory belongs to Alexander and Novgorod the crusade is defeated the invasion halton Novgorod will not fall under latin rule alexander has no interest in pursuing the westerners into their own territory his only concern is to remove the threat to Novgorod he's just won a great victory but the Teutonic Knights have suffered small losses which can easily be replenished the position of the Westerners in Livonia and Prussia remains strong thus Alexander opens negotiations he presents the Teutonic order with generous terms which the brother Knights quickly accept Alexander withdraw from Peskov and other border territories both sides free their prisoners a truce agreeable to both is established in the long term the outcome was probably beneficial to the Teutonic order the Pope had to accept that the conquests of Novgorod was impossible and the brother Knights no longer had to expend resources toward that end instead the order came to an understanding with Prince Alexander that left them free to pursue their domination of Livonia and Prussia the truce was also beneficial to Alexander who wanted to focus on countering the threat of the Mongols from the east the battle on the ice has become legendary in 1938 the Russian language film Alexander Nevsky presented a heavily fictionalized version of the battle which was more influenced by 20th century politics and historical reality the film grossly over plays the differences between the quality of the arms and armour of the two sides portraying the novgorodians almost as 20th century peasants engaged in a communist style uprising against an elitist Teutonic order the true Alexander Nevsky has become a hero in Russian history and his stellar performance at the battle on the ice is a key factor in his position of high esteem the 1260s saw the greatest challenge to the rule of the Teutonic Knights in their monastic state of Prussia this was a period of revolt the native pagan Prussians achieved a level of unity like never before and together they struck back against the Teutonic conquerors the goal of the Prussians to drive out the Christian warrior monks forever [Music] in addition to cooperating together the Prussian tribes gain an ally in one of the polish territorial Prince's messed one the 2nd Duke of Palma rally a mess when was the son of dukes vent Appel chief Palmer alia one-time Ally and enemy of the Teutonic order the Prussians had learned much from their conquerors and their uprising was well equipped and well organized they had crossbows and they had learned to build siege engines also the Prussians had adapted certain Christian battle tactics and so were prepared to face the Teutonic brothers in open combat it all began with the defiance of the semi Gideon's Asama Gideon's defeated the livonian Master of the Teutonic order in battle slaying 33 of his brother Knights they inflicted devastating raids on the Prussian natives living on Teutonic lands these raids were meant to demonstrate the inability of the Christian warrior monks to protect their subjects and to convince the crushin plans to join in the rebellion the sami Gideon's even forced a recent new ally of the Teutonic brothers Minda gasps of Lithuania to renounce Christianity systematically the Prussians penetrated deep into Teutonic territory overrunning castles massacring Garrison's and slaughtering colonists [Music] Pope Urban the fourth was in the middle of organizing a crusade against the Mongols when news reached him of the disasters being suffered by the Teutonic order in Prussia the Pope at once put aside his plans for a Mongolian crusade and began recruiting soldiers for a campaign in the north to save the Teutonic state however the first Crusader reinforcements were annihilated in battle by the Prussians many pagan Prussians now spoke German and so they were able to infiltrate Teutonic camps the Teutonic brothers who had always been greatly outnumbered had previously relied on their superior equipment and tactics especially the devastating power of their heavy cavalry but the greatly improved tactics of the Prussians meant that they could now bring their overwhelming numbers to bear in combat situations between 1260 and 1260 for two masters of the Teutonic Knights were killed in battle and the order lost most of its fortresses including the great castle of Marion verdure which had been a central base of the order since 1233 Koenigsberg was saved only by the order's reinforcements from Livonia less than a decade previously the Teutonic Knights had seemed poised to totally crush the last traces of Prussian resistance now the situation was reversed entirely and the Native pagans were on the verge of wiping out the orders for presence in the Baltic truly this was holy war as much for the Prussians as it had always been for the Teutonic brothers pagan victories seemed to confirm the power of the old gods and more Prussian clans joined in the revolt as did Lithuanians pagan armies were even penetrating into Christian Poland echoing the days of pagan raids on Polish border lands that had prompted the Prussian crusade to begin with [Music] despite the severity of the situation the Teutonic Knights refused to give up fortifying themselves in their few remaining castles the warrior months prepared for a bitter grueling war of attrition the brothers worked closely with the Pope and the church in Germany to organize new Crusades several large German Crusades helped to stabilize the situation in 1265 Crusader armies arrived under the leadership of the Duke of Brunswick and the landgrave of Thuringia in 1266 a Crusade arrived from brandenburg and in 1272 the Margrave of mizen showed up with reinforcements [Music] these Crusades allowed the teutonic brothers to recapture fortresses which were rebuilt with brick or stone the warrior monks took advantage of their Christianized Prussian auxilary troops who were able to infiltrate pagan encampments and disrupt operations well executed ambushes and raids by the Teutonic brothers proved devastating to the Prussian coalition which began to crack clans began to abandon the uprising and many of those who remain defiant fled East to seek shelter with the Lithuanian by 1277 it was over all the central Prussian nations had submitted to the Teutonic Knights the events of the great Prussian uprising are a testament to both sides involved the native pagan Prussians showed themselves to be quite adaptable and resilient in the face of a powerful Conqueror but the tenacity of the Teutonic Knights ultimately prevailed crucial to the Teutonic order was the steady stream of reinforcing Crusades arriving from the West which allowed the brothers to wear down Prussian resistance [Music] but the challenge was not over for the Teutonic Knights they would next faced resistance from a particularly valiant Prussian chieftain schooland of the psuedo viens we'll learn more about him in a future video in the series but first in the next video linked below and on your screen we'll follow the exploits of Martin Van Hollen a fearsome borderland mercenary who hunted pagans for the Teutonic Knights [Music] [Music] 12:44 comb in the teutonic state of prussia the Teutonic Knights have just been defeated in a major battle against the pagan Prussians Martin Fon Gulen is a young boy whose family had moved in to comb as settlers in the Teutonic state now the Teutonic Knights defeated are powerless to protect the Christian settlers the pagan tribesmen descend upon comb burning the farmlands and gathering up the people as slaves Martin and his family are among those captured as Martin and his family are being marched off into the Prussian wilderness Martin's older sister who is pregnant is unable to keep up the pace the Prussian warriors dragged the girl out of the line and kill her right there in front of young Martin it's a moment that will come to define Martin's life [Music] five years later a large German Crusade arrives in Prussia and annihilates the Prussian tribe that had captured Martin's family young Martin by now a teenager is liberated he returns to Christian territory with a new resolve he's decided to dedicate his life to fighting pagans as a slave Martin gains skills that are valuable to the Teutonic Knights he has insider knowledge about the customs and habits and the Prussian tribes and he speaks several Prussian dialects during the 1250s Martin serves in several Crusader armies by 1260 he is serving in calm along the most dangerous frontier in the Teutonic state he is a scout for the brothers who garrison the fortress of Raiden from the start it's apparent that Martin is a warrior of unusual skill he's remarkably strong and shows much endurance he's also intensely dedicated undeterred by danger distance or discomfort although young he is a man with a dark mission revenge [Music] during this early period Martin is out on patrol with a Teutonic brother deep in the wilderness they encounter a campsite occupied by five Prussians spurring their horses Martin and the brother make a break for it while the Prussians pursue them attempting to escape Martin and the brother dismount and send their horses off running while they themselves try to sneak away through the underbrush but the ruse fails the Prussians capture Martin and his companion while three of the pagans set off to catch the horses the others stay to guard over the prisoners after a while the guards decide to just kill the prisoners and take their valuables as they're about to behead Martin Martin speaks up in Prussian don't kill me like this my shirt is very valuable take it off first so you don't get blood on it the Prussians laughing thank him for the advice then proceeded to unbind him so they can strip him as soon as his hands are free Martin punches one Prussian in the throat dropping him instantly he grabs the man's sword and hacks both the pagans to death after freeing the Teutonic brother Martin and his companion stock the remaining three Prussians leaping upon them as they're leading back the horses all three Prussians are slain Martin and the brother loot the campsite then returned to the fortress of Rayden over the years martin becomes famous in the prussian wars he leads a band of rugged frontiersman Germans Slavs and converted Prussians with names like Conrad the devil and kadar the sidonians they hunt through the wild Borderlands they ambush military parties and villages bringing back much booty in loot and prisoners to the teutonic brothers Martin is soon widely feared among the Prussian tribes and tales of his exploits are recounted gravely around many a prussian campfire by 1286 martin is around fifty years old and receives intelligence from Konigsberg a young pagan nobleman is angry about one of his kinsmen who has robbed him of his inheritance the young pagan informs the Teutonic Knights about his kinsman's plans for a wedding the Knights dispatch Martin to make the attack [Music] Martin takes 20 experienced traders and sets out with the young pagan who leads them straight to the wedding party there they find some 70 pagan nobles in a state of festive drunkenness mercilessly Martin and his men set upon them slaying men left and right and rounding up the women and children to be taken back as captives finally Martin comes upon the young bridegroom lying asleep with his bride in his arms the chronicler recounts that he would have preferred to just leave them be on their wedding day but not Martin with a horrible cry Martin awakens them ties them up and leads them off as captives with the others meanwhile Martin's companions collect all the costly wedding presents to be hauled back as booty [Music] Martin never retires rather as an old man he raids even deeper into pagan territory at last he dies as he lived violently around 1295 amid a raid on the distant bug River Martin's life offers insight into the grim clashes between pagan and Christian that raged across the Prussian wilderness in the 13th century traumatized by the early horrors inflicted upon his family Martin himself became much the thing he initially hated however historian William urban points out that Martin's legend earned a certain amount of respect among the pagans themselves much as the Christians came to respect the valiant Prussian chieftain schoo Monde in these horrible and brutal battles warriors often developed an appreciation for the Valor of an enemy and yet these conflicts are a stark reminder of human cruelty which can shatter innocence and leave a legacy of bitter violence the year is 1274 the Teutonic Knights a powerful order of Christian warrior monks maintain a tenuous rule over the remote frontier of Prussia the territory is the main battleground of the northern Crusades an effort by Latin christened 'm to subdue and Christianize the pagan baltic and other northeastern regions the Teutonic Knights have just defeated the greatest challenge to their rule the great Prussian uprising which lasted some 15 years although the uprising has been crushed the Teutonic order is left battered and short of funds and men no longer can the order launch large-scale campaigns now they must make use of guerrilla tactics sallying forth and lightning raids from their network of castles with the great uprising ended two of the most important Prussian tribes the Netanya and the barton's have submitted to the knights but one prussian tribe remains defiant of the Teutonic brothers the sidonians the sidonians are quite numerous and their young men are reared as capable warriors the pseudo vien territories lay far to the east amid impenetrable swamps and forests [Music] the pseudo viens announced their defiance by attacking the work crews rebuilding Barton Stein an important Teutonic castle in central barcia the pseudo viens kill all the men and set fire to the site this is a serious blow to the teutonic brothers as Barton Stein is a key point in their defensive line along the dangerous frontier the man leading the pseudo viens is a shrewd and bold tribal chieftain school on sudo bein raids spread terror across teutonic controlled territory but in 1276 cumin suffers several setbacks when his smaller raiding parties are defeated by Teutonic counter-attacks determined to overcome the brother Knights SKU maan forges an alliance with the Lithuanians in 1277 he leads a large pseudo vien lithuanian coalition through calm to marry inverter and finally into pakistan eeeh burning villages all along the way cumin has struck right at the heart of the Teutonic state demonstrating the inability of the order to protect its territories this prompts another tribal group the Pakistani uns long pacified by the order to suddenly rebel the Teutonic Knights are in a difficult position they managed to suppress the rebellious Pakistani uns but they lack the numbers for a large-scale offensive against the pseudo viens however they develop a plan to undermine scheming small war parties are launched into pseudo bia where the brother knights brutally devastate local chieftains to discourage them from maintaining ties to school on one interesting character from this period of guerrilla warfare is Martin Van Hollen a freebooter who participates in the pseudo vien raids a riveting account from The Chronicles the scribes arrayed typical of this period noticed how Martin has both Germans and native Prussians in his war band with four Germans and 11 Prussians Martin attacks a certain village in sudo via killing or capturing the people and on the long return trip he came to a place where he sat eating with his friends resting fearlessly after their Labour's when the enemy burst among them they killed his four German comrades while the others fled leaving their all their arms and food the pseudo viens rejoiced greatly over this meanwhile Martin angrily circled in the woods and brought together his surviving comrades since they had lost all their weapons he slipped among the enemy while they slept and stole their swords shields and spears and when he had them he went to his hidden companions and they quietly killed all those they found except one who tried to flee and Martin killed him then they took up their original booty and the arms and other things that the pagans had brought with them and returned home over the winter of 1280 the teutonic marshal Conrad the younger leads a particularly devastating raid that penetrates regions previously untouched by the Christians meanwhile the order is having success in other ways as well pseudo vien chieftains unable to endure the orders raids are surrendering one after another however the order is turning these chieftains into allies by granting them Lordships and feudal rights in their territories skoo man finds himself running out of allies in 1281 the Teutonic Master of Prussia mongold von Sternberg leads an attack against humans home fortress slaying the inhabitants increasingly the Knights are capable of capturing any pagan fourth they wish during this period a young brother Knight by the name of Lewis Vaughan live and zel is captured by schooland and lives to tell the tale his account of his experience as commands prisoner provides incredible insight into life among the pseudo viens when Lewis fell into the hands of the foe he was brought in bonds to school on and told that he had been selected to fight against an opponent equal to him skooma meant this to be humorous and kept Lewis near him one day it happened that scheming went to where the noble pseudo viens assembled as was the custom and took Lewis with him in a friendly way even though he was a prisoner and in the drinking there arose such a quarrel that a mighty noble a pseudo vien angered Lewis with his sharp words that he was using in an insulting and threatening way so Lewis spoke to scheming did you bring me here with the intention of having him used such evil words so he can insult me and threaten me and scheming said you shall see that I am sorry that he is bothering you and if you have the courage to revenge you're wrong I will stand by you no matter what and when he heard this Lewis pulled out his sword and anger and cut down that pseudo vien in front of them all so that he died later Lewis was cut free from his bonds by a youth who was a member of schoo man's retinue and led away to the brothers in 1282 the Teutonic order receives aid from the poles when the Polish Prince lesyk the black leads an enormous army into Sedova and Lithuania over the course of weeks he crushes two pagan armies in battle the next year 1283 when the Teutonic Knights invade pseudo via they encounter little resistance luis von liebenzell arranges for the peaceful surrender of around 1600 pseudo viens who had befriended him these people are resettled in the West given new lands in the Teutonic state even schooland now an aging tired veteran surrenders the order forgives c'mon for its past rebellions granting him lands near Balga where he dies peacefully a few years later although an enemy command is admired by the Teutonic Knights as a worthy adversary the Teutonic chroniclers passed down remarkably positive accounts of his life and deeds [Music] slowly Sidewinder

Channel: Real Crusades History

Views: 815,926

Keywords: crusades, medieval, crusades history, crusades documentary, middle ages, teutonic knights, teutonic knights history, teutonic knights documentary, northern crusades, northern crusades history, northern crusades documentary

Id: u5WXf0iId8k

Length: 57min 59sec (3479 seconds)

Published: Wed Feb 12 2020