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The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the
Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...
, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the
Livonian Confederation Terra Mariana (Medieval Latin for "Land of Mary") was the official name for Medieval Livonia or Old Livonia ( nds, Oolt-Livland, liv, Jemā-Līvõmō, et, Vana-Liivimaa, lv, Livonija). It was formed in the aftermath of the Livonian Crusade ...
.


History

The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after their defeat by Samogitians in 1236 at the Battle of Schaulen (Saule). They were incorporated into the Teutonic Knights and became known as the Livonian Order in 1237. In the summer of that year, the Master of Prussia
Hermann Balk Hermann Balk (died March 5, 1239, Würzburg), also known as Hermann von Balk or Hermann Balke, was a Knight-Brother of the Teutonic Order and its first '' Landmeister'', or Provincial Master, in both Prussia and Livonia. From 1219 to 1227, he s ...
rode into Riga to install his men as castle commanders and administrators of Livonia. In 1238, the Teutonic Knights of Livonia signed the Treaty of Stensby with the
Kingdom of Denmark The Danish Realm ( da, Danmarks Rige; fo, Danmarkar Ríki; kl, Danmarkip Naalagaaffik), officially the Kingdom of Denmark (; ; ), is a sovereign state located in Northern Europe and Northern North America. It consists of metropolitan Denma ...
. Under this agreement, Denmark would support the expansion ambitions of the order in exchange for northern maritime
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...
. In 1242, the Livonian Order tried to take the city of
Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ...
. However, they were defeated by
Alexander Nevsky Alexander Yaroslavich Nevsky (russian: Александр Ярославич Невский; ; 13 May 1221 – 14 November 1263) served as Prince of Novgorod (1236–40, 1241–56 and 1258–1259), Grand Prince of Kiev (1236–52) and Gran ...
in the Battle on the Ice. Fortresses as Paide in land ceded by Denmark in the Treaty of Stensby allowed the order to contain the threat of Russian troops. For that reason, the order focused on its southern borders and Semigallia. Semigallia was a strategic territory for the Livonian Order. Lithuanians passed through Semigallia to raid settlements in Livonia, and they took advantage of the winter ice pack in the Gulf of Riga to reach Oesel Island. Also, this territory kept the Livonian Branch of the Teutonic Order separated from the Prussian Branch. Between 1237 and 1290, the Livonian Order conquered all of
Courland Courland (; lv, Kurzeme; liv, Kurāmō; German and Scandinavian languages: ''Kurland''; la, Curonia/; russian: Курляндия; Estonian: ''Kuramaa''; lt, Kuršas; pl, Kurlandia) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia ...
, Livonia, and Semigallia. In 1298, Lithuanians took Karkus Castle north of Riga, and defeated the order in the Battle of Turaida, killing Livonian Land Master Bruno and 22 knights. In 1346, the order bought the Duchy of Estonia from King
Valdemar IV of Denmark Valdemar IV Atterdag (the epithet meaning "Return of the Day"), or Waldemar (132024 October 1375) was King of Denmark from 1340 to 1375. He is mostly known for his reunion of Denmark after the bankruptcy and mortgaging of the country to finance ...
. Life within the order's territory is described in the '' Chronicle of Balthasar Russow'' (''Chronica der Provinz Lyfflandt''). The Teutonic Order fell into decline following its defeat in the
Battle of Grunwald The Battle of Grunwald, Battle of Žalgiris or First Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410 during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respec ...
in 1410 and the secularization of its Prussian territories by
Albert of Brandenburg Cardinal Albert of Brandenburg (german: Albrecht von Brandenburg; 28 June 149024 September 1545) was a German cardinal, elector, Archbishop of Mainz from 1514 to 1545, and Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1513 to 1545. Biography Early career ...
in 1525, while the Livonian Order managed to maintain an independent existence. The Livonian Order's defeat in the Battle of Święta (Wiłkomierz) on September 1, 1435, which claimed the lives of the master and several high-ranking knights, brought the order closer to its neighbors in Livonia. The
Livonian Confederation Terra Mariana (Medieval Latin for "Land of Mary") was the official name for Medieval Livonia or Old Livonia ( nds, Oolt-Livland, liv, Jemā-Līvõmō, et, Vana-Liivimaa, lv, Livonija). It was formed in the aftermath of the Livonian Crusade ...
agreement (''eiine fruntliche eyntracht'') was signed in
Walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ' inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ...
on December 4, 1435, by the Archbishop of Riga, the bishops of Courland, Dorpat, Ösel-Wiek and Reval; the representatives of the Livonian Order and vassals, and the deputies of Riga, Reval and Dorpat city municipal councils. During the Livonian War, however, the order suffered a decisive defeat by troops of Muscovite Russia in the
Battle of Ergeme The Battle of Ērģeme (also Battle of Ermes) ( et, Härgmäe lahing; german: Schlacht bei Ermes; russian: italic=yes, сражение при Эрмесе; lv, Ērģemes kauja) was fought on 2 August 1560 in present-day Latvia (near Valga) a ...
in 1560. The Livonian Order then sought protection from Sigismund II Augustus,
King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16th ...
and
Grand Duke of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power— Ho ...
, who had intervened in a war between Bishop William of Riga and the Brothers in 1557. After coming to an
agreement Agreement may refer to: Agreements between people and organizations * Gentlemen's agreement, not enforceable by law * Trade agreement, between countries * Consensus, a decision-making process * Contract, enforceable in a court of law ** Meeting ...
with Sigismund II, Augustus and his representatives (especially
Mikołaj "the Black" Radziwiłł Mikołaj Krzysztof Radziwiłł (4 February 1515 – 28 May 1565), nicknamed ''The Black'' (Polish: ''Czarny''), was a Polish- Lithuanian noble who held several administrative positions within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania: Voivode of Vilnius, ...
), the last Livonian Master,
Gotthard Kettler Gotthard Kettler, Duke of Courland (also ''Godert'', ''Ketteler'', german: Gotthard Kettler, Herzog von Kurland; 2 February 1517 – 17 May 1587) was the last Master of the Livonian Order and the first Duke of Courland and Semigallia. Biography K ...
, secularized the order and converted to
Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
. In the southern part of the Brothers' lands he created the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia for his family. Most of the remaining lands were seized by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The north of Estonia was taken back by
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...
and
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...
. From the 14th to the 16th centuries,
Middle Low German Middle Low German or Middle Saxon (autonym: ''Sassisch'', i.e. " Saxon", Standard High German: ', Modern Dutch: ') is a developmental stage of Low German. It developed from the Old Saxon language in the Middle Ages and has been documented i ...
as spoken in the towns of the
Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label= Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...
was the established language, but was subsequently succeeded by High German as official language in the course of the 16th and 17th centuries.


Masters of the Livonian Order

The Livonian Master, like the grandmaster of the Teutonic Order, was elected by his fellow knights for a life term. The grandmaster exercised supervisory powers and his advice was considered equal to a command. The grandmaster of Teutonic knights did not limit local autonomy, he rarely visited Livonia or sent ambassadors for oversight.
Hermann Balk Hermann Balk (died March 5, 1239, Würzburg), also known as Hermann von Balk or Hermann Balke, was a Knight-Brother of the Teutonic Order and its first '' Landmeister'', or Provincial Master, in both Prussia and Livonia. From 1219 to 1227, he s ...
1237–1238
Dietrich von Grüningen Dietrich von Grüningen (or ''von Groeningen'') (* around 1210, † 3 September 1259) was a Knights Templar, Landmeister in Livonia and Landmeister of Prussia and Deutschmeister of the Teutonic Order. One of the most outstanding figures of the Teu ...
1238–1242
Dietrich von Grüningen Dietrich von Grüningen (or ''von Groeningen'') (* around 1210, † 3 September 1259) was a Knights Templar, Landmeister in Livonia and Landmeister of Prussia and Deutschmeister of the Teutonic Order. One of the most outstanding figures of the Teu ...
1244–1246
Andreas von Stierland Andreas ( el, Ἀνδρέας) is a name usually given to males in Austria, Greece, Cyprus, Denmark, Armenia, Estonia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Finland, Flanders, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Romania, the Netherlands, and Indonesia. The ...
1248–1253
Anno von Sangershausen Anno von Sangerhausen (died 8 July 1273) served as the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order from 1256 to 1273. Sangerhausen originated from near Eisleben in Thuringia. His relatives were the vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarde ...
1253–1256
Burchard von Hornhausen Burkhard von Hornhausen (* before 1252; † July 13 1260 in the Battle of Durbe) was from 1257 to 1260 Landmeister in Livonia of the Teutonic Order. He was the first commander and directed the construction of the Königsberg Castle.Walter James ...
1256–1260
Werner von Breithausen Werner may refer to: People * Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name Fictional characters * Werner (comics), a German comic book character * Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Ra ...
1261–1263
Konrad von Mandern Konrad is a German (with variants ''Kunz'' and ''Kunze'') given name and surname that means "bold counselor" and may refer to: People Given name Surname *Alexander Konrad (1890–1940), Russian explorer *Antoine Konrad (born 1975), birth name o ...
1263–1266
Otto von Lutterberg 1266–1270
Walther von Nortecken Walther is a masculine given name and a surname. It is a German form of Walter, which is derived from the Old High German ''Walthari'', containing the elements ''wald'' -"power", "brightness" or "forest" and ''hari'' -"warrior". The name was fi ...
1270–1273
Ernst von Rassburg 1273–1279
Konrad von Feuchtwangen 1279–1281
Wilken von Endorp Wilken is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Aud Wilken (born 1965), Danish singer * Charles Wilken (1866–1956), Danish actor * Claudia Ann Wilken (born 1949), United States federal judge * Dorothy Wilken, American politic ...
1281–1287
Konrad von Herzogenstein Konrad is a German (with variants ''Kunz'' and ''Kunze'') given name and surname that means "bold counselor" and may refer to: People Given name Surname *Alexander Konrad (1890–1940), Russian explorer *Antoine Konrad (born 1975), birth name o ...
1288–1290
Halt von Hohembach Halt may refer to: * Halt (railway), a small railway station * HLT (x86 instruction), aka "HALT" * Highly accelerated life test, a product stress testing methodology * ''The Halt'', a 2019 film * Charles I. Halt (born 1939), United States Air F ...
 –1293
Heinrich von Dinkelaghe Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...
1295–1296
Bruno 1296–1298
Gottfried von Rogga Gottfried is a masculine German given name. It is derived from the Old High German name , recorded since the 7th century. The name is composed of the elements (conflated from the etyma for 'God' and 'good', and possibly further conflated with ) a ...
1298–1307
Gerhard van Joeck Gerhard is a name of Germanic origin and may refer to: Given name * Gerhard (bishop of Passau) (fl. 932–946), German prelate * Gerhard III, Count of Holstein-Rendsburg (1292–1340), German prince, regent of Denmark * Gerhard Barkhorn (1919–1 ...
1309–1322
Johannes Ungenade Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as " John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, ''Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' ...
1322–1324
Reimar Hane 1324–1328
Everhard von Monheim Everhard is both a surname and a masculine given name, a variant of Eberhard. People with the name include: Surname: * Erik Everhard (1976), stage name of Mitchell Hartwell, a Canadian pornographic actor and director *Nancy Everhard (1957), America ...
1328–1340
Burchard von Dreileben 1340–1345
Goswin von Hercke Goswin is a Germanic male given name originally meaning "friend (''win'') of the Goths (''gos'')"Goswijn
1345–1359
Arnold von Vietinghof Arnold may refer to: People * Arnold (given name), a masculine given name * Arnold (surname), a German and English surname Places Australia * Arnold, Victoria, a small town in the Australian state of Victoria Canada * Arnold, Nova Scotia Un ...
1359–1364
Wilhelm von Vrymersheim Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Mo ...
1364–1385
Robin von Eltz Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') **Bush-robin **Forest ro ...
1385–1389
Wennemar Hasenkamp von Brüggeneye 1389–1401
Konrad von Vietinghof Konrad is a German (with variants ''Kunz'' and ''Kunze'') given name and surname that means "bold counselor" and may refer to: People Given name Surname *Alexander Konrad (1890–1940), Russian explorer *Antoine Konrad (born 1975), birth name o ...
1401–1413
Diderick Tork 1413–1415
Siegfried Lander von Spanheim Siegfried is a German-language male given name, composed from the Germanic elements ''sig'' "victory" and ''frithu'' "protection, peace". The German name has the Old Norse cognate ''Sigfriðr, Sigfrøðr'', which gives rise to Swedish ''Sigfrid ...
1415–1424
Zisse von Rutenberg 1424–1433
Franco Kerskorff Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" Prefix * Franco, a prefix used when ref ...
1433–1435
Heinrich von Bockenvorde Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...
1435–1437
Heinrich Vinke von Overbergen Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of p ...
1438–1450
Johann Osthoff von Mengede Johann von Mengede (also Johann von Mengden, called Osthof) (c. 1400 — 15 August 1469) was a knight of the Teutonic Knights. Most notably, from 1442 to 1450, he was Komtur of Reval and then from 1450 to 1469 a Master (''Landmiester'') of the Liv ...
1450–1469
Johann Wolthuss von Herse Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning " Yahweh is Graciou ...
1470–1471
Bernd von der Borch Bernd is a Low German short form of the given name Bernhard (English Bernard). List of persons with given name Bernd The following people share the name Bernd. * Bernd Brückler (born 1981), Austrian hockey player *Bernd Eichinger (1949–2011), ...
1471–1483
Johann Freytag von Loringhoven Johann Freitag von Loringhoven (c. 1430 - 26 May 1494), also known as Johann Freytag von Loringhoven, and Johann Fridach van Loringhoffe, was a knight of the Teutonic Knights and a member of the Freytag von Loringhoven family. Most notably, from ...
1483–1494
Wolter von Plettenberg Wolter (or Walter) von Plettenberg (c. 1450 – February 28, 1535) was the Master (''Landmeister'') of the Livonian Order from 1494 to 1535 and one of the greatest leaders of the Teutonic knights. He was an important early Baltic German. ...
1494–1535
Hermann Hasenkamp von Brüggeneye Hermann or Herrmann may refer to: * Hermann (name), list of people with this name * Arminius, chieftain of the Germanic Cherusci tribe in the 1st century, known as Hermann in the German language * Éditions Hermann, French publisher * Hermann, M ...
1535–1549
Johann von der Recke Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious ...
1549–1551
Heinrich von Galen Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...
1551–1557
Johann Wilhelm von Fürstenberg Johann, typically a male given name, is the German language, German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin language, Latin form of the Greek language, Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew language, Hebrew name ''Johanan (name ...
1557–1559
Godert (Gotthard) Kettler 1559–1561


Commanderies of the Livonian Order

Across modern territory of
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...
and
Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...


Estonia

* Komturei Reval *Komturei Pernau *Komturei Jerwen *Komturei
Fellin Viljandi (, german: Fellin, sv, Fellin) is a town and municipality in southern Estonia with a population of 17,407 in 2019. It is the capital of Viljandi County and is geographically located between two major Estonian cities, Pärnu and Tartu ...
*Komturei Talkhof


Latvia

*Komturei Marienburg *Landmarschall
Segewold Sigulda (; german: Segewold, pl, Zygwold, russian: Сигулда) is a town in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, from the capital city Riga. Overview Sigulda is on a picturesque stretch of the primeval Gauja river valley. Because of the reddish D ...
*Ordensmeister (Komturei) Dünamünde *Komturei
Ascheraden Aizkraukle (german: Ascheraden) is a town in Vidzeme region in Latvia, the administrative centre of Aizkraukle Municipality on the right bank of the Daugava River. The population in 2020 was 7,018. History In the second half of the 14th century ...
*Komturei Dünaburg *Komturei
Bauske Bauska () is a town in Bauska Municipality, in the Zemgale region of southern Latvia. Bauska is located from the Latvian capital Riga, 62 km (38.5 mi) from Jelgava and from the Lithuanian border on the busy European route E67. ...
*Komturei
Mitau Jelgava (; german: Mitau, ; see also other names) is a state city in central Latvia about southwest of Riga with 55,972 inhabitants (2019). It is the largest town in the region of Zemgale (Semigalia). Jelgava was the capital of the united D ...
*Komturei
Doblen Dobele (; german: Doblen) is a town in the cultural region Zemgale in Latvia, and is located near the center of Latvia on the banks of the river Bērze. It received town rights in 1917 whilst being a part of the German occupied Courland Gover ...
*Komturei
Goldingen Goldingen is a former municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. On 1 January 2013 the former municipalities of Goldingen and St. Gallenkappel merged into the municipality of Esc ...
*Komturei Windau


References

{{Authority control Livonian Confederation Livonian Crusade State of the Teutonic Order Northern Crusades 1237 establishments in Europe Establishments in the State of the Teutonic Order 13th-century establishments in Europe 1561 disestablishments in Europe 1560s disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire