Bertold Brühaven (), also known as Berthold von Brühaven or Berthold von Bruehaven, was a

Teutonic knight The Teutonic Order is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem was formed to aid Christians on their pilgrimages to t ...

hailed from the then

Duchy of Austria The Duchy of Austria (; ) was a medieval principality of the Holy Roman Empire, established in 1156 by the '' Privilegium Minus'', when the Margraviate of Austria ('' Ostarrîchi'') was detached from Bavaria and elevated to a duchy in its own ri ...

; served in

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

as the

Komtur Commander (; ; ; ; ), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders. The title of Commander occurred in the medieval military orders, such as the Knights Hospitaller, for a member senior to a Knight. ...

Balga Balga (; ; ; ) was a medieval castle of the Teutonic Knights in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia. The castle ruins are located on the shore of the Vistula Lagoon, north of Mamonovo in the Pogranichny municipality of Bagrationovsky District, about so ...

in 1288–1289, the first Komtur of

Ragnit Neman (; ; ), is a town and the administrative center of Nemansky District in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located in the historic region of Lithuania Minor, on the steep southern bank of the Neman River, where it forms the Russian border with ...

in 1289, then the Komtur of

Königsberg Königsberg (; ; ; ; ; ; , ) is the historic Germany, German and Prussian name of the city now called Kaliningrad, Russia. The city was founded in 1255 on the site of the small Old Prussians, Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teuton ...

in from 1289 to 1302. Bertold Brühaven's military career is emphasized in two versions of ''The Chronicle of the Prussian Land'' by

Peter of Dusburg Peter of Dusburg (; ; died after 1326), also known as Peter of Duisburg, was a Priest-Brother and chronicler of the Teutonic Knights. He is known for writing the ''Chronicon terrae Prussiae'', which described the 13th and early 14th century Teutonic ...

and

Nikolaus von Jeroschin Nikolaus von Jeroschin (c. 1290 – 1341) was a 14th-century German chronicler of the Teutonic Knights in Prussia. Nikolaus joined the Teutonic Order as a chaplain of the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights, during the time of Grand Master Gottf ...

. In 1291, as the Komtur of Königsberg, Bertold Brühaven organized and fulfilled a successful raid against the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

in the region of Junigeda, which is described by Peter of Dusburg and Nikolaus von Jeroschin in their chronicles:

In the year of our Lord 1291 on the Day of our Lady known as Candlemas,
Brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...
Bertold Brühaven, that ever reliable warrior for God, took 1,500
brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...
and armed men and set off with them into
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
.... reached the area called Junigeda, which he attacked ferociously, burning and looting it and also killing or taking prisoner approximately 700 heathen men and women.

Later that year, at the head of 1,000 men he raided the same area again to storm the castle of the same name. The storm was repulsed by the Lithuanians, and then Bertold Brühaven changed the direction of the attack: his army stormed and captured the castle of Medraba. As Peter of Dusburg and Nikolaus von Jeroschin report,

... went to the castle at Medraba ... and stormed it relentlessly until he captured it from the control of the enemy, killing or taking prisoner everyone he found there. Having achieved this he burned down the castle and returned home.

In 1298, during a rivalry with the Archbishops of Riga for mastery in

Livonia Livonia, known in earlier records as Livland, is a historical region on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the Livonians, who lived on the shores of present-day Latvia. By the end of the 13th century, the name was extende ...

, Bertold Brühaven was sent at the head of a large force to assist the Livonian branch of the

Order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...

. As Peter of Dusburg and Nikolaus von Jeroschin report,

Grand Master
Gottfried von Hohenlohe Gottfried von Hohenlohe (19 November 1310) was a German nobleman who served as the 14th Grand Master of the Teutonic Order from 1297 until his resignation in 1303. Hohenlohe was born to Kraft von Hohenlohe and Willeborg von Wertheim and hailed f ...
... heard what difficulties the arrogant Rigans were inflicting on the
brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...
, he sent Brühaven with a big force of
brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...
and armed men to Livonia to help and protect the
brothers A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingl ...
.... When Brühaven had arrived from Prussia with his army he joined all the
Livonians The Livonians, or Livs, are a Balto-Finnic people indigenous to the Livonian Coast, in northwestern Latvia. Livonians historically spoke Livonian language, Livonian, a Uralic language closely related to Estonian language, Estonian and Finnish lan ...
with their arms and together they turned against the people, besieging Neuermühlen on the feast day of the Apostles St Peter and St Paul and beginning a ferocious battle which saved Neuermühlen from further harm and created many widows in the town of Riga.... e brothers hacked at and killed ... more than 4,000 besides those who barely escaped with serious wounds.

Being the Komtur of Königsberg, Bertold Brühaven was wondering if he could to keep the vow of

Clerical celibacy Clerical celibacy is the requirement in certain religions that some or all members of the clergy be unmarried. Clerical celibacy also requires abstention from deliberately indulging in sexual thoughts and behavior outside of marriage, because thes ...

he took when he joined the

. Hence, he decided to test himself. As the abovementioned chronicles both by Peter of Dusburg and Nikolaus von Jeroschin go,

After long consideration, he decided that poverty and obedience were tolerable, but
chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains from sexual activity that is considered immoral or from any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for exampl ...
terrified him, because no-one can ever live chastely unless God makes it possible. He decided to find out in advance whether he would be capable of withstanding this way of life; he tried an amazing experiment with temptation. He chose a gentle, well brought-up young girl, whose beauty was unequalled in that region, and he lay naked in bed with her virtually every night. This went on for a full year and yet, as the girl later swore on oath, and as was proved by the physical signs of her virginity, he had not deflowered her or ever treated her immodestly, but had left her as he found her. These events are wonderful and miraculous. God gave
Samson SAMSON (Software for Adaptive Modeling and Simulation Of Nanosystems) is a computer software platform for molecular design being developed bOneAngstromand previously by the NANO-D group at the French Institute for Research in Computer Science an ...
great strength,
King David David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Damas ...
holiness,
Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...
wisdom, but that was not enough to save them in their day: they were defeated by feminine wiles which made them do evil and laid them low. This brother, however, freely sought out the company of a woman and yet abstained from sinful contact with her. For this reason, if I dared, I would say that he was holier than David, much stronger than Samson and much wiser than Solomon in his conduct and worthy of great praise.''The Chronicle of Prussia''
by
Nikolaus von Jeroschin Nikolaus von Jeroschin (c. 1290 – 1341) was a 14th-century German chronicler of the Teutonic Knights in Prussia. Nikolaus joined the Teutonic Order as a chaplain of the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights, during the time of Grand Master Gottf ...
, Lines 19,018–103; III, 236

Notes

External links

''A History of the Teutonic Knights in Prussia 1190-1331: The Kronike Von Pruzinlant''
by

''The Chronicle of Prussia''
by

''Chronicon terrae Prussiae''
by

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bertold Bruhaven Teutonic Knights Medieval German knights Date of birth unknown

See also

Notes

External links