Norbert Klein (25 October 1866 in Brunzeif,

Austrian Silesia Austrian Silesia, officially the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, was an autonomous region of the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Habsburg monarchy (from 1804 the Austrian Empire, and from 1867 the Cisleithanian portion of Austria-Hungary). It is la ...

– 10 March 1933 in

Bruntál Bruntál (; ) is a town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 15,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban monument zon ...

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

) was

Bishop of Brno The Diocese of Brno () is a Latin diocese located in the city of Brno in the ecclesiastical province of Olomouc in the Czech Republic. History * 1296: A collegiate (latter the cathedral) chapter established in Brno * 1625: A collegiate chapt ...

from 1916 to 1926 and 59th Grand Master of the

Teutonic Order The Teutonic Order is a religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious institution founded as a military order (religious society), military society in Acre, Israel, Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Sa ...

from 1923 to 1933. St Andrew’s University website, ''Last Prussians'', document by Tomasz Kamusella
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Life

Klein began his theological studies in 1885 at

Olomouc Olomouc (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants, making it the Statutory city (Czech Republic), sixth largest city in the country. It is the administrative centre of the Olomouc Region. Located on the Morava (rive ...

. He continued for two years before entering the novitiate of the Teutonic Order in 1887. On 27 July 1890 he was ordained to the priesthood and in 1892 he made his solemn profession in the order. In 1903 he was named Prior of

Opava Opava (; , ) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Opava (river), Opava River. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia and was a historical capital of Czech Sile ...

. On 7 December 1916 he was appointed to be

. On 28 January 1917 he was ordained bishop. On 30 April 1923 he became the first clerical grand master of the Teutonic Order when

Archduke Eugen of Austria Archduke Eugen Ferdinand Pius Bernhard Felix Maria of Austria-Teschen (21 May 1863 – 30 December 1954) was an Archduke of Austria-Hungary, Austria and a Prince of Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary and Kingdom of Bohemia, Bohemia. He was the last Gra ...

resigned in order to ensure that the order retained its properties in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and

which were threatened with confiscation by the respective governments. On 4 January 1926 Klein resigned as Bishop of Brno and was named Titular Bishop of Syene. In 1929 Klein transformed the Order into a monastic order. Klein died on 10 March 1933, and is buried in

. After his death Paul Heider became grand master for three years; upon Heider's death, Klein’s nephew Robert Schälzky became grand master.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Klein, Norbert 1866 births 1933 deaths Grand masters of the Teutonic Order Roman Catholic bishops in Czechoslovakia People from Bruntál District People from Austrian Silesia Moravian-German people Clergy from Brno