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Teutonic Order Territories in Prussia

Type Object Region Baltic Sea Time c. 1226–1561

From the 13th century the Teutonic Order built a military-religious rule on the eastern Baltic coast;…

Timeline

  1. 1561Riga · RigaUnder pressure from the Livonian War, the last Livonian Grand Master Gotthard Kettler secularized the Order's territories, styling himself Duke of Courland and Semigallia and swearing allegiance to King Sigismund II of Poland, thus ending the Teutonic Order's territorial rule on the eastern Baltic coast.
  2. 1562–1565Mitau (Jelgava) · CourlandKettler established ducal administrative and military systems in Mitau, translating the former Order's castles, lands, and serfdom into a feudal ducal system; the Teutonic Order's castles and property in Livonia were gradually transferred or reorganized, with Order members either entering the new duchy's service or moving to the headquarters in Germany.
  3. 1566–1570Baden-Mergentheim · MergentheimThe Order's Grand Commander of Germany Heinrich von Rechberg maintained the convent headquarters' operations at Mergentheim; though the Baltic territories were lost, the Order continued to exist through its German fiefs and sought a voice in imperial politics regarding affairs of its former territories.

Sources