On February 4, 1454, members of the Prussian Union disobeyed the Teutonic Knights. In this way, the Thirteen Years' War began, which permanently changed the borders of Prussia and the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. One of the most important events in this conflict was the siege of Malbork which lasted for almost three years. The main seat of the order eventually remained in Polish hands, and the Teutonic administration moved to Królewiec.
In 1308, the Teutonic Knights took over Gdańsk and Gdańsk Pomerania. The Polish side tried unsuccessfully to regain the lost lands, but neither Władysław Łokietkowo, who practically allowed Pomerania nor his son, Kazimierz the Great, managed to do so. In the peace agreement with Kalisz of 1343, the last Piast on the Polish throne had to recognize himself as a donor of these areas to the Teutonic Order. Also, Władysław Jagiełło did not take advantage of the victory of the Battle of Grunwald of July 14, 1410, and after the great war of 1409-1411, Pomerania was still under the jurisdiction of German monks.
The growing conflict between the Teutonic Knights and the Prussian states led to the establishment in 1440 by the states of the Prussian Union - an organization gathering Prussian towns and states, directed against the order. Internal conflicts between the Teutonic Knights and the Prussian nobility began. With time, members of the Prussian Union began to consider an armed uprising against the Order's state. The actions intensified after the ruling of Emperor Frederick III, unfavorable to the Union, ordered the dissolution of the organization.
On February 4, 1454, the Prussian Union sent the Grand Master to Malbork to officially disobey. Two days later, an uprising broke out in Prussia - the Teutonic castles were attacked. The monks who did not expect an attack quickly surrendered most of the fortresses. Only the castle and the city of Malbork, the castle in Sztum, and the city of Chojnice remained in their hands. On March 6, 1454, at the request of the representatives of the Prussian Union, the king of Poland, Kazimierz Jagiellończyk, issued the act of incorporation of Prussia into Poland.
The act of incorporation formally dissolved the monastic state in Prussia. On April 15, the Prussian states swore an oath of allegiance to the Polish king, and the declaration of war was sent to Malbork, which was backdated for February 22. The Teutonic Knights used the resources of the order from the territories of the Reich and Livonia, as well as allied Denmark. Poland had stable support only from the Swedish king Karol Knutsson.
The first stage of the conflict lasted until 1461. An important role in this period was played by the mass uprising, which will also appear during the siege of Malbork. In 1454, the first attempt to conquer the capital of the order was made, which ended in failure. On September 18, the Battle of Chojnice took place, in which the Polish army, led by the nobility of Greater Poland, suffered a huge defeat.
The victorious Battle of Chojnice allowed the Teutonic Knights to regain the fortresses in Tczew and Gniew. The Order went on the offensive, and the international situation was not successful for the Prussian Union and Poland - the emperor banished the members of the Union, and the pope cursed the opponents of the Teutonic Order. However, the crisis also hit the law - the money ran out to pay for mercenary troops, brought mainly from the Reich and the Czech Republic.
In the spring of 1457, the unpaid Czech and German mercenaries began negotiations with Kazimierz Jagiellończyk regarding the sale of the fortresses they owned. Eventually, for a huge sum of 190,000 florins, Poland acquired Malbork, Tczew, and Iława. On June 8, the Polish king solemnly entered the Malbork Castle. Grand Master Ludwik von Erlichshausen had to transfer the entire state administration to Królewiec.
Already in August, the Teutonic Knights began another offensive. On September 28, the townspeople handed over the city of Malbork. The castle remained in Polish hands and was surrounded by enemy forces from then on. The Czech mercenary Ulryk Czerwonka was the commander-in-chief of the fortress, and in winter the king handed over this position to Ścibor of Poniec. In the meantime, the mass mobilization in Greater Poland temporarily blocked the supply of food supplies to the besiegers. However, when the main forces of the order, commanded by Bernard Szumborski, returned there, the Polish nobility did not stand a chance. In the spring of 1458, Kazimierz Jagiellończyk obtained permission to convene a mass uprising, which was to make another attempt to recapture Malbork. However, the expedition was organized too late, and the army was not well prepared and equipped. Discouraged by the lack of success, the knights returned home, and the king signed a truce in October, which was to last until July 1459.
The events of the following year also did not bring a breakthrough. After the end of the truce, Polish troops reappeared outside the city. The prolonged conflict discouraged the nobility from setting up a mass move to capture Malbork, which is why this time Kazimierz Jagiellończyk had an even smaller army than in the previous year. In November, the ceasefire was announced again, this time for a two-month period.
In 1460, the Polish army appeared at the former Teutonic capital much earlier, at the end of March. This time the activities were much better organized. The city was cut off from food supplies. Traffic on the Nogat was completely blocked, and the townspeople were even prevented from building nets. Ultimately, the city surrendered on August 5, 1460.
The first victim after regaining the city was its mayor, Bartłomiej Blume. Guilty of treason against the Polish ruler and giving the city over to the Teutonic Knights, he was sentenced to death.
The recovery of Malbork was a very important achievement, not only political. It also raised the morale of the Polish army, which significantly weakened during the three years of besieging the city. However, it did not matter for the offensive of the Teutonic army, which still posed a serious threat in Prussia. Withdrawal from Malbork allowed them to move their activities to the southern part of the Chełmno Land, where they soon began to threaten Toruń.
The military operations continued for six more years and ended with the signing of the peace treaty in Toruń on October 19, 1466. Under it, Royal Prussia remained within the borders of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. The Teutonic Order came under the authority of the Polish monarch, it could not conduct an independent foreign policy. Despite the significant advantage of the Polish side in the last stages of the conflict, the Second Peace of Toruń did not reflect this difference. For example, he did not define the exact dependence of the Teutonic Prussia on the Polish king, which could become the cause of another conflict in the future.
Bibliography:
- Bishop M., Labuda G., History of the Teutonic Order in Prussia. Economy-society-state-ideology, Wydawnictwo Morskie, Gdańsk 1988
- Biskup M., The Thirteen Years' War with the Teutonic Order 1454-1466, Napoleon V, Oświęcim 2014
- Militzer K., History of the Teutonic Order, WAM Publishing House, Krakow 2007
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