This book provides a concise and incisive introduction to the Teutonic Knights, or Teutonic Order, the last of the great military orders established in the twelfth century. Evolving into a powerful religious institution, the Knights left a profound and enduring legacy. Aleksander Pluskowski traces the Order's journey from a field hospital outside the walls of Acre during the Third Crusade to its remarkable rise as a major territorial ruler and power in northeastern Europe. He charts the three centuries of theocratic rule by this remarkable religious corporation and examines the Order's notable accomplishments, as well as its failures. From constructing distinctive fortified convents, including the largest castle in Western Christendom as its headquarters, to the Order's decline in the fifteenth century due to a devastating war with Poland-Lithuania and the secularization of its Prussian and Livonian branches during the Reformation, The Teutonic Knights is a compelling look at a pivotal force in European history.

About the Author
Aleksander Pluskowski is professor of medieval archaeology at the University of Reading. His publications include The Archaeology of the Prussian Crusade: Holy War and Colonisation.

Reviews
"Pluskowski has pulled off a remarkable feat. Combining up-to-date international scholarship, detailed narrative and shrewd assessment of complex evidence with close analysis of the full range of economic, political, environmental, ideological, artistic and architectural contexts, his succinct account of the Teutonic Order provides a comprehensive new standard reference."-- "Christopher Tyerman, University of Oxford"



Book Information
ISBN 9781789148688
Author Aleksander Pluskowski
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Reaktion Books
Publisher Reaktion Books