Terra Mariana (Medieval Latin for 'Land of Mary') was the formal name[1] for Medieval Livonia or Old Livonia.[b][4] It was formed in the aftermath of the Livonian Crusade, and its territories were composed of present-day Estonia and Latvia. It was established on 2 February 1207,[5] as a principality of the Holy Roman Empire,[6] and lost this status in 1215 when Pope Innocent III proclaimed it as directly subject to the Holy See.[7]
Throughout the existence of medieval Livonia there was a constant struggle over supremacy, between the lands ruled by the Church, the Order, the secular German nobility, and the citizens of the Hanseatic towns of Riga and Reval. Following its defeat in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, the Teutonic Order and the State of the Teutonic Order fell into decline, but the Livonian Order managed to maintain its independent existence.
This crusade differed from many other crusades because, in this case, the Pope allowed people intending to go on a crusade to the Holy Land to go instead to crusade in Livonia. Members of this crusade were made to wear the insignia of the cross as well, which showed that they were legally bound to the crusade.[13]
After the success of the crusade, the German- and Danish-occupied territory was divided into feudal principalities by William of Modena.[14]
Medieval Livonia was intermittently ruled first by the Brothers of the Sword, since 1237 by the semi-autonomous branch of Teutonic knights called Livonian Order and the Roman Catholic Church. By the mid 14th century, after buying the Duchy of Estonia from Christopher II, the Livonian Order controlled about 67,000 square kilometers of the Old Livonia and the Church about 41,000 km2 (16,000 sq mi). The lands of the Order were divided into about 40 districts governed by a Vogt. The largest ecclesiastical state was the Archbishopric of Riga (18,000 km2, 6,900 sq mi) followed by the Bishopric of Courland (4,500 km2, 1,700 sq mi), Bishopric of Dorpat, and Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek. The nominal head of Terra Mariana as well as the city of Riga was the Archbishop of Riga as the apex of the ecclesiastical hierarchy.[15]
In 1240, Valdemar II created the Bishopric of Reval in the Duchy of Estonia by reserving (contrary to canon law) the right to appoint the bishops of Reval to himself and his successor kings of Denmark. The decision to simply nominate to the See of Reval was unique in the whole Catholic Church at the time and was disputed by bishops and the Pope. During this era, the election of bishops was never established in Reval, and the royal rights to the bishopric and to nominate the bishops were even included in the treaty when the territories were sold to the Teutonic Order in 1346.[16]
Livonian civil wars
Throughout the existence of medieval Livonia there was a constant struggle for superiority in the rule over the lands by the Church, the order, the secular nobles of German descent who ruled the fiefs and the citizens of the Hanseatic town of Riga. Two major civil wars were fought in 1296–1330, 1313–1330, and in 1343–1345 the Estonian revolt resulted in the annexation of the Danish Duchy of Estonia within the Teutonic Ordensstaat.[17]
The most important ally of the Livonian Order was the German nobility in the Danish Duchy of Estonia.[17] In the beginning of the 14th century Denmark was no longer a powerful state and the local German nobility had effectively become the rulers of the territory. After the Estonians of Harju started a rebellion in 1343 (St. George's Night Uprising) the Teutonic order occupied the territories. The overthrow of Danish rule came two days after the Order had defeated the Estonian revolt. The Danish viceroy was imprisoned in cooperation with the pro-German vassals. The castles in Reval and Wesenberg were handed over to the Order by the German nobility party on 16 May 1343 and the castle at Narva in 1345. In 1346, the Estonian territories (Harria and Vironia) were sold by the king of Denmark for 19,000 Köln marks to the Teutonic Order. The shift of sovereignty from Denmark to the Teutonic Order took place on 1 November 1346.[18]
Livonian Confederation
The Teutonic Order fell into decline after Poland and Lithuania defeated it in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. The Livonian Order managed to maintain an independent existence, as it did not participate in the battle and suffered no casualties, having obtained a truce with Grand Duke Vytautas.[19]
Conflict commonly occurred between the Order, the bishops, and the powerful Hanseatic cities throughout the existence of medieval Livonia. To solve internal disputes, the Livonian Diet or Landtag gathered in 1419[23][24] at the initiative of Archbishop Ambundii. The city of Walk was chosen as the site of the Diet. The Diet comprised members of the Livonian Order, Livonian Bishops, vassals and city representatives.[23]
On 1 September 1435 the Livonian Order's defeat in the Battle of Wiłkomierz, claiming the lives of the Master and several high-ranking knights, brought the order closer to its Livonian neighbours. The Livonian confederation agreement (eiine fruntliche eyntracht) was signed in Walk on 4 December 1435, by the archbishop of Riga, the bishops of Courland, Dorpat, Ösel-Wiek and Reval; the representatives of the Livonian Order and vassals, and the deputies of Riga, Reval and Dorpat city municipal councils.[25]
"Sicut", inquit, "pater sancte, terram sanctam Ierosolimitanum, que est terra filii, sanctitatis tue studio fovere non desinis, sic Lyvoniam, que est terra matris, [...] derelinquere non debes." "Holy Father", he said, "as you have not ceased to cherish the Holy Land of Jerusalem, the country of the Son, [...] so also you ought not to abandon Livonia, the land of the Mother [...][30]
^Referred to by historians as Medieval Livonia[2] or Old Livonia.[3] to distinguish it from the rump-Livonia (Duchy of Livonia) and the Livonian Governorate that was formed from part of its territories after its breakup.
References
^ ab"Terra Mariana". The Encyclopedia Americana. Americana Corp. 1967.
^O'Connor, Kevin (2005). "Religion". Culture and customs of the Baltic states. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 35. ISBN0-313-33125-1.
^ abcBrundage, James. Thirteenth-Century Livonian Crusade: Henricus De Lettis and the First Legatine Mission of Bishop William of Modena. Franz Steiner Verlag. pp. 1–9
^
Jensen, Carsten Selch (2009). "8: How to Convert a Landscape: Henry of Livonia and the Chronicon Livoniae". In Murray, Alan V. (ed.). The Clash of Cultures on the Medieval Baltic Frontier. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 165. ISBN9780754664833. Retrieved 2017-07-12. 'Holy Father', he said, 'as you have not ceased to cherish the Holy Land of Jerusalem, the country of the Son, [...] so also you ought not to abandon Livonia, the land of the Mother [...]' [...] Sicut, inquit, 'pater sancte, terram sanctam Ierosolimitanum, que est terra filii, sanctitatis tue studio fovere non desinis, sic Lyvoniam, que est terra matris, [...] derelinquere non debes. [...]'