Seeing the History Guy cover a topic connected to my country really made my day. There is so much fascinating history in that general part of Europe, that often goes overlooked.
I’ve had the pleasure to visit Poland this summer. And you’re absolutely right about being overlooked. The Pomeranian region has so much to offer in terms of history! I’ve visited Malbork Castle, WW2 Museum Gdánsk, Blyskawica Museum and ofcourse the Old city of Gdánsk itself. Also have heard about the courageous stories of Westerplatte. For me it really was a fascinating trip and recommend the Pomeranian region for history buffs like us! I would love to visit Krakow and Wroclaw in the future to enjoy some more history! Greetings from the Netherlands! P.S. don’t get confused by my name, I am just a Dutchman with a Polish name ;)
Despite not living in Malbork or anywhere near it ............... I too am grateful for this fascinating video which gives an astonishing overview of a history of north central & eastern Europe I had no idea had happened.
An episode about the Victual Brothers would be great. They were a medieval pirate guild based on the Baltic island of Gotland and their history very much involves the Teutonic Knights.
@@Artur_M. cool read on them, also found interesting that Denmark had a queen ruler at the time. It seems to me at least so rare that a Germanic-type nation has a prominent female ruler besides later Britain.
@@loki2240 What about Piratical Knights? The Knights Hospitalier having lost their base in Rhodes and their other Aegean Islands, where granted sovereignty over Malta, but lacking for funds, they took to raiding Islamic ships in the Meditarean while similtaneously hunting down Islamic Pirates.
@@emm4rmstrong They were raiding Islamic ships and settlements out of Rhodes too.. One of the big reasons for the invasion of Rhodes. Cause they lost their base in Jerusalem, and went to Rhodes, and used piracy for funds there.
Why didn't my uni professor for Medieval European History talk about this? It seemed she never got out of France and England. She pretty much ignored Eastern Europe.
Believe me, you were lucky back then. I think medieval western Europe alone is crazy enough. Once you delve into the politics of the Holy Roman Empire and it's entanglements east and south, your head might explode :D
@@lamegoldfish6736 Well done and much respect! I attended lectures in medieval history when I was studying archaeology, but due to the specialisation of the prof we learned mainly about East-Falia, Thuringia and Lower-Saxony and central Europe at most. It was often incomprehensible without the greater political and socio-economical context. So I tried to learn outside as well but soon found out, what rabbit hole medieval, feudal politics and history was. So I stuck to prehistoric archaeology :D
@@jonmccormick6805 I mean, excluding the Roman Empire the majority of the western world is built on the backs of thinkers like Locke and Voltaire etc. There is a reason why Western Europe has kept its borders, they were way more centralized and in turn they have left a more noticeable mark on history in the west. That is not to say Eastern Europe is not fascinating but it is certainly a mess in terms of studying it.
Malbork is easily accessible by train and short Uber ride. The rail line between Gdansk and Warsaw runs right past the castle. The castle also houses a very good arms/armory museum and amber museum. We went in the off season, so only Polish guides were available, but they do have audio guides in many languages.
Interestingly, the rail line actually goes _through_ the castle, I have just found out. The whole land area of the castle is that big. You see it clearly that the northernmost ramparts of the lowest section of the castle are to be found north of the rail line, the rest of it being located to the south. This is not clear from the ground though, as these are lesser parts of the complex.
The castle's brick construction may have been a factor in its survival to the present, as stone castles tended to be used as quarries by the locals when they fell into disuse.
@@billd.iniowa2263 Its a huge reason that roman architecture doesnt exist in many places. The Colosseum and Parthenon were both quarried heavily, almost half of the structural stone was taken.
@@JarthenGreenmeadow alot of the stone taken from the colosseum built st Peter's basilica and the reason half of it remains is because that side faced a walkway priest liked to use and they liked the way it looked lol
@@ariochiv Best to thank Islam for the defacement of the Great Pyramids. Islam has an extensive history of doing the same to religious sites everywhere to put up its mosques.
@@WyomingTraveler There are many interesting places conected with the Teutonic Order in that region of Poland. I recommend you to google and see fotos of such places as Kwidzyn, Toruń, Chełmno, Gniew. The Templar Order knights lived in Chwarszczany, Czaplinek, Drahim, Oleśnica Mała and others.
Oh, I've been there twice already (I'm from Italy and my ex and my daughter are in Gdansk, a wonderful city nearby), let me see the history behind this huge castle :)
It is truly a magical castle. A long time ago (about 20 years) we were returning in the morning from a party, terribly dehydrated, when we saw a wonderful view. On the wall near the moat there was a bag with four cold cans of beer... :)
A little correction: Duke of the Lithuania, called later after taking Christianity the Polish-Tithuanian King Wladyslaw Jagiello, he marred the former Hungarian royal princess Jadwiga Andegawenska when she was holding her official status as a *KING of Poland.* Jadwiga Andegawenska, she was the youngest daughter of the Hungarian King .... . She - As a teenage, she finally came to Poland, and she started to govern Kingdom of Poland, with her official status as a *KING* (not Queen) *of POLAND* !!!!
Hello, Pookie and Pocky! There's a statue in Central Park, NYC, to King Wladyslaw II Jagiello, the Polsih-Lithuanian king who defeated the Teutonic knights at Battle of Grunwald. The history of the statue could be a THG topic all its own.
@@jimlogan5789 Some statues should be removed, especially when they represent tyranny and oppression. If you were one of the oppressed, can you imagine walking beneath one? Perhaps the murderer of a relative? Statues of Stalin and Hitler have no place, nor of slave traders in the English city of Bristol, or those in the US, traitors to the Constitution and who subjugated a portion of their own people (stolen from Africa) to slavery. These statues were built on feet of clay and belong in a museum, attesting to human arrogance, hubris and supposed superiority to others. The poem of Ozymandias comes to mind.
@@jimlogan5789 Well my opinion is that men who think slavery is OK are pure evil. Millions of innocent people died as a result of slavery, families forever torn apart, homes forever lost, lives destroyed, all for profit. Do you know anything about slavery? The conditions on the slave ships? You are sadly lacking in compassion and empathy. "Have the opportunity to live in this country"? Are you kidding? It's like saying the Holocaust was worth it because the Jews got to live in Israel. No mate, you just can't admit openly that you're a racist. Racism is pure evil. Statues honoring evil men who broke their oaths to the constitution have no place as memorials, perhaps only as a testament and warning to man's ignorance, lack of humanity and hate, somewhere in a museum.
@@jimlogan5789 No mate, don't give me that "I've served in the Military" BS. You know damn well there are lot's of racists in the US govt forces. Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staffs, Gen Mark Milley has addressed this very issue on many occasions. Homeland Security cites the greatest threat to the US is domestic terrorism, yes mainly from right wing organisations, including white supremacists, militias etc. most of them rascist and including members belonging to either past or present to the armed forces, law enforcement. This was borne out in the attempted Jan 6th insurrection, where these wicked fools broke their oaths to defend the constitution. Yes you are a racist, either through ignorance of your own country's history or willfully so. Your dishonest attempts to justify racism are transparent and odious. Playing a tiny violin and bleating on about your "military service" doesn't cut the mustard and veterans of yore would find your views abhorrent, especially those who fought against facism, you are a stain on their memory with your racist views. Statues of men who were part of a system which subjugated millions of innocent people to slavery, and it's vile consequences (including a civil war) playing out to this very day, have no place in our public squares and need to be torn down. I repeat again RACISM IS EVIL!
06:00 min - "The Teutonic state continued to fight against the pagan Lithuanian and Russians". This statement is not correct: Lithuania was officially Christianized in 1385 and there were no Russians at all, not even close. There were Eastern Slavs in the region (today's Belarusians) who were converted to Christianity in 988.
I meant that they did so throughout the fourteenth century while building the castle, although I see how that was unclear. Also The Teutons had plenty of issues with the Russians, and numerous times enacted blockades in the Baltic to prevent supplies from reaching Russia.
@@TheHistoryGuyChannel Thanks for your response. You are right: the Teutons had many issues with the Russians further to the north. I just thought that "Russians" in your sentence was synonymous with any Eastern Slavs (Belarusian, Ukrainian) which, of course, is not correct. There were no Russians closer to where today's Lithuania or northern Poland are.
@@TheHistoryGuyChannel I think the point is that there was no Russia during the medieval times. It was Rus' (also called Ruthenia) and included the Eastern Slavs (Belarusians, Ukrainians, Russians, known together as the Ruthenians back then) before they separated linguistically and nationally. In the Middle Ages there was the Kievan Rus' (882-1283), the period under the Mongol control (1223-1480) and Grand Duchy of Moscow (1283-1547) - whose inhabitants were Muscovites, not Russians. The first political entity to actually be called "Russian" was the Tsardom of Russia (1547-1721), starting with Ivan the Terrible. For this reason, the main branch of the Teutonic Knights couldn't have interacted with the Russians, given their dissolution with the Prussian Homage of 1525, which happened 22 years before the earliest time we can speak of Russia.
@@berlineczka Novgorod was the one dealing with the Livonian order/Teoutonic Knights I believe. ... That famous battle on the ice event was with Novgorodian troops I believe plus some allies.
North of Poland have lot of casels. Malbork is greatest but for example in Lidzbark and frombork had live Kopernik. Invite U one day to visit it. Regards from north Poland.
I’ve visited Malbork Castle! It’s very interesting. You can see where shells penetrated the walls and roof, those areas have a different color of red brick, and the roof tiles are a different color also.
It's worth mentioning that due to the location, the lack of natural resource to produce brick, and the time that castle was built it is very much possible that the castle had already stood there before the Teutons took the land. The research shows that the castle ruins were recovered by the Teutons and the existing materials were used to re-erect the castle.
I visited Malbork in 1979 when I was 13. The day we visited it we were the only people who visited it. I spent hours wandering around everywhere in the castle
I thought we were also going to hear about the fight on a frozen lakebed where the Teutonic Knights fell thru the surface :(. Where did that happen at?
On the Lake Peipus (on modern-day Estonian-Russian border) in 1242. It was a battle between the Livonian branch of the Order and the Novgorod forces led by Alexander Nevsky.
I enjoy your videos; but it is sometimes rather difficult to follow the locations of the things you talk about without a modern map to illustrate exactly where these things took place. And don’t just show the map, but point out the area that you’re talking about - have it highlighted. Maybe a half screen map, with the interesting pictures on the other side. It would also be nice if you would write the names of the places or people in the pictures correctly, as the closed captioning is frequently hysterically wrong. 😂 And always be sure closed captioning is available- because without it many people can’t follow you at all. I had to skip several videos that didn’t offer closed captioning. 😞 Thanks for the info! Vicki Lindsay < P.S. Your cats 🐈⬛ are beautiful. I want to pet them. 😍
I visited Malbork castle in July 2018. It definitely deserves a visit. It's a really impressive structure, with an interesting history. Greetings from Puerto Rico!!
The Tuxy is Pocky, who couldn’t decide if he wanted up or down, and apparently wanted both at the same time. The Caliby is his sister Strudel. Both are very fascinated with me filming.
I would appreciate, if you were to review the history of: "Van Ricktovin's Flying circus". My Great Great Grandfather flew with him in World War I. I believe my Great Great Grandfather flew either the Albatross or the fokker D7 !! But , most of my family records are spotty and missing. Mostly because of World War II !! Maybe, you can solve some of the problem by doing a review of Von Rictovin's flying Circus
@@thhseeking It's too bad that you got stuck on the spelling and not understanding the request !! I used automatic voice so, excuse the heck out of me !! I don't know why you have to sweat the small stuff. But my request is legitimate and so is my great great grandfather !!!!! " SO STUFF IT "
It is very difficult to keep track of who is whom in these fast moving, but otherwise excellent videos. Celts, Lombard, Gaul, Frank's, prussians, teutonic, Polish, German, barbarian....oy
In the region there are many castles from the same period as Malbork Castle, made from bricks. Same of them have been destroyed like in Gdańsk or Toruń, but still many of them exist and can be visited: Radzyń Chełmiński, Golub, Olsztyn. You can find the map and information about the castles in Internet. Number of them is really impressive.
You were really way too short about 1457 ... It is said those mercenaries were Czechs and their leader Oldřich Červonka sold Malbork and two other castles for 190.000 hungarian gold pieces a few smaller castles and a commission ... well, when you owe months of salary to an mercenary... "...you see what happens, Larry?!!" :-)))))
Quite informative video, considering it's only 12 mins long. However, it would make sense to explain that the native Prussians (Slavic tribes) were annihilated by the German Teutons, and later the Prussian Kingdom was "Prussian" only by the name (Slavic name). While many people consider Prussians to had been German, somebody who doesn't know the history of the region might get confused and think that those were the same people. Sometimes it's better to slow down and show the full picture.
Bohonk here, you mentioned Bohemian! I gonna celebrate 🍾🤪✨😎. I'm back. History dude you wanna hook me up on why grandpa, would get furious when people called him a Czech.? He was adamant that he was a Bohonk from Bohemia.
Amazing how little changes over the centuries. Looking at the teutonic knights invading a heathen country, looks like Vietnam, Afganistan, Grenada... As Robert Mitchum said at tne end of "the battle for Anzio", nothing changes, except the uniforms and transportation...
it is a nice presentation but didn't characterize the German-Polish relationship well. More needed to be said about the Brandenburg, Prussian, German-Polish relationship to get a better grasp on population and politics. Prussia became part of Brandenburg in the 1500s, not 1770. yet the polish king exercised some suzerainty until the 1600s.
AS ALWAYS THE HISTORY GUY, AN EXCELLENT VIDEO!! I, also, didn't know much about the Teutonic Knights except the name, and, didn't know how much they had to do with Polish history during the Middle Ages. ALSO, in the Comments section, I discovered the story the PIRATICAL KNIGHTS. WOW!!! To me, knights were always portrayed as rescuing damsels in distress, or, on some sort of quest or crusade. To NOW KNOW that there are knights who were pirates is FAR OUT MAN,🌞🌞🌞😄😄😄✌✌✌✌
The purpose of the Navy of the Order of St John was ostensibly to fight the Barbary pirates and police the Mediterranean. In practice this meant raiding Ottoman shipping- that is, there was little practical line between the order and the pirates they were fighting.
Wittorff = White village, a Low Saxon name, that would be "Weissdorf" in modern Standard German. Most likely it's referring to a place on white and poor sandy soil, which is quite common in northwestern Germany. Because of that, there are several towns and villages called Wittorf in Lower Saxony and Holstein. The two ff are an older spelling of the name.
My interests in WWII have me going back in time to strifes centuries old. Europe it seems was always in turmoil. never enough land for all those tribes. But there's something about Eastern Europe that is more than squabling. The attrocities committed in WWII Poland and the rest... why such deep hatered? I still dont understand.
Yeah, crusades did certainly not just go to the holy land. The Swedish king Magnus Ladulås had 3 crusades in Finland and 2 in Sweden. He claimed he ruled Småland and Värmland but he still had crusades there which is pretty odd, particularly since Småland is pretty central in the southern part of the country. There are plenty of other weird small crusades. The Teutonic order had "The battle of the ice" against Novgorod for instance and I am sure if you look around you can find many more. But to be fair does many of these "crusades" sound more like a reason to plunder and take some new land then made out of religious piety. Slapping the "crusade" label on it means you can get more people since everyone who went got their sins absolved.
So the castle is originally constructed by the German Teutonic's on German lands but it ultimately ends up in Poland under Polish governance touted as an important Polish Historical Monument. hmmm
Unsurprising. Former german territory in eastern europe are a bit of hot potatoe issue in Germany. Weirdly enough the teutonic Order was less of an issue in East Germany (albeit seen through a Russian lens).
@@Sofus. Berlin is a west slavic name, it means Swamp.. but it sounds close enough to "Ber" "Bear" in Germanic.. it works both ways! lol. .. just stirring the pot, since it's the subject of the post :-P
That's right, it's still a non-monastic, catholic order with about 1000 members. They don't possess any territories anymore obviously and are now mainly involved in caritative, educational and ceremonial activities.
the history cat makes a apperrance........my cat makes me pet him when i sit still... we call him dippy....if you met him you would under stand....what is the history cats name??
Nice video! I live in the North of Germany and I have visited the castle with my two boys on a vacation in Poland. The castle is very impressive and the boys had a great time! The castle was built with red baked bricks because the whole Baltic area does not have many suitable stones quarries for masonry. The red bricks are still very much in use btw.
pfft - 08:38 - that's .... a lot of fine print. You could hide anything in that. 'We also demand a Cybertruck' "what's a Cybertruck?" ... 'never you mind - it's in the document'! Also I'm seeing a continuity cat error. Or how many do you now have? (a pair is pur-fect as it's actually law in Switzerland that any social species has at least 2 in the household to be social with).
@@kingcosworth2643 Wiccan Proud )0( even after all, in the name of "religion" has done, by destroying others community's for power, I forgive you. As for me & mine, we will never wear a hijab or bow down to Kings again!
@@DgurlSunshine , I am an atheist, and I reject *all* of it, but I especially reject the idea that a majority religion in a given area or country has a right to persecute people of other religions, or deny them basic human rights and block them from having a voice in the local power structure.
Thank you for the history. As a child, I heard that modern state of Germany had a lot of political turmoil before WW2. However, that small bit of knowledge is eclipsed by this video, and this video is really just a taste of the history of this region. There is no wonder the different Baltic states distrust each other even to this day. The stories of Poland are particularly interesting. From the look of it, the Polish people have been fighting off aggressors as long as there has been written language. I wonder why?
If you thought history was dry and boring, you never watched the HISTORY GUY. Plus you never know when/which "history kitties" will make appearances, adding to the teaching.
The 'Order' was Swiss, [Jurgen]. The religion was money and greed. The lower classes were mercenaries and chancers from West Europe. Not Xtian, but freemasonic from the Levant
Brick Gothic is one of my favorite styles. It's like real adult LEGOs. Like... they made that! With bricks! That's so cool, and it's awesome that this place not only has so much history, but is still with us to teach it. An excellent episode! I love Lithuania so much, I wanna visit there terribly!
what i pick up from this story, is that since year0 where the czech republic was liquidated by catholicism, POLAND was not. czech played mediator between the romans and polish. and the long term distinction was evident throughout european history
