Historical calendar: June 19, 1454 – Prussian tribute

Historical calendar: the forgotten anniversary of the oath of allegiance to King Kazimierz Jagiellończyk by the Prussian states.

Today in our calendar we will look at the circumstances accompanying this event.

The increasing bureaucratic and fiscal oppression in the Order of Teutonic Knights caused an interior opposition in its subordinate cities. There was a bright difference in the economic, social and political situation of the inhabitants of the murderous Order, compared to the definitely more free neighbour of Poland.

In 1440 the Prussian Union was established at a convention of representatives of cities and lands in Kwidzyn. This organization aimed at defending the rights of the people against the tyranny of the Teutonic authorities. In practice, the Prusai Union rapidly became a mate for conspiracy against the Order and a hatchery of agents and informants for Polish kings. By the end of 1453 the organization had grown to immense size and gained so much influence that it decided to start an armed uprising.

There is no uncertainty that these plans were well known to the Polish authorities, who were of course patronising them. utilizing the winter season, the insurgents seized in February 1454 a crucial number of defence towns and castles in Pomerania, and sent an authoritative letter to King Kazimierz Jagiellończyk asking for aid and inclusion of spiritual lands within the limits of the Crown.

So-called. Incorporated privilege granted on March 6, that year, included Prussian lands in Poland and guaranteed their residents the same privileges as Polish cities and nobles. In April Kazimierz Jagiellończyk settled the Polish-Lithuanian dispute about Volyn, accepting status quo possession, thus gaining no unfettered possibilities of intervention in Prussia.

On 28 May, Kazimierz Jagiellończyk took a tribute in Toruń from the Prussian states of the Chełmina land, taking the lands of the Teutonic Order to the Kingdom. In the following days, the states of Elbląg land and Prussian bishops (10 and 11 June in Elbląg) and Gdańsk (16 June). The first and appropriate Prussian tribute, i.e. to surrender Poland to the lands around Królewiec (the alleged Lower Prussia), occurred on 19 June 1454 in Królewiec.

In this way, all spiritual lands on the confederate Baltic have surrendered to the power of Krakow. Unfortunately, the Teutonic Knights did not intend to lay down their weapons and everything depended on the result of the war. After the first shock caused by surprise and the scale of the rebellion of their own subjects, the nuns proceeded to contrast and reflect lost territories.

The King hoped he would settle the war by fighting in the field as it was done at the WilkometerThat's why he didn't take a haul of costly infantry and cannons.

Unfortunately, the outdated common start of the Polish knighthood was slow gathering and the combat capability was only achieved in late summer. The Polish army, which was encountered at Chojnice on 18 September, was defeated by the weakest in numbers, but was perfectly trained and armed by the dense army of the Teutonic Knights.. wagenburg. The defeat was terrible – about 3,000 Polish knights died and 300 were taken prisoner. The King himself barely escaped the battlefield.

The war, which was to be swift, began to turn into a long-term conflict for destruction.

Previous entry from our calendar is available Here.