Crusader Castles of the Teutonic Knights (2): The Stone Castles of Latvia and Estonia, 1185-1560

Osprey Fortress #19

by Stephen Turnbull, Peter Dennis (Illustrator)

The original forced conversion of pagan Livonia, what is now the Baltic states of Latvia and Estonia, was carried out by a military order known as the Brethren of the Sword. In 1236 this order was incorporated into the Teutonic Knights following a catastrophic military defeat. The knights had always consolidated their conquests through networks of castles and fortified places, and the Livonian Chapter of the Teutonic Order built castles of stone. This title covers the developmental and operational history of these fortresses over the length of the Middle Ages. It details how the Baltic fortifications of the Teutonic Knights evolved to reflect the changing nature of siege warfare and the increasing dominance of gunpowder in warfare.

Genres: History, Military History, Nonfiction, Medieval

64 pages, Paperback

First published May 25, 2004

About the author

Stephen Richard Turnbull is British a historian specializing in eastern military history, especially the samurai of Japan. His books are mainly on Japanese and Mongolian subjects. He attended Cambridge University where he gained his first degree. He currently holds an MA in Theology, MA in Military History and a PhD from the University of Leeds where he is currently a lecturer in Far Eastern Religions. He has also written a number of books on other medieval topics. He is semi-retired but still holds the post of Visiting Professor of Japanese Studies at Akita International University in Japan.

Reviews

[Dimitri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A trip down memory lane to Turaida Castle.

Surprisingly, not much on construction, apart from the building materials and modern archeology.

The focus is on the defensive evolution & operational history of the castles, built on heathen fortress sites by the Lavonian Brothers of the Sword and inherited by the Prussians. With the Lavonian saga thrown in.

Rivers were since times immorial the best commercial and martial arteries in these swampy lands, especially in winter. The new stone castle system hinged upon this logic so closely that the present Latvian - Lithuanian border marks the furthest advance of the Prussian knights against the southern marauders.

The tactics were simple. Castles weren't meant primarily to witness battles or sieges, but shelter fast-moving sortie forces which contested control of the surrounding territory with booty-laden bands.

The politics were complex, between the Order, multiple bishops, the Riga merchants, the Danish influence in northern Estonia and the Rise of Muscovy.

[Tiina · Rating 3 out of 5]

See lühike, kuid piinarikas raamat leidis tee mu riiulisse oktoobri alguses ja sellest ajast saadik olen ma seda ülimalt aeglases tempos lugenud. See pani mu pea valutama jkust nagu ka see punkt - Eesti naaberriigi raamat. Välismaal olles osutus see täielikuks pinnuks perses, sest eestikeelseid raamatuid ei ole mul eriti palju ning ajalooraamatuid eesti keeles e-raamatuna saada on peaaegu võimatu. Niisiis leidsin enda jaoks selle raamatu ning otsustasin anda võimaluse Lätile, mille kohta olen ilmselt kõige vähem kuulnud.

See õhuke raamat sisaldas, nagu pealkirigi ütleb, hulgaliselt infot kivist kindluste kohta Lätis. Pilte oli palju, juttu teutoonilisest ordust ka. Need ristisõdalased aitasid ilmselt mu peavalule kaasa, sest see ei olnud sugugi nii huvitav lugeda, kui ma põhikooliajast mäletasin. Minu jaoks päästsidki pildid raamatu.

Kõlbas lugeda, aga mul on nii hea meel, et see läbi sai.

[Darren F. Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable and informative read with many well done graphics.

[Koit · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this a bit more than the previous volume, mostly because Mr Turnbull had described the religious and organisatorial aspects of the Teutonic life and was able to input more about various episodes. Primarily, as the nature of the subject here is the Livonian chapter, these episodes concerned undertakings in the Northern Baltics but some were also relevant in light of the previous volume.

That said, there are things between the two titles which align very well and which don't at all. For some reason, the dansk (sewage tower) are detailed on only one castle though they were so prominent in Prussia, and I feel the author could have explained why the Swordbrethern/Livonians did not build these. Similarly, there're a few sentences which come word to word into this volume, such as that on the cogs (which are confusingly written as "cogge").

Nevertheless, I would recommend this and potentially to more people than Volume 1: the interesting bits of information and stories included herein cover a wider field than the previous book.

[Станислав · Rating 4 out of 5]

Замки Эстонии и Латвии
Немецкие рыцари Ливонского ордена покорили и сотни лет правили берегами Балтийского моря. Править землями ливов и эстов им помогала структура связанных между собой замков, которые располагали небольшим гарнизоном, но долгое время служили непреодолимым препятствием для врагов ордена. Многие замки и сейчас представляют собой величественное зрелище и неплохо сохранились. Интересно, что замки Латвии-Эстонии чаще построены из местного камня, а не кирпича, как их прусские братья. Серия "Фортрес" у Оспри кажется написанной с большой любовь к предмету. Замки из этой книги кажутся очень романтичными.

[Craig Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great content of drawings, photos and history.