The Teutonic Knights

Download or read book The Teutonic Knights written by William L. Urban and published by Greenhill Books. This book was released on 2003 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This major new book surveys the gripping history of the knights and their order and relates their rise to power; their struggles against Prussian pagans; the series of wars against Poland and Lithuania; the clash with Alexander Nevsky's Russia; and the gradual stagnation of the order in the fourteenth century. The book is replete with dramatic episodes--such as the battle on frozen Lake Peipus in 1242, or the disaster of Tannenberg--but focuses primarily on the year-after-year struggle to maintain power, fend off incursions and raiding bands, and launch crusades against unbelieving foes.