Heinrich Dusemer

Heinrich Dusemer

Grand Master's coat of arms of Heinrich Dusemers

Heinrich von Dusemer , also Heinrich Dusemer von Arf (f) berg (* around 1280 presumed to be in the Franconian or Bavarian region; † 1353 in Bratian (German: Brattian) in Neumark in West Prussia ) was the 21st Grand Master of the German from 1345 to 1351 Order .

Life

Mentioned for the first time as a knight in 1311, he defeated the Lithuanian Grand Duke Vytenis in a duel and was later honored by the same for his fighting courage and his chivalry.

As the keeper of Tapiau , Commander of Ragnit and keeper of Samland , he began his military career fighting against Lithuania . After five years he became Commander- in -Chief of Brandenburg and from 1335 to 1339 was the Commander-in-Chief of the Order's Army as Marshal . In 1343/44 he led the order's army in the fight against the Estonians .

After his predecessor, Ludolf König von Wattzau, abdicated in 1345, he was elected governor in Prussia and on December 13, 1345, grand master. He was one of the greatest colonizers in the order. During his time, the south of Prussia was increasingly populated (the city was founded in 1348 Tuchel , 1349 Soldau , 1351 Schippenbeil ).

To protect against the incursions of the Lithuanians, he had the construction of Johannisburg begin in 1345 .

Domestically, he undertook reforms in agriculture in favor of the peasant class, promoted trade in the Hanseatic cities and took measures to combat crime. He had to accept severe setbacks in his efforts due to the plague that broke out in 1350 and the associated population losses.

During his reign, northern Estonia was acquired for the order state in 1346. Denmark bought silver for 19,000 marks .

In 1349, he did not authorize the Benedictine nuns in Löbe to establish one of the rare monasteries of the time of the order. He expressed his thanks for the victory over the Lithuanians at the strut . The monastery was equipped with substantial property in the form of forests in the Wehlau district . The forests were later named Löbenichtscher Hospitalforst .

Heinrich von Dusemer is credited with starting the construction of the magnificent Grand Master's Palace on the Marienburg . He finished the construction of the Great Remter in the middle castle .

In 1351 he had to illness abdicate and returned to the Order Castle Bratian 53 ° 27 '29.6 "  N , 19 ° 36' 39.7"  O in the same bailiwick, where he died 1353rd He was buried in the Annenkapelle of the Marienburg. His grave slab can still be seen there.

He was considered a prime example of an honorable knight and prudent sovereign.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mentioned when the Benedictine nuns founded a monastery in Königsberg at ostpreussen.net
2. ↑ ( page no longer available , search in web archives: map of the Vogtei Brattian )

literature

• Friedrich Borchert: The Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order in Prussia. Published as a series in the “Preußische Allgemeine Zeitung” from May 12, 2001 to September 6, 2003.
• Hans Koeppen:  Heinrich Dusemer. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 8, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1969, ISBN 3-428-00189-3 , p. 378 ( digitized version ).
• Johann Caspar Venatorn: Historical report from the Marian Teutsche Ritterorden. Printed by Andreas Knorzen, 1680.
• Marcus Wüst:  Heinrich Dusemer. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 31, Bautz, Nordhausen 2010, ISBN 978-3-88309-544-8 , Sp. 622-623.

Web links

Commons : Heinrich Dusemer  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Biographical data and coat of arms at ordensstaat.de