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The Peace of Thorn or Toruń of 1466, also known as the Second Peace of Thorn or Toruń ( pl, drugi pokój toruński; german: Zweiter Friede von Thorn), was a
peace treaty A peace treaty is an agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually countries or governments, which formally ends a state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an agreement to stop hostilities; a surre ...
signed in the Hanseatic city of Thorn (Toruń) on 19 October 1466 between the Polish king
Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (in full Casimir IV Andrew Jagiellon; pl, Kazimierz IV Andrzej Jagiellończyk ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447, until his death. He was one of the m ...
and the
Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians o ...
, which ended the Thirteen Years' War, the longest of the Polish–Teutonic Wars. The treaty was signed in the Artus Court, and afterward a mass was held in the
Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...
Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary to celebrate the peace treaty.


Background

The treaty concluded the Thirteen Years' War which had begun in February 1454 with the revolt of the
Prussian Confederation The Prussian Confederation (german: Preußischer Bund, pl, Związek Pruski) was an organization formed on 21 February 1440 at Kwidzyn (then officially ''Marienwerder'') by a group of 53 nobles and clergy and 19 cities in Prussia, to oppose the ...
, led by the cities of Danzig (Gdańsk), Elbing (Elbląg), Kulm (Chełmno) and
Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg , image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg , nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town , pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...
, and the Prussian
gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...
against the rule of the Teutonic Knights in the Monastic State, in order to join the
Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...
. Both sides agreed to seek confirmation from
Pope Paul II Pope Paul II ( la, Paulus II; it, Paolo II; 23 February 1417 – 26 July 1471), born Pietro Barbo, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 August 1464 to his death in July 1471. When his maternal uncle Eugene IV ...
and
Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
Frederick III, but the Polish side stressed (and the Teutonic side agreed) that this confirmation would not be needed for validation of the treaty. The peace talks were held in Nieszawa (present-day Mała Nieszawka) from 23 September 1466,Górski, p. LXXIV and in the final stages moved to Toruń.


Terms

In the treaty, the Teutonic Order renounced any claims to the territories of Gdańsk/Eastern Pomerania and
Chełmno Land Chełmno land ( pl, ziemia chełmińska, or Kulmerland, Old Prussian: ''Kulma'', lt, Kulmo žemė) is a part of the historical region of Pomerelia, located in central-northern Poland. Chełmno land is named after the city of Chełmno (hist ...
, which were reintegrated with Poland, and the region of Elbing (Elbląg) and Marienburg (Malbork), and the Bishopric of Warmia, which were also recognized as part of Poland.Daniel Stone, ''A History of East Central Europe'', University of Washington Press, 2001, p. 30,
Google Books
/ref> The eastern part remained with the
Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...
as a
fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form ...
and
protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its in ...
of Poland, also considered an integral part of "one and indivisible" Kingdom of Poland. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Chełmno became a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Gniezno. From now on, every Grand Master of the Teutonic Order was obliged to swear an oath of allegiance to the reigning Polish king within six months of taking office, and any new territorial acquisitions by the Teutonic Order, also outside
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
, would also be incorporated into Poland. The Grand Master became a prince and counselor of the Polish king and the Kingdom of Poland.
Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in ...
were to be admitted to the Teutonic Order. The Teutonic Knights were obliged to help Poland in the event of war, and were forbidden to wage war against Catholics without the consent of Polish kings. Any
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...
on both sides were to be released. The treaty also dismissed any possibility of releasing the Teutonic Order from dependence to Poland or of any revision of the terms of the treaty by referring to any foreign authority, including
imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texas ...
and papal.


Outcome

The territories directly held by Poland were already organized into three voivodeships ( Chełmno, Pomeranian,
Malbork Malbork; ; * la, Mariaeburgum, ''Mariae castrum'', ''Marianopolis'', ''Civitas Beatae Virginis'' * Kashubian: ''Malbórg'' * Old Prussian: ''Algemin'' is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. It is the seat of Malbork County and has ...
) and the Prince-Bishopric of Warmia, all of which formed the autonomous province of Royal Prussia (later also part of the larger
Greater Poland Province of the Polish Crown Greater Poland Province ( pl, Prowincja Wielkopolska) was an administrative division of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland from 1569 until 1795. The name of the province comes from the historic land of Greater Poland. The Greater Poland Province c ...
), which was considered the exclusive property of the Polish king and Polish kingdom. Later, some disagreements arose concerning certain prerogatives that Royal Prussia and the cities held, like Danzig's privileges. The region possessed certain privileges such as the minting of its own coins, its own Diet meetings (see the
Prussian estates The Prussian estates (german: Preußischer Landtag, pl, Stany pruskie) were representative bodies of Prussia, first created by the Monastic state of Teutonic Prussia in the 14th century (around the 1370s)Daniel Stone, ''A History of Central Europe ...
), its own military, and its own administrative usage of the
German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...
for minority. A conflict over the right to name and approve Bishops in Warmia, resulted in the War of the Priests (1467–1479). Eventually, Royal Prussia became integrated into the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...
, but retained some distinctive features until the
partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 12 ...
in the late 18th century. In 1525, the Order was ousted from their territory by its own Grand Master when Albert, Duke of Prussia adopted
Lutheranism Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
and assumed the title of duke as hereditary ruler under the overlordship of Poland in the Prussian Homage. The area became known as the
Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...
.


See also

* Peace of Thorn (1411) *
List of treaties This list of treaties contains known agreements, pacts, peaces, and major contracts between states, armies, governments, and tribal groups. Before 1200 CE 1200–1299 1300–1399 1400–1499 1500–1599 1600–1699 1700–1799 ...


References


Bibliography

*


External links


Photocopy of the treaty

Latin text: ''In nomine domini amen. Ad perpetuam rei memoriam. Cum inter humane voluntatis desideria, que in aliquid citra Deum finem atque rerum omnium opificem ...''
{{Authority control 1460s treaties 1466 in Europe History of Pomerania History of Prussia History of Toruń Torun 1466 Thirteen Years' War (1454–1466) Treaties of the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569) Thorn 1466 Partition (politics) Thorn 1466