History of the Crusades

the Crusades Episode 240, the Baltic Crusades, the Livonian Crusade Part 33, Albert Sewer Bear. Hello again.

Last time we saw the Teutonic Order encounter two problems following their establishment of a land corridor between Livonia and Prussia.

The first problem was the defiantly pagan Samagitzians, who had thrown a spanner in the works by refusing to become Christian

despite the fact that their land was inside the corridor established by the Teutonic Order.

Master Ano, the head of the Teutonic Order in Lovonia,

addressed this problem in last week's episode by leading a large army of Crusaders and many other nationalities out of Lavonia to crush the defiant Samagitsians. The Samagitsians were defeated and were

prevented from carrying out their usual raids into nearby Christianized lands. But they weren't crushed and are in fact

regrouping as we speak. But today we won't be dealing with the Samagizians. No, today we will be addressing the second problem

faced by Master Ano and that second problem faced by Master Ano, and that second problem wasn't a region of war-loving

pagans, but a single Latin Christian man.

A man called Albert Suerbeer, the new Archbishop of Riga.

Albert Sewerbeer arrived in Livonia with a plan.

That plan being to make sure the ecclesiastical sector in

Livonia was securely under his thumb and then go after the jutonic order and bring them down to size.

And with any luck bring them under his thumb as well. Now forcing the various church institutions in Lovonia to bend to his

will was not going to be easy. Many of them had become wealthy and powerful in their own right and were used to making

their own decisions while being answerable to no one but themselves.

For example, many churches and convents in Lavonia had been gifted land and money from wealthy visiting crusaders,

or by means of bequests in wills from wealthy parishioners.

This meant that, in many many cases convents and churches were able to purchase land and property.

And while this sounds like a great thing to Albert Sewerbier, it wasn't because it meant that

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