The Teutonic Order in Northern Italy (13th century). About the borders of the “Network Research”

Abstract

The Teutonic Order in Northern Italy (13^th century). About the borders of the “Network Research”

 The Teutonic Knights were able to demonstrate their order’s charity and its military strength on various occasions: Their activity in hospitals and on the battlefield, at the court of Frederick II, as well as in some places in north-eastern Italy where they succeeded in founding new houses. Thus, mainly during the reign of Frederick II, they used to encourage members of the pro-svevian feudal nobility and of the prosperous urban elites in the north-eastern part of Italy to give alms and donations in favour of their order. Moreover, they motivated several of them to join the Teutonic order. Because of the scarceness of sources we don’t know any details about the order’s efforts to develop a good relationship to its potential donators and to the local political elites. Members of some properous families in the Veneto decided to join the order, part of them subsuquently being appointed in this region. For a short period in the beginning their presence was useful for the new convents because it made it easier for them to establish good relationship to parts of the local society. However, the presence of at least some of the local brethren in the order’s establishments was not really helpful: Several years after the death of Frederick II the Italian members unintentionally got the order involved into the power struggles between Ezzelino III da Romano, the most famous partisan of Frederick II and the Svevians, and Ezzelino’s ennemies. All in all, the Teutonic order was unable to establish a stable network he could make use of while striving for the restitution of its privileges and estates against the commune of Padoa and other powers in north-eastern Italy.