ABSTRACT
The Teutonic Order established two states on the shores of the Baltic: Pruthenia and Livonia. The first, after becoming secularized gave birth to the military rule of the Hohenzollerns; the second retained well into the twentieth century the strict rules of feudal domination of the nobles over the Latvian and Estonian population. In South Eastern Europe there was a small independent state of monks on Mt. Athos. It was intended mainly as a refuge from the world, whereas the reductions were established for the purpose of spreading Christianity. The inner organization of the Prussian state was far removed from the norm of those days. Its history from foundation to final catastrophe, has been a matter of great interest to many historians. German Protestant tradition could never divorce itself from the negative view of the Order and its dishonest political activities expressed by Martin Luther. The Polish ruler, situated so far from Italy, was an easy prey for Hermann von Salza.
