# Grand Master of the Teutonic Order

The grand master of the Teutonic Order (German: Hochmeister des Deutschen Ordens; Latin: Magister generalis Ordo Teutonicus) is the supreme head of the Teutonic Order. It is equivalent to the grand master of other military orders and the superior general in non-military Roman Catholic religious orders. Hochmeister, literally "high master", is only used in reference to the Teutonic Order, as Großmeister ("grand master") is used in German to refer to the leaders of other orders of knighthood.
An early version of the full title in Latin was Magister Hospitalis Sanctae Mariae Alemannorum Hierosolymitani. Since 1216, the full title Magister Hospitalis Domus Sanctae Mariae Teutonicorum Hierosolymitani ("Master of the Hospital House of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Germans of Jerusalem") was used.
The offices of Hochmeister and Deutschmeister (Magister Germaniae) were united in 1525. The title of Magister Germaniae had been introduced in 1219 as the head of the bailiwicks in the Holy Roman Empire, from 1381 also those in Italy, raised to the rank of a prince of the Holy Roman Empire in 1494, but merged with the office of grand master under Walter von Cronberg in 1525, from which time the head of the order had the title of Hoch- und Deutschmeister. From 1466 to 1525, the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order were vassals and princes of the Polish Crown.

## Coat of arms

The coat of arms representing the grand master (Deutschmeisterwappen) is shown with a golden cross fleury or cross potent superimposed on the black cross, with the imperial eagle as a central inescutcheon. The golden cross potent overlaid on the black cross becomes widely used by the 14th century, developing into a golden cross fleury by the 15th century. A legendary account attributes the introduction of the cross potent to John of Brienne, King of Jerusalem, who granted the master of the order this cross as a variation of the Jerusalem cross, while the fleur-de-lis was supposedly granted on 20 August 1250 by Louis IX of France. While this legendary account cannot be traced back further than the early modern period (Christoph Hartknoch, 1684) there is some evidence that the design does indeed date to the mid 13th century. Each quarter divided by black cross could be fitted with either coat of arms of the Teutonic Order or the personal coat of arms of the grand master, the imperial eagle have also added coat of arms on chest between 18th–20th centuries.

## Before the Reformation

Compared to other medieval governments, transfer of power within the Teutonic Knights was run efficiently. Upon the death of a grand master, the vice master called a capitulum composed of the leading officers of the order. The general chapter would select a twelve-person electoral college composed of seven knights, four sergeants, and one priest. Once a majority-candidate for grand master was chosen, the minority electors would concede to support unanimity. These elections usually provided a succeeding grand master within three months.
Candidates for the position of grand master had experience as senior administrators for the order and were usually chosen on merit, not lineage. This changed only after the order had entered a steady decline, with the selection of Frederick of Saxony and Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach, members of the powerful Wettin and House of Hohenzollern dynasties.
When the Teutonic Knights were originally based in Acre in Outremer, the grand masters spent much of their time at the papal and imperial courts. The grand masters were most powerful after the order's 13th century conquest of Prussia during the Northern Crusades and the creation of the militarized State of the Teutonic Order, which lasted until 1525 (from 1466 to 1525 as part of the Kingdom of Poland as a fief). After the order's capital moved from Venice to Malbork (Marienburg) in 1309, the grand master's power was at its height. He had ultimate control over Prussia, which gave him command over the Prussian commanders. When the general chapter would meet in Elbląg (Elbing), he was able to use this influence to ratify administrative measures he proposed. The grand master also served as the castellan of Marienburg and was aided by the order's treasurer. He was also a member of the Hanseatic League, allowing him to receive some of the league's custom dues.
Excavations in the church of Kwidzyn (Marienwerder) performed in 2007 yielded the skeletal remains of three Grand Masters of the late medieval period, Werner von Orseln (1324–1330), Ludolf König von Wattzau (1342–1445) and Heinrich von Plauen (1410–1413). The church had been known as the burial place of the bishops of Pomesania, but the discovery of the grand masters' burials was unexpected. The bodies had been buried in gold-painted wooden coffins draped in silk robes.
Since the 1466 Second Peace of Toruń, the Grand Masters of the Teutonic Order were vassals of the Kingdom of Poland, and 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. The Grand Masters were also princes and counselors of the Polish kings and the Kingdom of Poland. The State of the Teutonic Order was a part of Poland as a fief.

### Leaders of the early Brotherhood, 1190–1198

The Teutonic Order as a hospice brotherhood in Outremer:
| Name | Reign | Born | Death | Notes |
| Sibrand | 1190 | 1157 | 1191 | |
| Konrad | 1190–1192 | | | |
| Gerhard | 1192 | | | |
| Heinrich | 1193/1194 | | | Prior |
| Ulrich | 1195–1196 | | | |
| Heinrich | 1196 | | | preceptor |

### Grand Masters of the Order, 1198–1525

The Teutonic Order as a spiritual military order had a total of 37 grand masters between 1198 and 1525.
Several armorials of the 15th and early 16th century depict the coat of arms of the grand masters. These include the Chronica by Ulrich Richenthal, an armorial of St. Gallen kept in Nuremberg, an armorial of southwest Germany kept in Leipzig and the Miltenberg armorial. Conspicuously absent from these lists are three grand masters, Gerhards von Malberg (1241–1244) and his successors Heinrich von Hohenlohe (1244–1249) and Gunther von Wüllersleben (1250–1252), so that pre-modern historiographical tradition has a list of 34 grand masters for the time before 1525 (as opposed to 37 in modern accounts).
| # | Mod | Name | Reign | Born | Death | Notes |
| 1 | 1 | Heinrich Walpot von Bassenheim | 1198–sometime before 1208 | | 24 Sep 1200 | |
| 2 | 2 | Otto von Kerpen | Documented for 1208 | | 1208 | |
| 3 | 3 | Heinrich von Tunna | 1208–1209 | | 1209 | |
| 4 | 4 | Hermann von Salza | 1209–1239 | c. 1165 | 20 March 1239 | As a friend and councillor of emperor Frederick II, Hermann achieved the recognition of the order as of equal status with the older military orders of the Knights Hospitaller and the Knights Templar by Pope Honorius III. In 1237, he also oversaw the incorporation of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword into the Teutonic order. |
| 5 | 5 | Konrad von Thüringen | 1239–1240 | c. 1206 | 24 July 1240 | |
| - | 6 | Gerhard von Malberg | 1240–1244 | c. 1200 | After 1245 | |
| - | 7 | Heinrich von Hohenlohe | 1244–1249 | c. 1200 | 15 July 1249 | |
| - | 8 | Gunther von Wüllersleben | 1249–1252 | | 3 or 4 May 1252 | |
| 6 | 9 | Poppo von Osterna | 1252–1256 | | 6 Nov 1266 or 1267 | The pretender Wilhelm von Urenbach (1253–1256) was chosen in opposition to Poppo von Osterna). |
| 7 | 10 | Anno von Sangershausen | 1256–1273 | | 8 July 1273 | |
| 8 | 11 | Hartmann von Heldrungen | 1273–1282 | | 19 Aug 1282 | |
| 9 | 12 | Burchard von Schwanden | 1282 or 1283–1290 | | 1310 | Burchard von Schwanden's first year in office is given as 1282 on the Teutonic Order's German site and 1283 on the Austrian site. |
| 10 | 13 | Konrad von Feuchtwangen | 1290–1297 | Before 1230 | 4 July 1296 | After the fall of Acre, Konrad moved the Order's headquarters to Venice. |
| 11 | 14 | Gottfried von Hohenlohe | 1297–1303 | 1265 | 19 Oct 1310 | |
| 12 | 15 | Siegfried von Feuchtwangen | 1303–1311 | | 1311 | Of the same family as his predecessor Konrad von Feuchtwangen. Siegfried moved the order's headquarters to Prussia in 1309. |
| 13 | 16 | Karl von Trier | 1311–1324 | 1265 | 11 Feb 1324 | |
| 14 | 17 | Werner von Orseln | 1324–1330 | c. 1280 | 18 Nov 1330 | |
| 15 | 18 | Luther von Braunschweig | 1331–1335 | c. 1275 | 18 April 1335 | Also spelled Lothar |
| 16 | 19 | Dietrich von Altenburg | 1335–1341 | | Oct 1341 | |
| 17 | 20 | Ludolf König von Wattzau | 1342–1345 | Between 1280 and 1290 | 1348 or later | |
| 18 | 21 | Heinrich Dusemer | 1345–1351 | c. 1280 | 1353 | |
| 19 | 22 | Winrich von Kniprode | 1351–1382 | 1310 | 1382 | |
| 20 | 23 | Konrad Zöllner von Rotenstein | 1382–1390 | c. 1325 | 20 Aug 1390 | |
| 21 | 24 | Konrad von Wallenrode | 1391–1393 | c. 1330s | 23 July 1393 | |
| 22 | 25 | Konrad von Jungingen | 1393–1407 | c. 1355 | 30 March 1407 | |
| 23 | 26 | Ulrich von Jungingen | 1407–1410 | | 15 July 1410 | |
| 24 | 27 | Heinrich von Plauen | 1410–1413 | 1360 | | |
| 25 | 28 | Michael Küchmeister von Sternberg | 1414–1422 | c. 1370 | 1429 | |
| 26 | 29 | Paul von Rusdorf | 1422–1441 | c. 1385 | 1441 | |
| 27 | 30 | Konrad von Erlichshausen | 1441–1449 | 1390 or 1395 | 1449 | |
| 28 | 31 | Ludwig von Erlichshausen | 1449 or 1450–1467 | c. 1410 | 4 April 1467 | Ludwig von Erlichshausen's first year in office is given as 1449 on the Teutonic Order's German site and 1450 on the Austrian site. |
| 29 | 32 | Heinrich Reuß von Plauen | 1467–1470 | c. 1400 | 2 Jan 1470 | |
| 30 | 33 | Heinrich Reffle von Richtenberg | 1470–1477 | 1415 | 1477 | |
| 31 | 34 | Martin Truchseß von Wetzhausen | 1477–1489 | 1435 | 3 Jan 1489 | |
| 32 | 35 | Johann von Tiefen | 1489–1497 | | 25 Aug 1497 | |
| 33 | 36 | Frederick, Duke of Saxony | 1497–1510 | 26 Oct 1473 | 14 Dec 1510 | |
| 34 | 37 | Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach | 1510–1525 | 17 May 1490 | 20 March 1568 | |

## After the Reformation

The last Hochmeister, Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach, converted to Lutheranism and, with the consent of his overlord and uncle, King Sigismund I of Poland, turned the State of the Teutonic Order into the secular Duchy of Prussia per the Treaty of Kraków, which was sealed by the Prussian Homage in Kraków in 1525. The commanderies in the autonomous Livonian Terra Mariana likewise were lost by 1561, as that region also became Protestant. However, the Order retained its bailiwicks in the Holy Roman Empire (Germany and Italy), which had been administered by the Deutschmeister since 1219.
As the Order was now limited to its possessions in the German kingdom, incumbent Deutschmeister Walter von Cronberg was also appointed Hochmeister by Emperor Charles V in 1527. The administrative seat was moved to Mergentheim Castle in Franconia. The Hoch- und Deutschmeister was ranked as one of the ecclesiastical Princes of the Holy Roman Empire until 1806; when Mergentheim fell to the newly established Kingdom of Württemberg, their residence was relocated to the Deutschordenshaus in Vienna. The dual title lasted until in 1923, when the last secular Grand Master, Archduke Eugen of Austria, resigned from office.
A Franconian Teutschmeister regiment [de] of the Imperial Army was formed under Count Palatine Francis Louis of Neuburg in 1696; organized as 4th Infantry Regiment in 1769 and deployed at Vienna, it was known as the Lower Austrian Hoch- und Deutschmeister regiment from 1814. Chiefly known for its popular military band, the regiment's tradition was adopted by the Wehrmacht 44th Infantry Division in 1938 and today is maintained by the 1st Jäger Battalion [de] of the Austrian Armed Forces.

### Hoch- und Deutschmeister, 1527–1929

| Name | Reign | Born | Death | Notes |
| Walter von Cronberg | 1527–1543 | 1477 or 1479 | 4 April 1543 | |
| Wolfgang Schutzbar | 1543–1566 | c. 1483 | 11 Feb 1566 | |
| Georg Hund von Wenkheim | 1566–1572 | c. 1520 | 17 June 1572 | |
| Heinrich von Bobenhausen | 1572–1590 | c. 1514 | 21 March 1595 | |
| Maximilian III, Archduke of Austria | 1590–1618 | 12 Oct 1558 | 2 Nov 1618 | |
| Charles of Austria, Bishop of Wroclaw | 1619–1624 | 7 Aug 1590 | 28 Dec 1624 | |
| Johann Eustach von Westernach | 1625–1627 | 16 Dec 1545 | 25 Oct 1627 | |
| Johann Kaspar von Stadion | 1627–1641 | 21 Dec 1567 | 21 Nov 1641 | |
| Archduke Leopold Wilhelm of Austria | 1641–1662 | 5 Jan 1614 | 20 Nov 1662 | |
| Archduke Charles Joseph of Austria | 1662–1664 | 7 Aug 1649 | 27 Jan 1664 | |
| Johann Caspar von Ampringen | 1664–1684 | 19 Jan 1619 | 9 Sep 1684 | |
| Ludwig Anton von Pfalz-Neuburg | 1685–1694 | 1660 | 1694 | |
| Francis Louis of Palatinate-Neuburg | 1694–1732 | 18 July 1664 | 6 April 1732 | |
| Prince Clemens August of Bavaria | 1732–1761 | 17 Aug 1700 | 6 Feb 1761 | |
| Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine | 1761–1780 | 12 Dec 1712 | 4 July 1780 | |
| Archduke Maximilian Francis of Austria | 1780–1801 | 8 Dec 1756 | 26 July 1801 | |
| Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen | 1801–1804 | 5 Sep 1771 | 30 April 1847 | |
| Archduke Anton Victor of Austria | 1804–1835 | 31 Aug 1779 | 2 April 1835 | Office becomes hereditary to the Imperial House of Austria |
| Archduke Maximilian of Austria-Este | 1835–1863 | 14 July 1782 | 1 June 1863 | |
| Archduke Wilhelm Franz of Austria | 1863–1894 | 21 April 1827 | 29 April 1894 | |
| Archduke Eugen of Austria | 1894–1923 | 21 May 1863 | 30 Dec 1954 | End of hereditary status |
| Norbert Klein | 1923–1929 | 25 Oct 1866 | 10 March 1933 | Bishop of Brno from 1916 until 1926 |

### 1929–present

Time of the Teutonic Order as a clerical Roman Catholic religious order
| Name | Reign | Born | Death | Notes |
| Norbert Klein | 1929–1933 | 25 Oct 1866 | 10 Mar 1933 | Bishop of Brno from 1916 until 1926 |
| Paul Heider | 1933–1936 | | | |
| Robert Schälzky | 1936–1948 | | | |
| Marian Tumler | 1948–1970 | | | |
| Ildefons Pauler | 1970–1988 | | | |
| Arnold Wieland | 1988–2000 | | | |
| Bruno Platter | 2000–2018 | | | |
| Frank Bayard | 2018–present | 11 Oct 1971 | | |