page_title: Prussian uprisings
section_title: The First Prussian Uprising (1242–1249)
hierarchical_section_title: Prussian uprisings / The First Prussian Uprising (1242–1249)
caption_attribution_description: Polski: Zamek krzyżacki w Radzyniu Chełmińskim, widok od strony południowejEnglish: Teutonic Knights castle in Radzyń Chełmiński, view from south
context_page_description: The Prussian uprisings were two major and three smaller uprisings by the Old Prussians, one of the Baltic tribes, against the Teutonic Knights that took place in the 13th century during the Prussian Crusade. The crusading military order, supported by the Popes and Christian Europe, sought to conquer and convert the pagan Prussians. In the first ten years of the crusade, five of the seven major Prussian clans fell under the control of the less numerous Teutonic Knights. However, the Prussians rose against their conquerors on five occasions.
  The first uprising was supported by Duke Swietopelk II, Duke of Pomerania. The Prussians were successful at first, reducing the Knights to only five of their strongest castles. However, the duke then suffered a series of military defeats and was eventually forced to make peace with the Teutonic Knights. With Duke Swietopelk's support for the Prussians broken, a prelate of Pope Innocent IV negotiated a peace treaty between the Prussians and the Knights. However, this treaty was never honored or enforced, especially after the Prussian victory in the Battle of Krücken at the end of 1249.
context_section_description: The First Prussian Uprising was influenced by three major events. Firstly, the Livonian Knights - a subsidiary of the Teutonic Knights - lost the Battle of the Ice on Lake Peipus to Alexander Nevsky in April 1242. Secondly, southern Poland was devastated by a Mongol invasion in 1241; Poland lost the Battle of Legnica and the Teutonic Knights lost one of its most trusted allies that often supplied troops. Thirdly, Duke Swantopolk II of Pomerania was fighting against the Knights, who supported his brothers' dynastic claims against him. It has been implied that the new castles of the Knights were competing with his lands over the trade routes along the Vistula River. While some historians embrace the Swantopolk–Prussian alliance without hesitation, others are more careful. They point out that the historical information came from documents written by the Teutonic Knights and must have been ideologically charged to persuade the Pope to declare a crusade not only against the pagan Prussians but also against the Christian duke.
  Prussians besieged Teutonic castles and managed to capture all except for Elbing (Elbląg) and Balga in the eastern regions of Natangia, Barta and Warmia; Thorn (Toruń), Culm (Chełmno), and Rehden (Radzyń Chełmiński) in the western parts. In December 1242, the Knights were able to capture Sartowice, Swantopolk's castle on the banks of the Vistula. The ensuing five-week siege of Sartowice failed to recapture the fortress and Swantopolk lost 900 men. In the spring of 1243, Swantopolk also lost the castle at Nakel (Nakło nad Notecią), which dominated trade on the Noteć River. In the face of these losses, the duke was forced to make a short-lived truce. In the summer of 1243, Prussians with Sudovian help raided the Culmerland (Chełmno Land) and, on their way back, defeated the pursuing Teutonic Knights on June 15 on the banks of the Osa River. Some 400 Teutonic soldiers perished, including their marshal. Swantopolk, encouraged by the defeat, gathered an army of 2,000 men and unsuccessfully besieged Culm (Chełmno).
  The Teutonic Knights managed to gather a coalition against Swantopolk: Dukes of Masovia were given territories in Prussia, Dukes of Greater Poland received Nakel, and Dukes of Pomerellia, brothers of Swantopolk, hoped to regain their inheritance. Swantopolk built a castle at Zantyr, where Nogat separated from the Vistula, and launched a blockade of Elbing and Balga. While the castle withstood Teutonic attacks, the blockade was smashed by cogs. In late 1245 Swantopolks's army suffered a great defeat at S(ch)wetz Świecie, and another one in early 1246, where 1,500 Pomeranians were killed. Swantopolk II asked for a truce and Pope Innocent IV appointed his chaplain, Jacob of Liège, the future Pope Urban IV, to handle the peace negotiations. However, the war was renewed in 1247 when large Teutonic reinforcements arrived in Prussia. On Christmas Eve of 1247 the Knights besieged and overwhelmed a major Pomesanian fortress, which they later renamed Christburg (Dzierzgoń), and newly arrived Henry III, Margrave of Meissen subdued the Pogesanians. Swantopolk retaliated and destroyed Christburg, but the Knights rebuilt it in a new location. Both Prussian and Swantopolk's armies failed to capture the new castle. Otto III of Brandenburg raided Warmia and Natangia, forcing the locals to surrender.
  The peace talks that begun in 1247 achieved little, but a new truce was arranged in September 1248 and peace was made on November 24, 1248. Swantopolk had to return lands seized from his brothers, allow Teutonic Knights to pass through his domains, stop charging tolls on ships using the Vistula, and stop any aid to the Prussians. Prussians were compelled to sign the Treaty of Christburg on February 7, 1249. The treaty provided personal freedom and rights to newly converted Christians. It formally ended the uprising, but already in November 1249 the Natangians defeated the Knights at the Battle of Krücken. The skirmishes lasted until 1253 and some sources cite this year as the end of the uprising. At that point the treaty
caption: Ruins of the Teutonic castle in Rehden (today Radzyń Chełmiński). It was one of five castles not captured by the Prussians.
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