The Livonian Crusade was the conquest and Christianisation of the pagan peoples of what is now Latvia and Estonia by German, Danish and Swedish forces in the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries. It began with German merchants and missionaries on the Daugava River, and after Bishop Berthold was killed in 1198 Pope Innocent III declared a crusade. Bishop Albert founded Riga in 1201 and, in 1202, the Livonian Brotherhood of the Sword, a military order that was merged into the Teutonic Order in 1237. The Danes took northern Estonia and built Tallinn. The conquered Livonians, Latgalians, Estonians and others lost their independence, and the region was ruled by a German-speaking elite for centuries.
Before and after
- 1195Construction of Bourges Cathedral
- 1196Construction of Siena Cathedral
- from 1198 to 1918Kingdom of Bohemia
- 1198Construction of Giralda
- 24 July 1198Livonian Crusade
- 10 December 1198Death of Averroes
- from 1199 to 1349Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia
- from 1200 to 1523Aztec
- 1200Construction of Meenakshi Temple
More in Wars, politics & history
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- 27 November 1095Pope Urban II calls the First Crusade
- 1206Temujin is proclaimed Genghis Khan
- 15 June 1215Magna Carta
- from 24 May 1337 to 9 October 1453Hundred Years' War
- 2 January 1492The fall of Granada ends Muslim rule in Spain
The era
This moment belongs to the Medieval world (500 CE to 1500 CE), kingdoms, faiths and trade routes. You can also browse everything in the 12th century.