Description: Original, in Latin, 1 sheet
of parchment sized 116x156+17 mm; figural
seal of Anno von Sangerhausen, Grand Master
of the Teutonic Order, impression in black
sealing wax appendant by parchment strip
(30 mm in diameter) depicting Mary with the
child on the throne, two parchment strips
without seals.

Description: Original, in Latin, 1 parchment sheet sized
570x496+45mm, seal of the great duke of Lithuania Vytautas,
impression in a red wax appendant by parchment strip (50
mm in diameter), 10 parchment strips without seals.

Comments: This is the main Teutonic document of the so-called
Treaty of Torun concluding the Thirteen Years' War waged between
Poland and the Order. The document was issued on behalf of the
Great Master, his dignitaries, the Prussian branch of the Order,
the Bishop, the Chapter and the representatives of the estates
of Sambia, and the estates of Sambia. The final draft of the
treaty was mediated by the Papal Legate, Rudolf of Rüdesheim,
between October 17-19, 1466. On the Polish side, the draft was
endorsed (among others) by Jakub of Szadek, Wincenty Kiełbasa,
Scibor Bazynski, and Jan Dlugosz or Longinus. Under the terms of
the treaty, the Order ceded to Poland the districts of Chelm and
Michalow, the region of Pomorze Gdanskie (Danzig Pomerania), and
surrendered the northwestern part of Prussia including Marienburg
(now Malbork) and Elbing (now Elblag). The Great Master became a
duke and a senator-councillor of the Kingdom of Poland, and his
future elected successors were to swear loyalty to the Polish king.
The Order was obligated to provide military aid against the enemies
of the Polish Kingdom. Out of the three bishoprics, the diocese of
Chelm returned to the Polish Church the bishopric of Warmia remained
under the protection of the Polish king, and the Pomezanian diocese
was given to the royal secretary Wincenty Kielbasa for lifelong
administration.

The document regulated such issues as the release of prisoners of
war or the exchange of castles and towns. The towns returned to
Poland under the terms of the treaty included Sztum, Nowe Miasto
on the river Drweca, Bratian, Chelmno, Brodnica, and Dzierzgon.
The gains of the Order included Paslek, Pasym, Nidzica and Młynary.
The Prussian estates were to swear an oath to keep the peace.
Clearly, the provisions of the Treaty of Torun were an attenuation
of the act of incorporation of Prussia (1454), leaving the eastern
part of the former Order's state in existence to remain as a dangerous
trouble spot in the Baltic Sea region. Also, the fact that the Treaty
required an endorsement from the Holy See meant that the papal Curia
continued to hold at least a formal sway over Prussia. The most
lasting effects produced by the Second Peace of Thorn proved to be the
recognition of Polish control over Pomorze Gdanskie, the district of
Chelm and Powisle, all of which were to remain indissolubly linked
with the Crown for more than three hundred years to come.
(Janusz Grabowski)

Description: Original, in Latin, libellus consisting of 3 parchment
sheets sized 456x296 mm; 55 seals; signature of Papal Legate, Rudolf
of Rüdesheim, and notarial signs of notaries Jan Ewich de Attendorn
and Stanislaw Franke of Redkowice; 12 pp.

April 8, 1525, Krakow (Cracov) Margrave Georg von Brandenburg, and
Frederick II, Prince of Legnica (authorized by the Great Master of
the Order of Teutonic Knights to conduct negotiations with the
Polish king), list 31 articles of the peace treaty to be concluded
by Albrecht von Brandenburg-Ansbach, the Great Master of the Order
of Teutonic Knights, and Zygmunt I, King of Poland.

Comments: Shortly after its conclusion in 1466, the Great Masters
of the Teutonic Order were busily seeking to undermine the Second
Treaty of Torun by way of diplomatic intrigue, and refused to swear
the oath of vassal loyalty to the Polish king. In the years of 1519
-1520, a Polish-Teutonic conflict flared up, leading to the so-called
Compromise of Torun (April 5, 1521) introducing a four years'armistice
and leaving both sides with their respective territorial gains.

The ongoing social and political changes in Teutonic Prussia provided
a fertile soil for reformist trends, which became apparent in the early
1520s. In 1523, Martin Luther published an open letter to the members
of the Teutonic Order, calling them to reject celibacy. Later, after
a meeting between Luther and the Great Master Albrecht, the Reformation
was clearly gaining ground in Teutonic Prussia. As early as 1523, the
Polish side too entered into talks with the Great Master with the aim
of secularizing Prussia. However, decisive arrangements were reached
only in March 1525, after brief negotiations with the Great Master's
representatives, Georg, Margrave of Brandenburg, and Frederick II,
Prince of Legnica. The agreed version of the treaty was endorsed by the
Polish King Zygmunt I, his Chancellor Krzysztof Szydlowiecki, and Vice
-Chancellor Piotr Tomicki.

Under the terms of what came to be known as the Treaty of Krakow, the
Teutonic Order was to be liquidated, and its lands granted in fief to
Albrecht, Margrave of Brandenburg, and his male descendants. The right
of succession was also secured to the brothers of the Great Master:
Georg, Johann and Casimir, and to their male offspring. All lands
conquered from the other party during the last war were to be exchanged.
Albrecht gave up Nowe Miasto, Braniewo and Tolkmick in exchange for a
life annuity from the Polish King. He was also obligated to swear an
oath of vassal loyalty, and to provide military aid to the Polish King.
The Treaty of Krakow created stronger links between Ducal Prussia and
Poland than it was the case in the Second Treaty of Torun (1466), and
it eliminated the risk of mutiny in the major Prussian cities, whose
Lutheran leanings threatened to push them into Albrecht's camp. The
Treaty eradicated completely the decrepit body politic of the Order's
Prussian state, replacing it with the secular authority of the German
family of Hohenzollern ruling as vassals of the Polish Crown. Despite
its limitations, the Treaty potentially opened the way for a future
full unification of the Prussian fief with the Polish Crown, subject
to the fulfilment of all its terms. (Janusz Grabowski)