Blue Order

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Blue Order until the Protestant Reformation was known as: ”Milites Sanctae Mariae Ordo Cyaneum”. After 1536, the name of the order was changed to: Ordo Cyaneum. The Blue Order is a order of chivalry founded in 1222 by former members of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword, originally instituted by Bishop Albrecht of Riga.

The Blue Order was from the beginning a crusading order, which had the christianizing of the Baltic area as its mission, along more profane national interests (especially some of King Valdemar II’s).

Following the Protestant Reformation, the Blue Order became secular and renounced its crusading mission, but remained a secluded and hermetic order, surrendering to spiritual matters and military training: riding, fencing and archery.

The Blue Order consists of “Housecarls”, organized in an old Scandinavian military system. The most prominent housecarl is “Ward of Valdemar” which owned its reputation during the three years absence of Valdemar II of Denmark in 1225-28, and is said to have a important meaning in the self-understanding of the order.

The Teutonic Order must have had some influence on the structure of the early Blue Order, since the two orders were operating in the same area, but no documented relation remains.

The history of The Blue Order is related to a series of legends and fragments from the early Danish history, especially to the Danish engagement in the Baltic area of present day Estonia and Lithuania, where it is said that the order had a stronghold or a castle called “Arax”.

In addition to its castle, The Blue Order also had “houses of the order” scattered around in the Danish Impire of that time; Roskilde, Lund, Soroe, Odense, Viborg, Ribe, Altona (today in Germany), Kalmar (Sweden) and apparently in Akershus (Norway).

Because of the scarce documentation, it’s hard to decide where legend ends and history begins, but it’s a fact that The Blue Order is still active today.