Battle of Krücken

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Battle of Krücken

Part of the Northern Crusades

Prussian tribes in the 13th century

Date	November 29, 1249
Location	Small village of Krücken
Result	Prussian victory

Belligerents

Prussians (Natangians)

Teutonic Knights

Commanders

Unknown

Marshal Heinrich Botel

Casualties and losses

None

54 knights massacred

The Battle of Krücken was a medieval battle between the Teutonic Knights and Prussians, one of the Baltic tribes, fought in 1249 during the Northern Crusades. Marshal Heinrich Botel gathered men from Kulm, Elbing, and Balga for an expedition deeper into Prussia. They traveled into the lands of Natangians and pillaged the region. On their way back they encountered an army of Natangians. The Knights retreated to the nearby village of Krücken, near Kreuzburg (now Slavskoye, Kaliningrad Oblast), where Prussians hesitated to attack. The Prussian army was growing as new troops were arriving from more distant territories, and the Knights did not have enough supplies to withstand a siege. Therefore the Teutonic Knights bargained for surrender: the marshal and three other knights were to remain as hostages while the others were to lay down their weapons.

The Natangians broke the agreement and massacred 54 knights and a number of their followers. Some knights were executed in religious ceremonies or tortured to death, others were ransomed or exchanged, including the marshal.

In terms of knights killed, it was the fourth largest defeat of the Teutonic Knights in the 13th century. Such barbarity gave the Knights an excuse not to treat the Prussians as civilized and honorable people. Never again did the Knights surrender to pagans. The Natangians did not exploit their victory and did not make offensive into the lands of the Teutonic Knights. It took two years for the crusading military order to recover and revenge the massacre.