English
The Cistercians, who were very involved in the Christianization process in the Eastern Baltic, have long been accused of having introduced armed mission (Schwertmission) in Livonia. This paper will show that the forced Christianization was rather a consequence of the ambitions of some aristocrats from Denmark or Northern Germany. We will also point out some historical mistakes. For example, the first bishop of Estonia, Fulco, was not a Cistercian. The Cistercians Theodoricus and Berthold did not launch the Livonian crusades, but Meinhard, first bishop of Livonia, did.
Keywords
- Middle Ages
- Livonia
- Baltic sea
- christianization
- Cistercian order
