German Romanticism and the Order
The German Romantic reception of the Teutonic Order was, a foundational element in the construction of the modern German national identity, and the German Romantic treatment of the Order was, a central element in the construction of the German national tradition. The German Romantics of the early nineteenth century treated the Order as a noble Christian frontier, a forerunner of the German national mission in the east, and a symbol of the German imperial tradition. The German Romantic treatment of the Order was, in the course of the nineteenth century, increasingly politicised, and the German Romantic treatment was, a central element in the construction of the modern German national identity.
The Origins of the German Romantic Reception
The origins of the German Romantic reception of the Teutonic Order are to be found in the German national awakening of the early nineteenth century, in the period of the Napoleonic Wars and the Congress of Vienna. The German Romantics of this period, including Friedrich Schlegel, August Wilhelm Schlegel, and the circle of the Athenaeum journal, were interested, in this period, in the construction of a usable German national past, and the medieval empire of the Hohenstaufen and the medieval German settlement of the Baltic were, an attractive source of national symbolism.
The Order, as a German-speaking institution in a non-German region, and as a crusading order under the protection of the imperial house, was, the Romantics, a natural symbol of the German imperial tradition. The Order’s hospital at Acre was, the Romantics, a symbol of the German charitable vocation, and the Order’s territorial state in Prussia was, the Romantics, a symbol of the German colonial vocation. The Order’s military forces were a symbol of the German military tradition, and the Order’s crusading vocation was a symbol of the German Christian vocation.
The Order’s black cross was, the Romantics, a particularly potent symbol of the German national tradition. The cross was, the Romantics, a symbol of the German Christian mission, and the cross was a symbol of the German imperial tradition. The cross was a symbol that could be deployed, in modern times, in the service of the German national cause.
The National-Mission Rhetoric
The national-mission rhetoric of the nineteenth century was, in the German Romantic tradition, a central element in the construction of the German national identity. The Order was, in the national-mission rhetoric, a symbol of the German imperial mission in the east, and the Order was a symbol of the German colonial vocation. The Order’s medieval empire was, in the national-mission rhetoric, the model of the future German national state, and the Order’s military forces were the model of the future German national army.
The national-mission rhetoric was, in the propaganda of the revolutions of 1848, a central element in the construction of the German national identity. The Order was, in this propaganda, a symbol of the German national unity that the revolution was intended to achieve, and the Order’s medieval empire was the model of the future German national state. The Order was, in the propaganda of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, a symbol of the German military tradition that the new German Empire was intended to continue.
The national-mission rhetoric was, in the propaganda of the Wilhelmine period, a central element in the construction of the German imperial identity. The Order was, in this propaganda, a symbol of the German imperial mission in the east, and the Order’s Prussian crusade was the model of the German colonial expansion in modern times. The Order was, in this propaganda, a symbol of the German racial and imperial mission in the east.
The Nazi Appropriation of the Romantic Tradition
The Nazi appropriation of the Teutonic Order was an extreme form of the German national-mission rhetoric of the previous century, and the Nazi appropriation was, a substantial embarrassment for the German national tradition. The Nazi ideologues of the 1920s and 1930s were interested in the construction of a usable medieval past, and the Teutonic Order was a particularly attractive source of national symbolism.
The Nazi appropriation of the Order was, in practice, a central element in the propaganda of the Nazi period. The Order was, in the Nazi propaganda, an explicit point of reference, and the Order’s symbols, rituals, and architectural forms were, in the Nazi propaganda, a central element in the construction of the Nazi visual culture. The Order’s black cross was, in the Nazi period, a central element in the iconography of the SS, and the Order’s medieval castles were a central element in the architecture of the Nazi state.
The Nazi appropriation of the Order was, a substantial embarrassment for the German national tradition, and the postwar German historiography of the Order has, distanced itself from the Nazi appropriation. The postwar German historiography has, attempted to recover the Order’s medieval character as a religious and military institution, and the postwar German historiography has, treated the Nazi appropriation as a distortion of the Order’s medieval character.
The Postwar German Historiography
The postwar German historiography of the Order was, in its first decades, dominated by the attempt to recover the Order’s medieval character as a German institution, and the postwar German historiography was an attempt to distance itself from the Nazi appropriation. The postwar German historiography was, however, also committed to a critical distance from the national-mission rhetoric of the previous century, and the postwar German historiography has developed a more nuanced and more balanced view of the Order’s history.
The postwar German historiography has, treated the Order as a complex institution with a long and varied history, and the postwar German historiography has treated the Order as an institution that is best understood in the context of the medieval European frontier societies and the medieval European state system. The postwar German historiography has, distanced itself from the national-mission rhetoric of the previous century, and the postwar German historiography has treated the national-mission rhetoric as a distortion of the Order’s medieval character.
Sources
- Biskup, Marian, and Gerard Labuda. Dzieje zakonu krzyżackiego w Prusach. Gdańsk: Wydawnictwo Morskie, 1986.
- Boockmann, Hartmut. Der Deutsche Orden: Zwölf Kapitel aus seiner Geschichte. Munich: Beck, 1981.
- Burleigh, Michael. The Third Reich: A New History. New York: Hill and Wang, 2000.
Related Reading
For the romantic and nationalist legacy, see the cluster on the romantic and nationalist legacy. For the Grunwald narrative in Polish literature, see the article on the Grunwald narrative. For the Nazi appropriation of the Order, see the article on the Nazi appropriation. For the modern historiography, see the article on modern historiography. For the founding of the Order at Acre, see the article on the founding. For the Prussian state, see the pillar on the Teutonic State.