Hermann von Salza

Hermann von Salza (c. 1165 – 20 March 1239) served as the fourth Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights from 1210 until his death. He was a capable diplomat who maintained connections with both Emperor Frederick II and the Pope, and under his leadership the order expanded into Prussia.

Born into a family of ministeriales serving the Thuringian landgraves, Hermann likely came from Dryburg Castle in Langensalza. He may have participated in the 1189/91 Siege of Acre alongside Landgrave Louis III of Thuringia, where the Teutonic Order was founded. He possibly joined Landgrave Hermann I and Count Otto von Botenlauben on the 1197 Crusade and saw the coronation of King Amalric II of Jerusalem.

That crusade ended early after Emperor Henry VI died, leading to the order's reestablishment as a military organization under Grand Master Heinrich Walpot von Bassenheim to protect holdings in the Holy Land. When Hermann first appears as Grand Master at the 1210 coronation of John of Brienne as King of Jerusalem, his exact entry date into the order remains unknown. He may have spent time in the Mediterranean during his first year as leader, while the order's activities stretched from Spain to Livonia.

Hermann served as a friend and advisor to Emperor Frederick II, acting as his mediator at the Papal curia from 1222 onward. Pope Honorius III recognized Hermann's abilities and granted the Teutonic Knights equal standing with the Knights Hospitaller and Knights Templar, reversing the order's decline under previous Grand Masters.

At King Andrew II of Hungary's request in 1211, Hermann placed Teutonic Knights in Transylvania's Burzenland to defend against the Cumans. Hungarian nobles objected to their presence, forcing the knights to leave by 1225. Meanwhile, Hermann joined Frederick on the 1219 Fifth Crusade against Damietta and received a bravery decoration from John of Brienne. He later persuaded Frederick to undertake the Sixth Crusade and helped arrange Frederick's marriage to Isabella, John of Brienne's daughter.

After returning to Europe, Hermann helped resolve the War of the Keys and ended Frederick's excommunication. Konrad I of Masovia then requested his help fighting the pagan Old Prussians. With approval from both Pope and Emperor, the knights began their campaign to Christianize Prussia in 1230.