I visited Malbork Castle today. It is one of the largest remaining castles in the world by area, the largest brick complex in Europe and placed on the UNESCO world heritage list.

The history of Malbork castle is closely intertwined with the history of Poland. It was founded in the 13th century by the Teutonic order and named Marienburg. The Teutonic order was a group of Catholic German knights who had previously fought in the Holy Land during the Crusades and protected pilgrims there. They left the Middle East after the Muslims became increasingly stronger and took part in the Prussian Crusade in North Poland and Baltic region to Christianise the local population. The castle was built to maintain control over the area and the Teutonic order started ruling the North of Poland.

In 1457, as the power of the Teutonic knights weakened and Polish power increased, the castle was sold to the Polish king Casimir IV and became an important residence for the Polish monarchs who now controlled the north of Poland with its important access to the sea and its valuable trade routes. With the establishment of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569 the power of the now elected Polish kings (and grand dukes of Lithuania) grew and Malbork became an important stronghold within a large state that now played an important part in European affairs.

In 1772 Malbork changed names and hands again. The power of the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth crumbled, and the state was partitioned between Prussia, Russia and Austria at the end of the 18th century in a series of treaties. Malbork became a part of Prussia, who had become a very powerful German state, and was known again as Marienburg.

Although Germany had lost in WW1 and Poland regained independence, Malbork stayed in German hands together with other areas of North Poland. It was used as a destination for Nazi youth pilgrimages and camps as Nazi glorified the past of the Teutonic knights.  It would take another war and another German defeat for the castle to return to Polish hands in 1945. 

Originally posted on Instagram on October 31, 2021