Burchard von Schwanden (also
Burkhard; died 1310) was the 12th
Grand Master of the
Teutonic Knights, serving from 1282 or 1283-1290.
Burchard hailed from a
patrician part of
Berne in
Switzerland. He was a monk in
Hitzkirch before becoming the
Komtur of
Konitz (Chojnice) and advancing in 1277 to the rank of a regional Komtur of
Thuringia and
Saxony. He became grand master in 1282 or 1283.
It was during his term that the political situation of the
Kingdom of Jerusalem worsened. This situation was strongly felt by the Order as its headquarters were still in
Acre, but despite this, Burchard was in no hurry to help the
crusaders in the
Middle East, as his mind was preoccupied with matters in
Prussia,
Livonia, and the
Holy Roman Empire.
In 1287, a
Lithuanian invasion devastated much of Livonia. Burchard left for
Rome in 1289 where, in the presence of the
Pope, the new borders of the
Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights by the
Baltic Sea were drawn. Burchard also sought
Pope Nicholas IV's permission for the coronation of
Rudolf von Habsburg.
In early 1290, Burchard was forced by the Order to help the crusaders in Acre which was under siege. An army gathered by the grand master in a hurry left for the
Holy Land. Shortly after arriving, Burchard surprisingly handed over his authority to
Heinrich von Bonlant, Komtur of
Sicily, resigned as the grand master, and left the Order for reasons unknown.
After leaving Acre, Burchard left for his native
Switzerland where he decided to join the
Knights Hospitaller and became the Komtur of
Buchsee. He died in 1310, but the exact date of his death is not certain.