
Emblem of the Order
The
Order of Dobrzyń () or
Order of Dobrin (), also known as the
Brothers of Dobrzyń (), was a
military order created in the borderland of
Masovia and
Prussia (today's
Dobrzyń Land,
Poland) during the 13th century
Prussian Crusade to 'defend against
Baltic Prussian raids'.
In
Latin the
knights were known as the
Fratres Milites Christi (de Prussia, de Dobrin, de Dobrzyń, de Mazovia), and they were nicknamed the
Prussian Cavaliers of Jesus Christ.
The Order was created by
Christian of Oliva, the first
Bishop of Prussia (1216–1228), to protect Masovia and
Kuyavia against raids from the
pagan Prussians who defied Duke
Konrad I of Masovia's attempts to subjugate them.
The creation of the Order was confirmed by
Pope Gregory IX (1227–1241) in 1228. Duke Konrad granted the Knights the town of
Dobrzyń (Dobrin) and the surrounding
Dobrzyń Land (), territory located south of and adjacent to Prussia. The Order of Dobrzyń was the only military order created in the territory of Poland.
At first the Order was composed of 15
German knights from
Lower Saxony and
Mecklenburg led by
Master Brunon.
The Order of Dobrzyń provided assistance to the
Cistercian missionaries in Prussia and protection from the raids of the pagan Prussian tribes. Their ideology was represented by their clothing - over their
armor they had white cloaks, with symbols of a red sword raised up and a red star representing the revelations of
Jesus to non christians. The rules of their orders were based on those of the
Livonian Order and the
Knights Templar.
In the face of the Order's lack of success in battle against the Prussians, as well as their small number (at its highest, 35 knights), in around 1235 the majority of the Knights joined the
Teutonic Order, as allowed by a papal document, the
Golden Bull of Rieti.
In 1237 the rest of the Brothers were moved by Konrad to
Drohiczyn to increase the military strength of that outpost. The Brothers of Dobrin were last mentioned when Drohiczyn was captured by
Prince Daniel of
Kiev in 1240.