Royal Prussia (polish: Prusy Królewskie) was a
Polish province formed from a part of the
Teutonic Order Teritory. In March
1440, the Hanseatic cities of
Gdansk,
Elblag and
Torun founded the
Prussian Confederation with other Prussian cities to free themselves from the overlordship of the Teutonic Knights. Polish king
Casimir IV supported their revolt (February
1454) in the War of the Cities or
Thirteen Years' War and the
second Treaty of Torun[?] (October
1466). That treaty provided for the Teutonic Order's cession to the Polish crown of its rights over the western half of its territories. Henceforth the Gdansk Pomerania returned to Poland to form
Royal Prussia together with
Malbork, the
Chelmno[?] voivodships and the bishopric of
Warmia. The eastern part of the
Monastic State of Prussia[?] remained under the rule of the Teutonic Order successors, under Polish suzerainty as a Polish fief. It included the lands recovered by Poland during the
Thirteen Years War (1454-1466) and also the bishopric of
Warmia and regions of
Malbork and
Elblag.
Until 1569 ( the
Union of Lublin[?]), Royal Prussia enjoyed substantial autonomy in the Kingdom of Poland - it had it's own Diet, treasury and monetary unit. During the First (1772) and Second (1793) Partitions of Poland the teritory of Royal Prussia was incorporated into the
Kingdom of Prussia.
Also see :
- Brandenburg
- Brandenburg-Prussia
- List of Kings of Prussia
- Ducal Prussia
- Kingdom of Prussia
- Warmia
- Masuria
- Kaliningrad
- Hohenzollern
- History of Germany
- Franco-Prussian War
- West Prussia
- East Prussia