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98-738: Freiherr Christian Johann Dietrich Theodor von Grotthuss (20 January 1785 – 26 March 1822) was a Baltic German scientist known for establishing the first theory of electrolysis in 1806 and formulating the first law of photochemistry in 1817. His theory of electrolysis is considered the first description of the so-called Grotthuss mechanism . Grotthuss was born in 1785 in Leipzig , Electorate of Saxony , Holy Roman Empire , during an extended stay of his parents away from their home in northern Grand Duchy of Lithuania . He showed interest in natural sciences and went to study first in Leipzig and later in Paris at

196-400: A ruling class over indigenous Latvian and Estonian non-nobles. By the time a distinct Baltic German ethnic identity began emerging in the 19th century, the majority of self-identifying Baltic Germans were non-nobles belonging mostly to the urban and professional middle class. In the 12th and 13th centuries, Catholic German traders and crusaders ( see Ostsiedlung ) began settling in

294-783: A century earlier than in Russia proper. For some time, there was no outward tension between the German speakers and indigenous residents. Earlier, if any Latvian or Estonian who managed to rise above his class was expected to Germanize and to forget his roots, by the mid-19th century German urban classes began to feel increasing competition from the natives, who after the First Latvian National Awakening and Estonian national awakening produced their own middle class and moved to German- and Jewish-dominated towns and cities in increasing numbers. The Revolution of 1905 led to attacks against

392-538: A fortress on a hill near the town during the early 13th century. However, throughout the passing of time, demographically, their numbers gradually dwindled and had been subsequently assimilated in the local medieval Wallachian and Moldavian cultures by the overwhelming Romanian ethnic majority. Along with the largely Hungarian -Transylvanian nobility and the Székelys , the Transylvanian Saxons were members of

490-536: A minor alternative theory suggests settlement in Transylvania. In the context of medieval Transylvania, the term Saxon was used to denote a nobleman's title and not necessarily someone who was German-speaking. In these regards, the Saxon title could have been awarded to someone who was a non-native German speaker as well. Not all Transylvanian Saxon settlers were German-speaking given the fact that they also stemmed from

588-664: A note of independence to Soviet representatives in Stockholm on January 28, 1918, announcing their intention to break away from Russia under the rights granted to them by the Treaty of Nystad of 1721. In response, the Bolsheviks, who controlled Estonia, arrested 567 leading Germans and deported them to Russia. After the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk they were allowed to return. Under German-Soviet treaties, Germany gained control over Courland, Riga, Saaremaa (Ösel), Livonia and Estonia. In

686-667: A result, today only approximately 12,000 Saxons remain in Romania. Nowadays, the vast majority of Transylvanian Saxons live in either Germany or Austria. Nonetheless, a sizable Transylvanian Saxon population also resides today in North America, most notably in the United States (specifically in Idaho , Ohio , and Colorado as well as in Canada, southern Ontario more precisely). On the history of

784-688: A scheme by Karl Baron von Manteuffel-Szoege and Silvio Broedrich-Kurmahlen to pacify the countryside by settling up to 20,000 ethnic German farmers, mostly from Volhynia , in Courland. World War I brought the end of the alliance of the Baltic Germans and the Russian Tsarist government. German heritage led to their being viewed as the enemy by Russians . They were also seen as traitors by the German Empire if they remained loyal to Russia. Their loyalty to

882-480: Is 100 years since our children left") when a group of 130 children from the town of Hamelin (German: Hameln ), in present-day Lower Saxony , were led away from their hometown by a piper (who may be a folk memory of a lokator ) is that this related to an emigration event as part of the Ostsiedlung (i.e. Eastern settlement). The destination is usually supposed to have been Prignitz , Uckermark , and Pomerania , but

980-463: Is therefore known that Suceava had a small yet influent and thriving community of Transylvanian Saxons in medieval times. The newly arrived Saxons outside the Carpathian arch in the emerging medieval Romanian principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia brought urbanisation, craftsmanship, trade, and the so-called German law , under which the local administrations of medieval Romanian towns had operated in

1078-592: The Weinland including the village of Nympz (Latin for Nemșa / Nimesch ) near Mediasch ( Romanian : Mediaș ). Allegedly, the term Saxon was applied to all Germans of these historical regions because the first German settlers who came to the Kingdom of Hungary were either poor miners or groups of convicts from Saxony. In 1211, King Andrew II of Hungary invited the Teutonic Knights to settle and defend

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1176-684: The Burzenland in the southeastern corner of Transylvania. To guard the mountain passes of the Carpathians (German: Karpaten ) against the Cumans , the knights constructed numerous castles and towns, including the major city of Kronstadt ( Romanian : Brașov ). Alarmed by the knights' rapidly expanding power, in 1225 King Andrew II expelled the Teutonic Order from Transylvania permanently, which henceforth relocated to Prussia in 1226, although

1274-623: The Constitutional Assembly of Latvia nationalized 1,300 estates comprising 3.7   million hectares of land. Former German owners were allowed to keep 50 hectares of land and farm equipment. In 1924, the Saeima decided that no compensation would be paid to former owners. In 1929, the Saeima voted that veterans of the Baltische Landeswehr could not receive any land. In Estonia, there

1372-603: The German diaspora in Central-Eastern Europe , having continuously been living there since the High Middle Ages onwards. The Transylvanian Saxons are part of the broader group of Romanian Germans as well, being the eldest and one of the most important of all the constituent sub-groups of this ethnic community. Their native dialect, Transylvanian Saxon is close to Luxembourgish . Nowadays, organisations representing

1470-656: The German diaspora in Europe. The majority of medieval Catholic settlers and their German-speaking descendants lived in the local towns of medieval Livonia . However, a small wealthy elite formed the Baltic nobility , acquiring large rural estates. When Sweden had ceded its Livonian territories to the Russian Empire after the Great Northern War (1700–1721), many of these German-speaking aristocrats began taking high positions in

1568-682: The Kingdom of Romania , after the Transylvanian Saxons also voted for the union with the Romanian kingdom in February 1919. Consequently, the Transylvanian Saxons, together with other ethnic German sub-groups in then newly enlarged Kingdom of Romania (namely the Banat Swabians , Sathmar Swabians , Bessarabia Germans , Bukovina Germans , and Zipser Germans ), became part of that country's broader German minority . Today, relatively few still live in Romania, where

1666-646: The Livonian Order invited over 200 German merchants from Gotland to settle in Tallinn where they founded a market town. Membership in the Hanseatic League and active trade links with Russia and Europe increased the wealth of German traders. As the military power of the Teutonic Knights weakened during the 15th century wars with the Kingdom of Poland , Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Grand Duchy of Moscow ,

1764-484: The Modern Age , more specifically during the 19th century. Furthermore, Transylvanian Saxon intellectual Stephan Ludwig Roth also pleaded for a strengthening of the German element in Transylvania during the 19th century by means of subsequent waves of settlers stemming from contemporary Germany while at the same time firstly supporting the rights of the ethnic Romanians. Although the Teutonic Knights had left Transylvania,

1862-562: The Reformation ). These fortified churches, or kirchenburgen as they are known in standard German, had defensive capacities in the event of a foreign attack on a rural Transylvanian Saxon community (e.g. extensive inner and outer walls and a fortified watch tower). Such an attack would often stem from the Cumans , for example, or from the Pechenegs . It was estimated that there are approximately 300 such villages with fortified churches built by

1960-684: The Terra Mariana confederation, under the protection of Roman Popes and Holy Roman Empire . After the heavy defeat in the 1236 Battle of Saule the Livonian Brothers of the Sword became a part of the Teutonic Order . During the next three centuries, German-speaking soldiers, clergymen, merchants and craftsmen constituted the majority of the quickly growing urban population, as the native inhabitants usually were prohibited from settling there. In 1230,

2058-630: The Unio Trium Nationum (or 'Union of the Three Nations'), which was a charter signed in 1438. This agreement preserved a considerable degree of political rights for the three aforementioned groups but excluded the largely Hungarian and Romanian peasantry from political life in the principality. During the Protestant Reformation , most Transylvanian Saxons converted to Lutheranism . As the semi-independent Principality of Transylvania

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2156-481: The Zipser Saxons from present-day Spiš (German: Zips ), north-eastern Slovakia (as well as other historical regions of contemporary Romania, namely Maramureș and Bukovina ) given the fact they are two of the oldest ethnic German groups in non-native German-speaking Central and Eastern Europe. The first wave of settlement continued well until the end of the 13th century. Although the colonists came mostly from

2254-436: The École Polytechnique . Several renowned scientists taught at the École Polytechnique at that time, including Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy , Claude Louis Berthollet and Louis Nicolas Vauquelin . Because of some tensions in the relations between Russia and France, Grotthuss had to leave for Italy where he stayed at Naples for one year. The discovery of the first electric cell in 1800 by Alessandro Volta provided

2352-517: The Baltic German landowners, the burning of manors, and the torture and even killing of members of the nobility. During the 1905 Revolution groups of rebels burned over 400 manor houses and German-owned buildings and killed 82 Germans. In response Cossack punitive expeditions aided by German nobles and officers burned down hundreds of farms, arrested and deported thousands and summarily executed at least 2,000 people. Reaction to 1905 Revolution included

2450-545: The Baltic area consisted of the following territories: Small numbers of ethnic Germans began to settle in the area in the late 12th century, when traders and Christian missionaries began to visit the coastal lands inhabited by tribes who spoke Finnic and Baltic languages . Systematic conquest and settlement of these lands was completed during the Northern Crusades of the 12th and 13th centuries; this resulted in creation of

2548-750: The Bolshevik regimes were short-lived, they pursued the Red Terror against Germans, often killing them purely because of their nationality. After the collapse of the German Empire, Baltic Germans in Estonia began forming volunteer units to defend against the Bolshevik threat. On November 27, 1918 this was authorized by the Estonian government, and the Volunteer Baltic Battalion ( Freiwilligen Baltenbataillon )

2646-616: The Carpathian arch, and, implicitly, outside their then newly native lands across Transylvania starting in the mid and mid-late 12th century. Those areas pertained to the neighbouring and emerging Romanian medieval principalities of Moldavia (to the east) and Wallachia (to the south). In this particular process, they founded or co-founded major historical settlements on the territory of both aforementioned Romanian principalities such as Târgu Neamț (German: Niamtz ), Baia (German: Stadt Molde or Moldennmarkt ), Târgoviște (German: Tergowisch ), or Câmpulung (German: Langenau ). In

2744-701: The Empire expanded the area of the Saxons further to the east. Settlers from the Hermannstadt region spread into the Hârtibaciu River valley (German: Harbachtal ) and to the foot of the Cibin (German: Zibin ) and Sebeș (German: Mühlbacher ) mountains. The latter region, centered around the town of Mühlbach ( Romanian : Sebeș ), was known as Unterwald . To the north of Hermannstadt they settled what they called

2842-455: The German name for the Olt river, or the old land as in a word for word translation from German) or Hermannstadt Provinz , based around the picturesque well preserved medieval town of Hermannstadt , today's Sibiu . Additionally, the surrounding areas of the present-day town of Sibiu/Hermannstadt (former European Capital of Culture in 2007 alongside Luxembourg City ) were formed of marshlands in

2940-458: The High Middle Ages. Hence, taking in consideration the aforementioned regarding the Saxon title in high medieval Transylvania, the Transylvanian Saxons' ethnic consciousness subsequently solidified after the first waves of settlers from Western Europe arrived in the region and was further reinforced or revitalised with new waves of settlers from central and southern present-day Germany during

3038-508: The High Middle Ages. This is further hinted but also highlighted in the coat of arms of the town of Sibiu/Hermannstadt ( Latin : Cibinium ) by the water lily included therein. These German settlers were invited by Géza II . Although the primary reason for Géza II 's invitation was border defence, similar to employing the Szeklers against foreign invaders in the east of Transylvania, Germans were also sought for their mining expertise as well as

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3136-624: The Hungarian monarchs. Consequently, they had to pay yearly tax to the king and provide military contributions to the royal army in case of danger of attack from abroad. Otherwise, they enjoyed suzerainty ; even Hungarians could not settle down in the Saxon territories. The territory colonized by Germans covered an area of about 30,000 km (10,000 sq. mi.). The region was called Royal Lands or Saxon Lands (German: Königsboden ; Hungarian : Királyföld or Szászföld ; Romanian : Pământul crăiesc ; Latin : Terra Saxonum or Fundus Regius ). During

3234-671: The Hungarian nobility, with Transylvanian Saxon intellectuals pleading for the Latinity of the Romanian language and the Romanian people. They were subsequently allied with the Transylvanian Romanians and thus sided with the Austrian Empire in the context of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 . After 1918 and the dissolution of Austria-Hungary , in the wake of the Treaty of Trianon (signed in 1920), Transylvania united with

3332-562: The Imperial court. Starting from the 18th century, the Baltic German nobility also assumed some leading posts in the Russian imperial government. Germans, other than the local estate-owners, mainly lived in the cities, such as Riga , Reval , Dorpat , Pernau and Mitau . As late as the mid-19th century, the population of many of these cities still had a German majority, with Estonian, Latvian or Jewish minorities. By 1867, Riga 's population

3430-615: The Kingdoms of Poland, Sweden, and Denmark and lasted for 20 years. In 1561, Terra Mariana ceased to exist and was divided among Denmark (which took the island of Ösel ), Sweden (which took northern Estonia) and Poland, which annexed the newly created Duchy of Livonia , and granted the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia , a vassal state of Poland-Lithuania, to the last Master of the Livonian Order Gotthard Kettler . The secularized land

3528-742: The Livonian Governorate found themselves in two new countries, both of which introduced sweeping agrarian reforms aimed at the large land owners, an absolute majority of whom were Germans. As a result of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the subsequent Russian Civil War , many Baltic Germans fled to Germany. After 1919, many Baltic Germans felt obliged to depart the newly independent states for Germany , but many stayed as ordinary citizens. In 1925, there were 70,964 Germans in Latvia (3.6%) and 62,144 in 1935 (3.2% of population). Riga remained by far

3626-690: The Livonian branch in the north began to pursue its own policies. When the Prussian branch of the Order secularized in 1525 and became a Polish vassal state as the Duchy of Prussia , the Livonian branch remained independent while searching for a similar way to secularize. Livonia became mostly Protestant during the Reformation . In 1558, the Tsardom of Russia began the Livonian War against Terra Mariana which soon involved

3724-603: The Russian surrender at the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1918, the German Empire occupied the remaining Baltic provinces. The Ober Ost military administration began plans for German colonization of Courland. On April 20, 1917, the Commander-in-Chief of the Eastern front announced that a third of arable land there should be reserved for settlement by German war veterans. This was approved by Courland's German nobility on September 22, 1917. Livonian and Estonian nobles delivered

3822-506: The Saxon colonists remained, and the king allowed them to retain the rights and obligations included within the Diploma Andreanum of 1224 by Hungarian King Andrew II . This document conferred upon the German population of the territory between Drăușeni (German: Draas , Romanian : Drăușeni ) and Orăștie (German: Broos , Romanian : Orăștie ) both administrative and religious autonomy and defined their obligations towards

3920-705: The Saxons in Transylvania during the Middle Ages. The majority of them are still in very good to relatively good shape to this day, after further consolidation and renovation based on European funds or Norwegian grants (for example in Alma Vii or Laslea ), but also based on foreign donations. Nevertheless, there also some still left in ruin or decay, since the vast majority of the Saxons in their respective villages left them deserted during either before 1989 and after 1989 while emigrating for Western Europe or North America. The Transylvanian Saxons also colonized areas outside

4018-404: The Saxons in northeastern Transylvania). The initial waves of Transylvanian Saxons were referred to as hospites flandrenses et teutonici or primi hospites regni in Latin, literally "the Flemish and Teutonic guests" or "the first guests of the kingdom" (i.e. of the former Kingdom of Hungary ). For centuries, the main tasks of the Transylvanian Saxons during the High Middle Ages were to protect

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4116-588: The Saxons led to Transylvania being known in German as Siebenbürgen and Septem Castra or Septem Castrensis in Latin , referring to seven of the fortified towns (see Historical names of Transylvania ), most likely: Other potential candidates for this list include: Other notable urban Saxon settlements include: In addition to fortifying their towns over the passing of time, the Transylvanian Saxons also had to fortify their villages by building their fortified churches (the Transylvanian Saxons were initially strongly Roman Catholic then Evangelical Lutheran after

4214-455: The Sibiu (German: Hermannstadt ) area. Moreover, under the title of Schultheiß (German: Șoltuz ), ethnic Germans were even briefly in charge of some of these Romanian settlements during the High Middle Ages . Additionally, German potters and merchants were also present in the former Moldavian capital of Suceava at the end of the 14th century. Historically, the town of Suceava has also been known in Old High German as Sedschopff . It

4312-413: The Transylvanian Saxons exist in Romania , Germany, Austria , Canada, and the United States (in the latter case most notably 'Alliance of Transylvanian Saxons'). Other smaller communities of Transylvanian Saxons can be found in South Africa and Australia as well as South America (for example in Argentina ). The legal foundation of their settlement in southern, southeastern, and northeastern Transylvania

4410-435: The Transylvanian Saxons, former federal German president and professor doctor Theodor Heuss ( FDP ) stated, namely: "...their history is a piece of German history as a whole..." . The initial phase of German settlement in Transylvania began in the mid and mid-late 12th century, with colonists travelling to and residing in what would later become known in standard German as Altland (i.e. Țara Oltului in Romanian, after

4508-430: The Transylvanian context, of the terms Lutheran and Saxon, with the Lutheran Church in Transylvania being de facto a "Volkskirche", i.e. the "national church" of the Transylvanian Saxons (or the people's church of the Saxons). The Mongol invasion of 1241–42 devastated much of the Kingdom of Hungary. Although the Saxons did their best to resist and even tried to valiantly fight back the Mongol invaders, their resistance

4606-418: The ability to develop the region's economy. Most colonists to this area came from Luxembourg ( Luxembourgish : Lëtzebuerg ) and the Moselle River region (see for instance Medardus de Nympz , former knight and founder of the fortified village of Niemesch/Nemșa in Moșna ). A second phase of German settlement during the early 13th century consisted of settlers primarily stemming from the Rhineland region,

4704-518: The area. During this time, the Low German ( Plattdeutsch ) of the original settlers was gradually replaced by the High German ( Hochdeutsch ) of the new settlers. In the course of their 700-year history, Baltic German families had ethnic German roots, but also intermarried extensively with Estonians, Livonians and Latvians, as well as with other Northern or Central European peoples, such as Danes, Swedes, Irish, English, Scots, Poles, Hungarians and Dutch. In cases where intermarriage occurred, members of

4802-411: The beginning. In the medieval towns situated in the highlands of the Principality of Moldavia (or what would later become Bukovina starting in the Modern Age ), namely Suceava or Câmpulung Moldovenesc (German: Kimpolung ), the type of German town law which operated there was the Magdeburg law . Furthermore, the Teutonic Knights were also present in Siret (German: Sereth ) where they built

4900-433: The case of the first settlement (i.e. Târgu Neamț), they could have been equally helped in establishing it by the Teutonic Knights . Saxons in Wallachia also settled in Râmnic (i.e. present-day Râmnicu Vâlcea ) and Pitești (German: Pitesk ). Saxon colonization in Moldavia had likely occurred through a crossing from the Bistrița area eastward and northward whereas Saxon colonization in Wallachia had likely occurred from

4998-510: The charge is not transported by the movement of particles but by breaking and reformation of bonds was the first basically correct concept for the charge transport in electrolytes ; it is still valid for the charge transport in water, and the current proton hopping mechanism is a modified version of the original Grotthuss mechanism . The following two years Grotthuss spent in Rome , some other Italian cities, and Paris, and then went back to Russia via Munich and Vienna . From 1808 on he lived at

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5096-535: The colonists remained in Burzenland . The Kingdom of Hungary's medieval eastern borders were therefore defended in the northeast by the Nösnerland Saxons, in the east by the Hungarian border guard tribe of the Székelys, in the southeast by the castles built by the Teutonic Knights and Burzenland Saxons and in the south by the Altland Saxons. A common interpretation of the tale of the Pied Piper of Hamelin , dated to 26 June 1284 and recorded in Hamelin records that (the earliest of such records dating from 1384: "It

5194-407: The contemporary Low Countries (i.e. aside from Luxembourg, also contemporary Netherlands and Belgium ) and from modern day France as well. Additionally, it is equally important to mention the fact that the family name 'Sas' or 'Sasu' in Romanian and 'Szász' respectively in Hungarian could denote both an ethnic lineage as well as a social liaison to the Saxon title awarded in Transylvania during

5292-434: The eastern Baltic territories. With the decline of Latin , German became the dominant language of official documents, commerce, education and government. By the first half of the 20th century, the Baltic Germans were, until after World War II, along with the Transylvanian Saxons and the Zipser Germans (in Romania and Slovakia respectively), one of the three oldest continuously German-speaking and ethnic German groups of

5390-440: The eastern shores of the Baltic Sea , in what today are Estonia and Latvia . Since their resettlement in 1945 after the end of World War II , Baltic Germans have markedly declined as a geographically determined ethnic group in the region. Since the late Middle Ages , native German-speakers formed the majority of merchants and clergy , and the large majority of the local landowning nobility who effectively constituted

5488-480: The easternmost frontiers of the former Kingdom of Hungary against certain invading migratory Asiatic peoples, to bring more agriculture to the region, to instil Central European culture, enhance trade, and boost urbanisation and overall economic development. In the process of fortifying the borders of the Kingdom of Hungary to the east, they were early on helped by the Teutonic Knights . Later on, they had to further strengthen their hometowns and rural settlements against

5586-412: The estate of his mother in northern Lithuania. There he conducted research on electricity and light with the limited research equipment he could assemble. Grotthuss committed suicide in the spring of 1822 during a depression caused by health problems. Baltic German Baltic Germans ( German : Deutsch-Balten or Deutschbalten , later Baltendeutsche ) are ethnic German inhabitants of

5684-458: The expanding Ottoman Empire which posed a major threat from the south. The rural settlements were more protected with a series of fortified churches known as 'kirchenburgen' in standard German . An alternative term for them in standard German is also ' wehrkirchen ' (i.e. fortified churches). During the Modern Age, they favoured more and more the Romanians for the latter to obtain increased and rightful political, social, and cultural rights before

5782-478: The following territorial extent, as depicted in the maps below: Along with the Teutonic Order, other religious organizations important to the development of German communities were the Cistercian abbeys of Igrisch (Igriș) in the Banat region respectively Kerz (Cârța) in Fogaraschland (Țara Făgărașului). The earliest religious organization of the Saxons was the Provostship of Hermannstadt (now Sibiu ), founded 20 December 1191. In its early years, it included

5880-472: The landed class of German noble families and their economic base. On October 10, 1919, the Estonian parliament expropriated 1,065 estates (96.6% of all estates). The law of March 1, 1926 set the compensation to the former owners of arable land at about 3% of its market value and no compensation at all for the forests. This almost instantly bankrupted the German noble class, even if they were allowed to keep some 50 hectares of their lands. On September 16, 1920,

5978-466: The largest German center with 38,523 Germans residing there in 1935, while Tallinn then had 6,575 Germans. While the German landed class soon lost most of their lands after the agrarian reforms, they continued to work in their professions and to lead their companies. German cultural autonomy was respected. The Committee of the German Baltic Parties in Latvia and Deutsch-baltische Partei in Estland in Estonia participated in elections and won seats. At

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6076-426: The local Baltic nobility . Until the imperial reforms of the 1880s, local government was in the hands of the landtag of each province, in which only members of the matriculated Baltic nobility held membership and cities were ruled by German burgomasters . Between 1710 and approximately 1880, the Baltic German ruling class enjoyed great autonomy from the Imperial government and achieved great political influence in

6174-501: The military, political and civilian life of the Russian Empire , particularly in its capital city Saint Petersburg . Most Baltic Germans were citizens of the Russian Empire until Estonia and Latvia achieved independence in 1918. Thereafter, most Baltic Germans held Estonian or Latvian citizenship until their coerced resettlement to Nazi Germany in 1939, prior to the Soviet invasion and occupation of Estonia and Latvia in 1940. The Baltic German population never surpassed more than 10% of

6272-553: The modern Transylvanian Saxons originally came from the contemporary Low Countries (more specifically the regions of Flanders , Hainaut , Brabant , Liège , or Zeeland ) as well as the Moselle and Lorraine river valleys, and Luxembourg as well, then situated in the north-western territories of the Holy Roman Empire around the 1140s. Further or subsequent waves of German colonists in Transylvania also stemmed from more southern regions of present-day Germany such as Thuringia or even Bavaria (the latter particularly valid for

6370-404: The north-western territories of the Holy Roman Empire around the 1140s and 1150s. Alongside the Baltic Germans from Estonia and Latvia and the Zipser Germans (also sometimes known or referred to as Zipser Saxons ) from Zips , northeastern Slovakia , as well as Maramureș and Bucovina , the Transylvanian Saxons are one of the three eldest German-speaking and ethnic German groups of

6468-424: The other ethnic groups frequently assimilated into German culture, adopting German language, customs, and family names. They were then considered Germans, leading to the ethnogenesis of the Baltic Germans. The families of Barclay de Tolly and of George Armitstead (1847–1912), who had emigrated from the British Isles, married into and became part of the Baltic-German community. Baltic German settlements in

6566-460: The reign of King Géza II of Hungary (1141–1162). For several consecutive centuries, the main task of these medieval German-speaking settlers (as that of the Szeklers for example in the east of Transylvania) was to defend the southern, southeastern, and northeastern borders of the then Kingdom of Hungary against foreign invaders stemming most notably from Central Asia and even far East Asia (e.g. Cumans , Pechenegs , Mongols , and Tatars ). At

6664-422: The reign of Hungarian King Charles I (probably 1325–1329; also referred to as Charles Robert d'Anjou ), the Saxons were organized in the Saxon Chairs (or seats) as follows: The territorial extent of the aforementioned Saxon seats can be clearly seen in depth in the maps from the gallery below: Aside from the Saxon seats, there had also been two districts, namely Bistritz/Bistrița and Kronstadt/Brașov, which had

6762-430: The rights of German landowners under the Treaty of Nystad . Between 1710 and 1795, following Russia's success in the Great Northern War and the three Partitions of Poland , the areas inhabited by Baltic Germans eventually became Baltic governorates of the Russian Empire : Courland Governorate , Governorate of Livonia and Governorate of Estonia . The Baltic provinces remained autonomous and were self-governed by

6860-438: The same time, as both young states built their institutions, this often reduced the status of their minorities. In Latvia, children of mixed marriages were registered as Latvians while in Estonia they took the nationality of their fathers, who increasingly were Estonians. This quickly reduced the number of German children. German place names were eliminated from public use. German congregations lost their churches. Tallinn Cathedral

6958-405: The same time, the Saxons were also charged with developing agriculture and introducing Central European culture. Later on, the Saxons needed to further fortify both their rural and urban settlements against invading Ottomans (or against the invading and expanding Ottoman Empire ). The Saxons in northeastern Transylvania were also in charge of mining. They can be perceived as being quite related to

7056-451: The scientists a source of electricity which was used in various laboratory experiments around Europe. The electrolysis of water, acids and salt solutions was reported, but a good explanation was missing. Grotthuss actively contributed to this area both in terms of electrolysis experiments and their interpretation. During his stay in Italy, he published his work on electrolysis in 1806. His idea that

7154-405: The second last official census (carried out in 2011) indicated 36,042 Germans, out of which only 11,400 were of Transylvanian Saxon descent. As per the latest Romanian census conducted in 2022, they are even fewer, as other sub-groups of the entire German community in Romania as well. The colonization of Transylvania by ethnic Germans later collectively known as Transylvanian Saxons began under

7252-524: The signing of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact and the subsequent Nazi–Soviet population transfers . Nazi Germany resettled almost all the Baltic Germans under the Heim ins Reich program into the newly formed Reichsgaue of Wartheland and Danzig-West Prussia (on the territory of the occupied Second Polish Republic ). In 1945, most ethnic Germans were expelled from these lands as part of

7350-610: The situation of the native population. For examples, see List of palaces and manor houses in Latvia and List of palaces and manor houses in Estonia . The native Latvian and Estonian population enjoyed fewer rights under the Baltic German nobility compared with farmers in Germany, Sweden, or Poland. In contrast to the Baltic Germans, Estonians and Latvians had restricted civil rights and resided mostly in rural areas as serfs , tradesmen, or as servants in manors and urban homes. They had no rights to leave their masters and no surnames. This

7448-477: The south-eastern region of Transylvania still has one of the highest density of existing fortified churches from the 13th to 16th centuries as more than 150 villages in the area count various types of fortified churches in good shape, seven of them being included in the UNESCO World Heritage under the name of Villages with fortified churches in Transylvania . The rapid expansion of cities populated by

7546-584: The southern Low Countries , and the Moselle region, with others from Thuringia , Bavaria, and even from France . A settlement in northeastern Transylvania was centered on the town of Nösen , the later Bistritz ( Romanian : Bistrița ), located on the Bistrița River . The surrounding area became known as the Nösnerland . That area was important for mining in the Middle Ages. Continued immigration from

7644-560: The spring of 1918, Baltic Germans announced the restoration of the independent Duchy of Courland and Semigallia and pursued plans for uniting it with the Kingdom of Prussia . On April 12, 1918, Baltic German representatives from all Baltic provinces met in Riga and called on the German Emperor to annex the Baltic lands. Subsequently, a plan for a United Baltic Duchy ruled by Duke Adolf Friedrich of Mecklenburg , instead of outright annexation,

7742-549: The state was questioned, and rumours of a German fifth column increased with the defeats of the Imperial army led by Baltic German general Paul von Rennenkampf . All German schools and societies were closed in the Estonian Governorate and Germans were ordered to leave the Courland Governorate for inner Russia. Courland was conquered by Germany in 1915 and included into the military Ober Ost administration. After

7840-524: The territories of Hermannstadt, Leschkirch (Nocrich), and Groß-Schenk (Cincu), the areas that were colonized the earliest by ethnic Germans in the region. Under the influence of Johannes Honterus , the great majority of the Transylvanian Saxons embraced the new creed of Martin Luther during the Protestant Reformation . The first superintendent of the Saxons Evangelical Church, Paul Wiener ,

7938-570: The territory of present-day Romania en masse during and after World War II, relocating initially to Austria, then predominantly to southern Germany (especially in Bavaria ). The process of emigration continued during communist rule in Romania. After the collapse of the Ceaușescu regime in 1989 and the fall of the East German communist government, many of them continued to emigrate to unified Germany. As

8036-568: The territory they lived in was part of the Kingdom of Prussia . Baltic Germans were not a purely German ethnic group. The early crusaders, tradesmen and craftsmen often married local women, as there were no German women available. Some noble families, such as the Lievens , claimed descent through such women from native chieftains. Many of the German Livonian-Order soldiers died during the Livonian War of 1558–1583. New German arrivals came to

8134-664: The total population. In 1881, there were 180,000 Baltic Germans in Russia's Baltic provinces; however, by 1914, this number had declined to 162,000. In 1881 there were approximately 46,700 Germans in Estonia (5.3% of the population). According to the Russian Empire Census of 1897, there were 120,191 Germans in Latvia , or 6.2% of the population. Baltic German presence in the Baltics came effectively close to an end in late 1939, following

8232-624: The western Holy Roman Empire , they came to be collectively referred to as ' Saxons ' because of Germans working for the royal Hungarian chancellery . Gradually, the type of medieval German once spoken by these settlers, craftsmen, guardsmen, miners, and various other workers became locally known as Såksesch (i.e. Transylvanian Saxon ; in its longest form Siweberjesch-Såksesch ) and remains, still to this day, very closely related to Luxembourgish with which it shares many lexical similarities. The Transylvanian Saxon population has been steadily decreasing since World War II as they started leaving

8330-694: The wider explusion of Germans from Central and Eastern Europe after World War II. Resettlement was planned by the Allies for the territory remaining under Germany under terms of the border changes promulgated at the Potsdam Conference , i.e. west of the Oder–Neisse line . Ethnic Germans from East Prussia and Lithuania are sometimes incorrectly considered Baltic Germans for reasons of cultural, linguistic, and historical affinities. Germans of East Prussia held Prussian, and after 1871, German citizenship , because

8428-511: Was 42.9% German. Until the late 19th century, most of the professional and learned classes in the region, the literati , were Germans. German political and cultural autonomy ceased in the 1880s, when Russification replaced German administration and schooling with the usage of Russian . After 1885 provincial governors usually were Russians. Years of peace under Russian rule brought increasing prosperity and many new manor houses were built on country estates, but economic exploitation worsened

8526-507: Was developed. Its regency council met on November 9, 1918, but collapsed with the German Empire. The Baltic Germans' rule and class privileges came to the end with the demise of the Russian Empire (due to the Bolshevik revolution of October 1917) and the independence of Estonia and Latvia in 1918–1919. Baltic Germans suffered greatly under Bolshevik regimes in Estonia and Latvia. While

8624-514: Was divided among the remaining knights who formed the basis of Baltic nobility . The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia existed as a German-speaking country until 1795, while the northern part of Duchy of Livonia was conquered by Sweden which controlled parts of Estonia between 1561 and 1710 and Swedish Livonia between 1621 and 1710, having signed an agreement with the local Baltic German nobles not to undermine their political rights and autonomy. The Academia Gustaviana (now University of Tartu )

8722-584: Was elected by Saxon pastors at a synod on 6 February 1553. Almost all became Lutheran Protestants , with very few Calvinists , while other minor segments of the Transylvanian Saxon society remained staunchly Catholic (of Latin Church , more specifically) or were converted to Catholicism later on. Nonetheless, one of the consequences of the Reformation was the emergence of an almost perfect equivalence, in

8820-655: Was eventually turned down by the Mongols and many of their settlements were destroyed or ruined in the process. After the Mongols retreated from Transylvania, in the event of another invasion, many Transylvanian towns were fortified with stone castles and an emphasis was put on developing towns economically. In the Middle Ages, approximately 300 villages were defended by the Kirchenburgen , or fortified churches with massive walls and watch towers. Although many of these fortified churches have fallen into either decay or ruin, nowadays

8918-440: Was followed by White Terror in which up to 2,000 people, mostly Latvians, were shot as suspected Bolshevik supporters. Baltic German outlying estates were frequent targets of local Bolsheviks (as portrayed in the film, Coup de Grâce ) and the combination of local Bolsheviks and nationalists following independence brought about land nationalisations and a displacement of Baltic Germans from positions of authority. Baltic Germans of

9016-605: Was formed under the command of Colonel Constantin von Weiss ( de ). During the Estonian and Latvian wars of independence from 1918 to 1920, many Baltic Germans voluntarily enlisted in the newly formed Estonian and Latvian armies to help secure the independence of these countries from Russia. These Baltic German military units became known as the Baltische Landeswehr in Latvia and Baltenregiment ( de ) in Estonia. The State archives of Estonia and Latvia keep individual military records of each person who fought in this war. Baltische Landeswehr units took Riga on May 22, 1919 which

9114-569: Was founded in 1632 by King Gustavus II Adolphus of Sweden. It remained the only institution of higher education in the former Livonian territories and became the intellectual focus of the Baltic Germans. At the end of the 17th century, Sweden introduced the land reduction in its Baltic provinces and properties held by German nobility became the property of the Crown . That effectively turned serfs into free peasants. However, it would be overturned when Russia conquered these territories in 1710 and restored

9212-468: Was given to an Estonian congregation in 1927. After the 1923 referendum St. James's Cathedral in Riga was lost and Riga Cathedral taken away after another referendum in 1931 . At the start of independence, Baltic Germans owned 58% of land in Estonia and 48% in Latvia. Radical agrarian reforms were implemented in both countries to break German power and to distribute land to the veterans of independence wars and landless peasants. This largely destroyed

9310-411: Was in keeping with the social scheme of things in Russian Empire . It lasted until the 19th century, when emancipation from serfdom brought those inhabitants increased civil freedoms and some political rights. In 1804, Livonian peasant law was introduced by the Imperial government, aimed at improving conditions for serfs. Serfdom was abolished in all Baltic provinces between 1816 and 1820, about half

9408-569: Was not enough to support their manor houses. Germans were banned from governmental and military positions . Many Germans sold their properties and emigrated to Scandinavia or Western Europe. Most of the grand manor houses were taken over by schools, hospitals, local administration and museums. Transylvanian Saxons The first ancestors of the Transylvanian 'Saxons' originally stemmed from Flanders , Hainaut , Brabant , Liège , Zeeland , Moselle, Lorraine , and Luxembourg , then situated in

9506-551: Was officially stipulated within the Diploma Andreanum (German: Der Goldener Freibrief der Siebenbürger Sachsen , The Golden Charter of the Transylvanian Saxons , Romanian : Bula de aur a sașilor transilvăneni ) issued by King Andrew II of Hungary which allocated them the royal land ( Romanian : Pământul crăiesc or Pământul regal ) under local autonomy known as Königsboden or Fundus Regius in Latin . The ancestors of

9604-664: Was only one German party, which from 1926 was led by Axel de Vries ( de ), editor of Revaler Bote . Their leading parliamentarian was Werner Hasselblatt (1890–1958). Germans never received ministerial posts in governments. The three largest minorities – Germans, Swedes and Russians – sometimes formed election coalitions. The Deutsch-baltische Partei in Estland was established to defend the interests of German landowners, who wanted to receive compensation for their nationalized lands and properties. After land nationalization they received no compensation, but could keep plots up to 50 hectares, which

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