Master of Mayhem
Lithuania was always an alluring target for the Sword Brothers and, later, the Teutonic Knights. But Lithuania was vast, its people resilient and the wars waged against its dukes were long and bloody. After the Sword Brothers had conquered Livonia and Estonia they turned their gaze towards the endless forests of Lithuania, expecting another glorious crusade against the pagans.
After the fall of Dorpat to the Sword Brothers in 1224 and the cessation of hostilities with Novgorod, Bishop Albert had established peace throughout Livonia and Estonia. His crusader kingdom had expanded to cover an area from the River Dvina north to the gates of Reval. But that place was still under Danish control and there was a festering resentment between the Danes and the Sword Brothers.
Estonia may be at peace but Conrad Wolff, now a master of the Sword Brothers, seethes with anger against a wrong committed against him and his friends. The aftermath will lead to Livonia and Estonia being dragged into international politics as the Papacy intervenes in the affairs of the Sword Brothers and Livonia.
Meanwhile a frustrating war continues against the pagan Lithuanians in the south, a conflict that puts a severe strain on the resources of the Sword Brothers. But it is in the north where a crisis suddenly develops, resulting in Conrad and his order facing annihilation in the freezing wastes. Against this dire backdrop Conrad is forced to make a decision that will have major ramifications for both him and the Sword Brothers. And in the aftermath of that decision a giant of the crusader kingdom in the Baltic leaves the stage.
‘Master of Mayhem’ is the fourth volume of the Crusader Chronicles and continues the story of Conrad Wolff and the Baltic Crusade in the first half of the thirteenth century.
Maps of Livonia in the thirteenth century, the Lithuanian kingdoms and the tribal lands of Estonia can be found on the maps page.
