Albert of Brandenburg Albert of Brandenburg, 1490–1568, grand
master of the Teutonic Knights (1511–25), first duke of Prussia
(1525–68); grandson of Elector Albert Achilles of Brandenburg.
In 1525 he became a Protestant, and on the advice of Martin
Luther he secularized the dominions of the Teutonic Knights and
became duke of the hereditary duchy of Prussia. The knights'
lands had been held as a fief from the king of Poland, and the
new duchy remained under Polish suzerainty. On the extinction of
Albert's line (1618), Prussia passed to the senior line of
Brandenburg, and in 1701 it was made a kingdom. The Columbia
Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2012, Columbia
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