Deutschordenskommende Lucklum

The Deutschordenskommende Lucklum stands in the village of Lucklum within the district of Wolfenbüttel. It began as a commandery of the Teutonic Order in the 13th century, established after the order acquired lands and the local church. The site became the administrative centre for the order’s holdings between the Weser and Oder rivers. By the late 13th century the commandery had replaced the Elmsburg as the seat of the bailiwick of Saxony.

The commandery’s history reflects wider events in the Teutonic Order’s fortunes. After suffering losses at the Battle of Tannenberg in 1410, the bailiwick fell into debt and lost prestige. During the Reformation it converted to Protestantism in 1542 and later became a foundation for unmarried noblemen. The Thirty Years’ War damaged the buildings, yet Landkomtur Jan Daniel von Priort rebuilt them and his tomb remains in the church. Later Landkomtur Friedrich Wilhelm von Hardenberg introduced Merino sheep from Spain, creating a noted stud farm that made Lucklum famous for fine wool.

Visitors enter through a high stone wall built by Landkomtur Hans von Lossau in the late 16th century. Inside, the Romanesque church of 1051 forms the oldest part, its westwork predating the order’s arrival. The church’s interior holds an over-life-size statue of Jan Daniel von Priort holding a replica of the order’s black cross on white flag, surrounded by the coats of arms of 43 knights. The adjoining former commandery house contains the Knights’ Hall with portraits of Brunswick dukes and Teutonic grand masters. Beyond lies a landscaped park planted with rare American trees along the river Wabe, where a horse-washing place still stands. A lime avenue of about 400 metres leads from the road to the courtyard, replanted in 2018 after storm damage.