Vytautas the Great

Vytautas the Great is the Grand Duke of Lithuania, and widely regarded as a king by his own people. In 1410 he is one of the most powerful men in Europe and a major opponent of the Ordenstaat, having opposed the Teutonic Knights since the first Lithuanian Civil war, when his cousin Jogaila who would later become King of Poland, allied himself with the Teutonic Knights agianst Vytautas's father Kęstutis.

By 1410, Jogaila has become Władysław II Jagiełło, King of Poland and technically, Vytautas is now a nominal vassal of his cousin though the Union of Vilnius and Radom gives Vytautas and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania vast internal autonomy and Vytautas is often regarded as the more powerful of the two.

At the Battle of Grunewald/Tannenberg, Vytautas, aged sixty, commands the Lithuanian flank and Jagiełło is Supreme Commander of the combined army. Rumours abound however that Vytautas is the true architect of the allied battle plan.

Ulrich von Jungingen

Ulrich von Jungingen is the twenty sixth Hochmeister des Deutschen Ordens (Grand Master of the Teutonic Order). This means that he is the Supreme Commander of the Order, answerable to no one but God.

The Pope, Gregory XII has little influence on the politics of Prussia, finding himself very busy dealing with the Antipope Benedikt XIII.

In 1410, the position of Hochmeister is one Ulrich has held for only three years after his brother Konrad von Jungingen died of gall stones, in his bed at Marienburg Castle.

Ulrich von Jungingen is a hard nosed and belligerent character who has adopted a 'no nonesense' course of action against the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland.

He is 50 years old.

Ulrich von Jungingen does not feature in the games in person, but is present 'off stage' by virtue of who he is and what he means to the principal characters. More than any other, Ulrich von Jungingen, and his policies of belligerence and confrontation lead to the formation of the Schwartzekreutz Bruderschafft. The Brotherhood of the Black Cross.