# Riga founded (1201)

URL: https://christianity-history.com/timeline/1201-riga-founded
Location: Riga, Livonia
Themes: War

Bishop Albert of Buxhoeveden founds Riga as the base for a crusade against the pagan Livonians and soon creates the Livonian Brothers of the Sword. The Baltic crusades brought Christianity to present-day Latvia and Estonia by force. At this point in the timeline (1201), the Bishop of Rome was Pope Innocent III (8 January 1198 – 16 July 1216).

## Why it matters
It opened the Northern Crusades in the eastern Baltic, the last region of Europe to be Christianised.

Pope at the time: [Pope Innocent III](https://christianity-history.com/popes/pope-innocent-iii)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Livonian Crusade](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livonian_Crusade)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Riga founded](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Riga+founded)
- [Wikipedia — Medieval Church (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Catholic_Church#Middle_Ages)