The Grand Commandery Alden Biesen was the headquarters of a bailiwick or province of the Teutonic Order in the land of Maas and Rhine. This bailiwick consisted of about twelve commanderies (castles in the countryside or residences in the city) in this European Region, each of them administered by a commander. Those commanders were under the authority of the Grand Commander, who resided in Alden Biesen (Bilzen) or in Nieuwen Biesen (Maastricht). The bailiwick Biesen is shown on the map. The different Grand Commanderies are found together on an illustration from 1700. The time axis gives an overall picture of the most important events in the history of the Teutonic Order of Knights and of Alden Biesen, with a brief historical explanation at each point.

- The source of pictures: “800 Jahre Deutscher Orden” (1990) and “Ridders en Priesters” (1992)
- Information on the texts and about the historical activity: pat.vincent@cjsm.vlaanderen.be