Northern Crusades

So, it's been a while since I made a map. I have a few ideas in my head and a few unfinished works-in-progress, and finally found some time to complete one of them. It's not as good as I wanted it to be, but it's better than nothing.
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The Northern Crusades, in our world, were a series of military conflicts in the 12th and 13th centuries, during which the Kings of Denmark and Sweden, two German military orders (Brothers of the Sword and Brothers of the Cross) and some other Catholic rulers sought to conquer and convert the Pagan peoples of the modern-day Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and parts of Russia, Belarus and Poland. What if the set-up was completely reversed?

A brief timeline goes as this:

- late 10th - early 11th century: several missionaries to the lands of what would later be called the Baltic tribes are successful and convert the peoples to Catholicism. Even though they keep many elements of their old beliefs, the tribes soon accept the feudal society that comes with Christianity and become part of Europe at large.
- mid-to-late 11th century: the Viking age comes to an end in the British Isles and Denmark, but the Norse kings keep their power in the Scandinavian peninsula. Several dynasties, the Ynglings and Munsos being the most well-known among them, establish Pagan realms and begin conquering the Sami tribes to the north. The Svear also establish a kingdom around the city of Kalmar, while the city of Birka grows into an agglomeration of trader towns, generally referred to as Birkenland. In the meantime, a chieftain Roerik, claiming descent from the great Rurik, establishes a Kingdom by conquering some Finnish tribes. Roerik had been raised in Novgorod, and so the new realm adopts the Eastern Christian faith.
- early-to-mid12th century: tensions between Christian and Pagan realms increase, until they erupt in three wars, called the First (1116-1123), Second (1152-1157) and Orthodox (1156-1158) Northern Crusades.

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The First Northern crusade can be divided into two, somewhat distinct although still closely related, parts. The first was a series of raids and counter-raids between the warlords of Svearike and Birkenland on one side, and the Duchies of Kursemia and Latgalia and Kingdom of Aestirikke on the other. It is notable that Murrik of Svearike had kept the County of Visbit for almost three years (1116-1118) before being ousted by Duke Kunnins himself after a half-year-long siege.

The second part of the Crusade was triggered by a rebellion of Catholic subjects living in south-western Svearike, which began in 1120, as Svearike was somewhat weakened due to its conflict with Kursemia and neighbours. The rebellion was supported by Gottland, and King Hermund II soon received a Papal Bull supporting his endeavour and calling all good Christians to join the cause; this is almost the only reason why the whole conflict is called a Crusade. This part of the war lasted for 3 years and resulted in Gottskap being occupied by Gottland for that time. However, once Gottland's armies were defeated at Nishoping and Varend, an inconclusive peace was signed; it established the right of Svearike's subjects to practice Catholicism if they so desire, but no land formally changed hands.

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The Second Northern Crusade was a proper Crusade, with the Catholic side receiving material support from many Christian realms. It began in 1152, a year after a huge coordinated Sami raid devastated most of the northern Ynglinga lands. A multinational army, led by the Danish King Vestor, sailed across the Skagerrak and landed close to Skene. They proceded to occupy a large amount of territory in southern Ynglinga and Munsorike, but eventually the Pagans mustered enough troops to repel the Christian invasion. In 1155, another army set forth from Denmark and Gottland, invading Svearike. They defeated the Svear army and annihilated it trying to return to Nishoping, but at a similar time, Prince Diefeld was captured in battle by the Munsorike forces, and the Pagans managed to barter him away in exchange for peace. At that point, the Ynglinga could focus on the Sami raiders and soon recaptured their land, pushing much further than the previous borderland, subjugating the tribes of Julleva and Pitejja.

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The Orthodox Northern Crusade is sometimes considered a part of the Second, but since it was only temporally coincident, it is reasonable to count it as a separate effort. Initially, the Christian nations were on the defensive; a Suomi chieftain Pelleksi gathered a formidable force and invaded Roerikrike, sacking the towns of Jarvinikki and Sortavala. He went as far south as Viborg, but there he met a massive defensive force under command of Grand Duke Samozh Rurikovich of Novgorod. During the battle, Samozh was joined by Roerik, sealing the outcome. Subsequently, the Orthodox forces liberated Roerik's lands and invaded deeply into Suomi territory. Peace was signed in spring of 1159, forcing many tribes to pay tribute to Roerik and Novgorod for many years to come.

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Note that most of the mangled spellings of city names are intentional. I tried to capture the feeling of 19th century English maps, which often had spellings changed to allow English speakers to pronounce them properly. Also note that some names are located in different places than in our world (e.g. Gotland); this is also intentional. Except, that is, where it is not; there it's just a sign of my sloppy research.