Which medieval military order used a black cross and later became known as the Teutonic Order?

The medieval military order that later became known as the Teutonic Order was the Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem.

The order began during the Third Crusade, when German merchants established a field hospital at the siege of Acre in 1190. It developed into a religious military order and received papal recognition in 1198. Its members included knights, priests, and other brothers.

The order’s emblem became a black cross on a white mantle. After its campaigns in the Holy Land, it shifted much of its activity to northeastern Europe, where it fought and converted pagan peoples and established a powerful territorial state in Prussia.

The Teutonic Knights are sometimes confused with the Knights Templar or Hospitallers. Unlike those orders, the Teutonic Order was closely associated with German-speaking patrons and its later Baltic state. Its power declined after military defeats and political changes in the region.