in Livonia) From October 1412 to June 1413, he was sent to the
Kingdom of Poland and the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania as arbiter in their long territorial dispute with the
Teutonic Order over
Samogitia. Officially, his task was only to inspect and determine the southern and eastern borders of Samogitia which had never been defined. Makrai first arrived to
Marienburg, capital of the Teutonic Order, and received a cold welcome. He then traveled via
Ragnit to
Trakai where Grand Duke
Vytautas organized a feast, knighted Makrai, and showered him with expensive gifts, including golden belt and
spurs. The arbitration took place in January 1413 in
Kaunas. The Order presented many documents, reaching as far back as donations by King
Mindaugas in the 1250s and early 1260s, showing the numerous times that Samogitia was transferred to them (most recently by the
Peace of Raciąż of 1404). They also extracted from Vytautas and King
Jogaila a confirmation that, as agreed by the
Peace of Thorn (1411), Samogitia was ruled by Lithuania only temporarily, i.e. only for the lifetime of Vytautas and Jogaila. However, two days later, this confirmation was protested by representatives of their heirs – Vytautas' married daughter
Sophia and Jogaila's infant daughter
Hedwig. They argued that Vytautas and Jogaila had no right to transfer Samogitia without the approval of their heirs. The protest was joined by 14 Samogitian nobles who argued that the transfer was invalid without the approval of Samogitian nobility which enjoyed greater privileges and had the right to select their ruler. When direct negotiations failed, Makrai returned to his primary goal of determining the border. Both sides presented numerous documents, brought witnesses for testimonies, and swore under oath in support of their position. Particular points of contention were
Veliuona and
Pieštvė, Lithuanian fortresses destroyed during the
Lithuanian Crusade and rebuilt by Vytautas, and
Memel, Teutonic castle since 1252. Makrai departed Lithuania by the end of February and traveled to Poland to investigate various territorial claims in
Mazovia. He was presented evidence that
Pomerelia with
Gdańsk was once Polish. He also collected proof that Teutonic Order was not following previous agreements, for example regarding release of prisoners, and sent a couple admonishing letters to Teutonic Grand Master
Heinrich von Plauen. On 3 May 1413, Makrai delivered his final decision and recognized that Samogitia took up the entire right bank of the
Neman River, including Memel (
Klaipėda), and thus should belong to Lithuania. The Teutonic Order refused to recognize this ruling, accused Makrai of accepting bribes, and started a campaign to discredit both Makrai and Lithuanian dukes (they fabricated a story that Vytautas' grandfather
Gediminas was a low-born
hostler of
Vytenis). Makrai completed his mission in June 1413 leaving growing tensions behind that spilled into the short but devastating
Hunger War in summer 1414. The territorial dispute was settled only by the
Treaty of Melno in 1422. ==Later career==