In what century did the Battle of Grunwald take place? Battle of Grunwald - a mortal blow to the Teutonic Order
Battle of Grunwald 1410
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Battle of Grunwald in 1410 [in it. literature - the Battle of Tannenberg (Stembark)], the decisive battle of the "Great War" 1409-11, in which the Polish-Lithuanian-Russian troops on July 15 defeated the troops of the Teutonic Order. July 3, Polish-Lithuanian, the army under the command of the Polish. King Vladislav II Jagiello (Jagiello) set out from the Chervinsk district to Marienburg (Malbork) and met in the Grunwald district with Ch. forces of the order under the command of the Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen. The army of the order (27 thousand people) consisted of German, French. and other knights and detachments of mercenaries (Swiss, British, etc.), a total of 51 banners. The allied army (32 thousand people) included Polish, Lithuanian, Russian (including Ukrainian and Belarusian), Wallachian, Czech-Moravian, Hungarian and Tatar detachments, united in 91 banners. On July 14, the allied army concentrated in the forest near the lake. Luben and, having found the pr-ka, lined up for battle. The battle formation of the allies consisted of 3 lines on a front of 2 km. On the right wing 40 Lithuanian-Rus, banners under the command of the Lithuanians were deployed. Prince Vitovt, on the left - 42 Polish, 7 Russian. and 2 Czech. banners under the command of Crown Marshal Zbigniew. The Tatar cavalry was also located on the right flank. The position of the allied forces was covered from the right flank and rear by a swamp and the river. Marsha (Maranza), and on the left - the forest. The crusaders lined up in 2 lines on the front 2.5 km, having 20 banners on the right wing under the command of Liechtenstein, on the left wing 15 banners under the command of Wallenrod; 16 banners remained in reserve (2nd line). The Teutons deployed their troops on the heights to force the pr-ka to lead the attack up the slope. Bombards and crossbowmen took up positions in front of the front on both sides. The battle began with a volley of Chapter bombers, but their fire did little harm to the allies. The Tatar cavalry and the 1st line of Vitovt's troops attacked the left flank of the crusaders, but were overturned by the knights of Wallenrod. The 2nd and 3rd lines of Vitovt's troops entered the battle, the Teutons again threw them back, and then began to pursue. The situation was saved by 3 rus. Smolensk banners under the command of Prince Semyon Lingven Olgerdovich. They did not leave the battlefield and, bravely defending themselves, forged part of Wallenrod's forces. At this time, Polish. banners boldly attacked the right flank of the crusaders and broke through the front of Liechtenstein's troops. Successful attack of Polish. troops, as well as the courage of the Russian. warriors, their skilful actions in battle against the knights of Wallenrod allowed the Lithuanians. gonfalons stop pr-ka, and then go on the offensive. By the combined efforts of the Russian. and litas. the banners of Wallenrod's troops were defeated. On the left wing, Polish, Russian. and Czech. troops and the Lithuanians who came to their aid. and Russian. banners surrounded the troops of Liechtenstein and began to destroy them. Grandmaster Jungingen brought his reserve into battle, but Jagiello moved the 3rd line of his troops to meet him, to-rye defeated the last banners of the Teutons. All the leaders of the order, led by Grandmaster Jungingen, were killed in the battle. In G. b. the allied forces, fighting for the independence of their peoples, won an outstanding victory and stopped the Teutonic aggression to the east. G. b. revealed a number of negative qualities of the knightly army - its sluggishness, stereotyped actions, low moral qualities... The allied infantry showed the ability to conduct successful combat operations against the heavy knightly cavalry. Especially high fighting qualities in G. b. showed Russian. troops. Victory in G. b. became a symbol of the fighting community of the Slavic and Baltic peoples. G. b. contributed to the development of liberation, the movement in Bohemia - Hussism (see Hussite Wars 1419-34). In 1960 in place of G. b. a monument was erected.
V.N. Kiselev.
Used materials of the Soviet military encyclopedia in 8 volumes, volume 3.
The order ceased to exist
In the winter of 1409/10, a Polish-Lithuanian meeting was held in Brest-Litovsk, at which a plan of war with Teutonic Order: Poles gathered in Volborzh, Lithuanians and Russians moved to join them from the side of the river. Narev. The combined forces were to go to Marienburg (Malborg), take it and destroy the Order.
June 26, 1410 Polish army under the command of the king Vladislav II Jagiello (Jagiello) set out from Volborzh and went through Saimitsy (near Skierniewice) to Kozlov Biskupii. Here the king received a report that the Lithuanians, together with the Russian regiments, were already on the banks of the Narew. Russian regiments were exhibited by the Russian principalities that were part of the Lithuanian state. The most efficient of them were the Smolensk regiments.
On June 30, the Polish army moved through Sochachev to Chervinsk, where by July 2 the entire Lithuanian-Russian army arrived, led by the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt. From here the allies moved to Yezhov, and then to Radzanov.
On July 7, while moving to Bondzin, the king inspected the troops and on the same day set up a false alarm to check the fighting efficiency. The inspection and alarm went well and instilled confidence in the troops of success.
On July 9, when the Allied army crossed the border of the Order's possessions, commanders were appointed: Zyndram commanded the Poles, Vitovt commanded the Lithuanian-Russian regiments. On the same day, the first German fortress of Lautenburg was taken. July 10, approaching the river. Drevenets, the allies saw on the other side, on the fortified position of the crusaders. By decision of the military council, the allies abandoned the crossing of the river and followed a flank march to its source at Lautenburg, Soldau. The Master of the Order Ulrich, upon learning of this, moved to Bratenau to Tannenberg to block their path.
On July 12, the Allies rested; the next day they set out to Gilbenburg (Dombrovno), where they faced a detachment of crusaders, took the castle and plundered the city. On July 14, the army was again given rest.
On the night of July 15, a storm broke out and it was pouring rain. By morning the storm had subsided, but the rain did not stop. The allies covered only 11 km and bivouacked in the forest, to the left of Lake Lyuban, which covered their right flank. Zyndram sent several patrols towards the village of Tannenberg, which could be seen to the north. Intelligence soon reported on the approach of the entire crusader army.
When the crusaders noticed the enemy, they halted in indecision, since the Polish-Russian-Lithuanian army was in the forest and did not leave it. Ulrich convened a council at which it was decided to send two swords to the Polish-Lithuanian king as a challenge and then retreat to clear the enemy's place for formation.
In the battle of Grunwald, the crusaders had 51 "flags". In the composition of their troops, there were soldiers of over 20 nationalities, but the Germans predominated. The Teutons had up to 11 thousand people, of which about 4 thousand knights, up to 3 thousand squires and about 4 thousand crossbowmen. Their army had bombards that fired stone and lead cannonballs. "The Order's army," Geisman noted, "consisted of: a) the Prussian troops proper (knights, the grandmaster's court and the militia); b) the troops of the vassal princes; c)" guests "or hunters from different countries Western Europe and d) mercenary troops; in total, no less than 14 thousand - 16 thousand horsemen and 3 thousand infantry. "(Geisman. Short course history of military art. SPb., 1907.S. 105.)
The Allies had 91 banners, of which 51 were Poles and 40 were Lithuanians. The Polish troops consisted of seven banners from the natives of the Russian regions, two banners of mercenaries and 42 purely Polish banners. There were 36 Russian banners in the Lithuanian army. In addition to the Poles, Russians and Lithuanians, the allied army included zhmud, Armenians, Volokhs and mercenaries from Czechs, Moravians, Hungarians and Tatars - up to 10 nationalities in total. The detachment of the Czechs was commanded by Jan Zizka, an outstanding military leader and national hero of the Czech Republic.
Thus, the allied army had less heterogeneity of national composition in comparison with the Teutonic army. At the same time, the Poles numbered at least 15,600 horsemen, and the Lithuanians and Russians at least 8 thousand regular horsemen, not counting the Tatars (up to 3 thousand people). As you can see, the Teutons outnumbered the Allies; the most reliable part of the Lithuanian army was the Russian regiments. But the Lithuanians had weak weapons, and the Tatar cavalry in the army was unreliable. The advantages of the Teutons were in discipline, combat training and supply.
The battlefield was south of the village of Tannenberg. It was a fairly flat area that had several ridges of low hills, crossed by minor ravines. A small hollow separated the opponents.
The battle formation of the allies, having a two-kilometer front, consisted of the front, middle and rear lines. On the right flank were the Russians, Lithuanians and Tatars under the command of Vitovt, on the left - the Poles under the command of Zyndram. The Smolensk regiments were in the center.
The Crusaders first formed in three lines, and then, in order to lengthen their front to 2.5 km, reorganized into two lines. In front of the Teutonic army, under the cover of crossbowmen, bombards were installed. On the right flank there were 20 "banners" under the command of Liechtenstein, on the left - 15 "banners" under the command of Valenrod; in the second line and in reserve - 16 "banners" under the command of Master Ulrich Jungingen. Thus, from the very beginning, the battle threatened to result in a grandiose cavalry battle.
The master was on the left flank, near the village of Tannenberg. Yagailo stood on a hill behind his right flank.
At 12 o'clock on July 15, the Harolds arrived from the crusaders and handed over to the king two swords. Jagiello regarded the dispatch of swords as a daring insult. He announced the password and ordered his troops to wear straw bandages for distinction in battle. Then the king moved down to the plain, where up to 1 thousand gentry were awaiting knighthood. The knights swore to him to win or die.
In the meantime, the rain stopped, the sky cleared. They beat the timpani, the trumpets began to play, the Poles sang an old battle song. At this time, the crusaders fired a volley of bombardments, but the cannonballs, flying over the heads of the allies, fell into the darkness of their battle formation without causing harm. The battle began.
By order of Vitovt, the Tatar cavalry attacked the enemy's right flank. However, the formation of the crusaders did not flinch, the arrows bounced off the knight's armor. In turn, the master ordered Valenrod to launch a counterattack. The Tatars, unable to withstand the swift blow, rushed to flee.
Then the second and third lines of the Lithuanian-Russian army joined the battle, rushing to help the retreating Tatars. However, their main forces were also crushed and driven back by the crusaders. The Vilna and Trokskaya gonfalons resisted the longest, but they also began to retreat. Valenrod's nine "banners" pursued the retreating Lithuanians. Only three Smolensk regiments under the command of Yuri Mstislavsky remained on the battlefield, continuing to stubbornly resist. They were surrounded by the six "banners" of Valenrod. In this battle, one Smolensk regiment was completely destroyed, two others made their way to the right flank of the Poles and covered it.
Now the offensive of the first line of the Poles of Zyndram, consisting of 17 banners, has begun. Ulrich Jungingen sent 20 "banners" of Liechtenstein against them. A stubborn battle ensued, as a result of which the Poles managed to break through the Crusader line. But the Teutonic "banners" returned, pursuing the Lithuanians. They struck on the right flank and partly in the rear of the Poles. The Smolensk regiments, which covered the attacked flank of the Poles, withstood this blow, and thus saved the Poles from defeat. They then reinforced the first line of the Poles and helped them launch a counterattack.
At this time, a large royal banner fell. For the allies, the crisis moment of the battle has come. Jagiello moved forward the second line of the Poles, which, under the cover of Russian regiments, had just repulsed the attack of the banners of Valenrod. The second line, together with the Russian regiments, rushed to the aid of the first, rescued the banner, surrounded Liechtenstein and began to press it. The crusaders hesitated and slowly began to retreat.
Intending to break the resistance of the Poles, the master put forward his reserve against them - 16 "flags", which tried to cover the Poles from the right and enter them from the rear. Then the third Polish line rushed towards the Germans "obliquely".
Instead of attacking, Ulrich suddenly halted the movement of his "banners." The Poles took advantage of this and launched a counterattack. At the same time, Vitovt managed to collect the Lithuanian fugitives and again lead them to the crusaders. The blow of the returning Lithuanian-Russian regiments decided the outcome of the battle. The crusader army was defeated. Those close to Ulrich offered him to flee, but he proudly replied: "God forbid that I leave this field, where so many men died - God forbid." Soon the master was killed by a Lithuanian soldier.
Increasingly, the enemy's cries of mercy began to be heard. Six Teutonic "banners" fled in panic from the battlefield. Part of the crusaders took refuge in Wagenburg, which the allied army took by storm. The enemy suffered heavy losses, but the victory was not cheap for the allies either. Together, the Germans and Slavs lost 1/5 - 1/3 of the composition of their armies, and the troops of the Order lost more prisoners than killed.
The allies pursued the enemy at a distance of 25-30 km. Then, as a sign of victory, their army was on the battlefield for three days. However, the Slavs were able to realize victory only on a tactical scale, on the battlefield. There was no strategic pursuit. This is what saved the Teutonic Order from complete defeat. The allies approached Marienburg only on July 25, when the crusaders were able to prepare for the defense, gathering scattered troops and concentrating a strong garrison in the fortress. Therefore, the allies failed to take Marienburg. K. besides, under the influence of intrigue, Vitovt refused to continue the war.
Nevertheless, the political significance of the victory of the Slavs at Grunwald is difficult to overestimate. The Crusader Knights not only received another rebuff. Their military power was undermined, and the Teutons were actually forced to go over to a passive defense. After 56 years (in 1466), their Order ceased to exist.
Used materials of the book: "One hundred great battles", M. "Veche", 2002
Literature
A. I. Barbashev The Battle of Tannenberg // Journal of the Ministry of Public Education. - 1887. -№12.-С. 151-193.
Military encyclopedia: In the 8th volume / Ch. ed. commission. P.S. Grachev (prev.). - M., 1994. - T.2. - S. 527-528.
Military encyclopedia. - SPb., Ed. I. D. Sytin, 1912. - T.8. - S. 518-520.
Geisman P.A. Polish-Lithuanian-Russian campaign in East Prussia and the battle at Grunwald Tannenberg // Military collection. -1910. - No. 7.-S. 37-70.
Delbrück G. History of military art in the framework of political history. - T.Z. Middle Ages. - SPb., 1996.S. 327-331.
Dlugosh J. Battle of Grunwald. Per. from Latin. M.-L., 1962.
History of the Lithuanian SSR / A. Tautavicius, Y. Yurginis, M. Juchas and others - Vilnius, 1978. S. 58-60.
History of Poland. Ed. 2nd. T. 1.M., 1936;
Marine atlas. Descriptions to the cards. - M., 1959. - T.Z, h. 1. - S. 77-78.
Marine Atlas / Ed. ed. G.I. Levchenko. -M., 1958. -T.3, part 1. - L.4.
Narkevich N.F. Grunfelde Tannenberg. 1410 Riga 1710 // Military history bulletin. - 1910. - No. 7/8. - S. 5-35; ...
Pashuto V., Yuchas M. 550th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald, - “Military history. zhurn. ", I960, No.
Razin E.A. History of military art. - SPb., 1994: - T.2. - S. 483-489.
Florea B.N. Battle of Grunwald. - M.-L., 1962.
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Battle of Grunwald (Battle of Tannenberg, July 15) - the decisive battle of the "Great War" 1409-1411 between Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, on the one hand, and the Teutonic Order, on the other. The battle ended with the complete defeat of the troops of the Teutonic Order. It occurred near Grunwald, Tannenberg and Breslau (Prussia), from where it got its name.
Background
Army structure of the Teutonic Order
According to the medieval chronicler Jan Dlugosz, the order's army consisted of 51 banners. Of these, 5 banners of the highest order hierarchs, 6 were provided by the Prussian bishoprics, 31 were exhibited by territorial units and cities, and 9 were detachments of foreign mercenaries and guests. A special role was played by the "big" and "small" banner of the grandmaster and the banner of the Teutonic Order under the command of the Grand Marshal. The great commander and the great treasurer commanded their regiments. The core of the army was made up of knight brothers, near Grunwald there were about 400-450 of them. Therefore, they served as commanders of the highest and middle rank. The other category included half-brothers, people of non-noble origin, who, unlike the brothers of the knights, did not take monastic vows and could serve in the order intermittently, but for some time. The most numerous category of warriors consisted of fighters mobilized on the basis of vassalage, as well as on the basis of the so-called "knightly right" (ius mititare). Mobilization in the troops of the Teutonic Order was carried out on the basis of the "Prussian", "Chelminsky", "Polish" law. The helminky right had two varieties: Rossdienst and Platendienst. The first variety for every 40 LANs, you must put up one fighter in full armor with a horse and two squires. The second type obliged to put one soldier in light weapons and without accompanying. Polish law provided for mobilization in accordance with the "best opportunity" (Sicut Melius Potverint). Basically, "Prussian law" (sub forma pruthenicali) dominated, uniting the owners of estates of no more than 10 lans, who were sent on horseback unaccompanied. The so-called "Free Prussians" (Freie) and townspeople were called up for military service. Mercenaries from Germany, Austria, France, as well as the regiments of the Polish princes Konrad White Olesnitsky and Kazimir Szczecin fought on the side of the Teutonic Order.
Army structure of the Kingdom of Poland
The army of the Kingdom of Poland was mobilized on the basis of "pospolite ruszenie" (expidito generalis) and consisted mainly of cavalry. The Polish army included actually Polish regiments, regiments of mercenaries (Czechs and Moravians, Silesians), as well as regiments of the "land of Leopolska", "the land of Podolsk, which had three banners, due to the large number of its population", "the land of Galicia"; Mostly banners were formed on the territorial basis - "zemstvo banners". The spiritual and secular feudal lords of the kingdom exhibited their own banners. The battle was attended by two royal banners - "Nadvirna" and the Hound. "The most important was the Great Krakow banner, its banner was the banner of the entire army. There were three banners of mercenaries. Czechs and Moravians served in the banner of St. George, Moravians and Moravians served in the banner of Jan Yanchikovich. in the gonfalons of Gniewosz from Dalewitz - Czechs, Moravians, Silesians. polish army there were 51 banners: 2 royal, 3 princes of Mazovia, 17 zemstvo, 26 formed by spiritual and secular feudal lords, 3 mercenaries. According to Dlugosz, the army of the Kingdom of Poland was far superior to the order's army in terms of the number of knights.
Army structure of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Lithuanian army was mobilized on approximately the same conditions as the Polish one and consisted almost or entirely of cavalry. As part of the Lithuanian army, which was commanded by grand Duke Lithuanian Vitovt, cousin of Yagailo, were Grodno, Kovensky, Lidsky, Smolensky, Mstislavsky and Orshansky (under the command of Prince of Smolensk Semyon Lingven Olgerdovich), Polotsky, Vitebsky, Kievsky, Pinsky, Novgorodsky, Brestsky, Volkovynsky, Mitremensky, Ditsky banners; on the side of the Polish-Lithuanian army was also the Tatar cavalry of Jelal-ed-din, an ally of Prince Vitovt. The army of Prince Vitovt consisted of 40 ethnically diverse banners. Of the 40 banners there were 11 Lithuanian, 13 from Belarusians, 2 Polish-Lithuanian and 14 mixed banners.
Battle
The battle began at noon with the offensive of Vitovt's light cavalry on the left flank of the Teutons. The attack was met with an artillery salvo (probably the first and unsuccessful use of field artillery). In front of the formation of the Teutonic troops, ditch-traps were dug, which also did not have much effect for the light cavalry. Following the light cavalry, the rest of the banners went into battle, which were no longer threatened by the danger of cannon shots and archers. In response, Wallenrod's heavy cavalry launched a counteroffensive. At the same time, the first Polish troops of the first line and the right flank of the Order were drawn into the battle.
The Lithuanian cavalry could not resist the Teutons and began to retreat deliberately. Wallenrod began to pursue her, but the heavy cavalry of the Order could not move quickly over rough terrain, which gave Vitovt time to regroup his troops. At the same time, Wallenrod faced strong resistance from the Lithuanian-Belarusian infantry, which stood between the Polish and Lithuanian troops and acted as a cover for the Polish troops from a flank attack during the retreat of the Lithuanian cavalry. Vitovt sent several banners to help these regiments. This move changed the course of the battle. The attack of the crusaders was restrained by the Belarusian and Vilna, Trokskaya, Gorodenskaya and Zhamoytskaya banners. The Belarusian chronicler Stryikovsky describes it this way: “The Trokskaya, Vilna gentry from Zhamoytsu became ripped off from Vitauts, and my husbands from Dapamagali. Along with the іnshya pavety of the Lithuanian country, he ran out where he could at the different bakery. I didn’t start a galounai with the saints of Yurye, she looked at the mustache of the army. Already there was a tsyazhka Lіtve, ale Vіtaut at the beginning of Navahradtsy and Valintsy swept away the flock. " In addition, the Polish troops, pushing Liechtenstein, began to cover Wallenrod from the right flank.
To remedy the situation, Jungingen brought in the second line of Teutonic cavalry, but the Poles also used the reserve commanded by Jagiello, and Vitovt's Lithuanian cavalry successfully returned to the battlefield and dealt a strong blow on the left flank of the Order, which got stuck in a battle with the infantry and lost maneuverability ... After the death of Jungingen and the refusal of part of the Teutonic troops to continue the battle, the army of the Order fled.
205 brothers of the order were killed, including all three commanders. The total loss of life was about 8,000. The losses of the Polish-Lithuanian troops are unknown.
Outcome
About a third of the Teutonic army was killed on the battlefield, almost the entire leadership of the Order was killed, a significant number of knights were captured. The allies "stood on the bones" for three days, after which they began to move towards Marienburg.
The castle was besieged, but the tired and weakened Polish-Lithuanian army did not dare to storm. Vitovt withdrew his troops because of the threat to the eastern borders of the principality, the Polish militia sought to return home before the harvest. As a result, the siege was lifted in a few weeks.
Notes
see also
Links
- Photo album and video clip of the reconstruction of the Grunwald life in 2006
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
See what the "Battle of Grunwald" is in other dictionaries:
- (in German literature, the Battle of Tannenberg) the decisive battle of the "Great War" 1409 11 (See. Great War 1409 11), in which the Polish-Lithuanian Russian troops on July 15 defeated the troops of the Teutonic Order. July 3 Polish Lithuanian Russian ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
The decisive battle of the Great War 1409 11, in k rum Polish litas. Russian troops on July 15 defeated the armament. forces of the Teutonic Order. July 3, Polish lit. Russian army under command. Polish King Władysław II Jagiello (Jagiello) set out from the district of Czerwinsk ... Soviet Historical Encyclopedia
The Great War (1409 1411) Jan Matejko. "... Wikipedia
14,000 taken prisoner,
200-400 Knights slain
Battle of Grunwald (Tannenberg) - the decisive battle of the "Great War" of 1409-1411, which took place on July 15, 1410 between the allied Polish-Lithuanian and Teutonic troops. The union of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania under the leadership of King Vladislav II Jagiello and Grand Duke Vitovt of Lithuania won a decisive victory over the army of the Teutonic Order under the leadership of Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen. Most of the knights of the order were killed or taken prisoner. Despite the defeat, the crusaders were able to withstand a two-month siege of their capital Marienburg and suffered only minimal territorial losses as a result of the Torun Peace of 1411. Territorial disputes continued until the conclusion of the Peace of Meln in 1422. However, the Teutonic Order was never able to recover from the defeat, and the financial burden of reparations and violent internal conflicts led to an economic downturn. The Battle of Grunwald redistributed the balance of power in Eastern Europe and marked the rise of the Polish-Lithuanian alliance to the level of the dominant political-military power in the region.
The Battle of Grunwald was one of the largest battles of medieval Europe and is one of the most important victories in the history of Poland and Lithuania. The battle was surrounded by romantic legends and nationalist propaganda, turning it into a symbol of the struggle against invaders and a source of national pride. During the 20th century, the battle was used by the Nazi and soviet propaganda, the transition to its scientific study has been observed only in the last decades.
Name
The battle took place on the territory of the state of the Teutonic Order, between three villages: Grunfeld (in the west), Tannenberg (in the northeast) and Ludwigsdorf (in the south). Jagiello referred to this place in Latin as "In loco conflictus nostri, quem cum Cruciferis de Prusia habuimus, dicto Grunenvelt" ... Later Polish chroniclers interpreted the word "Grunenvelt" as "Grünwald" (Grunwald), which means "green forest" in German. Lithuanians followed this tradition and translated this name as "Žalgiris". The Germans called the battle Tannenberg, from the name of the village Tannenberg (with it. - "fir hill" ). In the Belarusian-Lithuanian chronicle of 1446, the battle is called Dubrovenskaya - from the name of the nearest town, Dabrova (Polish. Dąbrówno) .
Source base
Anonymous letter dating from the time of the Great Battle (between 1411 and 1413) and one of the few sources of that time
The most important source about the Battle of Grunwald is Cronica conflictus Wladislai Regis Poloniae cum cruciferis anno Christi
There are few reliable ones about the Battle of Grunwald, most of them Polish. The most important and reliable among the sources on this topic is "Cronica conflictus Wladislai regis Poloniae cum Cruciferis anno Christi 1410"written no later than a year after the battle. The authorship of the chronicle remains unknown, however, Polish Chancellor Nikolai Truba and Jagiello's secretary Zbigniew Olesnitsky are named as possible authors. Although the original text "Cronica conflictus" did not reach our days, it survived short retelling, made in the 16th century.
Another main historical source about the events of the Battle of Grunwald is the work "History of Poland" (lat. Historia Poloniae) Polish historian Jan Dlugosz (1415-1480). This is a detailed and comprehensive report, written several decades after the battle. The reliability of this source remains undoubted to this day, despite the long time interval between the events and the date of writing the chronicle itself, as well as Dlugosz's prejudiced attitude towards the Lithuanians.
An additional source about the battle is Banderia Prutenorum - preserved in the original description of the knight's banners (standards) with their images, compiled by Jan Dlugosz. Other Polish sources include two letters written by Jagiello to his wife Anna Celskaya and the Bishop of Poznan Vojtech Jastrzembets, as well as letters from Jagiello to Poles in the Holy See.
German sources include a small mention in the essay Chronik des Landes Preussen - continuation of the chronicle of Johann von Posilge. An anonymous letter, written between 1411 and 1413, describing important details of the movements of the Lithuanian army, was discovered by the Swedish historian Sven Ekdahl.
Historical context
Lithuanian campaign and the Polish-Lithuanian union
War and truce, preparing for a new war
By December 1409, Jagailo and Vitovt had agreed on a common strategy: their armies were to unite into one large force and move towards Marienburg, the capital of the Teutonic Order. The Crusaders, having taken a defensive position, did not expect a joint Polish-Lithuanian attack and began to prepare for a double offensive - from the Poles, along the Vistula in the direction of Danzig, and from the Litvinians, along the Neman in the direction of Ragnit. To counter this threat, Ulrich von Jungingen concentrated his forces in Shvets (now Swiez), in a central point, from where the Teutonic troops could react quickly enough to an invasion from either side. Large garrisons were left in the eastern castles - in Ragnit, Rhine (Ryn), near Lötzen (Gizycko) and Memel. In order to keep their plans secret, Jagiello and Vitovt organized several raids on the border territories, thereby forcing the crusaders to keep their troops in one place.
All winter and spring preparations for war went on. At the end of May 1410, banners from all over the Great Duchy began to gather in Grodno - from Lithuania, Belarus, northern Ukraine and Zhmudi. They were joined by the Tatar horsemen, as well as the forces of other allies.
Forces of the parties
| Historian | Floor. | Lit. | Teut. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karl Hevecker and Hans Delbrück |
16,5 | 11 | |
| Evgeny Razin | 16-17 | 11 | |
| Max Ehler | 23 | 15 | |
| Jerzy Ohmanski | 22-27 | 12 | |
| Sven Ekdahl | 20-25 | 12-15 | |
| Andrzej Nadolski | 20 | 10 | 15 |
| Jan Dombrowski | 15-18 | 8-11 | 19 |
| Zigmantas Kiaupa | 18 | 11 | 15-21 |
| Marian Biskup | 19-20 | 10-11 | 21 |
| Daniel Stone | 27 | 11 | 21 |
| Stefan Kuczynski | 39 | 27 | |
It is difficult to determine the exact number of warriors who took part in the battle. Neither of historical sources of those times does not contain the exact military number of the parties. Jan Dlugosz in his works lists the number of banners, the main units of each cavalry: 51 for the Teutons, 50 (or 51) for the Poles and 40 for the Lithuanians. However, it was never found out how many people were under each banner. The structure and number of infantry troops (archers, crossbowmen and armed with pikes), as well as artillery troops, is also unknown. Quantitative calculations made by different historians are often biased due to different political and national opinions. German historians tend to show lower military figures, while Polish historians tend to exceed these figures. The final professional estimate of the Polish historian Stefan Kuczynski at that time was 39,000 people in the Polish-Lithuanian army and 27,000 in the Teutonic. Western literature refers to this historian's figures as "generally accepted."
Warband
According to the medieval chronicler Jan Dlugosz, the order's army consisted of 51 banners. Of these, 5 banners of the highest order hierarchs, 6 were provided by the Prussian bishoprics, 31 were exhibited by territorial units and cities, and 9 were detachments of foreign mercenaries and guests.
A special role was played by the "big" and "small" banner of the grandmaster and the banner of the Teutonic Order under the command of the Grand Marshal. The great commander and the great treasurer commanded their regiments. The core of the army was made up of knight brothers, near Grunwald there were about 400-450 of them. Therefore, they served as commanders of the highest and middle rank.
The other category included half-brothers, people of non-noble origin, who, unlike the knight brothers, did not take monastic vows and could serve under the order not constantly, but for some time.
The most numerous category of warriors consisted of fighters mobilized on the basis of vassalage, as well as on the basis of the so-called "knightly right" (jus militare). Mobilization in the troops of the Teutonic Order was carried out on the basis of the law of the "Prussian", "Chelminsky", "Polish". The Helminsky right had two varieties: Rossdienst and Platendienst. The first variation: for every 40 LANs, one fighter must be put in full armor with a horse and two squires. The second type obliged to put one soldier in light weapons and without accompanying. Polish law provided for mobilization in accordance with the "best opportunities" (Sicut Melius Potverint).
Basically, “Prussian law” (sub forma pruthenicali) dominated, uniting the owners of estates of no more than 10 lans, who were sent on horseback unaccompanied.
The so-called "Free Prussians" (Freie) and the townspeople were called up for military service. Mercenaries from Germany, Austria, France, as well as the regiments of the Polish princes Konrad White Olesnitsky and Kazimir Szczecin fought on the side of the Teutonic Order.
Polish-Lithuanian army
Modern reconstruction of clothing and armor worn by the Lithuanian heavy infantry in the XIV-XV centuries. The Pillars of Gediminas are depicted on the shields.
Battle progress
Before the battle
At dawn on July 15, 1410, both troops met on an area covering approximately 4 km² between the villages of Grunfeld (Grunwald), Tannenberg (Stembark), Ludwigzdorf (Ludwigovo) and Faulen (Ulnovo). The local gentle hills, more than 200 m above sea level, were separated by rather wide valleys. The battle site was surrounded by forests on three sides. The Grand Master, having calculated the route of the enemy, was the first to arrive here with troops and took measures to strengthen the position. Were dug and camouflaged "wolf pits" -traps, placed guns, crossbowmen and archers. Ulrich von Jungingen hoped to detain the enemy cavalry near obstacles and destroy it with cannons, crossbows and bows. After that, reflect the attack in this way and, inflicting damage on the enemy, throw your cavalry into battle. The Grand Master strove with such tactical tricks to compensate for the superiority of the allied forces in numbers.
Both troops lined up opposite each other, along the northeastern axis. The Polish-Lithuanian army was located east of Ludwigsdorf and Tannenberg. The Polish heavy cavalry formed the left flank, the Lithuanian light cavalry the right, and many mercenaries were located in the center.
Before the start of the battle, the troops formed three battle lines. The first was the vanguard, the second was the bulk, where the main forces were located, the third was the free Guf and the reserve. Each battle line, or Guf, consisted of 15-16 banners.
The Crusader army was located in two battle lines. The third line remained with Master von Jungingen in reserve. The Teutonic Knights concentrated against the Lithuanians their elite heavy cavalry, which was under the command of Grand Marshal Friedrich von Wallenrod. She is located near the village of Tannenberg. The right wing was located opposite the Polish army and was headed by the great commander Cuno von Lichtenstein.
The Crusaders, who were the first to prepare their army for battle, hoped to provoke the Poles and Lithuanians to attack first. Their regiments, clad in heavy armor, had to stand in the scorching sun for two hours, waiting for an attack. In one chronicle, it was assumed that the troops had pits ("wolf traps") into which the attacking army had to fall. Archaeological excavations carried out in the 60s near Grunwald did not find any pits. The Order troops also tried to use cannon weapons, but during the battle it started raining and only two cannon volleys were fired in the end.
Jagiello was in no hurry to launch an attack and the allied army was waiting for a symbolic command. The Polish king at that time was praying in the marching chapel (he defended two masses in a row) and, as Dlugosh writes, wept all the time. When he finished praying, Jagiello rode up the hill, went down to its foot and began to ordain several hundred young warriors to knights. Soon after Jagiello's speech to the new knights, two heralds arrived from the Order. One had the sign of the Holy Roman Empire on his chest - a black eagle on a golden field, the other - the coat of arms of the princes of Szczecin: a red vulture on a white field. The heralds brought two drawn swords - from the Supreme Master of Jungingen to King Vladislav and from Grand Marshal Wallenrod to the Grand Duke Vitovt - and verbally conveyed the challenge to battle. The swords were supposed to mean an insult and provocation towards the Lithuanian and Polish monarchs. Such a daring challenge was intended to induce the Polish-Lithuanian army to be the first to go on the offensive. Known today as "Grunwald swords", they have become one of the national symbols of Lithuania and Poland.
Start
Not waiting for Jagailo's order, Vitovt immediately after the crusaders opened fire from bombardments, sent the Tatar cavalry, which was on the right flank, to the offensive. The first line of the Lithuanian army, which consisted of heavy mounted warriors (so-called horsemen) shouting "Vilna!" followed the Tatars. According to the Chronicle of Bykhovets, some of the Tatar horsemen from the first ranks fell into the "wolf traps", where they died or were seriously injured, but thanks to the deployed row, most of the riders missed military pits. (It has now been established that the "wolf pits" on the field were absent). The horsemen of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania attacked the banners of the great marshal Friedrich von Wallenrod and, in order to wedge themselves into the battle ranks of the crusaders with heavy armor, they had to throw the enemy off the horse or kill him immediately. For this purpose, the Tatars used arcana, and the horsemen used spears with hooks.
After about an hour of fighting, Wallenrod ordered his knights to launch a counteroffensive. To avoid a devastating attack by heavily armed German knights, the Tatars and horsemen broke away from the enemy and moved in the direction northwest of Tannenberg. Started . Researchers assess this move ambiguously. Some (mostly Polish and russian authors) consider the retreat of the Lithuanians as an escape, while others (mainly Belarusian and Lithuanian authors) talk about Vitovt's tactical maneuver.
Retreat of troops ON
Retreat of the Lithuanian army
Finding themselves for some time alone with the crusaders, under their onslaught, part of the Lithuanian departments began to retreat. Jan Dlugosz described this event as the complete destruction of the entire Lithuanian army. According to Dlugosz, the crusaders considered that victory was already theirs and therefore rushed into an unorganized pursuit of the retreating Lithuanians, losing their battle formation in order to capture more trophies before returning to the battlefield to continue the struggle with the Polish regiments. However, he made no mention of the Lithuanians returning to the battlefield. Thus, Jan Dlugosz portrayed the Battle of Grunwald as a victory for Poland without any outside help, however this has been refuted by modern historians. They expressed the opinion that the retreat was a planned strategic maneuver borrowed from the Golden Horde (the same retreat was used in the battle on the Vorskla River, where the Lithuanian army suffered a crushing defeat and Vitovt barely survived). This opinion is based on a German document found and published by the Swedish historian Sven Ekdahl in 1963. The letter advised the Grand Master to keep an eye on the erring retreat. Stephan Turnbull argued that the Lithuanian retreat did not quite fit the formula of the previously applied special one. This retreat is usually made by one or two military units (as opposed to the rest of the army) and quickly spills over into a counterattack.
Part of the crusader troops, chasing the fugitives, was surrounded and destroyed near the Lithuanian camp - by order of Vitovt, Prince Lugveniy Olgerdovich with his banners, which were located not far from the right flank of the Polish army, had to by any means maintain their position in order to cover the Poles from a blow to the side and back, and Lugwen's troops accomplished this task, suffering significant losses. According to Jan Dlugosh, the merit in stopping the Teutonic onslaught belongs to these banners, as reported: "In this battle, the Russian knights of the Smolensk land fought hard, standing under their own three banners, alone without turning to flight, and thus deserved great glory." Belarusian historian Ruslan Gagua notes that this message of Dlugosh does not find confirmation in other sources.
Polish-Teutonic battle
Attack of the Polish-Lithuanian troops from the right flank
While the Lithuanian forces were retreating, a major battle broke out between the Polish and Teutonic forces. The crusaders, under the command of the great commander Cuno von Lichtenstein, concentrated on the right Polish flank. Six von Wallenrod's banners did not run after the Lithuanians, but joined the attack on the Polish banners. The large banner of the Krakow land was an extremely valuable trophy. It seemed that the crusaders were already beginning to gain a tactical advantage, and at one point the great crown cornet Martin from Wrocimowitz even dropped the Krakow banner with the image of a white eagle, but it was immediately picked up again. "To atone for this humiliation and insult, the Polish knights in a furious onslaught rush to the enemies and all that enemy force, which converged with them in hand-to-hand combat, overturning them, plunging them to the ground and crushing them. "(The Chronicle of Jan Dlugosh). The Teutons took this fall as a sign of God and began to sing the Easter hymn "Christ is risen after all suffering ..." (German. "Christ ist erstanden von der Marte alle ..." ). Then King Jagiello moved to the aid of the reserve banners, including the banner of the Galician land.
Polish heavy cavalry infiltrates the Teutonic forces.
Mercenaries from the Czech Republic and Moravia suddenly left the battlefield. The head of the Czech and Moravian mercenaries Jan Sarnowski was wounded in the head. After that, his soldiers (about 300 people) withdrew from the battlefield and stopped in the forest. Only after the royal sub-chancellor Nikolai Tromba put them to shame did the warriors return to battle.
Jagiello deployed his reserve troops - the second line of the army. The Master of the Order Ulrich von Jungingen had 16 more banners (about a third of the Crusader detachments) in reinforcements, and in the fifth hour of the battle, seeing that the Lithuanians were retreating, he decided that everything was over with them (the Lithuanians), and led his reserve to rear to the Poles.
Soon Jagiello deployed his last forces - the third line of the army. Hand-to-hand combat reached the Polish command, and one crusader, later identified as Leopold or Depold Kökeritz, rushed straight towards King Jagiello. Jagiello's secretary, Zbigniew Olesnicki, saved the king's life. Having received royal favor, he later became one of the most influential people in Poland at that time.
The last stage of the battle
To remedy the situation, Jungingen brought into battle the second line of Teutonic cavalry (from 15 to 16 banners), but the Poles also used a reserve commanded by Jagiello, and Vitovt's cavalry successfully returned to the battlefield and dealt a strong blow on the left flank of the Order, which battle with the infantry and lost maneuverability. After the death of Jungingen and the refusal of a part of the Teutonic troops to continue the battle, the army of the Order fled.
205 brothers of the Order were killed, including all three commanders. The total loss of life was about 8,000. The losses of the Polish-Lithuanian troops are unknown.
Outcome
About a third of the Teutonic army was killed on the battlefield, almost the entire leadership of the Order was killed, a significant number of knights were captured. The allies "stood on the bones" for three days, after which they began to move towards Marienburg. The castle was besieged, but the tired and weakened Polish-Lithuanian army did not dare to storm. Vitovt withdrew his troops because of the threat to the eastern borders of the principality. As a result, the siege was lifted after a few weeks.
Memorialization
Painting- Painting by J. Matejko "Battle of Grunwald";
- the historical novel by G. Senkevich "The Crusaders";
- the historical novel by K. Tarasov "The Pursuit of Grunwald".
- x / f "The Crusaders" (1960);
- c / f (epic drama) "Zalgiris - Iron Day" (lit. Žalgiris - Geležies Diena), dir. Raimundas Banionis, Studija 2;
- documentary film "Dust and Steel" ( Dust and steel; Poland) - about the reconstruction of the Battle of Grunwald.
see also
Notes
Sources and Literature
The sources- Jan Dlugosz... Battle of Grunwald. - M .: Ed. Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1962.
- Jan Dlugosz... Prussian gonfalons / per. from lat. I. Dyakonova, with him. Thietmar. - Website
The Battle of Grunwald is a turning point between the Polish-Lithuanian army and the Teutonic army, which took place on July 15, 1410. The battle was very fierce and bloody, thousands of soldiers died on both sides, but it played huge role in the further fate of all of Europe.
Background and causes of the Battle of Grunwald
For centuries the lands belonging to the Lithuanians and Poles aroused unprecedented interest among the Teutons. Why?
- In the north of Poland there was access to the Baltic Sea, i.e. it was possible to control all trade in the mouths of the Neman River, the Western Dvina River and the Vistula River, replenishing their treasury and pockets.
- Through the Baltic Sea, it became possible to access the territory of the Moscow principality, which promised more great wealththan the possession of European lands.
- There are many minerals, among which amber and deposits of pine forests were highly valued.
For about a hundred years, the Teutonic Order made periodic incursions into the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. But in 1378 Lithuania adopted Christianity, and now the Teutons had no right to invade the Lithuanian lands. And in 1385 the Lithuanian prince Vladislav II Yagailo entered into a dynastic marriage with Yadviga (Krevsk union). As a result of this event, a new powerful Christian state appeared on the map of Europe from the united Polish and Lithuanian lands.
The Teutons needed a new pretext for clashes. And he was found! Once again, Samogitia became a stumbling block. Possessing it, the Teutons would completely cut off the Lithuanian lands from the sea. And also - they could unite and close the entire territory of their state into one border.
At the end of May 1409 there was an uprising of the Samogitians against the willfulness of the Teutons. The Lithuanians took the side of Samogitia. The Teutons did not like this, they decided to clarify the positions and plans of the Polish king. He replied that in the event of a repeated attack by the Teutons, he would support the victims, i.e. Samogitia.
In the conditions forcing the war, the contradictions over the possession of Danzig and the Dobrzinskaya land also affected.
Preparation and start of the Battle of Grunwald
After the Samogitian uprising, the Teutonic army left the area. In anger and vexation, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order Ulrich von Jungingen declared war on August 6, 1408. For almost two months from that day, the Teutonic Knights made repeated sorties and raids.
On October 8, 1409, an armistice was signed between the conflicting parties, which lasted until June 21, 1410. No one doubted that the armistice would be followed by a major battle, for which it is worth preparing in advance.
Throughout the spring and winter periods, Jagailo and Vitovt worked on strategic plans. It was decided that the combined army would go to Marienburg (the capital of the Teutonic state). This decision confused the commanding staff of the Teutons. They distributed their forces in Shvets, tk. assumed that the opponent's army would split into two parts in order to enter from different directions. In order to completely confuse the Teutons, individual units of the Allied troops periodically raided the border areas.
In May 1410, both armies were fully equipped with soldiers and weapons. Mercenaries from Austria, Germany, France, and the regiments of two Polish princes fought on the side of the Teutons. On the side of the allied Polish-Lithuanian army - mercenaries from the Czech Republic, Moravia, Prussia, Hungary, Galicia-Volyn principality, Belarusian and Samogitian lands, Tatar horsemen. According to the statistics of Stefan Kuchinsky, the Polish-Lithuanian army numbered 39 thousand people, and the Teutonic army - 27 thousand people.
The Allied armies united on the Vistula River near Chervinsk on July 2, 1410.They crossed the Prussian border on July 6, and on the morning of July 15 came face to face with the Teutonic army between the villages of Tannenberg, Grunwald and Ludwigsdorf.
General course of the Battle of Grunwald
The Polish-Lithuanian army was located in three lines. The right flank consisted of the Lithuanian light cavalry, the left - of the Polish heavy cavalry, in the central part there were mercenaries.
The Teutonic army consisted of two lines, and the third (reserve) took with him towards Jungingen.
Before the battle, the Teutons challenged Jagiello - they handed him two drawn swords. But the king did not give the order to attack. Vitovt acted in his own way, sending ahead of the Tatar mercenaries with cavalry, and then - mounted soldiers to the heavy cavalry of Friedrich von Wallenrod.
After an hour-long battle, Wallenrod ordered the troops to launch a counterattack, the Lithuanians fled, and the joyful Teutons, feeling the taste of victory, began to pursue them.
The formation of the Teutonic army was disrupted, the persecuting crusaders who broke away from it were defeated by the troops of Lugveny Olgerdovich.
Meanwhile, there was a sharp battle between the Polish flank and the Teutons. Jagiello used the reserve troops of the second line. The five-hour battle brought victory to no one. Observing, Jungingen decided that the Lithuanian flank was defeated and retreated, and independently led his third reserve line into battle.
Seeing an update from the enemy, Jagiello also used his third line. In a fierce battle, the battles reached the king himself, he was almost killed. The reserve soldiers of Jagiello and the cavalry soldiers of Vitovt went in response to the offensive of the second line of Jungingen, bringing a strong blow to the left flank of the army of the Teutonic Order. The Grand Master was killed. Many Teutons fled, many refused to continue the battle. The camp of the defeated enemy was plundered, everyone who was caught there was killed. In general, the Polish-Lithuanian army stood at the battle site for three more days. Then she laid siege to Marienburg, but after half a month, exhausted by the battles, she took it off.
Results of the Battle of Grunwald
1. Killed about 8 thousand Teutonic soldiers (1/3 of the army), many prisoners.
2. Failure of cities Hanseatic League from cooperation with the Teutonic state.
3. Change and reshuffle of the leading forces in Eastern Europe. The emergence of the Polish-Lithuanian state in the international arena.
4. A noticeable decrease and financing of the knightly trend.
- Dobrzinskaya land ceded to Poland;
- Samogitia became part of the Lithuanian lands;
- The Teutonic Order pledged to pay an indemnity.
The decisive battle of the "Great War" between Poland and Lithuania and the Teutonic Order (1409-1411), which took place on July 15, 1410 on the field between Tannenberg and Grunfeld (Grunwald). It ended with the victory of the Polish-Lithuanian army under the command of King Vladislav II Jagiello (Jagiello) and the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt.
Background
In the 14th and early 15th centuries, the most important foreign policy task for the Polish state was the fight against the Teutonic Order. In the second half of the 14th century, the Order intensified its expansion into Polish and Lithuanian lands, placing Poland and Lithuania in front of the need to jointly fight the crusaders. This became the main motive that forced the parties to conclude in 1385 the so-called: the daughter of the late Polish king Louis of Anjou, Jadwig, was married to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Jagiello, who became king of Poland under the name Vladislav Jagiello. The union did not eliminate the contradictions between the new king of Poland and his cousin Vitovt, who became the head of the Lithuanian state after the Krevo union. Vitovt and the grouping of the Lithuanian aristocracy who supported him were not satisfied with Jagiello's pro-Polish policy. In 1401, the terms of the union were revised, and Vitovt was proclaimed an independent ruler of Lithuania for life - the incorporation of the Grand Duchy into Poland was to take place after his death. The ambitious Vitovt did not lose hope of ousting his influential rival and consolidating his power in Lithuania.
The union of Kreva led to the Christianization of pagan Lithuania, which undermined the ideological foundations of the Teutonic Order in the Eastern Baltic. However, the Western European knights, especially the German ones, were not interested in stopping this activity: the Order declared the baptism of Lithuania insincere and set out to fight for the embodiment of its own concept of the Christianization of the Lithuanian lands. In 1399, the Teutons captured the province of Samogitia (Zhmud) belonging to Lithuania. This became a prelude to future war 1409-1411, which went down in history as the "Great War". The Samogitians rebelled against the invaders several times: in 1401, such an uprising provoked new hostilities, which culminated in a peace treaty between Poland and Lithuania with the Order in Ratiz in 1404. Samogitia remained under the rule of the Order, but Poland was given the right to redeem the Dobrzyn land.
In 1407, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order Konrad von Jungingen died, and his place was taken by his brother Ulrich, a supporter of a military solution to the Lithuanian question. Vytautas also hatched war plans. In 1409, with the knowledge of Vitovt, another uprising broke out in Samogitia, and the Lithuanians came to the aid of its participants. This was the beginning of the war. Acting through his supporters among the Lesser Poland landowners and clergy, the Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen tried to keep Poland from interfering in the conflict, but did not achieve his goal. Then the crusaders seized the Dobrzyn land - Polish territory east of Torun.
The course of the battle
In the spring of 1410, the Lithuanian and Polish troops were ready for a large-scale campaign. At the beginning of July, they united at the Vistula, near the Mazovian city of Chervinsk, and by the shortest route moved into the possession of the Order, successfully besieging the border castles along the way. The united Polish-Lithuanian army was joined by East Slavic detachments (banners) from Smolensk, Polotsk, Galich, Kiev and other cities, Czech detachments led by, later the leader of the Hussite movement in the Czech Republic, as well as a detachment of Tatar cavalry.
On July 10, the allied army failed to cross the Drwenca River - on the opposite bank, the Teutons built a defensive line of palisades, palisades and trenches (earthen trenches), behind which they placed artillery. Jagiello retreated with his army and placed the allied forces between Grunwald and Tannenberg. The field, where the decisive battle took place, was a fairly flat area with a number of low hills crossed by small ravines. On this territory, near the village of Grunwald, the allied Polish-Lithuanian troops and the army of the Teutonic Order and stood against each other. The order brought 52 banners to the battlefield, Poland and Lithuania - 51 and 40, respectively. The number of both troops is not known exactly, since there is no data on how many people included one banner. The order had fewer soldiers, but the Crusaders were better equipped and more combat-ready. The shock force of the Teutonic troops was heavily armed cavalry.
The Teutonic army was formed in three lines, and then, in order to lengthen the front, reorganized into two lines. Ahead of the troops were set up bombards, they were covered by crossbowmen. The right flank of the Teutonic forces (20 banners) was commanded by the Grand Master Konrad Lichtenstein, the left (15 banners) - Marshal Friedrich Wallenrod. Ulrich von Jungingen was in general command. German, French and other knights, as well as mercenaries of various origins, including the Swiss and the British, fought in the army of the Order.
Jagiello hesitated to enter the battle and did not give the command to attack, referring to the need to celebrate Mass and conduct the rite of knighthood. Some historians believe that the king wanted to wear down the enemy and waited for the sun to stop hitting the allies in the eyes, while others believe that he did not want a fight at all and hoped that the numerical superiority of the Polish-Lithuanian forces would force the Order to negotiate. Jagiello's delay began to worry the Polish commanders, and especially Vitovt. In the end, at 12 noon, order heralds arrived at the Polish-Lithuanian camp demanding not to avoid open confrontation, and it became clear that the demonstration of force had no effect on the crusaders. Vitovt was the first to order his troops to go on the offensive. When the Lithuanians and Teutons met in battle, Jagiello gave a similar order to his units. Because of this, at first, the Allies did not act in concert: the main blow of the enemy fell on the Lithuanians. A tactical retreat was impossible - polish forces not yet drawn into battle, and the withdrawal of the Lithuanians could cost them heavy losses. When the Polish heavy cavalry entered the battle, the situation returned to normal, and Vitovt was able to begin a withdrawal maneuver. Breaking away from the pursuit of Friedrich Wallenrod, the Lithuanian troops covered the Polish flank on the right. The crusaders, pursuing the Lithuanian banners, violated their own system, lost time and returned back in scattered groups, which allowed the Poles to cut their path. Then Vitovt attacked the German flank under the command of Konrad Lichtenstein. After that, Ulrich von Jungingen had to put into operation all 16 reserve banners. Vitovt brought in fresh Polish forces into the battle and began to surround the enemy. The Teutons tried to make a breakthrough, but were crushed by Lithuanian troops (including Russian regiments), who returned after a deceitful maneuver. As a result, the crusaders were squeezed from the sides. Six Teutonic banners fled in panic from the battlefield, the rest began to beg for mercy. The crusaders suffered significant losses, and more prisoners than killed, but also opposite side suffered serious damage: together, both opponents lost from 1/5 to 1/3 of the composition of their armies.
Almost all the Teutonic commanders died in the battle, including Ulrich von Jungingen, Friedrich Wallenrod and Konrad Lichtenstein, as well as 200 knights, which made up about a third of the Prussian branch of the Order. According to legend, the great master's associates offered him to flee, but he replied that he would not leave the battlefield. In the hands of Vitovt fell part of the Teutonic banners, a number of noble captives, including the Olesnitsky prince Konrad the White, and other valuable booty. Wine barrels in the Teutonic camp were broken beforehand so that excessive drinking would not demoralize the winners. After the battle, the Polish-Lithuanian units rested for three days.
Consequences and results of the battle
Jagiello failed to take full advantage of the fruits of the Grunwald victory. After the battle, the victorious army did not leave the battlefield for three days and, as a result, slowed down with a march on the Teutonic capital Marienburg (Malbork). The Polish-Lithuanian forces approached the walls of the fortress only on July 25, ten days after the Battle of Grunwald, which allowed the defenders of Marienburg to prepare in advance for a meeting with the enemy. The newly elected Grand Master Heinrich von Plauen agreed to abandon Samogitia and the Dobrzyna land, but Jagiello, who wanted to conclude peace on more favorable terms, did not accept his proposals.
The siege of Marienburg turned out to be a failure: the prepared garrison managed to repel the attack. The setbacks in the siege were aggravated by new disputes between Vitovt and Jagiello: in early September, the former refused to continue military operations, and the Lithuanian units left the camp of the besiegers. In addition, the King of Hungary (since 1410 - King of Germany) Sigismund of Luxembourg took the side of the Teutons. Because of this, according to the Peace of Torun, concluded in 1411, only the lifelong rights of Jagiello and Vitovt to Samogitia were recognized. No other territorial changes were expected, the losses of the Order were limited only to indemnities. These conditions were incommensurate with the scale of the victory won by the Polish-Lithuanian forces. The triumph at Grunwald, thus, became only a tactical victory, but not a strategic one: the Teutonic Order was not completely defeated, although its defeat at Grunwald revealed the internal weakness of the order state.
Subsequently, wars between the Order and the Polish-Lithuanian state broke out more than once: in 1414, 1419, 1422, 1433-1435. Under the terms of the Peace of Melnensk in 1422, the Order finally returned Samogitia to Lithuania, and under the terms of the Brest-Kuyavian Peace of 1435, it agreed to release the subjects of the Order from the obligation to obey him in the event of a new war. In 1466, the Teutonic Order, whose military power was irretrievably undermined, ceased to exist.
Evaluations and memorialization
Already contemporaries characterized the battle of Grunwald as a "Great Battle". It brought world military fame to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt, and even in Germany there was an opinion that it was the numerous "pagans" - Lithuanians and Tatars - who ensured victory for the Poles. Polish historians are inclined to believe that the main hero of the battle was Jagiello. The tone in this direction was set by the famous Polish historian of the second half of the 15th century, Jan Dlugosz, whose father was a participant in the Battle of Grunwald. In Russian historiography and culture, special attention has always been paid to the role of the Russian regiments operating near Grunwald as part of the army of the Grand Duke of Lithuania.
The Battle of Grunwald has become the motif of many works of literature and art. The most famous painting on the theme of the legendary battle is Jan Matejko's painting "The Battle of Grunwald", written in 1878. The writer Henryk Sienkiewicz described the events of the battle in the novel "The Crusaders" (first published in 1897-1900). In Lithuania, the name “Zalgiris” (this is how Grunwald is called in Lithuanian) is worn by several popular sports clubs, including the titled basketball club from Kaunas, which has repeatedly won the championships of Lithuania and the USSR.
In 1910, celebrations were held in Krakow to mark the 500th anniversary of the victory at Grunwald, which brought together 150,000 people from all Polish lands. Similar events took place throughout Austrian Galicia: in 1910, monuments to the Battle of Grunwald were erected in 60 villages and cities. In the Russian Empire in this anniversary year, brochures were published, meetings were held dedicated to legendary battle... The speakers noted the special role of the Smolensk regiments; many suggested calling the battle "Dubravninskaya", thereby emphasizing the decisive role of the Russian regiments in the victory over the crusaders.
If in 1910 the battlefield of Grunwald was on the territory, and celebrations could not take place there for obvious reasons, then in 1960 the place of events was already part of Poland. The Polish leadership presented the Battle of Grunwald as the greatest national victory of the Poles over the Germans and assigned its anniversary an important role in the development of Polish identity in the newly acquired territories. On July 17, 1960, large-scale celebrations were held on the historic site with the participation of about 200,000 people. A new monument was erected to replace the old monument to the Battle of Grunwald, erected in 1953.
