A brief history of the

A brief history of the

Battle of Grunwald

15 July 1410

The Battle of Grunwald (or the first Battle of Tannenberg) took place on July

1410 between the Kingdom of Poland and their allies against the Knights of the Teutonic Order. It was the decisive engagement in the Polish-Lithuanian-Teutonic War (1409-1411) and one of the greatest battle of medieval Europe. I wrote about it because the battle was very important for Polish history. After it the country achieved freedom and independent.

The aims of my essay are:

1. To look at the location of the battle

2. To investigate the background to the conflict

3. To study the preparations for the battle

4. To look at the battle in detail and finally

5. To evaluate the result of the battle

My teacher told me about the History essay that I needed for my Leaving Certificate. I told him about my plan to write about the battle about Grunwald and he said that this was a good idea. I found books and websites to research my essay. I drew up a plan and wrote the essay up on the computer. A full list of the websites and book I used can be found at the back.

Evaluation of the sources

Here is a review of the sources that I used for my essay. My first source was a website on the Battle of Grunwald found at:

http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitwa_pod_Grunwaldem

This website is about the Battle of Grunwald. It describe the battle in detail and it contained maps and pictures. That was very good source because was easy to use and is translated into many languages.

Book 1

My first book source was the Teutonic Knights written by Henryk Sienkiewicz. The book have 520 pages and Sienkiewicz wrote this book about 35 years ago. It is a very good book because it describes the battle in detail. One problem is that it is a novel and because of that I was not sure what bits were made up. Having said that it gave me a good idea of what went on.

Book 2

My second book source was The Great War with the Order of the Teutonic Knights 1409-1411. It was written by Stefan Kuczynski in 1960. This book had 683 pages and a lot of pictures. It is very good book because it had good detail and had about twelve maps which showed the course of the battle

A brief history of the

Battle of Grunwald

15 July 1410

At the end of the fourteenth century, “Lithuania was a warlike political state with control over enormous stretches of present-day Belarus and Ukraine.”[1] Putting aside their previous hostility, Poland and Lithuania saw that they shared common enemies, most notably the Teutonic Knights. “This situation was the direct incentive for the Union of Krewo in 1385.”[2] The agreement hinged on the marriage of the Polish Queen Jadwiga to Jogaila, who became king of Poland under the name Władysław II. In return, the new monarch accepted baptism in the name of his people and promised to link Lithuania with Poland. This intention however proved difficult to fulfil. During the Christianization of Lithuania, the Bishopric of Vilnius was established in 1387 to convert Władysław's subjects to Roman Catholicism. (Eastern Orthodoxy predominated in the bigger part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.) From a military standpoint, Poland received protection from the Mongols and Tatars, while Lithuania received aid in its long struggle against the Teutonic Knights.

This alliance of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania exerted a huge influence on the history of Eastern Europe. Poland and Lithuania maintained a joint statehood for more than three centuries, forming the "Commonwealth of Two Nations" ranked as one of the leading powers of the continent. The association produced prompt benefits in 1410 when the forces of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeated the Teutonic Knights at the battle of Grunwald (Tannenberg) during the Polish-Lithuanian-Teutonic War.

Fighting over the frontier towns, Santok and Drezdenko become the direct cause of the outbreak of the great war with the Order in 1409. In the early morning of, 14 July 1410 both armies met in the fields near the villages of Grunwald, Tennenberg and Lowigowo in Prussia which at that time was territory governed by the Teutonic Order but which is now in Poland. Both armies were setup in line formations. The Polish-Lithuanian army was set up in front of the villages of Ludwigsdorf and Tannenberg. The left flank was guarded by the Polish forces and composed mostly of heavy cavalry. “The right flank of the allied forces was guarded by the army of the Grand Duke and composed mostly of light cavalry. The opposing forces of the Teutonic Order were composed mostly of heavy cavalry and infantry.”[3] They were to be aided by troops from Western Europe called "the guests of the Order", who were still on the way, and other Knights who had been summoned to participate by a Papal letter.

“On Monday the day before the battle, the Polish king moved armies in to different areas, because he needed to be near supplies of food and clothes. The night before the battle was very quiet for the Polish army.”[4] The troops got little sleep the night before the battle because weather conditions were awful a strong wind blow all night. The following monday the Polish king went to Mass and then after that on the battlefield. The opposite force send him two swords as a formal invitation to do battle and for faster preparation to the battle. He accepts the swords and renders thanks.

The opposing forces formed their lines at dawn. At noon the forces of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas started a line to the left flank of the Teutonic forces, near the village of Tannenberg. “The Lithuanian cavalry was helped by a cavalry charge by Polish troops on the right flank of the enemy forces.”[5] The enemy heavy cavalry counter-attacked on both flanks and suddenly fighting break out.

After more than an hour, the Lithuanian light cavalry started the planned maneuver of

retreating toward bogs and trees. “This maneuver was often used in the east of Grand Duchy of Lithuania by Mongols.”[6] Vytautas, who had experience in battles against Mongols, used it in this battle. Only three banners of Smolensk commanded by Lengvenis son of Algirdas brother of Jogaila and a cousin of Vytautas, remained on the right flank after the retreat of Vytautas and his troops. One of the banners was totally destroyed, while the remaining two were backed up by the Polish cavalry held in

reserve and broke through the enemy lines to the Polish positions. Heavy cavalry of the Order started a disorganized quest after the retreating Lithuanians, which might have been a big mistake.

Knights entered bogs, where Vytautas Large reorganized his troops to get back into the battle. At the same time heavy fighting took place farther side of Polish forces. After a few hours, the Germanic cavalry started getting the upper hand. Polish ranks started hesitating. “According to Ioannes Longinus the Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen peculiarly led a Germanic cavalry charge on the strongest Polish unit - the Banner of the Land of Cracow.”[7] The Polish ranks started to waver and the flag of the banner was lost. However, it was soon recaptured by the Polish knights, and king Jogaila ordered most of his reserves to enter combat.

The arrival of fresh troops allowed the Poles to beat the enemy assault and the forces of Ulrich von Jungingen were beaten. At the same time his reserves were still busy pursuing the evading Lithuanian cavalry. When they finally returned to the battlefield, it was already too late for the Teutonic charge to succeed and the forces of the Order started to run away.

“A deciding role in triggering Germanic withdrawing off they are Culm assigned to the commander of the banner, Nikolaus von Renys born in Prussia. The founder and leader of the Lizard Union, a group of Order Knights sympathetic to Poland, refused to fight the Polish.”[8] Turning the banner which he won down was taken as the signal of defeat by the Germanic army. Von Renys was later beheaded by his order, along with all of his male descendants. “After few hours of fighting, Ulrich von Jungingen decided to join his forces in the main part of the battle.”[9] Vytautas, however, also returned to the battlefield with the reorganized forces of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and joined the fierce fighting.

The Teutonic forces were by then becoming worried by the mass of Polish knights and the advancing Lithuanian infantry, which all of a sudden had come pouring on the battlefield from the surrounding forests. “Ulrich von Jungingen personally led the assault with 16 banners of heavy cavalry, which until then were hold in reserve. Jogaila, however, threw in all his remaining reserves, as well as several already tired units.”[10] The 16 banners of the Grand Master were surrounded and began to suffer high losses, including the Grand Master himself. “Seeing the fall of their Grand Master, the rest of the Teutonic forces started to withdraw towards their camp.”[11]

“Half of individuals run to forest and there stay routed through Lithuanian and Polish cavalries, while the rest retreated to the camp near the village of Grunwald where they tried to organize the defense by using the tabor tactic.”[12] This tactic relies on surrounding wagons tied up with chains, serving as a mobile fortification. However, the defense

was soon broken and the camp was looted.

The battle was over and victory went to the Polish and Lithuanian.

I thing that this battle was very important for Poland because they won freedom. Who won was very important because that had influence on the political attitudes in Europe. It has bent might power down Order ultimately but it took away for rank most important on continent dynasties Jagiellonska.

Bibliography

Jan Stanisław Kopczewski, Mateusz Siuchniński "Grunwald. 550 lat chwały", Warszawa: PZWS, 1960
Stefan Maria Kuczyński "Wielka Wojna z Zakonem Krzyżackim w latach 1409-1411", Warszawa: Wydawnictwo MON,1960
Konstanty Górski, “Bitwa pod Grunwaldem” (dnia 15-go lipca 1410r.)

Henryk Sienkiewicz, “Krzyzacy 1900”
http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitwa_pod_Grunwaldem

[1] Stefan Maria Kuczynski, “Wielka Wojna z Zakonem Krzyzackim”

[2] Jan Stanisław Kopczewski, Mateusz Siuchniński, "Grunwald. 550 lat chwały",

[4] http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitwa_pod_Grunwaldem

[5] Konstanty Gorski, “Bitwa pod Grunwaldem”

[7] Stefan Maria Kuczyński "Wielka Wojna z Zakonem Krzyżackim w latach 1409-1411"

[8] Jan Stanisław Kopczewski, Mateusz Siuchniński "Grunwald. 550 lat chwały"

[9] http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitwa_pod_Grunwaldem

[10] Konstanty Górski, “Bitwa pod Grunwaldem” (dnia 15-go lipca 1410r.)

[11] http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitwa_pod_Grunwaldem