In December 1409, Vytautas and Jogaila met in Brest, where they discussed a detailed plan for a summer campaign against the crusaders. Khan Dzhelaleddin, son of Tokhtamysh, who was subordinate to the large Golden Horde army accepted in the Grand Duchy, was invited to this Brest meeting. An agreement was concluded with the khan that he would bring a certain number of cavalry to war, and for this, after the war, Vitovt would help Jelaleddin return his father’s throne in the Golden Horde.

At the Brest meeting, Vytautas and Jogaila also discussed the number and location of the assembly of the troops of Poland and the Grand Duchy, the strike strategy, issues of recruiting mercenaries, diplomatic tactics of attracting their possible allies and neutralizing possible allies of the Order.

According to the plan, in the last days of May 1410, regiments from Belarusian and Lithuanian lands and principalities began to gather in Grodno. From here they set off to the sources of the Narew River, where a gathering was scheduled for the entire army of Vytautas, crossed through the Mazovian lands and came to Chervenska on the Vistula, where they met with Polish banners. This was at the beginning of July, and two weeks later the Battle of Grunwald took place, which became the culmination of the entire war of 1409-1411 and determined its outcome.

Among the major battles of that time, Grunwalius stands out both in the number of troops participating in it and in the extraordinary success of the results: the Order, which in the morning of July 15, 1410 was one of the powerful states of Europe, by the evening became almost nothing, and was threatened with disappearance from the political map . Although the Order subsequently managed to revive and strengthen, its defeat in the Battle of Grunwald changed the political and military climate in Europe and brought Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into the number of effective countries that had to be taken into account.

Therefore, the deep interest in this battle on the part of historians of many generations in Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Germany, and Russia is understandable.

Banners from all Belarusian lands and principalities took part in the battle; all cities, every village gave soldiers for the Battle of Grunwald, and, of course, it is interesting to trace from the available direct and indirect evidence what this participation was like.

The Polish army came to the battle consisting of 50 banners, of which 7 were deployed by Ukrainian lands subordinate to Poland. Dlugosh names the following Ukrainian regiments: Lvov, Kholm, Galician, Przemysl and three Podolsk; in two banners there were hired knights from Czechs, Moravians, and Silesians.

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania fielded 40 banners on the battlefield:

• - 30 of them had Pagonya on their banner - the coat of arms of the Grand Duchy;
• - 10- coat of arms of the Column - white pillars on a red background.

In addition to them, the cavalry of Khan Jalaluddin came with Vitovt. Dlugosz in his “History of Poland” estimates the number of Tatars who participated in the Battle of Grunwald at 300 people. The figure is, of course, many times underestimated. According to the legends of the Belarusian-Lithuanian Tatars, 40 thousand of them came to Vytautas.

Therefore, the opinions of researchers were very contradictory. Some believed that there were about 30 thousand Tatars in the campaign of 1410, others claim that Jelaleddin fielded 10-15 thousand soldiers for the battle, others limit the number of Tatars who helped Vytautas to 1-2 thousand. Without accurate data, it is difficult to agree with any opinion, but indirect evidence suggests that Jelaleddin added at least 5 thousand horsemen to the army of the Grand Duchy. This conclusion can be made based on the fact that the Horde who came with Tokhtamysh were located in many Belarusian and Lithuanian povets, and further, restoration to his father’s throne could be real for Jelaleddin only if he himself had sufficient military strength.

In addition, the order's chronicles record that the Grand Master Ulrik von Jungingen died at the hands of the Tatar Khan Bagardin, which could be true, and in this case the death of the master at the hands of a pagan was another reproach against Jogaila and Vytautas. Perhaps, in order to ward off such a reproach, J. Dlugosh wrote in “History” that the Grand Master was killed by a “simple drab,” that is, an ordinary warrior of non-gentry origin. In the famous painting “The Battle of Grunwald” by Jan Matejko, the moment of the death of Jungingen is depicted symbolically:

• - the man who deals the death blow to the Grand Master of the Order is dressed in the red clothes of the official executioner;
• - his weapon is also a traditional instrument of execution, that is, the warrior acts as a non-personal executor of the sentence of history.

Of the forty banners of the Grand Duchy, Dlugosh names 21 by name: Vilna, Troka, Grodno, Kovno, Lida, Polotsk, Vitebsk, Novogrudok, Volkovysk, Mednitsa, Brest, Pinsk, Kiev, Starodub, Drogichin, Melnitsa, Kremenets, Smolensk, and also the banner of the prince Sigismund Koribud, the banner of Prince Semyon Lingwen of Mstislavsky and the banner of a certain George (Yuri).

The remaining 19 banners are not named.

Banners had different numbers - from 60 to 200-300 copies, but there were banners of 500 and 600 copies. A spear was a combat unit consisting of three warriors: a knight, a squire (we called it a parobok) and an archer.

The poor boyar could act alone or make do with only an archer, but those who were richer sought to increase the number of squads and archers, since the safety of a knight in battle depended heavily on their number and skill.

As a rule, the commanders of the banners were people who occupied the highest positions in the lands or cities where the banners were formed.

The absence of any specific information about the number of troops or individual banners of the Order, Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania allows us to build various assumptions, even fantastic ones, on this issue.

Vytautas needed a victory over the Order. In this case, he returned Zhmud, received Sudava, and Jogaila returned to him that part of the fertile Podolian lands that Poland used. The defeat of the Order and peaceful borders with the Golden Horde in the event of Jelaleddin's arrival there turned the Grand Duchy into a powerful power. The real possibilities for the independent development of the Grand Duchy, of course, were clearly visible to Vytautas, and he was obliged to make every effort to achieve his cherished goals. This meant that he had to lead the maximum number of his regiments into battle. Therefore, the forces of the Grand Duchy in the Battle of Grunwald can be estimated at 20 thousand cavalry, several thousand infantry, 3-5 thousand Tatars and 3-4 thousand servants, transporters, and horse guides.

Yagaila brought about the same amount of force to the battle.

The Order allowed the enemy to cross the borders, which turned out to be disastrous for many castles and villages - they were plundered and burned. It is not easy to understand why the order chapter decided to give battle to Vytautas and Jogaila on its territory. The Order's strike on the troops of Poland and the Grand Duchy during their junction near Czerwinski on the Vistula could have decided the outcome of the summer campaign in favor of the crusaders more quickly and with fewer losses. But not everything that became known to the researchers of this battle was known to the Grand Master when he made his decisions. In particular, he had no way of knowing whether Jogaila and Vytautas would attack him with united forces or separately, in two directions. When the situation became clearer and it became known that the Polish and Belarusian-Lithuanian-Ukrainian troops were moving together towards the fords on Drvenets, the passage through which opened a direct path into the depths of the order’s lands, Ulrik von Jungingen met them at these fords and here he was ready to give a decisive battle.

The fords were fortified with palisades and palisades, behind them stood ready artillery and detachments of crossbowmen, and in the depths were heavy and light cavalry. An assault on the fords would have resulted in defeat for the allies, and therefore Vytautas and Jogaila decided to bypass Drvenza at its source. This maneuver was unexpected for the crusaders, but they quickly figured out the enemy’s strategy and quite accurately determined the route of his movement.

The path along which the troops of Jogaila and Vytautas advanced inevitably passed through the villages of Grunwald, Ludvikovo and Tannenberg, and here the Grand Master decided to stop the enemy and force him to fight. The Germans arrived here a day earlier. The convoy of the crusaders settled down near Grunwald, and their banners took up combat positions between the villages of Tannenberg and Ludvikovo.

It was here on the morning of July 15 that the famous battle began. Let us trace its main points in Dlugosz’s description.

As soon as the trumpets sounded, the entire royal army sang the ancestral song “Virgin Mary” in a loud voice, and then, shaking their spears, rushed into battle. The Lithuanian army, by order of Prince Vitovt, who did not tolerate any delay, began the battle even earlier.” In other words, the Belarusian-Lithuanian-Ukrainian regiments entered the battle with the crusaders first, and this happened for a sufficient time before the Poles began to fight.

Then follows a chapter entitled “The Lithuanians, showing their rear, flee all the way to Lithuania.”

Having met each other, the two troops fought for almost an hour with uncertain success; and since neither one nor the other army gave in, striving for victory with the strongest tenacity, it was impossible to clearly discern which side luck was leaning on or who would prevail in the battle. The crusaders, noticing that a difficult and dangerous battle had broken out on the left wing against the Polish army, turned their forces to the right wing, where the Lithuanian army was lined up. The Lithuanian army had thinner ranks, worse horses and weapons, and, being weaker, it seemed easy to defeat. Having thrown back the Lithuanians, the crusaders could have hit the Polish army harder.

However, their calculation did not fully live up to expectations. When the crusaders began to press closer, the Lithuanian army was forced to retreat again and again and finally took flight.

Grand Duke Alexander tried in vain to stop the flight with beatings and loud screams. In their flight, the Lithuanians even took with them a large number of Poles, who were assigned to help them. The enemies cut down and captured those fleeing, pursuing them for many miles, and considered themselves completely victorious.

The fleeing people were gripped by such fear that most of them stopped fleeing only when they reached Lithuania, where they reported that King Vladislav had been killed, Alexander, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, had also been killed, and that, moreover, their troops had been completely exterminated.

Alexander Vitovt, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, very upset by the flight of his army and fearing that because of the unfortunate battle for them, the spirit of the Poles would be broken, sent messengers one after another to the king so that he would rush into battle without any delay, after vain requests the prince hastily galloped up himself, without any companions, and in every possible way begged the king to go into battle in order to give the combatants more animation and courage with his presence.

“After the Lithuanian army fled and the terrible dust that covered the battlefield and the soldiers was washed away by a pleasant light rain, a fierce battle began again in different places between the Polish and Prussian troops. Meanwhile, as the crusaders began to strain all their strength towards victory, the large banner of the Polish king Vladislav with a white eagle collapses to the ground under enemy pressure. However, thanks to the very experienced and honored knights who were with him and immediately delayed his fall, the banner was raised and hoisted in place.”

The Polish ranks, casting aside the doubt that beset them, under many banners fall upon the enemies standing under sixteen banners and converge with them in mortal combat.

And although the enemies resisted for some time, however, finally:

• - surrounded from everywhere, were defeated and crushed by many royal troops;
• - almost all the soldiers who fought under sixteen banners were killed or captured.

It should be said that no one really knows how everything happened on the battlefield, and it is unlikely that a document will be found that sheds a bright light of clarity on the many mysteries of this fierce battle of many peoples. Therefore, all versions of the course of the battle and its development put forward by historians are hypothetical. But the totality of the works of many researchers both past and present allows us to imagine the actions of the Belarusian-Lithuanian-Ukrainian banners and Tatars on the Grunwald Hills with some certainty.

At dawn on July 15, the troops of Jogaila and Vytautas approached Lake Lyuben in two columns, and then it became known that German banners were standing nearby, behind the road connecting the villages of Tannenberg and Lyuyuvikovo.

The Poles went from the left side of the lake, Vitovt's army - from the right, and right from the march they began to rearrange themselves into battle formations. We got out to the edge and froze: half a mile away, on the foggy hills, far to the right and to the left, we could see the wide wedges of German banners, clad in iron and gleaming with armor.

One can imagine how, at the edge of the forest, near the road leading to the village of Tannenberg, Vitovt poured out orders to the princes and gentlemen.

The banners quickly moved to the indicated places. Half of the Tatar cavalry under the command of Khan Bagardin crossed the meadows and joined the Vilna Guf.

The conspicuous robes of the Tatars excited the extreme group of Germans.

Next to the Novogrudok people stood the Volyn Guf, and between the Orsha and Volyn people - the banner of the Volkovysk people, who were most eager to fight. Who sought revenge for the German attack on the city on Palm Sunday - March 16, 1410. According to the custom of the Middle Ages, military operations were not conducted on holidays associated with Christ and the Mother of God.

The Germans, to everyone’s surprise, did not start the battle, missing what everyone thought was the most convenient opportunity to cut down the scattered regiments of Belarusians and Lithuanians who were emerging from the small forests into the field at that moment.

Jungingen, Wallenrod, Kuno von Lichtenstein, and the commanders stood in a crowd on the top of the hill. We looked at the hasty, tense formation of Polish banners on the right hand, and Russian and Lithuanian banners on the left.

The enemy's wedges were already standing opposite the order's, and battle was inevitable.

A matter of time separated the troops from a clash, and from victory - those few hours that were required to scatter and flog the presumptuous Poles, Rus' and Lithuania.

Valenrod ordered pressure on the Tatars, and they could not stand it. And how could you stand it? The sabers dulled on the Kryzhak armor, and while a crooked knife found the knight’s neck or a lasso pulled him to the ground, he managed to stain the sword with Tatar blood three or five times.

The Tatars decided to change formation and strike in the rear.

But the retreat of the Tatar regiments turned out to be fatal for the Monivid wing.

Monivid, not wanting to waste too many people, decided to retreat to the convoy.

Victory seemed certain, it seemed that defeat had begun, the extermination of Poles and Lithuania, non-believers and pagans. And the knights who were approaching the convoy rushed after the booty. But then thousands of foot warriors stood in front of them on carts, with flails, flails, spears, stars, and heavy shafts. The Crusaders were met with a blow they had not expected and a fight they had never seen.

The knights were beaten like wolves - with hatred and indiscriminately, just to kill.

The spikes of the stars pierced the armor, the iron balls of the flails killed the horse with one blow, and with the second they laid down the kryzhak near it.

The skinned warriors died in the hundreds, but their deaths were paid for with the lives of the crusaders.

Time passed, the worst was experienced, the pressure of the kryzhaks weakened, their strength was depleted, although it cost great sacrifices.

Whatever direction Friedrich von Wallenrod threw his banners to cut through the circle, everywhere the Germans were repulsed by the swords of the Rusyns and Lithuania, lassos and sabers of the Tatars. The ring tightened like a noose.

From all the lands of the order, from all the lands that they longed to own, what was left to them at that hour was a patch of blood-soaked earth, and death was working hard on it.

Ulrik von Jungingen, with the mind of an experienced warrior, understood that the battle was lost, but his heart refused to believe, accept, agree, and submit to the horror of the obvious collapse of the Order. Such a massacre of the crusaders had never happened. Selected knights stood around him, they fought desperately, maybe they had never fought as hard as they did in these hours, but here they fell, sank, died, powerless to break the suffocating ring. Swords flickered, lassos and arrows curled. The Teutonic knighthood was destroyed. And near the great master himself there were the hated Poles or Lithuanians or Ruthenians, and in addition to them the Tatars.

And he tried to crush them, putting into the blow all his painful shame for the shame of defeat, all the resentment towards himself, so easily driven into a trap, into a bloody swamp. Suddenly he saw in front of him a dark face under a gilded helmet, slanted eyes looking at him with the cold interest of an executioner deciding where best to strike. And this condemned look burned Ulrik von Jungingen. He raised his sword towards the battle ax of Khan Bagardin, but his heart trembled, his hand disobeyed, and he was late - a shiny steel plate quickly approached his eyes and turned out to be hellishly cold, he felt this blood-chilling touch, everything that his memory had held since childhood began to crumble , crumble, fragment and disappear.

Tired of shedding blood, the gentry and boyars already flogged the Teutons in succession: they did not cut down those who surrendered, and those for whom they hoped to receive a ransom. Hundreds of captured knights were driven to the Polish and Belarusian-Lithuanian camps.

The regiments that went in pursuit returned all night. At dawn, the banners lined up, were counted and filled with grief - every third, and even the second, was no longer in the ranks.

They buried the dead, sent the wounded home, rested and set off for Malbork. We moved extremely slowly, walking a hundred kilometers for more than a week. Jogaila's delay allowed the Crusaders to organize the defense of Marienburg, draw the troops of Jogaila and Vytautas into a long and fruitless siege, and thus the Order gained time, gathered some forces, and organized a coalition of the Imperial Germans, the Hungarian and Czech kings against Poland and the Grand Duchy. A month and a half of siege led to nothing, and on September 8, Vitovt’s troops were the first to withdraw and go home. Soon the Poles lifted the siege.

In the middle of the 13th century, the Lithuanian ruler Mindovg decided to give this land to the Livonians, but a little more than ten years passed and the people who inhabited Samogitia were able to win back their territory and enter into battle with the Teutonic Order.

Beginning of the Great War of 1409-1411

At the very beginning of the 14th century, at the instigation of Prince Vytautas, Zhematia came under German rule. And the desire of the Principality of Lithuania to regain these lands at any cost became the cause of the Great War of 1409-1411, the results of which were disastrous for the Teutonic Order. In the spring of 1409, a mass uprising against the aggressive policy of the Teutons began in the Principality of Lithuania.

Soon news of this reached the master of the order, Ulrich von Juningen, and he decided to declare war on Lithuania and Poland. This happened on August 6, 1409. It took both sides some time to prepare troops, and after a short lull, at the end of autumn, military operations began.

Progress of the war

At the beginning of the war, the size of the army of the Lithuanian-Polish alliance significantly exceeded the German one. In July 1410, the army of the union was able to reach Prussia, where the border of the territory of the Teutonic Order ran along the river. On the other bank, one of the German detachments was waiting for them, planning to suddenly attack their rivals after they crossed the river, but the Lithuanian prince Vitovt foresaw their plan and ordered his troops to go around.

Beginning of the Battle of Grunwald

The Germans were waiting for their rivals near the village of Grunwald. In mid-July, detachments from Lithuania and Poland approached them, starting a battle. The date of the Battle of Grunwald is July 15, 1410.

While the fighters of the Teutonic Order were in ambush, the master gave orders to intensively prepare the territory for battle: the Germans dug several traps, and also equipped inconspicuous places for cannons and crossbowmen. Despite the fact that the rivals attacked from the wrong side from where they were expected, the Teutonic Order skillfully used all its advantages.

Before the most famous battle of the Great War of 1409-1411 began, both armies lined up in three columns called "Gufs".

The Polish military leader with the charismatic name Jagiello was in no hurry to announce the start of the attack, and the troops began to wait for his symbolic order. But Prince Vitovt turned out to be less patient and gave the order to advance to the Tatar cavalry, which rushed into battle immediately after the Teutons began shelling from cannons hidden from view. When the Germans gave a worthy rebuff, the union fighters began to retreat, and Jagiello began to think over a new plan. The Germans acted more stupidly: rejoicing that they were able to repulse the attack, they began to pursue the Lithuanians and Poles without any tactics, leaving behind all their shelters and prepared traps. Prince Vitovt managed to react to this in time, and most of the Teutons were surrounded and destroyed within a few hours.

The height of the Battle of Grunwald

Enraged by such a blunder, the master of the order decided to launch a more powerful attack and gave the order to his troops to attack, which was the beginning of the great battle. Everyone remembered this day as the date of the Battle of Grunwald.

The master planned everything well enough for the Teutons to begin to occupy good positions, and therefore Jagiello decided to withdraw all Lithuanian troops in reserve. After about five hours of battle, the Union soldiers began to retreat again, and the joyful Germans began to pursue them again.

The fighting of the Great War of 1409-1411 is known for the interesting and often unexpected strategic moves of Prince Vytautas and his military leader Jagiello. Having learned about the persecution, Jagiello brought another reserve onto the battlefield. Ulrich von Jungingen realized that the number of enemy fighters was only increasing, and ordered the second line of his cavalry to surround the Lithuanians. Both sides began to run out of ammunition, and soon almost everyone resorted to hand-to-hand combat. Vitovt, who observed this, was able to wait for the right moment and ordered the remaining cavalry to surround the Germans from the left flank, where their command was located. They did not have time to protect their ruler, and very soon the master, along with his entourage, was killed. The Teutons who learned about this fled. The Lithuanian troops spent a few more days on the field, and then headed towards Malborok, present-day Marienburg, which they reached without any obstacles. Thus, the Polish-Lithuanian alliance was victorious and regained Samogitia.

Results of the Great War

In the first months of 1411, Prince Vytautas and the rest of the alliance announced a peace treaty with the Teutons, provided that they would pay an indemnity and return all previously captured territories. The results of the Great War of 1409-1411 turned out to be beneficial not only for the Lithuanians, but also for other countries nearby, which were previously often raided by the Teutonic Order. After the war, the Teutons, who suffered heavy losses, began to pursue a more peaceful policy.

The unification of the foreign policy efforts of two strong states in Eastern Europe - Poland and Lithuania - showed its effectiveness at the beginning of the 15th century, when they waged another war against the Teutonic Order. This war had catastrophic consequences for the German crusaders.

The stumbling block in relations between the Teutons and Lithuanians was the region of Samogitia, which separated the center of the Teutonic state (its capital since 1309 was the city of Marienburg, now Malbork) from its Livonian “branch” on the territory of modern Latvia. At the same time, the Teutons fought against the Poles. As a result of the acquisition by the Germans of the Dobrzhin region and the New Mark, part of the Polish lands was cut off from the rest of the kingdom. With the election of Master Ulrich von Jungingen, the order's relations with Poland began to rapidly deteriorate. At the beginning of 1408, in the Lithuanian city of Kovno (Kaunas), fruitless negotiations between Jungingen and Jagiello took place through the mediation of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas.

In Samogitia that same year, preparations for the anti-Teutonic uprising were in full swing, in the organization of which, of course, Vytautas took the most active part. At the same time, the Lithuanian prince and the Polish king also carried out diplomatic preparations, enlisting support or neutrality in a future war with the order of European sovereigns - the Moscow prince, for example. Vitovt even managed to come to an agreement with the Livonian Order, which received benefits in trade with Polotsk and at the same time the threat of receiving a blow to Riga from Pskov and Novgorod if something happened. That is why the Livonians did not come out in support of the Teutonic chiefs. The Master of the Teutonic Order also sought friends among the Hungarians, Czechs and other peoples. The Crusaders increased their artillery.

The uprising in Samogitia began in May 1409. The Teutons, preparing to go to the rebellious region, turned to the Poles, offering to remain neutral, but they not only refused, but also stated that as soon as the knights moved to Lithuania, the Poles would strike Prussia. Then the leaders of the order decided to direct their attack on Poland. On August 6, 1409, the master declared war on King Jagiello. While the Poles were fighting the Germans, Vytautas, with the support of the Samogitian tribes, took Memel (Klaipeda). In winter, a Polish-Lithuanian meeting was held in Brest-Litovsk to develop war plans. The forces of the allied states had to unite and march on Marienburg. On July 9, 1410, the united Polish-Lithuanian army crossed the border of the Teutonic Order. On the 10th, the allies saw the crusaders on the other side of the Drevenets River. By decision of the military council, the Poles and Lithuanians refused to cross the river and followed a flank march to its source at Lautenburg, Soldau. Master Ulrich, having learned about this, moved to Bratenau to Tannenberg to block their path. The Teutonic and Allied armies met on July 15, 1410 at Grunwald (now Olsztyn Voivodeship). One of the largest battles in history took place here.

The Teutons had about 11 thousand people, among whom were not only Germans. But the national composition of the 17,000-strong army of Vytautas and Jagiello was even more variegated. Naturally, the Lithuanian army included representatives of the peoples living on the territory of the Grand Duchy: Ukrainians, Russians, Belarusians. In addition, there were allied Tatar cavalry, Volokhs and Armenians, Czech mercenaries (they were commanded by the future Taborite leader Jan Zizka).

The Germans chose a good position on the hills and rested their flanks on the villages. The length of the front was about 2.5 km. The right flank was commanded by Liechtenstein, the left by Walenrod. The master himself led the reserve left in the second line. Bombards were placed in front of the front. Also, in front of the Teutonic ranks, “wolf pits” were secretly dug, at the bottom of which sharpened stakes were driven, and on top everything was covered with poles and disguised with turf. Ulrich forced the enemy to attack uphill, and the German reserve remained hidden behind the hills for the enemy.

The battle formation of the Polish-Lithuanian army consisted of three lines. The right flank was occupied by the Lithuanians (and therefore Volynians and Belarusians) and the Tatars under the command of Vytautas, the left flank by the Poles under the command of Zyndram. The Smolensk regiments of Yuri Mstislavovich were located in the center.

The Tatar cavalry was the first to rush into battle from Vitovt's flank. This happened around noon. The German gunners managed to fire only two shots, after which they were crushed. The fierce battle had already been going on for an hour when Ulrich threw the knights of Valenrod into battle. They repelled the Tatar attack, then launched a counter-offensive and forced the entire flank of Vytautas to retreat, continuing to pursue him for some time.

Three Smolensk regiments fought desperately in the center. One of the regiments was almost completely destroyed, but the other two repulsed the enemy and broke through to the left flank of Zyndram, who was also saved from defeat by protecting the returning knights of Valenrod from a flank attack.

The crusaders were pushing back the enemy when the second Polish line was thrown forward, which managed to encircle and push back Liechtenstein. Then Jungingen threw his 16 “banners” of the reserve into battle. Their task was to encircle the Poles of Zyndram. The third Polish line hurried across these German units. The master was confused, while he was determining where the reserve needed to be maneuvered, it stopped. At this time, the Lithuanian-Russian units of Vytautas, who had stopped fleeing and were put in order, appeared on the battlefield again. Their appearance discouraged the Teutons, they began to retreat, gradually the retreat became panicky. The crusaders tried to take refuge in the Wagenburg (a fortified camp of carts), but were overtaken and defeated here. The Order suffered colossal losses from which it could no longer recover. The master died during the battle. They say that at the end of the battle he said: “God forbid that I leave the field alive where so many glorious men died!” On July 25, Marienburg was besieged. The Poles and Lithuanians failed to take it, but the expansion of the Teutons was stopped. In 1466, the order essentially ceased to exist.

The memory of Grunwald is still kept by Poles, Lithuanians, Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians proud of their success.

The Battle of Grunwald is a turning point battle between the Polish-Lithuanian army and the Teutonic army, which took place on July 15, 1410. The battle was very cruel and bloody, thousands of soldiers died on both sides, but it played a huge role in the future 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?

1. In the north of Poland there was access to the Baltic Sea, i.e. it was possible to control all trade at the mouths of the Neman River, the Western Dvina River and the Vistula River, replenishing one’s treasury and pockets.
2. Through the Baltic Sea, it became possible to access the territory of the Moscow Principality, which promised even greater wealth than the possession of European lands.
3. 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 invasions of the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. But in 1378, Lithuania adopted Christianity, and now the Teutons had no right to invade Lithuanian lands. And in 1385, the Lithuanian prince Vladislav II Jagiello entered into a dynastic marriage with Jadwiga (Union of Krevo). As a result of this event, a new powerful Christian state from the united Polish and Lithuanian lands appeared on the map of Europe.

The Teutons needed a new reason 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 yet, they could unite and close the entire territory of their state into one border.

At the end of May 1409 there was a Samogitian uprising 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 second attack by the Teutons, he would support the victims, i.e. Samogitia.

In the conditions escalating the war, the contradictions regarding the possession of Danzig and Dobrzyn land were also reflected.

Preparation and beginning of the Battle of Grunwald

After the Samogitian uprising, the Teutonic army left this territory. Angry and frustrated, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order, Ulrich von Jungingen, declared war on August 6, 1408. Almost two months from that day, the Teutonic knights made repeated forays and raids.

On October 8, 1409, a truce was signed between the conflicting parties, which lasted until June 21, 1410. No one doubted that after the truce a major battle would follow, for which it was worth preparing in advance.

Throughout the spring and winter periods, Jagiello and Vytautas worked on strategic plans. It was decided that the united army would head to Marienburg (the capital of the Teutonic state). This decision led the Teutonic commanders into confusion. They distributed their forces in the city of Shvets, because. it was assumed that the enemy army would split into two parts in order to enter from different sides. In order to completely confuse the Teutons, individual units of the Allied troops periodically made raids on the border territories.

In May 1410, both armies were fully equipped with both soldiers and weapons. Mercenaries from Austria, Germany, France, and regiments of two Polish princes fought on the side of the Teutons. On the side of the allied Polish-Lithuanian army are mercenaries from the Czech Republic, Moravia, Prussia, Hungary, the Principality of Galicia-Volyn, Belarusian and Samogitian lands, and Tatar horsemen. According to statistics from Stefan Kuczynski, the Polish-Lithuanian army numbered 39 thousand people, and the Teutonic army - 27 thousand people.

The Allied armies united on the Vistula River in the Cherwinsk region on July 2, 1410. They crossed the Prussian border on July 6, and on the morning of July 15 they 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 Lithuanian light cavalry, the left - of Polish heavy cavalry, and in the central part there were mercenaries.

The Teutonic army consisted of two lines, and the third (reserve) was taken with it 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 forward Tatar mercenaries with cavalry, and then mounted warriors to the heavy cavalry of Friedrich von Wallenrod.

After an hour-long battle, Wallenrod ordered the army 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 pursuing 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 deployed second-line reserve troops. The five-hour battle did not bring victory to anyone. Watching, Jungingen decided that the Lithuanian flank was broken and retreating, and independently led his third reserve line into battle.

Seeing the enemy's renewal, Jagiello also activated his third line. In a fierce battle, the fight reached the king himself, and he was almost killed. Jogaila's reserve warriors and Vytautas's mounted warriors responded to the advance of Jungingen's second line, 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 another three days. Then she laid siege to Marienburg, but after half a month, exhausted by the fighting, she lifted it.

Results of the Battle of Grunwald

1. About 8 thousand Teutonic soldiers (1/3 of the army) were killed, many prisoners.

2. Refusal of the cities of the Hanseatic League from cooperation with the Teutonic state.

3. Change and rearrangement of leading forces in Eastern Europe. The emergence of the Polish-Lithuanian state on the international scene.

4. A noticeable decrease and financing of the knightly movement.

• Dobrzyn land went to Poland;
• Samogitia became part of the Lithuanian lands;
• The Teutonic Order was obliged to pay indemnity.

Principality of Moldova Warband
mercenaries Commanders Jagiello
Vytautas Ulrich von Jungingen Strengths of the parties 32 000 30 000 Losses unknown 8,000 killed

Battle of Grunwald(Battle of Tannenberg, July 15) - the decisive battle of the “Great War” of 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 originated near Grunwald, Tannenberg and Breslau (Prussia), from where it got its name.

Background

Structure of the army of the Teutonic Order

According to the medieval chronicler Jan Dlugosz, the order's army consisted of 51 banners. Of these, 5 are the banners of the highest order hierarchs, 6 are provided by Prussian bishoprics, 31 are exhibited by territorial units and cities, and 9 are units of foreign mercenaries and guests. A special role was played by the “large” and “small” banners of the grandmaster and the banner of the Teutonic Order under the command of the great marshal. The great commander and the great treasurer commanded their regiments. The core of the army were the knight brothers; there were about 400-450 of them near Grunwald. Therefore, they performed the functions of commanders of high and middle rank. Another 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 not permanently, but for some time. The most numerous category of warriors consisted of fighters mobilized on the basis of vassal affiliation, as well as on the basis of the so-called “chivalry” (ius mititare). Mobilization in the army of the Teutonic Order was carried out on the basis of “Prussian”, “Chelmin”, “Polish” law. The right of Chelminki had two varieties: Rossdienst and Platendienst. The first variety, from every 40 lans, it is necessary to field one fighter in full armor with a horse and two squires. The second type required the deployment of one warrior, lightly armed and unaccompanied. Polish law provided for mobilization in accordance with the “best possibilities” (Sicut Melius Potverint). Basically, “Prussian law” (sub forma pruthenicali) dominated, uniting the owners of estates of no more than 10 lans, who went on horseback without an escort. 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 the White Olesnicki and Kazimir Szczecinski fought on the side of the Teutonic Order.

Structure of the army 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 the Polish regiments themselves, regiments of mercenaries (Czechs and Moravians, Silesians), as well as regiments of the “land of Leopol”, “land of Podolsk, which had three banners, due to the large population”, “land of Galicia”; Mostly banners were formed on a territorial basis - “Zemstvo banners”. The spiritual and secular feudal lords of the kingdom exhibited their own banners. Two royal banners took part in the battle - “Nadvirna” and Hound.” The most important was considered 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, and Moravians and Moravians served in the banner of Jan Janczykovich. in the banners of Gniewosz from Dalewice - Czechs, Moravians, Silesians. In total, there were 51 banners in the Polish army: 2 royal, 3 princes of Masovia, 17 zemstvo, 26 formed by spiritual and secular feudal lords, 3 mercenaries. According to Dlugosz, the army of the Kingdom of Poland was much superior to the army. orders based on the number of knights.

Structure of the army of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

The Lithuanian army mobilized on approximately the same terms as the Polish one and consisted almost or entirely of cavalry. The Lithuanian army, commanded by the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas, cousin of Jogaila, included Grodno, Kovno, Lida, Smolensk, Mstislav and Orsha (under the command of Prince Smolensk Semyon Lingwen Olgerdovich), Polotsk, Vitebsk, Kiev, Pinsk, Novgorod, Brest, Volkovysky, Drogichinsky, Melnitsky, Kremenetsky, Starodubsky banners; The Tatar cavalry of Jelal-ed-din, an ally of Prince Vytautas, also acted on the side of the Polish-Lithuanian army. The army of Prince Vytautas consisted of 40 banners, very ethnically diverse. Of the 40 banners, there were 11 Lithuanian, 13 Belarusian, 2 Polish-Lithuanian and 14 mixed banners.

Battle

The battle began at noon with the advance of Vytautas' light cavalry on the left flank of the Teutons. The attack was met with an artillery salvo (probably the first and least successful use of field artillery). Before the formation of the Teutonic troops, trap ditches 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, no longer in danger of cannon shots and archers. In response, a counter-offensive by Wallenrod's heavy cavalry began. 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 was unable to resist the Teutons and began to deliberately retreat. Wallenrod began pursuing her, but the heavy cavalry of the Order could not move quickly over the rough terrain, which gave Vytautas 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 cover for the Polish troops from a flank attack during the retreat of the Lithuanian cavalry. Vytautas sent several banners to help these regiments. This move changed the course of the battle. The attack of the crusaders was held back by the Belarusian and Vilnius, Troki, Goroden and Zhamoitsk banners. The Belarusian chronicler Stryikovsky describes it this way: “The Troka, Vilna gentry from Zhamoitsyu began to tear apart from Vіtautam, and the palyaks were married to dapamagali. However, other messages from Lithuania scattered wherever they could from different tanks. I did not become a harugva with Saint Yury, at which Litouskae’s army was looking. Already there was a flock in Lithuania, and Vitaut at the beginning of the Navagradians and the Valynians swept away the flock.” In addition, the Polish troops, having ousted Liechtenstein, began to encircle Wallenrod from the right flank.

To rectify the situation, Jungingen brought a second line of Teutonic cavalry into battle, but the Poles also brought in a reserve commanded by Jagiello, and Vytautas's Lithuanian cavalry successfully returned to the battlefield and dealt a strong blow to the left flank of the Order, which was bogged down in combat 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 Order's army fled.

205 order brothers died, including all three commanders. The total loss of life was about 8,000 people. The losses of the Polish-Lithuanian army are unknown.

Results

About a third of the Teutonic army died on the battlefield, almost the entire leadership of the Order was killed, and 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 it. Vytautas withdrew his troops due to the threat to the eastern borders of the principality, the Polish militias sought to return home before the harvest. As a result, the siege was lifted after a few weeks.

Notes

see also

Links

• Photo album and video clip of the reconstruction of Grunwald life in 2006.

Wikimedia Foundation.

• 2010.
• Battle of Grosberen

Battle of Goose Green

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