History and significance of the Battle of Grunwald. Battle of Grunwald for dummies: who, whom, when and how Battle of Grunwald in brief

It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the Battle of Grunwald in the history of Belarus, Poland, and the whole of Europe as a whole. As a result of one of the largest battles of the medieval world, the balance of power in the world arena completely changed - Belarus (at that time - the Grand Duchy of Lithuania) and the Kingdom of Poland came to dominant positions in Europe.

July 15, 1410 the combined forces of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (modern Belarus) utterly defeated the main forces of the Teutonic Order, thereby putting an end to more than two hundred years of military conflicts and stopping German aggression for many centuries to come.

It all began with the fact that in May 1409, mass uprisings began on the territory of Samogitia (part of the territory of modern Lithuania), controlled by the Teutonic Order. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania supported these uprisings, and the Order threatened to invade the lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The Kingdom of Poland spoke out in support of its ally, and threatened the Order with its invasion of its lands.

Soon after these events, on August 6, 1409, Grand Master of the Teutonic Order Ulrich von Jungingen declared war Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Soon after the declaration of war, the crusaders attacked a number of Polish castles and small border towns. The battles were fought mainly in the border areas, but it was clear that neither side was ready for a full-scale war.

In the autumn of the same year, a peace agreement was signed, which was to be valid until June 21, 1410. Both sides used this time to prepare for the decisive battle.

By December 1409, cousins - Jagiello, King of Poland and Vitovt, Grand Duke of Lithuania, agreed on a common strategy: the armies of the two countries were to unite into one common force and move towards the capital of the Teutonic Order - Marienburg.

At the end of May 1410, the banners of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania began to gather in Grodno - from Belarus, modern Lithuania, northern Ukraine and Zhmudi. They were joined by Tatar horsemen and other allies. The Allied armies united on the territory of the Kingdom of Poland and marched towards the capital of the Order.

The data on the number of troops are somewhat different. The generally accepted figures are: 39,000 soldiers in the allied army and 27,000 soldiers in the army of the Order. The quantitative composition of the allied armies was approximately equal. The Lithuanian army consisted of 40 banners, most of which came from cities that are now on the territory of modern Belarus.

Knights from most European countries gathered under the banner of the Teutonic Order: England, France, Hungary, Switzerland, Holland, and others. In total, 22 nations entered the Teutonic army.

At dawn on July 15, 1410, the two armies met on a hilly field that stretched between the villages of Grunwald, Tannenberg and Ludwigzdorf. The Crusaders who arrived first took up a position on the hill and had time at their disposal to prepare for battle. On the field, "wolf pits" were dug and camouflaged, obstacles were set up, and cannons were placed.

The troops of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland that came later were located south of the village of Tanenberg. The left side of the field was occupied by Polish troops, and the army of the Grand Duchy - the right, mercenaries and allies were located in the center.

Ulrich von Jungingen hoped to delay the enemy cavalry near obstacles and destroy it with cannon shots, volleys of crossbowmen and archers. And then, stopping the enemy's attack, throw your heavy cavalry into battle.

For several hours the allied army was waiting for a symbolic command, and Jagiello was in no hurry to launch an attack. The Polish king prayed all this time in the marching chapel, where he defended two masses in a row.

Having finished praying, Jagiello began to ordain several hundred young warriors as knights.

Seeing the indecision of the allies and adhering to his plan, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order sent two heralds to Jagiello.

They 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 a challenge to them to battle.

The great battle began at noon. Vitovt, never waiting for the order of the Polish King, launched an attack on the Order, sending the Tatar cavalry to attack the banner of Grand Marshal Friedrich von Walenrod. The Tatars were followed by the first line of heavy mounted warriors of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After an hour of fighting, Wallenrod ordered his knights to counterattack. To avoid a devastating attack by heavily armed Teutonic knights, the Tatars and horsemen of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania broke away from the enemy and began to retreat northwest of Tannenberg.

The Teutons considered that the Lithuanian army was practically destroyed, and rushed into an unorganized pursuit of the retreating horsemen, losing their battle order. The heavy cavalry of the Order, in pursuit of the retreating Tatar and Lithuanian horsemen, reached the main army of the allies and fell on the right flank.

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 hold their positions by any means and protect the Poles from attacking the flank and back. Suffering huge losses, these banners survived, and soon the retreating Lithuanian detachments returned to the battlefield, regrouping, while part of the crusader troops was encircled and destroyed.

Even at the time of the retreat of the troops of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a major battle began between the main Polish and order forces. The crusaders under the command of the great commander Cuno von Liechtenstein launched an attack on the right flank of the Polish troops. A fierce battle broke out. At one of the moments of the battle, a large banner of the Krakow land fell, but soon it again dawned over the allied army. The Teutons took her fall as a sign of God and began to sing the Easter hymn "Christ ist erstanden von der Marte alle ...", believing that victory was already on their side. At that moment, King Jagailo sent his reserve banners to the aid of the main troops, and Vitovt's heavy cavalry returned to the battlefield.

The Master of the Order, Ulrich von Jungingen, also moved his reserve into battle, it happened in the fifth hour of the battle. One of the turning points of the battle was the return of Vitovt's cavalry to the battlefield. A strong blow was struck on the left flank of the order, which by that time was bogged down in a battle with the infantry and lost its maneuverability. The introduced reserves of the Polish army made it possible to practically take the crusaders into the ring. The battle came to the supreme commanders of the Teutonic Order. The squires many times offered to Magister Ulrich von Jungingen to flee, to retreat, by that time it had already become clear that this battle was lost for the Order. However, the Master refused, stating: "God forbid me to leave this field, where so many gallant men have died!" After the death of Jungingen, the remnants of the Order's army fled.

Allied troops - the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, won a decisive victory. On that day, most of the Knights of the Order were killed or taken prisoner. All three commanders were also killed.

After a lost battle The Order was never able to recover from the defeat and soon ceased to exist. The price of victory was also high for our ancestors. About half of the soldiers of the army of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania remained forever on the battlefield near the town of Grunwald.

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 Belarus and Poland. The battle had a huge impact on the formation of our nation. Historians say that Polotchane, Viteblyane, Gorodenets went to the battle, and from the battle - Litvin.

Battle of Grunwald. I am Mateiko. 1878 year

1410 year. On July 15, the Battle of Grunwald took place between the knights of the Teutonic Order on the one hand and the combined Polish-Russian-Lithuanian army on the other

“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. On July 3, the Polish-Lithuanian Russian army under the command of the Polish king Vladislav II Jagiello (Jagiello) set out from the Chervinsk region to Marienburg (Malbork) and met in the Grunwald area with the main forces of the order under the command of the Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen. The order's army (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 a rival, 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-Russian banners were deployed, banners under the command of the Lithuanian 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 a front of 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 a hill to force the enemy to attack up the slope. Bombers 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, but the Teutons again threw them back, and then began to pursue. The situation was saved by 3 Russian-Smolensk banners under the command of Prince Semyon Lingven Olgerdovich. They did not leave the battlefield and, bravely defending themselves, fettered 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. The successful attack of the Polish troops, as well as the courage of the Russian soldiers, their skillful actions in the battle against the knights of Wallenrod allowed the Lithuanian banners to stop the enemy, and then go on the offensive. By the combined efforts of the Russian and Lithuanian banners, Wallenrod's troops were defeated. On the left wing, Polish, Russian and Czech troops and the Lithuanian and Russian banners that came to their aid surrounded Liechtenstein's troops and began to destroy them. Grandmaster Jungingen brought his reserve into battle, but Jagiello moved the 3rd line of his troops towards him, which defeated the last banners of the Teutons. All the leaders of the order, led by Grandmaster Jungingen, were killed in the battle. In the Battle of Grunwald, the Allied forces, fighting for the independence of their peoples, won an outstanding victory and stopped the Teutonic aggression to the east. The Battle of Grunwald revealed a number of negative qualities of the knightly army - its sluggishness, stereotyped actions, low moral qualities. The infantry of the allied forces has shown the ability to conduct successful military operations against the heavy knightly cavalry. The Russian troops showed especially high fighting qualities in the Battle of Grunwald. The victory in the Battle of Grunwald became a symbol of the military community of the Slavic and Baltic peoples. The Battle of Grunwald contributed to the development of the liberates, the movement in the Czech Republic - Hussism. In 1960, a monument was erected on the site of the Battle of Grunwald. "

Quoted from: Soviet Military Encyclopedia in 8 volumes. Volume 3. Ed. Grechko A.A. Moscow: Military Publishing, 1976-1980

History in faces

Suprasl Chronicle:
B about 6918. Coming from Constantinople, Foteya will be metropolitan, put on the whole Ruska land, a native of buckwheat. Establishment of patriarcham Matthew under Tsar Manuel, and coming to Moscow under the Grand Dukes Vasily Dmitrievich on the Great Day. That is, when Prince Volodimer Andreevich is attached to the month of May, on the 14th day. The same one, Prince Danilo Borisovich of Nizhny Novgorod and from the Tatars, having taken the pillars of the city of Volodymer and the miraculous icon of the Holy Mother of God, turned golden, and a lot of evil was created. That is, assign Foteya to metropolitan bishop on Rezan Sergiy Ozakov, and then for a month put a bishop on Kolomna, hegumen of Yaroslavl. That autumn there was a slaughter for King Yagail, named Vladislav, and for the great prince Vitovt Kestutevich from Germans and Prusians to Pruskoi lands, between the cities of Dubrovna and Ostred. And I killed the mistra and the marshal, and the kundurs, beat them, and beat all their German strength, and the cities of the German robbish, but only three hails were not given to King Vitovt. And byst that autumn I went to three battles with a German and a daring, but I didn’t beat you, and in all the battles there are many krestschany of the padot and Lithuania and the Poles. And she stood near the Maryin city for 8 weeks and took the Marina of the city two ohobnya, but did not take the highest, and walked across the German land for another ten weeks.

In the middle of the XIII century, the Lithuanian ruler Mindaugas decided to give this land to the Livonians, but a little more than ten years passed and the people inhabiting Samogitia were able to recapture their territory and engage in battle with the Teutonic Order.

The beginning of the Great War of 1409-1411

At the very beginning of the 14th century, with the filing of Prince Vitovt, Zhematiya was ruled by the Germans. And the desire of the Lithuanian principality to regain these lands at any cost was the reason for the Great War of 1409-1411, the results of which were disastrous for the Teutonic Order. In the spring of 1409, a massive uprising against the aggressive policy of the Teutons began in the principality of Lithuania.

Soon the 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. For some time, both sides needed to train the troops, and after a slight lull, at the end of autumn, hostilities began.

The course of the war

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

The beginning of the Battle of Grunwald

The Germans who were waiting for their rivals were 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 the order to intensify the preparation of the territory for battle: the Germans dug several traps, and also equipped inconspicuous places for cannons and crossbowmen. Despite the fact that the rivals came from the wrong side from which 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 commander with the charismatic name Jagiello was in no hurry to announce the start of the attack, and the detachments began to await his symbolic order. But Prince Vitovt turned out to be less patient and gave the order to attack the Tatar cavalry, which rushed into battle immediately after the Teutons began shelling from cannons hidden from sight. When the Germans fought back, the fighters of the union 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 offensive, 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 in 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 ordered his troops to advance, 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 start taking good positions, and therefore Jagiello decided to withdraw all the Lithuanian troops that were in reserve. After about five hours of battle, the soldiers of the union again began to retreat, and the joyful Germans again pursued them.

The combat actions of the Great War of 1409-1411 are known for the interesting and, often unexpected for the opponent, strategic moves of Prince Vitovt and his commander Jagailo. Upon learning of the pursuit, Jagiello introduced another reserve to 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 switched to hand-to-hand combat. Vitovt, who watched 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. Learning about this, the Teutons fled. Lithuanian troops spent several more days in the field, and then headed towards Malborok, present-day Marienburg, which they reached without any obstacles. Thus, the Polish-Lithuanian alliance won a victory and regained Samogitia.

Results of the Great War

In the first months of 1411, Prince Vitovt and the rest of the union announced a peace treaty with the Teutons on the condition 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, and which were often raided by the Teutonic Order. After the war, the Teutons, who suffered heavy losses, began to pursue a more peaceful policy.

Battle of Grunwald 1410 (in German literature - the Battle of Tannenberg), the decisive battle of the "Great War" 1409-11, in which the Polish-Lithuanian (including Belarusian-Ukrainian and Russian) troops on July 15 defeated the troops of the Teutonic Order.

During the Battle of Grunval, the Slavic-Lithuanian troops dealt a mortal blow to the Teutonic Order, its aggression to the east was stopped.

In 1409, Zhemoitia raised an uprising against the Teutonic Order, and the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt, supported the insurgents and sent his soldiers to help them. This uprising and the desire of Vitovt to return Zhemotiya to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia, was the reason for the start of the war of the Teutonic Order against the Grand Duchy and the Polish kingdom, whose king Jagiello, supported his cousin Vitovt.

After a short hostilities, the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order Ulrik von Jungingen, realizing that he did not have enough strength, to fight immediately with Poland and Lithuania, asked for an armistice, which was concluded from September 8, 1409 to June 12, 1410, the parties having signed an armistice, began to thoroughly prepare for a new war. Despite all the efforts of the Teutonic Order to break the alliance between Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vitovt and Jagailo were able to agree and approve a plan of joint actions in the war against the crusaders.

Both sides gathered almost all their troops, there are many versions about their numbers, and according to rough estimates, the troops of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia (VKLiR) were about 12-20 thousand soldiers. The army also included the Tatar cavalry.

Of the 40 banners, thirteen banners were Belarusian-Ukrainian-Russian: Smolensk, Mstislavskaya, Orshanskaya, Lida, Polotsk, Vitebsk, Pinskaya, Novogrudok, Brest, Volkovyskaya, Kievskaya, Kremenetskaya and Starodubovskaya. Two more banners (Drogichinskaya and Melnitskaya) were mixed.

Warrior from the Lviv Banner

Poland put up about the same number of troops (about 12-20 thousand, including 7 Ukrainian banners: Lvov, Galician, Peremyshlyansk, Kholmsk and three Podolsk). In total, the Poles had 51 banners.

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, as well as 100 bombardments with a caliber of 3.6 pounds - 5 pounds.

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. 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.

The total number of representatives of various states, in the troops of the Teutons, numbered 22 nations.

According to the calculations of the Polish historian Stefan Kuczynski, the number of armies was: up to 39 thousand people were in the Polish-Lithuanian army and up to 27 thousand in the Teutonic one.

Map of the formation of the Slavic-Lithuanian in 1410

On July 15, 1410, the armies of the Teutonic Order and the allies, Poland and VKLiR, met on the field near the villages of Grunwald, Ludwigsdorf and Tanenberg. The crusaders who arrived first, to this place, took up a position on a hill between the villages of Ludwigsdorf and Tanenberg, and their wagon train was located near Grunwald. The approaching troops of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Poland were located south of the village of Tanenberg. Polish troops occupied the left side of the field, and the army of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania occupied the right.

The great battle began in the second half of the day, the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitovt, the first to start the battle, sending light Tatar cavalry into the attack, which, without significant losses, overcame the ditches dug by the crusaders for the early ones and destroyed the Teutonic cannons and crossbowmen. In response to a counterattack, the Grand Master sent Wallenrod's heavy cavalry to the Lithuanian banners, from the camp of which, to meet them, heavily armed horsemen also came out, and a heavy battle began.

At this time, the Polish troops stood in place and watched the battle, and the Polish king Jagiello listened to mass and was inactive. This led to the fact that the crusaders attacked the center, with the aim of taking the troops of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Poland into two separate rings, thus, a battle began in the center too. At this time, Vitovt's troops on the right flank began to retreat, and part of the Teutonic army, deciding that the Lithuanians were fleeing, rushed after them to the carts, but there, meeting stubborn resistance and having achieved nothing, he turned and struck the right flank of the Polish troops.

In the battle, a critical moment came, the Polish troops were partially surrounded, they had to hold back the crusaders from the front and right flank, until Vitovt rebuilt his troops and sent them back to the attack. Under the onslaught of the troops of the VKLiR and Poland, the Teutons began to slowly retreat, and soon, they were surrounded in two rings, in which they began to be crushed.

After Grand Master Ulrik von Jungingen and Grand Marshal Volenrod were killed in the battle, the surviving soldiers began to get out of the encirclement and retreat to their wagon train, where several thousand knights and knights hiding behind the carts tried to resist, but the absence of commanders and panic. soon, forced them to flee, the extermination of the fleeing began, which lasted until late at night for 15-20 miles.

The next morning, it became clear that the order's army was completely defeated and no longer exists, the entire Teutonic leadership, led by Jungigen, Wallenrod and Liechtenstein, as well as more than 600 noble and eminent knights with a huge number of ordinary bollards, soldiers and mercenaries, perished on the battlefield.

In this battle, almost the entire leadership of the order, led by the Grand Master, was killed. Allied forces took 52 banners, all bombards and a rich baggage train. The allied forces also suffered heavy losses, and the victory was not cheap for them. Killed - 4 thousand people, wounded - 8 thousand people.

Such a bloody defeat, in those days, did not happen often, since in the Middle Ages the victor could take a ransom from the enemy, therefore it was preferred to take prisoners, but only a knight could get rich in this way, and a commoner did not receive anything, therefore, leave the enemy alive to him there was no point.

The allied forces, as a sign of victory, were on the battlefield for three more days, as required by military custom and did not pursue the enemy, which saved the order from complete defeat. The crusaders managed to gather the scattered troops and concentrate them in the castle of Marienburg. And when the allied troops approached Marienburg, it was already on July 25, they failed to take the fortress, for about a month they stood at the walls of the fortress and turned back.

The significance of the Battle of Grunwald, especially for the Slavs, is great. The knights-crusaders were given a worthy rebuff, the military power of the Teutons was undermined, and the myth of the invincibility of the order collapsed.
Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen was buried on the battlefield, where his grave is today.

For the 500th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald, in 1910, a monument was erected in Krakow.
Now, every year, on July 15, there is a reconstruction of this grandiose battle, which attracts "knights" from different countries of the world.

The Battle of Grunwald became decisive in the struggle of the crusaders against the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia and Poland, after the defeat of the order, the ridge was broken and after 56 years, the most formidable and dangerous enemy of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia ceased to exist.

Battlefield of Grunwald (Poland)

The victory over the crusaders brought the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Russia to the most powerful powers of that era, and Vitovt became the most powerful man in Eastern Europe. The very same Battle of Grunwald, in scale, became one of the greatest in European history, and the reason for the redistribution of military forces and political maps.

King of Poland Jagiello

Prince Vitovt