User:Matty393/Polish–Teutonic wars

Polish-Teutonic Wars - armed conflicts between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the State of the Teutonic Order, fought mainly in the 15th century. One of them was the Great War of 1409-1411.

Beginnings of the dispute

The Teutonic Knights began their expansion of the territory of present-day Poland in 1226, when Conrad of Mazovia brought them to the land of Chelmno.

During the reign of King Wladyslaw Lokietek, the Teutonic Order conquered Gdansk Pomerania by force of arms in 1309, which became a cause of conflict with Poland. They refused to return the seized territories despite a favorable ruling by the papal court in Inowrocław in 1321. Subsequently, the Teutonic Knights conquered the Dobrzyń Land, Kujawy and invaded Greater Poland, allied with the Czech ruler John of Luxembourg, who was hostile to Poland. As a result, the Polish-Teutonic war continued from 1327.

The conquest of the Prussian and Yotvingian lands by the Teutonic Order also proved a threat to the Duchy of Lithuania. The Teutonic Knights, under the pretext of spreading Christianity, organized raids on Lithuanian lands. Numerous knights from all over Europe took part in them as guests of the order. Lithuania was one of the last places where they could fight for the faith and at the same time gain money and fame. It was the danger from the Order that brought Poland and Lithuania closer together, prompting the two countries to enter into a union. The personal union with Lithuania concluded in Kreva 1385 was to be a guarantee of the security and inviolability of the crown.

Battle of Grunwald

Despite Lithuania's acceptance of baptism, the Teutonic Knights continued to organize plundering expeditions into the lands of the Grand Duchy. In the course of these raids, the Order's knights managed to take control of Zmudia, which lies on the Baltic Sea. However, an uprising against their rule soon broke out there. Poland and Lithuania provided assistance to the insurgents. This was the immediate cause of the outbreak of war between these countries and the Teutonic Order in 1409.

The most important clash of the war took place on 15 july 1410 near the village of Grunwald. It was one of the largest battles of medieval Europe. It involved nearly 70,000 knights and warriors.

The Teutonic Knights were assisted by the armies of the Pomeranian princes and numerous knights from Western Europe. On the side of Polish King Wladyslaw Jagiello and his cousin, Lithuanian Grand Duke Vytautas, their allies fought alongside the Poles and Lithuanians. Among them were pagan Samogitians, Orthodox Ruthenians and Muslim Tatars.

Grand Master of the Order Ulrich von Jungingen threw himself into the battle at the decisive moment and died. King Ladislaus did not take a direct part in the battle. He commanded his forces from a nearby hill. This way of conducting a battle modeled on the Tartars was a novelty in Europe at the time.

Aftermath of the Battle of Grunwald

Upon hearing of the defeat of the Teutonic Order, many Prussian cities, which had long been fed up with Teutonic rule, surrendered to the Polish king. However, the Polish state failed to seize the opportunity - the warfare was conducted by the Poles too slowly for them to manage to capture Pomerania and Prussia. In 1411, after a months-long and ineffective siege of the capital of the monastic state Malbork - peace was concluded. It mainly benefited Lithuania, which regained Zmudź, but only until the deaths of Jagiello and Vytautas. Poland regained the Dobrzyń land. The defeat at Grunwald, however, stopped the influx of knights from Western Europe, who had so far willingly helped the Teutonic Knights. Due to a shortage of volunteers, the Order had to spend more and more money on hiring the army's enlisted troops, the professional soldiers of the time. The result was an increase in taxes in the Teutonic state. At the same time, the resentment of the subjects towards the ruler of the Teutonic state deepened.

The Battle of Grunwald was one of the greatest battles of medieval Europe. The defeat of the Teutonic Order strengthened Poland's position. The battle also had great ideological significance. The Battle of Grunwald influenced the further fate of the Jagiellonian dynasty and the expansive dynastic policy.

Thirteen Years' War

Prussian citizens opposed to the Order's rulers founded a secret organization, the Prussian Union, which was joined by the knights and almost all the cities of Prussia.

In 1454, they asked the Polish King Casimir Jagiellon to annex Prussia to Poland. The king agreed and declared the incorporation of the lands of the Teutonic state into Poland. This became the cause of another war between Poland and the Teutonic Knights. This time it lasted as long as 13 years, which is why it was later called the Thirteen Years' War.

Rebellious citizens drove the Teutonic Knights out of all towns in Pomerania. Later, however, King Casimir's troops lost several battles to the Order's hired troops of enlisted men. It turned out that such troops were much more effective than knights, who in peacetime very rarely exercised in battle.

The long war was very costly, and the Teutonic Knights were running out of funds to wage it. Unpaid soldiers were increasingly eager to go over to the Polish side. Thus, among other things, the Teutonic capital Malbork fell into the hands of the Poles.

Poland returns to the Baltic Sea

After thirteen years of struggle, in 1466, in Toruń, the Teutonic Knights concluded a peace treaty with the Polish state - the Second Peace of Torun. Gdansk Pomerania was returned to Poland after more than a hundred and fifty years. Warmia, which belonged to the bishops, was also annexed. These lands were henceforth called Royal Prussia, as they were ruled directly by the king. The remaining part of the Teutonic state - became a fief of Poland.

After the Thirteen Years' War, the Teutonic ruler moved the capital of his state from Malbork to Königsberg.

Lista wojen

[[Category:Polish-Teutonic Wars]] [[Category:Teutonic Order]] [[Category:Teutonic Knights]] [[Category:Kingdom of Poland]]