Lecture by Dr. Krzysztof Kowalewski organized on the occasion of the end of the competition "Get to know Poland 2010", Collegium Civitas, April 20, 2010 [1h06min] https://wszechnica.org.pl/wyklad/bitw... The image of the Battle of Grunwald, which we know from the novel "Krzyżacy" by Henryk Sienkiewicz and the film by Aleksander Ford, has little to do with reality. Myths about the battle were debunked in his lecture by Dr. Krzysztof Kowalewski. The Battle of Grunwald was the main act of the war between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the state of the Teutonic Order. It began with the Teutonic Knights' occupation of the Dobrzyń Land in August 1409. After this initial success, the Teutonic Order went on the defensive. Military operations resumed in the summer of 1410. From that time on, the initiative passed to the Polish-Lithuanian side. Both armies entered the territory of the Teutonic Order at the beginning of July. The warfare was carried out with the brutality characteristic of the times. The Polish-Lithuanian army's route was marked by numerous murders, rapes and pillages. The cities of Lidzbark Warmiński and Dąbrówno were completely plundered. These actions forced the Grand Master of the Order - Ulrich von Jungingen to take part in a general battle with the Poles. Many false legends have grown up around the Battle of Grunwald, fought on July 15, 1410. The first one mentioned by Kowalewski was the alleged digging of wolf pits by the Teutonic Knights on their foreground. The historian explained that this was impossible. The Teutonic Knights appeared at Grunwald on the morning of the battle. In addition, the Polish-Lithuanian army came from a completely different direction than the Teutonic command expected. Ulrich von Jungingen's subordinates would not have had time to prepare such traps. The idea of ​​how a medieval battle was fought is also wrong. According to the vision popularized by cinematography, it consisted of individual duels of knights. In the meantime, banners, or formations fighting in close formation, clashed with each other. Only when the enemy banners were broken, which usually did not happen the first time, could direct clashes between knights occur. It is also untrue that the escape of Lithuanian troops from the battlefield was planned in order to lure the Teutonic Knights into a trap. Kowalewski debunked the myth spread by Lithuanian historians. He explained that the behavior of the Lithuanians exposed one of the wings of the Polish troops. This could have determined their defeat. Therefore, the retreat could not have been planned earlier. As we know, the battle ultimately ended in a complete defeat of the Teutonic Knights. And this is where the last myth is connected. Only about 250 monks took part in the battle. 203 died, including most of the highest officials of the monastic state, led by Grand Master Ulrich von Junginen. Why didn't anyone brag about killing a Teutonic Knight after the battle? Probably after the Teutonic Knights were defeated, the battle turned into a helpless massacre of the defeated, which had nothing to do with knightly principles. Find us: / Wszechnicafww / Wszechnicafww1 https://anchor.fm/wszechnicaorgpl---h... https://anchor.fm/wszechnica-fww-nauka https://wszechnica.org.pl/ #grunwald #knights #history