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15 July in military history: Battle of Grunwald, 1410

Military history · 15 July · Polish-Lithuanian-Teutonic WarFull calendar

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Detail of a crowded battle painting: at the center a rider in a red robe and fur-trimmed crown raises a sword in his right hand and his left fist, while on the left a knight in a white cloak with a black cross is attacked by a half-naked footman with a spear, under torn banners and a stormy sky.
Detail of Jan Matejko's Battle of Grunwald (1878), National Museum in Warsaw. Public domain. Jan Matejko, 1878, National Museum in Warsaw.
Quick answer

On 15 July 1410, near Grunwald and Tannenberg, the army of King Władysław Jagiełło of Poland and Grand Duke Vytautas of Lithuania defeated the army of the Teutonic Order, and Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen was killed. Also on 15 July: the crusaders took Jerusalem in 1099, and Germany opened its last offensive on the Marne in 1918.

The Battle of Grunwald, 1410: the day the Teutonic Order broke

15 July 1410 · 616 years ago

The army of Poland and Lithuania under King Władysław Jagiełło and Grand Duke Vytautas defeated the army of the Teutonic Order near Grunwald and Tannenberg on 15 July 1410. The fighting lasted from late morning until evening, and Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen was killed.

Read the full story of The Battle of Grunwald, 1410: the day the Teutonic Order broke ›

Also on this day

Battle of Be'erot Yitzhak

15 July 1948 · 78 years ago

In the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the Egyptian army attacked the isolated Negev kibbutz of Be'erot Yitzhak between the two truces. The attackers broke into the village, but the defenders held out until reinforcements arrived and the kibbutz stayed in Israeli hands.

1918: Pershing's final report calls 15 July "the date of the last German offensive". The American Battle Monuments Commission counts three German armies of 47 divisions and puts the infantry assault at 3:50 a.m., east and southwest of Reims. Southwest of Reims, by both accounts, the Germans crossed the Marne. Pershing quotes the Third Division's commander: "no German soldier crossed the road from Fossoy to Crezancy, except as a prisoner of war".1

Frequently asked questions

When was the Battle of Grunwald?

On Tuesday 15 July 1410, the feast of the Division of the Apostles, near the villages of Grunwald and Tannenberg. Jan Długosz, the king's letter of the next day and the Cronica conflictus all give that day.

Who sent the two swords at Grunwald?

The sources differ. Długosz says Grand Master Ulrich sent them to the king and his brother; the Cronica conflictus has one sword from the master and one from the marshal; the Order's Posilge continuation has the marshal send both to the king; the king's letter to the queen names the master and the marshal, his letter to the bishop of Poznań the master alone.

Did the Lithuanians flee at Grunwald?

Jerzy Rajman writes that all the sources agree the Lithuanian wing fell back. Długosz describes a rout; Sven Ekdahl, citing a letter to the grand master, argues for a feigned flight by part of the army; Rajman says the letter is not proof. The question is still argued.

How many died at Grunwald?

The sources count different things. Długosz claims 50,000 enemy dead; the Order's necrology at Maastricht counts 203 brothers; Hungarian envoys reported 8,000 dead on both sides together. The king wrote of small losses on his own side.

What else happened on 15 July?

The First Crusade took Jerusalem on 15 July 1099, and on 15 July 1918 the German army opened what Pershing called its last offensive, east and southwest of Reims.

Notes

A number in the text points to a note; each note names the works that paragraph draws on, listed in full under Sources.

  1. John J. Pershing, “Final Report of Gen. John J. Pershing, Commander-in-Chief, American Expeditionary Forces”; American Battle Monuments Commission, “American Operations in the Aisne-Marne Region”; American Battle Monuments Commission, “American Operations in the Champagne Region”. ↩

Sources

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