The Grunwald Narrative in Polish Literature
The Battle of Grunwald, fought on 15 July 1410 between the forces of the Teutonic Order under Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen and the combined Polish-Lithuanian forces under King Władysław II Jagiełło, was, in its own time, one of the largest and most decisive battles of the late medieval period, and it , was the principal event of the medieval period in the Polish national imagination. The battle was, in the immediate aftermath, a substantial political and military event: the Order lost the bulk of its leadership, including the grand master, and the Order’s military prestige was, severely damaged. The battle was, a substantial factor in the Order’s political decline, and the battle was the principal event of the medieval period in the Polish national identity.
The Battle Itself
The Battle of Grunwald was, in its military details, a substantial engagement between the Polish-Lithuanian forces and the Order’s forces. The Order’s forces, numbering perhaps 27,000 men, included the brother-knights, the lay brothers, the mercenaries, and the feudal levy of the Order’s territories. The Polish-Lithuanian forces, numbering perhaps 31,000 men, included the Polish levy, the Lithuanian levy, the Tatar auxiliaries, and the Czech and Moravian mercenaries.
The battle opened, in the morning of 15 July 1410, with a series of attacks by the Lithuanian forces on the Order’s left wing, attacks that were, generally repulsed by the Order’s forces. The Polish forces, under the personal command of King Władysław II Jagiełło, then attacked the Order’s centre, and the Polish forces were, generally successful in breaking the Order’s line. The Order’s reserve, under the personal command of Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen, was generally committed to the battle, and the Order’s reserve was, in the end, defeated by the Polish forces. The grand master was killed in the battle, and the Order’s army was generally routed.
The battle was, in its immediate consequences, a substantial disaster for the Order. The Order lost, in the battle, the bulk of its leadership, and the Order’s military prestige was severely damaged. The battle did not, however, result in the immediate destruction of the Order’s state, and the Order was, able to continue its military operations in the Baltic until the Second Peace of Thorn in 1466.
The Grunwald Narrative in the Polish Romantic Tradition
The Grunwald narrative in the Polish Romantic tradition began, generally in the early nineteenth century, in the period of the Polish national awakening and the Polish national uprisings. The Polish Romantics of this period, including Adam Mickiewicz, Juliusz Słowacki, and Zygmunt Krasiński, were interested, in this period, in the construction of a usable Polish national past, and the Battle of Grunwald was, a natural object of national commemoration.
The principal literary monument of the Polish Romantic tradition on the Battle of Grunwald is Henryk Sienkiewicz’s novel Krzyżacy (The Teutonic Knights), first published in 1900. Sienkiewicz was, by the time of the novel’s composition, the most popular Polish novelist of his generation, and the Nobel Prize that he received in 1905 was, in part, a recognition of the novel’s success. The novel is set in the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries, in the period leading up to the battle of Grunwald, and it is, in form, a historical romance in the manner of Sir Walter Scott.
The novel is, however, more than a historical romance. It is, in Sienkiewicz’s intention, a national epic, and the Battle of Grunwald is, in the novel, the central event of the narrative. The Order’s grand master, Ulrich von Jungingen, is, in the novel, a ruthless and fanatical figure, determined to destroy the Polish-Lithuanian state and to impose the German rule on the Slavic populations. The Order’s defeat at Grunwald is, in the novel, a moment of national redemption, in which the Polish-Lithuanian forces inflict a crushing defeat on the German oppressors.
The Grunwald Narrative in the Polish National Calendar
The Grunwald narrative in the Polish national calendar was generally a central element of the Polish national identity in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The anniversary of the battle was, in this period, an object of substantial national commemoration. The anniversary of the battle was, in the interwar period, a major national holiday, and the anniversary was, in the interwar period, a central element in the construction of the modern Polish national identity.
The Grunwald narrative in the Polish national calendar was, in the postwar period, a more contested element of the Polish national identity. The Polish postwar historiography has, retained the Grunwald narrative as a central national symbol, and the Polish postwar historiography has, treated the battle as a moment of national redemption. The Polish postwar historiography has, however, also developed a more nuanced and more balanced view of the battle.
The Cultural Legacy of the Grunwald Narrative
The cultural legacy of the Grunwald narrative is, a central element of the Polish national tradition. The Order’s defeat at Grunwald was, a central element in the Polish national literature, the Polish national music, the Polish national painting, and the Polish national cinema. The Order’s defeat at Grunwald was, a central element in the construction of the modern Polish national identity.
The Grunwald narrative was, in addition, a central element in the German national tradition, and the Order’s defeat at Grunwald was, in the German national tradition, a moment of national humiliation. The German postwar historiography has, distanced itself from the Grunwald narrative of the previous century, and the German postwar historiography has, treated the battle as a complex event with a long and varied history.
Sources
- Biskup, Marian, and Gerard Labuda. Dzieje zakonu krzyżackiego w Prusach. Gdańsk: Wydawnictwo Morskie, 1986.
- Boockmann, Hartmut. Der Deutsche Orden: Zwölf Kapitel aus seiner Geschichte. Munich: Beck, 1981.
- Burleigh, Michael. The Third Reich: A New History. New York: Hill and Wang, 2000.
Related Reading
For the Battle of Grunwald, see the article on the Battle of Grunwald. For the romantic and nationalist legacy, see the cluster on the romantic and nationalist legacy. For the German Romanticism and the Order, see the article on German Romanticism. For the Nazi appropriation of the Order, see the article on the Nazi appropriation. For the Order’s religious mission, see the cluster on the religious mission. For the Prussian state, see the pillar on the Teutonic State.