The organization met with little success.

In response to various murders, a new military order was founded, the Sword-Bearers, or Knights of the Sword. Some decades earlier a crusade had been preached against the pagans of Prussia, who had violently resisted conversion to Christianity. The Teutonic Knights, however, was not left without a mission. In 1291 the Order retreated from Palestine, the area again having fallen to the Muslims. Their “habit,” i.e., official religious uniform, consisted of a white surplice with a black cross, which most people recognize as Germany’s famous “Iron Cross.” They adopted the “Rule” of the Order of Saint John, and were soon granted the same privileges as that order and the Templars, from whom they derived their military organization. The Teutonic Order originated in the assignment of religious knights to the defense of pilgrims, generally to and in the Holy Land, and a special hospital that had been established for German pilgrims. For clarity’s sake, we will refer to the battle as “Tannenberg.” Origins Of The German “Iron Cross” Confusingly, the battle was to be known to the Germans as Tannenberg, to the Poles as Grunwald or Grunfeld, and to the Lithuanians as Zalgiris. Sienkiewicz, the most popular novelist in the world in the final decade of the 19th century, and almost a hundred years after his death still Poland’s best-selling author, described a scene that was the culmination of centuries of struggle and hardship on both sides. In this fashion, more or less, Henryk Sienkiewicz described the opening of what one enthusiast called “the greatest battle in the history of the world” in Sienkiewicz’s climactic scenes of his eight hundred-page epic, The Teutonic Knights. And it is to His justice that I now appeal, making complaint of my wrong and your lawlessness and pride. The field of battle will be marked out by Him. “Of swords we have enough,” he said, “but I will take these as an omen of victory sent me by God himself through your hands. Having hoped for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, Jagiello was taken aback by this arrogant display. “Grand Master Ulrich bids us also inform you that if the field of battle seems too small to you, he will withdraw his armies somewhat so that you need not loiter in the thickets.” An Epic Battle By Any Other Name

“Grand Master Ulrich challenges Your Majesty and Duke Witold to mortal battle, and in order to rouse your courage, which seems to have failed, sends you these two naked swords.”ĭismounting, the heralds laid the weapons at the feet of the King. They bowed slightly-bowing deeper from horseback would have been impracticable as well as showing more honor than they felt their foe deserved. The ranks of the Polish army opened to let the heralds pass, and they were soon before the allied commander. “God grant it!” replied the priests around the King. “Perhaps they are coming with a just peace,” remarked Jagiello with a degree of hope. Returning from inspecting some of his Polish companies on the left wing, Jagiello, King of Poland and former Grand Duke of Lithuania, spied the two men approaching at a leisurely pace. On the morning of Jtwo heralds approached the enormous host of Poles, Bohemians, Hungarians, Czechs, Cossacks, Tartars, Livonians-any and all who felt they had a grudge against the opposing force of Teutonic Knights and their allies, also gathered from all over Europe.

Battle of tannenberg facts