Brothers of knights and mercenary armies in the 15th century. After its bloody defeat at the Battle of Tannenberg in 1410, the Order's state in Prussia was in a phase of decline. In 1454, the Prussian towns and knights rose up against the rule of the brethren of the Order and allied themselves with the King of Poland. A thirteen-year war broke out. The crusading enthusiasm that had brought huge armies of voluntarily serving knights to the Order at the height of its power had died out in the meantime. Instead, mercenaries dominated the warfare. Their upkeep consumed enormous sums of money and when the Order could no longer raise the necessary funds, the mercenaries themselves seized control of the country. This volume deals with the army system of this last significant conflict in the history of the Teutonic Order. In addition to the composition of the individual armies, the equipment and tactical deployment of the mercenary armies are analysed and the course of the Thirteen Years' War is traced. Thus a multi-faceted picture of late medieval military history emerges.
The contents
After Tannenberg - Stabilisation externally Crisis internally: The Prussian Estates The Prussian League The Revolt of the Prussian League Aid from the Empire The Battle of Konitz The Sale of Marienburg The Mercenary System at the Time of the Thirteen Years' War Weapons and the Use of Weapons The Campaign in East Prussia 1454 to 1457 The War after the Surrender of Marienburg 1457 to 1460 Fighting on the Baltic Sea The Campaign 1460 The Campaign 1461 The Battle of Schwetzin 1462 The End of the War The Second Peace of Thorn Literature and Source Index and sources
Group
Books (first-hand)
Author
Querengässer, Alexander / Lunyakov, Sascha
Title
Der Deutsche Orden im 13-jährigen Krieg 1454-1466
Details
Paperback, contemporary illustrations, three maps, 7 full-page colour drawings. 64 pp.