Featuring full-colour artwork, maps and carefully chosen
illustrations, this exciting book investigates the Teutonic Knights and
their Lithuanian foes during the epic Lithuanian Crusade.
The Teutonic Knights were a military order committed to spreading
Christendom eastwards into the non-Christian realms of the Baltic and
Russia. They progressively extended their control across the various
feuding tribes of the Baltic until they confronted the Grand Duchy of
Lithuania, a relatively well-organized and cohesive state. Fully
illustrated, this book investigates the fighting men on both sides,
assessing their origins, tactics, armament and combat effectiveness in
three clashes of the Lithuanian Crusade.
The battle of Voplaukis (1311), triggered by a major Lithuanian invasion
of newly Christianized lands, saw the Teutonic Knights defeat the
numerous but relatively poorly equipped Lithuanian raiders once they had
brought them to battle. As a result, the Lithuanians would begin to
prepare for full-scale warfare, and the siege of Kaunas (1362) was the
month-long investment of the first brick-built castle the Lithuanians
constructed. In the battle of Grunwald (1410), the forces of the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - fielding knights by now almost
comparable to those of the Order - broke the armies of the Teutonic
Knights, a defeat from which the Order would never really recover. This
lively study lifts the veil on these formidable medieval warriors and
three battles that shaped the Baltic world.
