Anonymous_Jerzy_Sebastian_Lubomirski_on_horseback

The 1659 Battle of Grudziądz took place in the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

town of

Grudziądz Grudziądz ( la, Graudentum, Graudentium, german: Graudenz) is a city in northern Poland, with 92,552 inhabitants (2021). Located on the Vistula River, it lies within the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship and is the fourth-largest city in its prov ...

(german: Graudenz) during the

Swedish Deluge The Deluge ( pl, potop szwedzki, lt, švedų tvanas) was a series of mid-17th-century military campaigns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a wider sense it applies to the period between the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648 and the Truce ...

( pl, Potop szwedzki),Frost, Robert I (2004). ''After the Deluge. Poland–Lithuania and the Second Northern War, 1655–1660.'' Cambridge Studies in Early Modern History.

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...

; p. 3. . around 29–30 August 1659. Polish forces were commanded either by hetman

Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski Prince Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski (20 January 1616 – 31 December 1667) was a Polish noble (szlachcic), magnate, politician and military commander, and Prince of the Holy Roman Empire. He was the initiator of the Lubomirski Rebellion of 1665 ...

or general

Krzysztof Grodzicki Krzysztof Grodzicki (died 1659) was a Polish artillery general, serving the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Grodzicki underwent military education in the Dutch Republic. He served under Stanisław Koniecpolski in the Polish–Swedish War (1626� ...

(sources vary). The battle ended with the Polish victory, after a week-long siege; however much of the city was destroyed in a fire.

Background

Swedes had taken Grudziądz on December 13, 1655, after their failed attempt at conquering

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

followed by the subsequent march along the

Baltic coast The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 10 ...

. The Swedish troops of King

Charles X Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Loui ...

, went on to build additional fortifications in the town, which were later inspected by the king himself, on his tour of the south coast of the Baltic sea. Polish

hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

Stefan Czarniecki Stefan Czarniecki (Polish: of the Łodzia coat of arms, 1599 – 16 February 1665) was a Polish nobleman, general and military commander. In his career, he rose from a petty nobleman to a magnate holding one of the highest offices in the Commo ...

– Field Hetman of the

Crown of the Polish Kingdom The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, includi ...

– arrived in

Pomorze Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

at the beginning of 1657 with an armed force of about 6,000

cavalrymen Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating a ...

ready for the defence of the region, which was part of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

ruled by the Polish King

John II Casimir John II Casimir ( pl, Jan II Kazimierz Waza; lt, Jonas Kazimieras Vaza; 22 March 1609 – 16 December 1672) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1648 until his abdication in 1668 as well as titular King of Sweden from 1648 ...

(1648–1668). The battle was fought by the entrenched Swedish units in the town and the surrounding Polish army.

Battle

Along with Stefan Czarniecki arrived the Polish Prince

– Field Crown

Hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

since 1658, who approached Grudziądz fortress in mid-August. (While some sources name Lubomirski the commander, others name general

). Poles gave the Swedes an opportunity to surrender, but expecting to be relieved, they refused. After a week-long siege the Poles defeated the Swedes on 29–30 August 1659. Much of the city was destroyed in a fire. The campaign was won also thanks to the devotion of local government (

Starostwo Starostwo (literally " eldership") ; be, староства, translit=starostva; german: Starostei is an administrative unit established from the 14th century in the Polish Crown and later in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth until the part ...

) and

Marie Louise Gonzaga Marie Louise Gonzaga ( pl, Ludwika Maria; 18 August 1611 – 10 May 1667) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania by marriage to two kings of Poland and grand dukes of Lithuania, brothers Władysław IV and John II Casimir. Together wi ...

who raised the sum of 1,415

Polish zloty Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

to pay for the maintenance of the army.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Grudziadz (1659) Grud Conflicts in 1659 Grudziądz Grudziądz (1659) 1659 in Europe Second Northern War

Background

Battle

See also

Notes and references