The sack of Sandomierz during the

first Mongol invasion of Poland The Mongol Invasion of Poland from late 1240 to 1241 culminated in the Battle of Legnica, where the Mongols defeated an alliance which included forces from fragmented Poland and their allies, led by Henry II the Pious, the Duke of Silesia. ...

took place on 13 February 1241. It ended in the victory of the Mongol forces, who captured the city and burned it, massacring the residents. During the Mongol invasion of Poland, southeastern

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

city of

Sandomierz Sandomierz (pronounced: ; la, Sandomiria) is a historic town in south-eastern Poland with 23,863 inhabitants (as of 2017), situated on the Vistula River in the Sandomierz Basin. It has been part of Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship (Holy Cross Prov ...

was regarded by the invaders as a strategically important location, which had to be captured. Sandomierz lies near the confluence of the

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

and the San rivers, near the 13th-century border between the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...

and Mongol-controlled

Red Ruthenia Red Ruthenia or Red Rus' ( la, Ruthenia Rubra; '; uk, Червона Русь, Chervona Rus'; pl, Ruś Czerwona, Ruś Halicka; russian: Червонная Русь, Chervonnaya Rus'; ro, Rutenia Roșie), is a term used since the Middle Ages fo ...

. The invaders captured Sandomierz on 13 February 1241, after crossing the frozen Vistula. According to

Jan Długosz Jan Długosz (; 1 December 1415 – 19 May 1480), also known in Latin as Johannes Longinus, was a Polish priest, chronicler, diplomat, soldier, and secretary to Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki of Kraków. He is considered Poland's first histo ...

, forces of the khan besieged both the city, and the castle. After breaking defences, they murdered the

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

Koprzywnica Koprzywnica is a town in Sandomierz County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, Poland, with 2,546 inhabitants (2004). Koprzywnica lies on the Koprzywianka river, in Lesser Poland. It is one of the oldest urban centers of the province, located along t ...

, and all monks from Koprzywnica's Abbey, who had fled to the city. A great number of residents of the area was massacred, and the invaders saved only young men, whom they enslaved. During the siege, the Mongols used specially designed

engines An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power g ...

, especially stone throwing machines, which threw rocks weighing over 100 kilograms. The city was captured after four days, and after the sack, Mongol forces headed westwards, to

Wiślica Wiślica is a town in Busko County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in south-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Wiślica. It lies on the Nida River, approximately south of Busko-Zdrój and so ...

and Skalbmierz. On the day of the capture of Sandomierz, the

Battle of Tursko The Battle of Tursko (or Tursko Wielkie) took place on 13 February 1241, during the First Mongol invasion of Poland. It ended in the defeat of the Polish forces of the ''ziemia'' of Kraków. In early February 1241, Polish forces under the voivo ...

took place. In 1259–1260, the Mongols sieged and captured Sandomierz again, razing the city and massacring its residents.

Sources

Tomislaw Giergiel, Tatarzy w Sandomierzu
* Piastowie. Leksykon biograficzny, wyd. 1999, str. 397 * Wielka Historia Polski cz. do 1320, wyd. Pinexx 1999, s. 187-188 * Stanislaw Krakowski, Polska w walce z najazdami tatarskimi w XIII wieku, wyd. MON 1956, str. 136-137 Conflicts in 1241 1241 in Europe Sandomierz (1241)

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

{{Poland-battle-stub Sandomierz 1241 Razed cities

See also

Sources