At the end of June 1683, the mighty army of the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa, began the siege of Imperial Vienna. How large that army was has long been discussed. Nobody knows for sure, but the number of camps set up around Vienna impressed the soldiers of the coalition of Christian troops. At the end of the battle, the number of small tents, that is, those that were for three or four people, was estimated at more than 100,000. It is not known how many large stores there were. Also, not everyone slept in tents; for example, the Tatars did not wear them. Therefore, by the standards of that time, the Ottoman army was truly imposing. However, it must also be taken into account that the majority of its members were not soldiers, but subordinate personnel. Both Emperor Leopold I and Polish King John III Sobieski they were informed of Ottoman preparations for war. On April 1, 1683, they signed an alliance in which they undertook to provide mutual aid in case of aggression by the Ottoman Empire. Sobieski fulfilled his commitment. German ducal troops also went to help the besieged Vienna. They were joined by the army of the Holy Roman Empire, but without their emperor, which, according to the agreements reached, gave King John III Sobieski command of the allied troops.
It is also not possible to specify, today, the number of troops of the coalition. Polish historians agree that there were about 65,000 soldiers, of which 21,000 were Poles. It is very difficult to make an exact calculation, so approximate figures are used. As for the Winged Hussars, between 2,250 and 2,750 participated in the battle, grouped into 24 companies.
Organic Corps of Polish Winged Hussars
The Polish Winged Hussars were a body of heavy cavalry armed with long spears. They called themselves gentlemen, which reflects their character well. They can be considered as the last European knights, not only because of the equipment they used (armor and long spears), but also because of their adherence to tradition and their organizational structure, origin and training.
In organizational terms, the Winged Hussars were divided into companies which, in turn, were made up of small squads . Several of these (from a few to several dozen) made up a company (also sometimes called a flag), led by a captain, seconded by a lieutenant. Each regiment also had a standard bearer and musicians (a drum and several trumpets).
The square (poczet listen)) was the smallest organizational unit of the old Polish cavalry. It was made up of a towarzysz (knight), its owner, who financed the equipment and the horses, as well as the weapons and equipment necessary to function on and off the battlefield, with the sole exception of the spear – it was the captain's obligation to supply it. The squad had a retinue of subordinates who, in turn, were divided between pocztowi (outriders) and free servants.
The escort riders they participated in the battles; most stood in combat formation behind the knights, although some fought in the front row, alongside them. The others were in charge of taking care of the assets of the squad, feeding the mounts, getting food for men and animals, driving the chariots, passing the spears to the combatants, digging trenches, etc. The servants did not usually participate in the fight. However, in exceptional situations they were also used in combat, organized into separate units and commanded by experienced knights.
In Vienna there was no need to resort to servants . The vast majority of the servants remained in the camp on the banks of the Danube, near the town of Greifenstein, and therefore did not participate in the battle.
Escort riders were considered soldiers, and the knight received pay for each escort rider. For the rest, the knights, not being considered soldiers, did not receive a soldier.
A typical Polish winged hussar squadron was composed, in 1683, of:
| 1 knight 2 escort riders | Considered Soldiers |
| 6-15 servants | They were not considered soldiers |
| from 2 to 5 cars | They transported the tents, the food, the clothes, all the equipment, the weapons, etc. |
| 12-30 horses | Including combat mounts, reserve horses for hussars, draft horses, service horses, etc. |
This unit was referred to as a “three-mounted” unit, as there were three men who were considered soldiers. There were also units of "two mounts" (a knight and an escort, without forgetting the servants) and of a single rider (knight and servants). It was about having fewer escort riders and more knights, since the latter were better equipped, better trained, and also believed to have higher morale.
Organizing a squad of Polish Winged Hussars cost a fortune. Even if the knight who did it was very thrifty, equipping a squad of three horsemen could cost 5,000 zlotys . And this just to start. Maintaining a squad was also very expensive, especially due to the loss of the very expensive horses . To get an idea of what it meant, a soldier's quarterly pay was 51 zlotys . An ox cost, in Poland in 1683, around 30 zlotys; some flintlock muskets, acquired in 1695, cost about 20 zlotys per unit.
There is another comparison that may be illustrative:the economic effort of a hussar knight compared to that of an average Polish peasant, with about 17 hectares of land. This peasant, staying at home and not having to risk his life (military service in the Polish Army was voluntary, since there were no compulsory levies) had a tax burden, in the period between May 1, 1683 and February 1685, about 20 zlotys .
Serving in the Polish Winged Hussars was very expensive. It is not surprising, therefore, that the knights came, almost exclusively, from among the wealthy nobility . Both due to the costs of their service and their high value as a combat formation, they enjoyed enormous prestige. And this was one of the main reasons for joining their ranks. Others could be the maintenance of tradition, the desire for fame for oneself and one's lineage, expectations of high position, loot, or even patriotism and the inner conviction that nobles were made for war and, therefore, participating in wars was a duty. At that time, Poland was clearly a feudal country, where each social layer had its privileges but also its obligations. Thus, for example, the peasants were not obliged to do military service, but they worked the lands of their lord and also had to pay taxes to the State (which were very low, as we have already mentioned). The nobles, in principle, were exempt from paying taxes, but in return the burden of military service fell on them. They were aware that, from an economic point of view, it was not an advantageous situation. A hussar captain who participated in the Vienna campaign, Jan Dobrogost Krasiński, found that royal soldiers served “with their own substance of centuries” [her heritage]. Later, he reiterated that the Polish knights mobilized, for the 1683 expedition, "without pay, at their own expense", desirous of fame and for love of the country "because for that [by participating in the war], that of God that is in heaven, than on earth, the more certain will be the reward for every man.”
While knights were almost always wealthy nobles, escort riders were often their own teenage brothers. Serving the older brothers was an apprenticeship in the art of war and, over time, they went on to form their own squads. But the escort riders were not only brothers or relatives of the knights. There were also commoners (usually people who lived at court or servants who had been trained in the use of weapons), as well as impoverished nobles.
The motivation to serve in the Polish Winged Hussar units was not the same for everyone. Between the escorts, the servants and the knights there was an insurmountable distance, not only social and economic, but also moral. Servants were often condemned for their propensity for plunder, which they practiced particularly vigorously, especially in foreign lands. However, in defense of the Polish army that marched to the rescue of Vienna, it must be argued that it was particularly disciplined. This was largely due to the fact that the provisions they received in the lands of the Holy Emperor were greater than their needs. However, once the Polish royal army continued its advance after the victory, the emperor's subjects stopped providing the troops with food, so they began to get it freely and on their own. The use of force was resorted to against the civilian population, who often went hungry, as the military campaign took place on land previously looted by Ottoman troops.
The horses
The mounts used by the Polish knights in the Battle of Vienna were the best , the most beautiful and the most expensive among those known in Europe at that time. The most expensive were those used by the hussar knights, whose price ranged from more than 500 zlotys up to several thousand. For example, Wojciech Stanisław Chróściński bought a horse for 3,146 zlotys . The price was not only due to the quality of the horse, but also to its training . Polish equestrian treatises from the 17th century describe in detail the process of preparing animals to serve in the hussars. In them it is said that the best horses could be taught the following maneuver:the mount, of course with its rider, was capable of galloping along a marked path several tens of meters, entering a circle only two meters wide diameter, make a 180-degree turn, and head back the way you came. And all this without losing an iota of speed! These types of moves were very useful in battle.
Horses for escort riders were much cheaper. Normally its price did not exceed 200 or 300 zlotys , although there could be horses that exceeded 1000 zlotys . Even cheaper (no more than 100 zlotys ) were draft horses and for servants.
For almost the entire advance of the troops from Krakow to Vienna, the horses were well fed. We say almost, because after the royal troops crossed the Danube at the height of the town of Tulln, on September 6, they entered lands where the Tatars had previously camped. Those lands had been completely pillaged, and the meadows razed to the ground. It was necessary to save the situation with the feed brought in the carts. However, the cars did not cross the river at the same time as the troops. They were many (it was estimated that there were about 32,000 in total) and it took them four days to cross the Danube, from September 7 to 10. When, on the 10th, the last wagons reached the other shore, the soldiers of the coalition of Christian troops began to scale the mountains covered by the Vienna Woods. The carts with provisions did not follow the troops, as they headed towards Grefenstein. As Hussar Captain Jan Dobrogost Krasiński noted:“Three nights of great distress, the people on dry bread and water, and the horses with oak leaves endured.”
It was then that the situation of the horses became really bad:from September 10 to 13 they were also very thirsty. With these horses, thirsty and fed on oak leaves , fought the Polish knights on September 12. For this reason, after expelling the enemy troops from the city walls, the Polish king did not want to call on all his forces to pursue the fleeing enemy army the next day. Only a few light companies were used for the pursuit.
The Spears
These were the main hussar weapons. It is a complicated weapon from the technological point of view and, therefore, very expensive. Its price was comparable to that of firearms. In addition, they were single use , since they shattered upon impact with the enemy. The spears had different lengths:from just over three meters (the so-called Polish spears, whose name in Polish is połowiczne , that is, medium), up to more than six meters. Each captain was responsible for providing his troop with spears, which were ordered in different workshops. Therefore, it can be assumed that in the battle of Vienna there were spears of different sizes. Several sources from the time of the wars against the Ottoman Empire, in the last three decades of the 17th century, indicate that at that time the most common spears were those between 4.5 and 5 meters, sufficient dimensions to reach the enemy before that it could hit the hussar.
Spears used to be adorned with silk banners . Each company shared the same banner, which differentiated it from the others. However, the banners also fulfilled another very important role:their noise frightened the opposing horses, and the tumult they caused facilitated the defeat of the enemy.
At the Battle of Vienna, escorting knights and horsemen were armed with lances, but not in all companies . Much to the king's disappointment, not all the captains were up to the task; some did not supply their troops with spears. Other companies also lacked banners. Although the king distributed a part of his spears, prepared for his own troops, and pennons, he was not able to satisfy all his needs with it.
The impact force of the spears was powerful. They pierced shields, mail and even plate armor (penetrating between the plates and breaking rivets and latches). In principle, spears broke on impact . However, if they hit an unprotected part, they pierced the entire body and could hit more than one person at a time. If the soldiers were very close (for example, huddled together in the fleeing rout), they could cut through as many as six corps in one rush. There is evidence that in Vienna there were cases in which two enemies were pierced with a single blow from a spear.
Other offensive weapons
Besides the spears, the Polish winged hussars were equipped with sabers , rapiers, firearms, and even bows. After breaking their spears, they unsheathed their sabers, fastened with baldrics. However, when backing up to reload it was no longer possible to pick up another spear, so they fought with swords or rapiers. Keep in mind that the term "rapier sword" (koncerz in Polish) encompassed numerous weapons, the common feature of which was their considerable length. Thus, for example, among others, the name koncerz was given to long double-edged swords.
The hussars possessed firearms , but they hardly used them in the loads. Salutes from firearms were considered to be of little use against a well-trained enemy. That conviction was shared by the Ottoman cavalry, who avoided firearms. These were useful only against the Tartars, whose horses, not being accustomed to the shots, were frightened when they heard them. Firearms also served with stopped mounts and at medium distances. It could also be thrown at a distance of a few steps, but this did not happen often. These kinds of weapons, back then, had mostly a psychological effect; they had more effect on the enemy's morale than on eliminating him; were scared more than they killed or wounded.
The arches instead, they were useful in the pursuit of the decimated adversary. Their range was greater than firearms, and they were faster. Nor were they without flaws. First of all, they made charging in close formations (“knee to knee”) difficult. For this reason, they were discouraged for hussars. Furthermore, already in the age of firearms, bows were viewed with some contempt, and were not as noisy as cavalry pistols or carbines. Therefore, its ability to have a psychological impact on the adversary (especially if he was protected in some way) was less. However, the Poles had a certain attachment to bows. Although they were not used on the battlefield, they were usually worn with civilian clothing, thus indicating that their wearer was a soldier. Non-nobles could only carry swords. The noble-soldier was with sword and bow .
The wings
This is the item most visually associated with Polish hussars. He wore them to impose and to frighten the enemy and, above all, his horses. They were also used in the Battle of Vienna. However, on the one hand, not all hussars wore them and, on the other, they were not as they have been shown for a couple of centuries in various paintings and, for a few decades, in movies. The wings were not a mandatory element of hussar equipment. When they displayed, it was not the whole company, but only the escort riders. Hussar knights no longer wore wings.
How were the wings of the hussars? It is shown by numerous period images. They didn't look like those tall wings curved like a feathered hockey stick. These emerged later, in the eighteenth century.
Defensive Weaponry
Polish Winged Hussars fought in Vienna in their heaviest armor. They had chain mail , which were superimposed plate armor which, in general, were provided with leg guards. Despite what is often claimed, it is not true that the classical hussar armor that is considered to be the oldest is from the 17th century. This erroneous dating, based on mere speculation, contradicts what the illustrations from the time of the hussars teach us. For this reason we can affirm that those armors are, in fact, from the second half of the 18th century.
17th century armor had different protective properties. As a rule, the knights had better quality and more colorful armor (which cost about 100 or 200 zlotys ), leaving for the escorts more modest and less resistant armor and, therefore, cheaper (about 30 zlotys ). Cases have been reported where armor was able to protect against cannonballs, but these are truly rare contingencies. A typical armor used to protect against hand firearms:pistols, rifles or even muskets.
Among the defensive weapons, we should also mention the shields . The kalkan , a round-shaped shield, was part of the equipment of the hussars, but it was not usually used in the fight. On the battlefield, if need be, hussars sported them as adornments on spare mounts.
Troop Formation
Polish Winged Hussars fought in the Battle of Vienna in two types of basic tactical units:squads and companies. These were the smallest. As an example, we can cite the company of Prince Alexander Sobieski, used for reconnaissance of the terrain before the main charge. The companies of hussars formed in Vienna in two rows . The knights positioned themselves and attacked in rows at closely spaced intervals; that is, they were so close to each other that their knees and feet touched.
The other tactical unit was the squads . At the Battle of Vienna, these were made up of companies of hussars and lighter cavalry (pancerni ) equipped with chain mail and armed with spears of something more than two meters long and with sabers, firearms and bows. The hussars formed in the center of the squadron, while on the sides were the companies of pancerni . In turn, the squads formed in lines, at intervals. The lines and combat formation followed the following scheme:
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P – pancerni company
H – company of hussars
PHP – single squad
In this formation, behind the first line of cavalry the next was placed, but displaced so that the companies covered the intervals of the first line. This allowed the different lines to support each other in the fight. In Vienna, the Polish Crown Army was situated on the right wing of the Allied troops. However, before the general charge some companies of hussars and pancerni they were moved to the center and to the left wing to form the front line of the Imperial and German troops there.
Conclusions
24 companies of Polish Winged Hussars participated in the Battle of Vienna. At the head of all the allied troops, they played a primary role in the last and decisive phase of the battle that ended with the escape of the enemy. However, do not overestimate his part in the victory. The hussars did not fight alone . Nor were they the most numerous units. The victory in Vienna was to the credit of the entire Allied army, not just the hussars.
This is a training that must be valued positively. The knights, without skimping on the enormous costs they had to bear, came to the aid of the imperial capital in numbers not seen for a long time. Moreover, both on the road and on the battlefield, the hussars showed exemplary discipline. Before engaging the enemy they had to overcome the difficult mountainous terrain of the Vienna Woods. During the fight they demonstrated their value and achieved the recognition of the king and the coalition. They became a symbol of that battle, which the Ottoman chronicler Silahdar Findiklili Mehmed Ağa described in these words:“the disaster and the loss […] have been so enormous, such has been the defeat, that since the creation of the [Ottoman] state ] never was like this.”
Bibliography
- Sikora, R. (2017):Fenomen husarii. Warszawa:Instytut Wydawniczy Erica.
- Sikora, R. (2015):Husaria w walce. Warszawa:Instytut Wydawniczy Erica.
- Sikora, R.; Szleszyński, R. (2014):Husaria Rzeczypospolitej. Les hussards ailes. Winged hussars. Warszawa:Instytut Wydawniczy Erica.
- Sikora, R. (2012):Husaria pod Wiedniem 1683 . Warszawa:Instytut Wydawniczy Erica.
- Sikora, R. (2010):Z dziejów husarii. Warszawa:Instytut Wydawniczy Erica; Fundacja Hussar.