Game of the Polish-Lithuanian United Kingdom
Although the Republic of Poland is today a single Slavic, Catholic state, in the 17th century Poland was one of the largest european states of the time, like a European version of the United States. In the territory of the Republic, there are not only Poles, but also Moldovans, Ukrainians, Tatars, Germans, French and other nationalities. Poland's tolerant religious policy was sufficient to protect the majority of dissidents and religious minorities from mutilation, and Jews, Muslims and Christians and Protestants coexisted peacefully in the country, while the Spanish Inquisition tried moors and Moriscos, while the Huguenots in France were being persecuted. The diverse ethnic composition also allowed the Polish army to absorb a large number of foreign elements. This was common in the Polish army at the time. The class setting of the game "Horseback and Slash: Fire and Sword" also truly reflects the military equipment style and rich ethnic composition of this powerful country in the middle of the 17th century.
<h1>1. German influence</h1>
German troops in the Polish region
Although the Germans were the traditional enemies of the Poles, in the 16th and 17th centuries, the relations between the princes of Poland and the German region were generally friendly, and the Russian-Polish borders at that time were not as clear as they are today, and many areas presented a situation of Polish-German mixed habitation, especially in Danzig, where most of the inhabitants were Germans, and the outside of the wall was completely two worlds. In the Polish army of the time, legions composed of Germans had a great influence on Polish military traditions. These armies consisted mainly of German infantry in line uniforms armed with 6-meter spears and musketeers, who were more skilled in Western tactics and weapons than the polish infantry themselves, and by 1633 the Poles began to give their soldiers to Polish Officers of German descent for training, forming a German-style Polish infantry unit.
German infantry in the city of Danzig
These infantry units were generally divided into 10 platoons: the first row was melee infantry; the second and third rows were spearmen, of which the first row consisted entirely of officers, each commanding the column behind them; behind them were 6 rows of musketeers; and the last row was spearmen. Musketeers took turns firing during combat, while those in the front row had to crouch down to avoid being hit.
Polish German pistol cavalry, the game's reduction of pistol cavalry is very high
Pistol cavalry in the game
In terms of cavalry, German pistol cavalry from Silesia, Courland, Livonia and other places was very popular at the time. Dressed in three-quarters of armor, armed with pistols and swords, these men rode taller, more serene horses, and did not charge as their main form of combat. In fact, these people were very much valued by the Polish nobility during 1650, and their salary for ten years was 65 zlotys, while the salaries of winged cavalry at that time were 43 zlotys. Because the Polish cavalry lacked a tradition of using firepower, these pistol cavalry had more sophisticated firepower and armor, so they were more durable. But later, these German cavalry also began to accept the leadership of the Polish command system, and some German pistol cavalry began to wear the armor of the winged cavalry, so that in the siege of the city in 1683, there were cavalry using pistols but wearing winged cavalry armor.
Swedish pistol cavalry
At that time, in addition to the king's and noble troops, each of the large towns had their own independent armed forces. These armed forces usually maintain a small elite force to maintain order in the town, but in wartime they recruit a large number of militia troops for the defense of the city. Among them, the "Amsterdam of the North" --- the city of Danzig not only had walls and fortresses, but also had its own fleet, which even became the early main force of the Later Polish Navy.
By 1646, the wealthy citizens of Danzig had paid for a total of 6,000 militias organized by craftsmen, merchants, and militias, divided into 5 legions in white, blue, red, orange, and a mixture of colors. In 1620, this army of citizens even defeated the Swedish army brought by King Gustav, which shocked King Gustav for a while.
<h1>2. The Janissaries of the King of Poland</h1>
Polish wing cavalry units
In terms of the composition of the Janissaries, the Polish king's Janissaries were like the arms museums of European countries at that time, from the pistol cavalry in the West to the New Army of Yeniceri in the Ottoman Empire.
Under the polish king, there are honorary standard-bearer wing cavalry composed of courtiers and national nobles, for details of the wing cavalry, you can see other articles in the same series: Eagles on the Steppes of Eastern Europe: Polish Wing Cavalry The Polish king has other kinds of Janissaries, such as the Guard infantry composed of German mercenaries, which are generally about 600-1200 people in size, wearing blue uniforms embroidered with yellow lines, this color match, It was clear that the Polish king's ambitions for Sweden were clear: because the Swedish flag was yellow and blue. Later, in the time of King Jan-Sobieski, he also equipped his queen Mary and Prince Jacob with a German infantry unit, but the color of the army flag was different, Mary's guard flag was green and white, and the prince's flag was red and white.
In addition, private guards brought by foreign contenders for the throne or foreign noblewomen also formed part of the Polish army at that time, such as the personal guards brought from Sweden by Jan Sobieski's wife, Marie Casimir; in 1574, Henry of Valois brought 120 French and Swedish musketeers and halberds from France in loose silk uniforms.
In addition, the Scots were also an important foreign community in Poland at that time. In the 17th century, Poland even had a Scottish community of 37,000 people. Scottish mercenaries were also once hired by the Poles.
The King of Poland had a small Janiceri Janissary as a sample
The most amazing thing is that there was also a Yenicherry Janissary in the Swedish army at that time. They had feathered felt hats similar to those of the Yeniceri Janissaries, loose bloomers, and rows of centipede clasps, as well as exaggerated bright colors. These Yeniceri Janissaries existed until the 18th century. In 1673, King Jan-Sobieski captured some of the Yeniceri Janissaries in a fortress offensive and defensive battle, and the king recruited a part of the Janissaries from the captives; in addition, the Polish nobles would deliberately choose dark-skinned, dark-haired Ukrainians, Moldavians, and Wallachians; and in 1681, during the Kamenez Offensive and Defense, Sobieski also received the surrender of a desperate Ottoman Janissary. Later these troops even participated in the Siege of Vienna, and were regarded by the Polish nobility as a symbol of the country's strong tolerance and as a sample soldier with an exotic atmosphere.
<h1>3. The private subordinate troops of the nobility</h1>
Flag of the King of Poland
In the time of the Republic of Poland, the nobles had great freedom rights due to the golden freedom. In the Council of Nobility, as soon as one person voted against it, the whole proposal was nullified. These great nobles basically had all the rights except for the right to mint money. This includes the right to build forts, cast cannons, and raise soldiers. In the 17th century, the size of these noble private soldiers could even exceed 10,000, not much less than the king's standing soldiers. Francis Gordon, a British agent in Poland, once mentioned that Stanislav Lubnski, bishop of Pollock, brought 1,000 dragoons, 2,000 infantry, and ten artillery pieces when he participated in the royal elections of 1632, and because the private army was relatively large, many family hatreds and political disagreements could easily develop into vendettas. In order to prevent the large nobles from becoming smaller and smaller and thus becoming private territories without defensive territorial capacity, the Polish Council of Nobles decided that the four largest families: the Zamojski family, the Razywił, Mizavoski, and the Osterwowski family, could only be passed on to the eldest son, and the border should be built to resist possible foreign invasions; in addition, as the times developed, they also had to provide a certain number of troops for the country to consolidate national defense.
In general, due to the abundant financial resources of the aristocratic families, the military uniforms and weapons of the aristocratic families are often more gorgeous and exquisite than those of the Royal Family.
<h1>4. Zaporozhian Cossack warriors</h1>
Historical Zaporizhian Cossacks
Cossack cavalry in the game
The Cossacks were not a single ethnic group, but in fact an independent political and military entity composed of extrajudicials and exiles from Ukraine, Poland, Russia and turkey, Italy, and Spain. The word Cossack is derived from the Turkic language, meaning outlaw. Soon, these people with similar lifestyles and habits came together, and the Cossacks became synonymous with these outlaws.
Zaporizhian Cossack cavalry
With the exception of the Don Cossacks, who are mainly Made up of Russians, the Zaporizhian Cossacks are the cossack group most closely related to the Republic of Poland. To find Borrozhia means people who live on the edge of the rapids, because their camps and bases are located on the bend of the Dnieper River, hence their name. In their way of life they are half peasants and half herders, they live a semi-Tatar life, and in their political organization they organize according to a primitive democratic system, and everything is decided by simple meetings. A 1594 eyewitness recorded that the officers and the commoners formed two circles, and after agreeing on the issue, they would throw their hats in mid-air to express their approval, and then throw the dissenting minority dissidents into the choppy Dnieper River.
Cossacks who fought with car battalions
Although the Cossacks looked very fashionable and bohemian, the Zaporizhian Cossacks had simple and easy-to-enforce military orders: women were not allowed to enter the camp, and although they could drink wine before setting out for battle, they could not carry alcohol with them when marching to prevent mistakes. Those who violated military discipline were thrown into the river and executed. As more and more Ukrainians and Poles joined the Zaporizhian Cossacks, the Zaporizhian Cossacks eventually became the dominant force in the Ukrainian region. Although it was the territory of the Republic of Poland, Poland acquiesced to their semi-autonomy on the grounds that, in addition to the regular troops stationed on the southern border, the Cossack settlements were a buffer against Tatar raids.
The Cossacks were Poland's middle ground in buffering against tatar invasions
In order to prevent more and more serfs in Poland from fleeing to the Cossack regions, and to prevent the rebellion of the Cossacks, the Republic of Poland established the "Registered Cossacks" in the mid-to-late 16th century. In 1569 the size of the unit was 300 men, and by 1578 the force had expanded to 500 men, who were mistakenly referred to by the Poles as zaporozhyks, and their commanders were also known as zapologhheimers, who received a symbolic annual annuity for the purchase of military uniforms, on the condition that their movements be restrained and they would no longer casually rob houses. By 1619, the size of this force had exceeded 10,000. By 1648, as a result of the Great Uprising of Bogdan Khmelnytsky, King Jan Casimir of Poland was forced to agree to the expansion of the Zaporizhian Cossack army to 40,000 men as a condition of peace. In 1654, as a condition for assistance, Khmelnytsky chose to defect to Tsarist Russia, but the Moscow Tsar was far less tolerant than the Poles, and as the Tatar states were annexed by Moscow one by one, the Zaporozhian Cossacks gradually lost their significance in guarding the border and resisting the Tatar invasion, and finally Shech was wiped out in 1775, and the Zaporozhian Cossacks never regained their former glory. For more on the Zaporozhye Cossacks, take a look at the Cossack warriors in this series: Games and History: Horseback riding and slashing: Fire and Sword
Cossack warriors in the Zaporozhye camp
The first one on the left in this picture is a registered Cossack warrior in a blue Polish uniform, next to him are two Zaporizhian warriors, and the most realistic point in the game is that it truly reflects the Zaporozhian Cossacks wearing red uniforms, which they did historically. In terms of weapons, they used sabers, Turkish arquebusiers and Tsarist machetes at the same time; some poor Cossacks used flails, wooden sticks, short spears and other weapons.
Cossack car camp
Large carts used by the Cossacks
Similar to the setting in the game, the Cossacks had many excellent musketeers and sharpshooters, but lacked effective heavy infantry. This is more in line with real history. The common tactic used by the Cossacks was to erect muskets and firearms in the camps to fend off the enemy's powerful cavalry and to take advantage of their own good use of firearms. This was a more effective countermeasure for the Polish winged cavalry and tatars. This tactic of the ancient Rus' against nomadic warriors in the steppes of Eastern Europe eventually influenced the Cossacks and Poles, and finally gave birth to variants in the Czech Republic in Central Europe, which became a weapon for the Hussite rebels to defeat the Crusaders. However, with the upgrading of firearms and the increase in the power of artillery fire, the tactics of the car battalion have also withdrawn from the historical stage.
The left 1 is the Polish Dragoon, and the Polish Dragoon in the game is highly restored
Polish dragoons in the game
Among the foreign cavalry, in addition to the German pistol cavalry, there were also the dragoon units composed mainly of Cossacks and the registered Cossack cavalry units. The Cossacks were a specialty in combining horsemanship and firearms, capable of riding horses, archery, digging trenches, collecting grain and grass, plundering the countryside, and were all-rounders, capable of replenishing artillery, infantry, or cavalry. The latter mainly wear chain armor, wear chain armor helmets, riding archery and spear melee combat as the main way of fighting, is a composite of near and far medium cavalry, in addition to the wing cavalry, an important backbone of the Polish cavalry force.
<h1>tatars</h1>
In addition to the Cossacks, there were a considerable number of Tatar troops in the Polish army. For the situation of the Tatars of Eastern Europe, take a look at this article in this series: Games and History: Eastern European Tatars in Horseback riding and slashing: Fire and Sword The Tatars settled near Vilnius in Lithuania, where the Grand Duke of Veltaud had settled, and by the middle of the 16th century, although they were still Muslims, they had begun to speak Polish or Belarusian and were gradually Polishized. The Poles organized them in the form of a banner of 60-200 men, transforming them into a cavalry unit with considerable combat effectiveness, and later the Tatars became synonymous with the light cavalry of the Polish army that carried out the task of looting and harassing.
Historical Lithuanian Tatar cavalry
Lithuanian Tatar cavalry in the game
<h1>5. Tactics and formations</h1>
The Polish army will be artillery. A mixed formation of cavalry and infantry
Since Poland is a place where East and West blend, the Western-style spear charging and the Eastern enticing-attacking tactics coexist in the same land. The Polish army had both Mongol-influenced Parthian tactics: for example, by drawing the enemy into an encirclement after a defeat and finally crushing the enemy with a fierce counter-charge, in 1605 Saraspils, the Polish army defeated the flaccid Swedes in pursuit with a flank cavalry counter-charge.
After the reforms of King Gustav II of Sweden, the Polish army began to combine Western infantry formations with Eastern European cavalry raiding and vehicle formation tactics. The Poles began to use obstacles such as chariots and rivers to hinder the advance of the enemy, forcing the enemy to engage the narrow frontal battle of the Polish army. Judging from the continuous introduction of foreign troops by the Republic of Poland, the Poles did not lack the ability to learn the essence of foreign military affairs, but the real problem was that in addition to the economy of the peasant base, there was also the golden freedom of free choice of kings and nobles, which led to the absolute freedom of the nobility, and for their own interests, it was difficult for them to condense the scattered noble armies into a powerful army and systematically upgrade the armaments.