Great video! Didn't know the Swedish continued to kick butt into the later centuries! I had a question on the map: Why was Freiburg next to Dresden? Did these cities shift locations over time because of emigration?
Torstensson is a very underrated general, he was very fast even though he was crippled and sick and definitely made use of some of the Gustavian tactics.
Although he was a bit.... touched too. A detachment commander under Torstensson that had carried out an unsuccessful assault was catapulted out of the army under humiliating forms, and he was forced to swear an oath to never tell anyone he had ever been in swedish service. On another occation he held a full court of law trial against the corpse of another sub-commander that had failed and died in a skirmish. Tactically brilliant, but also a bit of a looney :)
Not sure were you found those tall tales about Torstensson but true they are not Not a shred of evidence exists that he was 'touched' I.e a bit insane.
Commanders in early 30 years war: "Modern war ought to be fought with well disciplined infantry. Cavalry based armies are relicts of the past" Commanders in later 30 years war: "I am speed"
Nope, every early commander in the war believed in combined arms tactics and invested heavily in raising expensive cavalry as cavalry was still very important due to its unique combination of mobility and shock. Used in the right moment even a few squadrons could wreck entire brigades.
@@Vonstab Well, that was just a joke but of course you are right :) Although, I found interesting that proportions between numbers of cavalry and infantry changed so much.
That is where a true commander shows his power. Gotz needs to be sacked and replaced on the spot. However when you have such a disorganized army you cannot leave it again and again ... you have to be present.
@@andraslibal It ain't as simple as you think, when the men fighting are not really loyal to you but more loyal to the guy you want sacked. You run the risk of having half your army desert on the spot or worse, kill you right there.
Depends, maybe his Commands were unclear? I mean he could have come out of that battle bloodied but still standing if he would have been clear/overseen the re-taking off that Hill. Naturally the Bavarian Cavalry could have also been FAR more decisive if they wouldnt have plundered... but alas, that is the big issue with mercenary armies and undisciplined forces that arent used to fighting together on a large scale. Throughout history there have been many forces that were great on an individual or skirmishing level (with just several dozens to hundreds of people involved), but showed to be lacking in coordination on a large scale battle. (of several thousands.)
@@superspies32 that has been done by many other commanders or troops, it was done by the crusaders against Saladin troops, but I don't remember the name of the battle
Ahh the ethical standards of the sixteen hundreds. I remeber an old Danish army bulletin from that era, forbiding on pain of death, the rape of virgins, women in the late stages of pregnancy, women in birthing bed, the elderly, the infirm and livestock.
@@Validboy You can insert women if you want rather easily. It doesn't need to be completely historically accurate (otherwise it is a documentary). Plenty of ways to insert women, at the court of France or Vienna, a love interest during the campaign, maybe some intrigues at home while the husband is away campaigning, ...
Gotta say: Every other K&G episode is like "The broke the lines, Decisively gaining the upper hand!..." YAH! Alright! They may win this "...And then they began looting the baggage train" GOD DAMN IT.
@@andraslibal It's actually not hard to understand the looting. After the battle is won, the commanding officers will take control of the enemy baggage train and divide it as they see fit. A common soldier didn't exactly get a whole lot (Which is not necessarily because of the greed of their superiors; There's many to share with in an army), but if they get the chance to personally take what they want, there's an excellent chance that they will be able to keep at least some of the good stuff, such as valuables, good food or better equipment. A soldier that is on the winning side and survives doesn't necessarily benefit. A soldier that is able to loot and survive, regardless of winning or losing, stands to become significantly wealthier in an instant. You have to remember that most soldiers of almost any kind were not rich. If they were ever going to make bank, it was with loot.
Jankau was probably the most important battle of this war phase. Sice then the Emperor knew the hope of victory is lost and he has begun negotiate for peace.
I have always wondered why Jankau is hardly ever mentioned. It any battle can be said to decided the long 30-years war it's Jankau, not only was yet another Imperial army annihilated, The loss of the experienced Bavarian Cavalry made further Bavarian resistance against France hopeless. After Jankau the war continued to settle how much Habsburg would have to offer for a peace, to turn the tide was now beyond Imperial resources. Btw Lennart Torstensson was a very interesting man, He was military prodigy and favorite of Gustavus. Colonel at 26, General and commander of the artillery at 29, playing key roles in the kings victories. 1632 he was captured and spent a year in a dank dungeon in Ingolstadt. This afflicted him with gout and utterly ruined his health, he still continued to serve in the army as well as he could. His actions at Wittstock and Chemniz was critical to Johan Banér the new Swedish commander in chief victories but in 1640 Torstensson retired from the army due to his illness and joined the Council of the Realm. Not a year later Banér died. The Council appointed Torstensson as his replacement, despite Torstensson's own objections. He had the misfortune of having the army's absolute confidence, while also being part of the Swedish high aristocracy and thus unlike foreign generals in Swedish service unquestionable loyal. Despite frequently having to be carried on a stretcher because the pain was so severe that he couldn't ride, he quickly made his mark on the war. He was a master of maneuver warfare and destroyed two Imperial armies simply by boxing them into desolated land decimating them through starvation and disease. In 1642 he crushed the Imperials at the second battle of Breitenfeld, In 1644 he was ordered to conquer Denmark so he did, and a year later he wrecked the Imperials at Jankau. Year after year he asked to be relieved which didn't happen until 1646, He died 1651. 48 years old.
Too bad no one told the Bavarian cavalry that resistance was hopeless since they were beating up the French at Allerheim in August 1645 despite being destroyed ;)
Does it denote the height? Although that sounds pretty tall to be lugging artillery up. Of course metric units weren't a thing at that point so it could be through a different measurement. Imperial? Not sure what many European countries might have used prior to the metric system.
@@mjwoodroff8446 It most likely is height - if you look on the map of the area, it is 540-570 meters above sea level on the hilltops, while the low area is around 500, so those are hills, but no Alps, not sure about the exact measurement, because it seems modern maps do not have the same numbers, so it is possible some older historical source used military map to describe the area with current measurements and since that the names of the hills stayed that way despite beeing few meters off the actual height. Its not like we don´t have a a name every other hill thats barely noticeable, it is just that a lot of those names is unoficial or not important for military maps.
Especially the cases where the guys looting the camp just up and leaves the army afterwards. The worst cases must be when one group plunders their allies camp and then just runs away. Also a good indicator is when the baggage train of an army seems more like circus caravan or a giant royal ball on wheels.
That was one hell of a nail biter. The battle ranged all across the countryside, to the point where it's amazing how the forces managed to stick together. And once again, one of the decisive moments is when the cavalry stopped to loot the baggage train.
no one would have that, the war was really three wars. One with the Bohemians, One with the Platatanate, and this one with the French and Swedish. And soldiers get taken out of war quickly
@@jameskowanko7574 There is in fact someone, 'Peter Hagendorf' a mercenary who fought in the War, apparently for it's entire duration, or at least the vast majority of it and lived to tell and write down the tale.
I don't understand why Torstensson does not get more publicity. Much of the modern artillery tactics developed by the Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus was due to Torstensson himself, who was a key figure in all of the king's early campaigns. Combined with his amazing personal military successes, I think Torstensson has a case to be remembered as the greatest military commander/soldier of the 30 years war.
He is also quite fascinating because since he became commander in chief only out of necessity. He was invalided from gout as a prisoner of war. His stellar military reputation and being part of the council aristocracy made him the only option for the Swedish government. Sometimes Torstensson's gout pain was so severe he couldn't ride so his soldiers had carry him on a stretcher. Year after year he wrote letters begging to be replaced while he delivered one victory after another until he was replaced 1645. He died 6 years later a mere 47 years old.
@@Jauhl1 if anything that speaks of his character. He doesn't want to be there, shouldn't be there either, but he keeps delivering his best for his nation. And "his best" just so happens to be a string of victories for the Swedish cause
@@HeyImLucious Right Sitting in a bed and not knowing when you can work again or sitting in a bunker not knowing if the war will destroy humanity or just all of your loved ones
@@Dragons_Armory You got that right. But when you're going to be graded on your knowledge of the goings on, you do not want to get involved with AS THE HABSBUGHS BURN" or maybe it's just a case of Stockholm syndromm
Oh God, I'd guess reading about this battle, I mean reading reports from people on the field and translating to a map would be a nightmare. Thanks guys for the work! This has been an extraordinary chapter, the movements, the logic behind it, awesome.
You re joking on this kind of subject !!!! What kind of human being are you ? Would you sacrifice your elderly for dollars ?? I thought you were talking making a parallel to coved 19
The map and animation could be a lot better but Jankow was a messy and unusally mobile battle. They have simplified it in several places to make it more managabel
One huge difference is that Gustav had the ability to rally the Germans behind him even Catholics who was willing to tolerate. The Lion of the North was the only figure capable of uniting the Germans in this era.
Ha! That was tricky! I managed to finish my video before you uploaded yours! Now I can enjoy the battle and slowly set up the description. Perfect timing :D
@Plamen Stoev Yeah, I believe the ERE inherited more of Rome's administrative and military traditions. I wouldn't say the Greeks were Romanized, more like the other way around, though. Some Roman historian (Livy?) said something about how Rome conquered Greece, but Greeks conquered Romans or something. Religiously though, I think the ERE had more in common with the Roman Empire than the HRE. Orthodoxy in the ERE had less authority than the Emperor, as Christianity did in the Roman Empire, while the HR Emperor was often subordinate to the Pope, and when he wasn't, well one of them had to go beg the Pope for forgiveness (Lay Investiture). Not to mention that the name of the HRE was created to spite the ERE and because at the time the ERE was ruled by an Empress, so the Pope decided that the Roman emperorship was "unoccupied" and crowned Charlemagne Roman Emperor. You could argue, though, that the Catholic church is the successor of the WRE.
David Chicoine The British monarchy is descendant from the Frederick, elector of the Palatinate. His daughter’s son was George I and he was made king of Britain.
thanks as always for the content you bring. They are done very well and thoroughly. I wanted to advise you to add to the series of videos something about the battles of medieval and Renaissance Italy for example: legnano, cortenuova, parma, fornovo, agnadello etc ... however excellent as always.
Having watching all episodes so far (liked & subscribed) this period of warfare seems extremely dangerous for senior commanders... no sitting 5 miles behind the lines in a luxurious chateau sipping cognac. Any chance of doing more videos featuring the excellent Turenne.
Hatzfeldt's order to attack the right flank of the Swedish army was a very smart tactical move. If it was successful, the Bavarians could have captured the whole artillery division on hill 537 and used it to shoot back at the Swedes. After that they could even attack Tortensson from the back. It was always some incompetent subordinate that was more interested in looting than killing.
Torstensson was an excellent commander! Not only did he conquere much territory for the empire. He also trained Gustavus adolphus nephew, (the future warrior king of Sweden Charles X) in the art of war.
My opinion is that Torstensson is the greatest Swedish commander in our history. NB he understood the importance of field artillery, logistics and due to his illness indirect leadership. He did also mastered the artillery reforms after the Polish war just before the entry in the 39 years war and was for a period Governor General over Western Sweden.
Hatzfeld knew how to maneuver his forces & needed more commanders like Suetz (no idea how to actually spell his name, at 11:00). I do wonder if Hatzfeld' orders were misinterpreted because of him or his commanders.
Hatzfeld was a competent commander but had probably been promoted beyond his abilities. He went from colonel to field marshal in just 3 years and had no time to gain experience as "middle management" before having to command an entire army at Wittstock. He did not do well but improved a lot between them and Jankow. His big problems at Jankow was Götz and the fact that Torstensson was simply a superior commander with a better command team.
@@KingsandGenerals Spot on, he too easily slipped back into being a regimental commander who managed only a few units. Probably why he did better in small battles such as Vlotho when he only had to manage 6000 men.
How funny is it that i finished reviewing the 30 years war yesterday?!! :-D What a coincidence cheers for this upload quality as always just extra surprising!
Great job, your work is admirable! I think only the time you need to find all these maps, strategies and finally synchornize all these togetehr to an amazing peace of art!!!
Even in video games like Darkfall that I have played years ago, some battles were lost there because people were looting the dead while others were still pushing the "deafeated" enemy, only for that enemy to reorganize, kill the obedient ones that kept chasing, and then come after the looters also :)
The interesting thing is that the motive for looting is the same as well, getting to pick your choice before anybody else can lay claim or demand fair distribution. Quite the interesting analogy to real life that I'm quite sure the game devs didn't necessarily try to create.
Hi! I'm a fan of your videos, and I absolutly love your t-shirt! But even if I love them, I'd love to see t-shirt of other peoples like Condé, Richelieu, Gustav Adolph, or Aetius. It would be awesome! Love from France guys
When they got near the baggage train, i totally knew they will start looting and be killed by a counter attack, i guess i learned something after all those videos. Nice job as always.
I still expect for the most important moment in the 30 years war. The Peace of Westphalia. No General, no King, no Prophet, No Pope, no Leader or Emperor would be more powerfull than man-made letters in a paper. Very fitting for an Enlighted world, since the peace granted made professionals and specialists to be authorities, and ushered a world where kids of that time, like a 6 years old Isaac Newton, would change all of our understandings about the world.
@@TheLocalLt Westphalia ended a war (two actually), but it laided an important ground. The idea that law matters, an abiding to is for everyone. Sovereignty of another nations was beyond your wishes, and while we see kings and emperors defying it once and a while, just the stand make a mark Without that, the ideia of science would never take off. Some numbers and rules could not defy Pope or emperor.
@@TheLocalLt Yes The reformation was a major step to it, but ultimately the reformation was still under the Bible. You can say that the word of god was still important on that matter. Westphalia tough, was signed despite the hate of the Emperor and the Pope. It was based both outside the Religious and Royal authority. It was made by diplomats, bureaucrats, merchant guilds and what can be called the civil service of states. The act of drawing lines, in a kind of secular way, with the backing of common man, when something like that happened before? Magna Carta? Religious authority was crucial. Anglicanism? Royal authority did that. Reformation? Still a religious dispute.
@@TheLocalLt There's a book called "World Order" by Henry Kissinger who goes over the later importance of the treaty of Westphalia has in the later centuries, including now.
I believe to this day that the 30 years war was a missed opportunity for Assassins Creed when it was still Assassins Creed. We need more Video games, movies and series about the topic. Such interesting and epic historical dramas we could have had.
Never actually read this anywhere but I have to imagine that one of the reasons for the high cavalry ratios late in the war was the sheer number of garrisons requiring men. Hard to have a lot of infantry when they're all being left in cities and forts. Easier to do that at the beginning when there hadn't been a generation of war.
A great video! You keep a very high standard doing the Thirty Years War justice, thumbs up! :D And here is an unnecessary fact bonus, in Sweden we call it The Battle of Jankov ^^
Don't forget the Habsburg 's signed the Peace of Westphalia when the dutch cut the trade rout of for the biggest part of the empire at the end of the war, they destroyed the Spanish fleed for the first time. That's also the start of one of the biggest admirals ever lived Michiel de Ruyter where Horatio Nelson learned the most of.
9:12 As a supervisor in the civilian world, I totally understand what that was like. "Where the Hell is he? I told him to stay put!" And then the worker that didn't stay put argues with you. Grrrrr......
I've been watching the thirty years war series recently, a question has been bothering me ---- How can Swedish and French supply such large army so deep inside enemy territory? How can imperial army supply their large army from this war razed land?
Ok, I'm half way though and this is driving me crazy. You have your east and west backwards. If north is on top, left is west, right is east. 7:48 Chapel hill is in the south east, not the south west. 9:07 same thing. 10:45 these woods appear to be north east, not south of Nosakov. There are other points as well.
I've never really read up on the 30 Years War - thank you for this series! *peers* How could the ranking officers get commands interpreted incorrectly, not once, but TWICE? I mean, the scouting party was one thing and that guy paid for it, but come on, couldn't they have checked to see how many were on that hill before committing near the entire force??? And then they couldn't even make the guns they captured useful. Ten guns! I mean, what the hell.
Consider supporting your favorite youtubers: www.patreon.com/KingsandGenerals Onlyfans account at 10 million subs!
@Kings and Generals I’ll buy more SPQR hoodies, would that work?
What's the song at 10:00
When is the next episode coming out
Please make a video on battle of Didgori.
Great video! Didn't know the Swedish continued to kick butt into the later centuries!
I had a question on the map: Why was Freiburg next to Dresden? Did these cities shift locations over time because of emigration?
"...or decided it's a good moment to show his disobedience."
Yeah, this is what happens when you have -40 opinions with your vassals
@monhbold naiman it's faction time boys
@@stygian8049 good ole ck2 -40 aint that bad tho
or high liberty desire?? loll
love the comment, however an opinion is uncountable
Huh. Turns out tyranny isn't just a number.
Poor Hatzfeld, desperately trying to snatch defeat from the jaws of utter annihilation but the incompetence of his underlings was just too great.
Veteran and well disciplined soldier is worth 2 or 3 fresh recruit........
@Plamen Stoev 100 percent agree with you
I don't know, I'm wondering if people misunderstanding his instructions might've been caused by him giving unclear ones.
@@romanbarna1316 16:31 that one had nothing to do with unclear orders. they just were idiots
Hatzfeld loses his hat and he loses his head ha ha ha ha
Torstensson is a very underrated general, he was very fast even though he was crippled and sick and definitely made use of some of the Gustavian tactics.
Although he was a bit.... touched too. A detachment commander under Torstensson that had carried out an unsuccessful assault was catapulted out of the army under humiliating forms, and he was forced to swear an oath to never tell anyone he had ever been in swedish service. On another occation he held a full court of law trial against the corpse of another sub-commander that had failed and died in a skirmish.
Tactically brilliant, but also a bit of a looney :)
He really was something, brilliant tactician and strict disciplinary.
@@goosfraba2948 Thanks for mentioning that.
German "Your General is crazy."
Swede "yes."
German "So why do you follow him?"
Swede "He keeps winning."
Not sure were you found those tall tales about Torstensson but true they are not
Not a shred of evidence exists that he was 'touched' I.e a bit insane.
Commanders in early 30 years war: "Modern war ought to be fought with well disciplined infantry. Cavalry based armies are relicts of the past"
Commanders in later 30 years war: "I am speed"
Gotta go fast!
Had a CO (US Navy) who loved the phrase "Speed is Life."
Nope, every early commander in the war believed in combined arms tactics and invested heavily in raising expensive cavalry as cavalry was still very important due to its unique combination of mobility and shock. Used in the right moment even a few squadrons could wreck entire brigades.
@@Vonstab Well, that was just a joke but of course you are right :)
Although, I found interesting that proportions between numbers of cavalry and infantry changed so much.
@Aleksa Petrovic
Dragoons.
I really believe, that the breaking of little squares is the most satisfying sound ever😂
I've been pavlov-trained by K&G
I want that sound in Total War and Europa Universalis.
@@eduardochiscuet3146 Come back and tell us when it's finished!
@Eric Kim we know
@@letoatreides5165 and that's why we like it
And the only way to assassinate someone is a spinning dagger.
"A good moment to show his disobedience"
LMAO
That is where a true commander shows his power. Gotz needs to be sacked and replaced on the spot.
However when you have such a disorganized army you cannot leave it again and again ... you have to be present.
@@andraslibal It ain't as simple as you think, when the men fighting are not really loyal to you but more loyal to the guy you want sacked. You run the risk of having half your army desert on the spot or worse, kill you right there.
Some time later: gets killed by Swedes because of disobedience
feel really bad for Von Hatzefeldt, He did everything he could with his numbers and disobedient/incompetent commander's.
Depends, maybe his Commands were unclear?
I mean he could have come out of that battle bloodied but still standing if he would have been clear/overseen the re-taking off that Hill.
Naturally the Bavarian Cavalry could have also been FAR more decisive if they wouldnt have plundered... but alas, that is the big issue with mercenary armies and undisciplined forces that arent used to fighting together on a large scale.
Throughout history there have been many forces that were great on an individual or skirmishing level (with just several dozens to hundreds of people involved), but showed to be lacking in coordination on a large scale battle. (of several thousands.)
@@superspies32 that has been done by many other commanders or troops, it was done by the crusaders against Saladin troops, but I don't remember the name of the battle
I really dislike dumb commanders and this video was full of them. fuuuuuuu
Looting was big mistake since age of time
@heilige Einfalt that one yes, if conrad of montferrat was there I think is that battle
"The wives of the swedish officers were captured here, including Torstenson wife".
Swedes: "So, you choose death!".
They did not have the time to properly rape them. Oops, officers wives were not raped at that time, the habit started in the 20th century.
Ahh the ethical standards of the sixteen hundreds. I remeber an old Danish army bulletin from that era, forbiding on pain of death, the rape of virgins, women in the late stages of pregnancy, women in birthing bed, the elderly, the infirm and livestock.
@Ger Many Raping is SOP for islamics.
I wish I was looking at it right now.
@@silafuyang8675 They're not Wallenstein
Just imagine a tv series set in the 30 years war. You'll have a large battle every 1-2 episodes. So much source material. I'd love it.
@@Validboy You can insert women if you want rather easily. It doesn't need to be completely historically accurate (otherwise it is a documentary). Plenty of ways to insert women, at the court of France or Vienna, a love interest during the campaign, maybe some intrigues at home while the husband is away campaigning, ...
Gotta say: Every other K&G episode is like
"The broke the lines, Decisively gaining the upper hand!..." YAH! Alright! They may win this
"...And then they began looting the baggage train" GOD DAMN IT.
T.S. Millar always the fatal flaw of looting the baggage train 😂
Saved Antigonus’s Campaign.
Genghis Khan approves this tactic
WTF is with looting destroying cohesion and battle plans all the time ...
first win the battle. Then loot. How hard is that to understand.
@@andraslibal It's actually not hard to understand the looting. After the battle is won, the commanding officers will take control of the enemy baggage train and divide it as they see fit. A common soldier didn't exactly get a whole lot (Which is not necessarily because of the greed of their superiors; There's many to share with in an army), but if they get the chance to personally take what they want, there's an excellent chance that they will be able to keep at least some of the good stuff, such as valuables, good food or better equipment.
A soldier that is on the winning side and survives doesn't necessarily benefit. A soldier that is able to loot and survive, regardless of winning or losing, stands to become significantly wealthier in an instant.
You have to remember that most soldiers of almost any kind were not rich. If they were ever going to make bank, it was with loot.
What a complicated terrific battle. Wow. No wonder I've never really understood what happened. Turns out discipline matters. Who would have thought?
Jankau was probably the most important battle of this war phase. Sice then the Emperor knew the
hope of victory is lost and he has begun negotiate for peace.
15:50 "It's over, we have the high ground!"
"You underestimate our power."
@@superspies32 they definitely underestimated the power of the Swedish side.
"you underestimate the shininess of are baggage train!"
I have always wondered why Jankau is hardly ever mentioned. It any battle can be said to decided the long 30-years war it's Jankau, not only was yet another Imperial army annihilated, The loss of the experienced Bavarian Cavalry made further Bavarian resistance against France hopeless. After Jankau the war continued to settle how much Habsburg would have to offer for a peace, to turn the tide was now beyond Imperial resources.
Btw Lennart Torstensson was a very interesting man, He was military prodigy and favorite of Gustavus. Colonel at 26, General and commander of the artillery at 29, playing key roles in the kings victories. 1632 he was captured and spent a year in a dank dungeon in Ingolstadt. This afflicted him with gout and utterly ruined his health, he still continued to serve in the army as well as he could. His actions at Wittstock and Chemniz was critical to Johan Banér the new Swedish commander in chief victories but in 1640 Torstensson retired from the army due to his illness and joined the Council of the Realm. Not a year later Banér died. The Council appointed Torstensson as his replacement, despite Torstensson's own objections. He had the misfortune of having the army's absolute confidence, while also being part of the Swedish high aristocracy and thus unlike foreign generals in Swedish service unquestionable loyal. Despite frequently having to be carried on a stretcher because the pain was so severe that he couldn't ride, he quickly made his mark on the war. He was a master of maneuver warfare and destroyed two Imperial armies simply by boxing them into desolated land decimating them through starvation and disease. In 1642 he crushed the Imperials at the second battle of Breitenfeld, In 1644 he was ordered to conquer Denmark so he did, and a year later he wrecked the Imperials at Jankau. Year after year he asked to be relieved which didn't happen until 1646, He died 1651. 48 years old.
Too bad no one told the Bavarian cavalry that resistance was hopeless since they were beating up the French at Allerheim in August 1645 despite being destroyed ;)
7:00 Hill 554 sounds like a battle location from WWII, like Hill 113 (in Normandy).
Yeah, I also was surprised
Lest we Forget
Tells you what kind of war the 30yrs War was, doesn't it.
(Btw. there were also a lot of those key hills in WWI, like Hill 60)
Does it denote the height? Although that sounds pretty tall to be lugging artillery up. Of course metric units weren't a thing at that point so it could be through a different measurement. Imperial? Not sure what many European countries might have used prior to the metric system.
@@mjwoodroff8446 It most likely is height - if you look on the map of the area, it is 540-570 meters above sea level on the hilltops, while the low area is around 500, so those are hills, but no Alps, not sure about the exact measurement, because it seems modern maps do not have the same numbers, so it is possible some older historical source used military map to describe the area with current measurements and since that the names of the hills stayed that way despite beeing few meters off the actual height.
Its not like we don´t have a a name every other hill thats barely noticeable, it is just that a lot of those names is unoficial or not important for military maps.
Looting the enemy camp seems lke the second most common sign that one side is about to lose the battle. (1st as killng envoys)
Especially the cases where the guys looting the camp just up and leaves the army afterwards.
The worst cases must be when one group plunders their allies camp and then just runs away.
Also a good indicator is when the baggage train of an army seems more like circus caravan or a giant royal ball on wheels.
or chasing retreating cavalry.
That was one hell of a nail biter. The battle ranged all across the countryside, to the point where it's amazing how the forces managed to stick together.
And once again, one of the decisive moments is when the cavalry stopped to loot the baggage train.
I can only imagine the 1,000 yard stare someone who fought in this entire war from start to finish would have.
no one would have that, the war was really three wars. One with the Bohemians, One with the Platatanate, and this one with the French and Swedish. And soldiers get taken out of war quickly
James Kowanko there are examples of soldiers that fought in all of them, mercenaries go where the war is
@@jameskowanko7574 There is in fact someone, 'Peter Hagendorf' a mercenary who fought in the War, apparently for it's entire duration, or at least the vast majority of it and lived to tell and write down the tale.
@mr_ anheuser By chance do you know where a copy would be available I tried looking on Amazon just now and couldn't find it.
There were a handfull Finnish cavalry men who fought against Poles in 1605 and still went to war against danes in 1655, 50 years later.
I don't understand why Torstensson does not get more publicity. Much of the modern artillery tactics developed by the Swedes under Gustavus Adolphus was due to Torstensson himself, who was a key figure in all of the king's early campaigns. Combined with his amazing personal military successes, I think Torstensson has a case to be remembered as the greatest military commander/soldier of the 30 years war.
The same reson Subutai do not get credit, both where totaly loyal to there King and did fight in his kings name.
He is also quite fascinating because since he became commander in chief only out of necessity. He was invalided from gout as a prisoner of war. His stellar military reputation and being part of the council aristocracy made him the only option for the Swedish government. Sometimes Torstensson's gout pain was so severe he couldn't ride so his soldiers had carry him on a stretcher. Year after year he wrote letters begging to be replaced while he delivered one victory after another until he was replaced 1645. He died 6 years later a mere 47 years old.
@@Jauhl1 if anything that speaks of his character. He doesn't want to be there, shouldn't be there either, but he keeps delivering his best for his nation. And "his best" just so happens to be a string of victories for the Swedish cause
Remember guys even though were stuck in doors atleast were not killing each other *FOR 30 YEARS*
War would be more exciting than this tbh
Not yet.
@@HeyImLucious Right
Sitting in a bed and not knowing when you can work again or sitting in a bunker not knowing if the war will destroy humanity or just all of your loved ones
@@ertvonzukonigvonrahm835 l think he ment renaissance or medieval war not modern
Wait till you learn about the 100 years war
Finally, I really like this period of European history. Thanks, KnG!!!
Man those videos were mad interesting before quarantine. Now they are pure gold
With all this back and forth, I remembered why I hated studying the Thirty Years War
I remembered why I freaking love it. Each battle is literally a soap opera
@@Dragons_Armory You got that right. But when you're going to be graded on your knowledge of the goings on, you do not want to get involved with AS THE HABSBUGHS BURN" or maybe it's just a case of Stockholm syndromm
Oh God, I'd guess reading about this battle, I mean reading reports from people on the field and translating to a map would be a nightmare. Thanks guys for the work! This has been an extraordinary chapter, the movements, the logic behind it, awesome.
In a short time, this channel quickly became one of my most favorite channels on youtube, thanks for this wonderful content
I appreciate these!! Not going to lie...Since this outbreak virus happened, ur channel has kept me going from home haha.
Stay in :-)
France : '' Soo... at least we're safe from any disease, right ? ''
Plague : '' ...'bout that(!)'
You re joking on this kind of subject !!!!
What kind of human being are you ?
Would you sacrifice your elderly for dollars ??
I thought you were talking making a parallel to coved 19
@@jack.charlesc4750 *b'ruh!*
11:18 I don't know why but the forced conversion of the Imperial artillery was so damn satisfying.
Wololo
Can we agree that up is north? Or if motion sickness is still the goal here, then at least include a compass?
Yang M I agree. Doesn't help that sometimes the animation and narration are utterly backwards.
The map and animation could be a lot better but Jankow was a messy and unusally mobile battle. They have simplified it in several places to make it more managabel
A compass rose on the map would be REALLY helpful.
There was a compass.
@@cray1727 Only visible in the very beginning, rather than remaining in frame so that you still have a reference.
One huge difference is that Gustav had the ability to rally the Germans behind him even Catholics who was willing to tolerate. The Lion of the North was the only figure capable of uniting the Germans in this era.
Ha! That was tricky! I managed to finish my video before you uploaded yours! Now I can enjoy the battle and slowly set up the description. Perfect timing :D
How have i as a Swede not heard of this battle? Bloody glorious!
Saved my Sunday, thank you
The High Ground didn’t save the Imperials...
Not against artillery and professional soldiers, you should know that Napoléon ;)
Vive le empereur!.
Austerlitz sweet memories...
@Trz Probably on his way to Paris after he got his ass handed to him at the "EPIC" Battle of Nations .
@Trz
*Execution of possible heirs to the French throne, suppression of the press, the Continental System*
Well, he's all right...
Czechs:okay guys we have named many hills we ran out of names for that one
Some random kid:hill 554
Czechs are basically slav germans smh
Although this battle was in today's Czech republic and not in Germany ;)
@@appleslover Protektorat Böhmen und Mähren, Oberlandratsbezirk Beneschau, Jankau
@Garrim Gyr "1st Deutschen Reich called Holy Roman Empire - the only and true heir of the pagan Roman Empire."
That's just ridiculous
@Plamen Stoev Yeah, I believe the ERE inherited more of Rome's administrative and military traditions. I wouldn't say the Greeks were Romanized, more like the other way around, though. Some Roman historian (Livy?) said something about how Rome conquered Greece, but Greeks conquered Romans or something.
Religiously though, I think the ERE had more in common with the Roman Empire than the HRE. Orthodoxy in the ERE had less authority than the Emperor, as Christianity did in the Roman Empire, while the HR Emperor was often subordinate to the Pope, and when he wasn't, well one of them had to go beg the Pope for forgiveness (Lay Investiture). Not to mention that the name of the HRE was created to spite the ERE and because at the time the ERE was ruled by an Empress, so the Pope decided that the Roman emperorship was "unoccupied" and crowned Charlemagne Roman Emperor.
You could argue, though, that the Catholic church is the successor of the WRE.
@@appleslover Yes this is a shorter version of Czech republic.
Last time I was this early, Frederick was still Elector of the Palatinate.
The Father of Prince Rupert of the Rhine. The Protestant Frederick. The former "Winter King" of Bohemia. Of the House of Wittelsbach.
David Chicoine
The British monarchy is descendant from the Frederick, elector of the Palatinate. His daughter’s son was George I and he was made king of Britain.
"But not everything was so simple." It's the 30 years war, NOTHING is simple.
thanks as always for the content you bring. They are done very well and thoroughly. I wanted to advise you to add to the series of videos something about the battles of medieval and Renaissance Italy for example: legnano, cortenuova, parma, fornovo, agnadello etc ... however excellent as always.
Me : Cannons are turning blue......
K&Gs: Bad news for the Imperial army.
Love this series!! I hope you keep making videos of the 30 years war 💪🏼
Lennart Torstensson hasn't gotten the military appraice as he should. He was basically a northern Caesar.
Having watching all episodes so far (liked & subscribed) this period of warfare seems extremely dangerous for senior commanders... no sitting 5 miles behind the lines in a luxurious chateau sipping cognac.
Any chance of doing more videos featuring the excellent Turenne.
This is def filling a gap in my history knowledge. Bravo
Love this series, looking forward to the next video!!
At least someone loves it :D Soon!
Hatzfeldt's order to attack the right flank of the Swedish army was a very smart tactical move. If it was successful, the Bavarians could have captured the whole artillery division on hill 537 and used it to shoot back at the Swedes. After that they could even attack Tortensson from the back. It was always some incompetent subordinate that was more interested in looting than killing.
Torstensson was an excellent commander! Not only did he conquere much territory for the empire. He also trained Gustavus adolphus nephew, (the future warrior king of Sweden Charles X) in the art of war.
My opinion is that Torstensson is the greatest Swedish commander in our history. NB he understood the importance of field artillery, logistics and due to his illness indirect leadership. He did also mastered the artillery reforms after the Polish war just before the entry in the 39 years war and was for a period Governor General over Western Sweden.
Hatzfeld knew how to maneuver his forces & needed more commanders like Suetz (no idea how to actually spell his name, at 11:00). I do wonder if Hatzfeld' orders were misinterpreted because of him or his commanders.
Suys. Yeah, Imperial commanders were incredibly catty.
Hatzfeld was a competent commander but had probably been promoted beyond his abilities. He went from colonel to field marshal in just 3 years and had no time to gain experience as "middle management" before having to command an entire army at Wittstock. He did not do well but improved a lot between them and Jankow. His big problems at Jankow was Götz and the fact that Torstensson was simply a superior commander with a better command team.
@@Vonstab Thanks. Hardly a strong point in my knowledge, appreciate the further info.
@@Vonstab sources criticize his tendency to go away from the army to conduct little missions, but overall claim that he was competent
@@KingsandGenerals Spot on, he too easily slipped back into being a regimental commander who managed only a few units. Probably why he did better in small battles such as Vlotho when he only had to manage 6000 men.
Good video K&G's, and the war continues, great series
How funny is it that i finished reviewing the 30 years war yesterday?!! :-D What a coincidence cheers for this upload quality as always just extra surprising!
i rarely shook my head for a whole video. this is one of them.
Excellent video!!!!!
Great job, your work is admirable! I think only the time you need to find all these maps, strategies and finally synchornize all these togetehr to an amazing peace of art!!!
Yess! Always happy to see 30 Years War content.
Glad to see more 30 years war videos!
Even in video games like Darkfall that I have played years ago, some battles were lost there because people were looting the dead while others were still pushing the "deafeated" enemy, only for that enemy to reorganize, kill the obedient ones that kept chasing, and then come after the looters also :)
The interesting thing is that the motive for looting is the same as well, getting to pick your choice before anybody else can lay claim or demand fair distribution. Quite the interesting analogy to real life that I'm quite sure the game devs didn't necessarily try to create.
Hi! I'm a fan of your videos, and I absolutly love your t-shirt! But even if I love them, I'd love to see t-shirt of other peoples like Condé, Richelieu, Gustav Adolph, or Aetius. It would be awesome!
Love from France guys
Brilliant presentation as usual and very informative as well !
Love this series, such an interesting time period! Great video once again. :D
I've watched this whole series just today and my professional historical period is that this war is a clusterfuck.
That is the scientific term
When they got near the baggage train, i totally knew they will start looting and be killed by a counter attack, i guess i learned something after all those videos.
Nice job as always.
This is one of your best series.
I love you, guys)))) Thank you for your job!!!
thx for this, love your works!
Awesome video. Keep up the good work
Great series! I really enjoy it!
Wonderful job Kings and Generals.......An overlooked time period in European history
Best series on the channel
this is your best series
I still expect for the most important moment in the 30 years war.
The Peace of Westphalia.
No General, no King, no Prophet, No Pope, no Leader or Emperor would be more powerfull than man-made letters in a paper.
Very fitting for an Enlighted world, since the peace granted made professionals and specialists to be authorities, and ushered a world where kids of that time, like a 6 years old Isaac Newton, would change all of our understandings about the world.
@@TheLocalLt Westphalia ended a war (two actually), but it laided an important ground.
The idea that law matters, an abiding to is for everyone. Sovereignty of another nations was beyond your wishes, and while we see kings and emperors defying it once and a while, just the stand make a mark
Without that, the ideia of science would never take off. Some numbers and rules could not defy Pope or emperor.
@@TheLocalLt Yes The reformation was a major step to it, but ultimately the reformation was still under the Bible. You can say that the word of god was still important on that matter.
Westphalia tough, was signed despite the hate of the Emperor and the Pope. It was based both outside the Religious and Royal authority. It was made by diplomats, bureaucrats, merchant guilds and what can be called the civil service of states.
The act of drawing lines, in a kind of secular way, with the backing of common man, when something like that happened before? Magna Carta? Religious authority was crucial. Anglicanism? Royal authority did that. Reformation? Still a religious dispute.
@@TheLocalLt I agree with you.
@@TheLocalLt There's a book called "World Order" by Henry Kissinger who goes over the later importance of the treaty of Westphalia has in the later centuries, including now.
Couldn't attack because WINTER IS COMING, you say?
Sounds familiar...
intense.... awesome work, guys
Love your channel
I believe to this day that the 30 years war was a missed opportunity for Assassins Creed when it was still Assassins Creed. We need more Video games, movies and series about the topic. Such interesting and epic historical dramas we could have had.
Never actually read this anywhere but I have to imagine that one of the reasons for the high cavalry ratios late in the war was the sheer number of garrisons requiring men. Hard to have a lot of infantry when they're all being left in cities and forts. Easier to do that at the beginning when there hadn't been a generation of war.
5:23
March West?
You mean East?
Nice catch. Error alert!
When you are out names ,
People : how about we just name it hill 537?
Other person : it's a cool name
A great video! You keep a very high standard doing the Thirty Years War justice, thumbs up! :D
And here is an unnecessary fact bonus, in Sweden we call it The Battle of Jankov ^^
Best channel on TH-cam
Don't forget the Habsburg 's signed the Peace of Westphalia when the dutch cut the trade rout of for the biggest part of the empire at the end of the war, they destroyed the Spanish fleed for the first time. That's also the start of one of the biggest admirals ever lived Michiel de Ruyter where Horatio Nelson learned the most of.
9:12 As a supervisor in the civilian world, I totally understand what that was like. "Where the Hell is he? I told him to stay put!" And then the worker that didn't stay put argues with you. Grrrrr......
Always loved your videos, if you dont mind me asking what's the name of the track between 6:03 to 7:00
I've been watching the thirty years war series recently, a question has been bothering me ---- How can Swedish and French supply such large army so deep inside enemy territory? How can imperial army supply their large army from this war razed land?
Pillaging mostly thats why do many civilians died
Wow this battle was amazing!
I guess the siege of Brno (Brünn) is the next? :D
Anyway, a really good video.
Greetings from Czech Republic!
Amazing series!!
Man i Just love the 30 y. war videos so great
Hi the gameplay you show in this video where is it from? Is it a mod, if so what one?
I love your videos continue your great work could you do more roman videos
5:22 -- Small mistake there I think, as it should be "move east" and not "move west". Unless the map was wrong and not the narration.
If you don't mind me asking, what app are you using for your animations? They are really good!
The fact that the term ’campain season’ was used like football season is today is just insane.
This whole war is one big ping pong match.
And every time the ball touches the table or rackets, thousands of people die.
@@michaelt.5672 exactly
whats the track at 15:00? would highly appreciate it.
This series is great
Is there a place to go for info on artillery during this time? Was it sorta like Napoleonic era artillery but just a lot heavier?
Griffin Gasink Swedish artillery tactics and equipment were generally lighter than continental, so it was more the predecessor to Napoleonic.
Ok, I'm half way though and this is driving me crazy. You have your east and west backwards. If north is on top, left is west, right is east. 7:48 Chapel hill is in the south east, not the south west. 9:07 same thing. 10:45 these woods appear to be north east, not south of Nosakov. There are other points as well.
Great. nobody cares except for you.
The Fall of the Holy Roman Empire is starting to reveal its crack
I've never really read up on the 30 Years War - thank you for this series!
*peers* How could the ranking officers get commands interpreted incorrectly, not once, but TWICE? I mean, the scouting party was one thing and that guy paid for it, but come on, couldn't they have checked to see how many were on that hill before committing near the entire force???
And then they couldn't even make the guns they captured useful. Ten guns! I mean, what the hell.
Could you make a vid for The Greek War of Independence?
They will. As a part of the Ottoman wars series
Ok...👌