Jan Žižka: One of the Greatest Generals in History
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 5 май 2018
- / history_uncovered
Jan Žižka was a Czech military commander during the medieval Hussite Wars of (1419 - 1436) that took place in central Europe.
He is remembered by his introduction of war wagons into medieval warfare: a mobile armored cart that allowed him to defeat much larger and better equipped forces on the battlefield.
Also, his ability to defeat professional armies leading peasants, farmers, and poorly trained militia allows him to be considered one of the greatest military commanders in history.
Music:
The Descent: Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Fun fact. When Zizka died his final order to his men was to skin his body and dry the skin to create war drums out of his own hide so he could lead his men into battle even after death...what a badass.
Now that's dedication
Josiah Siska Šiška, Žižka close enough
Never heard about, could be just rumor to slander him as barbarian, as pagan. Many cruisades Vatican sent to Czech (Bohemia) kingdom to surpress the upheaval of those who raised after John Hus, priest and university teacher in Prague who criticized catholic church representatives living in wealth, selling indulgances (to cancel sins if one pays) was burnt at stake.
Never heard about this. Source?
@@bernardoheusi6146 I am Czech and this (anti-hussite crusades) is common knowledge found in basic school history textbooks. Yes, Czechs were rebelians, perhaps because the religion was originally forced on us with sword, even though we had our own world view derived from Vedas, some local names speak still about such past, because they speak to us in sanscrit. Source? CZech textbooks and maybe wiki: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hussite_Wars
RUclips Recommendations did something right this time...
Hello have you watched Kings and Generals Hussite Wars. They show Zizka in battle
@@brrrrrtenjoyer That's why I'm here. Ever since that video I've been interested in Zizka.
They are very interesting at times indeed
Modern soldier: " I can disassemble and reassemble my rifle blindfolded."
Zizka: "That's fine. Hold my beer and watch THIS."
Video; "Zizka never lost a battle."
Me; "Wow! Why have I never heard of him?"
Video; " he lead peasants and poorly trained militia against professional knights and soldiers."
Me; " That's why!"
Rogue Raven I don’t get it
@@MattieK09 you dont want to be known as looser against peasants.
Rogue raven, i think it has to do with the latest century, being under communist controll, erasing such feats from the national narrative. It's my best guess.
@@AwoudeX The communists in Czechoslovakia, actually used Žižka and the hussites as a propaganda for its military.
"Poorly trained" is a bit of a lie. He trained them, and trained them well.
Leading troops to battle while wholy blind and decisively winning each time? Wow, that's something really amazing!
With fewer numbers as well...
and with a lesser quality army...
Actually Žižka not only lead them, he actually fought in every single on of his battles, Husiti even had a warcry/ warsong “Kdož sů boží bojovníci” when they sang it the crussaders shat themself and ran away
That's something you don't see everyday :D :D
Yeah .... don't buy all of it ; )
Jan Žiška was the name of a Partizan unit in WWII in Yugoslavia. In northern Croatia lives a Czech minority,they were members of the unit
This man was undefeated in battle, invented the tank, fought on after going completely blind, led peasants to victory against professional armies, and after death demanded he be made into a war drum... ABSOLUTELY GLORIOUS
his blindnes activated his third eye. actually he saw whole batllefield like "online from satelite". therefore his orders were flexible, timed and exact. at that time noone was able to defeat him, there people around Prokop the Bold poisoned him.
He didn't really invented tank as first person, because Da Vinci invented something like tank before him, but the truth is that Jan Žižka was the first who started using tanks in battle
@@examplenameyoutube Da Vinci was born in 1452. Zizka died in 1424 so Da Vinci was not around before him. Also the armored wagon was less a tank and more like a mobile fortress. Zizka had fought in Grunwald 1410 against the Teutonic Knights and understood that castles were pretty much the only defense against mounted knights.
But Zizka did pioneer the use of field artillery in battle. He also reformed the military by bringing in a top down military command structure (that had been around with the Romans but was more or less forgotten) and bringing in strict rules of engagement.
Though one can say at the battle of Malesov he kind of used the wagons like tanks. Zizka was being pursued by another army which outnumbered his forces but when he came to Malesov - there was a river on one side and a small town with a hillside. Zizka and his forces arrived there and took up position on the hill. Then they loaded up several wagons with stones and released them on the attacking army and completely taking them by surprise. His men then drove them in to the river. Basically the battle was pretty much won once they took the high ground and surprised the enemy.
“Beat my skin into drumheads for the Bohemian cause.”-Ziska’s last words. The pure patriotism and love of country expressed with them almost brings me to tears.
the husites were nationalist before nationalism was invented.
It was more strong believe in living at the end of history, anticipating imminent 2nd coming of Christ to the Earth and the final judgment... eg. powerful religious faith. Which was shared by all radical hussites. Demonstrates how strong faith can give you almost superhuman strength.
The Hussite wars are so interesting for anyone who studies history, especially military history.
totally agree, bad ass knights, bad ass guns and OPwar wagons ofc :) , there a movie coming out in 2021 should be gooood, cheers
@@davidkubik537 that movie will be probably nonsense to true history of Žižka.
@@josefmalar1829 and the movie was great and historical.
After Žižka's death Taborites renamed to sirotci [= orphans]. To make others know that he was like their father.
*Orebité/Orebites renamed to Sirotci
Ne, vychodoceští orebité se tak přejmenovali, protože je Žižka ke konci svého života vedl. táborité zůstali pořád tábority. Žižka sice jednu dobu byl generálem táboritů, ale v čele táboritů byli kněží, konkrétně Prokop Holý.
Am I the only one it has occurred to that by organizing his wagons into a column and firing along the broadside while on the move at Kutná Hora Jan Žižka basically invented the line of battle tactic using his war wagons 80 years before it would first be used for naval vessels?
Man’s revolutionary.
There is a reason you say howitzer and pistol. You can thank Zizka for that, sort of. Those words are originaly czech and got spread because of the worlds very first manual of battle tactics, millitary organisation and logistics, called Bellifortis. Mainly developed during the Hussite wars, later translated to german and got spread all over europe. And Hussite waggon tactics can easily be applied to early cannon ships. This book was a millitary bestseller at the time, so maybe some naval guy read it :) You remamber that one time in history at Cannae when Hannibal used the naval tactics learned at battle of cape Ecnomus, used it on land and killed the shit out of 8 legions..
There is a certain genius to this tactic that isn't readily apparent from a modern perspective. While organizing your wagons in a column may seem obvious to us this is only due to our familiarity with modern naval tactics, as at the time Zizka lived there were no other types of troops with which this sort of maneuver would even be possible given the enemy would simply use the opportunity to envelop and crush the column from either flank similar to what Hannibal did at Cannae. What made this maneuver possible was the firepower of the war wagon's broadside to repel enemy charges and the protective walls that nullify any that make it through the line of fire. The flanks of the war wagons are practically invulnerable, rather its their front and back that are vulnerable to being overrun, so it would be crucial that Zizka keep his wagons held tightly in line from front to back to present the enemy with a single impenetrable wall. Had Zizka been a more traditional thinker he would have organized his wagons in a wedge, which would have likely nullified the effectiveness of his broadside fire and resulted in his formation being overrun due to the increased number of vulnerable forward profiles presented to the enemy. With a column however all he has to do is secure the first and last wagon, and the rest of the line will take care of itself. Its simple yet surprisingly brilliant, and entirely unorthodox for the time.
Well, it worked because his enemies had no artilery of their own, mostly rellying on heavy cavarly and man at arms. So they were unable to actualy do anything to brake the wagons apart. Try to give the crusaders few cannons and focus it on one spot. When you brake it in multiple pices, Its over. Waggons, unlike ships, can only fight as a single masive unit, their effectivnes in small formations drops significantly. I also wonder if anyone back then thought of using fire. A medieval version of molotov would do the trick too. You know, heavy cavarly molotov drive by...
+Tokrus They did have ways to treat wood back then that made it more difficult to burn, thats how wood was used effectively in simple castles and fortifications.
There's not enough contents on the Hussite wars. I'm happy to see this.
there is enough of it but mostly in czech.
there is lot of wrong understanding about žižka even here in czech republic.
And last, but not least... Yes you correctly mentioned the usage of peasants and women, but frankly, thats more of a popular fact. In truth Hussites and Žižka had build one of the most orgnized armies in Europe which rellied on professional soldiers of low birth rather than nobles. They invented new military doctrines and Žižka wrote very furst military manual! Very first field book! With advices and instructions. The whole concept is amazing. It was highly professional army, with heavy footmen, light harass footmen, heavy halberds and light pikes. Gunnery platoons and cannon bateries! Hell Czech husites invented Howitzers. Its Czech invention "Houfnice* cannon against infantry houf (crowd). Hussite military manuals were so popular, that after the Hussite wars, Reutonic order purchrased several of them from czech nobles. Even Pope had it all writen down in one book whike he was trying to figure out why five crusades failed against such small army.
Hussite specialists were hired even in England and by Sigismund of Luxemburk against Turks with succes!
Swiss pikes are next evolution of this. Hussites used organized line infantry and peasants as support. They had their own knights and heavy cavalry, and very good light cavalry " Honci" (Chasers or Hounds).
Firs line formed by heavy pavesemen, followed by heavy pikes and halberds with light polearms as support in 3rd line and Harcíři (Harass infantry) light infantry in rear for flanking. All with supporr of pavese crossbows and guns wit artilery.
So no... They were not unwashed peasant militia. They were called like that by high born crusaders and lords because of their birth class. They certainly didnt fight like peasants.
One of the less discussed aspects of Hussite's success si that they really sorted their troops based on skill and experience rather than born status.
díky za připomenutí jak vznikl germánský Hund, ze slovanského Honec.
hi, tried to find that Zizkas military manual, no hits on the internet.. can you tell where to check it out, diky cau
@@davidkubik537
Hledej: Žižkův vojenský řád. Try google it up. Original should be in national archive or museum. We used to transcript it from medieval letters to modern czech at the university.
You gave me a good education. Than you very much. I knew some,but now i know more
Takes the phrase "I can beat you blind folded" to the next level. XD
"But tell me, why is Comrade Žižka holding such a... little carved branch in his hand? He was no band-master or a priest of sorts. Give him at least a light machinegun, would you?"
"But, but, comrade major, there weren't any machine guns back then!"
"When?"
"Fiftheenth century."
"Fifteenth century? What was, was. Righty-now I am a major."
Indeed I am. I am quoting a classic Czechoslovak film called Černí Baroni (Black Barons). There's a scene where a soldier is painting the picture of Jan Žižka and the Major is asking him about it.
Film? That movie is average, the book is a must read. Written by Miroslav Švandrlík, who himself served in a TP - Technical Battalion. But the book is about PTP - Auxiliary Technical Battalions. They were non-combat units that worked at construction sites, mines, forests, fields etc. It was intended for those physically unfit for regular military duty or those, who were "politically unreliable" - anyone with a college, anyone whose dad had had some kind of wealth or land, criminals, and priests. They were called "black barons" due to their black shoulder boards.
It was basically a modern day slavery that exploited the cheap labour while paying low attention to their well-being. Luckily, they lasted only for a relatively short time - roughly from the communist takeover to the deaths of Stalin and Klement Gottwald (then Czechoslovak president), when the regime began to loosen a bit.
The book is rather light-hearted, describes the TP rather than PTP (black was later used for TP), but you can see some of the pain seeping through. All in all, it has *great* jokes.
Už som sa bál, že tu žiaden komentár o vyrezávanej halúzke nebude :D Ale taký Žižka, čo by gule metal - to by bol heavy metal!
Knihu som nečítal a vrelá vďaka za odporučenie! Na oplátku: husitská trilógia od A. Sapkowského (ak o nej náhodou neviete)
The fact he was blind when he did this makes his achievements even more incredible.
How was he blinded
Thank you so very much for this, Zizka is one of my historic heroes and I love the Czech Republic. I have been to Jan's statue in Prague four times now and I will definitely go again, anyone visiting Prague really should make the effort and climb to go see it. Thanks again.
As somebody who grew up in the Žižkov city quarter, just on the slopes of that hill,I cannot agree more :-) The Vitkov Hill, where the statue stands, is now well inside the city, so besides the historical genius loci it provides a beautiful view :-)
I'm going to see it in Prague in 2 weeks. Thanks for the tip.
Hi Snake, Prague is a fantastic place, there is so many great things to see, and the people are really nice. Hope you have a good time, all the best, Billy.
Billy Jones check out the story of the Czech Legion in WW1. Survivors founded the Czech republic.
Hi Gulf, thanks for the tip, I will do some research on them.
Who was the best military commander in history?
Everyone: Napoleon, Caesar, Genghis Khan...
Me, an intellectual:
Don't forget Alex
@Jacob Zondag pretty much yes
Hannibal
Who was the best military commander in history? The one and only undefeated - Jan Žižka z Trocnova !
@Jacob Zondag does azerbadjan have one or tajikistan and the other stans in the Kaukasus
Žižka probably did not die of plague, but was poisoned. There was no plague that year in Bohemia, plus he was the only one in the entire encampent who died, amidst his fellow warriors, although plague was highly infectious.
I read many theories abouth his cause of death, for example he didnt need to die from poison but could die from Sepsis or from some dissease, also he died when going to battle and after allies strapped him into his horse and when enemies saw that they thought he was ressurected, which caused them to run away
His dad was a no vax
Pana Keje .....bingo!
Thank you for this information. It makes sense. Oliver Cromwell was poisoned also and many others who went against the Catholic church, Mystery, Babylon the great, the Mother of harlots and abominations of the earth.
@@MortalReaver like El Cid when his body was strapped to his horse and made to lead a charge?
Jan Zizka.. The greatest militart leader of all time. Much respect from tiny Finland.
you did also great job against Soviets invvade
🇵🇱🇨🇿 brothers
From: Poland
Poland always had a hard on for heretics
Slava rodu
🇨🇿🇵🇱
@Narex Moravian true we just wanted to stop the corruption in the catholic church and becouse pope had BIG money off corruption he did not really comply with Jan hus
@@squakrock
Catholicism was introduced to Poland by a Czech princess who married a Polish King or Duke a thousand years ago. I am not sure about the timing, but you can look it up in wiki.
Just watched Medieval I never heard Jan Zikaka from here in the uk but I am so interested in this now and his history
Same bro
@@j3lli3s I agree
not trying to be a dick but it's Žižka
I never heard about this man of war. Love the war wagons.
Pozdro, zdravim dla braci CZECHÓW. Polacy - Czesi - jedna rodzina, przez góry podzielona...
❣️
🇨🇿❤️🇵🇱
Zdravim Polaky :) We sent you Zizka to aid you against Germans :)
3:45 Wasn't the first time he made a bid for the Bohemian throne... Hey Henry's come to see us!
Let's see if this theme will be Kingdom come: blind deliverence
Bohemia was a crossbow country & had hand cannons in 1403. We really didn’t see either crossbow or hand cannon in Kingdom Come Deliverance, but it’s because they are way too overpowered.
Feelin pretty hungry
There are Czech words used for "guns" all over the World that are directly tight to Hussites. A Pistola took name from light single man operated "hand gun" called píšťala (flute) @2:16. A howitzer originally houfnitz was a short range "field gun" designed to shoot at "houf" a crowd, herd
, troop of infantry or cavalry @2:43.
wasn't named after the italian city of Pistoia?
@Abu Troll al cockroachistan The wagons were used stationery. The created a wall of them anywhere in the field - it was called "Vozová hradba" in czech or "Wagenburg" in german.
@Abu Troll al cockroachistan Well, if you take into account that in most of the battles the Hussites were wastly outnumbered, they usually didn't attack. You survive the attack of cavalry / knights hidden behind your Wagenburg trying to give them hell and after the attacker loses most of his teeth, you open your Wagenburg and go for counterattack.
@@Janshevik No
And the word 'houf' in turn comes from the German word 'Haufen' which has the same meaning (in addition to 'pile') 🙂
Great video on a fascinating but not widely-known general!
Gave a like the moment I saw Jan Žižka!
Hopefully I did him justice here. :)
Just finished watching the video, and yes, you did an amazing job describing his deeds!
There are now 15 thousand more people who have heard the name of Jan Zizka, one of the few undefeated men in history. I think you did him justice.
Slavic Pride i live in czech republic and live next to the museum of Jan Žižka
Heve you been in Trocnov museum when Jan Zizka bord? It is very nice place.
Great work!
And kudos for having the guts of picking less... "click-bait friendly" topics as well :)
I love how Zizka turned the laager into his mobile fortress concept, as it allowed him to not only guard against attacks but to also launch successful counterattacks. He is, along with Giap, Genghis Khan, Gustavus Adolphus, and Alexei Chuikov, one of my favorite unorthodox generals.
Matthew Kuchinski Did you mean Vasily Chuikov?
Yes, that is who I meant. Thank you very much for correcting me about that mistake.
Think the Boer Voortrekkers using similar rolling fort tactics against the various Bantu tribes is worth adding to your list, as they faced crazy odds
Provocateur Genghis Khan was a conqueror, TED-ED sheds light on it watch?v=Eq-Wk3YqeH4
Basicaly every conqueror was a rapist and a mass murderer.Just look at the death tool against Gauls during Caesar conquest.
That was beautiful. I was moved to tears by his valor.
Jan Zižka z Kalicha ! Je v nás a mi jsme v něm! Kdy umře vojevudce? Až na něho národ zapomene! Nikdy!!!
Václav IV was not german, he was 1/2 luxembourg 1/2 czech
Woth slavic name
Václav IV was king of bohemia, but he held other titles too - The German king was one of them, until he lost it in 1400 (if I remember correctly)- being German king was a first step to become the Holy Roman Emperor. After the election by the princes-electors (kurfursten, kurfiřti) you became the German king, only after a coronation oi Romy by pope (or some archbishop delegated by pope), you can be title the emperor. Karel IV was able, during his lifetime, to ensure the election of his son Václav IV to the position of German king, but Vaclav never did the tour to Rome to be crowned emperor and later was deposed from the German throne for being "lazy and useless" as stated by German nobles.
Did not know anything about this piece of history, thank you.
Thanks and greetings from Czechia :)
"Czechia" is an offensive bastardization of "Čechy" brought to you by the EU overlords.
@@kaiz6606 Most czechs do not like to use "czechia" so they're using czech republic instead
@@kaiz6606 No. Bohemia = Čechy. Czechia = Česko = Czech republic.
@@latindwarf8173
Thanks, J, but I don't need lessons in Czech. Bohemia/n is .. nothing. It is what Romans called the area and inhabitants and is about the same as referring to Beijing as Peking or Deutschland as Germany. Česko is slang for Čechy, which is the proper literate form. It is truncated from Československo when that was relevant. "Czechia" is a recent invention of linguistic ingrates. We know who you are.
Have a pleasant day.
@@jansvoboda4242
Simply "Czech" is fine. The translation came to be regarded as a sort of adjective during the communist dark ages as part of Czech blah blah Republic, but this is not set in stone as in "I am a Czech" it works well enough as a noun and is infinitely more palatable than "I am a Czechian," which is just retarded.
What would be wrong with "Czechy?"
We need detailed schematics of those battles, pls make more material about him.
Felipe Werner Especially Sudoměřice Battle would worthwhile!
The way he used the terrain there is unprecedented ... or maybe with some limited similarity to the battle of Agincourt ... with the difference that the hussites were at the end switching from defensive to attacking mode and the mud which was in both battles incapacitating the knights was acting like a glue-trap ... so the knights were sitting ducks ... being beaten by wave of raging infantry.
ruclips.net/video/2ZQwkX3euFg/видео.html you welcome :)
the are around 92 battles won by žižka, most of them won in miraculous way (which is not publicable). Žižka had activated third eye, so he was able to give orders in realtime. he saw whole battlefiled at once. most known battles are those, which are near to common in the way of winning.
when you numerous times beat the best european units just with farmers and carts.. Hoi
proud to be czech
No škoda že v 38 zaúřadoval Mnichov, to by byla ještě větší sláva :-)
Love your videos because you talk about topics no one else does.
And because it's professional :D
"What a tough Guy......."
Chuck Norris (2009)
From this historical age is Kingdom Come Deliverence. :) Hope Jan Žižka will be in the next game KCD. ...Nice video.
Kutná hora is even mentioned at the beginning of the KCD they are only mentioning it while talking, but its the germanized name (i think it was something like kuttenberg or something like that) KCD doesnt take place that far from there
@@TheNowerianRaven yes but KCD is pre husite boogaloo.
Real Sir Capon was member of antihusites nobility
@@Mirinovic
I hope they broiled him. Capons taste better than hens or chickens, according to my acquaintances.
@@sarcasmunlimited1570 Capone Are castrate Roomster. And meat of adult Animal Are Always stif
Yo this is kingdom come deliverance
More like Kingdom come deliverance 2, since the events showed in the video come a few years latter after the game's ending.
this could be future game from them to be honest
you could meet young Zizka in the sequel that would be awesome.
This is a bit after it. Could make a sequel though
Great work and thanks! But you forgot the Badass part where he told his men (while dying obviously) that they should make a drum out of his skin so he can lead them into battle despite being dead :P
I thought about it, but it's not 100% proven that it actually happened. It might be just a legend.
it is just a legend othing more
wow, I did not know this until now. thank you for this history of this great commander.
What a legend!
Not the legend,but reality!
He was like a father to Chuck Norris.
I would add that Hussites won many battles only by singing Któž jsú boží bojovníci which lead enemy armies to flee the battlefield because they were scared even though they were proffesional soldiers but other than that great video, in a battle of Sudomer a lot of knights actually tried to attack through empty ponds but they got stuck in mud so Hussites with no armor could easily pick them off. Calculated
Michael Zrůst Domazlice ze jo?👍
Michael Zrůst Domazlice ze jo?👍
Michael Zrůst , dafuq "Hussites", to je výraz jak stehno. Máme v Sokolově Husovy sady, to by mohlo bejt jako "Hussades" že jo? No twl
Hussites je správný anglický název pro Husity, ty tatare.
the mighty choir of Hussites surely served to demoralize the enemy before they even laid eyes on them, but I'd be skeptical with "they won only by singing"... it makes a good legend, though
"I may not see my enemy, but I see the light of my victory"
Thank you for posting !
Age of Empires 2 brought me here with the strong hussite wagons and I am so happy about that :D
It's kinda sad that despite all of his winnings he died without achieving the main goal of his comrades, just freedom. Stablishment it's so brutal 😢
Fixundfertig1 Even so the legacy was strong. And it resulted in religious freedom in Bohemia after that and even the “Church of Jednota Bratská” exists till this day (the religious freedom was broken in17th century though) And Sigismund the old King, actually died in the year he finally achieved the royal crown...
The video- story actually did not include the reason why the hussites were so much opposed to Sigismund. Sigismund was originally claiming that he will shield and protect Jan Hus {the religious reformator} if he will decides to go to Constance council in 1415. Jan Hus was invited {as an originally respected dean of university and respected catholic scholar who was now accused of heresy} to defend himself before general church council. Hus didn’t want breakaway protestant church. He wanted reform/restore Catholic church, bus tenants of his faith were under criticism.
Emperor Sigismund made critically important proclamation that he wants Hus defend himself but that he will be under imperial protection.... even so he had completely let Hus to be on the mercy of the tribunal. Tribunal had much less time and attention to Huss’s tenants and defense, than Hus expected {they were preoccupied by papal schism}and they focused only on one point, the point they found faulty on Jan Hus. And gave him strict choice to either reject his doctrine or being excommunicated and executed. He chose the fire of execution. Sigismund did nothing to protect him.... and Hussites broke into open rebelion after that.... lasting for 20 years.
He is also included as one of main characters on one of the most important polish painting (if not the most importatnt) "Battle of Grunwald" by Jan Matejko.
Ahoj z Polski!
It was funny fakt, I know he was in battle of Grunwald in polish side, but after hussites movement Poland as cathoic state supported the Hussites, maybe the king and his nobelmans were scared when they have seen the Hussites attacked the germany states and nord Hungary-Slovakia. European crusading soldiers often fled before the battle, it was enough to hear the Hussite song "Who are God's warriors" in the distance.
@@Hermann3635
Just think what would typical crusaders think and simple conversation:
-These people set a blind men as their commander? Srsly?
-yep. And he never lost a battle even when blinded.
-Bunch of crazies commanded by blind men who never lost, singing about God when into battle?
-Yep. Pissed my pants when i heard of it.
-You tell me... Lets get the hell out of here.
:D
@@witterboo yeah, but also they lost ohly one battle- in Bavaria 9 years after Zizka death. Btw, in this time the czechs are making new big movie about Zizka after 70 years old big trilogy made by communists, main role Ben Foster, next actors Michael Cain or Till Schweiger. What people in Europe dont know is letter from Joan of Arc to hussites in 1430:archive.joan-of-arc.org/joanofarc_letter_march_23_1430.html
id never heard of him, im glad i now have, what a soldier!
Wow....never heard of this Zizka fellow....what a savage....!!!!!!
Great video. It’s nice to see “lesser known” figures and events given some much needed love. Thanks for sharing
Thank you for this little bit of history
0:52 awesome picture !
Thanks for the video. It's fantastic.
yo this will probably be in KCD2 when Henry is a veteran knight
That would be amazing!
The blind badass
We had also blind badass king. He was completely blind. He took his army to France, to fight against the English. When the battle turned against them, he commanded his men to point him to the enemy so he can fight them. When his subordinates protested and pointed out that he should retreat, that the battle is lost, he said: "There shall not be a day, that Czech King runs from battle." With that he dug his spurs into flanks of his horse and charged enemy force.
And this blind badass king was Jan Lucemburský/Johann von Luxemburg and his son was Charles the fourth. King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Empire.
@@themirror8994 Nah.
I knew all about the battles, but nothing aboutr the man, thank you for this
This was very interesting.I didn't know of Jan Zizka I am sorry to say and I should have known about him but didn't.He certainly deserves the title as one of the greatest generals in history.Leading an army while being blind there is no equivalent in history.
Actually, he wasn't the only one who led his men into the battle completely blind in Czech history. King en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Bohemia did the same, although he was not as successful as Jan Zizka.
But his last command was: "Far be it that the King of Bohemia should run away. Instead, take me to the place where the noise of the battle is the loudest. The Lord will be with us. Nothing to fear. Just take good care of my son."
@@keenmate9719 yes Jan Lucemburský was blind. he didnt see. but Jan Žižka did see very wel because of very well working third eye. With it he had online infromations about battle. he was able to give exact orders in time.
A. GODDAMN. BADASS.
My grandfather and his family came from czech in the early 1900s and had a genealogy test and I’m apparently the blood line of Jan zizka’s only son. The last names spelling has been changed through the years and translations of languages but that’s supposedly my great (times a ton) grandfather. Would love to get another genealogy test with new tech to see if it’s really true.
Wait whaaaaat???!!!
Siska means “cone” in Czech... sorry mate but it has nothing to do with Zizka : )
@@volf3D Last names often 'evolve' through misspellings in the documents, and then these versions being considered the new standard, before being misspelled again, and so forth. Happens all the time xD
maan, if that's true, it's a true honor
My Great Grandfather Waclaw Zizka didn't have any brothers, only two sisters, he was born in the late1800s, and moved with his family from Czech in the early 1900s to Bitkow (Ukraine - Poland). He has 3 daughters and one son, Marian Zizka. Marian didn't have any children, he was the last Zizka on earth .......... One of Waclaw Zizka's daughters was my grandmother, Maria Zizka. We have many old family pictures from the beginning of the 1900s ..... My grandmother Maria Zizka went to Prague in 1960 to Zizka Museum and added her family papers to the museum files. She told us that on that trip she ended up in Prague on Sunday and the museum was closed. She knocked on the door until somebody open it. They couldn't believe who she is until they see her documents. She passed away in Poland in the 1980s ...
I love hearing about underrated historical figures.
The Medieval Alexander/Napoleon of his time so it speak which is awesome !
But the main difference is that he never lost a battle while being outnumbered and in tough position many times while Alex lost the battle of Persian Gate, but conquered a massive area of territory which in turn count for nothing because he didn't had the time to administer it properly and his generals were adding fuel on fire with their ambition, while Napoleon led a disasterful champaing on Russia and lost more then half a million man which led to his stage 1/2 end.
Oh and should I mention how he always(like the video mentioned) commanded an army of peasants against Crusaders and professional soldiers/mercenaries while the big two had the same assortment like the latter?.....
So I'd say that he was nothing like Alexander or Napoleon.
+Milan Pavlovic Alexander didn't loose at the battle of the Persian Gate, but he did receive relatively heavy casualties for the number of troops he had present. He was initially halted by a Persian ambush but then managed to outflank and destroy the Persians through a mountain pass, similar to how the Persians won at the battle of Thermopylae but the greeks are still the ones who are remembered because they put up a good fight.
United History Tactically speaking yes. But when you are talking about the people? No, Alexander and Napolean were conquerers while he was just a general
Those were conquerors, Žižka was Just a defender..
Napoleon and Alexander are noobs in comparison to Žižka. BTW. he also led several offences to the Baltic region.
Amazing how some people react different to an arrow in the eye
Harold II Godwinson, King of the Anglo-Saxons dies when receives an arrow in the eye
Jan Zizka only loses its eye but still lives
I would love a video of Don Gonzalo Fernandez de Córdoba aka “the great captain”, that introduced tercios on the battlefield and managed to hold europe for the spanish empir
In Sudomer the situation was a little different than described. The area is full of many fishponds which are specifically there for raising carp. These are drained to collect the fish. So at Sudomer ZIzka set up the wagons (in a semi circle but also more offset in a zig zag pattern rather than end to end, because this makes it easier to setup as well as leave), the ponds on the other side had been drained so they actually looked more like fields but proved to be muddy and attacking cavalry was stuck and the knights were forced to dismount.
thank you, ありがとう🇨🇿🇯🇵
0:56 one of the largest ? It was the largest medieval battle in Europe.
"Hrrr na ně, hrrr na vlky hltavé ........"
Such a great channel. Play this in our public school system somehow.
Waitting to DLC in AoE 2 DE bohemians and Žižka journey :)
Who needs silly knights with their charging horses when you have a couple of 12 year olds with a cannon lol. This guy was awesome, doesn't get enough press.
They were like peasants with improvised weapons but at same time using modern technology like firearms against well equiped german crusaders. Typical tool would be polearm that had hammer pike and hook which peasents were traint smash the knight in face with the hammer pull him of the horse with the hook and finish him offwith the pike in unprotected area.
you mean halberd? :)most of them started with more primitive weapons, like flails or pitchforks
Should make you wonder, shouldn’t it?
Why do normal peasants have that equipment?
Explanation: they were not. They were actually trained soldiers and mercenaries mostly.
The whole myth about the peasants beating nobility and their oppressing armies comes from Soviet history mostly.
@@truckwarrior5944 Its not a myth I have seen those weapons my self. And as i sadi that equipment were farming tools converted into weapons.
@@17MrLeon Sorry but the point you just made only shows that you are not knowledgeable about that time.
Basically every army had converted farming tools. And to top it all off: Those were not the majority of their weaponry.
They mainly used modern guns and artillery. Not something you are likely to find with normal farmers.
@@truckwarrior5944 that's literary what I said. They didn't use just one weapon and one type of soldier your attempt to stereotype Hussites into one individual does not work to describe the history and for the record. I know more than you.
The Hussite wars also marked the earliest successful use of pistols on the battlefield and Žižka was an innovator in the use of gunpowder. The word "pistol" originates from the Czech word "píšťala".
True Czech warrior. My great grandfather was from Kutna Hora
There were more crusades agains Czechs than to Palestine. It's good that Poland didn't take part in them but Poland should support Czechs much stronger.
I don't agree. It was a religious conflict between catholic church and hussites. At the time Poland was catholic. It wouldn't work out... But still, slavs should stay together and defend each others back.
There was strong prohusitian movement in Poland that time - it's reason why Poland haven't joined antihusitian coalition. Husitians were helping Poland in fights against Teutonic Order. Many polish knights were also fighting on husitian site. Husitians even offered Czech Crown to polish king Władysław Jagiełło but he refused. Probably he didn't want to risk open conflict with Pope and Emperor, especially that he was converted pagan, Poland was allied with Lithuania which was presented by Germans as pagan country and Poland had open conflict with Teutonic Order. King would be also excomunicated in the same moment when he would accept Czech offer.
And after death of Władysław Jagiełło Husitians offered Czech Crown to his son and polish king Władysław III but he also refused. All nobles wanted it but catholic church was against it. In my opinion this is one of strongest "if" in polish history.
It would be from Poland like showing middle finger to the Pope. :D
Maybe 30 years war would be sooner and lot of things would be different ... no one can tell
Karel Šlaj Many Czechs were heretics then and Godless now. Not much has changed.
A Great Warrior.
History Ucovered děkuji
The hand-canons of Žižka’s fighters were so small, they were calling them Whistle (Píštala). From here comes the modern word Pistol.
Read, yes read, Fredrick Heymann's biography of John Zizka. It includes an English translation of the Petty Chronicle and gives as detailed account of Zizka's battles as possible. Malesov in particular is fascinating. Much more can be said.
He was totally blind. First eye lost when he was young (not in the Battle of Grunwald), second eye lost during the siege od castle Rábí.
Nice video.
o první oko přišel nejen mladý, ale přesněji jako pěti letý, když bránil svoji matku před znásilněním. napsat, kdo byl násilník, tak bych asi dostal ban a doživotí.
@@josefmalar1829 Můžu se zeptat z jakého to máte zdroje?
@@petrurban2381 ezoterika
@@petrurban2381 pokud Vám ezoterika něco říká, pak youtube Homosignum video o Žižkovi. informace z toho videa dosud jinde nezazněly.
@@josefmalar1829 To video je jenom snůška nijak nepodložených nesmyslů.
I don't know if he was the first to use "war wagons," but if so, he was also the inventor of what we would call tanks. And your use of illustrations is excellent.
Awesome work. Would really love to see a video on Admiral Yi, another unbeaten general.
Well, now iam happy that someone atleast knows about the history of Czech and Bohemia. I appreciate it, no really i do. Iam a Czech.
Imagine having an army of Peasants, fighting a higher quality and more bigger army that belong to Royalists.
But you win anyway.
Yeah, was a great story the Soviet’s made up for propaganda, wasn’t it? ^^
@@truckwarrior5944 "made up" ?? the fuck are you on about
Holy shit, this guy's badassery is off the charts.
yes, and dont be mistaken, he was not a hero from a fairy tale, he (and "Husité") did really dark deeds. But you see if there is big badass fucker around, you want him on your side.
Finally some exposure of Jan Zizka
An unsung hero.
Greetings from Poland, great commander!
Die Stalin again...
Vlastimil Zlámal *gulag waiting for you*
Jedeš ty potvoro !
Came to YT to search for Žižka and Hussite history since Bohemia was put into AoE 2 as campaign and playable civ.
Thank you never haven't heard of him vary good
Defenestrations!! Good word.
We still use the word,but probably we will need to use it in reality again!
Yes, the favourite hobby of our nation. Sadly, it is not practised anymore, as past 5 parliaments we had could really use it.
I don't think there is another nation fond of throwing people out of windows.
The best commander of the world!!!
Cool video!
This is fantastic stuff
Not bad. He never lost a battle even when he get blind. How he could win when he did not see anything? His subcommanders had to tell him what is going on. But still. Remarkable general.
Obviously.
One of the leaders of the Papal and Imperial forces at the battle of Tachov(1427) was the English Cardinal Henry Beuafort(The Papal legate) Beaufort was the illegitimate son of John of Gaunt who was the youngest son of the English king.He is a character in one of Shakespeare's plays and his death scene is portrayed in one of them.Earlier he had been responsible for the burning of Joan of Arc -compare this with the burning of Jan Hus!The Beauforts were later made legitimate by the pope and formed the basis for the claims of Henry Tudor to the English throne when he defeated king Richard the Third.
Since you mention Joan of Arc - she wrote a letter to the Hussites, threatening to personally lead an army against them.
I wonder if she had won?
Do you mean "would have won"? She never actually went against the Hussites.
If she did, I expect she would join the ranks of other righteous crusaders who believed they could crush the Hussites.
You're right I didn't express myself very well!Had she gone on an anti-Hussite crusade she may have come up against the man who was responsible eventually for having her burnt at the stake -Cardinal Henry Beaufort.By the way do you know about the Lollards -the English followers of Jan Huss?
I didn't know the Lollards, I had to look it up. I did know John Wycliffe, a predecessor of Jan Hus.
It seems the Lollards are mostly his followers, although I just checked Wikipedia.
And he finally got his on personal campaign in Age of Empires 2.
One fun fact more: Jan Zizka had an angry letter from another contemporary famous commander - the French teenager girl... She cursed him from breaking with the one true Catholic church and promised him Rome's forgiveness if he repented and rejoined. If not, she wowed that once she had thrown the Englishmen out of France, she would personally take charge of a crusade against him and his Hussites. And do not imagine that this would have been just another walkover for the Czech one-eyed-and-then-blind one, sub-commanders under her marvelled how good she was not only at firing up soldiers but also in such down-to-earth abilities like deploying artillery and attacking before the enemy had managed to go into a full defensive position.
This teenage girl was Jeanne d´Arc, she was lucky she didn't fight with Zizka, because her army was infantry and cavalery and Zizka had best tactics against them: wagoon and guns 🙂. Husittes army defeat 4 crusaders expeditions and 5th expedition reterat before battle from fear with choral "Ktož jsú boží bojovníci" 🙂.
I’m surprised I’ve never heard of this guy. Jesus Christ be with you friend.😊