Battle of Turaida (1211)
 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (September 2016) |
| Livonian Crusade | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Sword-Brothers Livonians | Oeselians and other Estonians | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Bernhard of Lippe | ? | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | more than 300 battle ships, several thousands of warriors, | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Low casualties | 2,000 killed | ||||||
Battle of Turaida was one of the biggest battles of
Livonian crusade between Estonian tribes and Livonian Brothers of the Sword. The battle took place around modern Turaida, Latvia
.
Battle
By summer of 1211, a larger military plan had been made by
Livs inside agreed to join the Estonians
for the attack on Riga.
Soon after, a large Crusader reinforcement army arrived from Riga with whom a fierce battle began. The Livonian and German
crossbowmen from the stronghold also charged out to join the attack. The Estonian forces were caught between two enemy forces, which made them fall back. They regrouped on a hill between the stronghold and the Gauja river. The battle lasted from morning to night, and eventually the Estonians were forced to surrender and agree to being baptized
. At night, however, they secretly tried to escape to the sea along the Gauja using their ships. Unfortunately for them, the Germans had built a bridge with towers on the river, where they fired upon the fleeing Estonians with spears and arrows. The next night the Oeselians left their ships and broke away using the roads on the mainland.
The Estonian losses were heavy, which was further elaborated in the
Chronicle of Livonia. Approximately 2,000 were killed with nearly the same amount of captured horses and over 300 ships captured as well. These are most likely exaggerations.[1]
See also
References
- ISBN 9985-2-0043-8.
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