Hussite Infantry Crushes Crusaders at Vitkov Hill
Jan Zizka was a one-eyed military genius who had never lost a battle when Crusader forces descended on Prague in 1420. Emperor Sigismund had called the crusade to crush the Hussite religious movement in Bohemia, sending a massive army against the reformist followers of the executed priest Jan Hus. On July 14, Zizka's forces, largely composed of peasants armed with farm implements and fighting from fortified wagon circles called tabors, crushed the Crusader assault on Vitkov Hill overlooking Prague. The victory saved the Hussite revolution and proved that disciplined infantry with innovative tactics could defeat armored knights, foreshadowing the end of feudal cavalry warfare across Europe.
July 14, 1420
606 years ago
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