austro hungarian empireconcept:era modern

Battle of Grunwald

Name: Provenio Provenance Knowledge Graph
License: https://provenio.art/terms

Oil on canvas by Jan Matejko (1875-1878). One of the largest history paintings in European art (426 x 987 cm), depicting the 1410 defeat of the Teutonic Knights by Poland-Lithuania. Painted during Polish partition as a nationalist assertion. National Museum in Warsaw.

Scholarly Significance

Anchor Polish historical painting with Matejko's Battle of Grunwald.

Notes

·Depicts the Battle of Grunwald (Tannenberg), July 15, 1410 — decisive victory of Poland-Lithuania over the Teutonic Knights.
·Central figure: Grand Master Ulrich von Jungingen dying — Polish victory over German aggression given universal symbolic weight.
·Painted during the partition of Poland; the painting functioned as a nationalist monument.
·Matejko gifted it to the Polish nation 1879; refused to sell to foreign collectors.
·During WWII, Nazis specifically hunted for the painting to destroy it; museum staff successfully hid it in Canada.