Siege of Kaunas (1362)

Siege of Kaunas
Part of the Lithuanian Crusade
Remains of Kaunas Castle in 2011
Date March 13 – April 17, 1362 Location Kaunas Castle 54°53′56″N 23°53′6″E / 54.89889°N 23.88500°E / 54.89889; 23.88500Coordinates: 54°53′56″N 23°53′6″E / 54.89889°N 23.88500°E / 54.89889; 23.88500 Result Teutonic victory
Belligerents
Grand Duchy of Lithuania	Teutonic Order Livonian Order
Commanders and leaders
Vaidotas	Winrich von Kniprode
Casualties and losses
350 dead; Vaidotas and 36 men taken captive

The Siege of Kaunas was laid by the Teutonic Order on the newly built Kaunas Castle in spring 1362. It was the first brick castle built by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After a month-long siege, the castle was captured and destroyed. Its commander Vaidotas, son of Kęstutis, and 36 others were taken captive. The defeat, followed by the destruction of Veliuona and Pieštvė the following year, severely weakened Lithuanian defenses along the Neman River and opened central Lithuania to Teutonic attacks.

The Teutonic Order waged a decades-long crusade against the pagan Grand Duchy of Lithuania in attempts to conquer it and convert it to Christianity. The Neman River became the natural frontier and each side built a network of castles and fortresses along its banks. Lithuanian fortresses were wooden (Kolainiai, Veliuona, Pieštvė, Paštuva, Bisenė) until they began building stone and red brick Kaunas Castle near the confluence of the Neman and Neris Rivers.

In 1361, the Order sent brother Henry of Schöningen on a reconnaissance mission to find out the size of the new castle so that an effective siege could be organized the next winter. That became the first mention of Kaunas Castle in written sources; the town of Kaunas was mentioned only in 1384. In spring 1362, the Order organized a large campaign with crusaders from England, Italy, Germany and elsewhere. They sailed upstream the Neman, quietly bypassing Lithuanian fortresses, and disembarked below Kaunas. For two days they built bridges and reached the castle on March 13.

The Order dug trenches, built ramparts, and filled the moat with dirt. To protect themselves from Lithuanian attack, the Teutons dug a canal connecting Neman and Neris thus cutting off the castle from the mainland. They also built siege towers and trebuchets and managed to destroy two corner towers. The defense was organized by Vaidotas, son of Kęstutis. The defenders shot arrows, pushed away siege engines, and even managed to build a tower by Neris and fire arrows upon the invaders. This tower was quickly destroyed and pulled down into the river. The knights kept pounding the outer walls provoking the defenders out of the inner walls. The weakened outer wall collapsed burying many defenders and attackers. The Order continued attacking and destroying inner walls, but defenders would quickly repair the damage.

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Wikipedia