The Battle of Mohács, which took place on 29 August 1526, was one of the most pivotal and tragic events in Hungarian history. The Hungarian army under the command of King Louis II Jagiellon faced the overwhelming Ottoman forces led by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. The battle ended in a crushing defeat for the Hungarians, and King Louis II himself was killed while fleeing the battlefield. This defeat marked the symbolic end of the power of the Jagiellonian dynasty and the beginning of Turkish domination in central Hungary, which lasted for more than 150 years.

Participation of Polish troops in the battle

Polish auxiliary troops also took part in the Battle of Mohacz. Some 1,500-2,000 Polish soldiers, including mercenaries, fought on the Hungarian side under the command of Captain Leonard Gnojeński. Their participation in the battle was crucial, albeit tragic - many of them died defending the Hungarian position and the stockade, the defence of which was entrusted to the Poles.

Although it was Leonard Gnojeński's troop that went down in history because of the tragic events of 1526, it is worth mentioning that earlier, in 1521, Polish auxiliary troops under the command of Jan Tarnowski, the Polish Hetman-in-Chief, were sent to Hungary. Among the commanders of these troops were Jan and Mikołaj Zebrzydowski, Lampert Gnojeński and Piotr Suski.

The initiative to commemorate Polish heroes

In 1931, on the 305th anniversary of the Battle of Mohacz, a monument was erected to commemorate the Polish warriors killed in the battle. The initiative had been born a few years earlier and came to fruition in 1929. At that time, on the initiative of Ferdinand Leon Miklós, the Hungarian-Polish Association and the Museum of Military History formed the National Committee for the Polish Monument in Mohacz, headed by Albert Nyáry.

Individuals who were particularly involved in the erection of the monument were also Dr Lajos Margitay, Mayor of Mohács, who supported the initiative logistically and administratively together with his colleagues, and Dr Vilmos Mihályffy, Undersecretary of State.

The monument was placed in the south-western part of Szepessy Park in Mohács. The monument was part of a larger project to commemorate the participation of Poles in the fight alongside Hungarians. The monument was designed by the architect Professor Jenő Lechner (1878-1962) and the eagle sculpture was made by Jenő Martinelli (1886-1949).

Design and description of the monument

The monument consists of a tall column on top of which is a Polish eagle with a golden crown, facing north. On the lower part of the north side of the monument is a plaque in the shape of a shield of arms with the inscription:

1526. AUGUSZTUS 29-ÉN / A MOHÁCSI CSATÁBAN / GNOINSKI LIVHARD / KAPITÁNY / VEZÉRLETE ALATT RÉSZTVETT / ÉS HŐSI HALÁLT HALT / LENGYEL VITÉZEK EMLÉKEZETÉRE //.

Which can be translated as:

"29 August 1526 / in the battle of Mohács / under the command of Captain / Leonard Gnoinski / took part and heroically fell / Polish soldiers / honour their memory".

On the south side of the base of the monument, a fragment of a poem by an unknown poet is engraved on a plaque:

MÉG ÁLL BÁSTYÁNK, AZ ŐS HATÁR: / A TÁTRA. RAJTA A SZENT MADÁR, / A LENGYEL SAS IDE VIGYÁZ, / MOHÁCS PÉLDA LEGYEN, NE GYÁSZ! //. .

Which can be translated as:

"Our bastion, the ancient frontier: the Tatras. Above them the sacred bird, the Polish eagle watches here, Let Mohacz be an example, not a mourning!".

Monument unveiling ceremony

The unveiling ceremony of the monument took place with pomp and with the participation of many distinguished guests. The ambassadors of Poland and Turkey and representatives of the Hungarian authorities were present at the ceremony. "Mohacsi Hírlap" published an excerpt from the Christmas homily of Dr Vilma Gyenis, who emphasised the importance of love for the homeland and the heroic sacrifice of the warriors, both Polish and Hungarian.

Renovation of the monument

The monument survived the Second World War, on a postcard from 1940 we can see that it was not destroyed. However, it deteriorated over time. In 1983, it was restored by workers from Rudostal 2 in Kraków. During the restoration, the limestone plaques were replaced with black stone, which still bears the original inscriptions. A bilingual stone plaque made of grey granite informs of the 1983 work, and the coat of arms of Krakow was also placed in front of the monument. The inscription on the plaque reads:

RESTORED BY WORKERS / RUDOSTAL 2 KRAKÓW / UJJAÉPÍTETTÉK A KRAKKÓI / RUDOSTAL 2 DOLGOZÓI / 1983 ÉVBEN //.

Probably ongoing restoration work has also been carried out in recent years.

There is also a memorial to the Battle of Mohács near Mohács, but it does not directly refer to the Polish participation in the battle. Also in Mohacz itself there is a monument to Louis II Jagiellon, which is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a monument to Vladislav Varna (cf. https://polonica. hu ).