Battle of Świecino The Battle of Świecino ( named for the village of Świecino , near Żarnowiec Lake , northern Poland ) also called the Battle of Żarnowiec or in German Battle of Schwetz , took place on September 17 , 1462 during the Thirteen Years ' War . The Poles commanded by Piotr Dunin , consisting of some 2000 mercenaries decisively defeated the 2700 mercenaries of the Teutonic Knights commanded by Fritz Raweneck and Kaspar Nostyc . Auxiliary forces sent by duke Eric II of Pomerania , an ally of the Polish king , did not enter the battle . Polish forces . The Polish forces consisted of the mercenaries hired by the Polish king , Casimir IV the Jagiellon and the city of Danzig ( Gdańsk ) . This army included 1000 cavalry , of which 112 were heavy cavalry , and another 1000 of infantry . 1000 cavalry and 400 infantry were mercenaries hired by Polish king , while the rest were units from Danzig . Teutonic forces . Most of the Teutonic army , under the command of Fritz Raweneck and Kaspar Nostyc , were mercenary soldiers gathered from the nearby castles Mewe ( Gniew ) , Stargard ( Starogard Gdański ) , Nowe , Skarszewy and Kiszewy . This army totalled 1000 cavalry and 400 infantry . Raweneck also had the supply chain ( tabors ) , cannons and up to 1300 auxiliary infantry of Pomeranian peasants , used mainly for fortification works . Battle . The battle started in the evening . Adopting a relatively new tactic , Polish units built a fortified camp on the Hussite model consisting of wagons linked by a chain surrounded by a deep ditch ( tabor ) . The units of Raveneck and his subordinate , Kaspar Nostyc ( commander from Conitz ( Chojnice ) also created a tabor . Piotr Dunin decided not to wait for the enemy and attacked first , setting infantry with crossbows on the left , defended by cavalry between the tabor and the coast of the nearby lake of Rogoźnica . Raveneck placed cavalry in front of his tabor , and infantry behind it , without any strategic plan . The first phase of the battle was started by a charge of Polish heavy cavalry under Paweł Jasieński . Fierce fighting continued for three hours and ended without a clear winner . After a short pause at midday , Teutonic units were able to push the Poles back ; however , they found themselves under very heavy fire from crossbows of the Polish infantry , which caused huge losses and a withdrawal . During this fight Raveneck was wounded . He stopped his soldiers and tried to attack again , but this charge ended with a total defeat - Raveneck died and the rest of the cavalry surrendered or escaped . The Teutonic infantry tried to defend themselves at the tabor but its resistance was broken by a quick attack of Polish cavalry . Casualties . The Teutonic Order ' s army lost around 1000 soldiers , including some 300 cavalrymen . Fifty soldiers were captured . The Teutonic commander was also killed in battle and was buried in the Żarnowiec chapter church . The Poles lost just 100 soldiers , although 150 later died from their wounds . Among the dead on the Polish side was Maciej Hagen from Gdańsk . Piotr Dunin was wounded twice . Aftermath . The direct result of the battle of Świecino was that the city of Danzig and Pomerania were freed from the danger of an attack by the Teutonic Order . As a result the royal and municipal armed forces could be used elsewhere in the war , mainly to protect the Vistula waterway and to capture the Teutonic held strongholds . This way that Teutonic forces in Prussia on the right bank of Vistula were cut off from supplies from Western Europe . The psychological significance of the battle was that this was the first open field battle won by the royal forces , so it increased the morale of the Polish forces and lowered the morale of the Teutonic Knights . Many military historians say that the battle of Świecino was the turning point of the Thirteen Years ' War , leading to the final Polish victory in 1466 .