Arnold Von Winkelried - The Legend

The Legend

Further information: Battle of Sempach

According to legend, the Swiss initially could not break the close ranks of the Habsburg pikemen. Winkelried cried: "I will open a passage into the line; protect, dear countrymen and confederates, my wife and children..." He then threw himself upon the Austrian pikes, taking some of them down with his body. This broke up the Austrian front, and made an opening through which the Swiss could attack.

As phrased in the Halbsuterlied printed in the 1530s by Aegidius Tschudi and Wernher Steiner:

Des adels her was veste, ir ordnung dik und breit,
 Das verdross die frommen gäste, ein Winkelriet der seit
 wend Irs gniesen lon,
 min fromme kind und frowen, so will ich ein frevel bston.

The host of the nobles was solid, their order both thick and wide
This frustrated the pious host; one Winkelried said:
"If you will aliment
my pious wife and children, I will do a daring deed."

Trüwen lieben eydgnossen, min leben verlur ich mit,
 sie hand ir ordnung bschlossen, wir mogänds in brechen nit.
 ich will ein inbruch han,
 des wellend ir min geschlechte in ewig geniessen lan:

"True and dear confederates, I shall lose my life doing it.
Their battle order is locked tight, we may not breach it
But I will make a breach
For this may you aliment my family forever."

Hiemit so tett er fassen, ein arm voll spiess behend
 den sinen macht er ein gassen, sin leben hat ein end.
 er hat eins lewen mut,
 sin manlich dapfer sterben, was den vier waldstetten gut.

Saying thus he quickly grasped an armful of pikes,
He created an entrance for his own, and his life took an end.
He had the courage of a lion,
His brave and manly death was a benefit for the four forest-cantons.

Also begunndentz brechen, des adels ordnung bald,
 mit howen und mit stechen, gott siner seelen walt
 wo er das nit hett gton,
 so wurds d eydgnossen han kostet noch mengen bidermann.

And thus they soon began to break up the battle order of the nobles
with hewing and with thrusting; may God keep his soul.
had he not done this deed
it would have cost the confederates many a brave man.

Two other verses describe the order of battle of the Austrian side. According to this testimony, the knights dismounted, presumably because they were forced to fight from the lower ground, and they cut off their shoe-tips for better mobility. Even though they would have had a sufficient force of mercenaries to engage the outnumbered Swiss, the nobility wanted to engage the enemy on their own, because they were concerned that the mercenaries would make such short work of the peasants that they themselves would not see any action at all, which would have been to their dishonour:

Sie bunden uff ir helme, und tatends fürher tragen.

von schuhen huwents dschnäbel, man hätt gefüllt ein wagen;
 der adel wolt vornen dran,
 die andern gmeinen knechte, müstend dahinden stan.
 Zusammen sie nun sprachend: "das völckli ist gar klein,
 söltind üser puren slahen, unser lob das wurde klein
 man spräch: 'die purn hadns gethan'."

They fastened their helmets and pushed forward
They cut the tips off their shoes, as many as would have filled a cart
The nobility wanted to take the front,
while the common men-at-arms must stand back.
Among themselves, they spoke: "these folk are very few,
if we let the commoners fight for us, our honour would be diminished,
as people would say 'the commoners did all the work'."

This is given my means of explanation as to how the breaking of the first rank of pikes by Winkelried could lead to immediate disaster for the Austrian side, as the leaders of the army were fighting in the van.

Haller (Schweizerschlachten, 1828) reports that in the early 19th century, a pierced mail shirt identified as that worn by Winkelried in the battle was preserved in Stans. Haller also reports a folk tradition according to which Winkelried was found still alive after the battle, and only died of his wounds on the way home in a boat on Lake Sempach.

Read more about this topic:  Arnold Von Winkelried

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