An even greater propaganda coup was the huge Tannenberg Memorial erected by Germany in 1924 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of their glorious victory.

Thus, one of the two victorious German commanders from the battle, Erich Ludendorff used it as the name for his extreme right wing society, the Tannenbergbund. Tannenberg resonated with much of the populace and especially the far right. After the First World War ended, a defeated Germany looked to victories in battle for solace. This was just the beginning of the name’s usage for German propaganda purposes. Never mind where the battle was actually fought, Tannenberg was close enough. Henceforth, they referred to it as the Second Battle of Tannenberg. The victory, presented the Germans with a golden opportunity to showcase their superiority.

The Power of Propaganda – Funeral of Paul Von Hindenburg at the Tannenberg Memorial in 1934 (Credit: Bundesarchiv Bild 183-2006-0429-502) No matter what nationality, Slavic peoples were seen as the common enemy of the German people. Even though it came against the Russians, they were also Slavs. The victory of the German Army at Tannenberg avenged the Teutonic Knights loss.

German nationalists certainly noticed this. The Poles did not have the ability to fight the Germans militarily, so they held onto the next best thing, victories from many centuries before. A policy of Germanization throughout Prussia brought about resistance from the Polish population. They were also used to influence the present. With the rise of nationalism in the decades prior to World War I historic battles between Teuton and Slav were no longer just about the past. It was a critical moment in the history of northeastern Europe, as it stopped the Knights’ expansion. At the Battle of Grunwald (German name Battle of Tannenberg) in 1410 the Teutonic Knights were defeated by a Polish-Lithuanian force. This was done to avenge a historic defeat the German’s forebears had suffered in the area over 500 years before. It was around this time that it was decided that the battle should be named after the village. Slaying the demons of Prussia’s past – a naked General Hindenburg fighting the Russian Bear on a commemorative medallionĪfter the battle was won, the German high command sent their victorious dispatch from Tannenberg. So why was the battle named for a town on the periphery of where it actually occurred? The reasons had to do with national and racial identity. Instead, they occurred about 20 miles (30 miles) further to the northwest, in the vicinity of the small city of Olsztyn (Allenstein). After a bit of research I discovered that the heaviest fighting and focal points of the battle did not take place near the village. Once I knew that, it was easy enough to locate the village on a map, but then it got really tricky. The Polish name for the village is Stębark. First of all, the village of Tannenberg no longer exists on maps, since it is now located in Poland. Since there was no dedicated visitor center or x marks the spot historic site, I surmised that the battle’s location would be at or near the village it was named for. In other words, it was mobile warfare distilled to its essence. Instead it was a blundering, confused mess marked by chaos and confusion. This was not a Napoleonic set piece battle, with two armies staring each other down. There was nothing inherently dramatic about that. On the German side, tactical brilliance consisted of setting a trap and allowing the Russians to fall into it. Not exactly the type of activity that gets a history buff’s heart racing. The Russian forces ended up with 92,000 soldiers taken prisoner versus 78,000 killed and wounded. On the Russian side, there was more surrender than actual combat. Trying to pin down a specific place and date for the decisive events is all but impossible. It took a total of five days from start to finish. The battle was fought across a sprawling expanse of countryside consisting of lakes and forests. The problem with locating the Battle of Tannenberg is mostly one of space and time. Lost In Space & Time – Finding Tannenberg The Battle of Tannenberg was fought over an area of hundreds of square kilometers

Who won battle of tannenberg