Jan Žižka And The Impact of Military Innovation On History

Jan Žižka z Trocnova a Kalicha (English: John Zizka of Trocnov and the Chalice; c. 1360 – 11 October 1424) was a Czech military leader, a contemporary and follower of Jan Hus, and a prominent Radical Hussite who led the Taborite faction during the Hussite Wars. Renowned for his exceptional military skill, Žižka is celebrated as a Czech national hero. Nicknamed “One-eyed Žižka” after losing one eye, he later became completely blind. Despite his blindness, Žižka led the Hussite forces in battles against three crusades and remained undefeated throughout his military career.

. . .The Hussite wars also marked the earliest successful use of pistols on the battlefield and Žižka was an innovator in the use of gunpowder. He was the first European commander to maneuver on the field with cannon of medium caliber mounted on carts in between the wagons. The Czechs called the handgun a píšťala, and anti-infantry field guns houfnice, from which the English words “pistol” and “howitzer” have been derived. The Germans had just started corning gunpowder, making it suitable for use in smaller, tactical weapons. A handgunner on an open field armed with only a single-shot weapon and without a bayonette was no match for a charging knight on a horse; however, from behind a castle wall, or from within the enclosure of the wagenburg, massed and disciplined gunmen could use the handgun to its greatest potential.

. . .The Hussite Wars were fought to win recognition of faith of the Hussites, the forerunners of the Protestant Reformation, and though predominantly a religious movement, it was also propelled by social issues and strengthened Czech national awareness. The Catholic Church deemed Hus’s teachings heretical. He was excommunicated in 1411, condemned by the Council of Constance, and burned at the stake in 1415. The wars proper began in July 1419, with the First Defenestration of Prague, when protesting Hussites threw the town councillors and the judge out the windows of the New Town Hall. It has been reputed that King Wenceslaus IV was so stunned by the defenestration that he died from the shock shortly afterward on 16 August 1419. This led to the armed conflict in which Žižka was to earn his fame.

. . . A film Jan Žižka (English title Medieval) by director Petr Jákl was released in 2022. It follows Jan Žižka during his youth. It is the most expensive Czech film ever made. Žižka was portrayed by Ben Foster. It was released on Netflix in 2022.

An excerpt from, “Wagons, handguns and flails – Tábor Museum shows secrets behind Hussite victories” Radio Prague International, June 4, 2021:

In the city’s Hussite Museum, visitors can learn more about the religious movement and the footprint it has left on Czech history, Dr Zdeněk Vybíral, who leads the museum’s history department, told Czech Radio’s Kateřina Havlíková.

“Wars during the Hussite period were a very nasty, bloody business and were conducted according to the rules of war of that time. However, the Hussites did bring into this their own flavour. Some scholars refer to this as a revolution in mediaeval warfare. The most famous characteristic of Hussite warfare is the use of wagons in battle. However, what really was revolutionary was their use of firearms, not just during sieges but in the battle itself.”

Known as one of the first commanders to handle infantry, cavalry, and artillery as one tactical body, Jan Žižka developed a defensive, yet at the same time dynamic, style of warfare. He took a basic component of any Medieval army – the supply wagon – and transformed it into a device capable of forming an ad-hoc mobile fort on the battlefield. Reinforced with armour, usually made of extra wooden planks and occupied by a squad of warriors, wagons made it possible for the Hussites to fight from a tactically advantageous, defensive position during battles.

These capabilities were further strengthened by adding cannons, howitzers and even men armed with crude handguns called Píšťaly onto these platforms, Dr Vybíral told Czech Radio.

“It was very rare for armies to use firearms at the beginning of the fifteenth century, especially in battle. One cannot overstate their effectiveness. These weapons were, after all, quite primitive and had very limited range. The quality of the materials that they were made of and problems associated with overheating meant that they could only be fired a few times during the battle.

“Nevertheless, their sound and the pinching smell of gunpowder did have a psychological effect on opponents. The physical effect of a cannonball on a group of infantry or horsemen must also have been significant. No armour from that period could withstand such a weapon.”

While cannons and handguns added a hi-tech element to Hussite firepower, Hussite warriors are best known in the Czech Republic for their many improvised close-combat weapons. Among them was the nail-studded flail (okovaný cep), which enabled a peasant to use a farming tool to which he was well accustomed as a deadly weapon that could pierce armour, Dr Vybíral told Czech Radio.

An excerpt from, “Hussite Jan Zizka” By John E. Spindler, Warfare History Network, March 2018:

 Zizka had a keen eye for terrain. He sought in every situation to occupy the highest elevation possible. He preferred hills with steep slopes so that the enemy’s heavy cavalry would be compelled to dismount and ascend the slopes on foot.

When King Wenceslas died in August 1419, Sigismund prepared to secure the crown of Bohemia by force. To facilitate and sanctify this effort, Pope Martin V issued a papal bull on March 17, 1420, calling for a crusade against the Hussites. In response, the Hussites turned to Zizka to lead them in battle against Sigismund’s powerful Imperial army.

. . .Sigismund’s army entered Bohemia in October, but the emperor waited so long for additional troops to join his army that Zizka’s 12,000 troops were able to occupy Kutna Hora and improve its defenses. After Prague, Kutna Hora was the most important town in Bohemia as it was the center of the Bohemian silver mining industry.

Although Sigismund was present with his army, day-to-day operations were handled by an Italian mercenary captain named Philip Scolari. Sigismund’s 50,000-strong crusading army arrived at Kutna Hora on December 21 to find a Hussite wagenburgdefending it. Scolari’s heavy cavalry made repeated charges against the stout wagon fort. Hussite cannons inside the wagenburg roared to life, inflicting great carnage on the crusaders.

Realizing force alone could not defeat the Hussites, the crusaders intrigued with sympathetic townspeople who opened a gate to a column of crusader cavalry that entered the town from the south. Just when it seemed that Zizka might be beaten for the first time, the clever Hussite commander decided to launch a surprise attack at night against that portion of the crusader battle line where Sigismund’s headquarters was located.

Zizka attacked the crusaders in the early morning hours of December 22. The entire Hussite force advanced toward the north portion of the crusader line. They were heading straight for Sigismund’s camp. Since night fighting was practically unheard of in the Middle Ages, Zizka used the confusion and fear created by hand guns and cannons to open a breach in the enemy lines large enough for the Hussites to pass through to safety. Stopping a short distance later, another wagenburg was established on Kank Hill to await the Hungarians. But Sigismund was content to retain possession of Kutna Hora and did not pursue the retreating Hussites.

In the sharp skirmishes that followed, the Hussites defeated the Imperialists multiple times in central Bohemia in early January 1422. Hussite maneuvering eventually compelled Sigismund to abandon Kutna Hora altogether. Although Scolari and other officers advised Sigismund not to engage in further battles with the Hussites, he ignored their advice. The crusaders formed for battle at Habry on January 8. When the Hussites attacked, the crusader army immediately fled the field.

An excerpt from, “Rise of the war machines: Charting the evolution of military technologies from the Neolithic to the Industrial Revolution” By Turchin P, Hoyer D, Korotayev A, Kradin N, Nefedov S, Feinman G, et al. (2021):

Video Title: Blind Courage: The Unique Genius of Jan Žižka | Full Movie | Dr. Joel Biermann | Dr. Paul Maier. Source: Vision Video. Date Published: January 7, 2022. Description:

An amazing military genius, Jan Zizka (c. 1360-1424), emerged to lead them. He took a handful of peasants, outfitted them with farm implements, and defeated more than 100,000 of the finest knights in the world. He revived military techniques not used since the Romans and developed a forerunner of the modern tank. All of this despite the fact that, for most of this period, he was completely blind. 

Director: Jerry Griffith