Atlas of Battles

battle, notable, early modern

Battles of Wenden

Battles of Wenden was a battle fought on 21 October 1578 at Cēsis, in what is now Latvia. It was part of the Livonian War, which ran from 1558 to 1583. The recorded result: Swedish–Polish victory. Recorded strength: 4,000–6,000 against 18,000–22,000 (Livonian claim).

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Cesis, Ruine der Ordensburg
Cesis, Ruine der Ordensburg. Greifen, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought21 October 1578
WhereCēsis, Latvia57.314N, 25.269E
OutcomeSwedish–Polish victory
Belligerents25px Poland–Lithuania; 22px Sweden (1578)againstRussia; Magnus of Livonia; (August 1577)
Part ofLivonian War1558 to 1583

Where it sits in the Livonian War

Siege of Narva, 1558Siege of Fellini, 1560Battle of Ergeme, 1560Battle of Nevel, 1562Battle of Ula, 1564Siege of Reval, 1570Siege of Weissenstein, 1572Battle of Lode, 1573Siege of Wesenberg, 1573Battles of Wenden, 1578Siege of Polotsk, 1579Siege of Velikiye Luki, 1580Battle of Toropets, 1580Battle of Zavolotchia, 1580Siege of Narva, 1581Battle of Shklov, 1581Battle of Mogilev (1581), 1581Siege of Pskov, 158115581581Battles of Wenden, 1578
19 placed engagements of the Livonian War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date21 October 1578
PlaceCēsis, Latvia
57.314N, 25.269E
KindBattle, early modern
Strength4,000–6,00018,000–22,000 (Livonian claim)
Casualties and lossesAbout 400 men6,280 killed (inflated Livonian claim); 3,000 captured; 1,720 dispersed; 20–30 artillery pieces; At least 162 mentioned in a 17th-century Russian sinodik
Commanders
  • Andrzej Sapieha
  • Göran Boije
  • Ivan Galitzin
Battles of WendenBattles of WendenSiege of Cēsis CastleBattle of WendenBattle of CēsisBattle of WendenBattle of CēsisSiege of Cēsis CastleRigaTartuPärnuJelgavaRēzekneViljandi100 km57.314N, 25.269E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 6 times between 1210 and 1919.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1578

Battles of Wenden is one of 1,390 engagements of the 16th century in the atlas and one of 54 in present-day Latvia.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q2364604, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battles of Wenden (1577–1578), revision 1370603832, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.