67 Days to Opening Day

Opening Day 2008 for the Timber Rattlers is April 3. That is 67 days from today. This off-season, the countdown will be based on books. Each day between now and Opening Day 2008, I will pick a random book out of my library and excerpt a passage off the page number corresponding with the number of days remaining to the first pitch of the new season. I will try not to repeat a book during the countdown.

Today’s book is The Seventy Great Battles in History edited by Jeremy Black. Liegnitz, a battle during the Mongol invasions of Europe, took place in Poland in 1241.

Baidar thrust into Poland, burning as he went, lured out and massacred the garrison of Cracow, which was sacked, then advanced towards Breslau where he joined Kadan. Henry of Silesia was awaiting the army with 50,000 Bohemians, but as the Mongols approached, he chose to give battle, not realizing that Wencelas was only a day’s march away. Accounts of the battle are confused. It seems that Henry divided his army into four divisions: the Bavarian gold-miners and other peasants; the forces of Greater Poland; the forces of another Polish principality, Opplen, with the Teutonic Knights; and his own Silesian troops and mercenaries perhaps numbering 10,000.

The Mongols seem to have attacked by surprise, disordering the Silesians and drawing the allied troops into an ambush. Duke Henry, seeing what he thought was a small enemy army, sent his cavalry forward against their centre, but the wings of the Mongol army now revealed themselves and swept around the attacking knights, separating them from the rest of their army. Accounts refer to the Mongols using smoke to confuse the westerners and this may be true, since gunpowder was known to the Mongols from China. Duke Henry was killed in the rout of his army and most of his troops were slaughtered. The Mongols cut off ears to count the enemy dead and after Liegnitz are said to have sent home nine bags full of this gory evidence.

Put today’s excerpt in a baseball context.