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Cross, memorial to the battle in 1704 - Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou

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History
In the memory of the country, sometimes traces of the past are visible at every step, but other times they need to be searched for. Crosses, mounds, torments or chapels are a living reference to places that were the scene of ancient stories and at the end of which there was mostly death. Such places include the road stone cross by the Parná stream, the last resting place of hundreds of men who fought and laid down their lives in one of the greatest battles of the Franciscan uprising in Kuruk. Rákoci.

Cross, memorial to the battle in 1704 - Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou

In the memory of the country, sometimes traces of the past are visible at every step, but other times they need to be searched for. Crosses, mounds, torments or chapels are a living reference to places that were the scene of ancient stories and at the end of which there was mostly death. Such places include the road stone cross by the Parná stream, the last resting place of hundreds of men who fought and laid down their lives in one of the greatest battles of the Franciscan uprising in Kuruk. Rákoci.

Although this military performance went down in history as the Battle of Trnava, the only memorial to this event in the vicinity of Trnava is the mound with the cross in Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou, where the monks of Trnava buried 180 killed chickens, bastards and French grenadiers after the fight.

The clash itself was preceded by the siege of the Imperial Fortress of Leopoldov by the rebels of Francis II. Rákoci and the intention of the Imperial Field Marshal Sigrid Heister to help the defenders of this fortress. The two, imperial and insurgent troops, finally met during the Christmas holidays on Thursday, December 26, 1704 near Trnava. Rákoci's divisions had 12,000 riders, 7,800 infantry and 6 parts. The Imperial Army also numbered around 20

000 men, but compared to the insurgents had up to 24 works. In the fight, which broke out under heavy snow and heavy fog, the individual divisions of Kurucs initially won. After the shots dispelled the fog, Marshal Heister was shocked by the enemy's optical superiority. However, due to poor visibility, he did not notice that the two outer wings of the Rákoci army, composed of riders, stood only in one width. The Imperial Army stood in an approximately 2 km long front line lined up along the entire length of the left bank of Parná from Kamenný mlýn to the village of Hrnčiarovce.

Source: publikácia Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou

The right wing of Heister's army stood just 100 steps north of the Pottery Bridge over Parná. The inhabitants of the village were thus in direct danger of fighting, which was finally confirmed when several houses and the potter's church were damaged during artillery fire.
Weak discipline in the insurgent army thwarted Rákoci's plans to quickly defeat the enemy. The infantry in the central rebel formation were among the most disciplined. They effectively grouped into a closed shape and slowly advanced against the imperial artillery. There was always a certain amount of time between firing and reloading, which was enough for the infantry to slowly advance to the artillery battery. The distance between Heister's artillery and Rákoci's infantry was only 600 to 700 meters, so the infantry saw the preparation for the enemy's fire and the soldiers were able to throw on the ground in time before each volley and proceed almost without loss to the enemy until they reached the distance to fight with rifles and bayonets. . In this attack, the bastards from Miskolc were particularly distinguished, who penetrated as far as the enemy's reserves. Most of the soldiers operating the cannons were killed, and one bastard almost managed to shoot Commander Heister himself. In the middle of the battle, the insurgents were clearly outnumbered and were about to win until the cavalry attack of the imperial army, led by Heister himself. He used a broken line of insurgents, crossed it and attacked infantry units from behind. At that moment, one of the rebel battalions raised a white flag, turned his weapons against his comrades-in-arms from a neighboring battalion, and opened fire alongside the imperial army.

This betrayal in the ranks of the rebels marked a complete turning point in the battle. In the evening twilight, Rákoci's troops retreated. According to various sources, 400 Kuruk soldiers remained on the battlefield that day, and 10 officers, 370 soldiers and 6 non-commissioned officers fell on the side of the Imperial Army. Losses were indeed difficult to quantify, with some sources reporting as many as 1,000 dead and 1,100 wounded. Regardless, the monks from Trnava buried 180 fallen chickens on the way to the Pottery mill. A mound and three wooden crosses were erected over the grave. In 1806, the parish priest of Brestov, Martin Palšovič, consecrated a new stone cross at this place, which Judita Lieskovská had built to commemorate the Kurucs after Martin Lieskovsky.

Source: publikácia Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou

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Transport: By foot, By bike, By car
Parking: Free parking nearby


Suitable for: Families with childrens, Elderly, Cyclists, Young, Adults
Season: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter
Updated on: 30.3.2022

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Cross, memorial to the battle in 1704 - Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou
pri Parnej
Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou
Region: Trnavský
District: Trnava
Area: Trnavsko, MAS 11 PLUS, Microregion 11 PLUS
 48.349012, 17.57143

pri Parnej
Hrnčiarovce nad Parnou

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