Renowned archaeologist Dr. Tony Pollard will be hoping that the remains of soldiers from Scotland will be found buried in the German town of Lützen.
Under a modern-day supermarket in the east German town, archaeologists believe they have found the final resting place of some of the soldiers who fought in a battle during the Thirty Years’ War.
Dr. Pollard from the University of Glasgow, spent a week with other leading European archaeologists who have been carrying out a long-running investigation at the battlefield said that he has been interested in finding physical evidence of Scottish soldiers fighting out in Germany, where the majority of the Thirty Years’ War was fought.
He also commented, “[T]here has been the construction of a supermarket and car park.
“There is a possibility the graves survived because it seems they were dug deep, but there is probably little that can be done now because of the supermarket being there.
“However, hundreds of men were killed in this battle and there could be other graves. Bodies were said to have been lain side-by-side along a road and we think that we have identified the road and graves may not be too far away.”
For now the German experts are continuing their work at the battlefield, however, Dr. Pollard is intending to return to Lützen next Spring.
The Battle of Lützen was fought in the November of 1632 (either the 6th [O.S.] or the 16th [N.S.]) between the Protestant Swedish army and the Catholic Holy Roman Empire. The outcome was a definite Swedish victory, but it came at the cost of the death of the King of Sweden, Gustavus Aldophus, causing the Protestant campaign to lose direction. It was very common for Gustavus to hire German mercenaries from the Protestant states, but Scottish recruits were also common, with most originating, it is believed, from the Highlands.
The Swedish army lost roughly 6,000 men at Lützen; which included those who were seriously wounded or fled the battle. It’s believed that both armies lost around the same sort of numbers during the battle, though this can’t be claimed with 100% certainty. However, despite this, it was, strategically and tactically speaking, a clear victory for the Protestants, with the Swedish army going on to achieve the main goals of its campaign.