Hungarian Tactics and significant Battles
Battles
Rozgony June 15 1312
Ambush in Wallachia Nov 9 1330
Nicopolis 1396
Sava October 1441
Alba Iulia late February, early March 1442
Hermanstadt (Sibiu or Nagyszeben) 22 March 1442
Vasaq 2-6th September1442
The Long campaign 1443-1444
The Battle Of Varna 1444
Kossovo 1448
Belgrade 1456
Hungary's mix of Knights with essentially Asiatic horse archers
created a style of tactics broadly similar to that of Poland and the Serbians.
The aim of Hungarian tactics was to create situations where the charge of the
knights would be decisive. The light horse were used in open battle to clear
away enemy skirmishers and prevent those of the enemy interfering with the deployment
and charge of the knights. Knights through out the period either deployed in
multiple lines or in deep columns. This mirrors the developments in Polish tactics.
Both styles of deployment allowed maximum manoeuvrability for the Knights and
provided reserves to prevent encirclement by hostile light horse.
The Hunyadi period saw a shift along the lines of the Polish armies, infantry
came to play an important supporting role. Like the Polish armies the Hungarians
used infantry and Tabor wagons to create a strong centre from which their cavalry
could operate and anchor their internal flanks. Bonfinius describes a Hungarian
battle formation called the scorpion where infantry formed its body and the
warwagons and cavalry formed the pincers. This brief description sounds very
much like the Polish Crescent formation (it being based on the Mongol Grand
Hunt). The objective was to sweep away the enemy flanks or force them inwards
and crush their centre on the hvy infantry and wagons of the centre.
Rozgony June 15 1312
Charles Angevin defeats the last serious opposition to his rule, the 'prince'
Matheus and his allies. The King's forces included local contingents from the
town of Szepes and a force called 'crusaders' in the Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum.
These were probably German mercenaries. Matheus' army was commanded by Demetrius
and Aba, supporters of Matthius. They drew up their forces on the slopes of
the valley of the river Harnad in a very favourable defensive position possibly
with the Crusaders in reserve. Charles drew his army up opposite them but appears
to have refused to advance. The forces of Matheus appear to have launched an
impetuous charge against Charles and made significant progress,. Initially Charles'
army was thrown back, the royal standard bearer and several high ranking Nobles
being killed. Charles appears to have been narrowly avoided capture or death
and subsequently fought under the banner of the Crusaders. The crusaders tipped
the balance and when Demetrius and Aba were killed the rebels fled. The Chronica
de Gestis Hungarorum records that Charles suffered significantly more casualties
than their enemies.
Main Source- Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum
Ambush in Wallachia Nov
9 1330
King Louis with an army raised mostly from Transylvania and with large numbers
of Cuman light horse invaded Wallachia to force them back under Hungarian rule.
After initial successes Louis army started to suffer from supply problems. A
truce was reached with Voivode Bazarad and Louis' army was allowed to retreat.
However in a narrow defile with one end blocked by a log and stone wall the
Wallachians ambushed the Hungarian army. Losses were apparently massive and
the King only escaped by exchanging surcoats with one of entourage. This battle
secured Wallachia's independence from Hungary.
Main Source- Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum
Nicopolis 1396
A combined army of Crusaders and Hungarians is defeated by the Ottomans. This
battle is covered in detail in David Nicolles excellent book, Nicopolis 1396
Sava October 1441
Hunyadi and his personal forces along with troops raised in Transylvania attempted
to drive off Ottoman troops raiding around Belgrade. Unable to pin down the
Ottomans Hunyadi started withdrawing to Transylvania. An Ottoman army under
the Bey of Semendria blocked the Hungarian retreat. Hunyadi deployed his army
with his heavy infantry in the centre, flanked by his foot archers and auxiliary
infantry. Either side of the infantry centre were the Knights and heavily armoured
mounted crossbowmen. In front of the cavalry were deployed the light horse.
Behind the infantry centre there was a reserve of knights under Hunyadi. Precise
details of the battle are not known however the main source Bonfinius states
that the reserve played a decisive role in winning it. The pursuit apparently
went as far as the walls of Semendria. The lack of supporting sources to Bonfinius
has lead to this battle being regarded as an inflation of a minor skirmish.
It does not however detract from the deployment description which is entirely
consistent with other sources for later Hungarian battles.
Main Source- Ioan Thuroczi, Chronica Hungarorum 1488
Historia Pannonica sive Hungaricarum rerum decades IV et dimidia- Bonfinius
Alba Iulia late February,
early March 1442
Mezid, Bey of Vidin led an Ottoman army of some 16,000 to 20,000 men in an invasion
of Transylvania and besieged the city of Sibiu (Hermanstadt). Sibiu was one
of the Saxon towns of Transylvania and straddled one of the few routes large
enough for armies to safely traverse the Carpathian mountains. Mezid's attack
was well timed as Hunyadi's army had only recently disbanded after its victorious
return from Serbia. The unexpected attack by Mezid placed Hunyadi in a difficult
position. If Hunyadi waited for his well trained 'regulars' to muster it was
possible that the Ottomans would take Sibiu, severely weakening Transylvania's
border defences. Hunyadi instead declared a general muster of all able bodied
men and ordered them to mass at the fortress of Alba Iulia.
Mezid hearing of the muster either sent or lead a detachment of the Ottoman
army to disrupt or disperse it, leaving the rest to continue the siege of Sibiu.
Hunyadi, with all the troops that had already gathered advanced to met the Ottomans
and discovered them drawn up some miles north of Alba Iulia. The Ottomans were
deployed in the valley of the river Mures. Their right flank resting on the
valley heights and their left anchored on the river and occupying the near by
village of Santimbru. The Ottomans apparently concealed a significant reserve
within the village itself. Hunyadi took the offensive and launched a strong
attack with his right flank against the Ottoman left. This was presumably because
it appeared to be the weakest and/or most easily accessible. The Ottoman reserves
however appeared to have successfully contained the attack while the Ottoman
centre launched a counter attack against Hunyadi's centre. Hunyadi's centre
is described as staggering then retreating under the onslaught. This rapidly
turned into a rout. At this juncture Hunyadi ordered a general retreat back
to the fortress of Alba Iulia. The Ottomans do not appear to have pursued the
Hungarians as Hunyadi seems to have extracted the majority of his troops, certainly
they were sufficiently intact to advance on Sibiu only weeks afterwards. The
Ottomans instead scattered and looted the surrounding area before returning
to the main army at Sibiu. It is probable given the lack of pursuit by the Ottomans
and the relative lack of casualties that this was a small scale battle and that
the Hungarians had a numbers advantage. The Ottoman deployment was unusual in
that they anchored both flanks of terrain difficult to cross. Usually the Ottomans
preferred open battlefields where their light horse to flank and envelope their
opponents. This also suggests that their army was smaller than that of the Hungarians.
Main Source- Ioan Thuroczi, Chronica Hungarorum 1488
Historia Pannonica sive Hungaricarum rerum decades IV et dimidia- Bonfinius
Hermanstadt (Sibiu
or Nagyszeben) 22 March 1442
Reinforced by additional levies, including contingents of Szekeler and Saxons
under the Royal 'Jude' Anton Trautenberger, Hunyadi advanced on Sibiu. The Hungarians
also had a detachment of Transylvanian Wallachians under Basarab, son of Dan
II, who Hunyadi wanted to place on the throne of Wallachia. Mezid, Bey of Vidin
drew up his army somewhere near Sibiu, the precise location has never been identified.
Dispositions of the armies are not known however certain assumptions can be
made from the source descriptions of the battle. Both armies appear to have
deployed strong infantry centres with cavalry on the wings. Additionally Hunyadi
strengthened at least one of the flanks with Tabor warwagons. Both armies also
appear to have had a reserve. The Ottomans a infantry reserve massed behind
their centre. The Hungarians had a hvy cavalry reserve under Janos Hunyadi either
behind the centre or on one of the flanks.
The battle began with a general advance on the part of the Hungarians. Initially
the Hungarians succeeded in pushing back the Ottoman centre. A counter attack
by the Ottoman centre and reserves successfully contained the Hungarian centre,
possibly killing their commander in the process (see below). The Ottomans initiated
a general attack at this point believing the battle won. Hunyadi launched his
reserve along with warwagons (possibly with light guns mounted on them) against
one of the Ottoman wings, breaking it. Bonfinius further describes Hungarian
captives behind the Ottomans rising up and attacking them. More likely detachments
of the Hungarian army had worked their way around the Ottoman flanks. The attacks
to the rear and the broken flank caused panic amongst the Ottomans who fled,
leaving Mezid and his son dead on the battlefield. Basarab and his Wallachians
apparently pursued the fleeing Ottomans deep into Wallachia.
There is a story associated with this battle in which Mezid
ordered his army to focus their efforts in killing Hunyadi. These orders having
reached Hunyadi led to a certain Simon Kamonyai wearing Hunyadi's armour and
carrying Hunyadi's Voivode of Transylvania standard and leading the Hungarian
centre. Simon Kamonyai was also apparently accompanied by Hunyadi's elite Szekely
bodyguard. Kamonyai was killed in the Ottoman counter attack on the centre,
where upon the Ottomans believing Hunyadi dead and his army's morale ruined
pressed home the attack. At this stage Hunyadi unfurled his personal standard
and led the attack on one of the Ottoman wings.
This story may well be a heroic invention as such events are popular for the
period. As with many such stories though there may be truth mixed in. At its
most basic its likely that the Hungarian commander of the centre was killed
and the Ottomans expected to exploit this and Hunyadi in turn exploited the
Ottoman's commitment of their reserve to attack elsewhere.
Main Source- Ioan Thuroczi, Chronica Hungarorum 1488
Historia Pannonica sive Hungaricarum rerum decades IV et dimidia- Bonfinius
Vasaq 2-6th September1442
Sa'd ed-din Pasha Beylerbey of Rumelia leading army of some 80,000 men was ordered
by the Sultan to invade Wallachia and turn it into a Dar-al-Ahd (dependent territory).
He was also commanded to invade Transylvania. His army contained Janissaries
and six Bey and Sandjek Beys from Anatolia and their troops. Basarab, Hunyadi's
candidate for the throne of Wallachia had been enthroned as Prince of Wallachia
after the battle of Hermanstadt (Sibiu). The reality appears to be that Basarab
with Hungarian support had managed to raise a revolt in Wallachia and gain control
of parts of the Country. Sa'd ed-din's army was too large for Basarab to confront
on his own and he retreated along with his followers into the mountains to await
reinforcements from Hungary. Sa'd ed-din split of elements of his army to pursue
Basrab and to plunder the countryside, the majority of his forces moved up the
valley of the Ialomita river. Hunyadi and Basarab's troops confronted the Ottomans
at a narrowing of the valley, described by Thuriczi as the iron gate. This description
has led to the battle been mistakenly described as being fought near The Iron
Gate on the river Danube. In fact Thuriczi was actually using the name to describe
the terrain of the battlefield.
The Hungarians described as 'peasants, townspeople and Szekelers' numbered some
15,000 men. They drew up in the narrowest part of the valley, the walls being
described as mountainous. Once again the infantry was draw up in the centre
with Tabor warwagons on their flanks and their rear as well. The wagons were
in turn flanked by cavalry. The Ottoman dispositions are not described in the
sources.
True to his previous successful offensive tactics Hunyadi attacked. His infantry
centre may have been supported by warwagons in their advance. The battle was
hard fought with the Ottoman army not breaking until near dark. The Ottomans
lost some 20,000 men, 200 standards, 5,000 camels, horse and mules. Sa'd ed-din
and the remnants of his army successfully retreated and crossed the Danube,
Hungarian pursuit apparently being light. The majority of the Hungarians instead
were hunting down the Ottoman forces that had been sent raiding the Wallachian
countryside and in a series of clashes destroyed them, the last apparently being
on the 6th of September.
Both Thuriczi and Chalkondyles make the point that this battle
marks a change in Hunyadi's strategic tactics. From this battle Hunyadi takes
the war away from Hungary's borders. This policy would continue up until the
battle of Kossevo in 1448.
Main Source- Ioan Thuroczi, Chronica Hungarorum 1488
Historia Pannonica sive Hungaricarum rerum decades IV et dimidia- Bonfinius
Laonic Chalkondyles, Historical Chronicles
The Long campaign
1443-1444
Preparations for an offensive began as early as the end of 1442. Cardinal Cesarini
brokered a peace between Elizabeth and King Ulászló I. News reached
Hungary during June or July that Murad II had been badly defeated in Anatolia
fighting against the rebels of Carmania. There are documents that show Janos
Hunyadi requested wagons, gunpowder and artillery from the Transylvania towns,
particularly Brasov in the months of March, June and July 1443.. Hunyadi also
received large sums of money from the Serbian prince Brancovich. With this and
his own money Hunyadi raised some 10,000 to 12,000 men comprised Czech, German,
Poles, Serbians and Transylvanians. Mercenaries apparently making up the majority
of the force, though Hunyadi also allowed serf soldiers to join his forces as
well. Hunyadi also equipped some 600 Tabor warwagons. Combined with the Royal
troops, Serbians under Brancovich and Wallachian troops under their own leaders
the Hungarian force numbered some 35,000 men. The army finally entered Ottoman
territory in September 1443. The delay apparently being caused by Jiskra's refusal
to honour the peace brokered by Cesarini until September 1st. Hunyadi was appointed
military CinC of the campaign.
The lateness of the campaign start took the Ottomans
by surprise and they were unable to prevent Hunyadi's rapid advance. Ishak,
the Bey of Semendria attempted to stop or at least delay Hunyadi's advance at
the river Morava. Fighting with the river to their rear the Ottomans were outflanked
and defeated and forced to retreat over the river. Hunyadi leading some 12,000
cavalry, his Transylvanians and those troops of Nicholas Ujlaki rapidly advanced
ahead of the main army and seized the town of Nis. Nis was the main muster town
for the Ottoman troops of Vidin and Nis. Hunyadi's advance troops were able
to attack and defeat three separate Ottoman detachments as they advanced to
mass on the town. While at Nis Hunyadi received word that Murad II had made
peace with the Emir of Carmania and had returned to Adrianople. With Murad II
mustering troops Hunyadi returned to the main army just in time to join it in
defeating another Ottoman army made up of a fresh detachment and remnants of
the detachments defeated around Nis.
Hunyadi's victories led to additional Serbs from the Ottoman occupied territories
joining the army. In addition a small Wallachian force under Mircea, son of
Vlad Dracul also arrived to assist the Hungarians. Vlad Dracul had regained
the throne from Basarab, Hunyadi's installed candidate, with the help of the
Ottomans. Hunyadi's successes however led Dracul to hedge his bets and so Mircea
was dispatched to provide assistance.
20th November Hunyadi defeated the Beylerbey of Rumelia, killing some 2,000
and taking at least 4,000 prisoners. Significantly more casualties were inflicted
on the Ottomans by the local population as they retreated. The Hungarian army
was able to advance on Sofia and take the city without further fighting.
Murad reinforced the detachments holding the mountain passes through which Hunyadi
would have to march to attack Adrianople or reach Constantinople. Hunyadi instead
of taking the most direct passes through the mountains instead cut east presumably
hoping to overwhelm these passes before Murad could bring his army to their
aid. On the 12th of December at the village of Zlatitsa Hunyadi decided to make
his attempt but found an Ottoman army under the Grand Vizier Halil-Pasha already
dug in behind palisades.
Halil-Pasha seeing the size of the Hungarian army decided to give battle and
advanced beyond his defences. The Hungarians were successful in pushing the
Ottomans back behind their defensive line but were unable to make any further
headway. Hunyadi continued to probe the passes around Zlatitsa but was unable
to force his way through. On the 23rd of December the Sultan arrived with additional
troops and Hunyadi ordered the retreat back to Hungary. On the 24th somewhere
near Melstitsa, the vanguard of the Ottomans under the Beylerbey of Rumelia
attacked the retreating Hungarians. Hunyadi reacted quickly and defeated the
Ottomans convincing Murad to pursue 'at a distance' and await his chance.
The Hungarina retreat was disciplined despite severe supply problems, including
the loss of most of their wagons and horses. Murad not given an opportunity
to strike directly at the Hungarians instead concentrated his efforts on the
forces of the Serbian Prince Brancovich which were retreating separately. Near
Kunovitsa the Ottomans surprised the Serbs and scattered them. In turn Hunyadi
was able to surprise the Ottoman vanguard shortly after the battle and disperse
them, capturing Mahmud Celebi, the Grand Viziers Brother and the Sultan's brother
in law. The capture of this man appears to have been the catalyst for a truce,
Murad stopped his pursuit and the Hungarians were able to withdraw to their
own borders.
The Long campaign was not an unqualified success, the army had suffered severely
from supply problems and had lost all their warwagons and supply wagons. However
Hunyadi had proved that with a large disciplined force of mercenaries the Hungarians
were more than capable of taking on Ottomans forces far larger than their own.
The army was in the field for six months, four of which in Ottoman territory.
It had advanced some 300 kilometres into Ottoman territory, fought seven major
battles, innumerable skirmishes and managed to retreat in good order. The campaign
was seen in Western Europe as a glorious success. It did however sowed the seeds
for the disaster at Varna the following year.
Sources
Hunyadi's letter to Nicholas Ujlaki 8th November 1443, in Hurmuzaki, p687
Ioan Thuroczi, Chronica Hungarorum 1488
Historia Pannonica sive Hungaricarum rerum decades IV et dimidia- Bonfinius
January 1444 the Army returned from the long campaign and is
disbanded. At the Hungarian Diet in April Cardinal Cesarini announced the formation
of a coalition against the Turks. Besides the Pope and Ulászló,
Philip the Good of Burgundy, Venice and Genoa all pledged their support for
the enterprise. On April the 14th in front of the Diet Cardinal Cesarini took
Ulászló's oath that with in the year he would lead a fresh campaign
against the Ottomans. The basic plan put forward was that fleets from Venice,
Genoa and the Papacy would block the sea routes from Asia Minor to the Balkans
by cutting the straits between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. A Crusading
army led by Hunyadi and Ulászló would recapture all of the Ottomans
European provinces.
Even as the Diet was discussing the forth coming campaign, Ulászló
was in negotiation with George Brankovic, Prince of Serbia. Brankovic was the
father-in-law of the Ottoman Sultan Murad II. This distinction had not saved
him from having his lands ravaged and two of his sons blinded for assisting
their father in resisting the Ottomans. Murad II through his wife Mara Brankovic
offered Brankovic the return of all his lands if he could organise a truce between
Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. Overtures apparently began in March with Brankovic
approaching Hunyadi. It should be noted that Brankovic was also a Hungarian
Noble by virtue of the massive estates he held there. In return for Brankovic's
estates Hunyadi was to convince the King that peace with the Sultan was worthwhile.
Ulászló did sign the treaty with the Ottomans and Hunyadi did
take control over Brankovic's estates. Whether there was an intended deception
of the Ottomans or not, Ulászló broke the treaty almost immediately.
The King was able to mount the campaign almost immediately. An army mustered
from Royal, Episcopal troops and from Transylvania numbering some 16,000 men
crossed the Danube on the 20th September. Possibly because of the relatively
short period between the Long campaign and this one, the Hungarian army was
smaller and very imbalanced. It contained almost no infantry, except 100 to
300 Czech mercenary handgunners. There were also 100 warwagons probably with
crews, though none are mentioned. The rest of the army was heavy cavalry, mostly
Royal and foreign mercenaries, with some Episcopal and Noble banners as well.
The plan of the campaign is well recorded. Whilst Papal, Venetian and Genoese
ships blockaded the Dardanelle straits the Hungarian army was to advance on
the coastal town of Varna. There they would met up with elements of the Papal
fleet and move down the coast to Constantinople, pushing the Ottomans out of
the Balkans as they went.
The Hungarian advance was rapid, fortresses were bypassed and the Ottomans refused
to give battle. Near Nicopolis on the 16th of October a contingent of some 4,000
Wallachians under one of Vlad Drakul's son's joined the Hungarians. The son
was probably Micea though no direct evidence exists, later sources attribute
the leader as Drakula but this is unreliable as it is used to show early signs
of his perfidy.
Continuing their rapid advance the army reached Varna on the 9th of November.
That night the Hungarians were surprised to discover a massive Ottoman army
encamped to their West and South. The Hungarians were essentially trapped. The
Black sea to the East and heavily forested hills and marshes to the North. The
chroniclers describe the discussions of the Hungarian war council. Cesarini
and many of the nobles were for fortifying themselves with in a wagon laager
and waiting for the Papal fleet to arrive. Hunyadi convinced them that this
course of action would only lead to disaster and that the only possible way
to extract themselves was by offering battle. Hunyadi was appointed commander
of the army and it was decided to give battle the next day.
Deployment
Bonfinius describes the Hungarian deployment as an arc or crescent shape between
the Devina Lake and the Frangen hills. The line was some 1,000 paces long and
shaped as it was so that the right of the line was facing both to the front
and towards the Frangen hills. To the rear of the Hungarians, backed onto the
Black sea was the camp and wagon laager, defended by drivers and the 300 Czech
mercenary soldiers. The lack of any significant numbers of infantry clearly
caused Hunyadi problems, his deployment was such as to minimise the risk to
the right of Ottoman infantry moving through the hills and falling on the exposed
end of the line.
The left of the Hungarian line was commanded by Michael Szilagyi, Hunyadi's
brother in law. His force was almost entirely made up of Hunyadi's Transylvanian
troops and German mercenaries and also banners of Hungarian Magnates, a total
of 5,000 men, organised into 5 Banners. The centre was held by the King's Polish
and Hungarian bodyguards, Hungarian Royal mercenaries and banners of Hungarian
Nobles. They numbering some 3,500 men and were organised into 2 banners. The
Hungarian Royal mercenaries under Stefan Batori, the rest possibly under the
joint command of Hunyadi and King Ulászló. The right of the Hungarian
army was the largest, numbering some 6,500 men, divided into 5 banners. The
breakdown of the right wing was, in overall command was Bishop Jan Dominek of
Varadin with his personal banner. Cardinal Cesarini commanding two banners of
German mercenaries/crusaders, the Bishop of Erlau commanding his own banner
and The military Governor of Slavonia, Talotsi, commanding one banner. Unlike
the rest of the Hungarian army these banners were deployed very deep, three
banners to the front and two to the rear. Behind the centre of the Hungarian
army the Wallachians were deployed in reserve.
The Ottomans deployed with the Spahis of Rumelia on their right, numbering some 15 to 20,000. The Spahis of Anatolia on the left numbering somewhere around 15,000 men. The centre was comprised entirely of infantry, the Sultan's Janissaries and the levies from Rumelia, numbering some 10,000 in all. The centre was dug in behind ditches and barricades and was deployed behind the line of the cavalry wings. There was an additional force of Janissary/ azab archers and Akinji light horse deployed in the Frangen hills.
The Battle
The Ottomans began the attack with their left in concert with the troops occupying
the Frangen hills. Almost immediately the Hungarian battle plan came apart,
The Bishops of Erlau and Varadin launched their banners at the attacking Ottomans,
fracturing the Hungarian line and exposing the centre's flank. The Banners of
the Bishops pushed deep into the Ottoman line but were rapidly surrounded. Talotsi
led the remaining banners of the wing to their aid.
At this juncture sources differ as to What happened. Bonfinius implausibly describes Hunyadi leading the majority of the centre and the left wing in an attack on the Ottoman right, with the aim of aiding his beleaguered right! All other sources either imply or state that the Ottoman right was instead ordered to attack their Hungarian counterparts. Once the Ottoman right was engaged with the Hungarian left Hunyadi personally led Batori's Banner in an attack on the flank of the Ottomans right. Bonfinius at least agrees that Hunyadi's line was able to overlap the Ottomans causing them to recoil, then withdraw. This withdrawal may or may not have been a rout what is certain is that the Rumelia forces retreated a significant distance away from the battle. Parts of the Hungarian left pursued then began looting. The Wallachians had advanced at this point to occupy the part of the line left vacant by Hunyadi's attack on the Ottomans. The success of the Hungarian left was immediately tempered by the collapse of Hungarian right. Only Talotsi and his banner were able to extract themselves in any kind of order. They were able to withdraw to the wagon laager and take refuge within it. The rest of the Hungarian right dispersed and fled. The Wallachians moved away from their position in the centre and headed away from the battle, subsequently looting parts of the Ottoman camp before retiring in good order back to Wallachia.
At this stage the battle remained almost evenly matched, each army had lost a wing, though the Ottomans was arguably in reasonable order. Hunyadi lead the elements of the Hungarian left and centre that had remained in good order towards the now disorganised Ottoman left. Almost the entire Hungarian army, now including the Royal Hungarian Guards attacked the Ottoman left. Despite their disorder the Ottoman left was able to put up spirited resistance and it was only when the Beylerbey of Anatolia was killed that they broke and fled the field. Despite the odds the Hungarian army had successfully destroyed or neutralised over 35,000 Ottoman cavalry, leaving the Sultan on the battlefield, isolated with only infantry, most of dubious quality.
Bonfinius describes how what could have been one of Hunyadi's greatest victories was turned rapidly into a crushing defeat. Bonfinius records Hunyadi warning Ulászló to wait until the army had reformed before engaging the Ottoman infantry but Ulászló disregarding this advice and being urged by his Polish bodyguard to seize the opportunity for glory. Ulászló charged the Ottoman Janissaries and inevitably despite initial success was overwhelmed and killed. The Hungarian army broke up into small groups and retreated. The Ottoman troops did not pursue for at least a day, apparently the losses were sufficient for Murad to state 'may Allah never grant me another such victory'.
The aftermath
Casualties for the battle are variously recorded in the sources. What seems
certain is that Ottomans suffered significant losses, they refused to actively
pursue the retreating Hungarians and retired to their camp after the battle.
Hungarian casualties are often portrayed as massive, one letter stating only
four Noblemen made it back to the borders of Hungary! The most common figure
for Hungarian losses puts the figure at 10,000 men at of 16,000. What ever the
reality of Hungarian losses they were in essence replaceable. The majority of
the force were mercenaries. Unlike Mohacs of the following century the Hungarian
presence was actually limited and Hunyadi's military and political power in
Hungary suffered only marginally. It should also be noted that the major commanders
of the army, Szilagyi, Hunyadi and Talotsi all managed to return to Hungary.
Hunyadi retreated through Wallachia where according to popular accounts he was
held prisoner by Vlad Drakul. Though Hunyadi was held briefly by the Wallachians
it appears to have been a mistake on the part of a local Wallachian Noble rather
than at the direct order of Drakul. Certainly the period immediately after Varna
shows quite cordial relations between the two which is rather at odds with the
popularist account of his capture.
Main Source- Ioan Thuroczi, Chronica Hungarorum 1488
Historia Pannonica sive Hungaricarum rerum decades IV et dimidia- Bonfinius
Laonic Chalkondyles, Historical Chronicles
In the year 1448 Hunyadi was
in a position to once again attack the Ottomans. His objectives were not as
ambitious as those of the Varna campaign. Hunyadi aimed to link with Scanderbeg
and his Albanian rebels, then conquer Macedonia and Southern Serbia. In this
way the European domain of the Ottoman Empire would be split in two. Hunyadi
gathered his army on the banks of the Danube. Given the limitations of the General
Levy Hunyadi preferred to rely on personal ties and troops under his direct
command. As a result the core of his army was from Transylvania with the only
major Hungarian contingents supplied by Franko of Talovak, Ban of Dalmatia and
Croatia and his Brother-in-laws, Micheal Szilagyi and Janos Szekely. Hunyadi's
army marched into Serbia making quick progress but unlike previous occasions
the Serbians did not join the army in any significant numbers. At Kossovopolje
Hunyadi rested the army either waiting for Scanderbeg or prior to marching to
join Scanderbeg.
On October 17th Hunyadi's forces were surprised by detachments of Murad's army
moving onto the Kossovo plain to their North. An unwelcome surprise, even more
for Hunyadi as he was under the belief that Murad and the main Ottoman forces
were campaigning in Asia Minor.
Hunyadi now faced a difficult decision, either retreat further into Serbian
territory, away from Hungary and face the possibility of attacks on his marching
army or stand and fight. Though not the ideal position from which to fight,
the Kossovo plain at least well scouted by Hunyadi and his officers. Hunyadi's
first course of action was to dispatch much of his light horse to block the
passes towards Pristina, they were successful though the clashes are described
as 'bloody'. By the end of the day the entire Ottoman army was deployed on the
southern bank of the Lab river, with hills to their east and the river Sitnica
protecting their Western flank. The Ottoman camp was positioned on the Northern
bank of the Lab river. The distance between the two encampments was some 4 to
5 kilometres.
The Armies.
Hungarians
Hunyadi's army numbered in the region of 24 to
30,000. Included in this total was a Wallachian force maybe numbering as high
as 10,000 men under Dan, Prince of Wallachia. See notes
as to the likely composition of this force and why I have accredited the command
to Dan rather than the more usually mentioned Vladislav II.
The rest of Hunyadi's force was a mix of infantry and cavalry. 2,000 to 3,000
German handgunners are mentioned in the sources, as are Transylvanian infantry.
Along with the infantry there were warwagons, though their numbers are not known.
The army was accompanied by a supply train of some 2,000 wagons. The sources
say that many of these wagons also pulled cannons. Hunyadi was apparently very
well equipped with artillery for this campaign, presumably to reduce Ottoman
strongholds in Albania and Macedonia. One such model of cannon is mentioned
by name, the Zarobotana (a corruption of the Italian Cerbottana) meaning a cannon
capable of firing at longer ranges than normal. The cavalry were mostly Heavy
cavalry a mix of Mercenaries and the banners of Hungarian Nobles. Light cavalry
was also present in significant numbers, the bulk provided by Wallachians and
Transylvanians, presumably Szekely. There were sufficient numbers of light cavalry
to form skirmish screens in front of both wings of the army.
The Ottomans
The Ottoman army has been variously estimated from 50,000 to 400,000 men! The
Turkish Sources closest to the time put the figure at between 50,000 to 60,000
men. The army was comprised of the Spahis levy of both Rumelia and Anatolia
and the Sultans personal army of Janissaries and court cavalry. The similarity
in the sizes given and those for the Ottoman army at the battle of Varna, 60,000
seems to be the reasonable upper limit.
18 October 1448
The Hungarian Deployment, 18th October.
Hunyadi had placed his camp on a hill which dominated the land around it. The
supply wagons were used to build a fortified area. His large artillery train
was placed amongst and on these wagons, giving them a dominating field of fire
towards the Ottoman camp.
Hunyadi deployed his cavalry in front of his fortified camp in two lines. The
first line comprised of a heavy cavalry centre with wings of light horse. The
heavy cavalry of the centre were the banners of Transylvania, Slovenia and Croatia
under the command of Janos Szekely and Franko of Talovak. The light horse of
the left flank was personally commanded by Voivode Dan, presumably his Transylvanians
and Wallachians. The right flank's first line light horse was under the command
of Benedict Losonczi. Behind the first line Hunyadi positioned a second line
of entirely heavy cavalry. He personally commanded the centre of the second
line comprised of Royal troops, mercenaries and some banners of Transylvanians.
The left flank's heavy cavalry was under the command of Stephan Banffy. The
right flank's were also under Benedict Losonczi who positioned his standard
and commanded from the middle of the Knights. Both flanks heavy cavalry appear
to have been made up of banners from the Hungarian Magnates who had been willing
to follow Hunyadi. The third line of the Hungarian army was the infantry, massed
behind the fortifications of the camp and the warwagons. Behind or possibly
in the camp there was an additional reserve of cavalry. The description of the
third line's defences is general in nature but it is not unreasonable to assume
that the warwagons formed the front of the camp. Hunyadi's basic battle plan
appears to have been to attack with the cavalry and if they were hard pressed
to retreat behind or through the fortified third line of the infantry and regroup.
The infantry, warwagons and cannons providing the protection whilst they reorganised.
The total number of banners of cavalry, including light horse is given as 38.
The Ottoman deployment, 18th October
The Ottomans deployed in front of the south bank of the River Lab, their right
flank resting on the Sitnica river. Going against tradition the forces of Anatolia
were positioned on the right. The Rumelia were positioned on the left in advance
of the centre and the right. Both flanks comprised entirely of cavalry, two
lines of Spahis with multiple lines of Akinjis skirmishers and other levy light
horse to their front. The centre of the Ottoman deployment was held by the Sultan
and the infantry, in 3 lines. The rearmost line was that of Janissaries with
the Sultan, the second line was artillery, dug in behind redoubts. Around the
Janissaries and the artillery was a further defensive ditch and surrounding
this on three sides was the first line of infantry made up of Azab levies.
The Battle, 18th October
The Ottomans began the battle with an attack by
the Rumelian cavalry on the Hungarian right. As soon as they advanced the Hungarian
light horse line retreated in good order behind their heavy cavalry supports.
Fierce fighting followed with the Hungarians holding but being unable to make
head way. Hunyadi fed some of his central units into the fight on his right.
The Ottomans then launched the Anatolian cavalry against Banffy and Dan's commands.
Dan's Wallachians also manoeuvred behind their heavy cavalry support though
then deployed on their far left, presumably to cover the exposed flank, which
did not have the terrain coverage of the right. The Anatolians pushed the Hungarians
back but were stopped when Hunyadi led part of the central command into the
fighting.
At this point the Ottoman Azab infantry attacked the now weakened Hungarian
centre. They cracked the centre of the line but were halted by cannon fire from
the wagon fortifications. The line was sealed by a counter attack by the Hungarian
infantry.
With the Ottoman centre and right held, Hunyadi
fed more reserves into the fight on his right flank. Parts of the Rumelia troops
broke and fled into the hills surrounding the area. The rest managed a controlled
withdrawal to their camp. At this stage the rest of the Ottomans forces broke
off combat and retreated. Hunyadi also retreated to his camp.
The night of 18th October
The sources for the aftermath of the first day are at odds about what happened
during the night. Chakondyles states that the Hungarians launched a night attack
against the Ottoman camp but were repulsed by the Janissaries. Hunyadi in a
letter to the dean of Cracow (30 December 1448) merely mentions a continuous
exchange of cannon fire. What does seem clear is that the Hungarians expected
the Ottoman's to retreat the following day as was their usual tactic when unable
to force the issue in a single days fighting. The Hungarians put the day's casualties
as 15,000 to 16,000 Ottoman dead, the majority from the Rumelia contingent.
The Ottomans though do not appear to have suffered any where near this number
and the majority of the Anatolian contingent had not even been engaged that
day. The deployment and course of the battle the next day do suggest that Rumelia
forces were badly weakened.
Battle 19th October
Ottoman deployment
The Ottoman deployment mirrored the previous day. Except that the cavalry of
Thessaly were removed from the Rumelia contingent and sent on a flank march
around the Hungarian army. The Sultan ordered Turakhan, the Beylerbey of Rumelia
to lead it himself. The remaining combat worthy troops of Rumelia were ordered
to take up their previous positions.
Hungarian deployment
Hunyadi either divined that the focus of the day's battle would be his left
flank or was informed of the Sultan's intentions by deserters. Either way Hunyadi
strengthened his left by moving Janos Szekely and his men from the centre to
the left and adding in his cavalry reserves. Bonfinius records that Szekely
was placed in command of the left, all other sources say Banffy retained command.
His right flank's deployment remained the same as the previous day's. Hunyadi
deployed most of infantry as part of his centre, they were accompanied by the
more mobile of his artillery pieces.
The Battle 19th October
The Ottomans began the attack with the cavalry
of Anatolia. They were held by the reinforced Hungarian right. The weakened
Ottoman left began skirmishing with the Hungarians to their front and Losonczi
was hard pressed to prevent them slipping behind the Hungarian lines.
With both flanks in a stalemate Hunyadi lead his centre against the Ottoman
infantry. The Azabs were driven away by artillery fire and the Hungarian infantry
attack. The Ottoman artillery and Janissaries were able to halt the advancing
Hungarian infantry. However the addition of the Hungarian cavalry, personally
lead by Hunyadi broke through the Janissary line.
With the situation precarious for the Sultan, he ordered the
main baggage camp commander, Sinan-bey to reinforce the centre with his camp
guards and the army followers. This ill-armed force was sufficient to stabilise
the Ottoman line and allow the Janissaries to recover their cohesion. With this
failure Hunyadi retreated his centre back to its original positions.
The battle stalemated at this point, the Hungarian
right was under pressure but holding and their left was unable to make headway
against the Ottoman skirmishers. At this juncture Turakhan and the Thessalonians
cavalry arrived behind the Hungarian left wing. Unable to manoeuvre to respond
to the threat Dan and his Wallachians were rapidly overwhelmed and forced to
surrender. The Anatolians began to rollup the Hungarian flank. Hunyadi ordered
the retreat back to camp. The Hungarian centre and left retired in good order
but their right was decimated and Szekely was killed in the fighting.
The aftermath
Hunyadi decided to retreat in the early hours of that morning. Micheal Szilagyi
led a feint with some of the cavalry, allowing Hunyadi to exit the camp with
the majority of the army. Szilagyi would be captured in the course of this diversion.
Hunyadi also left part of his infantry to cover his withdrawal. It would take
the Ottomans the best part of the morning to overwhelm the camp, by this time
Hunyadi and most of his army had successfully broken contact from the Ottoman
forces.
Over the two days the Hungarians are said to have lost as many as 17,000 men
or as little as 6,000 men. The difference in the two could be due to the differing
versions as what happened to the Wallachians. Excluded from the 6,000 as they
had swapped sides. The Ottomans are said to have lost between 30,000 and 40,000
troops, though Chalkondyles puts it at only 4,000 men. Chalkondyles figure does
seem unlikely given how badly Rumelian troops suffered on the first day and
the two defeats suffered by the Azab infantry. The truth probably lies somewhere
in-between the two figures. Like Varna, there seems to have been a very limited
pursuit only.
Hunyadi was captured by Brankovitch, Prince of Serbia, during his retreat and
it would take until December before his return to Hungary. Unlike Varna Kossovopolje
weakened his domestic support and gave rise to a period of instability and the
end of Hunyadi's aggressive policies towards the Ottomans.
Notes on the Battle of Kossovo
Wallachian troops and their commander?
The name of the commander is not known for certain,
Later chroniclers such as Bonfinius name him as Vladislav II, Prince of Wallachia
from 1447 until 1456. However there is no contemporary source that places Vladislav
at the battle of Kossovopolje. In 1448 a Hungarian army under instructions from
Hunyadi assisted Dan, a Wallachian noble, and his forces to depose Vlad Drakul.
Once Dan was declared Vioviode of Wallachia the Hungarians withdrew. Dan however
was unable to retain the throne as other nobles attempted to emulate him but
with Ottoman support. Hunyadi interfered again and captured and blinded the
main Ottoman candidate. Hunyadi did not however return Dan to the throne, instead
he supported Vladislav another noble with links to the Ottomans. It appears
that Hunyadi supported Vladislav as a compromise, at least securing the neutrality
of Wallachia. Ottoman chroniclers describe Vladislav as a friend to the Ottomans
and a personal friend to the Ottoman commander of Nicopolis. Given that Vladislav
retained the throne until 1456 and appears to have enjoyed good relations with
the Ottomans for most of that period his appearance at Kossovopolje on the side
of the Hungarians is unlikely. Voiviode Dan however had every reason to assist
the Hungarians as they offered his only chance of regaining the throne of Wallachia.
It is also possible that Dan had retained control of the Western part of Wallachia,
with Hungarian support. It is also uncertain exactly what troops were with Dan
at the battle. They are attributed as being Wallachian, it is however possible
that these were a mix of true Wallachians and Transylvanian Wallachians, Muresanu
in his description of the battle says Hunyadi assigned troops to his command,
though does not give the source of the information. The common interpretation
of the battle is that the Wallachian contingent swapped sides causing the defeat
and were subsequently massacred by Murad. The Ottoman chroniclers however make
it quite clear that Dan and his Wallachians were captured during the battle,
after being struck in the rear by a detachment of the Ottoman army and forced
to surrender. The chroniclers go as far as to name the commander of this force
as the Beylerbey of Rumelia, Turakhan-Bey. The subsequent massacre makes sense
if these were rebels against Vladislav II.
In 1455 news reached the Hungarian court that the Ottomans were massing a warfleet on the Danube and mustering men and supplies. The conqueror of Constantinople, Mehmed II, made no secret of his desire to add Hungary and Serbia to his Empire.
April 1456 the Hungarian diet was convened with the purpose
of organising Hungary's defence. A general mobilisation was declared and a plea
was sent to the Pope for support. It was hoped that Papal ships could intercept
or at least hinder the movement of Ottoman troops from Anatolia. Much to the
dismay of many Hungarian Nobles king Ladislas V took this moment to go on a
hunting trip, one that was based in Vienna and would only end after the Ottoman
threat had passed. The nobles despite their personal mistrust of him turned
to Janos Hunyadi for leadership. Hunyadi was once again in effective control
over Hungary.
Hunyadi reinforced the fortresses along the Danube particularily Belgrade whose
strategic position made it the mostly likely target fot the Ottomans. Hunyadi
is recorded as sending over 5000 mercenaries to Belgrade. Described as a mix
of Hungarians, Czechs and Poles. Hunyadi's long term planning was paying dividends,
not only had he initiated repairs and the building of fresh defences as far
back as 1442 but he had also managed to ensure that the commander of the Belgrade
fortress was an excellent soldier and his personal friend Micheal Szilagyi.
As it became clear that Belgrade was the likely target of the Ottomans the inhabitants
rallied to Szilagyi and provided him with an enthusastic militia but more importantly
the manpower to further improve the city's defences.
With the initial defence of Belgrade taken care of Hunyadi set about raising
a field army and gaining allies. Hunyadi's focus was Wallachia for two main
reasons. Firstly the current Wallachian ruler, Vladislav II, was an ally of
the Ottomans and had in 1455 with the assistance of Ottoman troops raided and
plundered across Southern Transylvania. The effect of this was that Hunyadi
was unable to remove many of his most trustworthy and reliable troops as they
were required to guard against further Wallachian incursions. Hunyadi initially
attempted diplomacy but this appears to have had little effect as Vladislav
subsequently supported a rebellion in the Hungarian controlled city of Fagaras
in early April 1456. Hunyadi responded with a rebellion of his own, he gave
the son of a previous Wallachian king men and money. Prince Vlad, later famous
as the 'impaler', gained rapid support from the Wallachian Boyars and by the
end of June 1456 had killed Vladislav and was undisputed king of Wallachia.
Vlad's rebellion was sufficently successful from the outset that Hunyadi was
able to pull most of his personal troops out of Transylvania to the muster point
at the city of Seghedin. Unfortunately the Saxon elements of Transylvania ignored
Hunyadi's requests as it had been their lands that had suffered the greatest
in the Wallachian incursions. There are three letters from Hunyadi in three
weeks to the Saxon leaders asking them to join the muster at Seghedin. There
is no evidence that Saxon troops arrived to help.
Hunyadi also turned to the Serbs and Albanians for support. There are no details of any communications between George Brankovitch and Hunyadi, however unlike the capaign of 1448 which ended badly for the Hungarians at the Battle of Kossovo this time Serbian support was emphatic and wide spread. The local Serb population around Belgrade added considerably to the defenders of the city. A Serbian army of some 9000 men attacked the Ottoman main army as it advanced up the pass of Moravia towards Belgrade. It was outnumbered at least four to one, and had little hope of success. The Serbs lost the engagement but in doing so gained Hunyadi more time to organise his forces.
Scanderbeg of Albania responded to Hunyadi's request for help and gathered an
army but was unable to come to his aid. At the same time as the Ottoman army
was advancing on Belgrade a secondary force attacked Albania directly. This
was presumably to prevent Albanian assistance to the Hungarians but also as
a continuation of the previous year's campaign.
A further blow to Hunyadi was the refusal of most of Hungary's senior noblemen
to participate in the campaign. Many citing the King's absence as reason enough.
Only those with a vested interested mustered as required. Nobles with estates
in Southern Hungary rallied to Hunyadi as did many of the minor noblemen whose
causes Hunyadi had championed over the years. This gave Hunyadi a field force
of some 15,000 men, about half were said to be mercenaries or transylvanian
troops. Despite the small number these were on the whole very experianced, especially
Hunyadi's banderium and Transylvanian troops.
There was however an unexpected development throughout Hungary, Serbia and even
the Holy Roman Empire . Priests and monks had been spreading the news of the
Ottoman threat to Belgrade and preached a crusade to come to Hungary's aid.
Chief amongst these was the Monk inquisitor John Capistrano who since late 1455
had been persecuting anyone not of the Catholic faith in Transylvania. Despite
the adverse reaction to his inquistion amongst the Nobles and the general population
his call to arms struck a cord and soon people were flooding to his crusading
banner. Some were minor Nobles who had previously been restrained by ties to
Noblemen hostile to Hunyadi but most were common people. Descriptions of these
crusaders vary but all are consistant in that they were badly armed and equipped,
most only having slings and clubs. Though some had spears, horses and armour.
The crusaders made their way to the camp at Seghedin, many arriving after the
final battle for Belgrade. By the end of June some contempories estimated that
there were over 60,000 crusaders gathered at the camp. A more realistic figure
is given by a fellow crusader and collaborator of Capistrano, a Giovanni Tagliacozzo,
who wrote from Belgrade shortly after the relief of the city that there were
some 27-28000. This figure may well include the population of Belgrade who
also fought in the last days of the siege and the militias of Southern Hungary
and Transylvania.
Early in June Hunyadi moved his army down the Danube to Kubin
(Kovin) and just after the 22nd crossed the river to its Southern bank. In
a series of skirmishes Hunyadi slowly retreated towards Belgrade. Large parts
of the Ottoman army was able to bypass his skirmishers and were outside the
walls of the city sometime near the end of June. The 2nd of July saw Belgrade
reinforced by a large group of crusaders under Capistrano who used five large
transport ships to get them into the city. Capistrano attempted to link up with
Hunyadi's forces to the south with three of the ships but a storm wrecked them,
abandoning them he and his troops returned to Belgrade by foot. By the 4th of
July the numbers of Ottomans gathering around Belgrade and the arrival of the
Ottoman fleet made Hunyadi's presence on the south side of the Danube very risky.
He duly crossed over the Danube and made camp at the fortress of Zemun north
east of Belgrade. The 4th was also the day that the first of the Ottoman heavy
seige cannons began bombarding the city walls of Belgrade. With the arrival
of the Otoman fleet Belgrade found itself under seige. Capistrano withdrew from
the city before it was surrounded and returned to Seghedin where he gathered
the rest of the available crusaders and marched South to join Hunyadi.
Hunyadi set about commandering all naval vessels he could find and gathered
them at Slankamen. Some were military vessels from the Danube fleet but most
were transport/merchant ships of varying size. Outfitting these as best he could
Hunyadi had a force of some 200 ships with which to attempt a relief of Belgrade.
Hunyadi was able to continue communications with Szilagyi in Belgrade and the
relief attempt was set for the 14th of July. Once Hunyadi's attack had begun
Szilagyi was to launch a sally from the city with the forty or so ships moored
at the city docks. Szilagyi crewed the ships with Serbs from the city. The reason
given in the contempory sources is that they would do anything to repel the
Ottoman invaders. A more cynical reason would be that the the Serb irregulars
were more expendable than Szilagyi's few professional troops.
On the 14th of July Hunyadi's fleet sailed towards Belgrade,
paced by some 15-20000 infantry on the Southern bank of the river. The core
of this infantry were the Transylvanian militia but a large number of Crusaders
commanded by Capistrano were also present. One Source mentions a noblemen called
Peter carrying the crusader banner. This Peter has never been positively identified
however his inclusion and mention of the fact that he was responsible for the
Crusader flag probably indicates that he was Hunyadi's man, there to ensure
that Capistrano did not make any foolish errors. The role of the infantry was
to prevent detachments from the Ottoman army interfering with the naval battle
and to capture any Ottoman vessel or crew forced to beach.
The lead ship of the fleet was described as exceptionally powerful and well
built. Hunyadi made it his flagship and placed dismounted men at arms on it.
The Ottoman fled advanced from the Belgrade blockade to meet them. The fight
lasted some 5 hours, finally swung in the Hungarian favour by the arrival of
the Belgrade ships. The ottomans lost some ¾ of their ships, either sunk,
captured or so badely damaged that the Sultan later had them fired to prevent
their capture. The descturction of the Ottoman fleet opened up Belgrade to resupply
and each night saw fresh equipment and men shuttled over by ship.
Despite the loss of his fleet the Sultan continued the siege, his artillery
train rapidly destroyed the outer walls and small scale assults kept up the
pressure on the defenders. The Hungarians were themselves not inactive, their
limited amount of artillery were constantly in use, one lucky shot killed the
Beylerbey of Rumelia who had been in over all charge of the Ottoman siege works.
His death appears to have demoralised or at least dampened the spirits of the
Ottoman troops. As a result Mehmed II decided on a general assault to achieve
a quick, if bloody, victory.
On the 21st of July the assault was launched. The Ottoman superority
of numbers quickly showed as they breached the outer defences and were able
to reach the inner fortress before the draw bridge could be raised. Fierce resistance
by the Hungarian defenders, including Hunyadi and his banderia saw the Ottomans
repulsed from the gateway but not before Janissary sappers had successfully
destroyed the draw bridge, preventing the Garrision from easily sallying against
them. Despite this set back Crusader troops were able to affect a crossing from
the North side of the river Sava and successfully counter attacked the Ottoman
troops within Belgrade's outer defences. Additional support from mercenaries
in manouverable boats saw the Crusader troops drive the Ottomans out of Belgrade
and by evening had recaptured the city.
The following day the Crusader forces and transylvanian militia within Belgrade launched a disorganised surprise attack on the Outer Ottoman seige works. This was supported by the rest of the crusaders in the camps across the Sava river. Fighting was soon heavy with groups of ottoman cavalry launching counter charges against the Hungarian foot in a desperate attempt to defend their artillery. Seeing the situation stale mated Hunyadi threw in the rest of the Hungarian forces. These well trained mercenaries and veterans quickly over turned the Ottoman resistance and captured their main artillery postitions. Hunyadi had the lighter of these pieces turned around and trained on the Ottoman camp. A full assault with artillery support was then launched on the Ottoman camp. Succesive attacks were beaten back by the Janissaries at the cost of their commander's life and the wounding of the sultan. The Sultan in turn launched his own counter attacks to recapture his guns. After three such attacks were beaten off the Ottoman army refused to try again and remained on the defensive. With night fall the Ottoman army withdrew from their camp and retreated, leaving massive amounts of valuables and equipment behind. The price was high for the Hungarians as within days Janos Hunyadi contracted the plague that was sweeping the camps and died.
I'd recommend Bob Black's pamphlet on Janos Hunyadi and the Turkish invasions
of Hungary as an excellent alternative source of information. Though Bob does
not list all his sources he seems to have relied on ones different to myself
and it makes interesting reading. My one gripe with it, is the inclusion of
several standard myths associated with the Hunyadi period, for example the Ringing
of Church Bells at noon everyday to commemorate Hunyadi's victory at Belgrade.
The ringing of the Bells was actually introduced before the siege of Belgrade
by Pope Callistus III as part of the Catholic Angelus prayer. It is linked to
the events of 1456 but only in that it was announced as part of the Papal declaration
of a Crusade against the Ottoman Turks.
Also the placing of the battle of Vasaq at the 'irongate' on the Danube, it
is pretty clear from the available evidence that the chronicler only used the
term 'irongate' as a descriptive term and not a specific location.
Copyright © 2002-2020 Matthew Haywood
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