Siege of Vienna (1529): Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Failed siege of the Ottoman–Habsburg wars}}

The '''Siege of Vienna''' of [[1529]], as distinct from the [[Battle of Vienna]] in 1683, represented the farthest advance into [[Eastern Europe]] of the [[Ottoman Turks]], and of all the clashes between the armies of [[Christianity]] and [[Islam]] might be signaled as the battle that finally stemmed the previously-unstoppable [[Islam|Muslim]] forces, likely saving European Christianity from annihilation.

{{other uses|Siege of Vienna (disambiguation)}}

{{EngvarB|date=October 2013}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}

{{Infobox military conflict

| conflict = Siege of Vienna

| partof = the [[Habsburg–Ottoman wars in Hungary (1526–1568)]]<br>[[Habsburg–Ottoman war of 1529–1533]]

| image = Siegeofvienna1529.jpg

| image_size = 300px

| caption = Contemporary 1529 engraving of clashes between the Austrians and Ottomans outside Vienna, by [[Bartel Beham]]

| date = 27 September – 15 October 1529<ref name="Shaw1976">{{cite book|last=Shaw|first=Stanford J.|title=History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofottoman00stan|url-access=registration|access-date=22 September 2011|date=1976|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-29163-7|page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofottoman00stan/page/93 93]}}</ref><br />({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=09|day1=27|year1=1529|month2=10|day2=15|year2=1529}})

| place = [[Vienna]], [[Holy Roman Empire]]<br />(present-day [[Austria]])

| result = Habsburg victory

| combatant1 = {{Tree list}}{{flagicon|Holy Roman Empire}} [[Holy Roman Empire]]<br />

**{{Flagicon image|Royal banner of the Kingdom of Bohemia (colorful).svg}} [[Kingdom of Bohemia]]

**{{Flagicon image|Banner of the Palatinate.svg}} [[Electorate of the Palatinate]]

**{{Flagicon image|Flag of Krain.svg}} [[Duchy of Carniola]]

**{{Flagicon image|Coat of arms of the Serbian Despotate.svg}} [[Serbian Despotate]]

{{flag|Spanish Empire}}

{{tree list/end}}

| combatant2 = {{Tree list}}{{flagicon|Ottoman Empire|1517}} [[Ottoman Empire]]

**{{resize|{{flagicon|Moldavia}}}} [[Moldavia]] {{Small|''(Vassal state)''}}

{{tree list/end}}

| commander1 = {{flagicon|Holy Roman Empire}} [[Nicholas, Count of Salm|Niklas Graf Salm]]{{DOW}}<br />{{Flagicon image|Banner of the Palatinate.svg}} [[Philip, Count Palatine|Philipp der Streitbare]]<br />{{flagicon|Holy Roman Empire}} [[Wilhelm von Roggendorf]]<br/>{{Flagicon image|Flag of Krain.svg}} [[Johann Katzianer]]<br/>{{flagicon|Holy Roman Empire}} [[Pavle Bakić]]

| commander2 = {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire|1517}} [[Suleiman the Magnificent]]<br /> {{flagicon|Ottoman Empire|1517}} [[Pargalı Ibrahim Pasha]]

| strength1 = ≈&nbsp;17,000–21,000<ref>Turnbull says the garrison was "over 16,000 strong". ''The Ottoman Empire'', p. 50; Keegan and Wheatcroft suggest 17,000. ''Who's Who in Military History'', p. 283; Some estimates are just above 20,000, for example: "Together with Wilhelm von Roggendorf, the Marshal of Austria, Salm conducted the defense of Vienna with 16,000 regulars and 5,000 militia." Dupuy, Trevor, ''et al''., ''The Encyclopedia of Military Biography'', p. 653.</ref>

| strength2 = ≈&nbsp;120,000–125,000 (only 100,000 were available during the siege)<ref name = estimate>Turnbull suggests Suleiman had "perhaps 120,000" troops when he reached Osijek on 6 August. ''The Ottoman Empire'', p. 50; Christopher Duffy suggests "Suleiman led an army of 125,000 Turks". ''Siege Warfare: Fortresses in the Early Modern World 1494–1660'', p. 201. For higher estimates, see further note on Suleiman's troops.</ref>

| casualties1 = Unknown, with presumably high civilian fatalities and at least 20,000 civilians enslaved<ref>Schimmer, Karl August (1879). The sieges of Vienna by the Turks. London : J. Murray. Contributor University of California Libraries. p. 52-53</ref><ref name="Turnbull_2"/><br />More than 1,500 dead (10% of the besieged)<ref name="repositorio.uam.es">{{Cite web |url=https://repositorio.uam.es/bitstream/handle/10486/1235/17116_C6.pdf?sequence=1 | title=Carlos V y el primer cerco de Viena en la literatura hispánica del XVI | language=es | trans-title=Charles V and the First Siege of Vienna in 16th Century Hispanic Literature | website=repositorio.uam.es}}</ref>

| casualties2 = 15,000 wounded, dead or captured<ref name="Turnbull_2"/>

}}

{{Campaignbox Ottoman-Habsburg Wars}}

{{Campaignbox Little War in Hungary}}

The '''siege of Vienna''', in 1529, was the first attempt by the [[Ottoman Empire]] to capture the city of [[Vienna]] in the [[Archduchy of Austria]], part of the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. [[Suleiman the Magnificent]], sultan of the Ottomans, attacked the city with over 100,000 men, while the defenders, led by [[Nicholas, Count of Salm|Niklas Graf Salm]], numbered no more than 21,000. Nevertheless, Vienna was able to survive the siege, which ultimately lasted just over two weeks, from 27 September to 15 October 1529.

== The Ottomans ==

The siege came in the aftermath of the 1526 [[Battle of Mohács]], which had resulted in the death of [[Louis II of Hungary|Louis II]], [[King of Hungary]], and the descent of the kingdom into civil war. Following Louis' death, rival factions within Hungary selected two successors: [[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor|Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria]], supported by the [[House of Habsburg]], and [[John Zápolya]]. Zápolya would eventually seek aid from, and become a [[vassal]] of the Ottoman Empire, after Ferdinand began to take control of western Hungary, including the city of [[Buda]].

In August of [[1526]], [[Sultan]] [[Suleiman II]] (also known colloquially as '''Suleiman the Lawgiver''' or '''Suleiman the Magnificent''') after smashing the forces of King [[Lajos II of Hungary]] at the [[Battle of Mohacs]]. Following the conquest and following subjugation of Hungary, Suleiman turned his attention to [[Austria]], where King [[Frederick I of Austria|Frederick I]] eyed Suleiman's advances, coming to quickly realize their importance to the survival of his own kingdom, not to mention Christian Europe (although to which his sympathies lay is an unsettled question).

The Ottoman attack on Vienna was part of the empire's intervention into the Hungarian conflict, and in the short term sought to secure Zápolya's position. Historians offer conflicting interpretations of the Ottoman's long-term goals, including the motivations behind the choice of Vienna as the campaign's immediate target. Some modern historians suggest that Suleiman's primary objective was to assert Ottoman control over all of Hungary, including the western part (known as [[Royal Hungary]]) that was then still under Habsburg control. Some scholars suggest Suleiman intended to use Hungary as a staging ground for further invasion of Europe.<ref name="someHistorians">It was an "afterthought towards the end of a season of campaigning". Riley-Smith, p. 256; "A last-minute decision following a quick victory in Hungary". Shaw and Shaw, p. 94; Other historians, including Stephen Turnbull, regard the suppression of Hungary as the calculated prologue, to an invasion further into Europe: "John Szapolya {{sic}} became a footnote in the next great Turkish advance against Europe in the most ambitious campaign of the great Sultan's reign." Turnbull, p .50.</ref>

Three years following his conquest of Hungary, in the spring of 1529, Suleiman's armies began a general mobilization in Ottoman [[Bulgaria]], mustering a host of around (or possibly surpassing) 325,000 men, 90,000 [[camels]], and 500 [[pieces of artillery|artillery]]. Included among them was a force of at least 20,000 of the elite [[''janissary'']] corps, and a small force of Christian Hungarians fighting for their new Turkish rulers. With Suleiman acting as commander-in-chief and his [[grand vizier]], a Greek slave known only as "Ibrahim" acting as ''seraskier'' (a commander equivalent to a Western [[field marshal]]), the army set out soon after for Vienna.

The failure of the siege of Vienna marked the beginning of 150 years of bitter military tension between the Habsburgs and Ottomans, punctuated by reciprocal attacks, and culminating in a second [[Battle of Vienna|siege of Vienna]] in 1683.

The spring rains characteristic to that part of central Europe were particularly fierce that year, making many of the major roads in the area - including those leading to [[Vienna]] - a soggy, barely-passable mess. Thousands of camels were lost when they broke their legs and had to be slaughtered, and about two hundred of the heaviest field guns were turned back due to the roads. Acting against the advice of ''seraskier'' Ibrahim, however, Suleiman pressed on, saying, "It is beneath my dignity to allow the weather to interfere with my plans." Therefore the force pressed on, intending to rely on the disciplined ranks of Balkan miners to subvert the walls and setting the stage for the macabre combat ahead.

== The Austrians Background==

{{main|Battle of Mohács|Hungarian campaign of 1527–1528}}

In August 1526, Sultan [[Suleiman the Magnificent|Suleiman I]] decisively defeated the forces of King [[Louis II of Hungary]] at the [[Battle of Mohács]], paving the way for the Ottomans to gain control of south-eastern Hungary;<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Mohacs |title=Battle of Mohács |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]] |access-date=14 October 2020}}</ref> the childless King Louis died, possibly drowning when he attempted to escape the battlefield.<ref name="JohnBrit">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Louis-II-king-of-Hungary-and-Bohemia |title=Louis II: king of Hungary and Bohemia |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]] |access-date=14 October 2020}}</ref> His brother-in-law, [[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor|Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria]], brother of [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Holy Roman Emperor Charles V]], claimed the vacant Hungarian throne. Ferdinand won recognition only in western Hungary; a noble called [[John Zápolya]], from a power-base in [[Transylvania]], challenged him for the crown and was recognised as king by Suleiman in return for accepting vassal status within the Ottoman Empire.<ref name="JohnBrit"/><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Suleyman-the-Magnificent |title=Süleyman the Magnificent |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]] |access-date=14 October 2020}}</ref> Thus Hungary became divided into three zones: [[Royal Hungary]], [[Ottoman Hungary]] and the [[Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711)|Principality of Transylvania]], an arrangement which persisted until 1700.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rWQSBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA189 |pages=189–190 |title=A History of the Habsburg Empire 1273–1700 |author1=[[Jean Bérenger|Jean Berenger]] |author2=C.A. Simpson |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2014|isbn=978-1317895701 }}</ref>

The populace of the city reacted with terror when news reached them of the advancing Ottoman force. Stories of their inexorable approach, especially the tales of the janissaries' murderous brutality (a notable example being the massacre of the surrendering [[German|Germany]] garrison and, subsequently, the populace of the town of [[Pest]]) infused the city with first a sense of fear and then a resigned will to fight to the death that would serve it well during the siege to come. Ferdinand I, however, had none of this will - he fled to the relative safety of [[Hapsburg]] [[Bohemia]] following the rejection of pleas to his brother, [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor]], for help. His designated commander, a Duke Frederick, then gave operational command of the defence to a 70 year-old German [[mercenary]] named [[Nicholas, Graf von Salm]].

Following the Diet of [[Pozsony]] (modern [[Bratislava]]) on 26 October,<ref>Turnbull, Stephen. ''The Ottoman Empire 1326–1699''. New York: Osprey, 2003. p. 49</ref> Ferdinand was declared king of Royal Hungary due to the agreement between his and Louis's families, cemented by Ferdinand's marriage to Louis's sister [[Anna of Bohemia and Hungary|Anna]] and Louis's marriage to Ferdinand's sister [[Mary of Hungary (governor of the Netherlands)|Mary]]. Ferdinand set out to [[Campaign of Ferdinand I|enforce his claim on Hungary]] and captured [[Buda]] in 1527, only to relinquish his hold on it in 1529 when an Ottoman counter-attack stripped Ferdinand of all his territorial gains.<ref>Turnbull, Stephen. ''The Ottoman Empire 1326–1699''. New York: Osprey, 2003. pp. 49–50</ref>

He arrived with 1,000 German [[Landsknechte]], formidable mercenary pikemen, and another 700 Spanish musketmen. Taking charge of the garrison of 23,000 infantry, 2,000 cavalry, and 75 cannon, he moved desperately to reinforce the city's 300 year-old walls, pierced by four gates and surrounding [[St. Stephen's Cathedral]], which he would make his headquarters. He ordered the digging of fireproof magazines and erected earthen bastions for defenders to mount in case the wall (reinforced by paving stones) should be breached. Flammable shingles were torn from the roofs, and the four gateways were heavily reinforced.

==Prelude==

In a move to preserve what food the city had stored in the event of siege, Salm ordered about 4,000 women, children, and elderly men out of the city via an escorted column. However, by this time lower Austria had been inundated by the Ottomans' advance parties, and most of the group was slaughtered 'en masse' at [[Traismauer]], with particular cruelty being shown some who were impaled on stakes (although some young women were left alive to be sold as slaves). Resistance within the city - which now saw itself as the final bulwark for Christianity - was uplifted and entrenched, even as Austria burned around the helpless defenders. By late September - two months tardy - the Ottoman host had arrived.

===Ottoman Opening army===

[[File:Suleiman the Magnificent by Dell'Altissimo.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Portrait of Suleiman the Magnificent by [[Cristofano dell'Altissimo]]]]

In the spring of 1529, Suleiman mustered a large army in [[History of early Ottoman Bulgaria|Ottoman Bulgaria]], with the aim of securing control over all of Hungary at his new borders by [[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor|Ferdinand I]] and the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. Estimates of Suleiman's army vary widely from 120,000 to more than 300,000 men, as mentioned by various chroniclers.<ref>Turnbull suggests Suleiman had "perhaps 120,000" troops when he reached Osijek on 6 August. Turnbull, p. 50; Very high figures appear in nineteenth-century histories, for example that of [https://books.google.com/books?id=pZoBAAAAQAAJ&dq=300,000+inauthor:Augusta+inauthor:Theodosia+inauthor:&pg=RA5-PA136 Augusta Theodosia Drane] in 1858, "more than 300,000 men"; such estimates may derive from contemporary accounts: the Venetian diarist [[Marino Sanuto the Younger|Marino Sanuto]], on 29 October 1529, for example, recorded the Turkish army as containing 305,200 men (mentioned in Albert Howe Lyber's ''The Government of the Ottoman Empire in the Time of Suleiman the Magnificent'', p. 107). Modern books sometimes repeat the higher figures—for example, Daniel Chirot, in ''The Origins of Backwardness in Eastern Europe'', 1980, p. 183, says "some 300,000 men besieged Vienna in 1529"; an alternative figure appears in ''Islam at War'': "The sultan's army of 250,000 appeared before the gates of Vienna in the first siege of that great city", Walton, ''et al''., 2003, p. 104.</ref> As well as numerous units of ''[[Sipahi]]'', the elite mounted force of the [[Six Divisions of Cavalry|Ottoman cavalry]], and thousands of [[janissary|janissaries]], the Ottoman army incorporated a contingent from [[Moldavia]] and renegade [[Serbs|Serbian]] warriors from the army of [[John Zápolya]].<ref>E. Liptai: Magyarország hadtörténete I. Zrínyi Military Publisher 1984. {{ISBN|963-326-320-4}} p. 165.</ref> Suleiman acted as the commander-in-chief (as well as personally leading his force), and in April he appointed his [[Grand Vizier]] (the highest Ottoman minister), a [[Greeks|Greek]] former slave called [[Pargalı İbrahim Pasha|Ibrahim Pasha]], as ''[[Serasker]]'', a commander with powers to give orders in the sultan's name.<ref>In April, the diploma by which Suleiman confirmed Ibrahim Pasha's appointment as ''serasker'' included the following: "Whatever he says and in whatever manner he decides to regard things, you are to accept them as if they were the propitious words and respect-commanding decrees issuing from my own pearl-dispensing tongue." Quoted by Rhoads Murphey in ''Ottoman Warfare 1500–1700'', p. 136.</ref>

By the time they arrived, the Turkish army was far more formidable on paper than it was in reality. From the drenching country rains barely 20,000 of the camels remained as many of the men, too, took ill with fever or chills. Even of those able to fight, a third were [[light cavalry]] (''sipahis''), next to useless in siege warfare. Even so, the sight of tents as far as they could see struck renewed fear into the besieged city. It is possible they might have capitulated if not for Von Salm's steely resolve, and when Ottoman emissaries threatened to raze the city if it did not surrender, he returned them with honor but without reply.

Suleiman launched his campaign on 10 May 1529 and faced numerous obstacles from the onset.<ref name ="Turnbull">Turnbull, pp. 50–51.</ref> The spring rains that are characteristic of south-eastern Europe and the [[Balkans]] were particularly heavy that year, causing flooding in [[Bulgaria]] and rendering parts of the route used by the army barely passable. Many large-calibre cannons and artillery pieces became hopelessly mired or bogged down, leaving Suleiman no choice but to abandon them,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Siege-of-Vienna-1529 |title=Siege of Vienna: Europe [1529] |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia Britannica]] |access-date=14 October 2020}}</ref> while camels brought from the empire's Eastern provinces, not used to the difficult conditions, were lost in large numbers. Sickness and poor health became common among the janissaries, claiming many lives along the perilous journey.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y2LiBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA8 |page=8 |title=Atlas of Southeast Europe: Geopolitics and History. Vol. One: 1521–1699 |author=Hans H.A. Hötte |publisher=Brill|year=2014|isbn=978-9004288881 }}</ref>

The next day, the remaining 300 cannons opened fire simultaneously, the gunners having successfully made a superhuman effort to keep their power and shot dry. The results were predictably negligable, however, as the guns were designed for use against men, not walls. Bowmen, too, fired their arrows with little effect. Salm reportedly remarked as balls crashed into the spires of St. Stephen's, "These pebbles are like the little pills my medico bids me swallow."

Suleiman arrived in [[Osijek]] on 6 August. On the 18th he reached the [[Mohács|Mohács plain]], to be greeted by a substantial cavalry force led by [[John Zápolya]] (which would later accompany Suleiman to Vienna), who paid him homage and helped him recapture several fortresses lost since the Battle of Mohács to the Austrians, including [[Buda]], which fell on 8 September.<ref name = "Stav">Stavrianos, p. 77.</ref> The only resistance came at [[Pozsony]], where the Turkish fleet was bombarded as it sailed up the [[Danube]].<ref name ="Turnbull"/>

His response was a dramatic raid by a small unit of a hundred cavalry under [[Eck von Reischach]] that took the Turks by surprised and managed to kill two gun crews before fleeing back behind the walls. This had a great effect on the morale of both sides but did little to effect the battle. For several days, the bombardment continued uselessly with no signs of assault.

===Defensive measures===

== The Moles ==

[[File:Viena 1529.JPG|thumb|Panoramic view of Vienna during the first Turkish siege, by Nikolaus Meldemann, 1530, Wien Museum]]

As the Ottomans advanced towards Vienna, the city's population organised an ad-hoc resistance formed from local farmers, peasants, and civilians determined to repel the inevitable attack. The defenders were supported by a variety of European mercenaries, namely German [[Landsknecht]] pikemen and professional [[Habsburg Spain|Spanish]] [[harquebusier]]s, sent by [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]], who was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain.<ref>Ferdinand I had withdrawn to the safety of [[Habsburg]] [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]] following pleas for assistance to his brother, Emperor [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]], who was too stretched by his war with France to spare more than a few Spanish infantry to the cause.</ref><ref>Reston, James Jr, [https://books.google.com/books?id=OW2Mv8P6kbEC&dq=siege+of+vienna+spanish+musketeers+charles+v&pg=RA1-PA288 ''Defenders of the Faith: Charles V, Suleyman the Magnificent, and the Battle for Europe, 1520–1536''], Marshall Cavendish, 2009, p. 288, {{ISBN|978-1-59420-225-4}}</ref>

On [[1 October]], however, a miner of Christian parentage that escaped into the city reported that the real purpose of the bombardment was to mask tunnelling efforts beneath the city. The Carinthian Gate, one of the city's four entrances, was the apparent target of this new assault, with the intent being to blow up the towers and then attack with assault troops. Salm, an expert in tunnelling, quickly took inventine steps against the efforts, including placing buckets of water and dried peas near the cellar walls of homes adjacent to the gate. When they shook, an alarm was sounded and counter-miners commenced digging "like moles". What they discovered were six different tunnels, quickly moving through the Earth and towards the helpless bastions.

Queen Mary of Hungary, who was the sister of Charles V, in addition to 1,000 German [[Landsknechts]] under Count Niklas Salm, sent a contingent of 700–800 Spanish [[harquebusier]]s. Only 250 Spanish survived.<ref name="repositorio.uam.es"/>

The Austrians dug until they struck the enemy tunnels, some of which were deserted, with powder kegs ready to be lit (these were carried off as booty) and some which were still occupied by miners and immediately became the site of bizarre combat. Guns were unusable due to the proximity of the kegs, so the men fought with whatever tooks or body parts they could muster, each blow finding a target and countless fighting dying like, in the words of one witness, "devils from the nether pit of hell", returning above approaching insanity and covered with blood. As the battle continued, new weapons were devised for the underground war, including Turkish cavalry maces and Austrian sharpened spades as the fighting below ground grew even more fierce. At one point, a powerkeg prematurely exploded, killing dozens on both sides. The total death toll from this mini-war is still unclear, but it was here originated the term that would come to define the battle, the '''Siege of the Moles'''.

The Spanish were under the command of Marshal [[Luis de Ávalos]], with captains Juan de Salinas, Jaime García de Guzmán, Jorge Manrique, and Cristóbal de Aranda. This elite infantry excelled in the defense of the northern area and with discretion fire prevented the Ottomans from settling in the Danube [[meadow]]s, near the ramparts, where they could have breached with enough space to work. These elite soldiers also built additional [[palisade]]s and trap pits that would be essential during the siege.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}

The majority of the mines were discovered before any damage could be done, but constant digging exhausted Viennese capabilities and on [[5 October]] two mines exploded beneath the Salt Gate, leaving room enough for a company of soldiers to break through. ''Janissaries'' immediately stormed the breach but were met by twelve-foot pikes and halberds, repulsing them with heavy losses. Within hours the breaches were refilled.

The [[Hofmeister (office)|Hofmeister of Austria]], [[Wilhelm von Roggendorf]], assumed charge of the defensive garrison, with operational command entrusted to a seventy-year-old German mercenary named [[Nicholas, Count of Salm]], who had distinguished himself at the [[Battle of Pavia]] in 1525.<ref name ="Turnbull"/> Salm arrived in Vienna as head of the mercenary relief force and set about fortifying the three-hundred-year-old walls surrounding [[Stephansdom|St. Stephen's Cathedral]], near which he established his headquarters. To ensure the city could withstand a lengthy siege, he blocked the four city gates and reinforced the walls, which in some places were no more than six feet thick, and erected earthen bastions and an inner earthen [[Defensive wall|rampart]], levelling buildings where necessary to clear room for defences.<ref name ="Turnbull"/>

The night after, the Austrians replied with a new form of deadly assault. Dozens or possibly hundreds of fanatics wearing cloaks of black and armed with homemade bombs - quite possibly one of the first appearances of the [[Molotov cocktail]] - exited the city in silence and strode into the Ottoman camps, tossing their bombs into tents before making their escape. As many as 2,000 Turks died unawares, sleeping.

Pavle Bakić, the last titular of the [[Serbian Despotate]] and ally of Ferdinand, provided 2,000 Serbian [[hussar]] cavalry to the defence of Vienna.<ref name="Gavrilović1993">{{cite book |last1=Gavrilović |first1=Slavko |title=Serbs in European Civilization |date=1993 |publisher=Nova, Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Institute for Balkan Studies |isbn=9788675830153 |page=43 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O3MtAQAAIAAJ |access-date=26 June 2025}}</ref>

The fighting continued unabated. Some days later a mine finally brought down the two tours of the Carinthian Gate, bringing them down and opening it to assault, but the advance was held back by Spanish [[harquebusiers]], German pikemen and Bohemian two-handed swordsmen with a heap of 1200 janissary dead left behind at the end.

== Endgame Siege==

[[File:Stephansdom B.jpg|thumb|left|[[St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna]], used as the informal headquarters of the Austrian resistance by Niklas Graf Salm, appointed head of the mercenary relief force.]]

The Ottoman army that arrived in late September had been depleted during the long advance into Austrian territory, leaving Suleiman short of camels and heavy artillery. Many of his troops arrived at Vienna in poor health after the tribulations of the long march through the worst of the wet season.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}} Of those fit to fight, a third were ''[[Sipahis]]'', ill-suited for siege warfare. Three richly dressed Austrian prisoners were dispatched as emissaries by the Sultan to negotiate the city's surrender; Salm sent three richly dressed Muslims back without a response.{{citation needed|date=October 2017}}

Suleiman could now see that his mining was becoming at best dilatory and at worst counter-productive, as it went on day after day with no end in sight. Meanwhile, on 11 October, more rain fell and thousands more camels died while the Viennese mounted cannons on rooftops, including so-called "royals" with greater range than any Turkish gun, which raked the Ottoman camps with fire nonstop. As if that weren't enough, the Turks had been so convinced of a quick victory that they'd devastated the surrounding land so it yielded no crops and food began to grow scarce and the weather sickened even more troops. Finally, on 11 October, Suleiman held a council of war that decided upon one, final assault.

As the Ottoman army settled into position, the Austrian garrison launched sorties to disrupt the digging and [[Mining (military)|mining]] of tunnels below the city's walls by Ottoman [[sapper]]s, in one case almost capturing [[Pargalı İbrahim Pasha|Ibrahim Pasha]]. The first units to attack the Ottomans were mounted Serbian hussars under the command of Pavle Bakić.<ref name ="Gavrilović1993"/> The defending forces detected and successfully detonated several mines that had been intended to breach the walls. On 6 October, 8,000 men were dispatched to attack the Ottoman mining operations. They succeeded in destroying many of the tunnels, but they sustained heavy losses when the confined space hindered their return to the city.<ref name ="Turnbull"/>

On 14 October, the attack began, with 'seraskier' Ibrahim leading the charge personally. The drives were aimed at the Carinthian Gate and the ruined bastion nicknamed The Berg. The assault was led by [[bashi-bazouks]], militia intended to tire the Austrians with sheer crush of humanity, to be followed by ''janissaries'', who for the first time were offered a bounty of silver where heretofore only fervor had sufficed. Suleiman ordered that regardless of losses the attack be launched three times - he would either win or suffer dearly in the attempt.

[[Image:Five German Soldiers MET DP822162.jpg|thumb|right|Depiction of German [[Landsknecht]]s circa 1530, renowned mercenary infantry of the [[Renaissance]] period, famous for their pikes, long [[halberd]]s, and [[Zweihänder]] swords.]]

More rain fell on 11 October, and with the Ottomans failing to breach the walls, the prospect of victory began to fade. In addition, Suleiman was facing critical shortages of food, water and other supplies, while casualties, sickness, and desertions began to take their toll. The janissaries began voicing their displeasure at the lack of progress, demanding a decision on whether to remain or abandon the siege. The Sultan convened an official council on 12 October to deliberate the matter. It was decided to attempt one final, major assault on Vienna, an "all or nothing" gamble.<ref>Spielman, p. 22.</ref> The assault was launched on 14 October, but despite extra rewards being offered to the troops, it was beaten back, with the defenders' [[arquebus]]es and long pikes proving decisive.<ref>Stavrianos, p. 78.</ref> The following day, with supplies running low and winter approaching, Suleiman called off the siege and ordered a withdrawal to Constantinople.<ref>''Early Modern Wars 1500–1775'' p. 18</ref><ref>Holmes et al p. 953</ref>

One mine failed to blow, but the other succeeded and with screaming battle cries the Turks broke through the breaches only to be faced against with palisades and long pikes. The ''baski-bazouks'' charged twice and fell back twice as they were cut down again and again by pike and musket. The ''janissaries'' too struck with murderous fervor and were too beaten back, with piles of bodies collecting where they tried and failed. Hand bombs rained upon them as grapeshot from cannons on the Berg cut through their ranks. Salm had descended from St. Stephen's to assume personal command of the battle, almost immediately being hit, a wound from which he would soon after die.

With unusually heavy snowfall, conditions deteriorated. The Ottoman retreat was hampered by muddy roads along which their horses and camels struggled to pass. Pursuing Austrian horsemen took many stragglers prisoner, although there was no Austrian counter-attack. The Ottomans reached Buda on 26 October, Belgrade on 10 November and their destination, Constantinople, on 16 December.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Skaarup |first1=Harold A. |title=Siegecraft – No Fortress Impregnable |date=2003 |publisher=iUniverse |___location=Lincoln, Nevada |isbn=978-0-595-27521-2 |page=111 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EUHOVXjHDiEC |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hötte |first1=Hans H. A. |title=Atlas of Southeast Europe: Geopolitics and History. Volume One: 1521–1699 |date=2015 |publisher=Brill |___location=Leiden, Holland |isbn=978-90-04-28888-1 |page=8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y2LiBQAAQBAJ |language=en}}</ref>

Finally, without being ordered, the ''janissaries'' fell back despite Ibrahim's efforts to whip them into another charge. They immediately swarmed back to the camp and struck their tents, unpursued. The siege was over.

== Aftermath Atrocities==

During the siege of Vienna, the Ottoman troops pillaged the countryside around Vienna, killed many civilians and took many survivors as slaves. Peter Stern von Labach described it:

The Turks quickly packed their campsites that night, tossing captured Austrians into the fire as they did. Pandemonium reigned throughout, however, and many managed to escape to the walls of the city, where ladders were lowered for them, the Viennese still not believing it was all over. The next day, as the Ottomans disappeared, snow began to fall on Vienna as the defenders cautiously crept out of their fortress, the weather that had saved it once more displaying itself.

:"After the taking of Bruck on the Leitha and the castle of Trautmannsdorf, the Sackman and those who went before him, people who have no regular pay, but live by plunder and spoil, to the number of 40,000, spread themselves far and wide over the country, as far as the Ens and into Styria, burning and slaying. Many thousands of people were murdered, or maltreated and dragged into slavery. Children were cut out of their mothers' wombs and stuck on pikes; young women abused to death, and their corpses left on the highway. God rest their souls, and grant vengeance on the bloodhounds who committed this evil."<ref>Schimmer, Karl August (1879). The sieges of Vienna by the Turks. London : J. Murray. Contributor University of California Libraries. p. 21</ref>

Approximately 20,000 people are estimated to have been captured and kidnapped in to [[slavery in the Ottoman Empire]], of which few ever returned: the Ottomans reportedly preferred young boys and girls and members of the clergy.<ref>Schimmer, Karl August (1879). The sieges of Vienna by the Turks. London : J. Murray. Contributor University of California Libraries. p. 52-53</ref>

==Aftermath==

Ottoman casualties were thought to be in the neighborhood of 20,000 - 25,000 men, many more than the garrison's, although most of Austria south of Vienna was depopulated, piles of skulls all that remained of its villages.

[[Image:SiegeOfViennaByOttomanForces.jpg|thumb|upright|An Ottoman depiction of the siege from the 16th century, housed in the Istanbul Hachette Art Museum]]

As the Ottomans retreated, eight squadrons of cavalry and four companies of foot soldiers under the command of Katzianer and Bakić pursued them. The Ottoman rearguard was continuously attacked over a three-day period from 17 to 20 October. Over 200 Ottomans were killed, a pasha captured, and numerous Christian children rescued from captivity. Ottoman troops enacted a [[scorched-earth policy]] as they retreated, engaging in massacres, plundering and arson.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Shepard |first1=Si |title=Crescent Dawn: The Rise of the Ottoman Empire and the Making of the Modern Age |date=2025 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |___location=Great Britain |isbn=9781472851468}}</ref>

In Vienna, the defenders examined each man let into the city following the siege for circumcision, believing the Turks had smuggled in spies and hanging immediately those that failed the test. In the Turkish camps, they found bags filled with coffee beans - their first appearance in Europe - which were used by the Turks as a stimulant, alcohol being forbidden. The stuff caught on, and coffee was soon a European sensation.

Some historians{{which|date=September 2015}} speculate that Suleiman's final assault was not necessarily intended to take the city but to cause as much damage as possible and weaken it for a later attack, a tactic he had employed at [[Buda]] in 1526. Suleiman would lead another campaign against Vienna in 1532, but it never truly materialised as his force was stalled by the [[Croats|Croatian]] Captain [[Nikola Jurišić]] during the [[siege of Güns]] (Kőszeg).<ref name="Turnbull_2">Turnbull, Stephen. ''The Ottoman Empire 1326–1699''. New York: Osprey, 2003. p. 51</ref> Nikola Jurišić with only 700–800 Croatian soldiers managed to delay his force until winter closed in.<ref name="Turnbull_2"/><ref name="Wheatcroft59">Wheatcroft (2009), p. 59.</ref> Charles V, now largely aware of Vienna's vulnerability and weakened state, assembled 80,000 troops to confront the Ottoman force. Instead of going ahead with a second siege attempt, the Ottoman force turned back, laying waste the south-eastern Austrian state of [[Styria]] in their retreat.<ref>Tracy, p. 140.</ref> The two Viennese campaigns in essence marked the extreme limit of Ottoman logistical capability to field large armies deep in central Europe at the time.<ref>Riley-Smith, p. 256.</ref>

Overall the invasion and subsequent siege required a ghastly price from both sides, with tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians dead and thousands more sold into slavery. Practically, it marked the end of the Ottoman advance into Europe and the beginning of their decline from dominant power in the [[Renaissance]] world. While they would remain strong for many years after - even mounting another siege, resulting in the [[Battle of Vienna]] a hundred years later, they would never again reach their prior heights of power.

The 1529 campaign produced mixed results. Buda was brought back under the control of the Ottoman vassal [[John Zápolya]], strengthening the Ottoman position in Hungary. The campaign left behind a trail of collateral damage in neighbouring [[Royal Hungary|Habsburg Hungary]] and Austria that impaired Ferdinand's capacity to mount a sustained counter-attack. However, Suleiman failed to force Ferdinand to engage him in open battle, and was thus unable to enforce his ideological claim to superiority over the Habsburgs. The attack on Vienna led to a rapprochement between Charles V and [[Pope Clement VII]], and contributed to the Pope's coronation of Charles V as Holy Roman Emperor on 24 February 1530. The outcome of the campaign was presented as a success by the Ottomans, who used the opportunity to show off their imperial grandeur by staging elaborate ceremonies for the circumcision of princes [[Şehzade Mustafa|Mustafa]], [[Şehzade Mehmed|Mehmed]], and [[Selim II|Selim]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Şahin |first=Kaya |title=Empire and Power in the Reign of Süleyman: Narrating the Sixteenth-Century Ottoman World |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-107-03442-6 |pages=79–80}}</ref>

== External Links ==

[[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor|Ferdinand I]] erected a funeral monument for the German commander [[Nicholas, Count of Salm]], head of the mercenary relief force dispatched to Vienna, as a token of appreciation of his efforts. Nicholas survived the initial siege attempt, but had been injured during the last Ottoman assault and died on 4 May 1530.<ref>Entry on Salm. Dupuy, ''et al''., p. 653.</ref> The Renaissance sarcophagus is now on display in the baptistery of the [[Votivkirche]] cathedral in Vienna. Ferdinand's son, [[Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor|Maximilian II]], later built the [[Neugebäude Palace|Castle of Neugebaeude]] on the spot where Suleiman is said to have pitched his tent during the siege.<ref>Louthan, p. 43.</ref>

[*http://europeanhistory.about.com/library/prm/blsiegeofthemoles7.htm/ October 2001 article by Jon Godwin for ''Military History'' magazine, ''The Siege of the Moles'']

==References==

'''Notes'''

{{reflist}}

'''Bibliography'''

{{Refbegin|2}}

* {{cite book |title=Early Modern Wars 1500–1775 |date=2013 |publisher=Amber Books Ltd |___location=London |isbn=978-1-78274-121-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k_GxAgAAQBAJ |language=en}}

* {{cite book|last=Chirot|first=Daniel|title=The Origins of Backwardness in Eastern Europe|year=1980|publisher=University of California Press |isbn=0-520-07640-0|url=https://archive.org/details/originsofbackwar00chir}}

* {{cite book|last1=Dupuy|first1=Trevor N.|first2=Curt|last2=Johnson|first3=David. L.|last3=Bongard|title=The Encyclopedia of Military Biography|publisher=I.B. Tauris & Co.|year=1992|isbn=1-85043-569-3|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofmi0000dupu}}

* {{cite book|last=Fisher|first=Sydney Nettleton|author-link=Sydney Nettleton Fisher|title=The Middle East: A History|publisher=Knopf|year=1979|edition=3rd|isbn=0-394-32098-0}}

* {{cite book |last1=Holmes |first1=Richard |last2=Strachan |first2=Hew |last3=Bellamy |first3=Chris |last4=Bicheno |first4=Hugh |last5=Strachan |first5=Hew |title=The Oxford Companion to Military History |date=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |___location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-866209-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ro8YAAAAIAAJ |language=en}}

* {{cite book|last=Kann|first=Robert Adolf|title=A History of the Habsburg Empire: 1526–1918|publisher=University of California Press|year=1980|isbn=0-520-04206-9}}

* {{cite book|last1=Keegan|first1=John|first2=Andrew|last2=Wheatcroft|title=Who's Who in Military History: From 1453 to the Present Day|publisher=Routledge|year=1996|isbn=0-415-12722-X}}

* {{cite book|author1-link=Howard Louthan|last=Louthan|first=Howard|title=The Quest for Compromise: Peacemakers in Counter-Reformation Vienna|year=1997|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=0-521-58082-X|url=https://archive.org/details/questforcompromi0000lout}}

* {{cite book|last=Lyber|first=Albert Howe|title=The Government of the Ottoman Empire in the Time of Suleiman the Magnificent|publisher=Harvard University Press|year=1913}}

* {{cite book|last=Murphey|first=Rhoads|title=Ottoman Warfare 1500–1700|publisher=Rutgers University Press|year=1999|isbn=0-8135-2685-X}}

* {{cite book|last=Riley-Smith|first=Jonathan|title=The Oxford History of the Crusades|year=2002|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=0-19-280312-3}}

* Sáez Abad, Rubén (2013), ''El Sitio de Viena, 1529''. Zaragoza (Spain): HRM Ediciones. {{ISBN|978-8494109911}}.

* {{Cite book |last=Şahin |first=Kaya |title=Empire and Power in the Reign of Süleyman: Narrating the Sixteenth-Century Ottoman World |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-107-03442-6}}

* Sellés Ferrando, Xavier (2000), "[https://repositorio.uam.es/bitstream/handle/10486/1235/17116_C6.pdf?sequence=1 Carlos V y el primer cerco de Viena en la literatura hispánica del XVI]", In: ''Carlos V y la Quiebra del Humanismo Político en Europa (1530–1558)'' : International Congress, Madrid (Spain) 3–6 July 2000].

* {{cite book|last1=Shaw|first1=Stanford Jay|first2=Ezel Kural|last2=Shaw|title=History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofottoman00stan|url-access=registration|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1977|isbn=0-521-29163-1}}

* {{cite book|last=Spielman|first=John Philip|title=The City and the Crown: Vienna and the Imperial Court|publisher=Purdue University Press|year=1993|isbn=1-55753-021-1}}

* {{cite book |last1=Stavrianos |first1=Leften Stavros |title=The Balkans Since 1453 |date=2000 |publisher=Hurst |___location=London |isbn=978-1-85065-551-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xcp7OXQE0FMC |language=en}}

* {{cite book|last=Toynbee|first=Arnold|title=A Study of History|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1987|isbn=0-19-505080-0}}

* {{cite book|last=Turnbull|first=Stephen|title=The Ottoman Empire: 1326–1699|publisher=Osprey Publishing|year=2003|isbn=1-84176-569-4}}

* {{cite book|author1-link=James Tracy (historian)|last=Tracy|first=James D.|title=Europe's Reformations: 1450–1650|publisher=Rowman and Littlefield|year=2006|isbn=0-7425-3789-7}}

* {{cite book|last1=Walton|first1=Mark W.|first2=George. F.|last2=Nafziger|first3=Laurent W.|last3=Mbanda|title=Islam at War: A History|publisher=Praeger/Greenwood|year=2003|isbn=0-275-98101-0}}

* {{cite book | last=Wheatcroft | first=Andrew | title=The Enemy at the Gate: Habsburgs, Ottomans, and the Battle for Europe | publisher=Basic Books | year=2009 | isbn=978-0465013746 | url=https://archive.org/details/enemyatgatehabsb00whea_0 }}

{{Refend}}

{{Major Ottoman sieges}}

{{Authority control}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Siege of Vienna}}

[[Category:Habsburg–Ottoman wars in Hungary (1526–1568)]]

[[Category:Archduchy of Austria]]

[[Category:1529 in the Ottoman Empire|Vienna]]

[[Category:Austro-Turkish Wars]]

[[Category:Battles involving Bohemia|Vienna]]

[[Category:Battles involving Moldavia|Vienna]]

[[Category:Sieges of Vienna|Vienna 1529]]

[[Category:Ottoman–Spanish conflicts|Vienna]]

[[Category:Conflicts in 1529|Vienna]]

[[Category:Invasions of Austria]]

[[Category:Sieges involving the Holy Roman Empire|Vienna 1529]]

[[Category:Sieges involving Spain|Vienna 1529]]

[[Category:Sieges involving the Ottoman Empire|Vienna 1529]]

[[Category:Suleiman the Magnificent]]

[[Category:16th century in Vienna]]

[[Category:1529 in the Habsburg monarchy]]