Siege of Vienna (1529): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 00:12, 4 December 2003

Revision as of 00:19, 4 December 2003

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== The Ottomans ==

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 [[Archduke Frederick I of Austria|Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor]] 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).

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.