| Siege of Vienna | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theHabsburg–Ottoman wars in Hungary (1526–1568) Habsburg–Ottoman war of 1529–1533 | |||||||
 Contemporary 1529 engraving of clashes between the Austrians and Ottomans outside Vienna, byBartel Beham | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Niklas Graf Salm (DOW) Philipp der StreitbareWilhelm von Roggendorf Johann KatzianerPavle Bakić |  Suleiman the MagnificentPargalı Ibrahim Pasha | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| ≈ 17,000–21,000[2] | ≈ 120,000–125,000 (only 100,000 were available during the siege)[3] | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown, with presumably high civilian fatalities and at least 20,000 civilians enslaved[4][5] More than 1,500 dead (10% of the besieged)[6] | 15,000 wounded, dead or captured[5] | ||||||
Thesiege of Vienna, in 1529, was the first attempt by theOttoman Empire to capture the city ofVienna in theArchduchy of Austria, part of theHoly Roman Empire.Suleiman the Magnificent, sultan of the Ottomans, attacked the city with over 100,000 men, while the defenders, led byNiklas 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 siege came in the aftermath of the 1526Battle of Mohács, which had resulted in the death ofLouis II,King of Hungary, and the descent of the kingdom into civil war. Following Louis' death, rival factions within Hungary selected two successors:Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria, supported by theHouse of Habsburg, andJohn Zápolya. Zápolya would eventually seek aid from, and become avassal of the Ottoman Empire, after Ferdinand began to take control of western Hungary, including the city ofBuda.
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 asRoyal 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.[7]
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 secondsiege of Vienna in 1683.
In August 1526, SultanSuleiman I decisively defeated the forces of KingLouis II of Hungary at theBattle of Mohács, paving the way for the Ottomans to gain control of south-eastern Hungary;[8] the childless King Louis died, possibly drowning when he attempted to escape the battlefield.[9] His brother-in-law,Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria, brother ofHoly Roman Emperor Charles V, claimed the vacant Hungarian throne. Ferdinand won recognition only in western Hungary; a noble calledJohn Zápolya, from a power-base inTransylvania, challenged him for the crown and was recognised as king by Suleiman in return for accepting vassal status within the Ottoman Empire.[9][10] Thus Hungary became divided into three zones:Royal Hungary,Ottoman Hungary and thePrincipality of Transylvania, an arrangement which persisted until 1700.[11]
Following the Diet ofPozsony (modernBratislava) on 26 October,[12] 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 sisterAnna and Louis's marriage to Ferdinand's sisterMary. Ferdinand set out toenforce his claim on Hungary and capturedBuda in 1527, only to relinquish his hold on it in 1529 when an Ottoman counter-attack stripped Ferdinand of all his territorial gains.[13]
In the spring of 1529, Suleiman mustered a large army inOttoman Bulgaria, with the aim of securing control over all of Hungary at his new borders byFerdinand I and theHoly Roman Empire. Estimates of Suleiman's army vary widely from 120,000 to more than 300,000 men, as mentioned by various chroniclers.[14] As well as numerous units ofSipahi, the elite mounted force of theOttoman cavalry, and thousands ofjanissaries, the Ottoman army incorporated a contingent fromMoldavia and renegadeSerbian warriors from the army ofJohn Zápolya.[15] Suleiman acted as the commander-in-chief (as well as personally leading his force), and in April he appointed hisGrand Vizier (the highest Ottoman minister), aGreek former slave calledIbrahim Pasha, asSerasker, a commander with powers to give orders in the sultan's name.[16]
Suleiman launched his campaign on 10 May 1529 and faced numerous obstacles from the onset.[17] The spring rains that are characteristic of south-eastern Europe and theBalkans were particularly heavy that year, causing flooding inBulgaria 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,[18] 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.[19]
Suleiman arrived inOsijek on 6 August. On the 18th he reached theMohács plain, to be greeted by a substantial cavalry force led byJohn 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, includingBuda, which fell on 8 September.[20] The only resistance came atPozsony, where the Turkish fleet was bombarded as it sailed up theDanube.[17]
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 GermanLandsknecht pikemen and professionalSpanishharquebusiers, sent byCharles V, who was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain.[21][22]
Queen Mary of Hungary, who was the sister of Charles V, in addition to 1,000 GermanLandsknechts under Count Niklas Salm, sent a contingent of 700–800 Spanishharquebusiers. Only 250 Spanish survived.[6]
The Spanish were under the command of MarshalLuis 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 Danubemeadows, near the ramparts, where they could have breached with enough space to work. These elite soldiers also built additionalpalisades and trap pits that would be essential during the siege.[citation needed]
TheHofmeister of Austria,Wilhelm von Roggendorf, assumed charge of the defensive garrison, with operational command entrusted to a seventy-year-old German mercenary namedNicholas, Count of Salm, who had distinguished himself at theBattle of Pavia in 1525.[17] Salm arrived in Vienna as head of the mercenary relief force and set about fortifying the three-hundred-year-old walls surroundingSt. 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 earthenrampart, levelling buildings where necessary to clear room for defences.[17]
Pavle Bakić, the last titular of theSerbian Despotate and ally of Ferdinand, provided 2,000 Serbianhussar cavalry to the defence of Vienna.[23]
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] Of those fit to fight, a third wereSipahis, 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]
As the Ottoman army settled into position, the Austrian garrison launched sorties to disrupt the digging andmining of tunnels below the city's walls by Ottomansappers, in one case almost capturingIbrahim Pasha. The first units to attack the Ottomans were mounted Serbian hussars under the command of Pavle Bakić.[23] 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.[17]
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.[24] The assault was launched on 14 October, but despite extra rewards being offered to the troops, it was beaten back, with the defenders'arquebuses and long pikes proving decisive.[25] The following day, with supplies running low and winter approaching, Suleiman called off the siege and ordered a withdrawal to Constantinople.[26][27]
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.[28][29]
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:
Approximately 20,000 people are estimated to have been captured and kidnapped in toslavery in the Ottoman Empire, of which few ever returned: the Ottomans reportedly preferred young boys and girls and members of the clergy.[31]
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 ascorched-earth policy as they retreated, engaging in massacres, plundering and arson.[32]
Some historians[which?] 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 atBuda in 1526. Suleiman would lead another campaign against Vienna in 1532, but it never truly materialised as his force was stalled by theCroatian CaptainNikola Jurišić during thesiege of Güns (Kőszeg).[5] Nikola Jurišić with only 700–800 Croatian soldiers managed to delay his force until winter closed in.[5][33] 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 ofStyria in their retreat.[34] 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.[35]
The 1529 campaign produced mixed results. Buda was brought back under the control of the Ottoman vassalJohn Zápolya, strengthening the Ottoman position in Hungary. The campaign left behind a trail of collateral damage in neighbouringHabsburg 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 andPope 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 princesMustafa,Mehmed, andSelim.[36]
Ferdinand I erected a funeral monument for the German commanderNicholas, 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.[37] The Renaissance sarcophagus is now on display in the baptistery of theVotivkirche cathedral in Vienna. Ferdinand's son,Maximilian II, later built theCastle of Neugebaeude on the spot where Suleiman is said to have pitched his tent during the siege.[38]
Notes
Bibliography
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48°12′30″N16°22′23″E / 48.2083°N 16.3731°E /48.2083; 16.3731
