Having already talked about the Battle of Legnica a couple of days ago, we now turn to the Mongols’ other major April 1241 fight, the Battle of Mohi (also referred to as the Battle of the Sajó River) on April 11 (it technically may have begun on April 10, but close enough). If you’ve already read the story of Legnica … Continue reading Today in European history: the Battle of Mohi (1241)
Tag: hungary
Today in European history: the Siege of Belgrade ends (1456)
Mehmed II earned the epithet Fatih or “the Conqueror” when he captured Constantinople in 1453, and it’s lucky for him that he did, really. If he didn’t already have a slick nickname by the time of his failed effort to capture Belgrade, I can imagine he might have been saddled with a much less flattering one instead. … Continue reading Today in European history: the Siege of Belgrade ends (1456)
Today in European history: the Battle of Varna (1444)
The Battle of Varna in 1444 was arguably the most important Ottoman victory in Europe prior to their conquest of Constantinople, especially if you consider its effects alongside those of the (second) Battle of Kosovo in 1448. The Ottoman success at Varna shattered a Hungarian-Polish alliance that had been formed to counter the Turkish threat. That alliance … Continue reading Today in European history: the Battle of Varna (1444)
Today in European history: the Second Battle of Kosovo ends (1448)
When you mention the names of some famous battles, everybody knows which engagement you're talking about. There's only one “Battle of Actium,” for example, and the 1815 “Battle of Waterloo” is unlikely to be confused with any other “Battle of Waterloo” that may have taken place. That’s not always the case, though. If you want … Continue reading Today in European history: the Second Battle of Kosovo ends (1448)
Today in European history: the Crusade of Nicopolis (1396)
Although we think of “the Crusades” as the numbered (anachronistically) series of Christian military expeditions in the Middle East (and North Africa, and Greece that one time) that took place in the 11th-13th centuries, the Crusading movement actually encompassed much more than that. The Reconquista in Iberia was, for a time, treated as a Crusade, … Continue reading Today in European history: the Crusade of Nicopolis (1396)
Today in European history: the Battle of Mohács (1526)
Today’s anniversary commemorates the first of two battles fought near the Hungarian town of Mohács a little over a century and a half apart, and so we should be careful not to confuse today’s engagement with the 1687 Battle of Mohács. While both of these battles involved the Ottoman Empire, the circumstances surrounding them could not … Continue reading Today in European history: the Battle of Mohács (1526)
The Foreign Exchanges Companion 