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'{{Infobox military conflict |conflict=Battle of Varna |partof=the [[Crusade of Varna]] and the [[Ottoman wars in Europe]] |image=[[File:Bitwa pod Warną (fragment - Władysław).jpg|300px]] |caption=[[Władysław III of Poland]] leading the [[cavalry charge]], by [[Jan Matejko]] |date=November 10, 1444 |place=Near [[Varna]], present-day [[Bulgaria]] |result=Decisive Ottoman victory |combatant1= [[File:POL Przemysł II 1295 COA.svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569)|Kingdom of Poland]]<br />[[File:Coa Hungary Country History Vladislaus I (1440–1444).svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Kingdom of Hungary (1000–1538)|Kingdom of Hungary]]<br />[[File:Coat of arms of Croatia 1495.svg|16px|link=Croatia in the union with Hungary]] [[Croatia in the union with Hungary|Kingdom of Croatia]]<br /> [[File:Blason Boheme.svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Lands of the Bohemian crown|Crown of Bohemia]]<br /> [[File:Coat of Arms of Lithuania.svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]]<br />{{flagicon|Wallachia}} [[Wallachia]]<br>[[File:Coat of arms of Moldavia.svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Moldavia|Principality of Moldavia]] <br /> [[File:Coat of Arms of the Emperor of Bulgaria (by Conrad Grünenberg).png|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Uprising of Konstantin and Fruzhin|Bulgarian rebels]]<br />{{flag|Holy Roman Empire}} <br />[[File:Flag of the Papal States (pre 1808).svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Papal States]]<br /> [[File:Den tyske ordens skjold.svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[State of the Teutonic Order|Teutonic Knights]] |combatant2=[[File:Flag of the Ottoman Sultanate (1299-1453).svg|20px|link=|alt=]] [[Ottoman Empire]] |commander1=[[File:POL Przemysł II 1295 COA.svg|20px]] [[Władysław III of Poland]]{{KIA}}<br />[[File:Coat of Arms of Hungary.svg|20px]] [[John Hunyadi]]<br />{{flagicon|Wallachia}} [[Mircea II of Wallachia|Mircea II]]<br/>[[File:Coat of Arms of the Emperor of Bulgaria (by Conrad Grünenberg).png|20px]] [[Fruzhin]] |commander2=[[File:Flag of the Ottoman Sultanate (1299-1453).svg|20px]] [[Murad II]] |strength1=20,000<ref>{{Cite journal | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Y-noOrtrox4C&pg=PA275&lpg=PA275&dq=%2220,000+men+advanced+through+bulgaria%22#v=onepage&q=%2220%2C000%20men%20advanced%20through%20bulgaria%22&f=false | title = The Crusades: A History | isbn = 9780826472700 | author1 = Riley-Smith | first1 = Jonathan | date = 2005-07-30}}</ref> / 24,000<ref name="google">{{Cite journal | url = https://books.google.com/books?i | title = Tirant Lo Blanc | isbn = 9780801854217 | author1 = Martorell | first1 = Joanot | last2 = Galba | first2 = Martí Joan de | date = 1996-07-23}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ta3Nj6_qIUAC&pg=PR17&lpg=PR17&dq=%22He+became+governor+of+the+kingdom+of+Hungary+and+led+an+army+of+thirty+thousand+men%22#v=onepage&q=%22He%20became%20governor%20of%20the%20kingdom%20of%20Hungary%20and%20led%20an%20army%20of%20thirty%20thousand%20men%22&f=false | title = Tirant Lo Blanc | isbn = 9780801854217 | author1 = Martorell | first1 = Joanot | last2 = Galba | first2 = Martí Joan de | date = 1996-07-23}}</ref> (15,000 Polish, Hungarian, Croatian, Bohemian soldiers, 7,000<ref name="books.google">{{Cite journal | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xeuaoghuq3cC&dq=varne+144+wallachians&q=%22says+seven+thousand+men%22%22#v=snippet&q=%22says%20seven%20thousand%20men%22%22&f=false | title = The Crusade of Varna, 1443–45 | isbn = 9780754601449 | author1 = Imber | first1 = Colin | year = 2006}}</ref> – 8,000 <ref name="google" /> Wallachians, 1,000 soldiers from Lithuania, Papal States, Holy Roman Empire, Croatia, Bulgaria) |strength2= 20,000<ref>Riley-Smith, Jonathan (2005-07-30). "The Crusades: A History". ISBN 9780826472700.</ref> -24.000<ref>(^ Pears, Sir Edwin (1903). "The destruction of the Greek empire and the story of the capture of Constantinople by the Turks".)</ref>-60,000<ref name="liptai">Ervin Liptai, ''Magyarország hadtörténete'', ISBN 963-326-337-9</ref>{{page needed|date=November 2011}}<br>(15,000 regular Janissary, Sipahi, Mercenary of the Sultan) |casualties1 =20.000<ref>J^ a b c Ervin Liptai, Magyarország hadtörténete, ISBN 963-326-337-9</ref> 30,000 <ref>Johann Wilhelm Zinkeisen</ref> |casualties2=15.000<ref>J^ a b c Ervin Liptai, Magyarország hadtörténete, ISBN 963-326-337-9</ref> }} {{Campaignbox Ottoman-Hungarian War}} The '''Battle of Varna''' took place on 10 November 1444 near [[Varna]] in eastern [[Bulgaria]]. The [[Military of the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Army]] under [[Murad II|Sultan Murad II]] defeated the [[Hungary|Hungarian]]-[[Poland|Polish]] and [[Wallachia]]n armies commanded by [[Władysław III of Poland]] (also King of Hungary), [[John Hunyadi]] (acting as commander of the combined Christian forces) and [[Mircea II of Wallachia]]. It was the final battle of the [[Crusade of Varna]].<ref>Bodnar, Edward W. ''Ciriaco d'Ancona e la crociata di Varna, nuove prospettive''. ''Il Veltro'' 27, nos. 1–2 (1983): 235–51</ref><ref>Halecki, Oscar, ''The Crusade of Varna''. New York, 1943</ref> [[Đurađ Branković]] contributed to Ottoman victory by giving the Sultan information on the Christian advance and barring the way [[Skanderbeg]] intented to cross [[Serbia]] to join the Christian forces at Varna.<ref name="Anzulovic1999">{{cite book|author=Branimir Anzulovic|title=Heavenly Serbia: From Myth to Genocide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CWMVCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA43|page=41}}</ref> ==Background== The Hungarian Kingdom fell into crisis after the death of [[Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor|King Sigismund]] in 1437. His son-in-law and successor, [[Albert II of Germany|King Albert]], ruled for only two years and died in 1439, leaving his widow [[Elizabeth of Luxembourg|Elizabeth]] with an unborn child, [[Ladislaus the Posthumous]]. The Hungarian noblemen then called the young [[Władysław III of Poland|King Władysław III of Poland]] to the throne of Hungary, expecting his aid in defense against the Ottomans. After his Hungarian coronation, he never went back to his homeland again, assuming rule of the Hungarian Kingdom next to the influential nobleman [[John Hunyadi]]. After failed expeditions in 1440–42 against [[Belgrade]] and [[Transylvania]], and the defeats of the "[[long campaign]]" of Hunyadi in 1442–43, the Ottoman sultan [[Murad II]] signed a [[Peace of Szeged|ten-year truce]] with Hungary. After he had made peace with the [[Karaman Emirate]] in [[Anatolia]] in August 1444, he resigned the throne to his twelve-year-old son [[Mehmed II]]. Anticipating an Ottoman invasion encouraged by the young and inexperienced new Ottoman sultan, Hungary co-operated with [[Venice]] and [[Pope Eugene IV]] to organize a new [[crusade]]r army led by Hunyadi and Władysław III. On receipt of this news, Mehmet II understood that he was too young and inexperienced to successfully fight the coalition. He recalled Murad II to the throne to lead the army into battle, but Murad II refused. Angry at his father, who had long since retired to a contemplative life in southwestern Anatolia, Mehmed II wrote, "If you are the Sultan, come and lead your armies. If I am the Sultan I hereby order you to come and lead my armies." It was only after receiving this letter that Murad II agreed to lead the Ottoman army. ==Preparations== The mixed [[Papal army]] was composed mainly of Hungarian, Polish, Bohemian (whose combined armies numbered 15,000) and [[Wallachia]]n (7,000)<ref name="books.google" /> forces, with smaller detachments of [[Czech people|Czechs]], [[Papal knights]], [[Teutonic Knights]], [[Bosnians]], [[Croats|Croatians]], [[Bulgarians]], [[Lithuanians]] and [[Ruthenians]] ([[Ukrainians]]).<ref>Magyarország hadtörténete (1984), 102.-103. pg.</ref> Papal, [[Republic of Venice|Venetian]] and [[Republic of Genoa|Genoese]] ships had blockaded the [[Dardanelles]] as the Hungarian army was to advance on Varna, where it would meet the Papal fleet and sail down the coast to Constantinople, pushing the Ottomans out of Europe. The Hungarian advance was rapid, Ottoman fortresses were bypassed, while local Bulgarians from [[Vidin]], [[Oryahovo]], and [[Nikopol, Bulgaria|Nicopolis]] joined the army ([[Fruzhin]], son of [[Ivan Shishman]], also participated in the campaign with his own guard). On October 10 near Nicopolis, some 7,000<ref name="books.google" /> Wallachian cavalrymen under [[Mircea II]], one of [[Vlad Dracul]]'s sons, also joined. [[Armenians|Armenian]] refugees in the Kingdom of Hungary also took part in the wars of their new country against the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottomans]] as early as the battle of Varna in 1444, when some Armenians were seen amongst the Christian forces.<ref>{{Cite document | last = Basmadjian | title = Histoire moderne des Armeniens | place = Paris | year = 1922 | page = 45 | language = French | postscript = <!-- Bot inserted parameter. Either remove it; or change its value to "." for the cite to end in a ".", as necessary. -->{{inconsistent citations}}}}.</ref> ==Deployment== Late on November 9, a large [[Military of the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman army]] of around 50,000 men approached Varna from the west. At a supreme military council called by Hunyadi during the night, the [[Papal legate]], [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|cardinal]] [[Julian Cesarini]], insisted on a quick withdrawal. However, the Christians were caught between the [[Black Sea]], [[Lake Varna]], the steep wooded slopes of the Franga plateau (356 m high), and the enemy. Cesarini then proposed a defense using the [[Wagenburg]] of the [[Hussite]]s until the arrival of the Christian fleet. The Hungarian magnates and the Croatian and Czech commanders backed him, but the young (20-year-old) Władysław and Hunyadi rejected the defensive tactics. Hunyadi declared: "To escape is impossible, to surrender is unthinkable. Let us fight with bravery and honor our arms." Władysław accepted this position and gave him the command. Andreas del Palatio states that Hunyadi commanded the "Wallachian army" indicating a large Romanian component in Hunyadi's personal army.<ref>Istoria Romaniei, Vol II, p. 440, 1960</ref> In the morning of November 10, Hunyadi deployed the army of some 20,000 – 30,000 [[crusaders]] as an arc between Lake Varna and the Franga plateau; the line was about 3.5&nbsp;km long. Two [[Chorągiew (military unit)|banners]] with a total of 3,500 men from the king's Polish and Hungarian bodyguards, Hungarian royal mercenaries, and banners of Hungarian nobles held the center. The Wallachian cavalry was left in reserve behind the center. [[File:Szilágyi Mihály.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Michael Szilágyi]]]] The right flank that lined up the hill towards the village of [[Kamenar, Varna Province|Kamenar]] numbered 6,500 men in 5 banners. Bishop Jan Dominek of Varadin with his personal banner led the force; Cesarini commanded a banner of German mercenaries and a Bosnian one. The [[Bishop of Eger]] led his own banner, and the military governor of [[Slavonia]], ban Franco Talotsi, commanded one Croatian banner. The left flank, a total of 5,000 men in 5 banners, was led by [[Michael Szilágyi]], Hunyadi's brother in law, and was made up of Hunyadi's Transylvanians, Bulgarians, German mercenaries and banners of Hungarian [[magnates]]. Behind the Hungarians, closer to the Black Sea and the lake, was the Wagenburg, defended by 300 or 600 Czech and [[Ruthenians|Ruthenian]] mercenaries under hetman Ceyka, along with Poles, Lithuanians and Wallachians. Every wagon was manned by 7 to 10 soldiers and the Wagenburg was equipped with [[Bombard (weapon)|bombards]]. The Ottoman center included the [[Janissaries]] and levies from [[Rumelia]] deployed around two [[Thracians|Thracian]] burial mounds. Murad observed and directed the battle from one of them. The Janissaries dug in behind ditches and two palisades. The right wing consisted of [[Kapikulus]] and [[Sipahis]] from [[Rumelia]], and the left wing was made up by [[Akıncı]]s, Sipahis from [[Anatolia]], and other forces. Janissary archers and Akıncı light cavalry were deployed on the Franga plateau. ==Battle== [[File:Battle of Varna.png|thumb|250px|Movements of the forces during the battle.]] [[File:Varna 1444 Polski Kronika from 1564.jpg|250px|thumb|A scene from the Battle of Varna (1444) on the ''Kronika wszystkiego świata'' of [[Marcin Bielski]], published in 1564.]] The light Ottoman cavalry assaulted the Croats of ban Talotsi. Christians from the left riposted with bombards and [[History of the firearm|firearms]] and stopped the attack. Christian soldiers chased the Ottomans in a disorderly pursuit. The [[Anatolian cavalry]] ambushed them from the flank. The Christian right wing attempted to flee to the small fortress of Galata on the other side of [[Varna Bay]], but most of them were slain in the marshland around Varna Lake and the [[Devnya (river)|River Devnya]], where Cesarini also met his end. Only ban Talotsi's troops managed to withdraw behind the Wagenburg. The other Ottoman flank assaulted the Hungarians and Bulgarians of Michael Szilagyi. Their push was stopped and turned back; then Sipahis attacked again. Hunyadi decided to help and advised Władysław to wait until he returned; then advanced with two cavalry companies. The young king, ignoring Hunyadi's advice, rushed 500 of his Polish knights against the Ottoman center. They attempted to overrun the Janissary infantry and take Murad prisoner, and almost succeeded, but in front of Murad's tent, Władysław's horse either fell into a trap or was stabbed, and the king was slain by mercenary Kodja Hazar, who beheaded him while doing so. His head was given to the Sultan and was later taken to the Ottoman court.<ref name=Florescu1>{{cite book |title=Dracula, Prince of Many Faces: His Life and His Times |last=Florescu |first=Radu R. |authorlink=Radu R. Florescu |author2=Raymond McNally |year=1989 |publisher=Little, Brown & Co. |location=Boston |isbn= |page= |pages= |url= |accessdate=2011-02-08}}</ref>{{page needed|date=November 2011}} The remaining Polish cavalry was smashed by the Ottomans. On his return, Hunyadi tried frantically to salvage the king's body, but all he could accomplish was to organize the retreat of the remains of his army; it suffered thousands of casualties in its chaos, and was virtually annihilated. Neither the head or body of the king have ever been found. Many crusade prisoners were slaughtered or sold as slaves;{{citation needed|date=April 2012}} the [[Minnesang|minnesinger]] [[Michael Beheim]] wrote a song based on the story of one Hans Mergest who spent 16 years in Ottoman captivity after the battle. ==Aftermath== {{See also|Battle of Kosovo (1448)|l1=Second Battle of Kosovo}} {{Expand section|date=May 2008}} [[File:VarnaMemorial.jpg|thumb|right|240px|The [[Park-museum Władysław Warneńczyk|Memorial of the Battle in Varna]], built on an ancient Thracian [[Tumulus|mound tomb]], bearing the name of the fallen king.]] The death of Władysław left Hungary in the hands of the four-year-old [[Ladislas the Posthumous|Ladislaus Posthumous of Bohemia and Hungary]]. He was succeeded in Poland by [[Casimir IV Jagiellon]] after a three-year interregnum. Murad's casualties at Varna were so heavy, it was not until three days later that he realized he was victorious.<ref name="Setton90">Kenneth Meyer Setton, ''The Papacy and the Levant, 1204-1571: The Fifteenth Century'', Vol. II, (American Philosophical Society, 1978), 90.</ref> Consequently, the Ottoman victory in Varna, followed by the Ottoman victory in the [[Battle of Kosovo (1448)|Second Battle of Kosovo]] in 1448, deterred the European states from sending any substantial military assistance to the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantines]] during the Ottoman [[fall of Constantinople|conquest of Constantinople]] in 1453. ==Legacy== In the aftermath, the Ottomans had removed a significant opposition to their expansion into central and eastern Europe; subsequent battles forced a large number of Europeans to become Ottoman subjects. The fallen Polish King was named Władysław III Warneńczyk in memory of the battle. The Battle of Varna is commemorated on the [[Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Warsaw]], with the inscription "WARNA 10 XI 1444". ==References== {{Refimprove|date=July 2008}} {{Reflist}} ==External links== * [http://www.mek.oszk.hu/01900/01919/html/cd4a/kepek/history/to056gf95172.jpg Battle map] (Hungarian) * {{cite book | last = Imber | first = Colin | title = The Crusade of Varna, 1443–45 |date=July 2006 | publisher = Ashgate Publishing | isbn = 0-7546-0144-7 | format = PDF | chapter = Introduction | url = http://www.ashgate.com/subject_area/downloads/sample_chapters/Crusade_of_Varna_Intro.pdf}} * Ervin Liptai (1984), ''Magyarország hadtörténete I''. Zrínyi Katonai Kiadó, Budapest. ISBN 963-326-320-4 {{Polish wars and conflicts}} {{Ottoman battles}} {{Portal|Military history of the Ottoman Empire}} {{Coord|43|13|N|27|53|E|region:BG|display=title}} {{Commons category|Battle of Varna}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Varna 1444}} [[Category:1444 in Europe]] [[Category:Battles involving Bulgaria]] [[Category:Battles involving the Ottoman Empire]] [[Category:Battles involving Bohemia]] [[Category:Battles involving Poland]] [[Category:Battles involving Hungary]] [[Category:Battles involving the Grand Duchy of Lithuania]] [[Category:Battles involving Wallachia]] [[Category:Battles of the Ottoman–Hungarian Wars]] [[Category:History of Varna]] [[Category:Battles involving Serbia]] [[Category:15th century in Bulgaria]] [[Category:Battles of the Middle Ages]] [[Category:15th century in the Ottoman Empire]] [[Category:Conflicts in 1444]] [[Category:Battles involving Moldavia]] [[Category:1444 in the Ottoman Empire]]'