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Siege/Battle of Vienna (1683)
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:37 pm
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:37 pm
For how important it was, it’s shocking how little this gets brought up in military history.
I’m finishing up a book about this incident now and it’s kinda a refreshing look at how complicated warfare was during this time period.
The siege would have seemed familiar to the Western front of World War 1. Trench warfare that was fought with mines and grenades and shellshock from artillery barrages.
Engineers played at the forefront of the siege and continuously made innovation after innovation to outmaneuver each other. But by the end of the siege, conditions were so bad that the Ottoman camp was just simply referred to as a cesspit where bodies were buried so shallow they exploded from gas buildup.
Then you get to the battle. Which I can just leave you with the largest cavalry charge in history of over 18,000 men and horses, most of them the fan favorite Winged Hussars
I’m finishing up a book about this incident now and it’s kinda a refreshing look at how complicated warfare was during this time period.
The siege would have seemed familiar to the Western front of World War 1. Trench warfare that was fought with mines and grenades and shellshock from artillery barrages.
Engineers played at the forefront of the siege and continuously made innovation after innovation to outmaneuver each other. But by the end of the siege, conditions were so bad that the Ottoman camp was just simply referred to as a cesspit where bodies were buried so shallow they exploded from gas buildup.
Then you get to the battle. Which I can just leave you with the largest cavalry charge in history of over 18,000 men and horses, most of them the fan favorite Winged Hussars
5
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:40 pm to athenslife101
THEN THE WINGED HUSSARS ARRIVED!!!
This post was edited on 4/20/26 at 9:41 pm
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:42 pm to athenslife101
Who were the belligerents in this conflict? Who was at war in other words?
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:45 pm to cbree88
The Ottomans thought that it was time to own Eastern Europe
Rome and the Pope delayed
The Pollocks stood up
Rome and the Pope delayed
The Pollocks stood up
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:47 pm to cbree88
quote:
Who were the belligerents in this conflict? Who was at war in other words?
The Ottoman Turks had laid siege to Vienna.
Determined to take what others had been unable to
They sent out emissaries begging others to come save Christendom from the Ottoman hordes
It really is a fascinating conflict in the early gunpowder era.
This post was edited on 4/20/26 at 9:50 pm
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:48 pm to athenslife101
I’m too high for this.
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:50 pm to OWLFAN86
quote:Jackson was impossible to figure out
The Pollocks stood up
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:51 pm to OWLFAN86
quote:
The Pollocks stood up
I dunno...sounds fishy to me
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:56 pm to cbree88
The Hasburgs of Austria were attacked by the Ottomans, the king of Austria being the Holy Roman Emperor.
The Hasburgs and the Ottomans had been on and off fighting for over 100 years and the Ottomans finally just wanted to be done with Austria so they set out along with their subjects in Hungry and their barbarian Tartars to put an end.
At first, no one wanted to help Vienna. Because no one liked the Holy Roman Empire including its subjects. “It’s neither Holy, Nor Roman, Nor an Empire”.
And the emperor was actually turned down for a loan to raise troops. But it turns out the pope was a big fan of the crusades and taxed the frick out of everything to bribe all the Germans and Polish to come to the aid of Vienna.
The attack of the relief force was a bit odd to be honest. Kinda happened by mistake and was very technically demanding but probably had over 200,000 people though the death toll was pretty small compared to the siege.
The Hasburgs and the Ottomans had been on and off fighting for over 100 years and the Ottomans finally just wanted to be done with Austria so they set out along with their subjects in Hungry and their barbarian Tartars to put an end.
At first, no one wanted to help Vienna. Because no one liked the Holy Roman Empire including its subjects. “It’s neither Holy, Nor Roman, Nor an Empire”.
And the emperor was actually turned down for a loan to raise troops. But it turns out the pope was a big fan of the crusades and taxed the frick out of everything to bribe all the Germans and Polish to come to the aid of Vienna.
The attack of the relief force was a bit odd to be honest. Kinda happened by mistake and was very technically demanding but probably had over 200,000 people though the death toll was pretty small compared to the siege.
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:57 pm to fr33manator
quote:
The battle was fought by the Holy Roman Empire, led by the Habsburg monarchy, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, both under the command of Polish King John III Sobieski, against the Ottomans and their vassal and tributary states.
The battle was won by the combined forces of the Holy Roman Empire and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, marking the beginning of their military cooperation against the Ottomans.
Some historians maintain that the battle marked a turning point in the Ottoman–Habsburg wars, a 300-year struggle between the Holy Roman and Ottoman Empires.
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:58 pm to OWLFAN86
quote:Chris can’t say the same
The Pollocks stood up
Posted on 4/20/26 at 9:59 pm to athenslife101
quote:
I’m finishing up a book about this incident now and it’s kinda a refreshing look at how complicated warfare was during this time period.
What’s the book?
Posted on 4/20/26 at 10:09 pm to athenslife101
Also, and I’m sure there’s still more. I finished the battle portion of the book today and there’s still another hundred pages to historical analysis, but some other stuff.
The Ottoman army was considered extremely organized for its day. Their camps before the siege were considered second to none and being quite well thought out. Like their captives were so impressed they drew the latrines.
Also, I’m not surprised but this book just felt violent. They talk about how some teenager in Vienna accidentally set fire to something. And then the townspeople rip him limb from limb in anger. Or Austrians casually nailing Ottoman skins to the walls. I’ve read about way worse stuff but this for some reason feels different…
Also, did you know John Smith from Pocahontas claims to have been taken as a slave by tartars. He killed his owner and escaped back to England before ever going to Jamestown
The Ottoman army was considered extremely organized for its day. Their camps before the siege were considered second to none and being quite well thought out. Like their captives were so impressed they drew the latrines.
Also, I’m not surprised but this book just felt violent. They talk about how some teenager in Vienna accidentally set fire to something. And then the townspeople rip him limb from limb in anger. Or Austrians casually nailing Ottoman skins to the walls. I’ve read about way worse stuff but this for some reason feels different…
Also, did you know John Smith from Pocahontas claims to have been taken as a slave by tartars. He killed his owner and escaped back to England before ever going to Jamestown
Posted on 4/20/26 at 10:19 pm to Crimson
The Enemy At The Gate by Andrew Wheatcroft.
I renjoy it. But not everyone will. It’s written by a historian and the first 5 hours of the book are all setup and analysis. And the siege and battle are maybe 3 hours of the book.
He has an argument about fear and inter-connectedness he is trying to prove with the book and he does go into side tangents about it.
Also, I think I’m much better at history than most people, but it can still be hard to wrap your mind around. I didn’t know that the ottomans had taken over hungry in this time period. (This made me feel better about my disastrous campaign in eu5 when I got walloped as Hungry)
I renjoy it. But not everyone will. It’s written by a historian and the first 5 hours of the book are all setup and analysis. And the siege and battle are maybe 3 hours of the book.
He has an argument about fear and inter-connectedness he is trying to prove with the book and he does go into side tangents about it.
Also, I think I’m much better at history than most people, but it can still be hard to wrap your mind around. I didn’t know that the ottomans had taken over hungry in this time period. (This made me feel better about my disastrous campaign in eu5 when I got walloped as Hungry)
Posted on 4/21/26 at 1:11 am to athenslife101
And now it’s considered racist if Europe does not let in a horde of Muslims
Posted on 4/21/26 at 6:09 am to biglego
I spent a chunk of time at the Hofburg Palace in the 90's. The center balcony overlooking the courtyard is where Hitler did his big "Heil" speech, overlooking what seemed like a couple of hundred thousand people. I thought that was a big deal in history. Then I found out this yuge palace was built, starting in the 1200's. It has seen most of civilized history.
Side note: The giant courtyard in front of the balcony has two giant statues of riders on horses. The sculptor finished the first, the horse rearing up with only his two hind legs touching. The second horse was finished, but would not balance on his back legs so the sculptor extended the tail to the ground. This created a triangle and provided stability.
The sculptor was so embarrassed that it would not stand on two that he committed suicide when finished.
Google maps has halfway between the two statues at 48.206293, 16.363772. You can use google earth to see th estatues, balcony, etc.
Side note: The giant courtyard in front of the balcony has two giant statues of riders on horses. The sculptor finished the first, the horse rearing up with only his two hind legs touching. The second horse was finished, but would not balance on his back legs so the sculptor extended the tail to the ground. This created a triangle and provided stability.
The sculptor was so embarrassed that it would not stand on two that he committed suicide when finished.
Google maps has halfway between the two statues at 48.206293, 16.363772. You can use google earth to see th estatues, balcony, etc.
Posted on 4/21/26 at 6:22 am to OWLFAN86
Sobieski does not get the credit he deserves from history for that charge.
Posted on 4/21/26 at 8:14 am to athenslife101
quote:Get something to eat. It's spelled Hungary.
ottomans had taken over hungry in this time period. (This made me feel better about my disastrous campaign in eu5 when I got walloped as Hungry
This was simply another attempt by the moslems to take Europe. Don't let the mention of "Ottomans" and "Turks" fool you. They were primarily driven by their religion.
ETA: Athens, your history threads are a benefit here.
This post was edited on 4/21/26 at 8:40 am
Posted on 4/21/26 at 9:27 am to OWLFAN86
The Ottomans thought that it was time to own Eastern Europe
—they thought that starting c800
—they thought that starting c800
Posted on 4/21/26 at 9:33 am to biglego
And now it’s considered racist if Europe does not let in a horde of Muslims
—that’s playing the long game, for sure
—that’s playing the long game, for sure
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