12 September 1683: The siege of Vienna is lifted
On this day in 1683, the Ottomans were forced to lift their siege on Vienna and abandon their designs on Austria following a fierce battle.
After destroying the Byzantine Empire in 1453, the Ottoman Empire turned its attention toward Europe, aiming to take advantage of upheaval caused by various European conflicts.
The Turks employed two strategies: using their navy to attack the Mediterranean and invading central and eastern Europe with their land armies.
Despite some brief successes, their attempt to gain naval supremacy would effectively be ended by a crushing defeat at the battle of Lepanto in 1573. But by the middle of the 16th century, they controlled Serbia, Albania, Croatia, Bosnia and even parts of Hungary.
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However, an attempt to extend their territory deeper into Europe ultimately met with failure. The Ottoman forces launched an attack on the rest of Hungary and Austria in 1682, and by the summer of 1683 they had besieged Vienna. In response, troops from Poland and the Holy Roman Empire attempted to relieve the city.
A day after the coalition arrived outside the city gates, the two forces clashed. In the resulting battle, which involved one of the largest cavalry charges in history, the Ottomans were routed, despite having greater numbers.
The battle proved to be a turning point. By 1699, the Ottomans not only had to abandon their designs on Austria, but also had to relinquish their Hungarian possessions. They would continue to make occasional attempts to expand westwards during the 18th century and their empire would not be wound up until 1922.
But most historians date its decline from that day outside the gates of Vienna. Certainly, it would never again pose a serious threat to Europe.
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Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.
He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.
Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.
As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.
Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri
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