Battle of Albulena (1457)

Battle of Albulena

Part of: Turkish Wars

Dhimitër Frëngu : Albanians attacked a Turkish camp during the Battle of Albulena . Venice 1539

date	September 2, 1457
place	south of Laç , Albania
Casus Belli	The Ottomans invade Albania
output	Lezha League victory

Parties to the conflict
League of Lezha	Ottoman Empire
Commander
Gjergj Kastrioti	Mehmed II. Isak Bey Evrenoz Hamza Kastrioti
Troop strength
8,000 to 10,000 men	50,000 to 80,000 men
losses
not known	15,000–30,000 dead and wounded 15,000 prisoners of war 24 standards

The main routes of the Ottoman invading forces to Albania

The Battle of Albulena , also known as the Battle of Ujëbardha , took place on September 2, 1457 between the Christian defensive alliance of the League of Lezha , led by the Albanian prince Gjergj Kastrioti (called Skanderbeg), and the Ottoman invasion army of the Islamic monarch Sultan Mehmed II. , called the Father of Conquest , under the operational command of Isak Bey Evrenoz, in the north of what is now Albania.

Strategic prerequisites

Gjergj Kastrioti, ruler of Albania, served in the Ottoman army for several years as a result of his forced Islamization and recruitment by the boy harvest , before returning to his homeland and the uprising against the expansionist aspirations of the Ottoman Empire in 1444 with the establishment of the League of Lezha organized.

The second battle on the Amselfeld in 1448 ended in a defeat for the Roman Catholic coalition under the Hungarian military leader Johann Hunyadi , when the military support of the League of Lezha was still on the way to the battlefield.

The strategically important fortress town of Berat , located in the south of Albania, has been under Ottoman control since 1450 . With the outcome of the siege of Berat in 1455 , the reconquest of the fortress failed.

Alfonso V of Aragon , the most important ally of Gjergj Kastrioti, also suffered military setbacks in his Mediterranean expansion policy and was therefore unable to provide assistance.

Tactically , the league was in a very unfavorable position: Due to the established military presence of the Ottomans north (Amselfeld) and south (Berat) of the boundaries of the territory of the League of Lezha, a Turkish invading army advancing from the east and the Adriatic coast in the west, threatened the encirclement by a numerically far superior Turkish armed forces. In this scenario, nothing would have prevented the Ottomans from landing in Italy and further conquering Europe.

Hamza Kastrioti

Sultan Mehmed II entrusted the operational command to Isak Bey Evrenoz, who was supported by the defector Hamza Kastrioti , son of Reposh Kastrioti, brother of Gjergj Kastrioti. Isak Bey Evrenoz was an experienced general who had already successfully crushed the anti-Turkish rebellion of Gjon Kastrioti I , the father of Gjergj Kastrioti, in 1430 and who led the Ottoman counter-offensive during the siege of Berat in 1455. Hamza Kastrioti, a nephew of Gjergj Kastrioti, who was considered his best officer before deserting, brought with him experience and knowledge of the tactics of the Lezha League.

Between 50,000 and 80,000 men were available to the Ottoman armed forces. Armies of this size were usually directly commanded by a sultan, which is why it was assumed on the Albanian side that Mehmed II would personally lead the campaign. The Albanians had only 8,000 to 10,000 men ready for defense.

The fighting morale of the Albanians could before the battle, through the promise of Pope Kalixt III. to provide financial and military support to the Lezha League.

course

At the end of May 1457, a large Ottoman army was sighted marching towards Albania. Gjergj Kastrioti wrote a letter to Pope Kalixt III informing him of the arrival of the Ottoman army and asking for material and military help. The Pope then promised to send a fleet of warships that never arrived and would have been useless in the land war . The soldiers of the League of Lezha were on their own in the fight against the Ottomans.

The Ottoman army invaded Albania in several groups. The first military division to arrive was the Ottoman storm riders who marched through the eastern border town of Dibra . When the main Ottoman force arrived, the Albanians were unable to resist and withdrew. Knowing that Isak Bey Evrenoz and Hamza Kastrioti knew his tactics and the Albanian terrain well, Gjergj Kastrioti decided to use new military means. Usually he lured his enemy into a trap and then attacked from an ambush. His new tactic was very similar to the old one, but this time he chose to enter the battlefield in a different way.

In order to make persecution by the Ottomans impossible, Gjergj Kastrioti ordered his troops to split into several groups and to scatter through the mountains in different directions. An attack on the Ottomans or the unification of his troops was expressly only allowed on his orders. The Albanian soldiers were looked after by the local population, who also set up storage facilities.

The Ottomans marched into Mat, starting from Dibra and on the way to the main Albanian fortress Kruja , and plundered Albanian villages, while Gjergj Kastrioti moved westward on parallel routes. Isak Bey Evrenoz decided not to besiege the fortress of Kruja and stopped north of Mount Tumenishta to wait for the arrival of the Albanian troops. This region was called Albulena (Albanian: Ujë i Bardhë; German: White Water) and is located south of today's city of Laç . Since Tumenishta served as the Albanian main base during the first siege of Kruja , the Ottomans expected an Albanian attack there and therefore expanded the northern line of defense (looking towards Kruja) of their camp, while the eastern flank was only weakly defended (looking towards Tumenishta).

Due to the constant absence of the Albanian army, the opinion spread among the Turks that the League of Lezha, intimidated by the Ottoman superiority, did not want to fight a battle and was on the run.

An ambassador was sent to Rome to explain to the Pope that Albania had been conquered by the Ottomans and needed the help of the Vatican to get the Ottomans out of Albania. It was not until September 17, 1457 that Gjergj received Kastrioti from Pope Kalixt III. the reply by letter that financial and military resources were on the way to support the crusade , as he called the violent confrontation with the Ottomans.

The Ottomans were unaware of the immediate presence of the Albanians until the last moment, as the local population remained loyal to their Prince Gjergj Kastrioti and did not reveal the positions of the Albanian armed forces. Before the battle, the Albanian troops were ordered to regroup without being discovered by the Ottomans. They gathered on the wooded group of hills of Mount Tumenishta, opposite the weakest point of the Ottoman defense lines, to storm the Ottoman encampment on September 2, 1457 in three lines of attack.

With his closest confidants, Gjergj Kastrioti climbed one of the surrounding peaks and watched the Turkish encampment to find out about their readiness to fight. It was found that the Ottoman army was resting and not expecting a battle. As they descended, they were spotted by Ottoman guards who were pursued and destroyed before reaching the Turkish base. One of them managed to reach the camp, where he gave an alarming warning of the arrival of the League of Lezha. In order to still be able to use the element of surprise, Gjergj Kastrioti ordered the immediate attack.

Accompanied by the loud noise of the metallic noise of the battle, the Albanian troops stormed the camp of the Turks who were unprepared for the fight and who were totally surprised by the attack.

After a series of attacks by the Albanian crossbowmen , infantry and cavalry , the Ottomans were pushed into the center of their camp. When the Ottoman army was surrounded by Albanian soldiers, it panicked and was as a result wiped out. Isak Bey Evrenoz managed to flee the battlefield.

After the battle 15,000–30,000 killed and wounded on the part of the Turks. Another 15,000 went into captivity, including Hamza Kastrioti. 24 Ottoman standards fell into the hands of the Albanians. The fallen Albanian soldiers were buried in St. Mary's Church in the surrounding village of Shëmri.

An Ottoman negotiator was sent to negotiate the surrender of the Ottoman standards and the release of 40 high-ranking prisoners. He also tried to reach an armistice between Gjergj Kastrioti and Sultan Mehmed II. This failed because the Albanian side demanded the return of Svetigrad and Berat, which were conquered by the Ottomans in 1448 and 1450, as a condition for a ceasefire.

consequences

The Battle of Albulena was of great importance for the Christian resistance against the Ottomans on the south-eastern flank of Europe. Franz Babinger , a historian in the field of the Ottoman Empire, describes the outcome of the battle as Gjergj Kastrioti's most brilliant victory . Pope Kalixt III. appointed Gjergj Kastrioti, one day before Christmas Eve of 1457, captain-general of the Roman Curia and captain-general of the Holy See . For his special services in the defense of Christianity against the Ottomans, he also awarded him the honorary title Athleta Christi ( Latin defender of Christianity ).

The battle of Albulena strengthened the morale of the Albanian army. From then on, deserters and deserters like Hamza Kastrioti were very rare, if at all. This victory was a turning point in the course of the Albanian-Turkish war and set the course for the three-year truce agreed in 1460 between the League of Lezha and the Ottoman Empire. During this peaceful period, Gjergj Kastrioti's military expedition to Italy began to assist Ferdinand I of Naples , son and heir to the throne of Alfonso V , in the recapture of the lost territories of the Kingdom of Naples .

Honors and commemorations

Albulena is a common female given name among the Albanians and a synonym for freedom and victory . A folk song, which is still popular today and is considered a musical expression of Albanian patriotism, is dedicated to the battle.

literature

• Franz Babinger (1978), Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time, Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01078-1 .
• Robert Elsie (2004), Historical Dictionary of Kosova, Scarecrow Press, ISBN 0-8108-5309-4 .
• Demetrio Franco (1539), Comentario de le cose de 'Turchi, et del S. Georgio Scanderbeg, principe d' Epyr, Altobello Salkato, ISBN 99943-1-042-9 .
• Kristo Frashëri (2002), Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468 (in Albanian), Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 .
• Harry Hodgkinson (1999), Scanderbeg: From Ottoman Captive to Albanian Hero, Center for Albanian Studies, ISBN 978-1-873928-13-4 .
• Steven Runciman (1990), The Fall of Constantinople 1453, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-39832-0 .
• Kenneth Meyer Setton (1978), The Papacy and the Levant, 1204-1571, DIANE Publishing, ISBN 978-0-87169-127-9 .
• Peter Sugar (1983), Southeastern Europe Under Ottoman Rule, 1354-1804, University of Washington Press, ISBN 0-295-96033-7 .

Individual evidence

1. ^ Franz Babinger: Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time. Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01078-1 , pp. 152 ff.
2. ^ Robert Elsie: Historical Dictionary of Kosova. Scarecrow Press, ISBN 0-8108-5309-4 , p. 162.
3. ^ Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 347.
4. ^ Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 346.
5. ^ Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 347.
6. ↑ ^{a b} Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 348.
7. ^ Harry Hodgkinson: Scanderbeg: From Ottoman Captive to Albanian Hero, Center for Albanian Studies. ISBN 978-1-873928-13-4 , p. 147.
8. ^ Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 349.
9. ^ Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 350.
10. ↑ ^{a b} Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 351.
11. ↑ Kenneth Meyer Setton: The Papacy and the Levant, 1204-1571. DIANE Publishing, ISBN 978-0-87169-127-9 , p. 194.
12. ↑ Demetrio Franco: Comentario de le cose de 'Turchi, et del S. Georgio Scanderbeg, principe d' Epyr, Altobello Salkato. ISBN 99943-1-042-9 , p. 320.
13. ^ Harry Hodgkinson: Scanderbeg: From Ottoman Captive to Albanian Hero, Center for Albanian Studies. ISBN 978-1-873928-13-4 , p. 184.
14. ↑ ^{a b} Kristo Frashëri: Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468. Botimet Toena, ISBN 99927-1-627-4 , p. 352.
15. ^ Harry Hodgkinson: Scanderbeg: From Ottoman Captive to Albanian Hero, Center for Albanian Studies. ISBN 978-1-873928-13-4 , p. 149.
16. ^ Franz Babinger: Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time. Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01078-1 , p. 152.
17. ^ Harry Hodgkinson: Scanderbeg: From Ottoman Captive to Albanian Hero, Center for Albanian Studies. ISBN 978-1-873928-13-4 , p. 150 ff.
18. ^ Franz Babinger: Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time. Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01078-1 , pp. 152-153.