Page 87 - All About History - Issue 52-17

Battle of Vienna

Kara Mustafa
10lees Ottoman
Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa rode Army
to his pavilion to gather his most
important possessions. After packing
up his private treasure and the Royal TROOPS 138,000
Banner of the Prophet, he joined the
Ottoman flight south to Hungary. CANNON 300

Garrison joins
09ight
To assist the relief army, Count Ernst
06 Starhemberg orders his Imperial
infantry to sally forth from the city
and fall on the rear of the Ottoman
army, catching it unawares.

03 GRAND VIZIER KARA
07
02 MUSTAFA PASHA
LEADER
Believed that his army was powerful
Assault enough to capture Vienna, a difficult
08on the objective that had eluded previous
Turkenschanz Ottoman commanders.
04 Kara Mustafa watched as the Strengths: Veteran commander
with a rather wide range of
Christian attack on the Ottoman
redoubts on high ground at military experience.
the Turkenschanz unfolded. An Weaknesses: His overconfidence,
05 artillery barrage softened the greed and ambition clouded his
military judgment.
position, and German infantry
squares delivered volleys of
musket fire. As the Germans
08 were about to capture the Holy
Banner of the Prophet, Kara
Mustafa led a counterattack to
retrieve the banner.

09

OTTOMAN SIPAHIS

KEY UNIT
Elite Turkish heavy cavalrymen who
were paid professionals trained and
outfitted by the Ottoman state.
Strengths: Able to shoot the
recurved bow at full gallop
on horseback.
Weaknesses: Less armoured than
their European counterparts.

06 Polish cavalry deploys 07 Cavalry probes KILIJ
The Polish heavy cavalry, which is organised
Polish King Jan Sobieski ordered 150
in three corps, deploys at 4pm in checkerboard formation Crown Hussars to charge the Ottoman position to
for their attack. They advance slowly through the gauge enemy strength and firepower. They broke KEY WEAPON
vineyards on the forward slope of the escarpment at the through the first line of sipahis, but were surrounded A one-handed, single-edged sabre,
eastern edge of the Wienerwald. The fearsome winged and had to fight their way out. They returned to well suited for cavalry because of its
hussars take their position at the front. Behind them their lines having lost 50 men. Polish General Nicolas shape and design.
are medium and light cavalry whose job is to exploit the Sieniawski ordered a 150-man unit to charge the Strengths: The wide end section
breaches in the enemy line made by the hussars. Ottoman sipahis, and it also was badly cut up. of the blade made it effective
© Alamy, Nicholas Forder
against armour.
Weaknesses: Less effective for
stabbing and thrusting.
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