"“We Came, We Saw, God Conquered” — Our Lady’s" Topic

…Victory at the Siege of Vienna.

"Vienna was surrounded. An invading Ottoman-led army, estimated at 150,000 troops, stood outside of her gates. Having refused the customary demand to surrender, made by Kara Mustafa, the Grand Vizier, she had been under siege for two months. The soldiers defending Vienna, and the peoples trapped behind her gates, were exhausted.

For over a thousand years, since the very dawn of Islam, the borders of Christendom had been pressed against, and receding.

The Holy Land had fallen long ago, as had Egypt, the Levant, and all of North Africa. In the centuries since the early Arab conquests the subjugated peoples, many of whom had the honorary status of "People of the Book" according to the Quran, had most all been converted, through policies of taxation and breeding and the force of law. The vision of God as the Holy Trinity, whose efforts to befriend mankind culminated in the Crucifixion of Christ, had been traded away for the vision of God as Allah, far too majestic to have ever been one of us, to whom all servitude must be given…"
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Amicalement
Armand

Thanks Tango

No mention my good friend! (smile)

Amicalement
Armand

Imho the siege of 1529, and its subsequent invasion of 1532, was a far closer and dangerous affair then 1683. At that time the European powers were already ahead in science and military, even when the full effects would not have materialized on the battlefield. A fall of Vienna in 1683 would not last, while Suleyman, victorious in the early 16th century, could have concentrated upon a divided Empire.

Still, this was a close fought affair, and probably the most famous charge in history.

Looking at it from the Ottoman side, a drive on Vienna was a common rallying cry for a general or sultan who wanted to gain favor with the military or consolidate power. It's unlikely the empire would have been able to keep pressing further into Europe in hindsight-their control of their existing frontiers was contested (like with any of their contemporary states). As Puster said the invasions under Suleiman were far more concerning, especially since they were in effect part of the eastern front of the Habsburg-Valois struggle over Italy.

Thanks!

Amicalement
Armand