Battle description in Hungarian !

[cegorach]

I need some help with extractng the data from this description, anyone ?

http://crowland.uw.hu/images/csata/mezokeresztes.html

[cegorach]

This one could be fun to play as well if I knew what it all means :juggle2:

http://crowland.uw.hu/images/csata/mohacs.html

[Voevod al Moldovei]

hey cegorach can you make a historical battle for the battle of Vaslui between stefan cel Mare and Soliman Pasha

plus for a historical campaign michael the brave's campaign against the turks

[cegorach]

If I have enough information...:book:

[Voevod al Moldovei]

sure ill gather some

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vaslui

go to the battle section and you will have enough i think for the battle of vaslui

[Forgus]

If you ve got skype I translate it for you but there is no way I write it down.:laugh4:

[Forgus]

Part I.

Prelude

After the Battle of Mohács Hungary was split in 3 parts, one part was occupied by the Turks, one part remained Royal Hungary under a Habsburg king, and the independent Erdélyi Fejedelemség (Principality od Transylvania) that payed tribute to the Turks for independence.
The beginning of the 1590ies brought internal struggles in Turkey, and economic hardship in Europe, raising tensions and war seemed the only solution. Between 1590 and 93 border skirmishes evolved into small scale war in parts of Royal Hungary.
In the summer of 1593 Hassan pasha of Bosnia laid siege to the castle of Sziszek, with an army of 20.000 and ten cannons, breaking the peace of Drinapoli od 1568. The christians eventually lifted the siege and the siegers were pressed into the river Kulpa.
At the end of September the army of the sultan arrived that was raised back in the spring, and they occupied the castles of Veszprém and Palota thus breaking the line of frontier castles that were developed with much labour over the years.
The christians in response occopied a row of smaller castles in County Nógrád in the winter of '93-94, and won some smaller battles. It came as a shock, that on the 29th of September 1594 Győr was occupied by the Turks, which is quite close to Vienna.
The popular oppinion remained optimistic though. In 1595 Transylvania Moldavia and Wallachia joined the Christian alliance, and the Turks had to fight a two front war. They lost Esztergom, ten smaller castles in County Maros, and at Giurgiu the joined Wallachian-Transylvanian armies slaughtered the rearguard of the withdrawing forces of the Grand vizier (29th October 1595). It became imperative for the Turks to split Transylvania and the Romanian Principalities from the coalition.
As the blend of the Christian forces was very heterogenous it proved hard to find a person with undisputed superiority. Finaly Rudolf II's choice fell on archduke Maximillian. The archduke posessed little military experience, thus all decisions were made by a war council.
The Sultan himself came in great strenght, but the Christians unsure of his destignation could not yet be concentrated.
Christoph Tieffenbach over captain of Kassa defended Higher Hungary, Miklós Pálffy Cis-Danubian and Mine County (the area where the main mines of gold and silver were in present day Slovakia, Beszterce, Körmöcbánya etc, not a real County) over captain and Schwarzenberg stationed near Buda, The archduke around Magyaróvár, while the Transylvanians prepared back home.
The plan was good: they wanted to take Hatvan and attack Szolnok to put the fight into Turkish occupied territory and by securing these two key castles, the Turkish operation could be supressed.

[Forgus]

Part 2.

It is important to understand the high importance of castles in Hungary during the Turkish occupation. In the 16th century weather tended to be cool and rainy, rivers were untamed, foods was frequent, and marshes, forests effectively restricted movement. It was possible to control several counties with the possession of one castle on a crossroad or any other strategic location. In the protection of the castle local administration and jurisdiction could be estabilished. This is especially true for Turkis- held territories, because the occupation of the Turks was restricted to the possession of the Castles, losing them ment the loss of economic, military and political control of the area. It is obvious, that with Hatvan and Szolnok threathened The turks would've been forced to recapture these castles.

The plan was good, the execution was not. Hatvan was sieged from 15th august 1592, but the rainy weather made traffic and supplies impossible. Siege cannons, arms and ammunition was abundant, but they lacked herd animals. The military leader of Hatvan knew that his opposition is imperative of the success of the sultan's army.

The strategic goal of the turks that year was to teach Transylvania a lesson, and split her from the alliance. The attack of the Christians meanwhile canged the plans. The new plan became the capture of Eger. If the castle fell, the link between Royal Hungary and Transylvania would be broken.

The turkish arrived at Eger on the 21st of September, but on the 1st of october (unheard of swiftness in those times) the relieving force departed.
The muddy roads made the traffic very slow, so that the most part of the baggage and heavy equipment had to be left in Fülek. The three armies left for the release met on the 18th of october at Sajóvámos.
The transdanubian and lower Hungarian troops were led by Miklós Pálffy and Adolf Schwarzenberg, the upper Hungarian army was led by Christoph Tieffenbach over captain of Kassa. The Transylvanians were led nominally by the prince, but the de facto leader was Albert Király. The field marschal, the officer responsible for the tactical and strategical planning was Adolph Scwarzenberg who recieved great experience in France and the Low Countries.
Meanwhile Eger surrendered on the 13th of October, but the christian army which grew to 40 000 troops seemed likely to retake the badly damaged castle.

The war council at Sajóvámos decided to advance at Mezőkeresztes. The town was already scortched to earth, but it still had a strategic value, as the only road leading to Royal Hungary that could bear larger armies with baggage and heavy cannons led throug it. North of the town were the Bakony mountains, sto the south the marhes of the floods of the Tisza.
If the army takes position here they can block the Turks movements, and if the Turks leave, they can quickly reach and retake Eger.

[Forgus]

https://img156.imageshack.us/img156/8197/mezokeresztes7nl.th.jpg (https://img156.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mezokeresztes7nl.jpg)

[cegorach]

Good work and waiting for more.

BTW it is a placeholder isn't it ?

[Forgus]

Part 3. Skirmish

The field of Keresztes seemed a very good battlefield. The field is about 9X5 km, bordered by the Bükk mountains from the north, from west and south the streem of Lator, and the streem Kács, from East the marshes of the stream Csincse, which made the field a very good defensive positoion.
The christian army camped at Miskolc on the 20th of October, and spent the night of 21-22th in the area between Mályi and Nyék. After a short rest they regrouped for a new marching order of four columns that changed from the the single column over 2 miles long. It was in order to lessen the chances of ambushes and the quick formation of the battle order.
The first column on the left comprised of cavalry moved paralel the little river Hejő, the right one consisting of Hungarian cavalry and foot moved in the protection of the hills. The middle coloumn consisted of the foreign infantry regiments, Archduke Maximillian, and the heavy cavalry led by the prince of LÜneburg and the Prince of Anhalt. The vanguard consisted of cavalry and was led by Pálffy. The three columns moving paralel was protected by cannons from both sides and by a fortified camp of coachesat the rear guarded by 4000 hajdus.
The army (consisting of 50.000 soldiers, 97 cannons, 8000 coaches and 10-15000 followers ordered slowly and it was already afternoon, when the Turks and the Christians took a sighting of each other on the field of Mezőkeresztes.

When Albert Király noticed it, he sent 300 koplyás' (lancers) from the Transylvanian vanguard to probe the enemy. At the same time Hermann Christoph Russwurm and Johann Baptist Pezzen's troops became engaged to the Turks, The two officers were sent to the front to estabilish the campsite for the army. Their 5-600 German heavy cavalry and 300 Transsylvanian koplyás' made first contact of the enemy.
The experienced Pezzen and Russwurm soon understood that the forces of their disposal are not enough to counter the Turkish cavalry lined up before Keresztes. Field marschal Adolph Schwarzenberg personally came to their help with the reinforcements, to assess with his own eyes the strenght of the Turks. The reinforcement consisted of 9-10 000 Austrian Cavalry, 3 companies of mounted infantry with muskets from upper Hungary 3-400 Valoons, and an unknown number of Hungarian Hussars. We don't know their exact numbers, but there must have been at least as many of them as the Austrians and the Valloons, for we know thatamong others the full Transylvanian vanguard was there and it alone had around 20 flags of Hussars.
The fight went on for a whinle but was ened by the approach of the Allied army, and the Turkish vanguard that couldn't even really hold the 3-3500 christians at bay fled before the fresh troops swarming into the field. Witnesses say that the fleeing cavalry crossed the stream Kács but did not stop there, but passing the infantry and the cannons fled the field towards Mezőkövesd.

The only chance for the abandoned Turkish infantry was the defense the partly demolished bridge, and the other crossings. If they can hold the christians on the other side until the night comes, they can escape in the dark more easily. The chances for the execution were supported by the goof defensive position but also the 43 light cannons protecting the banks of the steam. These were not yet used as the musket fire odf the yannisari proved enough to stop the German and Hungarian pursuers.
The easiest way to get across would be the bridge of Keresztes. It's planks were removed, but as the stone parts were intact it could be repaired quickly.
To take the bridge, the Hungarian infantry seemed the most suitable. They wore no heavy equipment, moved quickly, but were exuipped with good muskets and were poficient in sapping and the similar operations of warfare.
First some Transylvanians from Albert Király's infantry tried to capture the bridge. The regular troops in close formation were an eligible target for the cannons, so the troops scattered after the first unexpected salvo of the 43 field guns. The losses were not severe, but the light infantry that was proficient in skirmishing rather than static warfare took refuge amongst the ruins of the village, shooting at the turks from there.
This stalemate was broken as Swarzenberg sent 6 field guns and additional Hungarian troops to help. While the Turks were engaged by the increasing fire at the bridge head. A body of the Transylvanian elite regular Kék drabants (Blue Drabants) crossed the stream a little lower. Since they subdued enemy resitance quickly, they managed to attack the turks defending the bridgehead from the side. A few volleys at close distance decided the outcome. The turks fled, the Hungarian infantry and some light cavalry crossed the steam, and pursued the routing Turks.

Meanwhile it turned dark, and the high command fearing a night attack did not let the troops to camp.

The troops were exhausted by the constant standing and marching from dawn on the 22nd and the night spent in battle order without warm food in October. The army spent the folowing two days with rest, recamping, and getting themselves orderly.
The new camp was set up with it's northern reaches at the Kálvária Hill at Alsó-Ábrány, the south at the center of today's Mezőnyárád. The western reaches were at the high banks of the steam Sály (Lator) ant the eastern ones were supposedly the North-South spine of the Sashalom hills.
The inactivity of the Christians was caused also by the fact that rumors had it that the Sultan departed towards Szolnok, it's army slowly disintegrating.

[Forgus]

Good work and waiting for more.

BTW it is a placeholder isn't it ?
Placeholder?

[cegorach]

The black image out there...

[Forgus]

Part4 - The Battle

Early afternoon on the 24th of October according to Pál Nyáry (escaped prisoner of the Turkish camp, ex-captain of Eger, a yanisari turncoat and a Hungarian spy the high command learned, that the Turkish army has not disintegrated, but advances on the christians at full strenght. It was proved by the sighting of Tartar vanguards at noon. By this time the pass of Ábrány to the north of the camp, and the bridge of Keresztes gas been fortified by trenches, and the camp was strenghtrened by war wagons.
The high command that gathered at the news of the approaching enemy decided to wait on the Turks at their present, very advantageous position.
In the afternoonlarger close formation troops appeared. The Turkish vanguard that was about 8-10000 strong detached a body of around 2-3000 Tartar cavalry, that tried to skirmish and probe the true strenght of the Christians.
They tried to cross the steams in smaller groups, nut they managed only at one place between Keresztes and Nagymihály but was not supported by the main, as the sultan dud not want to start a battle that day and the main already begun to make a camp. The unsupported vanguard withdrew under christian cannon fire.
The OIsmans continued to move into the night. Those arrived late at night or at dawn were not allowed to camp but were immediately sent to the battle line deployed in front of the camp.
So in the moning of the 25th of October the christians woke up to see a tired but orderly Turkish battle order on the other side of the steam.
Using their advanced tactical situation the Turks took the trenches around the temple of Keresztes, even before the christians formed a battle line.
Since ftom the trenches on the enbankments over the steam valley was easily held under fire, the crossing was only possible after silencing the cannons and the capture of the trenches. In posession of this important bridgehead, it was possible for the Osmans to cross the steam to the East banks, towards the Christian camp.

The tactical superiority of the christians lay in the large amount of firearms and the excellent field artillery. The advantage of this superior firepower could only be usedin defence though, and force the enemy to attack from a diadvantageous position. To maintain this it was imperative to hold the Turks on the other banks.
No surprise that the Christians first recaptured the temple led by Christoph Tieffenbach over captain of Kassa. I must have been a fierce fight, because in the meantime the Turks reinforced the trenches with four cannons. They were fully aware of the strategic importance of the bridge and supported all they could the berglerbeg of Greece who defended the trenches. They efforts were in vain thoug, as the christians recaptured the trenches, taking the guns.
After securing the Keresztes side, the christian army formed a battle rank broken in right angle, adapting the crescent shaped Turkish battle line.
The Upper-Hungarian troops were facing Mezőkövesd, standing between the temple of Keresztes and the Christian camp. To the north, at Alsóábrány the pass was secured by the troops of Archduke Maximillian. The Transylvanians reinforced by other troops faced Nagymihály standing west to east.
The right wing held the ground between the trenches at the temple of Keresztes and the Upper Hungarian troops of Tieffenbach. The East was secured by a camp of war wagons.
Since they failed to secure the crosses, smaller Turkish troops tried to cross the marches. They tried to succeed between Nyárád and Ábrány with strange eagerness, most likely drawn by the possible rich plunder in the Christian camp. They also tried to assault with great force the Northern pass, but drom the trenches built here, from the Kárlvária Hill and the western side of the camp the narrow crossing could be held unfer heavy fire, so the Turks couldn't cross.

[cegorach]

Very good work Forgus - is that all BTW ?