Battle of Mohács

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Battle of Mohács (1526)

The Battle of Mohács happened on 29 August 1526 near the town of Mohács in Hungary. It was fought between the Kingdom of Hungary, led by King Louis II, and the Ottoman Empire, commanded by Suleiman the Magnificent with his grand vizier Ibrahim Pasha. The Ottomans won a decisive victory.

What happened
- The Ottomans brought a large army, about 50,000–60,000 soldiers with 300 cannons. The Hungarians had about 25,000–30,000 soldiers and around 85 cannons, with a small Polish force helping.
- Hungary tried to defend its land, but its leadership was divided and pressed by nobles to fight quickly. The Hungarian plan was to attack the Ottomans on an open plain near Mohács.
- The Ottomans used smart tactics, including a feigned retreat, to draw the Hungarians into a trap. The Hungarian lines were broken, and the army collapsed after only a few hours of fighting.
- King Louis II died while trying to flee through the marshy ground after the battle. Many Hungarian nobles and soldiers were killed or captured.

Aftermath
- Buda (the Hungarian capital) fell to the Ottomans soon after the battle, and Hungary quickly broke into pieces.
- By 1541, central Hungary was under Ottoman control, the northern and western parts were ruled by the Habsburgs, and Transylvania remained under Ottoman influence. This began a long period of Ottoman–Habsburg conflict.
- The battle is seen in Hungarian memory as a national tragedy. The saying “More was lost at Mohács” expresses the sense of loss.
- The defeat helped end Hungary as an independent kingdom for a long time and changed the region’s balance of power.

Legacy
- Mohács is remembered as a turning point in Hungarian history and a symbol of national hardship.
- The battlefield is a national historical memorial site, first designated in 1976, with a memorial hall added later.