Battle Of Targoviste (Part 2/2) - The Night Attack 1462 AD

 

Word spreads across the Balkans and beyond about the effectiveness of Vlad Tepes' raid into Ottoman territory. Using his knowledge of the Empire's military organisation, something he learned during his time in the Ottoman court, Vlad selectively targets vital Ottoman military infrastructure in northern Bulgaria, crippling their capability to quickly respond to Vlahian attacks. He destroys crossing points into Vlahia, sacks those fortified cities that serve as bases, pillages and burns key towns that have military duties and store agricultural supplies as well as other provisions for the Ottoman army.

 Economic damage and chaos spread far and wide as countless thousands of civilians perish at the hands of Vlad s horsemen.

 But now, more Turks are coming.

 Mehmed II recently concluded a highly successful campaign against an anti-Ottoman alliance in Anatolia, extending his rule on the peninsula, and achieving the ultimate goal of his campaign by conquering Trebizond, the last of the Byzantine Greek cities.

 Back at his palace, while tending to the administration of the empire, news reaches Mehmed about the carnage caused by Vlad Tepes in Bulgaria.

 Large groups of the Turkish population are fleeing south, bringing with them tales that the Impaler Prince is on his way to Constantinople.

 Mehmed decides to take matters into his own hands, not least because the spreading of such rumors could turn Vlad into an undisputed hero of the entire region and destabilize Ottoman rule in the Balkans. The sultan becomes even more concerned after reports reach Constantinople that King Matthias Corvinus sent the experienced Szekely mounted troops in support of Vlad s war effort. If these reports are true, this would mean that an alliance between Matthias and Vlad may have been formed against the Ottomans.

 Mehmed further suspects that an even broader Christian alliance might be planning a crusade against the Ottoman Empire, as Hungary increases their military presence in Belgrade and the Pope sends vast sums of money to King Matthias.

 In return the king offers Hungary to be the host of the western armies and promises to provide troops for the Christian cause.

 The Hungarian king would eventually break these promises.

 Despite not knowing Matthias real intentions, Mehmed nevertheless diligently acts on the reports he received and begins preparations for a major conflict.

 Some contemporary sources place the number of Ottoman troops in the hundreds of thousands, which are highly exaggerated and unrealistic figures. For the purpose of this article we will use the accounts of the 15th century Venetian envoy in Buda, Pietro di Tommasi, who writes that Mehmed mobilized a 60.000 strong army, though modern research tells us that this number of troops was far lower. Mehmed assembles such a large army expecting that in Vlahia he will be fighting against the joined armies of Matthias and Vlad, which also requires the sultan to lead his troops in person.

 But there are further factors which require Mehmed's presence in Vlahia... Vlad proved to be a formidable foe, employing effective military tactics, logistical knowhow, as well as diplomatic trickery, to devastate northern Bulgaria and eliminate a number of Ottoman army contingents and garrisons.

 Mehmed has

 to take revenge against Vlad and re-affirm his image as "Protector of Ottoman lands". Furthermore, a demonstration of Ottoman power near the Hungarian border might discourage his biggest rival in the region from joining the planned crusade, and the destruction of Vlad's army would eliminate the only Christian country from the planned crusade that took action against the Ottoman Empire.

 Across the Danube, Vlad Tepes calls upon all able bodied men to join the fight. The core of his army is comprised of around 2,000 experienced troops - his personal guard, foreign mercenaries and the Szekely horsemen. The boyars, with their professional mercenaries and vassals, are able to field around 8,000 troops. The remaining 10,000 are formed by soldiers under local leaders of smaller land holdings. In total Vlad assembles around 20,000 troops, though here too modern research tells us that the number of troops was far lower.

 Believing that King Matthias will keep his promise and will come to his aid, Vlad continues his agression against the Ottomans by destroying their military and merchant shipping on the Danube, expecting help to arrive no later than April before the ice on the Danube completely melts, which will allow the Ottoman fleet to sail up the river from the Black sea. But April comes and goes, and Vlad realises he must adapt his plans.

 The Ottoman army leaves Edirne in late April or early May. Mehmed plans to march west along the Via Militaris to Plovdid and then north to Nikopolis, using army storehouses along the way to stockpile provisions for the campaign, knowing that he might not be able to effectively supply his army once he reaches the devastated areas in northern Bulgaria. Once at Nikopolis, from there he plans to follow a commercial route that leads straight to Targoviste. Meanwhile, the Ottoman fleet of some 175 ships is transporting more troops from the Black sea and plans to sail up the Danube to support the crossing at Nikopolis.

 Vlad knows that without Hungarian support he cannot wage an open war against the vast military potential of the Ottoman war machine, and that the only way to confront Mehmed's numerically superior army coming from the south is guerilla warfare, by focusing on operations that rely on speed, mobility, surprise and professionalism of the troops. For this extremely difficult and demanding task, the Vlahian voivode can count only on a small portion of his army.

 From the remaining troops Vlad forms a mobile expeditionary force and sends them to eastern Vlahia to hold off the Ottoman advance there and relieve the siege of Kilia, a highly valuable strategic city, disputed between Moldavia, Vlahia and Hungary, but also targetted by the Ottomans. Eventually, the Hungarian garrison in Kilia stands firm and the siege fails, with the invaders suffering great losses.

 Finally, the Ottoman fleet meets up with Mehmed on June 1st.

 Vlad and his cavalrymen ferociously contest the landing. But despite inflicting heavy losses on the invading troops, by June 3rd the Ottoman vanguard manages to cross the river, and Vlad retreats inland to avoid losses.

 The Ottomans complete the crossing by the end of June 4th, the next day.

 The sultan then divides his forces. The core of the army under Mehmed s personal command marches towards Targoviste.

 On Mehmed s far right is the second part of his army, the akinci cavalry who guard his flank.

 Due to the unusually hot summer Mehmed decides to go through the thick Vlasia forest. Ottoman troops welcome the escape from the scorching heat, but in the shade of the Vlasia forest lay hidden contingents of Vlahian troops.

 Multiple ambushes and night attacks are launched against the long Ottoman line of march. Aware of how dangerous these night attacks are, Mehmed slows down the march in order to keep the troops more compact and starts stopping the march earlier in the day, so that camp defenses can be erected before dark.

 With his night attacks Vlad successfully slows down the Ottoman advance, as he plays for time while waiting for his expeditionary force to return from eastern Vlahia.

 Meanwhile, on the Ottoman right flank the akincis run into deserted settlemens, the population and livestock are evacuated north, as Vlad aims to deprive the invaders of any means of supplies, leaving nothing behind.

 Back west, the main Ottoman army runs into logistical problems of their own, as Mehmed's chosen route towards Targoviste proves difficult, not least because of the thick forest and poor road, but also because of vast marshy areas and insufficient vegetation for animal consumption, not to mention the increased risk of diseas in the torrid summer heat.

 But finally, after about two weeks of marching Mehmed halts his army and orders the camp to be set up on the banks of the Ialomia river, south of Targoviste. At last, Ottoman troops can enjoy an endless supply of fresh water.

 To raise morale, the sultan orders musicians to play invigorating tunes. All seems to be under control and much needed sleep could not have come at a better time for Mehmed s troops. But the serenity will not last...

 Organisation of the Ottoman camp in many ways mimics their formation on the battlefield, a fact that Vlad is keenly aware of. Sipahi cavalry of the Porte is in the center, Janissaries in the front-center, Anatolian sipahi cavalry on the left, Rumelian sipahi cavalry on the right, and the Azab irregulars on the flanks in front of the cavalry.The camp's defenses consist of earthworks palisades chains and lookout posts, with the center being most fortified and additionally protected by artillery pieces due to Mehmed s presence there. Behind the tents are horses and pack animals. The vast camp covers around 460.000m/2

 Lurking with his cavalrymen, Vlad finally makes contact with his expeditionary force that returned from eastern Vlahia. Having issued orders for a synchronized attack from both flanks.

 Vlad orders his cavalrymen forward!

 He relays the plan to his captain, possibly a boyar named Gales, ordering him to flank the Ottoman rear from the east.

 While Vlad plans to flank the camp from the west, and then they would meet in the center to focus their attack on the Ottoman head quarters and the sultan himself.

 But the task of outflanking is a delicate one.

 Because of the tremendous dimensions of the camp it would take the Vlahian cavalrymen around 4 hours to complete the maneuver.

 Vlad rounds the Ottoman left undetected.

 But the troops in the tents on the Ottoman far left are soon alerted, because a small part of Vlad's left flank hooked the Anatolian sipahi camp. It is now only a matter of time before the rest of the camp is alerted to the attack and Vlad knows that his actions now must be executed faster.

 If he hurries there is still a chance to retain the element of surprise as it will take some time before news of the attack reaches the rest of Anatolian sipahis and the center of the camp. The Vlahian voivode urges his men forward!

 About 1 hour later, the Vlahian cavalry breaks through the camp defenses of the Ottoman center.

 Vlad Tepes spearheads the attack towards the tents of the Ottoman generals and the gold-red tent of Mehmed II. The surprise attack creates panic, catching the Ottomans in the center off guard and on foot.

 Vlahian cavalrymen hack their way through the sipahis of the Porte, and start cutting the ropes that anchor leather tent canvases, temporarily trapping many troops underneath, while in the darkness some of the Ottoman troops attack each other in the confusion.

 Vlad and his men close-in on the center of the Ottoman camp and smash into the Janissaries that managed to regroup and form a line to protect the sultan thanks to their high professionalism.

 Momentum of the Vlahian cavalry charge drives a deep wedge in their formation, getting ever closer to the sultan's tent, but the Janissaries stand fast and manage to contain the push of Vlad's charge.

 Amidst the fighting the Vlahian voivode sees that to his far right, his expeditionary force that was supposed to attack from the east is nowhere to be seen. It is not clear why Vlad s captain did not arrive with the expeditionary force. Contemporary accounts give us conflicting evidence.

 It is possible that this Vlahian commander wasn't proficient enough to execute the difficult flanking maneuver and that he clashed with elements of the Ottoman right flank too early.

 Another possibility is that the two Vlahian contingents couldn't effectively coordinate the attack at night while being tens of kilometres away from each other. It is also possible that the Vlahian commander betrayed Vlad.

 Whatever the case may be - The fact is: Vlad attacked the Ottoman camp alone with his horsemen.

 And soon the gruesome hand-to-hand combat begins to tilt in favor of the more numerous Ottomans. Outnumbered and bleeding from a head wound, Vlad and his cavalrymen begin fighting their way out of the Ottoman camp.

 Vlad's only option is to retreat south-east, because the news of the attack still hasn't reached the Rumelian sipahis on the Ottoman right flank. Before sunrise, about 5,000 Vlahian and 15,000 Ottoman troops lay dead on the battlefield.

 As the Ottoman march continues, they are met with a horrific sight.

 A field of dead Ottoman soldiers in their thousands, impaled and rotting in the summer sun.

 Mehmed takes stock of the situation and decides to bypass Targoviste. He realises that Matthias will not be coming to Vlad s aid, and that he won't be able to force an open battle against the Vlahian voivode, so to continue towards Targoviste would only expose his army to yet more ambushes and night attacks from the elusive Vlad Tepes. The sultan is aware that the Vlahian voivode can keep outmaneuvering the less mobile Ottoman army and slowly bleed them dry using guerilla tactics.

 The sultan's assumptions prove true as Vlad delivers yet another major night attack near Buzau, inflicting yet more losses to the invading army. Mehmed decides to march towards Braila where his fleet awaits. The sultan also correctly predicts that he can weaken Vlad's political position by leaving behind Radu to take the throne with the support of the akinci cavalry.

 Radu indeed quickly wins the support of the greater boyars by giving them many privileges and he soon takes control of the voivodal residences in Bucharest and Targoviste, as well as voivodal lands, subjects and trade routes in the south of the country. This secures fiscal stability for Radu, enabling him to establish his rule by August 1462.

 In the meantime Vlad retreats into northern Vlahia. Without the support of the greater boyars, it is unclear what is the reach of his authority at this point. However, he still holds two important trade routes, the Red Turret Pass and the Bran Pass, both strong defensive positions. The voivode knows that the akinci will finish their pillaging and retreat back to Bulgaria before winter, which will leave Radu exposed, and he intends to ask for support from King Matthias to depose Radu. In November, Vlad and Matthias meet at Brasov, but the Hungarian king refuses to aid Vlad, knowing that if he supported an attack against Radu, the Ottomans will perceive this as a declaration of war. Enraged, Vlad decides to attack Radu without Hungarian help.

 In late November of 1462, Vlad heads through the Bran pass. At the Oratia fortress he is ambushed by Jan Giskra, a Bohemian mercenary commander, now in the service of Matthias.

 The King orders Vlad s arrest in order to prevent the outbreak of a new war.

 With Vlad imprisoned, his brother Radu's rule is secured and Vlahia is now firmly in  the Ottoman grip.