Strigonium receptum : (Esztergom 1595. évi visszafoglalása)

Abstract

This study deals with the siege of Esztergom (Strigonium, Gran) during the Fifteen Years' War (1593-1606) between the Habsburg and Ottoman Empire in Hungary. After the Ottoman successes in 1593-1594 (e. g. Győr/Raab) the Habsburg Empire organized a campaign in 1595. The Ottomans had to fight on two fronts, because the vassal pricipalities of Transylvania, Wallachia and Moldavia joined the Christian coalition. Wallachia was considered the main front, while in Hungary the Ottomans tried to defend their forts. A huge Christian army was organized (altogether 40-60 thousand), which was under the nominal leadership of archduke Matthias, but in fact led by Count Karl von Mansfeld. The allied army attacked the Ottoman fortress of Esztergom by the Danube. The siege of Esztergom lasted 62 days (July 1-September 3). Mansfeld occupied easily the royal city on July 2, then took (on July 4) the Castle on St. Thomas hill (in Turkish: Tepedelen) and began to shoot heavily with his artillery the Watercity and the Fort. He had Parkan (in Turkish: Dsigerdelen) occupied by Hungarian troops led by Miklós Pálffy and Ferenc Nádasdy (July 24). He attacked the Watercity five times, till at last the allied troops occupied it (August 13). The Ottomans tried to get infantry, munition into Esztergom by ships, but mostly they failed. Sinanpasazade Mehmed even offered a battle in order to free Esztergom and tried to get troops into the Fort during the battle. The Ottoman army of 15 thousand soldiers lost the batde of Esztergom (August 4). When another Ottoman relief army was defeated at Vörösvár (August 27) and the Christian army got reinforcements (the army of Pope Clement VIII arrived, August 22), the defenders of the Fort of Esztergom had to surrender (September 2). This was one of the most important successes of the Habsburg armies during the long war, even if they lost Esztergom to the Ottomans 10 years later (1605).