Polish–Ottoman War (1620–1621)

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Polish–Ottoman War (1620–1621)
Part of Polish–Ottoman Wars and the Thirty Years' War
From top left: Death of Stanisław Żółkiewski at Cecora Jan Karol Chodkiewicz at Khotyn Tatars in vanguard Treaty of Khotyn
Date 1620 – 9 October 1621 Location Moldavia and Bukovina (modern Ukraine) Result Indecisive Polish-Lithuanian military victory Beneficial treaty in favor of the Ottoman Empire Janissary revolts Execution of Osman II Territorial changes Treaty of Khotyn
Belligerents
Poland–Lithuania Registered Cossacks Moldavia	Ottoman Empire Crimean Khanate Transylvania
Commanders and leaders
Stanisław Żółkiewski † Jan Karol Chodkiewicz # Crown Prince Vasa	Osman II   Güzelce Ali Pasha Ohrili Hüseyin Pasha Abaza Mehmed Pasha
Strength
25,000[1] Polish-Lithuanian troops 20,000 Cossacks[1]	120,000–160,000 Ottoman[2] and Tatar, 13,000 Moldavian and Wallachian troops[3]
Casualties and losses
14,000[4]	40,000[4]

The Polish–Ottoman War (1620–1621) was a conflict between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Ottoman Empire over the control of Moldavia. It ended with the Commonwealth withdrawing its claims on Moldavia and led to the eventual demise of the Sultan Osman II.^[5]

Background[edit]

Traditionally, Moldavia had been a subject of the Kingdom of Poland, and later the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. As the Ottoman influence grew in the 16th century, they had become more and more interested in the region. From the end of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th century, the magnates of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth intervened in the affairs of Moldavia, which the Ottoman Empire considered within its sphere of influence. Additionally, the Ottomans were aggravated by the constant raids of Cossacks, then nominally subjects of the Commonwealth, across the border into Ottoman territories. Another reason causing the war was the recent outbreak of the Thirty Years' War, and the request of support from the Protestant rebel leaders in Bohemia.

At the time, the Thirty Years' War was raging across Europe. Gabriel Bethlen, prince of Transylvania saw an opportunity to unite the two Hungarian principalities, Transylvania and Royal Hungary, and sacked Vienna in November 1619. He also asked Sultan Osman II for aid, but this was unsuccessful. The Commonwealth was relatively uninvolved in this war but the Polish king, Zygmunt III Waza, sent an elite and ruthless mercenary unit, the Lisowczycy, to aid his Habsburg allies. They defeated the Hungarian lord George Rákóczi at the Battle of Humenné in 1619, and thus, cut the supply lines of Transylvanian forces. Then Gaspar Graziani, ruler of Moldavia, switched sides and joined Poland.

Thus, the sultan agreed to help Bethlen, gathering a large Ottoman army with the intent of a punitive invasion of the Commonwealth.

The war[edit]

In 1620, the Ottoman forces crushed the Commonwealth army at the Battle of Ţuţora (Cecora). The campaign was suspended for the winter but, in 1621, both sides resumed hostilities.

The Turks, following their victory in the Battle of Ţuţora, had high hopes of conquering Ukraine (then a part of Poland), and perhaps even toppling the Commonwealth entirely and reaching the Baltic Sea. This time, however, they were stopped by a Commonwealth army, aided by a large Cossack detachment, at the Battle of Khotyn. The 45,000 Poles and Cossacks were able to withstand an Ottoman army at least two times the size of the Commonwealth's army at Khotyn and deal severe losses to the Ottoman army throughout the month of September.^[6] When the Polish cavalry rallied forth in October they broke the will of the besiegers and the Sultan sued for peace.^[7] The ensuing peace treaty gave the Fortress of Khotyn to Moldavia as a Ottoman vassal, and the Commonwealth agreed to stop its interference in Moldavia. Both sides claimed victory, as the Commonwealth saw the battle of Khotyn as a successful stopping of the Ottoman invasion of its mainland and the Ottoman Empire achieved its goal of removing the impending threat on the Moldavian lands.

The Polish–Ottoman border would remain relatively peaceful until the Polish–Ottoman War (1633–34) and the Polish–Ottoman War (1672–76).

See also[edit]

• Moldavian Magnate Wars

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

• (in Polish) Wojny polsko-tureckie, Encyklopedia WIEM
• Kołodziejczyk, Dariusz (2000). Ottoman-Polish Diplomatic Relations (15th – 18th Century): An Annotated Edition of 'Ahdnames and Other Documents. Leiden – Boston –Köln: Brill.

External links[edit]

• Polish Warfare: 1618–1621 War with Turkey
• (in Polish) Wojna 1620–1621
• (in Polish) Wojny Polsko Tureckie W Pierwszej Polłowie XVII Wieku
• "Battle of Khotyn / Chocim 1621" – movie produced on 400th anniversary of the battle.