Great Turkish War
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The Great Turkish War was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and European powers at the time (joined into a Holy League) during the second half of the 17th century. It marked the end of the Ottoman incursion into Europe.
[edit] 1667–1683
- See also: Russo-Turkish War, 1676-1681
After Bohdan Khmelnytsky's rebellion, when Russia acquired parts of Eastern Ukraine from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, some cossacks stayed in the south east of the Commonwealth. Their leader, Petro Doroshenko, wanted to connect the rest of Ukraine with the Ottoman Empire, starting a rebellion against hetman (Polish army commander) Jan Sobieski. The Sultan Mohamed IV, who knew that the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was weak due to internal conflicts, attacked Kamieniec Podolski, a large city on the border.
A small Polish army was defeated by a larger Ottoman one in what is sometimes known as the Polish-Ottoman War of 1672-1676. The first battle took place in Sconograd, Hungary, which was occupied by the Ottomans. The Polish army was defeated. The Poles retreated after three months. The Poles tried to defeat the Ottomans for four years, with no success. The Turkish Aggression followed later to the beginning of the Russo-Turkish Wars. The Poles agreed to surrender Kamieniec Podolski and the adjacent region and to pay tribute to the Ottoman Sultan.
When a message about the defeat and treaty terms reached Warsaw, the Sejm refused to pay the tribute. Accordingly the Sejm organized a large army under Jan Sobieski, who won a battle near Chocim in 1673 without however regaining Kamieniec Podolski. However, after King Michael’s death in 1673, Jan Sobieski was elected king of Poland.
[edit] War of the Holy League (1683–1699)
- See also: Russo-Turkish War, 1686-1700
After a few years of peace, the Ottoman Empire attacked the Habsburg Empire. The Turks almost captured Vienna, but Jan III Sobieski led a Christian alliance that defeated them. The Battle of Vienna finished the Ottoman Empire's hegemony in south-eastern Europe.
A new Holy League was initiated by Pope Innocent XI and composed of the Holy Roman Empire (headed by the Habsburg Austria), the Venetian Republic and Poland in 1684, joined by the Russian Empire in 1686.
The Holy League also battled the Ottoman Empire in the second Battle of Mohács (1687). The Russian involvement marked the beginning of the Russo-Turkish Wars.
The League eventually won the war in 1699 and forced the Ottoman Empire to sign the Treaty of Karlowitz.
Jan III Sobieski died in 1697. The Ottoman Empire returned Kamieniec Podolski in 1699.
