Siege of Belgrade
1456 CE.
Shown on the map at 44.817°, 20.467°.
The siege of Belgrade, or the siege of Nándorfehérvár (Hungarian: Nándorfehérvár ostroma or nándorfehérvári diadal, lit. "Triumph of Nándorfehérvár"; Serbian Cyrillic: Опсада Београда, romanized: Opsada Beograda) was a military blockade of Belgrade that occurred 4–22 July 1456 in the aftermath of the fall of Constantinople in 1453 marking the Ottomans' attempts to expand further into Europe. Led by Sultan Mehmed II, the Ottoman forces sought to capture the strategic city of Belgrade (Hungarian: Nándorfehérvár), which was then under Hungarian control and was crucial for maintaining control over the Danube River and the Balkans. As the "key to the realm", the castle of Belgrade was the largest and most fortified border stronghold of Hungary, regarded as the southern gate of the kingdom and being considered one of the strongest fortresses in Europe. Captain in Chief of Hungary, John Hunyadi, had garrisoned and strengthened the fortress city at his own expense. The Hungarian defenders, led by Michael Szilágyi, put up a determined resistance against the larger Ottoman army from 4 July. The siege lasted for several weeks, during which both sides suffered heavy losses.
Text from the Wikipedia article Siege of Belgrade (1456), licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.