Learn about the history of the battle of Vienna, 1683

NARRATOR: From the 15th century on, sultans continue their rampant conquests, expanding their territory from Constantinople westwards. There were many stops along the triumphant pathway leading to a prestigious prize: Vienna. On the 15th of July 1683, 300,000 Ottoman soldiers stood before the gates of the city on the Danube. Confident of the superiority of his forces, the Ottoman general Kara Mustafa bides time. Vienna has to fall sooner or later. A constant barrage of artillery fire and a massive deployment of explosives cause the city's fortifications to crumble. Vienna has only 10,000 soldiers to defend it. Nonetheless, they succeed in fending off the Ottomans, holding large sections of the city walls. The reason: The Ottomans attack in small groups. Sure that Vienna would surrender, Sultan Mustafa Kara pursues this strategy to spare his army.

DR. KLAUS REINHARDT: [translation]: "Mustafa Kara's colossal mistake was that he didn't act quickly. Instead, he braced himself for a long siege. This allowed his adversary to wait for reinforcements, which is ultimately why he lost the battle."

NARRATOR: Unbeknownst to him, the sultan gives a German-Polish army the time to join forces with the Viennese. The attack catches the Ottomans by surprise, most flee. What was expected to be a resounding triumph would go down in history as the Turks' most crushing defeat. Once again Vienna and Europe escape by the skin of their teeth.