Siege of Corinth (1463)

Siege of Corinth
Part of the Ottoman–Venetian War (1463–1479)
Walls of Corinth
Date September 3 – October 20, 1463 Location Corinth, Morea, Greece Result Ottoman victory
Belligerents
Ottoman Empire	Republic of Venice
Commanders and leaders
Elvanoğlu Sinan Beg Mahmud Angelović Turahanoğlu Ömer	Bertoldo d’Este   † Alvise Loredan
Strength
60 men	Thousands soldier, 32 galleys and many ships

The Siege of Corinth was a battle took place during the Venetians' attack on the Morea, which was under Ottoman control.

Background

The Venetians began their campaign toward the Morea in a far more magnificent manner. In May of 1463, thousands of warriors under the command of the Condottiere Bertoldo d’Este were embarked on ships commanded by Alvise Loredan. Loredan himself commanded 32 galleys and many other vessels. Venice had rarely assembled such a large fleet. ^[1]

Battle

When the Venetians recaptured the fortress of Argos on 12 August 1463, the first battle of the war had taken place. On 3 September, the Venetian army under Bertoldo’s command attacked the fortress of Corinth. ^[2] As Bertoldo was bombarding the fortress with artillery and was close to bringing down the walls, the fortress commander, Elvanoğlu Sinan Bey, having lost hope in the walls, planned to launch a sortie and conduct a night raid against the Venetians. ^[3] On a very dark night, Sinan Bey suddenly attacked the Venetians with a force of 60 men. The Venetian army, not expecting such a sortie from troops besieged inside the fortress, could not make sense of the situation and assumed that the attackers were the relief army under Grand Vizier Mahmud Pasha. Mistaking Sinan Bey’s force for Mahmud Pasha’s army, the Venetians began to fall into disorder and flee. ^[4] When Sinan Bey learned that Sultan Mehmed II had also sent him an additional force commanded by Turahanoğlu Ömer Bey as reinforcements, he intensified his attack even further. During this clash, Bertoldo d’Este received fatal wounds and died (20 October). ^[5] The other relief army under the command of Mahmud Pasha forced the Venetians to lift the siege and flee to Loredan’s ships. The Turkish army commanded by Mahmud Pasha broke through the Hexamilion, recaptured Argos, and advanced into the heart of the Morea before winter set in. ^[6] Alvise Loredan, meanwhile, was left with his fleet in a state of complete helplessness in the waters of the Isthmus Strait. ^[7]

Aftermath

Mahmud Pasha marched upon the other Greek cities that had rebelled and captured these fortresses one by one. ^[8] Almost every stronghold that had shown willingness to side with the Venetians submitted to the Turks. The main Ottoman army entered Leontari without any battle. Turahanoğlu Ömer Bey launched raids into Venetian-held territories and seized the fortresses of Methoni and Koron. He even forced the Albanians in the mountains to surrender. Had winter not arrived, the Turkish successes would undoubtedly have continued. ^[9] The Venetians’ achievements had vanished, and the Christian offensive had turned into a complete disaster. ^[10]

References

1. Jorga, Nicolae (2018). Büyük Türk Fatih Sultan Mehmed. Yeditepe. p. 149. ISBN   9786052070383.
2. Freely, John (2011). Büyük Türk. Doğan Kitapevi. p. 90. ISBN   9786051119564.
3. Mehmed Efendi, Nişancızade (2022). Osmanlı Tarihi 1299-1566. Bilge Kültür Sanat. p. 182. ISBN   9786257201834.
4. Tansel, Selahattin (2014). Fatih Sultan Mehmed’in Siyasi ve Askeri Faaliyetleri. Türk Tarih Kurumu. p. 197-198. ISBN   9789751610812.
5. Jorga, Nicolae (2018). Büyük Türk Fatih Sultan Mehmed. Yeditepe. p. 150. ISBN   9786052070383.
6. Freely, John (2011). Büyük Türk. Doğan Kitapevi. p. 90-91. ISBN   9786051119564.
7. Jorga, Nicolae (2018). Büyük Türk Fatih Sultan Mehmed. Yeditepe. p. 150. ISBN   9786052070383.
8. Tansel, Selahattin (2014). Fatih Sultan Mehmed’in Siyasi ve Askeri Faaliyetleri. Türk Tarih Kurumu. p. 198. ISBN   9789751610812.
9. Babinger, Franz (2021). Fatih Sultan Mehmed ve Zamanı. Alfa Kitap. p. 367. ISBN   9786254493607.
10. Clot, Andre (2012). Fatih Sultan Mehmed. Doğan Kitapevi. p. 119. ISBN   9786050911176.