Battle of Otlukbeli
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| Battle of Otlukbeli | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Ottoman Empire | White Sheep Turcomans | ||||||
| Commanders | |||||||
| Mehmed the Conqueror | Uzun Hasan | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown but heavy | ||||||
Battle of Otlukbeli was a battle between White Sheep Turcomans and the Ottoman Empire that was fought on August 11, 1473. It was a decisive victory for the Ottomans that were commanded by Mehmed the Conqueror.[1]
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[edit] Reasons of the Conflict
Mehmed II's aggressive military policy to capture the throne of the Roman Caesardom resulted with the Fall of Constantinople in 1453. Byzantine rulers secured their rule in some areas after this event. One of these dominations was the Empire of Trebizond. When Mehmed turned his face to East to clean the remnants of the Byzantine rule in 1461, he faced with another Central Asian originated power, the White Sheep Turcomans, a tribe that were ruling huge lands in Eastern Anatolia.
Their leader, Uzun Hasan, was continuing the tradition of close relations between the Byzantine throne and his own kingdom so he supported the Empire of Trebizond and sent them military aid but his support wasn't enough to save Trebizond from the Ottoman forces. Mehmed II conquered all of the Eastern Black Sea region. Uzun Hasan decided to seek help from Christian powers because he thought that Ottomans would return for his own kingdom. Therefore, he decided to sign a treaty with the Republic of Venice, the archrival of the Ottoman Empire at that time. In 1464, Venice granted her support to White Sheep Turcomans but she wouldn't do anything when the war broke out in 1473.
Another reason of the tensions between White Sheep Turcomans and Ottomans was the political standing of anoter powerful Anatolian tribe, Karamanoğlu. Kasım Bey, the ruler of Karamanoğlu, was supporting the growing power of Uzun Hasan. These two powers were working in cooperation against the Ottoman advance in Anatolia. In 1471, a successful Ottoman operation against Karamanoğlu reduced the power of the tribe. This gave courage to Mehmed II to move deeper into Anatolia.
[edit] The Battle
Mehmed II returned with his army in 1473 to defeat Uzun Hasan. Turcomans had a traditional army that contains considerable amounts of light cavalries. On the other hand, Ottoman army was using the latest technology. They came with rifles and cannons. This difference between the natures of two armies marked the result of the battle. Ottoman side gained a decisive victory. Turcoman army was nearly destroyed in a single day.
[edit] Aftermath
Ottomans nearly destroyed the power of the White Sheep tribe in the East. White Sheep Turcomans would be destroyed completely by Shah Ismail of Iran in later years. This victory of the Safavid Empire would create a new enemy for Ottoman Empire in the East. The race between two empires ended with the fall of the Safavid dynasty from power in the 18th century.[2]
