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===Background===
The Ottomans in the seventeenth century ruled a vast empire that encompassed the Balkans, modern day Turkey and much of the Middle East. They had captured Byzantium in 1453 and ended the Byzantine Empire. Successive Sultans had launched repeated attacks or ''jihads'' on the Christian kingdoms of Europe for many centuries. By the 1680s the main defense against the Ottomans was the Hapsburg Empire.<ref>Alan Palmer, <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1435136047/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1435136047&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=09ee1d29f59bacb5727488ab78d66e52 The Decline and Fall of the Ottoman Empire ]</i> (New York, Barnes & Noble Publishing, 1992), p. 113</ref> This was a large empire that was centered on the German-speaking lands of modern Austria and its capital was Vienna. The Hapsburg Empire and the Ottomans had long contested the control of central Europe and for the control of Hungary.
In 1529 the Ottomans had laid siege to Vienna but had been beaten back. This has also led to the partition of Hungary between the Turks and the Hapsburgs. However, the Catholic Hapsburgs distrusted and occasionally persecuted many of their Hungarian subjects who were Protestants.<ref> Palmer, p. 113</ref> The Catholic forces moved into an area of Hungary that had been a de facto buffer zone between the Hapsburgs and the Ottomans. This gave the Ottomans the excuse that they had long wanted to drive their armies into the heart of Europe. Since the death of Suleiman, the Magnificent the Ottomans had been in decline, but this had been reversed by a series of energetic Viziers. They had reformed the army and had built up the infrastructure of the Empire. The Hapsburg intervention into Hungary was the perfect opportunity for the Turks to capture Vienna. They wanted the city so that they could control vital land trade routes and to potentially fatefully weaken the Hapsburgs.
Some 150,000 Turkish troops entered Austrian territory and they were allied with the Hungarians. Some 40,000 Crimean Tartars also joined the army of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Viziers had long planned for this invasion and they had laid meticulous plans. However, the winter meant that the actual invasion was delayed and this gave the Austrians some time to prepare. The main Ottoman army arrived outside the gates of Vienna on 14 July. On the same day, the commander Kara Mustafa demanded the surrender of the city. The Viennese and the garrison vowed to fight on as earlier the Turks had massacred the inhabitants of a town that had surrendered on terms. The Ottomans cut off the city from the rest of the Hapsburg lands. The city's defenders had cleared the area around the surrounding city walls. This created a free-fire zone for the Imperial troops.<ref> Palmer, p. 221</ref>
In response, the Ottomans established a network of trenches. The Turks had excellent artillery and they employed almost 150 pieces of cannon and they also dug tunnels under the Hapsburg walls to place mines under the fortifications. The walls of the city were in a state of disrepair but the garrison and the citizens improvised and strengthen the fortifications. By September 1683 a small relief force of the Imperial army had arrived. The Hapsburg Emperor had previously fled the city. Despite this, the Viennese garrison was under great stress and the commander became so concerned that Graf Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg ordered any soldier malingering or asleep on duty to be ‘summarily shot.’<ref> Palmer, p. 223</ref> It seemed that the Austrian garrison was on the verge of defeat and the Ottomans on the threshold of a great victory. However, the Austrians had been very active on the diplomatic front and they had received the backing of the Pope, who also supplied much-needed funds. Louis XIV of France refused to help the Austrians, who he viewed as his arch enemy. The Poles under their King John III Sobieski conditionally agreed to participate in the relief of Vienna and joined the Holy League, the name given to the anti-Ottoman alliance.<ref>Nicolle, David. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0850455111/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0850455111&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=0a11926735705334a8b03716323a97e7 Armies of the Ottoman Turks 1300–1774 ]</i> (Osprey Publishing, 1983), p. 214</ref>
That August in 1683, a small Hapsburg army, with their allies the Bavarians and Saxons under the Duke of Lorraine defeated the Hungarian allies of the Ottoman's northwest of Vienna. This encouraged the Poles to enter a formal alliance with Leopold I. The Polish monarchy had a powerful army and Poland's Hussars, or cavalry was famed throughout Europe. By September 1683, the Ottoman forces had seized a portion of the walls of the city and it seemed that Vienna was about to fall. The Pope provided generous subsidies to the Poles and the Polish king advanced with a great army leaving his own realm virtually defenseless.<ref> NicoleNicolle, p. 113</ref> They approached the city by the 11th of September 1683 and sought to link up with the Imperial army. Mustafa ordered the Ottomans to attack the Duke of Lorraine’s army but they were beaten back and the Imperial army launched a counterattack. On the right flank, the Polish hussars advanced rapidly and they easily swept the Crimean Tartars from the field. The Ottoman Vizier ordered a direct attack on the city by his elite troops the Saphis and the Janissaries, but their attack was stalled by the stubborn defenders.
The Ottomans had hoped to take the city before John Sobieski arrived but the Poles had arrived quicker than expected. Suddenly the Turks found themselves outflanked and bogged down in fighting in Vienna. The Polish cavalry and the Imperial cavalry launched a massive cavalry charge against the Ottoman's flanks near Kahlenberg Mountain outside Vienna.<ref>Faroqhi, Suraiya. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1558764496/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1558764496&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=a745044192b83ee81bab02cacdc5b4df The Ottoman Empire: A Short History ]</i> (London, Osprey, 2009), p 196</ref> The Holy League horsemen shattered the Ottoman army and the Vizier ordered the retreat of the Turkish army. The Polish king in the aftermath said, ‘I came and God conquered.’<ref> Palmer, p. 205</ref> The Turks lost some 30,000 men and the Hapsburgs and their allies lost only several thousand. Divisions soon emerged among the allies and this prevent the Christian armies from invading Ottoman Territory. The defeat of the Sultan’s army caused a political crisis and severely weakened the Ottoman Empire, so much so that it was no longer a threat to Europe.<ref>Palmer, p. 312</ref>
===Alliances===
===The Pope===
One of the key reasons why the Ottomans were defeated before the walls of Vienna was the intervention of the Pope. He used his extensive resources to help the Hapsburg’s to form an alliance. The Pope used his status as a spiritual leader to persuade Catholic German princes to join what he called the Holy League. Without the intervention of the Papacy these princes would not have helped the Austrians whom they distrusted. Instead, they reinforced the Imperial Army near Vienna. They provided some excellent troops who were disciplined and well-trained.<ref> Eoin Duffy, <i>The history History of the Papacy </i> (London, Osprey, 1998), p. 215</ref> The Papacy could use it extensive funds to pay the Polish army. At one time, the money from the Pope helped to persuade many Imperial soldiers to remain and fight. During the early modern period, unpaid soldiers often mutinied. The support of the Papacy for the Holy Alliance was very important. It is also highly likely that the backing of the Pope prevented Louis XIV and France from taking advantage of the Turkish onslaught and invading Germany, which would have benefitted only the Ottomans.
===Strategy and tactics===
