20,000-70,000 men 800 men Date 26 September 1371 Location Maritsa | heavy combat lossesthousands drowned unknown | |
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Combatants Ottoman Empire, Serbia, Bulgaria Similar Battle of Sırp Sındığı, Battle of Pločnik, Battle of Bapheus, Battle of Kosovo, Battle of Nicopolis | ||
The Battle of Maritsa, or Battle of Chernomen (Serbian: Маричка битка, бој код Черномена, Bulgarian: Битката при Марица, битката при Черномен, Turkish: Çirmen Muharebesi, İkinci Meriç Muharebesi in tr. Second Battle of Maritsa) took place at the Maritsa River near the village of Chernomen (today Ormenio in Greece) on September 27, 1371 between the forces of Ottoman commanders Lala Şâhin Paşa and Gazi Evrenos and Serbian commanders King Vukašin Mrnjavčević and his brother Despot Jovan Uglješa who also wanted to get revenge after the First Battle of Maritsa.
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Battle of maritsa
Background
Before the Battle of Maritsa, Vukašin had the intention to recapture Skadar (now Shkodër) for the Serbian Empire. The army led by King Vukašin and his son Prince Marko came under Skadar in June 1371, but when they were informed about a large Ottoman army advancing from the east they headed east to prepare for the Battle of Maritsa.
Battle
The Serbian army numbered 20,000–70,000 men. Most sources agree on the higher number. Despot Uglješa wanted to make a surprise attack on the Ottomans in their capital city, Edirne, while Murad I was in Asia Minor. The Ottoman army was much smaller Byzantine Greek scholar Laonikos Chalkokondyles and other sources give the number of 800 men, but due to superior tactics, by conducting a night raid on the Serbian camp, Şâhin Paşa was able to defeat the Serbian army and kill King Vukašin and despot Uglješa. Thousands of Serbs were killed, and thousands drowned in the Maritsa river when they tried to flee. After the battle, the Maritsa ran scarlet with blood.
Aftermath
Macedonia and parts of Greece fell under Ottoman power after this battle. The battle was a part of the Ottoman campaign to conquer the Balkans and was preceded by the Ottoman capturing of Sozopol and succeeded by the capture of the cities of Drama, Kavála and Serrai in modern Greece. The battle preceded the later 1389 Battle of Kosovo, and was one of many in history of the Serbian-Turkish wars.