Battle of Slankamen
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| Battle of Slankamen | |||||||||||||||||
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| Conflict | Austro-Ottoman War, 1683–1697 | ||||||||||||||||
| Date | 19 August, 1691 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place | Slankaman, northwest of Belgrade | ||||||||||||||||
| Result | Christian victory | ||||||||||||||||
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The Battle of Slankamen was fought on August 19, 1691 near Slankamen (Salankamen), northwest of Belgrade, between Ottoman and Austrian and German forces.
The Ottomans had suffered many defeats against the Christians in the 1680s, most notably the failed Battle of Vienna in 1683 and the loss of Belgrade to Maximilian II of Bavaria in 1688. However, only two years later the city was recaptured. The next year, a new Christian army under the Margrave Louis William of Baden marched down the Danube to face the Ottoman army commanded by Grand Vizier Mustafa Köprülü.
The clash between the two forces took place on the west side of the Danube, opposite the outlet of the Tisa. After a hard battle, the 20 000 men Christian army was victorious over the Ottoman force, numbering twice as big. The Mustafa Köprülü was killed and the Ottoman army scattered.
The Battle of Slankamen was the last battle in the Austro-Ottoman war (1683-1697) that could have turned the war in favour of the Ottomans. Austrian victory was now inevitable. The Ottoman defeat at Slankamen eventually led to the signing of the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699.
An obelisk, 16 meters high, was built in Slankamen to commemorate the Christian victory.