The Battle of Polog was the result of an Albanian incursion into Ottoman territory. Aided by

Alfonso the Magnanimous Alfonso the Magnanimous (139627 June 1458) was King of Aragon and King of Sicily (as Alfonso V) and the ruler of the Crown of Aragon from 1416 and King of Naples (as Alfonso I) from 1442 until his death. He was involved with struggles to the t ...

, the Albanian leader

Skanderbeg , reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468 , predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti , successor = Gjon Kastrioti II , spouse = Donika Arianiti , issue = Gjon Kastrioti II , royal house = Kastrioti , father ...

made plans to recapture Svetigrad, which had been lost in 1448. His strategy involved launching an invasion of Macedonia to devastate the country surrounding Svetigrad and to lure the garrison into a trap. While implementing this, he was stopped in the fields of

Polog Polog ( mk, Полог, Polog; sq, Pollog), also known as the Polog Valley ( mk, links=no, Полошка Котлина, Pološka Kotlina; sq, links=no, Lugina e Pollogut), is located in the north-western part of the Republic of North Macedo ...

near

Tetovo Tetovo ( mk, Тетово, , sq, Tetovë/Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, w ...

by a force which was planning to invade Albania led by his old friend Ibrahim Pasha. The force was quickly destroyed and Skanderbeg's army proceeded its looting before returning to

Debar Debar ( mk, Дебaр ; Albanian: ''Dibër''/''Dibra'' or ''Dibra e Madhe;'' ) is a city in the western part of North Macedonia, near the border with Albania, off the road from Struga to Gostivar. It is the seat of Debar Municipality. Debar has ...

Background

Skanderbeg lost Svetigrad in 1448 after a two-month-long siege. The fortress was vital to his strategic defense of Albania as it guarded one of the main mountain passes into the country from Macedonia. He, therefore, made efforts to regain it with the help of Alfonso V of Aragon; in the Treaty of Gaeta signed in 1451, Skanderbeg became a vassal of Alfonso in return for financial and military aid for his ongoing war with the Turks. In the winter of 1452, Skanderbeg made plans for his offensive and thus received much-needed artillery and arquebuses from Alfonso.Francione p. 107.

Prelude

In the spring of 1453, Skanderbeg moved into Macedonia. During the night, Skanderbeg's army marched through a severe storm, hoping to surprise the Turks. Near Tetovo Skanderbeg's force met an opposing Ottoman force of 14,000 men led by Ibrahim Pasha, one of Skanderbeg's old friends during his service in the Ottoman army. Skanderbeg ordered the march to halt and made plans to retreat into the Mokra valley, hoping to entice his opponent into a trap. But Ibrahim did not follow and instead bivouacked on the field of

. This maneuver blocked further incursions into Macedonia. In the Albanian camp, battleplans were being made while the Turkish camp remained quiet.

Moisi Arianit Golemi Moisi Golemi, also known as Moisi of Dibra ( sq, Moisiu i Dibrës), was an Albanian nobleman and a commander of the League of Lezhë. In 1443–44 he captured all Ottoman holdings in the area of Dibër region. For a brief period in the 1450s h ...

proposed making a night attack but Skanderbeg was reluctant since a powerful storm was sweeping through, making it difficult to launch an attack;

Hamza Kastrioti Hamza Kastrioti ( la, Ameses Castriota) or Bernardo Kastrioti (after his conversion to Christianity), was a 15th-century Albanian nobleman and the nephew of George Kastrioti Skanderbeg. Probably born in Ottoman territory, after the death of his ...

supported Moisiu.Francione p. 108.

Battle

Skanderbeg's doubts soon faded and he made plans for an attack on his enemy's camp. On 22 April, despite the storms, Skanderbeg launched a swift cavalry attack which broke into the enemy camp causing disorder and chaos. Skanderbeg confronted Ibrahim and challenged him to a personal duel. Skanderbeg came out victorious and beheaded his opponent. His head was placed on a pike in a manner similar to

Władysław III of Poland Władysław III (31 October 1424 – 10 November 1444), also known as Ladislaus of Varna, was King of Poland and the Supreme Duke (''Supremus Dux'') of Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1434 as well as King of Hungary and Croatia from 1440 until h ...

's execution and upon being informed, the Turkish troops quickly fled.

Aftermath

According to

Marin Barleti Marin Barleti ( la, Marinus Barletius, it, Marino Barlezio; – ) was a historian and Catholic priest from Shkodër who was a humanist. He is considered the first Albanian historian because of his 1504 eyewitness account of the 1478 siege o ...

, the Ottomans lost 10,000 men, while the Albanians lost 300. According to Francione, the Turks left behind 3,000 dead. Skanderbeg's army continued fighting before returning to

.Franco p. 317. The same year, the Byzantine Empire fell after the fall of Constantinople.

Notes

References

*
Franco, Demetrio
''Comentario de le cose de' Turchi, et del S. Georgio Scanderbeg, principe d' Epyr''. Venice: Altobello Salkato, 1480. {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017

1453 in Europe

Macedonia under the Ottoman Empire

1453 in the Ottoman Empire