The Battle of Çamurlu was fought on July 5, 1413, between
Musa Çelebi and
Mehmed Çelebi
Mehmed I ( 1386 – 26 May 1421), also known as Mehmed Çelebi ( ota, چلبی محمد, "the noble-born") or Kirişçi ( el, Κυριτζής, Kyritzis, "lord's son"), was the Ottoman dynasty, Ottoman List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire, sul ...
, both sons of
Bayezid I, as the last conflict of the Ottoman civil war known as the
Ottoman Interregnum. The battle decided which son of Bayezid I would finally reunite the
Ottoman Empire, with Mehmed Çelebi becoming
Mehmed I of the Ottoman Empire.
Mehmed's invasion and final battle
After suppressing
Cüneyt Bey's revolt, Mehmed Çelebi gathered his troops at Ankara. With his
Dulkadirid
The Anatolian beylik of Dulkadir (Modern Turkish: ''Dulkadiroğulları Beyliği''), was one of the frontier principalities established by the Turkoman clans Bayat, Afshar and Begdili after the decline of Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm.
Capitals
...
father-in-law, he began planning an invasion of
Rumelia
Rumelia ( ota, روم ايلى, Rum İli; tr, Rumeli; el, Ρωμυλία), etymologically "Land of the Names of the Greeks#Romans (Ῥωμαῖοι), Romans", at the time meaning Eastern Orthodox Christians and more specifically Christians f ...
(the European part of the empire and Musa's stronghold) to defeat his brother, Musa. On his march to
Bursa
( grc-gre, Προῦσα, Proûsa, Latin: Prusa, ota, بورسه, Arabic:بورصة) is a city in northwestern Turkey and the administrative center of Bursa Province. The fourth-most populous city in Turkey and second-most populous in the ...
, Mehmed gained contingents of troops from western Anatolia. Upon reaching the straits, Mehmed's army was given passage by ships loaned from
Manuel II Palaiologos, who also supplied Mehmed with some troops.
Mehmed marched his army from Constantinople to
Edirne. He then marched onto Kosovo to join forces with his ally (and also half-uncle) Serbian ruler
Stefan Lazarević
Stefan Lazarević ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Лазаревић, 1377 – 19 July 1427), also known as Stefan the Tall ( sr, Стефан Високи / ''Stefan Visoki''), was the ruler of Serbia as prince (1389–1402) and despot (1402–1427), ...
, along with receiving information from Ewrenos concerning possible defections during the battle.
['' Encyclopedia of Islam'', Vol. 7, Ed. ]C. E. Bosworth
Clifford Edmund Bosworth FBA (29 December 1928 – 28 February 2015) was an English historian and Orientalist, specialising in Arabic and Iranian studies.
Life
Bosworth was born on 29 December 1928 in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire (now ...
, E. Van Donzel, W. P. Heinrichs
Wolfhart P. Heinrichs (3 October 1941 – 23 January 2014) was a German-born scholar of Arabic. He was James Richard Jewett Professor of Arabic at Harvard University, and a co-editor of the second edition of the ''Encyclopaedia of Islam''. He taugh ...
and Ch. Pellat, (E.J.Brill, 1993), 699.
Both armies met at Çamurlu, near modern-day
Samokov, south east of Sofia, Bulgaria. Initially, Musa appeared to be winning the battle despite the defection of Pasha Yigit and Sinan Bey of Trikkala.
[ However, the tide of the battle turned in favor of Mehmed, with the help of Serb and Byzantine troops, and Musa Çelebi fled.
]
Afterwards
Following the battle, Musa Çelebi was captured and strangled. This battle re-established the unity of the Ottoman state, under the control of Mehmed I.[''First Encyclopaedia of Islam 1913–1936'', Ed. M. Th Houtsma, (BRILL, 1993), 658.]
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Camurlu
1413 in Europe
1413 in the Ottoman Empire
Çamurlu
Conflicts in 1413
Çamurlu