The Battle of Guruslău or Battle of Goroszló () was fought on 3 August 1601, between the troops of the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

led by

Giorgio Basta Giorgio Basta, Count of Huszt, Gjergj Basta or Gheorghe Basta (1550 – 1607) was an Kingdom of Naples, Italian general, diplomat, and writer of Arbëreshë people, Arbëreshë Albanian origin, employed by the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II to com ...

, the

Cossacks The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic languages, East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borde ...

and

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

led by

Michael the Brave Michael the Brave ( or ; 1558 – 9 August 1601), born as Mihai Pătrașcu, was the Prince of Wallachia (as Michael II, 1593–1601), Prince of Moldavia (1600) and ''de facto'' ruler of Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711), Transylvani ...

on one side, and the

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

n troops led by

Sigismund Báthory Sigismund Báthory (; 1573 – 27 March 1613) was Prince of Transylvania several times between 1586 and 1602, and Duchy of Racibórz, Duke of Racibórz and Duchy of Opole, Opole in Silesia in 1598. His father, Christopher Báthory, ruled Transy ...

on the other side. It was part of a series of military encounters between the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

and opposing European states during 1591–1606 (see also The Long War).

Background

Michael asked for assistance from

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Rudolf II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–1608). He was a member of the H ...

during a visit in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

between 23 February and 5 March 1601. The visit was granted when the emperor heard that General

had lost control of

to the Transylvanian Hungarian nobility led by

, who accepted Ottoman protection. Meanwhile,

n forces loyal to Michael and led by his son, Nicolae Pătrașcu, drove out

Simion Movilă Simion Movilă (after 1559 14 September 1607), a boyar of the Movilești family, was twice Prince of Wallachia (November 1600 – June 1601; October 1601 – July 1602) and Prince of Moldavia from July 1606 until his death. Family He was the gra ...

from

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

and prepared to re-enter Transylvania.

Battle

The battle was carried out by two armies, those of

(Wallachians and Cossacks) together with

, on one side and those of

on the other side. The battle happened between 9 am and 7 pm on 3 August 1601. The Battle of Guruslău took place in the plain of the river Guruslău, a small right tributary of the

Zalău Zalău (, unofficial and former official name: (; or , , ) is the seat of Sălaj County, Romania. In 2021, its estimated population was 52,359. History Ancient times Zalău is situated in the area inhabited by "Free Dacians", away from the h ...

Legacy

monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

was built to commemorate the victory of Michael the Brave.Guruslau, Monument Mihai Viteazul
/ref>

Gallery

File: Guraslau-1601.jpg, File: Guraslau1601.jpg,

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

and Basta defeating the Hungarian nobility of Transylvania Image:Hans von Aachen - Allegory of the Turkish war- Battle of Kronstadt (Braşov).jpg,

Battle of Braşov A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

(1603): Different flags captured by Giorgio Basta

External links

The representation of Guruslau battle: 3 August 1601

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goroszlo 1601 1601 in Europe Battles involving Austria Battles involving Wallachia Battles involving the Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711) Military history of Romania Conflicts in 1601 Battles of the Middle Ages Battles of the Long Turkish War History of Sălaj County