Battle of Żurawno took place between 25 September and 14 October 1676, during the war Polish-Ottoman War (1672–1676). The battle ended in negotiations for peace; the

treaty of Żurawno The Treaty of Żurawno (; ; ) was signed on 17 October 1676 in the town of Żurawno (or ''İzvança'', as it was called during the Ottoman occupation of Podolia), in the aftermath of the Battle of Żurawno. The treaty, signed by the Polish–Lit ...

was signed in its aftermath.

Battle

In late August 1676, a large Ottoman-Tatar army of some 50,000 entered the southern Polish province of Pokucie. The invaders were faced by

Jan III Sobieski John III Sobieski ( (); (); () 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696. Born into Polish nobility, Sobieski was educated at the Jagiellonian University and toured Eur ...

, who had 20,000 soldiers. On 24 September 1676, Polish mounted units clashed with Tatars near Wojnilow and Dolha, and withdrew to the fortified camp in Zurawno. The Polish camp was protected from two sides by the

Dniestr The Dniester ( ) is a transboundary river in Eastern Europe. It runs first through Ukraine and then through Moldova (from which it more or less separates the breakaway territory of Transnistria), finally discharging into the Black Sea on Ukr ...

river, while in its front was the Krechowka river. Tatar forces under

Selim I Giray Selim I Giray Crimean Tatar, Ottoman Turkish and was four times Khan of the Crimean Khanate in the period from 1671 to 1704. During this time Crimean khans were regularly appointed and replaced by the Ottomans. The main events of the period we ...

concentrated around it by 26 September, while Ottoman units under Ibrahim Shishman arrived there on 28–29 September. The Ottoman forces were hoping that King Sobieski would lead his troops out of the camp, to fight a battle in the open field, but the

Poles Pole or poles may refer to: People *Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland * Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name * Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist ...

decided to stay in Zurawno. As a result, a prolonged siege began, initiated by a barrage of the Ottoman artillery, which continued until 5 October 1676. Since Polish losses were high, Sobieski ordered to abandon the first line of defence, along the old

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a Fortification, fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on Earthworks (engineering), earthworks, although some are constructed of ston ...

, and occupy the new line, closer to the center of the camp. The siege of Zurawno continued until 14 October. Ottoman losses were high, and the Poles continued to fight. Although the Poles were running out of food and ammunition, heavy rains put the Ottoman camp at risk of being flooded and the siege that much more difficult. The Ottoman commander Ibrahim Şeytan (''Abraham the Devil'') decided to initiate negotiations.

Aftermath

On 14 October a truce was signed, and three days later the

Treaty of Zurawno A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention ...

was signed, ending the second phase of the Polish–Ottoman War (1672–76). Some sources call this a stalemate, while others call it a victory for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth or Ottoman Empire. In 1876, on the 200th anniversary of the battle, the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

population of

Zurawno Zhuravno (; ; , ) is a rural settlement in Stryi Raion, Lviv Oblast of western Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Zhuravne settlement hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Population: , 2,968 (2025 estimate). History The town was first m ...

founded a commemorative monument to celebrate the halt of the Ottoman advance into Eastern Europe.

References

Sources

* * Conflicts in 1676 Żurawno 1676 Żurawno 1676 1676 in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1676 in the Ottoman Empire

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