Battle of Ankara (1402)

Timeline

1. 1402Ankara · AnatoliaBecause Bayezid harbored rivals such as Kara Yusuf, Timur invaded Asia Minor in May 1402; after taking fortresses such as Kemah and Sivas, he reached Ankara, using siege and maneuver to lure the Ottoman main force from its mountain positions onto the plain.
2. 1402Çubuk Plain · AnatoliaTimur cut off the waters of the Çubuk stream and used war elephants, flanking cavalry, and mounted archers to wear down the Ottoman army. Serbian auxiliaries charged repeatedly but could not reverse the tide; Anatolian beys and Tatar cavalry defected, the Ottoman main force routed, and Bayezid broke out with a remnant only to be surrounded and captured.
3. 1402–1413Asia Minor · AnatoliaOttoman expansion in Anatolia was checked, and Bayezid's sons' struggle for the throne sparked civil war. Byzantium and others recovered some lost ground, while Timur briefly controlled western Asia Minor until Mehmed I reunified the realm around 1413.