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Bayezid I's Balkan Expansion
During Bayezid I's reign (1389–1402), the Ottomans systematically advanced conquest and integration in the Balkans in the 1390s, laying the foundatio…
Timeline
- 1390–1391Central Anatolia · AnatoliaAfter acceding, Bayezid first subdued Anatolian splinter powers such as the Karaman beylik, defeating Ibrahim at the Battle of Körcüşme and securing his rear for the eastern Balkan campaigns.
- 1393–1395Tarnovo · BulgariaOttoman forces captured the Bulgarian capital Tarnovo; Tsar Ivan Shishman was taken prisoner and the Second Bulgarian Empire effectively ceased to exist. Ottoman power then extended to the lower Danube and the Black Sea coast.
- 1395–1396Nicopolis · BulgariaBayezid compelled Serbia, Wallachia, and other vassals to supply troops, and routed the Western European crusader coalition at Nicopolis, militarily confirming Balkan hegemony for this stage.
Sources
- The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650: The Structure of Power — Colin Imber (2002)
- A History of the Ottoman Empire — Douglas A. Howard (2017)