Ottomans Crush Serbia at Kosovo: Balkans Fall Open
Ottoman forces under Sultan Murad I defeated a Serbian-led coalition under Prince Lazar Hrebeljanovic at the Battle of Kosovo on June 28, 1389 (June 15 in the Julian calendar). Both leaders were killed: Lazar was captured and beheaded, and Murad was assassinated in his tent by a Serbian knight, Milos Obilic, who pretended to surrender. The battle's military outcome was ambiguous (both armies suffered devastating losses), but its political consequences were clear: Serbia gradually fell under Ottoman control over the next 70 years. The battle became the foundational myth of Serbian national identity, commemorated in epic poetry and folk songs. Vidovdan (St. Vitus' Day, June 28) became Serbia's most sacred national holiday. The date's significance partly explains why Gavrilo Princip chose June 28, 1914, to assassinate Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo.
June 28, 1389
637 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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