Vasilief, A History of the Byzantine Empire

The fall of Byzantium

The policies of Byzantium in the fourteenth century

Page 4

These conquests brought Murad face to face with Serbia and Bulgaria, which had already lost their former strength due to their internal troubles. Murad marched upon Serbia. The Serbian prince Lazar set out to meet him. In the summer of 1389 the decisive battle took place in the central part of Serbia on the field of Kossovo. At the outset the victory seemed to be on the side of the Serbs. The story goes that a noble Serb, Milosh (Milos) Obilic or Kobilic, contrived to force a passage into the Turkish camp, presented himself as a deserter to the Turks, and entering Murad's tent killed him with a stab from a poisoned dagger. The confusion among the Turks was rapidly quelled by Bayazid, the son of the slain Murad. He surrounded the Serbian army and inflicted a crushing defeat upon it. Lazar was taken prisoner and slain. The year of the battle of Kossovo may be considered the year of the fall of Serbia. The miserable remnants of the Serbian Empire which continued to exist for seventy years more, do not deserve the name of a state. In 1389 Serbia became subject to Turkey. Four years later, in 1393 (i.e., after the death of John V), the capital of Bulgaria, Trnovo, was also captured by the Turks, and a short time later the whole territory of Bulgaria came under the power of the Turkish Empire.

The old and ill John V had to suffer a new humiliation which accelerated his death. To protect the capital against danger from the Turks John set about restoring the city walls and erecting fortifications. On learning of this the sultan commanded him to destroy what had been built and, in case of refusal, threatened to blind the Emperor's son and heir, Manuel, who was at that time at Bayazid's court. John was compelled to yield, and fulfill the sultan's demand. Constantinople entered upon the most critical epoch of its existence.

Previous / First / Next Page of this section

A History of the Byzantine Empire - Table of Contents

Next Chapter : Manuel II (1391-1425) and the Turks

Previous Chapter : John V, John VI Cantacuzene and the apogee of Serbian power

Constantinople

 

Reference address : https://ellopos.net/elpenor/vasilief/policies-byzantium-fourteenth-century.asp?pg=4