Battle of Leobersdorf

The Battle of Leobersdorf was a battle fought near Leobersdorf on September 19, 1532, as part of the Austro-Turkish War (1526–1552).

The battle
After the failed Siege of Vienna in 1529, Suleiman gathered another massive army of 120,000 troops to besiege Vienna a second time in 1532. The small garrison of Koszeg consisting of 700 men led by Croatian Captain Nikola Jurišić blocked the way to Vienna for the main Ottoman army. In the meantime, some 16,000 Akıncı Ottoman-Moldovian light cavalry under Kasim Bey raided Styria and bypassed Wiener Neustadt, and southern parts of Lower Austria. When Kasim Bey was informed of the retreat of the Ottoman main Army, he gathered his raiders in Pottenstein to link up with the main army. Of the three possible valleys he could follow, two were blocked by abatis. An Austrian detachment under Sebastian Schertlin von Burtenbach managed to drive the Turks into the only remaining open valley, where a large army of 20,000 landsknecht, 1,000 heavy cavalry, 1,000 light cavalry from Hungary and artillery led by Frederick II, Elector Palatine, Bálint Török and Johann Katzianer were waiting for them.

The Ottoman army was practically completely destroyed, and Kasim Bey was killed. His richely decorated turban and sword was sent to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor as a trophy.

Kasim Bey