What happened at the Crusade of Varna in 1444?

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Crusades Crusaders departing for the Holy Land, chromolithograph of a 15th-century illuminated manuscript.

The Crusade of Varna in 1444 was a failed military campaign launched by European powers, primarily Hungary, to halt the expansion of the Ottoman Empire into the Balkans. Pope Eugene IV called for the crusade, and forces led by János Hunyadi and King Władysław III marched against the Ottomans, breaching a previously agreed-upon truce.

The campaign relied on a naval blockade to prevent Ottoman reinforcements from Anatolia, but this failed to materialize. On November 10, 1444, the crusader army encountered a numerically superior Ottoman force at Varna. Although the battle initially favored the Christians, King Władysław ignored tactical advice and led a reckless charge against the Ottoman center. He was killed by the Sultan’s elite bodyguard, leading to a total collapse of the crusader forces.

This defeat was a turning point that effectively ended Western efforts to save Constantinople from Ottoman conquest, which occurred in 1453. It marked the final major concerted campaign to drive the Turks from Europe for centuries.1