TRENDEFRARAtlas of the Sultans · Wars, battles and treaties
Battle · 1526
The defeat and capture of King Francis I of France by Charles V in 1525 created a favourable moment for a campaign against Hungary. Suleiman left Istanbul on 23 April 1526; the fortresses of Petrovaradin and Ilok were taken, and he ordered that the villages, now regarded as Ottoman land, should not be burned. According to the TDV article on Suleiman I, the battle fought with the Hungarians on the plain of Mohács on 29 August was short; this pitched battle, in which the Hungarian king lost his life, in a sense brought the Kingdom of Hungary to an end. The sultan entered Buda on 11 September without meeting any resistance.
| Date | 29 August 1526 |
|---|---|
| Location | Plain of Mohács |
| Result | Decisive Ottoman victory; King Louis II killed, Buda taken without resistance |
| Belligerents | Ottoman Empire | Kingdom of Hungary |
|---|---|---|
| Commanders | Suleiman I İbrahim Pasha | Louis II |
Took place during the reign of Suleiman I (1520–1566). Suleiman I
The atlas records this territorial change for the year:
By the atlas's calculation the Ottoman lands covered about 3,053,000 km² in 1526; at the start of Suleiman I's reign they measured 3,034,000 km², at its end 5,127,000 km².
During Suleiman I (1520–1566) the atlas records 20 regions gained and 1 region lost.
Regions gained: Belgrade–Šabac (1521), Rhodes and the Dodecanese (1522), Eastern Slavonia and Syrmia (Osijek–Vukovar) (1526), Lika–Krbava (1527), Baghdad–Basra (1534), Požega (central Slavonia) (1537), Kars–Ardahan–Artvin (1537), Yemen–Asir (1538), and 12 more.
Regions lost: Kars–Ardahan–Artvin (1565).
With a reign of forty-six years he ruled longer than any other sultan. He brought the state to its military, legal and cultural peak; yet the executions of his sons Mustafa and Bayezid are the gravest instances of violence within the dynasty.
Areas are land area computed from the atlas's region data; see Method and sources.
Source: TDV Encyclopedia of Islam, “SÜLEYMAN I” (Turkish); text written for the atlas.
Cite as: Atlas of the Sultans, “Battle of Mohács (1526): Date, Commanders and Outcome”, https://padisahlaratlasi.com/en/events/battle-of-mohacs/ (last updated 12 November 2026). Corrections