TRENDEFRARAtlas of the Sultans · Wars, battles and treaties
Siege · 1566
To overawe the Habsburgs, Suleiman the Magnificent left Istanbul on his last campaign on 1 May 1566; the targets were the fortresses of Szigetvár and Eger. Defended by Count Miklós Zrínyi, Szigetvár held out through a month-long siege; the old and new parts of the town were taken on 13 and 19 August. On 5 September a bomb placed in a mine was fired and the fortress's powder store exploded; in a last sally Zrínyi was wounded and taken prisoner. The ailing sultan died in his tent in the night of 6–7 September without seeing the fortress fall; his death was kept secret until Selim II reached Belgrade.
| Date | August – September 1566 |
|---|---|
| Location | Szigetvár (south-western Hungary) |
| Result | The fortress was taken; Suleiman died during the siege |
| Belligerents | Habsburg Empire | Ottoman Empire Eastern Hungarian Kingdom |
|---|---|---|
| Commanders | Suleiman I Sokullu Mehmed Pasha | Miklós Zrínyi |
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 5,127,000 km² in 1566; 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, “SİGETVAR” (Turkish); text written for the atlas.
Cite as: Atlas of the Sultans, “Siege of Szigetvár (1566): Date, Commanders and Outcome”, https://padisahlaratlasi.com/en/events/siege-of-szigetvar/ (last updated 12 November 2026). Corrections