September 11, 1683, the Start of a 331-Year Muslim Holy War

After decades of smaller wars, seiges and aggressions, the imperial city of Vienna, Austria was besieged by the armies of the Ottoman Empire for two months. The Battle of Vienna then commenced on September 11th. It was a battle of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in league with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Holy League), versus the Muslim Ottoman Empire and chiefdoms of the Ottoman Empire.

The battle took place at Kahlenberg Mountain near Vienna, and marked the beginning of the political hegemony of the Habsburg dynasty in the Holy Roman Empire and Central Europe.

The siege itself began on July 14, 1683, by the Ottoman army of approximately 300,000 men, and the battle was won by the combined forces of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. The alliance fought the army of the Ottoman Empire and those of Ottoman fiefdoms commanded by Grand Vizier Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha.

It has been suggested by many historians that this battle marked the turning-point in the Ottoman–Habsburg wars, the over 300-year struggle between the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire.