Which European city did the Ottoman Empire besiege in 1529? The answer is Vienna.
Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent led the Ottoman siege of Vienna from 27 September to 15 October 1529. It was the Ottoman Empire’s first attempt to capture the city, which stood in the Habsburg lands of the Holy Roman Empire.
The campaign grew out of the struggle for the Hungarian throne after King Louis II died at the Battle of Mohács in 1526. Suleiman supported John Zápolya, while Archduke Ferdinand of Austria claimed the crown. After Ferdinand captured Buda, Suleiman’s army retook it and advanced toward Vienna.
Vienna’s defenders, led by Niklas Graf Salm and supported by German and Spanish troops, held the walls despite the much larger Ottoman army. Rain, disease, supply problems, damaged artillery, and the approach of winter weakened the attackers, who withdrew. The failed siege began a long period of Habsburg–Ottoman rivalry; the empire made another famous attempt against Vienna in 1683.