The Battle of.....(Name Recognition)

I hate to disappoint you but I've never heard of Operation Atilla. (I had no idea when said war of independence was either until I looked it up). I believe you've fallen victim to Small Reference Pools.
 
Until I edit them from my memory, due to a severe lack of interest in modern military history. :p
 
Battle of Manzikert
Battle of Myriokephalon
Battle of Köse Dağ
Conquest of Istanbul
Almost all of Ottoman battles such as;
Battle of Sırp Sındığı, Crusade of Nicopolis, Battle of Mohács, Battle of Preveza, Siege of Vienna etc.
Turkish War of Independence
1974 Cyprus Peace Operation of Turkey aka 'Operation Atilla'

and many many more.

malazgirt: yes
miryakefalon: no
kösedağ: no , unless it's a side note for entire Alevi sufferings ; ı certainly fail remember to mention it anyday
fetih: sure
viyana : yes , others only as quickly forgotten names in history lessons at school
kurtuluş savaşı: yes
cyprus: ı would say Atilla is the 2nd phase in August . The July landings were straight Peace Operation , a military code-name would have "lessened" that angle . Never minding the all knowing Wikipedia on the subject . Considering ı know people who know people who know people who landed and etc etc ...


Also, do you what Grand Vizier Mehmed Sokullu said after Lepanto?

"You come to see how we bear our misfortune. But I would have you know the difference between your loss and ours. In wresting Cyprus from you, we deprived you of an arm; in defeating our fleet, you have only shaved our beard. An arm when cut off cannot grow again; but a shorn beard will grow all the better for the razor."

European crusader just pushed us to build stronger navy

much referenced in bragging and stuff , but fails to reference what the Uluç Ali Paşa said in return ; or at least should have said . With loss of trained personnel and hastily prepared from unseasoned timber , that fleet was quickly out of use , even if Tunus or someting was taken with it . Many foreigners write especially the loss of Archers was a huge blow to Turkish seapower with each one needing years and years of practice ; nothing of the sort in Turkish . Considering it's not a failing of the Old Republic , doubt it will ever be mentioned as well .
 
We talking about people who have interest in history right? Otherwise, all battles would be unknown to someone. So, yes, I believe almost all Turks know or heard those battles.

some of them are not really that influence on people and only some wars they memorized in high school history class and forgot. Such as Battle of Myriokephalon or Battle of Sırp Sındığı. (they have historical significance of course but this thread is about perception of battles rather than historical significance)

Even, people who have no history knowledge, knows Turkish War of Independence and Operation Atilla.

But almost no one knows that it's called Operation Atilla.
 
I think my fellow Yanks have underestimated the general ignorance of your average American.

There are only three battles that I am truly confident enough to say "everybody" knows:
  • Gettysburg
  • Pearl Harbor
  • D-Day

There are a few more that I'm less sure about, but might reach the level of 'general knowledge':
  • Bunker Hill (less important but more famous than Lexington/Concord, Saratoga, or Yorktown - whites of their eyes and all that.)
  • the Alamo (assuming Texian history qualifies.)
  • Custer's Last Stand (not sure if Little Bighorn would register as much.)
  • Midway
  • the Battle of the Bulge (not counting those who assume this refers to obesity.)
  • Iwo Jima
  • Pork Chop Hill (for the catchy name and/or eponymous movie.)
  • Hamburger Hill (for the same reasons.)

In the South, a few major Civil War battles could be added to the list, but elsewhere, I doubt they would register.
 
I consider that the general public in my country has no knowledge of history. I have a little interest, but I am awfull for names, dates and so on, so I consider myself an ignorant, however I have more knowledge than an average person.

So definetively in my Basque history battle list I will include wiothout doubt:
- Battle of Orreaga/Roncesvaux I have always been thought that the Vascones attacked the Franks in that pass in revenge of the destruction of the walls of Pamplona by Charlemagne's troups, however I do know as well that in France based on The Song of Roland it was thaught that they were the moors who attacked the Franks. Some historians consider that it was a mix of both moors and basques as the Banu Qasi were allies of the Kingdom of Pamplona

-Battle of Noain Considered as the begining of the end of the Kingdom of Navarre. Since then all south basque territories has been linked to Castilila/Spain

- It is not a battle, it's a set battles, Spanish Civil war battles in the north. I would include here the Santoña Agreement, but it was not a battle. I consider this agreement as the one of most disgraceful acts of the Basque nationalism during the Spanish Civil war
 
Britain - A Polish squadon had a huge impact on the battle . I wouldn't say the battle was a Polish battle, but since the most important squadron on the allied side was Polish, it warrants an inclusion IMO. It's an important part of Polish military history, at least in terms of a Polish pov.

According to Wikipedia, active Polish pilots only numbered 0.5% of the total Allied strength. It seems that they scored the highest number of kills, certainly, but going from there to claiming it as a 'Polish' battle seems to reek of nationalism.
 
According to Wikipedia, active Polish pilots only numbered 0.5% of the total Allied strength.

I have the following data for active pilots (according to this data, Poles were 6% not 0.5%):

British - 1878
Poles - 141 (6%)
Canadians - 88
Czechoslovakians - 88
New Zealanders - 73
Belgians - 26
Australians - 21
South Africans - 21
Free French - 13
Irish - 8
Americans - 7
South Rhodesians - 2
Palestinians - 2

Total: 2368 (100%)

going from there to claiming it as a 'Polish' battle seems to reek of nationalism.

I wrote that it was a battle in Polish history, not that it was a "Polish" battle.

As far as I know, British people count Waterloo as "British" battle.

This is despite the fact, that there were only 31,000 (26.3%) British soldiers out of 118,000 total force of the Seventh Coalition at Waterloo.

And even those 31,000 "British" soldiers included 6,000 men of the King's German Legion. So actual British soldiers were 25,000 (21.1%).
 
Wikipedia disagrees on the exact number, but Poles were about one-twentieth of the total number, yes. I don't know why I wrote 0.5%, rather than 5%.

Given that this thread is about battles that remain in the public consciousness, I'm not sure the British public would even remember Waterloo. I think they'd be more likely to remember Agincourt.
 
Not sure, I think Waterloo comes up often enough in idiom (and, as I said before, ABBA songs) to keep at least the name alive. It's also a Tube station, and there are quite a lot of Waterloo Roads.

That said, if you asked somebody to put a date on it, or even point at the battlefield on a map, that might be somewhat more difficult.
 
Fair enough. Going by that too, since "the" Duke of Wellington was the commander of over half the forces of the Seventh Coalition at Waterloo, I don't think it would be unfair to say that it was in fact a very important "British" battle, whatever that phrase actually means.
 
I don't know why the Battle of Vienna (...) counts as Polish battle.

Vienna was more a Polish battle than Waterloo was a British battle. Let's compare:

Vienna 1683:

1) Forces under Sobieski's supreme command:

Poland - 37,000 (including 3,700 Zaporozhian Cossacks)
Habsburgs - 18,450 (including 2,800 men in Hieronim Lubomirski's Polish Corps on Austrian payroll)
Bavaria - 10,500
Swabia & Franconia - 9,500
Saxony - 9,000

Total: 84,450

Grand total: 84,450

Waterloo 1815:

1) Forces under Wellington's supreme command:

United Kingdom - 31,000 (including 6,000 men in King's German Legion on British payroll)
Netherlands - 17,000
Hanover - 11,000
Brunswick - 6,000
Nassau - 3,000

Total: 68,000

2) Forces under Bluecher's supreme command:

Prussia - 50,000

Total: 50,000

Grand total: 118,000

Duke of Wellington was the commander of over half the forces of the Seventh Coalition at Waterlo

Yes. But Polish King Jan Sobieski was the commander in chief of all forces of the Anti-Turkish Coalition at Vienna.

Sobieski was also the main author of the battle plan. And he had most experience in fighting against the Turks. Which is why he became the CiC.
 
Battle of Vienna of course was Polish battle. If they didn't help People of Nemçe, Turks would conquer the Vienna.
 
Turks waited long because Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha didn't want to destroy the city to the ground. Even, Turks planned the ceremony when they get the city and they wanted to city remain as beautiful as before conquest. But they didn't consider a Polish help. and they shocked with cavalry charge of Poland.
 
You may note that I said I didn't know why the Battle of Vienna was an important "Polish" battle, not that it wasn't one. If I was going to insult your beloved Poland, I'd be much more obvious than that.
 
Turks waited long because Merzifonlu Kara Mustafa Pasha didn't want to destroy the city to the ground. Turks was already planned the ceremony when they get the city and they wanted to city remain as beautiful as before conquest. But they didn't consider a Polish help. and they shocked with cavalry charge of Poland.
According to Ottoman Tradition if a city surrendered it could not be looted, but if it was taken by force Soldiers would loot the city for 3 days. Vienna was an important cultural centre and Kara Mustafa Pasha didn't want this to happen.
 
I said I didn't know why the Battle of Vienna was an important "Polish" battle, not that it wasn't one.

Yes I know, I know. I wasn't "accusing" you of anything. I compared these battles "just so" (not as a direct response to your post).

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and they shocked with cavalry charge of Poland.

It was probably one of the largest cavalry charges in history - 20,000 horsemen rode down the hill - front of that charging cavalry formation was about 4 km wide. 20,000 Polish and German cavalry (spearheaded in first row by around 3,000 Winged Hussars deployed in a single line) charged downhill:

Obóz turecki - Turkish camp
Wiedeń - the city of Vienna (defended by garrison under Starhemberg)
Tatarzy - Tatars

charge.png


In the center of Turkish lines - near Ottakring - Janissaries were deployed.

According to Turkish accounts - Janissaries were holding bravely against that charge for some time, before finally perishing.

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BTW:

Ground for that massive cavalry charge had been carefully prepared in advance (it took several hours). And before the main charge also some reconnaissance charges (reconnaissance in force) by small units were carried out, to check where the ground was most favourable for a decisive charge.

You can't just send cavalry to charge randomly and blindly, without previously examining the terrain, like Ney did at Waterloo.
 
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