The Battle of Pollog was the result of an Albanian

Albanians

Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...

 incursion into Ottoman

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 territory. Aided by Alfonso the Magnanimous, the Albanian leader Skanderbeg

Skanderbeg

George Kastrioti Skanderbeg or Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu , widely known as Skanderbeg , was a 15th-century Albanian lord. He was appointed as the governor of the Sanjak of Dibra by the Ottomans in 1440...

 made plans to recapture Sfetigrad, which had been lost in 1448. His strategy involved launching an invasion of Macedonia

Macedonia (region)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...

 to devastate the country surrounding Sfetigrad and to lure the garrison into a trap. While implementing this, he was stopped in the fields of Pollog near Tetovo

Tetovo

Tetovo is a city in the northwestern part of Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River.The city covers an area of at above sea level, with a population of 86,580 citizens in the municipality. Tetovo is home to the State University of Tetovo and South East...

 by a force which was planning to invade Albania led by his old friend Ibrahim Pasha. The force was quickly destroyed and Skanderbeg's army proceeded its looting before returning to Dibra.

Background

Skanderbeg lost Sfetigrad in 1448 after a two-month-long siege. The fortress was vital to his strategic defense of Albania as it guarded one of the main mountain passes into the country from Macedonia. He, therefore, made efforts to regain it with the help of Alfonso V of Aragon

Alfonso V of Aragon

Alfonso the Magnanimous KG was the King of Aragon , Valencia , Majorca, Sardinia and Corsica , and Sicily and Count of Barcelona from 1416 and King of Naples from 1442 until his death...

; in the Treaty of Gaeta signed in 1451, Skanderbeg became a vassal of Alfonso in return for financial and military aid for his ongoing war with the Turks. In the winter of 1452, Skanderbeg made plans for his offensive and thus received much-needed artillery and arquebuses from Alfonso.

Prelude

In the spring of 1453, Skanderbeg moved into Macedonia. During the night, Skanderbeg's army marched through a severe storm, hoping to surprise the Turks. Near Tetova Skanderbeg's force met an opposing Ottoman force of 14,000 men led by Ibrahim Pasha, one of Skanderbeg's old friends during his service in the Ottoman army. Skanderbeg ordered the march to halt and made plans to retreat into the Mokra valley, hoping to entice his opponent into a trap. But Ibrahim did not follow and instead bivouacked on the field of Pollog. This maneuver blocked further incursions into Macedonia.

In the Albanian camp, battleplans were being made while the Turkish camp remained quiet. Moisi Arianit Golemi

Moisi Arianit Golemi

Moisi Arianit Golemi, , the Albanian feudal lord of Dibra, and grandnephew of Gjergj Arianit Komneni....

 proposed making a night attack but Skanderbeg was reluctant since a powerful storm was sweeping through, making it difficult to launch an attack; Hamza Kastrioti

Hamza Kastrioti

Hamza Kastrioti was the nephew of George Kastrioti Skanderbeg. Probably born in Ottoman territory, after the death of his father he was raised by Skanderbeg, who took him in his military expeditions. He supported Skanderbeg's uprising and was the vice captain of Skanderbeg's troops when they...

 supported Moisiu.

Battle

Skanderbeg's doubts soon faded and he made plans for an attack on his enemy's camp. On 22 April, despite the storms, Skanderbeg launched a swift cavalry attack which broke into the enemy camp causing disorder and chaos. Skanderbeg confronted Ibrahim and challenged him to a personal duel. Skanderbeg came out victorious and beheaded his opponent. His head was placed on a pike in a manner similar to Władysław III of Poland's execution and upon being informed, the Turkish troops quickly fled.

Aftermath

The Turks left behind 3,000 dead. Skanderbeg's army continued looting before returning to Dibra. He returned triumphantly with his army with whom he had split his booty. The same year, the Byzantine Empire fell after the fall of Constantinople

Fall of Constantinople

The Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire, which occurred after a siege by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, against the defending army commanded by Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI...

. This was a blow to Skanderbeg and the entire Christian world who now feared Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

would suffer a similar fate.