Siege of Šabac (1788)

The Siege of Šabac occured when Habsburg forces In 1788 besieged and captured the Ottoman fortress of Šabac along the Sava River as part of the Austro-Turkish War (1788-1791).

Background
On 1 March 1788, Joseph left Vienna for the front. He went through Trieste, Fiume, Croatia, along the edge of Serbia inspecting his troops and arrived in Petrovaradin, in southern Hungary on the 25th. By the beginning of April, he had joined the main camp at Zemun, at the opposite Belgrade, where he oversaw the final preparations for the taking of the Šabac, a small but key fortress situated on the southern bank of the Sava. So long as it remained under Ottoman control, it hampered the transportation of supplies of the river, especially of timber destined for the causeway at Beschania. In addition, its geographical location blocked an Austrian advance to Belgrade, and threatened the rear of the forces which were to cross the river at Zabrez And if the Habsburg forces could use it as a base, they could cut the Ottoman supply line between Bosnia and Belgrade.

Battle
Commanded by General Mittrowsky, eight infantry battalions, a unit of hussars, a heavy cavalry regiment and a detachment of engineers were to take the stronghold. They assembled near Klenack, on the northern side of the Sava and on the 21st, crossed the river a few kilometers downstream from Šabac. For the next three days Austrian guns bombarded the fortress, setting most of its buildings on fire; and, on the 24th, the Turkish garrison capitulated. According to the official count, the Habsburg forces lost only six men and eleven wounded, but took 800 prisoners, seventeen cannons and sixteen standards.