Why Did Yıldırım Beyazıt Lose the Battle of Ankara?

The Battle of Ankara is one of the most important battles in Ottoman history. It was a battle that put the Ottoman state on the verge of collapse. The Battle of Ankara took place between the Ottoman Empire and the Timurid Empire. There are 3 major threats from the East to the Ottomans in history. These are the Timurid Empire, the Safavid Empire, and the Aq Qoyunlu. The Timurid Empire is a Turkic state founded in Central Asia in 1370. The state's founder, Emir Timur, was a prominent figure in the old Chagatai Khanate. He seized power as the Chagatai Khanate weakened and established his own empire in these lands. After founding the state, Emir Timur began to expand his territories. Timur, who gained power in Central Asia and India, began to advance westward. After conquering Iraq and Syria through Iran, Emir Timur finally reached Anatolia. The Timurid threat at that time instilled fear in everyone. For this reason, the Turkish beyliks in Anatolia, whose lands had been conquered by the Ottomans, submitted to Timur. After Timur arrived in Anatolia, his enemies Kara Yusuf and Ahmet Celayir took refuge with the Ottoman Sultan Yıldırım Beyazıt. Upon learning that his enemies had taken refuge with the Ottomans, Timur demanded that these two individuals be handed over to him. However, Yıldırım, unwilling to hand over those to whom he had promised aid, refused Timur's demand. When the Anatolian beys who had sought Timur's help also incited Timur against the Ottomans, a war began between the two states in 1402.

Why Was the Battle of Ankara Lost?

The first reason for the Ottoman loss in the Battle of Ankara was that the Ottomans were a state, while Timur was an empire at that time. Before the Battle of Ankara began, the Ottoman army moved towards Timur, but Timur deceived the Ottomans and reached the Ankara position. Consequently, the returning army faced Timur in a fatigued state. Before the Ottoman army reached the area, Emir Timur poisoned the wells in the region. Because of this, the Ottoman soldiers were left without water. However, when the army arrived, Timur's soldiers had not yet formed their battle lines. This was a huge problem for Timur. But Yıldırım Beyazıt gave Timur the time needed to organize his soldiers and wanted it to be a fair fight. The Ottoman army consisted of approximately 70,000 men. The army of the Timurid state was around 140,000. Additionally, Timur's army included elephants brought from India. The use of these elephants in battle and their superiority over horses posed a great danger to the Ottomans. The main reason for the loss of the battle was Yıldırım Beyazıt's betrayal. During the battle, some of the soldiers in Yıldırım's army decided to switch to Timur's side. Furthermore, the princes, realizing that the battle would be lost, abandoned the battlefield one by one. The Serbs, who were allies of the Ottomans in the war, also retreated after a while. This led to the loss of the battle and the capture of the Sultan by Timur.