Battle of Vaslui

The Battle of Vaslui was fought by Stephen III of Moldavia on January 10, 1475, against Ottoman Beylerbeyi of Rumelia, Hadım Suleiman Pasha.

Battle of Vaslui was also referred to as the Battle of Podul Înalt or the Battle of Racova. In this battle, Stephen of Moldavia faced the biggest Ottoman army ever assembled during the Battle of Vaslui where the Ottomans outnumbered the Moldovans 3 to 1 and were better equipped.

Battle of Vaslui

Hadim Suleyman Pasha led an army of about 120,000 men to restore Ottoman authority in the region. Gathering 40,000 men and supported by Hungarians and Poles, Stephen met the enemy at Podul Înalt, near the town of Vaslui.

The Moldavian success in this battle and the Turks were forced to withdraw. Stephen was named the ‘athlete of Christ’ by Pope Sixtus IV for his resistance to Ottoman expansion, but he received little help from other European rulers.

He withstood a further Turkish invasion in 1884, but at the cost of the parts of Chilia and Cetatea Alba, and finally agreed to pay tribute to the Turks as the price of Moldavian independence.
Battle of Vaslui