Program Information

One of the most powerful symbols enflaming the Balkan crisis of the 1990s and engulfing the former Yugoslavia is the ancient Battle of Kosovo.

A Moment in Time is a brief, exciting and compelling journey into the past. Created to excite and enlighten the public about the past, its relevance to the present and its impact on the future, A Moment In Time is a captivating historical narrative that is currently broadcast worldwide.

Transcript

Lead: One of the most powerful symbols enflaming the Balkan crisis of the 1990s and engulfing the former Yugoslavia is the ancient Battle of Kosovo.

Intro: A Moment In Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: After achieving a foothold on the European mainland in 1354, the Ottoman Turks attempted to absorb the peoples of the Balkan Peninsula. Serbs, Bulgarians, Bosnians, and Albanians vigorously resisted the Turkish advance. As long as they suppressed tribal rivalries the natives could hold the Turks at bay as they did at the Battle of Plocnik in 1387. The Bulgarians went over to the Ottomans after Plocnik and the Turks under Sultan Murad I took advantage of this division to return to the offensive, concentrating their forces this time against Serbia. In 1396 Murad moved into Serbia where, on St. Vitus' Day, June 28th, he confronted a combined army of Serbs, Albanians and Hungarians at Kosovo.

At first it appeared as though the Serbs would prevail. During the night prior to the battle, a Serbian noble, Milosh Obilic, made his way into the Turkish camp, masquerading as a deserter. He forced his way into the sultan's tent and stabbed the ruler with a poisoned dagger. The confusion that followed was calmed by Murad's son Bayazid and the Turks were prepared to fight the next day. They surrounded the Serbian Army commanded by their leader Prince Lazar, and crushed it utterly.

From then on the Ottoman Empire was nearly everywhere victorious. By 1460, Serbia had been absorbed. Bosnia and Herzegovina were conquered by the 1480s and in 1529 the Empire was at the gates of Vienna. Ironically, the defeat at Kosovo remains a deeply embedded emotional symbol of Serbian greatness and sacrifice. Next time: Balkan Independence.

The producer of A Moment In Time is Steve Clark. At the University of Richmond, this is Dan Roberts.

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