When East Met West

[Victrix]

In A.D. 1242 the Mongols failed to capture King Bela IV of Hungary who fled Westwards into Croatia (in dual monarchy with Hungary in those days) and then the coast of Dalmatia. This meant crossing the Dinaric Alps which provides little in terms of secure pastures for horses. The Mongols suffered losses attacking unsuccessfully the fortress of Klis high up on a mountain top. This territory must have been awful for their traditional ways of waging war. They then moved on to attack again unsuccessfully the island of Trogir (today a lovely tourist destination) where King Bela promptly boarded a ship in the Adriatic and observed events from a safe distance. Then came the news that the Great Khan Ögedei had died and the priorities changed. If the Mongols hadn’t wasted their time chasing the evasive King Bela, more of Europe might have been destroyed?