The Battle of Vienna -Heroica
Today Alison Morton returns to my Triclinium blog. It’s always a pleasure to hear from her. Alison writes award-winning thrillers featuring tough but compassionate heroines. Her twelve-book Roma Nova series is set in an imaginary European country where a remnant of the Roman Empire has survived into the 21st century and is ruled by women who face conspiracy, revolution and heartache but use a sharp line in dialogue.
She blends her fascination for Ancient Rome with six years’ military service and a life of reading crime, historical and thriller fiction. On the way, she collected a BA in modern languages and an MA in history.
Alison lives in Poitou in France, the home of Mélisende, the heroine of her three contemporary thrillers, Double Identity, Double Pursuit and Double Stakes.
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You can connect with Alison via Connect with Alison on her World of Thrillers site, Facebook author page, Blog, Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, Threads, BlueSky and X
Heroica - three new stories from Roma Nova
Recently, Alison released Heroica, which features three women of the Mitela family, descendants of the founders of Roma Nova, bound by blood and courage. One of the stories features Honoria Mitela who leads her troops into the Battle of Vienna in 1683. I was fascinated to learn more about this pocket of history so I asked Alison to write a post by way of background.
You can buy Heroica on Amazon or through various retail sites.
With her trademark skill at combining thrills with history, Morton features three Roma Novan women who display courage and honour. Through the short stories of these protagonists, the reader is taken from a potential insurrection in 2020 to the defence of Vienna in 1683 and then to Italy during the Risorgimento in 1849. The interconnected thread leads to high stakes when a family secret is revealed which imperils the entire Mitela dynasty’s reputation and future. I always enjoy Morton’s mixed of alternate and ‘real’ history. Her characters are complex and her narratives compelling. Highly recommended.
And now let’s hear from Alison about the importance to both European and Ottoman history of the Battle of Vienna.
Why write a Roma Novan into the 1683 Battle of Vienna?
Change fascinates writers – we see the drama of the development, events and clash of the new with the old. I’m sure this is why the Battle of Hastings in 1066, its background, events and aftermath has given rise to numerous historical fiction stories about the period.
My alternative history series is based on religious change in the late 4th century Roman Empire. Enforced Christianisation by Emperor Theodosius in the 390s AD led to four hundred Roman exiles who remained true to the old gods to establish a new settlement north of the Italian peninsula that survived into the 21st century as Roma Nova. The temptation to write a story featuring one of my imaginary Roma Nova characters – Honoria Mitela, a descendant of the founders – around one of the critical events in history which could have changed the whole of Europe was too much to ignore.
Why the 17th century?
The late 17th century in Europe saw the dawn of the Age of Enlightenment characterised by an emphasis on reason, empirical evidence and the scientific method. Its thinkers are promoting ideals of individual liberty, religious tolerance, progress and natural rights along with constitutional government, the separation of church and state and the application of rational principles to social and political reform.
An exciting time, but one of transition from the struggles of the Late Medieval period and through to the Early Modern one. And it was by no means an easy transition.
Earlier in the century, the Thirty Years War (1618-48), fought by Protestants vs. Catholics, had devastated many parts of Europe. The wars ended in 1648 with the Peace of Westphalia, but left behind much bitterness. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from the effects of battle, famine, or disease; parts of Germany reported population declines of over fifty percent. Thus, a generation and half was lost and societies and economies significantly weakened. However, the treaties reconfirmed German liberties, established the notion of nation states and ended Habsburg attempts to convert the Holy Roman Empire into a centralised state similar to Spain.
Thirty-five years later, Europe faced an external threat that concentrated rulers’ minds enough to put inter-nation squabbles behind them. They needed to work together in a common force against a powerful enemy – the Ottomans.
Vienna – The bastion defending Europe
After the city had been besieged by Ottoman Empire forces for two months, the Battle of Vienna to relieve the siege took place on 12 September 1683 near the Kahlenberg Heights above the city. Count Starhemberg, an Austrian subject of Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, had successfully held the city since July against the Ottoman forces, but things were now at breaking point.
Armies of the Holy Roman Empire, led by the Habsburg monarchy and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, both under the command of the ebullient Polish King John III Sobieski, fought against the Ottomans and their vassal and tributary states. Sobieski was one of the most able, confident and successful military commanders of his age, frequently fighting Tatar, Cossack and Ottoman forces as well as navigating the complex shark pool of internal Polish politics. Of course, I had to include such a colourful and visual historical character in Honoria’s Battle!
He led the combined relief forces which soundly defeated the army of the Ottoman Empire and its vassal states commanded by Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha. The battle is famous for the largest known cavalry charge in history led by the Polish elite heavy cavalry known as the ‘winged hussars’ and in which Honoria Mitela and her troops participated.
Some historians consider the battle marked a turning point in the 300-year struggle between the Christian Holy Roman Empire and the Muslim Ottoman Empire. It was the final conflict in a hundred and fifty years of bitter military tension following the failed siege of Vienna by the Ottomans in 1529.
After the battle in 1683, the Ottomans would gain no further ground in Europe and never again challenge Vienna. The following years up to 1699 saw the Holy Roman Empire consolidate territorial gains and liberate most of Ottoman Hungary. By the turn of the century, the defeated Ottoman Empire had lost substantial territories not only in Hungary and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, but in significant parts of the western Balkans. It would never regain them.
Even the strongest state is vulnerable to its past
2020, Roma Nova. Carina Mitela investigates a potential rebellion but discovers the long-buried secret that ignited the attempted uprising links directly to her own powerful family.
1683, Vienna. As Europe struggles against the Ottoman onslaught, Honoria Mitela leads her troops into the desperate battle to save besieged Vienna. The fate of Europe – and of Roma Nova itself – hangs in the balance.
1849, Central Italy. Statia Mitela’s impulsive act saves one life but jeopardises Roma Nova’s very existence and threatens her descendants with public disgrace, financial ruin and permanent exile.
Three stories of the women of the Mitela family, descendants of the founders of Roma Nova, bound by blood and courage.
You can buy Heroica on Amazon or other retailers. If you are interested, you can read another Roma Nova foundation story here with Alison’ post about Julia Prima.
10 Responses
Thank you so much for hosting HEROICA± The Battle of Vienna is one of those things that’s often overlooked but was very important in European history, or at least seen as such. And I couldn’t resist having a Roma Novan heroine present and making a difference.
Thanks for taking the time to write the post. I enjoyed learning about this little pocket of history.
I love alternate history so this sounds like my type of book.
Many things in history hang on a moment, a word, a decision or a casual meeting, so nothing is cast in concrete about the way events go. Many academic historians encourage their students to think about the “what if” consequences of any event, so I think historical fiction writers can do so as well. ;-)
I hope you enjoy HEROICA!
The three different time periods sounds fascinating. I never knew about the battle of Vienna. I’m looking forward to reading it.
In the main Roma Nova series, characters often refer to their family’s history, so it was great fun to write about how some of the Mitela women acted in past events. Vienna has often been a pivotal point in European history, so it took little for me to be drawn into one of its decisive moments. I hope you enjoy HEROICA.
I’ve enjoyed other books in the Roma Nova saga so this one sounds great. Always good to look into the backstory behind the settlement.
Thank you for being a Friend of Roma Nova! I really enjoyed exploring events in the nation’s past history. It was the request/demand from readers which pushed me to write the foundation story of Roma Nova back in the 4th century – JULIA PRIMA and EXSILIUM. I’m thinking about several time periods now for the next book…
Great to see another book added to the Roma Nova world. I’m glad Alison Morton is continuing the series.
Thank you, Clara. I’m not sure where I’ll go next, but I feel drawn to something in the past, but I may give Carina another adventure. Several ideas occur to me… ;-)