‘Meldeman Plan’: The First Siege of Vienna

One of the oldest topographical maps of Vienna is the so-called “Meldeman-Plan’’ published by the Austrian painter and printer Nikolaus Meldemann that shows a vivid picture of the city during its first siege by the Ottoman army in 1529. The siege of Vienna in 1529 was the first attempt by the Ottoman Empire to capture the city. Suleiman the Magnificent, sultan of the Ottomans, attacked the city with over 100,000 men, while the defenders, led by Niklas Graf Salm, numbered no more than 21,000. Nevertheless, Vienna was able to survive the siege, which lasted just over two weeks.