Puan vermedi
kanije defense (1601): the glorious resistance of the ottoman empire and the genius of tiryaki hasan pasha
history is sometimes written with the incredible courage of a handful of men and the genius of a leader. here is the kanije defense, it is just such a victory! tiryaki hasan pasha and 8,000 ottoman soldiers showed an epic resistance against the giant habsburg army of 50,000 men and went down in history in golden letters.
ottoman's fateful moment: kanije castle
think about it, the year is 1601. the ottoman empire is in constant struggle with the habsburgs. kanije castle passed into the hands of the ottomans in 1600 and has great strategic importance. however, habsburg emperor ii. rudolf sends a huge army to take back this castle. commander archduke ferdinand surrounds the castle with soldiers collected from germany, hungary and various european states. number superiority? it belongs to the enemy. logistical support? it belongs to the enemy. but the ottomans have something in their hands: a strategic genius and an unshakable will!
tiryaki hasan pasha: the embodiment of cunning and military genius
this man is a master of war! as his name is "tiryaki", which means constantly alert, alert, intelligent... he knows how to defeat the enemy with his limited power. here are some of his tremendous tactics:
• continuous night raids: ottoman soldiers forbade the enemy's sleep by making sudden attacks on the habsburg camp. he didn't let them breathe easily.
• deceiving movements: although there were a small number of ottoman soldiers in the castle, the cannons were constantly fired from different points, giving the enemy the feeling that there was a large army inside.
• fake letters: he spread the rumor that a large aid army came from the ottoman forces. the habsburgs
One of the most interesting, eye-opening books I've read. I’m familiar with Russian literature, I know Russian, but the more I read, the more I'm falling in love with them.
It's one of those Russian classics that's always on those lists. A Hero of Our Time has an interesting format. It's split into sections but these sections are all very different and sometimes don't even involve our "hero" Pechorin.
The story is set in the Caucasus Mountains and is full of detail about the terrain, the local people and the lives of the Russian nobility who travelled to the spas in that area. Lermontov tends to mock those society travellers although I could not help thinking that they would also be a large part of his intended audience.
Pechorin’s story is told in three parts. First through the eyes of a former comrade, second the eyes of a fascinated onlooker who by chance inherits his journals, and lastly through his own words.
It is only by looking at the three vignettes as pieces to a whole that the reader gets a feel for Pechorin’s motivations, who he is as a person and how he comes off as a character to others. In fact, without those first two sections, his story wouldn’t have as much meaning or significance, in my eyes.
I haven't really touched on what happens in the novel - but what was important for me was the character of Pechorin. His exploits, adventures and charades in the army, in society, the Caucasus, they are mere extensions of who he is as a person. He has flaws, he can be ruthless, he can be tragic but I am a fan of the Byronic Hero.
I was also fond of the last chapter, The Fatalist due to the more philosophical nature of discussion. This reminded me a lot of The death of ivan ilyich, with its emphasis on how the old view the world differently: forever bleak. The
