In 1788, the Austrian army allegedly fought a devastating battle against itself — and lost — before the Ottomans even showed up.
The Battle of Karansebes supposedly took place on September 17, 1788, during the Austro-Turkish War. What makes it legendary is that it was an enormous friendly fire incident — the Austrian army reportedly attacked itself in a chaotic nighttime debacle.
According to the popular account, Austrian hussars crossed the Timiș River to scout for Ottoman forces and instead found a group of Romani people selling schnapps. The scouts got drunk, and when infantry soldiers arrived and demanded a share, a brawl erupted over the alcohol.
During the drunken quarrel, someone reportedly shouted 'Turci! Turci!' ('Turks! Turks!'), sending panic through the ranks. In the darkness and confusion, Austrian soldiers began firing on each other, convinced the Ottoman army was attacking.
The chaos was worsened by the fact that the Austrian army was composed of soldiers from multiple ethnic groups — including Austrians, Hungarians, Serbs, Croats, and others — who spoke different languages and couldn't easily communicate. Officers shouting 'Halt!' in German were misheard as 'Allah!' by non-German speakers, fueling the panic.
Emperor Joseph II himself was reportedly knocked from his horse into a creek during the stampede. The entire army dissolved into a terrified, self-destructive rout, scattering across the countryside.
When the Ottoman army arrived at Karansebes two days later, they allegedly found the town undefended and littered with dead and wounded Austrian soldiers — casualties of their own army's confusion. Some accounts claim up to 10,000 Austrian casualties.
Many historians question the accuracy of this story, noting it first appeared in a published account decades after the supposed event. The tale may be heavily embellished or even largely apocryphal, though some form of friendly fire incident likely did occur.
Regardless of its historical accuracy, the Battle of Karansebes has become one of the most famous military blunders in history, serving as a cautionary tale about the dangers of poor communication, indiscipline, and multinational armies without a common language.