Background
The Hungarian Kingdom fell in a crisis after the death of Sigismund of Hungary (who had become King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor) in 1437. His son-in-law Albert of Hungary (Albert II of Germany) ruled for only two years and died in 1439, leaving his wife Elisabeth of Luxembourg as widow and with a newborn child who was crowned as Ladislaus V of Hungary. The Hungarian noblemen called then the young King Władysław III of Poland to the throne of Hungary accepting its defense against the Ottomans: he was crowned as Władysław I of Hungary, and never went back to his homeland again, assuming the rule in the Hungarian Kingdom next to the influential nobleman Janos Hunyadi.
After failed expeditions in 1440–2 against Belgrade and Transylvania, and the defeats of the "long campaign" of Count Janos Hunyadi in 1442–3, the Ottoman sultan Murad II signed a ten-year truce with Hungary. After he had made peace with the Karaman Emirate in Anatolia in August 1444, he resigned the throne to his twelve year-old son Mehmed II.
Anticipating a new Ottoman invasion, encouraged by the young and inexperienced new Ottoman sultan, Hungary co-operated with Venice and Pope Eugene IV to organize a new crusader army led by Janos Hunyadi and Władysław III. On receipt of this news, Mehmet II understood that he was too young and inexperienced to successfully fight the coalition. Murad II was recalled to the throne by his son to lead the army into battle. Murad II refused. Angry at his father, who had long since retired to a contemplative life in southwestern Anatolia, Mehmed II wrote, "If you are the Sultan, come and lead your armies. If I am the Sultan I hereby order you to come and lead my armies." It was only after receiving this letter that Murad II led the Ottoman army.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Varna
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