At the end of the 14th century, the Ottoman Empire conquered most of the Balkans and arrived to the southern borders of the Kingdom of Hungary.

Sigismund's army also included Lithuanian and Wallachian auxiliary regiments, commanded by Zawisza Czarny and Dan II of Wallachia.

Sigismund planned an assault against the walls when a significant Ottoman army, led by Murad II, arrived to save the fortress.

Sigismund did not engage the Sultan in an open battle and instead reached an armistice: the Christians would stop their attacks and retreat in peace.

The Christian army started crossing the Danube in retreat when the Ottomans broke the armistice and organized a surprise attack.

After the Hungarian defeat, Murad II organized an offensive against Serbia, whose despot, Branković, finally accepted being the vassal of the Ottoman Empire.