KOSSOVO, BATTLE OF

KOSSOVO, BATTLE OF. This battle was a traumatic defeat suffered by the Serbian king, Lazar, to the Ottoman Turks on 15 June 1389 at kossovo polye (the field of the blackbird). It marked the end of Serbia’s independence in the Balkans and the beginning of its long captivity under the Ottoman Empire (qq.v.). Kossovo is also notable for the role it has played in Serbian popular lore and song. Through the alchemy of folklore, a military defeat was transmuted into an expression of Christian piety (q.v.). According to the legend, Tsar Lazar chose God’s kingdom over his own earthly realm. The king, and with him his people, were seen as sharing in Christ’s passion and so, implicitly, made confident of eventual resurrection. The myth was singularly important for the survival of this nation’s religion and identity through centuries of Muslim rule.