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The Battle of Rovine was one of the most important battles in the early mediæval history of Romania. The battle took place on 17 May 1395 between the Wallachian army led by Voivod Mircea cel Bătrân against an Ottoman invasion led by sultan Bayezid I. The Ottoman army, numbering approximately 40,000 men,^{[citation needed]} faced the much smaller Wallachian army, which was about 10,000 men.^{[citation needed]} Legend says that on the eve of the battle, dressed as a peace emissary, Mircea cel Bătrân talked to Bayezid I asking him to leave Wallachia, and promising to grant him safe passage. However, the sultan insisted on fighting.

The exact site of the battle is unknown, but the Wallachian army was victorious,^{[dubious — see talk page]} mainly because of its archers, who decimated the Ottoman ranks at the beginning of the battle.^{[citation needed]} Then the Wallachian cavalry charged and routed the Ottomans, who fled in disorder across the river Danube.^{[citation needed]} In the battle were also involved, on the side of Bayazid, his vasals Despot Stefan Lazarevic (then he was just Grand Prince) and King Marko, the mightiest of all Serbian feudal lords. King Marko died during the battle, whilst Despot Stefan showed great courage.

An epic description of the battle is found in the poem "Scrisoarea a III-a" ("The Third Letter") written by the Romanian national poet, Mihai Eminescu.

Actually, there is another version of this battle. A Serbian chronicle which dates a century later records that there were two battles (Battle of Karanovasa). The first took place on the 10th of october 1394 in which the Wallachians won,^{[citation needed]} and the second took place between the 17th and 18th of may 1395, in which Mircea lost but the Ottomans took so many casualties that they were not able to overrun the country.^{[citation needed]} The same chronicle also records that after this second battle Mircea and the entire country bowed to the Ottoman sultan and paid tribute.