Historical records reveal heavy rain preceded the Battle of Mohács

Historical records indicate that the period surrounding the Battle of Mohács in 1526 was characterized by heavy precipitation and significant mud. Since official meteorological measurements in Hungary only date back to 1870, researchers rely on historical accounts to reconstruct the weather conditions of that era.

According to the work of Antal Réthly, a key figure in the founding of the Hungarian Meteorological Society, the heavy rains caused severe logistical challenges. Historical diaries from the Ottoman forces accompanying Suleiman the Magnificent noted that continuous rainfall created deep mud and rendered roads impassable. For instance, the Ottoman army took ten days to travel a distance of 25–30 kilometers to Baranyavár due to the damaged road conditions.

Réthly’s research, compiled in a four-volume work titled ‘Weather Events and Extreme Precipitation in Hungary’, has been digitized by the Library and Information Centre of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences at the request of HungaroMet Zrt. The records confirm that heavy rains occurred throughout August and September 1526.