1462
The Night Attack at Târgoviște
The setting
near Târgoviște, Wallachia (Romania)
Ottoman camp on open ground at night
Reveal the outcome
Recorded sideWallachia
Recorded resulttactical success
Failed to kill the Sultan but inflicted heavy losses and terror
How the atlas explains it
Vastly outnumbered, Vlad poisoned wells and burned the land along the Ottoman line of march, then led a night raid into the camp aiming to assassinate Mehmed II. He hit the wrong tents but sowed chaos; combined with the field of impaled prisoners Mehmed found at Târgoviște, it broke Ottoman morale.
What followed
A model of asymmetric defense — terror, denial, and a decapitation strike used by a small state against an empire.