Did an army ever take over a city by just entering as allies, one at a time without suspicion, spreading out, and then marching into every house to slaughter everyone?

by Yauld

Might be a weird question.

huaut

Wow. That describes almost perfectly one of the most remembered historical events of my home country, Hungary. Ottoman (Turkish, basically) troops arrive. Camp near Buda, the capitol. The king is an infant. Sultan declares he just came here to protect the old kings son's inheritance (throne) from the grabby Habsburgs in Vienna. Meets the little king. Behaves basically like a perfect uncle type.

Ottoman troops go "sight-seeing" into Buda. More and more. Strolling around. Looking at stuff. Stuff at the most important strategic locations. Of course. Then at a signal, pull swords and chase everybody into their houses. Kill a few resisting guards, most guards flee or surrender. Plant flags. They own the city now, later install a Pasha etc. it is theirs now. No slaughter, though. Also of course they claim they are just holding it on behalf of the young king.

Source: plenty in Hungarian, but all the English ones I find online just say "it was a trick, a subterfuge". But this is standard high school textbook stuff in Hungary. If you want to try your luck with Google Translate, Rubicon is a respected history mag there: http://www.rubicon.hu/magyar/oldalak/1541_augusztus_29_szulejman_szultan_csellel_elfoglalja_buda_varat/

gm6464

During a revolt in the mid-18th century commonly known as Pontiac's War, in which Indians from the Great Lakes Region, Ohio country, and Illinois country attacked and conquered a number of colonial British forts and towns, a maneuver by some Ojibwa warriors kind of looks like what you're asking about.

They were playing a large stickball (kind of like and older form of lacrosse) game outside the walls of Fort Michilimackinac in the Michigan territory, and they threw the ball inside the fortress walls. The British soldiers let them come in to retrieve the ball, and the warriors grabbed weapons from Ojibwa women outside the gates and took the fort by force. I don't believe they killed everyone but they inflicted significant casualties and later ritually tortured and executed several prisoners.

AypocalypseLater

Would this not be a trivia-seeking question, or am I misunderstanding the rules?