31 December, a new Ottoman army of 17,000 set camp around river Bârlad, laying waste to the countryside, and intimidating the new prince into abandoning his Wallachian throne and fleeing to Moldavia. In the spring of 1474, Laiotă took the Wallachian throne for the second time; and in June, he made the decision to betray his protégé by submitting to Mehmet. Stephen then invested his support into a new candidate, named Ţepeluş (little spear), but his reign was even shorter, as it only lasted a few weeks after being defeated by Laiotă in battle on 5 October. Two weeks later, Stephen returned to Wallachia and forced Laiotă to flee. Mehmed, tired of what transpired in Wallachia, gave Stephen an ultimatum to forfeit Chilia to the Porte, to abolish his aggressive policy in Wallachia, and to come to Constantinople with his delayed homage. The Prince refused and in November 1474, he wrote to the Pope to warn him of further Ottoman expansion, and to ask him for support. Preparations for war Ottomans Mehmed ordered his general, Suleiman Pasha, to end the siege of Venetian-controlled Shkodër (now in Albania), to assemble his troops in Sofia, and from there to advance with additional troops towards Moldavia. For these already exhausted Ottoman troops, who had besieged the city from 17 May to 15 August, the transit from Shkodër to Moldavia was a month's journey through bad weather and difficult terrain. According to Długosz, Suleiman was also ordered that after inflicting defeat on Stephen, he was to advance towards Poland, set camp for the winter, then invade Hungary in spring, and unite his forces with the army of the Sultan. The Ottoman army consisted of Janissaries and heavy infantry, which were supported by the heavy cavalry sipahis and by the light cavalry (akinci), who would scout ahead. There were also Tatar cavalry and other troops (such as the Timariots) from vassal states. Twenty thousand Bulgarian peasants were also included in the army; their main tasks were to clear the way for the rest of the army by building bridges over waters and removing snow from the roads, and to drive supply wagons. In total, the Ottoman cavalry numbered 30,000. In September 1474, the Ottoman army gathered in Sofia, and from there, Suleiman marched towards Moldavia by crossing the frozen Danube on foot. His first stop was Wallachia, which he entered via Vidin and Nicopolis. His