An army reportedly suffered serious losses fighting itself, with no enemy present
In 1788, an Austrian army camped near Karánsebes supposedly panicked overnight when a dispute over schnapps escalated into shouting, then gunfire in the dark, with units mistaking each other for Ottoman attackers. Contemporary letters describe the army fleeing in disarray before any Ottoman force arrived. Historians now question how much of the colourful traditional account is reliably sourced, but it has been retold since the 18th century as a warning about panic and poor communication in war.