Battle of Lepanto
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| Battle of Lepanto | |||||||||||||||||
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| Conflict | Ottoman invasion of Europe | ||||||||||||||||
| Date | October 7 1571 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place | Gulf of Corinth | ||||||||||||||||
| Result | Holy League victory | ||||||||||||||||
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The Battle of Lepanto was a major battle fought off the west coast of what is now Greece on October 7 1571. A galley fleet of the Holy League, a sometimes-flimsy coalition of the Pope, Spain, Venice, Genoa, Savoy, Naples, the Knights of Malta and others, defeated a force of Ottoman galleys, at the northern edge of the entrance to the Gulf of Lepanto (the Gulf of Corinth).
The coalition fleet consisted of 206 galleys and 6 galleases, and was ably commanded by Don John of Austria (Don Juan). Galleys were contributed by the various Christian factions: 108 Venetian galleys and 6 Venetian galleases, 13 from Habsburg Spain, 30 from Habsburg Naples, 6 from Habsburg Sicily, 3 from Genoa, 3 from Savoy, 3 from Malta, 12 Papal ships, and 28 privately owned galleys.
Ali Pacha (Ali Pasha), supported by the buccaneers Chulouk Bey of Alexandria, (also called Scirocco or Suluk Pasha) and Euldj Ali (Uluch Ali or Uluj Ali) was at the head of approximately 220-230 galleys, 50-60 galliots and some smaller vessels belonging to the Ottomans.
One of the more well-known participants in the battle was Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes, who was wounded and lost the use of his left hand.
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Events and Details of the Battle
The Christian fleet formed up in 3 divisions in a North-South line. At the northern end, closest to the coast, was the Left Division of 53 galleys, mainly Venetian, led by Barbarigo, with Querini and Canale. The Centre Division consisted of 62 galleys under Don Juan himself, along with Sebastian Veniero and Marcantonio Colonna. The Right Division to the south consisted of another 53 galleys under Gian Andrea Doria. Two galleases were positioned in front of each main division. A further Reserve Division was stationed behind (that is, to the west of) the main fleet, to support wherever it might be needed. It consisted of 38 galleys - 30 behind the Centre Division and 4 behind each wing. A scouting group was formed from 2 Right and 6 Reserve galleys, but failed to notice the approaching Turkish fleet, as it was investigating some small islands offshore. Hence Doria's Right Division was not in formation at the start of the battle, and the Right's galleases were late in coming up.
The Turkish fleet consisted of 54 galleys and 2 galliots in its Right, or northern, division, under Scirocco, 95 (or 61?) galleys in the Centre (with 32 galliots?) under Ali Pasha and about 63 (or 87?) in the South, along with around 30 (or 8?) galliots, under Uluch Ali. A small reserve existed of 8 galleys and 22 galliots and 64 fustas.
As the battle started, Doria found that Ali's galleys extended further to the south than his own, and so headed south to avoid being out-flanked. This meant he was even later coming into action. He ended up being outmanoeuvered by Ali, who turned back and attacked the southern end of the Centre Division until Doria could reach him. The galleases charged through the Turkish line, causing much damage, but then played little part in the battle.
In the North Scirocco had managed to get between the shore and the Christian North Division, and early on, the Christian fleet suffered. Eventually though, they prevailed, and the Turks fled with the loss of about 180 galleys and 60 galliots. However, only 117 galleys and 6 galliots were in good enough condition for the Christians to keep. On the Christian side 11 galleys were destroyed or damaged so much they had to be scuttled, and one Venetian galley was captured.
During the course of the battle, the Ottoman commander's ship was boarded and the admiral was beheaded, against the wishes of Don John. However, when his head was displayed from the mast of the Spanish flagship, it contributed greatly to the destruction of Turkish morale. The battle concluded around 4 pm.
Aftermath of the Battle
The engagement was a crushing defeat for the Ottomans, who lost all but about 50 of their ships. It was one of the most decisive naval defeats in the Mediterranean between the Battle of Actium (31 BC) and the Battle of the Nile (1798).
The battle was the first major victory of any European army or navy against the Ottoman Empire and therefore it had a psychological importance. Despite the massive Turkish defeat, European disunity prevented the allied forces from pressing their victory or achieving a lasting supremacy over the Ottomans at this time. The Ottoman Empire immediately began a massive effort to rebuild their navy, and within 6 months was able to reassert Ottoman naval supremacy. The defeat at Lepanto did not prevent the Ottomans' capture of Cyprus and the forts around Tunis either. However, Ottomans lost their control of the seas, especially in the western part of the Mediterranean.
The Holy League had suffered around 9,000 casualties but freed twice as many Christian prisoners. Turkish casualties were around 30,000.
Modern Accounts and References
An excellent account of this battle can be found in R. C. Andersons Naval Wars in the Levant 1559-1853 pps. 37-47 [ISBN:0878397990] .
Playwright Howard Barker refers to the Battle of Lepanto in his play Scenes from an Execution, which premiered in 1986. In it, a fictional Venetian painter named Galactia, a character who bears much in common with the artist Artemisia Gentileschi, has been commissioned by the doge to paint a commemorative depiction of the battle. Her refusal to make the scene one which will inspire patriotism and pride in the Venetian people leads to conflict with state officials.
There is also a poem by G. K. Chesterton called Lepanto that deals with the events of the battle.
External links
- Lepanto by G. K. Chesterton (http://www.bartleby.com/103/91.html)
de:Schlacht von Lepanto it:Battaglia di Lepanto (1571) fr:Bataille de Lépante ja:レパントの海戦 pl:Lepanto
Categories: Naval battles | Battles of the Ottoman Empire