Battle of Lepanto - October 7th, 1571

On this date, over 400 years ago, was one of the most glorious victories over Islam ever recorded in the annals of history.

On October 7, 1571 was the Battle of Lepanto, a crucial and decisive naval engagement off the coast of Greece.

when a galey fleet of the Holy League, a coalition of the Rep. of Venice, the Papacy(under Pius V), Spain(including Naples, Sicily and Sardinia), the Rep. of Genoa, the Duchy of Savoy, the Knights Hospitaller and others, decisively defeated a force ofOttoman galleys.

The five-hour battle gave the Holy League temporary control over the Mediterranean, protected Rome from invasion, and prevented the Ottomans from advancing into Europe. This was the last major naval battle to be fought solely between rowing vessels.

The Turkish fleet suffered the loss of about 210 ships -- of which 117 galleys, 10 galliots and three fustas were captured and in good enough condition for the Christians to keep. On the Christian side 20 galleys were destroyed and 30 were damaged so seriously that they had to be scuttled. One Venetian galley was the only one kept by the Turks. All others were abandoned by them and recaptured.

The Holy League had suffered around 13,000 soldiers, sailors and rowers dead, but freed about as many Christian prisoners. Turkish casualties were around 25,000, and at least 3,500 were captured.
The engagement was a crushing defeat for the Ottomans, who had not lost a major naval battle since the fifteenth century. To half of Christendom, this event encouraged hope for the downfall of "the Turk", whom they regarded as the "Sempiternal Enemy of the Christian". Indeed, the Empire lost all but 30 of its ships and as many as 30,000 men, and some Western historians have held it to be the most decisive naval battle anywhere on the globe since the Battle of Actium

Tags: Lepanto

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