Battle of Lepanto

Battle of Lepanto, naval engagement fought on October 7, 1571, in the Gulf of Lepanto (now the Gulf of Corinth), between the fleet of the Ottoman Turks and the Christian fleet of the Holy League, which had been formed in May 1571 by Pope Pius V, and comprised Spain, Venice, Genoa, and the Papal States.

The Turks had been at sea throughout the summer of 1571, consolidating their hold on Cyprus, while assaulting both the Bay of Suda and Candia (now Iráklion) on Crete. During late July and August, from their base at Corfu, they sailed north into the Adriatic Sea, attacking the Dalmatian coast and islands, uncomfortably close to Venice. The naval forces of the Holy League, commanded by Don John of Austria, departed Messina, on Sicily, on September 16, determined to bring the Turks to action. This was a brave decision because defeat would have exposed Italy and much of the central and western Mediterranean Sea to Turkish attack. Searching for one another, as the Sun rose on October 7, the two fleets met at the entrance to the narrow Gulf of Lepanto.

Don John commanded 208 oared-galleys plus 6 powerful and heavily gunned Venetian galleasses, while Eludj ‘Alī, leading the Turkish fleet, commanded 230 oared-galleys. The tactics employed were those of land armies, with soldiers using ships as fighting platforms from which to fire their missile weapons and board their opponents. Only 30 Turkish galleys escaped from the mêlée—those commanded directly by Eludj ‘Alī, who had kept his vessels clear of the main action—and more than half the combatants became casualties. About 30,000 Turkish soldiers and sailors were killed or wounded, 3,000 were captured, and 15,000 Christian galley slaves were freed; the Holy League fleet lost 10 galleys, 8,000 men were killed, and 21,000 wounded.

Holy League success was variously attributed to several factors: the heavy artillery of the Venetian galleasses; the decision of the Genoese admiral, Andrea Doria, to remove the prow rams from the galleys so that the bows rode higher, enabling bow-chasing cannon to fire directly into the sides of the enemy ships; the sterling performance of the Spanish infantry; and the fact that the Turkish fleet, having been at sea for some months, was tired and ready for a refit.

Although Don John wanted to sail directly on to the Dardanelles, there were no direct strategic advantages emanating from Lepanto for the Christian Holy League; indeed, it has been described as a great spectacle that lacked substance and significance. The Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet and were ready for action the following year. However, it is now clear that Lepanto marked the end of a long period of Ottoman Turkish seaborne expansion through the eastern and central Mediterranean, and gave renewed hope and confidence to the demoralized and disunited Christians. Had Don John’s fleet been destroyed at Lepanto, the Turks would probably have attacked Naples and Sicily, while the Algerines (pirates inhabiting the north-western coast of Africa) might have been encouraged to invade Granada and Valencia.