Definition of Battle of Lepanto

In the last decades of the seventeenth century, the leaders of the Christian territories in Europe viewed with concern the advance of the Empire Turkish. For this reason in 1571 Pope Pius V summoned a Holy League. The armies of Spain and Venice were integrated into it.

The Spanish joined the alliance because the coastal territories were being harassed by the Berbers. The Venetians decided take part to get back your influence commercial in the Mediterranean.

At the end of August 1571, Juan de Austria took charge of a powerful army made up of 20,000 Spanish and Venetian soldiers (the Vatican army also participated with 2,000 soldiers).

In September the navy sailed from the port of Messina to the territories of Corinth and Patras, an area located in the Gulf of Lepanto (now the Gulf of Corinth). On the other side were the Turks of religion Muslim, who were led by Ali Pasha.

The Turkish naval forces were superior to the Christian ones, but these had a higher caliber artillery.

At dawn on October 7, the battle of Lepanto began

The first volleys from the Christian galleys pushed back the Turkish galleys and two of them sank. The Royal galley slammed into the Sultana of Ali. The Christians unloaded their arquebuses and jumped into the boarding, but had to retreat because the Turks counterattacked from other nearby galleys.

The combat seemed to be fought without any order, as some galleys were launched in pursuit of others. The sea it was filled with corpses from both sides. In full confusion, the ship La Loba led by Alvaro de Bazán destroyed a Turkish ship with cannon shots and then headed towards La Sultana, where Ali's life was killed. In a few hours the Turkish fleet surrendered and the ships of the Holy League were victorious.

Aftermath of the battle and some interesting data

The Battle of Lepanto represented the end of the expansion Turkish for the Mediterranean. The defeat of the Turks destroyed their reputation as an invincible army. Among the Turks there were 25,000 casualties and among the Christians it is estimated that the dead were the following: 5,000 Venetians, 2,000 Spaniards and 800 soldiers of the Pope.

I know esteem that 5,000 Turkish prisoners were taken, while 12,000 captives were rescued.

The author of Don Quixote fought in the famous naval battle

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, known as "the one-armed of Lepanto" because in this battle he lost his hand, he was a young soldier in 1571.

He was integrated into the Marquesa galley, which belonged to the squad led by Álvaro de Bazán.

Photo: Fotolia - Juulijs