October 7th commemorates the victory of a coalition of western nations over the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Lepanto, a battle which is widely considered one of the most significant in all of history. The result of the battle was the utter destruction of the Ottoman fleet, resulting in Christian domination of the Mediterranean and largely ending the continued spread of Ottoman power in Europe.
The battle of Lepanto took place in 1571 and consisted of what was essentially combined fleets of all of Mediterranean Christendom assembled into what was called the Holy League, facing the massive navy of the Ottoman Grand Admiral Ali Pasha. The Holy League possessed 206 galleys and 6 massive galleasses, while the Ottomans had 230 galleys and 50 smaller galliots. The Venetians gave the most ships to the fleet, donating over 100 galleys and all of the galleasses. Spain also donated a considerable number with 80 ships. Other ships were from Genoa, the Papal States, Savoy, and the Knights of Malta. The allied forces were commanded by the very capable Don John of Austria. The allied forces assembled in Sicily and sailed east, meeting the Ottoman forces off the coast of Greece.
As soon as the fleets saw each other they met for battle. One of the factors that largely determined the fate of the battle was the effectiveness of the Venetian galleasses. These ships were massive sailing fortresses bearing dozens of guns, and sailing in front of the Christian forces, the galleasses alone destroyed dozens of the enemy galleys. The outcome of the battle seesawed back and forth for hours until Spanish soldiers who had twice been repulsed from the Ottoman Commander’s flag ship were able to overcome the Ottoman resistance in a third attempt and take over the ship. Ali Pashan was killed and his head was placed on a pike for all to see. This was a major moral blow to the Muslim forces and the Ottoman’s began to withdraw.
Further pressure from the galleasses turned the battle into a rout and the Ottomans retreated with heavy losses. In the end the Ottomans lost almost 200 ships (most captured and later used by the Christians) and over 20,000 dead, wounded, or taken prisoner. The Holy League suffered only some 25 ships lost and around 10,000 casualties. While the loss to the Ottomans was many ships and men, the battle also represented a significant drain in irreplaceable sailors and soldiers. The ships could be and would be rebuilt, but many of the best soldiers in the Ottoman army had been killed, not to mention the majority of their best sailors.
This battle also represented a dramatic shift in the assumed perception of Ottoman dominance over Christian military forces. The belief held by many that the Ottoman’s were invulnerable was forever shattered at Lepanto, and would never really be regained. One historian has commented that the battle of Lepanto swung for the last time the pendulum of wealth and power from East to West.
