The Turkish Empire, Its Growth and DecayEversley, G. Shaw-Lefevre (George Shaw-Lefevre), Baron
History
The Turkish Empire, Its Growth and Decay
Eversley, G. Shaw-Lefevre (George Shaw-Lefevre), Baron
Turkey -- History
Barbarossa had made a splendid defence of the city. His force was
quite inadequate for the purpose. Solyman was at the time engaged in
war with Persia and could not give adequate support. Shortly after
this, when war broke out between the Ottomans and Spain, the Sultan
invited Barbarossa to Constantinople, and made him Grand Admiral of
the Turkish fleet. In this capacity he fought in 1538 a great naval
battle off Prevesa against the combined fleets of Spain, Venice, and
the Pope, under Admiral Andrea Doria, in which he achieved victory, in
spite of great inferiority of numbers and size of vessels. He appears
to have been the first to adopt the manœuvre of breaking the line
of the enemy’s fleet, for which three centuries later Nelson was so
famous. The Turkish fleet numbered a hundred and thirty vessels, and
that of the combined Christian Powers a hundred and sixty-seven. Six of
the latter were captured and destroyed. The main body of the combined
fleet drew off, under cover of the night. Later, Barbarossa accompanied
Solyman in the attack on Corfu, which was heroically defended by the
Venetians. The Sultan was compelled to withdraw from the island.
This failure at Corfu, and that before Vienna, were the only reverses
which Solyman personally encountered in his numerous campaigns.
Barbarossa, however, in the course of the war with the Venetians,
succeeded in capturing from them all the many islands which they
possessed in the Ægean Sea, with the exception of Crete and the few
fortified places they held in the Morea. These were his last exploits.
He died at Constantinople in 1546.
Others, however, of the same brood of corsairs or pirates succeeded
Barbarossa in the Turkish navy, and maintained its reputation for
successful daring. The most distinguished of them were Dragut (or
Torghut) and Piale, both of them renegade subjects of Turkey who had
taken to piracy as a profession. Dragut, a Croatian by birth, closely
resembled Barbarossa in his career, in his prowess at sea, and in the
terror which he created on the coasts of Italy and Spain. He had little
respect for the allies of the Sultan, and captured their vessels as
readily as those of his enemies. When called to account by the Porte
for the destruction of some Venetian merchant ships, and summoned to
Constantinople, he declined to go there, well knowing the fate in store
for him. He betook himself, with his pirate squadron, to Morocco, which
he made the base for piracy for some years. Later, Solyman, finding the
need of such a daring spirit, invited him again to take service under
the Ottoman flag, and promised to make him Governor of Tripoli, if he
could capture it. Tripoli then belonged to the Knights of St. John at
Malta. Dragut attacked and captured it, and annexed it to the Turkish
Empire. Eventually Dragut was appointed Governor of Tripoli and, in
this capacity, led a fleet in aid of the attack on Malta in 1565. He
lost his life in an assault on the city.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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