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VENETIAN GALLEY
After
the collapse of Roman naval power, while the rest of
Europe was engulfed in petty wars among petty
kingdoms, the Venetians created the longest-lasting
republic in Europe. They developed a
reputation as skilled sailors capable of handling
ships safely along unforgiving coastlines. As
early as the mid 500s, little marshy Venice had
twice sent its fleet to assist mighty
Constantinople. By the 880s, Venice had earned
the gratitude of maritime nations at both ends of
the Mediterranean by putting down the pirates
infesting the Dalmatian coastline. By that time,
Venice was already the leading clearing port for
goods in the Mediterranean. Her prestige was further enhanced when she fought
off an attack by the Magyars who had been
devastating Eastern Europe and northern Italy. A
Venetian fleet was clearly not something to mess
with.
October 7th, 1571, a naval battle between the
Christians and Ottomans fought in the strait between
the gulfs of Pátrai and Corinth, off Lepanto,
Greece. The fleet of the Holy League commanded
by
John of Austria (d.
1578) opposed the Ottoman fleet under Uluç Ali
Pasha. The allied fleet (about 200 galleys, not
counting smaller ships) consisted mainly of Spanish,
Venetian, and papal ships and of vessels sent by a
number of Italian states. It carried approximately
30,000 fighting men and was about evenly matched
with the Ottoman fleet.
The
battle ended with the virtual destruction of the
Ottoman navy (except 40 galleys, with which Uluç Ali
escaped.) Approximately 15,000 Turks were slain or
captured. Some 10,000 Christian galley slaves
were liberated.
Lepanto was the first major Ottoman defeat by the
Christian powers, and it ended the myth of Ottoman
naval invincibility. It did not, however, affect
Ottoman supremacy on the land, and a new Turkish
fleet was speedily built by Sokollu. Nevertheless, the battle was decisive in
the sense that an Ottoman victory probably would
have made the Ottoman Empire supreme in the
Mediterranean.
This beautiful wood model of the Venetian galley is
40" L x 30" T x
20" W $4,790 Shipping and
insurance
n the contiguous USA included. Other
places: $500 flat rate.
Model is built per commission only. We require only a
small deposit to start
the process. Lead time is about 7 months.
Learn more about the
Venetian galley here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venetian_navy
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