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Available
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Publication
Weidenfeld & Nicholson history (2004), Paperback
Description
In 1571, at the gulf between mainland Greece and the Peloponnese, the fleets of the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League clashed in a final great battle between oared fighting ships. This is the first major history for decades--and the first ever original study in English--on this epic encounter between two important cultures that marked a significant turning point in history. As a description of the age-old conflict between Christianity and Islam, it still resonates powerfully today and is a must read for anyone interested in why the two worlds seem perpetually at war.
User reviews
LibraryThing member jcbrunner
The battle of Lepanto was a titanic naval battle between declining empires that lives on its faded glory. In Barcelona, one can marvel at the reconstructed galley of Juan d'Austria. In Venice and Madrid, one can admire giant commemorative paintings. Long considered one of the decisive battles of
Hugh Bicheno's book consists of a good, readable account of the battle (part II), with a lot of meaty appendices and excellent maps. In contrast to most authors on the battle, Bicheno downplays the influence of the Venetian galleasses, according them mostly a nuisance value and giving the victory to the superior Spanish soldiers. Given, as Bicheno himself refers, that the Ottomans rebuilt their fleet with a focus on artillery and included galleasses into their arsenal, I tend towards the majority opinion. I agree with Bicheno about the poor showing of the Venetians. In their defense, unlike the rich Spaniards, they had to husband their forces. Apart from Crete and fortresses on the Adriatic coasts, not much of the Venetian empire remained to rebuild their strength.
The first part of the book is a mixed bag of facts and opinions, pertinent or not, valid or not; somewhat like a fireside chat with a slightly demented uncle chasing his personal dragons. In the case of Hugh Bicheno, this happens to be a rabid anti-Catholicism, which I thought had long died out in the United Kingdom, and the paradoxical need to both connect the battle of Lepanto to recent events in Afghanistan and defend Islam from accusations of aggressiveness. The comparison of the huge, modern and highly cultured Ottoman Empire to the landlocked, isolated and backward warlords of Afghanistan is not really helpful in understanding the battle.
Overall, read part I for amusement and with a grain of salt or skip directly to the more valuable part II. The best part of the book are map 3 illustrating the Mediterranean currents and wind patterns as well as the ships' order of battle in the appendix.
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the world, it wasn't decisive at all. Instead, the Ottoman defeat only momentarily stopped its absorption of the remains of the Venetian empire. Together with the successful defense of Malta in 1565, the battle of Lepanto marks the division of the Mediterranean Sea into an Eastern and Western zone of influence (which was broken up by the new naval powers of France and Britain).Hugh Bicheno's book consists of a good, readable account of the battle (part II), with a lot of meaty appendices and excellent maps. In contrast to most authors on the battle, Bicheno downplays the influence of the Venetian galleasses, according them mostly a nuisance value and giving the victory to the superior Spanish soldiers. Given, as Bicheno himself refers, that the Ottomans rebuilt their fleet with a focus on artillery and included galleasses into their arsenal, I tend towards the majority opinion. I agree with Bicheno about the poor showing of the Venetians. In their defense, unlike the rich Spaniards, they had to husband their forces. Apart from Crete and fortresses on the Adriatic coasts, not much of the Venetian empire remained to rebuild their strength.
The first part of the book is a mixed bag of facts and opinions, pertinent or not, valid or not; somewhat like a fireside chat with a slightly demented uncle chasing his personal dragons. In the case of Hugh Bicheno, this happens to be a rabid anti-Catholicism, which I thought had long died out in the United Kingdom, and the paradoxical need to both connect the battle of Lepanto to recent events in Afghanistan and defend Islam from accusations of aggressiveness. The comparison of the huge, modern and highly cultured Ottoman Empire to the landlocked, isolated and backward warlords of Afghanistan is not really helpful in understanding the battle.
Overall, read part I for amusement and with a grain of salt or skip directly to the more valuable part II. The best part of the book are map 3 illustrating the Mediterranean currents and wind patterns as well as the ships' order of battle in the appendix.
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Physical description
320 p.; 7.64 inches
ISBN
1842127535 / 9781842127537