History UsefulNotes / BattleOfLepanto

By the reign of the Sultan Selim II (affectionately known as Selim [[TheAlcoholic the Sot]]), the Empire was recovering from its failed attempt to conquer UsefulNotes/{{Malta}}. The Ottomans turned their gaze toward UsefulNotes/{{Cyprus}} which was rich in sugar and an important base, under the authority of the Venetians at the time. The Ottomans, commanded on the sea by admiral Ali Pasha, invaded Cyprus, and the threat provoked an alliance among the Mediterranean Christian states, chief among whom were the Republic of Venice and the Spanish Empire of King UsefulNotes/PhilipII. The former lent the ships, the latter the money, and together they readied a fleet to meet the challenge, with Philip's half brother UsefulNotes/JohnOfAustria and the veteran admiral UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan being handed command.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the [[EpicShipOnShipAction largest naval brawl]] in western history since classical antiquity. The Turkish fleet arrived in the Gulf of Patras in UsefulNotes/{{Greece}}, but the Spanish-Italian fleet intercepted it on 7 October 1571. The two armadas clashed in a massive, multi-level affair, where the elite Spanish ''tercios'' and Turk Janissaries jumped on the massed ships and warred on their boards as in a land battle while cannonfire fell over everybody. The Ottomans disrupted the Christian line in not less than three occasions, but Bazán's chess-like maneuvers covered the breach every time, and eventually, with the timely help of enslaved Christians that had revolted in the Ottoman ships, the Christian crews and boarding parties overpowered their opponents. Ali Pasha was killed in a duel of flagships against Juan, and the rest of the Turk fleet was rounded and methodically destroyed or captured almost in its totality.

This battle was a great victory for the Christian powers and was celebrated as such. It was the last major galley battle before galleys were superseded by [[WoodenShipsAndIronMen great sailing warships]], with its commander Bazán being one of the promoters of this innovation, and it was also where several famous military men achieved fame, like the mentioned John of Austria, Giovanni Andrea Doria and UsefulNotes/AlexanderFarnese, as well as people who would stand out in other fields after their military career, like Creator/MiguelDeCervantes. Even the Pope, Pius V, came out with glory, as he would be canonized after his death on a supposed miracle by which he "felt" the battle's outcome in real time from his chambers in Rome. In sum, there was a time in UsefulNotes/{{Europe}} where merely being Christian and having been at Lepanto, or being related in any way to the battle, was enough for you to qualify as a full-fledged war hero.

Although the Turks later managed to rebuild their fleet, so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First it was seen as a great and momentous victory, then there was the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the [[UsefulNotes/TheVirginMary Virgin Mary]]. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory (this was certainly the official Ottoman position in the immediate aftermath of the battle). The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval powers, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans; what battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. Therefore, in a greater sense, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

By the reign of the Sultan Selim II (affectionately known as Selim [[TheAlcoholic the Sot]]), the Empire was recovering from its failed attempt to conquer UsefulNotes/{{Malta}}. The Ottomans turned their gaze toward UsefulNotes/{{Cyprus}} which was rich in sugar and an important base, under the authority of the Venetians at the time. The Ottomans invaded Cyprus, and the threat provoked an alliance among the Mediterranean Christian states, chief among whom were the Republic of Venice and the Spanish Empire of King UsefulNotes/PhilipII, of which the former lent the ships and the latter the money.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the [[EpicShipOnShipAction largest naval brawl]] in western history since classical antiquity. A Turkish fleet headed by admiral Ali Pasha arrived in the Gulf of Patras in UsefulNotes/{{Greece}}, but a Spanish-Italian fleet headed by UsefulNotes/JohnOfAustria and UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan intercepted and destroyed it on 7 October 1571. Although the Turks later managed to rebuild their fleet, so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

This battle was a great victory for the Christian powers and was celebrated as such. It was the last major galley battle before galleys were superseded by [[WoodenShipsAndIronMen great sailing warships]], with its commander Bazán being one of the promoters of this innovation, and it was also where several famous military men achieved fame, like the mentioned John of Austria, Giovanni Andrea Doria and UsefulNotes/AlexanderFarnese, as well as people who would stand out in other fields after their military career, like Creator/MiguelDeCervantes. There was a time in UsefulNotes/{{Europe}} where merely being Christian and having been at Lepanto was enough for you to qualify as a full-fledged war hero.

Ironically, the Turks still retained Cyprus. Philip II would find himself too busy with his own conflicts in Europe, after which the Holy League started unraveling, meaning Venice ultimately found itself alone. Wishing to end hostilities with the Ottoman Empire and hopefully regaining trade with them, they signed a treaty giving the island away in 1573. Philip signed his own truce with the Ottomans in 1580, helped by the fact that the Turks were having their own problems against Persia, although his son Philip III would eventually return to the war against the Ottoman Empire in the following century, using their new galleons to score a couple of big victories against Turk fleets off their coasts of Anatolia.

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First it was seen unambiguously as a great and momentous victory, then there was the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the [[UsefulNotes/TheVirginMary Virgin Mary]]. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position in the immediate aftermath of the battle. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval powers, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans; what battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. Therefore, in a greater sense, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

If this position is taken to its logical conclusion, this battle gave Christian empires control not only over most of the world's seas, but the world itself. Ottoman control of eastern trade routes meant the Turks had easy access to the riches of the East, while European powers were forced to develop their naval technology and send {{bold explorer}}s in order to find alternate routes, either West (the Spanish way, leading to the discovery of UsefulNotes/TheAmericas) or South (around Africa, favorite of the Portuguese). Europe would be more than compensated for the extra effort. Control over the seas gave them control over trade, money, and everything that goes with it. European naval supremacy would lead directly to European imperialism and colonialism, meaning it would be western Europe that would dominate the world for the next couple of centuries. Turkey having any influence outside of its immediate vicinity was basically out of the question, while thanks to naval power Europe would eventually dominate as far away as UsefulNotes/{{China}}. Had the Turks won at Lepanto, it is possible that Western imperialism might have been seriously impeded, particularly in the areas bordering the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean, and all of history would have been changed.

During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, there was a constant naval war between the Christian and Muslim States in the Mediterranean. When there was no major campaign involved it was a handy excuse to be {{Pirates}}. Circa 1570, the Republic of Venice was entering a prolonged decline in Mediterranean dominance and the Ottoman Empire was extending its hegemony into the world's oceans.

By the reign of the Sultan Selim II (affectionately known as Selim [[TheAlcoholic the Sot]]), the Empire was recovering from its failed attempt to conquer Malta. The Ottomans turned their gaze toward Cyprus which was rich in sugar and an important base, under the authority of the Venetians at the time. The Ottomans invaded Cyprus, and the threat provoked an alliance among the Mediterranean Christian states, chief among whom were the Republic of Venice and the Spanish Empire of King UsefulNotes/PhilipII, of which the former lent the ships and the latter the money.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the largest naval brawl in western history since classical antiquity. A Turkish fleet headed by admiral Ali Pasha arrived in the Gulf of Patras in Greece, but a Spanish-Italian fleet headed by UsefulNotes/JohnOfAustria and UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan intercepted and destroyed it on 7 October 1571. Although the Turks later managed to rebuild their fleet, so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

This battle was a [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome Crowning Moment of Awesome]] for the Christian powers and was celebrated as such. It was the last major galley battle before galleys were superseded by [[WoodenShipsAndIronMen great sailing warships]], with its commander Bazán being one of the promoters of this innovation, and it was also where several famous military men achieved fame, like the mentioned John of Austria, Giovanni Andrea Doria and UsefulNotes/AlexanderFarnese, as well as people who would stand out in other fields after their military career, like Creator/MiguelDeCervantes. There was a time in Europe where merely being Christian and having been at Lepanto was enough for you to qualify as a full-fledged war hero.

{{Iron|y}}ically, the Turks still retained Cyprus. Philip II would find himself too busy with his own conflicts in Europe, after which the Holy League started unraveling, meaning Venetia ultimately found itself alone. Wishing to end hostilities with the Ottoman Empire and hopefully regaining trade with them, they signed a treaty giving the island away in 1573. Philip signed his own truce with the Ottomans in 1580, helped by the fact that the Turks were having their own problems against Persia, although his son Philip III would eventually return to the war against the Ottoman Empire in the following century, using their new galleons to score a couple of big victories against Turk fleets off their coasts of Anatolia.

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First it was seen unambiguously as a great and momentous victory, then there was the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position in the immediate aftermath of the battle. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval power, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans; what battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. Therefore, in a greater sense, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

If this position is taken to its logical conclusion, this battle gave Christian empires control not only over most of the world's seas, but the world itself. Ottoman control of eastern trade routes meant the Turks had easy access to the riches of the East, while European powers were forced to develop their naval technology in order to find alternate routes, either West (the Spanish way, leading to the discovery of America) or South (around Africa, favorite of the Portuguese). Europe would be more than compensated for the extra effort. Control over the seas gave them control over trade, money, and everything that goes with it. European naval supremacy would lead directly to European imperialism and colonialism, meaning it would be western Europe that would dominate the world for the next couple of centuries. Turkey having any influence outside of its immediate vicinity was basically out of the question, while thanks to naval power Europe would eventually dominate as far away as China. Had the Turks won at Lepanto, it is possible that Western imperialism might have been seriously impeded, particularly in the areas bordering the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean, and all of history would have been changed.

{{Iron|y}}ically, the Turks still retained Cyprus. Philip II would find himself too busy with his own conflicts in Europe, after which the Holy League started unraveling, meaning Venetia ultimately found itself alone. Wishing to end hostilities with the Ottoman Empire and hopefully regaining trade with them, they signed a treaty giving the island away in 1573. Philip signed his own truce with the Ottomans in 1580, helped by the fact that the Turks were having their own problems against Persia, although his son Philip III would eventually return to the war against the Ottoman Empire in the following century, using their new galleons to score a couple of big victories against Turk fleets in their coasts of Anatolia.

** The second part of the novel has a great TakeThat against {{FanFiction}} author Avellaneda, who wrote a ContinuationFic to the first part and some words making fun of Creator/MiguelDeCervantes' wounds [[UnacceptableTargets (which he got as a marine at Lepanto itself)]]:

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First it was seen unambiguously as a great and momentous victory, then there was the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time, in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position in the immediate aftermath of the battle. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval power, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans; what battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. Therefore, in a greater sense, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

{{iron|y}}ically, the Turks still retained Cyprus. Philip II would find himself too busy with his own conflicts in Europe, after which the Holy League started unraveling, meaning Venetia ultimately found itself alone. Wishing to end hostilities with the Ottoman Empire and hopefully regaining trade with them, they signed a treaty giving the island away in 1573. Philip signed his own truce with the Ottomans in 1580, helped by the fact that the Turks were having their own problems against Persia, although his son Philip III would eventually return to the war against the Ottoman Empire in the following century, using their new galleons to score a couple of big victories against Turk fleets in their coasts of Anatolia.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the largest naval brawl in western history since classical antiquity. A Turk fleet headed by admiral Ali Pasha arrived in the Gulf of Patras in Greece, but a Spanish-Italian fleet headed by UsefulNotes/JohnOfAustria and UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan intercepted and destroyed it on 7 October 1571. Although the Turks later managed to rebuild their fleet, so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the largest naval brawl in western history since classical antiquity. A Turk fleet headed by admiral Ali Pasha arrived in the Gulf of Patras in Greece, but a Spanish-Italian fleet headed by John of Austria and UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan intercepted and destroyed it on 7 October 1571. Although the Turks later managed to rebuild their fleet, so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the largest naval brawl in western history since classical antiquity. A Turk fleet headed by admiral Ali Pasha arrived in the Gulf of Patras in Greece, but a Spanish-Italian fleet headed by John of Austria and UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan intercepted and destroyed it on 7 October 1571. Although the Turks later managed to rebuild their fleet, in which they were helped by the French (whose king Francis I had struck a shocking alliance with the Ottoman Empire due to his vendetta against the Habsburg), so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

{{iron|y}}ically, the Turks still retained Cyprus. Philip II would find himself too busy with his own conflicts in Europe, after which the Holy League started unraveling, meaning Venetia ultimately found itself alone. Wishing to end hostilities with the Ottoman Empire and hopefully regaining trade with them, they signed a treaty giving the island away in 1573. Philip signed his own truce with the Ottomans in 1580, although his son Philip III would eventually return to the war against the Ottoman Empire in the following century, using their new galleons to score a couple of big victories against Turk fleets in their coasts of Anatolia.

The result was a battle of annihilation that was effectively the largest naval brawl in western history since classical antiquity. A Turk fleet headed by admiral Ali Pasha arrived in the Gulf of Patras in Greece, but a Spanish-Italian fleet headed by John of Austria and UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan intercepted and destroyed it on 7 October 1571. The {{iron|y}}ic result was that the Turks lost the main battle but ended up with Cyprus. However, arguably this was a PyrrhicVictory for the Turks as so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

The Battle of Diu, an encounter of the UsefulNotes/ConquestOfPortugueseIndia happened sixty years earlier during which the Portuguese destroyed an Ottoman fleet that outnumbered them to an insane degree, is often considered a sort of "Lepanto of the east", even although it received little attention. It also marked the beginning of Western European dominance in the Indian Ocean.

This battle was a [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome Crowning Moment of Awesome]] for the Christian powers and was celebrated as such. It was the last major galley battle before galleys were superseded by [[WoodenShipsAndIronMen great sailing warships]], with its commander Bazán being one of the promoters of this innovation, and it was also where several famous military men achieved fame, like the mentioned John of Austria, Giovanni Andrea Doria and UsefulNotes/AlexanderFarnese, as well as people who would stand out in other fields after their military career, like Creator/MiguelDeCervantes. There were a time in Europe where merely being Christian and having been in Lepanto was enough for you to qualify as a full-fledged war hero.

By the reign of the Sultan Selim II (affectionately known as Selim [[TheAlcoholic the Sot]]), the Empire was recovering from its failed attempt to conquer Malta. The Ottomans turned their gaze toward Cyprus which was rich in sugar and an important base, under the authority of the Venetians at the time. The Ottomans invaded Cyprus, and the threat provoked an alliance among the Mediterranean Christian states, chief among whom were Venice and Spain, at the time chieftained by King UsefulNotes/PhilipII.

The Turks managed to conquer the island, but the Christian fleet arrived to defeat them in a battle of annihilation on 7 October 1571. The {{iron|y}}ic result was that the Turks lost the main battle but ended up with the island. However, arguably this was a PyrrhicVictory for the Turks as so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

This battle was a [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome Crowning Moment of Awesome]] for the Christian powers and was celebrated as such. It was the last major galley battle before galleys were superseded by [[WoodenShipsAndIronMen great sailing warships]], and it was also where many famous military men achieved fame, like UsefulNotes/AlvaroDeBazan and UsefulNotes/AlexanderFarnese (with Bazán being ironically one of the main culprits of galleys being eventually phased out), as well as people who would stand out in other fields after their military career, like Creator/MiguelDeCervantes. There were a time in Europe where being Christian and having been in Lepanto was enough for you to qualify as a full-fledged war hero.

By the reign of the Sultan Selim II (affectionately known as Selim [[TheAlcoholic the Sot]]), the Empire was recovering from its failed attempt to conquer Malta. The Ottomans turned their gaze toward Cyprus which was rich in sugar and an important base, under the authority of the Venetians at the time. The Ottomans invaded Cyprus, and the threat provoked an alliance among the Mediterranean Christian states, chief among whom were Venice and Spain, at the time chieftained by King Philip II.

By the reign of the Sultan Selim II (affectionately known as Selim [[TheAlcoholic the Sot]]), the Empire was recovering from its failed attempt to conquer Malta. The Ottomans turned their gaze toward Cyprus which was rich in sugar and an important base, under the authority of the Venetians at the time. The Ottomans invaded Cyprus, and the threat provoked an alliance among the Mediterranean Christian states, chief among whom were Venice and Spain. The Turks managed to conquer the island, but the Christian fleet arrived to defeat them in a battle of annihilation on 7 October 1571. The {{iron|y}}ic result was that the Turks lost the main battle but ended up with the island. However, arguably this was a PyrrhicVictory for the Turks as so many skilled sailors and warriors were lost that the Turkish fleet would be incapable of major effective operations for a generation -- the galleys themselves were rebuilt quickly but fleets at the time depended so much on the skill of sailors that this was something of a bluff -- by which time its preferred methods were so obsolete that recovery was impossible.

This battle was a [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome Crowning Moment of Awesome]] for the Christian powers and was celebrated as such. It was the last major galley battle before galleys were superseded by [[WoodenShipsAndIronMen great sailing warships]].

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First it was seen unambiguously as a great and momentous victory, then there was the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time, in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position in the immediate aftermath of the battle. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval power, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans. What battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. Therefore, in a greater sense, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

If this position is taken to its logical conclusion, this battle gave Christian empires control not only over most of the world's seas, but the world itself. Ottoman control of eastern trade routes meant the Turks had easy access to the riches of the East, while European powers were forced to develop their naval technology in order to find alternate routes, either West (leading to the discovery of America) or South (around Africa). Europe would be more than compensated for the extra effort. Control over the seas gave them control over trade, money, and everything that goes with it. European naval supremacy would lead directly to European imperialism and colonialism, meaning it would be western Europe that would dominate the world for the next couple of centuries. Turkey having any influence outside of its immediate vicinity was basically out of the question, while thanks to naval power Europe would eventually dominate as far away as China. Had the Turks won at Lepanto, it is possible that Western imperialism might have been seriously impeded, particularly in the areas bordering the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean, and all of history would have been changed.

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First there was the glorification, then the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time, in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position and how they chose to view the battle in the immediate aftermath. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval power, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans. What battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. In a greater sense therefore, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

If this position is taken to its logical conclusion, this battle gave Christian empires control not only over most of the world's seas, but the world itself. Ottoman control of eastern trade routes meant the Turks had easy access to the riches of the East, while European powers were forced to develop their naval technology in order to find alternate routes, either West (leading to the discovery of America) or South (around Africa). Europe would be more than compensated for the extra effort. Control over the seas gave them control over trade, money, and everything that goes with it. European naval supremacy would lead directly to European imperialism and colonialism, meaning it would be western Europe that would dominate the world for the next couple of centuries. Turkey having any influence outside of its immediate area was basically out of the question, while thanks to naval power Europe would eventually come to dominate as far away as China. Had the Turks won at Lepanto, it is possible that Western imperialism might have been seriously impeded, particularly in the areas bordering the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Red Sea, and Indian Ocean, and all of history would have been changed.

Bottom line: it was important, an event on par with the Naval Battle of Actium fought not too far away many centuries earlier.

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First there was the glorification, then the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time, in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position and how they chose to view the battle in the immediate aftermath. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete against European naval power, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their naval technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans. What battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. In a greater sense therefore, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.

The historical significance of the battle is controversial to this day. First there was the glorification, then the backlash, then the backlash to the backlash, and so on. Evaluations are often colored by nationalism, pro-western bias, anti-western bias, or any number of historical frameworks. At the time, in the West it was seen unambiguously as a historical turning-point and a great, even miraculous victory attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary. Revisionists portray the battle as an inconsequential side-show, pointing out that the Turks quickly rebuilt their fleet, kept Cyprus, and continued the war, while the Christians did not regain any significant territory. This was the official Ottoman position and how they chose to view the battle in the immediate aftermath. The post-revisionist view is that the battle ''was'' important in that the Ottoman Empire never again attempted to seriously compete with European naval power, with the gap between them only continuing to grow over the coming decades. The Ottomans quickly rebuilt their fleet, but mostly avoided engaging the Europeans in naval combat, as their naval technology and tactics continued to fall behind the Europeans. What battles the Ottomans did engage in, they mostly lost. In a greater sense therefore, this battle was the point where Christian navies took control of the world's oceans.