The Victory of the West: The Great Christian-Muslim Clash at the Battle of Lepanto

by Capponi, Niccolo

• ISBN13: 9780306815447
• ISBN10: 0306815443
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-03-26
• Publisher: Perseus Books Group

Summary

The glow of the early afternoon sun hovered over the city of Rome, shining through the windows of the Vatican palace as Pope Pius V conversed with a group of close collaborators. The sixty-seven-year-old pontiff had many worries: Protestants were busy spreading their heresies all over Europe and the Ottomans' advance in the Mediterranean seemed unstoppable. Pius had done much to counter both perils, even managing to create a league of quarrelsome Christian princes to fight the Muslims. He knew that an allied fleet had been operating for some weeks in the Levant, and all this time the gaunt, deeply religious pope had been fasting and praying for divine aid against the Islamic menace. Suddenly Pius walked towards a window, opened it, and stood for some time looking at the sky. At length closing the shutters, he turned towards his treasurer Bartolomeo Busotti. "It is no time for business," he exclaimed, his face lit with joy. "Let us go and thank God, for this very moment our fleet has defeated the Turks." Book jacket.

Author Biography

Niccolò Capponi is an eminent military and Renaissance historian. He is a former fellow at the Medici Archive Project, and curator of the Capponi Archive. He lives in Florence, Italy.

Table of Contents

Author's Note	p. xv
Maps	p. xviii
Dramatis Personae	p. xxiii
Prologue	p. 1
The Waxing Crescent	p. 7
A House Divided	p. 46
Mediterranean Medley	p. 60
Build-up to Drama	p. 91
Cyprus	p. 119
A League of Mistrust	p. 153
The Cutting Edge	p. 179
Bragadin's Hide	p. 219
The 7th of October	p. 253
The Phoenix's Ashes	p. 287
Epilogue	p. 320
Battle Arrays	p. 325
Galley Armament	p. 332
Glossary	p. 335
Notes	p. 340
Bibliographical Note	p. 267
Bibliography	p. 374
Index	p. 401
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