Siege of Malta
Part of the Ottoman wars in Europe and Ottoman-Habsburg wars
The siege of Malta - Arrival of the Turkish fleet Matteo Perez d' Aleccio
Date 18 May 1565 – 11 September 1565 Location Island of Malta Result Decisive Knight Hospitaller victory
Belligerents
Ottoman Empire	Knights Hospitaller Spanish Empire
Commanders
Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha Piyale Pasha Turgut Reis † Salih Reis Uluç Ali Reis	Jean de Valette
Strength
22,000-48,000	6,100-8,500
Casualties and losses
< 25,000 - 35,000	2,500, plus 7,000 civilians, and 500 slaves

For the 1940-2 siege see "Siege of Malta (World War II)"

The Siege of Malta (also known as the Great Siege of Malta) took place in 1565 when the Ottoman Empire invaded the island, then held by the Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, Knights of Malta, Knights of Rhodes, and Chevaliers of Malta)

The siege, one of the bloodiest and most fiercely contested in history, was won by the knights and became one of the most celebrated events of the sixteenth century. The wars of the Ottoman Empire in Europe are also sometimes referred to as the Ottoman Wars or as Turkish Wars, particularly in older European Matteo Perez d'Aleccio (1547&ndash-1616 was an Italian painter of devotional historical and maritime subjects during the Mannerist period Events 1152 - Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. Events 9 - The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ends 506 - The Bishops of Visigothic Gaul Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha (or simply Lala Mustafa Pasha) (c 1500-1580 was an Ottoman general and statesman Piyale Pasha (c 1515-1578 also known as Piale Pasha in the West or Pialí Bajá in Spain Turkish: Piyale Paşa) was an Ottoman-Turkish Turgut Reis ( 1485 - June 23, 1565) was a Turkish Privateer and Ottoman Admiral as well as Bey of Salih Reis (1488 ca - 1568 was a Turkish Privateer and Ottoman Admiral. Uluj Ali ( Turkish: Uluç Ali Reis, later Uluç Ali Paşa and finally Kılıç Ali Paşa; born Giovanni Dionigi Galeni; 1519 Jean Parisot de Valette (born in 1494 died in Malta 21 August 1568) was born into a noble family in Quercy. The Siege of Malta was a significant Military event in the Mediterranean Theatre of World War II that occurred between 1940 and 1943 on the island Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St Voltaire may have exaggerated when he said, "Nothing is more well known than the siege of Malta," but it unquestionably put an end to the European perception of Ottoman invincibility and marked a new phase in Spanish domination of the Mediterranean. ^[1] Nevertheless, the siege should not be viewed in isolation. Rather, it was the climax of an escalating contest between the Spanish and Ottoman empires for control of the Mediterranean, a contest that included a previous attack on Malta in 1551 by the Turkish corsair Turgut Reis and which in 1560 had resulted in the utter destruction of the Spanish armada by the Turks at the battle of Djerba. Turgut Reis ( 1485 - June 23, 1565) was a Turkish Privateer and Ottoman Admiral as well as Bey of

The Knights of Malta

This Order of the Knights Hospitaller of St. The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem had become known as the Knights of Malta since 1530, when on 26 October of that year, Philippe Villiers de l'Isle-Adam, Grand Master of the Knights, sailed into Malta's Grand Harbour with a number of his followers to take claim of the island, which had been granted to them by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Events 740 - An Earthquake strikes Constantinople, causing much damage and death Philippe Villiers de L'Isle-Adam (1464 &ndash 1534 was a prominent member of the Knights Hospitaller at Rhodes and later Malta. Grand Master is the typical Title of the supreme head (in some national orders below the Sovereign Head of state of various orders of knighthood including Military orders Charles V (24 February 1500 &ndash 21 September 1558 was ^[2]

Seven years earlier, at the end of 1522, the Knights had been forced from their base on Rhodes by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent after a siege of six months' duration. Rhodes (Ρόδος Ródos, ˈɾo̞ðo̞s Rodi ردوس Rodos; Ladino: Rodi or Rodes) is a Greek island Suleiman I (سليمان Sulaymān, Süleyman almost always Kanuni Sultan Süleyman) ( 6 November 1494 5/ 6 September 1566 Between 1523 and 1530 the Knights lacked a permanent home, until Charles offered them Malta and Gozo in return for one falcon sent annually to the Viceroy of Sicily and a solemn mass to be celebrated on All Saints Day. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Gozo ( Għawdex) is an Island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea, the island is part of the Southern European As a proviso, Charles also required the Knights to garrison Tripoli on the North African coast, which was in territory controlled by an Ottoman ally, the Barbary corsairs. Tripolis ( Arabic: طرابلس Ṭarābulus - also طرابلس الغرب Ṭarā-bu-lus al-Gharb Libyan vernacular: Corsairs were French Privateers from the north-western French port of St-Malo, located on the northern coast of Brittany.

The Knights accepted the offer reluctantly because compared to Rhodes, Malta was a small, desolate island, and for some time many of the Knights' leaders clung to the dream of recapturing Rhodes. Nevertheless, the Order soon turned Malta into a naval base, continuing to prey on Islamic shipping. The island's position in the center of the Mediterranean made it a strategically crucial gateway between East and West, especially as the Barbary corsairs increased their forays into the western Mediterranean throughout the 1540s and 1550s.

In particular, the corsair Turgut Reis was proving to be a major threat to the Christian nations of the central Mediterranean. Turgut Reis ( 1485 - June 23, 1565) was a Turkish Privateer and Ottoman Admiral as well as Bey of Turgut and the Knights were continually at loggerheads. In 1551, Turgut and the Ottoman admiral Sinan decided to take Malta and invaded the island with a force of about 10,000 men. Note There were several prominent military and government officers with the name Sinan Pasha in Ottoman history After only a few days, however, Turgut broke off the siege and moved to the neighboring island of Gozo, where he bombarded the citadel for several days. The Knights' governor on Gozo, Galatian de Sesse, having decided that resistance was futile, threw open the doors to the citadel, and the corsairs sacked the town. Taking virtually the entire population of Gozo (approximately 5,000 people) into captivity, Turgut and Sinan sailed south to Tripoli, where they soon seized the Knights' garrison there. A local leader, Aga Morat, was initially installed as governor, but subsequently Turgut himself took control of the area.

Expecting another Ottoman invasion within a year, then Grand Master of the Knights, Juan de Homedes, ordered the strengthening of Fort Saint Angelo at the tip of Birgu (now Vittoriosa), as well as the construction of two new forts, Fort Saint Michael on the Senglea promontory and Fort Saint Elmo at the seaward end of Mount Sciberras (now Valletta). Fra Juan de Homedes y Coscon (also known as Jean de Homedes was a Spanish knight and member of the Knights Hospitaller (Knights of St Fort St Angelo is a large Fortification in Birgu, Malta. History The date of its original construction is unknown and may date back Birgu ( Città Vittoriosa or Birgu) is a small city in Malta that played a vital role in the Siege of Malta in 1565. Fort St Michael was a Fortification on the island of Malta. A fort of that name was built by the Knights of Malta between 1551 and 1565 on the Senglea ( Città Invicta or Senglea) is a fortified City in the east of Malta, mainly in the Grand Harbour area Fort Saint Elmo is a Fortification in Valletta, Malta. It stands on the seaward shore of the Sciberras Peninsula that divides Marsamxett Harbour Valletta ( Belt Valletta or Città Umilissima) is the capital city of Malta. The two new forts were built in the remarkably short period of six months in 1552. All three forts proved crucial during the Great Siege.

The next several years were relatively calm, although the guerre de course, or running battle, between Muslims and Christians continued unabated. In 1557 Jean Parisot de Valette was elected Grand Master of the Order. Jean Parisot de Valette (born in 1494 died in Malta 21 August 1568) was born into a noble family in Quercy. He continued his raids on non-Christian shipping, and his private vessels are known to have taken some 3,000 Muslim and Jewish slaves during his tenure as Grand Master. ^[3]

By 1559, however, Turgut was causing the Christian powers such distress, even having raided the coasts of Spain, that Philip II organized the largest naval expedition in fifty years to evict the corsair from Tripoli. Philip II (Felipe II de España Filipe I ( May 21, 1527 &ndash September 13 1598) was King of Spain from 1556 until 1598 The Knights joined the expedition, which consisted of about 54 galleys and 14,000 men. This ill-fated campaign climaxed in the battle of Djerba in May 1560, when Ottoman admiral Piyale Pasha surprised the Christian fleet off the Tunisian island of Djerba, capturing or sinking about half the enemy ships. Piyale Pasha (c 1515-1578 also known as Piale Pasha in the West or Pialí Bajá in Spain Turkish: Piyale Paşa) was an Ottoman-Turkish Djerba (also transliterated as Jerba, Jarbah or Girba جربة is with its 514 km² the largest Island off North Africa For the Christians it was a complete disaster and it marked the high point of Ottoman domination of the Mediterranean.

Toward the Siege

After Djerba there could be little doubt that the Turks would eventually attack Malta again. In August 1560, Jean de Valette sent out an order to all the Order's priories for the knights to be prepared to return to Malta as soon a citazione (summons) was issued. ^[4] The Turks in fact made a strategic error in not attacking at once, while the Spanish fleet lay in ruins, and the five year wait allowed Spain to rebuild her forces. ^[5]

Heedless of the danger, the Knights continued to prey on Turkish shipping. In mid 1564, Romegas, the Order's most notorious seafarer, captured several large merchantmen, including one that belonged to the Chief Eunuch of the Seraglio, and took numerous high-ranking prisoners, including the governor of Cairo, the governor of Alexandria, and the former nurse of Suleiman's daughter. Mathurin d’Aux de Lescout, called Romegas or Mathurin Romegas (born 1525 or 1528 died November 1581 in Rome was a scion of the aristocratic Gascony family of A seraglio (also serraglio) is the sequestered living quarters used by wives and Concubines in a Turkish household from an Italian variant of Romegas' exploits gave the Turks a casus belli, and by the end of 1564, Suleiman had resolved to wipe the Knights of Malta off the face of the earth.

By early 1565, Grand Master de Valette's network of spies in Constantinople had informed him that the invasion was imminent. Constantinople (Κωνσταντινούπολις Konstantinoúpolis, or gr ἡ Πόλις hē Polis, Latin: la CONSTANTINOPOLIS Valette set about raising troops in Italy, laying in stores and finishing repairs on Fort Saint Angelo, Fort Saint Michael and Fort Saint Elmo. Fort St Angelo is a large Fortification in Birgu, Malta. History The date of its original construction is unknown and may date back Fort St Michael was a Fortification on the island of Malta. A fort of that name was built by the Knights of Malta between 1551 and 1565 on the Fort Saint Elmo is a Fortification in Valletta, Malta. It stands on the seaward shore of the Sciberras Peninsula that divides Marsamxett Harbour

The Armies

The Turkish armada, which set sail from Constantinople at the end of March was, by all accounts, one of the largest assembled since antiquity. According to one of the earliest and most complete histories of the siege, that of the Order's official historian Giacomo Bosio, the fleet consisted of 193 vessels, which included 131 galleys, 7 galliots (small galleys) and 4 galleasses (large galleys), the remainder being transport vessels, etc. Galleys redirects here For other uses see Galley (disambiguation. Galiots (or galliots) were types of ships from the Age of Sail. A galley (from Greek γαλέα - galea is an ancient Ship which can be propelled entirely by human oarsmen, used for Warfare ^[6] Contemporary letters from Don Garcia, the Viceroy of Sicily, give similar numbers. "^[7]

The forces as given by the Italian-Spanish mercenary Francisco Balbi di Correggio in his famous siege diary are

Balbi's figures, however, must be treated with a great deal of skepticism. The Knight Hipolito Sans, in a lesser-known account, also lists about 48,000 invaders, although it is not clear how independent his work is from Balbi's. ^[8] Other contemporary authors give much lower figures. In a letter written to Philip II only four days after the siege began, de Valette himself says that "the number of soldiers that will make land is between 15,000 and 16,000, including seven thousand arquebusiers or more, that is four thousand janissaries and three thousand spahis. The Arquebus (sometimes spelled harquebus, harkbus or hackbut; from Dutch haakbus, meaning "hook gun" is The Janissaries (derived from Ottoman Turkish ينيچرى ( yeniçeri) meaning "new soldier" comprised Infantry units that formed Sipahi ( Ottoman Turkish: ota سپاهی also transliterated as Spahi, Sepahi, and Spakh; traditionally rendered as Spahia "^[9] On the other hand, in a letter to the Prior of Germany a month after the siege, de Valette writes, "This fleet consisted of two hundred and fifty ships, triremes, biremes and other vessels; the nearest estimate we could make of the enemy's force was 40,000 fighting men. "^[10] That de Valette gives the enemy fleet as 250 vessels, a number much above any one else's, shows that the Grand Master himself was not above exaggeration.

Indeed, a letter written during the siege by the liaison with Sicily, Captain Vincenzo Anastagi, states the enemy force was only 22,000 and several other letters of the time give similar numbers. ^[11][12] However, Bosio arrives at a total of about 30,000, that is, consistent with Balbi's "named troops. "^[13] Another early history gives essentially the same figure. ^[14]

Considering the capacity of sixteenth-century galleys, whose usual contingent of soldiers was between 70 and 150 men, it seems clear that Balbi's figure is an exaggeration, whereas Anastagi, who was attempting to convince the Viceroy of Sicily to send a relief as soon as possible, conceivably "lowballed" the numbers. We will probably never know the true size of the Turkish force, but given that several historians came up with specific--but not identical--lists totalling slightly under 30,000 (exclusive of the corsairs, who may have added another 6,000 upon arrival), that is a reasonable guess.

On the side of the defenders, Balbi's numbers may be somewhat low; there were indeed apparently only about 550 Knights on the island, but Bosio gives the total number of defenders as 8,500. Most of these, though, would have been Maltese irregulars, unschooled in the use of arms.

The Arrival of the Ottomans

De Vallette prior to the arrival of the Turks ordered that all the crops be harvested, including unripened grain, thus depriving the Turks of any local food supplies. Furthermore all the wells were poisoned, with bitter herbs and dead animals. The Turkish armada arrived at dawn on Friday 18 May, but did not at once make land. Events 1152 - Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. Rather, the fleet sailed up the southern coast of the island, turned around and finally anchored at Marsaxlokk (Marsa Sirocco) harbour, nearly 10 kilometers from the Great Port, as the Grand Harbour was then known.

Turgut Reis

According to most accounts, in particular Balbi's, a dispute arose between the leader of the land forces, Vizier Lala Mustafa Pasha, and the supreme naval commander, Piyale Pasha, about where to anchor the fleet. Turgut Reis ( 1485 - June 23, 1565) was a Turkish Privateer and Ottoman Admiral as well as Bey of A Vizier ( - wazīr) (sometimes also spelled Vazir Vizir Vasir Wazir Vesir, or Vezir - grammatical vowel changes are common in many western Asian Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha (or simply Lala Mustafa Pasha) (c 1500-1580 was an Ottoman general and statesman Piyale Pasha (c 1515-1578 also known as Piale Pasha in the West or Pialí Bajá in Spain Turkish: Piyale Paşa) was an Ottoman-Turkish Piyale wished to shelter it at Marsamxett bay, just north of the Grand Harbour, in order to avoid the sirocco and be nearer the action, but Mustafa disagreed, because to anchor the fleet there would require first reducing Fort St. Sirocco, scirocco, jugo or rarely siroc is a Mediterranean Wind that comes from Elmo, which guarded the entrance to the harbour. Mustafa intended, according to these accounts, to attack the unprotected old capital Mdina, which stood in the center of the island, then attack Forts St. Mdina, Imdina, Città Vecchia, or Città Notabile, ( English: Notabile, or Medina) is the old capital of Malta Angelo and Michael by land. If so, an attack on Fort St. Elmo would have been entirely unnecessary. Nevertheless, Mustafa relented, apparently believing only a few days would be necessary to destroy St. Elmo, and after guns were emplaced, a bombardment opened at the end of May.

It certainly seems true that Suleiman had seriously blundered in splitting the command three ways--not only between Piyale and Mustafa, but ordering both of them to defer to Turgut when he arrived from Tripoli. Contemporary letters from spies in Constantinople, however, suggest that the plan had always been to take Fort St. Elmo first. ^[15]. In any case, for the Turks to concentrate their efforts on it proved a crucial mistake.

The Siege

Fort St. Elmo Captured

Fort St. Elmo was manned by only 100 or so knights and 500 soldiers, but de Valette had ordered them to fight to the last, intending them to hold out for a relief promised by Don Garcia, Viceroy of Sicily. The unremitting bombardment from three dozen guns on Mt. Sciberras reduced the fort to rubble within a week, but de Valette evacuated the wounded nightly and resupplied the fort from across the harbour. Still, by 8 June the Knights were on the verge of mutiny and sent a message to the Grand Master asking to be allowed a sortie to die with sword in hand. Events 68 - The Roman Senate accepts emperor Galba. 536 - St Silverius becomes Pope (probable This was the last thing that De Valette wanted. A heroic sortie would be futile, de Valette was winning time. St Elmo delayed the main assault. De Valette's response was to pay the soldiers and send a commission across the harbour to investigate the state of the fort. When the commissioners returned with differing opinions, de Valette said he would send replacements if the Knights were too afraid to die as he had ordered them to.

The siege of Malta - Capture of Fort St Elmo by Matteo Perez d' Aleccio

Thus shamed, the garrison held on, repulsing numerous assaults by the enemy. Matteo Perez d'Aleccio (1547&ndash-1616 was an Italian painter of devotional historical and maritime subjects during the Mannerist period Turgut eventually interdicted the traffic across the harbour and finally, on 23 June, the Turks were able to take what was left of Fort St. Events 1180 - First Battle of Uji, starting the Genpei War in Japan 1305 - The Flemish Elmo, killing all the defenders but for nine Knights, who were captured by the Corsairs, and a few others who managed to escape. Turgut himself, however, died without savoring the victory. He was mortally wounded on 17 June, according to Bosio by a lucky shot from Fort St. Events 1462 - Vlad III the Impaler attempts to assassinate Mehmed II ( The Night Attack) forcing him to retreat Angelo, according to Balbi and Sans by an instance of "friendly fire" from Turkish cannons. Balbi says Turgut died before the day was out, while others have him languishing on until the day that St. Elmo was captured. Although the Turks did succeed in their objective in capturing St. Elmo, and Piyale's fleet was soon anchored in Marsamxett, the siege of Fort St. Elmo had cost the Turks over 4,000 men, including half of their best troops, the Janissaries. In that sense it was certainly a pyrrhic victory, but Mustafa had no intention of giving up. A Pyrrhic victory (ˈpɪrɪk is a victory with devastating cost to the victor The bodies of the knights were decapitated and their bodies floated across the bay on mock crucifixes. In response, de Valette, had all his Turkish prisoners massacred and their heads fired into the Turkish camp. This was a deliberate ploy, not a crude vengeance, as it sent the signal that no quarter would be given nor could the knights expect any, so it was imperative to hold out.

Panic

By this time, word of the siege was spreading. As soldiers and adventurers gathered in Sicily for Don Garcia's relief, panic spread as well. There can be little doubt that the stakes were high, perhaps higher than at any other time in the contest between the Ottoman Empire and Europe. Queen Elizabeth I of England is said to have remarked:

All contemporary sources indicate the Turks intended to proceed to the Tunisian fortress of La Goletta and wrest it from the Spaniards, and Suleiman had also spoken of invading Europe through Italy. Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands La Goulette (حلق الوادي Halq al Wadi) is the port of Tunis, the capital of Tunisia.

Although Don Garcia did not at once send the promised relief (troops were still being levied), he was persuaded to release an advance force of some 600 men. After several attempts, this piccolo soccorso managed to land on Malta in early July and sneak into Birgu, raising the spirits of the besieged garrison immensely.

The Senglea Peninsula

On 15 July, Mustafa ordered a double attack against the Senglea peninsula. Events 1099 - First Crusade: Christian soldiers take the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the final He had ported 100 small vessels across Mt. Sciberras to the Grand Harbour, intending to launch a sea attack against the promontory using about 1,000 Janissaries, while the Corsairs attacked Fort St. Michael on the landward end.

West face of the seaward bastion at Fort St Angelo

Luckily for the Maltese, a defector from the Turkish side warned de Valette about the impending tactics and the Grand Master had time to construct a palisade along the Senglea promontory, which successfully helped to deflect the attack. Fort St Angelo is a large Fortification in Birgu, Malta. History The date of its original construction is unknown and may date back palisade is a steel or wooden Fence or wall of variable height usually used as a defensive structure Nevertheless, the assault probably would have succeeded had not the Turkish boats come into point-blank range (less than 200 yards) of a sea-level battery of five cannons that had been constructed by Commander Chevalier de Guiral at the base of Fort St. In Military organizations an artillery battery is a unit of Guns mortars or Rockets so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield Angelo which sole purpose was to stop such an amphibious attack. Just two salvos sank all but one of the vessels, killing or drowning over 800 of the attackers. The land attack failed simultaneously when relief forces were able to cross to Ft. St. Michael across a floating bridge, with the result that Malta was saved for the day.

The Turks by now had ringed Birgu and Senglea with some 65 siege guns and subjected the town to what was probably the most sustained bombardment in history up to that time. (Balbi claims that 130,000 cannonballs were fired during the course of the siege. ) Having largely destroyed one of the town's crucial bastions, Mustafa ordered another massive double assault on 7 August, this time against Fort St. A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the main enclosure of a Fortification, situated in both corners of a straight wall (termed curtain with the shape Events 322 BC - Battle of Crannon between Athens and Macedon following the death of Alexander the Great. Michael and Birgu itself. On this occasion, the Turks breached the town walls and it seemed that the siege was over, but unexpectedly the invaders retreated. As it happened, the cavalry Commander Captain Vincenzo Anastagi, on his daily sortie from Mdina, had attacked the unprotected Turkish field hospital, massacring the sick and wounded. The Turks, thinking the Christian relief had arrived from Sicily, broke off their assault.

St. Michael and Birgu

After the attack of 7 August, the Turks resumed their bombardment of St. Events 322 BC - Battle of Crannon between Athens and Macedon following the death of Alexander the Great. Michael and Birgu, mounting at least one other major assault against the town on 19-21 August. Events 1192 - Minamoto Yoritomo becomes Seii Tai Shōgun and the De facto ruler of Japan. What actually happened during those days of intense fighting is not entirely clear.

The battlements at Birgu

Bradford (in the climax of the siege) has a Turkish mine opening the town walls and the Grand Master saving the day by running into the breach. Balbi, in his diary entry for 20 August, says only that de Valette was told the Turks were within the walls; the Grand Master ran to "the threatened post where his presence worked wonders. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine Sword in hand, he remained at the most dangerous place until the Turks retired. "^[16] Neither does Bosio mention a successful detonation of a mine. Rather, a panic ensues when the townspeople spy the Turkish standards outside the walls, the Grand Master runs thither, but finds no Turks. In the meantime, a cannoneer atop Ft. St. Angelo, stricken by the same panic, kills a number of townsfolk by "friendly fire". Friendly fire or non-hostile fire, a term originally adopted by the United States military, refers to fire from one's own side or allied forces as ^[17]

Fort St. Michael and Mdina

The situation was sufficiently dire that, at some point in August, the Council of Elders decided to abandon the town and retreat to Fort St. Angelo. De Valette, however, vetoed this proposal. If he guessed that the Turks were losing their will, he was correct. Although the bombardment and minor assaults continued, the invaders were stricken by an increasing desperation. Towards the end of August, the Turks attempted to take Fort St. Michael, first with the help of a manta (similar to a Testudo formation), a small siege engine covered with shields, then by use of a full-blown siege tower. In Ancient Roman Warfare the testudo or tortoise formation was a formation used commonly by the Roman Legions during battles particularly sieges A siege tower (or in the Middle Ages a Belfry) is a specialized Siege engine, constructed to protect assailants and ladders while approaching In both cases, Maltese engineers tunneled out through the rubble and destroyed the constructions with point-blank salvoes of chain shot. In Artillery, chain-shot is an obsolete type of naval ammunition formed of two sub-calibre balls or half-balls chained together

The city of Mdina

At the beginning of September, the weather was turning and Mustafa ordered a march on Mdina, intending to winter there. However, his troops by then hadn't the stomach for another assault and the attack failed to occur. By 8 September, coincidentally the feast of the Birth of the Virgin, the Turks had embarked their artillery and were preparing to leave the island, having lost perhaps a third of their men to fighting and disease. Events 70 - Roman forces under Titus sack Jerusalem. 1264 - The Statute of Kalisz

The previous day, however, Don Garcia had at last landed about 8,000 men at St. Paul's bay on the north end of the island. They engaged the dispirited Turks once more on the 11th of September, after which the surviving invaders hurriedly departed.

The Aftermath

The siege of Malta - Flight of the Ottomans Matteo Perez d' Aleccio

The number of casualties is in as much dispute as the number of invaders. Matteo Perez d'Aleccio (1547&ndash-1616 was an Italian painter of devotional historical and maritime subjects during the Mannerist period Balbi gives 35,000 Turkish deaths, which seems implausible, Bosio 30,000 casualties (including sailors). Several other sources give about 25,000. ^[18]

Malta had lost a third of the knights and a third of its inhabitants. Birgu and Senglea were essentially leveled. But such was the gratitude of Europe for the knights' heroic defense that money soon began pouring into the island, allowing de Valette to construct a fortified city, La Valetta, on Mt. Valletta ( Belt Valletta or Città Umilissima) is the capital city of Malta. Sciberras, which was designed so as never to allow the Turks to occupy the position again.

The Siege of Malta did little, if anything, to alter the balance of power in the Mediterranean,^[19] but it was the first true defeat of the Ottoman Empire in a century and lifted European morale immeasurably.

The Siege in recent historical fiction

Modern authors have attempted to capture the desperation and ferocity of the siege with varying degrees of success.

• Angels in Iron by Nicholas Prata remains faithful to the historical narrative and tells the story from a distinctly Catholic point of view.

• The novel Ironfire: An Epic Novel of Love and War by David Ball is the story of kidnapping, slavery and revenge leading up to the siege of Malta. David or Dave Ball may refer to David Ball (musician (born 1959 English electronic musician (usually known as Dave Dave Ball (musician It takes a somewhat less sympathetic view of the Catholic Knights Hospitaller and maintains a more romantic approach. (British edition called,"The Sword and the Scimitar")

• The novel The Religion by Tim Willocks (2006) tells the story of the siege through the eyes of a fictional mercenary called Mattias Tannhauser, who is on Malta fighting (at times) alongside the Knights (referred to primarily as The Religion), while trying to locate the bastard son of a Maltese noblewoman. Tim Willocks is a British doctor and Novelist. An experienced Psychiatrist, Willocks has worked for some years on the rehabilitation of the sufferers of In this attempt his opponent is a high-ranking member of the Inquisition. The Roman Inquisition was a system of Tribunals developed by the Holy See during the second half of the 16th century responsible for prosecuting individuals accused The story presents a picture of both sides of the conflict without romanticising or sanitising the content for modern consumption.

• The novel Blood Rock by James Jackson tells the story of the siege with a focus on a fictional English mercenary called Christian Hardy. James Jackson may refer to James Jackson (politician (1757&ndash1806 Revolutionary War soldier Georgia Congressman Senator and Governor Throughout the siege, Hardy works to discover the identity of the traitor within The Religion who works to ensure a Moslem victory. The traitor works on behalf of the French king, Francis I, who believed that peace with the Ottoman Empire was in the French interest and that the marauding Knights Hospitaller, by annoying the Sultan, threatened the security of France.

• It is the main plot of Pirates of Christ, the historical novel by Edward Lamond.

• There was a reference to the Siege of Malta in Age of Empires 3, where Morgan Black, supposedly one of the Knights Hospitaller, battles the Ottomans and later travels to the New World to fight them there among other enemies. Age of Empires III (also called AOE III) is a real-time strategy (RTS game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by His grandchild, great-grandchild, great-great-grandchild, and great-great-great grandchild continue the plot later on.

• Sea of Faith by Stephen O'Shea. Places the siege into the context of the ebb and flow of Islam and Christianity in the Mediterranean and ends with a summary of the Siege of Malta.

References

See also

• List of sieges
• Barbary pirates
• Spanish Empire
• Siege of Rhodes (1522)
• History of the Ottoman Navy
• List of Ottoman sieges and landings

External references

• Francesco Balbi di Correggio translated by H. A Siege is a prolonged Military Assault and Blockade on a City or Fortress with the intent of conquering by force or Attrition The Barbary pirates, also sometimes called Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim Pirates and Privateers that operated from North Africa, from The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries The Siege of Rhodes of 1522 was the second and ultimately successful attempt by the Ottoman Empire to expel the Knights of Rhodes from their island The Turkish Navy was once the largest sea power in the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, Red Sea, Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean The following is an List of Ottoman sieges and landings from the 14th century to World War I. A. Balbi (1568). The Siege Of Malta 1565. Copenhagen 1961.  
• Francesco Balbi di Correggio translated Ernle Bradford (1568 translated 1965). "chapter II", The Siege Of Malta 1565. Penguin 2003. ISBN 0-14-101202-1.  
• Ernle Bradford (1961). The Great Siege: Malta 1565. Wordsworth 1999. ISBN 1-84022-206-9.  
• Tim Pickles. Malta 1565: Last Battle of the Crusades; Osprey Campaign Series #50, Osprey Publishing, 1998.
• Stephen C. Spiteri. The Great Siege: Knights vs. Turks, 1565. Malta, The Author, 2005.
• Tony Rothman, "The Great Siege of Malta," in History Today, Jan. 2007.
• Bradford, Ernle, The Sultan's Admiral: The Life of Barbarossa, London, 1968.
• Wolf, John B. , The Barbary Coast: Algeria under the Turks, New York, 1979; ISBN 0-393-01205-0
• E. Hamilton Currey, “Sea-Wolves of the Mediterranean’’, London, 1910
• "History's bloodiest siege used human heads as cannonballs" by James Jackson - An account of the siege
• Images of Grandmaster de La Vallette from the Gallery of Grandmasters at the "Military History of Malta" website