George Cassar (Ed.), From the Great Siege to the Battle of Lepanto: The life and times of Malta and the Order of St John, Sacra Militia Foundation Publication, 2011, 192 pp. € 18.
The six years between the siege of Malta and the naval battle off Lepanto were decisive ones not only for Malta and the Order of St John, but also in a way for the Ottoman empire and Europe.
These years were marked by the formation of the Holy League that would be tested and emerge victorious in the last battle fought with galleys in the Mediterranean, that involved 500 ships and over 170,000 men and was basically ‘a battle of civilizations’.
With the probability of another full-scale assault on the island practically eliminated, the order could now come to terms with a long-term residence in Malta and set about its definitive fortification and embellishment. The building of the ‘most humble’ city of Valletta was a clear statement that anchors had been dropped.
The seven scholarly papers in the latest publication of the Sacra Militia Foundation deal with this short but crucial period. This is the third of such focused publications by the foundation which are significant contributions to Melitensia and the history of the Order of St John.
Joseph Muscat, Malta’s foremost maritime historian gives an extensive account of the battle that could easily have been published a monograph.
Lepanto was a classic naval battle that degenerated into a bloody free-for-all of desperate fighting with the outcome hanging in the balance. The author explains the background of the setting up of the Holy League, a victory for the indefatigable Pius V in the face of conflicting nationalistic interests.
Another fascinating aspect is the explanation of the various types of vessels and their armaments and battle tactics which are vital for the full understanding of how this momentous clash developed.
The actual battle on October 7 developed into five distinct phases. By 2.30 p.m. the Turks had run out of most of their ammunition and resorted to throwing whatever came into their hands, including oranges and lemons.
Two hours later, the battle was lost and won. The Turks lost an entire fleet and 30,000 men, while the Christians lost around 8,000.
Gerard Bugeja presents an excellent translation of a long letter sent by Giano Pelusio of Crotone exhorting the kings and princes of Europe to come to the aid of Malta as it was being assailed by the Turks in 1565.
This is yet another precious contemporary account, even though it contains nothing really new, which confirms how important the event was considered at that time.
Pelusio had no doubts that a victory in Malta would have been followed by an invasion of Sicily and the Italian mainland. The translation, which is accompanied by the whole original text, would have benefited had its many historical and literary references and allusions been explained by means of footnotes, since many require a very specialised knowledge.
Thomas Freller, the only foreign contributor to the volume and who has written extensively about Maltese history, writes a wide-ranging account of the geo-political situation of the Mediterranean in the mid-16th century that serves to give the necessary details to Pelusio’s letter.
Freller uses his typical wide-ranging approach which shows he is as comfortable dealing with the large-scale picture as he is dealing with particular issues.
The author stresses this is a real watershed period as far as the order was concerned. While the chivalric ideals still sounded nice to many imbued with old ideals, the new developing commercial interests were starting to change the perception of the order from a defender of the faith to an obstacle to trade and commerce. This would make itself felt in the following century and become overwhelming in the 18th.
Cultural historian Carmel Cassar analyses the ritual, splendour, and religious devotions connected with the festivals celebrating the siege in 17th century Malta.
Celebrations of past events, military victories in particular, are useful in drumming up nationalistic feelings and contribute to the pride people have in their history.
This was well-realised by the order, which expended great time, money, and effort to pass on this message to the population. In the local situation it would also serve to underscore the Christianity, which was considered an essential aspect of its identity.
Cassar’s analysis focuses partly on the celebration of the occurrence in 1645 but describes the entire background in the local context as well as in that of neighbouring Catholic states.
Two studies deal with the building of Valletta. Conrad Thake discusses the city from the viewpoint of Renaissance city-planning. The paper refers to Laparelli’s problem in establishing the layout of the new city in view of its notorious topographic difficulties and the Renaissance philosophy regarding the disposition of the perfect city.
The order’s original ideas can be seen in the Capitoli, which the author presents as a short appendix and which grow into quite some detail about how the process was to be carried out.
Simon Mercieca writes reflections abut the urban development of the city. The ongoing publication of the papers of Francesco Laparelli archives, especially by Pirazzoli of the University of Florence, are contributing to a greater understanding of Laparelli’s role and contribution.
Cassar writes about the magistracies of Jean de Valette (incidentally his name in no fewer than four different variants in the publication) and Pietro del Monte.
The former was the great battle leader and the visionary who insisted on building the city that was named after him and which meant the order had definitely cast its anchors on Malta.
Del Monte had the difficult task of seeing to the continuation of the project in the face of great financial difficulties and Turkish re-armament, and was the one to see the transfer of the order’s headquarters from across the harbour.
Less than four months after Lepanto, del Monte was dead – but by then the die had been cast.