Ottoman occupation of Toulon
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The Ottoman wintering in Toulon occurred during the winter of 1543–44, following the Franco-Ottoman Siege of Nice, as part of the combined operations under the
Franco-Ottoman alliance The Franco-Ottoman Alliance, also known as the Franco-Turkish Alliance, was an alliance established in 1536 between the King of France Francis I and the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire Suleiman I. The strategic and sometimes tactical alliance was o ...
.


Wintering in Toulon

The Ottomans were offered by
Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...
to winter at
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
so that they could continue to harass the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
, and especially the coast of
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
and Italy: Only the heads of households were allowed to remain in the city, with the rest of the population having to leave, on pain of death. Francis I indemnified the inhabitants by exempting them from the '' taille'' tax for a period of 10 years. During the wintering of Ottoman admiral
Barbarossa Barbarossa, a name meaning "red beard" in Italian, primarily refers to: * Frederick Barbarossa (1122–1190), Holy Roman Emperor * Hayreddin Barbarossa (c. 1478–1546), Ottoman admiral * Operation Barbarossa, the Axis invasion of the Soviet Un ...
, the Toulon Cathedral was transformed into a
mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
, the call to prayer occurred five times a day, and Ottoman coinage was the currency of choice. According to an observer: "To see Toulon, one might imagine oneself at Constantinople". Throughout the winter, the Ottomans were able to use Toulon as a base to attack the Spanish and Italian coasts under Admiral
Salih Reis Salah Rais ( tr, Salih Reis, ar, صالح ريس) (c. 1488 – 1568) was the 7th King of Algiers, an Ottoman privateer and admiral. He is alternatively referred to as ''Sala Reis'', ''Salih Rais'', ''Salek Rais'' and ''Cale Arraez'' in seve ...
. They raided and bombarded
Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
in Spain, and
Sanremo Sanremo (; lij, Sanrémmo(ro) or , ) or San Remo is a city and comune on the Mediterranean coast of Liguria, in northwestern Italy. Founded in Roman times, it has a population of 55,000, and is known as a tourist destination on the Italian Rivie ...
, Borghetto Santo Spirito,
Ceriale Ceriale ( lij, O Çejâ, locally ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Savona in the Italian region of Liguria, located about southwest of Genoa and about southwest of Savona. Ceriale borders the following municipalities: Albenga ...
in the
Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...
, and defeated Italo-Spanish naval attacks. Christian slaves were being sold in Toulon throughout the period. Sailing with his whole fleet to
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
, Barbarossa negotiated with
Andrea Doria Andrea Doria, Prince of Melfi (; lij, Drîa Döia ; 30 November 146625 November 1560) was a Genoese statesman, ', and admiral, who played a key role in the Republic of Genoa during his lifetime. As the ruler of Genoa, Doria reformed the Re ...
the release of
Turgut Reis Dragut ( tr, Turgut Reis) (1485 – 23 June 1565), known as "The Drawn Sword of Islam", was a Muslim Ottoman naval commander, governor, and noble, of Turkish or Greek descent. Under his command, the Ottoman Empire's maritime power was extend ...
. Barbarossa found the Toulon base very pleasant and convenient, could refit his ships at the expense of France, and could maintain an effective blockade of Christian shipping. The Lord Lieutenant of Provence complained about Barbarossa that "he takes his ease while emptying the coffers of France". The Ottomans finally departed from their Toulon base after a stay of 8 months, on 23 May 1544, after Francis I had paid 800,000 ecus to Barbarossa.Crowley, p.75 All Turkish and Barbary corsairs had to be freed from French
galleys A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be use ...
also, as a condition to his departure. Barbarossa also pillaged 5 French ships in the harbour of Toulon in order to provision his fleet.


Return to Constantinople

Five French galleys, under the command of the "Général des galères" Captain Polin, accompanied Barbarossa’s fleet, on a diplomatic mission to Sultan Suleiman. The French fleet accompanied Barbarossa during his attacks on the west coast of Italy on the way to Constantinople, as he laid waste to the cities of Porto Ercole, Giglio,
Talamona Talamona ( Lombard: ''Talamuna'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Sondrio in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about west of Sondrio. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 4,623 and an a ...
,
Lipari Lipari (; scn, Lìpari) is the largest of the Aeolian Islands in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the northern coast of Sicily, southern Italy; it is also the name of the island's main town and ''comune'', which is administratively part of the Metropo ...
and took about 6,000 captives, but separated in
Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...
from Barbarossa’s fleet to continue alone to the Ottoman capital. This would be one of the last naval campaigns of Barbarossa, who died 2 years later in Constantinople in 1546.


Aftermath

Toulon would again be used as a safe harbour for several months by
Turgut Reis Dragut ( tr, Turgut Reis) (1485 – 23 June 1565), known as "The Drawn Sword of Islam", was a Muslim Ottoman naval commander, governor, and noble, of Turkish or Greek descent. Under his command, the Ottoman Empire's maritime power was extend ...
from August 1546, when he was pursued by the fleet of Genoese admiral
Andrea Doria Andrea Doria, Prince of Melfi (; lij, Drîa Döia ; 30 November 146625 November 1560) was a Genoese statesman, ', and admiral, who played a key role in the Republic of Genoa during his lifetime. As the ruler of Genoa, Doria reformed the Re ...
.


Notes


References

* Roger Crowley, ''Empire of the sea'', 2008 Faber & Faber {{ISBN, 978-0-571-23231-4 * Yann Bouvier
« Récits de voyage et représentation de l'espace. La Méditerranée de Jérôme Maurand, un espace vécu »
Mémoire de Master, Dir. par Pierre-Yves Beaurepaire, Université de Nice, 2007, 292 p

* Yann Bouvier
« Antoine Escalin des Aimars (1498?-1578) - De la Garde-Adhémar au siège de Nice, le parcours d'un Ambassadeur de François Ier »
''Recherches Régionales'', Nice, Conseil Général des Alpes-Maritimes, n°188, Octobre-décembre 2007, 28 pp. Naval history of the Ottoman Empire Military history of France Toulon Islam in France 1540s in France 1543 in France 1544 in France 1543 in the Ottoman Empire 1544 in the Ottoman Empire Italian Wars