The Second Ottoman–Venetian War was fought between the Islamic

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

and the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...

for control of the lands that were contested between the two parties in the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi ( Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans ...

Ionian Sea The Ionian Sea ( el, Ιόνιο Πέλαγος, ''Iónio Pélagos'' ; it, Mar Ionio ; al, Deti Jon ) is an elongated bay of the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Adriatic Sea to the north, and is bounded by Southern Italy, including ...

, and the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to th ...

. The war lasted from 1499 to 1503. The Turks, under the command of Admiral

Kemal Reis Kemal Reis (c. 1451 – 1511) was an Ottoman and Turkish privateer and admiral. He was also the paternal uncle of the famous Ottoman admiral and cartographer Piri Reis, who accompanied him in most of his important naval expeditions. Backgrou ...

, were victorious and forced the Venetians to recognize their gains in 1503.

The war

1499

In January 1499, Kemal Reis set sail from

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

with a force of 10

galley 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 u ...

s and 4 other types of ships, and in July 1499 met with the huge Ottoman fleet and took over its command in order to wage a large-scale war against the

. The Ottoman fleet consisted of 67 galleys, 20

galliot A galiot, galliot or galiote, was a small galley boat propelled by sail or oars. There are three different types of naval galiots that sailed on different seas. A ''galiote'' was a type of French flat-bottom river boat or barge and also a flat- ...

s, and about 200 smaller vessels. In August, Kemal Reis defeated the Venetian navy under the command of

Antonio Grimani Antonio Grimani (28 December 1434 – 7 May 1523) was the Doge of Venice from 1521 to 1523. He had previously served as commander of the Venetian Navy. Biography He was born in Venice into a relatively poor, but noble Grimani family and in his ...

at the

Battle of Zonchio The naval Battle of Zonchio ( tr, Sapienza Deniz Muharebesi, also known as the Battle of Sapienza or the First Battle of Lepanto) took place on four separate days: 12, 20, 22, and 25 August 1499. It was a part of the Ottoman–Venetian War of ...

(also known as the Battle of Sapienza or the First Battle of Lepanto). It was the first naval battle in history with cannons used on ships, and took place on four separate days: on August 12, 20, 22, and 25. After reaching the

with the large Ottoman fleet, Kemal Reis encountered the Venetian fleet of 47 galleys, 17 galliots, and about 100 smaller vessels under the command of

near

Cape Zonchio Cape Zonchio is the name given by the Venetian cartographers to the cape north of Pylos (Navarino) (called Zonklon or Zonchio in Venetian) on the western coast of Messenia on the Ionian Sea, in present-day Greece. It was called Coryphasium ( grc, ...

and won an important victory. During the battle, Kemal Reis sank the galley of Andrea Loredan, a member of the influential Loredan family of Venice. Antonio Grimani was arrested on 29 September but was eventually released. Grimani later became the

Doge of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ; vec, Doxe de Venexia ; it, Doge di Venezia ; all derived from Latin ', "military leader"), sometimes translated as Duke (compare the Italian '), was the chief magistrate and leader of the Republic of Venice between 726 ...

in 1521. The Ottoman Sultan

Bayezid II Bayezid II ( ota, بايزيد ثانى, Bāyezīd-i s̱ānī, 3 December 1447 – 26 May 1512, Turkish: ''II. Bayezid'') was the eldest son and successor of Mehmed II, ruling as Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1481 to 1512. During his reign, B ...

gifted 10 of the captured Venetian galleys to Kemal Reis, who stationed his fleet at the island of

Cefalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It ...

between October and December. Ottoman incursions into inland Dalmatia also started in 1499, under command of Isa Pasha and

Feriz Beg Firuz Bey ( 1495–1515) was a 15th and 16th-century Ottoman military officer, Sanjak-bey of the Sanjak of Scutari and Sanjak of Bosnia. Origin Firuz Bey belonged to the Mihaloğlu family, a noted Byzantine family which converted to Islam and w ...

1500

In December 1499, the Venetians attacked Lepanto with the hope of regaining their lost territories in the

. Kemal Reis set sail from Cefalonia and re-took Lepanto from the Venetians. He stayed in Lepanto between April and May 1500, where his ships were repaired by an army of 15,000 Ottoman craftsmen brought from the area. From there, Kemal Reis set sail and bombarded the Venetian ports on the island of

Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

, and in August he once again defeated the Venetian fleet at the Battle of Modon. Kemal Reis bombarded the fortress of

Modon The Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones ( ar, الهيئة السعودية للمدن الصناعية ومناطق التقنية), also known simply as MODON ( ar, مُدُن) is a government organization created by the Go ...

from the sea and captured the town. He later engaged with the Venetian fleet off the coast of Coron and captured the town along with a Venetian brigantine. From there Kemal Reis sailed towards the Island of

Sapientza Sapientza or Sapienza ( el, Σαπιέντζα) Σαπιέντζα is a Greek island off the southern coast of the Peloponnese, near the city of Methóni. It is administratively part of the municipality of Pylos-Nestor, in Messenia. The 2011 cens ...

(Sapienza) and sank the Venetian galley ''Lezza''. In September, Kemal Reis assaulted Voiussa and in October he appeared at Cape Santa Maria on the Island of

Lefkada Lefkada ( el, Λευκάδα, ''Lefkáda'', ), also known as Lefkas or Leukas ( Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Λευκάς, ''Leukás'', modern pronunciation ''Lefkás'') and Leucadia, is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of G ...

, before ending the campaign and returning to Constantinople in November. With the Battle of Modon, the Turkish fleet and army quickly overwhelmed most of the Venetian possessions in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

. Modon and Coron, the "two eyes of the Republic", were lost.

Doge A doge ( , ; plural dogi or doges) was an elected lord and head of state in several Italian city-states, notably Venice and Genoa, during the medieval and renaissance periods. Such states are referred to as " crowned republics". Etymology The ...

Agostino Barbarigo Agostino Barbarigo (3 June 1419 – 20 September 1501) was Doge of Venice from 1486 until his death in 1501. While he was Doge, the imposing Clock Tower in the Piazza San Marco with its archway through which the street known as the Merceria le ...

asked the Pope and the

Catholic Monarchs The Catholic Monarchs were Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, whose marriage and joint rule marked the ''de facto'' unification of Spain. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being bot ...

for help, and on 24 December a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

–Venetian army commanded by Gonzalo de Córdoba took Cephalonia, temporarily stopping the Ottoman offensive on eastern Venetian territories.

1501–1503

The Ottoman incursions in Dalmatia escalated to the point where Venice was forced to sign a treaty with

Vladislaus II of Hungary Vladislaus II, also known as Vladislav, Władysław or Wladislas ( hu, II. Ulászló; 1 March 1456 – 13 March 1516), was King of Bohemia from 1471 to 1516, and King of Hungary and Croatia from 1490 to 1516. As the eldest son of Casimir IV Jagi ...

and

Pope Alexander VI Pope Alexander VI ( it, Alessandro VI, va, Alexandre VI, es, Alejandro VI; born Rodrigo de Borja; ca-valencia, Roderic Llançol i de Borja ; es, Rodrigo Lanzol y de Borja, lang ; 1431 – 18 August 1503) was head of the Catholic Churc ...

by which they pledged 140,000 ducats a year for the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coronation of the Hungarian monarch, c ...

to actively defend its southern Croatian territories, which aided the defence of Venetian Dalmatia, signed after long negotiations on 13 May 1501. In 1501

captured Durazzo in

Venetian Albania Venetian Albania ( vec, Albania vèneta, it, Albania Veneta, Serbian language, Serbian and Montenegrin language, Montenegrin: Млетачка Албанија / ''Mletačka Albanija'', ) was the official term for several possessions of the Repub ...

. By the end of 1502, Venice and the Ottoman Empire agreed on an armistice. On 31 January 1503, Venice signed another treaty with Vladislaus II, having already paid 124,000 ducats through the previous treaty, to pay 30,000 ducats a year for the same purpose. In 1503, Turkish cavalry raids reached Venetian territory in

Northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative region ...

, and Venice was forced to recognize the Ottoman gains, ending the war. The economy of the Venetian cities in Dalmatia was severely impacted by the Turkish occupation of the hinterland during this war.

Aftermath

By September 1510, Vladislaus had received a total of 116,000 ducats under the terms of the second treaty with Venice. After 1508, he had also been under pressure from the League of Cambrai to join them against Venice, but skillful Venetian diplomacy prevented that.

References

Sources

* * *

External links

Sydney N. Fisher: The Foreign Relation of Turkey, 1481–1512, Chapter VI: War with Venice, 1499–1503

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ottoman-Venetian War (1499-1503) 15th-century conflicts 16th-century conflicts 1499-1503 15th century in Greece 16th century in Greece 1499 in Europe 1500s in Europe 1500s in the Ottoman Empire 1499 in the Ottoman Empire Ottoman–Spanish conflicts