TRENDEAtlas of the Sultans · Wars, battles and treaties
Naval battle · 1538
The Battle of Preveza (also known as Prevesa) was a naval engagement that occurred on 28 September 1538 near Preveza in the Ionian Sea in northwest Greece, in the same area as the Battle of Actium in 31 BC. The battle was between an Ottoman fleet, led by Kapudan Pasha Hayreddin Barbarossa, and a Holy League of Venetian and Hispano-Imperial composition, led by Genoese admiral Andrea Doria. It was part of both the Ottoman–Habsburg wars and the Ottoman Venetian War of 1537-1547. It ended with the Holy League defeated by the Ottomans despite its enormous advantage in numbers and tonnage. The course of the battle is uncertain; according to historian Roger Merriman, "accounts of it are so contradictory that it is almost impossible to reach the truth".
| Date | 28 September 1538 |
|---|---|
| Location | Near Preveza, Ionian Sea |
| Result | Ottoman victory |
| Belligerents | Ottoman Empire | Holy League Venice Papal States Genoa Spanish Empire Mantua Malta |
|---|---|---|
| Commanders | Hayreddin Pasha Sinan Reis Dragut Reis Seydi Ali Reis | Andrea Doria Vincenzo Cappello Marco Grimani Ferrante Gonzaga Paolo Simeone |
| Strength | 120–150 galleys, galliots and gustas 366 cannons 3,000 janissaries and 8,000 soldiers | 130–170 galleys 50–140 carracks and galleons Possibly 250–300 other ships 2,500–2,594 cannon 60,000 soldiers |
| Casualties | Several ships damaged 400 killed 800 wounded | Two galleys and five carracks sunk or captured (Spanish and Italian sources) 128 ships sunk or captured (Turkish sources) 13 ships sunk and 36 captured (English sources) 3,000 prisoners (English sources) |
Paul III met the news of the defeat with sorrow, and even considered to joining personally the fleet along with reinforcements. Charles V expressed similar intentions. Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent celebrated highly the battle, ordering Barbarossa to pay 100.000 pieces of gold to his officers. Although their large fleet had come out mostly unscathed, there was large dissent within the Holy League due to their actions in battle.
Took place during the reign of Suleiman I (1520–1566). Suleiman I
The atlas records this territorial change for the year:
Text: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0), adapted for the atlas.