Empires of the Sea: The Siege of Malta, the Battle of Lepanto, and the Contest for the Center of the World [Paperback]

Roger Crowley (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 12, 2009

In 1521, Suleiman the Magnificent, Muslim ruler of the Ottoman Empire, dispatched an invasion fleet to the Christian island of Rhodes. This would prove to be the opening shot in an epic clash between rival empires and faiths for control of the Mediterranean and the center of the world. In Empires of the Sea, acclaimed historian Roger Crowley has written a thrilling account of this brutal decades-long battle between Christendom and Islam for the soul of Europe, a fast-paced tale of spiraling intensity that ranges from Istanbul to the Gates of Gibraltar. Crowley conjures up a wild cast of pirates, crusaders, and religious warriors struggling for supremacy and survival in a tale of slavery and galley warfare, desperate bravery and utter brutality. Empires of the Sea is a story of extraordinary color and incident, and provides a crucial context for our own clash of civilizations.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Is the West engaged in a “clash of civilizations” with the Islamic peoples of the Middle East? According to Crowley, that clash occurred in the sixteenth century, when Islam, under the leadership of the Ottoman Turks, seemed poised to dominate most of Europe. The “impregnable city” of Constantinople had been taken in 1453, and by the beginning of the sixteenth century, the Turks were ensconced in the Balkans. The key to the struggle between the Turks and the Christian West was control of the eastern rim of the Mediterranean Sea. The Turks had a formidable fleet, while the divided, quarreling Christian states seemed particularly vulnerable. Yet, through a combination of valor, military skill, and blind luck, the Christian West prevailed. Crowley’s exciting saga shows this struggle as grim, heroic, and inspiring. At the siege of Malta, a few hundred knights, remnants of a crusading order, held off 30,000 invading Turks. At Lepanto, Christians and Turks engaged in a naval bloodbath that decisively stemmed the Islamic tide. A beautifully written chronicle of a great and seminal struggle. --Jay Freeman --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

“[Crowley] offers exquisitely delicate insights and undulating descriptive passages. Yet in his descriptions of the battles, his prose is so taut and tense, it is impossible not to be caught up in the harrowing action.”—Christian Science Monitor

“A masterly narrative that captures the religious fervor, brutality and mayhem of this intensive contest.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Gripping . . . This is a rare combination of a history book that reads with the detail, insight and pace of a novel.”—Tampa Tribune

“Crowley has an astonishing gift for narration; his account is as exciting as any thriller.”—Wall Street Journal

“Crowley’s page-turner history . . . deserves to be this [season’s] most recommended nonfiction book. . . . Rich in character, action, surprise, what transpired in those few desperate weeks is one of history’s best and most thrilling stories.”—Dallas Morning News

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks; First Paperback Edition edition (May 12, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812977645
• ISBN-13: 978-0812977646
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (138 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,443 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > History > Europe > Malta
  • #11 in Books > History > Renaissance
  • #23 in Books > History > Military > Naval

More About the Author

Roger Crowley is a UK-based writer and historian and a graduate of Cambridge University. As the child of a naval family, his fascination with the Mediterranean world started early, on the island of Malta. He has lived in Istanbul, walked across much of western Turkey, and traveled widely throughout the region. His particular interests are the Byzantine, Venetian, and Ottoman empires, seafaring, and eyewitness history. He is the author of three books on the empires of the Mediterranean and its surroundings: 1453: The Holy War for Constantinople (2005), Empires of the Sea (2008) and City of Fortune: How Venice Ruled the Waves (2012).His website address is www.rogercrowley.co.uk, where he blogs about history. Click on 'Visit Amazon's Roger Crowley page' above to see a short video on City of Fortune.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

124 of 126 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Mediterranean World of the 16th Century July 27, 2008

By Izaak VanGaalen

Format:Hardcover

In the 16th century, the Mediterranean was considered the center of world, and this book is about the great battles and sieges that took place when the armies of Islam and Christendom tried to dominate that world. In 2005, Roger Crowley published a book called 1453: The Holy War for Constantinople and the Clash of Islam and the West in which he recounted the events of the siege of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks. In the present volume the saga continues, he chronicles the expansion of the Ottoman empire under the leadership of Suleiman the Magnificent and his son Selim.

Crowley's first book was not only brilliant, it was also a commercial success; this volume should do as well or even better, for it is narrative history at its best. Crowley, who reads Turkish, was able to consult Ottoman diaries and modern works in Turkish. His accounts of the many land and sea battles are vivid, dramatic and multilayered, as they tell the story from different points of view.

The story begins in 1521 when the Knights of St John (a Christian military order) were routed from the island of Rhodes by the Ottomans and forced to retreat to Malta. The Ottomans were making gains everywhere around the Mediterranean with the help of their allies the Barbary pirates. It was a time of Islamic ascendency as the European powers were in disarray from internal squabbling.

The bulk of the book deals with the siege of Malta (1565). This was arguably one of the most heroic and odds-defying battles in history. About 600 Knights of St John were up against 30,000 Ottoman Turks. The battle was expected to last about 4 hours, instead it lasted 4 months, with the Turks ultimately retreating.... Crowley's account of bravery and brutality is unparalled. He tells of how wounded soldiers were placed in chairs with their sword in hand fighting to the death.

The Ottoman siege of Malta failed but their invasions of Cyprus (1570) and Famagusta (1571) were successful. They also attempted to invade Lepanto in 1571. Crowley here gives us another great set-piece. While the siege of Malta took place at a fortress, this battle took place on the sea; in fact it was the largest sea battle before World War I. Crowley gives a fine diquisition on the relative merits of sail ships and oar-driven ships (galleons). The European forces prevailed as they had the more mobile oar-driven ships. Also an unpleasant reminder that these ships were manned by slaves (galley slaves). About 40,000 men died in about 4 hours, the highest rate of slaughter not seen until, again, World War I. One young writerly soldier named Miguel de Cervantes - wounded in battle - thought it to be the greatest event of the ages.

The Siege of Malta and the Battle of Lepanto were great stories, but they were just two conflagrations of the complex geopolitics of the 16th century Mediterranean. Crowley has done an excellent job, not only of describing the main events, but also filling in the background with rich detail. Read more ›

114 of 124 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars good, but not great, history work July 3, 2008

By David W. Straight

Format:Hardcover

Empires of the Sea rates a solid 4 stars. In a bit under 300 pages (plus footnotes and index) it covers a 50-year history of the struggle for control of the Mediterranean from 1521 to 1571. That's actually quite a lot of ground in 300 pages, considering what went on. So if you want a good general overview, the book is good. There are a few maps up front, a section with photographs--mostly of old paintings, plus a lot of woodcuts depicting mostly battle scenes and people. The woodcuts are fine, but at times you acutely feel the lack of some good modern-style maps of the action. Goodness knows, there are plenty of current maps showing the fleets at Lepanto and also the sieges on Malta.

I must admit to prejudice here. I still have my copy of Ernle Bradford's magnificent history The Great Siege--paperback, from 1966, cost 5 shillings, and getting quite threadbare from rereading every few years. When one great book like this can spawn a 40-year interest in the subject, you know that you have an outstanding work indeed. Bradford's book is almost entirely limited to the siege of Malta, whereas Crowley's book covers this in under 100 pages. You get much more detail with Bradford, and a dramatic sense of the struggle, much more so than with Crowley. The focus is narrower--so for breadth, turn to Crowley, for depth to Bradford. Both books will give you a look at the personalities involved, and both convey the aspects of warfare at the time. So this is a good addition to your history shelf.

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling, page-turning history August 1, 2008

By Bruce Trinque TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

My cultural blinders have long confined my view of 16th century history mainly to northern Europe and the Atlantic. Roger Crowley's "Empires of the Sea: The Siege of Malta, the Battle of Lepanto, and the Contest for the Center of the World" is a powerful corrective for that too-narrow point of view.

The story of the struggle between the Islamic Ottoman Empire and Catholic Hapsburg Spain for control of the Mediterranean (with important consequences for the lands bordering the Mediterranean) as told by Crowley makes for compelling reading, filled with dazzling characters and astounding events. The Pope fleeing Rome in advance of an army of invading Turks was a real historical possibility, averted by a chain of circumstances perhaps much less likely than normally seems evident from this distance of time. Malta, a geographic key to the central Mediterranean withstood a massive Muslim attack and siege only by the narrowest of margins. And Lepanto, the last great battle of oared ships, could very easily have been lost by the Hapsburgs, and Islamic domination of Italy and the south of France and of Spain might well have followed, greatly altering the future course of events in Europe.

Crowly has done a superlative job of narrating this slice of history and making it wonderfully vivid.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting....who said history was boring? August 7, 2008

By Robert Busko TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Empires of the Sea: The Siege of Malta, the Battle of Lepanto, and the Contest for the Center of the World by Roger Crowley provides the reader with a clear picture into the world of the 16th century Mediterranean and more importantly into warfare for the time.

Crowley wastes no time with preliminaries but gets quickly to work in the first chapter with Suleiman's attack on Rhodes. There's no beating around the bush here. Crowley does a terrific job looking at the art of war and how the two sides differed in their respective approaches to battle. On the one hand, the Knights of Saint John, who, like the Templar's, was an international organization with members pulled from the major European countries and provinces of the time. On the other was the Turkish army of Suleiman, large, mobile, well equipped and quick to mount an offensive; apparently lacking nothing needed for conquest. That the Christians were out-numbered is made clear. To the defenders of Malta the loss of any knight was a loss that was difficult if not impossible to replace. Suleiman had numbers on his side and spent freely suffering huge casualties for the time of both his soldiers and slaves. It was all out warfare. Rhodes was strategically important, in part, due to the loss of Constantinople in 1453. However, the loss of Rhodes could not compare to the loss of Malta fifty years later. Without Malta, Italy would become the "front lines" in the battle between Christendom and the door to Europe would be open.

Crowley also does a masterful job by incorporating primary sources where possible. Descriptions by eyewitnesses are scattered throughout the text and add an important element to the book.... Also the Turkish side of things is presented pretty clearly as illustrated with the following:

"Selim, Ottoman Sultan, Emperor of the Turks, Lord of Lords, King of
Kings , Shadow of God, Lord of the Earthly Paradise and of Jerusalem, to the
Signory of Venice: We demand of you Cyprus, which you shall give Us
willingly or perforce; and do you not irritate our horrible sword, for We shall
wage most cruel war against you everywhere; nor let you trust in your
treasure, for We shall cause it suddenly to run away from you like a torrent;
beware to irritate Us." (page 207)

Empires also does a great job in examining the growing Turkish presence in the Med as a naval power. Sulieman's reach and projection of power was made possible in part by the wonderful naval commanders that were available to the Sultan and by the absolute naval incompetence of the Europeans. In the end Sulieman's navy couldn't help him however.

Crowley writes for the layman and explains himself clearly. The information that is presented is done so in context and though I'm not an expert on the subject feel that I've read a complete treatment of the topic. The maps that are included in the book make sense and are easy to read and the inclusion of the illustrations and woodcuts add to the information in the text.

I recommend Empires of the Sea.

Peace Read more ›