Battle of Lepanto, 1571

On October 7, 1571 a galley fleet of the Holy League decisively defeated the main fleet of Ottoman war galleys. The Holy League consisted of a coalition of-

• The Republic of Venice
• The Papacy (under Pope Pius V)
• Spain (including Naples, Sicily and Sardinia)
• The Republic of Genoa
• The Duchy of Savoy
• The Knights Hospitaller and others, .

The defeat of the Ottoman Empire in battle was the first since the fifteenth century and it prevented the expansion of the Empire into Europe.