1453
Fall of Constantinople by the Ottomans

After the fall of Constantinople, the Ottoman Turks began to expand rapidly. Soon they occupied Mystras, Trebizond, as well as gradually all the islands of the Aegean that they had not conquered in the previous years.

After conquering Albania (around 1509) they turned their attention to Central Europe. At the end of the 15th century, the gradual dominance of the Ottoman Turks in western Asia and the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean increasingly blocked the land routes of communication & trade, making it difficult to transport Asian products to Europe.

1454
Treaty of Naxos

The first treaty after the conquest was signed between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire by which essentially the Venetians renewed the special privileges they had enjoyed for centuries, i.e. Venetian merchants had the right to trade freely and without any hindrance, on land and sea, in the territories of the Ottoman Empire.

The Venetians after 1204 had created an essentially colonial state, with possessions in Greece and the wider area of the Eastern Mediterranean which allowed them to develop economically and also to develop into the greatest naval power of the time. In order to preserve what they had acquired, the Venetians chose to bind themselves to terms of alliance with the sultans, and in cases where this was not possible, they fought passionately against the Ottomans to preserve their possessions and privileges.

1463-1479
First Venetian-Turkish War

The First Venetian-Turkish War ended with significant losses for the Venetians. In 1470 the Venetians lose Chalkida (which was known as Negroponte).

The Venetian-occupied Duchy of Naxos, Lesvos and Chios that belonged to the Republic of Genoa became tax vassals to the Ottomans (1458) who would incorporate the islands into their empire in the following years and by 1566 the last Latin-controlled hegemonies in the Aegean would be eliminated.

1492
Columbus discovers America

The Italian navigator and cartographer Christopher Columbus discovered a new continent, America. As the 15th century winds down Columbus plans to sail west across the Atlantic instead of crossing the vast African continent to reach the Far East by sea.

His assistants were the monarchs Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile. All wanted to mutually benefit from the mission: Columbus would gain fame and wealth while Ferdinand and Isabella could secure significant economic benefits from new goods while spreading Catholicism to the New World.

On August 3, 1492, Columbus set sail with all three of his legendary ships: the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria. Sailing until October 12, they finally spotted land, which Columbus thought was the East Indies, but was actually an island, which we called today as San Salvador in the Bahamas. This year is a milestone in the history of Spain. On the one hand it marks the establishment of the Spanish kingdom after the completion of the Reconquista (=Reconquest) while it is also the beginning of the period of the great Spanish discoveries.

1494
Treaty of Tordesillas

The Treaty of Tordesillas (Tordesillas - Tordesillas) of 1494 was an agreement between the monarchs of Spain and Portugal (mediated by Pope Alexander VI) in order to divide the world between them.

The imaginary dividing line ran through the center of the Atlantic Ocean, leaving America at Spain while West Africa and everything beyond the Cape of Good Hope at Portugal. The division of the non-European world into two spheres of influence, the Spanish and the Portuguese, was a world first. First the Portuguese and then the Spanish had already started overseas travels and overseas possessions.

1498
The first European to reach India

Vasco da Gama (Vasco da Gama, 1460 or 1469 - 24 December 1524), the first European to reach India by sea connecting Europe with India, circumnavigated Africa.

The discovery of the sea route to India paved the way for the creation of the Portuguese Empire in Asia which lasted for many centuries.

1499-1503
The predominance of the Ottomans

The second Venetian-Ottoman War ended with a victory for the Ottomans who now control Nafpaktos (Lepanto), Methoni, Koroni, all Venetian possessions.

The monopoly control of the spice trade in the Mediterranean by the Venetians and the Arabs, gradually passed to the exclusive control of the Ottomans, and the lack of precious metals in Europe, made it necessary for the Westerners to search for new routes to the countries of the East.

End of the 15th c. - early 16th century
Developments in navigation

During that period a technological revolution in navigation, shipbuilding & natural sciences takes place in Western Europe. Overseas travel is now easier thanks to the refinement of the technical means of navigation and orientation, the compass, the astrolabe and the portolan chart. At the same time, the development of navigation also contributed to the construction of a new type of ship, the Caravel, which had greater capacity and speed and was more secure. Between 1508 and 1514, Copernicus wrote the treatise entitled ‘’Commentariolus’’ (published later) and laid the foundations of the heliocentric theory and questioning the geocentric system of Ptolemy, which also constitutes the cosmology of Europe at the beginning of the 16th century.

These changes will catalyze the future of the Italian naval forces and especially Venice, which until then was the main regulator of trade, as they will allow the states of northwestern Europe to gradually emerge as new economic powers that will divert commercial activities from the narrow limits of Mediterranean.

16th century
The golden century for Spain

The golden age for Spain (Hapsburg dynasty) also known as the "Age of Expansion" (conquest and establishment of colonies in the New World, central & South America) marked the influx of precious metals (gold and silver) into Spain emerging in the largest naval, economic and political power of Europe, under the leadership of Charles V (1519-1556) later followed by his son, Philip II (1527-1598).

16th century
The peak of the Ottoman Empire

"Golden Age" for the Ottoman Empire under the leadership of Sultan Suleiman I the Magnificent or Legislator (1520-1566) later followed by his son Selim II. The Ottoman Empire controls the Black Sea, the Middle East, the lands of present-day Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the coast of North Africa almost as far as Gibraltar (which is the underbelly of Spain), the Red Sea and begins to harass Portuguese ships in the Indian Ocean. He controls both the 4 Orthodox Patriarchates and the three Muslim Holy Pilgrimages.

He "builds" a significant naval fleet and mans it with converted sailors who occupy important positions (eg the pirate Hayreddin Barbarossa becomes pasha-admiral) and conscripted sailors (providing sailors as a labor tax) from the coastal regions and islands. Many Greek shipbuilders from Venetian-occupied Crete came to Constantinople, with the promise of better working conditions and higher payment from the Ottomans, where they transferred their knowledge from the Venetian shipyards.

1517
Religious Reformation

The religious Reformation begins in Germany with Martin Luther and John Calvin which led to the establishment of Protestantism. The movement of the Reformation or otherwise the Protestant Revolution supported the liberation from the "tyranny of the papacy", the redemption of the "authentic Church" from the corruption and secular spirit of the papal court, the redemption of the Bible from the "distortions of the Catholic Church", a purification and a return to the authenticity of the first Christian community.

In addition to religious issues, the religious reformation sided with the nation-states that were forming at the time and which challenged international empires, such as the Holy Roman Empire of Charles V. The image of Luther in Worms in 1521 among the German rulers and against the emperor Charles V, when he refuses to retract his positions and defends his right and freedom of conscience, is a high point for the Reformation. At the same time, the Protestants were negative about the pope's intervention in the internal affairs of England, France and Germany.

1519
The Empire of Charles V: The Power of Western Europe

Charles V, head of the House of Habsburg, was the strongest ruler in Western Europe. Emperor of the Holy Roman German Empire and Archduke of Austria from 1519, King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) from 1516 and Prince of the Netherlands as Duke of Burgundy from 1506.

He was the emperor of an "empire on which the sun never set", which included in Europe: Low Countries, Spain and southern Aragonese, the Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sardinia and Sicily, the Austrian territories, the Holy Roman Empire which it extended to Germany (mainly southern Germany) and northern Italy as well as the huge colonies in Central and South America (after the Aztec and Inca conquests).

1519-1522
The first circumnavigation of the Earth

The first circumnavigation of the Earth is achieved. With the help of the Spanish king, the expedition begins under the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan and is completed by the Spaniard Juan Sebastian Elcano. In January 1520 he arrived at Rio de la Plata. After failing to find a passage to the west, he traveled south, following the coast of an unknown land, which he named Patagonia.

He also discovered the archipelago of Tierra del Fuego (Land of Fire), located further south of the Tierra del Fuego waterway, while in November 1520 he reached the ocean, which his fellow travelers later called the Pacific Ocean. Arriving in the Philippines, he engaged in a battle with the natives, on the island of Mactan, and the Spanish sailor was killed. The journey was continued by his companion Elcano after crossing the Indian Ocean and sailing around Africa.

1522
The Ottomans consolidate their rule

The Ottomans finally manage to conquer the island of Rhodes and establish their rule in the south-eastern Aegean. The Knights of the Order of Saint John will leave and settle in Malta.

After the final capture of Algiers in 1529, Emperor Charles V, worried about the rise of Ottoman naval power in the Mediterranean, wanting to protect Naples and Sicily which were part of his possessions. Αfter pressure from the Pope, he granted them Malta which they methodically organized with strong walls and guard castles, reinforced with modern artillery.

1526
The Ottomans occupy the kingdom of Hungary

The Ottomans led by the grand vizier of Greek origin, Damat Ibrahim Pasha, occupied the kingdom of Hungary. The two armies clashed near the Plain of Mohács on August 29. The Hungarians were led by King Louis II.

The Hungarian army led by King Louis II was defeated and Hungary ceased to be an independent kingdom. It was divided into three parts: Transylvania (eastern part of the kingdom) which became a tributary province of the sultan. The central part became an Ottoman province, while the western part was united with the dominions of Austria and Bohemia, which were under the leadership of Charles V.

1529
The Siege of Vienna

The Ottoman troops of impressive strength for the time (120,000 soldiers, 40,000 of whom were spachs, i.e. cavalry-landlords, 20,000 camels, 400 cannons and 400 boats to control the Danube) arrived outside the walls of Vienna, under the leadership of Suleiman the Magnificent.

The siege of Vienna by the Ottomans took place from 27 September to 15 October. Suleiman hoped to capture the Habsburg capital although the weather conditions were not particularly favorable and he may have overestimated his forces. In fact, the Ottomans failed to secure their supply with sufficient provisions and ammunition, due to the arrival of winter which that year came much earlier than usual. Meanwhile, Charles V made peace with Francis I of France, who sent reinforcements. Vienna was not meant to fall, nor was Europe to become Muslim.

1532
Proclamation of the third Venetian-Turkish War

In England the House of Commons proclaimed Henry VIII of Tudor as the "sole head, supreme lord, protector and defender" of the Church.

An ambitious king, with an aggressive foreign policy and great cruelty. He became best known for his six marriages. Of the six women he married, he beheaded two. Dissatisfied with the inability of his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, to provide him with the longed-for male heir, Henry annulled his first marriage to marry Anne Boleyn, resulting in his excommunication by the pope and England's secession from Catholic Church.

1535
Proclamation of the third Venetian-Turkish War

The Venetians remain politically neutral to Suleiman's proposal (he had already come to terms with the King of France) for an alliance to face his main rival Charles V of Habsburg.

The Venetian neutrality and the election of the new vizier Ayas Paşa (who was not particularly supportive of the Venetian-Ottoman alliance unlike his predecessor Ibrahim) led to the declaration of the third Venetian-Turkish War.

1536
Signing of the first treaties between France and the Ottoman Empire

The King of France Francis I (1494 - 1547) and Sultan Suleiman I the Magnificent singed the first confessions (capitulations/ kapitülasyonlar). From the point of view of international law, declarations are treaties by which a state agrees to grant exceptional privileges to the nationals of another state who are on its territory.

These are commercial privileges and rights based on the special convention, according to which, the French citizens of the Ottoman Empire and the Ottomans of France (virtually non-existent) acquired freedom of trade, were exempted from taxation and passed to the authority of their countries' consuls (i.e., they were no longer subject to the Ottoman Authorities and the Kadis).

1537-1540
The third Venetian-Turkish War continues

1537 was the year of the planned joint Franco-Ottoman operation in Italy. The plan called for an Ottoman landing from Albania on the Italian peninsula, an invasion of the Italian north by the French army, and raids by Hayreddin Barbarossa on the coasts.

The plan did not succeed but the gathering of a large army on the Albanian coast was considered dangerous by Suleiman. He declared war on Venetian Republic whose ships he systematically harassed in the Adriatic Sea and unsuccessfully besieged Corfu. The Venetians and their allies were finally defeated. The Venetians gave 300,000 Venetian ducats as compensation and lost Nafplio, Monemvasia and the islands in the Aegean (except Tinos).

The terms of the treaty regulated Venetian trade in the Mediterranean which has now become an "Ottoman Sea". The Pax Ottomana, the "Ottoman peace" marking a period of Ottoman rule in the Mediterranean, is established.

1538
Formation of the Holy League

A Holy League (Santa Lega) was formed with the main parties being Emperor Charles V, Archduke Ferdinand I of Austria, Pope Paul III (1543-1549) and Doge Andrea Gritti (1455-1538), to face the expansionist policy of the Ottomans. However, from the beginning, dissociative tendencies and conflicting interests between the partners were evident, which essentially undermined the military operations, with the naval battle of Preveza as a typical example.

The Naval Battle of Preveza is part of the Venetian-Ottomans wars. After capturing a number of Venetian islands in the Aegean and Ionian and plundering the coast of southern Italy, the admiral (kapoudan pasha) Hairedin Barbarossa, victoriously faced the united Christian fleet of Spain, the Papal States, Venice, Genoa and the Knights of Malta off Preveza confirming Ottoman naval supremacy in the eastern Mediterranean and demonstrating the internal strife of his rivals.

1543
Frenco-Ottoman Alliance

King Francis I of France signs a treaty of alliance with Suleiman I the Magnificent, which demonstrates that the crusading spirit that dominated the European powers in the 15th century has disappeared. One of the terms of the treaty was that France allowed Turkish galleys to overwinter in Toulon when they could not return to Constantinople.

The French king's main aim was to weaken Charles V, King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor, as the latter title was disputed between the French and the Habsburgs. In order to counter his rival's hegemony, he first sought the support of Henry VIII of England and then formed the Franco-Ottoman alliance with the Muslim Sultan Suleiman I the Magnificent, a remarkable if not controversial event for a Christian ruler at the time.

1545-1563
Council of Trent

Council of Trent or Trident, one of the most important councils of the Roman Catholic Church was the reaction to the Protestant Reformation.

It was decided among other things that the Catholic Church would become the greatest religious power on earth in two ways:
a) It will become the largest educational institution in the world. The Catholic Church will establish schools everywhere, all over the Earth - not only in Europe, not only in America, but all over the Earth.
b) It will become the largest organization of charity through the largest missionary activity that humanity would have known (schools, hospitals, orphanages, etc.) mainly by the Jesuits, but other religious orders were also used afterwards: Benedictines, Dominicans, Ursulines, Capuchins, Franciscans.

1556
Enthronement of Philip II

The son of Charles V, Philip II (1527-1598) known as Philip the Wise, ascends the throne of Spain. He was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580 and King of Naples and Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He was also jure uxoris (by virtue of wife) King of England and Ireland from his marriage to Queen Mary I in 1554 until her death in 1558. He was also Duke of Milan from 1540. From 1555 he was lord of the seventeen provinces of the Low Countries.

During his reign, the Spanish conquests were completed with the overthrow of the Inca empire in Peru and the conquest of the Philippines. A devout Catholic, Philip saw himself as the defender of Catholic Europe against the Ottoman Empire and the Protestant Reformation.

In the same year Ferdinand I (1503-1564) became Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, Hungary and Croatia from 1526 and Archduke of Austria from 1521 until his death in 1564. His daughter Anna married Philip II of Spain.

1558
Elizabeth I ascends the throne of England

Elizabeth I ascends the throne of England. She succeeded her sister Mary I, known for restoring Roman Catholicism to England and marrying Prince Philip II of Spain for political reasons.

Elizabeth I was a Protestant, but during her reign religious conflicts were reduced and England began its great expansion abroad by adopting an aggressive policy towards Spain. The defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588 turned Elizabeth into a living legend for the English and aided in the country's global naval dominance and colonial development.

1562-1598
Wars between Catholics and Protestants escalate in France

Religious civil wars between Catholics and Protestants (Huguenots) plagued France, sharpening the rivalry for power of the Guise and Bourbon families. The Vassy Massacre in 1562 marked the beginning of the religious wars and the Edict of Nantes, 32 years later, was the starting point for ending the conflicts.

Complex diplomatic negotiations and peace agreements, and extremely bloody power struggles characterize this era, most famously St. Bartholomew's Night in 1572 (massacre of Huguenots by Catholics). Subsequently, many Huguenots flee to America in order to save themselves.

1565
The Siege of Malta

Siege of Malta by the Ottomans, who withdraw without action.

In order to deal with the pirate activities of the Knights, who were harassing Ottoman ships in the Mediterranean, and mainly to secure a strategic naval base that would allow him to control the western Mediterranean, Suleiman the Magnificent decided to send the Ottoman forces against Malta.

Its fruitless siege was a stumbling block to the expansionist aspirations of the Ottomans towards the West.

1566
Enthronement of Pope Pius V

Pope of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal State, becomes Pope Pius V, previously named Anthony (or Michael) Ghislieri (1504 –1572). A Dominican theologian and inquisitor, he worked to reform the Church according to the dictates of the Council of Trent. He is considered one of the main architects and supporters of the Counter-Reformation.

Pius V, perceiving that the Ottoman advance was a threat to the freedom of Europe, persistently tried to organize a coalition of the great European countries. This is how the Holy League was formed (1571), which the pontiff placed under the protection of the Virgin Mary. The Holy League organized the fleet that later defeated the Ottomans in the famous naval battle of Lepanto/Nafpaktos (October 7, 1571). Two days before the naval battle, the Pope, with the help of the Virgin Mary, visualized the victory, and announced it to the cardinals in Rome. The following year, the first anniversary of the Lepanto victory was celebrated on October 7. Pius V sanctified the victory achieved "...through the intercession of the majestic Mother of the Savior, Mary", naming October 7 “Our Lady of Victory”, which was later renamed by Pope Gregory XIII to “Our Lady of the Rosary”. The Venetian Senate painted the scene of the battle in the conference hall with the inscription: "Neither the troops, nor weapons, nor the commanders, but Mary of the Rosary who made us the victorious".

1566
The new sultan, Selim II

New sultan Selim II (1524-1574) followed his father's aggressive foreign policy, but without personally showing the same zeal and energy, as he did not participate as commander-in-chief in the campaigns like Suleiman, but he actively participated in planning their. He was greatly influenced by the grand vizier Mehmed Sokollu. The decision for a new war against Venice, with the aim of occupying Cyprus and with the ultimate aim of occupying Crete (the two Venetian strongholds) is due to his attempt to ensure control of the trade routes in the Eastern Mediterranean.

It is also due to a significant extent to the influence of the Sephardi banker and Duke of Naxos Joseph Nasi. Nasi was an important financier of the vizier and a personal friend of the sultan and acted for his own benefit, enjoying special privileges such as the monopoly of the collection and management of taxes: e.g. honey in Poland and wine in Moldova. He wanted access to Cyprus (known for its vineyards and the production of excellent wine). In order to secure his back, Selim signed in 1568 a peace treaty for eight years with the Habsburg emperor Maximilian II and new confessions with the French in 1569.

1570-1573
The "Cyprus War"

Fourth Venetian-Ottoman War also known as the "Cyprus War". In 1570, the conquest of Cyprus by the Ottomans begins (Limessos, Larnaca, Nicosia) and after 10 months of strong resistance, Famagusta falls in August 1571.

Venetian pleas for help were heeded by Pope Pius V who persuaded Genoa and Spain to aid the struggling Pacific Republic with their fleets. The conclusion of the agreement was delayed for a full year due to the reluctance of the Venetians and the Spanish to cooperate with each other, resulting in valuable time being lost and Cyprus being occupied. Additionally from written sources from that period, it appears that Venice did not make much of an effort to send supplies to the Venetian commander Marcantonio Bragadin.

Hunger and lack of munitions forced the city's defenders to capitulate, which the Ottomans did not respect. Bragadin was horribly tortured. In the end he was flayed and according to legend he did not utter a single groan, provoking the admiration of the Ottomans. His skin was taken as a trophy to Constantinople but 10 years later it was stolen and taken to the basilica of St. John and Paul in Venice.

21/5/1571
Foundation of the Holy League, also known as Liga Sancta

On the 21st of May 1571, the agreement of the Holy League, also known as " Liga Sancta" in latin or " Liga Santa" in Spanish, was signed in the Basilica of Saint Peter.

The Holy League was arranged by Pope Pius V and included the major Catholic powers of southern Europe (Iberian Peninsula and Italian Peninsula), specifically the Spanish Empire as well as the Italian maritime powers.

It was intended to break the Ottoman Empire’s control of the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

16/9/1571
The Christian fleet departs from Messina, Italy

The Christian fleet sets sail from Messina, Italy, with Admiral John of Austria (1547-1578), half-brother of Philip II, as admiral. After reaching Corfu on September the 26th 1571, the Christians learned that Famagusta had fallen and that the Ottomans had committed unheard atrocities against the inhabitants. The fleet then sailed to Kefalonia.

At the beginning of October, the Ottoman fleet set out from Nafpaktos (Lepanto) with admiral (kapudan pasha) Müezzinzade Ali Pasha. During his stay in Nafpaktos, Admiral Muezinzade Ali Pasha convened a council of war, which was particularly ambiguous. Hasan Pasha proposed an immediate disembarkation and the search for a naval battle, a view supported by Kapudan Pasha himself. Hamet Bey and Uluch Ali instead proposed to wait for the Christians, under the protection of the Nafpaktos’ fortress and to attack when the Christians would be tired from the journey. In any case, a firman arrived from Constantinople, demanding an immediate naval battle, and so Muezzinzade Ali Pasha set sail.

7/10/1571
The naval battle of Lepanto (Nafpaktos)

Naval battle of Lepanto in the archipelago of the Echinacea Islands (Isole Curzolari), 40 nautical miles west of Nafpaktos, with a victory for the Christian forces. In fact the naval battle with the new Gregorian calendar took place on October 17th (difference of the Julian calendar - old vs. new) and the year 978 for the Ottoman Muslims. The Naval Battle of Lepanto would mark the end of the Ottoman threat to control the Mediterranean and rekindle hopes for a revolution among the treacherous peoples of the Balkans.

In naval history this naval battle will be the last battle with rowing ships, marking the beginning of the “age of sail”, with the dominance of sailing ships in both global trade and warfare. For the victors it turned out to be a "victory without tomorrow" because they did not capitalize - each for their own reasons, while the Greek population suffered the cruel dupes of the Ottomans.