Sixteenth Century

The most important historical event of the 16th century is the battle of Lepanto (1571), which marked the definite defeat of the Turks and put a period to the long fight between Christians and Mohammedans which had been in progress for nearly a thousand years. Pushed out of Spain and halted in the Balkan region, the Mohammedans had gradually acquired do minion in the Mediterranean Sea, had taken Cyprus and almost succeeded in capturing Malta from the Knight Hospitallers who de fended it with a dauntless courage which finally gave them the victory. Something had to be done to stay their progress. Thousands of Christians were being captured every year by Turkish pirates and held as slaves in the cities of the Barbary Coast or even being sold into the East. The Turks were making incursions on coast cities with great destruction and loss of life. Under the inspiration of Pope Pius V, an alliance was formed between the Venetians and Phillip II of Spain, whose commerce had suffered most, and they gathered an immense fleet. Don Juan of Austria, Phillip's half brother, just then the popular military hero of Europe because of his recent success in a crusade against the Moors, was in command. The Christians met the Turkish galleys in the Gulf of Lepanto on the western coast of Greece and utterly defeated them. This broke the power of the Turks on the sea forever. Though in the next century, the Turks ad vanced as far as Vienna and besieged the city, they were never the real danger to Europe that they had been before Lepanto. Besides the commander-in-chief, the one name now remem bered from the battle is that of Cervantes, the author of He was wounded while bravely fighting, though on the morning of the battle the physicians had ordered him to stay in bed because he was suffering from fever. He was very proud of his wound and liked nothing better than to be known as °the maimed soldier of Lepanto.* He was after ward captured and sold as a slave among the Mohammedans. This slave making continued, though in ever-decreasing importance, until the young American republic, at the beginning of the 19th century, inflicted severe defeat upon the Mohammedan pirates.

The best-known event of the century, be cause of the endless disputes as to its significance, is the massacre of Saint Bartholomew's Day in Paris, 24 Aug. 1572. A great many Huguenots were murdered under the direction of the gov ernment, with sad disgrace to France. Catherine de'Medici, the widow of Henry II, and the mother of the three kings who succeeded each other rapidly at this time, Francis II, Charles IX and Henry III, is undoubtedly responsible for it. Since Ranke's declaration on the sub ject, most historians have agreed that there was no deliberate premeditation of the massacre. Catherine was angered at Admiral Coligny and in a spirit of revenge resolved to do away with him. Assassination by gov ernmental order was still not repudiated in most countries. Coligny's assassination was attempted 22 August, but failed. In her alarm over the failure, Catherine worked upon the fears of her son, Charles IX, that the Hugue nots might in revenge bring about counter at tacks and had him order a massacre in which Coligny would surely be included. Only the

leaders of the Huguenots were to have been put out of the way, but in the mob spirit that ensued a great many others were killed. Many rich people became victims, their houses being pillaged regardless of their religious opinions. Mezeray declared that to have money or en viable position, avaricious heirs made almost any one a Huguenot at this time. The number of the victims is not known. Ranke estimated that 2,000 fell in Paris and larger estimates than this are undoubted exaggerations. The