Siege of Castelnuovo
A 1539 siege ending Christian hopes in the Eastern Mediterranean.
A powerful Ottoman army under Hayreddin Barbarossa besieged the town by land and sea.[1] The Spanish defenders rejected an honorable surrender offer and were eventually killed almost to a man.[1][2] In July 1539, a military confrontation occurred at the walled settlement of Castelnuovo, which is now known as Herceg Novi in Montenegro, as part of the Ottoman-Habsburg struggle for Mediterranean control.[1]
Quick Facts
- Part of
- the Ottoman–Venetian War (1537–1540)
- Date
- 18 July – 6 August 1539
- Location
- Herceg Novi, present-day Montenegro
- Result
- Ottoman victory
Facts from the source article.
Geography and history
The garrison's fate depended entirely on fleet support, which had been defeated by Barbarossa at Preveza.[3] Located near the Venetian holdings of Cattaro within the region designated as Venetian Albania, Castelnuovo served as a key defensive position.[4] During the preceding year, the unsuccessful Holy League campaign against the Ottoman Empire had resulted in the town's capture by Spanish tercios.[1] The Holy League's naval forces assisted the ground troops in their seizure of Castelnuovo.[4]
Although Venice asserted its right to the city, Charles V declined to transfer control to them.[5] Approximately 4,000 soldiers were stationed in the town, with the core being a tercio of experienced Spanish troops led by maestre de campo Francisco Sarmiento de Mendoza y Manuel.[4] The defending force was supplemented by 150 light cavalry, a small Greek contingent, and several artillery pieces.[6] The plan for Castelnuovo was to serve as the launching point for a major campaign against the Ottoman Empire.[3]
After agreeing to unfavorable terms with the Ottomans, Venice soon left the Holy League.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Fernández Álvarez, p. 229 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Francisco de Sarmiento, la furia española en Castelnuovo", 8 September 2013 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Arsenal/Prado, p. 24; Fernández Duro, p. 228 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Arsenal/Prado, p. 24 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Arsenal/Prado, p. 24; Fernández Duro, p. 269 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: 6 flags of the Tercio of Florence, 3 of the Tercio of Lombardy, 2 of the Tercio of Naples, one of the Tercio of Nice and three new flags. Fernández Álvarez, Car; De Sandoval, p. 375; De Sandoval, p. 375 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Siege of Castelnuovo" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Levin, p. 159; Arsenal/Prado, p. 25; Arsenal/Prado, p. 25 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Siege of Castelnuovo (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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