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The Great Siege: Malta 1565
by
In 1565 the Ottoman Empire was at its peak. Under their sultan, Solyman the Magnificent, the Turks had conquered most of Eastern Europe. The rulers of Christian Europe were at their wits' end to stem the tide of disaster. The Knights of St John, the fighting religious order drawn from most of the nations of Christendom had been driven from their island fortress of Rhodes 4
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Paperback, 256 pages
Published
June 1st 1999
by Wordsworth Military Library
(first published 1961)
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Now that was a hell of a siege!
I picked up The Great Siege: Malta 1565 by Ernle Bradford without knowing much about Malta and nothing about the siege of 1565. The book isn't too long and I figured it would be a nice diversion. It proved to be WAY more than that!
The Ottoman Empire tried to invade the island of Malta, then held by the Knights Hospitaller, as a means to set up a base for their fleet in order to make further attacks upon western Europe. The Knights and their stalwart allies the nat ...more
I picked up The Great Siege: Malta 1565 by Ernle Bradford without knowing much about Malta and nothing about the siege of 1565. The book isn't too long and I figured it would be a nice diversion. It proved to be WAY more than that!
The Ottoman Empire tried to invade the island of Malta, then held by the Knights Hospitaller, as a means to set up a base for their fleet in order to make further attacks upon western Europe. The Knights and their stalwart allies the nat ...more
I always get excited over any sea battle that utilizes wild fire!
An absolute massacre how can any victor truly be proclaimed? The Knights of St. John against the Turks LETS GET READY TO RUMBLE!!!
Probably the bloodiest religious battle of the ages consisting of some serious siege craft.
An absolute massacre how can any victor truly be proclaimed? The Knights of St. John against the Turks LETS GET READY TO RUMBLE!!!
Probably the bloodiest religious battle of the ages consisting of some serious siege craft.
May 17, 2020
Elyse
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
male-author,
non-fiction,
religion,
5-star,
military,
history,
renaissance,
europe,
islands
I'm always happy when I find a great book of history that is a total revelation to me. I'm American and an Anglophile and have a tendency to gravitate towards US and British history. I might have known about the Knights of Malta and the defense of their island if it had anything to do with England. But Henry VIII put an end to that. For centuries most major European powers contributed money and soldiers to the Knights of Malta, or Knights Hospitaller, as protection from the Muslim Ottoman Empire
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Well-told story, but pretty terrible as history. This book is the story of the Great Siege of Malta by the armies of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, as told from the perspective of the Knights. Maybe it's that I just re-read Edward Said's Orientalism, but boy this book was super ethnocentric, almost lazily so.
The narrative is replete with descriptions of the "savage attacks of the Moslem corsairs", how the Muslim commanders would "sacrifice thousands upon thousands of men with a ca ...more
The narrative is replete with descriptions of the "savage attacks of the Moslem corsairs", how the Muslim commanders would "sacrifice thousands upon thousands of men with a ca ...more
Oct 29, 2014
Hudson
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction-history,
loanable-kindle
Glorious bloody Renaissance warfare at it's best!!
This non fiction book flowed like a story and was incredibly entertaining for me. The battles scenes were brutally descriptive and the author painted a really great description of the key players on both sides.
Highly recommended for any fan of history and/or military stories. ...more
This non fiction book flowed like a story and was incredibly entertaining for me. The battles scenes were brutally descriptive and the author painted a really great description of the key players on both sides.
Highly recommended for any fan of history and/or military stories. ...more
The Great Siege: Malta 1565 , Ernle has an easy style of telling a story, it captures your imagination and places you right there in the siege. With all the bloodshed and all the goriness happening all around you it made me feel as though I were a knight of Saint John with head full of religious zeal slashing and stabbing with my weapons, then a brave stout Maltese swimmer with daggers between my teeth to slay brutally savagely & silently in the darkness, or a stone faced stoic Janisserie the Mu
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Ernle Bradford's book on the Turkish siege of Malta in 1565 is not a detailed scholarly study of the subject, though the subject could use one. However, it is a fairly thorough look at the subject from the Hospitallar's viewpoint. There is some examination of the Turkish and Spanish activities and reasoning, but this is a more minor part of the book, which is focused on the siege itself. There is also a little about the native Maltese, but Bradford points out that their activities mostly only li
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Few history books grip the reader so well. It is fast-paced, and you keep abreast of one of the more important siege battles in history.
I first read this book in 1998, and could not put it down. I've now read it a second time, and it had the same effect. Could not put it down until it was finished. What else can you expect?
A group of Christian knights, plus about 8,000 Maltese against the might of the Ottoman Empire. And so determined were the Christians to halt the Islamic movement westward, th ...more
I first read this book in 1998, and could not put it down. I've now read it a second time, and it had the same effect. Could not put it down until it was finished. What else can you expect?
A group of Christian knights, plus about 8,000 Maltese against the might of the Ottoman Empire. And so determined were the Christians to halt the Islamic movement westward, th ...more
Looking back through my Goodreads history I see that on December 2016 I finished Empires of the Sea: The Final Battle for the Mediterranean, 1521-1580 by Roger Crowley. This means that I’d probably completely forgotten everything in that book regarding The Siege of Malta so a refresher course was in order. Wow, this little book was so quick and so much fun to read.
It all started to come back to me once I started reading, but it was still a thrilling tale from start to finish. I need to backtrack ...more
It all started to come back to me once I started reading, but it was still a thrilling tale from start to finish. I need to backtrack ...more
Jul 10, 2017
Wanda
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Geevee
Shelves:
real-books,
2017
10 JUL 2017 - a small treasure found whilst unpacking.
14 JULY 2017 - I read past my bed-time and during lunch at work. I loved this one!
14 JULY 2017 - I read past my bed-time and during lunch at work. I loved this one!
This is a short book retelling the little-known story of the Siege of Malta in 1565. The Ottoman Turks attacked Malta in the hopes of using it as a base from which to attack Sicily and then mainland Europe, the so-called "soft underbelly." Fortunately for Europe, The Knights of St. John had been given the island by the King of Spain to defend against such an attack. The story of the siege is one of the most remarkable and neglected stories in Christendom.
The Knights of St. John were a a group cr ...more
The Knights of St. John were a a group cr ...more
A very satisfying account of the epic 1565 Ottoman attack on Malta.
Bradford traces out the story from Suleyman's decision to assault the island, focusing on the details of the battle. He has a good eye for character, focusing on individual leaders and combatants. He also has a good habit of detailing landscapes and battle sites as they change under violence.
Bradford is deeply biased towards the Knights of Malta and the Maltese people. This has the advantages of humanizing people often depicted ...more
Bradford traces out the story from Suleyman's decision to assault the island, focusing on the details of the battle. He has a good eye for character, focusing on individual leaders and combatants. He also has a good habit of detailing landscapes and battle sites as they change under violence.
Bradford is deeply biased towards the Knights of Malta and the Maltese people. This has the advantages of humanizing people often depicted ...more
Feb 03, 2016
Ian
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
16th-18th-century-history
The author of this very engaging book spent over thirty years sailing around the Mediterranean, first as a Lieutenant of a destroyer during World War II and thereafter in a private capacity until his death in 1986. He subsequently came to know the Island of Malta intimately, living and sailing around every part of the small rocky archipelago and developing an affection for both the nation and its people that would eventually lead to the publication of this gripping and emotional account of the 1
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Tales of heroism are always stirring, more so when they are true. This is nonfiction, but you won't believe it, written by a non academic, which is even harder to believe.
It's an account of one of the truly great sieges.
What are the great sieges? Troy, Tyre facing Alexander, the zillion sieges of Syracuse, the Spartans both at Thermopylae and maybe later, taking it up the Sphacteria, and... Malta, 1565.
The Knights of St. John defending their tiny island against the fabulous forces of Sultan Sol ...more
It's an account of one of the truly great sieges.
What are the great sieges? Troy, Tyre facing Alexander, the zillion sieges of Syracuse, the Spartans both at Thermopylae and maybe later, taking it up the Sphacteria, and... Malta, 1565.
The Knights of St. John defending their tiny island against the fabulous forces of Sultan Sol ...more
Good history of the dramatic attack on Malta in 1565. Each side has a larger-than-life leader to anchor the story. Short chapters make it easy to read a little at a time. Once the siege begins there's lots of action to keep the story moving quickly.
I would have rated the book a star higher but the writing style felt slightly dated to me. I would recommend this highly to fans of military history. ...more
I would have rated the book a star higher but the writing style felt slightly dated to me. I would recommend this highly to fans of military history. ...more
I've read multiple historical fiction books that are based on this siege, but I am pretty sure this is the first actual book of history on the event that I have picked up. As Dan Carlin says, "History is so much better than fiction."
By 1565, the Ottoman Empire had already passed its prime and was beginning its slow decline... but nobody in the world had realized that. It was still the most powerful nation with the greatest army in the world. Then Malta happened.
Four decades back the Turks stol ...more
By 1565, the Ottoman Empire had already passed its prime and was beginning its slow decline... but nobody in the world had realized that. It was still the most powerful nation with the greatest army in the world. Then Malta happened.
Four decades back the Turks stol ...more
The Seige of Malta is probably the greatest war story you've never heard. It is definitely one the greatest, most important battles in European history. There's a lot of fascinating history in this book. Bradford has basically devoted his life to the subject, and I'm amazed at how much detailed history exists about this period. It would make a good movie.
Suleiman the Magnificent is elderly and the Ottoman Empire at its height-- having been stopped at Vienna but still recording victories in Easte ...more
Suleiman the Magnificent is elderly and the Ottoman Empire at its height-- having been stopped at Vienna but still recording victories in Easte ...more
Somewhere in faintest memory there was a siege of Malta. Reading this convinced me all over again how bereft the typical college major in history is of key information, lacking as mine did, any significant coverage of this the greatest siege and a turning point in stopping the Muslim invasion of Europe. Stopping the horde at Malta, Vienna, and Lepanto were what kept common law, our system, and our civilization alive.
The crusader Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, had be ...more
The crusader Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, had be ...more
Very exciting and visual narrative, and very easily read! I could totally imagine the entire siege in detail in my mind.
But this comes at a huge loss in accuracy. Now, I don't really know anything about the siege apart from what I read in this book, but it has such an obvious European bias that it can't possibly be very accurate. The Ottomans aren't really presented as evil, but rather as stupid, incompetent plotters. I was really interested in understanding how the defenders could possibly win ...more
But this comes at a huge loss in accuracy. Now, I don't really know anything about the siege apart from what I read in this book, but it has such an obvious European bias that it can't possibly be very accurate. The Ottomans aren't really presented as evil, but rather as stupid, incompetent plotters. I was really interested in understanding how the defenders could possibly win ...more
Having grown up in Malta, I am no stranger to the great deeds done by the knights of St. John - before, during, and after the great siege of 1565. As one might expect the great siege is taught in history classes in schools here; albeit not in such great detail as delivered by Bradford. As Voltaire puts it "Nothing is better known than the siege of Malta.". Balbi, one of the Order's historians, took great care to describe even the smallest of fights and speeches, and no deed went unrecorded.
Being ...more
Being ...more
This is the 1961 edition of the book, which I came across about twenty years ago and always planned to read and have only just got around to it. And it is a re-read because I must have first read it in around 1970 when I was 16. It is sort of a nostalgic re-read.
As an academic history of the Great Siege of Malta by the Turks in 1565 it is an utter failure. But as a gripping overview of the incredible heroism of a small band of patrician Knights of St John of Jerusalem together with the ordinary ...more
As an academic history of the Great Siege of Malta by the Turks in 1565 it is an utter failure. But as a gripping overview of the incredible heroism of a small band of patrician Knights of St John of Jerusalem together with the ordinary ...more
This is really good. Despite the biased-sounding subtitle, Bradford relates the siege and the underlying motives in an evenhanded manner, avoiding casting one side as heroes and the other as villains. He lauds examples of honor and courage on both sides, and calls out the episodes of cruelty and cowardice on both sides as well. There is much excitement and intrigue, but he narrates the drama without being melodramatic. I only wish the book included additional and improved maps.
This really is a ...more
This really is a ...more
Very detailed and informative. The author made you feel that you were in there. I loved it!
Another great book that was available via Amazon Prime. Ernle Bradford has been dead for decades, but his books on the Mediterranean are very well written and interesting. Last year, I read his book about the Siege of Constantinople in 1204 and also have his book on St. Paul on my "to read" list. Mr. Bradford was an officer in the British Royal Navy in WWII, and actually took part in the battle for retaking Malta from the Axis powers.
I was aware of this battle, but had never really studied it. ...more
I was aware of this battle, but had never really studied it. ...more
Superb recounting of a truly climatic battle!
The Ottoman Empire is at its height of power. The only thing holding up turning the Mediterranean into the Sultan’s personal pond is a tiny, insignificant island. The Knight’s of St. John have been granted the island as their last place of refuge to continue on the order. Sultan Solyman is convinced, once the island falls, he will be able to continue his quest of glory and the abolition of Christianity forever.
Grand Master, La Vellete has different i ...more
The Ottoman Empire is at its height of power. The only thing holding up turning the Mediterranean into the Sultan’s personal pond is a tiny, insignificant island. The Knight’s of St. John have been granted the island as their last place of refuge to continue on the order. Sultan Solyman is convinced, once the island falls, he will be able to continue his quest of glory and the abolition of Christianity forever.
Grand Master, La Vellete has different i ...more
I picked up this book from the bargain table thinking if it was boring I would not be out much money! And WOW, I was spellbound by this action packed account of the siege of the small island of Malta! In 1565 the Muslim Ottoman Turks were at the peak of their empire ... controlling almost the entire Mediterranean. They had subdued Eastern Europe and were determined to expand into Western Europe. The only thing standing in their way were the Knights of St John based on the small island of Malta.
...more
Truly the most gripping historical non-fiction book that I have perhaps ever read. There is so much detailed source material from both the Order of the Knights of St John and the Ottoman Turks that the author is able to weave a detailed linear account of the events in such a way that you feel that you are experiencing it with them like an embedded reporter.
This book offers a remarkable insight to the incredible fortitude and strength of character of the Knights, the others who came to their aid, ...more
This book offers a remarkable insight to the incredible fortitude and strength of character of the Knights, the others who came to their aid, ...more
First published in 1961, the author's unabashed affinity for the Knights of St. John is not surprising, though it does call his objectivity into question. That said, this remains a pretty straightforward account of what could arguably be considered among the most consequential events for Western civilization. Nor can the skills and courage of the knights be questioned, considering what they were up against.
My interest in this topic originated while reading a novel, The Religion, by Timothy Willo ...more
My interest in this topic originated while reading a novel, The Religion, by Timothy Willo ...more
Admittedly, this book falls into the category of being a bit too specific in terms of scope and details for me. I don't want to take anything away from the writer or the subject matter if you are interested in this specific era or location in history. The couple take-aways I had were that Malta was a stepping stone to the Mediterranean and thus viewed as a strategic location by Suleiman and the Ottomans and the Battle of Fort St. Elmo showed an incredibly heroic effort—reminiscent in a sense of
...more
Such a compelling story. Loved it.
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Ernle Dusgate Selby Bradford was a noted British historian specializing in the Mediterranean world and naval topics. Bradford was an enthusiastic sailor himself and spent almost thirty years sailing the Mediterranean, where many of his books are set. He served in the Royal Navy during World War II, finishing as the first Lieutenant of a destroyer. He did occasional broadcast work for the BBC, was
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“Remembering the treatment that had been accorded the Knights and soldiers of St. Elmo, the Maltese inhabitants of Senglea took no prisoners. Hence there arose the expression (used in Malta to this day) 'St. Elmo's pay' for any action in which no mercy is given.”
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“In Malta, the Wars of Religion reached their climax. If both sides believed that they saw Paradise in the bright sky above them, they had a close and very intimate knowledge of Hell.”
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