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The great Ottoman Empire which wielded considerable military and political power during the 14-17 centuries A.C., was supreme in the three known continents-Europe, Asia and Africa. Its vast dominions which included the major parts of South-Eastern Europe, West Asia and North Africa, stretched from the gates of Vienna in the West to the wall of China in the East and from Ukraine (USSR) in the North to the source of the Nile in the South. The Turks were the masters of both land and sea. Their invincible armies stormed the capitals of Hungary and Austria, while their navy commanded by Barbarossa,chased the Genoese and Spanish fleets in the Mediterranean. The Muslims had mainly been a land power.
The Ummayads, the Abbasides, the Fatimides and the Moors of Spain, were, in their days of glory, supreme on land, but had paid less attention towards the development of their naval power. The Turks were the first Muslim nation to realise the importance of naval warfare. Their supremacy over the Mediterranean owes its establishment to the able command of the Barbarossa,who made the Turks the masters of the seas. A number of stories are told about the origin of the Barbarossa. Yaqub, the father of the celebrated Barbarossa brothers, was probably a Greek Christian who embraced Islam. "In the year 1474", states the author of "Russo-Turkish War': a humble potter in the island of Mitylene-a Greek Christian-had a son born to him who was destined, after becoming a Muhammadan, to re-establish the 'supremacy of Muslim power on the Southern coast of the Mediterranean.
The youth, when twenty, changed his religion and took the name of "Horush". He was popularly known as "Baba Horush" on account of his red beard, and hence on account of this was called Barbarossa by the sailors of the Christian powers for whom he had become the "terror of the seas" (Russo-Turkish War). The author ofthe History of the Turkish Rule in Africa, Captain Walsin Esterhazy also corroborates the above statement and accepts "Barbarossa" (red haired) as the pronouncement-of the words "Baba Arouj" (Horush). According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, "the contemporary Arab Chronicle published by S. Rang and F. Davis in 1837 says explicitly that Barbarossa was the name given by the Christians to Khairuddin. The founder of the family was Yaqub, a Roumaliot, probably of Albanian blood who settled in Mitylene after its conquest by the Turks. He had four sons, Elias, Arouj, Isaac and Khizr". Arouj and Khizr are called Horush and Khairuddin respectively.
Anyway. it has been established through historical records that the celebrated Barbarossa brothers were born of a Muslim father. who was a convert to Islam. The Barbarossas came into limelight with the naval exploits of the elder brother in the Mediterranean. He was assisted in his adventures by his later more famous brother Khuiruddin. They were a terror for the Christian naval fleets of Genoa and Spain. The elder brother was soon made the Admiral of the Turkish fleet with its Headquarters at Goletta in the Mediterranean. The Turkish naval forces. soon joined by the Moorish adventurers. carried on their marauding expedition against the Spanish Armada.
The Moors who had added a golden chapter to the cultural history of the Mediaeval times and were, in a way. responsible for the renaissance of the Christian West. were at last expelled from Spain. Their expulsion from their homeland forms a very lamentable chapter of Mediaeval history. The downfall of Muslim power in Spain would have led to the conquest of the North African coast too by the rising power of the Spaniards had it not been checked by the ceaseless efforts of the Barbarossas, who enabled the Turks not only to extend their territory to the whole of North African coast up to the shores of the Atlantic but also establish their naval supremacy in the Mediterranean. Attempts were made even to recover the Iberian peninsula. The Barbaroosa brothers were instrumental in the Ottomans exercising complete control over Morocco. Fez. Algeria. Tunis and Tripolis. The elder brother who commanded the Turkish fleet "was the dismay of the European merchant vessels trading from port in those regions". He assisted the Algerians in turning out the Spaniards from AI-Gezirah.
ln 1512 he tried to capture Bougel from the Spaniards and in 1514 he seized Jijalli from the Genoese. [n 1516 he became a semi-independent Ruler of the North-West African States under the Turkish Emperor. He extended his territories up to Fez. He intlicted several crushing defeats on the powerful Spanish fleet. The Spaniards were greatly alarmed at his growing power and he was killed in 1518 in a fierce engagement with the Spaniards at Rio Salado. Khairuddin Barbarossa. a man of great talent and ability. succeeded his elder brother. His knowledge of naval strategy soon made him a terror for the rival naval powers in the Mediterranean. He was appointed as the Admiral of the Turkish fleet by Sulaiman, the Mangificent, Emperor of Turkey. In 1519 he was recognised by the Turkish Emperor as the Governor-General of Algeria. He captured Tunis in 1534. Khairuddin Barborossa soon made Turkey the foremost naval power in the Mediterranean. "From this time", states the author of "Russo-Turkish War", "the Turkish power on the northern coast of Africa was so strongly consolidated that none of the European nations could compete with it".
His sole ambition was the recovery of the lost Iberian peninsula for which he strove till his last. His short term is marked by his incessant efforts to achieve his goal. 111 this respect he was challenged by the two most powerful naval powers of the time-the Spaniards and the Genoese, Had he lived a few more years he would have certainly fulfilled his ambition. During his lifetime. he had fully established complete Turkish naval supremacy over the Mediterranean.
He was a terror for the ports lying on the Northern Mediterranean coasts. He was a constant dread for the enemy ships. He attacked the powerful fleet of Emperor Charles of Spain and seized several coastal towns from his Admiral. He also invaded the coast of Italy. In 922 A.H. a naval battle was fought between France and Spain in which Khairuddin Barbarossa coming to the help of the French captured Corfu island and all islands of the Aegean sea which were in possession of Venice. Thus Turkish domination extended over the Aegean sea and up to the coast of Italy. In 995 A.H., the Pope made a "holy alliance" with Spain. Hungary and Venice against Turkey, with the sole aim of' crushing its naval power in the Mediterranean. Their powerful combined fleet under the celebrated Spanish Admiral Mendoza challenged the Turkish fleet in the Mediterranean.
A bloody battle was fought in which the combined enemy fleet had to retreat with heavy losses. Khairuddin Barbarossa won a memorable naval victory. He captured several islands in the Mediterranean. With the assistance of Khairuddin Barbarossa, the French captured the Spanish port of Niece. In recognition of their valuable assistance, the French gave the port of Toulon to the Turks. Admiral Barbarossa planned to conquer the Iberian peninsula by capturing Gibraltar. He wanted to enter Spain through the same route which was taken by the Muslim Conqueror, Tariq, With a foothold on Gibraltar. he planned to make a thrust into the heart of the peninsula. But due to his other preoccupations his plan could not materialise for quite a long time.
Meanwhile, the Spaniards made full preparations to meet Khairuddin Barbarossa on their soil. Gibraltar, which they had fully fortified. At last the fateful day arrived. On August 20. 1540, Barbarossa invaded Gibraltar. It was a well fortified town: the Spaniards mustered all their forces to meet the Muslims. They had even recalled Don Bernardio den Mendoza from Sicily to replace Admiral Don Alvaro de BaLOn. Barbarossa launched an attack with a fleet of 16 vessels. manned by a thousand sailors and 2.000 fighters. In less than 10 days he gained a [oothold on the coast 01" Gibraltar. The Spaniards could hardly stand the fierce Turkish onslaught and were forced to shut themselves in the city. They could not face the forces of Barbarossa in t he open field.
"The inhabitants, terrified and unable to resist the furious energy of the blood thirsty Corsairs shut themselves in the city" (History of GibraltarSoyer, 1862, London). But, at last the siege had to be called off due to lack of adequate supplies and land support. Khairuddin Barbarossa died in 1546. His dream of the conquest of Iberian peninsula could not be realised but he earned an immortal place in the annals of naval warfare as the man who made Turkey the foremost maritime power of his time. His name has been immortalised in the ballads of Don Quixote. His 14 years of Admiralty of the Turkish fleet added a golden chapter to the annals of Islam. For a pretty long time it had been a practice of the Turkish fleet to fire salvoes as a mark of respect to the memory of Khairuddin Barbarossa while sailing off from the Golden Horn.
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Published on June 30, 2019
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The great Ottoman Empire which wielded considerable military and political power during the 14-17 centuries A.C., was supreme in the three known continents-Europe, Asia and Africa. Its vast dominions which included the major parts of South-Eastern Europe, West Asia and North Africa, stretched from the gates of Vienna in the West to the wall of China in the East and from Ukraine (USSR) in the North to the source of the Nile in the South. The Turks were the masters of both land and sea. Their invincible armies stormed the capitals of Hungary and Austria, while their navy commanded by Barbarossa,chased the Genoese and Spanish fleets in the Mediterranean. The Muslims had mainly been a land power.
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