Posted on 10/06/2018 4:43:40 PM PDT by ebb tide
Lepanto
We cannot but recall that four great Roman Pontiffs came from the Dominican ranks. Of these, the last, St. Pius V, won undying gratitude from Christianity and civil society. He joined together, after unceasing efforts, the arms of the Catholic princes, and under the patronage of the Virgin Mother of God, whom, therefore, he ordered to be saluted in future as Help to Christians, destroyed forever at Lepanto the power of the Turks.
In this is amply shown the third quality We have noted in Dominican preaching: a most zealous piety towards the Mother of God. It is said that the Pontiff knew by Divine revelation of the victory of Lepanto achieved at that very moment when through the Catholic world the pious sodalities of the Holy Rosary implored the aid of Mary in that formula initiated by the Founder of the Friar Preachers and diffused far and wide by his followers.
Loving the Blessed Virgin as a Mother, confiding chiefly in her patronage, Dominic started his battle for the Faith. The Albigenses, among other dogmas, attacked both the Divine maternity and the virginity of Mary. He, attacked by them with every insult, defending to the utmost of his strength the sanctity of these dogmas, he invoked the help of the Virgin Mother herself, frequently using these words: “Make me worthy to praise thee, Sacred Virgin; give me strength against thine enemies.”
How pleased was the Heavenly Queen with her pious servant may be easily gathered from this, that she used his ministry to teach the Most Holy Rosary to the Church, the Spouse of her Son; that prayer which, being both vocal and mental, in the contemplation especially of the mysteries of religion, while the Lord’s Prayer is fifteen times repeated together with as many decades of the Hail Mary, is most adapted to fostering widely piety and every virtue.
Rightly, then, did Dominic order his followers, in preaching to the people, to inculcate frequently this manner of prayer, the utility of which he had experienced. He knew, on the one hand, Mary’s authority with her Son to be such that whatever graces he confers on men she has their distribution and apportionment.
On the other hand, he knew that she is of a nature so kind and merciful that, seeing that it is her custom to succor the miserable of her own accord, it is impossible she should refuse the petitions of those who pray to her. Accordingly the Church, which is wont to salute her “the Mother of Grace and the Mother of Mercy,” has so found her always, but especially in answer to the Rosary.
Ping
This is so inspiring. There is hope.
I posted on a previous thread:
We have a small group completing the Novena for Our Nation tomorrow, anniversary of Battle of Lepanto, where Mohammedans were smashed by the power of the rosary.
https://www.novenaforournation.com/
Is anyone here praying this Novena? Consider praying a rosary tomorrow for our nation in this critical time. The rosary is a powerful weapon. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us.
Lepanto is an interesting battle. Basically a battle between two armies fought on ship decks. The Turks outnumbered the Christians, but were overwhelmingly archers. The Christians were mostly heavy infantry in plate armor. Turks rained arrows on them as the ships approached, but with little effect. Once they closed the Christian soldiers cut through the Turks like a scythe through wheat.
You have company here in my neck of the woods. A lot of people have been praying the 54 Day Novena for our Nation.
http://rosarycoasttocoast.com/
No, that is not how it went down. Don John of Austria and Giovanni Andrea had a top secret weapon that the Turks did not know about. Boarding nets. Don John pointed his galley directly at Ali Pasha’s ship. When the two ships merged the arquebuses normally would only get one shot off before the battle went to swords. But with the thick boarding nets draped over the Catholic ships, the arquebuses fired and reloaded over and over again killing most of the muslims who vainly slashed at the heavy nets. Ali Pasha’s head was severed from his body and when the muslims saw that the battle was over. This is just my paraphrasing, there were many more details all carefully chronicled in “The Galleys of Lepanto” by Jack Beeching. Another awesome technology were the three large ships at anchor full of cannon that blasted away at the corsairs sinking many of them.
Don John of Austria. This guy was an under appreciated rock star of a leader and soldier. While most of Europe yawned in their easy chairs he saved it...at least temporarily.
The two aren’t mutually exclusive, but while arquebuses may have played a part, the hand to hand fighting lasted for hours and was the decisive factor. From Wiki...
“Around noon, first contact was made between the squadrons of Barbarigo’s and Sirocco, close to the northern shore of the Gulf. Barbarigo had attempted to stay so close to the shore as to prevent Sirocco from surrounding him, but Sirocco, knowing the depth of the waters, managed to still insert galleys between Barbarigo’s line and the coast. In the ensuing mêlée, the ships came so close to each other as to form an almost continuous platform of hand-to-hand fighting in which both leaders were killed. The Christian galley slaves freed from the Turkish ships were supplied with arms and joined in the fighting, turning the battle in favour of the Christian side.
Meanwhile, the centers clashed with such force that Ali Pasha’s galley drove into the Real as far as the fourth rowing bench, and hand-to-hand fighting commenced around the two flagships, between the Spanish tercio infantry and the Turkish janissaries. When the Real was nearly taken, Colonna came alongside with the bow of his galley and mounted a counter-attack. With the help of Colonna, the Turks were pushed off the Real and the Turkish flagship was boarded and swept. The entire crew of Ali Pasha’s flagship was killed, including Ali Pasha himself. The banner of the Holy League was hoisted on the captured ship, breaking the morale of the Turkish galleys nearby. After two hours of fighting, the Turks were beaten left and center, although fighting continued for another two hours.[37] A flag taken at Lepanto by the Knights of Saint Stephen, said to be the standard of the Turkish commander, is still on display, in the Church of the seat of the Order in Pisa.”
Let us please not forget Don John of Austria who steeled the spirit of the coalition and lead them to victory.
Yes, you are right, there are many different perspectives of how the fight went down. The Catholics should have lost. There was a key wind change that made a huge difference in the outcome at the very beginning of the engagement. Jack Beeching’s rendering of the battle is riveting. Especially what Don John of Austria did with the Spanish galliard. It was so awesome, you will have to read it, don’t want to spoil it for you.
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