A Picture from History: The Last Hope

The Ottoman Empire engulfed the entire Middle East; but for the Turks, this wasn’t enough. They wanted Europe too. 

It was on Malta that a small group of knights known as the Knights Hospitaller made a stand.

They put a serious damper on the Ottoman attempts at conquest throughout the region… 

Preparation Began

La Valette — the leader of the Knights Hospitaller — received news that a massive enemy force was headed his way.

He only had 9,000 men on the island. The only chance he had lie in reinforcements. Preparing for the storm to the best of his ability, Valette sent letters throughout Europe requesting help. 

Only Charles V responded, saying help was on the way. 

The Knights Hospitaller just had to hold out long enough. 

The Great Siege

On May 18, 1565, the sea filled with white sails. And for the Knights Hospitaller, those ships portended death. 

Over 48,000 Turks were headed their way, meaning the Knights were outnumbered by over 5:1.

For the Turks, the first attack point was the harbor fortress of St. Elmo. If they could take that, they’d have an effective staging point for further attacks on the island of Malta. 

They estimated they could do so within three days. 

After all, only 600 men guarded St. Elmo. 

The Turks never suspected how hard these men would fight.  

The First Wave

On June 3, after over a week of artillery bombardment, St. Elmo wave after wave of Turk fell upon St. Elmo.

The Knights had no choice, though.

Malta couldn’t fall, because if it did, Europe would follow. 

Using clay pot hand grenades, flamethrowers, early guns, and the blade, the Knights fought valiantly. 

By the end of the first day, 80 of them lay dead throughout St. Elmo. Yet they killed 2,000 of the enemy. 

Own the Night

Despite heavy losses, the Turks were not through yet. On June 10, they once more sent a massive onslaught. This time, the only difference was that they do so at night. 

The fighting was fierce, and 60 knights fell — taking 1,500 of the Turks with them. 

By June 15, the entirety of St. Elmo was surrounded.

Four thousand guns were aimed at its walls. By nightfall, they opened fire. Wave after wave of Turk followed, only to be repulsed by the few Knights who remained. 

The Fall of St. Elmo

Thirty-five days. That’s what the men at St. Elmo bought their friends.

Eventually, nothing other than sheer numbers caused the men at St. Elmo to fall. They were overrun, slaughtered, and then dismembered.  

Europe Prepared to Fall

After the fall of St. Elmo, the Ottomans swept throughout the rest of the island, finding brutal fighting at every turn.

Overwhelming numbers threatened to wipe the Knights Hospitaller from existence, and the rest of Europe as well. 

Nine thousand men can only hold out for so long against superior numbers, and as day after day resulted in further loss of life, the Knights were gradually whittled down to nothing. 

All seemed lost.

But then, September 8^th arrived.

It was on that day ships were spotted on the horizon – the ships of Charles V.

He landed 10,000 men at Malta that day, routing the Turks in what can only be described as one of the most spectacular rescues medieval warfare had ever seen. 

Conclusion

On September 11, the Turks retreated from the island of Malta.

Over 30,000 of them were killed in the fighting. As for the original 9,000 Knights, only 600 remained in a state that could be deemed war-ready. Though, in reality, every single one of the survivors was maimed. 

To find out more about The Great Siege of Malta, check out Ernle Bradford’s book on the subject.

This is a new style of article for Pew Pew Tactical, if you liked it — let us know in the comments! If you didn’t enjoy it…well phooey. To catch up on previous Pictures from History, click on over to our History Category.