Siege of Lemnos (1657)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Siege of Lemnos (1657) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Cretan War (Fifth Ottoman–Venetian War) | |||||||
 Map of Lemnos, Ottoman drawing | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Ottoman Empire |
 Republic of Venice | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Topal Mehmed Pasha | Unknown | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 4,000 or 10,000 men | Unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 500+ |
100–200 killed 500 captured | ||||||
The siege of Lemnos happened during the Cretan War when the Ottomans launched a campaign to reconquer the island of Lemnos from the Venetians. The Ottomans captured the island in the end.
The Ottomans won the fourth battle of Dardanelles and soon the Venetians found themselves on the defensive. The costly battles in Dardanelles and the struggle to hold on to Crete took a toll on the Venetians. They had already occupied the islands of Lemnos and Tindos. Those two islands were far away from the supply line. The peace party in the senate argued to abandon the two islands; however, the war party prevailed in the end. The Ottomans wanted a peace treaty but still demanded the surrender of Crete. The Ottomans under Köprülü Mehmed Pasha took an aggressive stance. On August 31,[1] the Ottomans landed at Tindos, easily captured after the Venetians abandoned it.[2]