The battle of Lepanto 7 October 1571 : a critical annotated edition of Luca Cenni's account

Abstract

The National Library of Malta is the depositary of the archives of the Order of Saint John, henceforth in this work described as 'The Order' or 'The Religion'. The Knights arrived in Malta in 1530 bringing with them a collection of relics and archives, some of them pre-dating the Rhodian period. The chancery of the Order, as can be seen from the minutes of the Council was not only the depositary of the official documents of the Order but it also contained such documents as historical accounts of the history of the Order by 'Hospitaller' historians both in published as well as in manuscript form. In this work the reference to 'Hospitaller historians' is to be intended to refer to histories of the Order written either by members of the Order itself or by non-members with the express or tacit authorization by the Order. In most cases these histories were written after the author was officially commissioned to do so by the Order as shall be explained hereafter. One such document which has survived the long and troubled peregrination of these documents m vanous local archives after the Order left Malta is a manuscript volume entitled Dell 'Historia dell 'Ordine Sacra e Militare dei Cavalieri di San Giovanni Gierosolimitano. It is written by Abbot Luca Cenni, an obscure literary figure who received glowing recommendations and attestations of worthiness on his being recommended to the Master as an official historian. No other work by Cenni has so far been traced by the undersigned. I decided to transcribe part of this manuscript dealing with the Battle of Lepanto (7 October 1571) and am attempting a critical edition of the same. Cenni's account differs considerably from other accounts in several aspects. It contains information which was not considered important by the other Hospitaller historians while it contains other information which may be considered as unnecessary digressions. It also omits to include several important aspects of the event, as shall be explained in detail. I believe that attempting this critical edition should provide a different insight into this landmark event in sixteenth century European history.