Daru, a member of the Academie
Francaise, who wrote an exhaustive _Histoire de Venise_ and Don Cayetano
Rosell, member of the Spanish Academy, who is responsible for an exposition
of the subject, known as _Historia del combate naval de Lepanto_. From a
comparison of the works of these eminent men one fact emerges with great
clearness, which is that the battle of Lepanto was an indiscriminate melee
which was decided by some of the most desperate fighting ever recorded, but
which depended hardly at all upon the tactical abilities of the men in
chief command. It is true that we are told Don John issued written
instructions to the commander of each ship, but we are left in the dark as
to what these instructions were, while at the same time we discover that in
his line of battle, which in the first instance appears to have been that
of "single line ahead," the galleys of all nationalities were inextricably
mixed up; making it thereby impossible for the Papal, Spanish, and Venetian
commanders to deal, as they should have done, exclusively with their own
men. On the other hand, Occhiali kept together the squadron of the
Sea-wolves; he outgeneralled and had all but defeated John Andrea Doria,
when the end came and he was obliged to retreat.
We are, however, anticipating. Don John passed down his own line in a light
"fregata" giving a few words of exhortation and advice to each ship under
his command. If the bastard brother of the King of Spain did not exhibit
any large measure of ability as a leader on this occasion, he was perhaps
none the less the right man in the right place, as he had about him so
winning a way, he was so striking and gallant a figure, that the hearts of
all under his command went out to him.
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