Lupa (ship)
The Lupa was an Ottoman galley which was the site of a rebellion by its galley slaves in January 1748.[1] The vessel was the flagship of Mustafa, Pasha of Rhodes, and the revolt broke out upon the end of his governorship of Rhodes, while he was en route to Karaman.[2]
In January 1748, 16 Hungarians, Georgians and Maltese who were enslaved on board the galley revolted and commandeered the ship.[3] Three of the rebels – Antonio Montalto, Claudio Camilleri and Pietro Schembri – were Maltese, eleven others were non-Maltese Christians, and two were Muslims. The planners behind the revolt included Montalto and Cara Mehmet; the latter was a Muslim who had been granted his freedom by Mustafa's father but had continued to be treated as a slave by Mustafa.[3] The rebel slaves took more than 150 Ottoman personnel and passengers captive, then massacred the ship's Turkish sailors and threw their bodies in the sea.[2] Around 160 slaves on board the galley were liberated as a result of the revolt.[3]
Some sources state that the rebel slaves were led by Cara Mehmet,[4] while others mention that they elected Demetrius, an Albanian, as their leader.[2] They sailed the ship to Hospitaller Malta, and by the time of their arrival, there were 22 Ottoman captives on board, including Mustafa.[4] The Lupa was spotted off the island on 1 February, and a galley of the Hospitaller fleet, the San Luigi, was sent to investigate. When the Hospitallers learnt of the rebellion, they provided the former slaves with supplies and towed the galley to Malta's Marsamxett Harbour. The ship and its passengers were quarantined at the Lazzaretto of Manoel Island until 2 March.[3]
By 6 April 1748, the Ottoman sultanate had been made aware of the loss of the Lupa and had reportedly began seeking to recover the vessel.[5] Mustafa was enslaved in Malta until he was released on 5 May 1749 due to French efforts as a result of the Franco-Ottoman alliance. Together with Cara Mehmet and other conspirators, he plotted to instigate a slave revolt on 29 June 1749 and take over Malta, but the plot was uncovered and many conspirators including Cara Mehmet were tortured and executed. Mustafa himself was not punished due to French intervention, and he left Malta on a French ship in 1751.[3]
See also
[edit]- Corona Ottomana, another Ottoman ship on which a slave revolt occurred in 1760
References
[edit]- ^ Castillo, Dennis Angelo (2006). The Maltese Cross: A Strategic History of Malta. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 90–91. ISBN 9780313323294.
- ^ a b c Kadıoğlu, Muhsin (2023). "Ottoman Empire's Strategy to Capture Malta Thanks To Turkish and Muslim Sea Captives". Sakarya Üniversitesi Türk Akademi Dergisi (in Turkish). 2 (1): 1–12. Archived from the original on 16 February 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Grima, Joseph F. (23 June 2024). "1749: The failed plot of the Muslim slaves". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024.
- ^ a b Cassar & Grillo 2024, pp. 38–39
- ^ Cassar & Grillo 2024, p. 14
Bibliography
[edit]- Cassar, Kenneth; Grillo, Rachel (2024). Betrayal and Vengeance: The Slaves' Conspiracy of 1749 in 19 Historical Drawings. Heritage Malta. ISBN 978-99186-19-9-00.
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