"From Naples, 13th of May, 1573. At your service,
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The downfall of the Ottoman Empire began at Lepanto and its ruin followed. It is, however, certain that the immediate benefits of this triumph did not correspond either to the splendour of its glory or to the heroism of those who gained it.
The Generals of the League were in a great hurry to separate; old Veniero was anxious to find himself in Venice to have the wound he had gained in the battle cared for; Colonna wished to be back in Rome to enjoy the merited honours of the triumph, and D. John of Austria, shut up in Messina by the definite orders of his brother Philip II, who had instructed him to retire there and not to move, or do anything without fresh orders from him, was consumed with impatience at seeing the opportunity of plucking the fruits of the battle of Lepanto slip away, and, as a natural consequence, the fulfilment of the promise made by the Pope at the investiture, of granting him the first kingdom gained from the Turks.
A mysterious event, then very secret, but afterwards known by everyone, came to spur on in D. John his desire to continue the campaign according to the treaty of the League, and according to the continual demands of Pius V, the only one who raised his voice, without worldly interests, in absolute and saintly independence. D. John had entered Messina on All Saints' day at the head of the Venetian fleet, towing the innumerable captive galleys, with their standards lowered, their flags dragging through the water, their cannon and arms crossed, forming trophies of war. Nothing seemed enough in Messina with which to feast and welcome the hero of Lepanto; the city, Archbishop and clergy received him under a pall, and there on the mole they gave him the munificent present of 30,000 golden crowns, which D. John divided between the hospitals and the wounded soldiers of the fleet. In his honour they gave the name of Austria to the magnificent doorway which they had constructed on the mole to receive him, and also to the street which ran from it. In the most prominent site of Messina, in front of the palace and in the centre of the square of Our Lady del Piller they erected, at that time, a colossal statue, the work of the renowned sculptor and architect Andres Calamech. This was (and is, for it still stands in the same place) of gilded bronze; the right hand holds the triple baton of the Generalissimo of the League, and it is placed on a very high column also of bronze, on the pedestal of which are sculptured Latin verses and allegories alluding to the short but glorious life of D. John of Austria.