<P> In the history of naval warfare, Lepanto marks the last major engagement in the Western world to be fought entirely or almost entirely between rowing vessels, the galleys and galeasses that were still the direct descendants of the ancient trireme warships . The battle was in essence an "infantry battle on floating platforms". It was the largest naval battle in Western history since classical antiquity, involving more than 400 warships . Over the following decades, the increasing importance of the galleon and the line of battle tactic would displace the galley as the major warship of its era, marking the beginning of the "Age of Sail". </P> <P> The victory of the Holy League is of great importance in the history of Europe and of the Ottoman Empire, marking the turning - point of Ottoman military expansion into the Mediterranean, although the Ottoman wars in Europe would continue for another century . It has long been compared to the Battle of Salamis both for tactical parallels and for its crucial importance in the defense of Europe against imperial expansion . It was also of great symbolic importance in a period when Europe was torn by its own wars of religion following the Protestant Reformation, strengthening the position of Philip II of Spain as the "Most Catholic King" and defender of Christendom against Muslim incursion, although this was mitigated by the defeat of the Spanish Armada by the Royal Navy of England in 1588 . </P> <P> The Christian coalition had been promoted by Pope Pius V to rescue the Venetian colony of Famagusta, on the island of Cyprus, which was being besieged by the Turks in early 1571 subsequent to the fall of Nicosia and other Venetian possessions in Cyprus in the course of 1570 . On 1 August, the Venetians had surrendered after being reassured that they could leave Cyprus freely . However, the Ottoman commander, Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha, who had lost some 50,000 men in the siege, broke his word, imprisoning the Venetians . On 17 August, Marco Antonio Bragadin was flayed alive and his corpse hung on Mustafa's galley together with the heads of the Venetian commanders, Astorre Baglioni, Alvise Martinengo and Gianantonio Querini . </P> <P> The members of the Holy League were the Republic of Venice, the Spanish Empire (including the Kingdom of Naples, the Kingdoms of Sicily and Sardinia as part of the Spanish possessions), the Papal States, the Republic of Genoa, the Duchies of Savoy, Urbino and Tuscany, the Knights Hospitaller and others . </P>

Describe the sea battle that occurred between the christian alliance and the ottoman empire in 1571