The War for the Mediterranean

In 1570, four years after Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent finally passed away, the Ottomans reopened their centuries-long conflict with the Republic of Venice. The Venetian still held the large island of Cyprus, just off the coast of Anatolia and this was the main target of the war. By luck, both sides had underestimated the others' numbers and their will to fight. Neither really thought there would be a battle but those false assumptions drove them into one of the largest naval battles in history.