The battle of the Galiotes uncovered in the 'Xerrades Essencials' cycle of Es Nàutic

This Friday, 19th of January, at 8 p.m., the Club Nàutic Sant Antoni's 'Xerrades Essencials' cycle of get-togethers returns, in which the book 'Galiotes! Una batalla oblidada' will be presented.

This work describes an unusual and fierce naval battle between Genoese galleys under the orders of the Spanish Crown and corsair galleots of Turkish origin. This naval battle took place on the 12th of June 1607 next to the islet of s'Espardell, although it originated in the bay of Portmany, costing the lives of more than a hundred crew members, most of them Christian captives. 

The talk, which will be moderated by journalist Xescu Prats, will be attended by three of the book's authors, historians Antoni Ferrer Abárzuza (also the book's coordinator) and Antoni Tur Torres, and archaeologist Marcus Heinrich Hermanns.

This meeting will not only serve to historically frame this battle, hitherto unknown to the general public, but will also provide an opportunity to delve into aspects such as the system for negotiating and rescuing captives captured by Barbary corsairs used by the Government of Ibiza at the time, the types of corsair and Crown vessels, the links between this episode and the findings at underwater archaeological sites on Ibiza and Formentera, the importance of the salt flats on Ibiza in relation to enemy corsair activity and, most especially, the link between the Bay of Portmany and this historical event.

This is the fifth meeting in this series of talks, after a period in which the CNSA's cultural activities have been geared towards the celebration of the institution's 50th anniversary. The previous meetings were dedicated to the Argonauts Club (the first agency to operate in Sant Antoni), the historic llaüt 'El Bohemio', the saga of the Hormigo family of artists and the figure of Pep de na Mossona (creator of the Hotel Portmany).

The cycle takes place in the Es Nàutic social lounge and features women and men with an interesting vision of the evolution of Sant Antoni and Ibiza itself. This activity is open to the entire public on the island, with free admission until full capacity is reached.