Kemal Reis was the paternal uncle of the famous Ottoman admiral and cartographer Piri Reis, who accompanied him in most of his important naval expeditions.
27 Facts About Kemal Reis
2.
Kemal Reis was born in Manisa on the Aegean coast of the Ottoman Empire in circa 1451.
3.
Kemal Reis's full name was Ahmed Kemaleddin and his father was a Turk named Ali from the city of Kayseri in central Anatolia.
4.
Kemal Reis became known in Europe, particularly in Italy and Spain, with names like Camali and Camalicchio.
5.
Kemal Reis started his career as the commander of the naval fleet belonging to the Sanjak Bey of Egriboz which was under Ottoman control.
6.
Kemal Reis sailed to Spain and landed an expeditionary force of Ottoman troops at Malaga, capturing the city and the surrounding villages and taking many prisoners.
7.
Kemal Reis continued to land his troops in Andalucia and tried to stop the Spanish advance by bombarding the ports of Elche, Almeria and Malaga.
8.
In 1495 Kemal Reis was made an admiral of the Ottoman Navy by Sultan Bayezid II who ordered the construction of his large flagship, Goke, which could carry 700 soldiers and was armed with the strongest cannons of that period.
9.
Kemal Reis later landed at Stalimene and from there sailed towards Tenedos and returned to Constantinople.
10.
Kemal Reis set sail from Cefalonia and retook Lepanto from the Venetians.
11.
Kemal Reis bombarded the fortress of Modon from the sea and captured the town.
12.
Kemal Reis later engaged with the Venetian fleet off the coast of Coron and captured the town along with a Venetian brigantine.
13.
Kemal Reis captured 3 Venetian galleys, a Venetian caravelle and several other local ships which were docked at the port of Zonchio.
14.
Kemal Reis took these ships first to Modon and later to the Island of Aegina, before sailing towards Euboea.
15.
Kemal Reis later captured Navarino from the Venetians, adding another important port to the Ottoman Empire.
16.
Kemal Reis engaged several Genoese warships off the coast of Sardinia, which later escaped northwards after being damaged by cannon fire.
17.
Kemal Reis was told by one of his prisoners that both came from newly discovered lands to the west, beyond the Atlantic Ocean.
18.
Kemal Reis later sailed westwards and passed the Strait of Gibraltar and entered the Atlantic Ocean, where he and his men raided the Atlantic coasts of the Iberian peninsula.
19.
Kemal Reis later turned eastwards, where he followed the Atlantic coastline of Morocco and re-entered the Mediterranean Sea through the Strait of Gibraltar, landing on several ports of Morocco and Algeria on the way.
20.
Kemal Reis intercepted several Venetian galleys in the area before sailing back to Constantinople.
21.
Kemal Reis transported Muslims and Jews and took them to Constantinople.
22.
Kemal Reis later bombarded the Venetian galley under the command of Benedetto Priuli.
23.
Kemal Reis responded to the cannon fire from the fortress of Trapani with the cannons on his ships.
24.
Kemal Reis later sailed to the Island of Cerigo in the Ionian Sea with a force of 3 galleys and 2 fustas, and exchanged fire with the Venetian fleet under the command of Girolamo Contarini.
25.
Still in 1509 Kemal Reis sailed to the Tyrrhenian Sea and landed at the coasts of Liguria.
26.
Kemal Reis continued operating in the West Mediterranean for some time, until returning to Gallipoli.
27.
The cargo fleet that Kemal Reis was to escort amounted to a total of 40 ships, 8 of which were galleys.