Martyrs of Otranto

St. Antonio Primaldo and His Companions Martyrs of Otranto
Relics of the Otranto Martyrs
Martyrs
Died	14 August 1480
Venerated in	Catholic Church
Beatified	December 14, 1771, by Pope Clement XIV
Canonized	May 12, 2013, Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City, by Pope Francis
Major shrine	Cathedral of Otranto
Feast	August 14
Patronage	Otranto

St. Antonio Primaldo and his companion martyrs (Italian: I Santi Antonio Primaldo e compagni martiri), also known as the Martyrs of Otranto, were 813 inhabitants of the Salentine city of Otranto in southern Italy who were killed on August 14, 1480. The mass execution is often explained as taking place after the Otrantins refused to convert to Islam when the city fell to an Ottoman force under Gedik Ahmed Pasha.

The Ottoman ambitions in Italy were ended. Had Otranto surrendered to the Turks, the history of Italy might have been very different. But the heroism of the people of Otranto was more than a strategically decisive stand. What made the sacrifice of Otranto so remarkable was the willingness to die for the faith rather than reject Christ. - Matthew Bunson

The siege of Otranto -with the martyrdom of the inhabitants- was the last significant military attempt by a Muslim force to conquer southern Italy. The slaughter was remembered by Risorgimento historians (like Arnaldi and Scirocco) as a milestone in European history, because as a consequence of this sacrifice the Italian peninsula was never conquered by Muslim troops.

The contemporary Turkish historian Ibn Kemal indeed justified the slaughter on religious grounds. One modern study suggests it may have been a punitive measure, devoid of religious motivations, exacted to punish the local population for the stiff resistance they put up, which delayed the Turkish advance and enabled the King of Naples to strengthen local fortifications. Intimidation, a warning to other populations not to resist, may also have entered the invaders' calculations. They were beatified in 1771 and were canonised by Pope Francis on 12 May 2013. They are the patron saints of the city of Otranto and the Archdiocese of Otranto.

On 28 July 1480 an Ottoman force commanded by Gedik Ahmed Pasha, consisting of 90 galleys, 40 galiots and other ships carrying a total of around 150 crew and 18,000 troops, landed beneath the walls of Otranto. The city strongly resisted the Ottoman assaults, but the garrison was unable to resist the bombardment for long. The garrison and all the townsfolk thus abandoned the main part of the city on 29 July, retreating into the citadel whilst the Ottomans began bombarding the neighboring houses.