Pius V formed the Holy League, a coalition between the Papal States, Malta, Habsburg Spain, the Republic of Venice, the Republic of Genoa, and some other Italian states. Four months later, on 7 October, the naval forces of the League, composed mainly of Venetian, Spanish, and Papal ships under the command of Don John of Austria, defeated the Turkish fleet at the Battle of Lepanto in one of the decisive battles in general — and naval battles in particular — of world history. The victory over the Ottomans, however, came too late to help Cyprus, and the island remained under Ottoman rule for the next three centuries. In 1573 the Venetians left Cyprus, removing the influence of the Roman Catholic Church. Administrative history As soon as Nicosia was conquered, Cyprus was declared an eyalet under the administration of a beylerbey, and Lala Mustafa Pasha, the former beylerbey of Avlonya, was appointed to the post. Cyprus was divided into three sanjaks: Famagusta, Kyrenia and Paphos. Additionally, the sanjaks of Alâiye, Tarsus, İçel, Sis, Zülkadriye and Tripoli (Trablusşam) on the mainland were placed under the administration of the Cyprus eyalet. Cyprus was also divided into several kazas: Tuzla, Limassol, Episkopi, Kythrea, Paphos, Kukla, Lefka, Morphou, Hirsofu, Famagusta, Kyrenia and Mesariye. These kazas each had their own kadı or naib. The sanjak of Tripoli, however, was removed from the jurisdiction of Cyprus in 1573 due to its distance and given to the Damascus Eyalet. The sanjaks of İçel, Alâiye and Tarsus were also removed in 1610 and given to the newly created Adana Eyalet. However, after the Ottoman conquest of Crete, the Cypriot Orthodox Church argued that Cyprus had lost importance, that trade volume had decreased and that people were emigrating. It thus requested a change in the administrative status as Cyprus could not afford remaining an eyalet. Thus, in 1670, Cyprus became a sanjak under the Eyalet of the Archipelago, under the direct control of the Kapudan Pasha, the head of the Ottoman Navy. This control was exercised through an appointed mütesellim. However, under this system, local aghas were the tax collectors. This magnified their power and resulted in discontent, with the rivalry between them causing a two-year long revolt in the 1680s, led by Boyacıoğlu Mehmed Agha. This proved that the existing system caused a power vacuum and was ineffective, so in 1703 Cyprus was placed directly under the control of