The Man Who Stopped the Sultan

The Reviews Are Coming In

25 March 2026
Edoardo
No comments
Categories: Book review, Gabriele Tadino, The Man Who Stopped the Sultan
The Man Who Stopped the Sultan

The reviews are starting to come in for The Man Who Stopped the Sultan but this one, from Amazon in America, is possibly my favourite review:

Michael P Heller

An Amazing – and Entertaining – Work of History

March 13, 2026

I am writing this review not just as a medieval re-enactor of the Knights of St. John the Hospitallers, but as a re-enactor of Gabriele Tadino himself: This book was a Godsend. Even after having long-studied the life of Tadino for my role, this book contained information that I still never knew, written in a way that is both informative and entertaining. Too many history texts are dry and filled with facts that put you to sleep after only a few pages, whereas Albert has the rare ability to educate the reader and entertain him at the same time. If you are at all interested in medieval history, or medieval warfare, I recommend this book 100%.

Publication Day!

29 January 2026
Edoardo
No comments
Categories: Blog, Gabriele Tadino, The Man Who Stopped the Sultan
The Man Who Stopped the Sultan

Today’s publication day for The Man Who Stopped the Sultan! Rush out and get your copy from all good booksellers.

If you’re not sure about reading it, let me reassure you. For a podcast interview last week, I had to reread the book to remind myself what I had written (there’s a long gap between finishing writing a book and it being published). In these cases, I always start reading with a little trepidation. What if, in the cold light of day, it’s not any good?

Well, I can now report that it is good. In fact, it’s very good. One of the best books I’ve written. So go out and get your copy today and tell me if I’m wrong.

The Man Who Stopped the Sultan: Gabriele Tadino and the Defence of Europe

19 October 2025
Edoardo
No comments
Categories: Blog, The Man Who Stopped the Sultan
The Man Who Stopped the Sultan: Gabriele Tadino & the Defence of Europe by Edoardo Albert

My new book! I’m delighted to say that The Man Who Stopped the Sultan is out on 29 January 2026, published by Osprey Books.

Heres’s the blurb:

An extraordinary account of how one man defied the most powerful ruler of his age and in doing so changed the course of European history.

Throughout the 16th century, wars raged across Europe as kings and republics jostled for wealth and power. Yet one man exceeded all these medieval princes of Christendom: Suleiman the Magnificent. As ruler of the Ottoman Empire, he governed 25 million people from Constantinople, his realm stretching from Persia to the Atlantic Ocean. Turning his gaze to Europe, Suleiman attacked Rhodes, the island fortress of the Knights Hospitaller but was opposed by Gabriele Tadino – an Italian who had risen through the ranks thanks to his genius as a military engineer.

This is a fascinating history of crusading knights and gunpowder, of spies and tunnels, and of a crossroads in history when the medieval age gave way to the Renaissance. Delving deep into Italian source material, Edoardo Albert weaves together the story of an ordinary man alive in an extraordinary time and performing extraordinary feats of military genius. Through the lens of his life we discover how military tactics and fortifications rapidly changed thanks to the discovery of gunpowder, and how Europe, divided by power-hungry rulers and religion, almost fell to one of the greatest rulers the world has ever seen, but was prevented by a humble engineer.

I’m very excited about this book and I hope you will be too!