Hayreddin Barbarossa was an Ottoman corsair and subsequently admiral of the Ottoman Navy. He was also known as Hzr Hayrettin Pasha and simply Hzr Reis. During the mid-16th century, Barbarossa's naval successes ensured Ottoman control over the Mediterranean. Khizr, who was born on the Greek island of Lesbos, began his naval career as a corsair under the command of his elder brother, Oruç Reis. The brothers took Algiers from Spain in 1516, and Oruç declared himself Sultan. Khizr got his brother's nickname, "Barbarossa," after Oruç died in 1518. ("Redbeard" in Italian). He was also given the honorific name Hayreddin (from Arabic Khayr ad-Din, "goodness of the faith" or "best of the faith"). Barbarossa retook the Peón of Algiers from the Spaniards in 1529.
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