Infantas of Cordoba and the Battle of Lepanto

The significance of the battle of Lepanto has inspired artists in various fields. One piece of commemorative music composed after the victory is the motet Canticum Moysis Pro victoria navali contra Turcas by the Spanish composer Fernando de las Infantas.

Infantas was born in Córdoba in 1534, a descendant of Juan Fernández de Córdoba who had conveyed the two daughters of Pedro I of Castile to safety after the Battle of Montiel in 1369. The family was still notable in Córdoba at the time of Fernando's birth and he enjoyed a privileged education, and later a patrimonio, or stipend, remitted to him in Rome from his family in Spain.

From 1572–1597 Infantas resided in Rome, voluntarily giving his services to a hospital for the poor. In 1577 he came into conflict with Pope Gregory XIII over the reversal of reforms in Gregorian chant.

Infantas' theological views may have influenced his preference for predominantly Biblical text settings in his publications.