able to Ferdinand, gave him time to provifion J.C. 1529. Heg. 936. Vienna, whilft the Turkish convoys were unable to pafs. Solyman's tents covered all the plains around the city, and occupied more than fix miles of the environs. This formidable fight no way frighted Philip, count palatine of the Rhine, who commanded in Vienna. His whole garrifon had been proved in the wars of Charles V. and his artillery was well ferved: he made a vigorous and able refiftance againft these soldiers accufftomed, for feveral years paft, rather to purfue than to fight. The attack and the defence of Vienna were on both fides as smart as it was poffible for them to be. Every thing that prudence or valour could fuggeft was made use of during one month and fome days. Solyman loft forty thousand men there, and the befieged more than

At length provifions failing the Turks, who were unable to procure any from Hungary, and the feafon daily becoming worse, the sultan was obliged to raise the fiege, whatever repugnance he might have, for it was impoffible to prolong it. He had ravaged the environs of Vienna as much through neceffity as hatred, and he did not abandon his enterprife, 'till his foldiers, worn out with hunger, expired in the trenches, which the continual rains filled with water, fpite of every effort to keep them dry.

But Solyman, wishing to conceal from the enemy the difgrace of this retreat, fet at liberty fome German

Yy 2

Heg. 936.

phen's

J.C.1529. German prifoners, whom he caused to be magnificently clothed, and fent them back to the city, with orders to tell, their commanders, that the fultan's real defign had never been to take Vienna; that he fought Ferdinand, in order to decide, by a battle, the dispute of the crown of Hungary; that not having met the archduke at Vienna, he had just tried the valour of his foldiers, whom he had favoured because he esteemed them. After He places Saint Ste- having thus difguifed his weakness under a falfe crown on appearance of generofity, he conducted his army back to Buda, where he placed with his own hands the crown of king Saint Stephen on the head of John Zapoli. This is the cuftomary ceremony at the coronation of all the kings of Hungary. Solyman displayed on this occafion a pomp which formed a ftriking contraft with the mifery of the people. He gave leffons of juftice and lenity to this prince, whofe dominions he had defolated before and after having acknowledged him for king of Hungary, recommending him to take care of his fubjects, of whom he, the emperor, was dragging a vast number in captivity to Conftantinople.

king

John's

head.

becomes

tributary to the

Turks.

The fultan, on his return to his capital, lent → Bogdan, prince of Moldavia, fix thoufand Turks to king John, to maintain him in poffeffion of the deferts bathed with blood which he left him mafter of. He gave the command of these troops to Gritti the Venetian, under the authority of John Zapoli. Solyman was endeavouring to forget the raising of the fiege of Vienna,

1

Heg. 936.

Vienna, by felicitating himself with having given J.C.1529a kingdom, when he himself gained a fovereignty. which he owed only to his reputation. Bogdan, prince of Moldavia, fent an ambaffador to Conftantinople, to offer the fultan to put his eftates under the protection of his highnefs, in order to their becoming fiefs of the empire, on condition, that the exercise of the Chriftian religion fhould be preserved there, and that the two Moldavias should, at all times, be protected by the Turks. Soon after, prince Bogdan arrived in perfon at the court of the grand feignior; he prefented, to his new lord, four thousand crowns of gold, forty mares with foal, and twenty-four falcons, engaging to pay the Porte yearly, the fame rent as a mark of feodal, fubmiffion.

The emperor received Bogdan with much diftinction. He ordered the robe of honor to be

J.C.1530

Heg. 936.

Festivals

of the cir

of the cm.

fons.

given him, which is granted only to the firft per- on account fonages of the empire, and the cucca or tuft of cumcifion egret's feathers, which the prince of Moldavia peror's alone, of all the Chriftian princes, has a right to wear. Solyman joined, to the entertainments which he gave this prince, the circumcifion of three fons, whom he had had by as many concubines; for the Ottoman monarchs no longer thought it confiftent with their dignity to bind themselves by matrimonial ties. It is at the ceremony of circumcifion, that the Orientals give names to their children. One of the princes

was

1

Heg. 936.

1.C.1530 was called Muftapha, the second Mahomet, and the third Selim.

J.C. 1531,

Heg.

& 939.

Cantimar reports, that the Turks took for a very bad omen, that, in a combat of animals fought during this feftival, a wild boar beat a lion, in fuch a manner, that this animal, in général fo terrible, was obliged to flee. The Muffulmen look on the boar as the emblem of the Chriftians, and the lion as their own.

For two years, the fultan and his minifter were 153217, bufily employed about the maritime commerce, 938, and arming corfairs against the knights of Saint John, whom Charles V. had juft established at Malta in full fovereignty, under the simple annual acknowledgment of a falcon. Thefe irrecon

Solyman marches to

the afif

tileable enemies of the Muffülmen had already armed cruifers to pillage their convoys and regain by degrees what they had loft by abandoning the ifle of Rhodes. Solyman would fain have had it in his power to tranfport to Conftantinople all the commerce carried on at Alexandria, Aleppo, and the other ports of Turkey. The love of the emperor for his capital made him with to people and enrich it at the expence of all his other poffeffions.

The affairs of Hungary recalled the fultan into that unfortunate kingdom. King Ferdinand of John Za- Auftria, after having taken fome places that were

tance of

poli; he

returns to not defended, came and befieged king John in

Adriano

ple after Buda his capital. He was on the point of taking

the cam

paign is his rival prifoner, and getting full poffeffion of

ever.

the

1532.

938,

the throne, when the troops which the bashaw of J.C.1531, Belgrade commanded came to his relief. John, Heg. 937, delivered from the greatest danger he had ever & 939. experienced, handfomely rewarded the bafhaw; but the latter fo inhumanly pillaged all the towns from which he had driven the Auftrians, that, it is faid, the unfortunate prince shed tears at the misfortunes of his country. Seeing that his protectors gave him occafion to hate them as much as his enemies, he endeavoured to make peace with Ferdinand of Auftria, by offering him to divide the kingdom. Ferdinand was just made king of the Romans, confequently, intended to fucceed Charles V. his brother, on the western throne. As he flattered himself with receiving affistance from this powerful empire, he did not think it compatible with his dignity to divide a crown, which, he boasted, belonged to him both by an alliance and a lawful election, with him whom he called an adventurer and ufurper. In order to deprive him of every support, he fent an embaffy to Solyman; but the Turkish emperor was the natural enemy of the fucceffor of Charles V. He was interested in preventing the house of Auftria from becoming too powerful. As much through intereft as honor, he remained faithful to his word, and prepared, though flowly, an armament to fecure Hungary to his vaffal.

Charles