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Heg. 824.

J.C. 1421. had been promised. Muftapha confidered himfufficiently certain of his profperity, to dare openly appear perjured and ungrateful. He refused to give up what he termed the patrimony of his ancestors, declaring to Demetrius, who demanded of him, in the name of Manuel, the execution of the treaty of Conftantinople, that he neither could nor would mangle the Ortoman empire. Demetrius, having been his first deliverer, made no fcruple of reproaching him with his perfidy. But Mustapha was not fufceptible of fhame; he complained in his turn of Manuel's cruelty, who had retained him captive in the ifle of Lefbos, the latter part of the reign of Mahomet. After a speech, full of pride and bitterness, he ordered Demetrius to go and tell the Greek emperor from him, that he would be his ally, only on condition of Manuel's renouncing his unjuft pretenfions. The Greek emperor was confounded with fo much audacity; he faw with grief his perfidies. repaid, and that he fhould not receive from them the fruit which he had expected. being fufficiently ftrong to punish, he refolved to offer his feeble fuccours to the fultan Amurath, whom he had betrayed; but on whom he founded all his hopes of revenge. The Ottoman prince was not caft down at having oppofed an infufficient force to the enterprise of Mustapha; he favorably received the ambaffadors

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of

1

Heg. 824.

of the emperor Manuel, and fent him others in J.C. 1421.
return, in order to diffemble the refentment that
he felt at the setting up of a pretended Mustapha;
but he would never promise, either to truft his
two brothers to the Greeks, or to give up Gal-
lipoli, as Manuel demanded. This would have
been paying too dear for the alliance of that
prince, for the ancient mafters of the world
had hardly any thing but good wishes to offer
their allies.

trays the

Mustapha

of Smyrna. Muftapha's

army aban.. dons him; he repaffes the ftraits

The young Amurath had feen how the addrefs Sineis bealone of Muftapha had made him reign at A- pretended drianople he was willing in his turn to get the for the gogood opinion of the people: he publifhed that vernment the fins of the Mahometans had drawn on them the wrath of God. When he learned the total deftruction of his army, he exclaimed in open almoft divan: What can a created being do, when the lone. Creator is against him. This maxim is retained by the Turks; they repeat it often in Amurath's own words. This prince went publicly fome leagues from Burfa, to vifit a dervis, who poffeffed great reputation for fanctity throughout Afia. He gave the folitary man a great many proofs of piety and veneration; he intreated him to go to prayer, in order to learn from God, and from his prophet, if he should undertake the war, and what fuccefs the monarch might hope from it. The pretended faint, after a long meditation, affumed the voice of inspiration, and promifed

M 2

J.C. 1421. promifed the fultan feveral times, from Maho, Heg. 824. met, the most complete victory, and the `conftant profperity of the houfe of Ottoman. This oracle, defignedly spread throughout the empire, weakened the fort of charm employed by the pretended Muftapha. He contributed himfelf, ftill more than the dervilian prophet, to ruin his party. Since he thought himself settled on his throne, luxury and debauchery had rendered him incapable of bufinefs, and he even neglected to please those from whom he thought he had nothing more to expect. The repeated reproaches of Sineis at length drew Mustapha from the floth in which he had languifhed for a year past. His troops paffed the ftraits, and the two armies met. Amurath, who knew Sineis to be an able general and a traitor, chofe rather to corrupt than to fight him. He proposed to him, by an officer of his army, brother to Sineis, who went to meet him in the night, to restore him Ephefus and Smyrna, of which he had been bafhaw, on the fole condition of the oaths, and an annual tribute. Sineis found Mustapha, neither fufficiently vigilant, nor warlike, to flatter himfelf with his being able to retain his conquests. He began to repent of having attached his fortune to that of an ufurper, who was incapable of fuftaining his dangerous part, and who was but an impoftor, even in the eyes of his partifans. Sineis gave his

word,

Heg. 824.

word, on which much dependance could not J.C.1421. be put, and the next night fet out for Smyrna. In The news of this defertion were a fignal for all Muftapha's foldiers, who difperfed, as foon as they faw themselves without a chief. Amurath, who had expected it, had caused bridges to be conftructed at equal diftances, and avenues to be prepared, in order that the deserters might come to his camp with greater facility, and where they actually arrived in great number. The abandoned Muftapha, fled to Lampfaco, followed only by four fervants; it was with difficulty that he found a bark to carry him to Europe. The army of his enemy was clofe after him: the ufurper was hard preffed to affemble at Gallipoli his few remaining foldiers, and particularly to flee from Amurath. He paffed, the ftraits without an escort. Amurath likewife wanted veffels Amurath, by the af, to carry over his army; but the Latin Chriftians fiftance of ferved the fultan, better than his allies or his noefe vefown fubjects could have done. The circum- fues his ftance was favorable: the Genoefe poffeffed at that time in Phocis, on the borders of the fea, a mountain, from which they drew alum, and which was, for them, a confiderable object of commerce. They had conftructed, at the foot of this mountain, a town and port called Phocea, and were continually fending veffels thither. This establishment had formerly paid a tribute to the Greek emperor; but, in the fequel, the

Ottomans

fome Ge

fels, pur

army.

Heg. 824.

2

J.C. 1421. Ottomans had poffeffed themselves of this tribute, as of almost all Afia. There were several years of this tribute due, as they had been obliged, through circumftances, to neglect the payment of it. Immediately on this revolution, Adorna, who was at that time podeftate of Phocea, offered the fultan to furnifh him with as many veffels as he fhould want to transport his troops across the straits, on condition that the fums due from the republic of Genoa fhould be remitted. The propofal was accepted, and as foon as it was known that the false Mustapha was paffed into Europe, Amurath wrote from Lampfaco to the podestate Adorna, to summon him to his word. The Genoefe fent his veffels immediately, and Amurath's army embarked the third day after their arrival at Lampfaco. As foon as Muftapha faw the fea covered with Genoefe veffels, he detached a bark to offer the podeftate a confiderable fum, if he would, under fome pretext, retard the difembarking of the Turks. Adorna fteadily refused to liften to this perfidy. The troops remaining at Gallipoli, and thofe which Mustapha had been able to affemble, courageously oppofed the defcent of Amurath; but, overcome by number, the ufurper's only refource was flight. Amurath remained three days at Gallipoli, in order to receive the foldiers who flocked in crowds to his standard.

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