Page:A History of the Knights of Malta, or the Order of St. John of Jerusalem.djvu/748

710 A History of the Knzh1s of Malta. the higher places, and prevented them from moving about on the walls. Of the four ladders, too, which had been provided for the descent into the Jews’ quarter, one had been broken by our order; but having ascended by the others, we opposed ourselves to the enemy, and defended the place. There were, in truth, 2,000 most magnificently armed Turks upon the walls, in dense array, opposing themselves to our men, and striving, by force of arms, to drive them away, and expel them from the place. But the valour of our soldiers prevented us from giving way. To the first body, however, of Turks, who had gained the walls, there followed an immense multitude of others, who covered the whole country, the adjacent breach, the valley and ditch, so that it was hardly possible to see the ground. The deserters state that 4,000 Turks were engaged in the assault. Our men drove about 300 of the enemy, who were upon the rampart, back into the Jews’ quarter, where they were killed to a man. At that conflict we raised the standard bearing the effigy of our most sacred Lord Jesus Christ, and that of our Order, in the presence of the enemy; and the battle raged for about two hours around the spot. At length the Turks, overcome, wearied, and panic-stricken, and covered with wounds, turned their backs, and took to flight with such vehement haste that they became an impediment to one another, and added to their losses. In that fight there fell 3,500 Turks, or thereabouts, as was known by the corpses which were found within the city, and upon the walls, and in the ditches, as also in the camp of the enemy, and in the sea; and which we afterwards burnt, to pre.. vent disease; the spo11s of which corpses fell into the possession of our men, who, following the flying Turks, even to their camp on the plain, slew them vigorously, and afterwards returned safely into the town. In which battle many of our bailiffs and brave soldiers fell, fighting most valiantly in the midst of the hostile battalions. We ourselves, and many of our brothers in arms, having received many wounds, having returned thanks to God, and placed a strong guard on the walls, returned home; nor was so great a calamity averted from us save by the Divine assistance. For we could not doubt hut that God had sent assistance from heaven, lest His poor Christian people should become infected with the filth of Mahometanism. Turkish women had prepared ropes, under the hopes of obtaining possession of the city, wherewith to bind the captives, and huge stakes, wherewith to impale them whilst living. For they had decreed that every soul, both male and female, above ten years of age, was to be killed and impaled; hut the children under that age were to be led into captivity and compelled to renounce their faith; and all booty was to be given over to plunder, the city being reserved for Turkish governance. But being frustrated in their evil designs, they fled like a flock of sheep. During these battles, and the attacks made on different days, as also in defending the approaches, and clearing the ditches, and in the general defence of the town by means of our artillery, which played constantly on their army, we killed, as the Turkish deserters revealed to us, 9,000 of them, and an innumerable quantity more were wounded; amongst whom Gusman Balse