Those in the castle, on the first appearance of their countrymen, opened the gate, and part of them forced their way thence in the town. Alas! what a deluge! what cries! what lamentations of the poor citizens! It is a great pity, and wonderful how many suffer in the support of the quarrels of princes and great lords: however, in this instance, they had deserved punishment, for having wantonly broken their oaths of allegiance. The duke of Nemours had no sooner gained the castle and palace than, like a great warrior as he was, he entered the town, one arm bare, and his sword on his wrist, shouting out 'France!' in which he was echoed by all Frenchmen. The Venetians, thunderstruck, took to flight through one of the gates, but numbers were slain[41] and made prisoners, of whom were many of high rank in Venice, who were sent to France. The inhabitants having attempted to defend themselves, the town was given up to plunder; and you might have seen several french adventurers tearing to pieces, out of spite, large bales of cloths of gold and of silk; such merchandise might then have been bought for almost nothing. The ladies and children made piteous moans on seeing their husbands and fathers murdered and cast out of the windows, and all their effects pillaged. To make short of the matter: they thought that God's whole indignation and wrath had been poured on them; for the French treated them with every cruelty, in revenge for the resistance that had been made by throwing stones and beams from the tops of the houses, by which some great french lords suffered severely. The place was completely conquered, in spite of all that the Brescians and Venetians could do to prevent it,--and the streets were filled with dead bodies, besides the numbers that were slain in the open country: in the whole, there must have been many thousands killed. Among the prisoners were sir Andrew Gritti, sir John Paulle[42], Caufre and his son, the count Ludovico Adanago[43], who had been the chief adviser of the town to revolt, for which it had been treated as you have heard. After this victory, the towns and castles in the territories of Brescia were re-garrisoned, and provided with abundance of provision and stores of all kinds,--and the lord d'Aubigny was appointed governor of Brescia. The town of Bergamo also surrendered, as well as several other places, which had revolted, and in consequence suffered great miseries. News was brought to the duke of Nemours, that the Spaniards had left all their heavy artillery and baggage at Imola, and were advancing, by forced marches, into the plain, boasting that they would form a junction with the Venetians and relieve Brescia; but I believe that, when they learned what had passed there, they changed their intentions.