Naples, surrounded on every side, would have been unable to sustain the siege, and the viceroy, Hugo Moncada, saw the necessity of breaking the enclosing lines by some daring undertaking. He collected six galleys called the _Capitana_ and _Gobba_, (the property of Fabrizio Giustiniano) one belonging to Sicames, another which was the property of Don Bernardo Vallamarino, the _Perpugnana_ and _Calabrese_. To these were added ten brigantines and some smaller vessels. The viceroy embarked upon the ships twelve hundred Spaniards clad in mail and commanded by the flower of the officers and barons of the kingdom. Finally, he himself joined the expedition and gave the command of the artillery to Gerolamo da Trani and that of the army to Fabrizio Giustiniano, called the hunchback, a brave Genoese in the pay of Spain. The latter, knowing the courage and skill of the Ligurian mariners advised that the Spanish fleet should avoid a close engagement with Doria; but a contrary opinion prevailed. Count Filippino was in the waters of Salerno when the report reached him that the imperial fleet had left Naples. He asked Lautrec to reinforce him with only two hundred infantry. Of the eight vessels under his command, that is, the _Capitana_, _Pellegrina_, _Donzella_, _Sirena_, _Fortuna_, _Mora_, _Padrona_ and _Signora_, he sent the three last under the command of Nicolò Lomellino out to sea as if they wished to escape, with orders, however, to turn about, and, driving down before the wind, attack the enemy in the rear. Filippino with the remaining five vessels awaited the assault of Moncada, who, trusting to the strength of his fleet and the bravery of his captains, confidently looked for a signal victory. The galley of the viceroy closed with the Capitana, the flag-ship of Doria, who, firing his basilisk, small cannon and falconets, raked the Spanish vessel from prow to poop with such fatal accuracy that forty armed men were killed, among whom were the bravest barons of the kingdom, Leo Tassino, a nobleman of Ferrara, Luigi Cosmano a famous musician, Don Pietro di Cardona and many others. The batteries of Moncada replied but did little damage to the Genoese. The _Gobba_, the galley of Sicames and that of Don Bernardo were more fortunate. They closed with the _Pellegrina_ and the _Donzella_ and the Spanish soldiers boarded without difficulty. The _Perpugnana_ and the _Calabrese_ cannonaded the _Sirena_ until she was forced to surrender. Doria had now lost three galleys, the _Capitana_ and the _Fortuna_ were in imminent danger of being boarded, not being able to sustain the attacks of six galleys and fifteen smaller vessels whose grappling irons were seizing them on every side. Everything looked propitious for Moncada and victory seemed secure to him, when the three galleys which Doria had sent to sea turned their prows and bore down swiftly before the wind. At close quarters, they poured in a terrible fire which dismasted the Spanish