"Already he casts his eyes over the treasures which he has in his
possession; with the money of the Sultan he has also brought his own; all
that of the German princes is going to be his; for he believes that it is
amassed in the city he is besieging. If he needs support, he reckons upon
the different governors of Hungary as devoted to his interests; these are
his creatures, whom he has put into their posts during the seven years of
his vizierate; not one of those functionaries dare offer an obstacle to the
elevation of his benefactor. Ibrahim Pacha, Beylerbey of Buda, keeps him in
suspense by reason of the influence that his fame gives him over the army
and over Hungary; he must be won over before all else, as well as the chief
officers of the janizaries and the spahis. Ibrahim shall be made King of
Hungary. The different provinces comprised in that kingdom shall be divided
into _timars_ for appanage of the spahis, and all the rest of the soldiery
shall have establishments in the towns, as so many new colonies; to them
shall be assigned the lands of the old inhabitants, who will be driven out
or reduced to slavery. He reserves for himself the title of Sultan,
his share shall be all Germany as far as the frontiers of France, with
Transylvania and Poland, which he intends to render subject or at least
make tributary the year following." Such are the projects that Cantemir
attributes to Kara Mustapha; the intervention of Sobieski caused these
chimerical plans quickly to vanish.
The Emperor Leopold, who returned to Vienna on September 16th, instead of
expressing his thanks and gratitude to the commanders who had rescued his
capital, received them with the haughty and repulsive coldness prescribed
by the etiquette of the imperial court. Sobieski nevertheless continued
his services by pursuing the retreating Turks. Awakened from his dream of
self-exaltation, the Grand Vizier retook the road toward Turkey, directing
his steps to the Raab, where he rallied the remnants of his army. Thence he
marched toward Buda, and attacked by the way the Styrian town of Lilenfeld;
he was repulsed by the prelate Matthias Kalweis, and avenged himself for
that fresh check by devastating Lower Styria. He crossed the Danube by a
bridge of boats at Parkany; but the Poles vigorously disputed the passage
with him, and he again lost more than eight thousand men taken or slain by
the Christians. Shortly after, the fortress of Gran opened its gates to
Kara Mustapha. The Grand Vizier barbarously put to death the officers who
had signed the capitulation; he threw upon his generals the responsibility
of his reverses, and thought to stifle in blood the murmurs of his
accusers. The army marched in disorder as though struck with a panic
terror. Kara Mustapha wished that a Jew whom he despatched to Belgrad
should be escorted by a troop of horsemen. "I have no need of an escort,"
replied the Jew: "I have only to wear my cap in the German fashion, and not
a Turk will touch me."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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