Muley-Hassan, king of Tunis, driven from his states by Barbarossa,
the terror of the Mediterranean, came to implore the aid of Charles
V. That prince, touched by the prayers of the Barbary monarch, swore
to replace him on his throne. He assembled a fleet of three hundred
ships, on board of which were twenty-five thousand foot and two
thousand horse, set sail from Cagliari, and arrived at Porto-Farina,
formerly Utica. As that port was not very secure, the fleet again
weighed anchor, and brought to within cannon-shot of the Gouletta. The
whole Christian army landed without the least opposition on the part
of the Mussulmans. The generals pitched their tents between Carthage
and the Water Tower, and surrounded it with wide deep lines, fortified
with redoubts. This was the exact spot on which Louis IX. had formerly
placed his camp. The trenches were opened, and three batteries were
raised against the fortress. Whilst the place was being cannonaded by
land, the galleys advanced by turns and delivered their broadsides;
the grand caique of Malta and a Portuguese galleon destroyed a part
of the fortifications and dismounted the batteries of the town. The
place being open in several places, it was determined to carry it by
the sword. The Christians mounted to the assault, forced the breaches,
gained the bulwarks and the top of the tower, and took possession of
them. Chasse-Diable, and Sinan the Jew, leaders of the defenders of
the Gouletta, being unable to resist the imperial conquerors, retired
into Tunis, where their arrival spread terror and despair. The emperor
entered this fortress, followed by Muley-Hassan, to whom he said, “This
is the door by which you will re-enter your states.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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