The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 05: Central and Southern EuropeHakluyt, Richard
History
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 05: Central and Southern Europe
Hakluyt, Richard
Discoveries in geography -- English; Voyages and travels
to resist any more his enemies: and being constrained on all sides to make
the appointment, with great heauinesse, inestimable dolours and bewailings,
at the last gaue his voyce to yeeld the towne (with the treatise or offers
to him presented) which was the 20. day of December, the yeere of our lord
a thousand fiue hundreth and two and twentie.
An answere to such as will make question for the deliuerance of the citie
of Rhodes.
And if by any it were demaunded wherefore the sayde lord great master hath
yeelded the towne to the great Turke, requesting it with treatie and
couenaunts, which was a signe that he feared and would no more fight, but
goe his way. To this I answere: Notwithstanding that the great Turke was
aduertised by some traitours, and by other that fled into the campe, that
the powder almost failed, and that there were but fewe men of warre within
the towne, yet he beleeued not, nor gaue credence of all that was reported
to him, but thought verily that wee had ynough for a great while, and
considered that hee must tary till they were wasted and spent, whereto
behooued time. And seeing all his estate entered into strange places, and
into the lands of his enemies, and had bene there already sixe moneths,
(and not without great danger of his owne person) thinking on the other
side, that taking the towne by assault, he should lose many of his folke;
and yet when hee had ouercome and wonne the towne, they should fall each
vpon other in departing of the bootie or pillage, doubting finally the
hazard of warre. For these reasons and other that may be alleaged, the
great Turke had much rather to haue the towne by composition and treaty
then otherwise. And it suffised him to driue his olde enemies out of the
countreys of Leuant, and set the subiects of his countreys in rest and
suretie. And we of the towne that knew our weaknesse, and that we might do
no more, it seemed better to saue so much small people, then we and they to
fall into the furie of our enemies, for otherwise could we not haue done,
but tempt God, and died as in dispaire.
How the citie of Rhodes was yeelded to the great Turke, and of the euill
behauiour of certaine Turkes.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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