Ismael vellialla;”[675] besides this, everyone, and particularly his soldiers, consider him immortal, but I have heard that Ismael is not pleased with being called a god or a prophet. They are accustomed to wear a red caftan and above that a high conical turban made with a dozen folds, representing the twelve sacraments of their sect, or the twelve descendants of Ali; besides this, they neither shave either their beard or whiskers. Their dress has never changed; their armour is of beautifully worked and carved steel cuirasses, besides coats of mail, helmets like those of the Mamelukes; their harness is very strong, bound with cotton; sometimes it is of the fine steel of Siras, and sometimes of copper, but not like ours, but all in pieces like that of Soria: they have other helmets or headpieces of heavy mail. Everyone rides, and so there are no foot soldiers; they use lances, swords, and slings, besides bows with many shafts. On his second arrival in Tauris, Ismael committed a most disgraceful act, as he caused twelve of the most beautiful youths in the town to be taken to his palace of Astibisti for him to work his wicked will upon them, and gave them away one by one to his lords for the same purpose; a short time previously he had caused ten children of respectable men to be seized in like manner. When he returned from Sumacchia three Georgian ambassadors arrived and were well received, and a damsel given them as a present. While engaged in these rejoicings, news came that the Usbecs, that is the subjects of the Tartar, had over-run the country of Gesti,[676] whereupon he had to decide to march against him at once, so he took the field and mustered his troops, ordering all his lords to assemble their retainers which they had to maintain during the campaign. In this way forces came together from all sides in numbers sufficient to meet Jeselbas,[677] a great many being necessary as the Tartar was a mighty monarch. I left Tauris on the 1st of May, 1520,[678] during the levying of this army, taking the route to Aleppo, and in spite of some dangerous fellow travellers, and by the favour of God arrived at Albir[679] on the 2nd July, 1520.[680] FOOTNOTES [530] Alla ed Douleh. [531] Erzingan. See p. 7, Caterino Zeno. [532] Tchimish Gazak, or birthplace of Zimisces; identified by the Armenians with the ancient Hierapolis, though called by its present name after the birth of Zimisces, the Byzantine Emperor; it is now a town of about five thousand inhabitants, but without any relics of the Roman period. [533] Schamachi. [534] Shirvan. [535] Irak-Ajemi. [536] Bir, on the Euphrates; formerly a large town. It was taken and destroyed by Timour, the ancient Apamea. [537] Kaiid Beg. [538] Devetdar, an officer of Mamelukes. Tomant Bey, the last of the Soldans of Cairo, defeated and put to death by Selim I. in 1517, after a gallant resistance to the Turkish arms; he succeeded Campson Gauri.