Infantry pinch'd with Hunger starved with Cold and overwhelmed with Misery and their Cavalry lazy and void of Experience are enough to frustrate the best laid designs of the greatest Generals Among those who deserve this Character we must reckon the Palatin of Russia Jablonouski a Lord of a fine Presence of a Noble and VVarlike and yet of a sweet Mien he is a Person of undaunted Courage accompanied with an admirable Temper and great Penetration He was first Grand Ensign of the Crown afterwards Little General and for his Valour advanced to the Supreme Dignity of Grand General after the Death of Prince Demetrius Wietsnievistski One of the Actions wherein this General signalized himself with part of the Foreign Troops was to stop the fury of Tartars and give the King time to retire under Leopold with the rest of his Army This particular will merit the Readers pardon for the Digression I shall here make to acquaint him with one of the greatest Actions of the King of Poland and the Palatin of Russia The City of Leopold is Capital of the Palatinat of Russia the Seat of the Palatin and is become famous in the History of the present Age by reason of the share it hath born in the War betwixt the Poles and the Turks But this Action of the King which we are now about to relate will consecrate its Memory to all Posterity and advance it to the highest Pinacle of Glory In the last Year of the Reign of Michael his Predecessor this City was in great danger The Turks burnt its Suburbs in 1672. and were likely to have carried this Important Place which is but sorrily fortified had not the Inhabitants come to a Treaty promised a great Summ for their Redemption and given up the principal Citizens as Hostages who were retained a long time in Caminiec But King John III. knew how to guard this City in the Sequel of the War by the most glorious Methods imaginable In 1675. the Tartars advanced very near this City which the Grand Visier had commanded them to besiege The King of Poland encamped round the Place and fortified the same with diligence though he had scarcely 5000 Men left Ibrahim Pacha and Sultan Nuradin commanded the Enemies Army which consisted of 15000 Turks and 20000 Tartars These two Generals having miscarried before several other Places sat down before Sbaracz in which there were but 40 Heidukes and 6000 Paysants who were more inclined to surrender than to fight and in effect as soon as the Enemy appear'd the Rabble opened the Gates After this Expedition Ibrahim retired to Caminiec and Nuradin detatch'd 15000 Men to block up Leopold posting himself with the rest of the Army two Leagues higher to attend the Issue which was to his dishonour for the King of Poland marched with some Squadrons against the Enemy charged them with vigor and drove them back to Nuradin's Camp whence that Tartar Prince retir'd with great Precipitation Some time after having assembled more Troops he renewed his design of investing Leopold and forcing the King's Camp and undertook it himself at the Head of 40000 chosen Men being attended with abundance of Officers of the best repute among the Tartars He began with the Attack of Slotzow which is a Castle belonging to the King 's Hereditary Demesnes within ten Leagues of Leopold on the side of Caminiec This Castle is well enough for a Gentleman's House and hath some Fortifications according to the Modern way faced with Stone but of very little Defence The Enemy attacqued it vigorously by way of Scalade with Sword in Hand The Palatin of Russia defended it with extreme bravery and forced the Tartars to retire from before this sorry Place after an obstinate Fight of five Hours duration Nuradin thinking it best to preserve his Troops that were designed for a more important Expedition would not expose them to any more Assaults but continued his march towards Leopold and possessed himself of a vast Plain below the Hills with which the Town is surrounded and upon which the King had taken his Post This Plain was covered in an Instant with the Enemies Squadrons who raised such a mighty Dust as quickly covered them from view In the mean time those of the Castle of Leopold fired some Guns to give Notice to the People of the Country to retire for their Security behind the King's Camp His Majesty having viewed that of the Tartars was nothing discouraged by their prodigious Number but gave all necessary Orders for the safety of his Camp and the City in which the Queen and the Princes her Sons were shut up He posted Guards in two places on the Right and Left to prevent a Surprize placed his Infantry in Ambuscade amongst the Bushes at the foot of the Hills which separated his Camp from the Plains possessed by the Tartars and planted his Cannon on the Heights to favour the descent of his Squadrons his eagerness to fight having quite over-ballanced his Enemies Numbers They began to skirmish assoon as they could join and the Polish Horse not finding a convenient ground at first were put into disorder but the King coming to their relief with the rest of his Troops and enlarging hi Front insensibly as his Squadrons gain'd gtound he restored the Battle where his presence seconded by his Example inspired his own Men with as much Valour as it did his Enemies with terror The Sultan quickly perceived by the disorder of his Troops that he was defeated by a Superior Power The King of Poland's Hand became dreadful to them by the weight of its blows and every one striving to avoid them that prodigious Army vanished in an instant like a Phantome Having finished this Digression I return to my Subject The Palatin of Kiow General of the Artillery is owned by all Men to be one of the bravest Officers and wisest Generals at this time in Poland and hath acquired an universal Esteem by his Gallant and Prudent Actions Those who have seen him in Battle could not but be charmed to behold his Magnanimity in exposing himself and taking care to save his Men. Those who have heard him discourse of Martial Affairs are perswaded that were he in a Country where the Art Military is regularly cultivated he would be accounted one of the greatest Captains in Europe There is moreover in Poland another Person of extrordinary Merit in that kind namely Prince Lubomirski who is no less expert in War than the Palatin and exceeds him much in Temper and Presence of Mind which contribute so much to the winning of Battles so that the same paralel might be made betwixt those two Polish Generals that was made betwixt the Prince of Condé and the Mareschal Turenne the one was incomparable for managing a Campagne and the other for fighting a Battle I would not that others whose Names and singular Endowments I don't mention here should suffer by my silence I shall do them Justice elsewhere but I thought fit to mention those
that those Troops are much degenerated from their Ancient Splendor â—â—se they would never have endured it They are composed of handsom Men mounted on the finest Horses of the Kingdom with divers other Led-Horses richly capparisoned their Bridles adorn'd with Plates and Nails of Silver or Vermillion gilt embroidered Saddles with gilt Boys great hanging Houzes according to the Turkish Manner with Fringes of Gold and Silver A Falchon or very rich Sword fixed to the left-side of the Saddle under the Horseman's Thigh Formerly the Polish Cavalry had no Pistols but now they are used amongst those fixed Troops But the Vallachians Cossacks and even abundance of Poles have none at the Saddle Boys no more than the Turks but carry one or sometimes two at their Girdle behind The Equipage of the Hussars is as much distinguished as their personal Habit. They have two or three Waggons a great number of Servants and fine Tents so that a Troop of them takes up a great deal of Ground in the Camp because the Streets must be large for their Equipage which is placed in the Intervals and not in the Rear as in France and Elsewhere The Hussars are armed with Back and Breast a scaled Head-Piece adorn'd on the sides and be hind with Pendants of Iron Plates quilted which come down to their Shoulders where they have another separate Piece of Armour with Braces reaching over their Neck to which there is fixed a sort of a Gantlet of Mail which covers the back of the hand only the Poles not knowing the Use of Gloves nay not so much as on Horseback Over all this they wear a great Leopard or Tigre's Skin in form of a loose Coat made in a Warlike Fashion which is a very fine Ornament to the Gens d'Arms The Lances they carry are no less Ornamental to the Body of the Troops in general they are longer than the French great Pikes round pointed with Iron made of a light Wood the upper part adorn'd with a Streamer of Taffata in form of a Standard and three or four Ells in length painted and gilt from one end to the other They carry 'em in a Boot fixed in the Saddle which supports 'em also when they make use of them in Battle otherwise there were no making use of this Machine because of its Weight Nor is the effect of it so terrible as was imagined I have seen those Hussars in Action and likewise at muster in the Camp and always found they had a great deal of Trouble in making use of their Lance and that their Impetuosity is not so considerable when particularly enquired into 'T is true indeed that they never retire they ride at full speed as if they were running at the Ring so that they break through all that oppose them In the Battle of Pragâ— on the Wefil near Warsaw where King Casimir attack'd Charles Gustavus King of Sweden who was shut up between two Rivers with a handful of Men There was a Squadron of Hussars that broke through the first and second Line as far as the Body of Reserve but they could not return and so were encompassed That 's the danger this sort of Cavalry is liable to by the weight of their Arms and the difficulty they have to manage their Horses by Snaffles without Bitts when their Mouths are heated If they had to do with the French who are expert in their Motions and Countermarches they would not kill one Man nor could one of themselves escape There were no more to do but to open the Ranks as the King of Sweden did and to mix Platoons of Foot in the Intervals of the Squadrons to fire upon them as they pass for if you kill the Horse you put the Gens d' Arms out of a capacity to fight it being impossible for them to raise themselves again because of the weight of Iron upon them So that this sort of Gens d' Arms is meerly in terrorem as Lowis le Grand judg'd at first sight of them The Marquis de Bethune had Orders upon his first Journey into Poland to bring home a Hussar with all his Accoutrements to see if the Effect answered the Reputation The King being minded to have of that sort of Foreign Troops the thing pleased at first because of its Novelty and their Equipage but the Experiment made of them in the Court of the Castle at St. Germans at a Course of the Lance convinc'd His Majesty that they were of small use and could do but little damage and besides they must have a ground on purpose for them i.e. Open Plains like those of Champagn to be drawn up in If after breaking their Lance as they do at the first shock they took their Scimiter in hand their Charge would be more dangerous for then they would break thro' all that stood in their Way The King of Poland hath remedied this Inconvenience in the last Wars by flanking a Squadron of Hussars with two others of Pancerns armed with Falchons and Musquetoons who join close after the other are put in disorder and possess themselves of their ground to compleat the defeat of the Enemy whose Order is already broke by the Charge of the Lances The Hussars have each two Servants arm'd and in pay who are called Pacolets they are mounted much like their Masters armed with Head-Pieces and Lances but without Back and Breast and Leopards Skin instead of which they have the Skin of a White Wolf made like a Coat and behind their back a very great Wing made of Eagles Feathers which gives them a fierce and savage Mein Formerly they had two Wings and we see them painted so in Pictures of old Wars I am of opinion that they are very useless but the Poles pretend that the whistling they make in the Air terrifies the Enemy's Horses and helps to break their Ranks They left off one of them by degrees and it 's hoped that the Great General who hath lately eased 'em of their Lances will likewise take away this Accoutrement which is good for nothing but to frighten little Children Those Troops form themselves into Squadrons like ours three Men deep and seventy in Front more or less according to the number of the Gens d' Arms and Pacolets for every Hussar may have three but no more The first Rank consists all of Masters the other two of Pacolets And when a Hussar has the Guard of the Standard he fixes his Lance by it and hangs the Wings of his Servants round it according to their number for some have three and others but one and they are paid in proportion As those Companies are very expensive the Republick entertains but few of them and give them little enough Pay but the Lords who have them make this up by an augmentation of Pay as a sort of Pension and thus they make themselves Creatures of the Touarizes and of the Lieutenants that command them who are always Men of Note and fit for Service to whom they
could get But nothing could be expected from them because of their smalness and the height of the Place on which they were planted This inconvenience was observed in the Battery that was made at Calemberg which began to fire Sunday Septemb. 12. about Ten in the Morning on the Main Body of the Turks Posted below without reaching them For as we said before the Grand Visier convinc'd at last of the Approach of the Succours took no other precautions to cover the Siege than only to send on Saturday Night a Body of 10 or 12000 Men whose Standards we could only see in the Covert or Hollow ways to take Possession of the bottom below this Castle On Sunday September 12. 1683. The German Troops about break of Day began to Skirmish with this Detachment of the Enemy whom they chased from Post to Post and there were particular Skirmishes carry'd on very warmly on both sides Among the Rest the Dragoons of Savoy those of Crouy a Regiment of the Army of Saxony and that of a small Body of Polanders commanded by Chevalier Lubomirsky signaliz'd themselves particularly These Troops were insensibly drawn into fight and began at last a regular Battle in the Villages and Defiles where the Turks defended themselves vigorously discharging on Foot and afterwards mounting on Horseback which deceived one of these Bodies of Dragoons who supposing that the Enemy fled advanced too forward and were cut in pieces In this Action the Lieutenant Colonel of Lubomirsky's Dragoons nam'd Kinsik was wounded in the Head with a Sabre who died within three days after notwithstanding the Horseshoe that he had in his Hat to defend him from the Blow The Marquiss of Parelle desired leave to go with his Volunteers to drive the Turks out of that Post but the Duke of Lorrain every time he made the Proposal seemed as if he heard him not and order'd Colonel Mercy to do it charging him thrice together not to go without his Head-piece This was a very brave Officer and notable Partyman He executed the Order with as much Address as Valour The Turks were driven out of that Post and all of a sudden scattered over the whole face of the Mountainous Country The Grand Visier himself came at last out of his Camp and posted himself not far from the Lines of it with a Body of Cavalry which according to the Accounts that have been given and the Relations of those who were in the Action were upwards of 30000 Men But the number did not appear so great to those who saw that Body of the Grand Visier broken by two Companies of Hussars one of which and the first that made the Onset was commanded by Alexander the King of Poland's second Son Before I descend any further to particulars I must take notice that the Janizaries did not appear upon this occasion none but the Cavalry and Dragoons which last fought sometimes on Foot The Infantry still carried on the Assault and maintained the Trenches For the Besieged have said since that they made three Sallies that very day and took or Nail'd up thirty Pieces of Cannon The Camp therefore remained still in the same Posture and the Conqueror found their Tents spread as if the Grand Visier had design'd his March before the Christians for no more than a Walk But the wiser among the Turks had other thoughts of the matter The Cham of Tartary was the first that took care of his Retreat The Principal Bassas sent their Equipage away before hand with the Camels and Led-Horses of which there were but a few left and scarce anything else considerable so that the Soldiery had but indifferent Plunder This very Day in the Morning we had descry'd from the top of the Mountains the retreat of all these Equipages And whereas they raised a great Dust in Raab Road it was thought at first that it was rais'd by the Reinforcement of the 20000 Men which as it was reported in our Army were to to be sent to the Camp before Vienna by the Sultan who was advanced as far as Belgrade But of this Reinforcement we could never get any certain intelligence The Precaution of these Bassas and the premeditated retreat of the Cham of Tartary were look'd upon among the Turks as arising from a correspondence they held with the King of Poland The Visier of Buda lost his Head for it The Cham of Tartary was deposed by the Sultan's Authority who gave the Grand Visier Orders to do it upon the complaints that he had preferr'd to his Highness about it after the raising of the Siege It was likewise reported among us that the King of Poland made way for this happy success by a secret negotiation as he had done at Kotchim the evening before the Battle by the desertion of the Hospodars Valachia and Moldavia which he dexterously brought about by the prevalence of his Promises But these are conjectures too refin'd with respect to the Affair of Vienna and besides the remainder of the Turkish Army was enough to have prevented the King of Poland from being Victorious if they had but done their duty Apannick fear infus'd from on high into all their hearts by one of those sudden Motions of which no account can be given was that alone which routed this formidable Army as had been promis'd in the Morning by Father Mark de Aviano a Capuchin Friar famous for contemplation and of so great an esteem for his Goodness as to be said to work Miracles This Holy Man we met with at Calemberg who always attended the Army during the Fight The King of Poland heard him say Mass and received the Communion at his hands in the Chappel of St. Leopold which is not far from the other Fabrick This Capuchin afterwards gave the Benediction in the name of the Pope to all the Generals and assured them in the name of God of a compleat Victory if they had but the Faith to Trust in him Si habebitis saith he Confidentiam in Deo obtinebitis Victoriam These are the Fryar's own words But to return to the Fight Whilst the German Troops were engaged the Cannon of Calemberg plaid upon the Turk and the rest of the Army began to draw out of the Wood forming themselves into a Line of Battle The King of Poland returning from the Chappel of St. Leopold made an halt in the bottom below that Fortress where he din'd under a Tent pitched in that place on purpose and afterwards mounted his Horse to march towards the Enemy with a design as I said before only of beating them to such an Eminence where he intended to have incamped on this Day being Sept. 12. The Fight therefore began then on all sides and it was just past Eleven a Clock The Turks being Posted in the Rocky Bottoms fenced with Walls in several places and in the high and thick Vineyards vigorously received the charge at first and killed a great many Men. The Company of the Hussars of the Castellan of
other Fortifications beside very thick Walls well built and Rampier'd defended with Towers Angles and other ancient Flankers by which the Walls of the Lower Town are joyn'd to those of the Upper That side which faces the Danube is very pleasant and the Communication of the Lower City with the Fortress very easie by paths than run along the Descent to a small Gate But the side which looks towards the Champian Country is very steep on the Top where is a Rocky Crest that surrounds the Fort and its Walls at the foot of which is a Pallisade in the nature of a Counterscarp to keep off the Enemy For as soon one has gain'd the foot of those Walls he is cover'd from all the Attempts of those that are upon them Over against this side is just such another Mountain parallel to the former and call'd in German Thomasberg where formerly was a sort of Fortress of which nothing is now remaining but the Foundations and from whence one might cannonade that of Strigonium The Lower City had several Houses in the out-parts upon the Plain a Mosque upon the Bank of the Danube near the Bridge to which they went through a small Gate open'd in the Wall over against it This Bridge was one of the longest that ever was seen the middle built on Boats the two ends on Piles The River is of an extraordinary Breadth its Banks pleasant its Current running in a strait line the passage all about of wonderful variety It was formerly a considerable Arch-Bishoprick whose Title is still bestow'd on Prelates of high Dignity And of late Years we have met in the Learned World with an Archbishop of Strigonium whose Writings have furnish'd matter of Dispute to the most Famous Universities of Europe and have establish'd a lasting Reputation to their Author This City is still the Metropolis of a Country of a large Extent which made up one of the best parts of the ancient Kingdom of Hungary BUDA Buda was the Capital thereof and the Residence of the King who had there a Magnificent Palace It lies below Strigonium six large Leagues and on the same side divided into the Upper and Lower Town the latter seated on the Declivity and at the Foot of a large Mountain the former stretch'd out on the Top of it where it stands being very narrow about the middle but very long and the two Extremities widened out like Places-d ' Armes Neither of these Towns have any Fortifications The Lower Town is inclos'd only with Walls the Upper flank'd with round Towers with a good Trench a double Circumvallation in several parts of the Ancient Mode and with those Pallaces of King Matthias at the end which enters into the very Substance of the Walls and make a principal part of them The whole is built with Brick and well rampier'd yet of easie Access the Declivity of the Mountain not being very rough and the Top being almost all of it commanded by other Risings proper to mount Cannon on The River runs behind that Hill on which the City stands so that one cannot get betwixt them and to cut off their Supplies one must either seise upon Pest which is on the other side at the Head of the Bridge or stop up the Danube below Buda towards the Isle of Saint Andrews which is not far from thence The Turks call the Place Boudim and have made it the Title of a Visier I likewise look upon it as one of the Chief Visiriats by the Extent of its Government and the Importance of the Province which is one of the richest and largest of the Ottoman Empire which comprehends the whole course of the Drave a very considerable River upon which or its Marshes on each side is the Famous Bridge of Esseck of near two hundred Leagues Length and which opens a Passage into Servia Bulgaria Bosnia and other Ancient Provinces of the Turkish Dominions The Province of Buda made a great part of Lower Hungary and one of the Ancient Pannonienses stretching it self from the Danube towards Sclavonia and across that River as far as the Mountains of Vpper Hungary and the River Theysse taking in the City of Agria with its Dependencies At present 't is the most considerable Province of the Ottoman Empire which reaches to the Borders of Austria on one side and to the Frontiers of Poland on the other HUNGARY But for the clearer Apprehending the course of this Country we ought here to say something in general of the Kingdom of Hungary one of the largest richest most fertile pleasantest and most populous Countries of all Europe Tho' it is in a great measure rob'd of those rare Qualifications and has been the Seat of War Revolts and Bloody Catastrophes for two hundred Years together still it is the best of all the Estates that belong to the House of Austria It wants nothing and what it has is altogether Admirable Its Mountains furnish you with Golden Mines its Coasts with the richest Wines in the World for the Best comes not near those of Hungary made in certain Parts and of certain rich Grapes dry'd in the Sun call'd Vvae siccae Vvae passae The Fruits of the Country are likewise Extraordinary You there meet with a kind of black Plums of a delicate Taste and so suitable to the Constitution of an Humane Body that the Physicians say proverbially That they will do you no harm eat as many as you will of ' em unless you swallow down Tree and all The other Fruits so much boasted of in hot Countries grow here in great plenty Water Melons and others on dry Land without meeting with so much as one of 'em naught And there are three or four sorts of them or of different colours being white green red within Hungary abounds no less in all other things requisite for the Pleasure or Necessities of Life so that it needs not to borrow any thing from its Neighbors but on the contrary can lend to them of its own stores This has render'd it very populous and enrich'd it with great Cities large Towns and stately Castles Most of the first owe their Original to the Ancient Romans who planted Colonies in this Country the Names of which are still retain'd in that general corruption of Languages Such are Poson Sabine and Tyrnau which are Famous Cities of this Kingdom founded formerly by Piso Sabinus and Tyrnavius The Inhabitants of those Places still retain the purity of the Language of their ancient Masters 'T is certain that no place of Europe speaks so good so Proper Elegant and Fluent Latin as Hungary Even the Language of Augustus's Time is not degenerated neither in the Stile nor the Pronunciation 'T is still cultivated with Care in the Universities of this Kingdom of which the Colleges of Tyrnau and Cassovia are the most Famous and noted as the Best Universities of France and the Ancient Conimbrian and Complutensian Academies of Spain The Post-Masters are not admitted into that Office unless they
with the Army and the Isle of Schut the only Road that could be Travelled with any safety and to facilitate that of the City Komorne which was seated at the farther end of the Island The King of Poland left the Isle October 3. and Encamped beyond it under the Cannon of that Fortress facing towards Newhausel on the Left leaving space on the Right for the German Army who arrived the next Day near the City and passed the Bridge the same Day and all the fifth which obliged the King to make a stand in that place to the sixth that the Duke of Lorrain might have time to draw over all his Forces However the Imperial Artillery and the Regiments of the Cravatians could not pass over till this Day and the Army was forced still to Halt But our Parties and our Cossacks having brought News the Night before that the Turks were likewise passing the Danube at Pest and Barean to put a stop to our March and cover Newhausel Lewents and the Country that lay at the foot of the Mountains the King resolved upon Marching directly to the Bridge of Strigonium to burn it before the Enemy could all get over to us and to carry the Fort which lay at the head of the Bridge by the Vanguard with Sword in Hand In the mean time he took a view of the Rounds of his Camp of Komorne to descry the Avenues and the Disposition of the Ground He sent a French Engineer named M. du Pont with a great Party of Horse towards Lewents with Orders to advance as nigh as he could to the Enemies Army His Cossacks were likewise ordered forth towards the Danube one of whom brought a Turk who was advanced but only twenty paces from the Main-Guard of the Enemies Camp The Engineer returned without having discover'd any thing because his Guides had led him all the Night without coming nigh either of the Bridges on the contrary they brought him towards Newhausel by the Walls of which he marched But another Officer committed a greater Error for being commanded to go as far Barcan he stopp'd in a Village half-way where he spent the greatest part of the Night a Detachment of the Turks surprized him cut off his Head with thirty Horse that attended him whose Trunks we saw the next Day as we passed through that Village So that the King could never get any certain Intelligence what number of Turks had crossed on this side of the River nor where their particular Post was We could plainly see the Fires which they made in the Villages upon the Road thereby to cut off from us both Wood and Forrage the former of which was very scarce in those Plains We were informed by the Prisoners that marched on the side of us that the Tartars were advanced by the way of Pest and were to join the Rebels of Hungary led by Count Teckly along the Mountains but we knew nothing of what past at Barcan This Post was very still undiscovered and the King was ill advised to think of carrying the Place by his Dragoons and Infantry without communicating any thing of his Design to the Germans that he might let them see that the Poles knew how to carry considerable Forts by surprize Full of this design he urged the Duke of Lorrain to decamp from Komorne and advance towards the Bridges of the of the Turks under a pretence of burning them without letting him know any of his Real intentions But the Imperial Army could not yet break up since their Cannon and part of the Cavalry was still stopp'd in the Isle by the breaking of part of the Bridge which was repairing all the fifth Day On October 6. about Nine in the Morning they decamped without waiting for the coming up of the rest and in that very instant the King received advice that Teckley being informed of his March was retreated towards Transylvania having gained the Mountains This redoubled his Desire of advancing towards the Enemy which they did this very Day within two short Leagues off the Fort of Barcan having marched three large Leagues During these Transactions the Queen of Poland to whom the King had sent me with a very large Account of the Particulars of Vienna dispatch'd me back again with her Answers and order'd me particularly to insinuate to the King by means of the Senators that follow'd the Camp that it was high time to return back to his Dominions This the Poles passionately long'd for because the Infantry began to be out of Heart for want of Provisions particularly Bread for which the Germans cannot be excus'd having the conveniency of the Danube by which they might have convey'd great plenty into the Camp had they us'd due Precautions Besides this the Poles thought they were at the fag-end of the World and long'd for their Beer their Colworts and their Cacha without which they fancy'd they could not live But the King would listen to none of these Considerations and with a steddy Resolution pursu'd that Glorious Carreer which he had form'd in his Mind from the Banks of the Danubâ—â— the Vistula across all Vpper Hungary I met with the German Army in the Isle of Komorne and because I could not tell for certain where the Polish Army was which always march'd two or three Leagues in the Van I resolv'd at Presbourg to follow a Courrier from the Emperor that was going thence to the Duke of Lorrain from whom I expected to receive a Convoy After 4 Hours march we found the Arrier-Guard compos'd of the Cravatian Regiments We went afterwards by the course of the Country towards the Place where they told us the Main Body of the Army lay but we turn'd too much towards the the Left and fell in with the Camp of the Infantry commanded by Staremberg which coasted along the Left Arm of the Danube and encamp'd this Day upon the Shore about Goutta a small City over against Newhausel By this means we could not get before Midnight to the Duke of Lorrain's Camp posted about the Middle of the Isle four large Leagues off Komorne being two Days March to that City On the Morrow being Sunday Octob. 3. I waited upon the Duke of Lorrain at his Levée who inform'd me That the King was this very Day to pass the Danube over the Bridge of Komorne his Army being march'd over the Day before That Prince order'd me to be conducted thither by one of his Adjutants upon Horses belonging to his own Equipage I arriv'd at the Bridge that very Instant the King pass'd it and his Majesty who had order'd me to rejoyn him by coming that Road in which he was pursuing the Enemy was surpris'd and at the same time glad to see me arrive so safe to his Camp During the Halt he made there he receiv'd an Express from the Prince of Transylvania with Letters writ in Cyphers dated at Buda which contain'd little else but the Re-establishment of the Grand Visier in his former Dignity and the
Particulars of the whole Intrigue at Court Much about the same time there arriv'd two Envoys from Count Teckley their Master being minded to adjust his own Particular Interests with the King of Poland when he perceiv'd the contrary Party so apparently to decline The Imperial Ministers who were near his Polish Majesty's Person were at first for treating those Envoys as Rebels and talk'd of nothing but hanging drawing and quartering them without any respect had to the presence of their Deliverer who had put them into a posture of speaking so big But the King nettled at such a groundless and unseasonable a piece of Arrogance gave 'em to understand That he was the Master and solemn Protector of all those who had any Negotiations with Him Those Envoys quarter'd in the Camp within the King's Lodgments all the time that the Army tarry'd there were treated by the Officers and sent back with all the Assurances imaginable which piece of Civility Count Teckley afterward repay'd Him with Interest Octob. 6. the Army as was said before advanc'd three Leagues beyond Komorne and encamp'd in the open Plains bounded on the Left by a ridge of Hills and on the Right by the Danube The Duke of Lorrain made a Proposal to the King of staying there October 7 to wait for the Infantry who were not yet come up and the King yielded to it So that the Duke of Lorrain retiring about Midnight to his Quarters and the Chevalier Prince Lubomirsky waiting upon him for Orders he acquainted him with the Resolution taken of staying there and accordingly order'd all Parts to go out a Forraging But a Moment after the King changing his Mind or fortified afresh by some unknown Circumstance in his Design of going to attack the Fort of Barcan he gave Orders to his Generals to dislodge the Army by Break of Day and to send before his Vanguard reinforc'd with Horse and Dragoons which were to march directly to that Post The Chevalier Lubomirsky retain'd by some secret Impulse would not send out to Forrage without sending again to the Duke of Lorrain's Quarters and his Conjecture prov'd true the Duke ordering him to march with all speed after the King of Poland who was already advanc'd a great way Such a desperate Resolution stunn'd the German Generals and was excused by none However they decamp'd without weighing things but not without murmuring and inwardly rejoycing at the Misfortune which afterwards attended our presumptuous Precipitation The Turks had two Days before pass'd over the Bridge of Strigonium and beside those who were lodg'd in the Fort there were great Platoons posted in the Gardens and Orchards round about Barcan Of this the King of Poland was not aware but was well pleas'd to rob the Germans of the Glory of this Expedition and of carrying the Place within their View and without their Assistance But God was pleas'd to mortifie this Hero by a contrary Success and to let him know that the Disposal of the whole was in his Hands having sav'd his Sacred Person by a Miracle no less Remarkable than that of the Deliverance of Vienna the Glory whereof if unblemish'd might perhaps have made the Poles too vain-glorious The Van-Guard was scarce arriv'd upon the Plains above the Bottom stretch'd out to the River and the Fort where they were to encamp on this Day but the Turks began to draw out of the Gardens in order to skirmish with our Dragoons At first their Number was inconsiderable but large Squadrons issu'd out insensibly Some out of the Fort others over the Bridge marching from Strigonium and at last the Body of Troops thus increas'd came thundring upon the Polish Van-Guard who had not so much as time to put themselves into a Posture of Fighting Horror and Confusion seis'd their Spirits no Officer to be seen no Word of Command given and those who did give any were so little Masters of themselves that they order'd the Dragoons some to dismount some to remount without any reason for either of these Counter-Orders For they were open Plains where the Infantry was expos'd to the Natural Fury and Impetuosity of the Turks They therefore drew themselves up in a confus'd Line of Battle the Troops of Pancernes Cosacks and other Cavalry descended below the Curtain whose Brow the Dragoons were in possession of in the same Line the Stragenic who commanded the Body in Person caus'd a discarge to be made upon the Enemy who bore upon them with an extraordinary violence The Turks at first gave ground but soon return'd upon that Body of Horse with the same Vigour without fearing the Fire of which they bore a second Discharge after which the Cosacks were broke the rest endeavour'd to regain the top of the Curtain and terror joyn'd with the Impetuosity of the Turks routed the whole Line without resistance The Dragoons of the Grand General remounted in order to fly for it those belonging to the King who were on the Right had not time to do it and were all cut in pieces However the King march'd on with the Hussars and the other Troops of Horse who were but little prepar'd for a Battle which they had no leisure now to wait for He saw at a distance the Disorder of his defeated Vant-Guard which at first he would have dissembled but at last perceiving that they were vigorously beaten off he put himself in a posture of defending them He drew up his Cavalry in a Line which upon the first Onset receiv'd the Turks with a great deal of Bravery the Hussars likewise charg'd them twice and the rest of the Troops bore some time the terrible Shock of the Enemy who were animated by their first Success But their Squadrons stretching out to the Right and Left with a design of surrounding our whole Line our Left Wing being disorder'd began to give ground and the Right being routed at the third Onset which the Turks made upon them with their Sabres in their Hands for that was all the Weapon they made use of in this Transaction fac'd about at the same time to avoid the Fury of the Enemy The Grand General seeing the Disorder pray'd his Majesty to retreat whilst he would endeavour to bear the Charge of the Turks with some rally'd Troops to cover his Sacred Person But that Prince being seldom us'd to such a Retreat receiv'd the Proposal very ill and still fought on till the Croud of those who fled carry'd him off in spight of his Teeth Never such a Confusion was seen The Hussars threw away their Lances the Cornets their Standards which one might see heap'd up pel-mell with the Kettle-drums in the Furrows The Officers could not be so much as hearken'd to those Brave Soldiers left the King to the mercy of the Turks who eagerly pursu'd him Some of the Soldiers were for Butchering the Leaders that would have forc'd them to rally and others reply'd to those who upbraided them for their Cowardise That their Lives were as precious to
either of their Defeat or of his Death These Circumstances joyn'd to those of the former Day wherein his Polish Majesty was in so much danger together with the Particulars of what the Palatine of Russia had done to favour that Prince's Retreat were a mortal Affliction to the Queen who was in dread of the Life of her Royal Consort and offended that he should be so much oblig'd to the Crown General with whom the Court was dissatisfy'd ever since his open Correspondence with the Marquiss De Vitry the French Ambassador But let us leave the Queen at the Altar loading it with her Offerings and let us see what the King is doing in the Plains of Barcan On Saturday Octob. 9. by break of Day he decamped that he might advance above the Defiles in which the Army was posted and draw it up in Battalia upon that Champian and even Ground which lay Parallel to that which the Turks had cover'd with their Squadrons As soon as we were come upon the Plain we discover'd their Line ready drawn up All our Troops were cast into three Lines there being no occasion of Stretching them nor any conveniency of doing it because of the Ground bounded on the Left by the Ridge of Mountains above-mention'd and on the Right by the Curtain which ran along above the Bottom of Barcan Our first Line had a larger Front than that of the Turks which did not reach our Centre at least not beyond it In this Line was an equal Number of German and Polish Troops the Infantry and Cavalry of both Nations together with the Generals and Trains of Artillery Thus were there some of all these in each Post and all saw the Enemy hard-by tho' not many of 'em charg'd them The Army was still 50000 strong and never made a finer Appearance not only by the wise Disposition of the Order of Battle and the goodness of the Ground but likewise by the Diversity of the Troops their Fierce Aspects their Regularity in keeping their Ranks as they march'd the dreadful Sounds of Drums and Trumpets and lastly by the Number of those Famous Commanders who led them The King of Poland was posted on the Right to intercept the Turks between the Line and the Fort of Barcan whose Retreat he was minded to cut off He assign'd the Left Wing to the Grand General of the Crown attended with some of the Emperor's Generals among whom was Count Veterani who has in the subsequent Campaigns given the World such Signs of an Extraordinary Valour and Conduct The Duke of Lorrain with others were in the Centre of the Line of Battle The Polish Artillery was planted in the Spaces between the Battalions and Squadrons of the Left Wing because they very wisely foresaw the whole Force of the Turks would fall on that side their Line being wholly drawn up over against them No sooner did the Cannon begin to play but the Turks undaunted at the Inequality of their Forces charg'd that Wing with an Impetuosity like Thunder which cannot be conceiv'd nor describ'd They were receiv'd by our Troops without giving the least Ground and with a dreadful Discharge of Fire and Ball it being certain that by the first Firing of a German Battalion a prodigious number of Men and Horses fell to the Ground Their Fury was not cool'd by this on the contrary they return'd with greater Vigour the Fight grew warm and a Bloody Slaughter ensu'd on all Sides The Visier of Buda did all he could to get the Better of our Troops and was wounded in two or three places by a Sabre The Visier of Silistria advanc'd so far that his Horse being kill'd under him he was surrounded by a Body of Cavalry against whom he defended himself a long while being assisted by 40 of his Domesticks who seeing him on the Ground leap'd all off their Horses with their Sabres in their Hands to cover their Master This Heroical Action struck our Generals with Admiration and they cry'd out that they should spare those Brave Men but in vain the Germans having put themall to the Edge of the Sword After this the Visier abandon'd to the Fury of the Soldiery and vanquish'd look'd about for a General to whom he might surrender himself chusing to die rather than yield to a less Officer He perceiv'd the Palatine of Russia and was not out in his Guess for he had the Air and Figure of what he really was whereupon the Visier getting out of the Croud advanc'd toward that Lord to whom he presented his Sabre The Bassa of Caramania was likewise wounded and taken in the same place by the Great General 's Troop However the Turks still maintain'd the Fight the Success whereof was doubtful But those who were drawn up in Columns behind the Line perceiving the Motion of our Right Wing guess'd at the Design They gave notice thereof to the foremost Troops who retreated gradually without breaking their Ranks and at last fled for it The King of Poland foresaw That the Turks being less extended than our Line would use their utmost Efforts to break our Left Wing and after stretch themselves upon the Flank between the two Lines He therefore suffer'd the Fight to grow a little warm and in the mean time order'd the Right Wing to advance from the Centre in the form of a Half-Moon with which he gradually gain'd the Low Plain thereby to possess the whole compass of it and to get between the Enemies and their Bridge He order'd the Hussars to trail their Lances on the side of their Horse's Necks to prevent the Enemy from perceiving the Motion But they having discover'd it and conjecturing truly at the Design of the King of Poland left the Field of Battle that they might gain the Fort of Barcan under the Cannon of the Upper-Town of Strigonium which carry'd a great way beyond this almost as far as the Curtain tho' the Danube be of an extraordinary breadth in this Place and the Plain beyond it of a vast extent The Troops were drawn up in Battalia that they might march orderly towards the Enemy and give the Artillery time to come up with the Battalions which open'd a little to the Right and Left The German Generals complimented his Polish Majesty upon this Day 's Glorious Success at which time one of his Pages who had with some Squadrons of Volunteers advanc'd very near the Danube on the Right side of the Fort return'd with full speed to acquaint his Majesty That the Turks were Filing off over the Bridge This Prince animated with the Desire of compleating his Victory order'd his Army to march directly to the Banks of the River on both sides of Barcan and himself at the Head of the foremost Squadrons The Artillery follow'd pretty close some pieces of which the King order'd to be planted so as to break the Bridge or graze the top of it and encourag'd the Gunners by the Mony he gave 'em in Hand to expedite the Design During
any Letters from the City nor seen any of the Signals by which I had ordered them to let me know that they had received my Letters The Communication with the City is the more difficult that I understand they have posted Watches at every ten Paces distance Just now we hear their Cannon battering the Place though from the Report there appears not to be 20 or 25 Pieces of great Cannon On the 25th Instant having had Advice that the Rebels advanced and that they burnt all towards the Morave I resolved to march to the River Mark which is pretty good having nevertheless first given Orders to the Imperial Troops that are in Stiria to advance into the Mountains into inaccessible Places and endeavour to incommode the Forages of the Turks I gave Orders to General Dunewald who covers Upper Austria toward Saint Peld to assemble all the Peasants and to post them in the Woods for the same purpose I sent General Lessie to Crems to wait for the Bavarians that ought to be arrived there by this time and to keep the Bridge I left in the Retrenchments of the Bridges of Vienna two Regiments to hinder the Turks from passing on this side by Boats and to endeavour as much as possible to communicate News to the City and to receive Advice from them Upon my arrival on the River Mark I had Advice that Presburg had desired Teckley's Protection and taken in a Garison of the Rebels That he was marching with his Hungarians and the Bassa's of Agria and Waradin with Artillery to storm the Castle That the Grand Visier had ordered the City to make a Bridge of Boats with all Diligence And that he had already sent a Detachment from his Army to join Tekey by means of the Bridge that was making at Presburg I thought my self obliged upon those Advices to attempt the breaking those Measures since if they succeeded not only the Countries of Silesia Moravia and Bohemia were unavoidably exposed to Fire and Sword but besides this Communication of the Enemies two Armies seemed so dangerous to me that I had reason to fear they might force me to retire to Crems cut off my Communication with the Army of Poland bring up their Bridges as far as Vienna and render it impossible to succour the Town for the Grand Visier might make very great Detachments from his Cavalry which being joined to the Body of the Rebels that was marching towards this side of the Danube might post themselves every where and withstand the succours from Poland or at least keep them further off So that I determined to pass the Mark to put some more Foot into the Castle of Presburg and to destroy all the Materials which that disloyal Town was preparing for a Bridge to the Enemy I left the Infantry and the Baggage in Mayerek and began to pass the River with the Cavalry about three in the Afternoon at two Fords I marched on the 28th all Night and stopt at a Defile about half a League from the Town having sent some Dragoons before backed by Polanders to possess themselves of the Hill of the Vineyards within Musquet-shot of the Town that the Foot might march with safety The Dragoons having secured the said Hills I caused the Infantry to march into the Castle and having been told That the Fire in the Enemy's Camp was feen within a quarter of a League of the Town I thought my self obligd ' to summons it the better to destroy the Preparations of the Turks for the Bridge not doubting but that seeing the Germans in the Castle and the Emperor's Army in a Condition to destroy them it would surrender which is did at first summons delaying only so long as was requisite to save the Garison of the Rebels to the number of three hundred who fled in Disorder to their Camp This Facility perswaded me that there was some Weakness in the Enterprize of the Enemy who had put themselves in Battalia so soon as they perceived me without offering to advance towards the Town and this face of Affairs made me resolve to march towards them I caused the Dragoons immediately to possess ' emselves of the Vineyards Hedges and Places that were covered with Trees that I might draw up the Cavalry in Battalia behind them which was done in four Lines the Ground allowing it As the Lines were formed I made them advance to give Ground to others At first the Turks began to skirmish which I hindered that I might not ingage before I was in Battalia Being formed I made them advance towards the Enemy who immediately retired something back to a sort of a covered Place where I believed the Body of their Army and their Infantry might be And continuing to march I saw them retreat soon after which obliged me to pursue them and to give Orders to Prince Lubomirski to detach Part of his Polanders to ingage them They follow'd them with so much vigor that the Turks and Rebels who fled with as much Precipitation and Confusion were obliged some of them to betake themselves to swim in the Arm of the Danube which forms the Isle of Schit others fled into the Woods and the Body towards Tyrnau without having ever faced about but at a little pass which they abandoned immediately I caused all the rest of the Polanders to advance to back the first and afterwards all the Imperial Dragoons to advance into these Posts where the Turks made show as if they had a design to turn into The Disorder of the Turks was so great that they were pursued near to Tyrnau their Bagage taken and six or seven hundred Men killed without the loss of one Man on our side Seeing them thus flying and my Cavalry fatigued enough and not able to come up with them I recalled the Polanders not being willing to suffer them to pursue them too far without being at hand to second them however some pursued them even almost to the very Walls of Tyrnau I encamped them afterwards near the City in the Camp of the Turks who I heard were retired to Schintaw and having refreshed themselves a little there retired further towards Lewens and Newhausel they and the Rebels having separated being dissatisfied with each other All the Cavalry of the Emperor was marching to the Engagement with stedfastness and joy But the whole Action was done by the Polanders alone who left nothing for the Germans to do I cannot sufficiently praise the Constancy Vigor and Conduct of Prince Lubomirski and of the Officers and Soldiers of the Body which he commanded All the Prisoners and Deserters say that Tekeli had retired the Night before with the Canon and the Infantry and that there was a Misunderstanding between him and the Turks They talk variously of their strength some making them amount to 60000 Men others to 40000 and others to 25000. But from their Incampment I cannot guess that they could be above 16 or 18000 Men. I hope this Action secures Presburg for
Depth and Rapidity of the Danube requires Betwixt those Canals there are several small ones which cut the Islands but don't properly make distinct Arms being only Streams that proceed from the Inundations of the River The first of those Islands and the nearest to the City is a second Town as we may call it the whole Place being full of Country-houses Palaces Gardens great Walks of Trees as those of the Cours le Reins Inclosures Thickets Malls and other things that conduce to the Ornament of a Capital City The whole being inclosed like a Park with high Pallissadoes of curious Workmanship This is that they call Leopolstadt From hence we enter the City by a little Bridge and a great Suburb beyond it that joins to the Houses of the Island in which the Empress some few Years before had caused a Palace to be built call'd the New Favorita which was the principal Beauty of the Island though to speak freely all those Houses Palaces and Gardens have little Magnificence or Grandeur in them but the Place of it self is very much adorned by Nature The other Island beyond it betwixt the two great Branches of the River is greater than Leopoldstadt but without Houses being only adorned with Walks of Trees and Thickets 'T is called Tabor and communicates with the First by a large Bridge as it does with the Terra Firma upon the Austrian-shore by one yet larger This Canal is properly the great Stream of the Danube At the Head of this last Bridge there 's a little Fort upon the Bank of the River built only with Turf and Pallissados which was useful to the Duke of Lorrain favoured his Retreat and covered those that sustained the Party commanded to destroy the Bridge In all the Letters which that Prince wrote to the King of Poland about his Retreat of all those Islands he mentions only the Tabor as if he had confounded it with that of Leopoldstadt but it is certain that he possessed himself of the latter immediately from whence his Infantry marched to Vienna and into which the Tartars and Janissaries entred upon their arrival so that it was not possible for him to burn the Bridge which joins with those two Islands Yet he left Coll. Greben there to defend it till he marched his Troops over the Tabor and gained the other Bridge of the Great Canal But the Tartars seized it defeated the Detachment and took or killed Col. Greben who was never afterwards heard of Then they run to the other of which the Duke of Lorrain had time to burn part and by that means saved the Remainder of the Imperial Army Those Bridges are now rebuilt but to me they don't seem to be in the same Place and the Road across those Islands appears to be changed The City is encompassed with large Suburbs which at that time extended very near the Glacis and to which the Imperialists had begun to set fire to satifie in some measure the King of Poland and to shew some deference to his Advice for the Emperor thought there was no need of it so that they left in effect the Walls of the Houses and the Terrasses of the Gardens which the Turks made use of to place their Batteries upon and to make their Approaches so that under the Shelter of those Ruines they advanced their Trenches within 60 Paces of the Counterscarp the first Night that they opened them which was the 13th of July 1683. This fatal Experience hath since occasioned them to remove the Suburbs at a greater distance when they began to rebuild them after the Siege As to the Fortifications some of them are strong and others weak There are 12 Royal Bastions faced with Brick with Cavaliers Ravelins Half-Moons and fine Gates all fac'd with Bricks as the Bastions and adorn'd with Wreaths of hewn Stone The Ditch is large and deep part of of it dry and part full of Water The Counterscarp is very sorry ill pallissadod nor did I see any thing that deserved to be called a Covert-Way or any detached Works beyond it The side on which the Town was attack'd hath two indifferent Bastions a Ravelin before the Courtin betwixt both the whole covered with Brick with a Cavalier or Platform for Guns and a large Ditch but so little Ground within and so little space betwixt the Rampart and the Houses that there could be no Retrenchment made on it particularly the Bastion of the Court the Emperor's Palace joining close to it and the Platform of it serving instead of a Terrasse for the Appartments so that when the Turks were lodg'd at the Point of it The Count de Staremberg could not make any more than one Retrenchment and told the King of Poland when he shewed him the Breaches that he could not have held out above three Days longer notwithstanding certain Barricadoes he had made at the entrance of the Bastion and of the Streets which run into it but I am of Opinion as were all those who saw the Disposition of the Ground that it might have bin carried in 24 Hours If the Grand Visier had not despised our Supplies been less intent upon the spoil of the Town and on the Evening before the Battle attack'd the weak Retrenchment of the Garrison for all Ingineers agree that he began the Siege like an able Captain and one that was well informed of the weak Places of the Town and that there is no other Place for carrying on of Trenches but those of the two Bastions attack'd by the Turks called the Bastions of the Lyon and of the Court. This was the Condition of the Place without that within was not ill there being great Stores of Provisions and Ammunition abundance of Artillery the Citizens resolved on a long Resistance and vigorously to endure the fatigues of the Siege There was a numerous Garison for Count Staremberg brought thither above 1000 Men and was also seconded by Count Caplier Commissary General of the Provisions who defended the Place longer than the other that fell sick of a Dysenterie during the Siege But notwithstanding all this the Duke of Lorrain was very much afraid of the Town and amongst other Reasons he wrote to the King of Poland at the beginning of the Siege he acquainted him That Vienna though well fortified with Bastions ought to be looked upon to be more a Courtly than a Warlike City as being defective in Works and a regular Counterscarp that which they had not being large enough in several Places It must be owned also That it was very ill defended and as feebly attacked since the Turks having advanced the first Night within 60 Paces of the Ditch were notwithstanding above six Weeks in passing it though the Place was batter'd with seventy Pieces of Cannon of which there were twenty five of a prodigious Size and the Garison made no great Sallies but contented themselves to defend their Ground foot by foot in the common Manner I saw nothing in reality in all the
Letters from the Duke of Lorrain and Prince of Transylvania to the King of Poland that took any great Notice of the Vigor of the Garifon who undertook nothing extraordinary but only sustained the Enemies Assaults with Bravery the Cavalry having continued a long time in the Ditch without making any attack either on the Quarters or Trenches The Turks on their side did not push on the Attacks with vigor so that the City which ought to have been in Ruins by Cannon and Bombs was very intire those Places excepted that were directly exposed to the Batteries I neither saw Steeples beat down nor many Houses shattered and much fewer burnt which confirms the Opinion of the Pachas that the Grand Visier spar'd that City for his own Interest whilst by a quite contrary and ill understood Policy he utterly ruined all the Neighbourhood as far as from Presberg to 5 or 6 Leagues up the Danube beyond Vienna The Tartars in effect left furious Marks of their Rage and Cruelty in those Parts for they not only depopulated those Countries but quite destroyed all the Houses except one Castle belonging to the Emperor which is within a small League of Vienna upon the great Road to Presburg where the Turks laid up their Magazins and which the Grand Visier preserved out of Respect to the Memory of the Great Soliman because that Emperor having formerly encamped upon that Ground when he besieged the same Place The Germans built an House there with a Park inclosed with Stone-Walls flankd with little Towers looking like Pavillions representing the Form and Disposition of the Sultans Tents whose Quarter was built by way of a Palace or Seraglio Those that are versed in War could not comprehend the Reasons of the Grand Visier who without any necessity thus ruined a fine Country of the Conqest whereof he assured himself and designed to have made it his Residence Besides that in ravaging behind him he not only starved his own Camp but also cut off all Possibility of Subsistance in his retreat in case of any Misfortune whilst at the same time he spar'd the Country on his left-hand towards Newstadt and the Mountains of Styria where the Tartars had scarcely ever touched He had pitched his Camp from the Brinks of the Danube which inclosed his right Wing to the Foot of the next little Hills where the Vineyard was taking up a vast Tract of Ground in Form of a Half-Moon insomuch that the very sight of it was formidable The Tartars had advanced further having passed the first Arm of the River and possessed themselves of the Isles over-against the Place On the first of which there was an Attack with a Battery of only six Pieces of Cannon pointed along the Streets of the Suburbs against a Bastion on the outside which is washed by the little Stream of the Danube This took up the width of the whole Street and could be nothing but a false Attack to fatigue the Garison for its Works were inconsiderable though that Arm of the River was not only fordable but very shallow in that Place The other two Approaches were towards the middle of the Camp full of irregular Cutts Turnings and VVindings after the Turkish Fashion with frequent Places of Arms all well covered and guarded the Trenches being deep and the Parapets raised high besides which the laborious Janisaries had made several Holes like Huts to secure themselves from the Granado's Firepots and Bombs as for Stones they did no hurt there In a word all that could be thought of for strengthening a Trench and covering a Battery was practised here No Body ever saw such fine VVorks and Gabions nor so many Fascines and Sacks of Earth particularly on the Brink of the Ditch from whence they defended the Lodgments made upon the two Bastions The Grand Visier had taken up his Quarters upon certain little Heights near that renowned Palace called the Favorita which he inclosed within his Park the extent whereof was prodigious I have heard the King compare it to the largeness of the City of VVarsaw He had added Gardens VVater-Courses and other Imbelishments to it and also a sort of a Menagery for after the Siege was raised several Rabbets live Pidgeons and the Body of the finest feathered Ostridge that ever was seen whose Head the Visier's Party had cut off as they retired were found there He was a Man who loved his Pleasures and Magnificence in all things mixing them always with a Representation of VVar. The Cares of that Siege did not debar him of his Divertisements nor interrupt his Amours And I know that the Mufti who accompanied him in that famous Expedition often reproached him with his brutal Debaucheries threatning him with the Vengeance of God and Forewarning him as by a Spirit of Prophecy that his infamous Commerce with Boys which the Turks as well as Christians are forbid under very severe Penalties would be the Cause of the ruin of the Empire and of his ill success in that Enterprize He had little reason to fear it humanly speaking for the Ottoman Empire had never assembled so vast an Army nor so many Pioneers at once nor gathered together such vast Quantities of Ammunition and Artillery The Camp was an entire VVorld as one may say I have heard some Turks who pretended not to exagerate when they said That it consisted of seven hundred thousand Men including regular Troops Pioneers Artificers Domesticks and such as composed the Trains of the Officers VVhen we arrived to the top of Mount Callemberg and first saw them we were struck with Fear and Admiration at the same time which we could not avoid at the sight of so many Men and such great Riches agreeable to the Grandeur and Puissance of the Grand Senior But the terror wherewith we were seized overcame our Admiration when the King asked one of his Gentlemen who advanced to the top of the highest Mountain to view them and bring some News of them he gave so terrible a Description of them that the whole Army trembled at it which that great Monarch seeing and fearing lest such a Prepossession might discourage the Army he openly derided the Gentleman's Relation calling it a Coward 's Vision but when the Business was over being himself amazed at his good Success he confessed that he had Reason to speak of it as he had done and that his Fear was very well grounded Amongst this prodigious Number of People which I have spoke of 't was computed that there were nigh 300000 fighting Men without including the Tartars and other Auxiliary Troops as Walachians Moldavians Transylvanians c. But according to the just Relation of an Envoy from Count Teckley who afterwards followed the King of Poland to Cracow that Number was reduced to an hundred and sixty thousand effective Turks whereof 22000 Men were at that time killed being in the Month of August The Grand Visier depending upon his formidable strength marched as if it had been to a Triumph and had