THE LOSS OF RHODES ad. 



1522. 



that they cared not for losse of them. And if we had 

 had men enow within the towne, there might have bene 

 remedy to have raised them from thence : but consider- 

 ing that our force and totall hope was in people, wee 

 left to doe many things that might have beene done, and 

 that should have bene good then and other times also, 

 for fault of men of warre. At the last it was pondred 

 by Sir Gabriel Martiningo, that there was no remedy but 

 to hew the wall for to meet them, and beat them with 

 ordinance and with engins of fire to burne and undoe 

 them. Then our men began to hew the wall, and made 

 some holes to shoot at the enemies that slept not, but 

 did as wee did, and shot at us, and indeed they slew & 

 hurt many of our men. Then Sir Gabriel Martiningo 

 ordeined to make repaires within the towne at the front 

 where they did cut the wall, to the end that after the 

 walles were cut, the enemies should know with whom to 

 meet. The traverses were made on ech side with good 

 artillery great and small : and the sayd traverses and 

 repaires were of the length that the enemies had cut the 

 wall, and beganne at the massife of Spaine made by the 

 reverend lord great master Mery d'Amboise, & ended 

 at the church of S. Salvador. The which traverses 

 and repaires the vulgar people call the Mandra, that 

 is to say, the field. 



The meane time that the repaires and traverses were 

 made with all diligence. Sir Gabriel Martiningo never 

 ceased going to every place to purvey for all things : and 

 he being on the bulwarke of Spaine to ordeine all things 

 that were needfull, there came a stroke of a handgun 

 from the trenches that smote out his eye, and put him in 

 danger of his life, but thanked be God, he recovered his 

 health within a moneth and a halfe. His hurt came ill to 

 passe, for the need that we had of him that time in all 

 things, and specially to the repaires of the breaches. 

 Nevertheles the lord priour of S. Giles (not ignorant in 

 all such things) with other men expert in warre, attended 

 to the sayd repaires and traverses, there and elswere. 



37 



