AD. THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



1522. 



driven from the sayd plaine, and from the breach of 

 Provence. 



How the treason of Sir Andrew de Merall was 

 knowen, and of the marvellous assaults that 

 the Turks made. 



UPon these termes and assaults, the treason of the 

 chancellour Sir Andrew de Merall, of whom I spake 

 before, was perceived : for a servaunt of his, named 

 Blasie, was found shooting a quarrell of a crossebow with 

 a letter, whereof he was accused to the lord great master, 

 which commanded to take him and examine him by 

 justice, and he confessed the shot of that letter & of 

 other before, at the commandement of his master : and 

 sayd that he had great acquaintance with the Turks 

 bashas, and that it was not long since he had written a 

 letter to them, warning them that they should not go, 

 for gunshot began to faile, and the men were wasted by 

 slaying and hurting at the assaults in great quantity : and 

 if they abode still and gave no more assaults, at the last 

 the towne should be theirs. And divers other things the 

 servant sayd of his master, of the which I have spoken 

 part before at the beginning, and of the warning that 

 he gave to the great Turke for to come. 



But to returne to the plaine of Italy. After many 

 battels and assaults done in the sayd place, by continuall 

 shot of seventeene great gunnes that beat the sayd plaine, 

 the repaires and traverses were almost broken and lost. 

 And by trenches the enemies were come joyning to the 

 breach, and never ceased to grate the earth and scrape the 

 earth to cause the repaires & traverses to fall : and at 

 the last the most part fell downe, & our men were con- 

 strained to leave the sayd plaine, save a cantell that was 

 toward the sea, as it v/ere the third part thereof. Cer- 

 taine dayes afore the enemies came to the foot of the 

 plaine, and did cut it, and rased the earth, & at the last 

 they passed thorow unto the towne wall : and anon 

 began to hew and cut as they did at that of Spaine. 



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