the Prince of Tarente her new husband to make an attempt to remount the throne But the prudence valor and fidelity of the Transilvanian rendered their endeavors ineffectual till Pope Clement the sixth put an end to the war The signal services which the Vayvod had done to the King his Master both in Naples and to his friend and Ally Francis Carcarius Prince of Padoua made him dream of vaste recompenses wherewith his hopes fed him But he did but flatter himself for Lewis not only frustrated him of his great expectations but recalled him also from the Government of Naples jealous of the worth and vertue of so eminent a person P. Other great Potentats have done the like before and after King Lewis Narses and Gonzale have furnished matter enough to the Writers of their times to lay foul imputations on the Emperor Justinian and Ferdinand King of Arragon But how did Steven carry himself in this his disgrace G. This Transilvanian as accomplished a Courtier as he was a Captain dissembled his ressentiment till some favorable opportunity should be offered whereby he might with advantage revenge himself This proffered it self by the death of the King who left no other successor but a daughter named Mary affianced to Sigismond of Luxemburg King of Bohemia The non-age of this Princess the unconstant humor of the Hungarians and the practises of our Vayvod procured such a contempt of Mary that many said publickly They would not be governed by a Girle This Cabal knowing the dexterous adress of the Bishop of Zagabria who was an Italien both by extraction and inclination sent him to Charles the second King of Naples the son of Andrew and Cousin-germane of Mary The Bishop did exactly that for which he was sent He offers the Kingdom of Hungary to the King of Naples and prays him to come take possession of the Estates which as he said of right belonged to him Charles gave a favorable audience to the Bishop and finding his mind perplexed with passions of diverse natures required a time to resolve of a business of so great importance He broke the matter to his Queen who forgot not to disswade him both with reasons and tears from an entreprise dangerous for the wavering unconstancy of the people and shameful for the great injustice he should commit in robbing his near Kinswoman of her inheritance without any color of reason But at length both Equity Justice and Reason must yeeld to Ambition Charles equippeth a great Navy and accompanied with an army suitable to such a King he landeth in Dalmatia and in few days came to Zagabria where he was met with many of these Nobles who favored his entreprise From thence he marched to Buda and though he met with some resistence by the resolution of Nicolas Gara and some other faithful subjects of the Queen yet he was established in the Kingdom by the favor and assistance of the Transilvanian Vayvod Sigismund King of Bohemia and husband of Queen Mary seeing the loss of Hungary inevitable retired himself to his own Kingdom And then Charles thought he had struck a nail in the wheel of Fortune His joy notwithstanding was but short and his usurpation no longer lived then other violent actions are Sigismund is recalled by the enemies of the Usurper and having routed Charles killed or chased all that offered to resist him reestablisheth himself in the Dominions of Mary his Queen P. These were marvellous alterations and no question such as were of hard digestion to the Transilvanian G. The loss and defeat of the King of Naples made the Vayvod dispair and forget all that is dear and precious to men Religion and Countrey He trode upon all considerations divine and humane and hath his recourse to Bajazet King of Turks to whom he promiseth his daughter on condition that he should assist him to chase Sigismond and Mary out of their Kingdom of Hungary This was the beginning and original of the miseries of this till then flowrishing Kingdom and of the hopes the Infidels conceived to make it a part of their Empire Bajazet layeth hold on Occasion marcheth with a mighty army towards Hungary meeteth with King Sigismund near Nicopolis between whom was fought a fierce battel where twenty thousand Christians and three score thousand Turks were laid in the dust upon the 18. of September 1396. P. I believe it was there where John Duke of Burgundy was taken prisoner with the loss of a thousand Gentle-men whom he had carried with him to that war But if I be not deceived the Turk made no great progress in Hungary during the reign of Sigismund G. These Burgundians kept company with the Hungarians who died at that time But in Sigismund and his Successor Albert of Austrias reigns the Turk gained but little ground in Hungary He resolved to go softly and to be first Master of Constantinople before he would fix his thoughts else where But for all that he learned the way to give us visits Mahomet the first beat the Hungarians at Tautemberg in the year 1400. And the Infidels advanced by little and little immediatly after the death of Albert of Austria This Prince at his death left his Queen with child which occasioned great divisions amongst the Nobility Some thought it fit to wait till the Queen were brought to bed before any thing should be done in order to the election of a new King Others made difficulty to obey a child though she should be delivered of a son and therefore resolved to choose a King capable to govern them Hungary being thus divided a faction of the Great Ones sent an offer of the Kingdom to Vladislaus the son of Casimir King of Polen Another party preferred Ladislaus the son of Albert though he was yet in his cradle and in it they set the Crown upon his head P. Truth it self doth teach us what danger Estates are in when they are divided amongst themselves And assuredly Hungary hath suffered irreparable losses by its divisions G. This division of affections and forces moved Amurath the second to take the field and taking his advantage of the discords of Hungary pierced to the heart of the Countrey and besiedged Alba Royal. Yet he got not all done he desired but on the contrair he lost almost all his army and was forced to raise the siedge This affront did irritate the Tyrant who to have his revenge entered Hungary with new forces where he was defeated by John Huniades Corvin This action as it gained much reputation to Corvin so it enflamed Amurath with spite and rage and therefore opposeth to Huniades who was constantly General of King Vladislaus his armies two of his bravest Captains these were Isaac and Mezets who entered Hungary and Transilvany both at once and filled all places where they came with terror fire and confusion Huniades runneth to the rescue renconntreth them loaden with spoil chargeth them gallantly but unfortunatly for he was beaten back and put to flight
of service five thousand wagons fourscore pieces of great canon and six hundred lesser ones with all furniture and amunition necessare for such a train of Artillery fell in the hands of the Victor G. The loss of the battel was but a smal matter in comparison of that which followed The Turk killed and took more then two hundred thousand persons And did so far advance in Hungary and fixed himself so firmly in it that till this hour he could never be removed out of it And no doubt he hath now more hopes then ever to abolish our Religion in that unhappy Kingdom so we have reason to write the 29. of August of the year 1526. amongst the most dismal days that ever afflicted Christendom or Christianity This King died without children and his want of issue did much augment the right which the House of Austria pretended to have to the Crown of Hungary Yet that illustrious family did not find the Hungarians much inclined to submit themselves to their domination John Zapoliha Earl of Sebusia and Vayvod of Transilvany who came too late with his forces to defend the Crown thought he was come soon enough to set it on his own head He had of a long time imployed both his means and his pains to gain the affections of the whole Kingdom And by the defeat he had given not long before to George Sekell and the peasants who had made him King he had opened to himself a way to the Royalty Seeing himself now in a condition to have the greatest hopes he prays he exhorts the whole Nobility and every one of them in particular not to loose the right and priviledge they had to elect a King and to make their generous resolutions in order thereto known at the next Dyet He remonstrats to them that Hungary had never been happy in subjecting it self to the dominion of a strange King That Sigismund of Bohemia and Vladislaus of Pole the first by his defeat at Nicopolis the last by his overthrow at Colembat and at Varna had given sufficient evidence how misfortunatly strangers govern that Kingdom He endeavored to make them believe that though a strange Prince might reign gloriously in Hungary yet it would be both more profitable and honorable for them to have a King of their own Nation That the best governed Common-wealths excluded the feminine sexe from the Scepter for fear it should come in the hands of strangers That the Hungarian Nobility was not so degenerated but there was heads amongst them worthy to carry a Crown And though himself was none of the bravest yet he thought not himself incapable to govern a great State and defend it with the point of his sword P. There are few Nations who do not abhor the yoke of a stranger What was the result of the Hungarian consultations G. The great merits and exhortations of Zapoliha prevailed so far with the greatest part of the Nobility that they invested him with the Royal dignity and caused crown him by Paul Deverda Archbishop of Strigonium on Martinmas day 1526. But to help the course of this miserable Countrey to its ruine Stephen Battori and some other Great Ones who looked upon the advancement of Zapoliha with an envyous eye sided with Ferdinand of Austria and supported his interests This Prince fortified with the accession of his new Kingdom of Boheme with the victorious forces of the Emperor Charles the fifth his brother with the marriage of Anne sister of the late King with the pretensions which Ladislaus son of Albert the first left to the Austrian family and the help of some Hungarian Lords thought that the Kingdom could not escape him In effect Ferdinand assisted by his right and his friends declared himself King and takes the field with an army and knowing the readiest way to kill a creature is to strike it at the heart he marcheth straight to Buda the capital City of the Kingdom King John astonished at this blow abandons the Town Ferdinand makes himself Master of it and shortly after beats his Competitors army and chases him entirely out of the Kingdom The course of this good fortune was stopped by the Turk who regains Jaitsa the chief town of Bosnia which Matthias Corvin had taken with extraordinary valor This loss and the safe retreat of Zapoliha made King Ferdinand believe he had not yet done his business but that Soliman and John would cut out more work for him then he had reason to desire P. I would gladly know whether this titular King retired himself what he did to recover his Estates G. This poor Prince beaten by Ferdinands force and the revolt of his subjects betook him to his shifts He went to Pole adressed himself to Jerome Lasco Vaydod of Siradie an illustrious person both by birth and vertue Lasco over-joyed with the presence of such a guest offered him all that was in his power and having maturely considered and reconsidered all means for his reestablishment at length adviseth him to have his recourse to Sultan Soliman And because these who give counsel should ever be ready to put it in execution he undertakes the journey himself and having obtained a recommeÌ„datory letter from Sigismund King of Pole he goes straight to Constantinople This great Man who had been before Embassador at the Port made it soon known how fit a person he was to agent a business of that importance He gained on his side by presents of great value Abraham the first Vizier Lustibey and Lewis Gritti who were in hie favor with the Grand Seigneur These being well instructed by the dexterous prudence of Lasco easily perswaded the Sultan that it would be both honorable and profitable for him to take the exiled King in his protection and restore him to his Kingdom Mean while Ferdinand fearing the practises of Lasco sent John Oberdans a Hungarian Lord Embassador to the Port to desire the friendship of Soliman and to demand a little unseasonably the restitution of all he had taken in Hungary since the death of Lewis the second This highly offended the proud Sultan who answered That the Ottomans were not accustomed to grant their friendship to those who had offended them That Ferdinand was in the wrong to desire it after he had invaded an Estate to which he had no just pretension That he thought him unworthy of that he desired That he would be revenged of the injury he had done him And commanded Oberdans to be instantly gone out of Constantinople and tell his Master that he denounced war against him That he would come into Hungary and bring the keys of these places with him whâ—ch Ferdinand demanded P. The Turk speaks with a wide mouth and if his actions corresponded with his words assuredly he made Ferdinand repent that he had given an interruption to Zapolihas repose G. Soliman did not all he would but desiring to be a man of his word he took the field with a dreadful army and in the Spring
advanced to Hungary King John went to wait on him at Bellgrade accompanied with Lasco and as splendide a company of the Nobility as was possible for him to bring together And in that great Assembly he did homage to the Infidel and acknowledged him for his Lord. The Sultan a little moving himself in his seat gave him his hand and assured him that nothing could be so pleasing to him then to support and restore the afflicted and oppressed He bid him be of good courage and told him He would restore to him all he should recover from his enemy Ferdinand These promises were confirmed by a most solemn and pompous oath after the fashion of these unbelievers who in all their actions will appear beyond that which they are All things being set in order Soliman marched to Buda which he might easily take in regard it was abandoned by the German guarison And then he forced Thomas Nadasdy to give over the Castle whereof he was Governor This victory gave opportunity to the Turk to reestablish John in the Royal dignity which accordingly he did Then treading over the bellies of all that durst offer to resist him he laid siege to Vienne He battered it with all imaginable fury and artifice but if it was well attaqued it was as well defended by Philip the Victorious Prince Palatine of the Rhine and Nicolas Count of Solms who forced him to retire with shame and to confess that who would take Vienne must have good mittains P. That place hath been for more then an age the mark at which the ambition of the Ottomans hath aimed They fancy to themselves if they had once possession of the seat and ordinary residence of the Emperor of the West they would quickly pluck from us the head of the Roman Eagle which is yet amongst us But in regard the Turk did rather fly then retire and that he was rather covered with Cypress then with Lawrels let us follow him and see what he did afterward G. I shal pass over all he did which makes not to our purpose neither shal I speak of his inhumane cruelties or the horrible marks he left of his indignation Let it suffise that I tell you that being arrived at Buda he caused bring before him all the Royall Ornaments and in presence of many great persons as well Christians as Mahometans he said thus to King John Brother and Friend Since next to God thou had thy recourse to me in thy calamity I was pleased to be favourable to thee and I have handled the matter so that thou art Master of thy Kingdom Now I deliver in thy hands the City and Castle of Buda with all Hungary whereof I declare thee King And turning to the Hungarian Lords he proceeded thus I command you to be faithful and obedient to your King here present If you do so I shal be your friend If you do otherwise I will destroy you with my seimeter And thou O King my friend Rememher of the great benefit thou hath received of God and of me Thou hath the Crown which thou and thy Successors shal enjoy peaceably if all of you continue in my friendship and the duty you owe me When he had spoke so he left Lewis Gritti son to Andrew since Duke of Venice by a Graecian concubine in Hungary with some Cavallery and so returned to Constantinople P. I wonder that Soliman having suffered so great losses in Austria did not recompense them by the detention of Hungary for I have heard that the Turk is not a slave to his promise G. Soliman did as these who break young horses he used this gentleness to tame the Hungarians and he gave that to John which he was afraid he could not well keep to himself But then King John fearing with much reason that the Grand Seigneur would weary of his succours and perceiving his affaires to be in a bad condition he sent to Vienne that same Lasco whom he had imployed at the Port. This active man procured a years truce in which time the edge of their animosity being somewhat blunted they came to an agreement By which John was to enjoy the Kingdom to his death after which Ferdinand or one of his sons should succeed him But because it was not impossible but John might have children it was provided that if he had a son that son should enjoy all these Lands and Castles which belonged to John before he was King of Hungary And besides all that he should be Prince of Transilvany This treatie was ill observed Ferdinand caused invade Transilvany by Baltasar Bamfy Sclavony by John Coatenerus the Province of Sebuse by Leonard Baron of Velts But all these attempts were rendered vain by the prudence of King John and the valor of George Martenusias a Monk and the Kings great favorite commonly called Frier George And so they came to another accommodation The calm which John enjoyed after he conjured away the tempest gave him leasure to think of his marriage And for that effect sends to Sigismund King of Pole and demanded his daughter Isabel or Elisabeth for his wife And having obtained her the nuptials coronation of the Queen were magnificently solemnized P. I believe King Ferdinand was not well pleased with a marriage from which might proceed an addition to his troubles and an opposition to his pretentions neither do I think Soliman could approve of the transaction which John made with Ferdinand without his knowledge or at least without his consent in regard a vassal can innovate nothing of that he holds in fee without the approbation of his Soveraign G. In this exigent John was like to him that holds the wolf by the ears He saw well enough that he had reason to fear as much mischief from Soliman as from his Competitor yet he conceived stronger hopes of a Christian Prince then of an Infidel notwithstanding whereof we shal presently see that his successors submitted to the Turk to preserve a part of their dignity Not long after King Johns marriage Stephen Meylats and some others take arms against him in favor of Ferdinand John desirous to quench the fire before it grew inextinguishable leaves his Queen at Buda and marcheth to Transilvany where he easily received these in his favor who acknowledged their fault which act of grace moved many to return to their duty But Meylats shuts himself up in the strong Castle of of Fogaras to wait for the succours which Ferdinand was to send him under the conduct of Nadasdy The King beseegeth the Castle and after a long siege takes it Mean time comes a Courrier who brings him the glad tydings of the birth of a son whom God had given him Such News useth to be very acceptable to these who have no children especially to such who are stricken in years You may easily imagine that John received them with an excess of joy which he witnessed by drinking after the Hungarian manner more then enough This augmented his