calumnies of their accufers prevail against them, for want of A. D. a better remedy, they inform the Serafkier of the danger 1695. they are in. THAT general, imagining this to be a ftratagem of the They defert Venetians to prevent a fudden attack, defers undertaking the Khios. fiege of Khios; and fo gives the Venetians time, after plundering the inhabitants and churches, to embark with their effects on board the ships remaining in the harbour (L). Next day the Serafkier, acquainted with the flight of the Venetians, takes the city; and, dragging-out from their lurking places, fuch as their fhips could not contain, puts them to death. He likewise constrains thofe Khians, who had turned Ro manifts, either to conform to the Greek church, or fubmit to captivity; and, restoring to the Greeks the churches taken from them, fhuts-up thofe of the Latins (M): thus retaliateing on the latter all the acts of tyranny which they had exercised on the former (N). Nor was their misfortune much alleviated by a victory gained by them near Argos, in which 400 Turks were faid to have been flain. IN Arabia, the rebel Sheykh Amir Mohammed is defeated The Arabs by the pilgrims guarded by Arflân Pashâ, governor of Tri- defeated. poli, with fome troops; and that dangerous wound of the Othman empire healed for a time. Soltân Moftafa, on his return to Adrianople, folemnizes, with great pomp, these victories, as fo many happy omens of his reign; and appoints Mezzo Morto, by whofe conduct he had recovered Khios, (L) Ricaut only fays, that all things being put in a confternation at Scio, from the two defeats fuffered by the fleet, the Venetian commanders most shamefully abandoned the island in the night; leaving fome troops, who were abroad to guard the ifle, to be made flaves of. (M) When Medzo Morto had taken the ifland, the Latins earnestly defired the fame privileges from whence they had excluded the Greeks: but the latter reprefenting, that they could not be fafe, while mixed with the Latins, who had lately betrayed the town, and would do fo again; the Soltán, on the Kapudan Pafha's report, condemns them all to the gallies, and their effects to be distri- (N) According to Ricaut, Hej. 1107. A. D. 1696. 1 A. D. high admiral. He likewise rewards the rest, who had distin1696. guished themselves in this campaign; while the Turks in general animated by their late fucceffes, on iffuing his commands for raising a more numerous army, lift themselves voluntarily in great numbers. But, before he had made the neceffary preparations for the field, Frederick Auguftus, elector of Saxony, at the end of the year 1107, befieges Temefwar with the imperial army. The Soltán, on this news, haftes to its relief; on whofe approach the Germans abandon the enterprize, and encamp eight hours distance from that city, with a refolution to wait for the Othmans. The Turks THE Othmans foon after come-up, and, pitching their tents attacked; in fight of the enemy, by advice of Tekeli, who attended on the Soltan, fortify their camp with strong ramparts, as well as wide and deep trenches; method unusual with the Turks. The night following the imperial general refolves on a bold attempt, which would have been very glorious, if crowned with fuccefs. There lay between the two camps a place full of briars, furrounded with a marfhy ground, fcarce an Italian mile over; but, fo thick, that a perfon unarmed could not pass through it. Here he orders 24 different paths to be cut; and, at day-break, the army, with as many cannon, to march through, and attack the Turkifb ramparts. The foldiers execute these orders with great bravery; and, having discharged their artillery three or four times, make a vigorous affault on the Soltan's camp: but, unluckily for the imperialifts, they happened upon the strongest part of it, where the Fanizaries, and Mefrli with his Egyptians, were pofted. For all this, they penetrated their trenches, and made a great flaughter, which ftruck fuch a terror into the whole army, that the Soltán himself left his tent, and retired to the fartheft part of the camp: but foon after they are overpowered by numbers, and repulfed with great lofs of men, befides their and Germans re uljed. 24 cannon. THIS victory was chiefly owing to the Wazir Etmas Mohammed Pasha, who firft, with his men, ftopped the fury of the Germans, now preffing to the Soltân's pavilions; and, by his example, encouraged the Janizaries, thrown into the ut moft confufion by the fudden irruption of the enemy. After the Germans had given way, they were intirely routed by the Bostânji (O); who, though defigned only for the Soltân's guard, (0) Or gardeners, inftituted with a view, that, while they exercifed themselves in the cul ture of gardens, they might be accustomed to heat, cold, and other feverities of the weather; and guard, and never employed before in any military fervice, were, in this danger, fent by Moftafa to affist the Janizaries. However there were flain, on the fide of the Turks, Mostafa Pálba, governor of Temifwar, the Wazir's brother, and many other officers of note, befides feveral thousand Fanizaries and Egyptians. Of the Germans, thofe only were killed who were found in the trenches. The rest of the army stood the whole day in order of battle, expecting the Othmans: but the Soltán, content with the present victory, orders the Mufti, by a Fetvah, to prohibit any farther engagement; and a few days after, marching eastward, puts an end to the campaign *. A. D. 1696. A. D. 1696. As our historians are filent with regard to the Germans cut- Turks ting roads thro' the bushes, fo they mention other circumstances how postof moment not related by the Turks. According to them, the ed. elector of Saxony, on the 30th of August, N. S. marched from his camp at Olafch; and, having given out, that he designed to besiege Temefwar, the Turks paffed the Danube in order to observe his motions. On the 20th of September the elector advanced, and repulfed some of the enemy's cavalry with confiderable flaughter; and next day was informed, by a Chaufb taken prifoner, that the Janizaries were advantageously posted on the right fide of a morafs, their quarters reaching to the banks of the Temes: that another body of them encamped to the left, along the banks of the brook Bege, against which place their cannon was pointed, as being the only paffage for an enemy to come at them; and that their camp was fo well fortified on all fides, that they were not to be attacked without much difficulty and danger. To invite the imperialifts to a battle, the Turks, on the Battle of 24th, fallied out of their intrenchments, and, in two hours Olafch. time, made other lines, where, having planted their artillery, the cannonading began briskly on both fides. On the 26th, they advanced in order of battle; and having, under cover of bushes, fhrubs, and fome trees, pofted themselves between Temefwar and the imperialifts, the latter marched directly to atack them : but they were fo fortified with the bufhes and * CANT. p. 400, & feqq. and fo become fitter to bear the fatigues of war. From them were formerly chofen the Azapli, or furious, the lowest kind of foldiery; and out of thefe the Janizaries. But thefe latter being now recruited out of their own fons, and such as will inlift, the Boftânji are employed only to guard the Soltan's palace, dre's his gardens, and row his barge. They are commanded by an officer, called Boftânji Babi, and never were ufed before this action, as foldiers to repel an enemy. Cant. G 4 ditches, A. D. 1696. The armies fight with va rious fuc cess; ditches, that it was difficult to come at them. They had also a bog behind them, and a marsh on their left, besides three ranks of waggons chained together in the front; fo that the attack feemed almost impracticable: however the generals being refolved upon it, at five in the evening fix battalions of foot, fuftained by two regiments of dragoons under general Heufler, marching into the bashes, charged the Turks in flank, whom they galled exceedingly with their fire. THE enemy's horfe hereupon advanced,and charging the imperial line with great fury, 1200 of their best horse broke thro' two Saxon battalions, notwithstanding their brave resistance. But lieutenant-general Zinzendorf, with fome regiments of horfe belonging to the fame line, beat them back, and again clofed the line with Saxon battalions; after which he attacked the Janizaries in their intrenchments, and beat them back from their poft. For all this, the enemy's foot being reinforced, and their horfe taking the Germans in the flank, they were obliged to retire; only two regiments of dragoons, commanded by the young prince of Vaudemont, advanced to fuftain them, and repulfed the Turkifo horfe. But the Janizaries returning to the charge, the dragoons fuffered very much by their fire, officers as well as foldiers; when general Heufler, bringing-up another regiment to their affiftance, beat back the enemy to their intrenchments, although he was himself dangeroufly wounded. MEAN time another body of Turkifb horfe charged a body of Germans on the fecond line, who received 'them in fuch a manner as gave a check to their fury. Then Roses, advancing with the horse of the fame line, drove them back, and purfued them about nine Hungarian miles; at what time victory began to declare in favour of the imperialists; and that general had orders to give over the purfuit. However fome other fquadrons of horse followed them to their entrenchments; from whence the Turks made fo fierce a fire, both with great and fmall fhot, that they were forced to retire, and were purfued by the enemy's horfe, who put into diforder another of the imperial regiments which fell in their way. Rofes, obferving this, advanced with the regiment of Caprara, and, charging the enemy in flank, cut-off above 1000 of them. HEREUPON the whole line marched forward, and pushed the Turks into their trenches; where they were in fuch a confternation, that the Soltan himself, with much difficulty, obliged them to keep their ground, and defend their entrenchments, killing feveral, who would have fled, with his own hand. Ат A. D. AT length the approach of night put an end to the battle, which the imperialists would have renewed the next day, but 1697. that the Turks had fo fortified their camp before morning, as to have rendered it almost impregnable. The imperialists loft their losses. here a great many men, befides feveral brave officers; particularly general Heufler, and major-general Poland, died of their wounds: they likewise loft fome cannon in the heat of the action, because their carriages were fhot to pieces. On the other hand, the Turks had above 8000 men killed, according to the report of a Pafbá taken prifoner in the battle". THE Poles, befides their ufual flownefs, were prevented Ruffians this year from raising an army, by the death of John Sobieski, take Asof. after a long illness, on the 17th of Zilkaadeh (P); whence enfued the cabals, which attend the election of a new king of that nation. Mean time Peter, Czar of Ruffia, affifted by officers and gunners brought from Germany, with a larger and better disciplined army than the year before, affaults Azak (or Afof) with fuch vigour, that the garrison, after being reduced to 400, furrendered the caftle on the 18th of Zilhajeh (Q) and their example is foon followed by thofe of the caftle of Luttikh opposite to it. WHILE the Ruffians prevail on this fide, the Fenetians be- Venetian fiege Dulcineum, a port famous for the refort of the Turkish affairs. pirates; but are obliged by the garrison to raise the siege, after they had bravely repulfed Omer Beg Pafba of Arnaud from their trenches: although, it is likely, they would have received a notable defeat, had not Liberakhi, prince of Mania, drawn his countrymen by a stratagem to revolt, so that the Othman forces being thus weakened, the Serafkier thought fit to retreat. The Venetians, on the other hand, content with defending their former acquifitions, apply themselves to repair Hexamilion (R), in order to fecure the Morea by land. AT fea, Mezzo Morto, Kapudân Pafbâ, regulates the fleet, in a manner before unknown to the Turks; avoids engaging, as his predeceffors used, without regard to wind or fituation; and watches all the motions of the Venetians: who, ftruck with admiration at his conduct, dare not hazard an engagement; so that nothing memorable was performed on either fide the whole year. * RICAUT, in Mostafa II. (P) June 6, 1697. built across the Ifthmus of Ko- MOSTAFA, |