The House Of Nuno Alvarez
Pereyra Being Used As A Strong-Hold By The Portuguese, Was Battered
During Forty-Two
Days by the enemy, who then assaulted it with 5000 men.
At first the defenders of this post were only
Forty in number, but
twenty more came to their assistance immediately, and several others
afterwards. The Moors were repulsed with the loss of 50 men, while the
Portuguese only lost one. The house of Nuno Vello was battered for
thirty days and assaulted with the same success, only the Portuguese
lest ten men in its defence. Judging it no longer expedient to defend
this house, it was undermined and evacuated, on which the enemy hastened
to take possession and it was blown up, doing considerable execution
among the enemy, but not so much as was expected. The summer was now
almost spent; above 6000 cannon-balls had been thrown into the town,
some of which were of prodigious size, and the Nizam seemed determined
to continue the siege during the winter. About 200 Portuguese, appalled
by the dangers of the siege, had already, deserted; but instead of them
300 men had come from Goa, so that the garrison was even stronger than
before. On the 11th of April, Gonzalez de Camara made a sortie upon 500
Moors in an orchard, only fifty of whom escaped.
Fortune could not be always favourable to the besieged. By a chance ball
from the enemy, one of the galleys which brought relief was sunk
downright with 40 men and goods to the value of 40,000 ducats. But, next
day, Ferdinand Tellez made a sally with 400 men, and gained a victory
equal to that of Gonzalez de Camara, and brought away one piece of
cannon with some ammunition, arms, and other booty. This action was seen
by the Nizam in person, who mounted his horse and threatened to join in
it in person, for which purpose he seized a lance, which he soon changed
for a whip, with which he threatened to chastise his men, and upbraided
them as cowards. The Portuguese were now so inured to danger that
nothing could terrify them, and they seemed to court death instead of
shunning it on all occasions. Some of them being employed to level some
works from which the enemy had been driven near the monastery of St
Francis, and being more handy at the sword than the spade, drew upon
themselves a large party of the enemy of whom they slew above 200, yet
not without some loss on their side. About this time Farete Khan, one of
the Nizams generals, made some overtures towards peace, but without any
apparent authority from his sovereign, who caused him to be arrested on
suspicion of being corrupted by the Portuguese, though assuredly he had
secret orders for what he had done. Indeed it was not wonderful that the
Nizam should be desirous of peace, as he had now lain seven months
before Chaul to no purpose, and had lost many thousand men; neither was
it strange in the Portuguese to have the same wish, as they had lost 400
men besides Indians.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 364 of 423
Words from 190253 to 190779
of 221361
