CHAP. II.]

ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM.

323

Rhodes. The Venetian, Papal, and Greek fleetsacted under Moncenigo; but French, Germans,Hungarians, came overland . 1 And the knights,always ready for action, either on sea or sod, as ifamphibious, left their galleys with maritimeefficiency to increase the Christian army, and dis-embarking their horses, marched with their grandmaster at their head, and joined the allies; whoundertook the siege of what has since been calledPrevisa, but then Nicopflis . 2 The valiant Turkwho held it made frequent sallies; and the camp ofGiaours, besides extreme debauchery, fell into thecarelessness which dissoluteness causes; the officerscontinually with lewd women, and the privatesdrunk . 3 The French were composed of the firstheroes of France, including Marshal Boucicault andtwo princes of the blood TheChristian allies, amount-ing in all to a hundred thousand men, of whomthere were sixty thousand horse, the choicest body inChristendom. The German knights under Zollern,and the Hungarian Hussars under their king.There was good reason to be proud of that army;yet finally it but produced a new Mansourah. TheFrench, with uncalculating bravery, and puffed up

1 Michaud: Hist., v. 210.

2 Seb. Paoli : Osservazioni, ii. 591.—Appendix, cxlvii.

3 Vertot: vi. 323.

y 2