302 THE HISTORY OF THE ORDER OF [book iv.

sworn neutrality between Christians to go to war withFrance; and also several French knights are in theorder’s ships, and ought those gentlemen to be forcedto fire on their own countrymen, and perhaps nearrelatives? 1

The Portuguese round the Cape of Good Hope,by depriving Egypt, Constantinople, all the Levantand Venice, of the Indian commerce, enraged Soly-man so amazingly that he prepared a fleet to attackLisbon. For the very same reason, to show inwhat estimation the Arabs then held the order ofMalta, and more particularly the Commandant ofTripoli, who spoke and wrote Arabic well, I toomean to follow the Swiss physician Pantaleone, ingiving in the Appendix a Latin translation of theoriginal letter from the Moslem sovereign of thoseparts to that aged German Prior in 1546. 2 In 1543Sir E. Russell, penultimate of the Turcopoliers, died,and Sir Oswald 3 Massingbert made only Lieutenantof the Turcopoliership, to give him a seat of honourin the chapter, through consideration for thatancient dignity, which, after remaining some yearsunoccupied, was finally conferred on Sir NicholasUpton. Some spark of existence was in the English

1 Cod. Dipl. Geros., ii., Nuin. clxxxvi.

2 Jahannitarum His tori a, 307.—Basilea, 1581.—Appendix,No. ccvii.

3 Bosio : par. ii., lib., ix. 206.