Tous les deables d'enfer
Subtitle: relations du siège de Rhodes par les Ottomans en 1480
By: Jean-Bernard de Vaivre et Laurent Vissière ; préface de Philippe Contamine, de l'Institut
Contributors: Vissière, Laurent, author
Series: Travaux d'humanisme et Renaissance -- no 529; Travaux d'humanisme et Renaissance -- no 529.
Publisher: Librairie Droz
Published: 2014
Place of publication: Genève
Language: fre
Number of pages: 878
ISBN-13: 9782600017688
Subjects: Sources; History; Personal narratives; Knights of Malta
Description: "In the spring of 1480 the Ottomans laid siege to the town of Rhodes, the headquarters of the Order of the Hospital. For three months, night and day, they bombarded the walls with their giant cannon, but the defenders, galvanized by the Grand Master Pierre d'Aubusson resisted fiercely, forcing the invader into inglorious retreat. Both sides used the most modern weapons, artillery, artificial fire and infernal machines, and they also employed psychological warfare involving spies and traitors. The siege ended with a series of miraculous events which supposedly put the Turks to flight, even though they had taken part of the ramparts. The Hospitallers' unlikely victory over an enemy who was reputedly invincible became one of the most highly publicized events of the century, as is demonstrated by the surviving accounts. Some, for example those of Guillaume Caoursin, Mary du Puis and Giacomo della Corte, are frequently quoted; others are completely unknown, such as the extraordinarily detailed Histoire journalière written by one of the defenders. The present volume presents the first scientific edition of these texts which are in French, Latin, Italian and Turkish, together with a selection of accounts written by pilgrims who visited Rhodes just after the siege; these are translated from German, Italian, Dutch, Latin, Czech and Hebrew. There are in all some 50 witnesses. A complete iconographic dossier and a series of plans enrich the volume."--
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 825-848) and index.