14.—How Tämerlin goes to war with the King-Sultan.
After Tämerlin had overcome Weyasit and returned to his own country, he went to war with the king-sultan, who is the chief king among Infidels. He took with him XII hundred thousand men, went into his territory, and lay siege to a city called Hallapp, which contains four hundred thousand houses. Then the lord and governor of the city took with him eighty thousand men, and went out and fought with Tämerlin, but he could not overcome him, and fled again into the city, and many people were killed in his flight. He continued to defend himself, but Tämerlin took a suburb on the fourth day, and the people he found in it he threw into the moat of the city, put timber and mire upon them, and filled the moat in four places. The moat was twelve fathom deep, and [cut] in the solid rock. Then he stormed the city, and took it by assault and captured the governor, and fully occupied the city, and then went to another city called Hrumkula, which surrendered. Then he went to another city called Anthap. There he lay siege for VIIII days, and took it on the tenth day by assault, and pillaged it, and went to another city called Wehessum. There he lay siege for XV days. After that they gave themselves up and he occupied it. The cities I have named are chief cities in Syria.[(1)] Then he went to another city called Damaschk; it is the principal capital in the country. When the king-sultan heard that he was laying siege to Tamasch, he sent and begged that he would not injure the city, and spare the temple. To this he consented, and went further on. The temple in the city of Tamasch is so large, that it has externally forty gates. Inside the temple hang twelve thousand lamps, of which number IX thousand are lit daily. But every week, on Friday, all of them are lit. Amongst these lamps are many in gold and silver, made by the order of kings and great lords. So soon as Tämerlin had gone out from the city, the king-sultan left his capital Alchei Terchei, with thirty thousand men, hoping to arrive before Tämerlin took it, and he sent twelve thousand men to Tamaschen. When Tämerlin heard this, he marched towards him, and the king-sultan returned again to his capital. Tämerlin pursued him, and where the king-sultan passed the night, there in the morning he caused the water and the grass to be poisoned; and wherever Tämerlin came, he suffered great losses amongst his people and cattle, and could not overtake him. Then he turned again against Tamaschen and besieged it for III months, but could not take it. During those three months they fought every day, and when the twelve M men saw that they had no assistance from their lord, they asked Tämerlin to be allowed to pass. He consented, and they left the city at night and returned to their lord. Then Tämerlin stormed the city and took it by assault. And now, soon after he had taken the city, came to him the Geit, that is as much as to say a bishop, and fell at his feet, and begged mercy for himself and his priests. Tämerlin ordered that he should go with his priests into the temple; so the priests took their wives, their children and many others, into the temple for protection, until there were thirty thousand young and old. Now Tämerlin gave orders that when the temple was full, the people inside should be shut up in it. This was done. Then wood was placed around the temple, and he ordered it to be ignited, and they all perished in the temple. Then he ordered that each one of his [soldiers] should bring to him the head of a man. This was done, and it took three days; then with these heads were constructed three towers, and the city was pillaged.[(2)] After this he went into another country called Scherch,[(3)] a country where no cattle are bred, and this country gave itself up. He ordered them to bring food for his people who were famished, although they had been before a city so rich in spices. Then he returned to his country, having left that country and occupied the cities.