THE GRAND BATTLE OF KHAIR-AD-DIN PASHA.
About this time information was received that the Spanish, Papal, and Venetian fleets had assembled at Corfu, and attacked Prevesa; whereupon Khair-ad-din sent twenty small privateers to that quarter, which, on reaching Zante, came in sight of forty guard ships. These latter immediately returned to their fleet and gave information that Barbarossa was in the neighbourhood. The enemy then left Prevesa; which circumstance being made known to Khair-ad-din, when he was near Motone, he took in water at Helomej, and proceeded thence to Cephalonia, where he landed his men and plundered the surrounding villages. Crossing thence to Prevesa, the castle of which had been much injured by the enemy’s cannon, he was preparing to besiege it, when he received reinforcements during the night from Santa Maura. With this assistance he entered the fortress, many of the infidels being slain in the assault: and having planted his great guns, the infidels, exhausted and terrified, left the place.[41] The pasha then ordered his troops to repair the fortress; and in the mean time sent over a few private vessels to the infidel coasts to obtain information. These on their return reported that the Spanish, Papal, Portuguese and Venetian fleets had assembled at Corfu. This intelligence was immediately forwarded to the sultan, who was then on an expedition into Boghdan (Moldavia). About the middle of the month Jemazi-al-avul the fleets of these accursed infidels arrived and anchored about two miles from Prevesa.