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897 [897]

K. Henry. 7. The historye and tyrannye of the Turkes.

MarginaliaThe iust hand of God vpon a cruell persecutour.fetters, and so beyng inclosed in an yron grate (whom before all Græcia coulde not holde) was ledde aboute and shewed throughe all Asia, to bee skorned and laught at: and moreouer was vsed in steade of a footestoole to Tamerlanes, MarginaliaBaiazetes made for a blocke for Tamerlanes to get vpõ his horse.or a blocke, as often as he mounted vpon his horse. Some adde also, that he was made lyke a dogge to feade vnder Tamerlanes table. The tyranny of which Baiazetes against þe Christians, as it was not much vnlike to the crueltie of Valerianus the Romaine Emperour MarginaliaVide supra. pag. 105.aboue mentioned, pag. 105. so neither was the example of his punishemēt much discrepant. For as Sapores kyng of þe Persians did then with Valerianus in tyme of the viij. persecution of the primatiue church: so likewise was Baiazetes this persecutor worthely hãdled by Tamerlanes K. of þe Parthiãs, as in maner aboue said.

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MarginaliaThe great victoryes of Tamerlanes in Asia.Tamerlanes after this conquest, passed with his army into Mesopotamia, to Ægypt, and all Syria, where he victoriously subduyng the Cities and munitions of the Turkes, at length also conquered Damascus. In his sieges his maner was, þe first day to go all in white attire, the secõd day in red, the third day in blacke: signifyeng therby mercy þe first day to thē that yelded, þe second day þe sword, the third day fier and ashes. At last after great victories and spoyles gottē of the Turkes, he returned into his countrey agayne, and there dyed. an. 1402.

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Seb. Munsterus writyng of this Tamerlanes  

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The passages on the numbers in Timur's army, on his conquests, andon his sons losing what their father had conquered, are taken from Sebastian Munster,Cosmographiae universalis (Basel, 1559), pp. 959-60.

, MarginaliaEx Seb. Mūstero. lib. 4. Cosmograp.recordeth that he had in his armye. 200. thousand men: and that he ouercame the Parthians, Scythians, Hiberians, Albans, Persians, Medes, & conquered all Mesopotamia: and after he had also subdued Armenia, passyng ouer the riuer Euphrates with. 600. thousand footemen, and 4000000. horsemē, he inuaded all Asia Minor, conqueryng & subduyng from the floode Tanais vnto Nilus in Ægypt,MarginaliaTanais is the vttermost floud in the North side: and Nilus the vttermost floude in the South syde of Asia. and was called terror orbis, þe terror of þe world. He left behind him. ij. sonnes, who fallyng in discord for their possessions, lost all agayne, that their father gotte.

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In the meane tyme Baiazetes in the second yeare of his captiuitie  

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Actually Bayezid died on 9 March 1403, less than seven months after his defeat.

, dyed, leauyng behind him diuers sonnes, Iesus or Iosua the eldest, Mulsumanes, Moses, Celebinus, or Calepinus, Iesus the yõger, Mustaphas, & Hali. MarginaliaA generation of Viperes.Of whõ first Iesus þe eldest was ouercome & slayne of Mulsumanes: Whiche Mulsumanes afterwarde was deliuered to Moses his brother, & by him was slaine likewise. Which Moses had also the like end by his brother Calepinus, hauing his necke brokē with a bow stryng, which was thē the vsuall maner among the Turkes in killing their brethren. The same Calepinus sparing onely the life of Mustaphas his other brother, condemned hym to perpetuall prison. Iesus the yonger was baptised, and shortly after departed at Constantinople  
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These passages are taken from Casper Peucer, Chronicon Carionis(Wittenburg, 1580), pp. 645-6 and they make a confused situation even more confusing. Bayezid's sons were: Süleyman (Calepine), Isa (Jesus; pace Peucer and Foxe there was only one son with this name), Mehmed, Musa (Moses) and Mustapha. There was no son named Hälil (or Hali). There was no son named 'Musulman'; if this is meant to be Mehmed, then the account in Peucer and Foxe is inaccurate from beginning to end. After Timur's victory, the Ottoman terriories were divided. Süleyman, the eldest, ruled the European territories, Mehmed, the youngest, ruled what is now northeastern Turkey. Isa ruled western Turkey. Musa and Mustapha had been taken prisoner along with Bayezid. Musa eventually fell into the hands of his brother Mehmed. Mustapha presumably died in Timur's custody. In 1403, Mehmed defeated Isa, seized his lands and drove him into exile. Isa secured Byzantine aid and re-invaded his former territories in 1404. Mehmed defeated him again, and Isa fled and disappeared from history. Later that year Süleyman invaded Turkey and occupied Isa's lands, driving Mehmed back into northeastern Turkey. In 1409, Mehmed took revenge against Süleyman by releasing their brother Musa and sending him against Süleyman. Musa entered into a marriage alliance with the Voyvode of Wallachia and, with troops supplied by his father-in-law, invaded Süleyman's teritories. Süleyman withdrew his armies from Turkey to deal with the threat and Mehmed overran these territories.

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In these such discordes and diuisions among the Turkes, what occasions were geuē to the Christians to haue recouered agayne of þe Turkes, that they had lost, if they had not ben either negligēt, or in their owne priuate warres otherwise occupied with them selues?

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¶ Calepinus the fift after Ottomannus.

MarginaliaCalepinus the fifth after Ottomannus.CAlepinus, or Celebinus was the sonne of Baiazetes  

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The account of Süleyman (Calepine) is taken largely from Casper Peucer, Chronicon Carionis (Wittenburg, 1580), pp. 645-6 with some material from Cuspinian. Despite Foxe's hailing him as an Ottoman emperor, Süleyman, is not generally considered one as he never ruled over the entire empire.

, & of, iiij. brethren, the eldest: who beyng all taken captiues of the Parthians  
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The Partians were actually a nomadic people who created an empireextending from the Euphrates, which flourished from the second century BCE tothe the third century AD. Peucer and Foxe are using a classical term to describeTimur's armies.

, he onely escaped and obteyned his fathers kingdome  
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Actually Süleyman (Calepine) and his brother Mehmed retreated fromthe battle and abandoned their father. Neither brother was captured.

. This Calepinus encouraged by the sloth and negligence of the princes of Europe, and by the discord of the Grecians amongest them selues and other natiõs nere about them, longe troubled and vexed the Bulgarians, Seruians, and Macedonians, euen to the tyme of Sigimundus. Whiche Sigismundusseyng now Baiazetes to bee ouercome and taken of Tamerlane, and the power of the Turkes weakened in Europe, & hauyng such occasion offered him, as it were from heauen, to destroy and vtterly to roote out, not onely out of Asia but also all Europe, that barbarous nation, and cruell enemies to the name and Religion of Christ: MarginaliaVid. supra. pag. 852.and also to reuenge the great slaughter and discomfiture of his ar-mye fightyng before with Baiazetes at Nicopolis a Citie in Mysia: with great power made warre agaynst Calepinus at Columbatium a towne in Seruia, as is also before mencioned, pag. 852. but as vnluckelye and with as litle successe, as he did before against Baiazetes his father  
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Foxe is taking his account from Johannes Cuspinian, De Turcorumorigine (Antwerp, 1541), fos. 14v-16v. Actually there was no such battle; it is probably a confused version of Sigismund's defeat at Nicopolis. Cuspinian admitsthat he does not know whether this battle took place in Murad's reign. This is from Johannes Cuspinian, De Turcorum origine (Antwerp, 1541), fo. 16v .

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: MarginaliaThe ouerthrow of Sigismund, fighting agaynst the Turkes.For in that battaile were slayne of the Christians to the number of. 20. thousand and the rest vtterly discõfited, the kyng hym selfe escapyng so hardly that he entred not agayne into his kyngdome for the space of. 18. monthes after. Some write þt this was done vnder Baiazetes, MarginaliaSome storyes record thys cõflict to be after the tyme of thys Turke.other some referre this battaile to Amurathes, but how so euer it was, most pernicious was it to the Christians  
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This is from Johannes Cuspinian, De Turcorum origine (Antwerp, 1541), fo. 16v.

. He reigned but. vi. yeares and dyed very yonge an. 1404  
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Musa (see C 177/35) caught Süleyman by surprise and defeated him. Musa's troops caught up with Süleyman as he was fleeing and killed him. This was in 1411, not 1410.

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¶ Orchanes and Moses his vncle the. vi. after Ottomannus.

MarginaliaOrchanes and Moses hys vncle.AFter the captiuitie  

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Foxe took this very garbled account of Orhan and Musa from CasperPeucer, Chronicon Carionis (Wittenburg, 1580), pp. 646-7.

of Baiazetes aboue mētioned, histories diuersly do dissēt. MarginaliaDiuersitie in historye.The Greke writers makyng no mention at all of Calepinus, onely make mention of þe sonnes of Baiazetes, and of þe contētion among thē, vntill þe time of Mahumetes. The Latine stories writyng of þe children of Baiazetes & of their succession, do not therin agree, some affirming that Baiazetes had. ij. sonnes, Orchanes surnamed Calepinus, and Mahumetes his brother, whiche within. ij. yeares slue the sayd Calepinus, and entred his dominion. Other attribute to Baiazetes moe sonnes, as is aboue rehearsed  
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These passages are taken from Casper Peucer, Chronicon Carionis(Wittenburg, 1580), pp. 645-6 and they make a confused situation even more confusing. Bayezid's sons were: Süleyman (Calepine), Isa (Jesus; pace Peucer and Foxe there was only one son with this name), Mehmed, Musa (Moses) and Mustapha. There was no son named Hälil (or Hali). There was no son named 'Musulman'; if this is meant to be Mehmed, then the account in Peucer and Foxe, is inaccurate from beginning to end. After Timur's victory, the Ottoman terriories were divided. Süleyman, the eldest, ruled the European territories, Mehmed, the youngest, ruled what is now northeastern Turkey. Isa ruled western Turkey. Musa and Mustapha had been taken prisoner along with Bayezid. Musa eventually fell into the hands of his brother Mehmed. Mustapha presumably died in Timur's custody. In 1403, Mehmed defeated Isa, seized his lands and drove him into exile. Isa secured Byzantine aid and re-invaded his former territories in 1404. Mehmed defeated him again, and Isa fled and disappeared from history. Later that year Süleyman invaded Turkey and occupied Isa's lands, driving Mehmed back into northeastern Turkey. In 1409, Mehmed took revenge against Süleyman by releasing their brother Musa and sending him against Süleyman. Musa entered into a marriage alliance with the Voyvode of Wallachia and, with troops supplied by his father-in-law, invaded Süleyman's teritories. Süleyman withdrew his armies from Turkey to deal with the threat and Mehmed overran these territories.

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. Some agayne do geue to Baiazetes onely these two sonnes Celebinus and Mustaphas: and hold that Calepinus or Celebinus had. ij. sonnes, to wyt, Orchanes & Muhametes, MarginaliaTirannye betwene vncle and nephewe.and adde moreouer that the said Orchanes beyng somewhat younge, was slayne of his vncle Moses, who gouerned but. ij. yeares: MarginaliaMurther reuenged with murther.For Mahumetes to reuenge hys brothers death slue Moses, and inuaded his dominion  
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Orhan was the eldest son of Süleyman (Calepine), the eldest son of Bayezid. Musa (Moses) was Süleyman's brother, who defeated and killed him. After Süleyman's death, the Byzantine emperor, who had Orhan in custody, released him to make war on Musa. Musa retalitated by un-successfully besieging Constantinople in 1411. The same year he also defeated his brother Mehmed. In 1413, however, Mehmed defeated Musa and killed him. Mehmed then defeated Orhan, captured him and had him blinded.

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. The Greke stories make no mention at all of Orchanes.

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¶ Mahumetes the. vij. after Ottomannus.

MarginaliaMahometes the vii. after Ottomannus.THis Mahumetes  

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This account of Mehmed I is taken from Casper Peucer, Chronicon Carionis (Frankfurt, 1594), p. 1205.

, whether hee was the sonne of Baiazetes, or els of Calepinus  
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Mehmed was the youngest son of Bayezid, Süleyman (Calepine) was his elder brother.

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conuerted to him selfe alone the kingdome, or tyrãny rather, of þe murdering Turkes. Who afflicted the Christians with soore warres within Europe, MarginaliaWallachia assaulted by Mahometes.especially the countrey called VVallachia, lyeng not farre from the floode Danubius, betwene Vngarie & Thracia. From thence he remoued into Asia, where he he recouered diuers partes in Galatia, Pontus, Cappadocia, Cilicia, which before Tamerlanes had alienated from the Turkes. MarginaliaThe Turkes seate at Adrianopolis.This Mahumetes plãted his chief Imperiall seate in Adrianople not farre frõ Constãtinople, within þe coūtrey of Thracia. In some writers þe conflict betwen Sigismund, and the great Turke, wherein the Christians were so discomfited, is referred rather to this Mahometes, then to Calepinus: of whiche conflict mention is aboue made in the storye of Sigismundus, MarginaliaVid. supra pag. 852.pag. 852. This Mahumetes reigned, as some say. 14. yeares, and dyed in the yeare of our Lorde. 1419. Other affirme 17. yeares  
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Mehmed I reigned from 1413-21.

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¶ Amurathes second the. viij. after Ottomannus.

MarginaliaAmurathes the viii. after Ottomannus.AMurathes, as Philelphus sayth, was the sonne of Celebinus, as Laonicus Chalcondyles testifieth, of Mahumetes  

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Most of this account of Murad II - including the citations of the twoauthors in this passage - is taken from Casper Peucer, Chronicon Carionis (Wittenburg,1580), pp. 647-51. Portions of it are taken from Christophe Richer's account of the Ottomans (via Bibliander's edition of the Koran) and Johannes Cuspinian's history of the Turks.

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. Whose sonne so euer hee was, a wretched tyranne he was, and permitted as a scourge of God to correcte the sinnes of the Christians. In the story of Baiazetes mētion was made before of Mustaphas his sonne, who was condemned to perpetuall prison by Calepinus his brother. This Mustaphas escapyng out of his brothers prison, was conueyed to the Grecians, where he remained long in custody, till at length they vnderstãding the purpose of Amurathes, set him vp wt sufficient habilimentes and furniture of warre to fight agaynst the sayd Amurathes his nephew. MarginaliaMustaphas murthered by Amurathes hys nephewe.But in conclusiõ he beyng not able to make his partie good, came into þe handes of his enemie and had his necke broke with a bow stryng, after the maner of the Turkishe execution  
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'Mustapha' was an imposter, supported by the Byzantine emperor, who claimed to be the son of Bayezid who was taken prisoner by Timur. After considerable initial success, he was defeated and captured in 1422. He was not strangled with a bowstring (a punishment reserved for royalty) but instead hanged as a common criminal.

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The