Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 1996. Vol. 1. Eger Journal of English Studies.(Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 24)

George Cushing: Eger - British connections

were well defended with a strong wall, yet the defendants being few in number and distrusting their own strength, left the defence of them and retired themselves within the Castle. The sixteenth ... seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth, they (the Turks) intended to undermine the Castle, and the twentieth, put fire thereto, but not succeeding to their mindes ... they gave courage to the defendants to make issue to mutuall damage. The foure and twentieth the assailants having made another breach, valiantly entered the same, but not being seconded with fresh forces, were repelled yet two houres after, in the same day, taking on them better courage, and more valiantly seconded, gave a new assault, when by chance a woman in the Castle setting fire upon a Barrell of Powder, and the souldiers of the Castle thinking it was a Mine fired in the Castle, for fear thereof retiring themselves, gave the Turkes courage to enter a small but strong Bastion, builded for the defence of a weake part of the castle, which they valiantly even to the last defended, and even after, with myning and countermyning, continuall assaults and skirmishes on both parts fighting, to the estreme losse of the defendants. The first of October, an English Trumpetter escaped out and fled to the Vice-Roy, requiring life and libertie, and declaring the weaknesse of the Castle, was brought before the Grand Signior, to whom likewise he made like relation, according to whose reports, the next day before Saturday, the Second of October, the Castle was rendered, with compact that all the Souldiers should safely retire whither best they list, and the Inhabitants to remain continuall Inhabitants and owners of their former possessions, the latter of which promises was observed, but the first was broken, because the inhabitants of Hatvan, a Castle belonging to the Grand Signior, two dayes journey thence ... assaulted the said souldiers a mile from Agria in their departure, and cut them all to pieces, because Maximilian with the Emperours forces, having a month since taken Hatvan, did most cruelly without eompassion put all the Inhabitants to the sword.'

1 In another letter addressed to the English Consul at Aleppo (Sandy), Barton describes how the defenders made a sudden attack on the Turks, killing some 2000 Janissaries and causing many in the army to flee to ' the Mountaines of Agria', so that it was by no means an easy siege. It was not until 13 October that Eger was taken. On the 19th the Sultan returned to Stamboul; Edward Barton went with him, but died, aged 35, in January 1597 and was buried there. His 50