were constantly
goaded by the fresh aggressions of the Knights.

Besides being actuated by a desire for revenge upon an enemy who had not
only so nearly ruined the commerce of Turkey, but who had raided so many
of the unprotected coast towns, carrying off the inhabitants and selling
them into slavery, Solyman, Sultan of Turkey, was burning with envy. He
coveted the island, which, under the Knights of St. John, had been made
to "blossom like the rose." So he "swore by his own head," says an
ancient writer, that he would possess Rhodes, if it cost the lives of
half his army to conquer it. Vast preparations were therefore made to
carry on, if necessary, a protracted siege. At great labor and expense
all the available forces of the Ottoman navy and army were brought
together and organized for this purpose, in the year 1522. The writers
of that period tell us that two hundred thousand men were transported to
Rhodes from Constantinople, commanded by the emperor in person. To
oppose this gigantic host the order could bring but six or seven hundred
Knights and less than six thousand men-at-arms. But every Knight was a
host in himself, while the common soldiers were well armed and
thoroughly disciplined.

The army of the Sultan took position before the fortifications of Rhodes
with all their implements of war, in a manner which showed that they had
come to stay until victory should perch upon their banners. They stormed
the stout defenses again and again, with great loss of life on their
part. The Knights gallantly withstood all their furious and frenzied
efforts for a period of six months, often sallying forth and
slaughtering myriads of the Ottomans in hand-to-hand conflicts. The
Turks did not lack for courage. They always fought with desperation; but
in personal conflict, man to man, they were no match for the stout
cavaliers of the white cross, who, besides having the advantage of
weight and physical strength, were protected by impenetrable steel
armor, while the Orientals wore only their flowing robes and turbans of
linen. Vastly outnumbering the Knights, this very disproportion was to
their disadvantage, often causing them to be swept out of existence by
the score, from the solid phalanx which they presented to the keen
weapons of the Christians. The light arms and the agility of the
soldiers of the Sultan were of little comparative avail when met by the
heavy blows and ponderous battle-axes wielded by stout Europeans. A