y chief than Boabdil,
their noble constancy might still have saved them; but this weak and
ferocious monarch hesitated not, on the slightest suspicion, to consign
his most faithful defenders to the axe of the executioner. Thus he
became daily more and more an object of hatred and contempt to the
Grenadians, by whom he was surnamed _Zogoybi_; that is to say, _the
Little King_. The different tribes now grew dissatisfied and
dispirited, especially the numerous and powerful tribe of the
Abencerrages. The alfaquis and the imans, also, loudly predicted the
approaching downfall of the Moorish empire; and nothing upheld the
sinking courage of the people against the pressure of a foreign foe and
the tyranny of their own rulers but their unconquerable horror of the
Spanish yoke.

The Catholic soldiers, on the other hand, elated by their past success,
regarded themselves as invincible, and never for a moment doubted the
{192} certainty of their triumph. They were commanded, also, by
leaders to whom they were devotedly attached: Ponce de Leon, marquis of
Cadiz, Henry de Guzman, duke of Medina, Mendoza, Aguillar, Villena, and
Gonzalvo of Cordova, together with many other famous captains,
accompanied their victorious king. Isabella, too, whose virtues
excited the highest respect, and whose affability and grace won for her
the affectionate regard of all, had repaired to the camp of her husband
with the Infant and the Infantas, and attended by the most brilliant
court in Europe. This politic princess, though naturally grave and
serious, wisely accommodated herself to the existing circumstances.
She mingled fetes and amusements with warlike toil: jousts and
tournaments delighted at intervals the war-worn soldiery; and dances,
games, and illuminations filled up the delicious summer evenings.

Queen Isabella was the animating genius that directed everything; a
gracious word from her was a sufficient recompense for the most gallant
achievement; and her look alone had power to transform the meanest
soldier into a hero.

Abundance reigned in the Christian camp; {193} while joy and hope
animated every heart. But within the beleaguered city, mutual
distrust, universal consternation, and the prospect of inevitable
destruction, had damped the courage and almost annihilated the hopes of
the wretched inhabitants.

The siege, nevertheless, lasted for nine months. The cautious
commander of the Christian army did not attempt to carry by