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which was printed or translated at least six times in 1572), and at last, towards the end of 1572, meeting at Bologna Jacques tie Lusignan, a brother monk, known in religion as Frere Etienne de Lusignan, yielded to Iiis wishes and added to the Chomgraßa, or short general history, of hi* noble and learned friend the account here translated of the two sieges. Etienne (or Jacques) de Lusignan was one of the nine children of Jason, who was son of Philippe, sen of Chiarioii, son of Philippe, sou of Henri, Prince de Galilée, son of Jacques I., King of Jerusalem, Cyprus and Armenia, and Heloise de Brunswick, Iiis Queen. One of his brothers was killed in the siege of Famagusta, another was a Basilian monk, one of hi* sisters a nun. Calopio himself possibly belonged to a family reckoned among the oldest and noblest of Bergamo, and certain peculiarities of dialect may be thought to betray Iiis Lombard origin. But his friend and editor! v1k> probably spoke French and Romaic, freely admits hie own ignorance of Italian, and deplores the many errors which result from it. His printers have been indeed unkind. Stops and capital letters hare been sprinkled over lus pages as with a pepper-box. The spelling is remarkable, the text shows no paragraphs, so that the work is difficult to understand and translate. Again it is unlikely that Fra Angolo would know much about fortification. He was not present at the siege of Famagusta, and probably the topography of that fortress was not so well known to him as that of Nicosia. More than ordinary care lias been taken in grappling with these difficulties, and in giving Calepio's narrative as fully and exactly as possible to the English reader. I have prefixed to it Fra Steffano's description of Nicosia and Famagusta. M. de Grammont (cited by V. Adm. Jonen de la Graviere, La Guerre de Cìiypre, ι. 65 and π. 18) has recovered some particulars concerning Ulnj Ali. He was born about 1608 on the coast of Calabria, was captured from a fishing boat, and made a galley slave, then became a renegade and a corsair, and from 15oC to 1571 was Beylerbey of Algiers. He distinguished himself at Lepanto, where he won the surname of Kilij, and the rank of Qaptan Pasha. In 1574 lie took from the Spaniards the port and town of Tunis, and died June 27,1587. He is said to have urged on the Sultan the advantage of re-opening the ancient canal between the Nile and Suez, (See G. Leti, La Vie de Philippe IL, Boi d'Enpague, ir. de VItalien, 8vo, Amsterdam, 1734, iv. Bai Our original occupies pp. 11.14—16. ami 91—133 of the Chorogruffia et breve Historia universale delV Itola de Cipro .per il R. P, Lettore Fr. Siffatto Luxiynano di Cipro dell' Ordine de' Predicatori, email 4to, Bologna, 1573. A curious account of the siege of Nicosia, written in στίχοι πολιτικοί by a contemporary woinrapts, was published (StXriov vi. pp. 405—482, Athens, 1906) under the title eptjvot τψ Κύπρου by M. Simos Menardos. The us., a bad copy of about 1700, was found at Pliasonlla, in the District of Lhnasol. LETTER OP THE MONK AFORESAID [FRA Κ. LUSIGXANO] TO HIS HEADERS. With great desire had I longed to hare within reach the tale of the unhappy downfall of the cities of Nicosia and Famagosta, with all the deeds of daring, and all the notable feats, which there befell, so that my work might be complete, and the leader might have a good and full view of the whole history of Cyprus. It pleased God to realise and fulfil this eager longing of mine, insomuch as His grace, and the liberality of that sainted, trne and perfect shepherd of souls, Pope Pius V., of happy memory, whose fame may God keep alive, freed from the cruel hands of the Turks the Reverend Vicar General of Terra Santa, the most learned Master Angelo of Cyprus, of the family of the Calepii, a monk of the order of S. Dominic. This man truly merits a place among the illustrions persons mentioned above, for that in all the misery of Nicosia, holding out that standard of Christians, the Cross, he laboured on, exhorting one, cheering another. I cannot tell all his blessed toils : how he comforted the wounded, helped them and carried them into shelter; buried the dead, shrinking not from the blood which dyed his hands and clothes, nor staying to tend his own LUSIGXA& CALEPIO. 123

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