THE SIEGE OF BONIFAZIO BY ALFONSO OF ARRAGON.
Alfonso of Arragon, after he had examined the position of the town, took
possession of a high hill lying towards the north; and from it and the
sea he kept up a perpetual fire of stones from his bombs. The Spaniards
had come with eighty ships, and among them twenty-three triremes; they
had forced their way into the harbour after the fall of the two towers
which defended it. Now, when a great part of the defences and the walls
had been overthrown, and it seemed possible to force a passage into the
town, King Alfonso called his captains to a council of war. He was young
and fiery, and full of desire to do great deeds. "When Bonifazio has
fallen," he said, "all Corsica will be ours, and then we shall sail for
Italy." He promised rewards to the first man who should scale the wall
and plant his banner on it, and to the second, and the third, and so
on to the tenth. The Spaniards heard this with great joy, and prepared
themselves for the assault. The Bonifazians suffered much from the
missiles and arrows of the assailants; but with stones and long spears
they hurled the enemy back into the sea, and held their post bravely.
Suddenly the tower Scarincio fell with a fearful crash, and immediately
the ships laid themselves close to the breach; the Spaniards sprang
upon the wall and planted their standard. In the army of the king, the
shout was heard, "The city is stormed." Then the marines might be seen
quickly and nimbly clambering up the walls on the masts and yards; and
when they came within reach of the houses they cast torches on their
roofs. Now, there arose a terrible death-struggle of fugitives, brave
citizens who still held their ground, and the assailants all mingled
together. But Orlando Guaracchi, the heroic Margareta Bobia, and Chiaro
Ghigini rushed to drive back the advancing enemy, and from their posts
came Jacopo Cataccioli, Giovanni Cicanesi, and Filippo Campo, and cut
down every foe who had pressed into the town, even to the last man. They
then threw fire on the ships in the harbour, and the king was repulsed
with great loss.
For three days had the struggle lasted, with fire and slaughter without
end. Every age and sex laboured to fortify the walls anew, and to fill
up the breaches with cross-beams. But alas! the granaries had been
consumed. Alfonso, meanwhile, kept throwing arrows into the town with
letters attached to them, offering bribes to all who should pass over
to him. Two deserted, Galliotto Ristori, a Bonifazian, and Conrado, a
Genoese, and they stimulated the courage of the king by telling him that
within the town both bread and munitions were failing. Accordingly, the
king took possession of another hill near the town; and after drawing
a double chain across the mouth of the harbour, to exclude any succours
which might come from Genoa, he resolved to reduce the town by blockade.
The Doge, Thomas Fregoso, heard that, and equipped a fleet of seven
sail; in this way the month of September passed. But the sea was so
stormy during the whole of October, November, and December, that the
fleet could not leave the harbour of Genoa. The Bonifazians, meanwhile,
had been brought to such extremities, by the bombs and catapults, that
they were compelled to leave the town, and seek shelter in the grove
beside San Antonio, and in the Convent of St. Francis, as the most of
their houses were now in ruins; those only remained behind who had to
fill the posts of defence.
The king had been strengthened by reinforcements and ships from
Spain; but, notwithstanding, he preferred negotiation, and gave a
solemn promise to the besieged that, if they would yield to him, they
should have permission to live free, and according to their laws. The
Bonifazians purposely prolonged negotiations with the ambassadors,
and as they looked in wretched plight, pale and exhausted with hunger,
and as the Arragonese taunted them with their condition, saying that
they would be soon forced to submit, it is said that, in order to give
him the lie, they threw bread over the walls down among the enemy's
outposts, and sent a cheese made of woman's milk as a present to the
king. Alfonso next moved all his engines and ships close to the walls.
Two vessels lashed together bore towers. The assault began afresh
from the sea and the heights. To oppose the machines on board the
ships, the Bonifazians had likewise planted engines on various parts
of the ramparts; on the more distant vessels they propelled stones of
immense weight; on those more near they threw stones of smaller size
and missiles of all kinds, as thick as hail. Although they themselves
were almost overwhelmed by the storm of missiles, and many of them lay
mangled and dying, they yet persevered with astonishing valour. Those
who still retained their strength filled up the places of the fallen—the
son that of the wounded father, the brother of the brother; the women
brought projectiles, wine, and bread, and carried off the wounded.
Arming themselves with shields and lances, too, they took their place
upon the ramparts wherever there was a vacant spot. Many of them could
not carry off or succour their fallen relations, till they had hurled
back the enemy from the walls. The assailants also suffered dreadfully;
many were drowned, being dragged into the sea by the swords, hooks, and
curved lances, thrown by the besieged upon the floating towers. Very
many were dashed to pieces with beams and stones, as they were scaling
the walls with ladders. In other places, the besieged threw torches,
tow, and pitch upon the enemy, so that often they did not know whither
to run, or on what side to defend themselves first.
The Bonifazians were now exhausted by the ceaseless contest, which had
already raged without intermission for many days, and the king resolved
once more to collect all his strength in order to make a grand assault
on the following day. So the fight raged anew, and more terribly than
before, for the foe brought every engine, tower, and catapult to bear
upon the town, and almost buried it under a shower of stones, arrows,
and steel hooks.
Only at the tower of Scarincio the bombarding ceased, for the besiegers
feared to overwhelm the Spaniards—who had already at that point forced
their way into the town—in the same destruction with the citizens.
There, armed women fought untiringly beside the men, and threw harpoons
on the assailants. From the ship-towers and the cross-trees, the
Spaniards kept up a ceaseless shower of darts, and propelled leaden
acorns out of certain cast-metal hand-bombs, which were bored like a
reed, and went by the name of Sclopetus. (This is Peter of Corsica's
description of a musket, which in those days was a rare, but is now
too common a weapon in Corsica.) They threw also showers of sulphur,
followed by fire, on the houses and men, so that many were half burnt,
and others were precipitated headlong through the breach. In this way
the breach, which was near the tower of Preghera, stood open to the foe.
As soon as the sulphur-smoke, which had wrapt it in thick darkness, had
cleared off, matrons, the unarmed, and crowds of children, could be seen
carrying stones and missiles of every kind to the wall, to supply the
combatants; when they found the breach deserted, they raised loud cries
of lamentation. Then, with wailing and tears, the mother besought her
son, the daughter her father, the wife her husband, to return to the
breach. The priests and monks also took up arms, and hurled down flaming
bundles of tow and slacked lime. This had such great effect that very
many, stupified and almost blinded by the dust and the floating vapour,
were forced to shoot at random. As the flames subsided a little, the
besieged sallied from the gate.
This day had been the most severe which the citizens had yet endured;
but it had been a destructive one to the enemy.
As the besieged became from day to day more hardly pressed, the more
frequent became the letters despatched to the Doge and Senate of Genoa,
begging them to come to the help of Bonifazio. The king, meanwhile,
having been again reinforced, gave the signal to his men to renew the
assault. By land and sea a fierce onset was then made in seven places
at once; but into the city Alfonso could not get. For fresh wall was
erected almost as quickly as it was thrown down, and armed men even
placed themselves in the breaches, and formed a living rampart. Then the
king ordered a mole to be thrown up, eight feet high, running towards
the great gate. Thereon was erected a tower of ten stories, so high as
to overtop the walls. Under cover of a shower of missiles, the mole and
tower were gradually nearing the gate, when one day it was suddenly
flung open, and the people sallying out, flung torches and fire on
the mound, and fascines into the tower, and in that way destroyed this
laborious work, which had already occupied so long a time.
Neither night nor day did the assault slacken; and nothing was for a
moment intermitted by the Bonifazians which could retard the progress of
the besiegers, whether it was the erection of new walls, or perpetual
sallies on the enemy's works. The poor citizens had not a moment's
rest; and, quite exhausted by continual exertion, were wasting away with
hunger, wounds, and daily and nightly watching. No day passed without
burial of the dead; death stood before every eye, and day and night the
sound of lamentation was heard. Meanwhile the necessity had become so
great, that they were compelled to eat disgusting weeds; and how long
were they still to wait for aid from Genoa? The power of endurance which
the people of Bonifazio exhibited under hunger and privations the most
severe, almost exceeds human conception. Horse and ass-flesh were in
those days dainties. Some ate herbs of all kinds—herbs which even the
cattle refused to touch—roots and wild fruits, the bark of trees, and
animals never before eaten by man. Despairing now of relief, many would
have willingly ended their lives, weeping and bewailing, and many of
the wounded, too, would have died of starvation on the walls, had it not
been for the compassion of the women. For the pious wives of Bonifazio
freely gave of their milk to relations, brothers, children, connexions,
and godfathers. And there was no one in that beleaguered town who had
not sucked a woman's breast.
As up to that moment there had been no signs of any help in their sore
extremity, the Bonifazians entered into an agreement that if the Genoese
did not come to their relief within forty days, they would deliver
themselves up to the Spaniard. They gave two men and thirty children of
the noblest citizens as hostages. But it was a matter of great anxiety
to the Bonifazians that King Alfonso had not allowed them meantime to
send messengers to Genoa. Accordingly, they built a little ship in great
haste, and in the darkness of the night they let it down into the sea by
ropes, on that side of the rock which fronted Sardinia and was averted
from the enemy, and in a similar manner they let down the young men,
twenty-four in number, who were to be the messengers and crew. The chief
magistrate had given them letters for Genoa, and a great multitude of
citizens had accompanied them to the edge of the cliff, wishing them a
successful expedition. One after the other, the women gave them their
breasts to suck before setting out, for they had no food with them.
After many perils by sea, and being long retarded by contrary winds,
these bold messengers at last reached Genoa, and informed the Senate
that the city of Bonifazio was brought to the last extremity.
Meanwhile, in Bonifazio, they resolved in solemn procession to beseech
God for deliverance from the enemy, and for forgiveness of all their
sins. The procession walked from the Cathedral of the Holy Mary to St.
Jacob's, then to San Domenico, and all the churches in succession; and
although the winter cold was very severe, yet all walked barefoot; and
as they walked, they sang hymns with great fervour. From an early hour
till late at night, prayers were offered up in the churches, and every
mind was intently hoping for relief or for some news of the messengers.
At last, on the fifteenth day, the messengers returned to Bonifazio
in their little ship, in the darkness of the night, and having given
the signal, they were drawn up by ropes. Every one in the city seemed
beside himself with joy. As the messengers walked to the Church of the
Holy Mary, where the senate sat in council day and night, all the people
poured in a living stream after them to hear the news. They delivered
the letters of the Doge, which were read by the magistrates, and then
taken out to the assembled people. Picino Cataccioli, the chief of
the messengers, gave them a detailed account of the expedition, and
assured them that the Genoese fleet was all equipped, and only waited
for a favourable wind to set sail. The senate of Bonifazio now ordered
a public thanksgiving of three days; and the joy in the city was quite
uncontrollable when what little grain the messengers had brought back
with them was distributed among the people.
Meanwhile, the day of surrender was fast approaching, but the Genoese
fleet had not yet made its appearance, and the ambassadors of the king
were already pressing the senate to fulfil their agreement. "If, in the
following night," declared the Anziani, "the Genoese do not appear, we
shall then surrender." Then began a wailing and lamentation of women
and children, and great sorrow and dejection filled every mind. But
the senate called an assembly that they might learn the sense of the
people about the matter. Guglielmo Bobia earnestly maintained that
they should hold out, and he conjured the shade of the Count Bonifazio
(the founder of the city) to fill the Bonifazians with his spirit,
so that none should think of parting with his freedom. Accordingly,
they resolved to wait to the last moment. Suddenly a cry arose in the
night, that the Genoese were at hand. All the bells began to ring,
and fire-signals blazed on every turret; endless shouts of joy rose to
heaven. The Spaniards were astonished, and lid not know what to think,
as they could see no sign of the Genoese. Their ambassadors lost no
time in presenting themselves before the gate at dawn, and demanded the
surrender of the city, according to the agreement. The men of Bonifazio,
however, replied, that during the night they had received the Genoese
auxiliaries; and, behold! armed men displaying the Genoese standard
were seen to march thrice along the walls, bristling with lances and
sparkling weapons. For all the women had during the past night put on
armour, so that the number of the Bonifazians seemed to be trebled. When
Alfonso of Arragon saw this, he exclaimed: "Have then the Genoese wings,
that they can enter Bonifazio when we occupy every approach?" And again
he directed all his engines against the town.
At last, however, on the fourth day after the stipulated period had run
out, the Genoese came in reality, and cast anchor in the offing of the
strait. Angelo Bobia and a few other brave men swam during the night to
their ships, and horrified all with their wasted forms and hunger-pale
faces. But the Genoese captains declared that they dared not venture
to attack the Spaniards. Bobia laid his fore-finger on his mouth, as
if thunderstruck, and then said, "We have trusted in God alone, and
in you—you shall attempt it, and we will help you!" The Genoese were
afraid.
Alfonso immediately turned a part of his ships towards the Genoese, and
directed his missiles upon the harbour, to cut off their entrance. The
Genoese ships, however, would not venture to attack the Spanish till the
young Giovanni Fregoso, Rafael Negro, and other leading men insisted
on their risking an engagement. But especially Jacopo Benesia, the
most valorous and daring of them all, decided for the battle. For seven
hours the struggle lasted at the entrance of the harbour and before the
rock—a fearful struggle—ship lying close to ship, as the confined space
rendered it quite impossible to move about; the Bonifazians, meanwhile,
hurled down missiles and torches on the Spaniards. At last the Genoese
burst through the chain, and forced a passage into the harbour; and
indescribable was the joy of the starving people, when seven ships full
of grain were moored in the harbour, and discharged their freight.
Then Alfonso of Arragon perceived that he could not reduce the town of
Bonifazio, and accordingly he raised the siege, taking the hostages with
him; and, deeply ashamed and vexed at heart, he set sail for Italy in
January 1421.