Great Siege 1565 - Tuesday 7 August
Tuesday 7 August An hour before daybreak when we saw that the enemy from Corradino had begun to move down towards St. Michael. Men from the fleet embarked at Marsamxett and were transported to Mount Salvador, both of which were a clear sign that we were to expect a general assault during the day, as indeed happened. As soon as it was light, they attacked St. Michael and the Post of Castile en masse, with such an uproar and blare of military music, that we would have marvelled had we not become used to it on previous occasions. 8,000 Ottomans attacked St. Michael and 4,000 the Post of Castile. They all came in a rush, as we had anticipated. But as soon as they left the trenches, we were ready for them - incendiary hoops blazing, pitch boiling, and everything primed for our defence. Thus when they started to scale the battlements, they were received like men well-expected. The attacks on this day were violent and fought on both sides with much bloodshed and cruelty. The main attack was o