312 ITALIAN WARS. II PART bold stroke for its recovery ; and that, too, instant- ly, before his late discomfiture should have time to operate on the spirits of his partisans. He accord- ingly embarked at Messina, with a handful of troops only, on board the fleet of the Spanish admi ral, Requesens. It amounted in all to eighty ves- sels, most of them of inconsiderable size. With this armament, which, notwithstanding its formi- dable show, carried little effective force for land operations, the adventurous young monarch ap- peared off the harbour of Naples before the end of June. Charles's viceroy, the duke of Montpensier, at that time garrisoned Naples with six thousand French troops. On the appearance of the Spanish navy, he marched out to prevent Ferdinand's land- ing, leaving a few only of his soldiers to keep the city in awe. But he had scarcely quitted it before the inhabitants, who had waited with impatience an opportunity for throwing off the yoke, sounded the tocsin, and, rising to arms through every part of the city, and massacring the feeble remains of the garrison, shut the gates against him ; while Ferdinand, who had succeeded in drawing off the French commander in another direction, no sooner presented himself before the walls, than he was received with transports of joy by the enthusiastic people. *°
- > Summonte, Hist, di Napoli, pp. 87, 88. — Villeneuve, Me-
tom. vi. p. 519. — Guicciardini, moires, apud Petitot, Collection Istoria, lib. 2, pp. 113, 114. — dcs M^moires, torn. xiv. pp. 264, Giovio, Hist, sui Temporis, lib. 3, 2G5.
