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 180 HISTORY OF TNT)TA. (Book 1.

A.a"i509. in present circum.stanceH, to demit his autliority, he refased to resi^ the insigriiu of office; and leaving Albuqueique, who was in no condition t<j force him, i(} devour his disappointment as he could, set out without him at the head of a tilTrol powerful armament. While proceeding northwards along the coast, in search Dabiu of the combined Egyptian and Gujerat fleets, he stopped at Anchediva, and there received information which determined him to make the important com- mercial city of Dabul, situated on the coast about half-way between Goa and Bombay, the first object of attack. It belonged t^; a king of the Deccan, who had joined the zamorin's confederation, and assisted him with ship.s. In Almeida's view this was sufficient to ju.stify any severity; and, without any note of warning, he suddenly commenced his attack both by sea and land, and never desisted till he had laid Dabul in ashes. An immense plunder might have been obtained; but fearing the effect upon his troops, he chose i-ather to hurn than to preserve the booty. 11.; dufeats From this achievement, which certainly added little to his laurels, Almeida

the Tui-kish _ -^ '

ami Gujerat procecded to Diu, finely and strongly situated on an island of the same name, on the southern shore of the peninsula of Gujerat. Here he found Ameer Hoossein and Mullik Eiaz, with their fleets. Had they remained in their position under the batteries of Diu, as the Gujerat admiral strongly urged, Almeida, if he had ventured an attack at all, must have made it under great disadvantage; but the Egyptian admiiul, who was naturally of a chivalrous temper, and perhaps also rendered over-confident by his recent success, when Lorenzo was slain, disdained to be cooped up in a harboiu", when he could meet his enemy in the open sea, and sailed out, displaying more valour than discretion. The conflict, after raging furiously for some time, terminated in a glorious victory gained by the Portu guese, who, however, converted it into an indelible disgrace, by an atrocioas massacre. Several days after the battle was fought, and they had sailed away for Cananore, they murdered all their prisoners in cold blood. There is no possible excuse for the atrocity ; and the only explanation given is, that Almeida's revenge coiild not otherwise be satiated. The defeat had so dispirited ]Iullik Eiaz that he made overtures of peace. They were readily listened to ; and he might have obtained advantageous terms, if he would have stooped to the meanness of delivering up his Eg}^)tian colleague. As much to his honour as to the disgrace of the Portuguese for making such a demand, he at once gave it a peremptory refusal.

He retains Almeida, liaviug returned to Cochin, was again pressed by Albuquerque to

the viceroy-, , , , ,.

ship. resign the viceroyship, which he had persisted in holding, in defiance of the

mandate of his sovereign. So far from complying, he took the extraordinary step of seizing the person of his competitor, and sending him as a prisoner to the fort of Cananore. He would probably have completed the treasonaljle course to which he was now committed, by declaring himself independent, had not the ojjportune arrival of Don Fernando Coutinho, with a large fleet and