Nuno set off on this expedition with 800 men, accompanied by Mahomet and
Bubac, each of whom had sixty followers. On the way he was joined by the
sheikh of _Otonda_, a neighbouring town, who offered to accompany him
with a well appointed vessel. This prince had silver chains on his legs,
which he wore as a memorial of having been wrongfully imprisoned by the
king of Mombaza, and had sworn never to take them off till revenged,
having been so used merely because he had shewn friendship to the
Portuguese.

Having been apprized of the intended attack, the king of Mombaza had
provided for his defence, by planting cannons on a fort or bulwark at
the mouth of the river, and brought 600 expert archers into the city.
Though opposed by a heavy cannonade from the bulwark, Nuno forced his
way up the river and anchored in the evening close to the city, whence
the archers shot continual flights of arrows into the ships, and were
answered by the Portuguese cannon. Next morning early the troops were
landed under Pedro Vaz, brother to Nuno, who carried all before him, and
planted the Portuguese colours, after killing many of the Moors and
driving the rest from the city, without losing a single Portuguese
soldier. To secure and repeople the city, Nuno sent for a nephew of the
king of Melinda, who came with 500 men, many of whom were of some rank;
and these were followed by the prince of Montangue with 200 more. Many
likewise of the former inhabitants came in and submitted, so that the
island began to reassume an appearance of prosperity. The expelled king,
sensible of the desperate situation of affairs, sent one of his
principal men to propose an accommodation, offering to pay a ransom to
preserve his city from destruction, and to become tributary. An
agreement was accordingly entered into to this effect, and the king
began to make the stipulated payments; but finding sickness to prevail
among the Portuguese of whom two hundred soon died, and many more were