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430 María José Rodríguez-Salgado

Despite the tight control of couriers, the emperor’s official missives
from Tunis usually arrived after the news was known, serving as
confirmation rather than announcements and therefore less likely to
impose a single vision of events. This was the case even for Ferdinand I,
who invariably had news before his brother’s letters, which normally took
between three to four weeks to arrive. Trusted sources in Venice, Rome
and Naples informed him of the emperor’s victory long before the official
letter of 23 July arrived in Vienna on 28 August . Mary of Hungary often
65
got information earlier, usually from Genoa, and sent it on to him. She
heard of the sack of the city from French officials while she was with
Leonor in Cambrai and would not believe it until it was confirmed by the
duke of Milan, a Habsburg ally . Leonor believed it and informed
66
Ferdinand I, who already knew by the time her letter arrived .
67
Merchants, some of them supplying the forces, often provided infor-
mation first. Sicilian merchants were the first to inform of the emperor’s
landing and siege of La Goleta at the end of June, and the news spread
widely through the papal nuncio network . The duke of Florence had a
68
dedicated service with brigantines and horses to ensure that news from
Tunis reached Florence via Livorno in four days or less .
69
Sharing such information was integral to the normal exchanges of
favour and friendship. For example, the sieur de Langy provided the
English ambassador in France, Wallop, with a copy of the treaties
between Charles V and Mulay Hassan . During May-June 1535 Paolo
70
Giovio composed a detailed description of Tunis and La Goleta and
had a map made which he shared, lent and gifted to many important
individuals . The pope, eager to court both the French and the
71
Venetians, shared news as soon as it arrived, often through Nicolas
Raince or Renzo, a member of the bishop of Mâcon’s household. On
13 July Raince summarised a letter of 23 June from Guidiccione, the
papal nuncio who was in Tunis, which the pope had received the
previous day. The pope also sent copies directly to the French court,
including sketches of the imperial camp and of La Goleta . He had
72
obtained those from a dispatch sent from «the camp near Tunis» that
arrived with the official accounts for the count of Cifuentes, imperial

65 KFI, V, pp. 314-315, Ferdinand I to Charles V, 3 September 1535. Charles V’s letter
from Tunis of 23 July (283ff) was received on 28 August with a verbal report from Jean du
May (ivi, p. 300, Ferdinand I to Charles V). KFI, V, notes when letters were received.
66 KFI, V, P. 307, Ferdinand I to Mary of Hungary, 27 August 1535.
67 KFI, V, P. 339 Ferdinand I to Leonor, 8 October 1535.
68 Ang, Carpi, P. 45, Ricalcato to Carpi, 1 July 1535.
69 LP, viii, n. 1121, Gregorio Casale to Cromwell, Ferrara, 27 July 1535.
70 LP, ix, n. 338, s.d. [September 1535].
71 S. Deswarte-Rosa, L’expedition de Tunis cit., pp. 82-90.
72 Charrière, I, pp. 268-272, Raince to Francis I, Rome, 13 July 1535.

Mediterranea - ricerche storiche - Anno XVII - Agosto 2020
ISSN 1824-3010 (stampa) ISSN 1828-230X (online)