The Turks obtained their first victory over the Christians of the Eastern, or Greek, empire in A.D. 1281.  Within ten years the Latins who inhabited Palestine were entirely overthrown (see Gibbon, Vol.  VI, p. 47), and the way was now clear for Turkish aggression against the Greek empire.  Before the end of the century the four Sultanies mentioned were combined into one consolidated empire under Osman (corrupted by Europeans into Ottoman) and from him took the name which it still retains—­the Ottoman empire.  From the time they were let loose, the Turks continued their aggressions until A.D. 1453, when Constantinople fell before their victorious arms, and the Eastern empire, with the last of the Constantines, sunk to rise no more.  “The Turkish sword and the religion of the Koran were enthroned in the Christian metropolis of the Roman emperors; and the proud Moslem had the Christian dog completely under his foot.”  The Ottoman power, however, continued to grow and make new conquests until the year A.D. 1672, when they conducted a successful campaign against Poland, in which forty-eight towns and villages were ceded to the Sultan, with promise of an annual tribute of two hundred and twenty thousand ducats.  See Encyclopaedia Britannica, Art.  Turkey.  This was the last victory they ever gained wherein the Ottoman empire obtained any advantage.  A little later they marched against Vienna, but sustained a miserable defeat.  “Venice and Russia now declared war against Turkey; misfortune followed misfortune; city after city was rent away from the empire; the Austrians were in possession of almost the whole of Hungary, the Italians of almost all the Morea.”  Encyclopaedia Britannica, Art.  Turkey.  So the power of the Ottomans to extend their conquests and to add to their empire, ended with the victory over the Poles in A.D. 1672.  This fact is even admitted by Demetrius Cantemir, prince of Moldavia, one of their historians, in the following language:  “This was the last victory by which any advantage accrued to the Othman state, or any city or province was annexed to the ancient bounds of the empire.”  In accordance with this statement, the same historian entitles the first part of his history up to the victory over the Poles in 1672 the History of the Growth of the Othman Empire, and the remaining portion, The Decay of the Othman Empire.

Calculating now the time during which these horsemen were prepared to extend their conquests—­“an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year”—­we find according to prophetic, or symbolic, time—­thirty days in a month, three hundred and sixty in a year—­that it signifies three hundred and ninety-one years and fifteen days.  This is exactly the period of time that elapsed between their first victory in A.D. 1281 and their last conquest in A.D. 1672.  I can not verify the fifteen days, because no history at my command states the exact days of the month on which these victories occurred.