At Cremnitz the Turks met with the first serious show of resistance.  The fortress was strong, and the garrison, inspired by the indomitable energy and courage of their commandant, Nicholas, Count of Salm, for a month repelled every assault of the foe.  Day after day and night after night the incessant bombardment continued; the walls were crumbed by the storm of shot; column after column of the Turks rushed to the assault, but all in vain.  The sultan, disappointed and enraged, made one last desperate effort, but his strong columns, thined, mangled and bleeding, were compelled to retire in utter discomfiture.

Winter was now approaching.  Reinforcements were also hastening from Vienna, from Bohemia, and from other parts of the German empire.  Solyman, having devastated the country around him, and being all unprepared for the storms of winter, was compelled to retire.  He struck his tents, and slowly and sullenly descended the Danube, wreaking diabolical vengeance upon the helpless peasants, killing, burning and destroying.  Leaving a strong garrison to hold what remained of Buda and Pest, he carried thousands with him into captivity, where, after years of woe, they passed into the grave.

  “’Tis terrible to rouse the lion,
     Dreadful to cross the tiger’s path;
  But the most terrible of terrors,
     Is man himself in his wild wrath.”

Solyman spent two years in making preparation for another march to Vienna, resolved to wipe out the disgrace of his last defeat by capturing all the Austrian States, and of then spreading the terror of his arms far and wide through the empire of Germany.  The energy with which he acted may be inferred from one well authenticated anecdote illustrative of his character.  He had ordered a bridge to be constructed across the Drave.  The engineer who had been sent to accomplish the task, after a careful survey, reported that a bridge could not be constructed at that point.  Solyman sent him a linen cord with this message: 

“The sultan, thy master, commands thee, without consideration of the difficulties, to complete the bridge over the Drave.  If thou doest it not, on his arrival he will have thee strangled with this cord.”

With a large army, thoroughly drilled, and equipped with all the enginery of war, the sultan commenced his campaign.  His force was so stupendous and so incumbered with the necessary baggage and heavy artillery, that it required a march of sixty days to pass from Constantinople to Belgrade.  Ferdinand, in inexpressible alarm, sent ambassadors to Solyman, hoping to avert the storm by conciliation and concessions.  This indication of weakness but increased the arrogance of the Turk.