Qualla: Siege of Nice https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:30 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/v/0/siege-of-nice-wp/hero-small.webp Qualla: Siege of Nice https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice Siege of Nice: Introduction https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice/ Photo credit Myrabella, CC BY-SA 3.0. A cannonball from the Ottoman fleet is still embedded in a wall on the Rue Droite in Nice's old town. A plaque identifies it, noting that it dates from the siege of 1543, 'where Catherine Segurane, heroine of Nice, distinguished herself.' That a Turkish cannonball sits in a street in the south of France tells you something about how strange this siege was. The King of France and the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire -- the most powerful Christian and Muslim rulers of their age -- had joined forces to attack a city that belonged to neither of them.

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Image: Myrabella | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/v/0/siege-of-nice-wp/spv0-siege-of-nice-intro.mp3 0:06 1 full Siege of Nice: An Alliance That Shocked Europe https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice/ Photo credit Matrakçı Nasuh, Public domain. The Franco-Ottoman alliance was one of the most audacious diplomatic arrangements of the 16th century. Francis I of France, locked in a long struggle with Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, needed naval power he did not possess. Suleiman the Magnificent needed a western ally to pressu...

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Image: Matrakçı Nasuh | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/v/0/siege-of-nice-wp/spv0-siege-of-nice-an-alliance-that-shocked-europe.mp3 0:06 2 full Siege of Nice: Walls Breached, Citadel Held https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice/ Photo credit Ottoman painter 16th century, Public domain. Nice in 1543 belonged to the Duchy of Savoy, whose Duke Charles III had allied with the Habsburgs by marrying into the Portuguese royal family -- infuriating Francis I. The combined Franco-Ottoman fleet sailed from Marseille on August 5 and attacked Nice the following day. The de...

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Image: Ottoman painter 16th century | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/v/0/siege-of-nice-wp/spv0-siege-of-nice-walls-breached-citadel-held.mp3 0:06 3 full Siege of Nice: A Winter in Toulon https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice/ Photo credit Matrakci Nasu, 16th century, Public domain. What happened next was perhaps more remarkable than the siege itself. Francis I offered Barbarossa the use of Toulon as a winter base, so that the Ottoman fleet could continue harassing Habsburg shipping. For six months, the Ottoman navy -- 110 galleys and 30,000 troops -- occupi...

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Image: Matrakci Nasu, 16th century | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/v/0/siege-of-nice-wp/spv0-siege-of-nice-a-winter-in-toulon.mp3 0:06 4 full Siege of Nice: The Washerwoman and the Cannonball https://qualla.com/siege-of-nice/ Photo credit Ottoman painter, 16th century, Public domain. Catherine Segurane's existence has never been definitively proven. Jean Badat, a historian who witnessed the siege firsthand, made no mention of her. The documented defense of Nice relied on the townspeople destroying a key bridge and the eventual arrival of Savoyard reinforcemen...

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Image: Ottoman painter, 16th century | Public domain

]]> Fri, 13 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/v/0/siege-of-nice-wp/spv0-siege-of-nice-the-washerwoman-and-the-cannonball.mp3 0:06 5 full