Guilia Gonzaga, dutchess of Fondi, considered the most beautiful woman in the world of her time, was mistress to the pope. Barbarossa, admiral to the Sultan, attempted kidnap her as a present for the Sultan. He raided Fondi, a city on the coast of Italy south of Rome. Guilia escaped in her nightgown., and Barbarossa spitefully burned the town and massacred the population.
The French title of the painting refers to the best seller of Mm. Millet, whose expirience can hardly compaire.
Barbarossa, greatest of the Moslem seamen, was a Berber. Also a berber, Lucien Oulahbib served as model.