covering the walls in soft surfaces, and then filling gaps created by cannonballs with debris (which turned out to be highly effective as the cannonballs would simply sink into the rubble). Throughout the siege, Giustiniani and his men repaired the damaged walls, plugging gaps with soldiers to repel assaults when necessary. He also made use of small artillery pieces containing grapeshot, projectiles and items to drop on attackers attempting to scale the walls. The first assault occurred on 18 April, with a detachment of Janissaries and archers being sent towards a breach in the middle section of the walls. Giustiniani and his men were able to repel this attack after 4 hours due to the narrow front - as the breach had been a small one, the Ottoman troops were unable to take advantage of their superior numbers. By late May, dwindling supplies and manpower coupled with the knowledge that no relief army would save Constantinople caused tensions to run high, and amidst this Giustiniani and Notaras (the Byzantine chief minister) are reported to have had a falling out. Death In the early hours of 29 May, the final Ottoman assault began, with the most forces concentrated in the center of the walls. The first wave of troops, Christian troops provided by vassals of Mehmed, attempted to scale the improvised stockades erected by Giustiniani's men, but were unsuccessful. A second wave proceeded to attack, most notably at a breach near the St. Romanos gate, but were once again repelled by early morning. The last wave consisted of elite Janissaries, who assaulted the wall and by this point were faced by no more than 3,000 exhausted troops led by Giustiniani. Giustiniani's downfall came during this assault, when a cannon or crossbow bolt severely wounded his arm, chest or leg, forcing a retreat from his combat station. As he exited the battle, the defenders' morale was severely weakened and men began to flee in panic. Giustiniani was taken to his ship with hopes of his wounds being cared for, and as it became known that Constantinople had fallen, fled alongside his men. Sources hostile towards the Genoese (such as the Venetian Nicolò Barbaro), however, report that he was only lightly wounded or not wounded at all, but, overwhelmed by fear, simulated the wound to abandon the battlefield, determining the fall of the city. These charges of cowardice and treason were so widespread