 In 1555 the French Navy, then allied with the Ottoman Empire of Suleiman the Magnificent, sent a detachment to Algiers to ask the assistance of Salih Reis against the Spaniards.Salih Reis accepted the request and conceded 22 of his galleys, carrying Turkish soldiers and cannons, to the service of the French fleet.Later, with his remaining force of 40,000 men, he laid siege to Bougie.