J.C. 1711 army, together with fome Poles and Swedes, all Heg.1123. of whom confidered the ruin of the czar as inevitable.

'As foon as Poniatowski faw that the armies must infallibly come to an engagement, he fent an express to the king of Sweden, who immediately set out from Bender, accompanied with forty officers, anticipating the mighty pleasure he fhould have in fighting the Ruffian emperor. After many loffes, and feveral marches in which he suffered severely, the czar was driven back to the Pruth, without any other defence than chevaux de frife and a few waggons. A party of janiffaries and spahis attacked his army in this disadvantageous fituation; but their attack was diforderly, and the Ruffians defended themselves with a firmness and refolution which nothing but despair and the prefence of their prince could inspire.

'The Turks were twice repulfed. Next day, count Poniatowski advised the grand vizier to starve the Ruffian army, which, being in want of every thing, would, together with its emperor, be obliged in a day's time to furrender at difcretion.

The czar has fince acknowledged more than once, that, in the whole courfe of his life, he never felt any thing fo exquifitely tormenting as the perturbation of mind in which he paffed that night. He revolved in his thoughts all that he had been doing for fo many years, to promote

the

Heg.1123.

the glory and happiness of his country. He re- J.C. 1711. flected that fo many great undertakings, which had been always interrupted by wars, were now perhaps going to perish with him, before they were fully accomplished. And he plainly perceived, that he must either be deftroyed by famine, or attack about a hundred and eighty thousand men with feeble and difpirited troops, diminished one half in their number, the cavalry almost entirely difmounted, and the infantry exhausted with hunger and fatigue.

He fent for general Czeremetof in the evening, and, without the least hesitation, or even fo much as afking any one's advice, ordered him to have every thing in readiness next morning for attacking the Turks with fixed bayonets.

'He likewife gave exprefs orders that all the baggage fhould be burnt, and that no officer fhould keep above one waggon; that fo, in cafe of a defeat, the enemy might not obtain the booty they expected.

'Having fettled every thing with the general relating to the battle, he retired to his tent, oppreffed with grief and racked with convulfions, a disease which often attacked him, and always recurred with redoubled violence when he was under any perturbation of mind. He gave peremptory orders, that no one should prefume, under any pretext whatsoever, to enter his tent in the night; not choofing to receive any remon trances against a refolution which, however defperate,

Heg.1123.

J.C.1711. perate, was abfolutely neceffary, and ftill lefs that any one fhould be a witnefs of the melancholy condition in which he was.

Meanwhile the greateft part of the baggage was burnt, according to his orders. All the army followed the example, though with much reluctance; and several buried their most valuable effects in the earth. The general officers were already giving orders for the march, and endeavouring to inspire the army with that courage which themselves did not poffefs. The foldiers, exhaufted with hunger and fatigue, advanced without fpirit and without hope. The women, with which the army was but too much crowded, fet up the moft lamentable fhrieks and cries, which contributed ftill more to enervate the men; and next morning every one expected death or flavery as the only alternative. This picture is by no means exaggerated: it is exactly agreeable to the accounts that were given by fome officers that ferved in the army.

The celebrated emprefs Catharine had followed her husband to Pruth camp. She held a council with the general officers and the vicechancellor Schaffirof, whilft the czar was in his tent. The refult of their deliberations was, that they must neceffarily fue for a peace to the Turks, and endeavour to perfuade the czar to agree to fuch a measure. The vice-chancellor wrote a letter to the grand vizier in his mafter's name. This letter the czarina carried to the emperor's

tent,

Heg.1123.

n

tent, notwithstanding his prohibition; and hav- J.C. 1711. ing with tears and entreaties prevailed upon him to fign it, the inftantly collected all her jewels, money, and most valuable effects, together with what money she could borrow from the general officers, and having by thefe means made up a confiderable prefent, fhe fent it, with the czar's letter, to Ofman aga, lieutenant to the grand vizier. Mehemet Baltagi replied, with the lofty air of a vizier and a vanquisher: "Let the czar fend "me his prime minifter, and I fhall then confider "what is to be done." The vice-chancellor Schaffirof immediately repaired to the Turkish camp with some prefents, which he publicly offered to the grand vizier, fufficiently confiderable to fhew him that they stood in need of his clemency, but too inconfiderable to corrupt his integrity.

The vizier at firft demanded, that the czar, with his whole army, fhould furrender at difcretion. The vice-chancellor replied, that his mafter was going to attack him in a quarter of an hour, and that the Ruffians would perish to a man, rather than fubmit to fuch dishonorable conditions. Schaffirof's application was strongly feconded by the remonftrances of Ofman.

'Mehemet Baltagi was no warrior: he faw that the janiffaries had been repulfed the day before; so that Ofiman eafily prevailed upon him not to risk fuch certain advantages upon the fate of a battle. He accordingly granted a fufpenfion of

VOL. IV.

U

arms

J.C. 1711 arms for fix hours, in which time the terms of the treaty might be fully fettled.

Heg.1123.

The vizier treats with

Charles

lofes all

hopes.

During the parley, there happened a trifling the czar: incident, which plainly fhews that the Turks often keep their word with a more fcrupulous exactness than we imagine. Two Italian gentlemen, relations of lieutenant-colonel Brillo of a regiment of grenadiers in the czar's fervice, having gone to fome distance in quest of forage, were taken prifoners by fome Tartars, who brought them to the camp, and offered to fell them to an officer of the janiffaries. The Turk, enraged at their prefumption, in having thus violated the truce, arrested the Tartars, and carried them himself before the grand vizier, together with the two prifoners. The vizier fent back the two gentlemen to the czar's camp, and ordered the two Tartars who had been chiefly concerned in carrying them off to be beheaded.

"However, the khan of Tartary oppofed the conclufion of the treaty, which would deprive him of all hopes of plunder; and Poniatowski feconded the khan with the strongest arguments. But Ofman carried his point against the importunity of the Tartar, and the infinuations of Poniatowski.

The vizier thought, that by concluding an advantageous peace, he fhould fufficiently confult the honor and intereft of his master. He infifted that the Ruffians fhould reftore Afoph, burn the galleys which lay in that harbour, de

molish