J.C.1719, lowed to bear any office civil or military, and that

to 1721.

to 1134.

Heg.1131, useless class who live folely on their fortunes being abfolutely unknown among the Turks, those who are not Muffulmen must neceffarily cultivate the earth or carry on a trade. It is to the subjects of the empire who are termed Giaurs that Afia owes the abundance which reigns there, and the fea-ports their opulence and commerce. Notwithstanding this remonftrance, whilst Mustapha continued on the throne, the Greeks who turned papists were perfecuted, and the frequent applications of the French ambaffador for their redress were not attended to, as the Porte had entered into no engagement to tolerate the Romish religion but for the fubjects of foreign crowns, and this minifter had no right to protect the fubjects of the grand feignior. But when Achmet III. had fucceeded his brother, and Ibrahim had ac- quired the confidence of the monarch, this minifter, who comprehended what policy and reafon required from him, durft not abrogate the catcherif of the laft emperor, for fear of caufing a revolt in the ulema; but he hindered the effect of it, and granted in all cafes the Roman catholics and Greeks a conftant protection, against the tyranny of the Greek paftors called papas.

The Ro man Ca

tholics re

cover the

The marquis of Bonac, at that time ambaffador from France, took advantage of the good Holyfe difpofition of this minifter, to obtain a grant pulchre which had been refufed a long time both to his predeceffors and him. The Greeks, as we have

feen,

to 1721.

to 1134

feen, had poffeffed themselves of the church of J.C.1719,
the Holy fepulchre at Jerufalem, and the Latin Heg.1131,
pilgrims were, not only obliged to join in prayer
with those whom they confidered as fchifmatics,
but even to pay very dear for permiffion to adore
Jefus Chrift in the place of his burial, after hav-
ing bought it already by a great many fatigues
and dangers. Lewis XIV. had folicited the re-
covery of the Holy fepulchre a long time, without
ever having been able to obtain it. Though the
Turks had not prefumed to give the most ami-
cable power of the Porte an absolute refusal, yet
the money of the Greeks had raised up the oppo-
fition of the muftis, and retarded the decisions of
the grand viziers, who for thirty years had kept
the Latins in expectation of a catcherif. The
marquis of Bonac having entered on this nego-

tiation, fupported his folicitations by a great many
reasons and complaints; and the grand vizier,
who was fenfible of the want which the Porte
would have fooner or later of France, made a
merit to the ambaffador of what he could not well
refuse him. The first thing the Roman catholics
did to the Holy fepulchre after they were in pof-
feffion was to repair the roof of it, pursuant to
the catcherif which granted it them.

The divan thought they had given France fuch a diftinguished teftimony of efteem and favor, that it was decided that this catcherif fhould be Embassy to carried to Lewis XV. by an ambaffador extraor- France. dinary. Mehemet effendi who fettled the peace

at

1

254

to 1721.

to 1134.

J.C.1719, at Paffarowitz with the Auftrians and the republic Heg.1131, of Venice, went to France in that capacity. The choice of fuch a negotiator, the ableft in the Ottoman empire, gave reason to presume that this embassy had some important object, and that the reftoration of the Holy fepulchre was only the pretext of it. And indeed the Turks, who had been more infefted for fome years paft by the Maltese galleys than formerly, had complained to the French ambaffador of feveral captures which the Order of St. John had made from them. The great number of French gentlemen who are engaged or admitted into that Order, the ignorance of the Turks with regard to the rights of the fovereigns of Europe, and their defpotic power over their tributaries, pretended fovereigns, whom they depofe as eafily as their lowest fangiacs, all this made the divan think that the king of France could retain the galleys of Malta in their ports if he pleased; and they wanted to have this friendly power restrain these religious warriors whom the Turks treated as corfairs, and fuppofed, with fo little reason, subjects of France, Mehemet effendi learned in the cabinets of the French minifters, what the marquis of Bonac had already told the grand vizier several times, that the Order of Malta, fovereign on its rock, has all the Chriftian kings of the Roman communion for protectors, but acknowledges neither of them for master, and that, notwithstanding the treaty concluded under Bajazet II. with the knights, who

were

to 1721.

to 1134

were then at Rhodes, it is the policy and duty of J.C.1719, the Order of St. John not to make any peace with Heg.1131, the Muffulmen. All the fruit which Mehemet effendi brought back of his embaffy, confifted only in prefents for his master, and plans of the palaces and gardens of Verfailles and Fontainbleau, fome parts of which Achmet endeavoured to imitate at his feraglios of Darud bafhaw and the Mirrors, two pleasure houses which he was fonder of than any of his other places of refidence. Mehemet effendi, who was a lover of letters, brought fome printers likewise from France, who published at Conftantinople an edition of the Alcoran, another of the Sunna, and another of a Turkish grammar; but thefe artisans, who might have been fo useful to a people fufceptible of being enlightened, were foon constrained to flee from the fury of seven or eight thousand copiers, who have no other profeffion at Conftantinople and in the other great towns, to keep themselves from mifery, and whose flow and incorrect work can communicate but a very fmall quantity of knowledge and a multiplicity of errors. All the muffulmen confider it as a duty to have an Alcoran and a Sunna. Thefe, with fome hiftorians and poets whose stile is both tumid and metaphorical, and almost unintelligible, compofe the whole literature of the Turks. One of these manufcripts is confidered by them as a valuable moveable, but which few people can make ufe of; for, if we except the members of the ulema, the number

of

J.C. 1722. of Turks who can read is very small, even at Heg.1134

&1135 Conftantinople.

Troubles

The Turks had enjoyed the advantages of peace in Perha. for four years, when the troubles in Perfia fud

1

denly excited the avidity of Ruffia, and that of the Porte. These inteftine wars fprang from the effeminacy of the fophis, and from the little care which they took of the government of their empire. Shah Huffein, more indolent even than his predeceffors, entirely abandoned the reins of government to thofe who had infinuated themfelves into his confidence. Bad kings have generally bad ministers. Some fubaltern tyrants provoked a general infurrection in the beginning of the prefent century. The flames broke out in the province of Candahar, inhabited by a horde of Tar tars, called Afghvans. One Mirveis, kelunter or fyndic of the Afghvans, a man of fome confequence among his countrymen by his birth (for there are nobles among thefe Tartars), his dignity, and the loftiness of his foul, received the most pointed affront from the governor of Candahar. The Perfian fent to the kelunter of the Afghvans to demand his daughter, (whose beauty was much extolled) to shut her up in his haram. Mirveis, who was unable immediately to revenge himself for this infult, feigned to obey. He fent the governor a beautiful flave richly dreffed, which he affured him was his daughter. It is remarked in hiftory, that the greatest revolutions have been occafioned by the incontinence

of