memoirs of baron Tott which have lately appeared, with the very important remarks on them by Mr. De Peyffonnel, late Frenchconful general at Smyrna, are corroborating proofs of the truth of the accounts given in this hiftory of the laws, manners, customs, finances, and military force of this great

nation.

As abbot Mignot is the nephew of the celebrated Voltaire, it is natural to suppose that his work underwent the examination of his uncle, prior to its publication, more particularly as it was printed before the death of that extraordinary genius, at which time the abbot copied, by his uncle's permiffion, his account of Charles XII.'s reception in Turkey.

How far the English translator has done juftice to the French original, must be left to the determination of the public.

THE

THOUGH the Turks are regarded as barbarians, an opinion perhaps not deftitute of foundation, I thought the knowledge of a great people, whofe poffeffions extend over three parts of the world, and who have poffeffed an important influence over the politics of the whole state of Europe, would be an interesting subject to the lovers of hiftory, and that, in order to obtain a thorough knowledge of mankind, it was requifite to be acquainted with their transactions. Naturalists obferve all the fpecies of animals from the elephant to the hand-worm, from the tiger to the dove. The differences that religion, climate, laws, government, may have introduced among mankind, merit the attention of those who are defirous of ftudying human nature; the more the manners and genius of a peo

2 2

a people differ from ours, the more it is neceffary to examine them, were it only to convince ourselves, that man is every where the same, and that all these diffimilarities, however important, may very well constitute the character of a nation, but never influence human nature taken in its phyfical sense; that the laws and variety of manners no more change our difpofitions, than the different fashions of our garments alter the forms of our bodies.

The hiftory of the Turks furnishes as many conquefts, fewer laws, less order, more revolutions, more profcriptions, and, upon the whole, more bloodshed, than that of any other people; but we perceive in it the fame interefts, paffions, crimes, talents, and virtues, as influence every other part of the globe.

WHEN it fhall be known that I am ignorant of the oriental languages, my undertaking perhaps will be thought prefumptuous. As it is effential for an hiftorian to gain the confidence of his readers for their particular intereft, I should give mine an account of the fources from whence I have drawn my information. Befides the well known authors,

fuch

fuch as Leunclavius, Ducas, the annals of the fultans, tranflated by Gaudier, Calcondilus and his continuators, prince Cantimir, Sagredo, Ricaut, the count of Marfigli, (whofe ideas I have far from implicitly adopted) Baudouin, Boffio for the history of Malta, the memoirs of Montecuculli, those of prince Eugene, the history of Sobieski by abbot Coier, I have had the good fortune to find affiftances which I had no reason to expect; they have determined me to undertake this work, of which, to speak properly, I am nothing more than the compiler. Mr. Cardonne, fecretary interpreter to the king of France for the oriental languages, and professor of the Arabic tongue in the royal college, who has ferved the court, and the French commerce, in quality of druggerman, in several Turkish ports during twenty years, has taken the pain to translate the most interesting and instructive parts of the three Turkish annalists, Naima Effendi, Rachid Effendi, and Tchelebi Zadé, which commence in the year 1594 of the Christian æra, and finish in 1727. He has been fo obliging as to let me fee his manufcript before it was depofited in the king's library. Mr. Bejault, keeper of the manuscripts

fcripts of this library, has likewise been fo kind as to intrust me with feveral tranflations of Turkish originals, which contain interefting parts of their history. Barón Tott, the fon of a Hungarian nobleman, fent by the king of France to the Porte, and who has himfelf been intrusted with affairs in that court, on fetting out to execute other commiffions, has left me the remarks which a fifteen years refidence at Conftantinople, a fpirit of obfervation, and a knowledge of the Turkish language, had enabled him to make.

THESE lights, fo ufeful for my purpose, have made me anxious for the acquifition of more. I have taken the liberty of foliciting the duke of Choifeul, for permiffion to confult the correfpondence of all the French ambaffadors at the Porte, which is lodged in the repofitory of foreign affairs. The generous protection which this minifter has conftantly given to literature and to truth, has prevailed on him to grant my request. I have found in thefe manufcripts the most circumftantiated, moft interefting, and least fufpected details. For near two fucceeding centuries, the ambaffadors have given an ac

count