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PEEFAOE The seven years that have elapsed since the last Edition of the present Handbook was published have brought with them changes and improve- ments in the mode of travelling in Eussia, which have rendered much of the information conveyed in the Edition of 1868 either obsolete or incom- plete. It has, therefore, been to a great extent rewritten and altered in arrangement ; and although still imperfect as regards i)rovinces and towns inaccessible by railway, yet the new Edition may perhaps be allowed to claim the credit of describing with sufficient care and accuracy all the principal highways of an Empire which cannot fail to excite more and more the interest and arrest the attention of the traveller and the tourist. The sections relating to the Caucasus and Finland, which have been much enlarged, may have the effect of attracting travellers, and particularly sportsmen, to those picturesque and unfrequented countries. The con- struction of railways has brought them within comparatively easy reach from Western Europe, while further railway extensions contemplated in the Lieutenancy of the Caucasus, must before long render Tiflis a favourite halting-place on the way to and from Persia and even India. To some tourists the historical information conveyed in this Handbook may appear to occupy too much space, but the fact is, that notwithstanding the great antiquity of most towns in Russia Proper, they offer but little to interest the traveller beyond their history. The few monuments of antiquity that have survived the calamities to which they have almost generally been subjected will be found described in their proper places, and it is intended that the scraps of history by which that description is accompanied should assist the traveller in understanding and appreciating the Russia of the present day. The gauge of past history gives the measure and the import of the great reforms introduced by the philan- thropic Sovereign who has liberated the serfs, and whose wise legislation is improving the institutions and the material condition of the country a 2 IV PREFACE. with a rapidity, and on a scale of magnitude and comprehensiveness, unexampled in any other State, ancient or modern. In drawing attention to the most interesting features of an empire which is passing through a transition so remarkable, no small object will have been gained if, with such assistance as the present Handbook affords, the traveller returns to his home with a juster knowledge of Eussia and her people than that with which he left it. The results of personal observation and study during a long residence in Eussia, as well as those of much travel over a great part of the Eussian Empire, are embodied in the Edition now offered by the Compiler to the travelling public, in addition to much valuable and curious information derived from numerous historical works of modern date in the Eussian language. At the same time, it is almost needless to say that a Handbook for a country so vast, and for which no general Handbook even in the Eussian language has yet been written, could not have been made sufficiently accurate without the aid of notes made by the most recent travellers ; and as such notes have been largely used in the present Edition, it is impossible to record within the limits of a Preface, or without partiality, the names of all those who have kindly contributed their observations and their advice. A general, heartfelt acknowledgment must suffice, and it may be hoped that such an unavoidable act of seeming ingratitude will not deter future travellers in Eussia from giving the advantage of their experience to those by whom they will be succeeded, T. MICHELE, late Second Secretary to H.B.M. Embassy, and Consul, at St. Petersburg. Odessa, October, 1875. Introduction Page 1 EOUTES. Sect. I.—NORTH RUSSIA, BALTIC PROVINCES, THE VOLGA, AND THE ROUTES TOWARDS IT. [The names of places are printed In italics only in those routes where the places are described.'] ROUTE PAGE 1. Loudon to St. Petersburg, over- land, via Beilin, Kowno, Wilna, and Pskof^ with branch line to Libau 83 2. London to St. Petersburg, via Sweden and Finland .. .. 182 3. London to St, Petersburg, by Sea, via Cronstadt 182 4. London to St. Petersburg, via Archangel 183 5. 'London to Riga andi 3Iitau .. 189 6. London to Moscow, via Wilna, Minsk, and Smolensk .. .. 194 7. Riga to Moscow, via Diinaburg, Vitebsk, and Smolensk ; and line from Smolensk to Orel .. 200 8. St. Petersburg to Narva, Reval, and Baltic Port; and Excur- sion to Dorpat 204 9. St. Petei-sburg to Novgorod the Great 213 10. St. Petersburg to Moscow, with branch line to Rybinsk; and branch line to Torjok and Rjef 217 route page 11. Moscow to the Troitsa Mona- stery, Yaroslaf, and Vologda, with Rte. by river from Yaro- slaf to Kineshma, via Kos- troma 268 12. Moscow to Nijni Novgorod, with branch line to Shuya, Ivan- ovo, and Kineshma ; and Ex- cursion up the Oka to Murom, Elatma, and Kasimof .. .. 276 13. Volga: by water from Nijni Nov- gorod to Kazan, Simbirsk, Sa- mara, Saratof, Tsaritsyn, and Astrakhan 284 14. Moscow to the Volga by Rail, via Riajsk, Morshansk, Penza, and Syzran 291 15. Moscow to the Volga by Rail, via Riazan, Riajsk, Kozlof, 2am- hof, and Saratof 292 16. Riga or Moscow to the lYlga by Rail, via Oiel, Griazy, Bori- soglebsk and Tsaritsyn, with branch line to Ziwy ., .. 293 VI CONTENTS. Sect. II.— CENTRAL AND SOUTH RUSSIA. ROUTE PAGE 17. Loudon to Odessa, by Vienna, Dresden, or Berlin, Cracow, Lemberg, Volochisk and Jme- rinka 296 18. London to Odessa, by Vienna or Beilin, Lemberg, Czernowitz, Jassy, Ungeni, and Kishenef . 297 19. London to Odessa, via Constan- tinople, by Sea 298 20. London to Odessa, by Vienna and the Danube 299 21. St. Petersburg or Moscow to Odessa, by Tula, Orel, Kursk, Kharkof, Poltava, Elizavet- grad, ank Birzula .. .. 299 22. St, Petersburg or Moscow to Odessa, by Orel, Kursk, Kief, Kazatin, and Jmerinka, with branch line to Roinny .. .. 315 ROUTE PAGE 23. St. Petersburg or Riga to Odessa, via Wilna, Belostok, Brest- Li-tovsk, Berdichef, and Ka- zatin 323 24. Riga or St. Petersburg to Odessa, by Wilna, Minsk, Bakhmatch, Kief, and Jmerinka .. .. 326 25. Moscow to Taganrog, by Khar- kof and Constantinofka, with branch line to Elenofka for Mariupol 326 26. Moscow to Bostof on Don, by Biazan, Kozlof, and Voronej, with branch lines to Egoriefsk and Zaraisk 331 27. Moscow to Nicolaef awdi Kherson, via Kharkof, Poltava, and Znamenka 337 Sect. III.— THE CRIMEA. ROUTE PAGE 28. Odessa to Eupatoria and Sevas- topol by Sea 343 29. St. Petersburg or IMoscow to Sevastopol, by Rail, via Kharkof, Lozovaya, Melitopol, and Siinpheropol, with branch line to Ekaterinoslaf . . . . 345 30. South Coast of Crimea : from Se- vastopol to Yalta, via Balaclava 358 31. Yalta to Simpheropol, via Alushta 374 ROUTE PAGE 32. Yalta to Theodosia and Kertch, by Land 378 33. Simpheropol to Theodosia, via Karasu-Bazar and Stary- Krim 382 34. Yalta to Kertch, via Theodosia, by Sea 383 35. Kertch by Sea of Azof to Ta- ganrog and Rostof on the Don, and thence by the Don to Tsa- ritsyn on the Volga, via ATa fa 389 Sect. IV.— CAUCASUS AND ROUTES TO PERSIA. ROUTE PAGE 36. St. Petersburg or IMoscow to Tiflis, overland, via Rostof on the Don and Vladikavkaz .. 392 37. Constantinople, Odessa or Crimea to the Caucasus : by Sea to Poti, and thence by Kail to Tiflis . . 399 38. Astrakhan to Tiflis, via Caspian Siudt. Petrofsk 401 route page 39. Astrakhan to Tiflis, via Caspian and Baku 403 40. Tiflis to Teheran, overland, via Erivan and Tabriz . . . . 405 41. Bakii or Lenkoran to Teheran, overland, via Enzelli, Besht, Menzil, and Kazvin . . . . 408 42. Astrabad on Caspian to Teheran 411 CONTENTS. Vll Sect. V.~ SIBEEIA AND EOUTES TO CHINA AND CENTEAL ASIA. ROUTE PAGE 43. Moscow to Irkutsk, via Nijni Novgorod, lenn, Ekaterin- hurg, Tiumen, Tomsk and Kras- noyarsk ..412 44. Irkutsk to Pekin, via Kiaklita and Mongolia 416 45. Moscow to Orenburg . 4 . . 417 ROUTE PAGE 46. Orenburg to Bokhara, via Orsk, Kazalinsk, Fort Perofski, Turkistan, Chimkent, Tashkent and Samarcand 418 47. Moscow to Omsk, Semipalatinsk and Yernoe 422 Sect. VI.— POLAND. Introduction Page 425 EOUTES. ROUTE PAGE 48. Berlin to Warsaw, via Brom- berg and Thorn, by Rail .. 445 49. Warsaw to Sandomir and Nie- zava, up and down the Vis- tula, by Steamer 454 50. Vienna to Warsaw, by Rail .. 455 51. St. Petersburg to Warsaw, via Wilna, Grodno, and Belostok 456 52. Warsaw to I\Ioscow, via Brest- Litovsk, Minsk, and Smolensk 457 53. Warsaw to Lodz 458 54. Warsaw to Kief, via Brest-Li- ROUTE PAGE tovsk, Berdichef and Jmeiinka 458 55. Warsaw to Odessa, via Brest- Litovsk, Berdichef and Jmer- inka 458 56. Warsaw to Cracow, via Badom and Kielce, by Road . . . . 459 57. Warsaw to Novogeorgiefsk, by Road 459 58. Warsaw to Kowno, via Pultusk and Ostrolenka, by road . . 459 59. Warsaw to Lemberg, via Lublin, by Read 460 Vlll CONTENTS. Sect. VII.— FINLAND. Introduction .. Page 463 EOUTES. ROUTE PAGE 60. London to Finland, by way of Stockholm .. 482 61. St. Petersburg to Finland, by Steamer 483 62. Hangi) to St. Petersburg, by rail 484 63. St. Petersburg to Wiborg and Helsingfors, by Rail ; and Ex- cursion to Imatra Falls . . 485 64. Helsingfors to Borgd, Lovisa^ Fredrikshamn and Wiborg ,. 493 65. Tornedj (Haaparanda) to Uled- borg, by Road 496 ROUTE PAGE 66. Ule&borg to Helsingfors, \\&Bra- hestad, Wasa, Bjorneborg, Abo and Hango 498 67. Uleaborg to Kuopio 504 68. Wiborg to Nyslot and Kuopio on Lake Saima, and thence to Sordavala (Serdobol), on Lake Ladoga 505 69. Wiborg to Kuopio, via Jymshyld^ on Lake Paijanne 507 70. Wiborg or Helsingfors to Tavas- tehus imd Tammerfors .. .. 508 Index 510 MAPS AND PLANS. PAGE St. Petersburg to face 90 Picture Galleries at the Hermitage 116 Moscow to face 222 Cathedral of the Assumption at Moscow 238 Map op Finland to face 463 Travelling Map of Kussia at the end. A HANDBOOK FOE TEAVELLERS IN RUSSIA, POLAND, AND FINLAND. introduction. PAGE 1 PAGE 1. Historical Notice - 1 9. Cuisine and Restaurants - - 65 2. Statistics - 37 10. Climate, Clothing, &c. - - 68 3. Language - 40 11. Sanitary Peculiarities - - 70 4. Literature - 52 12. Sport - - - - - 70 5. Measures, Weights, and Coins - 57 13. Society - - - - - 74 6. Passport Piegulations - 63 14. Seasons for Travelling and Skele- 7. Custom-houses - 63 j ton Routes - - - - 75 8. Posting and Postages - 64 1 15. Railways and Hints on Travelling 80 1. — Historical Notice on Eussia Proper. The space allotted to this sketch being sufficient only to furnish the traveller with a few historical memoranda of the remarkable events in Russian history and of the most celebrated sovereigns who have swayed the destinies of that empire, renders it impossible to give any descriptive details, more particularly of those monarchs who lived nearer to our own times, and who have figured conspicuously in European politics. The more salient and important points will, therefore, alone be mentioned. Further historical data will be found scattered through this Handbook. History and tradition concur in showing that Europe was peopled by three great families of the human race, who emigrated westward, at distinct periods; the last of these migrations was that of the Slavonians or Scythians, who established themselves on the Don about 400 years before Christ. In the days of Herodotus their mode of life was exceedingly rude and barbarous ; they had no houses and lived a nomadic and pastoral life, journeying from one verdant spot to another, and stopping at each only so long as they found sufficient pasture for their flocks and herds. Like all the other aboriginal races of Europe, the Slavonians dwelt together in more or less numerous colonies governed by elected or hereditary Elders of a patriarchal type. They held their councils of wise men, who administered laws very similar to those of the Germanic races. Their principal occupations were Russia, — 1875. b 2 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. the rearing of cattle, the chase of wild animals, and the management of bees, while their chief characteristics seem to have been in a degree analo- gous to those of their descendants, the modern Eussians: — they were hospitable, courageous, good-humoured, contented, and immoderately fond of spirituous liquors ; like most barbarous nations, however, the courage of the Slaves frequently degenerated into cruelty, and murder was no uncommon crime amongst them. The law of vengeance or retaliation was acted upon until the introduction of the penalties or compensation in money known as weregeld in German, and vira in Slavonian. Their religion was idolatrous, and their mode of worship resembled the gross and degraded forms of the ancient Druids ; they not only offered up their prisoners as a holocaust to their chief deity, Perun, the Zeus of the Greeks and the Jupiter of the Eomans, but would sometimes even immolate their own children to his honour. It was not until the fifth century that the wild Slavonians, who had overrun a large portion of European Russia, founded any remarkable settle- ments ; these were Novgorod, on the Ilmen, and Kief, or Kiof, on the Dnieper ; where they afterwards became distinguished for their commerce, riches, and incipient civilization. The tribal groups of the North began, about the middle of the 9tli century, to suffer from a want of unity and of a system of government better adapted to the civilization which their intercourse with the Germans and the Greeks was introducing. Em- broiled in dissensions, and subject on the S.E. to the exactions of Asiatic races encamped on the Volga and the Don, and on the N.W. to the depredations of the sea-kings, the Slavonians, according to an old chronicle, sent a deputation to the Variags, or Normans, with the message and the invitation, “ Our land is great and bountiful, but there is no order in it ; come and rule over us.” But this is a mere legend, and it was no doubt as a conqueror that, in a.d. 864, Rurik, a VarcEgr prince, took up his residence at Novgorod and there founded the Russian monarchy, the sceptre of which continued to be held by his descendants for upwards of 700 years. There is indeed little doubt that the Rurik of Russian History was the Rdric of South Jutland, who in 850 laid waste with a large armament the maritime provinces of France, and who also in the follow- ing year entered the Thames with 350 ships and pillaged Canterbury and London, but was finally destroyed by Ethelwulf, at Ockley, in Surrey.*^ Two of Rurik’s followers subsequently left him to seek their fortunes in the south, and on their journey to Constantinople they attacked the town of Kief, gained possession of it, and it thus became the capital of a second Slavonian kingdom. Six sovereigns succeeded Rurik, who, with their military comrades or drujina^ were constantly making war upon neighbouring tribes or fighting for the right of succession to the throne of Kief, then the capital of Russia. These princes all followed the pagan worship of their fathers ; but Vladimir, the seventh in descent, who possessed himself of the throne in 981, was converted to Christianity, originally introduced, although not established, by Olga, who embraced the Greek religion at Constantinople about the year 955. His nature became changed, the cruelty of his disposition gave way to clemency and humility, and when awarding * Gibbon, vol. vi. p. 275, edit, of 1855. Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 3 pimisliments for crime lie is said to have exclaimed, “ Y/hat am T, that I should condemn a fellow creature to death.” 'I’he first Code of llussian Laws, known as the “ Russkaya Pravda,” was compiled in his reign. He also endeavoured to overcome the violent prejudices and superstitions of his subjects by founding seminaries, with professors from Greece ; and from that classic land he likewise procured architects and other artisans to instruct his people in their several crafts. His military conquests embraced the whole of Poland, Vladimir deserved well of his country, and the Russian Church has enrolled him among the number of her saints. His son Yaroslaf, who reigned thirty-five years and died at the age of seventy- seven years, was a prince of considerable attainments and a great patron of the arts; the church of St. Sojihia, at Novgorod, was by his order decorated with pictures and mosaics, portions of which remain to the present time. His wars with Boleslas of Poland, as well as his acquire- ments and the splendour in which he lived, made his name known and respected throughout Europe. Three of his daughters were married to the Kings of France, Norway, and Hungary. Yaroslaf died in 1054, and, like his father, divided his territories among his sons. He was succeeded at Kief by his son Isiaslaf, who died in 1078, in which year the throne of Kief was occupied by Vsevolod, whose daughter married the Emperor Henry IV. of Germany. On the death of Vsevolod, in 1093, Vladimir, grandson of Yaroslaf, might have become Grand Duke of Kief, but he waived his claim in favour of Sviatopolk, the son of Isiaslaf, who had left Novgorod, where he had reigned, in 1088. He was a weak and unworthy. ruler, and was only kept on his throne during 20 j^ears by the talents and bravery of Vladimir, who, on the death of Sviatoslaf in 1113, was called to the throne of Kief, under the title of Vladimir Monomachus which had been given to him by his father and mother, in memory of his maternal grandfather, the Emperor Constantine IX. Monomachus. It is this prince, and not as some historians suppose, Vladimir, the eldest son of Yaroslaf, that married, in about 1070, Gytha, the daughter of our King Harold, who was slain at the battle of Hastings. This princess had taken refuge vuth her two brothers at the court of the King of Denmark, which at that period maintained very intimate relations with the Russian princes. The Norwegian chronicles state that Mstislaf, the son of Gytha and of Vladimir, married Christina, the daughter of Ingo Strenkelson, King of Sweden. Vladimir Monomachus, who died in 1125, likewise divided his dominions amongst his successors, and as the princely house multiplied, the country was continually a prey to internal dissensions and strife. In the year preceding the death of Monomachus, Kief was nearly destroyed by fire, and judging from the great number of churches and houses that fell a prey to the flames that city must have been anciently of great opulence and extent. This calamity was followed in the succeeding reign by a still greater one, when Novgorod, the sister capital, was desolated by a famine so awful that the survivors were not sufficiently numerous to bury the dead, and the streets were blocked up by the decayed corpses of the inhabitants. The reigns which followed this period of Russian history are distinguished by little else than continual civil wars for the possession of the throne of Kief, but in 1158 the town of Vladimir became the capital instead of Kief. In 1224, the Russian people were for the first time threatened with an B 2 4 1 . — Historical Notice, Introd. invasion of the Mongols, whose leader, Chinghiz Khan, after subjecting the cities and people of Central Asia to his sway, had sent in about 1223 a portion of his hordes to take possession of the west coast of the Caspian, whence they pushed on to the banks of the Dnieper. The Polovtes, who had in vain endeavoured to arrest the progress of the horde, were at length con- strained to apply to their hitherto inveterate foes, the Eussian princes, for assistance, and, the cause being now equally dear to all parties, the Eussians made an intrepid stand on the banks of the Khalka, near the pre- sent town of Mariupol. The impetuous attack, however, of the invaders was not to be withstood ; and the Prince of Kief having treacherously abstained from taking part iin the battle, the Eussians were completely routed, and scarcely a tenth part of an army composed of 100,000 men escaped. The enemy then pursued his way unmolested to the capital, which he took, and put 50,000 of the inhabitants of the principality of Kief to the sword. The further progress of the Tartars northward was marked by fire and bloodshed ; but, having reached Novgorod Severski, in the south of Eussia, they faced about and retreated to the camp of Chinghiz Khan, who was at that time in Bukharia. Thirteen years after, Baati Khan, the grandson of Chinghiz Khan, came to the Volga with 300,000 men, and desolated Eussia again, committing every species of cruelty and many breaches of faith with the towns which submitted to his arms. In this manner the provinces of Eiazan, Periaslavl, Eostof, and several others fell into his hands : for, with incredible apathy, and contrary to their usually warlike inclinations, the Eussian princes neglected to raise any troops to dispute the progress of the Tartars, the attention of Yury (George) II., Prince of Vladimir, having moreover been at that important juncture engrossed in celebrating the marriage of one of his boyars. Eoused however, at last, to a sense of his desperate position, Yury placed himself at the head of some troops hastily, called together and left his family under the protection of one of his nobles, trusting that his capital would be able to sustain a long siege. But he was mistaken : the Tartars soon made themselves masters of Vla- dimir, and the princesses, as well as other persons of distinction, were burnt alive in the church in which they had taken shelter. On hearing of this tragical event, Yury marched with his adherents to meet the foe : the con- test was sanguinary and short ; but, after performing prodigies of valour, the Eussians were borne down by overpowering numbers, and the prince was left amongst the slain. There was now nothing to arrest the march of the ruthless Tartars, and they pushed forward to within sixty miles of Novgorod Severski, when they again turned round without any ostensible motive and evacuated the Eussian territory. The wretched condition into which the southern and central parts of the empire were thrown by these invasions afforded a most advantageous opportunity for other enemies to attack it ; and, accordingly, in 1242, and during the reign of Yaroslaf II., the Swedes, Danes, and Livonians, sent a numerous and well-disciplined army to demand the submission of Novgorod the Great ; this, Alexander, the son of the reign- ing prince, refused to yield, and, leaving his capital, he advanced, unaided by any allies, to meet his opponents, and fought the celebrated battle of the Neva, which gained him the surname of Nevski and a place in the Eussian calendar. The personal courage of Alexander in this battle was of the highest order and mainly contributed to secure the victory. A cruel and constantly fluctuating war with the Tartars, various incur- Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice* 5 sions by the Livonians, Lithnanians, Swedes, and Poles, and the most frightful civil discord amongst the several, almost regal, provinces of Eussia, occupied fourteen successive reigns, between Yury II., who died in 1237, and Ivan- 1., surnamed “ Kalita,” who succeeded his father in the princi- cipality of Vladimir in 1328. At times, during this period, the Tartars arrogated to themselves the power of protectors of this or that interest ; and in the case of Ivan I., Uzbek Khan secured to him the possession of Novgorod, as well as of Vladimir and Moscow. Ivan’s father had greatly beautified and improved Moscow. Ivan followed his example by building the present Cathedral of the Assumption, the Cathedral of the Archangel Michael, and other churches, and made Moscow his residence. As the residence also of the Metropolitan, Moscow rapidly advanced in importance. Ivan’s reign of twelve years was remarkable as one of improvement and peace ; and he exercised a sound discretion by building a wall of oak round the city and a rampart of earth and stone. At the close of his life he took monastic vows, and died in 1341. In the reign of Ivan II., second son of the previous Tsar of that name, Moscow finally established its pre-eminence as a city, and became the capital of the empire. Ivan II. died in 1358. In 1380 the Eussians, under Dimitri IV., raised an army of 400,000 men, met the Tartar hordes near the Don, which they had reached on their way to re-establish their weakened supremacy over the Eussian princes, and defeated them with great loss on the field of Kulikovo ; the victors, however, sufiered greatly, and when Dimitri reviewed his army after the battle he found it reduced to 40,000 men : this success obtained for him the surname of Donski. Subsequently, however, to this victory the Tartars again advanced, and Dimitri, betrayed by his allies, the princes of the neigh- bouring states, deserted Moscow, which fell by capitulation into the hands of the Tartars, who devastated it with fire and sword until it was utterly destroyed, no building being left standing that was not constructed of stone. The character of Dimitri is thus given by the Metropolitan Cyprian of Moscow; — “He knew,” says that ecclesiastic, “howto soften the kingl}" office by condescension ; he was impartial in the administration of justice, and delighted to promote the peace and happiness of his subjects ; his learning was small, but the rectitude of his disposition and the kindness of his heart supplied the defects of education, and entitle him to a distin- guished place amongst Eussian sovereigns.” His son Basil (Vasili) II., who succeeded him in 1389, was destined to see his country invaded by the Tartars under Tamerlane ; but they never reached his capital, for when he prepared to give them battle on the river Oka, they suddenly turned round and retired, as their countrymen had previously done on two other occasions. The Eussians attributed this to a miracle performed by a picture of the Virgin Mary, painted by St. Luke. The horde, however, joined by the Lithuanians, afterwards laid siege to Moscow, but were repulsed by the inhabitants, the Grand Duke having retired with his family to Kostroma. Exasperated at this defeat, the I'artars pillaged the surrounding country and slaughtered the defenceless peasantry in their retreat. Money was' first coined in Novgorod during this reign : hitherto its place had been sup- plied with skins and pieces of leather ; twenty skins of the marten were con- sidered as equivalent to a fjrivna^ the value of which was a pound of gold or silver, the equivalent of nine and a quarter ounces in Kief and of thirteen ounces in Novgorod, G 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. During the reign of Basil II. Ilussia was thrice visited with plague and famine, while the ancient city of Novgorod was shaken by an earthquake after the greater part of its buildings had been consumed by fire. Internal dissensions broke out on the death of Basil, a dispute having arisen respecting the succession to the throne between Basil III. (the Dark), the son of that monarch, and his uncle Yury : this was, by the consent of both parties, left to the decision of the Khan of Tartary, who determined in favour of Basil ; nevertheless, a civil war followed, and Yury was for a short time in possession of the throne, when, finding himself abandoned by his party and his family, he restored it to his nephew, and returned to his principality of Galitch or Galicia. Complicated wars, Kussian and Tartar, followed; the principal incident of which was that Ivan, the Prince of Mojaisk, in the interest of the traitor Shemiaka, induced Basil to stop at the monastery of the Troitsa to return thanks on his return from the Tartar horde, and, having seized him there, he took him to Moscow and put out his eyes. A few years after the Prince of Mojaisk had committed this savage act Basil was restored to the throne and he died in 1462. The first exploit which Basil’s son and successor, Ivan III., attempted was the reduction of the Tartar city of Kazan ; the next was the sub- jection, in 1475, of Novgorod the Great. He succeeded in incorporating that city and province with his own dominions, and after receiving the oaths of the citizens, he carried off with him to Moscow their cele- brated Veche bell.* The next and most arduous undertaking was the destruction of the Golden Horde of Tartars under Akhmet, which he effected in revenge for the insult offered him by that Khan in demanding the homage he had received from his predecessors. Ivan spat on the edict and on Akhmet’s seal and put his ambassadors to death, sparing one only to convey the intelligence to his master, who prepared in the following year to take his revenge ; but, awed by the preparations made to receive him on the Oka, Akhmet retired for a time and subsequently took the more circuitous route through Lithuania, from which country he expected support. The Kussians, however, met and defeated a part of his horde, and were returning home, when the Khan was met on a different route by the Nogay Tartars, who routed his army and slew him in the battle. Casimir IV. of Poland, Akhmet’s ally, also incurred the indignation of Ivan, not only for this war, but because he had attempted to poison him, and a raid made by the Moscovite troops into the territories of the Polish king was eminently successful. The powerful and ambitious prince of Moscow also made treaties of alliance with, and received ambassadors from, the Pope, the Sultan, the Kings of Denmark and Poland, and from the Kepublic of Venice; it was he who assumed the title of Grand Duke (or Prince) of Novgorod, Vladimir, Moscow, and all Eussia, and added to his arms the Black Eagle with two heads after his marriage with Sophia Paleologus, a princess of the imperial blood of Constantinople. In fact, Ivan III. may be called the true founder of the modern Eussian Empire. The Kussian historian Karamzin thus describes him : — “ Without being a tyrant like his grandson, he had received from nature a certain harshness of character which he knew how to moderate by the strength of his reason. It is, however, said that a single glance of Ivan, when he was y For the history of that ancient republic, vide Eoute 9. Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 7 excited with anger, would make a timid woman swoon, that petitioners dreaded to approach his throne, and that even at his table the hoyars, his grandees, trembled before him;’' which portrait does not belie his own declaration, when the same boyars demanded that he should give the crown to his grandson Ivan, whom he had dispossessed in favour of a son by his second wife, “ I shall give to Kussia whomsoever I please.” He died, very infirm, in 1505, having reigned forty- three years. Wars between the Ptussians, the Poles, the Tartars, and the Novgorodians again arose on the death of Ivan ; and it was not until the death of Basil IV., his son and suc- cessor, and after a minority of twelve years had elapsed in the reign of Ivan IV., that internal cabals and intrigues were for a time suppressed. This latter monarch, the first to take the title of Tsar,* married Anastasia, the daughter of a boyar, and who, in the early part of his reign, had the happiest ascendency over a character naturally violent and cruel. Ivan was at this period affable and condescending, accessible to both rich and poor, and his mental powers, under her guidance, were employed in ad- vancing the interests and happiness of his subjects. Ivan soon perceived that in order to preserve his own power he must annihilate the Tartar dominion ; to this he felt his uninstructed army was unequal : he there- fore established, in 1545, the militia of the Streltsi, and armed them with muskets instead of bows, — hitherto their arms, as their name imports, from Strela, an arrow. He then laid siege to and captured Kazan, taking the Khan prisoner. He likewise defeated Gustavus Wasa in a pitched battle near Wiborg, ravaged Livonia, taking Horpat, Narva, and thirty fortified towns, and made war on the King of Poland because he had refused him his daughter in marriage. An unsuccessful campaign against this poten- tate, attributed by the boyars to the unskilful arrangements of the foreign generals of the Tsar, as well as the death of his wife Anastasia, whose con- trolling influence was no longer felt, led to the unlimited indulgence of Ivan’s naturally ferocious disposition ; and the remaining acts of his life, which this short sketch will not permit us to dilate upon, gained for him in the history of his own country the surname of “ The Terrible.” Independently of the many and dreadful acts of barbarity of which he was guilty, he killed his own son with a^stick in a paroxysm of rage, and died a prey to the grief and remorse which this fearful crime occasioned, after having endeavoured to atone for it by giving large sums of money to different monasteries. In his last moments he received the tonsure. As a legislator he was superior to his predecessors, having, with the assistance of his nobles, compiled a code of laws called Sudebnik. In his reign an Enghsh ship, commanded by Piichard Chancellor, on a voyage of discovery in the Arctic Sea, anchored in the mouth of the Dvina.f Ivan controlled his religious prejudices and tolerated the Lutheran churches of the foreign merchants at Moscow ; but he never shook hands with an ambassador without washing his own immediately after the visitor had taken his leave. AVith a character so strongly marked by cruelty, superstition, and caprice, it is remarkable to find not only that he was enterprising and intelligent, but that he should have entertained the idea of placing the Scriptures in the hands of his * The sovereigns of Moscow had hitherto been called Great Princes—" Veliki Kniaz.” Czar is a corrupt orthography of the title. t For history of intercourse between Piussia and England, vide ‘ British Factory and Chapel,’ St. Petersburg. 8 1 . — Historical Notice, Introd. siiLjects in the mother- tongue : he ordered a translation to he made of the Acts and Epistles, and caused it to be disseminated over his dominions. “/m the memory of the people f observes Karamzin, “ the brilliant renown of Ivan survived the recollection of his bad qualities. The groans had ceased, the victims were reduced to dust ; new events caused ancient traditions to be forgotten, and the memory of this prince reminded the people only of the conquest of three Mogul kingdoms. The proofs of his atrocious actions were buried in the public archives, whilst Kazan, Astrakhan, and Siberia remained in the eyes of the nation as imperishable monuments of his glory. The Russians, who saw in him the illustrious author of their power and civilization, rejected or forgot the surname of tyrant given him by his contemporaries. Under the influence of some confused recollections of his cruelty they still call him Ivan ‘ the Terrible,’ without distinguishing him from his grandfather, Ivan III., to whom Russia had given the same epi- thet rather in praise than in reproach. History does not pardon wicked princes so easily as do people.” Ivan IV. died in 1584, having governed the Russian nation for a longer period than any other sovereign, namely, fifty-one years.* His son Theodore I., who ascended the throne after his death and was a feeble and vacillating prince, died in 1598. His successor was Boris Godunof, his wife’s brother, who, like our own Richard, put to death his nephew Dimitri, f the youngest son of John the TerrilDle ; and therefore in Theodore ended the dynasty of Rurik, which had Wielded the sceptre during seven centuries. Consequent upon this deed came all kinds of civil calamities, and in 1604 a pretender to the throne arose in the person of a Russian monk. This man assumed the character of the murdered Dimitri, and after having drawn to his standard the Poles and the Cossacks of the Don, met Boris in the field, remained master of it, and in the space of one year seated himself on the throne. Nor was this civil war the only calamity which befell the Russians during the reign of Boris ; Moscow was, in 1601, visited by the most appalling famine that ever devastated the capital of a country. It is related that, driven by the pangs of hunger, instances occurred of mothers having first slain and then eaten their own children ; and it is recorded that a woman, in her extremity, seized with her teeth the flesh of her son, whom she carried in her arms. Others confessed that they had entrapped into their dwellings, and subsequently killed and eaten, three men successively. Pies made of human flesh were openly sold in the market. One hundred and twenty-seven thousand corpses remained for some days in the streets unburied and were afterwards in- terred in the fields, exclusive of those which had been previously buried in the four hundred churches of the city. An eye-witness relates that this awful visitation carried off 500,000 persons from the densely-peopled capital, the population of which had at the time been augmented by an influx of strangers. During this dreadful calamity, Boris, with justifiable violence, broke o])en the granaries which avarice had closed, and caused the corn to be sold at half its value. Serfdom was finally established in Russia by Boris Godunof. By his advice a decree was issued, on the 24th November 1597, a year previous to the * For an account of the OpritclmUcs and other acts of the reign of John the Terrible, vide, the description of Moscow. t Vide Cath. of the Assumption, Moscow. 1 . — Historical HoticC* 9 Bussia. death of Theodore, forbidding peasants to leave the lands on which that date should find them. This was the fii’st enactment that bound the peasantry firmly to the soil. Earlier traces of their attachment are, it is true, to be found in the middle of the 13th century, during the Tartar dominion, when a census was taken (in 1257) in order to secure the regular collection of taxes. The inhabitants of towns and villages were then forbidden to leave them without permission, and the custom sprang up by degrees of restricting the migrations of the rural population to the commencement or termination of the agricultural season. The custom was legalized in 1497 and confirmed by John IV. in 1550; but the full and final attachment of the husbandman to the soil was not consummated until the close of the 16th century. Interminable and very complicated troubles, fomented by a second false Dimitri, and by other impostors, ensued. After the murder (in 1605) of the Tsar Theodore, son of Boris Godunof, by the orders of the False Dimitri, who held Moscow for about a year, and after the short reign of Shuiski, who was taken to Warsaw as a prisoner (1606-1608), Moscow was occu- pied, in 1610, by the Poles, who took possession of the city in the name of Vladislas, son of Sigismund, King of Poland, who had been elected to the throne by the Ptussian boyars, on condition that he should embrace the Kusso-Greek religion. His election, however, and the treason by which it was accompanied, gave great offence to the national feeling, and Minin, a citizen of Nijni-Novgorod, called his countrymen to arms and entreated the boyar Pojarski to take the command. This he did without reluctance, and his army was quickly increased by the arrival of troops and money from various towns, and by the Cossacks and Streltsi, who flocked to his banner. Thus strengthened, they marched to Yaroslaf, and afterwards to Moscow, to which they laid siege, carrying the Kitai Gorod by assault and making a fearful slaughter of the Poles, whose main forces were at that time engaged in the siege of Smolensk. Driven to the greatest extremity by famine, the last Polish occupants of the Kremlin surrendered, and Vladislas abandoned the country over which he might have ruled if his father had pursued a more politic course and not lost time in besieging Smolensk. In 1613, after the retreat of the Polish troops, the States-General, convoked by the boyars and military chiefs, j^roceeded to elect as their Tsar, Michael Pomanofl, the son of the Metropolitfin of Postof, and who was then only sixteen years of age. He was proclaimed Tsar of all the Pussias, without the title of Autocrat enjoyed by the Sovereigns after Ivan III., and the Act of Election stipulated many important rights to the people. Civil strife and foreign wars continued after the accession of Michael ; and the contest in which the Tsar was involved with Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden was terminated, not much to the advantage of Russia, through the mediation of England, France, and Holland. A treaty was signed by the belligerent parties on the 26th of January, 1616, giving to Sweden Ingria, Carelia, Livonia, and Esthonia ; the Russians, however, regaining Novgorod, Avhich had been taken from them by the Swedes. The Poles were at that time masters of Smolensk and had ravaged the country up to the walls of Moscow, against which they made a night attack, but were repulsed ; they remained, however, in possession of Smolensk, after sustaining a siege of two years. Dragoons are mentioned for the first time in this reign, as forming part of a Russian army, and the Tsar was assisted in his wars by both German and French troops ; these regiments served him as models for the organization of 10 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. the Kussian army, which was further improved by the discipline introduced by Scottish ofiScers.* After a reign distinguished by an enlightened policy and by virtuous habits, the Tsar died in July 1645, at the age of forty-nine years. His son Alexis, who was a prince of a mild and benevolent disposition, suc- ceeded him. The chief events of his reign were the marauding expeditions of the Cossacks of the Don, led by Stenka Razin, a rebellion in the city of Astrakhan, ai^d the appearance of another Pretender, who was brought captive to Moscow and put to a violent and cruel death. In this reign shipwrights came over from Holland and England, and a Dutchman named Butler built a vessel called the Eagle, at Dedinova, a village on the Oka river, near the mouth of the Moskva. This was the first ship that the Russians had seen built on scientific principles. The Tsar Alexis directed his attention to legal reforms, and his reign is most remarkable for the improvements which he introduced. The States-General, a body composed of delegates from all classes, and first summoned in 1550, after the suppression of the old Vech5 or Witenagemotes, were convoked in 1648 for the compilation of a new code of laws. Little Russia and Red Russia (Galicia), conquered by Casimir the Great of Poland in the 14th century, submitted to Alexis. An account of his quarrel with the Patriarch Nicon, and of the origin of dissent in the Russian Church, will be read in Boute 10. Alexis died in 1676, and was suc- ceeded by his son Theodore HI., who died young in 1682. During the short period allotted to him for the exercise of power the latter Prince evinced every disposition to carry out his father’s plans ; he directed his attention to the improvement of the laws and rendered justice accessible to all. In the words of a Russian historian, he “lived the joy and delight of his people, and died amidst their sighs and tears. On the day of his death Moscow evinced the same distress as Rome on the death of Titus.” The sovereignty of the Cossacks was secured to Russia in this reign. Theodore left no children and named no successor, expecting, no doubt, that his own brother Ivan would succeed him. That prince, however, was both mentally and physically incapable of holding the reins of government, and therefore his sister Sophia was intrusted with the affairs of state by the Streltsi, who had arrogated to themselves the power of the Pimtorian bands and who decided that the Tsar’s half-brother, Peter, afterwards the Great, the son of Natalia, Alexis’s second wife, should share the throne with him. The two boys were therefore crowned together by the Patriarch on the 15th of June 1682, but Sophia was in reality the sovereign. Subsequently to this. Prince Khovanski, leader of the Streltsi, having not only neglected to cultivate the princess’s friendship, but having also allowed her to perceive that he and his men narrowly watched her proceedings, she determined upon his ruin, which was further hastened by the intrigue of his known enemy, Miloslavski. This boyar accused the Prince in a public placard of having together with his son and his Streltsi conspired to effect the death of the two Tsars and the destruction of the family of Romanoff ; and under this accusation Khovanski and his son were seized and beheaded. Their followers, furious at Khovanski’s death, at last became disheartened at the preparations that were being made in order to resist and punish them, and proceeded to the monastery of the Troitsa, where they made their submission to Natalia and the Tsars, who had tied there for Vide ‘ British Factory and Chapel ' at St. Petersburg, for names and further particulars. iiussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 11 refuge. Sophia still contrived to govern Kussia with the assistance of her Minister, Galitzin, until she affronted Peter, who retired to the town of Kolomna. To that place he was followed by a large party; hut being soon after informed that the Streltsi were again in revolt under Sophia’s influence, Natalia once more removed him to the fortified walls of the Troitsa. It was in vain that Sophia disclaimed this accusation. Peter neither believed nor forgave her ; and, failing in her attempt to reach Poland, she was incarcerated in a monastery for the rest of her life. Considering the times in which she lived, this princess was a woman of extraordinary taste and great literary acquirements. A tragedy which she wrote while involved in state intrigues and apparently absorbed in political turmoil, is still preserved. On Peter’s return from the Troitsa to Moscow, his brother resigned to him his share in the government, and in 1689 lie became sole Tsar, being at that time only seventeen years of age. Ivan V. survived until 1696. The ruling passion of Peter the Great was a desire to extend his empire and consolidate his power; and accordingly his first act was to make wai' on the Turks, an undertaking which was at the outset imprudently con- ducted, and consequently unsuccessful ; he lost 30,000 men before Azof and did not obtain permanent possession of the town until the year 1609, and then only by an armistice. In the following year he was defeated at Narva by an inferior force under Charles XII., then only a boy of seventeen ; and on many other occasions the Russians suffered severe checks and re- verses. But at length the indomitable perseverance of Peter prevailed. . St. Petersburg was founded in 1703, under the circumstances detailed in the description of that city. In 1705 he carried Narva, the scene of his former defeat, by assault ; and two years after, by the crowning victory of Poltava, where he showed the qualities of an able general, he sealed the fate of his gallant and eccentric adversary and that of the nation over which he ruled. In 1711 Peter once more took the field against the Turks ; but his troops were badly provisioned, and, having led them into a very disadvantageous position near the Pruth, he was reduced to propose a peace, under the teims of which the King of Sweden was permitted to return to his own country and Azof was restored to the Turks. From this period, to 1718, he was constantly occupied in pursuing with vigour the plans which he had originated for extending the frontiers of his kingdom towards the sea; and in 1718 he drove the Swedes out of Finland, made several descents upon the coast near Stockholm, destroyed whole towns, and finally, in 1721, by the peace of Nystad, retained Esthonia, Livouia, Ingria, a part of Carclia and Finland, as well as the islands of Eago, Moen, Oesel, &c. Having no longer an enemy in that direction, he turned his arms eastward and took Herbend, on the Caspian, in 1721 — an inglorious conquest, for only 6000 men were opposed to his veteran army of 11,000, besides Cossacks and Kalmucks. Previously to this last military achievement the health of Peter had become much affected by the conduct of his son Alexis and that of his wife Catherine. The Tsesarevitch was the son of Peter by his first wife, Eudoxia Lopukhin, the daughter of a boyar, to whom he had been married in 1689, when he was only seventeen years of age. On his return from England in order to quell a fresh insurrection of the Streltsi, Peter refused to see his wife, and in the following year 12 1 . — Historical Notice, liitrod. lie forced her to take the veil and the name of Helena in a convent at Suzdal — on account, said Peter, in an Ukaz, of “ certain of her thwai tings and suspicions.” This had evidently reference to Eudoxia’s jealousy of Anne Mons, a German lady of Moscow, whom Peter would probably have married if she had not been discovered in a secret attachment to one of her own countrymen, whom she afterwards married. Peter thereupon transferred his affections to Catherine, the daughter of a Courland peasant, who had been married to a Swedish corporal, and who was taken prisoner by the Russian troops at Marienburg in 1702, together with the family in which she had been brought up. Sheremetief, the Russian commander-in-chief, had retained her in his service, but six months later he ceded her to Peter the Great’s favourite, Menshikof, originally an itinerant vendor of meat-pies, who again, a few years after, resigned his handsome and clever handmaiden to the Tsar. Catherine soon after embraced the Russo-Greek religion, the unfortunate son of Eudoxia being her sponsor on the occasion. In 1712, after her return with Peter from his unfortunate campaign on the Pruth, when she saved the Russian army by a skilful negotiation, she was married to him at St. Petersburg, her two daughters (Anne, about five, and Elizabeth, about three years old) acting as her bridesmaids. In the previous year, Alexis Petrovitch had been married to the Princess Charlotte of Brunswick-Blankenburg (sister of the consort of Charles VI. of Germany), who died ten days after giving birth to a son, in 1715. The death of his wife, whom he had treated very badly, appears to have in- creased the dejection and apathy with which he viewed his prospects, par- ticularly since a son had been born to Catherine a few days after the death of the Tsesarevna. In answer to his father’s remonstrances on the subject, addressed to him on the day of his wife’s funeral, Alexis said that he was “ useless,” and that he wished to relinquish his right of succession. Peter endeavoured to induce his son to take an interest in state affairs, but to no purpose. In 1716 Alexis fled to the Court of Vienna, with which the diplomatic relations of his father were at that time of an unpleasant character. The fortress of Ehrenburg, in the Tyrol, was assigned to him as a residence ; but when his surrender was, in the following year, de- manded by the Envoy of Peter, Alexis was sent hurriedly to Naples. The escape of his son, and the failure of his attempt to have an interview with our King George I. in Germany, aggravated the malady of Peter, who was at that time suspected in England of harbouring a Swedish scheme for the restoration of the Stuarts. Catherine, also, at this time gave premature birth to a son, who, however, died in 1719. After her recovery Peter again went to travel abroad, visiting Paris, where he was well received by the Regent ; but on his return to St. Peters- burg, a little more than a year later, he was much angered at the manner in which the work of constructing his new capital had been conducted. His favourite sister Natalia also died in 1717. In the month of October of that year, Alexis had been induced to leave Naples on board a Russian vessel of war, and in January 1718 he was brought to Moscow, after obtaining his father’s promise that he would be allowed to live on his estates, and that his mistress Euphrosinia, a low Finnish woman, woukl not be taken from him. In the following mouth he formally abdicated his right to the throne, and] Euphrosinia having, it is alleged, confessed that Russia. 1 . — Historical Notice, 13 Alexis had intended to seize the crown and to, kill his father, who, more- over, suspected him of being in secret correspondence with Eudoxia for that purpose, Peter the Great appointed a High Commission for lus trial ; and, although the application of torture is at present denied by some historians, the fact remains that Alexis died suddenly on the 26th June, 1718, in- the fortress of St. Petersburg, soon after he had been visited and cross-examined by his father. Catherine was solemnly crowned at Moscow in 1724:, but in the autumn of the same year Peter the Great discovered that she had been unfaithful to him. She was, nevertheless, forgiven ; her lover, Mons, chamberlain at the palace, and his sister, alone suftering the penalty of death ; and a few months afterwards the Tsar died, in the fifty-second year of his age, I’rom the effects of a cold which he had caught in saving some men from drowning at Lakhta, near St. Petersburg. He possessed in an eminent degree a persevering mind and a resolute will which defied all difficulties. By the assistance of his foreign officers he succeeded in forming and bringing into a high state of discipline a large army; he found Kussia without a fishing-smack, and bequeathed to her a nav}g to which that of Sweden, long established and highly efficient, lowered her flag ; he built St. Petersburg, which may be said to float upon the waters of the Neva ; he caused canals and other works of public utility to be constructed in various parts of the empire, endowed colleges and universities, and established commercial relations with China and with almost every other nation on the globe. The Tsar likewise possessed the capability of en- during privation and bodily fatigue to an almost incredible extent, and seemed to act upon the idea that by his own personal exertions and the versatility of his genius he could accomplish for Kussia that which it had taken centuries to effect in other countries ; and he also fancied he could infuse into her citizens an immediate appreciation of the mechanical and polite arts as well as a taste for things which are seen only in an advanced stage of civilization. Peter devoted the whole of his attention and all his energies to this theory, and although he could not achieve impossibilities, he was enabled, by the uncontrolled exercise of the imperial will and by inexhaustible resources, to effect a most extraordinary and rapid change in the political and economical condition of his country. The States-General were no more summoned. The Tsar reigned alone, without even the old Chamber or Council of Boyars, that had existed through so many pre- vious reigns. In their place he founded the Senate, or High Court of Appeal, which is preserved to this day. His system of administration Avas founded on the Swedish Collegiate Institutions. Dissent from the Church Avas very much increased by his reforms, Avhich even included the shaving of beards, and Avhich caused him to be styled the Antichrist by the o 2 :>ponents of the ritual of Nicon. All the civil functionaries of the croAvn Averc ordered in 1705 to shave their beards, and the Amevods or military goA'ernors of the principal towns in Kussia Avere ordered to appear before His Majesty in Moscow Avithout beards or moustaches. Those Avho refused to shave Avere threatened Avith the Tsar’s displeasure and ordered not to quit Moscoav. Finding, however, that this iikaz had not produced the desired effect, Peter imposed a fine of 50 roubles on all those Avho ventured to disobey his orders. A licence in the shape of a copper medal Avas, hoAvever, subsequently Avorn by those Avho had paid for the privilege of Avearing their own hair ; and later still all classes, 1 . — Historical Notice, U Introd. excepting the clergy, were compelled to purchase the immunity and to wear the badge if they refused to shave.* The manual dexterity and mechanical knowledge of Peter were very great. Against the expressed wish of his boyars and of his clergy, who thought it an irreligious act, he left Kussia to make himself acquainted with the arts and inventions of other European nations and worked with an adze in their jDrincipal dockyards. His apprenticeship to a shipbuilder at Saardam is a well-known historical fact. He not only built, but sailed his own boat, which is still to be seen in St. Petersburg, as are also specimens of his engraving, turning, and carpenter’s work. He rose at four ; at six he was either in the senate or at the admiralty, and his subjects must have believed that he had the gift of ubiquity, so many and various were his occupations. He had also the virtue of economy, a quality rarely seen in a sovereign. He even found time for literature, and translated several works into Eussian ; amongst these was the ‘ Architecture ’ of Leclerc, and the ‘ Art of Con- structing Dams and Mills ’ by Sturm ; these MSS. are preserved. There had been no schools to teach arithmetic before the reign of Peter. In 1700 he erected a large school in Moscow {vide Suharef Tower), in which a great number of boys were taught arithmetic ; and even a gratuity in money was given to such as were willing to come and learn. Some of the most ingenious among them were taught mathematics by an Englishman of the name of Farquharson, and by two young men from Christ’s Hospital (Cx Wynne and Graves), whom the Tsar sent over from London when he was there. About a hundred of these boys, who had also been taught navigation, were sent to England, Holland, and Italy, to qualify themselves for the Tsar’s naval service. “ The method,” says Motley, in his ‘History of Peter I.’, “in which the Tsar took arts and sciences among his people was certainly very cruel, and that was to confine the professors of them in his country by denying them passports, and by keeping them out of great part of the pay or stipends which were agreed to be given them.” Captain Perry, another Englishman, who had been engaged to make a report upon the feasibility of establishing a communi- cation between the Volga and the Don, was treated as harshly as Mr. Farquharson. During the Tsar’s visit to London in 1698 he was much gazed at by the populace, and on one occasion was upset by a porter who pushed against him with his load, when Lord Carmarthen, who was in attendance upon him, fearing there would be a pugilistic encounter, turned angrily to the man, and said, “ Don’t you know this is the Tsar ? ” “ Tsar ! ” replied the man, with his tongue in his cheek, “ we are all Tsars here.” Going one day with Lord Carmarthen to Westminster Hall when it was, as usual, full of men wearing wigs and gowns, Peter asked who those people might be, and, when informed they were lawyers, nothing could exceed his astonishment. “ Lawyers ! ” he said ; “ why, I have but two in all my dominions, and I believe I shall hang one of them the moment I get home.” In the introduction to Evelyn’s ‘ Diary ’ the following reference is made to the Tsar’s mode of life in London : — “ When the Tsar of Muscovy came to England in 1698, proposing to instruct himself in the art of ship- building, he was desirous of having the use of Sayes Court in consequence of its vicinity to the King’s dockyard at Deptford. This was conceded ; but during his stay he did so much damage, that Mr. Evelyn had an * Some of these badges are preserved in the Numismatic Collection at the Hermitage, at St. Petersburg. Kussia. 15 1 * — Historical Notice. allowance of 150Z. for it. He especially regrets the mischief done to his famous holly-hedge, which might have been thought beyond the reach of damage. But one of Tsar Peter’s favourite recreations had been to demolish the hedges by riding through them in a wheel-barrow.” He was very well received by William and Mary, who gave him a yacht called the ‘ Transport Koyal,’ and placed at his disposal the services of Yice-Admiral Mitchell, who was able to converse with the Tsar in Dutch. Lord Carmarthen, who spent many days with the Tsar in sailing his yacht on the Thames, obtained a monopoly of the sale of tobacco in Kussia, in consideration of an annual payment of 48,000?. The vices of Peter, particularly a great fondness for strong liquors, were such as might have been expected in a man of his violent temperament, despotic in a barbarous country, and who in very early life had been sur- rounded by flatterer^ and dissolute associates. It would, however, be foreign to the purpose of this work to enter into a discussion of this nature. The Russians date their civilization from his reign ; but a slight glance at the history of some of the early Tsars will show that, in many of the points on which the greatness of his reputation rests, he was anticipated by his predecessors. Dark and savage as the history of the country is, an attempt at public education had previously been made, religious toleration and an anxiety to promote commerce existed, and the improvement and codi- fication of the laws had already occupied attention. The untimely end of some of the earlier princes had deprived Russia of monarchs far more bene- volent than Peter, men of finer and more generous minds, and, although not so ambitious, quite as anxious for her welfare. Under their sway no such rush at improvement would have been made ; no such influx of foreigners would have taken place ; but, if not so rapidly, at least as surely, those sovereigns might have effected quite as much real good. Peter left no code of laws established on the broad principles of justice ; he travelled in England and Holland, but thought only of their navies and wholly overlooked the great principles of their government, by which he might have ameliorated the condition of his own. The death of Peter the Great, who had assumed the title of Emperor, was the signal for the formation of political parties within the palace. One party, composed of the majority of the adherents to the old order of things in Russia, wished to place the infant son of Alexis on the throne and to imprison Catherine and her daughter in a convent, but the Empress having been informed of this plan, measures were immediately taken to prevent its execution. It is supposed that Peter had intended that his daughter Anne, affianced to the Duke of Holstein, should succeed him, but his dying hand could only trace the words “ give all ” on the slate that was brought to him at his request shortly before he became insensible. The story of his having left a political will is entirely apocryphal. Catherine I. was at once proclaimed, and received the first homage of her courtiers in the very room in the Winter Palace at St. Petersburg in which the body of Peter the Great was lying in state. Menshikof became more powerful than ever, the empress being ill prepared for the exercise of the art of government. She could neither read nor write ; her daughter Elizabeth usually signed her name for her, and particularly to her last will and testament. Gordon, in his ‘ History of Peter the Great,’ says : “ She was a very pretty, w*ell-lookt woman, of good sense, but not of that sublimity of wit, or rather that quickness of imagination, which some 16 1 . — Historical Motic4, Introd. people have believed. The great reason why the Tsar was so fond of her was her exceeding good temper.” Peter used frequently to express his admiration at the propriety with which she supported her high station, without forgetting that she was not horn to that dignity. The principal object of her short reign of two years was the restoration of Schleswig to the Duke of Holstein, who had married her daughter Anne. The reduction of the capitation tax was the most popular act of her short reign, and Delille, Baer, and the Bernouillis were the most distinguished members of the Academy of Sciences which Peter had left her to open. On the death of Catherine I., in 1727, Peter II., son of Alexis, was ])roclaimed Emperor, under a High Privy Council, which was entirely under the influence of Menshikof, who caused his daughter to be betrothed to the young monarch. In order, however, to avoid the arrogance and tyranny of that minister, Peter took refuge at Peterhof and passed his time in the pleasures of the chase. In the autumn of 1727, Menshikof was dis- graced and banished with the whole of his family to one of his estates beyond Moscow, from whence he was exiled to Siberia, where he died. This would-be usurper was accused of having amassed immense riches at the expense of the crown, and even of having coined money for his own profit. His place was soon filled by a triumvirate, composed of Ostermann, Golovkin, and Apraxin, who likewise endeavoured to oppose Peter and the Dolgoroiiki faction. The latter encouraged the Emperor in his pleasures, to the detriment of public business. Ostermann endeavoured to recall him to a sense of his duties, and even went so far as to write a letter on the subject to Helena (Eudoxia), the grandmother of Peter II., who had been removed from Suzdal, under an escort, to the Devichi convent at Moscow. Great fears were entertained by certain foreign courts, and by the opponents of the old Russian party, that the influence of Helena (to whom a civil list had been granted) and the Emperor’s preference for Moscow, might result in a re-establishment of the order of things sub- verted by Peter the Great, especially as his grandson was fond neither of ships nor -sailors. The intrigues by which he was surrounded received a fresh impetus from the arrival at Moscow of Anne, Duchess of Courland, the daughter of Peter the Great’s half-brother Ivan. She came accom- panied by her lover Biren, who played such an important part in the next reign. Church affairs were likewise a prey to much dissension. Never- theless, the Emperor exhibited a good deal of common sense, and several la ws were framed in his reign favourable to the development of the trade and financial resources of the empire ; while the foreign policy of the country was conducted in a reasonable manner. In September 1729, Peter II. left Moscow for a time, accompanied by the Dolgoroukis and 620 hounds, but returned in November, when his intention of marrying a daughter of Prince Alexis Dolgorouki was publicly announced, his first bride having been banished with her father. The Dolgorouki faction triumphed and Ostermann began to tremble for his fate ; but in January 1730 the Emperor took the small-pox, and died within a few days, at the age of fourteen years and three months. The male line of the Romanoffs having become extinct in Peter II., the choice of a successor had to be made among the female descendants of Peter the Great and his half-brother Ivan. Prince John Dolgorouki, the favourite of the late Tsar, would have wished to proclaim his sister, the Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 17 affiauoed bride of Peter II., as Empress of all the Paissias ; and be actually rushed from the room, in which his master had just expired, with his sword drawn, and cried “Yive rimperatrice Catherine.” An attem]it was even made to forge a will to that effect, but the Galitzins, the rivals of the Dolgoroukis, succeeded in establishing a coalition in favour of Anne, Duchess of Courland, the daughter of Ivan V. The claim of Peter, the son of Anne, Duchess of Holstein, to succeed to the throne under the will of Catherine I., was set aside, as was also that of Catherine, the elder daughter of Ivan, married to the Duke of Mecklenburg, but separated from him, and at that time residing in Moscow. The High Privy Council was induced by Prince Dimitry Galitzin to elect the Duchess of Cour- land under certain conditions. The sovereign was required to promise that her greatest care would be the dissemination of the Russo-Greek religion ; that she would neither marry nor appoint a successor to the throne ; and that she would maintain irremovably her High Privy Council, then com- l)Osed of eight persons (belonging, with two exceptions, to the Dolgorouki and Galitzin families), and without its advice to make neither war nor peace, to impose no taxes, to make no appointments in the army or civil service above the rank of colonel, nor to nominate persons to any higli offices (the Guards and the troops being under the exclusive orders of the Council), to inflict no penalties without the judgment of a tribunal, to give away no manors or villages, to fill up no offices at Court, either with natives or foreigners, and lastly to make no personal disbursement of the public revenue, but to extend grace and mercy to all her true subjects. These conditions were sent to the Duchess, who was then at Mitau, and she subscribed them on the 28th January, 1730. But the action thus taken by the High Privy Council was viewed with considerable alarm in the upper classes of Russian society. It was feared that, instead of having one sovereign, eight autocrats would henceforth rule the empire ; and that while the rights of the empress would be limited, those of her Council would be uncontrolled. The new constitution was indeed that of an oligarchy, of which the powers w^ere vested in two great families ; but the influence of the Dolgoroukis and Galitzins was so great that about 500 of the clergy, nobility, and army, subscribed the Act of Election, on the conditions to which Anne had assented. By an oversight, however, of the Council, a thanksgiving service was performed at the Cathedral of the Assumption at Moscow, in which Anne was styled, like her predecessors, “ Autocrat of all the Russias.” The clergy did their utmost to upset the plans of the Council, notwithstanding several conces- sions which the latter had made, and by which the number of its members was increased, the privileges of the priesthood extended, and the seat of government removed from St. Petersburg to Moscow. They succeeded in causing the oath of allegiance to be drawn up in a form which practically set aside the authority of the High Piivy Council, which in vain en- deavoured to induce the empress to appear before it and to sign a charter on the conditions which she had already accepted. The opposite party encouraged her, and at last sent her a deputation which requested the empress to consult her people as to the form of government which they required, and which had been arbitrarily fixed by the Council. Their petition was granted, and the same day a deputation from the nobility presented a petition, praying for the institution of a Senate in lieu ^of a 18 Introd. 1 . — Historical Notice, Privy Council. In her reply the Empress simulated surprise, and asked, “Were the conditions which were submitted to me at Mitau not drawn up at the desire of the whole nation ? ” The answer being in the negative, she turned round to Prince Dolgorouki and accused him of having deceived her. The fate of the oligarchy was at once sealed. Anne had already suffered much during the three preceding reigns. Her liaisons had given rise to much trouble and annoyance, and a more legitimate heir to the throne was watching the course of events from the Duchy of Holstein, The Privy Council was abolished, and many changes were made in the civil and judicial administrations in accordance with the petition of the nobility. Considerable energy was employed in the amelioration of the trade and industry of the country ; and, in 1731, all foreigners were per- mitted to trade freely within the empire on payment of certain dues. The Empress attended the meetings of the Senate, which had superseded the Privy Council, and displayed great activity as well as judgment and firmness in the promulgation of various laws ; but from the early part of 1730 her favourite, Biren, and Lewenwold, the friend of Count Ostermann, who also possessed great influence, began to rule the empire in her name. Foreigners were appointed to many high ofiices, and even a Scottish officer, Keith, was made Lieutenant-Colonel of the Izmailoff Kegiment of Guards. National feelings were by these acts outraged. The empress gave way to luxury, indolence, and pleasure. The leaders of the Galitzin and Dolgorouki factions were banished with their families to Siberia, and many other Eussians of eminence shared the same fate. In 1732 the court was removed to St. Petersburg, where it pursued a course of still greater luxury and licentious- ness than at Moscow. Following the example of her grandfather, Peter the Great, she surrounded herself with buffoons, three of whom were noble- men of high birth. One of these, a Prince Galitzin, she married in 1740 to a Kalmuck dwarf, and caused him to be conducted by a grotesque bridal pro- cession to a palace of ice built on the Neva, in which the couple were forced to pass the night of their wedding day. The nuptial couch wgs also made of the same cold material, as well as the furniture and the four cannons which stood outside the palace, and from which several salutes were fired. Amidst the dissipation and frivolity of the court, the foreign affairs of the country were conducted with much activity, but with little success. In 1734, the provinces wrested by Peter I. from Persia were restored in return for certain commercial facilities. Anne opposed the election of Stanislas Lesczinski to the throne of Poland, and sent an army into Poland under General de Lacy, and later under Field-Marshal Miinnich. The latter took possession of Dantzig and made prisoner the small French contingent which had been sent to succour the cause of Stanislas, who was father of the Queen of France. The Poles might have succeeded in retaining the King whom they had elected, but their cause was ruined by their own disunion. In 1736 a war was prosecuted against the Crimean Tartars and the Turks, who were not inclined to give up the provinces which Peter the Great had been forced to abandon to them by the treaty signed on the Pruth. It was conducted with the loss of 100,000 men and at an enormous expense until 1740, when peace was made on condition that Azof, deprived of its fortifications, should be retained by Kussia, which on the other hand surrendered Moldavia and other conquests, and engaged not to maintain vessels of war or commerce in the Black Sea. In the Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice, 19 same year Mr. Fincli was sent to St. Petersburg as envoy from the court of St. James’s, which had previously been represented by a minister resident. England was then at war with Spain, and, fearing the intervention of Spain, sought the alliance of Russia, which was then threatened by Sweden at the instigation of France. The Marquis de la Chetardie, who was sent by the French court to counteract the influence of its enemies, became a great favourite at St. Petersburg and was soon initiated into the intrigues of the persons by whom the empress was surrounded. Biren, the grandson of a groom in the stables of the Duke of Courland, and made a count and a knight of the order of St. Andrew by his weak and indulgent mistress, had towards the close of her reign become all-powerful. Under his influence the greatest atrocities were committed by a sovereign who was naturally of a mild and humane disposition. A man whom he had himself recommended to the empress — Volynski — and who rose to be one of her principal secretaries of state, began to counteract the policy and influence both of Ostermann and Biren. The latter had conceived the project of obtaining the hand of the Princess Anne, niece of the empress and daughter of Catherine, the Empress Anne’s eldest sister, for his son, who was then only sixteen years of age. The princess, however, refused this alliance, greatly to the satisfaction of the empress, who wished her to marry Prince Anthony of Brunswick. Biren’s failure increased the power of Volynski, against whom the favourite soon found it necessary to take extreme measures. He threatened to leave Russia unless the minister was put on his trial, and Anne having at last yielded, Volynski was tried, tortured, and beheaded, together with two of his agents, while several others were whipped with the hnut and sent to the mines in Siberia. Biren next intrigued for the removal of Ostermann, and with that object caused Bestujef, a former lover of the Empress Anne, to be appointed a cabinet minister. Meanwhile the Princess Anne had married the Prince of Brunswick and been confined of a son. In the midst of the plans which Biren was forming in order to set aside the claims of the infant prince, the empress fell ill, and under the influence of the German party, whose interests were necessarily identical with those of Biren, she was induced to sign a decree, the day before she died, appointing Biren Regent during the minority of the infant Ivan. Hated and despised by everybody, Biren caused himself to be proclaimed regent on the 19th October, 1740, and an oath of allegiance to be taken to the Emperor Ivan VI. Each day he increased the number of his enemies by the cruelties which he committed, and it became at once evident to the foreign ministers at the court of Russia that a revolution was imminent. He was suspected of the design of marrying the Princess Elizabeth, the daughter of Peter the Great, and of usurping the throne in her name. A conspiracy was immediately formed by the officers of the Guards, and the people demanded the nomination of the parents of the infant Tsar as regents. Field-marshal Miinnich at last undertook to seize the regent, which he accomplished during the night of the 9th November, 1740. Biren was banished to Pelym, in Siberia, together with his brothers and his kinsman Bismarck, and Anne proclaimed herself Grand Duchess of Russia and regent. She at once endeavoured to secure the affections of her people by a gentle demeanour and by acts of mercy, but she was too inactive, and her private life was such as to alienate from her both her husband and 20 1 . — Historical Notice, Introd. the friends by whom she had been raised to power. Her liaison with Count Lynar, the Polish envoy, became notorious. The Princess Elizabeth became the object and centre of a court intrigue, although her private life was not very different in character from that of the regent. She gained over the Guards, and with the assistance of Lestocq (her friend and physician, who was at the^same time the agent of the French Ambassador), and with that also of Woronzoff, the regent, with her husband and infant son, were seized on the 9th December, 1741, in their beds, by the soldiers of the Preobrajenski Regiment of Guards. The senate and nobility were summoned next morning to appear before Elizabeth in order to swear allegiance, and the revolution was complete, Elizabeth proclaiming that, as the heiress of Peter the Great, she had taken possession of the throne of her ^ancestors and driven away its usurpers. One of the first acts of the reign of Elizabeth was to imprison the deposed regent, together with her husband and son (John YI.), in the fortress of Riga, from whence they were sent first to the fortress of Diinaburg and then to a lonely place on the shores of the White Sea, Avhere Anne died in childbed, in 1746. Her husband, the Prince of Brunswick, breathed his last in 1780. The young prince, their son, was taken from them in about the year 1756 and imprisoned in the fortress of Schlusselburg, where he ultimately lost his life in attempting to escape from his guards. A commission was appointed to try Ostermann, Munnich, Golovkin, Mengden and Loewenwold, who had all under the previous reign exercised functions with which entire innocence was incom- patible. Even Lestocq, who became somewhat insupportable to the empress, seven years after her elevation to the throne, followed into exile the men whom the commission had condemned to more severe ]:>enalties. With considerable prudence, Elizabeth asked the Duke of Holstein, the son of her elder sister Anne, to come to Russia in 1742, and to be re-christened in the Russo-Greek faith under the name of Peter, with a view to his succession to the throne. Her reign was, however, one series of wars and intrigues, promoted by the corruption and licentiousness of those by whom she was surrounded, and it was wholly unfavourable to the intellectual improvement and progress of the people. The Swedes thought this a favourable moment to recover their ancient possessions, but were obliged to agree to a peace on the basis of that of Nystad. Detesting Frederick for some coarse remark levelled at her mother, Elizabeth made war with Prussia, which lasted from 1753 to 1762, the year of her death. The taste of this empress for architecture greatly contributed to embellish St, Petersburg, and the Academy of Fine Arts in that capital was instituted by her; but she was a model of hypocrisy ; and, while from feelings of pretended humanity she abolished capital punishment and deplored the miseries her troops suffered in the war with Prussia, she established a kind of Star Chamber, in which justice and mercy were unknown. In 1744, her nephew, Peter, was married to the Princess Sophia Augusta, daughter of the reigning Prince of Anhalt Zerbst, and who on adopting the Russo-Greek religion assumed the name of Catherine, Avhich was subsequently distinguished by the title of “Great.” The secret memoirs of this princess show that her marriage was a most unhappy one, for the Grand Duke Peter was devoted to the lowest pursuits, and treated Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 21 her with the utmost scorn, infidelity, and cruelty. His conjugal desertion of Catherine caused the Empress Elizabeth much alarm and discontent, but she was appeased when at last Catherine became, in 1754, the mother of the Grand Duke Paul. Peter III. succeeded the Empress Elizabeth in 1762, and having always been a great admirer of Frederick the Great he immediately made peace with Prussia. He also suppressed the secret council established for the examination of political offenders, softened the rigour of military discipline, permitted his nobles to travel, lowered the duties in the Livonian ports, reduced the price of salt, abated the pressure of usury by the establishment of a loan bank, and instituted other salutary and wise measures. He was, however, of a weak, depraved, and vacillating disposition, while his tastes were entirely German, which amounted to a crime in the eyes of the nobility. His private life and the intrigues of his wife, afterwards the Empress Catherine II., whom he continued to neglect grossly, and who had reason to suspect that she would be shut up in a nunnery or imprisoned, led to his downfall, and he died by suffocation at Kop- sha, near Peterhof, in the same year in which he had succeeded to the throne. The reign of Catherine II. is one of the most remarkable in Russian history. In the early part of it she interfered in the affairs of Poland, which produced a civil war in that country and ended in its conquest. In 1769 the Turks declared war, which was at first favourable to their arms ; they were afterwards defeated with great slaughter on the Dniester, and abandoned Khotin. At this period was fought the celebrated action at Chesme, in which the Turkish fleet was completely destroyed, — an achievement that was mainly owing to the gallant conduct of Admirals Elphinstone and Greig, and Lieutenant Dugdale, Englishmen in the Russian service. In another campaign “the Russians carried the lines of Perekop, defended by 57,000 Turks and Tartars, and thus obtained possession of the Crimea, while Rumiantsof gained several victories in the Danubian provinces. These conquests were, however, dearly purchased ; the plague passed from the Turks into the Russian armies, and the frightful malady was carried by the troops into the veiy heart of the country ; 800 persons died daily at Moscow, and the disease subsided only with the severity of the winter. In the same year also (1771), the Kalmuck Tartars, who' had been ujiwards of half a century settled near the steppes of the Volga, north of Astrakhan, left the Russian territory suddenly, to the number of 350,000 souls, for their old haunts on the Chinese border. An affront offered to them by the empress is said to have been the cause of this extraordinary flight. Another disaster succeeded this wholesale emigration. A Cossack of the Don, named Pugatchef, escaped from his fetters at Kazan (where he had been imprisoned for proclaiming himself to be Peter HI.), ravaged the provinces of Kazan, Nijni Novgorod, Astrakhan, and Orenburg, and raised a rebellion which very nearly placed Moscow at his mercy ; he was not put down until the imperial troops were concentrated against him at the conclusion of the war with the Turks, which was only brought to a successful termination in 1773, by Rumiantsof, notwithstanding that his troops had already suffered great losses. By the Treaty of Kujuk Kainardji (1774), Russia obtained the free navigation of the Euxine, the cession of Kinburn and Yenikale, with a tract of country between the Bug, the Dnieper, and Taganrog. Russia restored her other conquests, and the Turks paid 22 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. into tlie Russian Treasury 40,000,000 of rubles towards the expenses of the war ; they also acknowledged the independence of the Crimea, which in the year 1784 fell entirely into the hands of Russia, together with the island of Taman and part of the Kuban. Shortly after this, Catherine and the northern courts, aided by France, an^ from a jealousy of British maritime power, brought about a combination against England. She formed a league with Sweden and Denmark, and announced her intention of supporting it with her navy. In 1787 she made, in com- pany with Potemkin and an immense suite, her famous progress to the Crimea, and the following year found her once more at war with the Turks. Finland was invaded by Gustavus III. soon after. This contest was settled by a pacification in 1790. At the close of that year Constan- tinople trembled at the forward movement of the Russians, and the fall of Ismail after a ninth assault by Suvoroff, concluded the war on the 22nd of December. In this extremity, Europe combined to save the Porte from destruction, and in 1791 Russia relinquished all the territory she had acquired, excepting that which had been guaranteed by the treaty of 1784. In these wars with the Ottoman Empire 130,000 Austrians, 200,000 Russians, and 370,000 Turks, or 700,000 men in all, were destroyed. About this time the intrigues of Russia, Austria, and Prussia, for the partition of Poland, commenced, and after having been carried on for several years, were brought to a conclusion by two sieges of Warsaw ; in the first, Kosciusko was made prisoner, and in the second the Poles, unassisted by his genius, gave way in that fearful assault which, on the 9th November, 1794, consummated the ruin of Poland as a nation. Catherine’s subsequent plans of aggrandisement in Daghestan and on the shores of the Caspian were cut short by her death, on the 9th November, 1796, which was hastened by the humiliation which had been put upon her by Gustavus Adolphus IV. of Sweden, who left St. Petersburg without marrying her grand-daughter, to whom he was engaged. The great talents for governing which the empress possessed are universally admitted; and, although her energies were principally dis- played in carrying out her schemes of foreign conquest, she by no means neglected the interior economy of her empire. Her views on all subjects were far more enlarged than those of her predecessors, and upwards of 6800 children were educated at St. Petersburg at the public expense. She invited Pallas, Etiler, and Gmelin to survey her territories and describe their characteristics, and requested D’Alembert to undertake the education of her grandson, the Grand Duke Alexander, which honour, however, he declined. The empress also confirmed the abolition of the secret state inquisition, and, by dividing the administrative colleges of the empire into separate departments, facilitated the despatch of business and rendered the administration in each more efficient. With a view to check corruption, she raised the salaries of the government ofBcers, put down many mono- polies of the crown, and issued an ukaz which prevented any proprietor from sending his serfs to the mines, or to any distant part of the empire, except for agricultural purposes. She purchased the praises of the French philosophers, corresponded with Voltaire and D’Alembert, patronised Sir Joshua Reynolds, and complimented Fox by asking him for his bust, which she placed between those of Cicero and Demosthenes. Catherine came to the throne eager for fame and anxious to put into practice the i^hilosophic doctrines of the age. It may even be said that Russia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 23 she was desirous of reigning constitutionally so far as serfage would permit her. But she was most anxious to be a lawgiver, and her more liberal advisers took advantage of her ambition and promoted the cause of repre- sentative government, such as had existed in Russia under the form, first of Veche (Witenagemotes), then of meetings of . the States-General. A Commission was composed of 565 deputies from the nobility, inhabit- ants of towns, military colonies, and alien races subject to the empire, as well as from the senate, the synod, and other public offices. This Com- mission — a Parliament all but in name — met on the 31st July, 1767, at Moscow, and, after listening to the representations made by the several interests, drew up the drafts of laws which Catherine subsequently enacted, and which contributed greatly to the glory of her reign. But the Assembly having commenced an inquiry into the evil of serfdom, the empress dissolved it on the 29th December of the same year. The Empress Catherine introduced important changes into the condition of the nobility and clergy. The history of the nobles may be here epito- mized. The comrades, or drujina, of the early princes of Russia long retained a nomadic character. They passed from one prince to another as those princes ascended in the scale of primogeniture and passed on to the throne of Kief. They acquired no lands and lived on the contributions which they levied on the Zemstvo, or “people of the land,” as distinguished from the servants of the sovereign. On the establishment of the throne of Moscovy, the drujina of the deposed princes repaired to Moscow for em- ployment in the service of the State, and styled themselves bondsmen of the Tsar. At his court they quarrelled perpetually about the right of pre- cedence. Each family guarded jealously its position in relation to other families ; and each individual above the condition of a labourer had an hereditary right, most intricately regulated, to a certain social position, which he spent his whole life in asserting. The nobles having become unruly during the reign of John the Terrible, that sovereign put to death a considerable number of them and kept the rest in subordination with the assistance of a new class of nobles, the Opritchna, who carried out his instructions with unsparing brutality. They murdered their victims openly in the streets, and, led by the Tsar, visited villages during the night and razed them to the ground. It was with the assistance of these servants that John the Terrible subjected all his lieges to despotic government. The old boyars deserted to the Prince of Lithuania, but many were caught and punished. After that reign, the older families succeeded in causing Shuiski, one of their order, to be elected Tsar : but on the accession of Michael Romanoff all their privi- leges were abolished, and the code of 1649, drawn up by the States-General, or Zemstvo, rendered all subjects equal before the law. The nobles, how- ever, now began to acquire lands, which they at first held as feudatories under the Crown, liable to military service. Peter the Great converted those lands into freeholds, and at the same time bound the proprietors to perpetual service. The Senate called up the young boyars from the country, and allotted civil and military functions to them. In 1736 the period of service was reduced to 25 years, and in 1761 the nobles were allowed the discretion of serving the State or not. As every nobleman had been obliged to serve, so every man that served the Crown acquired nobility through his chin, or official rank. The nobility are still styled “ courtiers ” in the Russian lan- guage, and a chinounik is always a nobleman. 24 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. An important feature in the social life of Bussia is, that the right of primogeniture does not exist, except in a few great families. By an ukaz of 1713, Peter I. desired to introduce an inheritance in fee of the eldest son, hut this was so much opposed to the customs and traditions of the people that it was abandoned. Peter II. cancelled the ukaz in 1728. Under the immediate predecessors of Catherine, the courtiers had assumed a considerable amount of power and began to demand a better position in the State. Catherine II. granted them a charter in 1785, by which the nobles of each province were formed into a corporation, with the power of electing judges and various rural officers. They moreover acquired the right of meeting triennially for the discussion of their wants and interests. A property qualification and official rank were required of the members of these assemblies, who were exempted from corporal punishment, com- pulsory service,* and personal taxation. They had already acquired in 1754 the exclusive right of holding serfs. The Emperor Paul annulled this charter, but it was restored by Alexander I. The vicissitudes of the clergy have been as follows. In ancient Bussia they enjoyed many special privileges and the right of administering justice on all Church lands. John the Terrible prohibited the attachment of land to churches, and sought to make the Metropolitan dependent on his will. The patriarchate was established under his son, but was abolished by Peter I., who, warned by the example of Nicon, instituted the Ho^y Synod. The present metropolitans have ecclesiastical jurisdiction only within their several bishoprics or provinces, and are subject to the Synod. Peter the Great considerably limited the power of the clergy. He converted the monasteries into hospitals, and filled them with soldiers. Monks were not allowed the use of ink in order that they might not publish libels, and the clergy generally were made amenable to the civil law. Peter the Great also established a scale of fees, to which, in the reign of Nicholas were added regular salaries, the village priest receiving 70 rubles per annum (lOZ.), and his clerk 30 rubles (4Z. 10s.), in addition to a glebe of 33 dessi- atinas (about 85 acres). The churches in towns likewise at present possess houses and other real property, which pay no taxes, but their priests re- ceive no salaries from the State. Catherine II. took away the serfs and lands held by the monasteries. They had acquired no fewer than 900,000 male serfs, the Troitsa monastery alone possessing 100,000. In return, she freed the monks from the liability of quartering troops, from corporal punishment, and from compulsory service. Some of the monasteries were placed in direct dependence on the Holy Synod, while others were left under the control of the several bishops, who were, however, disqualified from depriving a priest of his holy office without the decision of the Synod. The inhabitants of towns were much improved in their condition under Catherine II. They were not anciently distinct from the agricultural popula- tion, and the town lands were held by private individuals. The Tsar Alexis, however, declared that those lands belonged to the Crown. Peter the Great gave the towns special courts of law, and generally promoted the welfare of the mercantile classes; the Empress Catherine endowed them with a charter in 1785, on the model of the nobility charter, with the right of electing Military service was made compulsory on all classes of the community in 1874. Russia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 25 Tnayors aud magistrates. The merchants were divided into guikls, and obtained an exclusive privilege of trade. Nothing: was, however, done during her reign to remove the evils of serfdom; on the contraiy, alarmed at the readiness with which the peasantiy had joined the formidable insurrec- tion under Pugatchef, the empress placed them still more under the control of the landed proprietors, who were then invested with judicial and exe- cutive powers. Possessed of great beauty in her youth, Catherine preserved the traces of it to the end of her life ; in matters of religion she was tolerant from political motives ; extravagant in an extraordinary degree, and with a woman’s liberality, she paid well those who served her ; and, although there are many acts in her reign which cannot be defended, yet she did more for the civilization of Eussia than any of her predecessors. Catherine was succeeded by her son Paul, whose short reign, from 1796 to 1801, was not of any great historical importance. At his coronation he decreed a law of hereditary succession to the crown in the male line, and failing that in the female line, instead of leaving it to the caprice of the reigning Tsar. The emperor declared war against the French in 1799, sent an army into Italy to oppose the republican generals, and through the intervention of England, Suvoroff, who had been banished from tlie capital by Paul, was recalled, and made commander-in-chief. But the campaign in Italy, successful at first, ended unfavourably to the Eussian arms. The emperor then suddenly became a great admirer of Bonaparte ; and, with the same inconsistency that exiled Suvoroff, he liberated Kosciusko; subsequently, the eccentricity of his notions led to the couclusicn that he was of unsound mind. Amongst his ukazes was one against the use of shoe-strings and round hats ; and in the number of his eccentricities was a rage fur painting, with the most glaring colours, the watch-boxes, bridges, and gates through- out the empire. The career of Paul was closed in March, 1801, in a similar manner to that of Peter III., at his palace, now a school of militar}^ engineers, at St. Petersburg. Alexander, his eldest son, succeeded to the throne, being then 24 years of age. In the same year he recalled a great number of Siberian exiles, suppressed the secret inquisition, re-established the power of the senate, founded in 1804 the University of Kharkof, and freed the Jews from the oppression to which they had previously been subjected. In 1805 the emperor joined the Northern Powers against France, and on the 2nd De- cember the Austro-Eussian army was defeated at Austerlitz. In 1806, Mr. Fox having failed in negotiating a peace between France and Eussia, Napoleon overran Prussia, and, Benningsen having evacuated Warsaw, klurat entered that city on the 28th November. On the 26th December the French were beaten at Pnltovsk, and in February, 1807, the severely contested battle of Eylau was fought, each side having three times lost and won, the deciding move being made by Benningsen, who took Konigsberg by assault. On the 28th of May, Dantzig capitulated to the French, and on the 14th of June they won the battle of Friedland ; ten days after, Napoleon and Alexander met on a raft moored in the middle of the Niemen and concluded an armistice, which was a prelude to the treaty of j Tilsit, signed on the 27th July of the same year. By this act Alexander I became the ally of France and enabled the French to carry on their aggressive policy in Spain. But the injury inflicted on Eussian commerce Russia. — 1875. c 26 1 . — Historical Notice, Introd. by Napoleon’s continental system against England, and his interference with Alexander’s conquests in Finland in 1809, roused the Emperor of Eussia to a sense of his true interests. He broke with France, and the invasion of Eussia by the French was the consequence. In order to meet it, he made peace with the Porte and re-established his alliance with Great Britain. The operations which took place during this memorable struggle are so well known that they will only be briefly adverted to here. On the 23rd of June, 1812, the French crossed the Niemen and pushed on to Wilna, the Eussians carefully retreating, and leaving Napoleon to pass that river on the 28th and to enter the town unopposed. Here the French emperor remained 18 days, and then, after considerable man- oeuvring, he marched on Vitepsk, where he fully expected to bring the Eussians, under Barclay de Tolly, to action. The Eussian general, however, declined; and Napoleon, instead of following the advice of his marshals and wintering on the Dwina, crossed the Dnieper and marched on Smolensk. On the 16th of August he was once more in front of the Eussian grand army near that town ; but the wary and intelligent De Tolly had occupied it only to cover the flight of its inhabitants and to carry off or destroy its magazines ; and on the following morning Napoleon, to his great mortifica- tion, learnt that the enemy, in pursuance of his Fal)ian tactics, had again retreated. Smolensk was now taken by assault, the last inhabitants that re- mained having set fire to it before they left. Up to this time the Eussian commander-in-chief had been able to adhere to his plan of drawing the French into the country without risking a general engagement until a favourable opportunity should occur. But those tactics not having been liked by his army, Alexander, yielding to the clamour, appointed Kutusof to the chief command. The battle of Borodino, sometimes called that of the Moskva, fought on the 7th of September, was the result of this change of leaders. The combatants amounted on either side to about 120,000, and the killed and wounded in both to about 80,000. On the 12th, Bonaparte again moved forward, his troops by this time being nearly famished, as well as heartily tired of the war, for the day of Borodino had given them a clear idea that the enemy would yield only after a desperate struggle. On the 14th September the advanced guard of the French army caught the first view of the golden minarets and starry domes of Moscow. “ All this is yours,” cried Napoleon, when he first gazed upon the goal of his ambition, and a shout of “ Moscow ! Moscow ! ” was taken up by the foremost ranks and carried to the rear of his army. The French bivouacked in Moscow the same evening, but before the night had closed in, their leader arrived at the Smolensk Gate, and then learnt, to his astonishment, that 300,000 inhabitants had fled, and that the only Eussians who remained in the city were the convicts who had been liberated from the gaols, a few of the rabble, and those who were unable to leave it. On Tuesday, the 15th September, the mortified victor entered Moscow and took up his residence in the Kremlin ; but here his stay was destined to be very short, for on the morning of the 16th it was discovered that a fire, which had at first given but little cause for alarm, could not be restrained. Fanned by the wind, it spread rapidly, and consumed the best portion of the city. “ Tlie churches,” says Lahaurae, “ though covered with iron and lead, were destroyed, and with them those graceful steeples which we had seen the night before resplendent in the setting sun ; the hospitals, too, which Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 27 contained more than 20,000 wounded, soon began to burn — a harrowing and dreadful spectacle — and almost all these poor wretches perished ! ” A few who still survived were seen crawling, half-burnt, amongst the smoking ruins, while others were groaning under heaps of dead bodies, endeavouring in vain to extricate themselves. The confusion and tumult which ensued when the work of pillage* commenced cannot be conceived. Soldiers, sutlers, galley-slaves, and prostitutes, were seen running through the streets, penetrating into the deserted palaces, and carrying away every- thing that could gratify their avarice. Some clothed themselves in rich stuffs, silks, and costly furs ; others dressed themselves in women’s pelisses ; and even the galley-slaves concealed their rags under the most splendid court dresses ; the rest crowded to the cellars, and, forcing open the doors, drank the wine and carried off an immense booty. This horrible pillage Avas not confined to the deserted houses alone, but extended also to the few which were inhabited, and soon the eagerness and wantonness of the plunderers caused devastations Avhich almost equalled those occa- sioned by the conflagration. “ Palaces and temples,” writes Karamzin, “ monuments of art and miracles of luxury, the remains of past ages and those which had been the creation of yesterday, the tombs of ancestors and the nursery cradles of the present generation, were indiscriminately destroj^ed ; nothing was left of Moscow save the remembrance of the city, and the deep resolution to avenge its fate.”* On the 20th, Napoleon returned to the Kremlin from the Palace of Petrofski, to which he had retired, and tried to negotiate with Kutusof, who replied that no treaty could be made so long as a foreigner remained within the frontier. The emperor then requested that he would forward a letter to Alexander. “ I will do that,” said the Kussian general, “ provided the Avord jpeace is not in the letter.” To a third proposition, Kutusof replied that it Avas not the time to treat or enter into an armistice, as the Russian army Avas just about to open the campaign. At length, on the 19th of October, after a stay of 34 clays, Napoleon left Moscoav with his army, consisting of 120,000 men and 550 pieces of cannon, a vast amount of plunder, and a countless host of camp folloAvers. And now the picture of the advance Avas destined to be reversed. Murat was defeated at Malo- Yaroslavets on the 24th, and an unsuccessful stand Avas made at Viazma on the 3rd of November. On the 6th, a winter peculiarly early and severe, even for Russia, set in — the thermometer sank 18° — the Avind blew furiously — and the soldiers, A^ainly struggling with the eddying snow, Avhich drove against them Avith the violence of a Avhirhvind, could no longer distinguish the road, and, falling into the ditches by the side, there found a grave. Others craAvled on, badly clothed, Avith nothing to eat or drink, frost-bitten, and groaning Avith pain. Discipline disappeared — the soldier no longer obeyed his officer ; disbanded, the troops spread themselves right and left in search of food, and, as the horses fell, fought for their mangled carcases and devoured them raw ; many remained by the dying embers of the bivouac fires, allowing an insensibility to creep over them Avhich soon became the sleep of death. On the 9th of November Napoleon reached Smolensk, and remained there until the 15th, when he set out for Krasnoe. Prom this time to the 20th and 27th, Avhen the French crossed the Berezina, * For further details respecting the French occupation, vide description of Moscow. C 2 28 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. all was utter and hopeless confusion ; and in the passage of that river the wretched remnant of their once powerful army was nearly annihilated. The exact extent of their loss was never known, hut a Eussian account states that 36,000 bodies were found in the river alone and burnt after the thaw. On the 5th of December Napoleon deserted the survivors. On the 10th he reached Warsaw, and on the night of the 18th returned to the Tuileries. The army that had so well and enthusiastically served him was disposed of as follows : — Slain in fight 125,000 Died from fatigue, hunger, and the severity of the climate 132,000 Prisoners 193,000 » 450,000 The remains of the grand army which escaped the general wreck (inde- pendently of the two auxiliary armies of Austria and Prussia, which knew little of the horrors of the retreat) was about 40,000 men, of whom it is be- lieved scarcely 10,000 were Frenchmen. Thus ended the greatest military catastrophe that had ever befallen an army in either ancient or modem times.* Europe now became exasperated against Napoleon and combined against him ; and although in the following spring the French gained the battles of Liitzen and Bautzen, and on the 27th of August that of Dresden, yet fortune deserted them on the 18th of October of the same year on the field of Leipsic. On the Ehine the Allies offered him peace and the empire of France, which he refused, and on the 31st of March, 1814, Alexander had the satisfaction of marching into Paris at the head of his troops. After the general peace of 1815 the emperor devoted himself to the internal im- provement of his country, making many judicious and liberal changes in its method of government. He had good abilities, but not brilliant talent, and his greatness of mind was not fully developed until the invasion of his country by the French ; this aroused all his energies, and exhibited him to the world as a sovereign possessed of consummate discretion and unflinching steadiness of purpose. His disposition was kind and generous, his manners mild and amiable, and his moderation prevented him from ever abusing his unlimited power. Under the influence of his mother and the empress, the levity and extravagance of the court were materially repressed. Attended to the last by his wife, he died of erysipelas, in a small and humble dwelling at Taganrog, when on a tour of inspection through the southern provinces of the empire. AVhen the news of his death spread over his vast dominions, he was universally deploied, and the murmur of regret in other countries responded to the grief of Eussia. The subsequent history of Eussia is within the memory of the present generation, and we need, therefore, only give a summary of the principal events in chronological order. Alexander I. was succeeded by the Emperor Nicholas on the 25th December, 1825; Constantine, his elder brother, having married a Polish lady and resigned his rights to the crown. The natural order of succession having been broken and Nicholas proclaimed, St. Petersburg became the scene of a military revolution, which was suppressed by the emperor in person. The troops had been excited to revolt by the members of a wide- * Tbe catastrophe was, however, destined to be surpassed in 1870-71. Kussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 29 spread conspiracy for introducing a constitutional form of government. When the leaders cheered their men on with the cry of Constitutsia I the soldiery believed they were fighting for Constantine’s wife. This out- break made a deep impression on the mind of the emperor and had great influence on the system of government by which his reign is best known. Nicholas declared war against Persia, which terminated in 1828 by the payment of a large indemnity by jthe Shah. A war with Turkey followed and v/as closed by the Treaty of Adrianople (1829), by which Russia acquired a considerable augmentation in territory on the coast of the Black Sea, and other advantages, in addition to a certain amount of influence in the Danubian Principalities. An insurrection broke out in Poland in 1830, and was suppressed, after a hard struggle, in 1831 (vide Poland). The territory ceded by the Treaty of Adrianople having included the Caucasus, the Emperor Nicholas had recourse to arms in order to bring the independent races of that mountainous region to sub- mission. By a treaty between Russia and Turkey, signed at Constantinople on the 8th July, 1833, the Porte engaged, in return for the military aid of Russia against the Pasha of Egypt, to close the Dardanelles against all foreign vessels of war. The peace between the sultan and the pasha having again been disturbed in 1839, the Ottoman empire was placed, on the 27th July, 1839, under the common safeguard of the five great European Powers, instead of under the exclusive protection of Russia. This was followed by a convention, signed at London on the 15th July, 1840, “ for maintaining the integrity and independence of the Ottoman empire, as a security for the peace of Europe.” In 1844 the Emperor Nicholas visited England. In 1849 Russia assisted Austria in repressing the Hungarian insurrection. Very shortly after, a dispute between the Greek and Latin Churches relative to the guardianship of the Holy Places produced demands on the part of Russia which the Porte refused to admit. Thereupon the Russian troops, amounting to 80,000, entered the Moldo- Wallachian provinces in July, 1853. The combined fleets of England and France entered the Dardanelles on the 14th October, at the request of the sultan, and on the 1st November Russia declared war against Turkey. The Turks then crossed the Danube, and conducted a campaign against the Russians with much bravery and success. On the 30th November the Turkish fleet was destroyed while at anchor in the harbour of Sinope, not- withstanding the declaration on the part of Russia that she intended only to act on the defensive and to repel the advance of the Turks into the Principalities. The combined fleet was immediately ordered into the Black Sea, and hopes of a peaceful termination of the difficulty were abandoned. The Russian ambassador quitted London on the 4th February, 1854. France and England declared war against Russia respectively on the 27th and 28th March. Odessa was bombarded on the 22nd April, after an English flag of truce had been fired upon. The ‘Tiger’ steam-frigate stranded near Odessa, and was captured after an attack by the artillery on land ; the flag of one of her boats falling into the possession of the Russians. 'J’he allied squadron anchored off Eupatoria on the 13th September, and next day landed their troops at about 12 miles below that town. The battle of the Alma was fought on the 20th September. The following account of the battle of the Alma is condensed from, Licut.-Col. Hamley’s ‘ Story of the Campaign of Sebastopol — 30 Introd. 1 . — Historical Notice. The allied army, having landed, on the 14th Sept., at a place about 12 m. below the town of Eupatoria, com- menced its march on the 19th at 7 in the morning. In all, the British mus- tered 26,000 men and 54 guns ; the French 24,000 men and about 70 guns ; and the Turks 4500 men, with neitlier cavalry nor guns. At night the Allies bivouacked on the Bulganak. The next morning, between 9 and 10 o’clock, the army marched onward for about 2 hours under a bright sun. The front of the Allies was oblique, the Turks on the right being about 2 m. in advance of the British left. Surmounting the grassy ridges which formed their hori- zon, the scene of the coming struggle disclosed itself to them. The plain, level for about a mile, sloped gently down to a village, beyond which was a valley sprinkled with trees, and watered by the river Alma. On the opposite side of the stream the bank rises abruptly into steep knolls, termi- nating ill plateaux, behind which rises another and higher range of heights. Both these ranges were occupied by masses of Russian troops, numbering altogether, according to Gen. Todleben, 33,600 men of all arms and 96 guns. Such was the position in front of the British. In front of the French, who formed the centre of the line, the first range of knolls grew more and more abrupt. These were defended by in- fantry, and field-artillery was posted, with more infantry, on the plains at the top of the heights. Tlie French advanced steadily and incessantly, and attacked a small tele- graph station on the plain at the top of the heights, and succeeded in plant- ing their flag upon it. During the attack on it, the right of the British had gradually come under the fire of the heavy artillery on the knolls. Pennefather’s brigade of the 2nd divi- sion, advancing in line along the slope of the plain, lay down near the walls of the village for shelter from the de- structive fire of the enemy, and then moved onward to the river ; while the light division, passing into the valley, on the left of the second, pressed on until they passed the river, nearly up to their necks, and then began to ascend the slopes beyond, which were held by the Russian battalions. The battery now in front of them, covered with a thick, low bank of earth, swept the whole front of the British, and its fire was crossed by that of the guns from the knolls, which searched the village and ploughed up the plain beyond it. A wide road, bounded by low stone walls, leading to a bridge and a ford, intervened between the 1st and 2nd divisions ; and the latter point, being nearly intermediate be- tween the principal lines of fire, was probably the hottest of the cannonade. IMany of the 55th fell there, before advancing into the villages. To oppose the Russian fire, some guns were at last brought into action on the opposite bank, and their fire took the Russian centre and guns in reverse, while the French, pressing up the heights, had driven back the left. The Russian artillery now began to retire, soon after followed by covering masses of in- fantry. It was at this moment that a brigade of the light division, consist- ing of the 7th, 23rd, and 33rd regts., very gallantly led by Gen. Codrington, advancing up the slope, under a terrible fire of musketry, took a gun from the epaulement or low wall of earth al- ready mentioned ; but, with a loss of 600 killed and wounded, the brigade was forced to retire down the slope and re-form under cover of the attack of the 1st division, which had been led across the river by the Duke of Cambridge to support them. The 7th Fusiliers, going up to the breast- work with a cheer, retook and kept possession of the Russian gun ; the 33rd and 95th came to the support of the 7th; the 19th and 47th also ad- vanced ; and after a terrible slaughter the Russians were driven back. Sir George Brown rode gallantly in front of his light division and fell in front of the battery. The 55th and 30th regts., coming up on the right of the 95th, drove back the enemy on their own front, and the 3 British brigades formed line on the ground they had won. Eiissia. 1 . — historical Notice. 31 The battle had thus rolled back to the right rear of the Kussians. On the extreme right of their original position, at the top of the heights, was a battery behind an e'paulement, with a flank for 7 guns, thrown back to pre- vent the right being turned. The brigade of Highlanders, under Sir Colin Campbell, being on the left of the British line, formed themselves, when the 1st division crossed the river, directly in front of this battery, which, before it followed the other guns in their retreat, poured upon them during their gallant advance a heavy but ill-directed fire, doing them but little damage. At the top of the hill they met some battalions of the enem}'' still showing a front, and compelled them to retreat with the loss of a good many men ; and two troops of horse-artillery, which had crossed the river higher up, coming into action, played upon the retreating masses with great effect. Thus ended, after a contest of 3 hours, the battle of the Alma. The retreat was effected in good order, with the loss of 2 guns and Prince Menshikoff’s carriage with his papers. The loss of the Allies was about 3000 in killed and wounded. Gen. Todleben attributes the loss of the battle mainly to the superior dis- cipline and arms of the Allies. Prince Menshikoff, having made good his retreat to Sevastopol, caused its fortifications to be strengthened by Todleben, and ordered Admiral Kor- nilof to sink his squadron in the road- stead. On the 23rd the Allies reached the Katcha and encamped there, with- out finding the enemy as they had expected. On the 24th they bivouacked near Belbek. Meanwhile Prince Blen- shikofif had quitted Sevastopol in the I night, to proceed with his army to j Bakhchisarai by the Mackenzie road, j leaving only 16,569 fighting men in ! garrison, and losing some carriages I with baggage and ammunition on the 1 plain. Gen. Todleben is of opinion that neither the exaltation of the Eussian troops, nor their resolution to fight to the last, would have been able to save Sevastopol if the Allies had attacked it immediately after the pas- sage of the Chernaya. However that may be, the Allies moved on the 26tli September towards the east, in the direction of Mackenzie’s farm, and suc- cessfully accomplished the manoeuvre of transferring the army from the N. to the S. side of Sevastopol. On the 26th, Balaclava harbour was occupied. Sevastopol was attacked by sea and by land on the 17th October. The Light Cavalry charge of Balaclava was made on the 25th October ; out of 607 men only 198 re- turned. While the siege was progressing large reinforcements were pour- ing into the Eussian camp. The Eussians attacked the English positions in front of Inkermann on the 5th November, but were compelled to retreat. The following account of the battle of Inkermann is likewise condensed from Lieut.-Col. Hamley’s ‘ Story of the Campaign of Sebastopol — During the night of the 4-5th of November the Eussians had assembled in force in the valley of the Chernaya between Inkermann and the harbour. The object of their enterprise, accord- ing to General Todleben, was to drive back the right wing of the besiegers and take firm possession of the ground occupied by them between the town and the shore. A force of 18,929 men and 38 guns was to start at six in the morning for ‘ Careening Bay,’ ! and to be joined by another body of , 15,806 men and 96 guns passing over 1 the bridge of Inkermann. On their ! junction they were to bo under the ' command of General Dannenberg ; while Prince Gortcliakoff, with 22,444 men and 88 guns, was to support the attack and endeavour to effect a di- version. This plan was not entirely carried out, for the body of 18,929 men proceeded to a different side of the ravine from that originally con- 32 1 . — Kistorical Notice. Introcl. templated, and thus prevented the meditated junction. At dawn they made their rush upon the advanced posts of tlie second di- vision posted on the crest looking down into the valley, and which fell back fighting upon the camp behind the crest, 1200 yards in rear. The out- l^osts being driven in, the hill was occupied by the enemy’s artillery and guns of position, which commenced a heavy tire down the face of the gentle declivity, crashing through the tents left standing below. Captain Allix, of General Evans’s staff, was dashed from his saddle, not far from his own tent, by a round shot, and fell dead. The plan of the Russians was, after sweeping the ridge clear by their heavy concentrated tire, to launch some of their columns over it, while others, diverging to their left after crossing the marsh, were to have l^assed round the edge of the clitfs opposite Inkermann, and turned the British right. The artillery tire had not continued long before the rush of infantry was made. Crowds of skirmishers advancing through the coppice came on in spite of the case- shot, and passed within the British line, forcing the artillery to limber up and retire down the slope. Two com- panies of the 55th, lying down behind a small bank of earth, retreated as the Russians leapt over it, tiring as they went back, and halted on a French regiment that was marching up the hill. The Russians retreated in their turn, and the French, with General Pennefather riding in front, went gal- lantly down the slope under the tremen- dous tire, driving the enemy before .them. Almost simultaneously with this attack on the centre, a body of Russians had passed round the edge of the cliff, and met the Guards there, who had thrown themselves into a two- gun battery on the edge of the slope opposite the ruins of the old castle, with the Grenadiers extending to the right, the Fusiliers to the left, of the Imttery, and the Coldstream s across tlie slojjG towards the British centre. 'Idle Russians came on in great num- bers with extraordinary determination. The Guards, having exhausted their ammunition, attacked the Russians with the bayonet, and, after losing nearly half their number, were com- pelled to retire, but, being reinforced, returned and drove the enemy out of the battery. Four of the guns of Townsend’s battery of the fourth division, which came up at the left of the position, were taken by the Russians almost as soon as unlimbered, but some of the 88th and 49th retook them before they had been many seconds in the enemy’s hands. In all these attacks on the British right, the Russians were pre- vented from turning that fla n k by Codrington’s brigade of the light di- vision posted on the further bank of the ravine. When the Russian infan- try was driven back, a cannonade re- commenced along their whole line, to which the British guns replied warm- ly, although overmatched in metal and numbers. The ships in the harbour, and the battery at the Round Tower, also threw shot and shell on the slope. This cannonade was the preface to another infantry attack, which now again threatened the British right, at that moment absolutely without de- fence. By advancing resolutely the enemy would have turned it, but the men who had retreated from the low entrenchment already spoken of ral- lied and lay down under it. Then reinforcements arrived for the support of the remnant of the defenders of the 2-gun battery. These fresh troops at once charged the enemy, routed them, and pursued them to the very verge of the heights, when, returning victori- ous, they found the battery, as they repassed it, again occupied by Rus- sians, a fresh force of whom had mounted the cliff from the valley. It was while collecting his men to meet this new and unexpected foe that Sir George Cathcart was shot dead. At this juncture the remainder of Bosquet’s division came up on the right, and, passing at once over the crest, throw itself into the combat, and, flghting side by side with the British troops, 2 ^ 1 ’cssed the Russians back. A tremendous cannonade was Eussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 33 uow again opened by the Russians, and replied to by English and French bat- teries of artillery and two 18-pounders ordered up by Lord Raglan. Between these two opposing fires of artillery, a fierce desultory combat of skirmishers went on in the coppice. Regiments and i divisions, French and English, were j here mixed, and fought hand to hand | with the common enemy. About noon ! the fire of the Russians slackened, and I further French reinforcements took up ! a position on the hill. The battle was now prolonged only by the efforts of j the Russian artillery to cover the re- ! treat of their foiled and broken bat- talions. At three o’clock the French and English generals, with their staffs, passed along the crest of the disputed hill, and half an hour after the whole force of the enemy retired across the Chernaya, Until the arrival of the fourth division and the French, the ground was held by about 5000 British troops, presenting a thin and scattered line, while the body of Russians immedi- ately opposed to them was, according to General Todleben, 15,000 strong. In all, 8000 English and 6000 French were engaged. The total Russian force, estimated by Lord Raglan at 60,000, is put down by General Todleben at 34,835, of whom 6 generals, 256 offi- cers, and 10,467 rank and file w^ere put hors de combat — more than double the loss of the Allies. The loss of the battle is attributed by General Todle- ben to the want of simultaneity in the advance of the Russians (owing to conflicting arrangements in starting from Sevastopol), the superiority of the French and English small-arms, and the omission of the Russian ar- tillery to follow and support their infantry. Large trenches were dug on the ground for the dead; the Russians lay apart, the French and English were ranged side by side. A hurricane destroyed > great amount of shipping in the Black Sea on the 14th November, causing the Allies to suffer considerably from the want of supplies. General Todleben now assumed with much success the direction of the defences of Sevastopol, and soon gained great renown. In the meanwhile the Allies were repulsed in a naval attack on Petropavlofsk, in the Pacific. In 1855 Sardinia joined them with a contingent of 15,000 men. On the 17th February the Russians made a foi'midable attack on Eupatoria, defended by the Turks under Omar Pasha and by a French detachment, but 'were obliged to retire with great loss. The intelligence of this repulse reached the Emperor Nicholas but a few days before his death, wdiicli took place very unex- pectedly on the 2nd March. A conference was soon after opened at Vienna with the object of concluding peace, but after sitting six weehs it was dissolved without any satisfactory result. The war, however, was being meanwhile actively prosecuted. The second bombardment of Sevastopol was opened at daybi'eak of the 9th April, 1855, and produced no decisive result. The third bombardment commenced on the 6th June, and was followed next day by successful attacks on the Mamelon and Quarries. General Liprandi having attempted" to raise the siege, the battle of the Chernaya wa5 fought on the 16th August, and resulted in the complete success of the French and Sardinian troops engaged in it. On the 5th September an “infernal fire” was opened by the Allies and kept up until the 8th, when the French stormed the Malakof and the English the Redan, which was, however, abandoned after an unequal contest of nearly two liours. The French loss on that day amounted to 1489 killed, 4259 wounded, and 1400 missing ; and the English to 385 killed, 1886 wounded, and 176 missing ; the Russians, according to their own account, losing 2G84 killed, 7243 34 1 . — Historical Notice, In trod. wounded, and 1763 missing. The south side of Sevastopol being no longer tenable, the town was evacuated during the night ; the magazines were exploded, the fortifications blown up, and the ships in the harbour sunk. The Allies took possession of the ruins next day. The operations of the Anglo-French squadron in the Baltic consisted, in 1854, of a reconnaissance off Cronstadt by Sir Charles Napier, and of a boat action at Gamle Karbely, in the Gulf of Finland, when the paddlebox-boat of the ‘Vulture’ drifted on shore and became a prize. The flag of this boat is shown at St. Petersburg, being, together with that of the ‘Tiger’s’ boat, the only English colours preserved in Kussia as military trophies. The forts of Bomarsund, on the Aland Islands, were captured on the 15th July, 1854, by a French force of 10,000 men and a small contingent of English marines and seamen. In 1855 the Baltic fleet bombarded Sveaborg and cruised off Cronstadt, under the command of Admiral Dundas and Admiral Penaud. The war in Asia terminated with the surrender of Kars to General Mouravieff, after a gallant defence by Sir W. F. Williams, Lieut, (now Colonel) Teesdale, and other British officers. By the intervention of Austria, preliminaries of peace were agreed upon at a meeting of plenipotentiaries at Paris on the 26th February, 1856, and peace was signed on the 30th March and ratified on the 27th April following. By that treaty the territorial integrity and the independ- ence of the Ottoman empire were recognised and guaranteed. Kussia and Turkey mutually agreed not to keep in the Black Sea more than six steam- vessels, of 800 tons at the maximum, and lour light steam or sailing vessels, not exceeding 200 tons.* The navigation of the Danube was opened to the vessels of all nations, and the Russian frontier in Bessarabia was rectified. No exclusive protection over the principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia was in future to be admitted ; and it was stipulated that in case of the internal tranquillity of the principalities being menaced, no armed interven- tion should take place without the general sanction of the contracting Powers. The Emperor Alexander II. w’as crowned at Moscow on the 7th September, 1856. His accession was marked by the introduction of vast reforms in the administration. Corruption was prosecuted and punished. The army was reduced to the lowest limits that were considered compatible with the dignity and safety of the country, and the term of military service was shortened. Railwaj^s were projected and commenced, and commercial and industrial enterprise- of every kind was liberally promoted with the object of restoring the prosperity of the empire, much impaired by the war. Overtrading, however, induced by an artificial encouragement, added its disastrous effects to financial embarrassment and assisted in depreciating the currency of the country, no longer metallic. New loans were made, and a system of financial publicity was adopted. But the most glorious monument of the reign of the Emperor Alexander II. will ever be the emancipation of the serfs. Their manumission had been frequently con- templated. The delegates in Catherine II. ’s parliament had suggested it ; Alexander I. had counsellors who ardently desired to see its abolition, and even the Emperor Nicholas had contemplated a more mitigated form of personal bondage. In 1838 a section of the nobility petitioned for its entire abolition. In 1852 the Minister of the Interior actually drew up a plan of gradual emancipation, which was to have been carried into execu- tion in the spring of 1854. In 1859, the nobility of the province of Lithuania having offered to fiee their serfs, the Emperor Alexander II. * TLis clause Tvas repudiated by Russia in 1S72. Bussia. 1 . — Historical Notice. 35 convoked a commission at St. Petersburg which was charged with the preparation of an act of general emancipation. This was proclaimed on the 3rd March (19th February), 1861, when all the serfs of the aristocracy and gentry (about 22 millions) acquired civil rights. The emancipation was carried out peaceably, with only a few partial agrarian outbreaks, produced chiefly by erroneous interpretations of the law.* Under the Emancipation Act the serfs obtained, as regards the land : — 1. A right to the “ perpetual usufruct ” (tenancy) of their homesteads, and of certain maximum and minimum allotments of land, averaging 3 5 desiatinas (10 acres), f according to the value of land in each province, on terms which they were allowed to settle with their former lords by mutual agreement, or failing which on conditions fixed by the Act ; 2. A right to demand the compulsory sale by the lord of their homesteads, either, on terms of mutual agreement or on conditions fixed by the Act ; the right, however, of refusing to sell the homestead without the statute allotment of land being reserved to the lord ; 3. A right to State assistance in the redemption (freehold purchase) of their homesteads and territorial allotments, provided the lord agreed to sell the latter. On the other hand, the interests of the landed proprietor were protected by the following provisions of the Emancipation Act : — 1. Whether the lord granted the perpetual usufruct (tenancy) or the freehold of the peasant homesteads and land allotments, a money payment, more or less equiva- lent, based on the rents which he had previously enjoyed, was secured to him, and he was therefore called upon to cede, without compensation, only his political rights over the serf and his right to the gratuitous labour of the domestic serf ; 2. The lord could insist on the serf purchasing the freehold of his territorial allotment, as well as that of his homestead, on terms fixed by law, and he could refuse to sell the territorial allotment without the homestead ; 3. He could avoid the cession of the per[)etual usufruct of the territorial allotments fixed by law, by bestowing as a free gift on the peasants who consented to receive the same, a quarter of the maximum allotment of which they were entitled to enjoy the usufruct, with the homestead upon it ; 4. The lord was liberated from his responsi- bility for the care of the poor or for the payment of taxes by the peasantry, and from his previous obligations of defending actions-at-law brought against the peasantry settled on his land, and of paying the fines &c. im- posed upon them ; 5. He obtained a right to compensation for the loss of serf labour and for the cession of lands, in Government 5 per cent, stock ; 6. He procured the means of clearing off any mortgage with which liis land might have been burdened. The carrying out of the Emancipation Act on such terms laid a heavy burden on the Imperial exchequer, and the payment of compensation to the landed proprietors necessitated the preservation of the system of poll taxation, under which it is intended that the peasantry shall pay off their debt to the State over a period of 49 years.j: In order, however, to secure * For a further account of the emancipation of the serfs, vidt Iteports on Land Tenure, vol. ii., presented to Parliament in ISYO. f The minimum allotment was fixed at 1 desiatiua (2’ 06 acres), and the maximum at 12 desiatinas (34 acres). X On the 1st .January 1872, the total amount advanced to the peasantry (6,600,000 males) hy the Oovernment was 604,00o,000 rubles (about 80,000,000(.) in respect to about 23,000,000 desia- tinas of land (about 66,000,000 acres). 36 1 . — Historical Notice. Introd. such repayment, a system of collective responsibility was introduced, under which the peasants of a commune guarantee mutually the exact payment of their quit-rents, taxes, and “redemption dues.” That responsibility Avas laid on the village communes, Avhich, therefore, as corporate bodies, became the purchasers of the land ceded to the peasantry, who thus be- came to a great extent only tenants under communes. In order also to prevent the dissolution of the commune — which is only an administrative and financial unit, not a modern co-operative association — the Emancipa- tion Act contains a variety of subtle provisions tvhich prevent the peasantry from leaving the soil, to Avhich they are therefore still attached as firmly as in 1592. The Russian communal system in this form is now generally condemned, for the present impoverished condition of the peasantry is to a great extent attributable to its influenee, the incentive to individual exer- tion being removed by it, since the industrious and wealthy peasant is bound under it to imy the taxes and dues of his idle and profligate fellow- communist. Nor has the self-government with which the peasantry were endowed in 1861 given many good results, for owing to the uneducated condition of the masses, corn brandy plays far too important a part in communal affairs, both of administration and justice. These evils have been prominently exposed in the report of an Imperial Commission insti- tuted in 1873 by M. de Valuieff, the eminent Minister of Domains. • Among the many other important reforms which followed the Act of Emancipation we may signalise the intr(.)duction of new courts of law on the basis of trial by jury in criminal cases, Avhich came into operation at Moscow and St. Petersburg during the course of 1865, and in other parts of the empire later. Corporal punishment Avas abolished in 1863, and the penalty of death is now only inflicted in virtue of sentences passed by courts-martial, in cases of incendiarism and other crimes requiring special measures of repression. The knut has entirely disappeared as an instrument of punishment. The disabilities of the Jews have been to some extent removed; the commerce of the country, although still retarded in its development by one of the Avorst Customs Tariffs in Europe, has been relieved of many oppressive regulations, and thrown open to nati\''es and foreigners alike ; the municipal privileges have been extended ; the liberty of speech and thought denied under the previous reign may now be exercised Avithin certain limits, except always in the form of public meetings for political purjDoses; and the censorship of the 23ress has been reduced to a mitigated form. Public instruction is being pursued with some vigour. The Universities and superior schools have been remodelled and deprived of their once semi-military character. A classical system of education is being jwomoted, and the clergy are being raised socially and intellectually. These, and many other wise reforms of the Emperor Alexander II., too numerous and comjilex here to be specified, form, as it Avere, tlie basis of those Representative Institutions with Avhich the edifice of government Avill in all probability be sooner or later croAvned. Among the events in Russian history that have occurred since 1865 may be mentioned the attempt on the life of the Emperor by Karakozoff on the 4-16th A] )i’il, 1866; the marriage of the Tsesarevitch Alexander with the Princess Dagmar, sister of the Princess of Wales ; the visit to Russia of H. R.ll. the Prince of Wales, on the occasion of that marriage, in November, 1866 ; and the second dastardly attack oii the EmiDeror at Paris, by Bere- Biissia. 2. — Statistics. 37 zovski, in June, 1867. In 1866 a squadron was sent out by the Govern- ment of the U. S. of America, with Mr. Fox as envoy, to convey to H. I. M. the congratulations of the people of the United States on his escape from assassination. This complimentary mission was preceded by the visit of Mr. Atkinson, Mayor of Hull, who delivered to H. I. M. an address on the same occasion, from the Town Council and Chamber of Commerce of Kiogston-upon-Hull. His Imperial Majesty was invested with the Order of the Garter by Earl Vane on the 16-28th July, 1867. On the llth-23rd January, 1874, H. K. H. the Duke of Edinburgh was married at St. Petersburg to H. I. H. the Grand Duchess Marie, only daughter of the Emperor ; and the record of an event so auspicious, and so full of bright promise to the future relations between the reigning houses of Great Britain and Kussia, brings this necessarily incomplete Historical Sketch to a happy close. 2. — Statistics. Area and Population. — The Area and Population of the Eussian Empire are shown in the following Table taken from the Eeport of the Central Statistical Committee at St. Petersburg for 1867. Sq. Geog. Miles. POFULATION. Male. Female. Total. Russia in Europe Eussia in Asia : — Caucasus Lieutenancy . . Siberia Central Asia* Kingdom of Poland f Grand Duchy of Finland 85,820 7,897 227,340 46,741 2,220 6,723 31,450,623 2,426,796 1,716,381 1,351,063 2,759,587 ? 32,208,311 2,156,844 1,611,246 1,275,183 2,946,020 V 63,658,934 4,583,640 3,327,627 2,626,246 5,705,607 1,773,612 376,741 or 8.288,302 Entr. sq. m.J 1 1 81,675,666 It will be seen that the population of the Eussian Empire is veiy un- equally distributetl, being at the rate of 741 inhabitants to the sq. geog. in. in European Eussia, 580 inhab. in the Lieutenancy of the Caucasus, 14 inhab. in Siberia, and 56 inhab. in Central Asia; while Poland has 256'J inhab. to the sq. geog. m., and Finland 263. * Before annexation of Kbivan territory on the Oxus in I 8 T 3 . + Corrected according toa Table fo r 1870, compiled by C. E. F. Ignatius. it The “General Calendar” for 1873, published by H. Hoppe at St. Petersburg, estimates the present bjtal area of the Russian Empire at 9,350,000 Eng. sq. m., and its population at 83,570,253. 38 — Statistics. lntro(J. Grouped according to religious persuasion, the population of the Kussian Empire may be approximately subdivided as follows, viz. : — Kusso-Greek 49,500,000 Dissenters from Kusso-Greek Church .. .. 10,000,000* Koman Catholics 8,000,000-|* Mahomedans 5,800,000 Lutherans and Protestants 4,500,000 Jews 2,700,000 Armenians 600,000 Pagans 570,000 If the Grand Duchy of Finland and Eussia in AsiaJ he excluded, the remainder of the population of the Eussian Empire may he suh-divided into the following classes : — Nobles, gentry, and Civil servants 920,000 Clergy, with their families 633,000 Inhabitants of towns 6,900,000 Agricultural population 56,000,000 'Military, inclusive of families 3,750,000 Aliens — not Eussian subjects 148,000 Miscellaneous 744,000 Education. — Eussia Proper is divided into six educational districts, with 14,367 primary schools (in 1871), giving instruction to 561,576 children, and 424 district schools, with 27,830 scholars ; besides female schools, gymnasia, seven universities, § and many special schools and academies. The education of the masses is, however, as yet but little advanced, only one-tenth of the population being able to read or write. Akmy and Navy. — The total official strength of the Eussian army on a peace footing is 686,422 officers and men, and on a war footing 1,105,126 officers and men, exclusive of 179,340 irregular troops. H In the navy, about 30 officers and men are employed. Inclusive of vessels in construction (1873), the Eussian navy is composed of 29 iron-clad vessels, 182 screw steam vessels, and 40 paddle steamers and sailing vessels, carrying altogether 1102 guns. The total tonnage is 131,351 tons, and the nominal horse-power 28,623. Trade. — Being chiefly an agricultural country, Eussia exports to Europe wheat, rye, oats, hemp, flax, tallow, and other natural products of a value of about 90 mill. £ (1871), England alone purchasing to the extent of about 23 mill. £. The imports of goods from Europe are valued in Eussian official returns at about 47 mill. £, inclusive of 13 mill. £ worth of goods from Gt. Britain ; but as the imports are estimated at an exaggerated fixed value, the real value of the direct imports from Gt. Britain cannot be more than about 7 mill. £ sterling. A large indirect trade is * These are ofScially recorded at a little more than a million, but non-official authorities concur in estimating the number of Dissenters at 10 to 11 millions, f Including about 230,000 Greco-Uniats. J Complete statistics have not been published. ^ The universities are at St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kharkof, Kazan, Kief, Odessa, and Dorpat. There is also a university at Warsaw. II Under the law of isll, the military capabilities of the empire have been considerably ncreased. Russia. 2. — Statistics. 39 carried on witli Gt. Britain through Germany. The Eussian Tariff is the highest and worst in Europe, prevents the development of the foreign trade and internal resources of the country, and enriches a few manufacturers at the expense of the lower classes. In 1871, the total tonnage of all vessels entered with cargoes in Eussian ports was 1,856,684 tons, of which 1,043,682 tons were entered from ports in Gt. Britain. Three-quarters of this tonnage fell to the share of the Baltic ports. Finance. — The estimated revenue of the Eussian Empire, exclusive of the Grand Duchy of Finland, which has a budget of its own, was as follows for the year 1875 : — Direct taxes (Poll tax, &c.) Excise on spirits and beer, &c Excise on salt, tobacco, and beetroot sugar Customs ' . . Dues, stamps, and licences Eoyalties (post, telegraphs, mines, and coinage) State domains Eailways : proceeds of loans, and repayments of advances Miscellaneous receipts Eeveime of the Transcaucasus Total ordinary revenue . . , . 559 million rubles (76f mill. £, at 33d) 122 million rubles. 186 55 26 55 5 ? 55 55 * 5 37 34 55 16 55 55 26 55 55 50 5 5 •5 7 55 This revenue was to have been expended as follows in 1875 ; — Public debt, repayment of, and interest Superior State Departments Church, pay of clergy, &c. Imperial Household (Civil List) . , Foreign Affairs Army Navy Finance Department — Cost of collecting taxes ; pensions, &c State domains Home Office (inch post and telegraphs) Public Instruction Public Works J ustice Audit Office Imperial studs Poland (supplementary, for Justice) .. Transcaucasus, Civil Government of . . 107 2 9) 9 21 180 ^ 26 million rubles. ?? ?? 5? 75 5 5 55 82 20 51f 14i 25“. m 2 k Of 7 55 55 55 55 55 55 55 Total ordinary expenditure . . 552 million rubles (75f mill. £.) This statement show's an excess of 1 mill. £ sterling in revenue o^ er actual expenditure ; but tliis balance must be reduced by a sum of about ^ a mill. £, as the estimated receipts from direct taxes are expected to fall 40 Introd. 3. — Language. short by that amount. This deduction leaves nominally a net surplus of about 5 mill. £, which, however, will probably be expended under sup- plementary estimates. The local taxation is exceedingly high, and, together with the Imperial taxes, falls heavily on the slender resources of the peasantry, by whom indeed the State is almost entirely supported. 3. — Language. The Russian language belongs to the south-east group of Slavic languages, to which belong also the Bulgarian language (with its obsolete dialect, the ancient or ecclesiastical Slavonian, now the liturgic language of all the Slavonian-speaking followers of the Eastern Churcli) and the Servian or Illyric, with its numerous dialects spoken throughout a great part of Turkey, and to a considerable extent in the empire of Austria ; while the north-west group of the same family comprehends the Polish, Bohemian, and Lusatian languages, with their dialects. The Russian language has three dialects — the Little Russian, which is spoken in the south-west provinces of Russia (Volhynia, Kief, Chernigof, Poltava, Kharkof, part of Voronej, Ekaterinoslaf, Kherson, the Taurida, Podolia, and part of Bessarabia) ; the White Russian dialect, spoken in the provinces of Mohilef and Minsk, in the greater part of those of Vitepsk, Grodno, and Belostok, and in a small part of the province of Wilna ; finally, the Great Russian or Russian proper, which is the official and literary language, as also that of a large majority of the population. The difference between these three dialects, however, is not so great as to prevent the peoj)le speaking the Little Russian or the White Russian from understanding the Great Russian, so that it may be said that the Russian language is spoken from one end of Russia proper to the other. Even the Pole and the Russian can understand each other to a certain extent. The Russian language is extremely copious and flexible ; its grammatical construction is somewhat complex, and offers many difficulties to a foreigner, owing to the great variety of inflections peculiar to some parts of speech, and to the absence of such other elements of speech as are in other Euro- pean languages considered quite essential in order to attain precision. Thus nouns, pronouns, and adjectives, are declinable in seven cases ; adjectives have a full and contracted termination ; the diminutive, aug- mentative, and deprecative terminations are next in expression, strength, and grace only to the Italian ; but there is no article, — a deficiency which causes great perplexity to a foreigner. Again, the Russian verbs are to a foreigner most difficult of comprehension, for they are quite different in system from anything that exists in the Western languages namely, the verb, while denoting in its inflections the numbers, persons, and in some cases even the genders, has only three tenses, and the deficiency of the other tenses is partly made good by so-called modes, Avhich determine the frequent or unfrequent, iDrecise or imprecise mode of an action, partly redeemed by an almost unlimited freedom of inversion, which, however, can afford but little help to one not perfectly conversant with the language. The Russians have an alphabet difi'erent from that used in the rest of Europe. The invention of this alphabet (which is called KiriUitsa) isattri- Russia. 41 3. — Language. bated to St. Cyril and St. Methodius, who lived in the 9th cent 3 ^ and who are considered as the principal apostles of the Christian faith among the Slavonian tribes, and who translated the Holy Scriptures, or at least some parts of them, into their native language ; for which purpose they are said to have composed an alphabet, or rather to have adapted the Greek alphabet, with the addition of a certain number of new characters for such sounds as were peculiar to the Slavonian language, and for such as they found no signs in the Greek alphabet. These characters are now only used in printing devotional books. The characters in general use were introduced by Peter the Great ; they are the same Cyrillian alphabet, with the omission of a few unnecessary letters, and somewhat remodelled so as to resemble more closely the forms of the Latin characters. The sounds of the thirty-six letters of which the Russian alphabet is composed are given on the next page in English characters. Throughout the Russian section of this work, the Russian sounds of the letters have been rendered by a simple combination of English letters, to be pro- nounced as in the Italian language. The vowels should be pronounced as follows : a as in far, e as in met, i as e in me, u as oo in hook. All corruptions and complications of Russian orthography derived by English writers from German and French sources have been avoided. It has onl}^ been found advisable to retain the usual spelling of some well known Russian names. 42 EUSSIAN ALPHABET. CHAEACTEES. ROMAN. ITALIC. SLAVO- NIAN. WRITTEN. ENGLISH SOUNDS. A a A a B A // a| has the ) sound of j 1 a in far B 6 B 0 E K be )3 b in bay B B B 6 6 K ve 33 V in vale r r r t r r ge 33 g in gay 4 A 1 Ad Aa de 33 d in day E e E e Ul e e 33 e in met M oic OfC je 33 z in azure 3 3 3 3 s 3 § s ^ Z0 33 z in zeal 11 II II V, H H -it i 33 e in me I i I i I 1 j i 33 e in me K K B K K K d ka 33 k in keen A I J Ji A A 1 33 1 in lay M M M M M AA m 33 m in may II II II u H H n 33 n in nay 0 0 0 0 Q o 0 33 0 in open 11 n 11 n n n P 33 P in pay P p P p Pp AP /V r 33 r in ray C c C c G c s 33 s in say EUSSIAN ALPHABET. 43 ' CHAEACTEES. SLAVO- EOMAN. ITALIC. WRITTEN. ENaLISn SOUNDS. NIAN. T T in T m T T has the 7 , • 1 1 p 1 1 in tiiy. sound 01 j y V 1 y,j oyov f y u jj 00 in book. (I) ^ j» / f f in fat X X X X Xx klia „ h aspirated H u a Un ij, 4.y tse ts in its. 1 n 4 H die jj ch in chain m m UI m m uj sha „ sh in shade m m m 1!( iji^i stclia sch in' discharge C has no sound — a semi- h T, L n t X yer < vowel used to harden C consonants. LI bi hi hi hi bl JSf -4>0 f has something like the yery y sound of e in hie, die. r has no sound — a semi- b B L h h b yer ■] vowel used to soften C consonants. h t 2> lb H t yat 1 have the t 3 3 3 0 6 6 e > 1 p > a in any I sound 01 1 10 10 10 10 I-O 10 J€ .a jj u in unit H a 11 R A A jt. ya ;> ya in yam 0 0 0 0 •O’ A & e. fe 3, f in feet r V y r Y V i ,y e in me it ii it it a H 9 ‘'S 4X i (seldom used) ,, y in coy 44 3. — Lanyuaye. Vocabulary. Aoreenient, condition Uslovie. All Vse". Almost Potchti. Always Vsegdd. Ambassador, English Angliski Posol. American, an Americanets. Another Drugdi. Apples Ydbloki. Autumn. Osen. Axe Topdr. Back (return) Bad Bag, travelling Bake, to Basin Bath house Bathe, to Bay Bazaar, the srreat Bear Beautiful Bed Bedroom Beef Beefsteak Beer Before Behind Belfry Below Between Bill, account Birch tree Bird Biscuit Bitter Black Blackcock Blacksmith Blanket Blue Board, plank Boat Boatman Bog, marsh Boil, to Book Boots, a pair of Bottle Spind. Nazad, Iludo. Meshbk. Petch. Umivalnik. Vdnna. Bdnia. Khpatsia. Zdlif. Gostinnoi -Dvor. Medvyed. Prekrdssnoi (fern. -ago), Postel. Spdlnaya. Goviddina. Bifstek. Pivo, Prejde. Ndzddi. Kolokolnia. V^iizu. Mejdu, Schbt. Berioza. Ptitsa. Sukhcir. Gorki. Chorni. Teterka. Kusnets. Oddydlo. Sini. Boskd, Lodka. Lodotchnik, Boloto. Varit. Kniga. Bapogi. Butylka. Box or case Boy Brandy Bread, white Bread, black Break, to Breakfast Breakfast, to Bream Bridge Bring Brother Brush Bugs Butter Button Cabbage soup Candle Cap Capercailzie Carriage Cart Cartridge Cathedral Cemetery Chair Chambermaid Change, to Cheese Chemise Chemist Chicken Church Clean Clear Coachman Coat Coffee pot Cold Come, to Consul, English — • American Cook Copper Cord Cork Corn brandy Count Introd. Yaschik. Mdlchik. Vodka (^Cognac). Bdly-khleh. Chdrni-khleh. Slomdt. Zdvtrak. Zdvtrakat, Ijestch. Most. Prinesi. Brat. Stchiotka. Klbpy. Mdslo. Pugovitsa. Kapusta. Stchi. Svetchka. F'urdjka. Gluhhdr. Kareta^ Kbliaska. Telega. Patron. Sohor. Klddhisckd. Stul. Gornitchnaya. Meni'at. Syr. Bubashka. Apteka. Tsiplibnok. Tserkof, Chlsty. Ydsny. Kutscher. Siurtuk. Koffe. Koffeinik. ( Holod (adj. Holod- \ ni). Pridti. Angliski Consul. ( Ameriednsky Con- ( sul. Kuhdrka, Povar. Myed. Veriovka^ Shnurok. Prbbka. ^ Vbdka. Graf. Russia. 8. — Language. 45 Courtyard. Cream Crooked Cucumbers Cup Custom House Cutlet Dancrer Dark Daughter Day Dine, to Dinner Dish Doctor Dog Door Door, outer Drawers (garment) Drink, to Driver of sledge or drosky Drown, to Drunk Dry , to Duck Duke, Grand Duster (rag) Early East Plat, to Eggs Plmbassy Emperor Plmploy^ (official) Empress Englishman, an Enough ■ not Evening Exchange Fair, a P’ar P"arm P'ather Ferry boat Field Fine (punishment) Fire Phr tree Dvor. Slifki. Krivy. Ogurtsi. Chashha. Tdmbjnia. Kotlet. Opastnosf. Te'mno. Dotch. Dyen. Obedat. Ohed. Bliudo. Doktor. Sobdka. Dter. Podyezd. Potchtdniki. Pit. I IsvostchiJ;. Toniit. Pyan, pyani. Sukhoi. Silshlt. Utka. Veliki Kniaz. Triapka. Pdno. Vostbk. Kusshat. Yditsi. Posolstvo. Iinperdtor, Tsar, Gosfiddr. C/tinocnik. Imperatritza, Gosu- ddryna. Anglichdnin. Dovblno. Ne docblno. Vecher, Birja. Yhrmarka . Dalyeko. Mijza. Ote'ts. Perecoz. Porbra. Pbld. Shtraf. Ogon. Sbsna, Fish Fish Fish Float, a Flour Fly Fog P"ool Foot on P'or Ford Foreigner Fork Fort P'owl Fox Fiom P'rost Fruit Fry Fur coat Gaff Game Garden Gateway Girl Give me us Glass, a a wdne of w'ater Gloves Gold Good Governor Gown , dressing Grayling Great Green Grouse-hazel ( Te- trao bonnsia) Guard (of a train) Gun Ham Plammer Hand Hard Hare Hat Hay Ryha. Pybak. Udotchka. Pbplovok. Mukd. Mukha. Tumcin. Burak. Nog a. Peshkbm. Blid. Brbd. Inostrdnets. Yilka. Krepost or “ Fort.'" Kuritsa. Lisitsa. at. Morbz. Frukti, Ydgodi. Jdrit. Mekh. Shuba. Kriiik. Batch. Sad. Vorota. Bevitsa, deck Bai or Baite Bai mne. Bai nam Stakdn. Pm/nka. Stakdn Todl. Perchatki. Zbloto. Horosho. Gubernator, Pldtyd. Khaldt. Hdrius. Bolshoi. Zelyonoi. Biabchik. Kbnduktor. Pujyb. Vetchind, bkorok. Plolotok. Pukd; plur. Eicki. Krepki, jostki. Zdyets. Shlydpa. Seno. 46 He Heir apparent Here Hill Hold, to Hole Holyday Honest Hook, fishing Horse Horseback Hot Hotel House * Hungry Husband 1 Ice an If 111 Illness. Important In Ink Inn Inn, room at an Iron Island Key Kidney Kiss, a Kitchen Knife Lake Lantern Laundress Lead (metal) Leather Left Less Letter Lie, a Line, fishing Linen (clothes) Linen (stuff) Little Lock, a Long Long ago Lose, to Low Luggage 3. — Language, On Tsesareoitcli. Vot, sdh. Gord. Derjat. Dyrd. Prdzdnik. Chestni. Kriucholi. ( Loshad, plur. L6- ( shadi. Verkhdm. Goryatc/io, jdrJio, Gostinnitsa. Pom. Golodni. Muj, Ya. Lyod. Mormennoye. Esli. Nezdorov. Bolezn. Vdjno. V. Chernila. Gostinnitsa, tralitir. Nomer. Jelye'zo. dstrof. Kliutch, Pbtchka. Potselid. Kukhnid. Nojik. V Ozero. Fondr. Pi'dtchkn, Svinets. Koja. Leoo. Menshe. Pismo. Loj, neprdvda. Lesd. Belyd. Hoist. Mdio, ne mndgo. Zamdh. Dl'mrd. Davno. Teridt. Nizko. Jlufidj. Market Matches Mattrass May, can Measure, to Meat, beef Merchandise Merchant Milk Mill Minister, American IMonastery Money More Morning Mother Mountain Much Mud Mustard Mutton Nail Napkin Near Necessary Nephew Net Net, landing New Night No Noble North Nuts Oak Oar Oats Often Oil Old Omelette Or Outside Overcoat Pail Palace Pancakes Paper Parade-ground Partridge Pears | Peas Peasant Introd. Einok. Spitchki. Matrds. Mojno Merit. Goviddina. Tovdr. Kvpets. Moloko. Melnitsa Americdnshj Pos- Idnnik. Monastir. Dengi. ' Bolshe, estcliyo. tftro. Mat. Gord. Mndgo. Griaz. Gorchitsa. ^ Bardnina. Gvozd. Salfetka, Blizko. Nddohno. Plemydnik. Syet, nevod. Sotchdk, Ndvy. Notch. Nyet Pvoryanin. Se'oer. Ordkhi. Pfib. Veslo. Ovyds. Chdsto. Mdslo, provdnshoye. Stdry Yaitchnitsa. Hi. Vnie, Snaruji. Paletot. Vedrd. Pcorets. Blinni. Bumdga. Platz-pardd. Kurapdtka. Grushi, Gordkh. Krestidnin, mnjik. 47 Russia. 3. — Language. Pen Pero. Pencil Karandash Pepper Perets. Perch Ohm. Petticoat Yuhka. Pie Pb'og. Pike Stchuka. Pillow Podushka. Pillow case Ndvolotchka. Pilot Lotsman. Pin Bulafka. Pistol Pistolet. Pipe Tnibka. Place Mesto. Plate Tarelka. Pocket Karman. Pocket book Bumltjnik. Police the Politsia. Policeman ( Gorodovoi — Po- ( litseiskoi. Poor Porter Portion, a Portmanteau Post-office Post or rail way sta- Bedny. Dvornik. Portsia. ChemoddUf sunduk. Potchdint. 1 Stdntsia. tion Post-horses Potchovyid loshadi Postboy, postilion Yamschlk. Poste restante Bo Vostrebovdniye Potatoe Kartoffel. Powder, gun Pbrokh. Price Tsend. Priest, clergyman Pop, Pastor. Prince, a Knyaz. Proprietor Vladelets — lioz idy in , Proprietor, landed Pomestchik, Push, to Pikhdt. Quay Ndberejnaya. Quick Show. Railway Jelyeznaya doroga. Railway station Stdntsia, Maskina. Rain Bujd. Rapids Porogi. Raspberry Mallna. Ravine Ovrdg. Ready Gotovo. Red Krdsny — dya. Restaurant Restordn or Traldir. Rich Bogdty. Ride, to Yezdit. Right Prdvo. River Befid. Road Doroga. Roast Jarkoe. Roast, to Jdrit. Robber Pazhoinik. Room Kbmnata, Gbrnitsa. Room at an inn Nomer. Room, ladies’ Ddmskaya. Room, dressing Ubornaya. Row, to Gryest. Run, to Bejdt. Sable Sobol. Saddle Sedld. Safe Bezopdstno. Sailor Mati^bs. Salmon Ldsbsina. Salt Sol. Sandwich Butterbrod. Saucepan Kostriulia. Scissors Nbjnitsi. Sea More. Secure Sokhrdno. See, to Videt. Send, to Posy Id t. Servant, lacquey C helot eh. Shave Brit. She Ond, Sheets Prostiny. Ship Kordbl. Shirt Rubdshka. Shirt, night Notchndya rubdshka. Shoes BashmaJil. Shop Ldfka. Shops, row of Ridd. Shot Brbb. Show, to Pokazdt. Silk Sholk. Sing, to Pyet. Sir or Mr. Gospodin. Sister Sestrd. Sleep, to Spat. Slippers Tufli. Small Maly. Snow Snyeg. Snow, storm of Miatel, burdn. Soap Mylo. Soft Midgki. Soon Skoro. Smell Von, Zdpakli. Smoke By in. Snipe Becasse. Soup Soup. Soup, cabbage Stchi. South Yug. Spoon Jjoshkn. ^'])ortsman Ohbtnik. 48 Introd. 3. — Language, Spring, season Vesnd. Spring of carriage Eessora. Square Ploschad. Steamer Parokhbd. Steel Stdl. Stockings Chulki. Stop (imper.) Stdl. Storm Burya. Stove Petchka. Straight Pridmy. Straw Soloma. Strawberry Klubnlka. Street Ulitsa. Street, cross Pereulok. Strong Krepki, sllni. Sugar Sdkhar. Summer Leto. Sun Solntse. Sup, to Ujinat. Supper JJjin. Sweet Slddki. Table Stol. Take, to Braty Vzidt. Take (imper.) Beri, Vozmi. Tallow Sdlo. Tar Dibgot, Smold. Tea Chai. Tea-pot Chainik. Tea-urn. Samovdr. Tell, say Skazat. That Tot—Chto. Thief For. Thread Nltki. Ticket, railway Billet, Time Vre'mia. To K'. Tobacco Tab'ak. To-day Segodnid. To-morrow Zdvtra. Tongue Yazyk. 1'owel Polotenzo. Town Gorod. Train Poyezd. Ti’aveller Put^shestvennik. 'free Dd'revo. Trousers Pantalony. 'I'rout Forel. Truth Prax/da. Umbrella Zbntik. Under Pod. Utensil (night) Gorshok. Valley Dolma. Veal Telidtina. Very, much Ochen. Villa Ddtcha. Village Dereonia, Selo. Village, head of Stdrosta. Vinegar Uksus. Wait, to Dojiddt. Waiter Chelovek. Waim Tepid. Wash, to Myt. Watch, a Chasy. Water Vodd. Water carrier Vodovos. Water-closet Nnjnik. Water, cold Kholddnaya vodd, Water, glass of Stakdn vodi. Water, hot Gorydtchy vodi. Waterfall Vodopdd. Weather Pogdda, , ■ West Zdpad. Wet Mbkry. Wheel Kolesd. Which Kotdri. White Bye'ly. Who Ktd. Wide Shirdki. Wife Tend. Wind, a Veter. Wine Vind. Wine, red Krdsnod Vinb. Winter Zimd. Wish, to Jelat, With S'. Within Vnutri, Without (not with) Bez. Wolf Volk, Woman Jentclnna. Wood (fuel) Drovd. Wood (forest) Les. Wooden Derevydny. Work, to Pdbdtat. Worms Chdrvi. Write Pisdt. Year God. Yellow Jdlty. Yes Da. Yesterday Vchera. You, thou Vy, ty- Young Molodbi. R ussia. 3. — Language^ 49 Dialogues. 1 am an Englishman Ya Anglichdniii. i am an American. N Ya Ameriednets. 1 do net speak Kuss, Ne (jovoriii po rmshi. Where does the Consul reside ? Gde jiviot . ' , ( American Americanslnj Where is the English Churcli? Gde Ancjlislidga Tserhof‘^ Good day. Sdravstviiite. Good night. Dobraya notch. Good bye. Prostchaite. Good, very well. Horosho. Not good, not well. Ne horosho. Give me. Dai mne. Give us. Daite nani. It cannot be done. Nelzid. Do better. Zdelai lutche. If you jdease. Pojdlusta. Thank you. Play od dr i a — Spassiho . Who is there ? Jvhto tarn'-] Come here. Pad'i sndi. Hollo 1 here. Poslushi. TTT, ( boots ? Where are my] , GdeY‘P'l [platye ? Let us go (on foot). Poidtom. Let us go (in a carriage). Poyedem. Go on. Poshol. Drive gently. Tishe. Never mind, or nothing. Nlchehb. Hurry quick. Skore'i. Drive faster. Poshol skorel. Have a care. Beregiss. Give room, give place. Pad'i, ]oad'i. To the right. Na prdvo. To the left. Na lew. Go further on. Poshol ddlshe. Drive home. Dombi. Stop. Stbi. Tell me. Shajite-mne. Speak plainly. Gdvori yasneyc. Speak slowly. Govori tishe'. What is it ? Chto takoe^l How do they call it? Kah zaviit‘1 WTiat does it cost ? Chto stoit ? Shdlko stdit ? How much the arshin ? PotchoDi arshin^- How much tlie pound ? Potchdni funt i It is dear. Dto dbrogo. It is miicli. Eto rnnbgo. It is cheap. Deshevo (dioshevo'). Can you give change ? Sddehi yest ? I don’t know. Ne zndyii. Not wanted. Ne nddo. I won’t have. Ne hochu. Is it ready ? Gotovoli ? Set the tea-urn. Postdv samovar. Introd. So B,—Language^ Give us a spoon. What’s to be donCi What’s o’clock ? It is 1 o’clock. It is 2 j, It is 3 ,j It is 4 it is 5 „ Have you a room ? Empty that. Clean that. Dry that. In how many hours ? Is it possible ? Where is the inn ? How many versts? Where is the landlord ? Where is my servant? Where is the waiter ? Waiter! I will pass the night here. What can I have to eat ? Are the sheets dry? Is the bed clean? Bring candles. Where is the post office ? When do you start ? In an hour. It is time to be off. What is there to pay ? Bring the bill. The bill is too heavy. It must be reduced. Bring - water. Which is the way to ? Pray show me the way. What kind of a road is it ? Are the horses to ? What is to pay for them ? Drink money. Tea money. I will give you drink money.- I will not give you drink money. What will you charge ? (To a droshky or sledge driver).* Xo, I shall only give 20c., &c. ^Vhat station is it ? How long do we stop ? \\diere is the refreshment-room ? Dai Ibshhi. ' Ghto delat ? Katori chas ? Tepper chas. Tepper dm chasd. Tepper tri chasd, Tepper chetyre chasd, Tepper piat chasbf. (The latter termination is used fot the re- mainder of the hours). Yest-li nbrner^i Oporbjni. Chlsti. Prosushi. Chores sholho chasbf"} Mbjnoli} Gde Gostinnitsa ( Trahtir) Ckblko verst i Gde hozidin. Gde moi chelovek ? Gde chelovek ? Chelovek I Zdess nochkyu. Chto yest hushat Sukhi li prbstini ? Chistd li ijostel 9 Prinesi svetchi. Gde Potchamt ? Kogdd vy uyedete f Chores chas. Pord yehat. Skdlko platit ? Prinessi schot. Schot slishkom velik. Nddo sbdvit, holodnol. Pruuissi vodi Katoroi darogoi mne itti 1 Proshu p>okasdt mne dorbgu, Kdhova dorbga ? Zapriaj mi-li-ldshadi ? Skdlko prbgon ? Na vodka. JSfa Chai. Dam na vbdku. Neddm na vbdku, Za skdlko } Net, Dvadsat kopeik, Kakaya Stdntsia 1 Skblko miniit ? Gde Buffet ? * In engaging a droshky or sledge driver, it is merely necessary to mention the name of the' street, square, &c., with the addition of file question .v/coW-oAhow much? A bargain then ensues, which generally terminates in the driver running after the traveller with the words Jsi'olti, poj(iluite—-"\cvy well, come in.” Bussia. 51 3. — Language. Where is the W. C. ? Where is the telegraph*office ? Where is the luggage ? The luggage is lost. Give me a ticket. First class. Second class. Smoking compartment. Is smoking allowed ? Do we change trains? Do we change carriages ? Which is the nearest station to ? How far can I book ? Is your master at home ? Is there a Doctor here ? Which is the best hotel ? Can horses be obtained at the station to go to ? How far is from the station ? How far can I book ? I wish to telegraph. To the station master. Gde Otkhojie mdsto (Nujntk) f Gde telegraph ? Gde bagaj ? Bagaj poterian. Ddite inne billet. Pervi class, Vtordi class. Knritelnoye Otddlenie. . Kta'it mbjno ? Nddo U meniat Poyezd^ Nddo li meniat Vagbn ? Katordyd stantsid blije-k ? Do kotordgo mesta mogu vsiat bilet ? Pdrin doma ? Test li Doctor sdes ? Kotordyd lutchidya Gostinnitsa ? 3fojno~li loshddel dostat na Stantsii chtoh ye hat v — '? Dale'ko'li ot Stantsii ? Do kotoroi Stantsii mogu poluchit billet liochu teldgrdphirovat. Nachalnikii Stantsii. January February ilarch April ^lay . J une July August September October Names op the Months and Days op the Week. Janvar. November Noydhr. Fevrdil. Mart. December Dekdbr. Aprbl. Monday Tuesday Ponedelnih, Mai. Vtbrnik, lydn. Wednesday Seredd. iyul. Thursday Chetverg. Avgust. Friday Pidtnitsa. Sentydbr. Saturday Subbta. Oktydbr. Sunday Voskresenie. The Numerals. One, odin. Two, did. Three, tri. Four, chetiri. Five, pidt. Six, sliest. Seven, sem. Eight, rbsem. Nine, deviat. Ten, desiat. Eleven, odin-ndtzat. Twelve, dce-ndtzat ; And so on, always adding natzat to each number up to Twenty, dvdtzat. Twenty-one, dvatzot-odin. Twenty-two, dvatzat-dvd ; And so on, always adding the unit up to ten, and then Thirty, tritsat. Forty, sbrok. Fifty, piatdesiat. Sixty, shesdesidt. Seventy, semdesiat. Eighty, vbsemdesiat. Ninety, devianbsto. One hundred, sto. Five hundred, piat s6t. One thousand, tyissiatcha. 52 4:.---Literature. Introd. 4. — Literature. The modern literature of Russia dates, as almost everything else in modern Russia, from the political and intellectual reforms effected by Peter the Great. After the liberation of Russia from the Mongol yoke, which had for several centuries completely arrested the intellectual development of the Russian nation, theMoscovite Government and the more enlightened citizens became conscious of the necessity of restoring science and art. The task was a difficult one. They could no longer look to Constantinople, from whence at an earlier epoch Russia had received the first rudiments of Christian civilization; science and art had fled from Byzantium to the West of Europe; and from immediate intercourse with these, Russia v^'as shut out by her geographical position, and still more perhaps by difference of religion and by the animosity of powerful neighbours. Polish letters were the only channel through which "Western civilization exercised some ' amount of influence on Moscovy. Indeed, at Kief and in several other cities in the Russian provinces then incorporated with Poland, schools were established, where classical studies were conducted on the same plan as in the West. In these schools were formed most of the writers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and even later, many of the contemporaries of Peter the Great, among whom we will only name the most zealous partizan of reform, the Archbishop Theophanes Procopovitch, were educated in them. These schools were also taken as a model for the first classical school established at Moscow under the name of the Latino-Greco- Slavonian Academy. It is from Poland also that the first attempt at a drama was introduced into Russia, in the form of miracle plays, which, from the ecclesiastical schools of Kief, Wilna, and Moscow, penetrated into the houses of some rich boyars, and even into the palace of the Tsar. But although the influence of Poland and of Polish letters on the literature of Russia cannot be denied, yet there were two circumstances which did not allow it to be so great or so beneficial as might have been expected : firstly, Polish letters were then in a complete decline, owing to the lifeless scholas- ticism introduced by the Jesuits, under whose sway society had fallen ; secondly, the obstinate efforts made by the Roman Catholic aristocracy and clergy to bring the Ruthenian subjects of the republic within the pale of the Church of Rome produced a violent struggle and engaged all the best intel- lects of the country in religious controversy, d’he printing offices of Kief, Wilna, Lemberg, &c., on which the reading public of Moscovy chiefly depended for books (the printing office established at Moscow being appro- priated almost exclusively to the use of the Church and the Government), produced scarcely anything except devotional books and controversial tracts. Thus Polish influence not only failed to free the literature of Russia from its almost exclusively devotional and ecclesiastical character, but, on the con- trary, strengthened it in that direction. A more direct communication with the civilised world alone could have put an end to that state of things and have roused the nation from its secular intellectual slumber. This was felt by some of the Tsars of Moscow, and they tried to undertake the task. Boris Godunof sent young noblemen to study abroad ; he is even said to have contemplated the establishment of a university at Moscow. In general, however, these efforts of the Tsars were of a very timorous nature. Russia. 4. — Literature. 53 and they were frequently frustrated by the animosity of jealous neigh- bours. Many instances are recorded of professional' men, engaged for the service of the Tsar, having been prevented by the Polish or Livonian authorities from proceeding on their way to Moscow. At length Peter the Great did in a violent way what his predecessors had been unable to do by milder means. He broke through the wall which had hitherto separated Kussia from Western Europe, and forced his nation into the main channel of European civilization. In the execution of this plan he exhibited the same restless activity, the same faculty of taking an interest in the most minute details of a scheme, which he showed in his other acts. Not con- tent with issuing general measures for the diffusion of knowledge among his subjects, with erecting new schools and reforming old ones, with ]>re- paring the plan of an academy of sciences (which was however opened only after his death), he also found leisure to choose the books that were to be translated (generally elementary books of science), and sometimes to revise translations and to inspect their printing. It is even asserted that he corrected the proofs of early numbers of the first newspaper published by his orders at Moscow in 1703. The first classical writer and reformer of letters in Kussia was Lomo- nossof, the son of a fisherman at Archangel, who flourished in the reign of the Empress Elizabeth, — a man remarkable for the universality of his genius and acquirements. Having left his home at the age of seventeen, he studied first at Moscow and Petersburg, and finally at the universities of Germany ; on his return to Petersburg he was appointed professor of chemistry to the Academy of Sciences, and devoted his whole life to the promotion of science and letters in his own country. He was not a poet in the modern and stricter acceptation of the word; and his odes, his tragedies, and his unfinished epic poem are little more than clever and well-written imita- tions of German and French models. However, he is not quite un- deservedly considered as the creator of the modern poetry of Russia, for it is he who banished the clumsy syllabic verse which had been introduced from Poland, and replaced it by the tonical prosody which is used until now and which has proved so congenial to the Russian language. He also rendered great service to the language by rejecting from it, although not completely, numerous ecclesiastical Slavonian expressions and forms which had crept in under the influence of ecclesiastical writers, and by tracing a line of separation between the two languages. But his most important right to the gratitude of his country is liis having been an indefatigable champion of science ; he was alternately grammarian, philo- logist, historian, chemist, natural philosopher, metallurgist, statistician, and worker in mosaic ; his name appears in the beginning of almost every branch of knowledge and art ; he was, to use the words of a great Russian writer of more recent date, “ the only promoter of science in Russia in the period between Peter the Great and Catherine II.” At a time when the whole of Europe was under the influence of the artificial, pseudo-classical school of France, it is not surprising that Lomo- nossof submitted to the same sway, and that his example should have engaged in the same direction a host of less gifted writers, with whom litera- ture became a mere rhetorical 'exercise — a childish imitation of French models. A profusion of epics, tragedies, odes, &c., appeared every day, and Russia, in the raptures of her newly-won civilization, boasted already of possessing 64 4. — Literature. Introd. her own Corneilles and Racines, Virgils and Voltaires, whose works, how- ever, can now scarcely he read, even by those who devote themselves to the historical study of literature — if we except Derjavin, the first Russian poet of eminence, whose odes and other lyrics, although not free from the rhetorical bombast which was then held to be poetry, present many flashes of a genius powerful and truly poetic, and which will save his works from oblivion, notwithstanding their many defects. Satire and comedy were the only kinds of literature at that time, and these, although strictly imitative in their forms, were of some originality as to their contents. The comedies of Von-Wisin, those of the Empress Catherine II., the satirical essays of Novikof and his imitators, the fables of Hemnitzer, are until now read with pleasure as interesting illustrations of the manners and ideas of their epoch. Von-Wisin’s comedy of ‘The Minor’ still appears on the stage from time to time. A new period in the literature of Russia begins with Karamzin. In one sense he may be called the continuator of Lomonossofs reforms, for, while he still more strictly separated the vernacular Russian from the Slavonian language, he also banished the heavy Latin phraseology introduced by Lomonossof, and replaced it by the more simple and natural construction of modern languages. He thus created in Russia an elegant literary style adapted to the wants of modern civilization. On the other hand, he abandoned the pompous rhetoric of his predecessors, and introduced the sentimentality which was in such vogue in Europe at the end of the eighteenth and in the beginning of the present century. By his periodicals, in which he published his ‘ Letters of a Traveller ’ (a lively and brilliant description of his tour through Europe), sentimental tales, original as well as translations, and popular scientific and critical essays, he more than any other writer contributed to spread a taste for reading among the public. In the task of popularising literature he was much assisted by Dimitrief, who did for the language of poetry what Karamzin had done for prose writing. A further step in this direction was taken by Krylof, whose fables are equal to any similar .productions in other countries, and are justly considered as most perfect models of elegant and idiomatical language. A similar style is met with in Griboyedof’s comedy ‘ Sorrow comes from Wit/ a most telling satire on the society of Moscow, which was greedily read and learnt by heart many years before it was allowed by the censor to appear on the stage or in print. Great influence on the literature of Russia was exercised by Jukovski, who, by his masterly translations of some contemporary English and German poets, introduced into Russia the then arising romantic school of poetry. At the same time Martinof, by his translations of Greek classics, and especially Guaditch, by his able transla- tion of the ‘ Iliad,’ gave to their countrymen a more correct idea of the true character of classical poetry. But the great national poet of Russia is Pushkin. His works are very numerous and varied. After having been an imitator of Byron in some of his earlier poetical tales (‘ The Prisoner of the Caucasus/ ‘ The Fountain of Bakhchisarai,’ ‘The Gipsies’), he exhibited in his more mature works a truly original and national genius, which fully justified the admiration which is paid to him by his countrymen. His poetical novel (‘ Evgheni Oneghin ’), a tale of a Russian homme hlase, offers lively and interesting pictures of provincial and metropolitan life in Russia. His ‘ Boris Godiinof ’ Russia. 4:.— Literature, 55 is a magnificent historical drama, after the model of Shakspeare’s plays, repre- senting Russia at the highly interesting time of the appearance of the first false Demetrius. Among his other works we shall only point out his poem ‘ Poltava,’ some fine dramatic sketches (‘ The Stone Guest,’ ‘ Mozart and Salieri,’ ‘The Covetous Knight’), and an excellent story in prose, ‘ The Cap- tain’s Daughter,’ presenting a picture of provincial life in Russia at the time of the Pugatchef rebellion. A great number of Pushkin’s lyric pieces re- commend themselves as well by vigour of thought and deep feeling as by elegance of style and melody of verse. Lermontof holds the next place after Puslddn in the consideration of his countiwmen, and, indeed, although he died before his talent had come to full maturity, the vigour of thought and passion, and the strength of expression, which unite in his poetry with an exquisite harmony of versification, would undoubtedly have gained him a prominent position in any literature. Of other modern poets, the most remarkable are Baratinski, Yazikof, Khomiakof, Countess Rostopchin, and the peasant poets Koltsof and Kikitin. Among living poets we may mention Maikof, Stcherbina, Nekrassof (a most bitter satirist), Polonski, and Count A. Tolstoi, author of an historical drama, ‘ The Death of John the Terrible,’ which has had a great success on the stage. • A writer whose ]X)pularity and whose influence on the literature of his country are equal, if not even superior, to those of Pushkin, is Gogol, the great humourist of Russia, a man who possessed to a high degree the art, to use his own expression, of “ laughing a laugh under which are bitter tears to analyse “ the mud of trifling things with which life is shackled ; to ex- pose the triviality and meanness of life and of man,” — such is the usual theme of his works, and this theme he realizes with striking truth and inexhaustible humour. His chief works are a comedy, ‘ The Revisor,’ which holds permanent possession of the stage, and is considered to be the best comedy in the Russian language, and a tale entitled ‘ The Dead Souls,’ of which an English translation has been published. As almost all the modern poets of Russia are more or less indebted to Pushkin, so the influence of Gogol may be traced in a greater or smaller degree in almost all the branches of Russian novel- writing. The modern novel-writers who hold the highest place are Turguenief, Gontcharof, Pisemski, Dostoievski, and Count Tolstoi. The writing of historical novels, which had been quite abandoned for some years, has been resumed by Count A. Tolstoi, and by Count L. Tolstoi, whose romance entitled ‘War and Peace’ purports to represent the social life of Russia during the first quarter of the present century. Of modern comedies those of Ostrovski alone deserve to be mentioned. Scientific literature can be but poor in a country where science has been introduced so recently, and where, until of late years, literature has been under the control of rigorous censors. The history of Russia is almost the only branch of science in which some remarkable original works are to be found. The first, most celebrated historian in Russia is Karamzin, who, in his ‘ History of the Russian State,’ gave for the first time a true work of science and art, and not, as his predecessors Tatischef and Prince Stcher- batof, a crude and clumsy digest of the old chronicles and annals. Xot- witbstanding the progress made by historical investigation since it was first published, his work is until now not only widely read by the general public, 56 4. — Literature, Introd. but is even studied and considered as a book of reference by every writer on national history. Among the numerous more modern historical writers, we shall only name Polevoi, Solovief (Professor at Moscow, whose work is now considered the best history of Russia), Ustrialof (author of a very detailed history of Peter the Great, of which only a few volumes have as yet been published), Kostomarof (author of several historical works on Little Ptussia before its incorporation with Russia, on the ancient municipal constitutions of Novgorod and Pskof, on the false Demetrius, &c.), Beliayef, Pypin, Stchapof (author of a good work on the Russian dissenters) ; Miliutin, Minister of War, author of a work on the Italian campaign of Suvorof, and Bogdanovitch (a history of the war of 1812). Until a very recent period, all the other branches of scientific literature were almost exclusively (and even now are to a great extent) supplied by translations from foreign languages. It was in the reign of Catherine II., whose influence on the intellectual development of the Russian people was very marked, that translations began to be cultivated. They continued with great activity during the first part of the reign of Alexander I. ; but in the last years of his reign this activity was arrested by a sudden increase of the severity of the censorship, which, far from abating in the reign of Nicholas, grew at last to such a system of censorial terror, that not even the most innocent novel could be translated without considerable mutilations. Under the more liberal system wliich has been inaugurated during the present reign translations are again published with great activity. The works of Macaulay, Buckle, Adam Smith, J. Stuart Mill, and many other standard English works, may now be read in the Russian language. The present period is marked by a cultivation of political writing, most of the intellect of the country being absorbed in administrative reforms. The political economists and statists form a comparatively small school, but are nevertheless well known to the scientific societies of Europe. The news- papers employ a very considerable number of writers. The foremost journal IS the ‘ Moscow Gazette,’ with a circulation of about 15,000. Next in import- ance are (at St. Petersburg), the ‘ Golos,’ ‘ Russki Mir,’ ‘Novoe Vremia,’and ‘ Birjevye Veddmosti.’ At St. Petersburg, moreover, almost every minister of state has his organ. The ‘ Journal de St. Petersbourg ’ is the mouthpiece of the Imperial Foreign Office. Of the monthly magazines the most important are the ‘ Moscow Herald,’ conducted by Mr. Katkof, and the ‘ Herald of Europe,’ conducted by Mr. Stassulevitch. The scientific publications of the- War Office and Admiralty, and the Reports of the Minister of Public Instruction, are of high interest. The several scientific societies of Russia publish journals, whose valuable contents are almost entirely lost to Western Europe, owing to the language in which they are edited. Although the periodical press is no longer subject to a preventive censor- shpr, yet it is far from being free: it is under the control of the Minister of the Interior, and the system of avertUsemenU and suspensions^ which has been borrowed from France, weighs somewhat heavily upon it. Eussia. 5. — Measures, Weights, and Coins. 57 Diuim 12 Diilim Vershok 16 Vershoks 3 Arshins 500 Sajens 2400 Sq. sajens 5. —Measures, Weights, and Coins. Measures of Length. = 1 inch Eng. = 0’0254 metre. = 1 foot ,, = 0’3048 „ = 1*75 inch Eng. = 1 arshin = 28 inches Eng. = = 1 sajen or fathom = 7 feet Eng. : (N.B. a nautical sajen has 6 feet). = 1 verst = 0*66 or § mile Eng. = 1 desiatina = 2*86 acres Eng. : 0‘7112 metre, 2‘133G metres. 1.-0668 kilom. 1*0925 hectare. Shtof 8 Shtofs 40 Vedros Measures of Capacity. = ^ vedro. = 1 vedro = 3*25 galls, wine, and 2*7069 Imp. galls. = 12*2985 litres. = 1 botchka = 108*2760 Imp. galls. Dry Measure. Garnets = 0*34 peck Eng. 8 Garnets = 1 chetverik = 2*73 pecks or 0*72 bushel Eng. 8 Chetveriks = 1 chetvert or quarter = 5*77 bushels Eng. = 0*72185 imp, qr. = 209*9 litres. Weights.* 1 Zolotnik = 2*41 drams avoirdu})ois = 4265 milligrammes. 96 Zolotniks = 1 funt = 14*43 ozs. avordupois, or 0*40952 kilo. 40 Pounds = 1 pud = 36*08 lbs. ,, „ 16*372 „ 10 Puds = 1 berkovets = 360*80 lbs. ,, „ 163*720 „ The coinage of Piussia is decimal; thus — 100 copecks make 1 ruble. The ruble, of which the standard is silver, contains about 18 grs. of pure silver, and an alloy of about 13 per cent., or 83^ in 9G. Its par value in English money is The silver currency in circulation before the Crimean war has been exported from llussia, and the only silver money at ])resent in use are pjieces of 20, 15, 10, and 5 copecks. The intrinsic value of these coins was reduced by 12 per cent, in 1860. The copper tokens range between 1 and 5 cops. The lower classes, particularly in the’ interior of Eussia, still speak of the “ Grivna,” an old coin of the value of 10 cop. Thus, “ Grivennik ” is 10 cop., and “ Dvugrivinny ” 20 cop. Taken at par the sovereign is worth 6 rs. 28 cops., and the shilling 31 cops.; but the depreciation of the currency sometimes enhances the nominal value of a sovereign in paper money to Es. 7*50, according to the rate of exchange on London. The paper money in circulation is inconvertible, but has a forced cur- rency. The notes represent 100 rubles, 50 rs., 25 rs., 10 rs., 5 rs., 3 rs., and 1 ruble, and are plainly stamped with their value. They are very * The principal weights and measures will probably soon be decimalized on the basis of the metrical system. ^ 58 5. — Measures, Weights, and Coins. Introd. elaborate in design, and bear portraits of Eussian sovereigns. Practically the paper ruble is worth 2s. 6c^. The Treasury Bonds are for 50 rs., and bear 4^ per cent, interest. Eussian paper money may now be freely exported and imported.* Example to find the value of 50 rubles Eussian money in British sterling, at the rate, say, of S2d. to the ruble : — Euble. Pence. Rubles. 1 = 32 X 50 50 12)1600 20)133 4 Answer £6 13 4 or 50?. in Eussian rubles at the same rate : — Pence. ' Copecks. Pence. 32 = 100 X 12,000 = £50 100 32)1,200,000(375.00 96 240 224 160 160 000 Answer Bs. 375.00 Cop. The value of a sovereign in Eussian money, at the exchange of 32d., will be found thus : — Pence. Copecks. Pence. 32 = 100 X 240 = 20s. 240 32)24,000(7.50 224 160 160 000 Answer Bs. 7.50. * Travellers will receive the current value of their money in Russian rubles, and vice versS, at the frontier railway stiitions. It is, however, best to carry only the amount strictly requi- site, and to keep the rest in circular notes, or with a banlcer at St. I’etersburg or Moscow. Tables for the Conversion of Cost in Busslan Weights and Measures into English Equivalents^ at the Par and Average Pates of Exchange. ussia. 5. — MeasureB, Weights^ and Coins. 59 ’V o p-l 02 bC cc < 'O HM K|rH HN Hl4< KM -IN b '-'TiH(MOOOO?CirHCOCOiMC^iMrHrHOO 4,;i— IrHrHOOOOOOOOOOOOO r-lr-irHr-lOOOOOOOOOO . . . lO CO >-H r-l Co’3'’ rH fH CO cO'iM oqoqcM(Moq^rHi-< g^^COCM OCOOCOi-lOOiOCOOO CO CO CO CO CO (M oq O'! oq CO CC lO lo TjH Tab! e II.— Price per Piicl converted into Englisli equivalents per cwt. Introd, 60 5»^Measur68j Weights^ and Coins. fS'TS©l><^J< 75 '^’--iX)iOrHCO(Ni-t ^ coiOrHTHCOe«D»OCO(Mi— I to*lOiO'^THCOCO(MG rS /:3 ;'d^coc:)0(MOODiOrHa5':Dco OiooixM ci-io S •colOcq'+^oooc^5r-lcoT^^coa) rH rH rH 1— I lSj^(M t> |> O ?0 >0 iO O O O O O O O O t> CO lO GO O O rW (M O OO O rH O O lO O O t— ( I— I I— I I— I rH THOG0C000000505C00S05C5 OSCOOOC^C^'tOCO 05 hH rH CO eO OQ 1>0 Eussia, 5. — Pleasures, Weights, and Goins. 61 o <1 Ti o <0 cr* t 3 hInhInmM hMMnhItHMMHnhWMItJihIm Hnh|-h rH(MOOODt^iOCOCOCOiOrt^CO(M rt^TjHCOCOG’rH(Ni-l,-(05QOOTHCOirH rH r-H < «,»iMiMiOCO»OCO(M rH I— 1 1— 1 < vJCOCOOTi^rTSCOCO(MC^CCO'+ICOO'^GO cs CO ^^QDOCO^:OOCOOOCO^O'r^^r-ICO:OCOOOO^O(M i-H r— 1 I— I i~l iH I— 1 rH < tjCCiO'^COTfHCf:rHrHrHrHOOOOOO ^ rH rH tH tH 3 y rH C7* Ifl OOOOOOOOOO05CCt^Ol0'^CCC<>rH O0500l-^<^i0'^C0(MrH rH Bussia, 6 ,~—Pass 2 Jort Regulations. 7, — Custom-homes, 63 6. — Passport Eegulations. Foreigners arriving in Enssia, either by sea or by land, with passports duly vised at one of the Imperial Embassies, Legations, or Consulates (in London, 32, Great Winchester-street, City), may reside in any part of Enssia, and travel throughout the empire, with the same passport for the term of 6 months. The passport must be exhibited on arrival to the local authorities (through the hotel-keeper, to avoid inconvenience), who will register it. Should the traveller desire to stay longer than 6 months, a regular passport for residence must be applied for to the governor of a provincial town, or, at St. Petersburg, at the Alien Office. A neglect of this rule may be punished by expulsion from the Empire. Travellers wlio have not remained in Enssia beyond the term of 6 months may leave the empire, by sea or by land, with their national passports, after a second visa by the authorities to the effect that there is no impediment to their leaving the country. The latter regulation is intended to prevent the absconding of debtors, or of parties in a criminal or civil suit, before a judicial verdict has been given. Ohs . — The principal formalities which the traveller has therefore to observe are, 1st, to get "a new passport, and, 2ndly, to have it vised by a Eussian diplomatic or consular official. The rule applies equally to Fin- land and Poland. The passport regulations are now more strictly applied than ever, particularly at St. Petersburg, notwithstanding that in every other countr}' on the Continent the passport system, so obnoxious to the modern traveller, is almost entirely abolished. Tourists should keep this in mind, for any neglect of the Eussian regulations is visited with severe discomfort and annoyance, and even with penalties. 7. — Custom-Houses. Travellers will meet with every civility at the hands of the Eussian Custom-house officers. Although the tariff is still highly protective, persons evidently travelling for pleasure, and not for the purposes of trade, are very little molested by the search for articles liable to duty. There has hitherto been some difficulty in passing books, maps, guides, and other products of the press, but existing regulations permit the introduction of all such printed works as Continental travellers are in the habit of carrying with them, excluding the publications of the Eussian revolutionary press in London and elsewhere. Travellers are cautioned against introducing the latter works. Bibles and Prayer-Books are not touched, nor need the Handbook be any longer concealed. When the books are in large parcels, they will be forwarded by the frontier authorities to the local Censor, by whom they are examined, and ultimately restored to the owner, if not on the prohibited list. English and foreign newspapers are not seized, as formerly, when used as wrappers. Sealed letters, lottery- tickets, playing-cards, and books of an immoral or irreligious tendency, are liable to seizure. Fire-arms cannot be introduced into Enssia or Poland without special licence. Travellers coming to Enssia for the purpose of shooting should therefore deliver np their guns to the Customs’ authorities, by whom they will be forwarded to the place of 64 8 . — Posting and Postages. Introd. destination, there to he applied for on arrival. The proper office will he indicated, and a receipt will he given. The proceedings of Government officials are far stricter in Poland than elsewhere in the Russian dominions, and their searchings are tedious, both at the frontier and on arrival at Warsaw. The officers are, however, civil and courteous so long as the traveller is patient, and a Custom-house officer cannot have much to say to a person whose baggage is confined to his own personal requisites. N.B. — i^ny well-founded complaints against officers of Customs will he strictly inquired into and redressed by His Excellency the Director of Customs at St. Petersburg, to whom representations should be addressed, either direct or through any British official in the country. 8.— Posting and Postages. 1. Posting. — In order to travel post in Russia, it is necessary only in a few provinces to have a 'podorojna, or order for horses, in which is inserted the name of the place to which the traveller is going, the distance in versts, and the number of horses required. The cost of the podorojna depends on the number of versts and horses, at a rate which varies from 1^ cop. to 5 cops, per horse, according to the locality. This document is ob- tained from the governor of the town which the traveller is leaving, or at an office specially appointed for the purpose. On making the appli- cation it is necessary to produce a passport. The greatest care must be^taken of the podorojna, and it should be kept at hand, for it will be required at each post-station as an authority for the post-masters to furnish horses ; and, if mislaid or lost, the unfortunate traveller will be obliged to continue his journey with a peasant’s horses, subject to all his caprices as to charge, hour of starting, and distance of each day’s journey. A table showing the distance from one station to another, and the charge for each horse, is hung up in every post-house, which is frequently a mere hut. A book is likewise kept in which travellers may enter their com- plaints. Should any difficulties arise, a request to see this book may have some effect upon the dilatory and extortionate post-master. This official is bound to furnish at least the number of horses ordered in the podorojna ; but he may compel the traveller to take more if the roads require it, and this he does sometimes to the extent of making him travel with 6, and in very bad roads with 9 horses ; he may also, and often does, on the cross-roads, affirm tliat there are no horses left but those which he is bound to keep for the mail or for Government couriers. A little persuasion will however generally secure the requisite number of horses. The drivers expect a fee of 10 to 20 cops, for the stage, according to its length. This varies greatly, viz. from 12 to 30 versts. ''J.’he traveller should take especial care never to travel post just before, or immediately after, a courier or other man in authority. The speed when posting is sometimes great, the horses going ventre a terre ; but so much time is lost at the post-houses in changing, that, including stoppages, the traveller will not clear much beyond 8 or 9 miles an hour. If the traveller is not provided with his own carriage, or should he not borrow or hire one at the place of starting, he must content himself with the accommodation Eussia. 9 . — Cuisine and Bestaurants. 65 afforded by a telega, a small oj^en waggon without spriogs, but strongly constructed, so as to withstand the roads of the country. The jolting is most painful ; straw, and not unfrequently a bed, is placed in the cart by Kussian travellers. Gathering up his 6 or 8 reins (for there are 2 to each horse), and grasping his short severe whip, the yamstchih leaves the ])Ost-house at a furious gallop, and keeping the horses at this pace nearly the whole stage, not unfrequently returns to his station with one less than he set out with. The Idhitka in winter is an improvement on the telega, as it has a hood and an apron. In the winter, sledges will be found even as far south as Odessa, and in that season from 10 to 12 miles an hour may be accomplished. In the provinces of Esthonia, Livonia, and Courland, where podorojuas are still in use, the charges for posting are much higher than in any other part of Eussia. As alterations are frequently made in the post-stations, and some- times in the roads, it will be desirable for the traveller, should he purpose visiting the more distant provinces of the empire, to purchase the printed routes published on authority for the current year, and have the names of the stations read over to him, so that he can write them down in English. This will preserve him from the idea that he is being imposed upon — sometimes as great a vexation as the reality. The post-maps are very accurate. 2. Postages. — The following are the principal rates of postage for single letters (15 grammes) : — To Great Britain 8 Cop. „ Germany 8 „ France Italy (via Germany) Sweden (via Germany) . . United States (via Eng- land) Do. (via Antwnrp) Do. (via Bremen or Hamhurg-) From Gt. Britain, not prepaid 16 Cop. „ Germany „ „ 16 „ „ France „ „ 18 „ >> Italy „ 16 „ „ Sweden „ ,, 16 „ ,, United States (via Gt. Britain), not prepaid 16 „ „ Do. (via Antwerp), „ 16 „ „ Do. (via Bremen or Hamburg) „ „ 16 „ of the Empire is 10 cop. Letters for most foreign countries need not be prepaid. Stamps are procurable at all post-offices. Post-cards are also in use. N.B. — At the capitals, newspapers will not be delivered, even if prepaid abroad, unless they have been subscribed for at a Eussian post-office. In other towns this rule is not so strictly enforced. 9. — Cuisine and Eestaurants. The Diner-a-la-Eusse, as known in England, differs widely in substance, although not in form, from its prototype of Moscow. The following is the menu * of a Eussian dinner, which the traveller is invited to read in Eussian accents to the proprietor of the “ Palkin Traktir ” * It is scarcely necessary to point out that this is not the memo of a recherche dinner, but simply of a repast composed exclusively of national ylats. 66 9 . — Cuisine and liestaurants. Introd. at St. Petersburg, or to tlio landlord of the “ Novo-Troitski,” or of the “ Moscovski Traktir,” at Moscow. I, — Zahusha. This is the vorsclimach (dinette) of most northern nations. It consists of various relishes, such as fresh caviar, raw herrings, smoked salmon, lalyh (sturgeon dried in the sun), raw smoked goose, radishes, cheese, butter, and other comestibles. These need not be specified, the word “ Zakuska ” comprehending everything of the kind in season. A glass of Kiimmel (Alasch), or of “ Listofka,” an excellent spirit flavoured with the young leaves of the black currant, is highly recommended. The curious may try the other liquors, or vodkas, which will be served up. II,— The Obed, or Dinner, 1. Soups: — Okroshka; a cold iced soup of kvas (a beverage made of fermented rye), with pieces of herring, cucumber, and meat floating in it. , Batvenia : another cold soup of green colour. Stchi ; a very good cabbage soup ; the sour cream served round should be added. Ukha, or fish soup : this is rather expensive if made of sterlet, but is very good of yerslii, or pope (rulf). Travellers would do well to order small quantities of each description of potage, in the ratio of one portion for three or four. • A mere taste will suffice in the case of tlie two cold soups. 2. Rastigai ; patties of the isinglass and flesh of the sturgeon. Very much like muffins with fish. 3. Solianka : a dish composed of fish and cabbage. Recommended. Use cayenne. (Krcisny Derets.) 4. Pojarskie kotlety : cutlets of chicken k la Pojarski.* Very good. Veal cutlets are also a speciality of Moscow. 5. Porbsionok pod khrenbm : cold boiled sucking-pig with horse-radish sauce. Not a pretty dish, but very eatable. 6. Barany-bok s-kashoi : roast mutton stuffed with buckwheat. An excellent opportunity of tasting buckwheat, the staple food of the country. 7. Jarkoe : the roast, consisting of molbdye tetereva, or young capercailzie (up to September) ; riabchik, a kind of grouse (all the year round) ; and dupelia, or double snipe (in September). Salted cucumbers as salad. Vege- tables will not be served unless ordered. 8. Pirojnoe : sweet dishes. Gurief pudding, made principally of buck- wheat, is not a bad dish. Order Nesselrode pudding, an excellent combination of plum-pudding and ices, and “ Moscovite,” something between an ice and a jelly, flavoured with the fruit of the season. Should digestion require it, the >Syr, or cheese from the Zakuska, and even the caviar, may be served up again, although it is not customary at a Russian table. * So called after an old lady of Torjok,' on the old post-road between St. Petersburg and Jiloscow, who made her inn famous, and her profits lai ge, by the invention of this dish, Eussia. ^.-—Cuisine and Bestaurants. 67 With reference to wines and drinks, it is indispensable, for the sake of harmony and comparison, to order nothing but what is produced on Eussian soil. The sherry of the Crimea is a very tolerable brown sherry ; the imitations of Bordeaux and Champagne, provided they are really of the Crimean grape, not of the manufactories at Yaroslaf, are better than many inferior marks of the genuine article. Prince Woronzoffs wines are highly recommended. The wine of the Caucasus comes in very appropriately as a Burgundy. Be sure to ask for Kahetinskoe, a very sound and pure wine. The ladies will be pleased with Gumbrinskoe, a pleasant sweet wine grown in the Gumbri district of the Caucasus. The champagne of the Don, “ Donskoe Champanskoe,” very often appears on Eussian tables disguised as Clicquot, and is really a very potable wine ; all the sparkling wines of the Crimea have a slight taste of apples, and the others have the gout du terroir. But besides the wines, there are several delicious beverages under the denomination of Kvas. Order Yablochni kvas, or cider ; Grushevoi kvas, or perry ; Malinovoi, or raspberry kvas. The best, however, of all, is per- haps the goblet of cool Lompopo, the recipe of which is supposed to have travelled from the Baltic provinces. There is excellent beer to be had at St. Petersburg, Moscow, and other towns, as well as at all railway stations. Mead is likewise very pleasant to the taste. All these drinks are served in old silver tankards and beakers of German or Dutch work. Coffee, yellow tea, liqueurs, and cigarettes complete the feast. Fruit can be had if de- manded ; excellent in season. The service is very good; the slightest want is quietly and promptly supplied by the most civil of waiters, attired in bright-coloured silk shirts, worn over another garment of equal effect and neatness. The cost of a dinner like that described above, exclusive of the zakuska, sterlet soup, wines, kvas, coffee, and fruit, will not be less than 2 rs. 50 cop. per head (6s. 8iuk is their whole desire, the pot is all their pride, The sob’rest head doth once a day stand needful of a guide ; If he to banket bid his friends, he will not shrinke On them at dinner to bestow a dozen kinds of drinke ; Such liquor as they have, and as the country gives ; But chiefly two, one called Kwas, whereby the Mousike lives, Small ware and waterlike, but somewhat tart in taste. The rest is mead of honey made, wherewith their lips they baste. And it he goe unto his neighbour as a guest. He cares for little meat, if so his drinke be of the best.” Hospitality is still, as then, one of the chief virtues of the Russian people. 10.— Climate, Clothing, &c. The subjoined Table of the mean temperature at various places in Russia, by Fahrenheit, will give the traveller an idea of the climate of Russia : — St. Petersburg Annual Mean Temperature. .. -b 38-7 Winter. Dec. Jan. Feb. June. + 18-3 Summer. July. August. + 60-6 Moscow .. + 39-6 + 14-7 -b 64-9 Helsingfors . . .. + 38-7 + 20-5 -b 59-0 Kief .. .. + 44*4 + 22-5 + 65-3 Odessa .. +49-3 + 25-2 + 70-7 Titlis . . + 35-6 + 73-9 Archangel .. . . -p 33 '3 .... + 9-3 -b 57-7 Irkutsk .. + 31*1 - 1-3 + 61-5 Yakutsk . . .. +11*1 - 37-9 + 57*9 'he winter season sets in at St. Petersburg about the beginning of Novem- her, when the Neva freezes, to open again about the end of April. In summer, the prevalent winds are from the W., S.W., and N.E., and in winter those from the S.W., S., and S.E. Paradoxical as it may appear, the cold is in reality much less felt in Russia than in western countries. The houses are adapted to resist the greatest amount of frost and are even too warm. It is fallacious to suppose that the cold is ever so intense at Moscow or St. Petersburg as to prevent people from issuing out into the open air. Twent}'- five degrees below zero of Reaumur'^ is a very pleasant and exhilarating con- dition of the atmosphere when not accompanied by wind. Even the cold at Yakutsk, Avhich is sometimes twice as intense as that of St. Petersburg or Moscow, is quite bearable, for it is seldom accompanied by wind. Frostbites may be avoided by taking the most ordinary precautions. I’he ears are liable to be touched by frost if long exposed. In very cold weather * A degree of Beaumur is equivalent to aboi;t 2|- degrees of Fahrenheit, or rather 9° F.=4*^ R. liussia. 10. — Climate^ Clothing^ dec. GO they should he occasionally rubbed, in order to promote the circulation of the blood. Snow is the best application in cases of frostbite. The climate of St. Petersburg is more variable than that of Moscow, owing to its proximity to the Gulf of Finland. Pain and a complete thaw will sometimes suddenly succeed 18° of Fahrenheit. Travellers in winter should, however, take no notice of such variations, but continue to wear their fur clothing. Any change of dress in winter is sure to produce a violent cold. Cloaks of the racoon (yenotovaya Shuba) are mostly worn. They may be purchased in Germany for about 100 thalers, but their quality will be found inferior to that of the furs of Eussia. A walking coat, thickly wadded and with a fur collar, will be found very useful. Ladies wear cloaks or jackets wadded with eiderdown or lined with fox-skins. A sable collar and muff, and a small round hat of sable, complete the winter costume of a lady. These furs should be purchased at St. Petersburg (at Efimof’s, No. 70 Gostiunoi Dvor), where they will be found much cheaper and far better than in England or in Germany. The journey to St. Petersburg may very well be made even by ladies throughout winter in thickly wadded coats or cloaks without fur collars or cuffs, which will only be found requisite in driving or walking. Boots lined with fur, or long boots of felt, are indispensable to both sexes on journeys in winter. The following table (taken from the Academical Almanack of St. Peters- burg) will assist the traveller to convert degrees of Eeaumur into their equivalents by Fahrenheit : — F.* R. R. F. R. F. R. F. R. -40 -32-0 6 -16*9 + 28 - 1-8 -i-62 + 13*3 + 96 + 28-4 .38 31*1 4 16-0 30 0-9 64 14*2 1 98 29*3 36 30*2 ! 2 15-1 32 0-0 66 15*1 i 100 30*2 34 29-3 i ! 0 14-2 34 + 0-9 68 16-0 ' 102 31 * 1 32 28-4 : -h 2 13-3 36 1-8 70 16*9 1 I 104 32-0 30 27-6 4 12*4 38 2-7 72 17*8 ! 106 32-9 28 26-7 1 1 6 11-6 40 3-6 74 18-7 ; 108 33*8 26 25-8 ! 8 10-7 42 4.4 76 19-6 : 110 ,34*7 24 24-9 1 10 ! 9'8 44 5-3 78 20-4 1 i 120 39-1 22 24-0 ] 12 1 8-9 46 0-2 80 21-3 1 130 43*6 20 23-1 1 14 i 8-0 48 71 82 22-2 1 150 52-4 18 22-2 ! I 16 1 7.1 50 8-0 84 231 170 61*3 16 21-3 1 : 18 ! 6-2. 1 52 8-9 86 24*0 j 190 70-2 14 20*4 1 ; 20 1 5T/ ! 54 9-8 88 24*9 210 79*1 12 19 '6 : 22 j 4-4 56 10-7 90 25-8 ■ 212 80*0 10 18-7 : 24 ' 3-6 1 58 11-6 i 92 26’7 : — 8 17*8 i 1 i 26 i 2-7 j 60 12-4 1 1 94 27*6 — — * The freezing-point of Fahrenheit is 32°, and the boiling-point is represented by 212°. 70 11 . — Sanitary Peculiarities. 12. — Sjport. Introd. 11*— Sanitaey Peculiarities. * f Tlie most domlnOil disease among the higher and middle classes in linssia, and one, indeed, from which few families are exempt, is scrofula. Con- sumption, on the other hand, is far less prevalent than in Great Britain, although most of the causes which are supposed to favour the development of tubercle may be detected in Eussian life ; such causes, for instance, as Avretched ventilation, and sometimes even no ventilation at all, and frequent changes in the weather, from hot to eold and from dry to damp ; and, among the lower elasses, an insufficient quantity of food and an excessive indulgence in intoxicating drinks. Scurvy and rickets are very eommon diseases among the lower class of Eussians who live in towns. Both com- plaints are the results, no doubt, of want of food, and of strict observance of the Church fasts, the sum total of which covers nearly five months out of the twelve. Not only is meat then forbidden, but all products of the animal kingdom, such as eggs, milk, cheese, &c., as well. The poor, therefore, have a very small diet-table to choose from, and it is these who observe the fast most strictly. If it were not for the acid rye-bread which they eat, and the sour kvas which they drink, scurvy would perhaps be more common even than it is now. Diarrhoea and dysentery are very prevalent, and strangers are very liable to suffer from either of those complaints in Eussia. Diarrhoea generally occurs in summer. It is difficult to say what causes it, and, as it is by no means so common in winter, it may be called “ summer diarrhoea.” The water of the Neva has been blamed, more perhaps than it deserves to be, as a cause of diarrhoea ; so has the position of St. Petersburg ; so has the atmosphere ; and so also have the vegetables. There is one point, however, upon which we may caution travellers, and it is this ; not to eat too many vegetables and fruits Avhen at St. Petersburg, and not to allow a diarrhoea to continue long without sending for a medical man. Eheu- matism is not as common as in England, neither is asthma. We have known several cases of people Avho Avere martyrs to the latter disease in England and Avho Avere completely cured by spending a Avinter in Eussia. The average of Avatery vapour in the atmosphere is 87 per cent, in London, and 80 per cent, in St. Petersburg. Travellers afflicted with colds Avill find relief from the use of the Eussian steam -bath. These baths are numerous at St. Petersburg and Moscow, but they are inferior in comfort and appliances to the modern Turkish baths of London. On issuing from a Eussian bath, care should be taken to' avoid draughts or any approach of cold atmosphere. For further medical information vide Ete. 1, ‘ Hospitals and Medical Advice.’ 12. — Sport. There is, perhaps, no country in Europe which offers such a variety of sport as Eussia, and the traveller may, Avithout much difficulty, obtain a good day’s shooting in the summer, or participate in the pleasures and excitement of a bear-hunt in the Avinter, Avithin a moderate distance of the capital. Russia. 71 12. — S]port. In the immediate neiglihomiiood of St. Petersburg the ground is all strictly preserved, either by private clubs or by the Crown ; but a drive of a few hours, or a short trip by rail, will give the sportsman an unlimited extent of moor and forest, where he can range at will. He must not, however, expect to make large “bags;” from 5 to 10 brace of wood- game, or from 10 to 15 couple of snipe, in a good snipe season, is about the average of a fair day’s shooting. The shooting season commences on the 15th (27th) of July, and the game to be found in all the northern forests comprises the following birds : — capercailzie, black game, willow-grouse, and hazel-grouse, or geli- notte ; and on many of the tracts of cultivated land the grey or common English partridge. These last, however, are not, strictly speaking, indi- genous in the northern provinces, and their presence in the neighbour- hood of St. Petersburg may be attributed to the fact that many of the clubs are in the habit of procuring these birds in considerable numbers from Courland and elsewhere and turning them out in the spring. South of Moscow the quail abounds, and the bustard is still found on many of the Steppes. In the Caucasus the sportsman will find plenty of pheasants. Of migratory birds, besides innumerable kinds of wild-fowl, we may mention the woodcock, great or double snipe, single and jack snipe, golden plover, curlew, corncrake, &c. &c. The woodcock arrives early in spring, and considerable numbers remain and breed in the vicinity; the autumn flights arrive about the end of August, or first days of September. Legends of by-gone days tell of wonderful cock-shooting at no great distance from St. Petersburg ; but four or five cocks are now considered a very good day’s shooting. Of the three species of snipe, an inconsiderable number stop on their passage northwards in the spring, and breed ; their reappearance in the autumn is very uncer- tain. In some seasons there is capital snipe-shooting, and from 15 to 30 couple of snipe to a single gun is by no means a rare occurrence ; while sometimes you may walk all day without a shot. The double snipe arrives about the 12th (24th) of August, and the flights continue till about the 7 th of September. These birds are very shy of tlie cold, and a night’s frost drives them all to the southward. The single and the jack are rather later in their arrival, and the last-named little fellow remains until the frost is sufficiently severe to freeze the bogs and pools. Dogs . — The best dogs for the rough and varied shooting in Eussia are setters, English-bred, but broken in the country. If first-rate, they should be close rangers in the woods, and wide on the moors. Many dogs will leave their “ point ” and return to the sportsman, showing by their movements that they have found game, and then bring him quietly up to the point. This is an ’invaluable quality, as much of the shooting is in thick cover, where it is impossible to see a dog farther than a few paces. By the middle of August the capercailzie and black-game are very difficult of approach, and run long distances before they rise, generally out of shot. A clever dog will sometimes make a round and head the game back to the sportsman. A pointer, as a less hardy animal than the setter, will often not face the ^cold water on the moors and marshes, while his legs, unprotected, like those of the setter, by the long feathery hair, are more liable to injury in ranging over the rough, broken ground. The best way for a stranger to see sport is— -having first ascertained from 72 Introd. 12. — S^ort. some fellow-sportsman the most likely localities for game — to put liimself under the guidance of one of the peasant Nimrods of the district. They are all capital walkers and, generally, amusing companions, and by no means despicable shots. Battue-Shooting . — the end of September all shooting with dogs is over for the season, the capercailzie and black-game have retired to the thickest woods, the willow-grouse are packed and defy the most wary dog, and the snipe and woodcock have all left for warmer climes. Battue-shooting now commences, and althoug;h a large head of game is seldom bagged, there is a pleasant variety in the game driven forward, and a wildness in the vast woods and moorland, which possesses a charm for the true sports- man. Besides the birds already enumerated, there are plenty of hares, — the white hare, which frequents the woods ^ and moors, and weighs from 7 to 10 lbs., and the red hare of the plains and cultivated lands, weighing from 10 to 15 lbs. Vulpecidism is not considered a crime, and many is the gallant fox who has fallen before the deadly barrel in a battue. The visitor will have little difficulty in procuring an invitation to one of these shooting parties, which are organized at most of the clubs once a week. The number of beaters generally employed is from 80 to 100, according to the extent of the ground to be beaten. Fifty head of game to ten guns is considered a very good day’s sport. These battues continue until the winter regularly sets in, when the deep snow renders it impossible for the beaters to get over the ground. The winter shooting comprises bear, wolf, elk, and lynx. Bears . — Bears are to be found in considerable numbers in all the exten- sive forests in the North. The general way in which this sport is followed is this : — as soon as the first snow falls, peasants start from their villages in search of bear-tracks ; when they come upon traces they follow the track until they know by the numerous turns and twists which Bruin has made that he is thinking of choosing some snug corner for his winter quarters ; they then proceed with greater caution, and, when they consider that the bear is not very far off, they leave the track and make a circle, returning to their starting-place. If they have not again crossed the track, the}^ know that the bear must be within the circle ; they then advance a little further, when they again make a detour as before ; and thus they proceed, gradually narrowing the circle until they have enclosed the bear within a compara- tively small circumference. They then set off to town and offer the bear to any sportsman whom they happen to know ; if he decides upon taking the bear at the price offered, he invites some of his friends to join him in the hunt, and they set out, either by rail or in sleighs, as the case may be, to the village nearest the spot where the bear is. Beaters are then collected, the number varying according to the extent of the circle ; they are placed in a semicircle, while the sportsmen stand in a line at distances of from fifty to eighty yards from one another, according to the number of guns and the nature of the ground. The bear, roused from liis slumbers by the shouts and cries of the peasants, makes a bolt for it, and generally comes within shot of one or other of the guns, which either wounds, kills, or misses him, although it but seldom happens that a single shot suffices to put an end to Bruin’s existence. When wounded, the bear, more especially if it is a mother with cubs, is a dangerous customer, and it requires both nerve and courage to deal successfully with so formidable an antagonist. The sports- Eussia. 73 12. — Sport. man, however, is generally provided with two gnns, and with a spear as a dernier ressort, and most of the accidents whicli have happened have arisen either from foolhardiness or a want of nerve. AVhen “ ringing ” a hear, as it is termed, should the peasant when making his ring again cross the track of the animal, he knows that he has gone out of the circle, and accordingly, instead of returning to his starting-point, he I'ollows the fresh track, and proceeds as before described. Many sportsmen are not satisfied with the uncertain prospect of a shot at a bear held out by a joint battue, and adopt another plan, for the success of which it is necessary that the peasant who has “ ringed ” a bear should wait until Bruin has settled himself for the winter and then discover the spot where he has made his den ; this accom- plished, he gives information to the sportsman, who goes to the place, either alone with the peasant or accompanied by a friend, generally taking with him three or four rough clogs, who answer the double purpose of rousing the bear from his lair and of distracting his attention from the spoils- man. In this way the hunter is almost sure of a shot and has generalh^ only himself to blame if he returns empty-handed. Some of the most noted and successful bear-hunters make a regular campaign against Bruin for several weeks together, camping out at night in the forest, and often pursuing for days together a bear who has escaped the bullet when started from his lair. The best season of the year for this sport is January and Bebrucuy, at which time the snow is in a favourable condition for running on snow-shoes, without which accessories the hunter, sinking at every step to the middle in the deep snow, would be powerless in following up a bear. The snow-shoes are about 7 feet long and 6 inches broad, slightly curved at the point, with a foot-piece in the middle, to which are attached thongs or straps for securing the snow-shoe to the foot. Some of them are covered underneath with the skin of the reindeer, which is of great assistance to the hunter in ascending hills. In the absence of this under-covering of skin, the hunter provides himself with a pole about 8 feet in length, with a curved point of horn or bone, with which he guides himself in descending, or prevents his feet from slipping backwards in ascending any rising ground. It requires considerable practice to become an adept in the art of running on snow-shoes, but without them it is quite impossible to attempt to follow game in the winter time. An Englishman, who for many years was a mighty bear-hunter in Paissia, was in the habit of attacking and pursuing these animals armed only with a spear ; and although many were the deadly struggles that he had face to face with his grim opponent, he never met with any accident. To use the spear with any certainty requires great dexterity and strength of arm, with nerves of iron, and should on no account be attempted by a novice. The Emperor Alexander II., a keen and experienced sportsman, is pas- sionately fond of bear-shooting, and every winter adds several skins to his already numerous trophies. Bears, as well as elk and wolves, are often shot within 40 miles of St. Peterslairg. Elk. — Elk-shooting is conducted much in the same w^ay as the ordinary battue for bear. The peasants, however, wall sometimes follow them for days for the chance of a shot. 1 PoZz;es.— Wolves pe shot by hunting with dogs, by an ordinary battue, and sometimes by riding down ; but tliis requires a peculiar condition of the snow, as well as rideable ground. They arc to be found in consider- Itussia, — 1875. E 74 Introd. 13. — Society, able numbers in tbc immediate neiglibourbood of St. Petersburg, as well as all over Eussia, and, unless hard pressed by hunger and in packs, are seldom dangerous. Good sport may be had by driving out in a country infested with wolves, and attracting their attention by means of a squeak- ing sucking-pig, held in a bag in the sledge for that purpose. Lynx . — The lynx is occasionally shot in the vicinity of St. Petersburg, and the species most generally found is the Felis virgata of Nilssen. He is a very wary animal, and even when “ ringed” is very difficult to drive from his lurking-place. There are no reindeer in the immediate neighbourhood of St. Petersburg, but they abound in the provinces of x\rchangel, Olonets, &c. &c. Foxhunting . — A subscription pack of foxhounds is sometimes kept up by the English community at St. Petersburg. The kennels are about 12 m. out of town, and are well worth seeing, even out of the hunting season, which begins towards the end of August and ends about the middle of October, when the ground begins to get hard and slippery. Many a good run has been had with the “ Goreloe hounds,” notwithstanding the marshy and wooded nature of the country. A fox-hunting traveller will be most cordially welcomed and even mounted, provided he have no objection to bestride a Cossack pony — an animal which is, however, well adapted to the sort of work expected of him at Goreloe. Fishing.— Finland is famous for its streams and lakes stocked with the finest fish, and it will no doubt be one day as much visited as Norway for the purposes of sport ; for descriptions of which vide “ Grand Duchy of Finland.” There is a trouting club near St. Petersburg. Some enterprising English angler should explore the rivers of Siberia, some of which are stocked with grayling and other noble fish of unusual size. The Caucasus is likewise a splendid country both for the sportsman and the angler* 13. — SoclEl’Y. Winter is the season for gaieties in Eussia. Travellers with letters of introduction will find the salons of St. Pctersbtirg as brilliant as those of Paris, but they are unfortunately not many. There is no dancing during the forty days that precede Easter. Christmas and the Carnival are the gayest periods. Two or three court balls are then given, and ‘‘distin* guished strangers” who have been presented at home will sometimes receive invitations after having been presented to H. I. M. through their own Embassy or Legation. It is necessary to wear a uniform at court. French is the language spoken in society, but English is generally understood. Strangers are expected to make the first call, which is returned either in person or b}^ card. In leaving cards on persons who are not at home, one of the edges of the card should be turned up. It is necessary to leave a card next day on any person to whom the stranger may have been introduced at a party. Those who are introduced to the stranger will observe the same politeness. Great punctuality is exacted at St. Petersburg in the matter of leaving cards alter entertainments and introductions. Visiting on New Year’s Day may be avoided by giving a small contribution to the charitable institutions of the city, which will be duly acknowledged in the newspa]iers. No presents are given to servants, excep.t at New Year and Easter, when Russia. 14 . — Seasons for Travelling. 75 the porters of miicli- frequented houses will offer their congratulations in anticipation of a donation of 1 to 5 rubles, according to the number of visits paid. The hours for calling are 3 to 5 p.m. ; dinner parties are generally convened for 6 or 6 ‘30 p.m. ; and receptions commence at about 10 p.m., and last very late. Guests are expected to be punctual ’where members of the Imperial Family are invited. Ladies wishing to pass a “ season ” at St. Petersburg should recollect that Kussian ladies dress very richly and in great taste. The charges of dress-mahers at St. Petersburg being exorbitant, it is advisable to come provided with all the necessary toilettes. At balls, the only dance in which the stranger will not at first be able to join is the ]\Iazurka, a kind of cotillori imported from Poland. It is also necessary to observe that partners are not engaged for the whole of a waltz or polka, but only for a turn. In summer there are generally two or three salons out of town open for evening receptions. Ladies can in summer 'wear robes montantes^ and gentlemen light trousers and white waistcoats, with dress coats. The same costume is wwn at dinner parties in summer. Travellers should not forget that a Russian invariably takes off his hat whenever he enters an apartment, however humble, or a shop ; and an omission to pay this respect to the holy image suspended in the cornei of every room will immediately be noticed and will hurt the feelings ot the host or hostess. Top-coats must always be removed on entering Russian houses, as a point of etiquette and politeness. It is scarcely necessary to add that galoshes should likewise be removed on entering a house. 14.— Seasons for Travelling and Skeleton Tours. Winter is naturally the most interesting season for a tour in Russia ; the prevalence of ice and snow during a great portion of the year being the characteristic feature of the country. The mode of life which the long dark nights of winter induce, the contrivances of man to overcome the obstacles presented by the climate, the dormant aspect of nature, with its thick covering of dazzling snow and its ice-bound lakes and rivers, now bearing horses and the heaviest burdens where ships floated and waves rolled, perhaps only a fortnight before : — all these scenes and peculiar phases of file render a journey to Russia very desirable in winter. But 'vve cannot expect many tourists to submit to the hardships of travel- ling very far at such a season ; nor do we recommend it beyond a visit to St. Petersburg, where a very good idea of a Russian winter may be obtained, and w'here sight-seeing and amusements of a social character entail no dis- comfort. Moscow might, indeed, in winter disappoint the traveller who seeks the picturesque, and should therefore be visited in summer, when the sun lights up with an extraordinary brilliancy the striking panorama of that city ot churches and gilded cupolas. In arranging the itinerary of a summer tour in Russia the traYcller will be guided by a variety of considerations. Time and expense will be the foremost amongst these. Fext in importance is the question of the great midsummer heat in the Caucasus and the Crimea, Avhich many travellers would wish to avoid. The fair at Nijni Novgorod will continue for a few years longer to be a great attraction to travellers ; and as it takes ulacc in B 2 14 . — Skeleton Monies. Introd. Vb tlie middle of August, a visit to Nijui might be combined with ,an early summer or an autumn excursion to the South, or with a journey from the Caucasus and Crimea to Moscow. The month of November is by no means an unsuitable season fora visit to the Crimea. Yachts should not visit the Baltic or Gulf of Finland after the middle of September, as the nights begin to get dark and gales become frequent. It should also be borne in mind that Ladies will suffer some inconvenience in travelling off well-beaten tracks or in visiting small Russian towns, where the accommodation is as a rule exceedingly bad. Nor is there anything worth seeing in small Russian towns, as even the larger cities, Moscow and St. Petersburg excepted, have nothing to boast of or to attract the traveller beyond their past liistory, of which at the same time but few monuments are extant. The Caucasus and the Crimea, Finland with its beautiful scenery and splendid fishing, and the two capitals, will long continue to be the principal objects of attraction to would-be travellers in Russia. Journeys to Siberia, to Central Asia, to China, and to Persia, will be undertaken only by the most enterprising, who may find the information conveyed in Sects. lY. and Y. of some slight use. The following skeleton routes and journeys may prove sufficient with the assistance of the map to enable the traveller to draw up his own plan of a tour in the Russian Empire : — Shehton Routes. 1. Grand Tour.— From London to the Gulf of Finland, the Caspian and Black Seas, and back through Poland. The early summer is the best season of the year for the commencement of this toiir, which may be accomplished very thoroughly in four months, and if necessary even in two or three months, inclusive of stoppages for ]’est, amusement, and instruction. Approximately, the time of the traveller will be divided as follows : — England to Coast of Finland (Hango, Abo, or Helsingfors), via Christiania or Gothenburg and Stockholm Finland to St. Petersburg (by rail) St. Petersburg to Moscow (by night train, 16 hours) Aloscow to Nijni Novgorod (Ijy night train, 10 hours) Nijni Novgorod to Kazan (by steamer) Kazan to Astrakhan (by steamer) Astrakhan to Petrofsk on Caspian (by steamer) Petrofsk to Yladikavkaz (by post) Yladikavkaz to Tifiis Titlis to Kutais (l)y rail) ivutais to Poti (l>y rail) Poti to Kertch (by steamer) Kertch to Theodosia rheodosia along S. Coast of Crimea to Sevastopol (by post) .. SevastO])ol to Odessa (l)y steamer) Odessa to Kief (by rail) Kief to Warsaw (l)y rail) A^hlrsaw to London (by rail) Days. 4 1 A 1 6 3 1 ¥ ¥ 1 2 2 1 1 2 2 Total travelling 33 Eussia. 14 . — Skeleton Boutes. 77 Days. Brougilt forward —Total travelling 33 Add stoppages at discretion ; — At St. Petersburg 5 Excursion from St. Petersburg to Imatra Falls, in Finland . . . . d Excursion from St. Petersburg to Keval and Dorpat 4 Excursion from St. Petersburg to Novgorod the Great 3 At Moscow, including excursion to Troitsa Monastery 6 At Kazan 1 At Astrakhan 1 Excursion in Cancasus and stay at Tidis 10 Excnrsion in Crimea 4 At Odessa 1 At Kief 2 At Warsaw 3 Waiting for steamers, trains, &c 5 — 48 ; Total duration of Tour 81 This tour may of course be lengthened to any extent by spending four or five days in Sweden and a few days more both at St. Petersburg and ]\Ioscow, and by devoting more time to the Caucasus and the Crimea ; or it may be reduced by taking a more direct route back to England. The traveller will naturally be guided by the amount of time at his disposal and by the extent of his means. 2. Shorter Tour in Caucasus and Crimea from Constantinople, and back by Moscow and St. Petersburg. Many travellers combine a visit to Constantinople with a tour through the Crimea and the Caucasus'. In this case the time occupied will be as follows : — Days. London to Constantinoide via Paris 5 Constantinople to Odessa 2 Odessa to Sevastopol 1 Sevastopol to Kertch . , . . 2 Kerch to Poti 2| Poti to Tiflis 1 Tiflis to Vladikavkaz 2 Vladikavkaz to liostof on Don (by rail, when opened) . . . . 1 Kostof on Don to Voronej 1 Voronej to Moscow 1 INIoscow to St. Petersburg ^ St. Petersburg to London via Berlin 3 Total 22 Add stoppages at discretion : — At Constantinople At Odessa Excursion in Crimea Excursion in Caucasus and stay at Tiflis At Piostof and Voronej At Moscow At St. Petersburg 5 1 4 7 1 5 5 Total 50 78 14 . — Slceleton Boutes. In trod. Travellers who have already seen Moscow and St. Petersburg may vary this tour by visiting the Caspian and the Turkish ports in the Black Sea, and returning via Constantinople, or via Odessa, Jassy, and Vienna. 3. Journey from London to Constantinople by way of St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Odessa. Days. London to St. Petersburg (overland) 3 St. Petersburg to Moscow (by night train) .. .. i Moscow to Kief Kief to Odessa 1 Odessa to Constantinople (by steamer) 2 Total travelling 7i Add stoppages at discretion : — St. Petersburg 5^ Moscow 5 Kief 1 Odessa 1 — 12 | Total 20 If St. Petersburg is not visited, a day’s travelling may be saved by proceeding to Moscow, via Wilna, Minsk, and Smolensk, and when it is not desired to visit Moscow, the traveller may branch off at Smolensk for' Orel and Kief. The line from Belostok (in connection with Kdnigsberg), through Brest Litevsk to a junction with the main line from Moscow to Kief is the shortest way from Berlin to Kief (yid^ Warsaw). From Vienna the shortest way to Kief is via Cracow, Lemberg, and Jmerinka. 4. Trip to St. Petersburg, Moscow, the Volga, and the Crimea, returnin by Odessa, Kief, Smolensk, and lliga. London to St. Petersburg (overland) . St. Petersburg to Moscow (at night) . Moscow to Nijni Novgorod Nijni Novgorod to Kazan (by steamer) Kazan to Saratof (by steamer) Saratof to Kozlof (by rail) Kozlof to Voronej Voronej to Taganrog Taganrog to Kertch (by steamer) . . Kertch to Sevastopol (by steamer) Sevastopol to Odessa Odessa to Kief Days. 3 1 1 1 1 1 ^ l' 1 1 1 (T O Kief to Kursk ^ Kursk to Orel ^ Orel to Smolensk J Smolensk to Lunahurg 4 Lunahurg to Kiga \ Itiga to London (by rail) 3 Total travelling I 84 Russia. 14. — Skeleton Routes. 79 ]'>ays. Brought forward— Total travelling 18j Add stoppages : — At St. Petersburg 4 or 5 At Moscow 4 or 5 At Kazan 1 At Saratof 4 At Kozlof . . . . ^ At Voronej i At Taganrog 1 Excursion in Crimea 4 At Odessa 1 At Kief 1 At Smolensk 1 At Riga, and excursion to Mitau, &c 4 Total 43 The order of this journey may be reversed by visiting Riga first, although there is comparatively little of interest to the traveller in the Baltic provinces of Russia. 5. Trip from London toMosco'w andNyni Novgorod, via St. Petersburg, and back by Smolensk and Warsaw, in about 1 month. Days. London to St. Petersburg (overland) 3 St. Petersburg to Moscow (at night, IG hours) \ jVIoscow to Nijni Novgorod (at night, 10 hours) 4 Nijui Novgorod to Moscow (at night) ^ Moscow to Warsaw, via Smolensk 2 Warsaw to Berlin 1 Berlin to London 1 Total 84 Add stoppages : — St. Petersburg 54 Moscow, including trip to the Troitsa Monastery 5 Nijni Novgorod 1 Warsaw 3 — 144 Total 23 This itinerary leaves about 7 days short of 1 month at the dis})Osal of the traveller. They might be spent in taking the Finland Route to St. Petersburg, or in making an excursion to Kazan from Nijni Novgorod. The plan of the journey might be reversed by proceeding to Moscow first, via Smolensk, visiting Nijni Novgorod and Kazan, and returning to England, via St. Petersburg and Finland, 80 15 . — Railways and Hints on Travelling, Introd. 15. — Eailways and Hints on Travelling. It may be stated generally, for the encouragement of travellers, that, although slow, the Kussian railwa}^s arc the most comfortable in Europe. On the line between 8t. Petersburg and Moscow the traveller may regularly go to bed in a sleeping compartment ; he may ask for a table and play cards ; and he may even make his morning ablutions in the train. The stoppages are rather too frequent to please the impatient traveller, but on such long journeys it is frequently very refreshing to be able to stretch one’s legs even for five minutes at a station. The railway fares (1st class) are almost generally 3 cops, per verst, or less than l^d. per Eng. m. The actual cost of travelling in Russia, inclusive of railway fares (1st class), posting, and hotel bills, which arc generally very high, cannot be taken at less than 10 rubles (27s.) a day, but on a long railway journey the expense per diem will not be less than £2 to £3 per day. It is unneces- sary to be provided with food on railways, as the buffets are generally good. On all other journeys a supply of preserved meats, &c., will be requisite. Railway travelling being somewhat new to the Russian people, the tra- veller will sometimes be surjDrised to see a certain amount of disorder in the taking and keeping of seats. On entering a train all the seats will at first appear to be occupied, but an application to the station-master will soon cause a removal of the cloaks, bedding, &c., with which the carriage is packed. However, these artifices are not peculiar to Russia alone. As a rule, the traveller will find every comfort and civility on the lines of rail- way, &c., described in the following pages, where it is to be hoped sufficient information will be found to render the journey interesting. The words and dialogues given in the “Vocabulary” will, if properly pronounced, be found amply sufficient to enable the tourist to travel through Russia without any ]irevious knowledge whatever of the Russian language. Cases of theft are unfortunately not unfrequent on Russian railways, particularly in the south of Russia. It is dangerous to leave valuables in a carriage while taking refreshment at a station. Passengers’ tickets must be shown when luggage is being weighed. They will be returned, together with a luggage ticket. Without wishing to detract in the least from the merits of the best hotels mentioned in this Handbook, it is right to advise the traveller to be provided, when travelling in Russia, with remedies against insects of a vexatory disposition. Notice. — A Railway Guide for Russia, or ‘ Ukazatel Puteshestviya,’ is ipublished at St. Petersburg by Messrs. H. B. Eroom and Co., in the Ilussian language (with the lieadings of the Tables in English), and may be purchased for 45 c. ut all the principal stations. SECTIONS I. TO V. NORTH, CENTRAL, AND SOUTH RUSSIA, THE CRLMEA, THE CAUCASUS, AND SIBERIA. ( t ■« J SECTION I. NOETH RUSSIA, BALTIC PROYINOES, THE VOLGA, AND THE ROUTES TOWARDS IT. ROUTES. [Tlio names of places are printed In italics only in those routes ■« here the places are descrihed.] ROUTE PAGE 1. London to St. Fetershurg, over- land, via Berlin, Kowno, Wilna, and Fslcof, with branch line to Lihau .. 83 2. London to St. Petersburg, via Sweden and Finland .. 182 3. London to St. Petersburg, by Sea, via Cron.stacZi .. .. 182 4. London to St. Petersburg, via Archangel 183 5. London to Riga and Mitau 189 (j. London to Moscow, via Wilna, Minslcj and Smolenslc . . 194 7. Eiga to Moscow, via Ddna- Vmrg, Vitehsl:, and Smo- lensk ; and line from Smo- lensk to Orel 200 8. St. Petersburg to Narva, Fe- ral, and Baltic Fort; and Excursion to .. 204 9. St. Petersburg to Novgorod the Great 213 1 0. St. Petersburg to Moscow, with branch line to Fyhinsh ; and branch line to Torjoh and Rjef 217 ROUTE PAGE 1 1. Moscow to the Troitsa Monas- tery, Yaroslaf, am\ Vologda, with Rte. % river from Yaroslaf to Kineshma, via Kostroma 208 12. Moscow to Nijni Novgorod, with branch line to Shuya, Ivanovo, and Kineshma ; and Excursion up the Oka to Murom, Elcdma, and Ka- simof 276 13. Volga : by water from Nijni Novgorod to Simhirsh, Sa- mara, Saratof, Tsarytsyn, and Astrakhan 284 14. Moscow to the Volga by Rail, via Riajsk, Morshansk, Fenza, and Syzran .. .. 291 15. Moscow to the Volga by Rail, via Riazaii, Riajsk, Kozlof, Tamhof, and Sara- tuf 292 10. Riga or Moscow to the Volga by Rail, via Oiel, Griazy, Borisoglebsk, and Tsaritsyn, with branch line to Livny 293 ROUTE 1. LONDON TO .ST. PETERSBURG, OVERLAND, M.V BERLIN, KOWNO, WILNA, AND PSKOF, WITH BRANCH LINE TO LIBAU. By taking the route rid Calais, Bleyberg, Aix-la-Chapello, Elberfeld, Kreiensen and Berlin, St. Petersburg ] can be reached from London in 3 days inclusive of a stoppage for one night at Berlin.* Through tickets from Charing- cross, Victoria, or London Bridge sta- tions to St. Petersburg, available for * Travellers taking the route via Stendal (same fare as via Bleyberg) have to pass a night at Cologne if tliey leave London in tlie morning. For any alterations vide Bradshaw. 84 Moute 1. — Kowno. Sect. I. 30 days, and enabling travellers to stop at the principal continental towns on the route, are issued at the following rates 1st class via Calais . . (approx.) £1.3 6 3 Ditto via Ostend 13 2 6 Mixed ticket (2nd class through Germany from Cologne and Russia) — via Calais 10 It 0 via Ostend 10 12 9 Each passenger is allowed 56 lbs. Avoirdupois, or 60 lbs. Russian of luggage free of charge. For any weight in excess, the charge is 6s. Sd. per 100 lbs. via Calais, and 6s. 5d. via Ostend. As the Russian 2nd class carriages ai’e not equal to those on the German lines, the English or American traveller, with a mixed ticket, is recommended to pay at Wierzbolow the differ- ence to St. Petersburg between 1st and 2nd class, which is only 6 rs. 31 c. Travellers who have booked their luggage through to St. Petersburg must not forget that it will be exa- mined at Cologne, or at Aix-la-Cha- pelle, when the Bleyberg route is taken, and that if not claimed at the Ger- man Customs it will proceed no further. Handbags, &c., are also examined at Verviers. The route from London to Berlin and Konigsberg is described in the Hand- booh of North Germany. Berlin may be reached from London in about 27 J hrs. via Kreiensen and the Mail Train (Postzug) from Cologne to Berlin by Kreiensen takes only 6 hrs. The journey is broken at Berlin,! where travellers may remain 12 hrs. or go through. In case of fatigue, a night may be passed at Konigsberg or at Eydkuhnen, on the Prussian fron- tier. The carriages throughout are comfortable and roomy, and present facilities for sleeping. Buffets fre- quent and good. Money can be changed either at Eydkuhnen (the last Prussian station), or at Wierzbo- low (the first Eussian station), little more than a mile from Eydkuhnen, * These rates vary slightly, according to the rise or fall of the exchanges. -f- The distance from Berlin to the Russian frontier is about 450 miles. St. Petersburg is readied from Berlin in about 40 hrs., but the journey might be performed in much less time were it not for the custom of stopping 20 min. or I an hr. at every large station in Russia, where the rate of railway travelling is moreover very slow. when the change from Germany to Kussia will here be at once strongly ap- parent. Instead of the clean, well-built villages and large farmsteads by which Old Prussia is distinguished, dilapi- dated wooden houses and barns, and ill-cultivated fields, are seen from the Eussian line. At Wierzbolow (Wirballen) 840 v. (560 m.) from St. Petersburg, passports and luggage are examined. Porters charge 5 copecks for every parcel they carry. Good buffet kept by a French- man, and plenty of time for refresh- ment. Travellers may also sleep there very comfortably. Wilkowizky^ the 1st stat. beyond Wierzbolow, may be noticed as the site of Napoleon’s head-quarters on the 22nd June, 1812, and from which he issued a proclamation announcing to his soldiers the commencement of a “ Second Polish War.” The first 4 stations be)mnd Eyd- kuhnen are, like Wierzbolow, in the kingdom of Poland, and the train only enters Eussia at Kowno (Aovwo) 760 V. (507 m.) Chief town of province, at the confluence of the Vilia and Niemen. Pop, 33,000. On the 23rd June, 1812, the French army crossed the Niemen, 2 m. above Kowno, on their advance to Moscow, and some rising ground on the oppo- site bank is still called “Napoleon’s Hill.” A monument records the event. The town was occupied by a large corps d’armee, and suffered considerably. The remnants of the army recrossed the river at the same spot on the 13th December, in a very bad state of dis- cipline, and with only 9 guns out of 800. In the centre of the market- I^lace, in front of the town-hall and barracks (established in an ancient Polish ch.), is a monument commemo- rative of the retreat, and bearing the following inscription in Eussian: — “ In 1812 Eussia was invaded by an army numbering 700,000 men. The army recrossed the frontier numbering 70,000.” Kowno formed part of the ancient Duchy of Lithuania, now called one of the N.W. provinces of Eussia, whose Eussia. Boute 1. — Wilna. 85 liistory will be read at Wilna. The scenery around is mountainous and wooded. In the days of paganism this site was of great repute as the resi- dence of several mythological divini- ties. The town is supposed to have been founded in the early part of the 11th centy. In the 14th and 15th cents, the castle of Kowno played an important part in the history of Lithu- ania. It was frequently attacked by the Teutonic Knights; but in 1400 Vitovt, Grand Duke of Lithuania, or- dered it to be blown up, in order that it might not fall into other hands. After that event, which took from the town its military importance, Kowno became gradually a centre of trade, particularly after 1581, when it was made the seat of a custom-house for all goods exxwrted out of Poland. The establishment of an English Factory at Kowno in the middle ages is like- wise a proof of its great commercial importance. Subsequent religious dis- sensions reduced the inhabitants to such extreme poverty that in 1654 they were released from the obligation of paying taxes. In 1655 Kowno was burnt and pillaged by the Itussians, who occupied this part of the country until 1661, and into whose hands the town fell definitively in 1795. A fire destroyed of the town in 1808 ; and in 1812 it was devastated and pillaged by the French. There arc several’ old churches still extant ; that dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paid, in the 15th centy., being the largest Homan Gath. ch. in Lithuania. Tlie church of St. George was built in 1471, and the chapel dedicated to St. Gertrude existed in 1503. Koshedary, 726 v. (484 m.), [A branch line runs hence to the Kussian jtort of Libau in tlie Baltic. At a short distance from Sharli this line is joined by a branch to Ditna- burg, and at the stat. of Mojeihi (209 V. from Koshedary) another branch runs to Witau and thence to Piga. Lihan, 294 v. (196 m.) from Kosho- dary, has a pox). of 10,000. It was anciently known as the Lyra 2 Jortus, and is now a xilace of growing commercial activity owing to the rly. and to the fact of its roadstead being seldom frozen. The port, however, has but a small dex^th of water, and its vicinity to Memel and Kbnigsberg will never permit it to take any higli rank as a Eussian outport. The streets are crooked and narrow, but great imxirovements are being made. This is a favourite x^lace for sea-bath- ing ; living is very cheap, and there is Xjlenty of wild-fowd shooting on a lake 10 m. from the town. Libau also boasts of a fine park and of many x^retty gardens with restaurants and music, as well as of a theatre. Steamers ply weekly to Eiga and St. Petersburg, and monthly to Konigsberg.] Landvarovo, 679 v. (453 m.) Bnf. Junction with main line from St. Petersburg to Warsaw. Vide Poland. Wilna. 441 m. Good buffet ; 2 an hr. for refreshment. Poxi. 65,000. Hotel: Hotel de TEurope. A tolerably good hotel for a Eussian prov. town. This is the chief town of the ancient in- dependent Duchy of Litl mania, con- nected with Poland in 1386, when its Duke, Jagellon, espoused Hedwiga, Queen of Poland. Tlie dynastic union of the two countries inqiarted the strength which they required in order to rexiel the invasions of the Teutonic Knights, to arrest the incursions of the Tartars, and to keep the Dukes of Moscow within the limits of their territory. The Union, commenced by the Convention of Wilna, 14U1, be- came organic two centuries later by an Act passed at a Common Diet held at Lublin in 1569. The hi, Tory of Lithu- ania remained that of the kingdom of Poland until the Third Partition, in 1795, when it was incorporated with Eussia. Divided later into the x>i'o- vinces of MTlna, Grodno, Kowno, and Minsk, Lithuania now constitutes, to- gether with the x>rovinces of Mohilef and Vitebsk (also called MTiite Eussia, and detached from Poland in 1772) the N.W. pi'ovinces of the Eussian empire. 86 Boute 1. — Wilna, Sect. I. A very large proportion of the popu- lation is considered officially to belong to the Kusso-Grreek Ch., but a great number of the so-called Orthodox were, before their forced conversion in 1839, Uniats, or worshippers in the amalgamated Churches of the Greek and Koman faith. The Uniat denomi- nation had been introduced in 1599, under the influence of the Jesuits, with a view to Eomanise the Lithuanian people, then of the Greek Church. A large proportion of the so-called Uniats returned to the Kusso-Greek Church in 1875. The political vicissitudes to which these provinces have been subjected, and the mixed nature of their popu- lation, aftbrd a fertile and disastrous source of disagreement between the Itussians and the Poles. By the for- mer they are regarded and governed as Eussians, subject some time to Poland, but now reincorporated by con- quest and treaties of partition ; while the Polish element, comj3osed of the aristocracy, landed gentry, and edu- cated classes generally, maintain that the N.W. provinces are Polish, and, as, such, entitled to a national adminis- tration. The imperial Government ignore the claim, and deny that the Poles, entitled to certain political privileges by the Treaty of Vienna, are the Poles of the N.W. provinces. The claim is, however, unfortunately asserted at every available oppor- tunity. The insurrection of 1831, in the kingdom of Poland, was one of those opportunities ; the revolution of 18G2 at Warsaw was the latest. The rejiressive measures of Gen. Mouravieft' in 18G3 and 18G1: were dated from Wilna. Here the leaders of the hopeless insurrection in the provinces were confined, tried, hung, or shot. The reduction of the popu- lation in the N.W. provinces by de- portation to distant parts of the em- pire is variously estimated at 50,000 to 100,000 souls. The landed pro- perty of the exiles has to a great extent been transferred to native Eus- sians by confiscation and forced sale. The town of Wilna lies in a hollow at the foot of several hills which rise to some height on the E., S., and W. The Vilia river runs out at the northern extremity of the hollow, and, winding through deep and intricate ravines, clothed with foliage of the fir, the birch, and the lime, presents a most picturesque and smiling panorama, little in keeping with the stern deeds of retribution which have made Wilna so famous. Wilna is supposed to have existed in the 12th centy., and was the c.opital of Lithuania in the early part of the 14th centy., when its population was still pagan. A perpetual fire was kept burning at the foot of the hill which Guedemin crowned with a castle in 1323. The remains of the Old Castle, with an octangular tower of red brick, are still seen commanding the town, in pleasing contrast with the verdure around. A famine destroyed more than 30,000 inhab. in . 1710, and in 1715 the town was almost entirely burnt down. The Souse of the Governor-General was formerly the Episcopal Palace, and the present Post-office was the residence of Cardinal Eadziwill. Tl'.o churches will repay a visit, although their architecture is not striking ; the most ancient is the Cathedral of St. Stanislas, built in 1387, and the ch. of the Assumption, founded in 13G4. Among their monuments will be found those of several families whose names are familiar to all readers of Polish history. The old Town Gate near the rly. stat. has been turned into a ch. open to the street. When service is performed in it, lines of worshippers may be seen kneeling and crouching in the open street. The Museum of Antiquities will interest the traveller who may from any cause be compelled to stop at Wilna, which also boasts of an Astronomiced Observedory. The University of Wilna, established in 1803, was suppressed in 1832. AVilna was occupied by the French army on the 28th June, 1812. It had been evacuated by the Eussians during the night. The Emperor Napoleon occupied in the Episcopal Palace the rooms which the Emperor Alexander ! had left the previous day, and he re- 87 Boute 1. — Diinahurg. Enssia. mained there 17 days, instead of rapidly pursuing the retreating Kns- sians. Lord Tyrconnel, the aide-de- camp of Sir Eobt. Wilson, the British Commissioner at the Eussian* head- quarters in 1812, lies buried here. But' Wilna is best known to Europe as the place from which Napoleon on his retreat from Eussia quitted in dis- guise his army, which had been re- duced to the condition of a ‘‘ rabble train, without force — a mere fugitive band.” Notwithstanding that large military stores had been laid up there, the French were unable to hold Wilna, and retired after pillaging the maga- zines and leaving 20,000 sick and wounded in the hospitals. On the 10th December, 1812, at Ponari, 5 m. from Wilna, they abandoned 5 millions of francs which they were no longer able to convoy. When the Emp. Alex- ander reached the town on tlie 22nd December he found in one hospital alone “ 7500 dead bodies ]uled like pigs of lead one above the other.” Vileihi, 651 v. (486 m.) Stat. for lino to Minsk, from whence lines run to Brest, to Smolensk and Moscow, to Konotop on tlie Kursk-Kief Ely. and to Eomny. Sventsiamj, 590 v. (393 m.), Buffet. Stat. fortified town of GOOO Inhab. on the western Dvina. Dunaburg,* 498 v. (333 m.) Buf. Ilotel : St. Petersburg ; not good. Town of 30,000 Inhab. in province of Vitebsk, formerly known as Wliite Eussia. Dii- naburg has a very strong fortress, built in 1825, on the site of a fortification raised by Stephen Bathory in 1582. A tete-de-pont on the 1. bank of Dvina commands the passage of the river. The fortifications on the r. bank are of con- siderable strength, and l)eyond the strategical importance whicli tliey de- rive from being situated on the 2nd line of fortresses which protect the W. frontier of Eussia, they are designed to prevent an enemy from availing him- self of the main lines from St. Peters- burg to Warsaw and frean Eiga to Vi- • The express trains between Wierzbolow and St. Peter.sburg do not stop at Diinaburg. tebsk. John the Terrible of Moscow took the town in 1577, after which it was occupied by the Swedes in 1600. TheEussians retook it in 1656, but re- turned it two years later to the Poles, who in their turn were compelled to cede it finally to the Eussians in 1772. As a place of trade, Dunaburg holds a high position among the western towns of Eussia, and its present rail- way connection with the interior of the empire on the one hand and with Eiga (6 hrs. by rail) on the other, ren- ders it altogether a town of high com- mercial importance. Large quantities of flax, hemp, tallow, and timber are collected here for shipment or carriage to Eiga. [Lines branch off from Diinaburg to Iliga (see Ete. 5), to SmolensJ: (Ete. 6), and to ShavU (vide above ; Lihau).'] Antonopol., 435 v. (290 m.). Buf. Korsofka, 376 v. (251 m.). Buf. Osfrof, 306 V. (204 m.), Buf. Town of 6000 inhab., in province of Pskof, on river Veliki. The town takes its name, which signifies island,” from an island formed by the Veliki, and on which a fortress existed in the 14th centy. Three of the towers, built of a grey flagstone and red limestone, are still to be seen, together with the church of St. Nicholas in the centre of the island, built in 1582. Ostrof was burnt by the Lithuanians in 1501, when 4000 inhab. perished; and in 1581 it was taken by Stephen Bathory. A large trade is carried on in flax, carried hence to Eiga, Narva, and St. Petersburg. Travellers sometimes telegraph from here to an hotel at St. Petersburg for a carriage. Pskof, 257 v. (171 m.), Buf. Chief town of province of same name, PJ,000 Inhab. Hotel: St. Petersburg; bad, but best. This was anciently one of the three republics of Eussia ; the others being Novgorod the Great, and Khlynof (now Viatka). Tradi- tion points to the year 975 as the date of its foundation. It was, like Novgorod, the seat of a great trade 88 Route 1. — PsJwf: The Kremlin. Sect. I. with Germany in the earliest times, and formed part of the Hanseatic I.eague. The wave of European civi- lization and commerce first met the tide of Slavonic barbarism at this point. Commercial prosperity intro- duced political freedom and much popular turbulence. The citizens of Pskof elected theh own princes, de- posed them at pleasure, and held incessant Veclie, or popular councils almost identical with the Witenage- motes of the Saxons. The assembly, convened by a bell, sat on an elevated mound, approached by steps, and on which a club or heavy stick was set up, emblematical of the majesty of the law. There is a record of a Veche at Pskof in which the citizens deli- berated in their shirts, so urgent was the danger to their privileged city. This form of governmeut was retained, as at Novgorod and some other towns, even during the Tartar dominion, but it succumbed at last to the autocracy established by John III. and John the Terrible, who incorporated all the petty principalities of Eussia with the Grand Duchy of Moscow. The liber- ties of Pskof survived those of Nov- gorod 32 years. Taking advantage of some factious proceedings at the Veche, John the Terrible perfidiously imprisoned the boyars and citizens who had been sent to do him homage at Novgorod, and sent an envoy to the Veche demanding the instant sub- mission of that body; and on the 13th January, 1510, the inhabitants, feel- ing that resistance would be useless, took dov;n tlie bell of the Veche at the church of the Holy Trinity, and, gazing at it, “ long cried over the past and tlieir lost freedom.” Three hun- dred of the most distinguished families were thereupon removed to Moscovy, and re})laced by Moscovites. A town with such a glorious history is well wortiiy of a visit. It stands at a distance of 2 m. from the rly. stat., and cannot, therefore, bo inspected during tlio 15 or 20 minutes Avhich travellers are allowed there for re- freshment. But to those who Avill hazard the discomfort of a native inn under the protection of a guide, we i point out the following objects of curiosity : The Kremlin^ of which the stone walls were built in 1323, occupies an elevation 200 fathoms in length, and 30 in breadth. It faces the river Pskova on the E. and N., and the Velika on the W. Another wall, called Dovmont’s Wall, constructed in the latter part of the 13th centy., springs from the southern face of the Kremlin and forms a square, on which once stood the castle or palace of the Prince. There is now but one ancient building in that square, — a house of stone, built in the early part of the 15th ceiity., by Macarius, subsequently Metropolitan of All Eussia, and which was the residence of the Archbishops of Novgorod when they visited Pskof to exercise their ecclesiastical juris- diction. The huge mass of the Cathe- dral of the Trinity occupies nearly the Avliole of the interior of the Kremlin. The original ch. on that site is sup- posed to liave been built a.d. 957, by Olga, convei’ted to Christianity at Constantinople two years previously. The cathedral became thus early a centre from which the Christian reli- gion was diffused among the pagan tribes around. The ancient ch. was replaced by a stone edifice in 1138. Dovmont, a Lithuanian chief, was bap- tized in it, together with his family'and followers, in 1 266, prior to his election as Prince of Pskof ; but that building only lasted till 1363. A third cathe- dral was built on its foundation in 13 <38, and lasted long enough to witness some of the most important events in the history of the town. Within its walls, in 1510, John the Terrible caused the citizens to swear allegiance to the Grand Duke of Moscow. In 1581 the cathedral was besieged and stormed by the forces of Stephen Bathory, Avho was repulsed by the defenders of the city, stimulated to valour and enthusiasm by the exhi- bition of a miraculous image of the Holy Virgin. The Pskovians had “ washed the whole fioor of the ch. with their tears” before the danger- had passed. The present C::thedral Avas built on Russia. 89 Moute l.—Pslwf: Churches. the site of those ancient edifices in 1682, but has been much restored since, especially after a fire which took place in 1770. Its style is Russo- Byzantine, of considerable beauty. Some of the images of saints are ancient and curious, and the traveller will be shown numerous relics. The most in- teresting of these is the tomb of St. Vsevolod- Gabriel, the ejected Prince of Novgorod and elected ruler of Pskof, who died a.d. 1138, after lead- ing a life of great virtue and sanctity. The Novgoi odians demanded his relics, but the coffin would not be moved, owing, it is believed by the faithful, to the desire of the departed prince to abide with his faithful Pskovians. Several other miracles are attributed to his remains. A sword, with the inscription, “ Honorem meum nemini daboC is shown as having belonged to Vsevolod, who was warlike as he was godly. The cross which St. Olga raised at Pskof, and which was destroyed by tire in 1509, is represented by a crucifix suspended against the second pillar on the right-hand side of the altar-screen. The lamp vhich burns in front of it was presented by the Grand Duke Constantine Nicolaevitch in com- memoration of tlie birth of a daughter. The tomb of St. Dovmont., in a chapel to the right of the Ikonostas or altar- screen, is not of silver, like that of St. Vsevolod, Init of plain oak. It bears an inscription recording the his- tory of this Lithuanian prince, who appears to have assumed the name of Timothy at his baptism. His sword, frequently wielded in defence of the city, hangs near his tomb. It was held in great reverence by the Pskovians, who invested their princes with it at their consecration in this cathedral. Alongside of this tomb is that of “ the sainted Nicholas Salos the Idiot,” who saved Pskof from the fury of John the Terrible in the following manner : — Having per.suaded the citizens to pre- sent bread and salt to the angry Tsar immediately after mass, he rode about on a stick like a child, constantly re- peating “Jolinny, Johnny, eat the bread and salt, and not the blood of Christians.” The Tsar ordered him to be seized, but the saint suddenly vanished. Struck with awe, John the Terrible entered the cathedral with all meekness, and was met by the clergy carrying the holy crosses. An- other version is that Nicholas offered the Tsar a piece of raw meat. “ I am a Christian,” said John the Terrible, “ and do not eat meat in Lent.” “ But thou drinkest the blood of Christians,” replied the saint, while he exhorted the Tsar to be merciful. The tyrant, however, only listened to the warning after the saint had caused his horse to fall at the moment the Veche bell of the cathedral was ordered to be taken down. The sacristy contains many ecclesi- astical antiquities, and some ancient seals and coins of Pskof. There are several other churches worthy of a visit, each with a legend or tradition of miracles performed to the discomfiture of foreign foes. The interposition of saints appears to have been frequently needed by the good old city. The small chapel opposite the market cnmiuemorates the victims of an insurrection which broke out in 1650. Some of the houses are of ancient date ; that occupied by the ‘‘ Victualling DegKirtinent’' once belonged to the Pogankins, a race of merchant-princes now extinct. The tiles of the roof are curious. The Truhinshi house is not so perfect a specimen of ancient Rus- sian architecture as it was before a fire which partially consmned it in 1856. Peter the Great visited it. Travellers stopping at Pskof should cross the river and examine the churches and old buildings in the suburbs. Gustavus Adolphus be- sieged Pskof from that side in 1615. There are several monasteries, rich in ecclesiastical objects of ancient date, beyond the Velika river. A village, 8 m. up the latter river, and called Vybutina., was the birthplace of St. Olga. Tire fortified monastery of Fslcof - rechersk, celebrated for its catacombs and for the sieges which it has sustained, lies about 20 m. to the W. of Pskof. [In summer there is a route to DoiiPAT, through Pskof. Steamers 90 Sect. I. Moute 1. — St, Petersburg, run across Lake Peipus and up the river Embacli to Dorpat in 10 hrs. Vide Me. 8.] Two stations beyond Pskof is Belaya, 193 v. (128 m.) Buffet. Luga, 129 v. (86 m.) Buf. ; chief town of district in province of St. Petersburg. Pop. 1.500. Divenskaya, 80 v. i 53 ra.) Buf. Siverskaya, 63 v. (42 m.) On r. Oreditcli. Very good trout and gray- ling fishing in the neighbourhood. The best part of the stream (about 12 m. from the stat.) is leased to some English gentlemen who reside at St. Petersburg. Gatchina, 42 v. (28 m.), an imperial residence, founded by Prince Gregory Orlotf, and purchased on his decease by Catherine II., who presented it to her son, the Grand Duke Paul. The grounds are very extensive and well laid out, but somewhat neglected, since the palace, which was built by Prince G. Orloft', after a plan by Einaldi, is inhabited by the Emperor but for a short time in summer. In front of the palace is a statue of the Emj). Baul. There is a very large imperial kennel at Gatchina, which may be inspected on application to the Master of the Hounds. Many of the pictures winch the palace contained have been re- moved to the Hermitage. The trout of Gatchina, caught abundantly in the neighbourhood, appear on every good Ilussian table at the capital. In a ch. are some relics brought from Malta, and in a building, which will be pointed out as the Friory, the Knights of Malta were wont to assemble under the presidency of their Grand Master, the Emperor Paul. Travellers Avho have time to spare should make this a separate excursion from St. Peters- burg under the guidance of a commis- sionaire. The Ijora river, a few m. beyond the town, was once a good trouting stream, but being free is much spoilt by poaching. The Baltic Ely. passes througli Gatchina, and has a separate station. It has also a branch lino from this point to Tosna, on the Moscow Ely. There is a tolerably good hotel and restaurant at Gatchina — Verefkins. St. Petersbueg, the modern capital of the Eussian Empire. Pop. 667,000. Lat. 59° 57' N. Hotels. — Hotel de I’Europe (for- merly Klee’s Hotel, recently purchased and enlarged by a public company), on the Place Michel (Mihailofskaya Ploschad), in the centre of the town. This is an old - established house, fashionably frequented. Eooms, at 1 to 15 IS. (2s. 8d. to 40s.) per day. Cold, warm, and shower-baths on the premises. Dinners from 1 r. (2s. 8d.) A table-d'hote at 5 o’clock, 1 r. (2s. 8cZ.) English, French, and American news- papers kept. Commissionaires ‘in attendance. Hotel d’Angleterre, opposite St. Isaac’s Cath., also very good. The English commissionaire, James Pilley, is highly recommended. Hotel de France, kept by L. Crois- sant, and situated in Bolshaya Mor- skaya-street, near the Winter Palace, and close to Nevski Prospect, much to be recommended for its cleanli- ness and superior cuisine. Dinners 1 and 2 r. Toe charge for apartments is from 1 r. to 20 rs.. (2s. 8d. to 54s.) All languages spoken. Baths on the premises. Hotel Demouth, near the Police Bridge (Polizeisky Most), also close to Kevs4d Prospect, a large and commo« dious hotel, with an excellent cuisine. Grand Hotel, Malaya Morskaya- street. Very good. Hotel Bellevue, in Nevski Pro- spect. Very good, and well recom- mended. Hotel Victoria, Bolshaya Koniu- shennaya-street, next Demouth’s. Ex- cellent restaurant. An omnibus from each of the hotels meets the train. Lodgings. — There are not many good furnished lodgings to be had at St. Petersburg for a short period ; but we may recommend M. (nonet’s, 44, Nevski Prospect, where excellent rooms facing the street may be had at a moderate rate. The landlady is an Englishwoman. Good apartments ina}’- handbook map P^TIRSBUK.© iBolshaya^ i 0¥hta Peter the GalleyPort r i london .John Mitfray. AUtetnarLc S t , . %i ,i 8*' ''a^.,. A, V "'■^'^. Eussia. ' Houte 1. — St likewise be sometimes procuretl at Felicien Faivre’s, opposite the Hotel De'moutli. liestaurants. — x\ll very good. — Du- saux, in Bolshaya Morskaya-street. Borel, opposite Dusaux’s. Auguste, same house as Hotel De'- mouth (Canal side). Donon, at Pevcheski Most (Singers’ Bridge). Excellent Luncheons may likewise be obtained at Wolff’s and Dominique’ s Restaurants, both in Nevski Prospect. Good Vienna beer and a grilled kidney may be obtained at Frantzel’s (the Blue Moke), over Wolff’s. Vehicles. — A crowd of conveyances of every description will bo found at the station. Tliere is no difiiculty in making a Russian coachman drive to the addresses given above. Tra- vellers with much luggage, and un- willing to enter an omnibus, should secure one of the large four-seated carriages driven by a coachman in Russian dress, leaving the price to be settled at the hotel. The small, un- comfortable drojkies wall take 20 copecks for a short course in town. For sight-seeing or business, engage a carriage at the liotel. The charge is about 10 rs. (27s.) a day, to any hour of the night. Carriages hired at a stand are much cheaper. Police Begulatious. — The principal police regulation, to which the tra- veller must pay careful attention, is : that whicli relates to passports (vide ' chapter on Passports). Smoking in I the streets, which was once absolutely prohibited, is now permitted, except : in the neighbourhood of palaces, on [ wooden Inidges, &c. Notices to that j effect, in four languages, will be found in several parts of the town. 1 Historij and Topography of St. Petershurg. — The region comprised 1 between Lake Peipus and tlie Narova 1 river on the one side, and the Lake of I Ladoga on the other, was anciently j called Ingria, and belonged iirst to I Novgorod, then to Moscow, until the ! year 1G17, when it passed to the ' Swedes, and it was only jeeonrpiered 1 in 1702 by Peter the Great, who, Petersburg. 91 desiring to have “ a window looking out into Europe,” laid the foundation of St. Petersburg in 1703, after dis- possessing the Swedes of their fort and townlet of Nyenschanz, on the Okhta, a small tributary of the Neva. Rising in Lake Ladoga, the Neva Hows througli the city and disem- bogues in the Gulf of Finland, sepa- rating into many branr'hes and form- ing several islands. The first branch is called the Great Nevka, and an arm of the latter the Little Nevka. From the point where the Great Nevka rises, the river bears the name of the Great Neva, in distinction to the second branch, which it sends olf to the N.W., called the Little Neva. Thus the Bay of Cronstadt receives the waters of the Neva by four cliannels of con- siderable volume and breadth, which are further distributed through the city by 4 canals. ( Vide Plan). in the spring of 1703 Peter the Great caused a great number of Russian and Finnish peasants to bo sent to the banks of the Neva for the construction of St. Petersburg, and 40,000 men were subsequently drafted annually for several years from the most distant parts of the empire, the Tsar superintending the works in per- son, and dwelling in a small cottage which is still extant. The first private houses were built in 1704 on the N. side of the river, in a part of the townr now' called Old Petersburg. Elegant houses l)cgan to be erected by foreign- ers in 1705 in a street still called the Millionaya, where the Hermitage at present stands. The large island between the Great and Little Neva Avas soon after inhabited by the de- pendants of Prince Menshikofi’, to wdiom Peter the Great gave it. It was callereventing from sinking that part of the cathedral which faces the river. The total cost of construction and de- coration was about three mill, sterling. The jiresent building is, as usual, in the form of a Greek cross, of four equal sides, and each of the four grand en- trances Is approached from the level of the Flace by three broad flights of steps, each whole flight being com- posed of one entire piece of granite, formed out of masses of l ock brought from Finland. These steps lead from the four sides of the building to the four cliief entrances, each of Avhich has a su- perb peristyle. The 112 pillars of these l>eristyles are GO ft. high, and have a diameter of 7 ft., all magnificent, round, and highly-polislied granite monoliths, from Finland. They are crowned with Corinthian capitals of bronze, and sup- port the enormous beam of a frieze formed of six fire-polished blocks. Over the peristyles, and at twice their height, rises the chief and central cupola, higher than it is wide, in the Byzantine proportion. Its height is 29G ft., and it is supported also by 30 pillars of smooth ])olislied granite, which, although gigantic in them- selves, look small cx)inpared with those 96 'Route 1. — St. Peiershurg : below. The cupola is covered with copper overlaid with gold,* and glitters like the sun over a mountain. From its centre rises a small elegant ro- tunda, a miniature repetition of tlie Avhole, looking like a chapel on the mountain-top. The whole edifice is sur- mounted by a far- seen golden cross, f the top of which is 336 ft. above the ground. The rotunda is built of brick which has been overlaid with copper plates painted in excellent imitation of grey marble. It is ascended by about 530 steps. Four smaller cupolas, resembling the gi-eater in every particular, stand avonnd, and complete the harmony visible in every part. The embellish- ments of the facade and windows have been entrusted to various artists. The group of figures on the pediment of one of the former was designed by a Frenchman, a Mons. Le Maire ; the subject is the Angel at the Tomb, witii the Magdalen and other female figures on the one side, and the ter- rified soldiers in every attitude of con- sternation on the other ; these bronze figures are 8 ft. in height. The 7 large doors, 3 of which are 44 ft. wide by 30 ft. in height, are of bronze, but all the adornments have been produced by the electro process. The latter are of the most elaborate nature, com- prising no fewer than 51 bas-reliefs, 03 statues, and 84 alto-relievo busts. The great dome is of iron. It has a diameter of 66 ft., and, together with the whole of the bronze work, was manufactured at Mr. Baird’s Works, at St. Petersburg. In the interior the malachite columns for the ikonostas, * The weight of the gold used in gilding the cupola, &c., irrespective of the gold used for the cross, was 185 lbs. Av. t We may here correct a popular error re- specting the signification of the Crescent, so fre- quently seen in combination with the Cross on Itus>ian cupolas. Jt is not emblematical of the triumph of the Greek Church over Mahomed- anism alter the expulsion of the Tartars from Russia, for It was a device used in the earliest Russian churches long before the invasion, and was inqaorted from Byzantium on the introduc- tion of Christianity, d’he Holy Virgin is repre- sented in the most ancient Greek pictures with her feet resting on a crescent, and the cross sul3- sequeiitly placed over the latter by the Russian Church is intended to typify the issuing of the Cross from the Motlier of God. St. Isaac^s Cathedral. Sect. I. or screen, are more than 30 ft. in height, and exceed anything that has yet been done in that beautiful stone. The pillars of lapis-lazuli on eith^- side of the door of the screen are very valuable, having cost 6000?. each, but they have a somewhat incongruous appearance next the mlaachite. The “ Koyal Door” of the ikonostas is of bronze, and is 23 ft. high by about 15 ft. in breadth. Both the malachite and lapis-lazuli pillars are merely tubes of cast-iron on which the stone has been laid in mosaic work. Tlie inmost shrine or sanctuary (into which women are not admitted) is placed in a small circular temple, tlie dome being supported by 8 Corin- thian pillars of malachite, about 8 ft. high, with gilt bases and capitals. The malachite of the 8 pillars weighs about 34,000 lbs. English, and its cost was 25,000Z. It was worked by Messrs. Nicholls and Plincke of the “ English Magazine” at St. Petersburg. There is a fine stained window at the back of the high altar, representing the Ascension. The walls and floor of the Cath. are of polished marble of various colours, found in the Eussian do- minions. There is, perhaps, too much gilding about this very beautiful work, but thi.s is in accordance with its position in a Greek ch. It was presented to the Emperor by Prince Demidoff, who procured the malachite from his mines in Siberia and sent it to Italy to be worked ; its value is said to be as much as 1,000,000 of rubles. All the pictures on the walls are by Russian artists. Many of them, and particularly those in the Ikonostas, are of mosaic work and were executed at a manufactory close to the Academy of Arts. It is from the rotunda over the great dome that the traveller is recom- mended to view the capital on a bright and clear day ; and in this ch. also he should, if so minded, witness some of the ceiemonies of the Greek Church. The hours of Divine service are from 6 to 8 A.M.. 10 to 12, and from 4 to 6 and on Saturdays from 6 to 7.15 p.m. On holydays of the Church these hours 97 Eussia. Route 1. — St. Petersburg: Busso-Greeh Church. are advanced by 30 minutes. The sing- ing is the most etfeetive portion of the service, and most of the prayers are intoned. The choristers of this cathedral rank in efficiency next after those of tlie Court Chapel, whose re- hearsals may be attended on applica- tion to the Director of the School at the “ Singers’ Bridge.” In the cere- monies of the Kussian Church, boys, as in our cathedrals, take the soprano jjarts. Considerable expense is in- curred for deep basses, the best voices being everywhere sought for and libe- rally remunerated. Certain half-reci- tative solos, occasionally required in the service, must always be delivered by deacons with amazingly strong and deep bass voices, sucli as “ Gospodi poniilui The I.ord have mercy ! or. j Lord, we pray thee; Grant this, O Lord, &c. It has somewhat the effect of as many double basses all executing the same short arpeggio passage, and repeating it without any variation in the chord, time, or tone ; it is there- fore tedious when frequently heard. One of the most impressive portions of the service occurs when the doors of the ikonostas are shut; the clianting then ceases, the incense-bearers witli- draw, and every one seems breathless with attention ; at length the “ Royal doors” in the centre are reopened and thrown back, and the chief officiating priest, attended by deacons, comes for- Avard carrying the Holy Eucharist and commences a long recitative, which is a prayer for the Emperor and other members of the Imperial family. While this prayer is being intoned, every one bends low in a humlde attitude of adoration. In Russia the outward forms of the Greek Church seem to have taken as tirm and enduring a hold of the men as of the women, all classes alike par- ticipating in a strong exhibition of cexternal devotion. The first proceed- ing of a Russian on entering a church is to purchase a wax candle, a supply ot which is generally kept near the door, and the sale of which constitutes a very lucrative traffic ; bearing this in one hand, he slowly approaches one of the shrines : at a short distance from A'/i'.sm. — 1875. it lie sinks on one knee, bowing his head to the pavement, and crossing his breast repeatedly with the thumb and two forefingers of his right hand ; having at length reached the shrine itself, he lights his votive candle at the holy lamp, and sets it uji in one of the various holes in a large silver stand provided for the purpose, falling at the same time on his bended knees on the pavement before the altar. His prayers are few and short, and he retires sloAvly with his face to the altar, kneeling and crossing himself at intervals. This kindling of lamps and tapers in Russian churches is a pleasing custom. The Russians have so closely adopted the idea that fiame is a sym- l)ol of the continued life of the soul and the best possible material repre- sentation of the spiritual, that there is no interment, no baptism, no l)e- trothing, and in fact no sacred cere- mony, without lamp or taper. Fire is for tl)em the pledge of the presence of the Holy Spirit ; and hence illumina- tions play the most important part in the ceremonies of the Greek Clun-ch. The following extract from the ‘ En- cyclopaedia Britanuica,’ relative to the rites of the Russo-Greek Church, may here be read with advantage; — “ The Greco-Russian Church guards vigilantly against the introduction of any doctrine open to the slightest suspicion of heresy, and has its own censorship and journals. It is also very observant of hierarchical sul)- oidinution. Generally, however, the Russian clergy, although jealous of their dignity, have not the spiritual })ride or priestcraft of the Roman Catholic order, attributable no doul)t in part to the kindly national cha- racter, and in part to the humanising inlluence of marriage,* which prevents the overwhelming concentration of all the human passions into one single channel. The Greco-Russian Chureh is chiefly antagonistic to the Roman Catholic, and differs from it in the * This refers to the Wlhto flerp;y, for the Ihack clergy, from cvljich order alone liishojis are cho.seij, observe vows of celibacy. F 98 B,oute 1. — St. Petersburg : Busso-Greeh Church. Sect. I. following essential particulars : — 1. In not recognizing the primacy of the Pope. 2. In denying that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Son (Jilio- qne). 3, In rejecting a purgatory, pre- destination (except in the omniscience of the Deity), indulgences, dispensa- tions, and works of supei-erogation, altliongh admitting the intercession of saints l^y prayer. 4. It holds the necessity of complete submersion] of the body at baptism, unless iu urgent cases, when even laymen and women may perform it ; but tliey must immerse the infant with the baptismal words, ‘ In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,’ if the infant can bear the immersion; if not, then sprinkling or ablution is used. Should the judest arrive in time, he reads the supple- mentary prayers, and performs the mystery of anointing with chrism. 4. Whilst admitting the doctrine of transubstantiation in regard to the eucharist, it affirms that the holy bread (irpoacpopo) must be leavened; the wine and water being placed in the chalice; and it is only at the prayer of transubstantiation that part of the agnus is placed in the chalice. The element of wine with water is alone administered to children up to the age of seven, for fear of the ele- ments being ejected or falling to the ground. 6. Another important dis- tinction is that marriage is obligatory on the secular clergy, although mono- gamy is a strict tenet of the Church. A priest may continue to serve after his wife dies. 7. No instrumental music is allowed, but vocal music forms a most attractive portion of the service. “ This Church rejects all massive images of the Saviour or saints as idolatrous : but pictures, mosaics, bas- reliefs, and, in short, ail that is repre- sented on a flat surface, is not hold a violation of the law which says, ‘ Thou shalt not make unto thyself any graven image ! ’ Broadly stated, and besides some of the preceding tenets, the Greco-Eussiau religion differs from the Anglican in so far as the latter Church approaches to the Lutheran. The gencrtil harmony, however, j,with the Anglican is greater than with any other church; and several attempts have been made, but not successfully, to unite them, particularly in 1723.* “There are four great fasts: — L Lent, or the great fast, between the carnival and Easter, of seven weeks’ duration, and of which the first and last are the most rigidly observed, being more specially devoted to repentance, confession, and preparing for the sacra- ment ; 2. Tlie Petrof, or Peter’s fast, before St. Peter’s day in June, of two to five weeks’ duration, accordingly as Easter Sunday falls; 3. The Uspen- ski, or Assumption fast, called by the people the Gospbzinski, from the 1st to 15th August. 4. The Philippoff, or St. Philip’s fast of six weeks before Christmas. The first fast, or Lent, is the most rigidly observed. Besides the above, the Wednesday and Friday of every week are fast-days, and the common people scrupulously keep them all. Catechising and preaching are practised, — the latter frequently, the former at set intervals. Confirmation is not practised, the chrism used at baptism being held to comprise a mys- tery, rendering that ceremony super- erogatory. The Church festivals and saints’ days, kept with Eastern splen- dour, are numerous, and consequently form drawbacks to the business of life, although they greatly relieve the labouring classes.! “ The venerative feeling of the people is profound, and they are zealous church-goers, early and late, being due observers besides of all the outward forms of religion, iff which the essence is sometimes absorbed. There is, however, much genuine piety to be met with; pilgrimages to monas- teries are frequent among all classes ; donations, free gifts, offerings, and alms, being liberally bestowed by both rich and ])oor. There are no entrance- foes, no distinctions for great and little, * One of llie principal obstacles to a fusion of tlie two Churches for practical purposes is tlie denial of the Apostolic succession of the Anglican Bishops by the Knssian Synod. f The habits of idlene.'^s and dnmkenness that prevail to such a ruinous extent in Kussia, are attributable to the great number of these holy- days, wliicli are about 100. 99 Kussia. Monte 1. — St. Petersburg : Kazan Cathedral. no pews, no reserved places, in Eussian cliurclies ; the congregation stand ; all are equal before God. The Sabbath is not much observed, except as a chiircli- goiug day. The shops are shut during the hours of worship, but all public places of amusement are afterwards thrown open : visits are made, and business is but little atfected Ijy olje- dience to this salutary ordinance of tlie Supreme Lawgiver. “ The Church service is performed in the ancient Church Slavonic, and the lower classes cannot therefore com- pletely follow it, except as a thing they take for granted, although they comprehend its general signitication. The Bible, however, is now partly translated into the vernacular Euss. The congregation fervently join in the choral parts, the responses, and the ejaculations. This portion of the ser- vice, and the great pomp investing the whole system of worship, together with the procession of banners, pictured saints, and relics, have no doubt been the great means of originally impress- ing on a rude people the holy awe they entertain for Tsar and Chureli; which two, with them, are identical. Church service usually consists of the Vozglass, or call to worship ; singing of psalms or hymns ; the Ektenia, a series of prayers, mostly intoned, for the welfare of the Church and her chiefs, for the peace and union of the Christian Churches, and for every sepa- rate member of the Imperial family ; the reading of the epistles and evan- gel; choral and part-singing of un- exampled harmony ; a sermon, always in the common language, explaining the evangel read; prayers, preparing for the communion, and during which the priest prepares himself ; the con- secration of the elements, and the ad- ministration of the sacrament, which the clergyman' takes every time, and the congregation at will ; then, thanks- giving for the sacrament, and parting- benediction ; the chanting and incense- burning throughout being frequent. Asperging with holy water is also used. The Old Testament is read only during evening service, whicli is in- tended to prei)are for the morning or principal service, and it therefore has a prophetic tendency, the psalms and hymns being all appropriate. The morning service represents the fullil- ment of these prophecies. Service much of the same kind is often pei - formed — sometimes exorcisms too — at private houses, on special occasions ; and the remembrance-service, or Po- minld^ forty days after a person’s death, is a pious custom ; as is that of the yearly visitation of family graves, although this often degenerates into revelling. It is another laudable cus- tom of tlie Eussians to remove their hats, in the streets, before all funerals that pass. Every Eussian is obliged to take the sacrament at least once a year. “ The calendar in use is the Julian or Greek, which is twelve days behiuil the Gregorian or Latin. The anta- gonism of the two Churches is perhaps the chief objection to a reform in this respect. The superstitious belief of the common people in good and bad spirits, in house-spectres, forest and water de- mons,^ is fast dying out, although too much credence is still given to omens and witchcraft.” * 2. Kazan Cathedral (Kazanski So- ber), dedicated to Our Lady of Kazan. This ch. stands in the Nevski Pro- spect, and will be easily recognised by its colonnade in imitation of St. Peter’s at Eome. It was founded in 1802, and consecrated in 1811, after an outlay of about 600,000k Built on Yules, it has the shape of a cross, with a length of 288 ft. between its extremities, and a breadth of 182 ft. The crq)ola and cross rise more than 280 ft. above the ground. Inside the ch. a colonnade extends in 4 rows from the 4 jnllars which sup]iort the cupola towards the altar and the 8 ju'incipal doors of the cathedral. It consists of 56 monoliths of Fiidand granite, 35 ft. in height, resting on bronze bases and terminating in Co- rinthian capitals of tlie same metal. The ikonostas is of silver, as well n s * Some information respecting the Russian Dissenters will be found under ‘ Moscow.’ F 2 100 Sect. I. Route 1. — St. Petersburg : Winter Palace. the balustrade in front. An inscrip- tion on it states that the silver of which it is made was a “ zealous offering of the Don Cossacks,” after the campaign of 1812, The name of the Almighty is rendered in precious stones, in the centre of the principal door of the screen ; the glory around is only gilt. The miraculous image of the Virgin, brought from Kazan in 1579 and removed to St. Petersburg in 1821, will be seen in the ikonostas covered with line gold and precious stones valued at more than 15,000Z. The huge sapphire was presented by the late Grand Duchess Catherine Pav- lovna. The other paintings are by Itussian Academicians. Four immense candelabra of silver stand before the principal altar-screen. The pulpit, the Imperial seat, or rather stand, and the door, are of coloured marble, with steps of highly polished jasper. The tomb of General Kutuzof-Smo- lenslcoi will be seen under the trophies of wars with France, Turkey, and Persia. He lies buried on the spot where he prayed before setting out to meet the enemy in 1812. The baton of Davoust, Prince of Eckmuhl, and the keys of many fortresses, are sus- ]3ended against the pillars of this mili- tary - looking cathedral. Among the keys are those of Hamburg, Leipsic, Dresden, Eheims, Breda, and Utrecht. In front of the cathedral are two well- executed statues ; one of Kntuzof of Smolensk, the other of General Barclay de Tolly. 3. The Winter PaJace (Zimny Dvo- rets), the residence of the Emperor and his court during winter, stands on the left bank of the Neva, on the site of a house which in the reign of Peter the Great belonged_ to his High Admiral, Count Apraxin, who l)equeathed it to the Emperor Peter II. The Empress Anne, after being crowned at Moscow, took up her resi- dence in Apraxin’s house, but had it pulled down in 1751 and rebuilt by Count Rastrelli, by whom it was completed in 1762, in the reign of the Empress Catherine. A conflagration, which is supposed to have originated in some defect in the stoves, consumed the whole interior of the building in December 1837, notwithstanding every effort made to save it. It soon, however, rose again from its embers. In 1839 the Winter Palace was en- tirely restored. The huge pile is now four storeys high, or about 80 ft. The frontage is 455 ft. in length, and the breadth 350 ft. The principal en- trance, or “ Perron des Ambassa- deurs,” is from the Neva, and leads by a magnificent flight of marble steps to the state apartments of the Palace. A gateway in the centre of the building, facing Alexander’s Co- lumn, opens into a large court. Visi- tors, after procuring a ticket,* are ad- mitted by an entrance to the right of that gateway. One of the Imperial servants will conduct them throngli the several apartments, of which the most magnificent are — the Throne- room of Peter I., where the diplomatic corps generally present their congratu- lations on New Year’s Day ; the White Hall ; the Hall of St. George, a paral- lelogram of 140 ft. by 60 ; the Gallery of tiie Field-Marshals, with portraits of those who fought against the French, including the Duke of Wellington; and the Alexander Gallery, with the portraits of the generals whe resisted the French invasion in 1812, executed by our countryman, George Dawe. Several rooms will be passed contain- ing pictures of battles in Poland, in Italy, in Germany, and the Crimea. The lilnglishman may pause at a large picture of the battle of Balaclava, placed in a small dark room, and re- member with pride the charge of the gallant six hundred. The battle of Sinope is among the representations of naval engagements in which the Russian flag triumphed. The follow- ing is a list of the principal rooms, and a summary of the pictures which they contain : — I. Alexander Ilall.—l. Portrait of * Tickets to view the Palace may be had at the entrance to the Council of the Empire, close to the little canal which rises in the Neva. The servants who show the several apartments should have small fees. Kussia. 101 Boiite 1. — St. Petersburg: Alexander Hall. ]^mperor Alexander I. by Dawe. 2. llathe of Kulm, 18tli (30tb) August, 1813 (Vandamme beaten by Barclay de Tolly). 3. Battle of Leipsig, 6tb (18th) August, 1813. 4. Fere Cham- penoise, 13tli (25tli) Marcli, 1814. 5. Taking of Paris, 18th (30th) Marcli, 1814 — the last four by Sauerwaid. II. Beserve Boom. — 1. Battle at Bash-Kadyk-Lar, defeat of the Turks, 19th Nov. ( 1st Dec. ), 1853, by T17//e- walde. 2. Defeat of the Turks at Kuruk-Dar, 27th July (8th Aug.), 1854, by Baihof. 3. Taking of a bas- tion at Varna, 25th Sept. (7th Oct.), 1828, by Sauerwaid. 4. Taking of Akaltsykh, 15th (27th) Aug. 1828, by SuMiodolsliy. 5. Storming of Gunib, where Shamyl was taken prisoner, 26th Aug. (7th Sept.), 1859, by Gruzinshy. 0. Battle of Poltava, 27th June (9th July), 1709, by Kotzebue. 7. Battle of Kersk, 17th (29th) Sept. 1855, by Willewalde. 8. Taking of Akhta, by BaiJcof. III. 1. Naval engagement off Eeval, 9th (21st) May, 1790. 2. Naval en- gagement off Krasnaya Gorka, near Cronstadt, 23rd May (4th June), 1790, 3. Naval engagement at Wiborg, 29tli June (10th July), 1790, all by Aiva- zovsJcy. 4. Naval engagement off Mount Athos, 17th (29th) July, 1807, by Bo- fjoUubof. 5. Battle of Navarino, 20th Oct. (1st Nov.), 1827. 0. Destruction of the Turkish lieet at Sinope, 18th (30th) Nov. 1853. — All by Aivazovsky. 7, Defeat of the Turkish army at Tcheleti (Asia), by Frince Maksutof. IV. 1. Battle of Smolensk, 15th (27th) Aug. 1812. 2. Battle of Valu- thio, 7th (19th) Aug. 1812. 3. Battle of Borodino, 2Gth Aug. (8th Sept.), 1812. 4. Battle of IGestizy, 19th (31st) July, 1812. 5. Fxploit of Ge- neral Neverovsky, at Krasnoe, 2nd (14th) Aug. 1812. G. Battle of Taru- tino. 6th (18th) Oct. 1812. 7. Battle of Malo-Yaroslavets, 12tli (24th ) Oct. 1812. 8. Battle of Polotsk, 7th (19th) Aug. 1812. 9. Battle of Losmin, Gtli (18th) Nov. 1812. 10. Battle of Vi- azma, 22nd Oct. (3rd Nov.) 1812. 11. Battle of Krasnoe, Gth (18th) Nov. 1812. 12. Passage of the Berezina, 16th (28th) Nov. 1812. — All by Feter Hess. V. 1. Taking of Berlin, 28th Sept. (9th Oct.) 1760. 2. Capture of Col- berg (Pomerania), 5th (16th) Dec. 1761. 3. Battle of Trebia, 9th (21st) June, 1799. 4. Battle of Novi, 4th (15th) Aug. 1799. 5. Suvoroff* at the Devil’s bridge, 14th (26th) Sept. 1799. 6. Battle of Muttine, 20th Sept. (1st Oct.) 1799. 7. Suvoroff crossing the St. Gothard, 24th Sept. (5th Oct.) 1799. — All by Kotzebue. VI. 1. Battle of Narva, 17th (29th) Nov. 1700. 2. Capture of Noteborg (Schlusselburg), 11th (23rd) Oct. 1702. 3. Battle of Gross Jagerndorf, 19th (31st) Aug. 1757. 4. Battle of Zorn- dorif, 14th (26th) Aug. 1758. 5. En- gagement at Ziillichau, 12th (24th) July, 1759. 6. Battle of Kiinersdorff*. 7. Suvoroff and the Grand Duke Con- stantine on the Pannix, 1799. — All by Kotzebue. VII. Guard Boom. — 1. Taking of Otchakof, Gth f 18th) Dec. 1788, by Sulc- liodolshy. 2. Battle of Elizavetpol, 13th (25th) Sei)t. 1826; Abbas Mirza, heir apparent of Persia, beaten by Paske- vitch, by the same artist. 3. Death of a young Kussian drummer, 18th (30th) March, 1814, by BeucJdin. 4. Don Cossacks crossing the Theiss (Hungary), 16th (28th) June, 1848, by Willewalde. 5. Taking of Erzerum, 20th June (2nd July), 1829, by Suldto- dolsky. 6. Taking of Kars, 23rd June (5th July), 1829, by the same. VIII. Dark Boom, near tlic Guard Boom. — 1. Death of General Moreau at Dresden, by Steid)en. 2. Battle of Leipsig, by Kcuchlin. 3. Battle of Balaclava, 13th (25th) Oct. 1854, by Sukliodolslnj. 4. Death of General Sle])Zof, in the battle near the river Gech, 10th (22nd) Dec. 1851, by Frince Maksrdof. 5. Skirmish of Kussian and Turkish troops near Se- vastopol, Ijy Willewalde. IX. Corridor. — Several battle-pieces by Bourguifjnon, T. Farrocel, and others. 102 Moute 1. — St. Petershurg : Pomanoff Gallery. Sect. I. X. Vovtrait Gallery. — 1. ITield-Mar- slial Prince Volkhonsky, by Kruger. 2. General Prince Cliernysbef. 3. Field- Marshal Prince Wittgenstein. 4. Gene- ral Prince Orlotf. 5. General Count Piidiger. 6. General Count Kisselef. 7. Admiral Prince Menshikoff. — All by Kruger. 8. Count Nesselrode, Chan- cellor of the Empire, 9. G eneral Count P>enkendorff. 10, General Prince Yas- silchikoff. 11. Field-Marshal Prince Bariatinsky. 12. Prince Kotchubey, Chancellor of the Empire. 1 3. Prince A. Galitzin. 14. Prince S. Galitzin. — All by Boiliemann. 15. General Count Alderberg. 16. General Count Klein- micliel. — Both by Kruger. 17. Field- IMarshal Count Berg, by Slmmler. XI. Field-Marshal's Boom. — 1. Tak- ing of Wola, 25th Aug. (6th Sept.) 1S31, by Horace Vernet. 2. Gorgey surren- dering the Hungarian army to General Count Lhders, 1st flSth) Aug. 1849, by Willewalde. 3. Prince Suvorotf, by Frost. 4. Count Paskevitch, by Kruger. 5. Count Bmnianzof, by Eies. 6. Prince Potemkin. 7. Prince Kutuzof, by Balchtine. 8. Count Bibitsch, by the same. XII. Hall of Peter the Great. — Peter attended by the Genius of Eussia. XIII. The most elegant and glitter- ing apartment is the IJraicing-room of ih,e Empress., of which the walls and the ceiling are gilded. The light of day can however scarcely do justice to all the magnificence which will be shown to the visitor. The art of illuminating at night is nowhere so well known as in Eussia, and candles are still happily preferred to gas. No court in Europe presents such a brilliant appearance as tliat of Eussia when seen in the Winter Palace. The arrangements are on the most sumptuous scale, and sit-down suppers are always supplied at a bnll, whatever the number of the invited may be. One of the larger lialls is sometimes converted into a garden of delicious verdure by the introduction of exotic plants and fruit- trees. On such occasions two rows of tables extend down the room, each overshadowed by a beautiful tree in full leaf, under which the dames and their cavaliers, in groups of eight, par- take of an elegant supper after the fatigues of the waltz and the mazurka. An Imperial table, raised and apart, commands the whole view. After passing through the state apartments and galleries the visitor will be taken to see the Eomanotf Portrait Gallery, which contains the likenesses of all the sovereigns of the reigning House since Michael Feo- dorovitch, and those of tlieir consorts. Peter the Great will be seen suspended in many frames. At the door of this gallery, to the right on entering, ob- serve a green curtain drawn over a talfiet. It conceals tlie rules which Catherine enforced at her conversazione in the Hermitage, which begins here. The following is a translation of those rules : — 1. Leave yonr rank outside, as -well as your liat, and especially your sword. 2. Leave your right of precedence, your pride, and any similar feeling, outside the door. 3. Be gay, but do not spoil anything ; do not break or gnaw anything. 4. Sit, stand, walk as you will, without refer- ence to anybody. 5. Talk moderately and not very loud, so as not to make the ears and heads of others ache. 6. Argue without anger and without excite- ment. . 1 . Neither sigh nor yawn, nor make anybody dull or heavy. 8. In all innocent games, whatever one pro- poses, let all join. 9. Eat whatever is sweet and savoury, but drink with moderation, so that each may find his legs on leaving the room. 10, Tell no tales out of sciiool ; whatever goes in at one ear must go out at the other before leaving the room. A transgressor against these rules shall, on the testimony of two witnesses, for every offence drink a glass of cold water, not e.xcepting the ladies, and I'urther read a page of the Telema- cliiade'*' aloud. Whoever breaks any three of these rules during the same evening shall commit six lines of the Telemachiade to memory. 7\nd Avhoever offends against the tenth rule shall not again be admitted. Beyond this gallery is another long, narrow room, in which the traveller will find numerous oil paintings repre- * By Tretiakofsky, an unfortunate native poet, whose muse was thus reviled. iiussia. 103 Bjoute 1. — St. Petersburg: Crown Jciuels. renting St. Petersburg at various stages of construction. Before going down stnirs to -see tlie room in which Nicholas I. died, ask to see the Crowni Jewels, deposited in a room on the 3rd lioor. They can generally be seen, even when the Pa- lace is not open to strangers. Crown Jewels . — The great Or! off dia- mond surmounts the Imperial sceptre of Eussia, and is a worthy ornament for the emblem of a dominion so ex- tensive. This splendid diamond was an acquisition made in the reign of Catherine II. Its previous history has been represented by stories, not only different, but contradictory. One tra- dition rife in Eussia and the neigh- bouring Asiatic countries has sought to explain the great difference between the weight of the Koh-i-noor and the original weight of a vast diamond which belonged to Shah Jehaun, with which it was confounded by Tavernier, on the supposition tliat the Koh-i-noor and a slab now at Kokan are the severed li agments that once combined to form that huge diamond of 793 carats, and it has even been suggested that the Orloff diamond formed once a part of the same stone. Tavernier, however, mentions that this stone was ruined in the process of cutting, while the true history of the Koh-i-noor goes back to at least the time of Baber; whereas Bernier describes the huge diamond alluded to as having been found in Golconda in the time of Shah Jehaun. Furtlieianore, the Orloff diamond exhibits to a practised eye a faint tint of greenish yellow, while the Koh-i-noor is colourless. The most authentic of the many stories about the diamond appears to be this. It once formed the eye in on idol in a temple at Seringham, near Trichino- poly, in India. Into this temple a French renegade soldier introduced himself in a menial capacity, and took his opportunity to despoil the idol of its precious e}X'. Escaping to Malabar with his prize, he sold it to a ship’s captain for a .sum of 2000 guineas, from whom a Jew acquired it for 12,000 guineas. An Armenian mer- chant, Lazaref (called in one account Schafras), purchased it from the Jew, and offered it for sale at the court of the Eussian Empress. Catherine II. did not accept the terms of the Arme- ]iian, and he bore it back to Amster- dam. It was here that the name of Orloff became associated with that of the splendid jewel; for the famous Count purchased it, and laid it as a gift at the feet of his Imperial mis- tress. The price is stated to have been 450,000 silver rubles, a life annuity of 2000 rubles, and a patent of no- bility. Another account makes it a part of the spoils of Nadir Shah, and an ornament in the throne he took from the Mogul Emperor ; and the traditional French grenadier in this account escaped with it at the death of that conqueror. This, however, is evidently only an echo or a tradition of tlie authentic story of Akhmet Shah and the Koh-i-noor, and the history as given above would seem to be the most authentic. The English jewel- lers call the diamond the “ Effing- ham.’’ The wxrd is probably a ti adi- tional corruption of tlie name Sering- ham. This stone weighs 185 carats (the Koh-i-noor as it came from India weighed ISGy’g), and is valued at Es. 2,399,410. It exhibits a flaw in the direction probably of a cleavage p] rare in its interior, a little way from one of its edges, and a slight feather or black stain in another part of its internal substance. In other respects it is a stone of the greatest beauty, and is the largest, as the Pitt diamond of France is the most beautiful, of all the Crown diamonds of Europe. The Imperial Crown of All the Eus- sia s is, as might be expected, adorned Avith noble jewels, Avhich are valued at Es. 823,976. In outline resem- bling somcAvhat the dome - formed patriarclial mitre, it carries on its summit a cross, formed of fi\x beau- tiful diamonds, and siq^ported by a very large uncut but polished spinel ruby. Eleven great diamonds in a foliated arch rising from the front and back of the crown su]>port this rul)y 1 and its cross, and on either side of 104 Sect. I. Houto 1. — St. Petersburg: Crown Jewels. this ceniral arch a hoop of 38 vast and perfect pearls imparts to tlie Im- perial diadem the mitre-like aspect, Avliich may be held to typify the exaltation of the Sovereign into the sphere of the ancient, superseded patri- archate. The domed spaces on either side of these arches of pearls are filled with leaf-work and ornaments in silver covered with diamonds, and underlaid by purple velvet. The band on which the crown is supported, and which surrounds the brows of the Emperor, carries 28 great diamonds. The orb (valued at Ks. 190,535) is surmounted by a large sapphire, of a rich but slightly greenish blue colour, with a large diamond of the finest water, and of elongated form. The coronet of the Empress is ]ierhaps the most beautiful mass of diamonds ever brought together into a single ornament. Four of the largest of these stones are of perfect beauty, and beside these are 10 or 18 similar to them, but of somewhat smaller dimensions : there are 70 or 80 other diamonds of no less exquisite water, and the Avhole are surrounded and set Avith a great number of stones, fit in point of (j[uality to be associated Avith them. Besides these costly emldems of royalty there are several other sjDeci- mens of jeAvellery Avorthy to bear them company. One of these is a diamond necklace, each stone of it Avorth an argosy, composed of 22 single vast diamonds, fromAvhich 15 huge pendent stones are suppoi ted. The ]dume of Suvoroff, an aigrette composed entirely of diamonds, Avas one of those gifts which the Avealthy but Avoaker neighbour makes to, the man of strength. It Avas presented by the Sultan of Turkey to the conquering Kussian general. Another of these memorials of the respect entertained for Ilussia by her Moliammedan neighijours is the un- mounted but beautiful diamond pre- sented by the younger son of Abbas Mirza to the Emperor of liussia on the occasion of his visiting the Im- perial court. It is named “ the Shah.” It is a long crystal of diamond Aveigh- ing 36 carats, and but very little altered by cutting from its original form. It has, moreover, Persian cha- racters engraved on it, and a small groove cut round its end to give attachment probably to the mounting that once may have supported it. Among the many other curiosities preserved as crown jeAvels are several strings of truly imperial pearls, a fine spinel ruby, and the order of St. An- drcAV, Avith five pink diamonds and two large Siberian beryls or aqua- marines, one of the greenish, and one of the more blue tint, mounted in diamonds. The collar, star and jewel of this order, worn by the Em- l>eror only at his coronation, is valued at Ks. 111,557. The smaller insignia of the same order, Avorn by the Em- press, are likeAvise of great value. Room in tvliich Nicholas I. died . — A melancholy interest attaches to this room, Avhich will be shoAvn last to the visitor. On a narrow iron camp bedstead, in the smallest and plainest apartment of the vast Palace, the Emperor Nicholas expired on the 2nd March, 1855. While suffering from influenza, he heard of the unsuc- cessful attack upon Eupatoria, and his stern, proud spirit refused to sub- mit to any further earthly ills. His grey military cloak lies folded on the hard bed. His sword and helmet are Avhere he left them. On the table is the report of the Quartermaster- General on the strength of the House- hold troops, delivered to the Emperor on the morning of the day he died, d'he simplicity around is that of the barrack-room. The elegance of art and the luxury of civilization are alike absent. The appurtenances of the toilet, still in their place, are fcAV and simple. A peculiarity of habit Avill be observed in the pocket-handker- chiefs, Avhich lie on every available article of furniture. A Grenadier of the Golden Guard of the Palace is alAvays on duty over these relics of the “ never-to-be-forgotten Tsar.” Eussia. 105 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. 4. The Hermitage * (Ermitaj). — This i^'allery and museum was founded by Catherine tlie Great, originally in a small pavilion attached to the Winter Palace and built by Vallin de la Motte, a French architect, in 1765. The Pavilion was intended by the Empress as a refuge from the cares and duties of government, and hence was called the Hermitage. Her leisure moments and her evenings were spent there in conversation with philosophers, men of letters and artists. Ten years later Catherine caused the second part of the Hermitage to be built by Velten, for the reception of pictures. It was united to the Pavilion by an arch in the form of a bridge. The Theatre of the Hermitage was added in 1780, and joined to the other parts of the building by an arch thrown over a small canal at a point where the Moika rises in the Neva. But the Hermitage as it at present stands was entirely reconstructed by Leo von Klenze, of Munich, between 1840 and 1850. The architect selected the Greek style in preference to that of the Kenaissance, which would have been more in keep- ing with the buildings in the imme- diate vicinity ; but for elegance, purity of architectural forms, and for the beauty as well as costliness of the materials employed, this museum has scarcely any equal in Europe. It forms a parallelogram 515 ft. by 375, with two large courts, and is approached by a noble vestibule, supported by ten figures of a hard grey granite, measuring 22 ft. with tlieir pedestals. ►Statues of celebrated painters, sculp- tors, and other artists, ancient and modern, fill numerous niches in the walls, to which an excellent appear- ance of stone has been given. The roof of the hall is supported by 16 co- lumns, monoliths of the finest granite * Arlraission gratis. The Hermitage is closed (lie whole of July and August (old style) as ell as on all great holydays, but at any other time is open daily, exceiA on Fridays, between l'’cl)ruary and July from II a.m. to 3 p.m., and Irum September to February between 10 a.m. and 3 p.jr. But even on Fridays, or during the months of July and August, exceptions to the rule will be made by the Director in favour of the traveller. from Finland, terminating in capitals of Carrara marble. The stairs, in three flights, are of marble, but the walls on either side are only scagliola. A gallery runs round the top of the staircase, adorned with 20 monoliths of grey granite. In this stand 16 marble statues: Cain and Abel, by Dupre ; a Bacchante, by Bienaime ; and otliers. Two magnificent stands for candelabra of the finest violet jasper from Siberia are iilaced at the doors at each end of the gallery. It is advisable to begin with the picture galleries on the first floor, leaving the museums below for a sub- sequent visit. First Floor. Ficture Galleries . — The Hermitage Gallery is chiefly composed of three celebrated collections. — 1. That of Mr. Crozat, Baron de Thiers. . 2’. The Wal- pole Collection, purchased in 1779 for 35,000Z. The best pictures* in the gallery are from Houghton Hall ; viz., 89 Italian, 75 German, 7 Spanish, and 5 English. 3. Eleven pictures from the Choiseul Gallery, purchased for 107,904 livres. Many other additions have subsequently been made. Thirty- eight pictures of the Malmaison Collection, formed by the Empress Josephine, were bought in 1814 for 940.000 francs, many of them having belonged to the Landgraves of Hesse and Cassel, spoliated by the French in 1806. The Spanish Gallery of Mr. W. G. Coesvelt, banker at Amsterdam, was acquired pn 1814 for 8700Z. ; and Dr. Crichton, an English resident at St. Petersburg, afterwards knighted, sold to this gallery seven of the pictures in his collection. On the death of the Queen Hortense of Plolland, thirty of tire best pictures of her collection passed over to the Hermitage for the sum of 180.000 francs. The Barbarigo Col- lection was purchased by tlie Emperor Nicholas in 1850, as well as some fine * The letter W. will denote tlieae whenever they occur in the observations tha t follow. 106 Monte 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. Sect. 1. pictures from the celehratcd g-allery of the late King William II. of Holland. From the Soult Collection the Her- mitage possesses a Sebastian del Piom- bo (No. 17), a Zurbaran (349), and a Murillo (373). The most recent ad- ditions are the fresco pictures pur- chased by Mr. Guedeonoff in 18G1, at the same time as part of the Campana Museum. The Hermitage Gallery at present contains about 1740 pictures, selected from amongst more than 4000 speci- mens, the remainder being distributed in the several palaces. The Italian school is represented in the gallery by 333 pictures, the Spanish by 115, the Flemish, Dutch, and German by 944, the English by 8, the French by 173, while the specimens of native art are 05 in number. It is more especially rich in the Spanish and Flemish Collections, having no less than 20 Murillos and 0 Velasquez, GO Eubens, 34 Van Dycks, 40 Teniers, 10 Van der Heists, 41 Eembrandts, 50 Woiivermans, 9 Potters, 40 Jacob Euysdacls, and an equal number of Snyders. This is moreover, the only gallery on the Coniinent that contains a collection of English pictuies. The Hermitage Collection was care- fully examined and brought into its ])resent perfect order in 18G1 and 18G2 by the learned and celebrated critic. Dr. Waagen, of Berlin, whose work, ‘ Die Gemaldesammlung in der Kaiser- lichen Ermitage zu I8t. Petersburg’ (Munich, 18G4), contains most valu- able information. The rooms in which the pictures are placed are described in the order in which they should be visited.* The Gallery of Historical Painting at the top of the staircase need iiot arrest much attention. The frescoes on the Avails rej irescnt the i)rogress of Grecian art. There are eight good specimens of modern sculpture by '* "I’lie ‘ CatalosTue de la Galerie dos Tableaux,’ ])y Uaron do Ka'Iine, may be bad of the porter, and very good photographs of the best pictures may be procured from M. Ruetjer, Court Book- seller, Nevsky, No. 5. j Vital i, Gothe, Ploudon (Madame du Parri as Diana), Bienaime', and others. The vases and tables of porphyry and malachite are as it were an intro- duction to the magnificent specimens inside. Eoom II. — (The numbers arc marked over the inner doors in Eoman nu- merals: v/'eJe plan.) Larger pictures of Italian School. (Beginning opposite the door leading from the staircase.) No. G9, Holy Virgin, by Francia.* 73, Pt. Sebastian, by Luini. 145, Dead Christ supported by the Virgin and an x\ngel, one of the few pictures by Paul Veronese painted with any sacred feeling. 18, Descent from the Cross, a rare picture of great value by Sebastian del Piombo, purchased for 29,000 fiorins, from collection of late King of Holland. 59, Ado- ration of the Shepherds, by Garo- falo. 61, Christ carrying his Cross, by same artist, f - size figures, with very fine and characteristic heads. 89, Portrait of an Artist, by Domenico. 135, Perseus and Andro- meda, a very fine Tintoretto ; the figure of Andromeda for colour and beauty of form is equal to the finest effort of Titian. 121, Jupiter and lo, by Schiavone, remarkable for its landscape background. 133, the Ec- surrection, by Tintoretto ; original de- sign, in small proportions, of the enormous picture at Venice, and illus- trative of his later decorati\T style. 181, David Avith the liead of Goliath, by Guido Eeni, Avith dark shadoAVs in style of Caravaggio. Above it, IGG, Christ being anointed for the Sepul- chre, a fine specimen of Lodovico Caraeci (W.). 187, Dispute of the Doctors, a capital ]ficture by Guido Eeni, of Avhich the engraving by Sharp is so Avell knoAvn (W.). 180, Cupid, by Domenichino. 184, Eepose * It Avill siiffice in most cases to mention the number of the picture and the painter to whom we desire to attract attention. Criticism may be considered out of place in a handbook ; the ti avellor will form his own judgment of tliese works of art, but at the same time we shall endeavour to point out the most remarkable pictures, with the addition of any information that may make them interesting to Englishmen. ixtisaia. 107 Haute 1. — iSt. Petersburg : The Hermitage. ill Egypt, and 185, St. Francis, are beautiful works of the same period by Guido : the expression of trust and repose, the harmony, clearness, and warmth of the colour, render 184 one of the most attractive of that artist’s pictures. 191, the Virgin at School, also by Guido, is much admired for the grace and childlike inno- cence of tiie group engaged in needle- work. There are 11 pictures by Sal- vator Kosa in this room, 5 of which, 220 to 223 and 225, are from the IVal. Coll. No. 220, the Prodigal Son, was one of the treasures of that gallery. 215, Ecce Homo, by Caravaggio, painted in a colder tone than his Young Man singing and playing the Guitar- (217), which is more transparent in the shades tliaii usual with that master. 230, Portrait of an Actor, by Domenico Feti. 319, Doge of Venice marrying the Adriatic, by Canaletto. 318 (pendant to 319), represents the Keception at Venice of Count Gergi, Ambassador of Louis XV., a magniticent and most interest- ing work by that master. 307, Por- trait of Pope Clement IX., by Carlo Maratta (W.). 317 (above), the Feast of Cleopatra, who is seen dissolving the Pearl, by Tiepolo, one of the best and finest pictures of that artist. 255, St. Cecilia, by Carlo Dolci, in the style of the famous picture in -the Dresden Gallery, but superior to it in the pleasing drawing of the head ; and 254, St. (Catherine, also by Carlo Dolci ; heads very well drawn. The malachite tables and vases are wry handsome. The 4 candclaljra are of violet jasper. Poom HI . — Flemish School, d'he collections of this school begin appro- l)riatoly with rich and. numerous spjcci- meiis of Rubens and Van Dyck, of which many of the best come from the Walpole Collection. Beginning on the rt. hand: 543, hlary Magdalene washing the Saviour’s feet, is the principal picture, by Rpbens, in the Hermitage (W.); there is a copy of it by .Tordaens in tlie same room. 535, the Expulsion of Hagar, a perfect gem, by Rubens; a sketch of this same picture is in the Gros- venor Gallery. 626 is a portrait that will interest every Englishman ; it is that of Inigo Jones, by Van Dyck (AV.). 616, Portrait of Philip Lord Wharton at the age of 19, b}^ Van Dyck (AY.). 612, Archbishop Laud, by the same artist (AY.). 633 and 634 are portraits of Englisli ladies by the same great master. 629 is another fine porirait. 627, Portrait of the painter Snyders and his AYife. On the same wall is, 576, Portrait of Helen Fourment, Itubciis’ second wife* by her famous husband. This most graceful full-length figure is fre- quently copied ; the same head will be found in the picture called the Chapeau de Paille in Sir Robert Peel’s Collection (AY.). Very close to it on the rt. is 609, King Charles I., signed “ p. Sr. Ant. Vandiko for this picture Y^an Dyck received. 25h 610, Queen Henrietta Maria (rt. arm and hand badly drawn) is the pendant to it, both being from the Houghton Collection. 618," above the portrait of Henrietta Maria are portraits of the Ladies Elizabeth and Phila- delphia AA^liarton, also by A^an Dyck (AY.). The grim figure of the Earl of Danby, painted by the same master, will be seen in 615 (AY,). 617, Sir Thomas AA^harton, by Van Dyck (W.). 635 is Rubens’ AYife and Child, painted by Van Dyck; compare it with 575 (near the door on entering), Rubens’ wife at a later period, i)aiiited by Rubens; the dress and gold chain are tlio same in both pictures. 611 is a pleasing portrait of AATlliam II, of Nassau, Prince of Orange, when a boy, by A'bin Dyck (AY.). 549, Amims and Adonis, a rcpefition by Rubens of the picture on })aiicl at the Hague. 551, a Bacchanalian Scene, by the same artist, is in bis most spirited style ; the satyrs are sucli as only Rulrens could have imagined (\Y.). 620, Portrait of Sir Thomas Chaloner, by Van Dyck (AV.). 632, Portrait of a gentleman, by Van Dyck, is a fine specimen of his warmest colouring, probably painted at Genoa. 614 is a sketch by Van J )yck of the celebrated large ])icture of the Pembroke Family at AVilton; the 108 Sect. I. Boiite 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. Earl of Carnarvon lias another sketch of it. There are 2 candelabra and 3 tazza of violet Siberian jasper in this room. Eoom I . — SiianUli School. Tliis is the the best and most varied collection of Spanish pictures out of Spain. On the left-hand wall there are no less than 18 pictures by Murillo. Begin with 369, the Holy Family, a perfect little gem, blit obscured by the shadow which falls from its heavy frame (W.). 375, Celestine and her daughter in prison at Seville. 364, Adoration of the Shepherds ; interesting sketch and variation of the same subject in the Gallery at Seville. 360, Benedic- tion of Jacob ; its pendant, 359, Jacob’s Dream, is perhaps one of the most pictures(|iie productions of the artist. 372, Angel delivering St. Peter ; from the Soiilt Collection. Under it is one of the most lovely inspirations of this great artist, the Kepose in Egypt (367). 365, St. Joseph. 379, St. John, a contemiioraneous copy of the cele- brated. jiicture in the National Gallery in London. 378, a Peasant Girl, and 377, a young Beggar, are penda/h-s. 363, Adoration of the Shepherds, a specimen of the early style of the mas- ter (W.). 362, the Concejition, treated in the same grand manner as the large picture at Seville. Leaving the Mu- rillos for the present, look at 349, St. Lawrence, a very characteristic speci- men of Francisco Zurbaran ; but a rarer and more pleasing example of tlie master will be seen in 348, repre- senting the Holy Virgin as a child. 397, a sleeping child, is by Antolinez, in the clear tender tones of Murillo. .371, the Assumption, by Murillo (W.). In this beautiful picture the Virgin lias the same youthful form as in the celebrated picture in the Sala Isabella at Madrid, to which for grace and imrity of expression it yi(dds in no- thing, while the action of lloating in mid-air, and the elFcct of immense depth beneath the buoyant clouds on which the lovely group of children are borne upwards wdth the Virgin, were never lietter rendered. 373, Appari- tion of the Infant Jesus to St. Francis of Padua, must conclude our mention of the pictures by Murillo. The best of Velasquez’s, out of the 6, are 419 and 420, Portraits of Philip IV. of Spain, and 421 and 422, those of his Minister, d’Olivares. The full-length portraits came here from the Hague. 418, Pope Innocent X., is a spirited portrait, also by Velasquez, from the Walp. Coll. 331, Death of St. Sebas- tian, by Kibeira. The stands for candelabra of large masses of rose-coloured porphyry or rhodonite, and vases, tazza, and tables of lapis lazuli in this room, are re- markably handsome. ItapdiaeVs Frescoes . — The nine fres- coes ill this room (which may be entered from the gem-room) were until 1856 on the walls of the ground-floor of the Villa Mills (Villa Spada) on Mount Palatine, at Eome. They were pur- chased with the Campana Museum in 1861. Mr. Guedeonolf, the talented purchaser -of that collection for the Eussian Government, considers these fine paintings to have been executed by Eaphael and his pupils between the years 1512 and 1515. The great master probably made the sketches and only superintended the painting. Professor Waagen considers that Nos. 47, 48, 49, 51, and 53 are by the hand of Giulio Eomano. The Abduc- tion of Helen (No. 55) is a celebrated composition, frequently repeated on majolica, as seen in the Campana col- lection in the Louvre, in the Bernal collection at the British Museum, and in Mr. Abingdon’s collection. Waagen says it must iiave been painted by one of Enphiicrs best scholars, for it was a favourite subject with the great mas- ter, as evident from the drawings at Chatsworth and Oxford. It was de- tached from the wall of Eaphael’s villa near the Porta Pinciana. In this room is the famous little Eaphael, “ the Virgin and Child,” presented by the Emperor to the Em- press on their ‘‘silver wedding day;” also a table of fine pietra dura Avith silver ornaments, the gift of the King of Italy in 1873. Russia. 109 houte l.~St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. Koom IV. — 1, Holy Virgin, by Ve- rocchio, marks the early epoch of the Italian School, as also does 2, another Holy Virgin, by Eoselli. No. 8, Infant Jesus, by Lo Spagna. The most flourishing period of Italian paint- ing is represented in the following : No. 24, Holy Family, a very fine picture by Andrea del Sarto. No. 17, Christ currying his Cross, by Se- bastian del Piombo, on slate; one of the finest pictures from the Soult col- lection. No. 19, Portrait of Cardinal Pole, by the same artist. The Floren- tine School is well supported by No. 14, the Holy Family, by Leonardo da Vinci ; this bears a striking resem- blance to Foster’s well-known “ Vierge au bas-relief.” But the oldest and finest picture by this master comes ! from the collection of the Duke di i Litta of Milan : — 13a, “ The Ploly Virgin suckling the Infant Jesus ” (on a stand near the window). No. 15, Portrait of a lady, by tlie same painter (W.). The figure is the same as that of Vanity, in the well-known picture by the same artist in the Schiarra Gallery in Pome. No. 22, Nativity of Jesus, by Granacci; one of his best works. One of the most remarkable objects in this room is an unfinished sculpture of a small crouching figure in marble by M. Angelo, called the Tour de Force, evidently rough hewn from the stone, witliout model or preparation. That a figure of this size could be produced from a small block of marble, mjt larger than would be required for a full - sized bust, is extraordinary enough; but the position seems pur- posely to have been chosen by that great genius, in sport as it were with tlje greatest difticulties. Poom V. is attractive on account of its Paphaels. On a stand near the window will be seen a beautiful little picture (39), by that great master, re- presenting St. George and the Dragon (the saint earing the Order of the Garter) : it was painted in 150G by order of the Diike d’Urhino, who wished to present it to Henry Vif. of England, in return for the Order of the Garter. It was first in the Pembroke Gallery, then in that of Charles I., and was purchased by the Pussian Government with the Crozat Collection. It long served as an image in the Plall of St. George, at the Winter Palace. On the same stand is a fine Correggio — 81, Huly Family and St. John. No. 37, Holy Virgin, painted in Paphael’s Florentine style, and known as the “ Ste. Famillc au St. Joseph imberbe,” p. in 1507. No. 38 is the celebrated Vierge de la Maison d’Albe. No. 40, a remarkable portrait by Paphael, incorrectly called that of Sannazaro. No. 74 is the i)or- trait by Luini variously termed “ the Columbine,” “ Flora,” and “ Vanity,” and well known to the lovers of art : from the Hague, where it passed as a Leonardo da Vinci. No. 82 is a small sketch for the ceiling of the cathedral at Parma, by Correggio. Another picture by Correggio will be found in No. 82a, “Marsyas and Apollo,” one of four pictures of the Litta collec- tion purchased by the Hermitage. 83, The Marriage of St. Catherine is also a very pretty picture by the same master. The marble group (a boy carried by a Dolphin), in the centre of this room, is a great curiosity, since it is the work of Lorenzetto, after a model by Paphael. Mr, Guedeonolf states (in a pamphlet published in 1872) that it was bought by the Emp. Catherine II, in 1787, together with other pieces of sculpture, from Mr. Browne of Wimbledon. It was dis- covered in a storeroom at the Her- mitage in 1872, by Professor Stephiini, The only other statue with which the name of Paphael is authentically con- nected is in a ch. at Pome. Poom VI. — 112, Judith, by Moretto da Brescia, of whom it is one of the finest specimens. 113, Faith, by the same artist. 101, Portrait of Poijc Paul 111,, by Titian, Poom VII. contains the celebrated Titians, Irom the Barbarigo collection : —98, iVIary Magdalen. 99, 4'oilet of \cmis. loo, Diiiiae, from the Crozat collection, 'lliere are also soiue fine liO Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. Sect. i. sketches (Nos. 142, 149, and ] 50) by r. Veronese. Eoom VIII. 174, Christ in tlie Garden of Olives, by Caracci. 177, A young girl sleeping, by the same ; very carefully painted. 176, Portrait of An- nibale Caracci, by tlie artist himself, on a panel which had been destined for another subject. Through the trans- parent dark colour of the background may be seen tlie outlines of a life- sized head, 192, Beatrice Cenci, re- petition after Guido. 224, Portrait of a poet, by S. Rosa. 218, Portrait by CaravagAo. 223, three soldiers play- ing at dice, very cliaracteristic of S. Rosa, 264, Betrothal of St. Catherine, by Procaccini, suggestive of Etty. The tazzas near the window are of syenite and aventurine; the one in the centre of the room is of jasper. Room IX. 289, Pretty head of a boy, by Luti (W.) ; resembles a draw- ing in pastel, for which this artist is chiefly known. 257, Holy Virgin, by Sassoferrato. 260a, Head of the Ma- donna, likewise by Sassoferrato. 309, St. Sebastian, by Balestra. There are several pictures by C. Maratta and Schidone in this room. Room X. is the last of tlie Italian School, and is called the Cabinet of Luca Giordano, the painter of the large picture, 293, Bacchus asleep (W.), and of 294, the Judgment of Paris (W.). 229 and 230 are marine pieces, by Salvator Rosa. 320, the Rialto, by Belloti, is y a boar and a goat, wdiile two bears turn the spit. A mon- key and an elephant are hringiug up faggots; the wolf and the fox mean- while hanging two of the accomplices. A monkey on the top of the gallows acts as assistant executioner. The joy of the animals at their deliverance is wouderfully portrayed ; tlie goat is cutting capers, and the wolf rolling on the ground with laughter and delight. 1053, the Hunter’s Halt. 1054, the Ill Kussia. lloute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. Cows, and 1059, a Landscape. There are 9 specimens of Paul Potter in the Hermitage; 1051, 1052, and 1055 are from the Malmaison Collection. Teniers. — 699, Kitchen seized by Monkeys. 672, the Arquebusiers of Antwerp. The figures are mostly por- traits of the period ; Teniers himself is being admitted member of tlie corps. Between these two screens wall bo found every description of jDicture that Teniers painted — landscapes, cattle, historical portraits, and even a sea- piece (710). 669 and 670 are land- scapes by Teniers the elder. 708 and 709, in circular frames, by the younger Teniers, are pleasing subjects, charm- ingly treated. 673, the Cuardhonse, painted 1642 ; 677, the Wedding Ban- quet ; 674, Yillago Fete, are all by the same master-hand, as well as the large picture, 698, Interior of a Kitchen : the artist appears here as the land- lord (W.). (679, 688, and 706 are also from Walp. Coll.). Wouvermans . — These are too nume- rous to be particularised. 1030, 1031, and 1032 are perfect gems. The inctures by Wouvermans in the last compartment are equally good. 1017 is one of the few pictures known of that artist without a white horse. They are all well worth examinatioii. After inspecting Boom XII. the visitor will do well to relieve tlie eye by proceeding to gaze on other objects. A door* in the next room, XIII., opens on the staircase of the Council of the Fmpire. An immense vase of mala- chite stands at the top of the stairs. The door to the right leads to the apartments of tlie old Hermitage (reached from tlie Gem-room). The door on the left opens into a gallery, beyond which is a small l)all-room of white marble, fitted up in the most exquisite taste. This is the original I’avillon built by Catherine II. Inght galleries of gold trellis- work, supported by elegant white columns, run round _ * (iencrally closed, bat opened on applica- tion to one of the attendants. this beautiful room, which was de- signed by Mr. Stakenschneider, court architect. The style is Kenaissauce, with an admixture of the Moorish and antique. A portion of the fioor is in- laid with mosaic. Two marble foun- tains, after the model of a celebiated fountain at Bakhchisarai, in the Cri- mea, stand at the further end of tlie room. The water, when laid on, falls from one shell into the other with the most delicious murmur. Glass doors open into a conservatory of exotic plants. Balls are given here in winter to a limited number of guests. The view of the river from the windows is most charming. A portrait of Cathe- rine II., by Lampi, the best ever made, is suspended in this room, together with that of the consort of the Em- peror Paul, by Mine. Lebrun. Boom XII. English School and Bemhrandt’ s Gallerii . — The first small compartment is devoted to English pictures. Conspicuous amongst these is 1391, the Infant Hercules strangling the Serpents, painted for the Empress Catherine II. by Sir Joshua Beynolds. It is an allegory of Bussia vanquisli- ing the difficulties which beset its yoLithful state. This picture, finished two years before his death, was painted by order of the Empress Catherine, whose commission was unlimited both in subject and in price. The price paid for it was 1500 guineas. Soon after the picture arrived at St. Petersburg, Count AVoronzow, tlie Bussiari aml>as- sador, waited on Sir J. Beynolds to inform him that the enqiress had re- ceived the picture, as well as two sets of his Discourses, one in English and one in French, which, at the desire of 11. I. M., had been sent with tJie ])ic~ tui'c. This message was accompanied hy a gold snuti-box, vGth the empress’s portrait encircled with large diamonds The ambassador also left with Sir Joshua a copy of the following let- ter : — “ Momsieur lo Comte Moronzew^— I have read, and 1 may say with tJm greatest avidity, the Discourses jiro- iioiinccd at the Boyal Academy of 112 Sect. I. Moute 1. — St. Petersburg: The Hermitage. London by Sir Joshua Reynolds, which that illustrious artist sent me with his large picture ; in both productions a most elevated genius may easily be traced. I recommend you to give my thanks to Sir Joshua, and to remit to him the box I send as a testimony of the great satisfaction the perusal of his Discourses has given me, and which I look upon as perhaps the best work tliat ever was written on the subject. My portrait, which is on the cover of the box, is of a composition made at my Hermitage, where they are now at work about impressions on the stones found tire re. “ I expect you will inform me of the large picture of the subject of Avhich I have already spoken to you in another letter. Adieu — I wisli you well. (Signed) Catherine. St. Petersbui'g, March 5, 1790.” The large picture here referred to may be No. 1392, the Continence of Scipio, which was probably sent to St. Petersburg after the death of Sir J. Reynolds, as it is still in an unfinished state. This may be seen in the arms of Svipio and in the hands of another figure, Avhich show in an interesting manner Sir Joshua’s mode of painting ; the shadows being laid on in a green tone, preparatory to the warm glazing withwhicli he so successfully imitated the glowing tones of tlie Venetian School. 1393, Dido and /Eneas, in a landscape equal to one of Wilson’s finest, by Thomas Jones (1730-1790). 1390, Cupid unloosing the Girdle of Venus. This picture, painted by Reynolds for Prince Potemkin (for lO'O guineas), is the portrait of a pretty Lnsrlisliwoman, whose obliquity of vision is artfidly concealed by the position of her hand. There are two repetitions of this picture in England. 1389 is an interesting portrait of Grin- ling Gibbons, the sculptor, by Sir Godfrey Kneller, who also painted 1388, a likeness of Locke ; both from the Walpole Collection. 1387, Por- trait of Abraham Van der Dort, by Dobson (W.); and 1386, Oliver Crom- well, by Robert Walker (1600-1658). The pictures arranged on the re- maining screens in Room XIII. now claim attention : they are chiefly by Rembrandt. We particularise some of the finest, but all are worthy of atten- tion. Nowhere can this great master be studied with so much advantage, since here are found specimens of every period and subject of his art. 828 and 827, two portraits, show his earliest and his latest style, the former bearing the date 1631, and the latter 1666. 806, 825, 823, and 821 are a series of equally charac- teristic heads. 803, the “ Benedicite,” or Grace, a small cabinet picture of great simplicity, and full of reveren- tial feeling. 802, Danae : though un- fortunate in his model, Rembrandt has produced in this unique picture a chef- d’oeuvre of execution. 771 and 772 are excellent specimens of Franz Hals. The following are all by Rembrandt : — 808, Ifieven van Copenol, the cele- brated calligraphist, a highly-finished portrait of the same period as that of the “ Lesson of Anatomy ” at the Hague; 818, one of his noblest por- traits ; its vis-a-vis, 809, is a fine classi- cal head, called indifterently Joan of Arc or Minerva ; 804 (in the last com- partment), an old woman, an admirable ])ortrait in his freest style— the hands, executed with a freedom which borders on coarseness, appear highly finished when viewed at a proper distance ; 797, Return of the Prodigal Son, though painted in a coarse decorative manner, tells its story with much pathos ; beneath it is a bold landscape, 830, and, on the screen opposite, a marine piece, 831, very warm and transparent, probably left uncompleted by Reinbrandt, for the foreground seems to be finished by an inferior hand; 817, a beautifully- coloured small head of a woman putting in an earring ; 798, the parable of the Lord of the Vineyard, a remarkable sketch in brown glaze, the principal figure a highly-finished miniature ; 816, head of an old man in profile, a master- piece of free handling — observe the effect pioduced by the use of the sharpenetl stick of the brush in the treatment of the beard ; 826, Child at a Window — this picturesque genre Eussia. 113 Houte 1. — St. Petershurg : The Hermitage. portrait is a fine study of chiaroscuro ; 796, the Holy Family, was valued by Smith at 2000 guineas; 800, Descent from the Cross by Night, an admirable composition, replete with sentiment and mystery; 807, Eemluandt’s Mo- ther, a highly-finished cabinet picture; 799, Peter denying Clirist, another striking candle-light eftect ; 811, a most characteristic portrait in this master’s best style — it was long, but erroneously, supposed to be that of Stephen Bathory, or John III., So- bieski, of Poland ; the pentimenti or alterations in the position of the baton held in his hand, are evidence of the care bestowed on this picture ; 810 passes for the likeness of old Thomas Parr — it is in his latest style, but Kembrandt, instead of showing symp- toms of weakness, appears to have become more daring with age, to judge from the inqMsto and the masterly treatment of this fine portrait; (an- other portrait of Thomas Parr, also by Eembrandt, may be seen in Prince Lobanoff’s collection). 812, a female figure with rich dress and flowers in her hair, will also attract the visitor. 792, Abraham’s Sacrifice, one of Eem- brandt’s earliest, signed and dated 1635 (W.): there is a co])y of this picture by Eckout in a private collec- lection at Brussels. The Hermitage Gallery is also very rich in pictures by Ferdinand Bol : see the excellent portraits by tliis artist under Nos. 853, 854 (W.), 819, 818, 856, 851, and 817. Eoom XIII. Early German and Dutch Scliooh . — The portrait of Sir Thomas Gresham, the founder of the Eoyal Exchange, by Sir Antony More (480), will be of interest to the English visitor ; it is, moreover, one of the l)est specimens of that i)ainter. 481 is Lady Gresham, by the same artist (W.). 444, the Crucifixion and Last Judgment, by Christophsen. 445, St. Luke, a very good, though solitary, specimen of IMemling. 449, Corona- tion of the Holy Virgin, by Quentin IMatsys. 443, the only specimen of Jan Van Eyck, “ The Salutation,” Waa- gen says, must have been painted be- tween 1433 and 1434, for it bears a great resemblance to the picture by the same artist in the National Gal- lery, and which is known to liave been painted in 1433. 466, a Portrait, by Holbein. 467, Portrait of Edward VI. of England, is either a copy or a repetition of Holbein. It was once in Charles I.’s collection, and was pur- chased by Lord Walpole, whose enlight- ened judgment and taste for art were so remarkable, that, if his gallery had remained the property of the nation, we should have possessed the finest museum of pictures in the world. Nineteen of the best pictures in the Louvre, 44 of the most valuable in the Museo at Madrid, three or four in the Belvedere collection at Vienna, and the twm finest pictures in the Heimitage, will give some idea of the treasures we have lost. Eoom XIV. — The principal objects of attraction in this room are six sketches by Eubens for the decoration of the triumphal arches raised at Antwerp in 1635 to greet the solemn entrance of the Infant Cardinal Fer- dinand, brother of Philip IV. of Spain (Nos. 561 to 566). The paintings were executed by Eubens’ pupils, after these sketches. The allegorical representation of Peace and War con- tending at the Temple of Janus (566) is ingenious and masterly (W.). Nos. 572 and 573 are of interest to English- men, being sketches by Eubens for the ceiling of the Palace at Whitehall, made by order of Charles I. ; Hie former repi'esents James I. seated on his throne, with Pallas, Juno, and Venus accompanied by Cupid, l3efore him; the Genius of Peace is below, burning armour. This sketch once belonged to Sir Godfrey Kneller, but was purchased of Crozat for the Her- mitage. No. 573 is the Apotheosis of James I., formerly in the Walpole Coll. No. 546, Descent from the Cross, by the same great master, is a repetition of his famous picture at Antwerp. ’There is a very good copy of it over the altar of the English church at St. Petersburg. 594 and 595 (opposite to each other) are excellent specimens of 114 Sect. 1. Boiite 1. — St. Petersburg: The Hermitage. llubens’ landscape-painting, the for- mer conveying well the effect of moon- light (W.); the latter, “ the Eainbow,” is in the great master’s best style. 574 is another admirable sketch by Enbens in grisaille, with the exception of the portrait — it is signed near the left side of the head. 537, the Adora- tion of the Magi, on paper, has passed for a sketch by Rubens, but Prof. Waagen is inclined to consider it a copy of a picture of the same subject. 592, a Lioness between two Lions, is a portrait taken by Rubens at the Zoological Gardens at Antwerp — treated in the same masterly manner as the celebrated picture of Daniel in the Lions’ Den, now at Hamilton Palace (W.). 605, Christ on the Cross, most spirited sketch by Van Dyck ; and 658 is the copy, by Jor- daens, of 543, already mentioned. 757, Repose of tlie Holy Family, by Poe- lenburg, is a very unusual subject for that artist. Two candelabra of rhodonite, and a large tazza of violet jasper, will be noticed in this room. Room XV. — This small room is de- voted to a portion of the German school in its decadence. 1289, an Orgie, and 1290, a Concert, are by Platzer. 1303 is a portrait of Mengs by the artist himself. 1299, the Descent of the Holy Ghost, is an exquisite specimen of JMengs; unusually fine in colour and expression. The Denners are 1284 to 1288. 1304 and 1305, by Angelique Ivaufmann, represent episodes from y feme’s ‘ Sentimental Journey.’ Room XVI.— On the eight screens in this room arc numerous specimens of the Dutch school in its most nou- rishing period. 777, Presentation of the Bride (no longer young), a niaster- })iece by Van der Heist, to the left on entering, at once strikes the eye; very much restored, especially the head and dress of the bride (from King of Holland’s Collection). 778 and 779 are tine specimens of that artist's portrait-painting, rarely seen out of Holland. 900, (lame of Trictrac, by Jan Steen, who is seen in the picture playing with a lady; the specimens of this artist are numerous, affording an excellent opportunity of studying his style. 874, tlie Musician, by Ter- berg ; the white satin dress of the lady is beautifully painted. 870, an- other specimen of Terburg’s, is excel- lent. 903, the Alchymist, is a splendid specimen of Gerard Dow. 878 is one of the best pictures by Metzu. 962, a Winter Landscape, by Ostade, — signed ; it is painted in his latest and best style. 1246 and 1247 are the two well-known pictures, by W. van Mieris. 1136, a Morass in the middle of a Forest, is an excellent Ruysdael. 1143 (opposite) is another specimen of that master. 1211 (on stand VI.), a Street at Amsterdam, is one of Jan van der Heyden’s best pictures ; the figures were painted by A. van der Velde. The specimens of this artist are numerous, and extremely good and valuable. 1148, View near Groeningen, by Jacob Ruysdael — full of sunlight. 1145 is a beautiful and clear specimen of the same artist. 1117, one of the best efforts of Van der Neer — a View at Sunset. 1162, Marine View by Pynacker — one of his best. 1102, a View of the Meuse, by Cuyp. 1150 Study, by C. Decker ; a beautiful spe- cimen of this master, whose pictures are rare. 895, a large picture by Jan Steen, Esther before Assuerus ; consi- dered by Waagen the best of that artist’s serious pictures. 979 is a good specimen of Van der Poel. 1081, a graceful Landscape, by Berchem, in a warm golden tone. 1262, a Landscape, in grisaille, by Begeyn. 1076 and 1077 (opposite) are two more excellent Ijandscapes, by Berchem. 1135. Mouth of the Scheldt, by Everdingen; very Ijold and picturesque. 1206, another small picture by Van der Heyden; a little harsh in outline and cold in tone, but the figures beautifully painted by A. van der Velde; it represents a street at Cologne. Room XVII. is devoted to pictures of fruit and game, on the largest 1 canvas, by Snyders, Vos, Weenix, Vcremlacl, and others. On its w'alls will be seen the 4 best pictures painted Eussia. 115 Route 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. by Snyders, and known as the “ Four Markets” (1312, 1313, 1314, and 1315). 1324, Concert of Birds, also by Snyders, is curious. Peter the Great’s Gallery is reached from here. There is a studio for paint- ing on porcelain above this room, and a small collection of old majolica, not generally open to the public. Room XYIII. contains pictures of the French school, removed in 1873 from the old Hermitage Palace. They will be seen in the following order: 1507 and 1508, by Lancret ; 1413 and 1414, by Nicolas Poussin, are two noble classical landscapes, the first re- presenting Hercules and Cacus, the second Polyphemus ; the silvery moon- lit clouds and the effect of twilight in the latter are rendered with great truth. 1477, by Subleyras — the Em- peror Valens and St. Basilius, a small repetition of the celebrated picture in the Louvre. The mass of light formed by the robes of tlie priests in the centre group is admirably traced. A copy of this picture, the size of tlie original, is in the ch. of the Monastery of St. Alexander Nevski at St. Peters- burg. Above 1477 is 1487a, a por- trait of Mary Queen of Scots, by a pupil of Clouet. It comes from the Lobanoff Coll., and is said to have been painted at Fotheringay. 1486, Repose in Egypt, by Boucher; an unusual subject for this painter, whose pencil was chiefly devoted to mytho- logical amours, flirtations of fis'hion- able shepherdesses and their swains, bathing nymphs, and other nudities. Above it is 1474, a pretty little Le Moine, Cupid asleep, the subject of his large picture in the Louvre. 1428 to 1431 are fine landscapes by Claude Imrraine, representing the several periods of the day. Tliere are several other charming pictures by Claude (1433-1436, 1438, 1439, &m.). The Tri- umph of Galatea (1400), by Poussin, is remarkable for drawing and composi- tion, as well as for the beauty of the fe- male figures. 1399 is a powerful and uncommon picture by the same artist, representing the body of Our Lord at the foot of the Cross. 1475, by Le Moine, will be recognised as a copy of Correggio’s Jupiter and lo in the Berlin Gallery. 1516, by Fragonard, is a charming subject, with an effect of chiaroscuro suggestive of a serious study of Rembrandt. 1509, a pretty Lancret. The 4 sea-pieces (1548, 1549, 1554, and 1555) are good speci- mens of Vernet. (1554, by the same represents the Death of Virginia.) On a stand will be seen two small cabinet pictures by Watteau (1504 and ] 505). On another stand are 1522 and 1525, 2 animated and highly finished landsca]>es by Marne. There are 3 others in the Hermitage Coll, equally good. The Louvre has only 2 pic- tures by this artist. Between the second and third windows is a portrait of a Young Lady, by vSanterre, worthy of notice (1471). 1487 (on a stand) is a portrait by Clouet, of the Duke Francis d’Alen 9 on. Another portrait of the Duke by the same painter is in the gallery of ^Stafford House. Near the door of this room will be found several pictures by Greuze. 1518 is a fine bold sketch of a head by that artist, very like a Gainsborough, and 1520, the Death of the Paralytic, is his cele- brated picture, one of the series in the Louvre. Lastly, the visitor will see one of the oft-re]reated convent inte- riors by Granet (1528), remarkable for perspective. Room XIX. — Tills room, lihm the next, is set apart for the Itasisiait, School., founded in 1759 by Lossenko. 1626, Sunrise on tlie Black Sea; and on the other side of the door an extra- ordinary picture, “the Deluge,” by Aivazofsky, a marine painter. 1622, a View of Odessa, by the same artist. 1631, View of Vladikavkas, in the Caucasus, by Willcwald. 1632, The Keriiiesse or Fair at Amsterdam by moonlight, by Bogoliubof ; the double effect of the moonlight, and that of the variegated lamps, is beautifully rendered. 1568, the capture of Kazan by .John the Terrilik^ in 1552; the Tzn.r of Kazan is knee ling in submis- sion to John IV. 1569, the election of IMichacl Romanoff to the throne of Russia ; the boyar Shcremetieff is HEMBRATIDT 116 Iloute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage, Sect. I. PLAN OF THE PICTURE GALLERIES AT THE HERMITAGE. STAIRCASE OF COUNCIL OLD HEKMITAGE PALACE. Eussia. 117 Uoute 1. — St. Petersburg: The Hermitage. bearing the crown, the sceptre, and a j gold cross ; the mother of Michael j Komauotf and several high ecclesiastics | stand near him. Both these historical ' ])ictnres are by Ugrinmoff, a pupil of j Losseidvo. 'Near 1568 will be seen one of Aivazofski’s most extraordinary efforts, “ the Creation of the AVorkl.'’ A marble statne of Paris, by Canova, stands in this room. Ptoom XX . — Russian School con ti- nned. — 1591, a Nymph going to bathe, | by Neff', is an admirable specimen of ffesh-painting. 1 581, Abraham’s Sacri- fice, painted by Col. Bentern with his left hand, after losing his right liand at the battle of Leipzig. 1593, by Ivanof, Christ appearing to INIary IMagdalene; the figure of the Magda- lene is not deficient in pathos, wJiile that of Chribt is executed Avith the cold formality of the pseudo-classic school. 1590 is an immense picture by Bruni of the Brazen Serpent : a i startling academical picture. The most striking picture in this loom is 1580, the Last Day of Pompeii, by BruloAv ; it is considered to be the most impoitant Avork of the Russian School. 1595, tAA'o Nymphs bathing ; one of the figures in this picture is from the same model as 1591, Avhich it resembles in mode of treatment. There are more copies taken of these tAvo pictures by Neff’ than of any other in the Hermitage. 1591, Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, by Bruni, is a beautiful picture. Two candelabra and a tazza of very fine jasper stand in the centre of the room, and a handsome brass clock with a statuette of Peter the Great, adorns •the chimney-piece. The fine statue of John the Terrible, in bronze, is by Antonofsk}^ Rooms XXI. and XXII. — Numisma- tic Collection . — This consists of more than 260,000 specimens, and Avas com- menced by Catherine II. The original collection has been increased by ])ur- chases and gifts, principally from Baron de Chaudoir, INI. Reichel, Count Perofsky, M. Beule', and M. Schroll. The coinage of Russia is shoAvn in more tlian 8000 specimens, of Avhich the most precious are 1 gold coins of St. Vladimir, 10th centy. (in Case 1). On a small stand Avill be found a rich I collection of “ Poltinas,” or half- pounds of silver, current throughout Russia from the reign of Vladimir the Great to the 15th centy., and of “rubles,” or quarters of a pound of silver, introduced about the 15th centy. Those Avithout any stamp are the most ancient. Some Poltinas of the Golden I Horde of Tartary are under the same glass. The modern “ruble” takes its origin from these rude lumps of metal, the name implying a piece chopped off. The sc^uare copeck and half-coi)eck of iron are supposed to have been used in the payment of miners in the province of Olonets, near the White Sea. They are specimens of a coinage proposed in the reign of Cath. II. By some, the name “ Ko- peika” (copeck) is assumed to be ! derived from the word liopie, or lance, fri m the etfigy of the Tsar and the D I agon originally stanq)ed on the coin ; but by others the name is supposed to be of greater antiquity. The 4-cornered fiat ruble of copper, cast at Ekaterin- burg in 1725, will be noticed Avith interest in Case 5, as Avill also the round ruble of copper cast in 1771. In the same case Avill be seen the tokens or badges sold by iPeter the Great to those Avho d._ sired to retain their beards (1725). The coins of countries and provinces once indepen- dent, but now subject to Russia, are exhilaited in a magnificent series. Thus the coins of Roland from the 10th centy., and numerous medals {vide that of Sobieski in Case 1), form a fine collection in 7 cases. On a stand Avill be seen the medals struck in Russia in the reign of Peter the Great, Ivan, and Sophia ; and the visi- tor Avill notice that in the reign of Peter the Great gold coins bearing the effigy of the sovereign Avere Avorn as Orders of Merit, after the ancient custom of Byzantium. A case is devoted to a fine collection of the coins of the Sla- Tonic ruces, Servian, Bulgarian, &c. The mints of foreign States are very richly represented. An English or 118 Sect. I. Boiite 1. — St. Petersburg: The Hermitage. American visitor will inspect with in- terest the valuable collection of Enrilish coins arranged in 3 cases at the lower part of Eooni XXII. and consisting of about 1000 specimens of Etliel- dred II., Canute, Hardicauute, &c. many of wliich have been excavated in Itussia. Anglo-Saxon coins have been found in every ]>art of Eussia, from Orauienbaum (opposite Cboii- stadt) to Chernigof in the S. They were largely curj-ent in the early Eussiaii principalities, which then supplied Europe with black marten- skins, and other products of the chase. The coinage of Yaroslaf, son of Vladimir the Great, was after a Byzantine model. In one of the cases with Anglo-Saxon coins will be seen a curious small coin of copper with an Indian scroll on one side, and the words “ one rupee” in Eussian on the other. It was found at Moscow by the compiler of the irresent Handbook, and presented by him to the Hermi- tage as a curiosity, for no clue has yet been found to its identity, although the date is evidently the early part of the 18th centy. Among the ancient coins is a splen- did series representing the Greek colo- nies of Olbia, Chersonesus, Pantica- psBum, Phanagoria, and many others. The collection of coins of the kings of Pontus and Bosporus is particularly rich, the specimens ranging between Leucon and Ehescuporis (the contem- porary of Constantine the Great), and including Mithridates VI., Asander, Polemonll., diis wife Trypheena, and Eupator. As there is unfortunately no printed catalogue of this collec- tion, it may be as well to give hero a few particulars respecting the num- ber and character of the coins fiom the ju'incipal colonies of ancient Greece connected with Eussia. 1. Olbia (the most important Greek city N. of tlie Euxiue; situated at confluencj of Dnieper and Bug); — Skiluros, King ... 4 copper coins. Inismeus, „ ... 1 Ri’\er coin. Coins of the Emperors . 22 of cupp'^'>’- d\\sser:i‘ 41 ,, Fishes C4 ,, 2. Khersonesus (near Sevastopol): — Sih'er coins 16 Copper 89 3. Faniicapeeum (the present Kertch) : — Guld coins 12 Silver 33 Copper „ 88 4. Fhanagoria "(on Asiatic coast of Euxine capital in Asia of klng.s of Bosporus) ; — Silver coins 2 Copper 20 5, Tyras (the present Akerman) : — Copper coin 1 6. Sindi (near Sea of Azof) : — Silver coins ..... 2 7. Gorgippia (near the present Taman) ; — Silver coin 1 Copper „ 3 8, Heraclea (on S. shore of Euxine) Copper coins 2 9. Dioscurias (near the present Poti) Silver'coin (very rare) 1 Copper 2 10. Theodosia (Kaffa) : — Copper coins ..... 2 11. Cercina ; — Copper coin 1 (Very rare, being one of only two known specimens.) 12. Of Greek colonies or towns unknown:— 19 pieces. Among these is a coin similar to that which is mentioned in Harwood’s ‘ Populorum et Urbium selecta Numis- mata Gneca ’ ( 1812 ), as being of Tyras, from the monogram on it. There are, however, several pieces at the Hermitage, with different mono- grams, but with the same effigy on one side and a Scythian bow-case on the other. This was the earliest coinage of the Scythian Kings. The collection representing the Kings of Pontus includes 13 coins of two different sovereigns, whose names are indicated by monograms which have not been deciphered, but from which it is apparent that their names began severally with E and E. In the galleries above Eoom XXI. are more than 15,000 specimens of the Russia. 119 Boiite 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. coins of ancient Greece and Koine, and amongst them more than 40 sta- tere of Asia Minor. The line collec- tion of Athenian coins, purchased from M. Beule, contains more than 400 specimens of Tetradraclim^. The earliest dated inscription in the Russian language yet discovered is preserved in Room XXT. It is called the Stone of Tmutarakan, whose Prince, Gleb, caused the distance be- tween the seat of his sovereignty and Kcrtcli to be measured over tlie ice and recorded on this stone in 1068. The numismatic collection is not open to the general public, but an application to one of the learned cura- tors Vvill always secure admittance. Collection of Gems. — Room XXIII. (entrance from Room I.) — The collec- tion of gems is one of the largest in existence. It has been made up of various collections, purchased at dif- ferent times by the sovereigns of Rus- sia, and conspicuous among which is the renowned Cabinet of the Duke of Orleans (Philippe Egalite'). The gems from that collection may be distin- guished by their rims presenting a surface of deadened gold. It would be difficult to criticise in a short notice so vast an assemblage of engraved stones and cclmei, or even to direct attention to objects in it of especial interest and beauty, and the more so as at present the antique gems have not been separated from the very large majority of modern and cinqnecento works with which they are mingled, their arrangement being foumlcd only on the subjects engraved, irrespective of the dates of the artists tliat engraved them. In this loom is a large clock, re- markable for the perfection of its me- chanism. A poor widow, to whom it had fallen in a lottery, sold it for about 3000h It executes overtures with the effect and precision of a band, and is sometimes wound up to gratify travellers. There are also 3 very curious bureaux along the walls of tl:is room. Theatre. — The Hermitage Theatre is approached through the Gem Room (XXIII.). It was built by the archi- tect Quarenghi on the site of an old palace, but has recently been reno- vated inside. It is constructed in the semicircular form of an antique theatre, and will contain about 500 persons. The Empress Catherine had comedies acted there, which were generally composed by her court, and in some cases even by Her Majesty. The actors were fre(j[uently amateurs, and sometimes professional, both Erench and Russian. The empress sat on one of the benches of the second row, the stalls having only been placed in the reign of the Emperor Paul. In bout of her, and at her feet, sat the privi- leged persons described in M. de Se'- gur’s Memoirs. Up to the year 1837 fancy balls used to be given at tlie Palace on New Year’s Day. GOO covers were on those occasions laid for the sovereign and the court in this theatre; a flooring between the stage and the benches converting it into one immense banquettiiig hall of great beauty. Two such balls were given, in 1839 on the marriage of the Grand Duchess Marie Nicolaevna, and in 1841 on that of the Emperor Alexan- der II. The Hermitage Theatre is thrown open 3 or 4 times during the winter to a very select circle. Contiguous to the theatre are the barracks of the Transfiguration Regi- ment, a kind of Praetorian Guard, which has the privilege of entering the palace through the Hermitage by a private door, and which cari be sum- moned to the Imperial apartments by telegraph. Room XXV. — JRapliaeVs Locjqle. (Readied frem Room I., iSpanish.)— Catherine II. caused this gallery to be added to the Hermitage in order to receive the copies of the famous frescoes in the Vatican by Rai)hael. The originals suffered much neglect until the occupation of Rome in 1813 liy the Neapolitans; and these copies have the advantage of representing the I.oggie at a period when they were b( ttor preserved. 120 Sect. I. Boiite 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. In cases in front of the windows in this gallery is a collection of Oriental coins, commencing with the Sassa- nides and Ispabeds — the early Kha- lifs— and ending with a Turkish as- signat for 20 piasters. The Persian war contribution (1828), in Case 12, contains some interesting specimens. The Khans of the Golden Horde, the Khans of Bokhara, and many other Asiatic rulers, are here represented in their gold and silver coins. The collection of Khalifs and Djudjids is particularly tine. Russians never fail to look at the decorations worn by Shamyl, which lies in Case 11. Old Hermitage Palace — (Reached from Raphael’s Loggie). A few paint- ings of the French and Dutch Schools are hung here. The view from the windows of these tine apartments, occupied by H. R. H. the Prince of Wales in 1866, and by the Shah of Persia in 1873, embraces a vast and beautiful panorama of the Neva. This part of the Hermitage is not open to the general public, and can only be inspected by special permission. 1st Room.* — This contains several pictures by J. Vernet, and a picture by S. Bourdon (1419). 2nd Room. — Pictures by De Yos, Bloem (1335), Hondekoeter (1342). 3rd Room. — Mignard and De Troy. The larger picture in the centre of tliis beautiful hall (1456) is by Mignard, and represents Alexander and the family of Darius ; it once be- longed to the Duchess of Kingston. The other 2 pictures, Susanna and the Fldei'S, and Lot and his Daughters, arc by De Troy. The columns over the mantelpiece are of a very beautiful riband-jasper; the mosaic -work is Russian. The doors, made in St. I’etersburg, are of a very line and costly workmanship. 4th Room. — Pictures by Yernet, * These i\nmbers are not over the doors, but they are retained here for the purjiose of ren- dering the plan of the Hermitage mure distinct. Robert I’Allemand, &c. Hei'e is also a statue of a sleeping child, by Brodsky. 5th Room. — Two Claudes de Lor- raine, of 1437, 1432. Two pretty Bac- chanalian groups by N. Chaperon. The mosaic table in the centre of the room was made at Rome for the late Empress of Russia. It represents views of the cities visited by H.I.M., tmd the statues and pictures which the empress most admired. 6th Room. — Pictures by Yernet, Le Nain, &c. 7th Room. — Poussin, Le Sueur. 8th Room. — A landscape by Mou- cheron, 1155 ; and a view on the Rhine, by H. Saftleven. 9 th Room. — 1455, by Mignard ; 1050, The Prisoner of War, by P. Wouver- man. lOtli Room. — A magnificent Wy- nands : 1109, a Farm, the Poultry by Wyntrack ; 1183, a very pretty sea-piece by S. de Ylieger ; 1459, La Hyre. 11th Room. — La Fosse, Bourdon. 12th Room. — Le Sueur, Youet. Peter the Great’s Gallery is en- tered from Room XYII., although it forms part of the Winter Palace. It is devoted to a collection of objects of art and industry illustrative of the life and activity of Peter the Great. Here will be seen the turning-lathes and instru- ments for carving, with which that mo- narch worked. Numerous specimens of his handicraft stand about the room and in the cases which line the wall. His telescopes, mathematical instru- ments, books, and walking-sticks, are all objects of curiosity. A heavy iron staff which he carried about tells of his great strength, as the wooden rod which marks his height does of his almost gigantic stature. The small open, gilt chariot in which Peter occa- sionally drove has an anomalous ap- pearance among so many plain and Russia. 121 Route 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. practical appliances. His effigy, in the dress of the period, embroidered for him by Catherine I. for the cere- mony of her coronation, is appro- priately placed in the centre of this interesting workshop and museum. The sword which he wears, with a handle of nephrite, was the gift of Augustus II. On each side of the effigy are casts and portraits taken from the features of Peter after death, by his painter Tanhauer (or Dan- hauer); and the portrait, in mosaic, over the chariot, was executed by the poet Lomonosof. The victor at Poltava sits opposite to the horse which he rode at that battle; but his diminutive charger must have shrunk considerably in the process of stuffing, being now not many hands higher than the wolf-hound which runs alongside. Two other favourite dogs are preserved under the same glass cover. There is also a case con- taining the medals struck by Peter to commemorate the more important events of his reign, while another con- tains specimens of his coinage, with a few of a later date. On the top of a press, near a window, stands a small effigy of his housekeeper in Holland. The walls above the presses are covered with portraits of his coadjutors in the work of founding the Kussian empire. Scotchmen will observe with satis- faction the portrait of Count James Bruce, immediately on the right of the door by which the gallery is entei-ed. But perhaps one of the most interest- ing objects in this museum is a oast of Peter the Great’s face, made when he was alive. The cast, which is of wax and furnished with long black hair and a small moustache, was attached to a wooden bust and presented by Peter the Great to his friend Cardinal Va- lenti at Kome. An engraving taken I from it is preserved at the public I library at St. Petersburg ; but the I original had long been missing wlien I Mr. Guede'onoff, the talented director I of tlie Hermitage, discovered it at I Kome, at the banker Torlonia’s, pur- chased it, and gave it with generous patriotism to tlie gallery, where it now stands. liussia. — 1875. I Through a glass door at the end of this gallery the visitor will proceed to inspect the wonderful timepiece, in the shape of a gilded peacock, which once expanded its brilliant tail, pre- paratory to a cock of the same hue dapping his wings and crowing to announce the hour. The owl also rolled his eyes, and the grasshopper fed voraciously on the mushroom, in harmony with the chief actors in this complicated and now broken piece of mechanism. It was made by a Prus- sian in London for a Kussian noble- man, at whose death Prince Potemkin bought it for the Empress Catherine. Around it, in glass cases, is a large and valuable collection of snuff-boxes, left by various sovereigns. The one presented to the Empress Alexandra, consort of Nicholas I., by Mahmoud II. , Sultan of Turkey, with his por- trait in miniature on ivory, is resplen- dent with large diamonds of the drst water. It contained a fine shawl. The snuff-box, No. 1014, with portraits of Marie Antoinette and her children, was presented by Louis XVI. on the scaffold to his valet-de-chambre Clery. The miniature on No. 4042 portrays the Holstein army of Peter III. In- side the box is a laust of Duke George of Schleswig-Holstein, uncle of Peter III. The beautiful painting on No. 4023 represents the arrival of the drst bride (Natalie of Hesse) of the Em- peror Paul at Reval. The latter are by M. de Blaremberg. No. 4023 is a snuff-box which Frederick the Great gave to one of his generals, with the following lines written on a piece of paper inside : — “ Ilier schenk ich ilim was, lleb er es wohl auf iaenn es ist keia JJreck.” In frames against the walls are numerous historical miniatures of great interest. Frame J contains very duo miniatures, by Benner, of sovereigns of the house of Komanoff. Frame L ; Wallenstein (36), Frederick William the Great, Elector of Brandenburg (48), I.ouis XIV. (4.5). Frame M : Portraits of Charles I. and his Queen ; Cook (10), Milton (22), Cromwell (12), a Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage.- ‘ Sect. I. . 122 Ceorge IV. os Prince of Wales (20), Moreau (21), taken after death ; Miss Porter (24). Beyond this again is a long gallery, ■with presses and glass-cases full of articles of virtu, curiosities, and his- torical knickuacks. At each side of the door is a toilette-case in silver, made at Augsburg for Sophia, sister of Peter I. The first press on the right, numbered 20, contains a valuable col- lection of jewelled watches and other costly objects. Press 19. Two very fine dishes of Limoges enamel, signed by Pierre Kex- mon, and six enamel plates by Jehan Courtois. No. 2925, the gold cup, in the form of a snail, belonged to Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg. No. 2880, the last cup, on the top shelf (a shell), is a relic of John Sobieski. Press 18. Model of a Lapland hut aud household, carved in ivory. The two ivory vases, on either side, were presented by Alexander I. to the Em- peror of Japan, who sent them back, on the ground that he could not accept presents from an inferior. Press 17. Toys of Catherine II. and Marie Feodorovna. A large salver, with the topography of the province of Vologda, produced in niello-work, presented by the province to Alex- ander I. Potemkin’s plume, glittering with precious stones, presented to him by the Snltan of Turkey. On the upper siielf is the golden goldet used at the marriage ceremonies of the Imperial family. On the first shelfisacup, sur- mounted by an eagle holding a balai ruby, which bears the name of Francis Drake. Press IG. No. 2627, magnificent casket of vermeil, ornamented with pearls, precious stones, and camei, pre- sented by Sigismund I., King of Po- land, to iris friend Joachim I., Elector of Brandenburg, 1533. Monster pearls, mounted in a variety of forms l>y the Dinglinger family, jewellers to the court of Augustus II. at Dresden. No. 2682, inkstand of Jerome Bonaparte (King Lustig), taken at Cassel by Cherny shelf ; and the Duke of Wel- lington’s pen, presented after his death to the Emperor of Russia. Press 15. Filigree ornaments. — 2594, 1 inkstand of Maurice of Orange, in- ■; herited by Frederick I. of Prussia, and ^ containing his seal. Press 14. Silver objects. — No. 2503, model of Strasbourg Cathedral ; two magnificent vermeil goblets ; dish, with ' arms of Riga, on which the keys of the ^ town were presented to the Empress '■ Anne. Press 13. Japanese and Chinese articles of gold and silver plate. Press 12. Crystals. — 2366, small oval cup, that once belonged to Pope Clement VIII. Aldobrandini. On 2nd shelf large crystal cup, mounted in - vermeil and ornamented with diamonds ^ and rubies, from the celebrated convent of Maria Zell, in Austria, Crystal cro- . codile of Italian work. 2377, small tun, mounted with gold and precious . stones, attributed to Benvenuto Cellini. ; On fifth shelf, spoon, with coral handle, belonged to John Sobieski of Poland. - Press 11. Japanese and Chinese cu- ’ riosities, in silver. Press 10. Russian curiosities. — Four I small groups, in schistus, by Wenetf. Several old cups and a casket, in " enamel, called Tsenina, an art learned from Byzantium. Mosaic head of John ' the Bajhist, by Siewers. ] The inspection of the presses is j here interrupted by an object of some ^ interest, placed on a stand. It is a ; massive silver goblet, by Schlick, of ; Copenhagen, on which the apotheosis of the Emperor Nicholas appears in high relief. . Press 9. Old Japanese and Chinese ; filigree work. — On upper shelf a silver ' wig, woriij by Naryshkin, Grand Mar-; shal of the Court, at a fancy ball given ' by Catherine II. Press 8. Fine collection of old clocks j and jewelled watches. — Two watches,' in the shape of silver ducks. 2034, watch of an abbess, in form of a cross.' 2059 and 2060, two fine clocks of Augsburg work, early part of 17th^ century. 2035, on third shelf, watch, in shape of a Nuremburg egg\ by celebrated Russian mechanic, Kuly- bin. ' Press 7. Specimens of lapidary’s art." Eiissia. 123 Boute 1. — St, Petersburg: The Hermitage. — Handle of walking-stick, represent- ing a sphinx, in l^lood jasper, covered with diamonds ; belonged to Empress Elizabeth. No. 1901, parrot formed by a single emerald, presented by King Pedro II. of Portugal to his bride, the Princess of Savoy. A casket of Flo- rence mosaic, with arms of Francis I,, husband of Marie Therese, destined for a collection of gems. Two magni- ficent bouquets, one of fleurs-de-lis, composed of pearls and diamonds ; the other of several flowers, formed by splendid topazes, sapphires, rubies, and other stones. Press 6. Lapidary’s art. — No. 1794, on second shelf, inkstand, in form of sofa, presented by Stanislas Pouia- towski to Catherine II. No. 1865, a large cup of pudding-stone, supported by St. Christopher, and surmounted by a figure of the Infant Christ. Two bouquets of precious stones. Press 5. Oriental jewellery, — Plume of Suvoroff, given to him by the Shah of Persia, and presented by that Gene- ral to Catherine II. Press 4. China. — Complete tea-ser- vice of cl]ina and enamel ; belonged to Augustus II. of Poland. A casket of Dresden china, ornamented with diamonds, and containing the card- markers still used at the empress’s card-table. Press 3. No. 1609, glass drinking- horn, of the time of the last Crusades, with figures of 4 Evangelists, mounted in vermeil, of early part of 16th conty. No. 1612, a tankard of vermeil, orna- mented with crystals ; cover, sur- mounted by the eagle of the house of Ptadziwiil, descending from tlie old ecclesiastical princes of Lithuania. On third shelf. No. 1630, a large cup of Anglo-Saxon work, found in Pussia ; and at the back of the same shelf a large silver cover, in the same style, discovered in Siberia. No. 1629, ewer and basin, with arms and cipher of John Cherban III. Kantacuzen, Voevod of IVallachia. Press 2. On tiiird shelf small crystal cup, mounted on vermeil, with the in- scription, “ Vsihus Annx Clivens Jlenr. Vnr. lierj. Aiujl. uxoris, Ao. 1540.” A large cup of rock crystal presented to Peter I. by King Frederick William I. of Prussia. On the other shelves will be seen a very fine collection of Ilubin glass, invented by the cele- brated Kunkel, of Potsdam. Press 1. An inkstand, made to com- memorate the battle of Chesme; be- longed to Prince Orloff. At the end of the room are a few si)ecimens of carving in wood, some of which are by King. Passing by the glass-case with stones and the model of the monument at Poltava, the visitor will proceed to inspect the cases on the other side of the gallery. Glass-case I. Chinese figures. Press 26. — Head of Madonna, sculp- tured in mammoth-bone by Scheer, of Moscow, from model by Prof. Vital! ; height 23 in., breadth 20 in. Gives some idea of the size of the antediluvian animal whose tusks are so frequently found in Pussia. No. 3394, chess-men, F rench work of period of Charles IX. No. 3411, a superb ivory dish, of Ger- man workmanship, representing hunt- ing scenes. Case II. More than 100 ornaments in gold filigree, from the toilet of a Japanese lady of quality; equal to Greek work for fineness, though not for design. Observe the magnificent necklace in the shape of a streptos. Press 25. Collection of ivory figures, &c. Case III. Chinese jade cups. Press 24. Specimens of carving in bone, from Archangel. Alongside, the visitor will view a modern work of art, illustrative of a recent page in history. It is a silver- salver, which, in the allegorical forms of Hercules and the tlydra, records tire triple alliance against Russia (1854-56) and its result. Conceived and executed by Benjamin Schlick, of Copenhagen, and offered for sale to the Emperor. Press 23. Russian work in ivory. — l^ortrait of Lomonossof, the poet and fislierman, Ijorn at Archangel. Models of monument to Minin (Kusma Minitcli Sukhorukof — a butcher from Nijiii G 2 124 Sect. I. Boute 1. — St, Petersburg : The Hermitage. Novgorod) and Prince Pojarsky, erected at Moscow. Case V. Carving in ivory, from 14tli centy. — Portrait of Christian V., King of Denmark, of Duke Augustus of Brunswick (4415), and of a Duke of Schleswig-Holstein (4414). Press 22. Articles which have be- longed to members of the Imperial Family. — Set of buttons painted by the wife and children of Emperor Paul. Lockets, with hair of Peter the Great, his father, &c. Dinner and breakfast services, used by Alexander I. in all his campaigns. Case VI. Collection of pocket-books. — The largest one in centre (7), ena- melled and ornamented with diamonds and rubies belonged to the wife of George William, Elector of Branden- burg, and to both wives of Frederick William the Great, and containing auto- graphs of Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, and of most of the German Princes and Princesses of the time of the Thirty Years’ War. Memorandum- book in morocco (28), with gold and enamelled cipher of Sophia Char- lotte, wife of Frederick III., after- wards first Queen of Prussia ; given by her to Peter the Great at Kunigsberg. Small book (27), with gold cipher of Augustus II., King of Poland. Book, with tortoiseshell cover, studded with sapphires and rubies ; belonged to Peter III., husband of Catherine II. Also a few specimens of niello-work. Press 21. Filigree work. — Silver peacock, presented to Nicholas I. by Viceroy of Peru. Model of a Sardi- nian cannon, with the cross of the Annunciation. On small stands near the press nre marble busts of Charles of Anjou, King of Naples, and his wife, Margaret of Flanders. Case VII. A very valuable collec- tion of rings. — Bing, with portrait of Peter I. under a pink diamond; another with likeness of Frederick the Great. Several betrothal rings of the Imperial family will be seen in tlje upper small case. Tlio ring of greatest interest is engraved with the arms of E. Fries- land ; it was given by the Princess of Friesland to Sophia Charlotte, the un- happy wife of the Tsesarevitch Alexis. The jewelled walking-stick handles belonged to Catherine II. Under the case will be found an umbrella, made at Tula for the great empress. Visitors withdraw through Peter the Great’s gallery. Ground-floor. The ground-floor of the Museum is occupied by galleries of antique sculp- ture, by the Kertch and Siberian col- lections, by a library, and by a gallery of original drawings, which should be seen in the order here given. Sculpture. — 1st Boom, Entering by a door on the 1. hand, guarded by two very tall candelabra of rhodonite, the visitor is introduced to a few Egyptian I and Assyrian fragments of sculpture, six sarcophagi, and, to some casts from I the bas-reliefe of Nemroud. 2nd Boom. Fragments of Greek and ' Boman sculpture.* On a bracket against the wall (rt.), bust of Apollonius Tyaneus, the Pythagorean philosopher, ii! whose jjortrait has hitherto only been known by a medal. 44. Head of Statue of Juno; hair and drapery modern; j discovered in the Tauricla palace ; [ origin unknown. 87. Panther, from the Campana collection.! 60. Large* bust of Autinoiis, found at Adrian’s II Villa (C.). ly 3rd Boom. 147. Omphale with at- Iji * For details, purchase of the porter ‘ Cata- Iii logue du Musee de Sculpture Antique.’ Price 20 d|| cop. The collection of Egyptian antiquities has J||j been enriched by the valuable gifts of Khalil »|l Pasha, late Turkish minister at St. Petersburg, J'-i f In 1861 Mr. Guedeonoff, the present Direct- p|- or of the Hermitage, purchased for the Eussian ' j. Government a considerable portion of the col- ;■ lection of the Marquis Campana at Rome, whose ,t> defalcations in connection with the Mont de \ Piet^, are well known. The French Govern- '■ ment bought the less valuable portion at a:t-« great price. The most important of the objects T e* belonging to the Campana collection will be^ J noticed and maiked with the letter C. ’ ! an Eussia. 125 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg: The Hermitage. tributes of Hercules (C.). 148. Mer- cury (C.). 171. Mars. 152. Colossal sttitue of Jupiter ; considered largest in the world ; found at the Villa Barberini; very much repaired (C.). 173. Bacchus. 1 54. V ery fine statue of V enus Genetrix, in best style of Grecian art (0.). 175. Niobe (C.); excellent specimen of tbe antique. 17 6. Colossal head of Minerva, in Parian marble, probably of epoch of Phidias, The two marble sarcophagi at the head of the room are remarkable for the beauty of the figures in relief (C.). 4th Boom. 193. Well-restored statue of Augustus (C.). 194. Beautiful statue of Marius, found at Otricoli (C.). 200. ArsinoePhilopator; nose, lower lip, and lobes of ears restored. 209. Pompey ; and 210 Julius Csesar (C.). 207. Only existing bust of Sallust (C.). 5th Room. In centre, immense Tazza of green jasper from the Altai moun- tains. It was placed before lire windows were built ; diameter 16j; ft. ; more than 8 ft. high. 240. Titus Quinctius. 6th Room. Near door on rt. 274. Very fine statuette of Silenus. 266, near the window, Faun and Satyr (C.). 7th Room. Kertch collection, which see separately. 8th Room. The Nine Muses, from the collection of the Marquis Campana, but of various origin. 303. Caryatide Muse, in style of school of Phidias; bought at Venice in 1851. 332. Bas- relief of Ganymede. 337. Niobides ; very fine fragment (C.). 316. A Faun; best spechnen out of four in the Her- mitage; given by Pope Pius IX. in exchange for some land on Mount Palatine, purchased by the Emperor Nicholas in 1846, for the purpose of making excavations. 9th Room. Venus of the klermitage. 343. Very beautiful Greek statue found in 1859 at Rome, in the Vigna Man- gani, near the Porta Portese ; well pre- I served ; only right hand, fingers of left I hand, and small portion of neck re- I stored; purchased 1859. 347. Venus from the Taurida Palace; Peter the I Great caused it to be purchased at I Rome in 1719, with some other an- tiques, and thus laid the foundation of I the present sculpture gallery. There is another Venus with a Cupid (351) near the door. Cupid has been added by the sculptor Bernini (C.). Kertch Collection. — 7th Room. An- tiquities from Cimmerian Bosporus. Medals and other monuments attest- ing the existence of Greek colonies, founded nearly 600 years before the birth of our Saviour, began to be dis- covered in the early part of this cen- tury on the northern shores of the Black Sea. The classical names of Panticapmum, Theodosia, and Phana- goria, reappeared on the surface. Many discoveries were made on the sites of those ancient settlements in 1820, but the earliest prizes of any value were obtained in 1831, at the gates of Kertch (Panticapseum), on opening a tomb concealed in a mound, long known to the Tartars as the “ Hillock of the Brave.” In a chamber built of hewn stone were found the remains of a Scythian prince or ruler, side by side with his favourite wife, his equerry, and his war-horse. His crown, his weapons of gold, his ornaments and golden robes, had lain untouched for more than two thousand years. Numerous vases of bronze, some gilt, others more simple, and still contain- ing the remains of provisions which had been placed in them, were also found, and carefully conveyed to the Hermitage. Within the last feAV years the search for these treasures has been conducted, at the expense of the Crown, with, greater method and care, which were rewarded in 1866 by the discovery at Taman of the tomb of a Priestess of Ceres, buried with all her rich orna- ments, and with her four horses. The tomb was found within the “Great Tumulus,” or Bliznitsa.* The Kertch antiquities have been * The traveller is referred for a learned de- scription of these treasures to the valuable works of the curator of this museum, Mr. L. Stepliani : ‘ Compte Ilendu de la Commission Imp. Archeo- logique pour I’annee 1859 ; Idem, pour les annees 1860-71.’ These 12 volumes may he purchased at 5 rs. each at Eggers’ Library, St. Petersburg. They may also be purchased at Leipzig. A short description of the Museum, in French, may be obtained at the door of the Hermitage. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. , {iject. 1. 12t) supplemented by many specimens of ancient jewellery and pottery disco- vered in other parts of the Crimea, particularly at Theodosia and Nedvi- gofka, at the mouth of the Don, the ancient Tanais. A study of these treasures will re- veal two species or phases of art, the one Greek, the other local. Attracted by commerce, and by the riches of the Scythians, the Greeks engrafted their ancient civilization on them, and min- gled their mythology and their classi- cal forms and legends with the cus- toms, the emblems, the costumes, and even the physical types of the bar- barians. The classical scholar will be able to distinguish in this museum the gems of art purely Greek, and the scarcely less beautiful productions of the Greek artists and their disciples of the colonies, which form together the most perfect and interesting collection of objects of antique art in the world, immeasurably superior to the analo- gous collections of Naples and other favoured localities in Italy. The Turks and a few sailors, quite as many Frencli as English, behaved very badly at Kertch, but fortunately only a very few Greek antiquities were destroyed or carried away by them. The mu- seum there, founded in 1823, had only been a temporary depository of the antiquities ; and, with the exception of some duplicates, all the riches hitherto obtained from the classical shores of the Cimmerian Bosporus had been re- moved to St. Petersburg in 1852 ; and even the more valuable of the dupli- cates were taken away at the breaking out of the Crimean war, and have since been restored. An Englishman, however, may always deplore that any repository of the fine arts should have been plundered in the course of mili- tary operations in which his country was concerned. In a magnificent room, of which the roof is su],)ported by twenty monolith columns of grey granite, the treasures of tlie Cimmerian Bosporus are dis- played under the windows and against the walls in the following order — To the rt. of the door on entering is a sarcophagus of wood, found in | 1860 in a tumulus near Kertch. To the 1. of the door is the case or coffin found inside the sarcophagus, and which contained the skeleton deposited there 400 years b.c. The vermilion with which some of the ornaments were coloured is still to be traced, and the wood itself, supposed to be cypress and yew, appears almost new. 1st Window. — Under window, terra- cotta figures. Case rt. terracotta figures of children playing with various ani- mals; a child’s doll with moveable legs and arms : found in tombs of children. Case I., masks and other objects in pottery. First from door. Pyramidal Stand I. : domestic utensils of silver, of graceful, classical form. Between 1st and 2nd windows, Pyramidal Stand II. : small objects in silver, strigils, and ampulla ; 643 and 515, drinking-cup ; 575, head of calf, finely chased, 5 centuries b.c. ; cyatbus for wine, and mirror. 2nd Window. Cases on each side with glass vessels ; 796, a glass vase, with “Enrion has made it.” Case un- der window — glass ornaments, chiefly amulets ; walnuts, almonds, and fil- berts ; 994, hucklebones for game of Talus (Astragalos). Between 2nd and 3rd windows, Pyram. Stand III., with 6 funereal crowns of beaten gold. 3rd Window. Under window : 186. Small ivory box still containing the red pigment used by the Greek ladies ; 3 dice ; a wooden small- tooth comb with Greek inscription, “ Present from sister;” a splendid bronze cover of a looking-glass ; small ornaments from dress ; and remains of a wooden lyre. Case rt., painted vases ; centre vase in best style of Greek art ; subject, the toilet; a vase alongside, same design. OiDposite 3rd window, iron casque, with gold and silver ornaments. -Be- tween 3rd and 4th window, octagon case full of female ornaments of gold ; buttons, pins, necklaces, gold escallop- shells, gold filigree wine - strainer (527ft). Bracelets of silver on which links of gold were once passed; small gold chain of exquisite workmanshii-), with precious stones inserted between links ; heads of stag — symbol of long- ^ Eussia. 127 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. evity (407) ; wheat-ears of beaten gold, probably worn as ornaments in the hair. 4th Window. Gold ornaments found in the “ Great Tumulus ” at Taman. Case rt., vases, 36a and 36&, Paris and Helena, of magnificent workmanship. Case I., vases; 13a, Education of young Bacchus. Opposite 4th window, magnificent vase with figures in relief, coloured and gilded, representing combats be- tween the Griffins and Arimaspi ; one of the principal personages, named Aerokomas, is on horseback ; the other, Dareios, is in a chariot drawn by 2 horses ; one of the griffins has a lion’s head with large horns ; an inscription says “ Xenophantos of Athens has made it — a Greek artist, probably domiciled in Khersonesus about the 3rd or 4th centy. b.c. Between the 4th and 5th windows is a collection of female necklaces in gold. No. 148, a most perfect gold filigree necklace or hormos, found at Theodosia, in same tomb with 3 other necklaces alongside. Victories with quadrigse will be seen on close inspec- tion to form the design of the 2 filigree earrings (84^). Beautiful gold and enamel necklace with myosotes (161 c) ; necklace (160) with pendent charms ; gold necklace with pendent bull’s head (163), of magnificent workman- ship ; beautiful gold necklace, ter- minating in head of Medusa, with pendent amulets against various ills 5th Window. In the 3 cases are placed the various objects found in the tomb of Kul-Uba. Case rt., ornaments for male attire : 530a, 5305, silver stafts, supposed to be heralds’ ; 432, gold umbo of shield weighing 25 oz. ; 456, group of 2 Scythians drinking out of the sajne horn, with an intimacy which betrays the influence of Bacclius ; 433, part of scabbard: 431, liandle of sword ; 436, remains of stirru])s, iron and gold; 434, handle of whip, wood, with tliin spiral gold plate. The other objects worth notice arc 3 knives, and (447) the stone for sharpening them ; brace- lets (427), weighing 6 oz. each, and (426), weighing 3 oz. of gold, bearing a representation of Thetis defending herself against Peleus, and Aurora car- rying away the body of her son Mem- non, killed under the walls of Troy. The streptos or collar (424) of twisted gold wire, weighing 164 oz., and ter- minating in two Scythian horsemen, is of great beauty ; the blue enamel still preserved at the extremities of the ring or collar. 458, small Scythian figure with bow and arrows. Under window. Fragments of a lyre, probably of mammoth tusk, found abundantly on the Don ; on it is a most beautiful etching in the highest style of Greek art, the Judgment of Paris being one of the subjects, broken by the falling in of the tumulus. 451, electrum vase, with repousse figures of Scythians mending their weapons, &c. The principal figure appears to have been wounded in the mouth and leg ; he is seen a second time submitting to an operation which looks like tooth- drawing, and a third time having his wmunds dressed ; the costumes resemble those of the peasantry in Eussia at the present day, the shirt being worn out- side the trousers, which are tucked into tlie boot. 573, a silver rhyton or drinking-horn ; 574, ditto. Case 1. Female ornaments, &c. : 428, gold bracelets, each weighing 3 oz., of finest workmansliip ; 441, earrings, weighing 2 oz. each. It is necessary to have a microscope i!i order to see tlie delicate figures concealed in the ex- quisite ornamentation of tliese jewels. There are four female figures in each, representing Thetis, followed by her Nereides, bringing to Achilles the new arms forged for him by Vulcan. These wmre probably supported by Victories, detached, perhaps, by accident. Blue enamel visible in some parts. The gold collar (425) is inferior to the one opposite. TJie use of tliese ornaments was barbarian, not Greek. 430, neck- lace of plated gold thread, terminating in lion’s head, not so delicate as tlie one in last window ; 450, mirror with gold handle ; the small gold laininm liroceed from the dress, to which, j udg- ing by the holes in them, they were attached. 128 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Hermitage. Sect. I. Opposite 5 til window is one of the finest Greek vases in the world, repre- senting the Toilet, of beautiful design. Found near Kertch. Between 5th and 6th windows, oc- tagon case with gems. 2 gems re- presenting a heron flying, signed “Dexamenos,” are the finest and most important in the Hermitage, or per- haps anywhere. No. 292/i was found in a tomb at Kertch, and probably dates 4 centuries b.c. ; gem 290, Marsyas and Apollo ; 296a, Medusa ; 329, Ceres ; 295, a griffin ; 296, Venus at bath; 202, figure of a Scythian Two largest known thumb-rings of gold, witii heads of Minerva in cor- nelian ; gold rings, plain and en- graved; 246, Scythian trying his arrow, most curious ; 247a, a well pre- served Victory on gold signet-ring. 6th Window. Case rt., painted vases with bacchanalian scenes. In the case under the window are chiefly objects found in the tomb of a young woman at the Pavlovsk Battery at Kertch ; 650, looking-glass, necklace, earrings formed by Victories, and a ring containing the bone of her finger ; 247/, blue enamel ring, representing 2 Scythian dancers; 247f/, a ring with Venus at the bath; 2 boots of one piece, except the soles ; fragments of embroidered dress, partly worked with gold thread; 110, painted vase in terracotta, representing a Scythian dancing. Case 1, painted vase with baccha- nalian subjects. Opposite the 6th window, on a stand will be found the painted Greek vase, which is the second for beauty in the collection. It was taken from the tomb at the Pavlovsk Battery near Kertch. The figures are those of Triptolemus, Hecate, Ceres, Hercules, Proserpine, &c. Between the 6th and 7th windows is a collection of female ornaments from dresses, and earrings ; five fe- male heads wearing the stepluuie, some showing the bull-headed pen- dants; enamelled Cupids and Sirens in various positions ; 73a, 2 Bacchantes of delicate workmanship. 7th Window. Casert., painted vases; 43c, Orestes and Pylades in the Areo- pagus, and three of the finest little terra-cotta figures in existence, repre- senting a Syren, a Sphinx, and Venus Anadyomene. In case under window, silver salver, with border and centre of niello-work, and a monogram combining the let- ters A. N. T. B. ; a gold mask, which had covered the face of a female ; gold spindle; small amphora for perfume, studded with garnets ; gold bracelets and ornaments from dress ; fragments of dress. Case 1, painted vases with human figures (see .111 and 112). Opposite this window is a fine urn of gilt bronze. Between 7th and 8tli windows, Pyramid, Stand IV., with funereal wreaths ; the 2 upper crowns have an impression from coins of Marc Aurelius and of Commodus with Marcia. 8th Window. Case rt., bronze vases ; 2 pairs of greaves. Under window. Bronze scales from harness ; ariwv-lieads (6185, with a single barb) ; three ladles for wine ; strigils. Case 1, fragments of harness and trappings of bronze and iron, studded with stones. Opposite the window is a vase representing a scene evidently Hymeneal. Between 8th and 9th windows. Py- ramid, Stand V., with funereal wreaths. 9tli Window. The case under this wflndow contains the richest treasures in the museum. They were found in 1866 in the “Great Tumulus” at Taman, and constitute the ornaments, &c., of a priestess of Ceres, and the trappings of the four borses that were biiiied wflth her. Among the orna- ments, the visitor will be struck with the extraordinary beauty of the re- IDOusse work — Venus and Cupid — on a looking-glass cover of bronze-gilt. The bracelets, diadem, and necklace, and the buttons of her dress, are all of exquisite workmanship, as are also the 4 rings, of which one, the gold scarabaeus (241 F), is quite unique. Russia. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg: The Hermitage. 129 The remains of the sandals worn by the priestess will also be seen with interest. The splendid ear-ornaments (84/) were worn suspended from the crown over the ears, in addition to earrings. The gold plates from the dress of the priestess are stamped with the head of Medusa, whose tongue protrudes as a charm against the evil eye. The cases rt. and 1. are full of the most graceful little terracotta figures, with subjects from domestic life ; also alabastra and lamps. On some of the figures will be seen a head-dress (j)olos), which was probably the origin of the nimbus. On a stand opposite the window are a vase and basin of gilt bronze, with handles in form of serpents springing from the head of Medusa. In the pyramidical case (No. VI., at the end of the room) are 7 gold crowns or wreaths of beaten gold, some with gems and precious stones. The largest and finest, with a representation of combats with griffins, belonged to the Priestess of Ceres. In a recess beyond this window the visitor will see some large vessels of bronze, in the shape of a modern car- penter’s basket, which contained the mutton with which the corjise at Kul- Uba was supplied. At the head of the room are the remains of a beautiful marble tomb with 2 recumbent figures ; the bas-reliefs evidently rei^resented Achilles at Syros; work of tlie 2d centy. n.c. Along the wall on tlie opposite side of the museum are nume- rous funereal tablets and sepulchral monuments bearing inscriptions and figures of Greeks and Scythians ; 22c is an unfinished marble bust, found on INIithridates’ Hill ; the column of a temple of Venus at Khersonesus; a bronze urn, enclosed in the stone, showing the way in which it was deposited, and a votive tablet with a figure of Proserpine and other mytho- logical personages, may be noticed. On a stand is a beautiful silver helmet of Grecian work and unusual form. The sarcophagus of Kul-Uba stands in a glass case; the carving of the wood and the figures in relief are very fine ; the gilding and colour are still partly preserved. The 2 statues of a Greek lady and her husband may well be noticed for their beauty and perfection, not hav- ing been in the least restored ; pro- bably of the 1st centy. after Christ. The other objects on stands, a helmet and greaves (Knemides) of bronze, will have the parting glance in this interesting and unequalled collection. Scythian Collection. After leaving the Kertch room, the visitor should return to the Gallery of the IMiises, and, admiring once more the “Venus of the Hermitage,” pass into a room devoted to a collection of Scythian, Siberian, Oriental, and ancient Russian objects of antiquity. Here the progress and influence of Greek art may be studied in another stage. Although the Scythian orna- ments found near Nicolaef and the Don, at a comparatively small distance from the Greek colonies, are of the most exquisite workmanship, and might well have come from Athens, yet the greater part are somewhat inferior and different in point of art, and were perhaps manufactured by the Greek artists of Panticapmum or their scholars. The mythology of the Greeks appears replaced by repre- sentations of the domestic usages of the Scythians, or confined to the re- l)ioduction of fabulous animals, not persons. Gold was cheaper inland than on the shores of the Bosporus, and the jewellery of the Scythians of the Don is consequently moro massive than that of the Greek colo- nists. The gold objects, again, found in Siberia — perhaps the country of the Arimaspi — are still more solid and heavy, and are generally in the lowest style of art, with scarcely any Greek attributes. The same may be said of the gold ornaments of the oriental Scythians, whom Strabo describes wandering between the Oxus and the Jaxartes, and as wearing “in combat girdles of gold, and round the head bands of gold ; the bits and plastrons 130 Itoute 1. — St. Petershurg : The Mermitage. Sect. I. of their horses are of gold.” (Strabo, book xi.) The most important objects in this room will be found on the three centre stands. On the first circular stand will be found the gold corytos or bow-case of the king (421). It bears a mythological Greek subject, in repousse work, pro- bably of local interest to a Scythian ruler. In the next compartment is the gold scabbard of his sword, represent- ing a battle-scene between Greeks and Scythians, in which the fate of the battle appears equally balanced (424) ; the hilt of the sword, with handle of solid gold (425) ; other swords of infe- rior workmanship will be seen in Nos. 428 and 436 ; No. 419 is a sharpening stone. The other things exhibited in this case are gold ornaments from the dresses of the king and the queen, buried with them, some of them being evidently of barbarian origin ; Medusa heads frequent ; the dog engraved on ring 374 is a good specimen of art. On the 2nd stand is the splendid vase of silver gilt discovered in 1863, with the dish and ornaments on the remain- ing stands, in the tomb of a Scythian king, on the banks of the Dnieper. The vase, 28 in. high, is in the most perfect style of Greek art, and cannot be of later dale than the 4th centy. B.c. The magnificent relief figures round the upper part represent Scy- thians taming and otherwise attending to horses, which probably belong to the king’s stable. The repousse griffins attacking stags are mythological allu- sions to the country inhabited by the Scythians, in which the fabulous ani- mal was supposed to exist. Instead of being poured out with a cyathus, the wine evidently flowed out through the heads of the Pegasus and the lion below, after passing through a fine strainer inside. Probably the work of an Athenian artist of the period of Alexander the Great. A large silver dish and ladle, found with the above objects, is j)laced on the 3rd centre stand ; they are of pure Greek work. Other specimens of Greek art, with a c.onsiderable admixture of barbarian imitations, will be seen in some of the cases in this room. They are numbered consecutively, but must be described here according to the groups or collec- tions to which they belong : — Cases 4 and 6 form an entire collec- tion of the Scythian objects found in a tumulus on the banks of the Dnieper. Case 5. Objects found in the same tomb as the vase, dish, &c., on the centre stands (Nos. 1 to 3). On the top of the case are six gold cups of large size, found in the ruins of a palace at Serai, the ancient capital of the Khans of the Golden Horde. Case 7 contains gold and silver objects found in a tumulus near Novocherkask, and which must have belonged to some king. From the style of the diadem and the small Cupid in gold (13), they must be contemporaneous with the Emperors of Pome. Cases 8, 9, 12. Gold and silver objects removed here from the Aca- demy of Sciences. They were mostly found in the Southern steppe pro- vinces, and only a small minority in Siberia. The traveller will notice in the case nearest the door a Streptos of solid gold, terminating in the bodies of lions and weighing 3 lbs. Some of the ornaments are studded with turquoises. Case 12 is under the left window. Cases 10, 11, and 13. These will be found near the windows. They contain objects attributed to the Chu'd or Fin- nish race, anciently inhabiting the confines of Siberia and Russia Proj^er. The bronze weapons of the same people, such as daggers, knives, and mining implements, will be found in a case near the window. Cases 14 and 18 contain a collection of bronze objects from the Kirghiz Steppes, such as celts, arrow and spear heads, &c. Case 16, under 2nd window, holds a collection of Byzantino-Slave objects, found principally at Kief. The gold earrings with enamelled figures of Sirens are of the 11th centy., as is also the large gold medal of Ciiernigof seen in the centre of the case. The inscription round it, in Slavonic, is “ Lord, aid thy servant Basil.” In the ilnssia. centre is the head of Medusa and a dragon being vanquished by a figure rei^resenting Christianity. This was a kind of amulet worn round the neck by the early Russian princes and their consorts in the 11th and 12th centys. As Basil was the name taken by St. Vladimir when he was baptized, it is not improbable that the amulet be- longed to that sovereign. Case 17 is full of Mongolian pottery found in the ruins of Serai. Case No. 20, under the 3rd window, contains 2 well-preserved dishes of Persian (Sassanide) work, of the early part of the Christian era ; also the re- mains of a gold sheatli, witii Assyrian winged figures. The most remarkable object in this case is, however, the silver patera, with a border in bas- relief, representing crocodiles, pelicans, leopards, and the lotus-fiower. In the bottom of the dish are the repousse figures of a man standing on the back of another and chiselling the first 5 letters of the Greek alphabet on a tower of 2 stories. The subject is evidently the Nilometer. Pound in the province of Perm, on the borders of Siberia, and probably Roman work of the 2nd centy. a.c. In the same case are some gold diadems, cups, a bracelet, &c., found at Novocherkask, in 1861. The two small boxes were used for carrying grease, with which the inhabitants of the steppes to this day smear their swords in order to prevent them from rusting. Library, &g. The room next the Siberian Gallery is occupied by a collection of engrav- ings, the basis of which is formed by those of the Striihl collection. It is said to contain 200,000 plates, some of which are exposed in glass cases ; but they cannot be particularized, as they are changed several times in the course of the year. The Ifibrary is contained in the next rof»m. It was formerly composed of the libraries of iJiderot, d’Alem- bert, Voltaire, and many others; but the greater part of the books and 131 MSS. have been removed to the Public Library, leaving only 10,000 vols. on Archaeology (some of which are of great value and interest), and a collec- tion of works on art, together with documents relating to the different museums of the Hermitage. Only a portion of the Archaeological Library is here ; the rest has been removed to remote rooms. Part of the library is railed off and appropriated to a collection of archa?ological curiosities and small bronzes, many of them being Pom- peian, and dug out of the ground in the presence of members of the Im- perial family. The spears at the en- trance are Etruscan. The 1st case at the window (A 4) contains 3 paterae and other small objects. Case B, large silver salver (413) of Roman work, found near the river Pruth, in Mol- davia. Another dish (446), of re- pousse work, representing tlie chase, also Roman, found in S', of Russia ; Mirror; 406, “Venus and Adonis,” remarkable. Last Case : 14 mirrors, principally Etruscan, and engraved. The Etruscan helmet (364), found at Bolsena, is one of the most valuable objects from the Campana collection. It is of bronze, with a thin covering of silver, like the helmet (682) in the Kertch collection. It is surmounted by a crest, covered with a thin plate of gold, on which some ornaments are engraved. The indentation seen at the top was made by the stone which killed the w^earer, whose fractured skull was found inside, and lies under Case B, Over the helmet are an Etruscan javelin and shield, and a pair of greaves. Agninst the wall on the other side are 6 bronze helmets, Etruscan and Roman. There is an- other fine rEtruscan helmet (423) on a stand by itself, found in the necro- polis of Vulci by Lucien Bonaparte; the 3 gold crowns have been restored from antique models. Over it a bronze cuirasss and 2 shields. Opposite it, on a stand, is a large and inassivc silver pail (431), found in IMoldavia, with figures of Lcda and tlie Swan, Cupid, Hylas ravished Ijy Nymphs, Daphne and Apollo, &c., in repousse Boule 1. — St. 'Petersburg : The Hermitage. 132 Boute 1. — St. Petershiirg: Marble Palace. Sect. 1. work. The vase, 373, with relief figures of Amazons, and liandles formed by Centaurs, was found with it. Eoman work, 3rd centy, a.c. The cases on the other side, 9 to 12, are fall of statuettes in bronze and terracotta, lami)s, small vases, and other articles of pottery. On the top of Case 3, two bronze statuettes, found in S. Kussia (o58), with a Christian inscription. In Case 1, a steelyard. An elegant Etruscan tripod will be noticed on a stand. The long gallery alongside, opening into the library, corresponds with that upstairs painted in imitation of the Loggia of Eaphael. It is called the Gallery of Drawings by ancient mas- ters (about 12,000 numbers). The drawings exposed on the walls and in the glass cases being changed period- ically, it is impossible to indicate the num1)ers. Among the most interest- ing in the collection are the follow- ing : — Landscape and head of an old man, by Eembrandt. Van Dyck : portraits of Breughel “ the Velvet,” Eran^ois de Moncade (whose eques- trian picture is in the Louvre), and head of the painter Sebastian Vrancx; a sketch for the picture in the collec- tion of the Dnke of Buccleuch. Eu- bens : Helen Fourment, Cleopatra, and the sketch for the large picture in the Hermitage, IMagdalen washing the feet of Christ in the house of the Pharisee. Charming sketches of female heads, by Lancret ; a nude figure and pretty head, by Boucher ; and an old woman spinning, by Watteau. After leaving the gallery the visitor passes through 4 rooms,’ containing a very large and well-arranged collec- tion of Greek and Etruscan vases, of every iwssible shape and form, and more than 1300 in number and the Jiucst, in point of quality, though not in extent, in the world. They be- longed principally to a collection made by Dr. Pizzati, and were for sorne time deposited at the Academy of Arts ; but the most valuable specimens are from the Campana Museum. Anti- quities of this description being well known in England, it will suffice to mention the 3 principal vases in the collection. In the centre of Eoom 17 stands the gem in this department. It is the beautiful and perhaps match- less vase found at Cumse, purchased with the Campana Museum and called “the king of vases.” The beauty of the relief and the freshness of the gilding and colours render it one of the most interesting specimens of ce- ramic art. The subject represented is the Mysteries of Eleusis; of 4th centy. b.c. The other vase or amphora next to it in beauty and size is No. 523, to the 1. of the Cuma3 vase. Subject, Battle of the Gods and Titans. No. 422 is another fine Apulian amphora, with a representation of Priam askingAchilles for the body of Hector.* The mosaic floor in this room was excavated in the Crimea, on the site of the ancient Khersonesus. The visitor will pass out through a room in the centre of which is a large tazza of aventurine. The stands for candelabra at the door in the hall bear the date of the birth of the Emperor Alexander I., to whom they were pre- sented. 5. MarljJe Palace (Mramorny Dvo- rcts), on the Court Quay. — This was erected by Catherine, between 1770 and 1783, as a residence for Prince Gregory Orloff, who died before its completion. It was designed by Qua- renghi, and was the residence of Stanislas Poniatowski until his death, when it became the property of Con- stantine, brother of the Emperor Nicholas. At present it is inhabited l>y the Grand Duke Constantine Nico- lacvitch. ddie extraordinarily massive walls of this sombre building are built of blocks of granite; the supports of the roof arc iron beams, the roof itself sheet cop])cr, the wnndow -frames gilded copper. There is very little marlde in its construction to justify its name. Over the riding-school and stables alongside is a colossal bas-relief by Baron Klodt, a Eussian sculptor. This palace is not generally in- spected by tourists. * Vide ‘Catalogue des Vases Feints.’ Price 25 cop. Sold at the door of the Hermitage. 133 Russia. Route 1. — St. Peierd>urg : Taurida Palace. G. Enyineering School. — Michael Palace (Micliaelofski Zkmok). — This Palace, or rather Castle, as dis- tiuguished from the Palace of the late Grand Duchess Helen Pavlovna, stands on the site of the old Summer Palace on the Fontanka Canal, which was pulled down by the Emperor Paul, who built this pile of granite in its stead, fortified it as a place of defence, and dedicated it to the Archangel Michael. The castle has a more gloomy exterior than the other palaces of St. Petersburg, and is of an extraordinary style of archi- tecture. It is in the form of a square, of which the four facades all differ in style one from the other ; the ditches which originally snrrounded it are now partly filled up and laid ont in gardens, but the principal entrance is still over some drawbridges. In the square before the chief gate stands a monument which Paul erected to Peter the Great, with the inscription, “ Pro- de'du Pravnuk ” (the Grandson to the Grandfather). Vide “Monuments.” Over the principal door, which is over- loaded with architectural ornaments, is inscribed in golden letters a passage from the Bible in the old Slavonian language : “ On thy house will the blessing of the Lord rest for ever- more.” This palace was built with extraor- dinary rapidity, between 1797 and 1801 ; 5000 men were employed on it daily until it was finished ; and, the more quickly to dry the walls, large iron plates were made hot and fastened to them for a time. The result wms, that soon after the Emperor Paul’s death it was abandoned as quite uninhabit- able; the cost of building it is said to have been 18,000,000 rubles; had sulficient time Ijeen taken, it wmuld not have amounted to six millions. The halls and apartments of the castle are large and numerous. A fine marble staircase leads to the first story, and the vestibules and corridors are paved ^ with beautiful kinds of marble. The lloorings of the saloons were taken from the Taurida Palace, because the new ones were not ready. They have since been restored to their old places. The room in which the Emperor Paul met with his tragical end in now converted into a chapel, after having been walled up during the two preceding reigns. The painted ceil- ings have considerable interest. In one is represented the revival of the order of Malta, and Ruthenia, a beautiful virgin, with the features of Paul, seated on a mountain. Near her, the mighty eagle, Fame, flying from the South in terror, announces the injustice that has been done to her in the Medi- terranean and entreats the mighty eagle to shelter her under his wing. In the distance is seen the island (Malta) threatened by waves and hostile fleets. In another hall, all the gods of Greece are assembled and their physiognomies are those of persons of the Court. The architect, whose purse profited considerably by the building of the castle, appears among them as a flying Mercury. When Paul, who was a ready punster, and who knew very well that all the money he paid was not changed into stone and wood, caused the different faces to be pointed ont to him, he immediately recognised the face of the Mercury and said, laughing to his courtiers, “ Ah ! voila Tarchitecte, qui vole.” The palace is now the School of Engineers, under the direction of the famous General Todleben, to whom application must be made to view' it. 7. Taurida Palace (Tavricheskoi Dvorets). — This was built in 178o, by Catherine II., and given by her to Field-Marshal Potemkin after he had cnnquered the Crimea and received the submission of the King of Georgia. The Empress subsequently repurchased it. The i>alace is famous for the entertainments given there by the magnificent Prince. Later it was tenanted by Louisa, the beautiful but unfortunate Queen of Prussia ; by the Persian Envoy, Khozra Mirza ; and lastly, in 1830, by Oscar, Crown Prince of Sweden. The Emperor Paul turned the entire palace into a barrack for his guards ; but his successor restored it fcject. 1. ' ttoute 1. — St. Petersburg : Cathedral. 134 to its more befitting purpose of a royal residence. It is now occupied by superannuated ladies of the Imperial Court. The garden is very extensive and well laid out. The best pictures have been removed to other collec- tions, and there remains but little of interest within to gratify any curiosity beyond that of viewing the palace built for the favourite of Catherine the Great. 8. Fortress and Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paid (Ki-epost). — Peter the Great laid the foundation of a fortress on the 16th May, 1703, but the present fortifications of stone were commenced in 1706 under the superintendence of Tressini, an Italian architect. The corner-stone of the cathedral was laid in 1714 on the site of a church built in 1703. Consecrated in 1733, it was struck by lightning for the third time in 1756. The spire fell in and de- stroyed a Dutch clock which had been placed in the tower at great expense, besides doing much other damage. Tlie body of the ch. was restored in 1757, and Balles, a Dutch arcliitect, drew the plan of a new belfry and spire. The former was finished in 1770, and the latter was put up in 1772. The framework was covered with sheets of copper, as well as the globe, the angel, and the cross which surmount the spire. The gilding of the copper cost 2814 ducats, or 22 pounds of pure gold. The present clock, with chimes, was put up in 1774. The angel and cross showing symptoms of decay, a Russian peasant undertook hi 1830 to repair them. He accomplished the feat with extraordi- nary daring, aided only by a nail and a rope; but in 1855 it was found necessary to erect a scaffolding to the very top of the spire in order to secure it more thoroughly. The cathedral, as it stands at pre- sent, is an oblong building, 210 feet in length and 98 in breadth. A small lanteru-shaped cupola, painted white, rises over the altar. The western end is surmounted by a four-cornered bel- fiy, 112 ft. high, above which rises the pyramidal spire, so conspicuous for its elegance amidst the many domes and cupolas of St. Petersburg. The spire alone, is 128 ft. high, the globe 5 ft., and the cross 21 ft. The summit of the cross is therefore 371 ft. above the level of the ground, or 10 ft. higher than St. Paul’s. It is the tallest spire in Russia, with the exception of the ch. tower in Reval. All the sovereigns of Russia since the foundation of Si. Petersburg lie buried in the cathedral, excepting only Peter II., who died and was interred at Moscow. The bodies are deposited under the floor of the ch., the marble tombs above only marking the sites of the graves. The tomb of Peter the Great should be visited first. It lies near the S. door, opposite the image of St. Peter. The image with its rich gold frame gives Peter’s stature at his birth, viz. 19| in., as well as his breadth, 5f in. His consort, Cathe- rine I., lies buried in the same vault. The tomb of Catherine II. is to the right of the altar-screen. The row of tombs on the JST. side of the cathedral begins with that of the Emperor Paul. The image of St. Paul, opposite to it, also gives the height and breadth of that sovereign at birth. The diamond wedding-ring of the Emperor Alexander is attached to the image near his tomb. The sarcophagus of the Grand Duke Con- stantine, brother of Nicholas L, will be recognised by the keys of the fortresses of Modlin and Zamoscz, in Poland, which lie on it. The Emperor Nicho- las lies in the aisle opj^osite the tomb of Peter the Great, while the grave of his grandson and namesake, the deeply-lamented Tsesarevitch, who died at Nice in 1865, will easily be recognised in the same aisle by the palm-branches and the porcelain gar- land of roses deposited upon it by those who so deeply mourn his loss. The walls are covered with mili- tary trophies, standards, flags, keys of fortresses, shields and battle-axes, taken from the Swedes, Turks, Per- sians, Poles, and French. The de- vices on the flags Avill be a sufficient indication of their origin. Among the Eussia. Boutei. — St. Petersburg : Academy of Sciences. l35^ militaiy trophies is the pillow used by Suvorolf during his campaigns. The fortress is used as a state prison. Alexis, the eldest son of Peter the Great, having been per- suaded to return from Germany, was arraigned for treason and imprisoned in the dreary casemates of this dun- geon, where his father visited him immediately previous to his sudden death. He lies buried, together with his unfortunate wife (vide Hist. Notice), in a vault under the cathedral. Their names are recorded on brass plates let into the Avail of the edifice. They can be seen by going through a door to the 1. in the porch. The conspirators of 1825 were confined and tried, and some executed, within its walls. The cells are not shown to visitors, but the ch. is open all day. The Imperial Mint stands within the walls, and may be viewed on application. Within a brick building near the ch. is kept the celebrated boat of Peter the Great, which bears the proud title of ‘ The Grandfather of the Eussian Navy.’ It was found by Peter in 1688 under a shed at Ismai- lovo, the country residence of his grandfather, Nikita Komanotf, and liis curiosity Avas so much excited on being told by Franz Timmermann, a Dutch shipbuilder, that it could sail against the Avind, that he caused it to be put in order and launched on the Ytinza river at Moscoav. Sailing this boat gave him a taste for naval matters, which resulted in the con- struction of a fleet and the extension of the Eussian monarchy. Although the boat was at one time supposed to have been sent to John the TerrilAle by Queen ElizaljetJi, about the year 1580, yet it is noAV almost generally believed that it was constructed in Eussia by Dutch carpenters in 1668, during the reign of Alexis, at Dedi- novo, at the confluence of the M oskva with the Oka. It is carefully kept in repair, and painted exactly as in the days of Peter. In 1872 it Avas carried Avitli much solemnity to an Exhibition at IMoscow, and brought back Avith the same honours. 9. Feter the Great's Cottage (Domik Petra Velikaho). — This Avas the first house and palace built by Peter on the banks of the Neva in 1703, and he lived in it Avhile superintending the construction of St. Petersburg. It stands to the right of the fort- ress, at a little distance from it, but on the same island. 'Its length is about 55 ft., and its breadth 20 ft. It contains two rooms and a kitchen ; that on tlie left Avas Peter’s lAedroom and dining-room, and is noAV used as a chapel. A miraculous image of the Saviour, which accompanied Peter the Great in his battles and assisted at Poltava, is suspended there and receives the salutations of nume- rous devotees. Two guardians of the house Avere foully murdered by a sol- dier in 1863, for itlie sake of the dona- tion box. Numerous relics of the great reformer of Eussia are kept here : a boat which he built, the remains of its sails, and the bench on Avhich he sat at his door, are all preserved under the casing with Avhicii the entire building has been covered to protect it from decay. The Avoodeii church (“ the Cafh. of the Trinity") between the fort- ress and Peter the Great’s house, at the foot of the Troitski bridge of boats, was founded in 1703, and con- secrated in 1710, and is therefore the most ancient sacred edifice in the capital, the cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul having been rebuilt since its foundation. It has a Ijell Avhich was brought from the toAvn of Abo in Finland, in 1713, and several objects Avhich either belonged to, or were turned, by Peter the Great. 10. Academy of Sciences (Academia Nauk), on the Vasili Ostrof, between the University and Exchange. — By desire of Peter the Great, Leibnitz drcAV up the statutes of tiiis Academy, and it was founded in 1721. It is noAV diAuded into tliree departments: Ma- thematical Science, Eussian Imiguago and Literature, and History and Phi- lology. IVtany eminent men have been members of it, the earliest l)eing Baer, Euler, Muller, Pallas, Gmelin, and 136 Houle l.—St. Petersburg: Academy of Sciences. Sect. 1. Scliubert. It is now presided over by Admiral Count Liitke, a circum- navigator of the globe, whose contri- butions to science, and particularly to geography, are well known. There are 21 ordinary members, 55 honorary, among whom 7 foreign, and its corre- spondents are above 200 in numlier. The State contributes about 41,000Z. per annum towards its support. The Astronomical Observatory at Wilna is attached to it. The Library contains 147,000 books and MSS. ; among the latter may be mentioned those of the celebrated Kepler in 18 volumes. One of its greatest treasures is the ‘ Code Eadzi- will,’ or MS. of the Chronicle of Kestor, written about . a.d. 1280. It is ornamented with numerous illumina- tions, which show that the earlier costumes of the Kussians were the same as those of England, France, or Germany ; the present Asiatic dress ] laving lieen only introduced since the 14th cent. In the Asiatic Museum is a further collection of booivs and MSS., number- ing nearly 12,000. Of these, 1369 vols. are in the Chinese language ; the re- mainder are in the various cliaracters and dialects of the East, and relate to its history,, religion, and literature. TJiere is likewise a cabinet of Eastern coins and medals in this museum. 21,536 in number. An interesting collection of Mongolian idols, in gilt bronze, illustrating the religion of Budha, will also arrest the eye. The Egyptian Museum lias surren- dered its mummies to the Hermitage, and now offers little of interest. The Ethnographic Museum consists of the dresses and implements of the various races that inhabit the Kussian empire ; likewise some of Chinese, I’ersians, A.leutans, Carelians, and of the poiuilations of many other regions little known except to Kussian tra- vellers. The collection of medals and coins contains numerous specimens collected chielly by Count Suchtelen, and pur- chased by the Academy. The progress of the art of coining money in Kussia may be well studied here. There are long gradations between the leather tokens of antiquity, the platinum coins of Catherine, and the gold half- imperials of the present reign. The Botanical Collection has been enriched by the herbarium of the late academician Meyer. The [Anatomical Cabinet contains an exhibition of subjects by no means pleasant to view, although of interest to the pathological student. The head of a lady whom Peter the Great loved is one of the most interesting curiosi- ties. The Mineralogical Collection is large and useful for the jjurposes of instruc- tion, and the greater part of its riches are due to the labours of the learned Pallas. It is not, however, conspicu- ous for many very remarkable speci- mens. One of these is a large and rich twisted branch of native silver from Siberia ; and another, of much interest, is the large aerolitic stone that fell at Smolensk in 1807, present- ing the usual black crust and pris- matic form of these remarkable bodies. There is also one of the largest me- teorites in Europe, though surpassed by those in the mineral department of the British Museum. It was found at Krasnoyarsk in Siberia, and is re- markable for containing the mineral olivine, in some cases crystallized, which fills the cavities of the great sponge-like mass of the iron. A large artificial globe, constructed by Euler, may be seen in one of the rooms. It is no longer a curiosity since Wyld’s Great Globe was put up and taken down in Leicester Square. Although as yet incomplete, the Zoological Collection will perhaps be of greater interest than any other to the English traveller, for it contains the unfossilized remains of the great mammoth and rhinoceros. These are especially remarkable from their hav- ing been preserved through countless ages in the ice of Siberian rivers, and from their fiesh and integuments having lieen from this cause so pre- served from decay, that wolves and bears came down to feed on them as soon as they were revealed. The mam- moth was discovered in 1799, by a 137 Eussia. Moute 1. — St. Petersburg : Academy of Sciences. \ Tungusiau fisliermaii, on the banks ' of the Lena, in Siberia, in lat. 70°, and was afterwards brought away by Mr. Adams in 1806 ; and thus the break- ing away of a clitf brought the men of the last generation face to face with a species of elephant that had ceased to exist, as a living creature, for a period which the modern geolo- gist carries far back in time, to what may be called the geological dawn of human history. The monster whose remains are here very imperfectly exhibited was comparatively but a small, and per- haps a young, individual of his race. The huge skull of one of his kindred lying in the same room shows that the mammoth must have attained a size one-fourth, if not one-third, larger than the one here seen ; the skeleton is also incomplete. The tusks do not belong to the same individual as the bones, and some of the bones of the legs of the left side, which was that most exposed to the ravages of wild beasts and to the influence of the climate, are made up of wood and plaster, but the bones of the right side are pretty complete, and the feet, like the head, are covered by the in- teguments. Only nine of the ribs belonged to the animal. A mass of the skin may be seen alongside ; and in the glass case is a jflece of skin with some of the reddish-brown hair still adhering to it. The hair was a distinguishing feature of tliis denizen of northern latitudes. A small stuffed elephant and its skeleton stand side by side with tlie mammoth, for the purpose of com- jiarison, but they look small when compared witli the mamnnflh, which is at least 2 ft. higher and longer in the same proportion, the latter being 13 ft. long. The difterence between the two skeletons, in the position of the tusks, immediately attracts notice. In the mammoth they approadi closer jl togetlier at the roots than in the ele- I pliant, and are in this specimen re- pre.sented as extending laterally like two scythes in the same horizontal plane, and not in two parallel verti- cal planes a,s in the elephant. But this would appear to be an erroneous restoration of the tusks of the mam- moth, the true direction of which was first forwards, and, at some distance from the head, inwards, exactly in a contrary direction to that here repre- sented. Some of the mammotli-tu.sks in this museum are 8^ ft. long. The mammoth is also distinguished from the elephant by the greater length and compression of its skull, as well as by its superior height, giving the elephant the advantage of an appa- rently greater intellectual develop- ment. Besides these, a large assortment is here seen of the bones of this extinct species of elephant {Eleplias primi- genius, Blumbach), some of the indivi- duals of which seem to have surpassed this specimen in size as much as the latter exceeds the elephant by its side. The remains of an extinct species of rhinoceros teichorhimis) are scarcely less interesting than those of the mammoth. A head, on which the skin is almost entire, and the feet similarly clothed, and having even fine hair still on parts of them, form the most important portions of these re- mains. The skull, owing to its great length and the arching of the upper jaw, has some reseml)lance to that of a bird, and may, perhaps, have given rise to the fables which circulate among the savage tribes on the shores of the Polar Sea respecting a colossal bird of old times, the bones of which are said to be occasionally found. The learned curator of the museum has analyzed the remains of food found in the cavi- ties of the teeth of this huge beast, and discovered that he fed on young Inanches of the fir-tree. There are about lo skulls of the animal kept here. In these remains we probably see the animals of whom the ancients had heard from the Arimaspi. It is at all events certain that the tusks of the mammoth were well known to the Greeks, and obtained from their trade with the Scythians. Amongst other objects in the Zoolo- gical Collection are well-stuttcd speci- mens of the sea otter from the N. Pacific, one of which is 5 or G ft. long. 138 Sect. I. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The TJnwersity.. and wliose 81:111 alone is valued at 200 L Tlie birds from Kamchatka are also a valuable series, including some of the duck tribes of great scarcity. Tlie sturgeons of every sea may be here seen, including species from the Amur and the Caspian. The skeleton of a huge Dugong {Rutya stillagis) is supposed to represent a species that has become extinct since 1745, but the claim thus urged on behalf of this skeleton has been disputed by foreign physiologists. The Academy is open on Mondays to the public from 1 0 to 4. An intro- duction to a member of it is of service in seeing the different collections at any other time. 11. The University (Uiilversitet) stands on Vasili Ostrof, near the Ex- cliange. It was founded in 1819. It has, in addition to the Faculties of His- tory, Physics, and Jurisprudence, that of Oriental languages, of which a great variety are practically taught here. There is no chair of medicine, which is banished to u. special academy, with about 1500 stutleiits, situated a little higher up the river, and founded in 1800, under the superintendence of the late Sir James Wylie, Bart., a Scotch j)hysician, who did much towards advancing his science in Itussia. (Vide “Monuments.”) Tliis University is attended by about 1400 students, the matriculations being rs. 50 (11. 10s.), as at Moscow. The nobility only began to send their sons to llussian universities under the reign of Nicholas, when Count Uvarof, Mi- nister of Public Instruction, set the fashion by sending his own son to the University of St. Petersburg. In that reign, education received a more na- tional impress, and somewhat of a military tendency, since abandoned. Tlie students no longer wear swords and cocked-hats, and arc in every way liberally treated. The policy of the Thnperor Nicholas in reference to edu- cation was summed up in three words, contained in an instruction to Count Uvaroff: “Orthodoxy, autocracy, na- tionality.” The library contains 63,000 vols. The scientific collections are unim- portant. The remaining universilies of the empire are situated at Moscow, Kief, Kazan, Kharkof, Odessa, Dorpat, Warsaw, and Helsingfors. 12. Academy of Arfe* (Academia Hudojestv.) on Vasili Ostrof. — Peter the Great bestowed much attention on the introduction of the fine arts into Kussia, and sent many young- men to study in Italy and other coun- tries. Three of those pupils attained some celebrity in Kussia by painting images for the Church in the stylo of the Italian masters, as, for instance, those in the Cath. within the Fort- ress. Tlie Chamberlain Shuvalofif, founder of the University of Mos- cow, induced the Empress Elizabeth in 1757 to establish an Academy of Fine Arts. In 1764 the Empress Catherine II. granted new statutes and patronised the productions of na- tive artists, who had to be checked in their tendency of painting in a Byzantine ecclesiastical form for the ornamentation of chs., by which they obtained much lucrative employment. Under the direction of Lossenko, one of the earliest Academicians, the Aca- demy produced Ugruimof, the painter of two pictures in the Russian depart- ment of the Hermitage Gallery. In the reign of the Emperor Paul, the pupils of the Academy were much given to fresco-painting in the style of Watteau and Boucher, and it was only in that of Alexander I. that any great talent began to be exhibited. The Ivanofs, father and son, and BriiloAv, were the most eminent artists of that period. Then followed Brunni, Stchedrin, Bo- goliubof, Aivazofski, Neff, and many others. The Grand Duchess Marie Nicolaevna is President, and the Grand Duke Vladimir Vice-President, of this Academy, which admits puj^ils of all classes of society. The Russian school has lately iiro- duced 2 pictures of striking merit — ‘ The Last Supper,’ by Gay, a realistic conception of great boldness, since it * Open daily, gratis, from 10 to 4. 139 lJussia. Boute L—St. Petersburg: Academy of Arts. entirely departs from the conventional representation of the position of the Saviour and His Disciples at table, and portrays them reclining on couches, in accordance with Eastern custom ; the other picture is by Flavitzky, ‘The Princess Tarakanova in prison during an inundation.’ She is depicted with much pathos, struck with terror at the rising of the water in her cell. The princess was an impostor and a state prisoner, and is erroneously supposed to have met her death in the fortress of St. Petersburg in the manner de- l^icted (vide ‘ Description of Novospaski Monastery at Moscow ’). Sculpture and architecture have not as yet insi^ired or rendered very famous any pupil of this Academy. The present building was erected between 1765 and 1788, by a Eussian architect, partly after designs by La- motte and Velten. It forms an immense pile, 1722 ft. in circumference, and 70 ft. in elevation. The facade on the Neva, about 400 ft. in length, is adorned with columns and pilasters. The portico in the centre is ornamented with the statues of a Farnese Hercules and a Flora, and is surmounted by an elegant cupola, on which a colossal Minerva is seated. On the parapet in front of the Academy are two superb granite sphynxes, brought from Egypt. The building has of late years been entirely transformed, aud its contents re-arranged. The lower floor is now devoted to sculpture, specimens and casts of which are arranged chrono- logically in a series of rooms, begin- ning with the early Greek and Koman schools, and terminating with the sculp- ture of the present day. Visitors will recognise casts of many familiar and celebrated objects of art. Above this floor are the galleries appropriated to painting, while the upper story con- tains a large collection of drawings, y Cathcilne II. Panels by Gravelot, a distin- 150 Houte l.St. Petersburg: Carriages. guished painter of allegories in reign of Louis XV. (34.) Caleche brought from Eng- land in 1795 by Prince Orlotf for Catherine II. Restored 1856. Panels said to be by Boucher ; on the sides, Labour, Abundance, Commerce, In- dustry; Cupids strewing flowers ; be- hind, Apollo and the Muses. The driving-box is upheld by two eagles richly carved, while the back of the carriage is guarded by two figures of St. George and the Dragon. An im- perial crown, jewelled, on roof. (30, 31.) Phaetons, like No. 33. (9.) Carriage purchased 1794. Panels with cipher of Nicholas I. (10.) Purchased 1797, and used by Paul I. On left (8.) Carriage built 1793 by Bouken- dahl for Catherine II. Restored 1826 and 1856. Arms of Russia on panels in imitation stones. (14 to 17.) Carriages made at the Imperial Works, 1853-1856. (3.) Carriage purchased, 1762. (12.) Purchased at Paris, 1825, by Prince Volkonsky. (6.) Carriage purchased by Cathe- rine II. in 1793. Painting by Grave- lot. In front “Venus leaving her bath;” on rt. panel, Juno; on I, a Shepherd guarding his flock ; and be- hind, Olympus with Catherine bring- ing Peace and Plenty. The interior of this carriage, and the driving- seat, are richly decorated with Spanish point. 3rd Room. Tapestry . — Arabesques (49 to 51, after Raphael) ; 52, Triumph of Bacchus (G. Beni) ; 53, TriumiJi of Cupid (G. Beni). Carriages. — On rt. (32). Phaeton (vide 33). (5.) Carriage purchased by Cathe- rine II. in 1796. Panels by Boucher. Cypher of Catherine with allegories on doors. On panels, Cupids; and on panel behind the carriage, a likeness of the empress. Two stools in front for pages. (13.) Carriage made at the Imperial AVorks, 1850. (11.) Brought from Paris, 1797. Sect. I. Panels by Boucher. Allegories with incrustations of mother-of-pearl. Paint- ing remarkably fine. (7.) Purchased in 1780 by Catherine II., and used by consort of Nicholas I. ^ at her coronation. Cipher of the Em- - peror on panels. On left (41). Sledge for ten people. (36.) Vis-a-vis presented to Cathe- . rine II. by a Russian general, 1763. Cupids, very finely painted, attributed to Boucher. (47.) Sledge, 1799. (42.) Sledge for ten persons, pur- chased of Boukendahl, 1793, for Ca- therine II. Small sledges for twelve , persons more can be attached to it. Used by the court in Carnival time, ; out of town. ' (29.) Phaeton, presented by Count Bliilim, Danish Minister, to Empress Marie Feodorovna. (37.) Vis-a-vis, presented to Cathe- rine II. by Count P. Chernisheff, in 1766. Painting and incrustations of ' mother-of-pearl, very fine. 4 th Room, Gobelins Tapestry. — Or- pheus and the Muses (Raphael) ; and ' three landscapes. ; Carriages. — The greatest curiosity in this museum is (38) the sledge of ■ Peter the Great, made entirely with his own hands. This interesting object is protected from the influence of time , by a glass case. The trunk behind ' the sledge contained the clothes and ^ provisions of the great Tsar when he travelled. It will be seen that the i windows are of mica. Alexander I. ■ caused the sledge to be brought from Archangel, where Peter the Great had left it after a journey from St. Peters-, | burg, when he was obliged to return , on wheels. Among the other sledges in this room, the most remarkable is perhaps 4 No. 40, “The Masquerade Sledge,” | built in 1764 by Brogantz, an Italian. | It is of very peculiar form, the seat * being composed of a peep-show box , carried by a show-man. A figure in the dress of a harlequin is placed in the front ; while another, in the garb of a Levantine, is between him and the person driving. Another sledge, pro- 151 Hussia. Hoiite 1. — St. Petersburg : Naval Museum. bably likewise used for Carnival pur- poses, is No. 48, in the form ot St. George and the Dragon, the seat being formed by the Dragon. The harness for both these sledges stands close by. No. 49 is a mechanical Drojky made in 1801 by a peasant at Nijni-Tagilsk in Siberia. It has an apparatus behind, which once recorded both time and distance, and played a series of airs. No. 50 is a diminutive brougham pre- sented by a merchant of Moscow in 1847 to a daughter of the Emperor Alexander II., since deceased.* In rooms leading out of Room 2 is kept the harness of the State carriages (No. 1 is the harness for nine horses of the Consort of Nicholas I., and No. 2, also red and gold, that of the Consort of Alexander II.) ; and in separate rooms beyond are the State liveries for about 800 men, and the saddles and bridles of H. I. M., a set representing each regiment, used ac- cording to the uniform which the em- peror wears at reviews, &c. In the furthest harness-room will be seen the lift and the turn-table by which the carriages are raised to the second storey of the building and moved in the di- rection of their proper places in the museum. It should be remembered that these magnificent carriages and trappings are used at each coronation at Moscow, whither they iiave to be carried carefully packed up. Lastly, the staircase beyond Room 4 (by which the visitor will sometimes leave) is decorated with tapestry of which only 61, ‘ The School of Athens,’ and 62, arabesques, are from the Gobe- lins looms; the rest are Russian, viz. (60) ‘ Juno in her Car,’ (63; ‘ America,’ and (64) ‘ Asia.’ AVithin the spacious court of the museum are the Imperial Stables, hold- ing, in winter, more than 300 horses. The new stables opposite, built in 1868, contain about 150 saddle-horses, which, like the carriage-horses, are in summer dispersed over the various im- perial residences. The stables may be seen on application to the officer in charge. They will give the visitor * For depcriplion of other curious and his- torical carriage->, vide “ Treasury,” iiloscow. an idea of the magnificence of the Russian Court, as the sum expended in feeding the horses alone cannot be far short of 10,000Z. per annum. 18. Naval Museum (Morskoi Muse'e). — (Open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.) This will be found in the Admiralty building, under the archway, over which rises the conspicuous gold spire surmounted by a ship under full sad. To naval men, in particular, the museum will be great interest, as it contains a varied collec- tion of naval models, including also those of the Russian iron-clad fleet. Besides these, there are many naval curiosities, mineralogical and ethno- graphical specimens, many portraits and sea views, carvings of figure- heads, Ac. There are also full-sized figures of Russian sailors of the time of Peter the Great, and of the present period, and the flag of a British war- brig taken at Archangel in 1810. The collection, replete with interest, occu- pies two large halls. 19. xicjricuUural Museum (Zem- ledelcheski Musee). — Open on Mon- days, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 12 to 4, and on Sundays from 1 to 3; admittance, 20 cop. This is esta- blished in a large riding-school close to the Winter Palace. It should be visited if the traveller has time. Here the different processes of agri- cidtnre employed in Russia may be studied, as well as the produce of its various provinces, very prettily ar- ranged. It is under the patronage of the Department of Domains and of the Agricultural Society. 152 Moute 1. — St. Petersburg : Nevslci Monastery. Sect. I. 20. Museum of Applied Sciences . — Fontanka Canal, oiiposite Summer Garden. Open daily except on Mon- days, from 10 A.M. to 3 p.m., and be- tween 6 and 9 p.m. on Tuesdays. Admission 5 cop. on Sundays, 30 cop. on Tuesdays, and 15 cop. on all other days. This excellent institution has been established for tlie instruction and recreation of the lower classes, to whom lectures are delivered in it, on mechanics, chemistry, &c. 21. Military Equipment Museum . — Ekaterinhof Prospect. To a military man this museum will be of great interest, for it contains not only speci- mens, patterns, and samples of the present equipment of the Eussian army, but those of the clothing and ai'ms of the earliest regular troops of Kussia as well. The historical section of the museum contains many inter- esting articles of military equipment, dating from the reign of Paul I. Some gorgeous uniforms of general officers in the service of Catherine II. will give some idea of the military splendour of those days. The walls are decoiated with trophies skilfully made with helmets, buckles, epaulets, &c. Tlie double-headed eagle over the door will mors imrticularly elicit adoiiration. 22. Museum of Ministry of Domains. — Opposite the statue to Nicholas I. Contains a rich collection of maps, jdans, drawings, and models, relating princi]Dally to the present state of the forests in Eussia. 23. Museum of Imp. Free Econo- mical Society. — Obukliof Prospect. This contains models of agricultural implements and machinery. Open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 to 2. The society was founded by Catherine II. in 17G5, for the iDromo- tion of agricultnre. The empress fre- quently communicated with it under an assumed name, and caused it to deliberate on questions affecting the welfare of the peasantry, &c. 24. Smolni Church and School. — A long drive from the centre of the city will bring the traveller to the “ Smolni Institut ” at the end of Voskresenski- street, — on a gentle elevation, round which the N eva bends to the west. This structure, which is not far from the Tau- rida Palace, and which was originally a convent, is a vast pile of building, de- signed by Count Eastrelli in 1748, and finally opened in 1834. The church is of white marble, with 5 blue domes spangled with golden stars; and the interior is an exception to the sur- charged style which prevails in the churches of St. Petersburg; its walls of stainless white being unpolluted by flag, banner, or trophy — telling of strife and blood. A high and beauti- fully designed iron grating, of which the rails, or rather pillars, are wound round with wreaths of vine-leaves and flowers in ironwork, surrounds the court-yard, and above it wave the elegant birch and lime. This edifice may be seen from all quarters of the city, its elevation being 335_ ft. On either side of the ch. is the Insti- tution des Demoiselles Nobles (foun- ded 1764), a building dedicated to the education of the daughters of military officers and civil servants. About 400 girls are educated here. The charge is about £50 per annum. A simple monument in the ch. is dedi- cated to St. Mary, in honour of the Empress Marie, consort of Paul I., the foundress and benefactress of the school. A home for widows is attached to this establishment. 25. Monastery of St. Alexander Nevshi. — This is one of the most cele- brated monasteries in Eussia — a Lavra, that is, the seat of a Metroj)olit-an, and inferior only to the Lavra of the Trinity in Moscow, and to the Lavra of the Cave in Kief ; other monastic establishments are only “ monastirsf’ Its proper name is Alexander Nevskaya Sviatotroitskaya I^avra — (Alexander Nevsky’s Holy Trinity Lavra). It stands, as the traveller will have no- ticed in his drive, at the extreme end of the Nevski Prospect, where it occu- Biissia. 153 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Nevski Monastery. pies a large space, enclosing within its walls churches, towers, gardens, and monks’ cells. The ch. and convent were founded by Peter the Great in honour of the canonized Grand Duke Alexander, who, in a great battle fought on this spot, defeated the Swedes and thekniglits of the military orders, a.u. 1241 ; his remains were brought here with much pomp by Peter from Vladimir. The ch. and monastery were originally built of wood, in 1712 ; but stone was substi- tuted some years after. Peter’s suc- cessors increased the possessions and buildings of the cloister, and Cathe- rine built the Cathedral, one of the largest chs. in the capital, in 1790. For the decoration of tlie interior, marble was brought from Italy, precious stones from Siberia, and pearls from Persia. It is further adorned with some good copies after Guido, Rubens, and Perugino; tlie altarpiece — the Annunciation — is by Raphael Mengs. On two great pillars opposite the altar are portraits of Peter the Great and Catherine II., larger than life. On the W. wall is a marble l)nst to tlie metropolitan Gabriel, the builder of the ch. The shrine of Alexander Nevski is of massive silver, and, with the ornaments around it, weighs about 3250 lbs. of pure metal ; the design is pyramidal, 15 feet high, surmounted by a catafalque, and angels as large as life, Avith trumpets and silver flowers; also a quantity of bassi-rilievi, repre- senting the deeds of the Saint. The keys of Adriauople are suspended near the tomb. The Nevski cloister has profited by the presents sent from Persia Avhen the Russian Envoy Griboyedof was murdered at Teheran in 1829. The Persian gifts consisted of a long train of rare animals, Persian webs, gold stuffs, and pearls. They reached St. Petersburg in the winter. The pearls and gold-stuffs and rich shawls were carried on large silver and gold dishes by magnificently dressed Persians.' The Persian i)rince, Khosra Mirza, drove in a state carriage drawn by (J horses ; the elephant^, bearing on their backs towers filled with Indian warriors, had leather boots to protect them from the cold, and the cages of the tigers and lions were provided Avith double skins of the northern polar bear. Some of the pearls were given to this monastery, which also has a rich collection of mitres set in jewels, pontifical robes of gold bro- cade, and souvenirs of individual me- tropolitans and princes ; among them, an episcopal staff turned by Peter the Great, and presented by him to the first metropolitan of St. Petersburg ; another of amber, from Catherine II. ; and a number of other valuables Avhich, found elsewhere, singly, would be admired and described, but here, in the mass of treasures, are unnoticed. The crown of St. Alexander, and the bed on Avhich Peter died, are among the most interesting objects. The Library, of about 10,000 volumes, in- dependently of a number of very Amlu- able manuscripts, contains many rare specimens of the antiquities of Russia. The crypt of the ch. of the Annun- ciation attached to this convent con- tains the tombs of several illustrious Russian families; that of the Narysh- kins bears the following inscription : — ■ “From their race came Peter the Great.” Here are also the tombs of Suvoroff (a lAlain marble tablet) ; Rumiantsof ; the chancellor Bezbo- rodko ; Betskoi, the favourite minister of Catherine II. ; Panin, her minister for foreign affairs, &c. ; and of nume- rous members of the Imperial family. In the cemetery attached to the build- ing many of the great Russian fami- lies bury their dead, and large sums are paid for perndssion to repose in this holy ground. The graves are con- sequently very close together, and the new ones are generally covered with flowers. The anchor at the foot of the cross, a favourite emblem, is placed above many of the monuments. I’here are betAveen 50 and GO monks hero Avho superintend an ecclesiastical academy. The service is Avell per- formed at tliis monastery, and the ch. being fashionable, the sing ng is good. The Emperor is generally present at a mass celebrated on the 30th August, II 3 154 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Churches. Sect. I. O, S., the fete of St. Alexander Nevski. The Theological School and College, which are in the grounds of the Mo- nastery, are two perfectly unconnected institutions. The school or seminary, is designed to prei^are young men for tlie vocation of priests and deacons; the college or academy affords a higlier theological education to those who have evinced greater abilities and wish to devote themselves to the pursuit of learning, and subsequently to be employed in the capacity of tutois and professors in the semin- aries. The young men that receive their instruction at the above-mentioned establislinients are all sons of the town and country clergy of the Kusso- (jlreek Church. 2G. Freobrajensld Church, in Pan- teleimon St., off Liteinaya St. — This ch., the “ Spass Preobrajenski Sober,” belongs to one of the oldest regiments of guards — the Preobrajenski — founded by Peter the Great, and is one of the most considerable in the city, and more than any other adorned, both without and within, with trophies from conquered nations; consecrated 1754; rebuilt 1827. The railing that sur- rounds the churchyard is formed of Turkish cannon. Around the cannon chains of different thickness, grace- fidly twined, are hung like garlands between the columns; on the summit of each is a Kussian double eagle of iron, with expanded wings. Within, the ch. is adorned with Turkish flags taken in 1828 and 1829, and halberds ; the pillars [look like palm-trees, of which every leaf is a lance. Here travellers are also shown a production of Itnssian inventive talent, the work of a common peasant. It is a large sitlendid piece of clockwork, made by him in his native village, bought for lOUOb by his lord, and presenteel to the ch. Some baldacliinos — canopies used at the funerals of deceased Tsars — are preserved in this ch. with the veneration with which Kussians de - 1 light to hand down to posterity every relic of departed royalty. 27. Church of the Holy Trinity . — Near the Warsaw rly. stat. Conse- crated in 1835, and attached to the lijinaelof regiment of Guards. Its cupola is of a dark blue colour, be- spangled with stars. It stands on the site of the chapel in which Peter the Great was married to Catherine I., in 1707 {vide Hist. Notice). Among the trophies in the interior is a boat flag of the ‘ Tiger,’ wrecked on the coast of the Crimea, and another which fell into the hands of the Eussian troops in a boat engagement at Gamle- Karleby, during the allied naval ope- rations in the Baltic. 28. Homan Catholic Churches. — The principal ch., which is in the Nevski, is a most graceful building, with a finely proportioned dome and slender Co- rinthian columns. In the interior is a tablet of white marble edged with black, which bears the name of Moreau, and tells of tlie brilliant achievements and sad fate of the conqueror of Hohen- liuden. Another Eoman Cath. ch., within the building of the “Page School,” ojjposite the Gostinnoi Dvor (bazaar), is of some interest, having been built by the Emp. Paul in 1799, after he had become Grand Master of the Order of the Knights of Malta. It is in the style of the old churches of the Knights of St. John, and still contains the chair on which the Emperor sat as Grand Master. This ch. is fashion- ably attended, and the singing is par- ticularly good. The Duke of Leuchtenberg, Consort of the Grand Duchess Marie Nicola- evna, lies buried there. There is another Eoman Cath. ch. dedicated to St. Stanislas, in the Kolomna quarter of the city. It was consecrated in 1825. 155 Bussia. Moute 1. — St. Petersburg : British Factory. 29. Bussia Company, British ] Fac- tory, and Chapel . — A brief sketch of the intercourse between England and Russia may here prove of interest. The earliest mention in history of any connection between the two countries is about the year 1070, when Gyda (or Wulfgytha, according to Dean Stanley), the daughter of Harold II., was given in marriage by the King of Denmark to Vladimir, Grand Duke of Kief.* Embassies between Russia and the countries of the Continent were first exchanged in the 15th cent., and about this time the English Court ap- pears to have began to notice Russia. Henry Stafford, Earl of Wiltshire, and Baron Fitzwalter appeared in Russian dresses at a fancy ball given in the Parliament Hall at Westminster a.d. 1510. The trade with Russia had long been in the hands of Flemish and Lithuanian merchants, wlmn our more enterprising merchants began to devise means of getting the furs, wax, hemp, j and flax of Muscovy more cheaply and expeditiously than by way of the Hanseatic towns. Adventurous spirits even contemplated reaching India through the Russian dominions. Se- bastian Cabot, born at Bristol in 1477, conceived the design of reaching India and Cliina by sailing nortliwmrds round Norway, and by his exertions was formed ‘ ‘ The Mystery, Company, and Fellowship of Merchant Adven- turers for the Discovery of Unknown Lands, &c.” In 1553 three ships were fitted out by this company under the command of Sir Hugh Willoughby and Richard Chancellor. Sir Hugh with two of the vessels entered a bay on the coast of Lapland, where he perished miserably with his com- ])aiiions — frozen to death. Richard Chancellor in the ‘ Edward Bonaven- ture,’ having been separated from the other ships in a storm, entered the AVhite Sea alone, and reached tlie mouth of the Dvina. Having ascer- tained that the country which they h.nl discovered was “Russia or Mus- co\ic,” he declared to the astonished fishermen that they were “ English- men sent into these coasts from the most excellent King Edward VI., having from him in commandment certain tilings to deliver to their King, and seeking nothing else but his amitie and friendship, and traffique with his people, whereby they doubted not but that great commoditie and profit wnuld grow to the subjects of both kingdoms.” The fishermen, hav- ing understood (it is to be presumed by signs) the object of the expedition, “ heard those things very gladly, and promised their aid and furtherance to acquaint their King out of hand with so honest and reasonable a request.” John the Terrible was then Tsar and in the zenith of his power and glory as conqueror of Kazan and Siberia. He received Chancellor, and the two merchants. Burton and Edwards, who acconjpanied him, very graciously, and entertained them at a feast of great splendour. In compliance with Chan- cellor’s request that the establishment of commercial relations might be per- mitted between England and Russia, a letter was despatched by the Tsar to King Edward assuring him that “his shippes and vessels may come as often as they please ; ” “ and,” wrote the Tsar, “ send me one of your Majesties coimcill to treat with us, whereby your countrey merchants mate with all kind of wares, and wheare they will, make their market in our dominons, and there to have their free market with all free liberties through my whole dominions, and goe at then- pleasure, without any lett, damage, or impediment, according and by this onr lettre.” This letter found Queen Mary on the throne : and on the 26th Feb. 1555, a new Conqjany was formed in London by siDecial charter of Philip and Mary, conveying the exclusive privilege of trading with Russia. Chancellor returned to Moscow in 1555 with a reply from Philip and Mary. Two merchants, George Kill- ingworth and Bichard Say, went with him, and remained there as commer- cial agents. The Tsar then gave the Company a charter to trade throngh- ricZe Itist. Xotice, 156 itoute 1. — St. Petersburg: British Factory. Sect. 1, out his dominions without payiu,^ any taxes; on the strength of which the Bay of St. Nicholas, where the English ships had first anchored, soon became an important place of trade. In 15.56 Chancellor left Russia with 4 heavily- laden ships and an ambassador from John the Terrible, Nejreya by name, with a suite of 16 persons. A storm scattered the ships, and only one reached London in safety. The ‘ Ed- ward Bonaventure’ parted from her anchors on the coast of Aberdeenshire and was wrecked, by which Richard Chancellor with his son and 7 Russians were drowned. The ambassador, saved almost by a miracle, proceeded to Edinburgh and thence to London, where he was received with great pomp in 1557. Voyages and embassies now became frequent. At first the trade was most prosper- ous, but the English merchants began to quarrel amongst themselves, and had many complaints against the Tsar’s officers. In 1567 Queen Eliza- beth granted a new charter to the Com- pany, and stipulated with the Tsar that none but English ships should be em- ployed in the trade. The Company had a right to seize any foreigner attempt- ing to reach India, Persia, or China by way of Russia, and to confiscate his goods. The merchants obtained per- mission to smelt down foreign dollars and to stamp them anew as current coin. Under such advantages they seized all the most important commer- cial centres in Russia. They had an agency at Moscow, a factory at IIol- mogory (at the mouth of the Dvina), and depots at Novgorod, Pskof, Ya- roslaf, Kazan, Astrakhan, Kostroma, &c., where they sold their goods at 200 and 300 per cent, profit. Tlie people comjfiained of their proceedings, and the Tsar expressed his displeasure to Mr. Thomas Randolph, ambassador in 1569. The English, on the other hand, retorted that they were fast being ruined by the execution of so many of tlieir debtors. They had certainly to contend with civil commotions, pes- tilence, and famine ; and their house at JVloscow was destroyed by the Tar- tars in 1571, wlien about 15 English men and women perished in the flames. John the Terrible made an over- ture for the hand of Queen Eliza- beth, and wished to enter into a treaty to the effect that “she would be kind to his friends, but hostile to his enemies, and he would be the same to hers.” The Queen was to allow persons skilled in shipbuilding and navigators to come to Russia, to permit artillery and other warlike stores to be sent from England; and “ it was to be ratified by oath between her and himself that either sovereign might take refuge in the country of the other in case disturbances in their own realm should compel them to do so.” Queen Elizabeth merely thanked John the Terrible for this manifesta- tion of good-will, and proposed in 1581 that he should marry Lady Mary Hastings, daughter of the Earl of Huntingdon. The Tsar’s envoy re- ported that the lady in question was 3U years old, “ tall, well-built, though thin, ’ that she had “ a clear com- plexion, grey eyes, red hair, a straight nose, and long fingers.” The lady was at first not averse to the marriage, but she soon asked the Queen to spare her ; “ for being,” Hume says, “ in- formed of the barbarous manner of the country, she wisely declined ]:)ur- chasing an empire at the expense of her ease and safety.” In return for the hand of Lady Mary the Tsar had promised most important privi- leges to the Company, but the mer- chants were soon after informed by the boyars that “ their English Tsar was dead.” The Tsar Boris Godunof (a.d. 1598), although favourable to the English trade, refused to renew the exclusive privileges which it had enjoyed, and other nations were in his reign allowed to i^articipate in the commerce of the country. In 1646 the native merchants complained that the English “ were ruining them b)^ their exactions,” and in the following year the Tsar took ad- vantage of the civil wars in England, and, condemning the people “ who had l)ut their Charles to death,” closed all the i)orts against them wdth the excep- Rugsk. 157 ^ouie 1 . — Si. Petersburg : British Factory. tion of Archangel. Cromwell’s envoy was not received by the Tsar, who sub- sequently corresponded with Charles II. when the latter was in exile. At the Restoration, the Earl of Carlisle was sent to ask for a renewal of the ancient privileges of the Russian Com- pany, but his mission was unsuccessful. Another class of Englishmen began to visit Russia about this period. These were officers, chiefly Scottish, who were then seeking their fortunes in almost every country in Europe. The most dis- tinguished of these was Patrick Gor- don, who, under Colonel Crawfurd, assisted in forming the first regular regiment that Russia possessed. About 40 English officers were employed in drilling the soldiers who saved Peter the Great by discomfiting the unruly Streltsi. The next great event in the intercourse between Russia and Eng- land was the visit of Peter the Great to London, for an account of which the traveller must refer to the Hist. Notice. In the reign of Catherine II. English naval officers came over in considerable numbers to enter the Russian navy. Many of their descend- ants are at present in the service of the Russian crown. In the reign of the Emperor Paul an embargo was laid on British shipping in the expectation of a war with England, which happily never arose until in 1854 it became ne- cessary to maintain by arms the inte- grity of the dominions of the Sultan. The British factory, in the mean- while, originated at Archangel in 1716, when the English mercliants at that place embodied themselves into a company, and fixed a rate on goods imported and exported and a port- charge on British ships. They at the same time applied for a minister of the Church. Until the trade was removed to St. Petersburg by Peter the Great it was the practice of the Factory to reside at Archangel during lire sum- mer and at Moscow in winter, having a chapel at both places and taking their minister with them. The Factory removed to St. Petersburg in 1728. The principal objects which from the first engaged the attention of the Factory were the maintenance of the Church establishment and the regulation of charges on British ships and goods. In 1753 the Factory bought with their own funds, assisted by voluntary contributions, their present church premises on the English Quay. A treaty of commerce, signed between Great Britain and Russia in 1766, having expired in 1787, 6 members of the I^actory left the corjaoration and traded separately as “ Foreign Guests,” a denomination established by the Russian Municipal Code of 1785. In 1807, however, the Treaty of Com- merce which sanctioned the existence of British Factories in Russia lapsed, and the Factory at St. Petersburg, together with that at Archangel, became legally defunct. On the strength of the Ukaz of 1807, the greater part of the members of the I'actory became “ Foreign Guests,” and continued to trade as such until recent enlightened enactments re- moved all the disabilities under which foreign merchants had laboured, and gave them in respect to their commerce the privileges of natural-born subjects of FI. I. M. The British Ambassador was ordered to leave St. Petersburg 27th Oct. 1807, and during the Continental war, which lasted until 1812, the British mer- chants were not permitted to trade. The Factory at St. Petersburg con- tinued nevertheless to exist, but only as a Committee for the Management of Church Aftairs, and, notwitstanding some tedious disputes with the Russia Company, it succeeded in establishing its right to elect a chaplain and to levy port-charges — a right which, the Russia Company long asserted, only belonged to themselves, but which has since been abandoned. In 1813 the Russia Company agreed to contribute 4000/,. towards the repairs of the chapel, and in 1814 a grant of 5000/. was procured from Parliament for the same object. The chapel, rebuilt in 1815, by Quarenghi, is, internally, one of the handsomest places of lilnglish Protestant worship on the Continent. The copy of Rubens’s ‘Descent from the Cross ’ over the altar was presented in 1815 by Sir James Riddell, Bart. 158 Iloute 1. — St. Petersburg : Monuments. The pews are free, and will contain a congregation of about 500. The Anglican chapels in Russia enjoy the great privilege of exter- ritoriality, being considered by the Itussian government as chapels of the British Ambassador, and therefore under his special protection and juris- diction. The accumulations of the “ Comoiittee of the Chapel of the British Factory” at St. Petersburg, arising from the “Church Money” formerly levied on shipping, are not far short of 50,000Z., invested in Rus- sian funds. The total number of British resi- dents at St. Petersburg and its vicinity is estimated at nearly 3000. The ser- vices at the chapel, on Sundays, com- mence at the hours of 11 and 4. The chaplain resides on the premises, where an extensive circulating library has also been established. 30. British and American Chapel^ Novo - Isaacovskaya - st. — This was founded in 1833 by British and Ame- rican Congregationalists, Divine wor- ship having been previously performed by Dr. Pattison in the chapel of the Moravian brethren belonging to the “ Sarepta Company.” Service at 11 a.m. and 6.30 p.m. on Sundays. 31. Monuments. 1. The Equestrian Statue of Peter the Great ranks first among the monu- ments of St. Petersburg. It stands opposite the Isaac Cathedral, close to the Neva. The whole group was pro- duced at a single casting by Etienne Maurice Falconet, a Frenchman ; but the head of the Emperor, which is con- sidered to be a striking likeness of Peter, was modelled by Marie Callot, who subsequently became Mine. Falconet. The Emperor is admirably represented reining in his horse on the brink of a rock, on both sides of which, as well as in front, steep precijDices threaten immediate destruction. His face is turned towards the Neva, his out- stretched hand pointing to the result of his thought and will ; while a ,ser- Sect. 1. pent, emblematical of the dithculties which Peter encountered, is trodden under foot by the spirited charger. The whole is wonderfully balanced on the hinder legs and the tail of the horse, which is joined to the serpent’s body and into which 10,000 lbs. have been thrown. The weight of the metal (about 16 tons) has been so skilfully distributed by varying the thickness of the bronze from 1 inch to \ of an inch, that the centre of gravity is fixed immediately above the horse’s feet, which rest upon the ground. The huge block of granite which forms the pedestal, and weighs 1500 tons, was brought from Lakhta, a Finnish village, 4 m. from St. Peters- burg. It was originally 45 ft. long, 30 ft. high, 25 ft. in width, and weighed about 1600 tons; but in cutting it the nniss broke in two pieces, which w^ere subsequently joined. It is now only 14 ft. high, 20 ft. broad, and 43 ft. long ; the statue is 17J ft. in height. Tradition says that Peter the Great had stood upon this rock and watched from it a naval victory over the Swedes. Count Carburi, Police Master of St. Petersburg, undertook to trans- port it to St. Petersburg, and he em- jfioyed 500 men during 5 weeks, with a great number of horses, in hauling it over cannon-balls rolling upon an iron tramway, with the aid of ropes, pulleys, and windlasses. On the two long sides are the following inscrip- tions in Russian and Latin. “ Petrii Pervomu, — Ekaterina Vtoray a.” “ Pe- tro Primo, Catharina Secunda.” MDCCLXXXII. 2. The Alexander Column. — In the open space between the Btat Major and the Winter Palace stands the greatest monolith of modem times, — the column erected, 1832, to the memory of the Emperor Alexander I.— a single shaft of red granite, which, exclusive of pedestal and capital, is 84 ft. in height. This beautiful monument is the work of M. Montferrand, the archi- tect of tlie Isaac Oath. The shaft originally measured 102 ft., but it was subsequently shortened to its present dimensions from a fear that its dia- meter (14 ft.) was insufiicient for so Bussia. 159 B,oute 1. — St. Peter shuvg : Monuments. great a length. The base and pedestal are also composed of one enormous block of the same red granite, of the height of about 25 ft., and of nearly the same length and breadth ; the capital measures 16 ft., the statue of the angel on the summit 11 ft., and the cross 7 ft., but the total height of tlie monument is 151 ft. 9 in. Turkish cannon were melted down for the capital and tire ornaments on the pedestal. As the whole of St. Petersburg is built on a morass, it was thought necessary to drive no fewer than 6 successive rows of piles, in order to sustain such an immense weight standing upon so confined a base ; the shaft of the column alone is computed to weigh nearly 100 tons, and the massive pedestal must mate- rially increase the tremendous pres- sure. The statue was raised in its rough state, and polished after it was firmly fixed on its present elevation. On the pedestal — which, like the capital, is ornamented with bronze — is the following short and well chosen inscription : — “ To Alexander the First, Grateful Russia.” The eye rests with pleasure on this polished monument ; and in any other city its enormous size would make a greater impression. The inclemency of the climate has considerably injured the monolith. The frost has produced several fissures, which have been care- fully cemented, but the polished surface of the granite exhibits several patches. 3. Monument to Catherine II., in Nevski Prospect, opposite the Alex- ander Theatre and Imperial Public Library. Unveiled with great cere- mony in 1873. The huge blucks of granite on which this handsome monu- ment stands were brought from the Finnish shores of Lake Ladoga, and the casting was made by the English firm of Nicholls and Plincke at St. Petersburg, after a model by Mike- shin, a Russian artist. The nine figures in high relief around the pedestal re- present the more eminent coadjutors of Gath, in the work of governing and reforming the country. The female figure is that of the Princess Woron- zolf Dashkof, the first President of the Academy of Arts at St. Petersburg, and whose memoirs are so very well known. The other figures represent Rumi- antsof, Potemkin, Suvoroff, Uerjavin, Bezborodko, Betski, Chichagof and Orlolf-Chesmenski. The total height of the monument is 49 feet. 4. Nicholas Monument. — Between the Leuchtenberg Palace and St. Isaac’s : — an equestrian statue, repre- senting the Emperor Nicholas in the uniform ot the Horse Guards. The huge pedestal is formed of granite of various colours. The bas-reliefs re- present the principal episodes in the life of the sovereign, which, together with the emblematical figures at the four corners, will easily be recognised by those who have studied the history of the reign of Nicholas I. The 4 em- blematical figures have been cast after portraits of the consort of Nicholas and of his 3 daughters. 5. Equestrian Statue of Peter the Great, in front of St. Paul’s Palace, now the School of Engineers. — Erected, as already mentioned, by the Emperor Paul, with the inscription in letters of gold, “ The Grandson to the Grandfather, 1800.” Tlie pedestal is of marble, and Peter the Great is re- presented on it riding a charger and dressed as a Roman general, with a wu’cath of laurel round his head and a baton in his right hand. It was cast in the reign of the Empress Elizabeth (wdiile Paul was yet heir-apparent), by Martelli, an Italian artist. The reliefs on either side of the pedestal represent the battle of Poltava and the taking of Schlusselburg. 6. Iiumlantsof Ohelish . — On Vasili Ostrof, near the Academy of Arts, in the midhle of a square. It was origi- nally erected, in 1799, on the “ Cliami) de Mars,” in honour of Field-Marshal Itiimianstof Zadunaiski. It was re- moved to its present site iii 1821, and consists of an obelisk of black marble on a ])cdestal of a reddish marble, or- namented with festoons and bas-reliefs. It is surmounted by the eagle of Russia, with extended wings, resting on a globe, which, together with the eagle, is gilt. The total height of the monument is 79 ft. The pedestal 160 Sect. I. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg: Monuments. bears the laconic inscription, “ To the victories of Kumiantsof.” 7. Suvorojf Monument, near the Marble Palace, and facing the Troitski Bridge. — This is a bronze statue, re- presenting Prince Suvorotf on foot, dressed as a Roman, wielding a sword in the right hand and holding a shield in the left, in defence, over tlie crowns of the Pope, of Naples, and of Sar- dinia. Erected 1801. The house to the rt. of the statue^ is occupied by the British Embassy. 8. Monument to Field-Marshals Bar- clay de Tolly and Kutiizof. — Opj^osite the Kazan Cathedral. These were erected in 1836. Barclay de Tolly beat Vandamme at Culm, contributed to the victory at Leipzig, and to the capitulation of Paris; while Kutusof was considered the saviour of his country in 1812. Both statues were modelled by a Russian sculptor, Boris Oiiofsky. 9. Monument to Krylof, the great Russian fabulist, in the Summer Gar- den. The bronze bas-reliefs and orna- ments represent the subjects of his best compositions. He was born about the year 1768, and died in 18M-. His parents were poor, and his father died when he was only 14, leaving his mother with a pension of two rubles a month. His mother induced him to study hard, beginning with the small library that his father had carried about with him. His first literary attempts wmre not remarkable. He started with dramatic ideas, and after- wards tried journalism. In 1806 he obtained a government appointment at St. Petersburg, and in 1812 a i30st in the Imperial Library, whicli he lield till about 1840. It was only in 1809 that he began to write fables. These, although to a large extent ..Esopic, are nevertheless intensely Russian in character, and expose un- sparingly the ignorance, credulity, and other weaknesses of the Russian pea- santry.* * They have been admirably translated into English prose by AV. R. S. Ralston, of the British Musenm, who has likewise published two interesting works on the Songs and Folk Lore of the Russian people. 10. Statue of Admiral Krusenstern, on quay of Vasili Ostrof, opposite the the Naval School. The admiral dis- tinguished himself by being the first Russian circumnavigator of the globe. 11. Monument to Sir James Wylie, Bart . — Erected 1859, in the inner court of the Imperial Academy of Medicine, in recognition of the services which that distinguished Scotchman rendered to Russia as President of the Academy under the reigns of the Emperors Alexander I. and Nicholas. The baronet is seated, in full uniform, holding in his hand the reformed statutes of the Academy. The square pedestal is of grey marble, ornamented at the 4 corners with caryatides of great size. On three sides of the pedestal are bas-reliefs representing various episodes in the life of the doctor, together with his coat-of-arms and those of the Academy. Respecting the career of Sir James Wylie, Avho left the bulk of his large fortune to the Russian government, for the promotion of medical education, Dr. Lyall says, in his ‘Travels in Russia,’ “ Sir James Wylie, Avho is chief of the military division, is one of the most notorious and most power- ful individuals in Russia Through the interest of the late Dr. Rogerson he was appointed operator at tlie court, and I believe he retained this situation Avhilst he lived in the family of Count StroganotF. A new and important epoch in his life ap- proached, and the whim of the Emperor Paul led to his rise in life. This monarch had raised one of his lowest attendants to the rank of count, and had bestowed upon him an ample fortune in money and proirerty. Count Kutaisof, for this was the said count’s name, was seized with a violent in- flammation of the fore part of the neck that terminated in a large abscess, by Avhich his excellency endured great l)ain and extreme difficulty of respira- tion. Indeed he was threatened with suflbeation. The patient Avas attended by a number of the first medical men at court, Avho never thought of the only means of relief, the opening of the abscess. In the extremity of the Kiissia. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg: MarJcets. disease some friends advised the cnimt to send for Dr. Wylie in the middle of the night. On his arrival this gentleman opened the tumour, and an immense quantity of matter was eva- cuated. In an instant Count Kutaisof was restored to comparative health. On the following morning Paul, as usual, sent to inquire respecting the count’s state, and was astonished at the above relation. Paul then sent for Dr. Wylie, and appointed him to attend the court as physician. After Count Kutaisof's recovery, and Sir James Wylie’s advancement, it was jocularly reported that ‘ Dr. Wylie iiad made his fortune by cutting Count Kutaisofs throat.’ .... After Paul’s death and Alexander’s ascent to the throne, Sir James Wylie still preserved his place, and has success- ively been api:)ointed his majesty’s body surgeon and physician, chief of the medical military department, president of the Medico-Chirurgical Academy, &c., and has had numerous Kussian and foreign orders bestowed upon him. Besides, he has been chosen a member of almost all the learned societies in Eussia, and also of a few in Great Britain and upon the Continent. In addition to all these distinctions, after sharing the dangers and the honours of the cam- paign of 1812-13, by particular request of the Emperor Alexander, he was knighted by the Prince Eegent on board one of his majesty’s ships at Portsmouth, Platof’s sword being used on the occasion. He was also made a baronet of Great Britain.” It was Sir James Wylie that ampu- tated Moreau’s leg after the battle of Leipzig. 32. jMarivEts and Purchases. The principal market at St. Peters- burg is called the Gostinnoi-Dovor. It is situated in the Nevski Prospect, and was erected between 1755 and 1785. There is in most Russian cities of importance, and generally in a central j 161 position, a Gostmnoi Lvov, or bazaar, where all the more important articles of commerce are collected for sale. It is usually a large building, consisting of a ground floor and an upper floor. The upper floor is chiefly reserved for wholesale dealings : tlie ground-floor consists of a multitude of shops in which the various descriptions of mer- chandise are sold by retail. The dwellings of the merchants are away from these markets; and, when the hours of business are over, each trades- man locks up his own shop or stall, and commits the whole building for the night to the guardianship of the watch- men and their dogs. The Gostinnoi Dvor of St. Peters- burg is a colossal building, one side being in the Nevski Prospect, and anotiier in the Bolshaya Sadovaya, or Great Garden-street, through which, and along some of the adjoining streets, extend a number of shops and ware- houses, giving to that part of the town the appearance of a perpetual fair. The better description of Russian goods will be found in the Gostinnoi Dvor ; those of an inferior kind in the adjoining markets, the Apraxin Dinoh and the Stclmhin Dvor, which lie a little farther on in the ‘Bolshaya Sa- dovaya. Following the last-named street, which is bordered throughout its whole length by shops, the stranger will arrive at an open place, the Sennaya Ploschad, or hay-mai'ket, the principal provision-market of St. Peters- burg, which is well worth seeing in winter on account of the odd appear- ance of the frozen animals and birds offered for sale. The lanes and alleys that intersect these markets are overrun throughout the day by a crowd of purchasers. In a city containing 700,000 inha- bitants there must at all times be a great and urgent demand for a vast variety of articles ; but there are many reasons why this should be more the case in St. Petersburg tlian in any other capital. In the first place, there is no ottier European city where the great bulk of the inhabitants, ov/ing to the system of Customs’ protection, if I not prohibition, that prevails, make 1G2 Sect. I. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Hospitals. use of goods of such inferior quality, or where, consequently, they have such frequent occasion to buy new articles, or to have the old ones re- paired. Then there is no other capital where the people are so capricious and so fond of change. The wealthy Rus- sians are here one day and gone the next; now travelling for the benefit of their health, now repairing to the country to re-establish their finances by a temporary retirement, and then reappearing on the banks of the Neva, to put their revenues (much dimi- nished by the Emancipation) into cir- culation. This constant fluctuation leads daily to the dissolution and to the formation of a number of establish- ments, and makes it necessary that there should be at all times a greater- stock of all things required for the outtit of a family than would be requisite in a- town of equal extent, but with a more settled population. A Russian seldom buys anything till just when he wants to use it, and, as he cannot then wait, he must have it ready to his hand. Articles, which in other- countries are generally ordered before- hand from a tradesman, are here boirght ready for immediate use. The traveller will resort to these markets, partly to observe, as he lounges along the arcades, the cha- racteristic mamrers of the dealers, but principally with the intention of buy- ing sonre few articles as presents for (listribution at home. His first object is commendable, but there is very little on which he can lay out his money with advantage and satisfaction in the markets here described. The only articles really national and peculiar to be found there are the embroidered slippers, cushions, and sashes of Torjok. In most of the shops a system of bar- gaining is pursued which always leaves the purchaser in doubt whether he has really paid the minimum value. Gold brocades are sold in a row of shops called the Perinny Biad. They are much used in England for furni- ture. No. 70 in the Gostinnoi Dvor is an excellent shop for furs. There are several old curiosity and picture shops within the Apraxin Dvor, where i old china and many articles of virtu may be picked up by those who know the language and can bargain. Stolen goods of every description abound in the latter market. Both the Apraxin and the Stchukin markets were burned down in 1862. They have since been handsomely rebuilt. For purchases of jewellery the tourist is recommended to the “ English Magazine,” where by far the best selection of goods in every department will be found. The prices are perhaps a little higher than in other shops, but the superiority of the articles and the advantage of speak- ing English afibrd full compensation. Schneegas, jeweller, 17 Bolshaya Mors- kaya street, also keeps a large stock of malachite and lapis-lazuli ornaments at moderate prices. Travellers should visit Sazikof s shoi?, also in Bolshaya Morskaya - street, famous for silver goods. Many pretty little articles may be purchased there for keepsakes. There are several silver- smiths’ shops under the Town Hall, in the Nevski Prospect. Circassian belts and ornaments, in steel and silver, are much in fashion, as well as Caucasian hoods, of bright- coloured cloth and handsomely braided. These are sold in two or three shops in Nevski Prospect, on the left-hand side, a little beyond the Kazan Cathedral. Views of St. Petersburg may be obtained at Dazziaro’s, Beg- grow’s, and at the “ Palette de Ra- phael.” The best photographers are Berga- masco (12 Nevski Prospect) and Le- vitski (80 Moika Canal). 33. Hospitals and Medical Advice. The capital is well provided with hospitals endowed by the State and supported by contributions. Small monthly payments are exacted, but there are a certain number of free beds in each hospital, to which the poor have access. The principal hospitals are : — 1. Obukhof, founded 1782, on Eon- i tanka Canal. This is a building of Eussia. 163 Moute 1. — St. Petersburg : Theakes. 2 storeys, with a frontage of 600 ft., and stands in very spacious grounds of its own. The number of beds is 450, but there is a special hospital in connection with it, for prisoners, with 200 beds ; also a ward for male lunatics. Fifteen medical men are attached to it. There is a secret ward at this hos- pital with 50 beds, for women who may have fallen victims to disease under “ specially unfortunate circumstances.” It was established by the Emperor Nicholas I., who once on visiting the Obukhof found a lady in one of the public wards whose features were familiar to His Majesty. Her distress- ing story touched the heart of the monarch, and that hers was no un- common case may be seen from the fact that the secret ward is now gene- rally full. No questions are asked, and the patients are only known by their numbers. 2. Kalinkin, on Fontanka Canal, established 1779, and now appropriated to female syphilitic cases. Under the licensing and inspection system which l^revails, such cases are immediately sent to the hospital. 3. Marie Hospital, in Liteinaya- st., established 1803. An immense building with 2 wings, 400 beds. 4. Alexandrofski, or “ Chernorabot- chy,” hospital for workmen. Supported out of a tax of 60 cop. per head, levied on the lower classes in towns. In addition to these hospitals, con- ducted on the most perfect systems, are many charitable institutions, such for instance as the Hospital and Dis- pensary of tlie Sisters of Mercy, the Ophthalmic Hospital, the Hospital of St. Mary Magdalen, &c. A medical man will have no diffi- culty in obtaining admission to the civil and military hospitals of St. Petersburg. The average daily number of sick in the civil hospitals of St. Peters- burg, during an ordinary season, is 4000. The average mortality in the civil hospitals is 1 in 16 or 17. There is a lunatic asylum, with about 250 inmates, a few miles on the road to I’eterhof, and another on the Finland Ely. The practitioners at all these establishments are mostly German ; and the mortality, from the weakness of the constitutions of the patients, and partly from their unbelief in medical science, is excessive, compared with that of other cities in Europe. The death-rate in European Eussia is 3 AS per cent. Travellers are warned not to drink the water of the Neva ; its disagreeable effects are sometimes felt even when taken in the shape of tea. For further medical information, vide Introduction. Dr. Garrick, M.D., is the physician to the British Embassy (36, OflQcer- skaya-st.). Dentists : Messrs. Murphy and Lynn, 17, Malaya Morskaya-st. 34. Theatres. There are five public Theatres at St. Petersburg : 1, the Great Theatre ; 2, the Marie Theatre (both these in the same square between the Moika and Catherine Canals) ; 3, Alexairder Theatre, in Nevski , Prospect ; 4, Michael Theatre, near the palace of that name : and 5, The Boufte along- side the Alexander Tlieatre : all under the management of Government. 1. dEe Great Theatre is devoted during tlie winter season (with the ex- ception of Lent) to the Italian opera, for which one of the best troupes in Europe is always engaged. The first great musical work produced in Eussia, Paisiello’s ‘Barbiere di Siviglia,’ was originally performed at St. Peters- burg in i780. All the most approved operas are reproduced here with much success. The mise-en-scene is always most perfect, and the costumes rich and true. A very large sum is de- voted yearly by the government to the cultivation of the histrionic art in all its branches, and a large school is maintained for the education of act- resses and ballet-dancers. The ballets here given are very much frequented. Of these the “ Fille de Pharaon,” the 164 Sect. I. Moute 1. — St, Petersburg: Clubs. Tsar devitsa’ or Maiden Tsar, the ‘ Golden Fish/ and the ‘ Koniok gor- bunok’(“the Hnmp-backed Horse”) the 3 latter being based on national popular legends, are admirably ren- dered. The best ballets are gene- rally given on Sundays. The Great Theatre was originally built in 1781; it was burnt down in 1817, and renovated in 1836. There are 6 tiers of boxes and 17 rows of chairs, or room for about 3000 persons. The prices of the boxes vary from ,25 rs. to 5 rs. The pit-stalls Of the first 3 rows are 8 and 6 rs. ; the furthest are 2 rs. On benefit nights the prices are considerably raised. Masked balls on a large scale, frequented by the Emperor and members of the Imp. Family, are given here during the winter season. 2. The Marie Theatre is appropriated to the Kussian opera and drama. Pro- fane music has been much cultivated in Kussia of late years. Bortniansky was a great reformer of Kussian sacred music about the year 1780, and Alexis Lvotf was the first Russian who com- posed operatic music. He Avas the auth or of the Kussian National Anthem. The most remarkable composer, however, is Glinka, whose opera of ‘ J izn za Tsaria ’ (Life for the Tsar) is admirable for the correctness of its composition, and for the beauty of its melodies, Avhich are all national. The subject of this very popular opera is the de- votion of a peasant who saved the Tsar Michael by leading a detachment of Poles, who were seeking him, into a deep and thick forest, where they all jAerished. Verstofsky has written the music of several vaudevilles, and some comic operas, of which the best known is ‘ The Tomb of Askold.’ The opera by Glinka affords an opportunity of studying Russian melodies and cos- tumes, which should be eagerly seized by the traveller. The “ Mazurka,” a Polisli dance, mucli in fashion in Kussia, is introduced into one of the acts. Shakspearian tragedies in a Kussian translation are occasionally given here. The prices are lower than at the Great Theatre. 3. Alexander Theatre. — Here Kus- sian comedies and dramas are acted. I Griboyedoff ’s comedy, ‘ Sorrow comes : from Wit,’ a satire on Moscow society, I and Gogol’s ‘ Revisor,’ in which the coiTuption of the old Russian official is well portrayed, are well worth see- ing for the sake of the acting and the scenes of Russian life which they hold up to Anew, and which are in great part intelligible, even in the absence of a knowledge of the Kussian language. This theatre was opened in 1832. It has 6 tiers of boxes and 9 rows of stalls. The prices are very moderate. It possesses none of the beauty and magnificence of the two theatres already mentioned. 4. Michael Theatre, opened in 1833. French and German plays are per- formed here in winter by troupes as good as any on the Continent. All the most po]3ular comedies of the Parisian stage are reproduced here with very great success. 5. The Bouffe Theatre, where pieces of a light character are performed in Avinter, such as Offenbach’s and Le Cocq’s operettas. In summer, similar pieces are given at IsleTs, vide Drives : the Mineral ivaters. The Great and Michael Theatres are generally very numerously attended. Travellers should apply or send early for tickets. French spoken at the box-ollices. In summer, theatrical re- presentations are occasionally given at a theatre on Kamennoi island. 35. Clubs. The principal club is called the English Club, because it Avas founded in 1770 by an English merchant of the name of Gardener. It is situated on the Fontanka Canal, near the Anitchkof Bridge. Admis- sion through a member. Very feAV of the English residents noAV belong to it. The club Avhich is likely to be of most use to the English traveller is the Commercial Club, on the English Quay, betAA^een the English Chapel and the Nicholas Bridge. Here traA^ellers can be inscribed by their bankers or friends for the Avhole period of their residence at St. Petersburg, and enjoy all the 165 Russia. Moute 1. — St. Petersburg: Societies. advantages of members. Excellent dinners and a table-d’liote on “ ex- change days ” (Tuesdays and Fridays) are among those advantages. The ‘ Times ’ and other English news- papers are kept in the reading-room. The Nobility Club, the German or Schuster Club (so called after the name of the founder), and the Club of the Eussian Merchants, are large esta- blishments, where subscription balls are given during the winter season. The Agricultural Club, in the No- bility Assembly-house, combines ad- vantages of a social and domestic character with those of a learned so- ciety, where subjects of rural economy are formally discussed. The Imperial Yacht Club, which is the most exclu- sive, is in Great Morskaya-street. The summer station of the lUver Yacht Chib is on Yelaghiu Island, where the large collection of boats and the building-sheds of the club will well repay a visit. The Club has about 300 members and 150 yachts and boats. Eegattas are held under its auspices in the month of August. Vide Drives. 3G. Learned and other Societies . — Foremost amongst these is the Imperial Geographical Society, established in 184:5, and now under the presidency of H. I. H. the Grand Duke Constantine. It numbers about 800 Fellows, besides honorary and corresponding members. Its annual report is published in Rus- sian. The Proceedings of the Society contain most valuable contributions to geographical science, especially with reference to the distant and little- known countries of Central Asia. The Library is well supplied, and there is a very interesting ethnological mu- seum, representing the costumes of the several races subject to Russia. The meetinirs take place only in winter. Admission on application to the secre- tary. Among the other societies are the Imperial Archseological, the Rus- sian Entomological, the Free Econo- mical, the Imperial Mineralogical, and the Imperial Historical. There are several societies of a benevolent character, and an excellent association called “ The Society for the Encourage- ment of Art,” where pictures and other objects of art, by foreign and native artists, are exhibited all the year round. The rooms of tins society are at the Police Bridge, in the Nevsky Prospect. Admission on payment of 25 copecks. Very pleasing and cha- racteristic pictures by Russian artists may be bought there. It may not be out of place here to mention the good work done in Russia by the British and Foreign Bible Society. The following is a short sketch of the history of the Society’s Agency at St. Petersburg ; — After the extensive and important work of the first Russian Bible Society in the distribution of the Holy Scrip- tures ceased, on the accession of the Em})eror Nicholas, many of the editions of the Scriptures printed by them were returned to the warehouses of the Holy Syuod. Subsequently, during the pastorate of tlie well-known Richard Knill, over the British and American Congregational Church at St. Petersburg, that gentleman, on one occasion, sent to the Holy Synod to purchase a copy of the Russian New Testament. He obtained it, and sub- sequently purchased and distributed a considerable number of copies, Tire work was continued by the Rev. Dr. John Croumbie Brown, who succeeded him, and who brought with him an edition of the Finnish New Testament sufficiently large to supply every family in the Grand Duchy with a copy. The work of Bible distribution w'as then taken up by Archibald Merrielces, Esq., of the firm of Muir and Merrie- lecs in St. Petersburg, wdio carried it on with the aid of a clerk. On that gentleman’s retirement from business, the British and Foreign Bible Society’s work in Russia w'as placed on the same footing as the other foreign Agencies of the Society; Mr. A. Eck being- appointed the first agent. After the w'ork had been carried on for a number of years, in the South of Russia, with Odessa as a centre, by 166 Houte 1. — St. Petersburg : Simmer Garden. ^ Sect. I. Mr. Jolm Melville, to wliom special favour and facilities were granted by the Emperor Nicholas, that part of the Empire was also in 1870 constituted into a distinct Agency, the present agent beiug Mr. James Watt. The Agent for Northern Russia, Finland, and Asiatic Russia, is the Rev. William Nicholson, M.A., and the Society’s depot is at the foot of the Nicholas Bridge, 1, Blagovestchenski- street. 37. Private Collections of Pictures. — Besides the celebrated Leuchten- berg . Gallery, formerly at Munich, but now in the palace of the Duke of Leuchtenberg, which would re- quire a catalogue by itself (see Waagen), the private collection of H. I. TI. the Grand Duchess Marie con- tains several fine pictures by the an- cient Italian and Spanish masters, as well as many good specimens by modern artists. There is a small room very prettily panelled with Greuses. A Rerugino and a Vandyke are worthy of notice. The houses of some of the Russian nobles contain very valuable and interesting collections of art. The Counts Serge and Paul Stroganoff, who are both distinguished connois- seurs and lovers of art, possess pictures which woidd be considered valuable acquisitions in any public gallery. The collection of Count Serge, which is in the Stroganoff House, a fine building by Rastrelli, at the Police Bridge, opposite the “ Society for the Encouragement of Art,” contains amongst other treasures an admirable head by Leonardo da Vinci, a sketch by Correggio, 2 excellent portraits by Tintoretto, 4 Rubens, 2 capital por- traits by Van Dyke, a beautiful and highly finished cabinet picture by Rembrandt, as well as excellent speci- mens of Teniers, Cuyp, Adrian Van- develde, Hackert, and Van der Hey den. The collection of Count Paul Strog- anoff is wortljily lodged in one of the prettiest houses iu St. Petersburg, at the corner of the Sergietskaya airci the Mohkovaya, a chef-d’oeuvre of elegance and comfort, built by Monighetti, an I architect of great taste. The principal pictures in this small but choice col- lection are by Filippino Lippi (a small but beautiful specimen of this master), Cima da Conegliano, Sebas- tian del Piombo, Rubens, Van der Heist, Nicolas Maes, Peter de Hoogh, Adrian Vandevelde, and Ruysdael. Mr. Drujinin, a wealthy proprietor of mines in Siberia, who lives in Mokhovaya-street, has a beautiful sea- jnece by Ruysdael, and some curious specimens of precious stones and mine- rals from his mines. The once cele- brated collection of marbles, bronzes, pictures, and curiosities of all kinds, which belonged to Monferrand, the architect, is now dispersed. The col- lection of Senator Smirnoff contains some excellent portraits : Catherine II., by Lampi ; the painters Largilliere Rigaud, and David, by themselves ; Cosmo I., by Bronzino ; a portrait, by Antonio Moro; the Infant Don Fer- nando, said to be by Rubens — an excellent portrait, most probably by Van Tulden ; a fine head of a Monk, of the Spanish school ,* and amongst the modern pictures by French artists, a small Decamp and Gudin, The remaining collections of any note are those of Prince Gortchakoff, Count Peter Shuvaloff, Count Orlof- Davydoff, Prince Alexander Bariat- inski, H. Excy. Mr, P. Semenoff, General Bibikoff, and Doctor Kozlof. 38. Summer Garden. This is a favourite lounge of the inhabitants of St. Petersburg, especially iu spring, before the capital is deserted for sum- mer residences. The garden was laid out in 1711, and is half a mile in length by a quarter in breadth. The walks are well shaded by fine old trees and ornamented with marble statues, which are cased in wooden boxes during winter to protect them from the action of the frost. In one corner stands the Summer Palace, built by the Empress Anne in 1731 on the site of a residence built by Peter the Great in 1711, principally for the reception of foreigners. Biren, 167 liussia. Boute !.■ — St. Petersburg : Exchange Post Office. the tyrannical regent, occupied it after the death of Anne, and was arrested there. A few articles of furniture used by Peter are preserved inside. Near this house is the handsome monu- ment to the memory of Krylof, the great Eussian fabulist. {Vide Monu- ments.) During the short months of the Eussian summer numerous groups of prettily dressed children will be found playing under the shadow of him who wrote so well for their instruc- tion and amusement. At the other- end of the garden is a beautiful urn of porphyry, presented by the King of Sweden, and of which an exact counterpart exists in the grounds at Balmoral. The handsome iron rail- iug fronting the Neva was put up in 1784, after a design by Velteu, then Director of the Academy of Arts. In former days the sons and daughters of Eussian merchants and tradesmen, dressed in their best apparel, assembled in this garden on Whit-Monday to choose partners for life, but the cus- tom is now almost obsolete. The large square next to it is called the “ Tsarit- sin Lug” or Empress’ Field. It is also known as the “ Chamj) de Mars.” Eeviews are held here. At the entrance of the garden, facing the Quay, a Chapel dedicated to St. Alexander Nevsky marks the spot where the Emperor Alexander II. stood when his life was attempted by Karakozof in 1866. The text in letters of gold over the principal por- tico is “ Touch not mine anointed.” The chapel was laised by public sub- scription, and is therefore a monu- ment of the love and sympathy of the Eussian jicople. There is an excellent Eestaurant in the garden, and a military band plays near it on Sundays and holydays. Steamers leave from opposite the Summer Garden for the several islands of the Neva. 39. The Ezrdianrje, and Private Pauliers. — A fine building at the ex- tremity of Vasili Island, originally erected 1784, after designs by Qua- ] renghi ; but entirely rebuilt between 1804 and 1816, by Thomon. The great hall of the Exchange is of very large dimensions, and is lighted from above. A colossal bust of Alexander I. is placed in it. Stately flights of steps lead from this noble edifice to the river, and on the open space in front of it are two massive “ Columns Eostratm” above 100 ft. in height, decorated with the prows of ships, in honour of Mercury, and each sur- mounted by three Atlantas that sup- port hollow globes, in which fires are sometimes lighted. It should be visited during “change” hours be- tween 3 and 5 p.m. There is an exten- sive garden beyond, v/hich is converted in sjDi'ing into a market for birds, dogs, and other early importations on the opening of the navigation. Tlie Custom-house is immediately behind. Most of the bankers’ offices are situ- ated near the English Quay. The chief banking-houses are the State Bank ; the St. Petersburg Joint-Stock Commercial Bank; the International Bank; the Discount Bank ; the Bank for Eussian Trade ; Messrs. Thomson, Bonar, and Co. ; Messrs. Wyneken and Co. ; Messrs. M. Anderson and Co. ; Messrs. E. M. Meyer and Co. ; J. E. Giinzburg, and J. E. Condoyauaki. Business hours, 10 to 4. 40. Post and Telegraph Offices . — ■ These are almost contiguous, in Fotch- tamsky-stieet, which runs off, and is partly parallel with, the boidevard that extends from the Nicholas Biidge to St. Isaac’s. Letters for England and the Continent must be j)osted early in the morning. For rates, &c., vide Posting — Postage. Boxes for town and country letters will be found in all the principal thoroughfares, and at the chief hotels. Tlie charge for a telegram to London is 3 rs. 25 c. for 20 words, including the address. The time of transmission varies according to the amount of business ; 4 hrs. is about the minimum. Messages i)i English taken. 168 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Buildings. ' Sect. I. , 41. Summary of Buildings. — Al- though the principal objects of interest ’which are to be seen at St. Petersburg have now been enumerated, a descrip- tion of the city would not be complete witliout a cursory mention of the fol- lowing buildings and institutions. 1. Leuclitenherg or Marie Palace, be- hind St. Isaac’s, built in 1814 for the Grand Duchess Marie Nicolaevna ; it is fitted up with most exquisite taste, and has a large winter garden. The picture gallery has been mentioned (vide Private Collections'). The jDalace occupies the site of a house which once belonged to Prince Chernisheff, where the Emperor Paul entertained the Prince de Condeh On that occa- sion the apartments were furnished in exact imitation of those at Chantilly Avlien Paul visited him in 1783. The servants wore the liveries of tlie Prince, and over the entrance of the palace an inscription stated it to be the “ Hotel de Conde.” 2. Palace of the Grand Duke Nicholas, at the Nicholas Bridge. 3. Palace of the Grand Duke Michael on the Court Quay. 4. Palace of the Grand Duke Vladimir, also on the Court Quay. 5. Michael Palace, formerly occupied by the late Grand Duchess Helen, in Michael Square, built by Rossi in 1822; a vast and elegant edifice, ornamented in front with pillars of the Corinthian order. A large garden is attached to it. fi. Anitchkoff Palace, in the Nevski Pro- spect, built in 1744, by Count Ras- trelli for the Empress Elizabeth, who gave it to Count Razumofski. It re- verted to the crown in 1791, when it became the seat of the “ Cabinet,” or that of the administration of the Im- perial household. The widow of the Emperor Nicholas resided and died there, but it is now occupied by the Tsc'sarevitch and his consort Marie Eeodorovna (the Princess Dagmar of Denmark). On the bridge beyond the palace are the well-known equestrian statues by Baron Klodt. 7. The large house over the bridge, on the rt., is the residence of the princely family of Beloselski-Beloserski, containing the most beautiful staircase and the rich- est suite of apartments of any of the private palaces of St. Petersburg. It is full of pictures and costly objects of art. 8. The State Bank in Bolshaya Sadovaya-street, opposite the Stchukin Dvor. This handsome building is like- wise due to the architect Quarenghi. It is a State institution, ostensibly for the promotion of trade, but in reality a branch of the Treasury and an agency between the Government and the public for sundry financial transactions. 9. The establishment for printing the notes of this bank and other government paper will repay inspection. It lies in the direction of the Peterhof Rail- way Stat. There is an Artesian well on the premises. 10. The Town Hall, in the Nevski Prospect, surmounted by a signal tower. The business of the town corporation is transacted here. 11. Opposite the Gostinnoi Dvor is the Passage or arcade in which pe- destrians take refuge in case of rain. The shops are principally kept by foreigners. 12. Biding School of the Horse-guards and Barracks, along the boulevard near the Grand Duke Nicho- j las’ Palace. These may be inspected j by military men on application to some ] of the officers. 13, The riding-school i at the opposite end of the square, near the palace, is now converted into a Museum gof A griculture, where the ' various processes of agriculture used in Russia are exhibited. 14. Military Schools, Technological Institute, &c. Travellers who desire to study the system of education pursued in Russia will probably obtain letters of intro- duction which will procure for them the information they seek. 15. Physi- cal Observatory, alongside the School of Mines, where the temperature of the atmosphere and other phenomena are carefully recorded. 16. The Ceme- teries of Smolensk and Volkhova will afford materials for reflection, especi- ally on the first Monday after Easter, or “ Recollection Monday.” Thou- sands congregate in the cemeteries three or four times during the year, bringing with them provisions of every kind which are consumed over the graves of departed relatives and friends. Much taste and feeling are exhibited in the monumental records Route 1. — St. Petersburg : Drives. 169 Russia. of the dead; they illustrate, better than words, the kindly and sympa- thetic temperament of the Russian people. 42. Sports and Amusements. In summer the tourist can join the matches of the St. Petersburg Cricket Club, or tlie excursions of the Emjlish Boat Chib; and he can shoot black- cock, capercailzie, snipe, and duck, from July to October. In winter there is bear, elk, and wolf hunting in the neighbourhood of the capital. In winter, skating and going down ice- hills afford most healthy and mirth- ful exercise. The River Yacht Club rents the Yusupof Gardens, in Bolshaya Sadovaya-street, for skating purposes. Strangers are admitted on payment of a small entrance- fee. There is gene- rally an English subscription skating ground on the Neva. Drives in troikas, or sledges drawn by 3 horses abreast, complete the amusements to which the traveller in Russia will be welcomed by any member of the British commu- nity at St. Petersburg to whom he may have been recommended. For further particulars respecting sport, vide Intro- duction. 43. Drives. — The first drive the tourist should take in summer is to the islands of the Neva, a little before sunset, the hour at which the raiik and fashion still in the neighbourhood of St. Petersburg assemble at the “Point” (Strelka)oi Yelagin Island. Crossing the Troitski Bridge, he will be carried swiftly along the Kamenno- Ostrofski Prospect, lined on either side, first with the houses of the poorer classes, and further on with sub- urban retreats of varying attractions. Beyond Kamennoi, or Stone Island, is Krestofski, or Cross Island, on which stands the Beloselski-Belozerski Cha- teau. Beyond this again is Yelagin Island, with an Imperial residence, very prettily laid out and charmingly situated. The view from this chateau Russia . — 1875. is delightful ; first the gardens, with their neat English - looking gravel walks and fiower-beds ; then the broad sheet of the Neva, with its verdant banks, dotted with picturesque chalets standing out from a background of sombre pine-trees ; and beyond again, the lofty golden spires of the capital rising in the distance and glowing with the last red rays of the setting sun. There are few above the con- dition of tradesmen who do not afford themselves the luxury of a cottage or a few rooms beyond the precincts of the hot and dusty city. Men of busi- ness retire to the islands or to Peterhof after the hours of “ change,” and set in motion a great number and variety of conveyances, which enliven the cliaus- sees and make them look somewhat like the Epsom road on Derby day. Small river-steamers convey great numbers from a landing-stage oppo- site the Summer Garden. The tourist should visit the extensive establish- ment of the River Yacht Club on Yela- gin Island. On his way back to town he should drive to IslePs establish- ment for Mineral Waters at Novaya Derevnia, the Cremorne of St. Peters- burg without the dancing. Several other places of entertainment, with dancing, will be passed; but a visit to these we leave to the taste and in- clination of the tourist. The Botanical Gardens on Apothe- caries’ Island (Aptekiirski Ostrof), open to the public, may interest the horticulturist. The science of hot- house gardening is here brought to the utmost perfection, and one of the finest assortments of tropical 2^1 ants has been collected amid the snows of the north. The collection of Orchi- daceous pdants is one of the best in Europe. The more distant drives can only be undertaken under tho guidance of a resident. Pargoala, Murina, and other places further in Finland, are strewed with pretty villas, where merriment and hospitality abound. A very short drive through the streets of St. Petersburg will bring the visitor to the Moscow Gate or TrS umphal Arch (Moscovskaya Zastava), I Sect. .1. 170 Houte 1. — St. Petersburg : Excursions. ■where the old road to the ancient capital begins. It is in the Greek style of architecture, and was finished in 1838, by Stassof, Court arcliitect. Twelve columns 17 ft. in diam. and 68 ft. high, support an attic orna- mented with 12 angels in bas-relief, while above is the inscription : “ To the triumphant Kussian armies, in memory of their deeds in Persia, in Turkey, and in the suppression of the troubles in Poland, in tiie years 1826, 1827, 1828, 1829, 1830, 1831.” On the city side the inscription is in Latin, on the other in Eussian, This magnificent monument is well worth seeing. (For de.^cription of Narva Tri- umphal Arch, vide Excursion 1.) The Gardens of Bezborodko, a short distance up the river beyond the Sum- mer Garden, may be reached in one of the small steamers that ply on the river. The Gardens of Catherinenkof, in the direction of the road to Peterhof, are only visited by the public on the 1st (13th) May, to hail the return of spring. The old palace of Cathe- rinenkof is shown. 44. Excuesions. 1. To Cronstadt, Oeanienbaum, Peterhof, Steelxa, and Monastery of St. Sergius. This excursion may be made in one day, or each place may be visited separately, according to the time at the disposal of the tourist. The tra- veller may even reverse the itinerary and proceed first to Sergi or Peterhof. The following is, however, a sketch of the excursion in its entirety. Leaving the Quay of Vasili Island at an early hour (about 9 a.m.), Cron- stadt is reached by steamer in an hour and a half. The shores on each side of the estuary of the Neva are low and the voyage itself is uninteresting, except to those who like to watch the movement of shipping. Cronstadt, the port of St. Peters- burg, has a Pop. of 48,000 Inhab., in- cluding the garrison (about 25,000). The fortifications are extensive, and were begun by Peter the Great in 1703, when he dispossessed the Swedes. The first fort that he erected was Kronschlott, opposite the entrance of the present harbour. Prince Menshi- kotf conducted the works under the directions of Peter, and one of the forts still bears his name. During subsequent reigns the fortifications have been strengthened and the ap- proach from seaward secured by sink- ing ships and erecting batteries, espe- cially after the visit of the Baltic Squadron in 1 854 . It h as long been the chief station in the Baltic for the Eus- sian fleet, moored in a harbour in the rear of the fortifications. Two harbours are approjiriated to merchant vessels, of which about 1300 enter the port annually; not fewer than two-thirds being English. The bar at the mouth of the Neva carries a depth of only 8 to 10 ft. at ordinary level, and pre- sents a very narrow channel, navigable by ships of small burthen. The larger vessels discharge and load at Cronstadt, their goods being transported to and from St. Petersburg in lighters ; but a canal is being constructed to enable vessels drawing 18 ft. water to proceed direct to St. Petersburg. The official but very much exaggerated value of the imports cleared at the custom- house at St. Petersburg amounts to about 15 million pounds st. ; and the exports (principally tallow, corn, hemp, and flax) to about 10 million pounds st. This trade gives rise to considerable activity at Cronstadt between May and November, and enlivens the town, which in the winter season is exceed- ingly dreary. The only objects to interest the stranger are the fbrtifica- tions and the harbour, which he can view by taking a walk to the “ Mole- head,” or by crossing the “ Merchants’ Harbour ” in a ferry-boat. The canal is bordered with granite and by an iron railing, begun by Peter in 1721, and finished by the Empress Elizabeth Another canal, commenced in 1782, unites the “Italian Pond” with the S'" 171 Eussia. Moute 1. — St. Petersburg: Oranienbaum. Merchants’ Harbour. The dry docks will admit the largest vessels of war, and a splendid steam factory almost rivals Keyham in its mechanical ap- j)liances. These can only be viewed by permission of tlie naval authori- ties. Strangers may drive to the extremity of the island, 3 or 4 miles beyond the citadel-gate, where they will obtain a better view of the re- nowned forts of Cronstadt and of the South Channel, now dammed up, but which Sir Charles hJapier ascended as far as the parallel of the great Naval Hospital, near the pier for the steamers to St. Petersburg. The Summer Gar- den, originally planted by Peter the Great, contains a restaurant where refreshments may be obtained. Near to it and to the governor’s residence, on a square at the back of the Middle Harbour, is a statue of Peter the Great, by Baron Klodt. There is a British chapel at Cron- stadt, frequented by seafarers and by the English residents, who are about 50 in number. It is also the seat of a British vice-consulate. The British Seamen’s Hospital op- posite the English chapel will be visited by those who take an interest in such institutions. It was esta- blished in 1867 by private subscrip- tion, and is under the patronage of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, and of H.E. the British Ambassador at the Court of Russia. There is sufficient accommodation for 50 or 60 patients, although the number of beds, when no epidemic prevails, is only 35. An inspection of the premises will show that nothing has been neglected to make the establishment equal to the best in Europe, or even anywhere, on the same scale. The purchase of the ground and the building and fur- nishing expenses amounted to about 5500Z., of wliich 2000Z. was advanced by Mr. Edward Cazalet, an English merchant at St. Petersburg. Part of this debt was gradually paid off out of the contributions of the charit- able, as well as out of the profits of the Institution arising from a com- pulsory tax on all British vessels dis- charging or loading at Cronstadt, at the rate of 1 ruble per man of each crew — a tax that brings in about 10,000 rs. per annum. In 1874, Mr. Cazalet generously freed the Hospital from the remainder of its debt. The number of British seamen who have the advantage of this excellent institution during the months of summer is between 13,000 and 14,000. The affairs of the British Seamen’s Hospital are managed by a committee of which H.B.M. Consul at St. Peters- burg is ex-officio chairman. Per- mission to view the institution will readily be granted by the resident Medical Officer. Befresliments may be had at the British Hotel, in the principal street of Cronstadt, or at one of the Clubs (the Naval and the Merchants’) if the tourist be introduced by a member. English is spoken in most of the shops, and even the drojky-drivers are able to converse in “ pigeon-English.” 2. Oranienbaum — Small steamers ply several times a day between Cron- stadt and Oranienbaum, about 5 m. distant. From the latter place the traveller is recommended to engage a carriage or a drojky to take him to Peterljof, or even to Sergi, with the un- derstanding that all the siglits between these places are to be visited. A car- riage for the day will cost about 10 rubles. Travellers may, if they pre- fer it, proceed from Oranienbaum to Peterhof by rail, a distance of 6 m. The grounds at Oranienbaum are well worth seeing. Built on a terrace, the palace, which belongs to the Crown since the death of the Grand Duchess Helen, commands a lovely and exten- sive view of Cronstadt aud its fortifica- tions, and of an immense expanse of water, studded with busy craft under sail and steam. It was built by Men- shikotf in 1724, and confiscated on his attainder. Subsequently it became the favourite residence of Peter III., who surrounded himself there with his Holstein guard, and raised a mimic fortification, which is still to bo seen. There is an excellent hrifei at the ‘i 2 172 Sect. I. Route 1. — St. Petersburg : Peterhof. Eailway Station in Oranienbaiim, where dinner or refresliments may be obtained. Taking the high road to St. Peters- burg, the tourist will pass numerous summer residences and a thriving German colony. Tlie first chateau beyond Oranienbaum is Sergiefka, the property of the Grand Duchess Marie Nicolaevna. The house is most beau- tifully situated in grounds very taste- fully ornamented. Beyond this is Sobstvennaya, or “Mine Own,” a most lovely miniature palace, built for the Emperor Alexander II. when heir- apparent. Strangers are allowed to inspect it, and should not omit doing so. The several rooms, in which some charming little pictures will be found, are most tastefully and richly orna- mented, and the garden behind, kept with the utmost care, aflbrds a most charming prospect. The summer re- sidence and the farm of Prince Peter of Oldenburg stand between this and Peterhof. 3. Peterhof — The construction of this prettily-situated residence was commenced about 1720. The palace, situated on an elevation of 60 feet, was built by Leblond, under the directions of Peter the Great, and is one of the principal attractions of the place. Although every emperor and every empress has made alterations and ad- ditions, the character of the whole is the same as that of all the palaces built by Peter ; even the yellow colour, which was its original hue, is always renewed, but its architecture is very insignificant in style. Inside, however, are to be seen some beautiful tapestries, countless articles of virtu, tazzas of porcelain, malachite, and marble, and a num- ber of pictures chiefly representing the naval victories of Orloft' and other Russian generals of Catherine II. There is also one highly interesting apartment, containing a collection of 863 femaP joortraits executed by Count Rotari for that Emiuess during a journey which he made through the fifty provinces of Russia. They are all beautiful young girls, whom the count has painted in picturesque atti- tudes and in their national costumes ; and one cannot but admire the inven- tive genius of the artist in giving a difierent position and expression to so many laces. One pretty girl is knit- ting diligently, another embroidering ; one peeps archly from behind a cur- tain, another gazes expectingly from ^ a window ; another leans over a chair, as if listening to her lover; a sixth, reclining on cushions, seems lost in thought. One slumbers softly and sweetly ; this stands before a glass, combing her beautiful hair ; that has buried herself up to the ears in fur, leaving visible only a pair of tender rosy lips and soft blue eyes gleaming from under the wild bear's skin. There are also some excellent portraits of old people ; two in particular — an old man with a staff, and an old woman by the fire. This collection is unique in its kind, and would be, invaluable for a physiognomist, if he could be certain that these j^ortraits were as exact and faithful as they are pleasing and tasteful. But this is doubtful, for they all bear, undeni- ably, rather the stamp of the French school than of the Russian, Tartar, Finnish, or any other nationality within the Russian empire. The other apartments, excepting the study of Peter the Great with his portrait in mosaic, and an interesting picture of a Review, do not contain anything very remarkable. In one are the little table and benches with which the ^ Emperors Alexander I. and Nicholas j played as children; in another, some carving and turner’s work of Peter fl the Great. The Chinese room is pretty, and visitors will be attracted by B the curious portraits of the Empress ■ Elizabeth, and of a series of maids of honour in fantastic costumes. The ■?| dining-room is splendidly gilded. The I. 16 pictures on the walls of the adjoin-^B. ing room represent the battle ofB Chesme in its several stages. Them tapestry in the handsome ball-room » represents Peter I. in a storm on Lake* Ladoga. From the palace to the sea-shore,®. Eussia. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Monjolaisir. the garden is laid out in terraces adorned with fountains and water- falls ; the basins, the Neptunes, storks, swans, nymphs, tritons, dolphins, painted rocks, and grottoes, are copied from the engravings in Hushfield’s ‘ Art of Gardening/ The water-works are considered but little inferior to those at Versailles. The fountain called the Samson, in front of the palace, is a magnificent jet-d’eau, 80 feet high, and from it to the sea, a distance of 500 yards, runs a canal, wherein are many smaller fountains. On each side of the Samson (so called from a colossal bronze figure tearing open the jaws of a lion from whence the water rushes) are other jets-d’eau which throw water vertically and horizontally ; these basins are at the fo’ot of the elevation on winch the palace stands. In the centre is a broad flight of steps leading to the palace, and on each side a continuous range of marble slabs to the top of the hill over which the water pours down, the slabs being placed high and far apart so as to allow lamps to be arranged behind the water. This is done at the Peterhof/ctcs. The smaller buildings of Marly and Monj)laish\ in the garden below, re- mind the spectator of the modest domestic arrangements of the carpenter of Saardam, the great reformer of Eastern Europe. It was from Marly (restored in 1741) that Peter the Great loved to con- template his infant fleet, moored be- neath the batteries of Cronstadt. The furniture is of the period of Peter, and was used by him. The custodian will point out his bed, of which the curtains and coverlet were presented to him by the Emperor of China, and his dressing-gown, the gift of the Shah of Persia. Here are also a table .and a small box made by Peter him- self; in the latter are the Avorks of a Avatch Avhich he took to pieces. The fish in the pond in front of IVIarly are summoned by the ringing of a bell to be fed with rye-flour, in accordance Avith the directions of Peter, Avho caused the pond to be stocked with carp, chub, &c., from Prussia. 173 Near the building is a large oak-tree j)lanted by Peter I. The cascade to the r. Avas added in the reign of the Empress Annie. The “ Lion’s Fountain,” in an open Greek Temple, Avill be seen near Marly. Its date is 1853. The Danaide in the centre of the basin was cast after a model by Count Tolstoy. In Monplaisir, a Ioav Dutch-built summer-house, built in the reign of Peter I., the Empress Elizabeth used to amuse her leisure by cooking her own dinner. It contains a small col- lection of pictures of the Flemish aud Dutch schools of the 17th and begin- ning of the 18th cent., purchased by Peter the Great during his traA^els in Holland. A picture in the gallery to the r. represents Peter I. as a Dutch shipwright. The room to the r. of the central hall (of Avhich the ceiling is very prettily decorated), Avas Peter the Great’s bedroom. His bed, dress- ing-gown, nightcap, and slippers are exhibited in it. Opposite the bedroom is Peter’s study, and next to it is his secretary’s room, Avith an allegorical rejiresentation in marble of the glory of the reign of that sovereign. In the Chinese room, in the wains- coting near the chimney-piece, Avill be seen two bullets shot by the Empress Ann while pursuing an elk Avhich had taken refuge in Monplaisir, Visitors are cautioned against sitting doAvn on one of the seats near the green rail- ing, for the pipes Avhich are concealed in the ground immedi.ately in front may at any time be made to throw up copious jets of Avaters, The Hermitaye, Avhich stands on tlio shore of the gidf, and is surrounded l;>y a moat Avliich can Ije filled Avith Avater, is likeAvise of the time of Peter the Great. It is chiefly remarkable for the contrivance by Avliich the dislies aud plates descend from the table through grooves cut in the floor, and are replaced by others without any servant being seen. The Enylish Parle, so called from its having been laid out by an English gardener, is on the right-hand side of the road coming from Oranienbaum. It contains an old building designed 174 Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Berezovy DomiJc. Sect. I. by Quarengbi in 1781, and called the English Falace, where subscription balls are given in autumn. The rooms are very fine, and their walls are adorned with portraits of European sovereigns of the time of Catherine II. There is a curious portrait of the Empress Elizabeth on horseback, at- tended by a negro runner ; also a por- trait of Catherine II., on horseback. She is represented at the head of her troops, on the day on which she reached Peterhotf, on her fiight from Kopsha to St. Petersburg. The por- trait of Queen Victoria was presented by H. M. to the Emperor Nicholas after his visit to London. This palace also contains some very good copies of the pictures at Versailles illustrative of the campaign of Napoleon I. Many ornamental cottages and pieces of water surround it. The most interesting of these is the Berezovy Domik, or “ Birch Cottage,” thatched with straw, to the 1. of the Palace. It was built by Catherine II., and originally all its rooms were adorned with mirrors which inwardly gave the tiny building an appearance of great size and magnificence. Only one of these rooms is at present pre- served. A pretty road leads through the park to an elegant building in the Greek style, with a splendid colonnade of grey granite, with Ionic capitals of white marble, belonging to the Em- peror and called the Belvedere, on Babhy-gon hill. It was finished in 1856. In front of the portico is a bronze group presented to Nicholas I. in 1851 by the King of Prussia. The Scythian falling to the ground is sup- posed to typify Kussia, the panther who has stuck his claws into the Scythian is Austria, while the fidelity of Prussia is represented by the dog who holds the panther by the ear and is dragging him ofi*. The horses in front of the Belvedere are after a model by Baron Klodt. The interior of this ljuilding is very handsome, and there is a beautiful view from the Colonnade over a great extent of country. The brass eagle on a rock commemorates the services of the Sappers. Adjoining the lower garden of the old palace of Peterhof is Alexandria^ the private grounds of the Emperor, where His Majesty resides while at Peterhof. There are several imperial cottages within the grounds (to which visitors are only admitted by tickets issued by the governor of the town, and amongst them is the small house of the Emperor Nicholas I., from the roof of which, with a telescope still shown, he was wont to watch the movements of the Anglo-French squadron in front of Cronstadt. There are several beautiful views of the gulf to be obtained in these gardens. A little stream which flows through them sets in motion a miniature mill, constructed for the children of the Emperor Nicholas. Visitors preferring to dine or take luncheon at Peterhof will find a good Restaurant close to the steamboat pier, on the shore of the gulf.- Close to the Kestaurant are the Im- perial Lapidary and Mosaic Works^ established by Catherine II. The ornaments &c., of pietra dura, lapis- lazuli, malachite, nephrite, and other Siberian stones made at these works have been admired at several Exhibi- tions. The works may be inspected by visitors. Passing out of the private grounds, the traveller should take the centre road, or that between the high road and the road along the coast. The first Imperial residence on the right is Znamensky, belonging to the Grand Duke Nicholas and prettily situated on the top of a high embankment. His farm, called Kreutz, which the tourist should inspect, and where he can refresh himself with a draught of milk, is I5 m. beyond. Mihailofsky, the property of the Grand Duke Michael, is about 1| m. further on. It is built in the Italian style, and is really a princely resi- dence. If the traveller have a fancy for viewing palaces, no better oppor- tunity could possibly occur than during the drive here described. 2 m. be- yond is 175 Russia. Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : Strelna ; Sergi. 4. Steelna, a palace of the Grand Duke Constantine, IB m. from St. Petersburg, It was originally built in 1711, and presented by Peter the Great to Ijis daughter Elizabeth, by whom it was much neglected. In 1797 the Emperor Paul gave it to his eldest son Constantine, who resided there in summer, and considerably improved the grounds. It was almost entirely destroyed by fire in 1803, and was rebuilt by the Emperor Alexander I. The palace and grounds were be- queathed to General Alexandrof, from whose family they have since been repurchased. It is a fine building, situated on a commanding position ; but its interior is jDlain, and, with the exception of the ball-room, simply furnished. The gardens are laid out in the Dutch style. The marble bath was built for the consort of the Grand Duke Constantine Nicolae- vitch. [The Palace of Hopslia, where Peter III. breathed his last, is about 20 V. from Strelna, along a very good road.J A drive of about a mile will bring the traveller to 5. Seegi, or the monastery of St. Sergius, which will well repay a visit. The monastery of Troitskaya- Sergieva was founded in 1734 on the site of a farm which belonged to the daughter of John, brother of Peter the Great. The Empress Anne be- stowed the grounds on Warlaam, the superior of the Troitsa Monastery near Moscow, by whom the first church and cells were built. Until 1764 this monastery continued to be attaclied to tlie Troitsa. The principal church stands at the back of the grounds, on the edee of an elevation whicli over- looks^ the estuary of the Neva, and is certainly one of the prettiest in Russia. Its open roof and its stalls of oak give it an air of elegance and comfort that few Russo-Greek churches possess. It bears some resemblance to Merton College Chapel at Oxford. The granite monoliths were quarried on the spot. Below are numerous mortuary chapels, open to visitors. These are the sepul- chral vaults of many great families. They are full of tokens that the dead are not forgotten by the living. In one chapel the visitor will see, over the tombs of two little boys and their mother, a picture almost the size of life, and painted from actual portraits, representing the mother bringing her children to the Saviour, who receives them, saying, “ Suffer little children to come unto me.’- The monuments in the churchyard are very rich and handsome. On some, small lamps are kept perpetually burning, as if to in- dicate that Hope was not to be extin- guished by Death. Great crowds resort to this monastery on Sundays and wander among the gravestones. The singing is very fine, particularly at vespers on Saturdays, between the hours of 7 and 9. Several great Russian families have erected hand- some mausoleums, which may be inspected on application to the obliging Archimandrite, who continues to spend his private fortune in embellishing the monastery. From here the traveller is recom- mended to rejoin the railway, about 1 m. to the rt. of the road. A run of half- an -hour will bring the tourist to the station at St. Petersburg, where he will find numerous drojkies in waiting. Sometimes a carriage may be pro- cured at Sergi, and a tourist so in- clined may continue his journey to St. Petersburg by the high road (18 v.), passing many pretty villas, once tenanted by the nobility of Russia, but abandoned by them since the Court commenced to reside for longer periods at Tsar. shoe Selo. Twelve versts before reaching St. Petersburg a lunatic asylum will be jrassed. It may be inspected at any time on application to the medical superintendent, who speaks English. It is one of the best establishments of the kind in Europe, the system pur- sued being only partly coercive for the more refractory patients. The average annual number of in- 176 Houte 1. — St. Petersburg : Krasnoe Selo. Sect. I. mates is 400. The principal form of malady is dementia, the cases of melancholy being about 14 per cent, less than of the former, represented by 33 per cent, of the total number. The capital will be approached through the Triumi)lial Arch of Narva, so called after the road which passes through it, and which leads to Narva and the Baltic provinces. This fine gate commemorates the return of the Kussian troops in 1815. It is formed by very high columns of metal supporting the arch, which is sur- mounted by a triumphal car drawn by six horses and conducted by Victory holding the trophies of glory and of combats. Below, between the two columns, are warriors wearing Slavonic armour, and waiting to re- ceive their laurel wreaths. The in- scri})tion above, in Latin and Eussian, is : “ Grateful Eussia to its victorious legions.” The other triumphal arch of St. Petersburg has been described under “ Drives.” II. To camp at Krasnoe Selo by Peterhof line of rail in f of an hour. — The Guards go under canvas during the summer months and the great bulk of them are generally encamped at Krasnoe Selo. The emperor re- views them about the end of August, when they engage in mimic warfiire, and attack and defend neighbouring positions. The exercises of the troops, and perhaps their gymnastics, will be of interest to the military traveller, who should come j>rovided with a uniform, wdiich will secure the kindest attention on the part of the officers of tlie staff, including quarters and a good mount. Forty to titty thousand troops are manoeuvred here. III. Tsarskoe Selo and Pavlofsk. • — This royal residence and favourite resort of the Imperial family is distant about 15 m. from St. Petersburg. The best and most rapid mode of proceeding to Tsaivlvoe is by the rail- road, the first laid down in Eussia, but it may be reached by road, taking PulJcova Observatory on the wa|r {vide Excursion IV.). The train wifi land the traveller at a little distande from the palace, but drojkies, or, iti winter, sledges, are in readiness at the station to carry the passengers on. At the entrance to the grounds of the palace are two small towers carved with Egyptian figures and hierogly- phics taken from the classical work of Denon on that country. The facade of the Palace, built in 1744, but embellished by Catherine II., is 780 ft. in length ; originally every statue, pedestal, and capital of the numerous columns, the vases, carvings and other ornaments in front, were covered with gold-leaf, and the gold used for that purpose amounted to more than a million of ducats. In a few years the gilding wore off, and the contractors engaged in repairing it offered dhe Empress nearly half a million of silver rubles for the frag- ments of gold-leaf ; but Catherine refused, saying, “Je ne suis pas dans I’usage de vendre mes vieilles hardes.” The only gilding which now re- mains is on the dome and cupolas of the ch. The front of the palace, towards the gardens, is stained green, white, and yellow. The first portion of the building generally shown is the chapel, which is all blue and gold ; on the walls are some curious paint- ings. A key of the city of Adrian- ople hangs beside the altar. The Imperial family have a kind of gallery in the chapel, communicating with their various apartments in the palace, and situated immediately opposite the screen or Ikoiiostas. The walls and floors of the palace are exceedingly richly decorated : the former are either simple white and gold, or hung with rich silks ; the latter parquetted in the most graceful designs and tender colours, and still as fresh as when first laid down. One of the most elegant rooms is that called the Lapis-lazuli, ornamented with encrustations of that stone. The floor of this apartment is of ebony inlaid with large flowers of mother- Russia. Moute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Arsenal. 177 of-pearl, forming one of the most siDlendid contrasts possible. The room itself is not very large, but the effect is beautiful. Tlie wonder of this palace is, however, the famous Amber Ivoom, the walls of which are lite- rally panelled with that material in various architectural designs ; the arms of Frederick the Great, by whom the amber was presented to Catherine II., being moulded in dif- ferent compartments with the imperial cipher, the Kussian E for Ekaterina. Accustomed to see only small pieces of this beautiful substance, one can hardly believe that the large fragments projecting from the walls are really amber ; they are of a pale yellow, and in several places form groups of figures with frames composed of larger portions, A model of a statue of Frederick the Great stands in this room. The bedchamber of Catherine is adorned with walls of porcelain and pilasters of purple glass. In the banquetiug-room, the entire walls to the height of about 9 ft. are covered Avith gold, with which the ceil- ings of almost all the state apartments are lavishly covered. The Chinese room is remarkable for the taste with Avliich everything is arranged after the fantastic fashion of the Celestial Em- pire. Two grand ball-rooms are also conspicuous, the upper end of each being occupied by a collection of the most splendid china vases placed on circular tiers up to the ceiling, and marked with the Imperial E, The whole palace, in fact, breathes recol- lections of the great Catherine ; and here arc to be seen her private apart- ments, and tlie gentle descent leading into the garden by which she was wheeled up and down, when infirmity had deprived her of the free use of her limbs. The apartments of Alexander I. have been kept exactly as he left them when he started for Taganrog. His study was a small light room with scagliola walls. Beyond this was his simple bedroom with a slight camp bedstead in an alcove. On one side is a small table with a little green mo- rocco looking-glass, his simifie English shaving apparatus, his brushes, combs, and a pocket-handkerchief marked Z. 23. His uniform, boots, and mili- tary cap are kept in the same room. The Alexander Palace was built by Catherine for her grandson Alexander I. It is of a simple, yet lofty style. The only objects on the plain walls of the great draAving-room are a small print of Admiral Sir Edward Codring- ton, and the busts of seven Imperial children in infantine beauty. The Emperor’s OAvn room, in point of heavy AVI iting-tables and bureaux, is that of a man of liusiness, but the military tastes of Nicholas are apparent in the glass cases containing models of the different cavalry regiments, executed, man and horse, Avith the greatest beauty and accuracy. Paintings of military manoeuvres and stiff squares of soldiers are also dispersed through the ai3artmeuts. The Arsenal,"^ a recent red-brick erec- tion in English Gothic, is a most pic- turesque object in the noble gardens of the palace. For several generations the Russian sovereigns have amassed a collection of armour and curious antique instruments. These Avere in- creased in the reign of the Emperor Nicholas, who erected this building purposely for their reception, and in- trusted their classification and arrange- ment to an Englishman, It Avould be impossible to enumerate the objects here preserved, consisting chielly of ancient armour, Aveapons, and accoutrements of every descrip- tion, for man and horse, from every Avarlike nation, both Christian and Pagan. Figures in French and Ger- man armour guard the entrance and lead the eye along a Avinding staircase, ornamented Avitli trophies of arms. As the name and date of each olject Avill be found on a label, and as more- over a catalogue in French may lie purchased at the door, it Avill suffice if Ave mention brietly the principal treasures and curiosities of this * Open from 10 to 6 on Wednesdays and Sundays; but tra\-ellers exhibiting this Hand- book will not find it difficult to obtain admis- sion on other days. 178 Sect. 1. IBjOute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Arsenal. splendid museum, -which will be shown to the visitor in the following order ; 1. Albanian Eoom : 2 standards with horse-tails from Khiva. They once stood behind the Khan’s throne ; a gold saddle, &c., presented by the Khan of Kokan, Tartar casques, &c. 2. Fire-arms Eoom : Breechload- ing fowling-pieces made at Tula, 18th cent.,* old German and French wea- pons ; a Scandinavian war trumpet. Hunting horn in vermeil, tempo Henry 3. Small room, near door, with armour of ancient Polish Hetmans. 4. Library : Weapons &c., of Zapo- rogian Cossacks; Napoleon’s dressing- case given to Alexander I. at Tilsit ; Napoleon’s portfolio taken by Cos- sacks at the Berezina ; diamond hilted swords, &c., given to Cathe- rine II. by Frederick the Great. In centre stand, Napoleon’s pistols, given to Alexander I. at Tilsit; the Duke of Wellington’s sword, presented by his son to Nicholas I. ; a sword of meteoric iron from the Cape of Good Hope, presented by Mr. Sowerby to Alexander I., 1814; a sword blade with the date of 1618, and with the portraits of King James I. (at the age of 53), his son, Prince Charles, Maurice, Prince of Orange, and of Frederick V., Elector Palatine. In a glass case are preserved the small silver drum and trumpet given by Catherine to the Emperor Paul in his childiiood, and beside them is the autograph letter of Bestieres to Da- voust, Governor of Moscow, ordering him to evacuate the city. To the 1. of door : 8^hamyl’s armour. Over the door : Pojarski’s standard ; and on either side, armour of Dimitry of the Don. 5. The Knights’ Hall: German armour. 6. Small alcove : Insignia of the Order of the Garter belonging to Alexander II. (1868). 7. Study : Italian armour, &c. 8. Empress’ Eoom: Containing bed with Chinese Hangings ; armour worn by Nicholas I. in 1812 at a mock tournament on the 25th anniversary of his wedding-day ; dressing-table, chair, and English watch of Cathe- rine II. Passing again through the Knight’s Hall, the visitor will be taken up a staircase ornamented with German armour, instruments of torture, and Hungarian colours taken in 1849; Gorgey’s sword is here. 9. A lofty, circular hall will then be entered. Its walls are covered with carbines, lances, &c., in fanciful devices and placed on high pedestals in a circle round the room, and 7 equestrian figures in full accoutre- ments, 5 being in German armour and 2 in that of Persia and India. The saddle, with a, pommel in the shape of a swan’s head, belonged to Tippoo Sahib. Small alcoves with groined ceilings and stained windows will be entered from the hall. 10. The alcove to the rt. contains 2 sets of horse-trappings presented by the Sultan to the Emperor : the first on concluding the peace of Adrianople, pie, 1829, when the “ yellow-haired G iaours ’ ’ passed victoriously the moun- tain barrier of the Balkan, and were well nigh at the gates of his capital. The saddle is superb, with its trap- pings of purple velvet studded with diamonds, and its stirrups of gold; but the other makes its glories dim when seen together. The latter was given in 1833 when the Porte sued as a suppliant to Eussia for an auxiliary force to defend a tottering throne against a rebellious vassal, after the fatal field of Kouieh had witnessed the overthrow of the only army the Sultan possessed. The diamonds on the pistol holsters of this saddle are of unusual size, and their brightness perfectly dazzling, while every part of the saddle and bridle is actually covered with brilliants. Several swords, studded with diamonds, are also preserved here ; for the most part presents from various sovereigns to the Emperor Alexander II. 11. In the recess opposite the door are some curious Persian saddles and horse-trappings, presented to Alex- ander II. by the Shah in 1873. To Bussia. the 1. are Bokliarian horse-trappings, shields, &c., and Japanese saddles and weapons. 12. The room with the spiral stair- case contains Arab armour, Tartar saddles, Indian armour, a costume of the Crim Tartars, presented to Alex- ander I. in 1784 by the last Khan of the Crimea. After viewing a large collection of Turkish, Persian, Bok- harian and Khivan saddles, &c., the visitor may, if he chooses, ascend the spiral staircase, in order to see the colours, muskets, helmets, scythes, &c., of the Polish insurgents of 1863. The grounds around the palace are 18 m. in circumference, and contain plenty of larch, oak, and elm, which seem to flourish; the gardens are certainly the most carefully kept in the world; the trees and flowers are watched and inspected with the most anxious minuteness. The odd caprices exhibited in the decoration of the grounds are really extraordinary, and so numerous that it would be ditficnlt to enumerate them all. In one corner is the tower of an ornamental building of several storeys, where Alexander II. resided with his tutor, when heir-apparent ; in another are the baby-houses of the young Grand Duchesses, where they carried on a mimic menage. In front of a Chinese tower is a high pole, rigged like the mast of a frigate. In ad- dition to all these strange objects are a theatre, a Chinese village, a Dutch and Swiss cow-house, a Turkish kiosk, a summer-house, in the form of an Ionic colonnade, supporting an aerial garden, planted with flowers, a Gothic building called the Admiralty, a marble bridge with Corinthian co- lumns of polished marble, also rostral pillars and bronze statues, which Catherine erected to her favourites ; amongst these is a column to Orlotf. There are likewise some commemora- tive monuments raised by AlexauderT. to his “ companions in arms,” inter- mingled with flelds of roses, heimit- ages, artifleial ruins, Pioman tombs, grottoes, and waterfalls. On the lake opposite the Palace is a fleet of pigmy vessels, intended to amuse the Grand 179 Duke Constantine, now High Admiral, in his professional studies. There is a most interesting and instructive col- lection of the boats of all nations on the lake, and visitors are allowed to use them for rowing and sailing, attended by sailors who are kept there for the purpose. One of the prettiest spots in the gardens is a Pavilion at the end of a small lake where the Grand Duchess Alexandrina, the amiable daughter of Nicholas, used to feed her swans, re- placed since her premature death by black ones. Her picture hangs there with one of her sayings under it ; “ Je sais, papa, que vousn’avez pas de plus grand plaisir que d’en faire a maman.” Her full-length marble flgure, with a child in her arms, stand in an alcove, surrounded by a handsome railing. The celebrated Statue of our Saviour by Danneker is showm in the artificial ruin of a castle in the park. A very pretty fountain, representing a milk- maid with a broken jug, is always shown to visitors. It was put up in the reign of Alexander I. From Tsars koe the traveller is re- commended to drive to Pavlofsk^ 3 m. beyond, in the carriage which conveyed him to tlie several sights; returning to St. Petersburg by rail. Pavlofsk was built in 1780 and restored in 1803. The gardens are very extensive and well laid out over the most picturesque accidents of country. They are full of chalets, pavilions, temples, and mor- tuary chapels. The castle is a pic- turesque ol)ject. The palace is of very simple architecture and belongs to t lie Grand Duke Constantine. It contains a museum with some flue marbles and urns which were purchased by Cathe- rine II. from Mr. Lloyd Browne {vide Hermitage). The museum was ar- ranged by Prof. Stephani in 1872. A monument to tlie Emperor Paul repre- sents that Sovereign in a military uni- form of the period, and resting on a stick. The pedestal bears the in- scription : “To the Emperor Pauli., the founder of Pavlovsk. 1872.” A short walk in the grounds will afford all the pleasure and information that are to be derived from a visit, not Boute 1. — St. Petersburg : The Arsenal. 180 Sect. 1. Itoute 1. — St. Petersburg : Schlusselhurg. forgetting, of course, the excellent orchestra which plays daily at the Ely. Stat., or Vauxhall, where tourists may dine or take tea after their long excursion. IV. PuLKOVA Observatory. — This excursion may be made by road from 8t. Petersburg (20 v.), or by taking the train by the Tsarskoe Selo or the Warsaw line to Tsarskoe Selo, and driving thence to the Observatory, wliich is open to visitors on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.M. Admission in the evening only by express permission of the Director. The Imperial Observatory of Pul- kova was founded in 1838, by the Ihii])eror Nicholas, on a scale of great magnificence. The splendid instru- ments which it contains were pur- chased from the best makers in Europe for about 80,000/., while the cost of construction exceeded 300,000/. It stands on a considerable eminence commanding the whole region around, and is isolated from other build- ings within a circumference of about a mile. Since its foundation, the Observatory has made many impor- tant contributions to the science of Astronomy ; the name of Struve, falher and son. Directors of the Obser- vatory, are too well known in Europe to need any comment here. Struve’s measurement of the arc of the meri- dian between the Danube and the Polar Sea was one of the greatest achievements of astronomical science. Another measurement, equally well known, was made subsequently be- tween Valencia in Ireland and Orsk in Siberia, comprising 52 degrees of latitude. All these works were executed by officers of the Imperial Etat Major and by the Corps of Toiiograpliers edu- cated at St. Petersburg. Within the last 25 years the learned Directors of the Observatory and their coadjutors have published nearly 200 works on Astronomy and Geodesy. The State contributes a sum of about 5000/. for the support of the establishment. V. For excursion to Gatchina Pa- lace, see route from Frontier to St. Petersburg. Gatchina may likewise be reached by the Baltic Line. VI. To Schlusselburg and Lake Ladoga. — Small steamers leave several times a day, from a stage opposite the Summer Garden, for Schlusselburg, at the mouth of the Neva, in Lake La- doga, — a distance of 40 m., which is made in 4 to 5 hrs. This trip affords an opportunity of viewing the exten- sive manufactories, works, and build- i]ig-slips, established on the banks of the river, most of which are under the management of English mechanics. At a place called Alexandrofsld is a large steam factory and Railway rol- ling stock works, belonging to the Grand Russian Railway ^Company. The works are surrounded by a very large village, composed of the dwel- lings of the artisans and their masters. In their immediate neighbourhood is a very pretty English Congregational- ist Chapel erected by public subscrip- tion and to which a school is attached. One of the largest woollen mills in Russia — Thornton’s — stands on the opposite side of the river. About 1 m. further on are the Imperial Porcelain Worlis^ where the ceramic art has been fostered since the days of Catherine II. A great perfection has been attained here in the manufacture and ornamen- tation of china. Some splendid vases are exhibited, and many exquisitely modelled figures of biscuit. An ex- cursion to these works alone might be ]irolitably undertaken. The long line of cottages be5mnd is occuiried by a population engaged in the manufac- ture of porcelain, which is all shimjred in blue with the Russian initial of the reigning sovereign, surmounted by an Imperial Crown. The Alexandrofsld Manufactory., higher up the river, was once a thriving place, under the super- intendence of our countryman, Gene- ral Wilson, where numerous English cotton - spinners, weavers, and other mechanics obtained lucrative employ- ment. The Government have now abandoned the manufacture of cotton liussia. Boutel, — 8l Petersburg : Valdmo Monastery. 181 and linen fabrics and the principal buildings are occupied by a Eussian Iron-works Company. Higher up, after passing the large German colony of Sarafqf) the banks of the river become prettily wooded. Many country seats, once of great splendour, occur at in- tervals. The picturesque ruins of an old castle, called Pella, will be seen at the rapids of the Neva, 27 m. from St. Petersburg. Schlusselburg is a fortress on an island at the source of the Neva. It belonged anciently to Novgorod the Great. In 1321, George, Prince of Moscow and Novgorod, raised a fort on it during an expedition against AVyborg, and a trade with Eeval soon sprang up. The Lithuanians then took it, but were driven out by Magnus, King of Sweden, a.d. 1347. The Novgorodians retook it in 1352, and raised a stone wall round the island. From that date to its final occupation by Peter the Great in 1702, Schlus- selburg, or, as it was called by the Swedes, Nateborg, remained a fruitful subject of contention between the two countries. The fortress has often served as a state prison. John VI. met with his death in it. The town of Schlusselburg, on the left bank of the Neva, has 6500 Inhab., engaged in navigating the Ladoga Lake and the famous canal which forms part of the fluviatile system connecting the Baltic with the Caspian. Tourist^s should inspect the locks, and after paying a visit to Messrs. Hubbard’s print works, which are on a scale of great magnificence, return to St. Petersburg by the boat that brought them, and which will take them down the rapid current of the Neva in less than 2 hours. (For description of country beyond Lake Ladoga, vide Ete. 4). VII. The Monastery of Valamo, on Lake Ladoga, should also be visited if the traveller have sufficient time, par- ticularly between the 27th and 30th June O.S., when an annual fair is held there. Steamers ply regularly once a week from St. Petersburg, from a landing stage close to the Liteini Bridge. They touch at several points of interest on Lake Ladoga, and after leaving Valamo stop at Serdobol, on the Finnish coast, whence the travel- ler may post to Imatra via Nyslott {vide Grand Duchy of Finland). Lake Ladoga is the largest inland sheet of water in Europe, its length being 117 miles, and its area 336 square geographical miles. Its out- let is the Neva, and it receives the waters of the Volkhof river and the outflow of the Saima system of lakes, the largest system in Finland. The mouastery of Valamo is reputed to have been founded between a.d. 973 and 980, before the introduction of Christianity into Eussia, but it is dis- puted whether the 2 Greek monks who lie buried there (Sergius and Her- mann), flourished in the 10th or in the 14th cent. In the 12th cent., and in 1577 and 1610, the place suf- fered much from the inroads of the Swedes, who crossed over from Serdo- bol, on the mainland of Finland, 40 v. distant. The mouastery was destroyed by fire in 1754, and restored to its pre- sent condition in 1785. There are 5 chs. within it, and iu one of these (the Cath.) lie the remains of the two Greek monks in handsome shrines of silver. The situation of the monastery is very picturesque, and the island on which it stands is divided by a pretty rivulet. The traveller will visit with interest the many cells and subter- ranean caverns in which the more I^ious monks pass their lives in great austerity. In 1819 the Emperor Alexander passed two days in prayer and fasting at this monastery. Tolerable accommodation will be found at the Monastery. There arc 2 guest-houses — one for pilgrims, the other for visitors of a higher class. Travellers may even join the monks at their meals. The Steamers likewise touch at Konevets, another pretty monastery on Lake Ladoga, 30 v. from Kexholm on the Finland shore. (Vide Sect. VII. for further par- ticulars.) 182 , Houtes 2, 3 . — London to St. Petersburg. Sect. 1. EOUTE 2. LONDON TO ST. PETERSBUKG, VIA SWEDEN AND FINLAND. This is by far the pleasantest route to St. Petersburg between the months of May and October. Excellent mail steamers run between Hull and Goth- enburg or Christiania in about 50 hrs. across the North Sea (vide Handbook for Sweden). Moreover, by taking this route, the traveller is able to visit the Tralhiittan Falls, Stockholm, &c., or Norway, and generally to do the journey to Kussia by short and plea- sant stages. Unless the traveller wishes to go up the Gulf of Bothnia, the best and most convenient point for him to land at on the coast of Finland is the new port of Hango, from whence a railway runs to St. Petersburg through a most picturesque and interesting country. For a description of this route, vide Section VII.) Finland. EOUTE 3. LONDON TO ST. PETERSBURG, BY SEA, VIA CRONSTADT. This route is cheaper than the over- land journey. Steamers ply constantly I to Cronstadt and St. Petersburg from j London, Hull, and Leith. The Hull and London steamers charge 5Z. 5s., exclusive of provisions (about 6s. M. per day), and make the voyage generally in 6 or 7 days. Steward’s fee, 7s. Qd. As the steamers that ply between Hull and Cronstadt belong to several hrms, and are not equally well adapted to the conveyance of passengers, tra- vellers selecting this route will do well to write to the several agents for information and for berths. Steamers leave Leith frequently for St. Petersburg. Fares, &c., same as from Hull or London. Voyage 5 to 6 days. All these steamers stop at Elsinore, and many of them at Copenhagen. Some of them proceed direct to St. Petersburg ; others stop at Cronstadt, and forward their passengers by boat, or by rail via Oranienbaum. Passports are examined at Cronstadt, where also luggage is sealed preparatory to examination at St. Petersburg; dis- tant I5 hr. by steamer. The best months for the Baltic are June, July, and August. (For description of Cronstadt vide Ete. 1.) liussia. itoute 4. — London to St. Petersburg. KOUTE 4. LONDON TO ST. PETEESBUKG, VIA ARCH- ANGEL. Steamers loading for Archangel may be found in London and in the North between the months of May and August. They are not generally licensed to carry passengers, but a traveller can secure a passage as cap- tain’s friend. An earlier or later voyage should alike be avoided. The usual fare is 61. first class, and a charge of 6s. to 7s. per diem for pro- visions during a voyage that lasts 7 or 8 days under favourable circumstances. This route should not be under- taken except by those who have intro- ductions to residents at Archangel, and who are prepared to brave the diffi- culty and discomfort of posting 750 miles, the distance between Archangel and St Petersburg, or the tediousness of proceeding up the river Dvina and other rivers in a small steamer to Vologda, whence there is rail to St. Petersburg, via Yaroslaf. Its choice can only be justified by a desire 'to cross the White Sea, or to visit the interest- ing monastery of Solovetsk, situated on an island about 150 miles from Archangel, a town which, however, possesses a certain amount of interest to the British traveller from its having been the “cradle” of the trade be- tween Great Britain and Russia. (For description of Early Intercourse with Russia at Archangel, vide Rte. 1 — “ Russia Company.”) ARCHANGEL. Hotels . — There are no hotels properly so called at Archangel, but accommo- 183 dation will be found in the ordinary hostelries of the country. History of Archangel. — Pop. 20,000. Lat. 64° 33' N. 1104 versts from St. Petersburg, and ' 1121 versts N. of Moscow, on right bank of Northern Dvina. The history of the town is traced back to the 12th cent., when John, Archbishop of Novgorod the Great, founded a monastery on the coast of the White Sea. In 1419 the Northmen made a descent on that part of the coast, destroyed the churches which be- longed to the monasteries of St. Ni- cholas and St. Michael, then already existing, and put to death the monks. It was at the former monastery that Sir Richard Chancellor landed in 1553, as related in the history of the early intercourse of Great Britain with Russia. A wall was subsequently built round the monastery of St. Michael, and in 1584 the town which had sprung up within the enclosure began to be officially named New Holmogory. In 1637 the town and (the monastery were destroyed by fire, when the monks removed their shrines to a place then called Niachery, where they still remain. A church, dedi- cated to the Archangel Michael, marks tlie spot where the old monastery stood. Fires devastated the town in 1637, 1667, and 1678. In the latter year two foreign “ builders of towns,” Peter Marselin and William Scharf, built a new fortress or wall of stone, which was divided into three parts. The upper part being called the “Russian,” and the lower the “Ger- man” (or foreign) enclosure. Peter the Great visited Archangel in 1693, and founded a naval wharf on the island of Solombola, connected with Archangel by a floating bridge, and which he peopled with seamen and artisans, while on a neighbouring island, called after Moses, he built a summer residence, which can still be seen. In 1701 Peter founded the for- tress of Novodvinsk, 18 v. from Arch- angel, on the Berezof branch of the Dvina. The town was again burnt down seven times between the years 184 Sect. L Houte 4. — Archangel. 1724 and 1793. Euins of the old stone wall are alone to be found, but the “ Russian court,” or enclosure, is partly extant. The custom-house and harbour-master’s offices are contained within it. Two walls, very much crumbled, mark the limits of the old enclosure for foreigners. Archangel was made the seat of provincial go- vernment in 1702, the voevodes or governors having previously resided at Holmogory, now a district town, 71 V. from Archangel, and celebrated for its tine cattle. Prince Anthony of Brunswick and his Consort Anne, Regent of Russia, were kept prisoners at the Ostrog, or prison, near Holmo- gory (vide Hist. Notice). On the principal square in Arch- angel are the cathedral, the churches of the Archangel and of the Resur- rection, tlie courts of law, &c. ; and a monument, erected in 1838, to Lomo- nosof, the poet fisherman of Archangel, who was born at the village of Denis- ofka, near Holmogory. A handsome school-house stands on the site of the poet’s hut. In the Oath, square for- merly stood the houses of the early English merchants. The Archiei^isco- pal Palace, built in 1784, is one of the oldest houses in Archangel . Travellers may visit the old monastery, from which tlie town takes its name, and which was removed to its present site, 2^ V. from Archangel, in 1637. It contains 2 stone chs., of which one was built in 1685 and the other in 1705. The port is visited annually by about 800 vessels, of which nearly 200 are British. Oats and other grain, llax, linseed, tar, timber, and blubber are largely exported (value about one million sterling) ; but the import trade is veiy limited. An English ch. and a chapel-of- ease, where divine service is performed during the months of summer, are still maintained for the benefit of the shipping and of the English com- munity, now reduced to very tew members. A British consul likewise resides at Archangel. 1. Excursion to Solovetsh Monastery. A steamer proceeds twice a week to the monastery of Solovetsk, one of the holiest places in Russia, founded in 1429 by Saint Sabbatheus, assisted by Germanicus and Zosimus, two lioly monks. Zosimus having been made abbot in 1442, the monastery began to grow in wealth and powder. The Arch- bishop and Possadnik (governor) of Novgorod made large grants of land, while the inhabitants of that ancient city presented the monastery with gold and silver plate and rich vest- ments. In 1465 the relics of Sab- batheus were removed from their place of sepulture at the mouth of the river Vyga, and deposited in the Cathedral of the Transfiguration, where St. Zosimus was subsequently also buried. In 1485 and 1538 the monastery and its churches were destroyed by fire ,* but in 1552 the then Abbot Philip (afterwards Metro- politan of Moscow) began t(^ rebuild the churches in stone. During the reign of Theodore, between 1590 and 1594, the monks built at their own expense a wall of granite boulders, with towers and embrasures, 3 to 4 fms. high and 3 fms. in thickness, and running along a length of 421 fms. In 1667 the monks refused to receive tlie new books sent by the Patriarch Nicon (^vide description of the “New Jerusalem”), and broke out into open rebellion after ejecting their Archi- mandrite, Joseph, and refusing to listen to the envoy of the Tsar, the Archimandrite Sergius of Yaroslaf. But the leaders of the disaffected monks, having been carried away to Moscow, the remainder of the brethren flew to arms, and shut themselves up within their walls. The rebel- lion lasted nine years. After many inefiectual attacks by the Streltsi, the Vodvode, Prince John Mestcherski, besieged the monastery during two years, and it only fell by the treachery of one of the monks, who disclosed to the enemy a subterranean passage on the 22nd January, 1676, when Eussia. 185 Boute 4:.— Archangel : Churches. many of the rebellious monks were put to the sword. A large num- ber of them were either executed later or Sent into exile. The remainder were kept in awe and submission during a whole year by 300 Streltsi, under the command of Prince Viadimir Vol- khonsky. In the 16th and 17th cents, the Solovetsk monastery was the place of banishment or retirement of many celebrated men. Sylvester, the monk who exercised such a beneficial influ- ence over the earlier days of John the Terrible, lies buried there, together with Abraham Palytsin, the patriotic monk who roused the people to action during the Polish occupation of Mos- cow. Nicon, subsequently the famous patriarch, took the cowl at Solovetsk. Simon Bekbulatovitch, the deposed Tsar of Kazan, and subsequently the friend of his conqueror, J ohn the Ter- rible, was sent there in disgrace by the false Demetrius, and forced to become a monk, circa a.d. 1609. He was re- moved in 1611 to the monastery of St. Cyril-Belbozersk, in the province of Novgorod. Peter the Great visited Solovetsk in 1694 and 1702, and was accompanied on the last occasion by his ill-fated son Alexis. A chapel now stands over the spot where he landed, while within the gates will be seen the models of the two vessels in which Peter crossed over. One of these was a yacht that had been built in Eng- land. The monks will point with pride to the unexploded shells which were fired from the British White Sea squadron in 18o5. They were summoned to surrender to the “ squadron of horse,” as the interpreter incorrectly put it to them ; but they refused, and their only gun having burst and killed their only artilleryman, the holy fathers formed themselves in procession, and walked round the walls, preceded by the cross, while the shells were flying over their heads. An obelisk, next the 2 chapels, commemorates these proceedings. Churches . — This celebrated fortress- monastery now contains 6 chs. — 1. The Cathedral of the Transfiguration, built of wood in 1438 by Zosimus, but rebuilt of stone by St. Philip in 1558, and consecrated 1566. It has 5 altars, erected contemporaneously and dedi- cated as follows : — a, to the Archangel Michael ; 5, to Saints Zosimus and Sab- batheus, whose relics are there pre- served in shrines of silver-gilt, of which the covers, weighing 180 lbs. avoird. were made at Amsterdam in 1660, at the expense of the Boyar Boris Morozof; c, to the 70 Apostles; d, to the 12 Apostles ; e, to Theodore Stratilatus; and /, to St. John of the Ladder. The body of St. Philip, Metropolitan of Moscow, having been removed from the Otrotch monastery near Tver, where the exiled metro- politan had been put to death by order of John the Terrible, was originally buried under the porch of the Cathe- dral of the Transfiguration, but in 1652 it was removed to the Cathe- dral of the Assumption at Moscow. Part of the relics of the saint were, however, left in the monastery, where they lie in the shrine which was made for them in 1646. The Ikonostas was put up in 1697, by order of Peter the Great, as seen from an inscription above it. Near the cathedral are two chapels, built in 1753, and containing the tombs of Germanicus and of other reverend fathers of local repute. 2. The Cathedral of the Assumption, built of stone, together with a refec- tory by St. Philip, in 1552, and con- secrated by him in 1 557 ; in the upper part of this church are two altars which were restored after a fire that occurred in 1717. 3. The Church of Nicholas Thormaturgus, built of stone, and consecrated about 1590. 4. The Church of the Annunciation, founded 1596, consecrated 1601, and restored after a fire in 1745. 5. The Church of the Metropolitan Philip, built 1687, renovated 1798. And 6. A church outside the wall of tlie monastery, in the cemetery, and dedi- cated to Onuphrius the Great ; conse- crated 1667 ; the belfry, constructed in 1777, is of a height of 20 fms. The Sacristy is one of the richest in Russia, being full of valuable gifts made by various sovereigns and nobles. 186 Sect. I. Boute 4 . — Excursion to Kern. Among other objects of great price are the vestments, covered with pearls of unusual size, given in 1550 by John IV. (Terrible), and a gold cross with relics, adorned with pearls and precious stones, the gift of the same Tsar in 1558 ; a silver shrine, weigh- ing 25 lbs., made in 1766; another shrine, presented by the Grand Duke Constantine in 1845, and a large copy of the Evangelists, weighing about 18 lbs., in a binding of silver-gilt. The following other treasures will be viewed with interest: — 1. The white linen chasuble of Zosimus, presented to him by Archbishop Jonas of Novgorod, and in which St. Philip had said mass; this venerable garment is still worn on great occasions by the Archimandrite of the monastery ; 2, The Psalter of Zosimus, mended by St. Philip, and an image of the Holy Virgin, brought to Solovetsk island by Sabbatheus; 3. The armour of the followers of Abraham Palytsin, who, though a monk, was one of the most active agents in the war that termi- nated in tlie expulsion of the Poles from Moscow in 1613; 4. The sword of Prince Michael Skopin-Shuiski, and that of Prince Pojarski, presented by himself, and preserved in a scabbard of silver-gilt, studded with precious stones — (for the history of those princes, vide Historical Notice) ; 5. Many original charters of the Veche (or Witenagemote) of Novgorod and of Martha the Possadnitsa, or elected governor of that republic, granting lands to the monastery ; and 6. A large collection of ancient Russian and other weapons, and of banners bearing the emblem of the cross. Very tolerable accommodation will be found at the monastery, and the traveller who comes provided with an introduction to the archimandrite (easily obtained through the British residents at Archangel), will find a stay of two days at Solovetsk Monas- tery both pleasant and instructive. 2. Excursion to Kem. A tourist who will go as far as Solovetsk may as well proceed by the steamer which leaves the monastery once a week for Kem, an interesting settlement of the Staroveri or Old- Believer sect, who pursue the avoca- tion of fishermen, and to whom indeed the greater part of the fishing stations and vessels in the White Sea belong. Kem.— Lat. 64° 56' N. Pop. 1950. Distant 280 v. by sea and 521 v. by land from Archangel. This town is very prettily situated on the river Kem, which falls into the White Sea on its W. shore. In the 15th cent, it belonged to Martha, the “ Possadnitsa ” of Novgorod, who in 1450 made a gift of it to the Solo- vetsk monastery. The Finns took it in 1580, when the Voevode of Solo- vetsk and many Streltsi were killed. In 1590 the Swedes took possession of the entire district. A wooden for- tress, erected in 1657 by the monks on Lep island, at the mouth of the Kem, was destroyed by inundations that occurred in 1749 and 1763. The inhabitants (excepting the political exiles) are almost exclusively occupied in summer in the herring and cod fisheries, the women alone remaining in possession of the town. During the long absence of their hus- bands, however, they frequently make pilgrimages to the shrines of Solovetsk. As the inhabitants of the Kem district principally consist of Carets and Lopars the traveller will have an excellent opportunity of studying the charac- teristics of those northern races ; and the excursion might be made still more interesting by returning via Onega, and ascending the Onega river to Kargopol, instead of posting to the latter town fi'om Archangel. 3. Excursion from Kem to Onega. Should the steamer not touch at Onega on her return from Kem, the traveller can proceed by the high road Russia. Itoute 4 . — Journey to St. Petersburg by Post. 187 to Archangel, the distance between Kem and Onega being 289 v., and that to Archangel from Onega 232 v. more. Onega is a place of some trade, particularly in timber. An English company has for many years had a concession for cutting and exporting timber from this district. The com- pany has 3 saw-mills — 2 on the river Ponga and one on the Anda, tribu- taries of the Onega, which is a very fine and broad stream, 400 v. in length from Kargopol, in the vicinity of which town it takes its rise. The town is supposed to have been founded in the 15th cent., but its existence can only be authentically traced back to the end of the 17th cent. It has a Pop, of 2300, and 2 chs. Here the traveller will be able to get advice and assistance from the agents of the English Timber Com- pany, who will gladly put him on his way up the Onega river, the rapids of which, combined with very fine scenery, are well worthy of being visited. It is almost needless to say that game of every kind abounds through- out this part of the country, but the proper time for killing it is of course the winter, when only the most enthu- siastic sportsman would venture to carry his gun so far and to such a climate. 4. Journey to St. Petersburg by Post. Having attended strictly to all the injunctions of his countrymen at Archangel, who will most willingly give him every assistance in their power, the traveller bent on posting to St. Petersburg must resign him- self to the jolting of a tarantas and the rapid driving of a yamstchik. A considerable part of the bad road (or 150 V.) may, however, be avoided by taking advantage of a steamer which runs regularly up the Dvina to Siya, the 7th post station jrora Archangel. Thirteen stations beyond Siya, or 445 v. from Archangel, is the town of Kaegopol, where the traveller will rest. As regards Hotels, the general rule in Russia applies: — There are none at Kargopol; but the traveller will find a night’s lodging at the post station. History of the Town. Situated in Lat. 61' 30" N., in province of Olonets, on left bank of Onega river. Pop. 2000. Kargopol is one of the most ancient colonies in the N. of Russia, but the first authentic mention of the town occurs in 1447, when Priiace Dmitry Shemiaka and Prince John Mojaisky, sought refuge in it from the persecu- tion of the Tsar, Basil the Dark. From a charter, dated 1536, it appears that Kargopol was at that time a place of considerable traffic and pos- sessed of a privilege for trading in salt. In 1565, John the Terrible ordered the supplies for his household to be drawn from Kargopol, and he left the town by will to his son John. The Lithuanians and Poles set fire to the outskirts in 1612, after three in- eflectual attempts to take the town by assault, and it was again besieged for a considerable time by Cossacks and lawless bands from the Volga. As a place of banishment, Kargopol received in 1538 the Lady Agrippina Cheliadnina, the governess of the young Tsar John IV. At the in- stance of the Shuiski faction she was here made to take the veil. Solomonia, the consort of the Grand Duke Basil of Moscow, father of John the Terrible, was imprisoned at Kargopol on ac- count of her barrenness, in 1525. In the reign of the Tsar Theodore, Prince Anthony Shuiski was put to death there, a.d. 1587. The wall of the old fortress in which these state prisoners were confined is still partly visible, together with the remains of the moat, on the banks of the river Onega. There are 19 chs. within the town, and a convent (the Uspenski or the Assumption); but there is nothing within them of any great note. The inhabitants of Kargopol are principally occupied in the dressing 188 Moute 4 . — Excursion to Petrozavodsh. Sect. I. of skins, of which about 2 millions are annually sent to Nijni-Novgorod and St. Petersburg. A market is held every Sunday in summer, when the country j^eople come in with their pro- duce. From Kargopol the traveller can post to Vologda (distant 450 v.), and there take the train to Moscow, or go to St. Petersburg by rail via Yaroslaf and Kybinsk (vide Etes. 10 and 11). Ten stations beyond Kargopol is Vytegra, district town in prov. of Olonets, 668 v. from Archangel, Lat. 61°. Pop. 2800. This town is prettily situated on both banks of a navigalDle river bear- ing the same name. Until the reign of Peter the Great it was only a station or wharf for vessels laden with grain, &c., but the Vytegra river having later become part of the “canal sys- tem” that unites the White Sea with the Baltic, it was raised from the rank of a village to that of a town. Vytegra has therefore no historical interest, but to the geologist the rugged banks of the river will ofier many attractions, being comi30sed of red sandstone of the Devonian forma- tion, full of fossil remains, particularly of fishes. In the limestone near Deviat inski will be found fossils of Chaetetes radians, Leptsena hardrensis, Oidaris rossicus, Natica Marix, &c., while in the sandstone specimens of the Stigmaria ficoides abound. Travellers may terminate their land journey at Vytegra, by crossing over in a boatto Vosnesenie', on the opposite side of the lake of Onega (about 50 v.), and thence taking steam to Lake La- doga, which will be reached by means of the river Svir. {Excursion to Petrozavodsh. After arriving at Vosnesenie the more enterprising tourist will endea- vour. to reach Petrozavodsk, on the western shore of Lake Onega, which is 220 V. in length and about 75 in breadth. Steamers run regularly between St. I'etersburg and Petroza- vodsk, touching at Vosnesenid The entire voyage is made in 2 days. Petrozavodsk. — This town was founded by Peter the Great, with the view of developing the mineral re- sources of that part of his empire. The province of Olonets is rich in copper, iron, and mica, which were worked in the earliest ages. It was anciently called Corelia; and its in- habitants, the Corels, embraced Chris* tianity at the beginning of the 13th cent. Corelia was annexed to the republic of Novgorod, which granted permission to Dutch and other mer- chants to cut wood and raise iron and mica in the vicinity of the lake. Later, the Swedes and Lithuanians made frequent incursions. The town dates from 1701, when Peter the Great established works there for casting cannon, but which were afterwards destroyed, and re- placed by other works completed in 1774. Guns continued, nevertheless, to be imported into Kussia at great expense from the Carron Works in Scotland, owing probably to the un- satisfactory state of the establish- ment on Lake Onega. In order to improve the latter, Catherine II. invited Charles Gascoigne, the ma- nager of the Carron Works, to come over and rebuild the gun-foundry, which he did in 1794, when the town that had sprung up around it took the name of Petrozavodsk. Gascoigne was accompanied by two English arti- sans, George Clarke and James Wilson, who subsequently rose to great emin- ence in the service of Eussia. Guns for the navy are to this day cast at Petrozavodsk. The “ Museum of the products of the Province of Olonets ” is interesting.] Continuation of Journey. Eeturning in the steamer to Vos- neseuie, the traveller, Avho does not wosli to go overland from Vytegra, will continue his voyage down the river Svir, which connects the lakes of Ladoga and Onega. The steamer Eussia. 189 Route 5 . — London to Riga and Mitau. will stop at Lodeinoe Pole (the Field of Lodi), more than half way down the river. This is a place of some interest as the spot where Peter the Great built his first galleys in 1702. He superintended their building in person, and subsequently employed them in taking the fortress of Schlus- selburg from the Swedes. A monu- ment of cast iron marks the site of a house in which Peter resided. Emerging on Lake Ladoga, and after a voyage of some hours, the traveller will come in sight of the grim for- tress of Schlusselburg, where the river Neva takes its rise. For a descrip- tion of the lake, fortress, and course of the Neva, vide ilte. 1, Excur- sion 6, The overland route from Vytegra to St. Petersburg passes through Lodei- noe Pole' (855^ V. from Archangel) and the town of Novaya Ladoga (957| V.), in which there is nothing of in- terest, except the canal and locks. There are 23 stages between Vytegra and St. Petersburg, the. longest being 27 ^ V. and the shortest lOf v. The town of Schlusselburg, through which the traveller will pass during the last part of his journey, is 60 v. from St. Petersburg by the post road. 5. Journey to St. Petersburg, via Vo- logda and Yaroslaf, by steamer and rail. The cheaper and more pleasant route to St. Petersburg or Moscow from Archangel, particularly in the early part of the summer season and up to July, is by steamer to Vologda, via the town of Veliki listing (for- merly celebrated for its silversmiths’ work in Niello, but now a centre of the flax industry), situated at the con- fluence.of the Suhona, Yug, and Luza rivers. The steamers of the “ Desia- tinny ” Company run once a week, between Archangel and Vologda, and vice versa. As they have to proceed up stream all the way to Vologda, the voyage occupies about six days’ inclu- sive of a stoppage of 1 day at Veliki Ustiug, but the steamers often reach Archangel in less than 3 days from Vologda, as there is scarcely any night in those northern latitudes. The fare from Archangel to Vologda is Ks. 15, and from Vologda to Arch- angel, Ks. 12. For journey from Vologda, vide Ete. 11. EOUTE 5. LONDON TO KIGA AND MITAU. Sea Route . — Eiga may be reached by steamers from Hnll, Stettin, and Liibeck. Overland Route . — A branch line from Diinaburg (vide Ete. 1) ifiaces Eiga in direct rly. communication with St. Petersburg, Moscow, and the Southern lines, as well as with the net- work of European rlys. ; but travellers coming from the West by rail have no occasion to go to Diinaburg ; they can get out at Etkany st., and take the Libau train (vide Ete. 1) as far as Mojeiki st., from whence another line runs to Mitau and Eiga. [Stations on Eiga-DiinaburgLine : — Diinaburg (vide Ete. 1). Kreutzburg, 83 v. (55 m.) Train stops 20 min. Kohenlmsen, 116 v. (77 m.) Enins of old castle, Romersliof, 136 v. (91 m.) Train stops 15 m.J Faro between Diinaburg and Eiga Es. 6.12 c. Eiga, 204 v. (136 m.) — (Botch : Hotel de St. Petersbourg in the Castle Square; Stadt London, in the centre of the old town ; HOtel du Nord, near the English cli. ; and Stadt Fraidifort, in the Petersburg Faubourg.) 190 Sect. I. jBoute 5. — Biga : History. There is room for improvement in the hotels at Riga, but the prices are lower than those of the best hotels at St. Petersburg. Cafe: Kropsch’s, opposite the Ex- change. Riga, the capital of Livonia, with a Pop. of 103,000, is the chief seat of the political and administrative govern- ment of the 3 Baltic provinces, Li- vonia, Esthonia, and Courland, as well as the centre of their commercial and industrial activity. Livonia was almost unknown to the rest of Europe until 1158, when some Bremen merchants on a trading voyage to Wisby, on the Swedish island of Gottland, were wrecked on the Livonian coast, and soon after formed settle- ments on it and established commercial relations with the inhabitants. Mein- hardt, an Augustine monk, converted the Livonians to Christianity in 1168, and became their first bishop, but it was not until the time of Albert, the 4 th bishop, that the Christian religion Avas fully introduced. Albert built Riga, A.D. 1200, and made it the seat of the bishopric. Towards the end of that cent, the Baltic provinces were seized by King Knut VI. of Den- mark ; they were subsequently sold by Waldemar III., one of his descend- ants, to the Order of the Brethren of the Sword (Schwert Briider) founded by Bishop Albert. In the full spirit of the name they bore, these warlike adventurers speedily enlarged the territories of the Hanse Towns. Ignorant of the language, and despising the habits of the natives, their principal weapon of conversion to the true faith was the sword by which they held their footing on the shores of the east sea ; though on one occasion the Bishop of Riga is reported to have edified the minds of heathen Wends by a dramatic representation of a variety of scenes from the Bible. All writers concur in describing the cruelties prac- tised upon the unbelieving natives by these Christian warriors as of the most revolting and barbarous descrip- tion. They were not long permitted to pursue their career of conquest and tyranny with impunity. On the north, they were compelled to recoil before the arms of the Dane ; while the Rus- sians, alarmed at the near approach of such formidable neighbours, roused the natives to avenge the wrongs of half a century of oppression, and the flame of insurrection spread far and wide throughout Livonia and Esthonia. Many Germans were cut off by the insurgents ; but at length Bishop Bern- hard, falling upon their tumultuous forces with his disciplined chivalry, routed the Wends (the aborigines of Livonia) and their allies, and slew them mercilessly. The Russian town of Dorpat (then called Yurief) was taken, and a German colony established there (a.d. 1220). The capture of the isle of Oesel, to the rocky fastnesses of which the best and bravest of the Livo- nians had retired as a last refuge, and tlie voluntary conversion of the Cour- landers, established the power of the brotherhood. The Emperor Frederick II. (1230) conferred the conquered pro- vinces as an imperial fief on Valquin, the grand master of the order, and everything seemed to promise the rapid rise of a mighty kingdom, when a sudden attack of the Lithuanians laid low the Grand Master and his hopes of conquest, and nearly annihilated the entire forces of the brotherhood. The scanty relics of this powerful body now called for aid on their brethren, the Teutonic knights, who were anxiously seeking a fairer field for military achievements than the East, where they were alike harassed by the open violence of the Mussulman, and the jealousy of the rival orders, the Templars and Hospitallers. The pre- sence of these hardy warriors restored the Christians to their former superi- ority in the field, and these new comers soon rivalled the knights of the Sword in cruelty, burning whole villages that had relapsed into idolatry, and making, in the words of one of their own bishops, “out of free-born men the most wretched slaves.” As allies of the Poles, they built on the Vistula the fort of Nassau, and, sal- lying forth from thence, took by storm the holy oak of Thorn, the chief sanc- tuary of the Prussians, and beneath its Eussia. 191 JEtoute 5. — Eiga: History. far-spreading arms, as in a citadel, the knights defended, themselves against the frantic attacks of the pagans. A general rising of the natives, and a war of extermination, reduced their numer- ous forces to a few scanty troops, and their ample domains to 3 strongholds; and, after various alternate defeats and victories, they were rescued from entire destruction by a crusade under the command of the Bohemian monarch, Ottokar the Great, who founded the city of Konigsberg (a.d. 12ti0), and gave for a time new life and vigour to the falling fortunes of the northern chivalry. Internal dissensions, and the conse- quent establishment of a second Grand Master, who held his seat at Mergent- heim, weakened the growing power of the reviving brotherhood, and tlie fatal battle of Tannenberg(1410) gave a mortal blow to the importance of this “unnatural institution;” but tlie knights still retained the whole eastern coast of the Baltic, from tlie Narova to the Vistula, and it was not until the end of the 15th cent, that the arms of Poland compelled them finally to relin(;i[uish their claims to the district of eastern and western Prussia. The ancient spirit of the order awoke once again in the Grand Master Tlettenberg, who routed the Russians in 1502, and compelled the Tsar to agree to a truce for 50 years ; but the stipulated time had no sooner elapsed than the Kussiuns again invaded their possessions, and, too feeble any longer to resist such power- ful enemies, the knights were glad to purchase peace and the undisturbed possession of the province of Courland as a fief of the Polish crown by sur- rendering Esthonia to Sweden, and Livonia to the Poles, while the districts of Narva and Dor pat were incorporated with the empire of Eussia. Still the brotherhood existed. Without import- ance as an independent power, but valuable as an ally, its friendship was sought and courted in the various intrigues and commotions of the Eus- sian throne during the early part of the 18th cent. Esthonia and Livonia were finally given up by Sweden to Eussia in 1721, at the peace of Nystad. By the terms of the capitulation which preceded that treaty, the Protestant religion and the German language were guaranteed, as well as all ancient rights and privi- leges. Courland was incorporated with Eussia in 1795, at the 3rd partition of Poland ; Peter Biren, the last duke, son of the favourite of the Empress Anne of Eussia, receiving as compensation a pension of 2,000,000 rubles for life. The town of Eiga has been much embellished and enlarged since the removal of the lines of fortification in 1858. It has quite the appearance of a German town. The majority of the inhabitants are German Protestants ; Eussians are next in numerical im- portance. There are many Letts and Poles ; among the foreigners the Eng- lish are the most numerous. Eiga is the second commercial port in Eussia, and bids fair to become the first. During the season 3000 ships load opposite the town. The principal ex- ports are grain, linseed, flax, hemp, and wood ; the chief imports, — salt, herrings, coal, iron, machinery, colonial goods, &c. There are 70 factories, mills, and other similar establishments in the town and suburbs. The principal learned and scientific societies are the Society of History and Antiquities of the Baltic Provinces, the Society of Naturalists, and the Society of Practical Literature. There are a high school for technical science, two gymnasiums, a school of navigation, and several other public and private sc.liools. The town is very richly en- dowed with charitable institutions, many of which are of ancient founda- tion ; amongst the number are an ex- cellent orphan asylum and several asylums for widows of citizens in re- duced circumstances. Music is the most cultivated of the fine arts. An operatic company, a musical society, and 5 singing clubs are among the amusements of Eiga. The sights of the town are — llte Imperial Castle, a massive build- ing with 2 crenelated towers, dating 192 Sect. I. Route 5. — Riga : Churches, &c. from the time of the grand masters of the Teutonic Knights. Over an arch- way in the court is a stone statue of the Virgin Mary, protectress of the German orders ; also, the , statue of the celebrated Grand Master Walter von Tlettenberg. The castle is now the residence of the Governor General. In front of the castle is a monument raised by the citizens in honour of Alexander I., to commemorate the campaign of 1812. The Mansion Rouse, containing most interesting archives connected with the ancient history of the town. The Hall of the Mackheads (Schwarz- haupter), one of the oldest buildings in the town, built early in 1200, and often restored. This is a most interest- ing building, not only from its peculiar style, but also from the relics which it contains, including a curious collection of silver plate. (For lii story of Order, vide Keval.) It is at present only a club, of which the members must be bachelors. The Guildhalls of the great and small guilds ; handsome modern buildings in the Gothic and mediaeval styles, con- taining many curiosities of the mid die ages. The Cathedral Church, a large build- ing of the 13th and 14th cents., con- taining the tomb of the 1st bishop of Livonia. The pews ornamented with negroes’ heads are for the accommo- dation of the Blackheads. St. Peter’s Church, with a lofty spire of a peculiarly bold construction, from the galleries of which extensive views may be obtained. The English Church, a building in the purest style, where service is per- formed by a resident clergyman. Built and entirely supported by the English merchants established at Riga. The Toivn Lihrary, containing many rare manuscripts. The Museum, containing a fine arch- seological and zoological collection. The Braderlow Gallery of Paintings, containing many originals by cele- brated masters. A Gallemi of Pictures, by native and other artists, is attached to the Poly- technic School. The Bitter-house, containing the knights’ hall, and the coats-of-arms of all the Livonian nobility, who hold their parliaments there. The Exchange, a handsome new building, in the Florentine style. The Theatre, an imposing building of the handsomest description, open during nearly the whole year. There are also Club-houses, where balls are given during the winter sea- son, and where the national and foreign newspapers are to be found for the use of members and that of visitors, who can be introduced by a member free of all payment. Outside the town are the Imperial Public Gardens, with an elm planted by Peter the Great; and the Wohr- man Park, with an establishment for preparing and dispensing mineral waters, which are taken early on sum- mer mornings. A restaurant is kept open in these gardens during the sum- mer, and a band plays on 5 days of the week. The communication with the left bank of the river, on which are the Mitau suburb, the herring wharf, &c., is maintained by means of a rly. bridge, over which carriages and foot passengers can pass. A rly. runs from Riga to Bolderaa at the mouth of the Dvina (17 v.) Vessels are enabled to unload there when the river is frozen. Riga is supplied with water and gas under the management of a town com- mittee. The principal objects of interest in the neighbourhood are the Fortress of Diinamunde, 1 hour from Riga by steamboat, and the mole opposite, built to maintain deep water at the mouth of the Dvina; the large Mili- tary Hospital and House of Correction, at Alexander’s Hohe ; the old Buins of Kohenhusen Castle, on the Dvina, standing in the midst of peculiarly striking and beautiful scenery : and the Livonian Switzerland, with the 3 old castles of Cremon, Tryden, and Segewold, all in situations of great beauty. These are about 4 hours’ drive from Riga, along a good road. , {Vide Rte. 8.) Eussia. Boute 6. —Excursion to Diiheln. 1. Excursion to Diibeln. Diiheln is a watering-place situated on the Courland river Aa, distant about 15 Eng. m. from Riga, with which place there is frequent daily commu- nication by steamboat. Fare 50 co- pecks ; length of passage about 2 hrs. Diibeln is much frequented for sea- bathing during the season (from July to September inclusive) by visitors from the neighbouring piwunces, as well as from St. Petersburg and other parts of Eussia. The village, consisting of small wooden houses, with a few of a better class interspersed, is unfortu- nately situated in a sandy hollow on the bank of the river, and distant | m. from the sea, from which it is sepa- rated by a low hill covered with pine- trees. No houses are allowed to be built overlookim? the sea. The hours of bathing for ladies and gentlemen, respectively, are regulated by the ring- ing of a bell, and any infringement by the one sex on the hours sacred to the other is visited with a severe fine when detected. To those accqs- tomed to witness the promiscuous bathing of the sexes in the immediate vicinity of Riga, this phase of Russo- German modesty appears somewhat exaggerated. 2. Excursion to Mitau. Five trains run daily between Riga and Mitau, distant 46 v. Fare R. 1, 38 c. [The Riga-Mitau Railway has been extended from Mitau to Mojeiki (91 v.) on the Libau line (vide Rte. 1 ), and therefore the Russian frontier may be reached by that road and deten- tion at the dirty station of Dunaburg avoided.] Mitau (Hotel de Courlande). (Fop. 23,500), the capital of Courland. Founded in 1266, when the Grand Master, Conrad Medem, built a castle Jibe^.N'/a. — 1875. 193 on the site of the present palace. The town lies very low, on the banks of the Aa river. Its streets are broad and laid out with great regularity. Its chief ornament is the Palace or Castle, which was almost entirely rebuilt by Duke John Ernest Biren, the favourite of the Empress Anne, who, although only the grandson of an equerry to James Kettler, 4th Duke of Courland, was elected “Chief of the Courish nobility.” An old cicerone shows the deserted and unfurnished apartments of the Duke John Ernest, who died in 1772 and left the Duchy to his son Peter, by whom it was retained only until 1795, when he received in exchange a large pension from Eussia and the Principality of Sagan, in Prussian Silesia, where his descendants still flourish. But the Palace is more especially interesting on account of its having been occupied by Louis XVIII. (as the Comte de Lille), who, on being compelled to leave Verona in 1798, was invited by Paul I. to take up his residence at Mitau. The Emperor gave him a guard of 50 soldiers and an annual subsidy of 600,000 fcs. The Queen, IMarie Josephine of Savoy, joined him there, and slie was soon followed by the daughter of Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette, who on being liberated from the Temple, came to marry her cousin, the Due at. Tbe road is described in Ete. 8. EOUTE 6. LONDON TO MOSCOW, BY WILNA, MINSK, AND SMOLENSK. This is the shortest but not tbe most pleasant route to Moscow from tbe West. It is, however, sometimes taken by travellers who wish to avoid going a second time through St. Petersburg, or who are pressed for time on their way home. Tbe total distance by rail from tbe Eussian frontier Stat."(Wir- ballen) to Moscow by this route is 1061 V. (70 m.), whereas tbe distance to Moscow from tbe same starting- point via St. Petersburg is 1443 v. (962 m.), or 255 m. further. Nothing is lost by passing any part of tbe line between Wilna and Moscow in tbe night, as there is nothing very re- markable on it, with tbe exception of tbe historical city of Smolensk. The route as far as Vileiki Stat., 6 m. beyond Wilna, is given in Ete. 1. At Vileiki tbe direct line to St. Petersburg is left by a railway which proceeds towards tbe S.E., through a poor, sandy country, chiefly covered by fir woods of no large growtli. There is a Buffet at Zalescie, where 20 min. are allowed for refreshment, but tbe first large Stat. reached after a run of about 6 brs. will lie IMinsk, on tbe Moscow-Brest line, 173 V. (115 m.) from Vileiki and 702 v. (468 m.) from Moscow. [A rly. runs from Minsk to Romny , crossing tbe Kursk-Kief line at BalJi- match, distant 463 v. (309 m.) from Minsk. Fare between two latter points Es. 13, 89 c. At a distance of 239 V. from Minsk, tbe rly. passes tbe important 2nd-class fortress of Ro- hruistc, situated on high rt. bank of tbe Berezina (tbe passage of which it defends) ; and surrounded by dense woods and by marshes. This rly. has a strategical object, that of establish- ing direct communication with tbe Eussian forces in the N. W. and S. W. districts.] Hotels : H. de Paris, fair ; H. de St. Petersburg, a large hotel, but kept by very dirty Jews. Minsk is the chief town of a pro- vince of tbe same name, and has a Pop. of 36,000. It is built on hillocks. Russia. Boute 6. — Smolensh. 195 at the junction of two small rivers and close to a lake called Plebau. There is a Tartar faubourg inhabited by the descendants of Tartars who settled there in the early part of the 16th cent. The history of the town goes back to the 11th cent. In the early part of the 14th cent, the princi- pality of Minsk was incorporated with Lithuania and in the 15th cent, it became a province of Poland. The town was devastated by the Tartars in 1505, and was occupied by the Mos- covite troops in 1508. In the begin- ning of the 17th cent, heavy contri- butions w^ere laid upon it alternately by the Swedes and Eussians, and in 1793 it was finally united to Eussia. The French occupied the town in 1812, on their march to Smolensk. Tiiere are several chs. and monas- teries in Minsk, both orthodox and Eoman Catli., but none of any great interest. Beyond the town will be seen the ruins of the “ White Ch.,” built in the 15th cent. Jews of the poorest class form a third of the Pojr. and render Minsk a very undesirable place to stop at. From hlinsk the country again be- comes flat and for a great part of the distance to Smcdensk the rly. runs through primeval woods of fir and birch. The fir-trees do not reach a large size, but a tall birch is occasion- ally seen. The upper course of the Dnieper will be seen at Orsha, 199 v. from Minsk and the 10th Stat. beyond it. The town is rather prettily situated on both banks of the river. Its history is almost the same as that of Smolensk. In the 17th cent, it was the chief point from which the Polish and Lithuanian forces of the false Demetrius started for Moscow. Orsha was almost burnt to the ground on the retreat of the French in 1812. TJie 2nd stat. be- yond Orsha is KRASNofe, near whicli a sharp en- counter took place between the Eus- sian and French advanced guards in 1812. The 3rd stat. beyond is Smolensk, 392 v. (219 m.) from Moscow. Pop. 22,000. {Hotel : Eat= chinsky.) History . — Nestor calls Smolensk the town of the Krivitchi, and alludes to its existence prior to the Norman con- quest of Eussia. Prince Oleg took possession of it in 882, and until the year 1054 it remained annexed to the principality of Kief, when it fell to the share of Tiacheslaf, son of Yaroslafl. The province of Smolensk at that time comprised the whole of the present province of Smolensk and part of the present provinces of Vitebsk, Pskof, Moscow, and Kaluga. After passing- under the government of various princes it became the appanage of Vladimir Monomachus. When Vladi- mir succeeded in his turn to the throne of Kief, Smolensk was governed by his 2 sons. Eostislaf, son of the next Prince of Kief, held Smolensk for 34 years as a vassal, and was drawn into all the wars which the Princes of Kief, Chernigof, and Novgorod waged against each other. Mention is made in old chronicles of the magnificent reception given to Eostislaf when as Prince of Kief he passed through Smolensk on his way to Novgorod. His son Eol^ert suc- ceeded him at Smolensk, and spent so much money in building churches and establishing ecclesiastical schools that the expenses of his funeral had to be paid by the inhabitants. Many Veche or Witenagemotes were held about this time at Smolensk, as in other towns of Eussia. The whole of the 12th cent, passed in constant wars between the various princes. In the next cent. Smolensk was menaced by a new foe — the Lithuanians, who, in 1285, advanced up to Smolensk, and committed great ravages, but without taking the town, which had by tliis time grown very wealthy from its trade with the Baltic provinces and the Hanseatic League. The Germans ■ even made a commercial treaty with Smolensk as early as 1229. A mutual right of trade and a free passage from Smolensk to Gottland in the Baltic were thereby secured, subject to tlie K 2 196 JRoute 6. — Smolensk. Sect. I. payment of certain clues. This con- vention was confirmed in 1281 and 1330. The size of the town may be estimated from the fact that in i231 it lost no fewer than 32,000 inhab. from the plague. In 1237 the Tartars advanced on Smolensk, but it was saved, according to a legend, by a Koman named Mer- curins, who went into the camp of the invaders and killed the giant on whom they most relied for success in their enterprise. Having, however, been killed by the Tartars while asleep from fatigue, Mcrcurius was recognised by the Church as a martyr, and to this day the helmet and greaves which the hero wore during the fight are sacredly pre- served in the cathedral. The Lithu- anians now made several attempts to possess themselves of Smolensk, which compelled the inhabitants in 1275 to seek the assistance of the Tartars, who again in 1310 marched upon the city in conjunction with the forces of the Princes of Moscow and Eiazan, but the expedition failed, owing, it is sup- posed, to the Tartar chief having been bribed by the besieged. Continual wars with Moscovy and Lithuania, and another dreadful plague, soon after weakened the principality, and it was at last taken by the Lithuanians in 1395. In 1101, however, Oleg, Prince of Eiazan, agreed to assist his father-in-law, George, in the recovery of the throne of Smolensk, and, having appeared before the town with a large force, the inhabitants opened their gates. Prince George immediately put to death all the Boyars who had espoused the cause of the Lithuanians. Vitovt, Prince of Lithuania, attacked Prince George in 1103, and after taking Viazma, in order to cut oti’ his communications with Moscow, he laid siege to Smolensk during a period of seven weeks, but without success. Next year he came again, while George was at Moscow soliciting the aid of its prince, and reduced the town by famine on the 26th June, 1101. Vitovt gave the conquered town many privi- leges, but its ruin Avas so complete that a most dreadful famine ensued, during which the inhabitants were re- duced to the condition of cannibals, and “ dogs were seen in the streets feeding off human bones.” King Casimir of Poland visited Smolensk about 1153, and confirmed all its former privileges. A truce with Moscow in 1193, and the marriage of Alexander, Grand Duke or Prince of Lithuania, with Helen, daughter of John III. of Moscow, did not long pre- serve Smolensk from further disasters. Although the free exercise of the Greek religion had been guaranteed to Helen, yet Joseph, Bishop of Smo- lensk, soon began openly to preach the supremacy of the Pope and to interfere with the religious observ- ances of the Grand Duchess. A dis- pute about boundaries gave the Mos- covites a pretext for attack, and the Lithuanians were routed on the 11th July, 1500, at Dorogobush (86 v. from Smolensk) ; but Prince Alexander had put the town into such an excellent state of defence that the Moscovites Avere forced to withdraw, after suffer- ing much from the want of provisions. A regular peace was not concluded until 1503. This had scarcely expired before war broke out afresh between the Lithuanians and Moscovites, at the instigation of Glinsky, a Lithu- anian noble who went over to the Eussians. After many encounters and another truce, John the Terrible re- solved in council to fight the Lithu- anians ‘‘as long as his horse would carry him or his sword cut,” and in 1513 he advanced on Smolensk with a contingent from Pskof, which was so unaccustomed to fight that just be- fore the assault their courage had to be sustained by the distribution of 3 casks of mead and 3 of beer. A first and a second campaign proved unsuccessful, but a third siege, under- taken in June 1511, with superior forces provided with cannon, and with the assistance of mercenaries from Bohemia and Germany, compelled the citizens to surrender. The loss of Smolensk was keenly felt by the Poles and Lithuanians, and during the whole of the 16th cent, they endeavoured to regain possession of it.- Even the Khan of Tartary was Kiissia. Boute 6. — SmolensJa. 197 called in by King Sigismnnd to induce the Kussians to abandon it, bnt in vain. StejDlien Bathory tried to take it by force of arms, but failed, for the castle and fortifications liad been care- fully rebuilt. In 1596 these were again strengthened under the super- intendence of Boris Godunof, after- wards usurper of the throne of Mos- cow. He built a new wall of stone with 36 towers and 9 gates. The an- cient trade of the town was renewed, but famine and epidemics continued to succeed each other. The 17th cent, was ushered in by farther troubles. On the death of Boris Godunof, Smolensk surrendered to the false Demetrius, who gave it with the whole of the province to George (Yury) Mniszek, Voevod of Sandomir, his future father-in-law. On the 21st Ai^ril, 1606, the citizens went out with church banners, and with bread, salt, and sable-skins to meet their “ Tsaritsa ” Marina, daugh- ter of Mniszek. But their loyalty was not of long duration. The downfall of the Pretender was the signal for their ]narching against the Poles, then in Moscow. Between 1608 and 1611 Smo- lensk held ont against overwhelming Polish forces, and at last had to sus- tain a siege of more than 20 months’ duration ; nor would the old town have yielded, had not the weakness of one of its walls been betrayed to the Poles by a citizen. On the 3rd July, 1611, that part of the wall was bat- tered down, and the Poles broke into the town, killing an iunnense number of the inhabitants. As many as 72,000 persons perished on the Polish and Pussian sides during that memorable siege. The Boyar Sheln, who had so manfully conducted the defence of the city, was put in irons, tortured, and then sent to Lithuania with other important prisoners. Tlie Poles now hastened to establish themselves and their religion firmly in the conquered province. They founded monasteries and Roman Catholic churches, and gave the Jesuits and Bernardines full liberty of action. Important charters were at the same time granted to the citizens. The new Tsar Michael swas forced by circumstances to acknow- ledge the annexation of Smolensk and other towns, except Viazma, to Poland by treaty, in 1618, on condition, how- ever, of his father, the Metropolitan Philaret, being set at liberty. In 1632 that sovereign declared war against the Poles with the object of regaining Smolensk. The command of 32,000 troops and 158 cannon was given to the same Boyar Sheln who had de- fended the city in 1611. At first the Russian forces were successful, and many towns surrendered ; but in 1633 King Vladislas came in irerson to the relief of the besieged citizens, and compelled the Russians on the 19th February, 1631, to lay down their arms under an armistice. The Boyar Shein surrendered all his war materiel, standards, and provisions, and took oath with his troops not to carry arms against Poland during I months. It was a great humiliation to the veteran Boyar to see his troops march out of their camp without beat of drum and bow low to tlie hosts of Poland while they deposited their colours at the feet of the King. As an act of grace Vladislas permitted Shein to take 12 guns with him, but on returning to Moscow the unfortunate man was Irc- headed, together with his adjunct, the VoeVod Izmailof. Twenty years later the war was renewed under the Tsar Alexis, who in 1651 arrived in person with a large army before the walls of Smolenslv. The first assault, made after a siege of 6 weeks, was repulsed ; but after a second attack the Polish commander, whose authority had been weakened by a tumnlt among the citizens, was forced to surrender. On the 23rd Sep- tember, 1651, the Polisli troops had this time to march out of the fortress igno- miniously and to lay down their arms at the feet of the Tsar. Hostilities con- tinued for 12 years longer, and during that time Smolensk remained in tlie hands of the Russians, who re-esta- blished the Russn-Greek churches and did their best to Russify the province. Great numbers of the Polish popu- lation were deported to the Volga and the Kama, and replaced by “ sons of 198 Boute 6 . — Smolensh Sect. I. boyars” brought forcibly from beyond Moscow. The Treaty of Andrussy (1(J67) secured Smolensk to the Eus- sians for 13 years and 6 months, but the Poles took advantage of the im- pending war between Eussia and Turkey in 1678 and demanded the restoration of the city. This, how- ever, the Eussians refused to do, and preferred jDaying an indemnity of 200,000 r. and surrendering several other towns. At last, by the Treaty of 26th April, 1686, Smolensk was annexed to Eussia “ for ever.” The latter part of the 17th cent, was passed by the citizens in peace, and their ancient trade with Eussia and other countries was renewed. When the great northern war broke out at the beginning of the 18th cent., Peter the Great frequently visited Smolensk, and devoted much labour to securing it from danger. The great war did not reach it, but it was made the basis of the operations in Lithuania and Little Eussia, and the Poles natu- rally regretted all the more the loss of the city they had so long lield. Jesuit fathers penetrated into it and gained over many of the citizens ; and although their admission was jarohibited by ukaz in 1728, when those who liad already become domiciled in Eussia were ex- ])elled, they continued, according to Eussian accounts, to enter the province of Smolensk in disguise and to pro- l)agate Catholicism and allegiance to Poland. In 1731 a regular plot was discovered, in which even the Governor of Smolensk, Prince Cherkasky, was implicated. Their designs were di- vulged by one of the conspirators, and the measures which the Eussian Government adopted dispelled the hopes of tlie Poles and left the city of Smolensk in peace until the French invasion. AVhen the ‘grand army* began its march from the Niemen in 1812, the Eussian troops fell back on Smolensk. Although Barclay de Tolly encou- raged the inhabitants and assured them of their safety, he nevertheless caused the treasury to be removed, as well as all documents from which the enemy might derive any information about the condition of the country. The two Eussian armies (one com- manded by Barclay de Tolly, the other by Bagration) reached Smolensk on the 22nd July (O.S.), and encamped on the 1. bank of the Dnieper. Three days later they retreated further, leav- ing only one regiment in the town. In the meanwhile the French advanced, and, after the engagement with Never- ofski at Krasnoe, appeared on the 3rd August in the neighbourhood of Smo- lensk. Euefski, sent to assist Never- ofski, fortified as far as he could the suburbs of the town, and resolved to maintain himself in it until the ar- rival of the two armies. On the morning of the 4th (16th) August the fighting commenced, and was continued the next day with great carnage, as the armies had advanced the day before. Many assaults were- repulsed, the old walls withstood a fearful cannonade, and a dreadful fire broke out in the town. . . . During the night the Eussian troops evacuated the town, and on the morning of the 6th (18th) Napoleon entered it, but found nothing except smouldering ruins, and no inhabitants except the old, the young, and the sick, many of whom had taken refuge in the churches. Napoleon remained 4 days at Smo- lensk, and established a Commission for the civil administration of the town, with Caulaincourt as Military Governor. The Commission could, however, do nothing; a rising took place all over the country; bands of partisans were formed and destroyed foraging parties, and even larger bodies of the enemy, whenever they met them. The French tried to over- awe the people by acts of severity, and, having seized the leaders of two bands of partisans, Engelhard and Shubin, shot them at Smolensk. This only increased the animosity of the people, and when, on the 29th October (O.S.), Napoleon returned to Smolensk, he found nothing for the support of the remnants of the ‘ great army.* The further retreat of Napoleon was protected at Smolensk by Ney, who left the city on the 6th (18th) November, after blowing up 8 of the towers built Eussia. Boute 6. — Viazma. 199 by Godunof in 1596, and a part of lire other fortifications. The Russians who liad remained in the town issued out of their places of refuge, and began to destroy with frenzy the stragglers who roamed about the town, throwing them into the flames of the burning build- ings and into holes in the ice. - . . A Kiissian regiment entered Smo- lensk, and put an end to those outrages. The removal and destruc- tion of the bodies of men and earcases of horses were continued for 3 months afterwards, for many of the streets were literally encumbered with the dead. At first the bodies were burned, piled in heaps half a verst in lengtli and two fathoms high, and, when the supply of wood failed, they Avei-e buried in trenches and covered with quick-lime. Epidemics subsequently broke out in consequence. The losses incurred by Smolensk were at that time valued at Es. 6,592,404, 60 c. Topography. — The town is very prettily situated on green hills above both banks of the Dnieper, which is at this part of its course about as broad as the Thames at Windsor. The junction of two great lines— the Eiga- Orel and the Brest-Moscow — is effected here, and gives the town a growing importance. The ancient fortifications of Smolensk, whicli lie on the left bank of the river, and the demolition of which was stopped by Imperial Order in 1868, enclose? a space of about 3 m. The walls arc 49 ft. high and ITa ft. thick, but only 17 out of 36 towers built by Boris Godunof are now extant. The earthen ramparts on the rt. bank were thrown up in 1724 by Peter the Great, in order to defend the passage of the bridge on the Dnieper. A monument, erected in 1844, commemorates the events of 1812. There are about 35 Eussian chs. at Smolensk, of which the prin- cipal is the Cath. of the Assumption, founded in 1676 on the site of a ch. built in 1101, but blown up in 1611 by some Poles who had taken refuge within it. The iron shoes, &c., of St. Mercurius, who fought the Tartar chief in single combat in 1239, are here shown, as well as an old copy of the Evangelists, several old images, and sundry ch. vessels of the 16th and 17th cents. Two venerated images of the Virgin Mary painted by St. Luke, and brought to Eussia by Anne, daughter of the Emperor Constantiiie of Byzantium, who married Vsevolod, Prince of Chernigof, form one of the greatest treasures of the Enssian ch. They were removed from the cath. on the approach of the French in 1812, and remained for 3 months in the Eus- sian camp. The other chs. remarkable for tiieir antiquity are : the ch. of St. Peter and Paul, built in 1146; that of St. John the Baptist, erected 1160- 1181 ; and the ch. of the Archangel Michael, which dates from 1180. The additions made in the last cent, to the 2 former chs. have deprived them of their ancient style of architecture, but the ch. of the Arch. Michael has preserved its original form, notwith- standing an addition made to it in 1773 and its renovation in 1812. A chapel over the “ Dnieper gate’’ con- tains a copy (made in 1602) of the original image of the Virgin Mary in the Cath. of the Assumption at Mos- cow. The traveller who makes up his mind to break his long journey at Smolensk, can take a walk in the public garden of the city. It is called the Bolonie garden. From Smolensk the line is nearly flat, and runs through a poor and thickly wooded country, the fir and beech being the only timber visible. The 10th stat. beyond is Viazma, 227 v. (151| m.) from Moscow. Pop. 12,000. [Junction with line to Tula and Eiajsk (Etes. 14 and 21), and thence to Samara and Orenburg (Etes. 14 and 45).] The town of Viazma stands on a plain having an elevation of 835 ft., and a river of the same name di- vides it into two parts. During the plague at Moscow in 1654-55, it 200 Sect. I. Itoute 7 . — Biga to 3Ioscow. was tlie residence of the Tsar Alexis and of the Patriarch Nicon. It was nearly destroyed in the severe battle which took place there in 1812. The only trace of its ancient historical importance will be seen in a tower which was one of 8 built in the reign of John III. It was repaired in 1836 and given over to the Arcadie Convent. Viazina is the principal centre of trade in the province of Smolensk. In the 10th cent, its merchants traded with foreign countries, by way of Narva, in honey, flax, and hemp. It is now an entrepot for wheat, tallow, linseed, hemp, &c., forwarded to St. Petersburg and *Kiga. It also supplies the other towns in the province with iron and fish, and its s'peciallte is the making of honey cakes, which are much esteemed over Russia, but which the traveller will scarcely relish. From Viazma the country is better cultivated. The train draws up for about 10 min. at Gjatsk (169 V. or 113 m. from Moscow), a district town, with a Pop. of 6000, situated on a wooded plain along both banks of a river, from which it takes its name. It was formerly the centre of a considerable trade, but the flooding of the river bereft it of its commercial importance. The 4th stat. beyond is a place of great historical interest, viz., Bokodino (114 V., or 76 m. from Moscow). Near this small village on the Kolotcha rivei-, was fought on the 7th Sept. 1812, the celebrated battle, when the Russians under Kutuzof made a stand in the hojie of being- able to save Moscow. Beyond the outer wall of the ch., looking from the garden, will be seen the ravine in which NajDoleon pitched his tent in the rear of the army of Italy. A monument commemorating this battle will be seen surrounded by a small birch wood, on the spot where the in-incipal fighting took place. It is ill the sliape of an octangular column, and is surmounted by a gilt capital and cross. The soldier wlio is in charge of it will explain, in the Russian language, the chief incidents of the battle. The French called it the “ Bataille des Generaux,” owing to the great number of general officers killed on each side. No fewer than 51,000 corpses and 31,000 dead horses were burned on the field after the action, and Sir James Wylie, the cele- brated Scotch physician (vide Monu- ments, Petersburg) alone performed more than 200 operations during the day. An excursion to this celebrated spot may easily be made from Moscow. The next stat. is Mojaisk, 103 V. (69 m.) from Mos- cow, a district town in the province of Moscow. Pop. 4000. The ruined walls are all that remain to attest the ancient importance of the place and the military activity of John the Terrible. 6 stats, beyond is Moscow, for description of which vide Rte. 10. ROUTE 7. RIGA TO MOSCOAV, VIA DUNABURG, VITEBSK AND SMOLENSK; AND LINE FROM SMOLENSK TO OREL. This is not a route that many tra- vellers for pleasure are likely to take, l)ut the Rly from Riga to Orel is one of the great highways of commerce in Russia, since the lines running E. and S. of Orel tap, as it were, the Volga, Don, and other rivers, in the basins of which the agricultural wealth of Russia is principally raised. The direct com- Ixussia. Boute 7. — Polotsh. 201 immicatioii between tlie Volga and Eiga bas more particularly contri- l)nted to the growth of the import- ance of the latter city as a port of shipment. The total distance from Eiga to Moscow by this route is 1295 v., or 863 m. Fare Es. 29, 01 c. For journey from Eiga to Diinabnrg vide Ete. 5. At Diinaburg the traveller will take the Diinaburg- Vitebsk line, of which Fir Morton Peto was the contractor. It likewise follows the rt. bank of the Dvina, through uninteresting scenery. The distance to Vitebsk being 24;I v. (103 m.), the time occupied in the journey is about 8 hrs. The train draws up for refreshment at Keeslavka, 39 V. from Diinaburg ; other stoppages of 10 m. are made at Drissa, 90 V. (60 m.) fromDunabnrg. This small town lies at the continence of the Drissa with the W. Dvina. Pop. 3000. A fortification existed at Drissa in the 14th cent., when it was de- stroyed by the Prince of Polotsk. In 1565 Drissa was occupied by the Eussians,bnt Stephen Bathory restored it to Poland, to which it belonged until the annexation of White Eussia (or the present provinces of Vitebsk and Mohilef), to Eussia Proper. During the war of 1812, the Eussian General Barclay de Tolly retreated before the h'rench to Drissa, and established an entrenched camp there, which he abandoned, however, on the 18th (30th) July. I'here is a large trade here with Eiga in flax and other produce. Polotsk, 151 v. (100 m.) from Diina- bnrg. District town. Pop. 12,000. Histonj . — The history of Polotsk is that of tire whole of the country lying along the course of the Dvina, viz., of a considerable part of White Eussia. Its foundation is attributed, on the faith of Iceland Sagas, to the 1st cent, after Christ. According to the Chronicle of Nestor, Polotsk, with some slight variations in the name, existed prior to the arrival of the Norman princes. Eurik, Sineus, and Truvor. The authentic and eventful history of the town begins in 864, when Polotsk was one of the principal colonies in the country of the Krevitchi. At liis death, Truvor gave Polotsk to one of his followers, and, in 980, chronicles speak of it as belonging to an indepen- dent Pi’ince, Eogvolocl, a Northman. The proud refusal of his daughter Eogneda to marry Vladimir, Prince of Novgorod, caused the downfall of Polotsk, for Vladimir came there with a large army, and, putting Eogvolod and his sons to death, carried Eogneda away as his Avife. Annexed to the principality of Kief, when Vladimir, afterwards cano- nized, succeeded to that throne, it became the portion of Isiaslaf, son of St. Vladimir by Eogneda. Its ex- istence as an independent princi- pality was frequently menaced by tlie other descendants of Vladimir between 980 and 1129, when the Prince of Kief succeeded in taking possession of it. But the town and province of Polotsk continued to have many enemies— tlie Pskovites, the Li- vonian knights, and the Lithuanians, who wrested the principality from each other by turns. A treaty be- tween the Prince of Smolensk and Eiga in 1228 gave it to the former, and in 1235 it was conquered by Ein- holdt, a Lithuanian prince. During the internecine Avar that folloAved on the death of Mindovgus, Grand Duke of Lithuania, Polotsk was sold to the Church of Eiga., but it Avas purchased again by the Lithuanians in 1307. Its privileges Avere then gradually assimi- lated to those of other provincial towns in Lithuania, and in 1498 the law of Magdeburg superseded the Lithuanian and Eussian laws under Avhich Polotsk had been previously governed. The law of Magdeburg and other privi- leges of Polotsk were confirmed by successive grand dukes of Lithuania and kings of Poland between 1510 and J634. The deAmloiiment of the neAv institutions Avas, however, frequently retarded by danger from Avithout. In 1500 and 1 502 the Moscovites advanced as far as Polotsk, laying Avaste the 202 lioute 7 . — Vitebsk. country around them. Alexander, Grand Duke of Lithuania, hastened to put the castle in a state of defence, but a truce saved the town. In 1507 the Moscovites once more entered the province of Polotsk, and again with- drew with a jji’omise to leave it un- molested in future. In 1511 they returned and spread destruction around tliem, and in 1515 and 1518 they laid siege to the town, but without success, for the fortifications had been well re- paired. John the Terrible, however, having come to an open rupture with Lithuania, advanced in person with his army, a.d. 1568, and took the town after a siege of two weeks, during which many assaults were made. The fall of Polotsk was celebrated all over Moscovy with the ringing of bells, and for 17 years it was governed by Kus- sian Yoevods ; but in 1579 King Ste- phen Bathory retook it, because “ the YoeYods were bad, and admired the fair sex.” There was great mourning at Moscow in consequence, and John the Terrible, in an impulse of rage, caused all the troops that had re- turned from Polotsk, or that had been made prisoners and released, to be put to death. Bathory caused the walls and towers to be repaired and confirmed the an- cient privileges of the inhabitants; the Grand Duke of Moscovy, meanwhile attempting to regain the town by peaceful negotiations, for which pur- pose he even invoked theMd of Eng- land. The death of John the Terrible and the troubles that followed enabled the I’oles to retain peaceful possession of the unhappy town, which was about that time visited with pestilence and famine and nearly burned to the ground. After many internal dissen- sions of a religious character the town fell again, in 1654, to the Kiissians, who held it until 1667, when they re- stored it to Poland under the Treaty of Andrussy ; and it was not until the first partition of Poland, in 1772, that Polotsk and the rest of White Eussia were finally incorporated with Eussia Proper. In 1812 Murat and Ney established Sect. 1. themselves in the neighbourhood of Polotsk, and, when they marched on Yitebsk, Oudinot was left in their place. The two old castles and the monu- ment in the square opposite the ch. in commemoration of the Eussian soldiers who fell at the storming of the entrenchments of Polotsk in 1812, are not of sufficient importance to in- duce the traveller to break his journey at this place. He will probably pro- ceed direct to Yitebsk, 244 v. (163 m.) from Diina- burg. Pop. 30,000. Hotel : Brosi, with a restaurant below, rooms tolerable. History . — Situated on both banks of the Western Dvina, and on the Yitba rivulet falling into it, Yitebsk appears to have been founded before ihe year 1021. In 1101 it was the seat of an independent principality, which existed until the year 1320, when it was annexed to Lithuania, on the death of Prince Yaroslaf, who had given his daughter in marriage to Olgerd, Prince of Lithuania. Casimir, King of Poland, gaye the town many privileges in the latter part of the 15th cent. In 1562 Prince Kurbski, a Eussian Yoevod, who later incurrecl the wrath of John the Terrible and fled to Lithuania, burnt the suburbs of Yitebsk, and, in 1563 and 1569, the Moscovites took the town and set it on fire. The Poles having subsequently re- gained it, Sigismund III. compensated the iidiabitants for their losses by es- tablishing a fair, and giving to the town his castle of Lukishi, of which no traces remain. In 1616 Yitebsk was again burnt down by the Eussians and Cossacks. Seven years later the in- habitants rose and put to death Bishop Kun^ewicz, who attempted to introduce the Uniat faith, for which oftence the [ ancient privileges of Yitebsk were with- drawn for a time, but restored in 1641 by Yladislas lY. The Eussians, un- der Shermetief, again took Yitebsk in 1654, after a siege of 3^ months’ duration, and held it until 1667, when, together with Polotsk, it was restored to Lithuania under the Treaty of liiissili. Moute 7.- Andrussy. During the wars between Peter I. and Charles XII., Vitebsk, which had sided with the Swedes, and had even sent them a subsidy of 7000 thalers, was burnt to the ground by Cossacks and Calmucks, by the order of Peter. It was finally incor- porated with Russia in 1772. In July 1812, Vitebsk, deserted by its inhabitants, was occupied by the French army. No one was to be seen fn it but a few Jews and Jesuits. They could give no information. The French followed in pursuit for 6 leagues, through a deep and burning sand. At last, night put an end to their progress. The soldiers, parched with thirst, could get only muddy water to quench it; and while they were busy in procuring it, Napoleon held a council, wliich decided that it was useless for the time to pursue the Russians any fur- ther, and that it was advisable to halt where they were, on tlie confines of Old Russia. As soon as tlie emperor had formed this resolution he returned to Vitebsk with Ins guards. On enter- ing his headquarters in that city on the 28th July, he took off his sword, and, laying it down on the maps which covered his table, “ Here,” said he, “ I halt. I want to reconnoitre, to rally, to rest my army, and to organize Po- land. The campaign of 1812 is over ; that of 181.3 will do the rest.” Napo- leon left Vitebsk on tlie 13tli August, after halting there a fortnight, and on the loth the army was in sight of Krasnoe, where it defeated the corps of Neverovski. Having gone through so many cala- mities, it is not surprising that Vitebsk should have no monuments of antiquity to show the traveller. Its principal buildings are : the Palace where the Grand Duke Constantine of Russia, brother of the Emperor Nicholas, died in 1831 ; the Nobility Assembly House, the Gymnasium, and the Cathedrals of St. Nicholas and of the Assumption. It has also a theatre, and an hospital with 160 beds. There is a consider- able trade with Riga in corn, flax, hemp, tobacco, sugar, and timber. Beyond Vitebsk, on the Vitebsk Orel line, the country becomes very pretty, -Briansh 203 and after a run of 127f v. (85 m.), the train stops at Smoi.ensk, for description of which vide Rte. 6. The only places of interest beyond Smolensk are: Roslavl, 238 v. (150 m.) from Vitebsk, district town on river Ostra. Pop. 7000. The old high road to Warsaw passes through it. Vladimir Monomachus is supposed to have founded this town a.d. 1098, but its history does not properly begin until the middle of the 12th cent. Like other towns in the principality of Smolensk, Roslavl was taken by the Lithuanians. In 1493 it was taken by the Muscovites, but in 1503 Johir III. gave it back to the Lithuanians. Later, Roslavl passed through several hands. In 1563 it was held by the troops of John the Terrible, who de- fended it successfully against the Inthuanians, whose leader, Prince John Lytchko, was taken prisoner. At that time the town was strongly fortified, and its walls were defended by many cannon and a large garrison. The citizens of Roslavl espoused the cause of the Pretender Demetrius, and later, while the Poles were laying siege to Smolensk, they sent a deputation to King Sigismund wuth an offer of surrender. The temporary Polish governor of Roslavl, Nadolsky, so greatly irritated them that they im- paled him. In 1613, and again in 1632, the Muscovites seized the town, but they were obliged each time to restore it by treaty to the Poles. It was finally annexed to Russia by the- treaty made in 1686. The old martial spirit of the inhabitants revived during the French inva.siou, when they equip- ped a detachment of 400 horse and foot and greatly harassed the French foraging parties. Brtansk, 363 V. (242 m.) from Vi- tebsk. Pop. 13,000. District town on both banks of the Desnia, and on those of 4 other small rivers, which divide the town into 4 parts. Briansk is mentioned in chronicles of tlie 12th cent, and formed an independent prin- 204: iioute 8. — St. Petersburg to Narva. cipulity, wliich fell on the death of its prince, Vasili, in 1356. When the Mougols invaded Russia, Briansk was seized by the Litlmanians, but from time to time it was annexed to Mos- covy, as for instance in 1491. It was tinally incorporated with Russia in the beginning of the 17th cent. The ad- herents of the first Pretender took pos- session of the town, but the citizens withstood the siege of the second false Demetrius. Under the Empress Anne, a shipbuilding yard was established there, after a plan by Peter the Great, for the purpose of building vessels to be employed against Turkey ; but the ships having proved useless, tiieir fur- ther construction was stopped in 1739. In 1783 an arsenal was founded there for the manufacture of siege and field guns. It still exists, and supplies about 60 guns a year, besides gun- cairiages and other artillery appur- tenances. There are 13 churches within the town. The Cathedral of tlie Intercession of the Holy Virgin was built in 1526, and restored in the 17th cent. In the Sacristy will be seen a copy of the Evangelists, with an autograph of the Tsar Michael, 1637. There is also a convent con- t.iining 2 churches, in one of which is buried Oleg, Prince of Oliernigof and Briansk, who flourished in the 13th cent, and afterwards took the cowl under the name of Leonidas. A considerable trade is carried on here in timber, hemp, and hemp-seed oil, produced in various parts of the province of Orel, in which the town is situated, and forwarded lienee to Moscow, Riga, and St. Petersburg. The inhabitants likewise purchase cattle in the southern provinces, and sell it in the two capitals. At a distance of 1 m. from Briansk is Sev(jkf>retty villages of Kosch, Tischer, and Fall, on the coast of the Gulf of Finland, are places at each of which a day may be spent very pleasantly. A day may also be profitably and agreeably spent in driving to Fadis Kloster, distant 23 m. from the town, one of the finest ruins in Esthonia. This monastery is mentioned in the beginning of the 14th cent., when, owing to starvation without its walls, (and doubtless a very comfortable life within) the peasants rose in numbers around, murdered the abbot and monks, and so devastated the place, that in 1448 it had to receive a further and full consecration at the hands of Hein- rich, Baron Uxkiill, Bishop of Reval ; at which time it was ordained, that whoever in any way enriched or be- nefited this Kloster of Fadis, should, for any sins he might commit, have 40 days of penance struck off. Hence, perhaps, arose the peculiar repute and custom in the sale of indulgences which this monastery enjoyed. Hapsal, a fashionable bathing-place on the coast of the Baltic, is within a few hours’ reach from Reval by steamer. Steam communication. — St. Peters- burg may be reached from Reval by steamer in 24 hrs. and Helsingfors in 5 hrs. There are likewise opportu- nities of returning to England by steamer, particularly late in autumn, wRen navigation higher up the gulf becomes uncertain and dangerous. Ilailway communication with Mos- cow . — Travellers wishing to avoid St. Petersburg, can book at Reval direct for Tosna station on the Moscow line, via Gatchino. This branch line is, however, principally used for the trans- port of goods. History of Reval. — Esthonia, too insignificant a country to govern itself, but, from its position, too tempting a prize to be disregarded by neigh- bouring states, has been roughly used by every northern power, and has ex- hibited scenes of suffering and discord of which the history of the town of Reval, its capital, is sufficient to give an epitome. The town is supposed to have been IvllSSlcl. Boute 8 . — Beval. 209 founded in 1219 or 1223, wlien Wal- demar II., King of Denmark, built a strong castle on the rock now called the Domberg, and wdiich had pre- viously been occupied by an ancient fortification of the Ests, called Linda- misse, and subsequently Dani Linna, or Danish Town, whence the contrac- tion Tallina, the Esthonian name for Eeval at the present day. In about 1228, the castle and the town wliich sprung up around it fell into the liands of the Livonian Order of Knights ; but in 1237, “Eeval” was restored to the Danes, who had obtained the aid of Pope Gregory IX. Merchants from Bremen and Liibeck obtained permis- sion in 1238 to settle in the vicinity of the castle and soon gave to Eeval that German character which it has to this day retained. After having been made the seat of a bishopric in 1240, Eeval acquired in 1284 the privileges of a Hanseatic town. Trade began to flourish in the hands of the German merchants who knew how to profit by the excellent position of their town as a seaport, and who soon made it one of the most important cities of the Hanseatic League. For the pro- tection of that trade, a portion of the town Avas walled in by order of the Queen Mother of Denmark, Marga- retta Sambiria, who selected Esthonia as her Wittwensitz^ confirmed and in- creased the privileges of Eeval, en- dowed it with the right of coinage, &c., and enfranchised it from all outer interference. These privileges, hoAV- ever, did not extend to the Dorn, where the Stadthalter, or governor, resided, and wliich was independent of the town, and not considered Eeval. But even this short age of gold was dis- turbed by many bitter quai rels about rights of boundary, &c. The fertile province of Esthonia, Avith its wealthy little capital, from being a widow’s dowry, became a bride’s portion, and in right of his wife, a princess of Hveden, was possessed for some time by a iMarkgraf of Brandenburg. After that it again changed hands, and was at length formally sold, in 1774, for 19,000 marcs of silver, to the Master of the Teutonic Order in Livonia. A conflagration consumed Eeval in 1433, and fire and jilague visited the newly-built toAvn in 1532. MeaiiAvhile the luxurious habits of the nobility fell hard upon the neglected serf, and an old saying still exists, that “ Es- thonia Avas an Elysium for the no- bility, a heaven for the clergy, a mine of gold for the stranger, but a hell for tile peasant.” Consequently, in 1560, the peasants rose in immense numiiers, attacked castles and monasteries, kill- ing and slaying all before them, and menaced Eeval, Avhere many of their lords had taken refuge. Unaided by their knights, who Avere fettered with debts and who had battles enough of their own to fight at that time, and being moreover menaced by the Eussians, who had always been trou- blesome neighbours, the Eevalensers threAV off the dominion of the Order and calling over the aid of SAveden, took, in 1561, together Avith the rest of the province of Esthonia, an oath of allegiance to King Eric XIV. The Moscovite troops besieged Eeval tAvice, but unsuccessfully ; viz. for 30 Aveeks in 1570-71 and for 7 Aveeks in 1577. In 1569 the town Avas bom- barded by Liibeck and Danish vessels of Avar, and although its Avails did not suffer much on that occasion, yet its trade, no longer in the zenith of its importance, received a severe bloAV from so many successive calamities. On the 29th Sept. 1710, Patkul, the commandant of Eeval, surrendered the toAvn by capitulation to Peter the Great, avIio visited it for the first time in 1711, and Avho in 1713 caused a military harbour to be constructed. Eeval has an arsenal, and the fleet from Cronstadt rendezvous here at times. Eussian vessels of Avar are generally stationed in the harbour. The province of Estlionia has been alloAved to retain its oAvn jurisdiction, Avhich is administered by 12 Land- rathe, a strictly honorary office, dating from the 14th cent. The most dis- tinguislied names Avhich fill tire pages of Esthonian Ijistory, either in an episcopal, military, or civil capacity, are those of the Barons Meyendorf, Uxkull (the Esthonian name for the 210 lioute 8 . — Excursion to Dorpat. Sect. I. same, but now a distinct family), i Eosen, Ungern, Bouxliowden, and Wrangell, all of wliich still exist in very flourishing condition, with many others, of more recent origin, from Sweden, Kussia, and all parts of Eu- rope, including even the names of Douglas, O’Rourke, and Lewis of Me- nar, which stand here in friendly pro- pinquity, their British origin being overlooked in their established Estho- nian antiquity. The rivalry of St. Petersburg long deprived Reval of the last remnant of its former commercial greatness, but the construction of the railway and the improvement of the port are causing its trade to increase every year. In fact, it is now St. Petersburg that has to fear the rivalry of Riga, Reval, Hango, Helsingfors, and other ports on the coast of the gulf of Finland, connected as they now are by rail with the great producing and consuming centres of Russia Proper. II. Tleval to Baltic Port. There are 5 Stats, between Reval and Baltic Port, and the distance is 45 V. (30 m.) Baltic Port. This small harbour is entered by vessels when the port of Reval is frozen. It is a bleak and barren place, with no attraction for the traveller. III. Excursion to Dorpat. There are several ways of getting to Dorpat, and the choice of a route must depend upon the traveller’s gene- ral plan of a tour in Russia. Until a lu-anch line connects that town with the Baltic Rly. a selection will have to be made between the following routes, viz. : — (1.) St. Petersburg to Dorpat by Baltic line to Wesenberg, and thence by post. (2.) St. Petersburg to Dorpat by Baltic line to Jewe Stat. on Baltic line, and thence by post along Lake Peipus. (3.) St. Petersburg to Dorpat by Pskof, and thence by steamer. Instead of returning by one of the above routes, the traveller may wish to make a tour through the most beau- tiful part of the Baltic provinces, by posting from Dorpat to Riga. The following are short sketches of these several routes : — (1.) St. Petersburg to Dorpat, via Wesenberg. Wesenherg {vide above route to Reval) is the chief town of a district in the province of Esthonia. It lies at a distance of IJ v. from the Rly. Stat. The distance thence to Dorpat is 120 V. (80 m.), which can be per- formed in a post carriage. The post stations are : — versts. Pontifer . 23 Wdggeiva . . 27J Kurrista . 19i Moisama . . 23A Dorpat . 27 120 (2.) St. Petersburg to Dorpat via Jewe and along Lake Peipus, 133| v. Travellers wishing to see Lake Peipus on their way to Dorpat must get out at Je'we Stat. {vide above Rte. to Reval.) From thence the post stations are : — Klein-Punjern, 21J. Banna-Pungern^ 26| v. Here the traveller comes out on Lake Peipus (called Chudslioe' Oze'ro, in Russian). Nennal, 14 v., on shore of Lake Peipus. The road leaves the lake at the village of Chernaya, 7 v. beyond, which is jiopulated by Russian “ Old Believers,” whose principal occupation is catching fish. Torma, 25| v. Iggafer, 23| v. Dorpat, 22| v. Russia. 211 Route 8.- (3.) St. Petersburg to Dorpat via Pskof. This is the easiest route iu summer, for the train takes 7^ hrs. in reacliing Pskof (mVZe Rte. 1), and a steamer from thence along Lake Peipus and up the Embach river reaches Dorpat in 10 hrs. more. A steamer leaves Pskof and Dorpat daily, except on Sundays, at the same hour — 8 a.m. Fare, 1st class, 5 roubles. Dorpat. District town in prov. of Livonia. Pop. 21,000. Hotels : Londres ; St, Petersburg. This picturesque little town, cele- brated principally for its learning, stands on the hilly banks of the Em- bach river, whicli flows from Lake Wirtzj erw into Lake Peipus. The prin- cipal buildings are on the S. side of tlie river ; they are prettily grouped around the JDomherg and Scldossherg, but all that remains of the ancient buildings on those elevated mounds are the ruins of a cath. on the Dom- berg, which was destroyed by fire in 1775, together with a great part of the town. No vestige beyond this remains of the ancient Gothic nucleus of the town : all is new. The old walls and ditches have been converted into charming promenades. The town is, however, very pretty and neat, the principal square, the bazaar, the uni- versity, and the best houses and shops are situated between the N. base of the Domberg and the river, which is spanned by a handsome granite bridge. The University was founded by Gus- tavus Adolphus in 1032, the year of his death, and, after various vicissi- tudes, it took refuge in Sweden, in order to avoid the Russian army in 1710. Professors, students, libraries, museums — all departed ; and returned only under the auspices of the Em- peror Alexander I. in 1802. Its library (containing 80,000 vols.) is curiously situated in the ruins of the Dom, from which the views of the surrounding country are very fine. Attached to the University are : an anatomical theatre, and a museum of natural history ; but -Dorgjat. . of all the collections of the University, that of the Botanical Garden is the most complete ; it contains more than 12,000 plants, some of which are not to be found in other botanical gar- dens of Europe. Like Reval, Dorpat had once its corps of Schwarzen Hliupter, or “ asso- ciation of citizens for the defence of the city it is now merely a convivial club. Among its treasures is a magnificent goblet of glass.and gold, 2 ft. high, on which are engraved a beetle, a hum- ming-bird, and a butterfly. The his- tory of the town is a stirring and a stormy one. The Russians from the E., the Teutonic Knights from the W., the quarrels of both with the aboriginal Esthonians, and the bloody wars be- tween the Russians, Swedes, and Poles, more than once laid it in ashes. It was founded in 1030 by Yaroslaf I., Grand Duke of Novgorod, who called it Yurief. The Teutonic Knights seized it in 1223. In 1559 it was occupied and devastated by the IMoscovite troops, but in 1582 it was ceded by treaty to King Stephen Bathory of Poland. During the 16th cent, it was held alternately by the Swedes, the Poles, and the Russians, who at length finally annexed it to the empire in 1701. IV. Dorpat to Eiga, The distance by road between theso two towns is 21 5f v. (161 m.), but the journey is well worth making if the traveller is in search of beautiful scenery, or if he wishes to make him- self more thoroughly acquainted with the condition of the Baltic Provinces of Russia. A caia iage can easily be procured at Dorpat, and the observance of the usual rules as to posting in Russia (vide Introduction) will enable the traveller to perform the journey with consider- able comfort. The same route is of course avail- able for those who wish to proceed to Dorpat from Riga, The post stations and the places worth seeing on the road are the fol- lowing : — 212 Bonte 8. — Wenden. J'ddern Stat., 25 v. from Dorpat. Kuikatz Stat., 25 v. Teilitz Stat., 221 Walk. A small town, llj v. (hdben Stat., 71 v. Stuckeln Stat., 21^ v. Wolmar. A small town, 20 v. The next stat. is : Wenden. Chief town of district in province of Livonia, 20 v. Here the country, enclosed in tlie beautiful valley of the Aa, becomes very picturesque, and acquires the name of the Livonian Switzerland. Adjoining the town, the traveller will see the old castle of Wenden, the resi- dence of the masters of the Teutonic Order, after the last remnant of the Knights of the Sword (Scliwerdt- Bruder) had been received into the ranks of the Teutonic Order, and after Livonia had become a province of the • latter. The fine ruins of the ancient castle are situated in the park, to which the public are admitted by the liberality of Count Sievers, the present pro- prietor. The castle once belonged to Axel Oxenstierna, Chancellor of Swe- den, to whom it was given by Queen Christina; and later it became the property of Count Bestujef, minister of tire Empress Elizabeth of Kussia. The Sievers family have held it for 3 gene- rations. The park which encloses the ruins was planted by the father of the present proprietor, who, after taking part in the war of 1812-13 as a general in tlie Eussian army (and who later became a senator), devoted the leisure of his old age to the embellishment of Ills estate. The ruins are refiected in a beautiful sheet of limpid water, Inought in pipes from a distance of nearly 2 miles, while in the middle of it is a group of rocks, from which a jet of water rises to a height of 42 ft. The couityard of the castle, which is still inhabited, is separated from the town only by an ancient wall. In the first house on cn-tering the town the traveller will find the post and telegraph offices. A little beyond is a Protestant ch. (once a Eoman Cath. Ch.), in which are the tombs of Sect. I. several m.asters of the Teutonic order ; amongst them that of the famous Plet- tenberg, wliose bust in bronze — a copy of the bust which is in the Walhalla at Eatisbon — was likewise placed with- in its walls by the nobility of Livonia. Another tomb will be pointed out as that of Patricius, a Eoman Cath. bishop, whose name is connected with the fruitless attempt made by King Stephen Bathory of Poland to support the cause of Catholicism in Livonia, by estab- lishing a bishopric at Wenden. Over the altar is a very fine picture of the Crucifixion, painted by Academician Keller, of St. Petersburg, and pre- sented to the ch. by the Sievers family. Hotels. — The Schloss Traiteur is within the courtyard of the castle ; the Deutsches Haas is in the town ; as also an inn, at which post-horses are supplied. Wenden is connected with Eiga by an excellent macadamized road. The firat 8 versts are only on a branch of the Pskof-Eiga high road, on which the 1st stat. is Bamotzky, 16 v. from Wen- den. But travellers are advised to take, instead of the chausse'e, a road which leads to Carlsruhe Bamotzky, 14 v. from Wenden. This road is extremely picturesque, and gives travellers the opportunity of seeing Carlsruhe, a very fine country- house belon.ging to the Countess Sie- vers (wife of the proprietor of Wenden). The house, which is of the Dutch style of architecture, was built and the grounds laid out, by an English banker of the name of Pearson. The wmlks follow the windings of the lovely Ammat r., an affluent of the Aa, into which it falls at a distance of 5 m. from Carlsruhe House. Salmon, trout, and grayling may be caught in abundance in the Ammat. The salmon are more especially fine in the A a, which they ascend from the Baltic, into which the river falls at a distance of 40 m. from Carlsruhe. Leaving the valley of the Ammat, the traveller will reach the Pskof- Eiga high road, at a distance of 2^ v. from Carlsruhe, and a drive of 2J v. more will bring him to Eamotzky Stat. Eussia. 213 Boute 9.-~Sf> Petersburg to Novgorod. The stat. beyond Eamotzky is Segeicold, 25J v. Between Eamotzky and Segehvold will be seen the Castle of Segewold, the seat of the Borcli family, with the ruins of the old castle of tlie same name, on the 1. slopes of the valley of the Aa, and opposite to it, the Castle of Cremon, belongiug to Prince Lieven, and that of Treiden, in the possession of the baronial family of Campen- bausen. The next stat. beyond Sege- wold is Rodenpors, 23 v. Half-way between this and Eiga is a long causeway and bridge across the Jilgel r., which unites lakes Jagel and Stint ; to the h, on the shore of lake Jagel, will be. seen the splendid woollen mills of Pichlau, celebrated in Eussia. Ten versts be- yond is Eiga. For description, vide Ete. 5. EOUTE 0. ST. PETEUSEURG TO NOVGOROD THE GREAT. This is an excursion which all tra- vellers who take an interest in Eussian hit-tory and antiquities should make. In summer, the journey may be per- formed by rail (4 to 5 hrs.) to VoUdiova Stat., on Moscow line (vide Ete. 10), and thence by steamer up the Volkliof river (4 to 5 hrs.) ; but in winter the narrow-gauge rly., from Chudovo Stat. on Moscow line, to Novgorod (about 2^ hrs.), will have to be taken. The trip need not occupy more than 2 or 3 days. Travellers who cannot speak Eussian are recommended to take a commissioner with them. Assuming that the traveller will prefer to go by rail the whole way, the route from St. Petersburg will be as follows : Chudova Stat., on Moscow line (vide Ete. 10). This is the junction for the narrow-gauge line. Distance to Nov- gorod, 68 V. (45 m.). Fare — 1st Class, 2 Es, ; tliat from St. Petersburg to Chudova being Es. 4.40. The country through which the line passes is very poor, hat, and uninter- esting. The same remark applies to the banks of the Volkhof r. Four stats, beyond Chudova is Novgorod. Pop. 18,000. Hotel: Solovief, in the main, or Moscow st. Club. Travellers may easily obtain admission, by presenting their cards, to the Nobility Club, where a better dinner will be obtained than at tlio hotel. It is not, however, available for ladies. History . — The glorious history of this old city may be read in its churches, the only surviving inonu- ments of its former greatness. It was the cradle of the Eussian emjhre, for the Eurik dynasty hrst settled tliere in 862. The Grand-ducal throne having been soon after removed to Kief, the citizens of Novgorod grew in power as the princes of the house of Eurik weakened their dominion hj constant wars in dis]3utes relative to the right of succession to the throne of Kief. From 1136 the Novgorodians acquired the right of calling in jirinces to govern them according to the laws of the city, and of “ showing them the way out of it ” when they gave no satisfaction. Their iiopular assem- blies, or Veche, strengthened by the subdivision of Eussia into petty prin- cipalities, assumed still greater au- thority during the Mongol invasion. They devised in open council common measures of protection. The dominion of the invaders once establisheil over the greater part of Eussia, with the exception of Novgorod, — which tlie Tartars never readied, except later, in the train of a Moscovite army, — the princes, who had always sought merely their own personal advantage, were gained over to the camps of the Khans by bribes and olfers of support against their unruly people, who were thus driven into still stronger union. Ee- lying on the support of his Tartar protectors and the power of his officers, Yaroslaf, Grand Duke of Novgorod in 127U, neglected the conditions on wliicli he had ascended the throne, 214 Sect. I Boute 9.- piirsued a despotic course, and became deaf to the popular voice. The bell of the Veche soon struck the hour of his downfall. The citizens assembled at the Cathedral of St. Sophia, and at once resolved to depose Yaroslaf and to put his favourites to death. The chief of these was killed, the others fled to sanctuary, leaving their houses to be pillaged and razed to the ground by the angry populace. An act of accusation was Ijrought against the Pj’ince in the name of Novgorod. “ Why,” asked the citizens, “ didst thou take possession of the palace of Mortkinitch ? Why didst thou take silver from the boyars Nikifor, Kobert, and Bartholomew ? Why didst thou send away tlie foreigners (merchants) who lived peaceably among us ? Why do thy birdcatchers (ducks were then plentiful) deprive us of our river Volk- liof, and thy huntsmen of our fields ? Let thy oppression now cease ! Go where thou willst ; we shall find an- other prince.” “ Who can resist God and the Great Novgorod?” was a proverbial expres- sion of the time, evidently founded on a consciousness of popular power. The “ Lord Great Novgorod,” as the State was quaintly styled, exercised all the rights of sovereignty until John III. incorporated it with the Grand Duchy of Moscow in 1478. The an- cient trade of Novgorod with the Han- seatic towns had made it a centre of immense wealth, and it once covered an area of 40 miles in circumference. The first Russian money was coined there in the early j^art of the 15th cent. John III. was obliged to re- move more than 8000 boyars and 50 families of merchants to Moscow, be- fore he could extinguish the spirit of independence wdiich so many centuries of freedom and prosperity had fostered. The Veche bell was likewise carried away to Moscow (where it was broken and recast), with countless treasures in gold, silver, and precious stones. However, a still sterner fate awaited the city. John the Terrible, informed tliat the Novgorodians intended to submit to the Prince of Lithuania, suddenly appearetl on the Volkhof —Novgorod* with an army of Opritchniks, who sacked the churches and monasteries, and during an occupation of six weeks threw hundreds and thousands of the inhabitants into the river. During the interregnum that followed the extinction of the Rurik line, Novgorod, and its “ younger brother ” Pskof, con- templated a union under a prince of Sweden. This was the last inefiectual effort made by the Novgorodians to re-establish their ancient self-govern- ment. It is now the chief town of a province of the same name. Sights . — The principal sights are : — • 1. Cathedral of St. Sophia, anciently “ the heart and soul of Great Novgo- rod.” Here the princes were crowned, and in front of it the Veches were oc- casionally held. The first cathedral at Novgorod was built in 989. The pre- sent edifice was originally erected in 1045, by the grandson of St. Vladimir. It was constructed by artisans from Constantinople, after the model of the famous St. Sophia. It was pillaged A.D. 1065 by the Prince of Polotsk, and again in 1570 by the Opritchniks of John the Terrible. The Swedes, under Delagardie, in 1611, after kill- ing two of the priests, destroyed the charter granted to the cathedral in 1504. Tim frescoes were executed in the 12th cent., but the entire build- ing, both within and without, was completely renovated and restored be- tween 1820 and 1837. As one of the oldest churches in Russia, its architec- ture will afford an interesting study. The cupola is supported by eight mas- sive quadrangular pillars. There are two more similar pillars at the altar. Five chapels, or altars, stand within the cathedral, having been added at various periods from the 12th to the 16th cents. The high-altar is of oak, and is approached by two stone steps. The mosaic- work on the wall behind the altar is considered to be contempo- raneous with the building of the cathe- dral, and consequently Byzantine work. The Ikonostas was put up in 1341. The most remarkable images in it are : — 1. The Saviour, a copy of an ancient image attributed to the Greek Eussia. 215 Boute 9.- Emperor Manuel and taken to the Ca- thedral of the Assumption at Moscow in 3 570. 2, St. Sophia, a copy, of the ' same date as the church, of a Byzan- ! tine image. 3. St. Peter and St. Paul, brought, according to local tradition, I from Khersonesus, together with some I celebrated crosses now in the Cathedral 1 of the Assumption, by St. Vladimir. The remaining images, 15 in number, are of greater or less antiquity. On pillars above the choir are fresco re- presentations of canonized princes and ecclesiastics. The chief shrines are : — 1. Of 'St. Anne, daughter of King Olaf of Sweden, and consort of Yaroslaf I. She was the first to set an example of taking the veil, according to the cus- tom of widowed empresses in Byzan- j tinm. She died in 1050. 2. In a niche of the same wall lie the remains of St. Vladimir, son of Yaroslaf and I Anne, and founder of the cathedral, who died a.d. 1052. These relics were placed there in 1652. 3. St. Nikita, I Archbishop of Novgorod, reposes in a silver shrine. He was canonized for I his great piety. His prayers extin- ! guished the fiames which once threat- I ened Novgorod with destruction, and brought down rain on the parclied ji earth. He died in 1 108. 4. At the S. i wall of the high-altar stands an empty ij reddish slate tomb, and over it a bronze I shrine, in which repose the remains of I St. Mstislaf “the Brave,” Grand Duke j of Novgorod, who obtained great re- j nown in the war for the succession, I and was prevailed upon by the Novgo- rodians to become their prince. He j freed Pskof from its enemies, and coni- I pelled the Chiids, or Finns, to pay 1 tribute. In the midst of his greatness li| he was overtaken by disease, and, d having caused himself to be carried ij into the Cathedral of St. Sophia, took l:| the Holy Communion before the assem- ■; bled citizens, and, after commending ^ his wife and his 3 sons to the care of his brothers, crossed his once mighty ' arms on his breast and expired, 14th June, 1180. 5. In the N. chapel, in a rich silver shrine (1856), lies exposed the body of John, Archbishop of Nov- gorod, who died 1186. There are 10 -Novgorod. other shrines of saints who lived be- tween 1030 and 1653. Nineteen arch- bishops and Metropolitans, between 1223 and 1818, are also buried within the cathedral, together with many princes. Only 2 of the inscriptions on the tombs of the latter are now legible ; they record the deaths of Prince Mstis- laf Eostislavitch in 1178, and of Vasili Mstislavitch a.d. 1218. Among other interesting objects within the ch. may be mentioned : 1. The thrones of the Tsar and Metro- politan, erected in 1560 ; 2. Large brass chandeliers, suspended in 1600. The 2 doors which open into the Chapel of the Nativity are very remarkable. They are of oak, overlaid with metallic plates half an inch in thickness, and bearing various devices and scrolls. In the 6 panels in each door the same beautiful cross is repeated in metal work, within a border. Tiadition says they were brought from the ancient town of Sigtoun, in Sweden, pillaged in 1187 by pirates, among whom were some Novgorodiaus. The Korsun (or Khersonesus) doors, at the W. entrance, are likewise of wood, overlaid with bronze, bearing 54 in- scriptions in Slavonian and Latin. The former are supposed to be of the 14th cent., and the latter in the Gothic style of the 13th or 14th cents. It is in dispute wdiether the Korsun doors came from Khersonesus or from Magdeburg. Another account states that they were carried into Po- land by Boleslas II., when they were placed in a Koman Catholic church, and subsequently transported to Nov- gorod. The high alto-relievos in bronze are of splendid design and great in- terest, quite equal to the famous doors of S. Zeno at Verona and bearing a strong resemblance to them, the sub- jects being from the Old and New Testaments and wonderfully preserved. Their Byzantine origin is evidently apocryphal. All works of art were anciently called Korsun work in Russia, whence the name. The Sacristy, which is in a room at the top of the catliedral, contains several ecclesiastical objects of interest, althongli the more ancient treasures 216 Sect. I. Boute 9.— have been removed, stolen, or burnt at various periods. There is a printed copy of the Gospels in a cover of the 16th cent. The mitres, croziers, and panagias are of the 16th and 17th cents. Among the antiquities, not ecclesiastical, are: 1. A cap of main- tenance, of wood, covered with silk, supposed to have belonged to tlie Gd. Dukes of Novgorod; 2. Archbishop’s seal; 3. Silk standard, with a mono- gram of the Saviour’s name — tradition says it was canied before the ancient Governors of Novgorod; 4. Large silk standard of Novgorod, presented by the Tsars Peter and John in 1693; 5. A collection of small silver coins from John III. to Peter I.; 6. Old dishes of German work; 7. Walking-stick used by Peter the Gt. in Novgorod, a medal with his effigy, a horn snuff-box, and a cylindrical cup of bone, the two latter turned by the Tsar. Library . — This was one of the richest in Kussia, but in 1859 the MSS. were removed to St. Petersburg. A collec- tion of 20 letters from Peter the Great to Catherine I., and his son Alexis, &c., is still preserved there. 2. The Kremlin., or stone wall, in the centre of the city, was founded 1302, rebuilt 1490, and repaired in 1698 and 1818. A pavilion, in a garden which occupies the bed of the old moat, is raised on the spot in which lived (in the 15th cent.) Martha Bo- retskaya, a celebrated female, who is supposed to have been the wife or daughter of “ Possadnik,” or Gover- nor of Novgorod. The cathedral, the archiepiscopal jDalace, and several churches, stand within the walls. 3. The Veche tower, at the Bazaar, in which the bell that summoned the citizens to open deliberation was once suspended. Travellers will see the great Monu- ment, erected in 1862, to commemorate the 1000th anniversary of the existence of the Eussian Empire. The figures on it are emblematical of the several periods of Eussian history. The design is by a Eussian academician, but it was cast by the English firm of Nicholls and Plincke, of the “English Maga- zine,” at 8t. Petersburg. ‘Novgorod. A place called Gorodische, on an island of the Volkhof, will be pointed out as the site of the Palace of the ancient Princes of Novgorod, but no ruins are extant on it. A very ancient ch., the Spass Nere- ditsa, with some frescoes of great an- tiquity, stands near this site. A visit should also be paid to the Museum of Eussian antiquities, ar- ranged and kept by Father Bogos- lofski, a learned and obliging priest of the Eussian Chm’ch, who is ever ready to act as cicerone, provided his visitors can profit by his explanations in the Eussian tongue. An old barge, which Catherine II. used in her progresses through Eussia, and which she presented to the nobles of Novgorod, is kept in a brick build- ing on the bank of the Volkhof, close to the road to the Yuryef Monastery^ which travellers should not fail to see. It is situated 2 m. out of Novgorod, between the Volkhof and Kniajevka rivers, on an elevation of considerable picturesque effect. Having been founded Jn 1031, by Yaroslaf, son of Vladimir, it is one of the most ancient and important monasteries in Eussia. There are 3 chs. within it ; that dedi- cated to George the Martyr is the oldest, having been erected in 1119. They were repaired in 1807, at the expense of Countess Orloff of Chesme, who also caused the handsome belfry to be built. Among the treasures which this monastery possesses are the charters given to it in 1128 and 1132, an altar-cloth of 1449, and a cross studded with pearls and precious stones, presented in 1599. The fete of this monastery is held on the 14-26th Sept., the festival of the Elevation of the Cross. It is impossible to describe in the limits of this Handbook any other of the numerous churches and monasteries with which old Novgorod is adorned. They are mostly of great antiquity, and will fully repay a minute inspection and inquiry on the spot. A wcnk by Count M. Tolstoy, 1862, in the Eussian language, contains the most complete information, A baud plays twice a week during Russia. 217 Boiite 10. — St. Petersburg to Moscoiv. summer in the Summer Garden, which is unfortunately not kept in very good order. An excursion might he made across the Ilmen lake in the steamer which leaves every day for Staraya Muss, a fashionable watering-place where salt baths are taken. The steamer crosses in about 3 J hrs. Hotel : Knocli, pretty good. In winter the lake is crossed in a sledge, but Staraya Euss is not wortli seeing at that season. ROUTE 10. ST. PETEESBUEG TO BIOSCOW, WITH BEANCH LINE TO RYBINSK, AND BRANCH EJEF. LINE TO TOK.JOK AND By evening mail train in 15 hrs, ; fare, 1st class, 22 rs. ; by other trains, 19 rs. ; sleeping ticket, 2 rs. extra. This line, 601 v, (103 m.) in length, was constructed and long worked by the Government. It is now the pro- perty of the Grand Russian Railway Company. The principal stations .are solidly and handsomely built. The refreshment - rooms are abundantly supplied; and passengers have a liberal allowance of time for dinner, tea, and supper. The first stat. is Kolpino, 21 V. There is a very large steam factory here, founded by Peter the Great. Marine engines for the navy are made at the Kolpino works. Tosno, 50 V. Junct. here with brancli line to Gatchino, connecting Reval with Mo.scow (vide Rte. 8). Miiisia. — 1875. Liuban* 78 v. (52 m.), the first large stat, (It will sutfice to mention the principal stoppages or places to which any interest attaches.) Chudova, 111 v. The Volkhof river will be passed here. It flows from lake Ilmen into that of Ladoga, and is navigable for barges along its entire course. Junction with line to Nov- gorod the Great, vide Rte. 9. Volhhova, 118 v. (79 m.), next stat., at foot of the bridge. Steamers for Novgorod hence in summer, vide Rte. 9. Malo-Vyshera^^ 152 v. The river Msta, which rises in the Valdai hills, and flows into lake Ilmen, will be passed halfway between this and the next station. Immediately outside the station is an immense iron bridge, built over a ravine, on the American principle, over a height of 190 ft. Another bridge, nearly as large, over the Msta, will be passed. Ohulofha,^ 229 v. Two stats, be- yond is Valdai, 265 v., near the small town of that name on the Valdai Ijake (Pop. 4000), celebrated for its bells, which may Ido purchased at tiie stat. They are small, and when attached to harness have a very harmonious eflect. Scythes and sickles are also manu- factured here. Scenery wooded and hilly. The Dvina, Volga, and Volk- hof rise in the Valdai hills. A mo- nastery stands on one of the islands in the lake. It is called the Iverski, and was founded in 1652 by the patriarch Nicon, A copy of the image of the Il>erian Mother of God, brought from Mount Athos in 1648 and now at Mos- cow, adorns the altar-screen of the principal chapel. The Patriarch, fre- quently came here. Bologoe,* 295 v. (197 m.). Junction with branch line to Mybinsk. [Travellers bound to Rybinsk get out here. The distance to Rybinsk is 280 V. (187 m.), and the train runs in * The Courier or mail train only stops at the stations marked with an asterisk. L 218 Boute 10. — Tver. Sect. I. 9 or 10 hrs. Fare, Es. 8, 40 c. There is nothing interesting to observe on this route until the train stops at Kybinsk, Pop. 18,000, at the con- fluence of the Volga and Sbeksna. Although only made a town in 1778, Eybinsk is one of the most impor- tant commercial centres of the empire, especially for grain. The Mariinsk canal system begins here. By it the grain and tallow from the provinces along the lower course of the river are carried to St. Petersburg. The goods are transhipped in summer, at Eybinsk, into smaller vessels for the upper part of the Volga and the several fluviatile systems, giving employment to 100,000 labourers. 4000 to 5000 vessels arrive there yearly, with cargoes valued at about 4,000,000Z. : and 7000 to 8000 leave it with goods to the amount of 5.j millions sterling. There are two hotels at Eybinsk, frequented by native merchants.] Moscow line continued. Vyshni-Volocholi, 337 v., town in province of Tver, on the river Tsna (Pop. 15,000). A canal which rises liere, by joining several rivers and lakes, unites the Volga and the Neva, and the Caspian and the Baltic. The rly. and the improvement of a rival canal system, by way of the Svir and Sheksna rivers, have considerably lessened the importance of the town. Spirovo,"^ 368 v. 2 stats, beyond is Ostashkovo, 408 v. (272 m.). Junc- tion with branch line to Torjok and [The distance by rail from Ostash- kovo to Toejok is 33 v. This latter town has a pop. of 15,000. It is chiefly celebrated for its Eussia leather, em- broidered with gold, silver, and silk thread, for slippers, cushions, bags, &c. Specimens of these wares will be seen at Ostashkovo stat., but they are as cheaply procured at St. Petersburg and Moscow. Torjok is the farthest point in this direction reached by the French in 1812. Ejef (Pop. 20,000), 129 v. (86 m.), from Ostashkovo (Fare Es. 3, 87 c.) is an important centre of inland trade (hemp, linseed, and flax). It is pret- tily situated on both banks of the Volga. There is a Theatre in the Kniaz-Feodorof part of the town, the other half of which is called the Kniaz- Dmitrofskaya, or Polish, side. Steamers run 3 times a week between Ejef and Tver. Time 11 hrs. Fare, Es. 4, 50 c.] Moscoio line continued. Tver,* 448 v. (299 m.) Chief town of province. (Pop. 28,000). Muller's JTofeZ,the old posting-house, affords excellent accommodation. Here the traveller crosses the Volga, and has the first glimpse of that mighty stream, which, rising 47 m. S.W. from Valdai, now becomes navi- gable, after flowing through several small lakes. Steamers ply lienee to Astrakhan, a distance of about 2150 m. The town was founded in 1 182, and was the seat of a principality. It is prettily situated on the bank of the river, and stands 175 ft. above the level of the water. A cathedral, re- built in 1682, and a very handsome belfry of 3 tiers, are the most con- spicuous objects. Many of the princes of Tver and their consorts (between 1272 and 1408) lie buried there. The church of the Holy Trinity, built in 1584, is a fine remnant of ancient Eussian architecture. There are secret chambers in the upper storey where the clergy and citizens concealed their treasure in time of danger. The Otrotch Uspenski Monastery, at the confluence of the Volga and Tvertsa, was the prison of the Metropolitan Philip, whose cell is still shown (vide Cathedral of Assumption, Moscow). In this he was murdered by Maliuta, an agent of John the Terrible, who, after committing the crime, announced to the monks that the venerable pre- Kussia, 219 Monte lO.' late had died from the fumes of the stove. There is a very considerable trade in grain and iron, shipped hence to St. Petersburg by tae Iverisa river and several canals. The iron is brought from the Ural to be manufactured at Tver into nails, and in that shape much of it returns to the place of original production. [Steamers leave Tver daily down the Volga for Yaroslaf, and there is also steam communication with Rjef (see above). The following towns are passed : — Korclief, 57 m. from Tver. Kcdiazin, 120 m. from Tver. Uglitch, 125 m. from Tver. 13,000 Inhab. The latter is a town of considerable historical interest. The steamer stops here some hours. It is supposed to have been founded about a.d. 950. It was long governed by princes from Vladimir. In 1237 the inhabitants submitted to the Tartars, who subse- quently ravaged it during a quarrel with its prince. The town continued the scene of an incessant internecine war between rival princes, until John III. annexed it to Moscow. On the death of John the Terrible, in 1584, the Council of Boyars persecuted the family of his last consort, to whom he was married in 1580. She was exiled, with her son Dimitry to Uglitch, where the young prince was assassi- nated {vide Cath. of Assumption at Moscow). Prince Gustavus, son of Eric King of Sweden, exiled from his country, was invited to Uglitch by the Ttar Boris Godunof, who caused him to be imprisoned in the fortress of that town in 1611, on his refusal to marry his daughter. He was later removed U) 1 aroslaf and then to Kashin, where I lie died. On the death of Boris, the { town was treacherously surrendered to I the Poles by a citizen, when 20,000 j of its inhabitants are stated to have been massacred and burnt in a huge bonfire. The monasteries on that occasion were pillaged of all their — Uglitch, treasures. Fires and inundations in the 18th cent, complete the list of misfortunes to which the town has been a prey. The palace of young Demetrius, built in 1462, stands in the principal square of the town. It has been re- stored. Myslikin, 168 m. from Tver. Mologa^ 203 m. from Tver. The Tikhvin canal system begins liere. Yahoslaf, 291 m. from Tver, vide Rte. 11.] Moscow line continued. Klin,* 521 v. (347 m.), town in pro- vince of Moscow ; 5000 Inhab. 2 stats, beyond is Kriukova, 568 v. (379 m.). Stat. for Monastery of New Jerusalem or Vosk- resenski {Resurrection), which is about 14 m. distant. [Travellers wishing to visit this famed monastery will have to take post-horses here. A tarantas or a com- mon cart may be obtained for 3 to 4 rubles, there and back, returning next day. Tolerable accommodation will be obtained at the hostelry attached to the monastery, the last house on the left, approaching the gate of the mo- nastery, but a basket of provisions should be brought. An important page of the ecclesi- astical history of Russia may be read here. We come upon the life and doingsof the Patriarch Nicon, who laid the foundation of the monastery in 1657. On his frequent journeys to the Iberian Convent at Valdai he always stopped at the village of Voskresensk, and in 1655 built a ch. on some land which he purchased there. The Tsar Alexis, present at its consecration, named the ch., at the desire of Nicon, the New Jerusalem. The Patriarch then sent for a model of the Church of I. 2 220 Route 10 . — Monastery of New Jerusalem. Sect. I. the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem, which he set about to imitate. The neigh- bouring accidents of country he called after various sacred sites in Palestine. The river Istra was converted into the Jordan; a brook, purposely formed, became the Kedron; a neighbouring village was dignified into Nazareth ; and on the mound on which the Tsar stood when he bestowed the name of New Jerusalem he built a chapel and called it Eleon. But the favour of the sovereign was suddenly ‘withdrawn from the pre- late. Nicon arrogated to himself a power in civil as well as in ecclesi- astical matters, of which the Tsar and his courtiers became jealous. He also brought down upon himself the hatred of the clergy, whom he per- secuted most rigorously for intemper- anee and other irregularities. His in- novations in the ritual of the Church, induced by a warm zeal for the ancient Church and Empire of Constantinople, and effected by a comparison of more correct service-books from Mount Athos, encountered the strongest op- position and swelled the number of his enemies. The people, driven into Dissent, founded numerous sects, which are to this day strongly inimical to the Orthodox Church and partly even to the State. He went so far in uphold- ing the Byzantine purity of the Kussian Church as to seize and destroy in the houses of the nobles all pictures that were not painted in the conventional forms of Greek art. In imblic docu- ments he assumed a title which was equal to that of the sovereign. But at last his enemies triumphed. The Tsar, irritated at the insolence of the Patriarch, and annoyed at the unsuc- cessful termination of a war with the Poles and Swedes which he had un- dertaken by his advice, withdrew his friendship, and soon after, on a great festival of the Church, absented him- self from the cathedral in which Nicon was wont to sermonize his royal master. The enraged Patriarch threw off bis episcopal robes, resigned his crozier, and attiring Idmsolf in tlie habit of a I monk, withdrew, amid the expostula- tions of the populace and the Tsar’s ! officers to his retreat at Voskresensk. But his strength and greatness of mind were not equal to the occasion. He had expected to see Alexis with tears in his eyes, asking forgiveness and entreating him not to divest himself of his high office. The Tsar never came, and Nicon saw, when too late, that he had taken a fatal step. A Metropolitan, having been temporarily invested with the Patriarchate, considered himself justified in replacing Nicon at a cere- mony in which the Primate rode on an ass to typify Christ’s entry into Jeru- salem ; the recluse of Voskresensk protested against what he called a usurpation, under the plea that he was still a Patriarch, with the gift of the Holy Ghost to work cures, although by his own free will no longer Patriarch of Moscow. In 1664, 6 years after his resignation, Nicon appeared sud- denly at matins in the Cathedral of the Assumption, arrayed once more in his pontifical robes. He wrote to the Tsar that, after long fasting and much prayer, he had been told by the canonized Jonah, in a vision, to re- sume his seat on the throne of the Patriarchs of Moscow. A council of the Eastern Patriarchs was soon after called at Moscow, and presided over by the Tsar. Nicon was degraded and ba- nished to the Monastery of Therapon- tof in the province of Novgorod. In 1681 he was pardoned by Theodore, the successor of Alexis, but died on his voyage down the Volga to meet the Tsar. It was during this quarrel that Nicon built the greater part of the Monastery of New Jerusalem. From a small square tower beyond the Kedron he watched the progress of the build- ing which he was never to see com- pleted, and even worked as a common stonemason, making bricks with his own hands. He caused the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to be copied in the minutest particulars and it is therefore more like the old church in which the Crusaders worshipped than is that cli. itself, since it was destroyed by fire and altered in 1812. Nicon’s scheme for the aggrandisement of the Eussian Church was indicated by the 5 patri- Eussia. lloute 10. — Moscow, 221 arclial thrones of Constantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Moscow, which will be seen in the Sanctuary. He lies buried in the chapel of Melchizedek, at the foot of the Golgotha, close by the spot where, in the actual Church of the Holy. Sepulchre, lie the remains of Godfrey of Bouillon. Over the tomb are the heavy chains which he wore round his body, and at his head is the small waxen picture which he carried about with him in all his wanderings. Many other relics of the great Patri- arch are preserved in the sacristy, together with his portrait, and that of Alexis. In one of the small chapels above the great Ikonostas, the Saints de- ]hcted on the Ikonostas are said to be likenesses of the Emperor Nicholas, his consort, and of other members of the Imperial family. The principal dome having fallen in, the ch. was entirely restored by the celebrated architect Rastrelli in 1750, For further particulars respecting this interesting monastery the traveller should consult Dean Stanley’s “ Lectures on the History of the Eastern Church.” A battle was fought in the vicinity of the monasteiy, June 18, 1698, be- tween General Patrick Gordon and the rebellious Streltsi, who were there- upon suppressed, and decapitated by Peter in great numbers. Moscow line continued. The next stat. but one is Moscow, Pop. 612,000. Hoitls: Slavianski Bazaar, in the Kitai Gorod (Chinese town). New, and handsomely fitted up, with read- ing-room and good Restaurant. Rooms from Rs. 1, 50 c. to Rs. 15. Dusaux, opposite wall of Kitai Gorod. Very good. French cuisine excellent. Billo, in Bolshaya Liibianka-street. Very respectable and clean. Obliging and serHceable landlord, well con- versant with the English language. Reading-room, with English news- papers. Table - d'hote at 5 p.m. H. Stadt Berlin, kept by Lehmann, in the centre of the city (Rojdest- venka-street). Dresden, in the Square in which stands the governor’s house ; good, when other hotels are full. Kokoref, a large Russian hotel on the opposite side of the river ; 400 rooms. Splendid view from the win- dows of the Kremlin by moonlight. The charges at all these hotels are very much the same. A good bed- room can be obtained at any of tlie hotels for about 2 Rs, The diners du jour are generally 1 to 2 Rs. Commissioners from tire hotels await the trains from St. Petersburg, and will look after luggage, &c. Valets de 'place (commissioners) are difficult to be obtained, if a knowledge of the English language be required. There are a few Englishmen so em- ployed, but it is useless to mention their names, for they frequently disap- pear, and get replaced by others. French and German commissioners always obtainable. Russian Restaurants . — The dinner described under the head of “ Cuisine and Restaurants ” {vide Introduc- tion), may be had at the “Novo- Troitski Traktir,” opposite the Ex- change (visited by H.R.H. Prince Alfred in 1862, and by H.R.H. the Prince of Wales in 1866), as well as at the “ Moskovski Traktir,” “ Patri- keef Traktir,” close to tire Great Theatre. Carriages can be ordered at the hotel by the day, at a charge of 6 to 8 rubles per diem, with the addition of “ tea-money ” to the driver, to the extent of 30 to 50 copecks. They may be kept out all day and half the night with impunity, allowing only two or three hours during dinner for feeding the horses. Drojkies, and sledges in winter, are cheaper. Bargains should always be made with Drojky drivers, but on arriving at the Rly. stat. where there is always great confusion, it is better to get the Commissioner of an hotel to engage a vehicle, or to jump into one and to leave the landlord of the hotel to settle 222 Sect. I. lloute 10. — Moscow: History. witli the driver. Fifty copecks will go a great way, the charge per hour being a little less than 1 ruble (2s. 8d.), and per mile about 20 co- pecks. For instance, a drive to the ►Simonof Monastery and back, in a drojky, should not cost more than Ks. 1, 50 c. or E. 1, 75 c. The City op Moscow. The history of the Eussian provinces through which the traveller has passed on his way to Moscow has reference to that of this ancient capital ; for, al- though Novgorod and Tver were at one period independent, each in its turn, whether republic or principality, was subjugated by this more powerful neighbour, and in the 14th cent. Moscow became the capital of Mos- covy; Kief, and afterwards Vladimir, having till then enjoyed that distinc- tion. Prince George Dolgoruki, son of Vladimir Monomachus, is supposed to have founded the city about the year 1147, when its name first occurs in a Eussian chronicle. In the early part of the reign of Basil II. it was taken and ravaged by Tamerlane ; and later it fell again into the hands of the Tartars, who sacked it, and put many of the inhabitants to the sword. In 1536 the town was nearly consumed by fire, in which 2000 of the inha- bitants perished. In 1572 the Tartars fired the suburbs, and, a furious wind driving the flames into the city, a con- siderable portion of it was reduced to ashes, and no fewer than 100,000 per- sons perished in the flames or by the sword. In 1611 a great portion of the city was again destroyed by fire, when the Poles had taken possession of it under the pretence of defending the inhabitants from the adherents of a pretender to the crown. The plague of 1771 diminished the population by several thousands, and, lastly, in J812, the Moscovites gave up their ancient, holy, and beautiful city to the devour- ing element— the grandest sacrifice ever made to national feeling. The city was the idol of every Eussian’s heart, her shrines were to him the holiest in the empire — hallowed by seven centuries of historical associa- tions. Up to within a day of the entry of the French, Count Eostopchin, the governor of Moscow, had deluded the inhabitants with an assurance that the French would be destroyed in a pitched battle between Borodino and Moscow. It was only on the evening of the 1st (13th) Sept, that the Count was in- formed by Field Marshal Kutuzof that at a council of war held in a hut (re- cently burnt down) near the village of Pokrofsk, at the outskirts of Moscow, it had been decided to give up Moscow without striking a blow. The archives of the courts of law, the ancient manu- scripts, and the principal treasures of the monasteries, together with those of the sacristy of the patriarchs, had already been despatched to Vologda in 600 carts; but it was considered unadvisable to alarm the people by removing the vessels of plate and other objects of value from the parish churches. The three holy images — the Virgins of Iberia, Vladimir, and Smolensk, were during the night of the 13th carried away in carriages to Vladimir by the Metropolitan him- self, and early next day the city was left to its fate by Count Eostopchin, who escaped from the fury of the mob by a back staircase, during the con- fusion which ensued upon his givmg up to the mob, for the purpose of covering his retreat, the son of a Moscow merchant whom he denounced as one of the traitors by whom Moscow had been betrayed. This scene was enacted in Lubianka- street, nearly opposite the present Hotel Billo. Soon the advanced guard of the Eussian army made its appearance, and made its way through the city in solemn silence, followed by thousands of the now terrified inhabitants. A general sauve qui pent ensued. The streets were crowded with carriages and carts laden with household gods. Herds of cows, sheep, and goats blocked up the way. The sick were carried on the backs of the strong, mothers carried their infants, and 1 1 ♦ -A t I Eussia. 223 Boute 10. — Moscoio: History. fastened those who could walk to their sides. At the chs. the soldiers and the townspeople halted and received the blessings of their priests, who stood mostly in the streets robed in full canonicals.* The greater part of the fleeing multitude took the high road to Vladimir. Kutuzof endea- voured to make the French believe that he was retreating in the direction of Kazan. The last Kussian troops were passing along the quay near the Foundling Hospital while the French were already entering the Kremlin. On the Kiazan road, a few versts from Moscow, the Russian rear-guard halted, but next day Kutuzof turned off with his main army to the Kaluga road, and thus got into the rear of the French column that was sent in his pursuit. IMeanwhile the French were march- ing on the city in three columns. One column crossed the Moskva at the Sparrow Hills, another at the village of Fili, ill the direction of the Tver gate (near Petrofsk Palace, on the high road to St. Petersburg), while the main body of the French army entered Moscow by the Dorogomilof barrier (due W. of the city). A few detachments came in by the Pres- ninski barrier, between the two last barriers or gates. Napoleon, surrounded by his staff, galloped to the Poklonnaya Gora (Salutation Hill) near the Sparrow Hills, about 2 m. on the Smolensk road, and from thence surveyed the glittering city at his feet. His advanced guard was drawn up in order of battle at the foot of the hill, for he still thought that the Rus- sians would defend Moscow. After waiting, however, for half-an-hour and seeing no movement in Moscow, he mounted his horse and galloped to- wards the Dorogomilof barrier, where he halted, in the expectation of the keys of the city being brought out to him. But he waited in vain. The advanced guard, consisting of Polish and Prussian lancers led by Murat, * Many of the chs. were kept open for Divine service during the French occupation. entered the city at about 4 in the after- noon of the 2nd (14th) Sept., and took possession of the Kremlin, through the Troitski, Nikolski, Borovitski, and Spasski gates. The pillage of Moscow commenced in the Kremlin, and spread as the troops occupied the Kitai Gorod and the streets adjacent. In this respect the German and Polish soldiers behaved with far greater barbarity than the French. Napoleon made his solemn entry next day (the 15th Sept.), but he no sooner entered the Kremlin palace, than the destruction of the city by fire commenced. Count Ros- topchin’s agents — liberated for the purpose from the dungeons of Moscow — set fire to the drysalter’s shops and oil stores, and to the buildings in the vicinity of Murat’s head-quarters, near the bridge over the Yausa. The carriage makers’ shops, at which the French generals had already selected vehicles for their own use, were fired simultaneous^. The city was soon in flames in 11 different places, and for 3 days the fire raged with the most terrific fierceness. Count Rostopchiii had removed all the fire-engines, and the French soldiers could do little without them. A commission was soon appointed under the presidency of General Mortier to discover and punish the incendiaries. About 30 of them were placed in a row against the walls of the Petrofsk monastery and shot. Another batch of 18 was despatched in a similar manner in a courtyard in Tver-street, near the ch. of Cosma and Damian. On the 29th Sept, a municipal council, partly com- posed of Russians, was established, with a Russian mayor at its head. Napoleon was soon compelled to remove to the Petrofski Palace, which he surrounded with his artillery, but ho returned to the Kremlin 3 days later. The French guards bivouacked on the Hodynskoe Pole, opposite the palace. Murat occupied Count Razumofski’s house on the Gorokhovoe Pole, wdiere the gasworks at present are ; Lauristoii took possession of Count Rostopchin’s house (now Shipof’s) in Lubianka-st., and established his chancery in the tower of Ivan Veliki; while Lesseps 224 Boute 10. — Moscoio: Trade. Sect. I. previously French Consul in Eussia,* and appointed by Napoleon Police blaster of Moscow, took up his quarters in Princess Golitsin’s house, Prechis- tinka-street. The remaining incidents of the French occupation will be found in the historical notice and in the deseriiDtion of the principal buildings. As a centre of trade and industry Moscow is fast growing in importance, owing to its being the centre of the railway system of the empire. It has always been an emijorium of Eussian trade, and at present it can boast of attracting within its walls goods and products of an aggregate value of about 14 millions sterling annually. There are 550 manufactories or works within the city, giving employment to 38,500 men, and annually producing goods of a value of about 7 millions sterling, including 93 cotton spinning and weaving mills, 43 cloth and worsted mills, 46 mixed spinning mills and dye works, 29 silk mills, &c. The railways are likewise fast developing a large direct trade between Moscow and the Baltic ports, both German and Eussian, as well as with Odessa, which is now in direct water communication with China and India by means of the Suez Canal. But we have to describe the city as it is, l ather than to revert to Eussian history. It is now spread over a cir- cumference of about 25 m., its great- est length from S.W. (the Sparrow Hills) to N.E. (the Preobrajenskoe Cemetery) being 9 m., and its maxi- mum breadth from E. to W. about 6 111 . The assertion sometimes made that no city is so irregularly built as bloscow, is in some respects true ; none of the streets are straight ; liouses large and small, public build- ings, churches, and other edifices are mingled confusedly together; but it gains by tliis the advantage of being more picturesque. The streets un- dulate continually, and thus offer from time to time points of view whence the eye is able to range over the vast ocean of house-tops, trees, and gilded and coloured domes. The profusion * The celebrated builder of the Suez Canal is bis sun. of churches, 345 in number,* is a cha- racteristic feature of the city. But the architecture of Moscow, since the conflagration of 1812, is not quite so bizarre as, according to the accounts of travellers, it was before that event ; nevertheless it is still singular enough. In 1813 the point chiefly in view was to build, and build quickly, rather than to carry any certain plan into execution ; the houses were replaced with nearly the same irregularity with respect to each other, and the streets became as crooked and tortuous as before. The whole gained, therefore, little in regularity from the fire, but each individual house was built in much better taste, gardens became more frequent, the majority of roofs were made of iron painted green, a lavish use was made of pillars, and even those who could not be extrava- gant erected more elegant cottages. Hence Moscow has all the charms of a new city, with the pleasing negli- gence and picturesque irregularity of an old one. In the streets, we come now to a large, magnificent palace, with all the pomp of Corinthian pillars, wrought-iron trellis work, and magni- ficent approaches and gateways ; and now to a simple whitewashed house, the abode of a modest citizen’s family. Near them stands a small ch., with green cupolas and golden stars. Then comes a row of little yellow wooden houses, and these are succeeded by one of the new colossal public institutions. Sometimes the road winds through a number of small streets, and the tra- veller might fancy himself in a country town; suddenly it rises, and he is in a wide “place,” from which streets branch off on all sides, while the eye wanders over the forest of houses of the great capital ; descend- ing again, he comes in the middle of the town to the banks of the river. The circumvallation of the city is upwards of 20 English miles in extent, of a most irregular form, more resem- * Including ; 7 catbs., 14 monast., 7 convents, 233 parish chs., 38 chapels attached to govt, and charitable instits., 13 private chapels, 17 chapels at cemeteries, &c., and 13 chapels of foreign confessions, &c. liussia. 225 Mout6 10. — Moscow: SigMsi bling a trapezium than any other figure; within this are 2 nearly con- centric circular lines of boulevards, the sites of former fortifications, the one at a distance of about m. from the Kremlin, completed on both sides of the Moskva; the internal one once the moat of the Kremlin and Kitai Gorod, with a radius of about a mile, spreading only on the north of tlie river, and terminating near the stone bridge on the one side, and the Found- ling Hospital on the other. The river, which takes its rise in a morass in the province of Smolensk, enters the vast city to which it has given a name at about the central point of the western side; and after winding round the Devitchi convent like a serpent, and thence flowing beneath the battle- ments of the IHemlin, and leceiving the scanty stream of the Yausa, issues again into the vast plain, until it meets the Oka, which flows into the Volga at ISTjni Novgorod. On the N. of the Moskva, streets and houses, in regular succession, reach to the very barrier; and although a vast proportion of ground is left unoccupied, owing to the great width of the streets and boulevards, yet the earthen rampart may truly be said to gird in the city. But in the other (luarters, and particularly to the S., Moscow can hardly be said to extend further than the outward boulevard. The centre of this vast collection of buildings is the Kremlin, which forms nearly a triangle of about 2 Eng. m. in extent. On the E. comes the Kitai Gorod (Chinese city),* which still preserves its ancient fence of towers aud buttresses. Plncircling these 2 divisions, and itself bounded by the river and inner boulevard, lies the Beloi Gorod (white city) so called from the fact of that part of the city having been anciently inhabited by tlie ohelennye, or people freed from taxation, in contradistinction to the chennj narod, — the black or taxable people. The space enclosed between the 2 circles to the N. of the Moskva, and between the river and the outward boulevard on the S., is called the Zemlianoi Gorod. Beyond the boule- vards are the suburbs. Before entering the Kremlin it will be w'ell to view it from one or two points on the outside, and the most favourable spot for this purpose, on the S. side, is the stone bridge across the Moskva; from the river that washes its base the hill of the Kremlin rises picturesquely adorned with turf and shrubs. Another very good view may be obtained, and particularly by moon- light, from the balcony of the Kokoref hotel, on the opposite side of the river. The buildings appear set in a rich frame of water, verdant foliage, and snowy wall, the majestic tower of Ivan Veliki rearing itself high above all, like the axis round which the whole moves. The colours are every- where most lively — red, white, green, gold, and silver. Amidst the con- fusion of the numerous small antique edifices, the Bolshoi Dvorets (the large palace built by Nicholas) has an im- posing aspect. It is time, however, to reduce the sights of Moscow to some kind of order. Assuming that the traveller will spend at least 4 days in Moscow, he may divide his time as follows in visiting the different objects of interest, viz. : Day. — The Kremlin : its chs monasteries, &c. ; tower of Ivan Veliki Sacristy of Patriarclis ; Passion Monas- tery, for view of Moscow. Drive to Sparrow Hills. 2ud Day. — Great Palace and Graao- V it ay a Falata ; the Treasury ; Oath, of St. Basil ; Iberian Chapel. Drive to Siraonof and other monasteries. 3r(Z Bay . — Romanoff House ; Found- ling Hospital ; Gostinnoi Dvor. Drive to Petrofski Park, Hermitage Gardens, &c. 4Z7i Day. — Public IMuseums and other Collections ; Great Riding School ; Temple of the Saviour. Drive to Transfiguration Cemetery, or make excursions. h 3 * Several llnssian towns have a “Chinese city,” just as Calcutta has its “ China bazaar.” 22B Boiite 10. — Mosco'W : Kremlin. Sect. 1. I. Kremlin. — Russian archa3ologists are unable to trace the name of the Kremlin to any certain source. It is supposed to be derived from the Russian word Ki’emen or silex, but it occurs for the first time in its pre- sent form in the year 1446, when it denoted the enclosed space, or Acro- polis, in which the reigning prince lived, surrounded by his relatives, courtiers, superior clergy, and principal boyars. Originally, part of the site now occupied by it was enclosed by walls of oak. Demetrius of the Don laid, in 1367, the foundation of stone walls which resisted the Tartars on several occasions, and which were only seized by Tokhtamysh through treachery. In 1445 the Kremlin was burnt, and the walls and the gates, which were of iron, were partly destroyed. The intro- duction of artillery rendered the old walls, although repaired, no longer safe against invaders. John III. in- vited Italians to build new fortifica- tions of stone, which were accordingly erected between the years 1485 and 1492 and subsequently extended and strengthened. These walls alone escaped the ravages of a fire that destroyed the whole of the Kremlin in 1737. They are now 7280 ft. in cir- cumference, and pierced by 5 gates, the principal of which, the SpasJci or “Redeemer” Gate, nearest the ch. of St. Basil, was built by Peter Solarius, a Milanese, in 1491. Christopher Gal- loway, an English clockmaker, built the tower in 1626, and placed a clock in it, which was, however, later re- placed hy another. Hence the style of the tower is Gothic, and out of keeping with the Italian battlements: it is the Forta Sacra and Porta Trium- phalis of Moscow. Over it is a picture of the Redeemer of Smolensk, held in high veneration by the orthodox. An omission to uncover the head while passing under this gate was anciently punishable with 50 compulsory iDios- trations. The traveller should not fail to pay the respect to old traditions here exacted, since the Emperor him- self conforms to the custom. Criminals executed in front of this gate oftered their last prayers on earth to the image of the Redeemer of Smolensk, which also witnessed the execution of the Streltsi by order of Peter the Great. In his reign the sectaries who refused to shave their beards paid a fine on passing through this gate. The next gate in importance along- side the Spaski Vorota is the Nikolsky or Nicholas Gate. The miraculous image of St. Nicholas of Mojaisk, “ the dread of perjurers and the comforter of suffering humanity,” is suspended over it. Oaths were anciently ad- ministered to litigants in front of this venerated image. The tower was rebuilt in 1491 by an Italian archi- tect, but has, like the other build- ings of the Kremlin, been restored after successive disasters. The troops of Tokhtamysh, of Sigismund III., and of Napoleon, passed through the Nikolski gate within 4 cents. In 1408 it wit- nessed the siege of Moscow by Edigei, in 1551 the invasion by the Crim Tartars, and in 1611-12 the battles between the Poles and the Russians for the possession of Holy Moscow. It was also partly destroyed by the order of Napoleon, when it escaped with only a rent which s'plit the tower in the middle as far as the frame of the pic- ture ; but not even the glass of the picture, nor even that of the lamp suspended before it, is said to have been injured. An inscription to that effect was placed over the gate by order of Alexander I. A gate near the western extremity of the Kremlin wall is called the Troitski or Trinity Gate. Its tower was likewise built by Christopher Gal- loway in the early part of the 17th cent. ; it was restored in 1759, and after the conflagration in 1812. The French both entered and left the Kremlin by this gate. Before that invasion the buildings in the vicinity afforded a refuge for vagrants, thieves, and mur- derers, who kept the inhabitants in great terror. The last gate on the E. is called the Borovitski. Its tower is curious. Having penetrated the Kremlin by one of these gates, the visitor will proceed to inspect the many interesting build- ings and objects which it contains. Boute 10. — Moscow: Great Bell. 227 Hussia. These are as follows, in the order in which they should be seen ; — 1. The Tower of Ivan the Great (Bashnia Ivana Velihaho). — This re- markable structure should be ascended first. Tradition points to a very re- mote origin, but historical facts assert that the tower was built in the year 1600 by the Tsar Boris Godunof. It consists of 5 storeys, 4 being oct- angular and the last cylindrical, the whole rising to a lieight of about 325 ft. including the cross, which has been set up since 1812, in place of the cross which the French re- moved, under the impression that it was of great value, whereas it had only cost about lOOOZ. The basement is occupied by a chapel dedicated to St. John of the Ladder and of which, in fact, the tower is the Campanile. In the next 3 storeys are suspended 34 bells of various sizes and tones. The largest, named the “Assumption,” hangs in the first tier above the chai)el, and weighs 64 tons, being, therefore, five times as heavy as the famous bell of Erfurt, and four times heavier than that of Rouen. It was recast after the partial destruction of the tower in 1812. The chapel below this part of the tower is dedicated to a St. Nicholas who is the patron of all ladies about to marry. The most ancient of the other bells bears the date of 1550. The Veche' bell of the Great Novgorod was once suspended in this tower; but all trace of it is lost. In the highest tier are 2 small silver bells of exquisite tone. The ringing of all these bells on Easter eve produces a most wonderful etfect. Here the traveller pauses to behold the panorama of Moscow. The view from the summit is certainly one of tlie most striking and unique in Europe. General Lauriston established his chancery in this tower in 1812. The custode, who will ascend with the traveller, will expect a fee. It is advisable to retain the services of one of the men at the foot of the tower for the rest of the sights within the Krem- lin, making him a present of 50 copecks at parting. 2. Great Bell, “ Tsar Kblokol,” King of Bells. — This lies at the foot of the tower. The art of casting bells was known in Russia in the 14th cent., but was only brought to perfection in the 16th, when the first large bell was cast at Moscow (1553), which weighed 36.000 lbs., and was suspended in a wooden tower. A Polish traveller, in 1611, relates having seen a huge bell, of which the clapper was moved by 24 men. Olearius, Secretary of a Dutch Embassy to Moscow in 1636, asserts that a Great Bell was cast in the reign of Boris Godunof. During a fire in the reign of Alexis, this bell fell to the ground and was broken. In 1654 it was recast, and weighed 288.000 lbs. Its circumference was 54 ft., and its thickness 2 ft. In 1674 it was suspended from a wooden beam at the foot of the tower, from whence it fell on the 19th June, 1706, during a fire. Its fragments lay on the ground until the reign of the Empress Anne, by whose orders it was again recast in 1733. By the falling of some heavy rafters during another fire in 1737, or, according to some accounts, owing to an imperfection of the casting, caused by jewels and other treasures having been thrown into the liquid metal by the ladies of Moscow, a piece in the side of the bell was knocked out, and it remained buried in the ground until the year 1836, when it was placed on its present pedestal by order of the Emiieror Nicholas, under the superintendence of M. de Montferrand, the architect of the St. Isaac’s Cathedral at St. Petersburg. Its weight at present is 444.000 lbs. ; its height from the top of the ball and cross placed upon it by order of the Emp. Nicholas I., is 26 ft. 4 in., and its circumference 67 ft. 11 in. Its maximum thickness is 2 ft., and the weight of the broken piece (7 ft. high) is 700 pouds, or about 11 tons. The diameter of the bell at its top is 8 ft. 9 in. outside, and 6 ft. 5 in. inside.* The figures in relief are those of the Tsar Alexis and the Empress * Measurements by G. W. Whistler. Kotes and Queries, March 27, 1869. 228 Moute 10. — Moscoio: The Palace, Anne, and on the scroll below is a representation of the Saviour, the Holy Virgin, and the Evangelists, surrounded by cherubim. 3. The Palace . — The ancient habita- tions of the rulers of Moscow were of wood, with the exception of the Grano- vitaya Palata, built by an Italian archi- tect in 1484, and still extant. Fre- quent conflagrations, Tartar inroads, and a Polish occupation, destroyed the old* Courts of tlie Grand Dukes and Tsars. On the transfer of the capital to St. Petersburg, the Kremlin was definitively deserted as a royal resi- dence. The fire of 1737, which con- sumed everything that was ancient in Moscow, obliterated all traces of the buildings constructed by the first sovereigns of the Eomauoff dynasty, leaving only the stone basements on which the structures now seen have since been reared. The Empress Anne built a palace on their site in the style of the period, but this again made way for the gigantic palace designed by the Empress Catherine II., now exhibited in the Treasury as a model, and the construction of which was soon aban- doned. The French burned the palace facing the river which the Empress Catherine had rebuilt and which the Plmperor Napoleon occupied ; and be- tween 1838 and 184'.) it was entirely removed and replaced by the present palace, which is therefore only a monu- ment of the reign of Nicholas I. It is called the Bolshoi Dvorcts, or Great Palace,* and is very lofty com- pared with its frontage, and its style being an odd mixture of different periods and forms of architecture. The incongruity of the exterior is, however, more than atoned for by the great beauty and grandeur of the apartments within. The vestibule is supported by hand- some monoliths of grey marble. Be- ginning on the 1. with the Eirst-lloor, * Open daily, from 10 to 5 in summer, and 10 to 3 in winter. Tickets to be obtained in the chamberlain’s office, within the Kremlin. The exhibition of this Handbook will, however, be a sufficient introduction to the porter in scar- let, who will detach one of the Imperial servants on the duty of showing the palace. Sect. 1. which consists of the dwelling-rooms of the Emperor and Empress, the ajiart- ments occur in the following order ; — 1. Dining-room. 2. Empress’s Draw- ing-room; white silk, and gold mould- ings. 3. Attendants’ room. 4. Em- press’ Cabinet ; dark-red silk, and buhl doors. 5. Koom for Lady-in-Waiting. 6. Empress’ Dressing and Bath-room ; malachite mantelpiece. 7. Bedroom. 8. Emperor’s Dressing and Bath-room. 9. Emperor’s Cabinet ; tlie pictures re- present the French entering and leav- ing Moscow and the battles of Boro- dino and Smolensk ; bronze equestrian statuette of Napoleon. 10. Attend- ants’ room. 11. Regimental Standard- room. 12. Attendants’ room. Visitors will now be led back to the Vestibule, and shown, in a small room on the 1., a machine for lifting the Em- press to her apartments upstairs. As- cending a handsome granite staircase, with walls of scagliola, he will be taken to see the State Apartments. The large picture in the gallery round the top of the staircase, painted in 1850 by Yvon, a French artist, represents the battle of Kulikova, or the victory over the Tartars gained by Dimitry of the Don. The huge crystal vases at the door are from the Imperial Glass Works at St. Petersburg, as are also the other vases and candelabra, which will be shown inside. Hall of St. George . — Passing through an ante-chamber, the traveller will find himself in a magnificent Hall dedicated to the Military Order of St. George, founded by Catherine II., in 1709. After the battle of Kulikovo (1380) Dimitry of the Don adopted the effigy of St. George on a white horse (on a field gules) as the arms of the Duchy of Moscow. These are now tlie arms of the Russian Empire, as well as of the city of Moscow. Yaroslaf the Great (llth cent.) had used the same device on his great seal and on the grivnas (coins) with which he rewarded his troops. The Russian princes frequently used it on their armour and shields, and in the reign of Theodore Ivanovitch silver coins, with the effigy of St. George, Kussia. Mouie iO. — Moscoid : The Palace. were beatowed for valour and worn on the head-piece. The Saint has long been popular in Russia, owing to the power which he is supposed to wield over wolves and serpents. The Rus- sian peasant will not turn his cattle out to graze before the 23rd of April, o. s., the day dedicated to the memory of St. George. Catherine II. proclaimed herself Grand Mistress of the Order of St. George in 1787, and gave it to an entire regiment of cuirassiers; but it was neither given nor worn by her successor Paul. It was re-established by Alexander II. A copy of Raphael’s St. George (vide Hermitage) is suspended at the end of the hall. Near the door lead- ing out on the balcony are two bronze caskets, containing the records of the Order. The hall measures 200 ft. by 68 ft., height 58 ft. The names of the in- dividuals and regiments decorated with the Order since its foundation are inscribed on the walls in letters of gold. The capitals of the columns (which are of zinc) are surmounted by Victories bearing shields, on which are inscribed the dates of the several conquests of Russia, beginning with that of Perm, in 1472, and ending with the annexation of Armenia, in 1828. On the shields are likewise the arms of the conquered provinces. The name of the Emperor Alexander II. is in- scribed on a marble tablet to the left, near a window which looks out on the terrace. H.I.M. won the Cross of St. George of the 4th class in the Cau- casus, in 1850. The regiments thus honoured are 545 in number. The furniture is black and orange, the colours of the Order. The lustres and candelabra hold 3,200 candles. Ask to see the view from the balcony which opens out of this hall. 2. Alexander Hall . — Gorgeous hall, pink and gold, dedicated to Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, founded 1725, by Catherine II. Its length is 103 ft. by 68 ft., and its extreme height 68 ft. Here are placed 6 pictures by Prof. Moller, portraying the principal deeds of the Patron Saint : — i. The Cardinals 229 sent by Pope Innocent IV. endeavour- ing to persuade St. Alexander Nevsky to join the Latin Chnrch. ii. His marriage with Alexandra, daughter of the Prince of Polotsk, iii. Alexander in the Camp of the Tartars, bringing gifts. He is required to bow to idols, and to pass between 2 fires, but refuses, iv. Triumphal entry into Pskof, de- livered from the Livonian Knights, whom Alexander defeated (1242) on the ice, on Lake Peipus, near Dorpat. V. A dream is being interpreted to the Prince, in which the Divine aid is promised in the approaching battle with tire Swedes on the banks of the Neva. Alexander fighting with the son-in-law of the King of Sweden and smiting him in the face with his lance. The four stands near the doors hold gold and silver plate when the Imp. Family inhabits the Kremlin. It takes 4500 candles to light this hall. 3. Hall of St. Andreiv, the senior order of knighthood, established by Peter I., 1698 ; the arms of the pro- vinces of Russia appear on the walls, which are hung with blue silk, the colour of the riband. The Emperor’s throne is very handsome. The length of the hall is 160 ft. by 68 ft. ; height 58 ft. This splendid hall is lighted at night by 2095 candles. 4. Guard-room. 5. Hall of Order of St. Catherine, a female distinction, conferred by the Empress, who is sovereign of the Ordei’, and whose throne stands in the hall. Founded 1714 in commemoration of the deliverance of Peter I. by Cathe- rine from the Turks on the Pruth, 1711. The length of the hall is 68 ft. by 45. 6. State Hrawincj-room ; green bro- cade. 7. State Bedroom ; white brocade ; 2 pilasters of vert antique in mosaic- work ; mantelpiece of jasper. 8. State Bressiiaj and Bath-room. 1 9. Descending a few steps, the visitor 280 Boute 10. — Moscow : The Balace. Sect. 1. will be shown a small Chapel. It is dedicated to the Nativity of the Virgin, and was originally built of wood by the consort of Dimitry of the Don (1393). In 1480 the old ch. fell in, burying much treasure beneath it ; but it was restored by an Italian architect, in the reign of John the Terrible (1514). In ancient days this was the private chapel of the Grand Duchesses and Tsaritsas of Moscow, and it con- tained a hat stove of glazed tiles, on which they reposed when fatigued. Tradition says that they were brought to this stove for their confinements. It is supposed, however, that the stove stood in the adjacent refectory, in which are now to be seen the colours taken from the Kokans on the capture of their fort, Pishpek, in 1862. There are several images in this ch. of great value. A cross with relics, and orna- mented with enamel and pearls, was the gift of Michael and his father, the Patriarch Pliilaret, 1626. Below this ch. is a chapel dedicated to St. Lazarus. It was only discovered in 1837, its existence having been for- gotten since the 16th cent., when it was walled up. Supposed to be of the 14th cent. On the right is a recess, in which the sovereign probably stood during divine service. It is strange that the arms of Lithuania — a knight on horseback— should have been placed over him. The ch. was restored by Nicholas I. 10. Passing through a pretty winter garden, the tourist will come to the apartments occupied by members of the Imperial family. 1. Ante-room. 2. Dining-room, hung with fine old ta- pestry representing the life of Don Quixote. The tables, lustres, and looking-glass frames of silver, of the period of the Empress Anne. A small model of the monument at Novgorud. The 7th and 8th rooms alone present some interest, as they contain some fine sepia copies of Raphael, Correggio, and Guido Beni, by Zeidelmann of Dres- den, purchased by Alexander I., 1814. 11. The Picture Gallery comes next. The only pictures worthy of notice are the six that have been brought here from the royal castle of Warsaw, all painted by Bacciarelli. 180. Peace at Khotin between Turkey and Po- land. 149. John Sobieski raising the siege of Vienna by the Turks, 1683. 124. Union of Lithuania with Poland, at Lublin. 92. Oath of the Voevod Gabriel Baizen of Lithuania to Casimir Jagellon. 66. Kestoration of Academy of Cracow by Ladislas Ja- gellon. 35. Promulgation of Statute (1347) by Casimir the Great. Eeturn- ing through the garden, the visitor will be led along a gallery into which open the windows of the apartments allotted to the maids of honour of H.I.M. 12. The Zolotaya Palata, or Gold Court, is at the end of this gallery, and is supposed to have been b^uilt by the Metrop. Jonah, 1451. It is also believed that the Metropolitans and Patriarchs of Moscow were installed in this chamber, and that it was an audience chamber of the Patriarchs and Archbishops, for the 7 recesses and seats probably represent the 7 Councils. However, in the reign of Ivan III. (1462), it was called the Chamber of the Tsaritsa, who gave audience in it to the clergy, boyars, and foreign am- bassadors. The Tsar likewise appeared in it on state occasions and ch. holy- days. In 1653, the Tsaritsa of Mos- cow received the Tsaritsa of Georgia in it ; and in 1654, the Tsars of Georgia and Kasimof did homage in it to Na- talia, the mother of Peter the Great. It was renovated at the coronation of the Emperor Paul, and again during the reign of Nicholas, in the style of the 17th cent., copied from old draw- ings. The frescoes on the wall repre- sent Helena obtaining the true cross, St. Olga’s journey to Constantinople and her baptism, &c. 13. Nall of St. Vladimir.~The Hall with the high pointed roof is dedicated to the Order of St. Vladimir (founded 1782), and is consequently hung with black and red silk. 14. The flight of steps at the end of llussia. lloute 10. — Moscow: The Palace. 231 this hall, called the (or Beau- tiful) Staircasef is only used on im- portant state occasions, when the Em- peror goes to the Cathedral of tlie Assumption. From the top of these stairs the Tsars of old allowed the populace to see “the light of their eyes.” Here John the Terrible gazed at the comet that seemed to foretell his speedy end ; and it was here also that he committed the inhuman act of transfixing with his pointed staff the foot of the trusty messenger and friend of Prince Kurbski, a valiant leader of his armies, who, in the appre- hension of unmerited punishment and death, abandoned his wife and fled to the Polish camp at Wolmar, whence he wrote to the Tsar setting forth the crimes and atrocities of his reign. The tyrant rested on the staff which he had stuck into the foot of the messenger, who remained motionless and silent while the letter was being read. It was with the blow of a similar stick that J ohn the Terrible killed his son. From the Red Staircase the mangled body of the false Demetrius was thrown down into the court below by the infuriated people of Moscow in 1606 ; and it was from the same steps that the rebel Streltsi, in 1682, tore the obnoxious Boyar Matveyef and cut him to pieces before the eyes of the terrified mother of Peter the Great, together with numerous other noblemen and adherents of the Court. By these steps also, Napoleon, followed by his Mar- shals, ascended to take possession of the palace of the Kremlin. Above the Gold Court is a small chapel called “ the Gath, of the Re- deemer beyond the Golden Railmg.” It was built ill 1635, and in the reign of Alexis was raised to the rank of a Cath. It was renovated in 1733, but was considerably damaged by fire in 1737, It contains an image of the Re- deemer, considered to have miraculous properties, and which was brought to Moscow by Sophia Paleologus. There are several other images or relics more or less ancient. In olden times, the Tsar’s procession on the occasion of the coming of age of his successor, started from this chapel. Below it is a chapel dedicated to St. Catherine^ built in 1627 by John Taylor, on the site of a wooden ch. which is supposed to have been founded by the Consort of Dimitry of the Don. The image of St. Catherine was pre- sented by Catherine II., and the diamonds in the crown of the Saint are of considerable value. It was removed by the French, but found after their departure, in the ch. of the “ Saviour in the Wood,” buried under a heap of ch. vessels and vest- ments. Among the plate in this ch. is a cross containing relics with an in- scription, to the effect that it had been made by the order of Peter, John, and Sophia, “ Autocrats of all the Russias.” Above this ch. again, and on a level ■with the Ch. of the Redeemer above described, is another small chapel, restored in 1811. A very ancient incense burner is suspended in the centre of this ch. The 10 Virgins and the Bridegroom are represented upon it. The W. door is ornamented with figures of the 8 Sibyls. The false Demetrius is supposed to have jumped out of the window, which will be seen in a corridor to the right on leaving the ch. The window then looked out into a court-yard, in which the Pre- tender was discovered and put to death. The chapel of the Crucifixion stands above the corridor, between the ch. of the Redeemer and the chapel just described, and is on a level with the 4th storey of the Terem. Over the altar is a picture, of the 17th cent., representing the Emperor Constantine, his mother Helena, the Tsar Alexis with his first Consort Maria, and the Patriarch Nicon. The images in the ihonostas are said to have been worked by Tsarevnas. On the N. side of the altar is the oratory of the Tsar Alexis, who built the chapel in 1677. In 1 679, Alexis caused a “ Golgotha ” to be constructed in the corridor, and the crucifix of cedar which was set up on the occasion, and which was the work of one of the best carvers of the day in Moscow, may still be seen. 15. The Granovitaya Palata, or Ban» 232 B^ouielO. — Moscow: The Palace. Sect. 1. (|uetiiig-room, will be viewed- next. It was used by tlie old Tsars as an audience chamber on solemn occasions. An inscription over the door sets forth that it was built by Ivan III., who married Sophia Paleologus (15th cent.), and restored by Nicholas I. It is a vaulted apartment with arches resting on a column in the centre of the room, and round which the Imperial plate is displayed. Here the Emperor sits enthroned after the ceremony in the Cathedral, adorned for the first time with all the Imperial insignia, and dines amidst his nobles ; crowned heads being alone seated at the same table with him. Opposite the throne, near the ceiling, is a window, which was in olden days occupied by the members of the Imperial family during the coronation banquet, their presence below being still excluded by etiquette. The private chapel of the old Metro- politans and Patriarchs, up to Nicon, is next to the Granovitaya Palace. It was built in 1451 by Vasili III. (the Dark). It contains an image of the Virgin, before which all must bow under the pain of eternal damnation. At the door of this chapel the Metro- politans and Patriarchs used to mount the ass on which they rode through Moscow (the Tsar holding the bridle) after their installation. 16. The visitor now comes to a very interesting part of the palace — the Terem, anciently devoted to the Tsar- itsa and her children. The building consists of 4 storeys, which gradually diminish till the upper floor is so small as only to contain 1 room. The 2 lower storeys, used as magazines, were built in the early part of the 16th cent., but the two upper were added in 1636 by Micluiel Eedorovitch. The entire building was restored 1836- 1849. Ascending the curious, carved stone staircase, the first room reached is the Dining-room ; the presses con- tain the old seals of the empire, and the frescoes on the walls represent the |8aviour and the Evangelists, the Emperor Constantine and his mother Helena, St. Vladimir, and St. Olga. 2. lleception-room ; bronze casket, con- taining old charters of the reign of Alexis. 3. Throne-room of Alexis; seals of sovereigns ; gold coin of John the Terrible, in a small open box in press, 1. of door ; bronze casket con- taining act of election of Michael Romanoff to throne of Moscovy. At the upper end of the room stands the Tsar’s Chair, with a carpet before it, said to have been worked by the Tsar’s daughters. Outside the last window, a box was anciently fastened, into which petitions were dropped by the subjects of the Tsar, who examined them himself. 4. Bedroom. 5. Ora- tory ; copy of the Evangelists on parchment, of 14th cent. The images, &c., belonged to the Tsar Michael. 6. The room above is called the Council Chamber of the Boyars. It is, however, supposed to have been built by Michael for his -children. The Councils were probably held in the Throne-room. Visitors should go out on the gallery that runs round the outside of the building, and admire the view. A door under the staircase of the Terem leads to a suite of rooms where old charters are kept. These can only be seen by special permission. Alexis, and subsequently his sons Theodore and John, were brought up in the Terem. Peter the Great sometimes occupied it before his first journey to foreign countries, and its last occupant was the unfortunate Alexis, son of Peter. Foreign Ambassadors were sometimes honoured with an audience in it. Thus, in 1662, the Ambassadors of the Emperor of Germany, and in 1664 the Earl of Carlisle, were received in it. The guide should receive a fee, as well as the porter, for taking care of coats, sticks, and umbrellas. 17. The Treasury (Onijeinaya Pa- /«trt).*— This building, erected in 1851, forms the right wing of the Palace, and contains a collection very similar in subjects to that of the Tower of Lon- * The Treasury is only open on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, between 11 and 3. Tickets at the Chamberlain’s office in the Senate, within the Kremlin. Hussia. MoutelO, — Moscow: The 'Palace. 233 don. The Treasury of Moscow was anciently, and still remains, the deposi- tory of venerated historical objects, and of treasures hereditary in the reigning house. The geographical position of Kussia, and her ancient commercial intercourse with India, Persia, Ar- menia, and Greece, gave her princes and boyars the widest opportunities for the acquisition of wealth. The arts, first of the East, and later of the West, found munificent patrons at the court of Moscow. The interchange of pre- sents on the occasion of alliances, em- bassies, or the conclusion of peace, continued to the time when Russia ceased to be considered an Asiatic power, increased the store of riches in the shape of plate, precious stones, and costly manufactures of different kinds, which in those primitive days were the principal representatives of wealth. The churches, in the same manner, were more frequently endowed with pearls, diamonds, and rubies than with lands or ducats. The splendour of the Tsar’s court, like that of his nobles, was manifested in a gorgeous magnifi- cence and profusion in the absence of a more refined civilization. The riches thus amassed were naturally subject to political vicissitudes. In 1611 and 1612 the Council of Boyars, during an interregnum, supported the troops of Poland and Lithuania within the walls of the Kremlin on the produce of a considerable quantity of plate con- verted into money. The favourites of the Tsar received frequent marks of approbation in the shape of vessels of gold and silver. A fire in 1737 de- stroyed many historical objects, and amongst them ail the colours taken from the Swedes at the battle of Pol- tava. Later, the sovereigns of Ptussia transferred their capital, and more than once removed their household gods from one palace to another. During the French invasion the treasures were conveyed to Nijni-Novgorod. They were thus frequently dispersed and partially reunited, and there now re- mains in the Treasury of Moscow the collection, still considerable, to which the visitor is introduced. The hall and staircase are adorned with trophies of arms, principal] y Ger- man. The large bell, a sort of tocsin, bearing the date of 1714, when it was recast, anciently rang out alarms of fire and of other public dangers to the citizens of Moscow. The first room at the top of the stair- case is devoted to specimens of old Russian armour, both of man and horse, and the appropriate weapons of steel. The second room is full of old Rus- sian fire-arms, arranged chronologi- cally, and dating from the 15th to the 18th cent. The matchlocks and mus- kets to the left are all of native manufacture. The fowling-pieces are inscribed as having been presented to the Tsar Michael in 1614, by Fabian Smith, an Englishman. They are near ' the door on the 1. The standards of the Tsars of Moscovy, and of their military households, are grouped round the pillars by which the vaulted roof of the room is supported. The most interesting colours will be found at the second pillar. Here are the colours of Peter’s unruly Streltsi. Nos. 3697 and 3698, bearing the lion and the unicorn, were carried by the Cossack Yermak to the conquest of Siberia. No. 3699 was unfurled as long ago as the early part of the 17th cent, at the fort of Albazin, on the Amur, by a small body of adventurous Cossacks who settled on that river, but were subse- quently driven out by the Chinese. The standard of Ivan the Terrible, planted at Kazan in 1552, will be found near the first window on the 1., and is numbered 3752. Here are also numerous trophies taken from the Swedes, and amongst them the sword of Charles XII., his spurs, and the litter in which he was borne at the battle of Poltava. The walls of the third room are hung with origitial portraits of the Romanoff family. The coronation chair on the 1. is that of the Empress Elizabeth ; the chairs on the rt. were occupied by Paul I., Alexander II., and their con- sorts, as the visitor may perceive from the ciphers on them. The Emperor and Empress walk at their coronation under the haldacMno kept in the centre of the room. The traveller will pause 234 Route 10. — Moscow: The Palace. at the stand of colours at the furthest end of this hall, to the rt. of the door, while he reads the following translation of the printed inscription in Eussian characters, composed by the Emperor Nicholas himself: — ‘‘Alexander I., the benefactor of Poland, gave these colours to the Polish army. Mag- nanimity was responded to by treason ; the brave, faithful Eussian army took these colours back, after storming Warsaw and sparing its inhabitants, 25 and 26 August, 1831.” The con- stitution granted by Alexander I. to his Polish subjects lies in the small black box immediately under the in- scription, and at the foot of a portrait of Alexander I. The glass case on the 1. contains the arms taken from the Polish general Ezewuski. A blade bears the name of Stanislas Augustus, and the date of 1764. The room on the rt. contains many of the most interesting relics of Eus- sian sovereignty. To the l.on entering stands the throne of Poland, removed in 1833 from the throne-room of the Eoyal Palace at Warsaw. It was used at the coronation at Nicholas I. as King of Poland. The cipher M. is the initial of his name in Polish (Mikolay). The insignia of Alexis, and of his sons Jolm and Peter, are on stands close by. The ivory throne was brought from Constantinople by Sophia Palmologus in 1472, on her marriage with John III. The carving repre- sents the labours of Orpheus and the legend of Thrace, but several of the original panels were replaced in 1642 by others with inappropriate subjects. It was, moreover, restored in 1856 for the coronation of Alexander II. Tiie throne alongside came from Persia in 1660, and was used by the Tsar Alexis. It is studded with 876 diamonds and 1223 rubies, besides turquoises and pearls. The orb opposite these thrones is of great historical importance. It was sent to St. Vladimir, Grand Duke of Kief, by the Greek Emperors Basilius and Constantine, together with a crown, a collar of enamel and precious stones, and a chair with a piece of the true cross. It is [Sect. I. most splendidly studded with 58 dia- monds, 89 rubies, 23 sapphires, 50 emeralds, and 37 pearls. The coloured enamels are in the most beautiful style of Greek art, and represent the principal episodes in the life of David. The four symbolical figures of Byzan- tium,— the eagle, the lion, the grifiin, and the unicorn, — divide the several images or enamelled plates. The wardrobe next the throne brings very different recollections. The first object in it are the corona- tion robes of Catherine I., the military dress of Peter II., and other specimens of wearing apparel. The boots of Peter I. and Paul I. stand on either side of the wardrobe. The next throne is that of Michael. Opposite to it stands the crown of the kingdom of Ka- zan. It belonged to Simeon, crowned Tsar of Kazan and converted to Chris- tianity by John the Terrible in 1553. It is surmounted by a topaz, and adorned with rubies, turquoises, and pearls. The crown on the next stand was made for Michael by Eussian artisans. It is richly ornamented with enamel-work, and surmounted by a large emerald. There are 190 other precious stones round it. The throne of Boris Godunof comes next. It was the gift of Abbas, Shah of Persia, in 1604, and is studded with very large turquoises and innumer- able rubies and pearls. The crown of John, brother of Peter I., is on the next stand. It is in the shape of a mitre, or pyramidal cap of maintenance, surmounted by a dia- mond cross, rising from a ruby. The diamonds with wliich this magnificent crown is ornamented are 900 in number. The orb alongside was made at Con- stantinople for Alexis in 1662. The green enamel is profusely studded with diamonds and eight large sapphires. In the wardrobe opposite hang the coro- nation robes of the Empresses Anne and Catherine II. The double throne of Vermeil was made for the coronation of John and Peter. On lifting the drapery at the back of this throne, an aperture will be seen, through which Sophia prompted her brother John on state occasions. The usual Byzantine Kussia. Moute 10. — 3Ioscow: The Palace. emblems will be observed. The crowns of those sovereigns lie opposite. The costliest crown is that of the Em- press Anne, originally made for Cathe- rine I. by order of Peter the Great, the diamonds in it, alone, being 2536 in number ; but the jewel of most value in it is the ruby, purchased at Pekin in 1676 by the Ambassador of Alexis. The throne of Paul completes the col- lection. In the last wardrobe are the coronation robes of Paul, Alexander I., Nicholas I., and Alexander II., with those of their consorts. In the glass case in the centre of the room the visitor will find the Order of the Garter, and the patent for it, sent to John the Terrible by Queen Elizabeth. Here also will be seen the Banner of the Empire, carried at a coronation. The arms upon it were emblazoned by Mr. A. Fadeyef, chief heraldic painter of the Heraldic Department of the Senate. A casket in this room contains the “ Ulojenie,” or Code of the Tsar Alexis (1619), written on sheets of parchment measuring together 368 yards. The fourth, or last room upstairs, is full of stands groanmg with the richest and most curious articles of plate. Some of the objects here exhibited are of great antiquity, — a cup of silver bearing an inscription of the 12th cent. Every domestic vessel has a specimen in this collection, and their forms will be studied with interest by the lovers of art. Tlie work of nearly every country in Europe meets the eye. Onr own silversmiths have contributed many articles presented to the Tsar by the ambassadors of James I., Charles I., and Charles II. Two jugs of chased silver, two vases of vermeil, tlie covers surmounted by a cavalier armed with a lance, a ewer weighing 21 lbs., two large jugs, two candle- sticks, and four dishes, all of silver, were brought by the Earl of Carlisle, ambassador of Charles H. At the end of this hall stands a fine marble statue of Napoleon, which originally belonged to the city of Hamburg. For a detailed description of the plate vide “ Guide du Palais des Armures,” to be purchased at the door. Eetiirning down stairs, the visitor will be shown some rooms on the rt., containing amongst other things the following remarkable objects : — In the first room is an immense model of a palace which Catherine II. proposed to construct within the Kremlin, and of which the first stone was actually laid in 1773. A theatre, in the shape of the Coliseum at KoDie, was to have been erected near the holy gate of the Saviour. The tra- veller may congratulate the Moscovite on the plan of such a building having been abandoned. The small field- pieces were cast at Tabriz during its occupation by Kussian troops in 1827. In the second room will be found portraits of kings of Poland, and of Polish men of eminence, together with 22 busts of Zamoiskis, Sapiehas, Wielopolskis, and other illustrious Poles. The portraits of Louis XIV. and George III. are amongst them. The old carriages of the court of Moscow fill the next and last room. The large vehicle on the right was presented, together with eight horses, by Queen Elizabeth to the Tsar Boris Godunof. The panels are i3ainted with allegorical allusions to a crusade which the Tsar had proposed to make against the Turks, and in which our Queen declined to join. The minia- ture carriage with panes of mica be- longed to Peter I. when a child. An- other large carriage on the right belonged to the Empress Elizabeth. The panels are painted in the style of Watteau. The carriage on runners, with a table and benches covered with green cloth, was used by the Empress Elizabeth on her journeys between St. Petersburg and Moscow. The first large carriage on the left, lined with crimson velvet, was made for the Pa- triarch Philaret. Two camp bed- steads, which belonged to Napoleon and were taken at the Berezina, stand at the upper end of the room. The cases along the walls and pillars are full of saddles and horse-trappings, dating from the 17th cent. 18. The Poteshny (or Diversion) 236 Sect. I. Boute 10. — 3Ioscow: Cathedrals. Valace, in Alexander-street, near the Treasury, now the residence of the commandant of the Kremlin, was built in the reign of Theodore (17th cent.) Although partly rebuilt in 1805, its original exterior is still preserved. It was inhabited by Martha, the widow of Theodore, and was used as a chapel by Michael and other Tsars. Later, plays in which Sophia, the sister of Peter the Great, took part, were performed in it. There is at present nothing to see inside. 19. The Maloi or Nicolaefsld Dvorets or Little Palace, facing the Great Pell, is now scarcely worthy of a visit.* Originally built by Catherine II., it was the residence of the Metropolitan Platon, who presented it, in 1817, to the Emperor Nicholas. The Emperor Alexander II. was born in it. The furniture and arrangements are of the simplest kind. In the Dining- room is a picture by Canaletto, “ Elec- tion of Stanislas Augustus by the Diet of Warsaw in 1764.” There are 2 other pictures, by a native artist, illustrative of the merits of Minin and Pojarski. In the next room are 2 pictures by Aivazovski, the marine painter, “ the Burning of Moscow,” and “ the Temple of the Saviour,” now in course of erection. There is a Polish standard in the 3rd room. 20. Cathedrals hi the Courtyard of the Kremlin. (n.) TJspenshi Sohbr. {Cathedral of the Assumptioii). — This sacred edifice was formerly called the Patriarchal Oatliedral, but is now known as the Church of tlie Assumption, or Pej)ose of 1 lie Virgin. The emperors are crowned in it, and the patriarchs formerly offici- ated there. The site was origmally occupied by a church built in 1326 by the Metropolitan Peter, when it became the place of sepulture of the Patriarchs, just as the church dedi- cated to St. Michael, in the immediate vicinity, and founded at the same time, was destined to receive the remains of the sovereigns of Kussia; but it was reconstructed between 1475-1479 by Aristotle Fioraventi of Bologna, with the assistance of native artists, after the model of the cathedral at Vladimir. It is solidly built, the foundatio/is being about 14 ft. deep, and the walls and vaults were considerably strength- ened in 1 626, when the damages caused by the Poles in 1612 were likewise repaned. The domes were only covered with copper-gilt plates in 1684. But, notwithstanding these alterations, and others which were made after the great fire of 1737, the Cathedral of the Assumption retains almost entirely its primitive form, and is therefore one of the most interesting Christian monu- ments in Eussia. Its images and shrines, however, suffered considerably during the French occupation. They yielded about 5 tons of silver and 5 cwt. of gold to the soldiery, notwith- standing that all the more precious articles had been carried away on the approach of the French. The architectural arrangements (a mixture of the Byzantine and Lom- bard) and the ornamentation are all minutely symbolical, and will there- fore well repay a careful study of the plan here annexed, taken from Dean Stanley’s work on the Eastern Church. “It is in dimensions,”* says that learned authority, “ what in the West would be called a chapel rather than a cathedral. But it is so fraught with recollections, so teeming with wor- shippers, so bursting with tombs and pictures from the pavement to the cupola, that its smallness of space is forgotten in the fulness of its con- tents. On the platform of its nave, from Ivan the Terrible downwards to this day, the Tsars have been crowned. Along its altar-screen are deposited the most sacred pictures of Eussia ; that, painted by the Metroi3olitan Peter; this, sent by the Greek Emperor Ma- nuel ; that, brought by Vladimir from Kherson. High in the cupola is the * The height of the cath., from its base to the top of the highest cupola, is 128 feet. It is not open to the general public. Eussla. BjOiite IQ.— Moscow : Cathedrals. 237 chapel, where, as at the summit of the Kussian Church, the Eussian primates were elected Eound the walls are buried the primates of the Church ; at the four corners — here, as in all Oriental buildings, the place of honour — lie those most highly venerated.” St. Peter, the first Metropolitan of Moscow, lies in a small chapel on the left side of the Ikonostas, as shown in the accompanying plan of the Cath. t)n which the tombs of other Metropo- politans and Patriarchs are likewise marked. In ancient days the feudatory Princes of Eussia swore fealty to the Grand Duke of Moscow in front of St. Peter’s tomb. The stone image of St. George pre- served in the side chapel was brought from Eome. A picture in the Ikonos- tas — that of the Holy Virgin of Vladi- mir — will be pointed out as having been painted by St. Luke. It came originally from Constantinople and was brought toMoscovf from Kief in 1155. In 1395 it is supposed to have exer- cised miraculous powers on the occa- sion of the flight of Tamerlane from Eussia. In 1812 it was safely depo- sited at Vladimir. The jewels with which it is adorned are valued at 45,000?., the emerald alone being worth 10,000?. It is one of the most ancient images in Eussia, and is painted on a composition of wax. The image next in importance is that of the Holy Virgin of Jerusalem. It is, however, only a copy. The oii- ginal, which had been painted by I he Apostles and brought from Jerusalem to Constantinople in 453 and to Kher- son by Vladimir in 888, disappeared during the French invasion. The image of the “ Saviour in the gold chasuble,” painted by the Emp. IManuel, was brought from Novgorod the Great in 1478. The silver shrine of St. Philip, Metropolitan between 1566 and 1569, which stands conspi- cuous on the right “ wing ” of the Ikonostas, is an object of more than ordinary interest in connexion with the ecclesiastical history of Eussia. The prelate having been bold enough to rebuke John the Terrible publicly fnr Ins atrocities, the Oprilchniks (a lawless band of adherents by whom the Tsar surrounded himself) dragged him from the altar of this Cath., re- placed his pontifical robes by a monk’s cowl, and driving him out of the sanc- tuary with brooms, carried him off to a monastery at Tver, where he was ultimately put to death. This martyr in the cause of mercy a.nd justice well deserves the honours of a shrine, and the devotion with which it is regarded. The emperor never fails to place his lips on the exposed and withered forehead of St. Philip. The five domes are supported by pillars that are covered with frescoes on a gold ground. There is much gilding on the walls, but the glitter is somewhat moderated by the grim re- presentations of departed saints of the Church. At the same time it is im- possible to enter this time-honoured sanctuary without a feeling of vene- ration, nor can a grander sight be possibly imagined than a coronation within its ancient walls, or even a Te Deum performed in the presence of the emperor and the court, particu- larly on the 15th (27th) August, the annual feast of the Church, when His Majesty sometimes goes there in state. A coronation is of course a still better opportunity. “ The coronation,” we again extract from Dean Stanley, “even at the present time, is not a mere cere- mony, but a historical event, and solemn consecration. It is preceded by fasting and seclusion, and takes place in the most sacred church in Eussia; the emperor, not, as in the corresponding forms of European in- vestiture, a passive recipient, but him- self the principal figure in the whole scene; himself reciting aloud the con- fession of the orthodox faith ; himself alone on his knees, amidst the assem- bled multitude, otfering up the prayer of intercession for the empire; him- self placing his own crowii on his own head; himself entering through the sacred door of the innermost sanctu- ary, and taking from the altar tlie elements of the bread and wine.” The wooden throne which will be shown to the visitor as the throne of 38 B>outelO. — Moscoit^ : Cathedral of the Assumption, Sect. I. PLAN OF THE CATHEDRAL OF THE ASSUMPTION AT MOSCOW. Eussia. Boute 10.- — Moscow: Cathedral of the Asswm]^tion, 239 EXPLANATION OF REFERENCES. A. “Iconastasis,” or Screen for the Sacred Pictures. B. “ Bema,” or Sanctuary. C. C. “ Soleas,” or Choir. T). Nave. E. “ Proaulion, or Porch, P". F. F. F. Columns. 1. Principal altar. 2. Throne of the Archbishop, Metropolitan, or Patriarch of Moscow, 3. Side altar, dedicated to S. Demetrius of Thessalonica. 4. Side altar, dedicated to SS. Peter and Paul. These two side altars are separate pieces of the one chief altar ; but placed here to allow of access to them without passing through the Sanctuary. 5. Stairs leading to “ the Chapel of the Blessed Virgin” in the cupola, where the election of the Patriarchs took place. C. Stairs leading to the Sacristy, containing the relics and curiosities of the Church, 7. Tomb of S. Theognostus, ) 8. Tomb of St. Peter, J MetropoWans. a. a. a. a. Pictures of the Seven Councils, h. b. b. Pictures of the liUst Judgment. c. c. c. c. c. c. Pictures of the Life and Death the Virgin. d. d. d. d. Pictures of the Patriarchs and Prathers of the Church. 9. Shrine, containing sacred relics. 10. Tomb of St. Philip, Metropolitan. 11. Sacred Picture of our Lady of Vladimir, 12. Tomb of S, Jonah, Metropolitan. 13. Tabernacle over “ the Holy Tunic,” pre- sented to the Church by Philaret, Patriarch. 14. Tombs of SS. Photius and Cyprian. I.*). The ancient throne of the Tsar (called “ of Vladimir Monomachus ”). 16. Throne of the Patriarch. 17. Throne of the Empress. 18. Place of the platform on which the Em- pei-or is crowned, 19. Tomb of Philaret, Patriarch. 20. Tomb of Hermogenes, Patriarch. 21. Royal doors. 22. Platform in front of the choir. The Pictures on the Altar Screen (A) are thus arranged. 1. The highest compartment, the Patriarchs ranged on each side of the Eternal Father. 2. The Prophets leaning towards the Virgin and Son. 3. Minute representations of the life of the Saviour. 4. Angels and Apostles |on each side of the Saviour. 5. The Sacred Pictures or Icons : (а) “The Blessed Virgin,” brought by Vladimir from Khersonesus. (б) “ The Saviour,” sent by the Emperor Manuel. (c) “ Repose of the Blessed Virgin,” painted by Peter the Metro- politan. On the doors “the Royal Doors,” so called because the Tsar or Emperor passes through them on the day of his coronation) are painted the Four Evangelists, to represent that through this entrance come the glad tidings of the Eucharist. On each side of the doors are represented (in ancient churches) Adam and the Penitent Thief, as the first fallen and the first redeemed. On the farther compartments are represented the Virgin and the Forerunner (the Baptist), and at tlie northern corner the Saint to whom the Church is dedicated. On each side of the entrance to the nave are (sometimes) represented the Publican and the Pharisee, as the two opposite types of worshippers. Where the Porch is extended, it contains the Pagan Philosophers and Poets, each with a scroll in his hand containing a sentence antici- p