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 AN 
 
 EPITOME 
 
 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
.LONDON : 
 
 Spottiswoode and Shaw, 
 New-street- Square. 
 
AN 
 
 EPITOME 
 
 UNIVERSAL HISTORY, 
 
 *&& earliest ^txioH 
 
 THE REVOLUTIONS OF 1848. 
 
 TOGETHER WITH 
 
 HISTORICAL CHARTS, 
 
 AN EXTENSIVE CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE 
 
 ON THE SYSTEM OF 
 
 grey's memoria technica. 
 
 BY A/HARDING. 
 
 LONDON: 
 LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, AND LONGMANS, 
 
 PATERNOSTER-ROW. 
 
 1848. 
 

 v» 
 
PREFACE, 
 
 The following little work was suggested 
 by seeing a very small Epitome, which 
 had been successfully used by the late 
 Miss Lockyer of Hendon, the periods and 
 chart's of which are, with the full per- 
 mission of her friends, altered, enlarged, 
 and adapted to the present volume, which, 
 it is anxiously hoped, will not be found 
 unworthy of its talented but very brief 
 predecessor. 
 
 About 770 Questions, on facts connected 
 with the several histories, are added. A 
 Chronological Table, with dates as nearly 
 as possible according to Hales, and an 
 abbreviation of Grey's System, has, with 
 much care and labour, been compiled and 
 appended. The circumstances and facts 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 noticed are those that appear most essen- 
 tially connected with a knowledge of His- 
 tory. 
 
 The practical experience of many years 
 has served to convince the writer that all 
 the most competent and attentive instruc- 
 tors can do for their pupils is, to lay a solid 
 foundation for future excellence by giving 
 them such general information as shall 
 awaken a desire to pursue further reading 
 and inquiry ; and impress on them the 
 value and importance of a well-informed 
 mind and rightly-directed taste. 
 
 To impart a thorough knowledge of His- 
 tory would occupy more time than can be 
 given to any one branch of study during 
 the few years devoted to education, in 
 which so much is to be done, and so much 
 more attempted. Hence the writer has 
 thought that a work, in itself nothing more 
 than an epitome, containing such facts, 
 both ancient and modern, as will tend to 
 awaken an interest in History, and induce 
 to further research, yet differing from the 
 general cast of even good school books, 
 accompanied by an extensive chronological 
 
PREFACE. Vll 
 
 table, might be found useful and instruc- 
 tive, and of itself, if well understood, re- 
 deem the pupil from ignorance on this 
 important branch of study. 
 
 With these views it is humbly and re- 
 spectfully offered to the Public. 
 
 A. H. 
 
 Brixton Oval, June, 1848. 
 
CONTENTS, 
 
 Page 
 
 Ancient History - - - 2 
 
 Middle Ages - - - - 5 
 
 Modern History 7 
 
 Asia - 14 
 
 Assyria - - - - - 15 
 
 Persia - - - - - 16 
 
 India - - - - - 17 
 
 History of the Jews - - - 19 
 
 Africa - - - - - 65 
 
 Abyssinia - - - - - 72 
 
 Barbary - - - - - 73 
 
 Morocco - - - - - 75 
 
 Algiers - - - - - 76 
 
X CONTENTS. 
 
 
 
 Page 
 
 A General Survey op the 
 
 History 
 
 OP 
 
 
 Europe - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 79 
 
 Russia - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 80 
 
 Denmark *■ 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 86 
 
 Sweden - 
 
 - . 
 
 - 
 
 91 
 
 Charles XII. 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 94 
 
 Norway - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 98 
 
 Germany - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 99 
 
 The Merovingian Dynasty 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 101 
 
 House of Hohenstaufen - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 104 
 
 Prussia - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 111 
 
 Switzerland - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 116 
 
 France 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 119 
 
 France as a Republic 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 131 
 
 Spain - ■ 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 137 
 
 Portugal - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 144 
 
 Italy - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 146 
 
 Naples and Sicily 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 147 
 
 Savoy 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 148 
 
 Florence - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 149 
 
 Venice - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 149 
 
 Papal Dominions, or States of the Church 
 
 - 
 
 150 
 
 The Ionian Republic 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 157 
 
 Turkey - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 159 
 
 The Netherlands 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 169 
 
 England and Wales - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 175 
 
 Scotland - 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 211 
 
 Ireland 
 
 - 
 
 - 
 
 221 
 
 America - 
 
 . 
 
 _ 
 
 227 
 
ERRATA. 
 
 In the History. 
 
 Page 9. line 2. for " forty-six " read " fifty-nine " 
 20. 14. for " 1 253 " read " 1 953 " 
 
 33. 3. and 9. for "Jacob " read " Abraham" 
 
 80. 20. for "1660 " read " 1560 " 
 
 81. 1. for " first posts in Russia in his reign." &c. read 
 
 " first posts in Russia. In his reign iron and 
 copper mines " &c. 
 
 82. 7, 8. for " Pultowa in 1 709 " read " Frederickshall 
 
 in 1718" 
 28. for " Russia" read " Prussia " 
 85. 30. for " 1817 " read "1827 " 
 
 126. 25. for "and too cruel " read "or too cruel " 
 
 201. 29. for "Duke of York" read "Prince of Wales" 
 
 In the Chronology. 
 
 261. date 7. for " edop." read " edap." 
 
 262. 25. read 
 
 " 1055 David made king of Israel David king aylu. 
 
 1004 Dedication of the Temple Sol temp ago.' 
 
 265. date 3. for " Sara. Epam." read "Spar. Epam." 
 
 266. 6. for « dot." read «« dut." 
 272. 8. for "any" read "uny." 
 
 17. for "sad." read "sod." 
 
 274. last, for "keis." read " keib." 
 
 275. 5. for "oubs." read "nal." 
 
 276. 10. for "bit." read "bip." 
 279. last, for "ked." read "led." 
 281. 6. for "1559" read "1579" 
 
 for " lun." read "loin." 
 
 283. last, for "pen." read "pek." 
 
 284. 1. for "pen." read "pek." 
 
AN 
 
 EPITOME 
 
 OF 
 
 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 xiiSTOEY may be divided, with respect to time, 
 into Ancient, Middle, and Modern. 
 
 Ancient History comprehends the time which 
 passed from the Creation of the World to the birth 
 of Jesus Christ. 
 
 The History of the Middle Ages extends from 
 the birth of Christ to the year 1400, when Eu- 
 rope began, in many respects, to assume a new 
 appearance. 
 
 Modern History extends from the year 1400 to 
 the present time. 
 
 . It is necessary to subdivide these great spaces 
 of time into several periods. 
 
 ".. We shall therefore divide History into sixteen 
 periods — seven for Ancient History, five for the 
 History of the Middle Ages, and four for Modern 
 History. 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 ANCIENT HISTORY 
 
 First Period, — The first period comprehends 
 one thousand six hundred and fifty- six years, 
 from the Creation of the World to the Deluge. 
 Before Christ 2348. 
 
 This period contains the history of the Creation, 
 disobedience and punishment of man ; of the co- 
 venant which God made with Adam after his fall, 
 and of the depravity which afterwards took place 
 over the earth, and which led to the destruction 
 of the whole human race, the family of Noah 
 alone excepted. 
 
 Second Period. — The second period compre- 
 hends nearly eight hundred years, from the 
 Deluge to the time of the Israelites quitting 
 Egypt. B. C. 1550. 
 
 This period contains the history of the covenant 
 God made with Noah after the Deluge; of the 
 repeopling of the earth by the descendants of his 
 sons, Shem, Ham, and Japhet ; of the dispersion 
 of mankind after the building of the tower of 
 Babel; of the history of the Israelites from Abra- 
 ham to Moses ; of the foundation of the Assyrian 
 monarchy by Nimrod ; and some uncertain ac- 
 counts of the origin of the Grecian States, and of 
 the Egyptians. 
 
 Third Period. — The third period comprehends 
 almost eight hundred years, from the time of the 
 
ANCIENT HISTOKY. 3 
 
 Israelites quitting Egypt to the foundation of 
 Rome. B. C. 753. 
 
 This period contains the history of the Israelites 
 in the wilderness, of their settling in the land of 
 Canaan, of their judges and kings, and of their 
 division into the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. 
 The kingdoms of Sparta, Athens, Thebes, Corinth, 
 and Macedon, were founded about the beginning 
 of this period. Towards the end of it Lycurgus 
 established his laws in Sparta. The Egyptians 
 were rendered famous by their kiug Sesostris; 
 and the Assyrian monarchy was destroyed at the 
 death of Sardanapalus, and divided into the king- 
 doms of Media, Babylonia, and Nineveh. The 
 siege of Troy and the era of the Olympiads took 
 place also during this period. 
 
 Fourth Period. — The fourth period compre- 
 hends two hundred and sixteen years, from the 
 foundation of Rome to the taking of Babylon by 
 Cyrus. B. C. 537. 
 
 This period contains the history of the six first 
 of the Roman kings ; of Draco, Solon, and Pisis- 
 tratus, in Athens ; of the union of the kingdoms 
 of Babylon and Nineveh by Esarhaddon ; of the 
 destruction of the kingdom of Israel by Salma- 
 naser ; of the conquest of Jerusalem and the cap- 
 tivity of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar ; and of the 
 succession of Cyrus to the ancient Assyrian em- 
 pire under the title of the Persian empire. 
 
 Fifth Period. — The fifth period comprehends 
 two hundred and four years, from the taking of 
 B 2 
 
4 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Babylon by Cyrus to the expedition of Alexander 
 into Asia. B. C. 333. 
 
 This period contains the history of the abolition 
 of monarchy in Rome, of the taking of Boine by 
 the Gauls, and of the Samnite war. The history 
 of the kings of Persia to Darius, who was con- 
 quered by Alexander the Great ; of the Grecian 
 republic, distinguished by its philosophers and 
 warriors ; of the Persian and Peloponnesian wars ; 
 of the retreat of the ten thousand ; of Philip of 
 Macedon ; of the return of the Jews from capti- 
 vity ; and of the rebuilding of the Temple. 
 
 Sixth Period. — The sixth period comprehends 
 one hundred and eighty-eight years, from the ex- 
 pedition of Alexander into Asia to the destruction 
 of Carthage. B. C. 145. 
 
 This period contains the history of the subver- 
 sion of the Persian empire by Alexander the 
 Great ; of the division of Alexander's dominions 
 between his four generals, who founded four in- 
 dependent kingdoms ; of the defence of Judea by 
 the Maccabees ; of the Achaean League ; of 
 Pyrrhus, king of Epirus ; of the beginning of the 
 Roman conquests in Greece ; and of the three 
 Punic wars, which ended with the destruction of 
 Carthage, the epoch of Boman grandeur. 
 
 Seventh Period. — The seventh period compre- 
 hends one hundred and forty-five years, from the 
 destruction of Carthage to the birth of Christ, 
 which terminates Ancient History. 
 • This period contains the history of the conquests 
 of the Bomans in Greece, Asia Minor, Syria, 
 
MIDDLE AGES. 5 
 
 Judea, Africa, and Gaul ; of the civil wars be- 
 tween Pompey and Cassar, and between Augustus 
 and Mark Antony ; and of the change of the Ro- 
 man government to a monarchy under Augustus, 
 in whose rei^n our Saviour was born. 
 
 MIDDLE AGES. 
 
 Eighth Period. — The eighth period comprehends 
 three hundred and twelve years, from the birth of 
 Christ to the year 312 of the Christian era, when 
 Constantine the Great embraced Christianity. 
 
 This period contains little more than the history 
 of the Roman empire, as the Romans possessed 
 the greater part of the then known world. It 
 begins with Augustus and continues to Constan- 
 tine, who removed the seat of empire to Con- 
 stantinople. Jerusalem was destroyed by Titus 
 seventy years after the birth of Christ. 
 
 Ninth Period. — The ninth period comprehends 
 one hundred and sixty-four years, from Constan- 
 tine the Great to the extinction of the Western 
 empire, A. D. 476, 
 
 This period is also nearly confined to the history 
 of the Roman empire, which, soon after Constan- 
 tine, was divided into the Eastern and Western 
 empires. The power of the Romans was at this 
 time rapidly declining ; they were invaded by the 
 Vandals, the Visigoths, the Gauls, and other 
 northern nations, who at last took possession of 
 Rome, and put an end to the Western empire. 
 B 3 
 
6 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 During this period the Romans finally abandoned 
 their conquests in Britain, and the Franks settled 
 in Gaul. 
 
 Tenth Period. — The tenth period comprehends 
 three hundred and twenty-four years, from the 
 extinction of the Western empire to the nominal 
 re-establishment of the same empire under Charle- 
 magne. A. D. 800. 
 
 This period contains the continuation of the 
 history of the Eastern empire, that of the Visi- 
 goths, Ostrogoths, and Lombards, and of the 
 Saxons in Britain ; in France, of Clovis, of the 
 Mayors of the palace, of Pepin, the founder of the 
 Carlovingian line ; of the conquest of the Lom- 
 bards by Charlemagne, which gave him possession 
 of Italy. Mahomet also lived during this period : 
 his successors, the Saracens, conquered Persia, 
 Syria, Palestine, Sicily, the northern parts of 
 Africa, and settled finally in Spain. 
 
 Eleventh Period. — The eleventh period compre- 
 hends two hundred and ninety-seven years, from 
 the time Charlemagne received the imperial crown 
 to the first Crusade. A. D. 1097. 
 
 This period contains the history of the loss of 
 Italy and Germany, and also of Burgundy, by 
 the successors of Charlemagne ; of the power 
 which the Popes began to acquire over the clergy, 
 and even over the princes of Europe ; of the dis- 
 putes between the Popes and the Patriarchs of 
 Constantinople ; of the conquest of Italy by Otho 
 the Great, emperor of Germany ; of the extinction 
 of the Carlovingian race by the electior of Hugh 
 
MODERN HISTORY. 7 
 
 Capet to the throne of France ; and of the con- 
 quest of England by William Duke of Normandy. 
 The Danes and Swedes embraced Christianity and 
 began to be known during this period. 
 
 Twelfth Period. — The twelfth period compre- 
 hends three hundred and three years, and extends 
 from the first Crusade to the year 1400, which 
 finishes the Middle Ages. 
 
 This period contains the history of the Crusades, 
 or expeditions of the Europeans to recover the 
 Holy Land from the Turks, who had conquered it 
 from the Saracens ; of Rodolph of Hapsburg, the 
 founder of the house of Austria ; of the disturb- 
 ances between the Guelphs and Gibellines ; of the 
 disputes which arose in the Church, and occa- 
 sioned the election of two Popes at the same time ; 
 of the Latin emperors of Constantinople ; of the 
 conquests of Ireland and Wales by the English, 
 and of their victories in France during the reign 
 of Edward III. ; of Margaret of Waldemar, the 
 Semiramis of the North ; and of the conquests of 
 Zenghis Khan and his successors in Asia. 
 
 MODEKN HISTOEY. 
 
 Thirteenth Period. — The thirteenth period com- 
 prehends one hundred and nineteen years, from 
 the year 1400 to the election of Charles V., Em- 
 peror of Germany. A. D. 1519. 
 
 This period contains the history of Tamerlane 
 and Bajazet, and of the taking of Constantinople 
 b4 
 
8 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 by the Turks ; of the invasion of France by Henry 
 V. of England ; of the wars between the houses 
 of York and Lancaster, and of the election of 
 Henry VII. to the throne of England ; of the 
 Russians having shaken oif the yoke of the Tar- 
 tars ; of the rise of several of the Italian states ; 
 of the invention of printing ; of the family of the 
 Medici in Florence ; of the union of the crowns 
 of Arragon and Castile by the marriage of Fer- 
 dinand and Isabella, and the subjection of the 
 Moors in Spain ; of the discovery of America by 
 Columbus, and of the Cape of Good Hope by the 
 Portuguese. 
 
 Fourteenth Period. — The fourteenth period com- 
 prehends one hundred and twenty-four years, from 
 the reign of Charles V. in Germany to the acces- 
 sion of Louis XIV. in France. A. D. 1643. 
 
 This period contains the history of Charles V, 
 Emperor of Germany, of Francis I., King of 
 France, of Henry VIII., King of England, of 
 Pope Leo X., and of the Reformation which 
 beo-an in Germany under Luther, and extended to 
 most of the northern kingdoms of Europe ; of the 
 reio-n of Elizabeth in England ; of the succession 
 of James VI. of Scotland to the English throne, 
 and of Henry IV. to that of France ; of the revolt 
 of the United Provinces, under the Prince of 
 Orange, from the oppressions of Philip II. of 
 Spain ; of the delivery of Sweden from the Da- 
 nish yoke by Gustavus Vasa, and of the recovery 
 of Portugal from the Spaniards by the Duke of 
 Braganza. 
 
MODERN HISTORY, 9 
 
 Fifteenth Period, — The fifteenth period com* 
 prehends one hundred and forty-six years, from 
 the accession of Louis XIV. in France to the peace 
 of Amiens in 1802. 
 
 This period contains the history of the death of 
 Charles I. in England ; of the usurpation of Crom- 
 well; of the restoration of Charles II., and the 
 revolution which placed William Prince of Orange 
 on the throne of England ; of the reign of Louis 
 XIV. in France ; of the succession of the house 
 of Bourbon to the throne of Spain, in the person 
 of Philip V. ; of the conquests of Charles XII. of 
 Sweden, and of Peter the Great, Emperor of 
 Russia ; of the union of England and Scotland ; 
 of the succession of George I. to the throne of 
 England at the death of Queen Anne ; of Maria 
 Theresa, Empress of Germany and Queen of 
 Hungary ; of Frederick the Great, King of Prus- 
 sia, and Catherine II., Empress of Russia ; of 
 the revolt of the United States of America from 
 Great Britain ; of the conquests of the English in 
 the East Indies ; and of the dismemberment of 
 Poland by the sovereigns of Russia, Prussia, 
 and Austria; of the revolution in France in 
 1789 ; of the death of Louis XYI. ; of the reign 
 of terror and commencement of the career of 
 Buonaparte ; of the administration of Pitt in 
 England, and the mutiny of the English fleet at 
 the Xore ; of the naval victories of the English at 
 St. Vincent's and Camperdown; of the invasion 
 of Italy by Buonaparte, and of the fall of Venice ; 
 of the expedition of the French into E°:ypt ; of 
 b5 
 
f 
 
 10 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the victory of Lord Nelson at the Nile ; of the 
 Rebellion in Ireland; of the return of Buonaparte 
 from Egypt, and his being chosen first consul ; of 
 the union of Ireland with England ; of the vic- 
 tory of Buonaparte at Marengo ; of that of Nel- 
 son at Copenhagen ; and of the peace concluded 
 with England at Amiens in 1802. 
 
 Sixteenth Period. — The sixteenth period com- 
 prehends forty-five years, from the peace of Amiens 
 in 1802 to the revolution in France and other 
 parts of Europe in 1848. 
 
 This period contains the history of the renewal 
 of hostilities between England and France, of the 
 assumption of the Imperial crown by Napoleon 
 Buonaparte ; of the battle of Trafalgar ; of the 
 abolition of the slave-trade by the English ; of 
 the relinquishing of the Imperial crown of Ger- 
 many by the emperor, and his adoption of the 
 title of Emperor of Austria ; of the new kingdoms 
 established by Napoleon, and of his taking Vienna; 
 of his brothers being placed on the thrones of 
 Spain, Holland, Westphalia, and Naples, and of 
 his threatened invasion of England ; of the peace 
 between France and Austria, and the marriage of 
 Napoleon with Maria Louisa ; of the dethrone- 
 ment of the Pope, and the union of Holland 
 with France ; of the invasion of Russia by Na- 
 poleon, which was the commencement of his ill 
 success ; of the burning of Moscow, and the de- 
 struction of the French army ; of the coalition of 
 the allies against France; of the defeat of the 
 French at Leipsic ; of the Prince of Orange being 
 
MODERN HISTORY. 11 
 
 declared king of the Netherlands ; of the continued 
 successes of the English in Spain under Lord 
 Wellington; of the advance of the allied troops 
 towards the capital of France ; of the capitulation 
 of Paris, and of the resignation of the crowns of 
 France and Italy by Napoleon ; of the formation 
 of a new constitution in France ; of the establish- 
 ment of Louis XVIII. on the throne of his an- 
 cestors ; of the banishment of Napoleon to Elba ; 
 of the treaty of peace signed at Paris between the 
 Emperors of Austria and Russia, the Kings of 
 Great Britain and Prussia, and the King of 
 France; of the re-establishment of the Pope, 
 and the restoration of the Jesuits ; of the escape 
 of Napoleon from Elba, and his return to Paris ; 
 of the reunion of the allied powers against Na- 
 poleon; of his complete defeat at the glorious 
 battle of Waterloo, and his flight to Paris ; of the 
 reinstatement of Louis XVIII. on his throne, and 
 of the banishment of Napoleon to St. Helena ; of 
 the French being obliged to relinquish their con- 
 quests and acquisitions, and to admit 150,000 of 
 the allied troops under the command of the Duke 
 of Wellington ; of the death of the Princess Char- 
 lotte, heiress apparent to the throne of England ; 
 of the foundation of the kingdoms of Columbia, 
 Mexico, Buenos Ayres, Chili, and Peru; of the 
 decline of the Turkish empire, and the battle of 
 Navarino ; of the passing of the Roman Catholic 
 Relief Bill ; of the ordinances of Charles X., which 
 led to the revolution of July 1830, in which 
 B 6 
 
12 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Charles was driven from his throne, and Louis 
 Philippe nominated King of the French ; of the 
 succession of William IV. to the throne of Great 
 Britain, which introduced a Whig Ministry, Cor- 
 porate Eeform, Parliamentary Reform, a bill in 
 favour of Dissenters, and the total abolition of 
 Slavery ; of the insurrection of the Greeks against 
 the Turkish empire ; the devastation committed 
 by Ibraham Pasha in the Morea ; the loss of the 
 Turkish fleet at Navarino ; Otho, crown Prince 
 of Bavaria, elected King of Greece, thus again 
 raised to a kingdom ; of the death of Ferdinand 
 of Spain, and the contest between his daughter 
 Maria Isabella and her uncle Don Carlos ; of the 
 division of Belgium from Holland, and the eleva- 
 tion of Leopold, Duke of Saxe Coburg, to the 
 throne of Belgium ; of the accession of Nicholas 
 to the throne of all the Russias ; of the accession 
 of Alexandrina Victoria, daughter of the late Duke 
 of Kent, to the British Crown ; of the accession 
 of the Duke of Cumberland to the crown of Ha- 
 nover ; of the marriage of the Queen of England 
 to Albert, Prince of Saxe Coburg and Gotha ; of 
 the Chartist disturbances ; of the war with China, 
 and its probable results; of the changes in Ca- 
 nada ; of the war in the East Indies against the 
 Affghans, Scinde, and the Sikhs, under the com- 
 mand of Sir Charles Napier; of the distress and 
 famine in Ireland ; of the marriages of the Queen 
 of Spain with Don Francisco D'Assis, and her sister 
 the Infanta with the Duke de Montpensier, a son of 
 
MODERN HISTORY. 13 
 
 Louis Philippe; of the government of Algiers 
 being usurped by the French ; of the sudden 
 Eevolution in France, the abdication of Louis 
 Philippe, and the declaration of a Eepublican 
 srovermnent in France. 
 
14 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 ASIA. 
 
 Asia is the largest division of the eastern hemi- 
 sphere : it is the oldest, or rather the earliest 
 known, of the four quarters of the globe ; and 
 though now sunk into the most wretched state of 
 Pagan darkness and idolatry, commands our re- 
 spect as being the country in which God first 
 manifested his work of Creation. It was here God 
 placed his creature Man in a state of innocence ; it 
 was here man fell from that state, and was driven 
 from Paradise ; it was here the first human being 
 was born, and here were the first fruits of sin, 
 pain, death, murder. It was in Asia that sin 
 spread and flourished until the sons of men were 
 so corrupt that God destroyed his fair creation by 
 an universal deluge, the family of Noah only ex- 
 cepted. Asia was repeopled by the third son of 
 Noah, Shem, and his descendants — who again 
 became sinful, and provoked God to anger, until 
 the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up 
 Dathan, Coran, and Abiram. The cities of So- 
 dom and Gomorrah were also destroyed by fire 
 from heaven, leaving as a lasting memorial a stag- 
 nant unwholesome pool where those cities stood. 
 
ASIA. 1 5 
 
 It was in Asia also that our blessed Saviour, the 
 Lord of life and glory, condescended to put on 
 humanity, to live a life of poverty, and to suffer 
 an ignominious death to redeem man from sin : 
 here also was manifested the descent of the Holy 
 Ghost : here the Apostles laboured, martyrs suf- 
 fered, and the Gospel won its widening way. So 
 thoroughly is the history of Asia blended with 
 the inspired writings of the Old and New Testa- 
 ments, that a very short notice will be found suffi- 
 cient for the young Christian, especially as the 
 conquests made by Great Britain in the East are 
 generally known and familiar. 
 
 ASSYEIA. 
 
 This country is supposed to have been founded 
 about 100 years after the Deluge by Nimrod, 
 who is described as a mighty hunter. It was 
 situated between the Black and Caspian seas, not 
 far from the spot where the Garden of Eden is sup- 
 posed to have stood, two of the rivers of which ran 
 through it — Euphrates and Tigris. The great 
 and famous city of Babylon stood on the first of 
 these, and on the latter the far-famed Nineveh, 
 which was built by Semiramis, the wife and suc- 
 cessor of Ninus, and the mother of Nynius. As- 
 syria was a powerful and warlike country for nearly 
 1400 years, when at the death of Sardanapalus it 
 was destroyed, and the three kingdoms of Media, 
 Babylonia, and Nineveh founded on its ruins. 
 
16 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Thus ended the first great monarchy." Babylonia 
 and Nineveh were united under Esarhaddon, until 
 conquered by Cyrus the Great. 
 
 PEKSIA. 
 
 Cyrus was theTounder of the Persian monarchy — 
 the second of the first four great monarchies of the 
 old world : he inherited the kingdom of Persia 
 from his father Cambyses, Media from his uncle 
 Cyaxeres, and made himself sovereign of all As- 
 syria by the conquest of Babylon. He had also 
 previously conquered Asia Minor, Syria, and 
 Arabia ; afterwards he subdued all the nations be- 
 tween those dominions and the Bed Sea, and car- 
 ried his victorious arms to the confines of Ethio- 
 pia. His son and successor added to these exten- 
 sive dominions the kingdoms of Egypt — the most 
 fertile country in the world, — watered and en- 
 riched by the Nile flowing through it. This was 
 the only addition made by Cambyses — nor did 
 his successors do much more. Greece was a coun- 
 try long desired by the sovereigns of Persia — - 
 particularly by Xerxes ; but the Greeks resisted 
 all their efforts, and remained free and independent, 
 — not only so, but even ventured to invade Persia, 
 in which they succeeded, under Alexander of 
 Macedon, who thus founded the Macedonian em- 
 pire on that of Persia, about 200 years after it 
 had been formed into a monarchy. Alexander 
 entered Asia 333 years before Christ ; and after . 
 
ASIA. 17 
 
 the battle of the Granicus soon effected the con* 
 quest of Asia Minor. In the battle of Issus he 
 encountered Darius, the magnificent king of Per- 
 sia, who met him with a train much more like that 
 of a conqueror taking possession of a conquered 
 kingdom, than one preparing to defend his domi- 
 nions against a warrior who carried victory 
 wherever he carried his arms. In this battle the 
 wife and family of Darius were taken captives by 
 Alexander, whose conduct towards them reflected 
 the highest honour on him. Darius afterwards 
 fell in the battle of Arbela. The whole of 
 Greece having been subdued by Alexander and 
 his father, Philip of Macedon, he now turned 
 towards Syria, which, with Tyre, Judea, and 
 Egypt, soon yielded to the conqueror. He also 
 conquered several kingdoms beyond the Caspian 
 Sea, and, conducting his army across the Indus, 
 proceeded into India, where with some difficulty 
 he conquered Poms, an Indian king. After this, 
 Alexander returned to Babylon ; and there this 
 u mighty madman " lost his life in a coarse de- 
 bauch. 
 
 INDIA. 
 
 India is the richest country of all Asia, and 
 takes its name from the river Indus. Jenges 
 Khan invaded Hindostan in 1239 : after him Ti- 
 inour, or Tamerlane, the Tartar, made a conquest 
 of it in 1519. Baber, king of Fughana, in Tar- 
 
18 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 tary, conquered the Hindoo emperor Ibrahim, 
 and governed in his stead ; and his posterity have 
 possessed the throne ever since that period. In 1 733 
 Nadir Shah, a Persian, invaded India, and pene- 
 trated as far as Delhi. In this invasion it is com- 
 puted that not less than 200,000 of the Mogul's 
 subjects were slain, many in battle, but many more 
 in a dreadful massacre at Delhi. Nadir Shah is 
 said to have carried away with him money and 
 treasures to the amount of 80,000,000/. sterling. 
 The late emperor was Shah Allum : he was taken 
 prisoner by a Persian invader named Abdallah, 
 who assassinated the old man, but his son suffered 
 many and great reverses. The Sujhah having 
 elected Sujah al Dowlas, Nabob of Oude, Shah 
 threw himself on the protection of the Nabob : 
 he was, however, afterwards taken under the pro- 
 tection of the English ; part of the province of 
 Allahabad was allotted to him with a pension, on 
 which he dragged out a few years of miserable 
 existence. The English now possess immense 
 tracts of country in Asia, which they are con- 
 stantly increasing. They have a large British 
 population in the three divisions under the British 
 government ; and are by the aid of missionaries, 
 schools, and printing-presses, extending the arts 
 of civilisation, and the knowledge of the Gospel 
 as taught by our blessed Redeemer, and preached 
 by his disciples, over a wide extent of country to 
 the heathen who sit in darkness and the shadow 
 of death. 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 19 
 
 HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 
 
 The most authentic record we have of very 
 early periods in history is to be found in the Holy 
 Scriptures. From these we learn that the whole 
 earth having become exceedingly sinful, God de- 
 stroyed the inhabitants by a deluge, one only 
 family excepted, by whom the earth was re- 
 peopled. Very soon after the Flood the Scriptures 
 pass over the general race of mankind to relate 
 minutely the history of one family, of w T hom the 
 greatest care is taken that every fact be made 
 known that can tend to elucidate their history. 
 This family soon became a small nation, — one 
 would say, of very inferior consequence to .many 
 surrounding nations ; yet it is of this small nation 
 that the sacred history continues to speak. This 
 small and distinct people and nation were the 
 Jews, God's own peculiar people, the only people 
 who retained the knowledge of one supreme 
 Almighty God, when every other nation wor- 
 shipped numerous deities, and paid their adoration 
 to idols. For 4000 years this singular people 
 have been kept a distinct and separate race in the 
 most wonderful manner. The country also, set 
 apart for them, though not an island, nor a se- 
 cluded spot of land, but more than many others 
 exposed to the appropriation and subjugation of 
 
20 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 other nations, has never (though repeatedly sub- 
 jugated) become the land of any other people, but 
 appears to be sacredly reserved for the return 
 of the remnant of its own inhabitants. It is 
 scarcely less than miracle that this extraordinary 
 people should for 4000 years have preserved 
 their origin, language, countenance, manners, and 
 country so distinct, that not a shadow of doubt 
 can exist of their being the children of Abraham, 
 though there is not on earth the known posterity 
 of any other individual, scarcely of any other 
 nation, cotemporary with the patriarch. 
 
 The history of the Jews begins with Abram, ac- 
 cording to Josephus 1253 B.C. Abram was the son 
 of Terah, an idolater, a "maker of images," and was 
 converted from idolatry by an especial revelation 
 from God. In obedience to the divine command, 
 he removed to Ur in Charran, in West Mesopo- 
 tamia. At this first call Abram was sixty years 
 old ; the second call was given after the death of 
 Terah, and separated Abram from his family and 
 nation, directing him to the land afterwards so 
 full of important events to him and his posterity. 
 (Gen. xii. 2.) Relying on the promise, " I will 
 make thee a great nation," Abram entered Ca- 
 naan on the north, and at the large spreading 
 turpentine-tree of Moreh the Lord promised that 
 the land should be possessed by his descendants. 
 Palestine was not then fully inhabited ; and the 
 south being afflicted by famine, Abram, with his 
 family, removed into Egypt, then, as now, famed 
 for its rich corn-lands and pastures. Here Abram, 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 21 
 
 fearful of the effect of his wife's beauty on the 
 heart of the king, was led into a snare, from which 
 God delivered him, and prevented his losing the 
 promise made to him, and in a few years enabled 
 him to return to Palestine greatly increased in 
 riches. But Abram found that increase of riches 
 was not increase of happiness. Differences arose 
 between him and his worldly-minded relative Lot 
 that led to a separation, and a very different fate 
 awaited them. Still the promise of a pos- 
 terity was delayed ; and Sarai's faith failing, she 
 persuaded her husband to take her handmaid 
 Hagar as his wife, who brought forth a son, and 
 called his name Ishmael. From him the Arabs 
 are descended, a numerous race, whose history to 
 the present day may be summed up in the pro- 
 phecy delivered to his mother in the wilderness : 
 " He will be a wild man ; his hand will be against 
 every man, and every man's hand against him." 
 (Gen. xvi. 12.) "A wild ass man " is the original 
 expression ; and Gibbon calls them " wild ass men, 
 armed against mankind." And such they truly 
 are ; — their hand against every man, so that even 
 the property of their own tribes is not secure. 
 It has been observed, that of all the numerous 
 streams of population which have covered the 
 earth, this prediction has been uttered of one only, 
 and to that one it ever has, and still continues to 
 apply. The nations around have been con- 
 quered. Arabia still remains free. Other nations 
 have been rich and powerful, but none equal it ; 
 -—that wonderful country, which, can be traced 
 
22 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 to one head alone. A recent traveller says : — 
 "A single glance into the wastes of the desert 
 may tell the tale of a thousand miles as to dis- 
 tance, and 3000 years as to time. Here, alone, 
 the Arab is to be seen in his primitive simplicity — 
 a free wanderer over the same plains. The tra- 
 veller is carried back at once to the age of the 
 earliest patriarchs. The form he sees presents the 
 picture of those ancient fathers, with scarcely an 
 alteration. He may listen to their language, 
 number their possessions, partake of their food, 
 examine their dress, enter their tents, attend the 
 ceremonies of their marriage festivals, and present 
 himself before their princes, — still all is the 
 same. At the well they water their flocks ; they 
 sit at the door of the tent in the cool of the day ; 
 they take butter and milk, and the calf they have 
 dressed, and set it before the stranger ; they move 
 onward to some distant plain, and pitch their tent 
 near richer pasturage. Their treasures are in 
 camels, kine, sheep, and goats, men-servants and 
 maid-servants, and changes of garment. He may 
 stand near one of their encampments, and, as the 
 aged man sits in dignity, or the young men and 
 maidens drive their flocks past him, he seems to 
 know them all, and almost to recognise those 
 whose names are familiar in the Bible. The 
 mountains, the valleys, the streams, exhibit the 
 like unchanged appearance. Not a rock has been 
 moved, not a barrier has been raised. Planting 
 and culture have not appeared ; not a village has 
 been collected together. The founder of the race 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 23 
 
 would recognise without effort his own people and 
 his own land." In this his son Ishmael, as well 
 as in his son Isaac, is the posterity of Jacob dis- 
 tinctly preserved, so clear and unchangeable as to 
 be a standing marvel — a mystery serving to esta- 
 blish the truths of prophecy. 
 
 The faith of the Arabs, however, differs greatly 
 from that of the patriarch : the descendants of the 
 son of Jacob have forsaken the faith of their fa- 
 thers, and now follow the lying absurdities of 
 Mahomed. 
 
 Isaac, the child of promise, was like his father 
 Abraham, a good and pious man ; but for many 
 years the faith of Isaac and Rebecca was severely 
 tried : the promise was in their posterity, yet they 
 had no children. At length twins were born. 
 Esau, the eldest, was in many respects like the 
 bold, wild, self-willed Arab of the present day ; 
 Jacob, a man of a quiet mind and domestic habits. 
 In Esau, as the eldest, the promised blessings were 
 centered : he valued them, however, at little price, 
 and sold his birthright to his brother for the carnal 
 gratification of a savoury dish, of which he was par- 
 ticularly fond. Hence he was called Edom, or 
 Red, the colour of his pottage. He also manifested 
 a disregard for the faith of his fathers by taking 
 wives of the idolatrous daughters of the land, and 
 not restraining their opposition to the religion of 
 his parents. When Isaac was growing very old 
 he became anxious to counteract the effects of 
 Esau's folly as much as possible, by giving him 
 the blessing of a first-born. Rebecca, however, 
 
24 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 desirous of securing the blessing as well as the 
 birthright to her amiable and favourite son, formed 
 a plan for circumventing Esau and deceiving Isaac. 
 At first Jacob hesitated to confirm the plan of his 
 wily mother by absolute falsehoods : he was, how- 
 ever, overpowered by her readiness to take the 
 blame and sin on herself; the coveted blessing 
 was attained, and on the return of Esau the de- 
 ceit was found out. Isaac seems, however, to 
 have had some divine certainty that the blessing 
 had been given in accordance with the will of 
 God, and therefore did not attempt to reverse his 
 proceeding. A spiritual blessing rather than a 
 temporal one seems to have been the object of 
 Jacob and his mother ; but both had great reason 
 to regret their deceit and fraud, for a dreadful 
 hatred to his brother sprang up in the heart of 
 Esau, and Rebecca was obliged to send away her 
 beloved, dutiful, and affectionate son, that she 
 might not see him slain before her eyes by his own 
 brother for a crime planned and partly executed 
 by herself. Poor mother ! she did indeed justly 
 pay the penalty to forfeited truth and honesty. 
 She was already in the vale of years, and could 
 scarcely hope to see the son of her love return 
 from his enforced banishment : nor did she ; while 
 he in a distant country was labouring hard under 
 a severe master and relative, the fond but mis- 
 taken mother died. In the beautiful narrative 
 contained in the 29th, 30th, and 31st of Genesis 
 we learn how Jacob, who had deceived others, was 
 himself deceived and punished by having Leah 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 25 
 
 given him as wife instead of his beloved Rachel, 
 and being made to suffer fourteen yearjs of weary- 
 servitude; but God blessed Jacob in his sub- 
 stance, and in his flocks; the flocks of Mesopo- 
 tamia were, under ordinary circumstances, very 
 fruitful, but in the case of Jacob, their increase 
 and strength was remarkable ; so that the sons of 
 Laban grew envious, and rendered the condition 
 of Jacob so uncomfortable, that having laid his 
 case before the Lord, and received instructions to 
 return to the land of his fathers, he sent for Ra- 
 chel and Leah " to the field," their usual summer 
 residence, and finding them willing to depart, they 
 all set forward towards Canaan without delay. 
 Laban quickly followed, unwilling to allow them 
 to depart: they, however, united in raising an 
 altar to {i Jehovah the revered One," and parted on 
 friendly terms. Jacob now prepared to meet his 
 brother Esau : he had received an express promise 
 from God of support and protection, and had been 
 favoured by a sight of the angelic host who had 
 guarded him. Still he sent a humble message to 
 his brother, intimating in order to propitiate him, 
 that he possessed property, and asked only for- 
 getfulness of past offences ; but no return of friendly 
 greeting arrived. Jacob heard that Esau with 
 400 men was coming to meet him, and prepared 
 for the escape of his family ; and above all, prayed 
 humbly and secretly to his God " until the break- 
 ing of day." During that night he had been dis- 
 abled for flight or hasty motion, Gen. 31st, in 
 remembrance of which the Jews to this day avoid 
 c 
 
26 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 eating the hinder limbs of animals where the sinew 
 that shrank up is placed. The sun arose, and God, 
 in whose hand are the hearts of all men, gave Jacob 
 strength, and subdued the wrath in the heart of 
 Esau. The brothers met, wept on each others 
 neck, and were reconciled; and Esau proposed 
 that they should form one family. Against this, 
 Jacob found a courteous excuse, and they parted, 
 Esau returning to Sier in the rocky country of 
 Edom, and Jacob crossing the Jordan, " came safe 
 to the city of Shechem" in Palestine, where he 
 bought a piece of land : now Shechem, was in a 
 depraved neighbourhood, and Jacob did not keep 
 his children prudently at home, therefore they 
 brought great grief and sorrow upon him; his 
 daughter Dinah fell into evil, and as one sin leads 
 to another, deceit, violence, and deeds of blood 
 soon followed the indulgence of unlawful passions. 
 Henry says, " See what comes of Dinah's gad- 
 ding." Scott on this portion of Jacob's history 
 says, " Let parents remember their responsibility, 
 and seriously examine whether much of the vanity, 
 frivolity, and direct sinfulness of their children, is 
 not to be charged to their own blamable neglect, 
 to their passing by evil courses in early life." 
 
 Jacob now recollected the vow he had made at 
 Bethel when he fled from Esau, and set about 
 reforming his family by causing his children to 
 put away the strange gods which by degrees had 
 found place among his children and servants. He 
 then set out for Bethel, and passed through the 
 Canaanites without being molested, notwith- 
 
HISTOKY OF THE JEWS. 27 
 
 standing the late acts of violence and outrage. 
 Having built an altar to God at Bethel, the Lord 
 appeared to him and renewed his covenant under 
 the title of " God Almighty." Soon after his 
 return his beloved Rachel died, when, giving him 
 another son, only the second she had, for God 
 withheld children from her, and bestowed that 
 blessing on Leah as a compensation for the want 
 of her husband's love. The place of Rachel's in- 
 terment is described by several travellers. Carne 
 says: — " A small square building surmounted by 
 a dome marks the spot — a wild and solitary place — 
 no palms nor cypress trees to shelter it from the 
 blast ; not a single tree to shade the spot." About 
 this time the profligate conduct of his eldest son, 
 and the sinful habits of his younger sons brought 
 heavy grief on the head and heart of Jacob, who 
 now went to Mamre to receive the blessing and 
 close the aged eyes of his venerable parent Isaac. 
 A degree of selfish love of worldly ease becomes 
 apparent in the patriarch at this time. A severe 
 trial awaited him in the loss of his darling son 
 Joseph. Jacob was a partial father, and the sons 
 of Rachel were very dear to him; but he mani- 
 fested his preference in a weak, injudicious manner, 
 by giving him "a coat of many colours," and 
 making other unwise displays of parental fondness, 
 calculated to fill the lad's head with frivolous 
 pride and vanity, and the hearts of his brothers 
 with envy and hatred toward him. These young 
 men were bad characters, and Joseph, apparently 
 
 without any remonstrance or caution addressed to 
 c 2 
 
28 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 them, informed his father of their sins and evil 
 practices: hence the brethren could no longer 
 speak peaceably to him. In those days, when the 
 precepts and directions of Scripture were not to 
 be obtained, the Almighty sometimes made known 
 his will by dreams and visions. Now, Joseph 
 had dreamed two remarkable dreams, apparently 
 indicating that he should be placed over the heads 
 of his brethren, and probably this increased the 
 self-importance of the spoilt lad, who, being sent 
 to them on business concerning the flocks, fell a 
 victim to their jealousy. They at first proposed 
 to murder him, but God watched over the lad : he 
 was sold to Ishmaeiites, carried into Egypt, and 
 re-sold as a slave. Meanwhile, Jacob was deceived 
 by a tale, and taught to believe his darling dead, 
 and the brethren thought every thing had suc- 
 ceeded to their wish. But to what an extra- 
 ordinary, what a wonderful chain of events did 
 this lead. Egypt was an important and inter- 
 esting country, that had made far greater advances 
 in learning, in arts, manufactures, and science 
 than any other. It was a fertile land abounding 
 in corn, while the neighbouring nations were suf- 
 fering from famine. This led to Israel's going 
 down into Egypt — to the captivity and the deli- 
 verance of the Jews, and eventually to the intro- 
 duction of the truths of the Gospel. The stu- 
 pendous works of art which still remain in Egypt 
 prove that it even then deserved the appellation 
 of " The Cradle of the Sciences," and that she 
 nursed them to a goodly stature ; but its downfal 
 cannot be matter of surprise, when we call to 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 29 
 
 mind the gross idolatries of the Egyptians, wor- 
 shipping every creeping thing, abominable beasts, 
 and all manner of idols. Over this land Joseph 
 became governor, again assisted by two remark- 
 able dreams ; but this beautiful part of the history 
 is so pathetically related in the book of Genesis 
 that to repeat it here were superfluous. The 
 famine which ensued was severely felt in Pales- 
 tine, and probably all through the East, and multi- 
 tudes resorted to Egypt to buy corn. Among 
 them came the brothers of Joseph, who himself 
 superintended the sale of the corn, and imme- 
 diately recognised the brethren. The result is 
 well known. Jacob at first refused to believe the 
 assurances of his sons, that Joseph lived and was 
 governor of Egypt : at last, encouraged by a com- 
 munication from God, the old man with his family 
 set out for the land of Goshen, where Joseph 
 designed to settle his family. It was a fertile spot 
 on the eastern district of the Nile, probably left 
 uninhabited by the shepherd invaders of Egypt. 
 Here a hardy people would prove a barrier against 
 the Philistines, and here the Hebrews would be 
 less liable to corruption than if dispersed through 
 the country. Here the affecting meeting between 
 the aged father and his long-lost son took place. 
 Joseph brought his father into the presence of the 
 monarch, and the patriarch blessed the monarch, 
 referring to Jehovah as the Lord his God : thus 
 at once proclaiming his trust and confidence in 
 the living God. Joseph provided for his family 
 during the seventeen years of his father's life, and 
 
 c 3 
 
30 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the promise of Pharaoh was fulfilled : — " The 
 good of all the land of Egypt is yours;*' but, 
 feeling his strength fail, and desiring a "better 
 country," the dying patriarch made Joseph so- 
 lemnly promise that he should be buried in Canaan, 
 thus leaving a testimony of his faith in the promise 
 that Canaan should be their abode. He then 
 blessed the sons of Joseph, and included them in 
 the promised division, intimating that Shechem 
 also would be theirs, thus making them feel it an 
 honour to be called the sons of Abraham. He 
 also called together his wandering rebellious sons, 
 all of whom appear to have been living, and pro- 
 nounced on each separately a blessing and short 
 prophecy, every one of which prefigured the cha- 
 racter and circumstances of the tribe, and have since 
 been fulfilled literally. Thus Joseph, and his sons, 
 Ephraim and Manasseh, were - to be " as fruitful 
 vines." Their numerous tribes occupied the Land 
 of Promise ; six or seven of the judges were from 
 Ephraim; so were the kings of Israel, when a 
 division of the land took place. The fierce and 
 warlike tribe of Benjamin was figured forth as 
 " the Wolf," and so of all the others. The pa- 
 triarch having finished his work, "gathered up 
 his feet into the bed, yielded up the ghost, and 
 was gathered unto his people." 
 
 The sons of Jacob appear to have remained in 
 Egypt or Goshen until another king arose, who 
 knew not Joseph; but this distinct people were 
 by their rapid and extraordinary increase becoming 
 formidable. This king therefore degraded them 
 by the severest bondage, and laid such heavy 
 
HISTORY OP THE JEWS. 31 
 
 burdens on them that notwithstanding the fertility 
 of the land and the luxuries it supplied, the Is- 
 raelites were very anxious to leave it. Yet they 
 were obliged to labour " in mortar and brick/' for 
 the building of those splendid edifices which still 
 perpetuate their bondage. Finding these cruelties 
 insufficient to prevent the increase of this people, 
 a savage order was issued that every male child 
 born of an Israelite should be destroyed; but 
 vain were the efforts of wicked men. During 
 this inhuman proceeding the deliverer of his race 
 was born, and miraculously preserved by being 
 placed, when his mother could no longer hide 
 him, in a basket on the brink of the river. The 
 daughter of Pharaoh saw and pitied the " goodly 
 child," and at once determined to rescue him. 
 The suggestion of the young woman to call a 
 Hebrew nurse was acceded to, and again the son 
 of Amram, the descendant of Levi, was folded in 
 the arms of a mother. Josephus says, that when 
 the child was three years old, Pharaoh placed his 
 diadem on the curling locks of the young Moses, 
 who with marks of indignation took it off, threw 
 it on the ground, and trampled on it, which the 
 soothsayers regarded as ominous, and would have 
 killed the child, but that the astonished king inter- 
 fered to save him. The same spirit influenced 
 him when " refusing to be called the son of Pha- 
 raoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction 
 with the children of God than to eojoy the plea- 
 sures of sin for a season." He found in the land 
 of Midian employ and intercourse with God for 
 
 c 4 
 
32 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 forty years. During all this time his brethren 
 were groaning under hard taskmasters. It was 
 here on Mount Horeb that the Lord appeared 
 to Moses, and directed him to return to Egypt for 
 the deliverance of the people. After two months 
 Moses obeyed, and, accompanied by his brother 
 Aaron, went to the Egyptian king with a message 
 from the Lord God of Israel, requiring that he 
 should let them go. Pharaoh refused, and caused 
 their sufferings to be increased by doubling the 
 number of bricks they were to make, and refusing 
 to give them straw. These events are beautifully 
 related in the third, fourth, and fifth chapters of 
 Exodus. The brothers again and again appear 
 before the king, when the most remarkable contest 
 in history took place. Ten plagues, each of them 
 bearing on some particular point of Egyptian law 
 or sacred feeling, were sent in succession. These 
 plagues were all different, and sent more fully to 
 show the power of Israel's God and the wickedness 
 of Pharaoh in disregarding the repeated warnings 
 of Moses. The last plague was retributive justice. 
 They had murdered hundreds of the Jewish 
 children, but now their own were cut off by 
 thousands at a stroke. This determined Pharaoh 
 to let them go. — Exodus, xii. 29—33. It is in 
 commemoration of this night that the feast of the 
 Pass-over was instituted. Yet even now Pharaoh 
 repented him and followed the Israelites, only to 
 see them miraculously carried through the Red 
 Sea, and he himself with all his host swallowed up 
 in its merciless flood ; and now it was that Mi- 
 riam and her train came forward with dance and 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 33 
 
 timbrel, singing, — "Sing ye to the Lord, for he 
 hath triumphed gloriously." Yet three days after 
 we find them "murmuring" because the waters 
 of Marah were bitter waters. In these deserts 
 water is very scarce, and often bitter or salt. They 
 had already forgotten the deliverance — the Red 
 Sea — the exemption from the plagues. They 
 murmured when they should have prayed. The 
 water was graciously sweetened by a miracle, for 
 God loved his peculiar people. In the wilderness 
 of Zin we again find them murmuring against 
 Moses and Aaron, and longing for the fleshpots of 
 Egypt. Here, too, they forgot God ; but he did 
 not forget them. No ! he fed them with manna 
 daily and plentifully. Following the pillar of 
 cloud they journeyed to Rephidam. Here again 
 they wanted water, and the unbelieving Israelites 
 again tempted God to forsake them by wishing 
 themselves in Egypt and in bondage ; but his love 
 was enduring, and he gave them water out of a 
 rock." A rock, said to be the one struck, is still 
 pointed out to travellers, in which are numerous 
 small holes through which the water flowed. The 
 Amalekites, descendants of Esau, " a people that 
 strike," inhabited and still inhabit that country: 
 as Isaac prophesied, they " live by the sword" 
 (Gen. 27 — 40). They were a numerous people, 
 and fought with a few Israelites; but in vain. 
 Moses prayed — Israel fought; and God protected 
 his own. At Sinai God made known to Moses 
 the laws which the children of Israel were to 
 obey, and there Moses received directions how to 
 
 c 5 
 
34 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 build a tabernacle in which to worship God. It 
 might have been hoped that while Moses was on 
 the Mount the children of Israel would employ 
 themselves as children of God ; but no, although 
 the pillar of cloud stood before them, they went to 
 Aaron demanding that he should make new gods, 
 that should lead them to the Promised Land, for of 
 this Moses they wot not what had become of him. 
 Aaron yielded to their intreaties, and thus idolatry 
 was added to their other sins — open, gross idolatry. 
 But Moses, the gentle forgiving Moses, was their 
 intercessor — came between them and an angry 
 God, who accepted the sacrifice, and the laws 
 contained in the first seven chapters of Leviticus 
 were made known. 
 
 The numbering of the people took place in the 
 wilderness, when it was found, that in this their 
 second year, the descendants of one man, Jacob, 
 himself not born 366 years before, had, notwith- 
 standing the Egyptian servitude, and efforts to 
 crush them, reached the astonishing number, 
 women and children included, of three millions. 
 The multitude now resumed their march, con- 
 ducted by the pillar of cloud by day, and the 
 pillar of fire by night; but the Israelites fre- 
 quently tempted God by murmuring and forget- 
 ting all his mercies ; they grew weary of manna, 
 and desired flesh. God granted their request, sent 
 quails in abundance, and while the meat was in 
 their mouths they died. At last they arrived on 
 the borders of the Promised Land, and a man 
 from each tribe was sent to examine it. After forty 
 days they returned, bearing with them one bunch 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS, 35 
 
 of grapes so large that it required two men to 
 carry it, describing the country as rich and fertile, 
 but full of the tall sons of Anak. Caleb and 
 Joshua alone urged their going forward, the other 
 ten greatly feared. Again the people wept, mur- 
 mured, and wished themselves in Egypt : threat- 
 ened to kill Moses and Aaron, and were only 
 prevented by a manifest declaration of God's dis- 
 pleasure. The punishment awarded by God was 
 to remain in the wilderness forty years, until all, 
 save Joshua and Caleb, should be dead. It was 
 during this time that many fell by the Amalekites, 
 and that Dathan, Koran and Abiram were swal- 
 lowed up for their sins, and here God made it ma- 
 nifest that he had chosen Aaron and the tribe of 
 Levi to minister before him. 
 
 During the wanderings of the Israelites, many 
 important events had taken place in the surround- 
 ing nations, and many changes ; but Canaan, the 
 Palestine, remained as now, the same, awaiting 
 the arrival of its chosen people. At length, in 
 the year 1452 B. C, and the thirty-eighth of their 
 wanderings, the Israelites arrived on the borders 
 of Canaan. There Miriam died, — she had 
 watched over the infant Moses ; sung the praises 
 of God at the Red Sea, and journeyed through 
 all their difficulties, but was not permitted to 
 enter with her people into the Promised Land, — 
 here too Moses lost his confidence in God, smote 
 the rock, offended, and brought punishment on 
 himself and Aaron. During the following two 
 years the Israelites were often engaged in war, 
 
 c 6 
 
36 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 had many difficulties to encounter, and often 
 sinned against the Lord by murmuring and re- 
 bellion ; it was during that time, in their progress 
 onward, that Balak sought Balaam to curse them ; 
 but how could Balaam curse whom God had 
 blessed ? Still he strove to do so, and met his re- 
 ward. The prophecies of Balaam have been 
 literally and strikingly fulfilled. At Mount Hor 
 Aaron died, not unwillingly ; he was not per- 
 mitted to see the long-desired land, and submitted 
 patiently. At last, after innumerable difficulties, 
 the Israelites encamped on the north of the Dead 
 Sea. The Land of Promise was within a few 
 hours' journey ; but Moses was not to enter it : 
 he saw it from Mount Pisgah, died, and was 
 buried of the Lord in a valley, near the mount 
 where he died. Joshua was now appointed 
 to lead the people into the land that the Lord 
 their God had given them : he and Caleb alone re- 
 mained of the twelve who had been sent to ex- 
 amine the land. It was necessary to cross the 
 deep and rapid stream of Jordan ; but the moment 
 the feet of those who bare the ark touched the 
 water, it no longer flowed, and they passed over on 
 dry land. The first place the Israelites ap- 
 proached was Jericho, a large and strongly forti- 
 fied city, surrounded by a high thick wall. How 
 were they to obtain possession of it, " without 
 arms, without ladders, or any other necessary 
 means of attack ? " In Joshua vi. we learn how 
 they were directed to make their assault — no 
 doubt, greatly to the amusement of the inhabit- 
 ants. But Joshua believed, and at the end of the 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 37 
 
 seventh circuit, on the seventh day, while the 
 walls were still standing, and all appeared un- 
 moved, he cried, " Shout ! for the Lord hath given 
 you the city." They shouted, and the walls fell ! 
 The city lay open before them, and " every man 
 (went up) straight before him." Now this was 
 faith and the reward of faith. Jericho was ut- 
 terly destroyed. It had long been a very sinful 
 city, and a curse was pronounced against him who 
 should attempt to rebuild it. A curse literally 
 fulfilled, when Hiel defied the threatening in the 
 day of Ahab, 1 Kings, xvi. 24. 
 
 The extraordinary and triumphant siege of 
 Gideon, as well as the conquest over the Hittites, 
 the Perizites, the Jebusites, the Canaanites, and 
 many other nations, are all so beautifully related 
 in the twelfth, and nine following chapters of the 
 book of Joshua, that to them the young Christian 
 is referred for a detailed account of the assistance 
 given by God to this his own peculiar family and 
 people, and how literally and fully he performed 
 his promise given to Moses, (l I will drive them 
 out of the land before thee, until thou be increased 
 and inherit the land." Exodus, xxiii. 27. — 30. 
 And again, " Thou shalt consume all the people 
 which the Lord thy God shall deliver thee," &c. 
 Deut. vii. 16 — 24. The wars between these na- 
 tions is no common history, but one that tells of 
 the execution of a dreadful sentence of divine 
 wrath against an utterly depraved and wicked 
 people : we are expressly told, " For the wicked- 
 ness of these nations the Lord doth drive them 
 
38 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 out before thee." Deut. xviii. 12. The idolatrous 
 and sinful practices into which the Israelites af- 
 terwards fell, proceeded from their having spared 
 some of these wicked people and permitting them 
 to live among them. Joshua having settled the 
 tribes, and seen the people in possession of the 
 land, called them together, exhorted them strongly 
 to avoid all approaches to idolatry, reminded them 
 of the great things God had done for them, and 
 urged them to " choose that day whom they 
 would serve," and having fulfilled his appointed 
 duties, died, being 110 years old, and was buried 
 in Mount Ephraim. 
 
 The decease of Joshua was soon followed by 
 that of Eleazer and other elders. They were now 
 without a leader; anarchy and confusion soon 
 followed. Intercourse with idolaters soon cor- 
 rupted the Israelites — " every man did what was 
 right in his own eyes," the lusts of the flesh, and 
 the lust of the eye were gratified, the progress of 
 wickedness was rapid and extensive. A son of 
 Levi willingly engaged to perform idolatrous ser- 
 vices, and while the son of Eleazer was High 
 Priest "the children of Israel did evil in the sight 
 of the Lord, and served Balaam," "forsook the 
 Lord God of their fathers," "served Baal and 
 Ashtaroth, so the Lord delivered them into the 
 hands of spoilers." Judges, ii. We find them 
 brought repeatedly into servitude. Othmel, the 
 first Judge, delivered them from the king of Meso- 
 potamia, Ehud from the king of Moab, Shangar 
 from the Philistines, and the stately Deborah from 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 39 
 
 the Canaanites. About forty years after this, the 
 Midianites, Amalekites, and other tribes, (whose 
 manners the Bedouins of the present day resem- 
 ble, and whose numbers were so great that they 
 are represented as grasshoppers over the land) 
 entered Judea, and spread themselves over all the 
 fertile districts, penetrating to the shores of the 
 Mediterranean sea ; from these terrible marau- 
 ders the Lord himself raised up a deliverer. "The 
 sword of Jehovah and of Gideon" conquered; the 
 undisciplined hordes,filled with panic and fear, turned 
 on each other in the darkness of the night ; they 
 fled, and Israel was again free. Grideon was ap- 
 pointed judge ; after his death an unworthy son 
 became judge, when the oldest and perhaps the 
 most beautiful fable extant, that of the trees 
 choosing a king, was recounted by one w T ho had 
 escaped from him. But the children of Israel 
 still pursued evil courses to a fearful extent. The 
 Philistines and the Ammonites were permitted to 
 make a permanent invasion into their country, 
 lay waste their lands, and take their children into 
 bondage. From this they were delivered by 
 Jephtha, who was judge in Israel until about the 
 time that Samson was born ; whose extroardinary 
 strength, wonderful acts of valour over the Philis- 
 tines, folly in committing his secret to a bad 
 woman, and the peculiar manner in which he 
 revenged himself in his death, is well known and 
 beautifully related in the sacred writings. 
 
 Eli was the next judge of Israel: he held that 
 office forty years, and presents an awful and 
 
40 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 striking lesson to parents. A good man, in whose 
 family great attention was paid to the Divine in- 
 stitutions, but an over-indulgent, weak, and there- 
 fore bad father, who did not restrain the wicked 
 courses of his profligate sons, which is described 
 as " the iniquity which he knoweth." Eli was 
 very old when the ark of the Lord, committed to 
 the care of his sons, was taken and his sons slain. 
 This was a gloomy day for Israel ; no wonder the 
 old man and his daughter-in-law both died ; the 
 ark for the first time was in the hands of the 
 enemies. 
 
 The young Samuel, whose affecting history is 
 familiar, appears to be the first of that succession of 
 prophets who were raised up by the Jewish nation. 
 During the administration of Samuel, national piety 
 was in some degree restored, and with it national 
 prosperity. The Philistines no longer troubled 
 Israel, and Samuel governed in peace for twelve 
 years after the first assembling at Mizpeh; but 
 the fickle nation now grew weary of judges, 
 and, contrary to the judgment of Samuel, desiring 
 to have a king, Saul, the Son of Kish, was chosen 
 by lot, and very soon after engaged in warlike 
 actions with the Philistines, Amalekites, and 
 others; but his pride and disobedience to the 
 commands of God brought him into continual 
 difficulties, and proved that he was a very unfit 
 person to govern Judea. The encounter of the 
 young David, the son of Jesse, with the formidable 
 Goliah of Gath, and its consequences are well 
 known to the Scripture reader. So are his friend- 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 41 
 
 ship for Jonathan and his marriage with Michal ; 
 but none of these could repress the envy or extin- 
 guish the hatred that dwelt in the proud monarch's 
 breast. David was obliged to fly from his presence, 
 closely pursued by, and often in much danger from, 
 Saul. It was during this long and cruel persecu- 
 tion that the greater number of David's beautiful 
 psalms were written. David was ever ready to 
 forbear and pardon the cruelties of Saul, and on 
 one occasion resisted the temptation of killing him 
 when asleep in his tent ; for, in all his wanderings 
 and backslidings, David still had firm confidence in 
 the power and goodness of God. The enmity of 
 Saul against the son of Jesse did not arise from any 
 injurious conduct on the part of the young man, 
 neither was it the effect of madness, but the 
 workings of an unregenerate evil heart, at enmity 
 with God. The life of Saul was very tur- 
 bulent, and the latter part rendered particu- 
 larly so by the Philistines. Hence we find him 
 in his perplexity consulting w T ith wizards, magicians, 
 and soothsayers; he had, indeed, departed from 
 the living God, and God left him to his enemies, 
 who fastened his mutilated remains to the walls of 
 the city, and placed his head in the temple of 
 Dagon. Four hundred years had now transpired 
 since the settlement of the Israelites in Canaan ; 
 a period presenting a history widely differing from 
 that of every other people on earth. Continually 
 a prey to powerful enemies — continually threat- 
 ened with extinction — they were still preserved. 
 A separate people, an improving, increasing, se- 
 
42 UNIVEKSAL HISTOEY. 
 
 parate people, notwithstanding every concurring 
 circumstance that could lead to an opposite result. 
 David was by the death of Saul free from danger, 
 and seven years after was made king; his first 
 care was to bring the kingdom into order ; he re- 
 moved his family to the city, which he had built 
 after gaining the stronghold of Zion, and called it 
 Jerusalem; he removed the ark from Gilead to 
 Jerusalem, and this is supposed to have given 
 cause for the 24th, 132nd, 105th, 96th, and 106th 
 Psalms ; he planned the Temple, was successful in 
 war, and provided for the family of Saul : hitherto 
 all was right, David served the Lord, and the Lord 
 prospered all his ways ; but David grew indolent, 
 and indolence led to adultery and murder; he 
 married the widow ; but the reproof of Nathan 
 awakened his sleeping conscience ; his repentance 
 was deep and sincere, and the birth of Solomon 
 was a pledge of forgiveness ; but peace was no 
 more for David ; his sons grew up rebellious and 
 sinful ; like Eli, he had been a fond, but careless 
 parent : too late he wept this fault ; his darling, 
 Absalom was slain in the wood of Ephraim, and 
 three years famine succeeded : the Philistines took 
 up arms, and, contrary to the Divine precepts, 
 David numbered the people, now amounting to 
 1,300,000 fighting men; for this crime heavy 
 punishments followed; feeble and wasted, his 
 grey hairs brought down with sorrow to the grave, 
 he gave his son Solomon directions, explaining 
 the plan he had designed for the Temple, and 
 slept with his fathers. 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 43 
 
 Solomon succeeded his father, and began his 
 reign by offering a thousand burnt offerings, 
 and humbly confessing he was as a little child, 
 prayed not for earthly goods, but an understand- 
 ing heart. His prayer was answered: "his wis- 
 dom far excelled that of the most renowned sages 
 of his time ;" his judgment was clear, his govern- 
 ment strong and prosperous; his dominions ex- 
 tended from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates, 
 — from the Orontes to the Red Sea and the Per- 
 sian Gulph ; he " had peace on all sides around 
 him." In happy alliance with Hiram, king of 
 Tyre, who supplied him with many materials, 
 the Temple was completed and dedicated to Je- 
 hovah with grand solemnity. All Israel assembled 
 on the occasion; the ark was borne within the 
 vail by the Levites, and " the glory of the Lord 
 filled the house." Solomon then ascended a 
 throne of brass and offered up a prayer, at once 
 fervent and pathetic, solemn and full of humility, 
 the language of a sinner at the footstool of Divine 
 mercy. 1 Kings viii. Solomon here seems to be 
 a type of the Saviour, the intercessor for his 
 people before the throne of grace. Solomon also 
 built himself a palace, of which he says, " I builded 
 me houses — I planted me vineyards — I made me 
 orchards and gardens — I planted trees in them of 
 all kinds of fruit — I made me pools of ^water to 
 water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees." 
 Eccl. ii. 4. The only remains of these works that 
 now exist, are the pools of Solomon, situated to 
 the south of Bethlehem. The Divine Songs of 
 
44 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Solomon, the Proverbs, so full of piety, charity, 
 prudence, and benevolence, and the excellent sys- 
 tem of ethics set forth in them, all attest his wis- 
 dom, piety, and humility. The pen lingers — 
 it is painful to turn from a picture so rich and 
 glowing in " the beauty of godliness," to the luxu- 
 rious, idolatrous, lascivious monarch, surrounded 
 by a harem of 700 princesses, and 300 of lower 
 rank, going after the idols they worshipped — 
 burning incense and offering sacrifice with them 
 — until he provoked the Lord to declare that the 
 kingdom should be rent from his family ; one 
 tribe only should be left, the united tribes of Ju- 
 dah and Benjamin, in which Jerusalem was situ- 
 ated, and this was spared for his servant David's 
 sake, from whose family the Messiah was to pro- 
 ceed. " The seed of him that loveth him he will 
 not take away; wherefore, he gave a remnant 
 unto Jacob, and out of him a root unto David." 
 Thus rested Solomon with his fathers. 
 
 Solomon left but one son, called Rehoboam, 
 who must have been born the year he came to the 
 crown, and who, it appears, never gave his father 
 much of hope or comfort, or reason to expect 
 good of his future character. From the early 
 days of the Jewish nation, there had existed an 
 envious, unhappy feeling between the sons of 
 Ephraim and the sons of Judah ; the pre-eminence 
 gained by the latter had ever been offensive to the 
 other tribes. Before, therefore, receiving Reho- 
 boam as king, they sent for Jeroboam, who was 
 an exile in Egypt, to propose such measures as 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 45 
 
 they judged necessary. Rehoboam hesitated, and 
 the unruly spirits of the leaders at once renounced 
 all allegiance to the son of David. Choosing Je- 
 roboam as their king, Judah and Beniamin alone 
 remained faithful to Rehoboam. Jeroboam in- 
 troduced a new religious system throughout the 
 ten tribes : appointed Dan in the north and 
 Bethel in the centre, as places for sacrifice, instead 
 of Jerusalem, and set up "calves" of gold, which 
 quickly introduced idolatrous worship among a 
 people but too ready to follow after strange idols. 
 The Levites refused to assist at this, and Jeroboam 
 himself officiated as priest. A prophet from Judah 
 denounced his unholy altar, which was shaken by 
 an invisible hand, and the arm of Jeroboam wi- 
 thered. The alarmed king prayed the prophet to 
 restore his arm, but did not pray to God to restore 
 his heart ; on the contrary, continued his idolatrous 
 courses. Rehoboam, in the mean time, took pru- 
 dent measures for strengthening his kingdom, re- 
 ceiving those who were driven from, or grew 
 weary of the revolted provinces, and during the 
 three years that he continued in these good courses, 
 his kingdom flourished, and the blessing of God 
 was upon him ; but he then fell into idolatrous prac- 
 tices, and was punished by an invasion of Shisshak, 
 king of Egypt. Rehoboam died after a reign of 
 seventeen years, and Abijah, his son, reigned in 
 his stead. Although the provinces under Jero- 
 boam formed by far the larger portion of the Is- 
 raelites, yet the promised seed being in the tribe 
 of Judah, the part left with Rehoboam must be 
 
46 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 considered the Israel of God. The government of 
 Jeroboam ended in his son, who was killed by the 
 Philistines, and although the kingdom of David 
 was divided, it may be observed through the whole 
 history of Judah and Israel, that the Lord Jeho- 
 vah exercised the same direct, providential inter- 
 ference with both branches as heretofore, and the 
 Jewish nation was still, in eifect, a theocracy. 
 Asa was a good man and king, who rooted idolatry 
 out of the land, and many flocked to him from 
 Israel, ce where they saw that the Lord his God 
 was with him." Jehosaphat, his son, followed the 
 " way- of David and his father ; his heart was 
 lifted up in prayer to the Lord ;" he fortified the 
 cities, and sent priests and Levites through the 
 land to instruct the ignorant ; and thus the Lord 
 made " even his enemies to be at peace with him." 
 It was at this time that Ahab, king of Israel, was 
 led into so great wickedness by the beauty and 
 fascinations of the imperious and sinful Jezebel, 
 daughter of the king of the Zidonians, and aunt 
 of Dido, the foundress of Carthage, that we are 
 told " he did more to provoke the Lord God of 
 Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that 
 went before him." Then rose up the prophet 
 Elijah as a light out of dense darkness ; " and his 
 word burned like a lamp." While the hills were 
 yet smoking with sacrifices to Ashtaroth and the 
 groves resounded with the wild music of their 
 rites, Elijah suddenly appeared and announced that 
 no rain should fall for three years. Long did the 
 holy man remain hidden from the furious Ahab, 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 47 
 
 first among the rocks, fed by the birds of the air, 
 and refreshed by the stream that ran at his feet, 
 then sheltered and miraculously fed in the hovel 
 of a poor widow, who reverenced him as a pro- 
 phet, a follower of Jehovah, and willingly shared 
 with him what appeared to be her last meal. But 
 his God and Master manifested his power and 
 the love he bore his servant, by answering of 
 prayer, by sending fire from heaven, by the death 
 of the idol prophets, and by sending rain on the 
 the earth. Jezebel had witnessed all this. She 
 saw the earth refreshed, famine stayed, and her 
 subjects rescued from starvation, but she hated 
 Elijah, and resolved on his death; because her 
 prophets were no more ; those who had ministered 
 to her pleasure were gone ; but the Lord will not 
 forget his own; death was not for Elijah; he escaped 
 and dwelt in rocky Horeb for a time, then dwelt 
 in the valley of Jordan. Soon after this, both 
 Ahab and Jezebel came to an untimely end. 
 and agreeably to the word of the Lord, " dogs 
 licked their blood." 
 
 The striking events of the prophet's life 
 and death, or rather his translation, together with 
 those of his servant Elisha, during the reigns of 
 Ahaziah and Jehu are so well known to the 
 young reader of Scripture, that all repetition were 
 useless. 
 
 Jeroboam second, king of Israel, died 793 B. c. 
 He recovered the district east of Jordan, and by 
 conquests from the Syrians enlarged his dominions 
 even to Damascus. It was during his reign that 
 
48 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the prophets Hosea and Amos wrote. Hosea 
 foretold the judgments to be sent upon Jerusalem, 
 and carried his views forward even to the coming 
 of Christ in the flesh. Amos saw, in vision, the 
 destruction of the idolatrous temple of Samaria. 
 It was a dark and dismal period in which there 
 " was no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge, in this 
 land." In Judah, Uzziah reigned long and pros- 
 perously : he was skilled in the arts of war, yet he 
 loved the peaceful occupations of husbandry. 
 The Olympiads began to be celebrated in Greece 
 during: the reign of Uzziah. It was in the last 
 year of Uzziah that Isaiah was called to the pro- 
 phetic office. Joel also prophesied at this time. 
 The early portions of the prophecies of Isaiah 
 speak of the judgments then at hand, — of the 
 oppression of the rulers, — the vanity and pride of 
 the Jewish females. The state of Judah is repre- 
 sented under the parable of a vineyard, Isa. v., a 
 striking illustration of a people whose vineyards 
 clothed the hills on every side. Jotham succeeded 
 his father as king of Judah. He became mighty, 
 because he established the ways of the Lord. He 
 built a new gate to the Temple and improved Je- 
 rusalem ; but the voice of Micah was heard, " Arise 
 ye and depart, for this is not your rest." During 
 the reign of Jotham, Rome was built, B.C. 753 ; 
 that city by whose power Jerusalem was finally 
 destroyed. Ahaz succeeded Jotham, an idolater ; 
 and worse than any preceding king of Judah. 
 In his reign the king of Assyria carried away 
 captive the tribes beyond Jordan, and some of the 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 49 
 
 inhabitants of Israel : this was the first captivity. 
 The last days of the kingdom of Israel were now 
 close at hand. Unwillingly the Lord gave up his 
 people, but they would not have him for their 
 God. The reign of Hezekiah was very important. 
 " Like unto him was there no king before him." In 
 the first days of his reign he opened the Temple, 
 and assembling the priests and Levites charged 
 them to cleanse and set in order the house of God 
 without delay. The idols were destroyed, and 
 the people showed their faith by their fruits. At 
 this period, the first universal monarchy, that of 
 Assyria, was at its most palmy state. Involved 
 in war with Egypt, but still a mighty power, Ca- 
 naan, from its situation between the contending 
 powers, was often the cause, and sometimes the 
 seat of war. Hoshea, king of Israel, had formed 
 an alliance with Egypt, and refused to continue 
 tributary to Assyria. In the fourth year of He- 
 zekiah, Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, besieged 
 Samaria, and after a siege of three years took it, 
 and utterly destroyed Samaria, beautiful in its 
 situation, and rich in its fertility. He caused all 
 that remained of the seven tribes between Jordan 
 and the sea to be carried away to a remote part 
 of his dominions, far in the East, where many of 
 their descendants still continue. In the fourteenth 
 year of Hezekiah, Sennacherib invaded Judah, 
 but Hezekiah purchased peace by the payment of 
 a large sum. Soon after he proceeded towards 
 Jerusalem, Isaiah, xxii. 1. ; but though close to 
 the holy city, Sennacherib shot not an arrow 
 
 D 
 
50 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 against her walls. A miraculous blast in one 
 night struck 185,000 of his army with death, and 
 he was afterwards murdered by his own sons while 
 at worship in an idol temple. Hezekiah reigned 
 twenty-nine years, and then departed in peace, and 
 was honourably buried in the "chiefest"of the 
 sepulchres of the sons of David. These sepul- 
 chres are supposed to be an elaborate work cut 
 out of the solid rock, and still existing to the north 
 of Jerusalem. This is the only remains of ancient 
 Jerusalem which can be traced satisfactorily. 
 Here are several rooms with recesses for bodies, 
 and places for sarchophagi, with doors, one of 
 which Maundrell found with hinges on it, and in 
 its place. 
 
 The accuracy of history with the predictions 
 of prophecy are too remarkable to pass unnoticed. 
 Babylon, Tyre, Egypt, and Idumea, are all pre- 
 cisely in the state in which the book written 2000 
 years since described they would be ; in fact an 
 accurate account of the downfall of various na- 
 tions may be drawn from predictions written while 
 they were in their bright and palmy state. The 
 most wretched reign in the kingdom of Judah w r as 
 that of Manasseh, son of the good Hezekiah ; he 
 restored all the idol worship, sacrificed children to 
 Moloch, and committed acts of the deepest de- 
 pravity. It is supposed that Isaiah, who was se- 
 cretary to Hezekiah, addressed the prophecy to 
 Shebna, recorded in Isa. xxii. 15., while superin- 
 tending the workmanship of a sepulchre, which, 
 giving offence to the proud apostate, Isaiah was 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 51 
 
 seized and sawn asunder with a wooden saw. 
 Many years after, the crimes of Manasseh, " that 
 which he did in Jerusalem," are mentioned as a 
 primary cause of the Jews being driven from all 
 the nations of the earth. Jer. xv. 4. In the 
 twenty-second year of his reign the Assyrians, 
 under Eserhaddon, invaded Judah, and carried 
 Manasseh a prisoner into Babylon : he also took 
 away the remnants of the tribes left in Israel. The 
 duration of Manasseh's imprisonment is uncertain : 
 he, however, returned to Jerusalem, fortified it, 
 died, and was buried. Josiah was a righteous 
 young prince, and did much to restore the wor- 
 ship of the living God, causing a more solemn 
 passover to be observed than during any former 
 period. In his reign the prophets Jeremiah, Ze- 
 phaniah, and Habakkuk wrote their prophecies. 
 In a battle against Pharaoh Necho, on the plains 
 of Megiddo, Josiah was mortally wounded: he died, 
 and the "Lamentations of Jeremiah" record his 
 virtues. It is said of Jehoiakim his son that he 
 "did evil in the sight of the Lord:" he was but 
 the king of a subdued people, and a vassal to 
 Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who, in the 
 fourth year of his reign, besieged and took Jeru- 
 salem, and carried away some of the sacred vessels 
 which he placed in the temple of Belus at Babylon, 
 also some of the princes and nobles, among whom 
 was Daniel and his companions. This may be 
 considered the beginning of the Babylonish cap- 
 tivity, B.C. 605. 
 
 Yet the Temple still towered above its spacious 
 d 2 
 
52 UNIVERSAL HISTORr. 
 
 courts, and the walls of the city remained ; but a 
 further judgment was to come. In the year 
 B. C. 597, Nebuchadnezzar again invaded Judea, 
 dethroned the son of Jehoiakim, and made Zede- 
 kiah king in his stead. A large number of cap- 
 tives were then sent away to weaken the resources 
 of the rebellious land: they were taken to Ba- 
 bylon and to various parts of Mesopotamia : among 
 them was the prophet Ezekiel. The Jewish 
 nation still did evil. Zedekiah revolted against 
 the Assyrians, and joined the Egyptians. This 
 caused the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, 
 B. c. 586 ; when, after a frightful scene of slaughter, 
 all that remained of the inhabitants of the land 
 were cleared away, except a few of the poor, who 
 were left as vine-dressers and husbandmen. Of 
 the fugitives dispersed through the country, 
 many of them died by their own hands. (Je- 
 remiah, xl. 7 — 13. xli. 11.) Many of the sur- 
 vivors went into Egypt, where they perished ; 
 others fled into adjacent countries. Thus disap- 
 peared from Palestine those sinful people so often 
 rebuked by the prophets ; but no invading troops 
 occupied the land. Judea was suffered to remain 
 uncultivated during the captivity: the country 
 was left vacant, not colonised by heathens as 
 Samaria had been, nor occupied by a population 
 arising from the scanty remnant left by their con- 
 querors. Thus Nebuchadnezzar was overruled, 
 and acted contrary to his usual policy. But thus 
 and thus only could the denunciations of the 
 prophets be fulfilled* The Divine declaration had 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 53 
 
 gone forth. The ten tribes were not to return to 
 their possessions ; therefore a heathen colony was 
 permitted to settle therein. The tribes of Judah 
 and Benjamin were again to occupy Jerusalem and 
 the land of their forefathers ; therefore that country 
 was reserved for them. No opposition was of- 
 fered to their return ; they could all dwell in their 
 cities without fear or difficulty. At the time 
 when the Jews were thus led into captivity, the 
 two ruling powers over the then known world 
 were the Babylonians and the Medes. The do- 
 minions of the latter were over the country east 
 of the river Tigris. The former comprehended all 
 that had been the Assyrian empire, together with 
 countries towards the west. Babylon was the 
 capital of this large empire instead of Nineveh, of 
 which no traces now remain. It was the desire of 
 Nebuchadnezzar to render the vast city of Babylon, 
 which was situated in a plain and divided into two 
 parts by the Euphrates, rich and populous. He 
 therefore treated the Jews with more respect and 
 consideration than they might have experienced 
 had his city been fully peopled. Daniel and his 
 companions were very young, not more than 
 eighteen years of age, and Nebuchadnezzar caused 
 them to be instructed in the Chaldee language, 
 changed their names to such as sounded well in 
 the palace of Babylon, familiarised them to heathen 
 customs, and did all in his power to fit them to 
 fill high stations, and forget the land of their 
 fathers ; but Daniel and his companions were 
 influenced by the fear of Jehovah, and their his- 
 D 3 
 
54 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 tory instructs young people in the immense im- 
 portance of avoiding compliance with the sinful 
 pursuits of those around them. Ezekiel also was 
 among the captives, and his book of prophecies 
 will be read with great interest by all who have, 
 or may observe how literally they were fulfilled. 
 Of his death there is no account : but a building a 
 few miles south-east of the ruins of Babylon is 
 even yet pointed out as his tomb. 
 
 Nebuchadnezzar appears to have been raised up 
 an instrument in the hand of God to perform this 
 his work of punishment. Hence he is called " the 
 rod of God's anger," and " the servant of Jehovah." 
 He subjugated all the nations round Palestine, and 
 carried his army into Egypt, besieged and destroyed 
 the powerful city of Tyre, and laid the land deso- 
 late for forty years. Having completed the con- 
 quest of the then known world, Nebuchadnezzar 
 returned to Babylon as its acknowledged master, 
 R. C. 570, which was the beginning of his universal 
 dominion; but his visions, dreams, and impiety, 
 recorded by their living witness the prophet 
 Daniel, was cut short by perhaps the most 
 awfully striking event on record, and this mighty 
 monarch became "as a beast of the field." Bel- 
 shazzar, his grandson, did not profit by the fate of 
 his grandfather, but lived a few years in riot, ex- 
 travagance, and debauchery, notwithstanding the 
 warnings of the prophet, until alarmed by the 
 handwriting on the wall, when too late, for very 
 soon his kingdom was taken from him by Darius 
 the Mede, who placed Daniel at the head of his go- 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 5 b 
 
 verninent, which produced such burning jealousies 
 among other influential Jews, as led to the trial 
 of the prophet's faith and firmness, and produced 
 another instance of God's preservation of his own 
 faithful and devoted children. When Darius had 
 reigned only two years, he died, and his nephew, 
 Cyrus, who had been designated by name more 
 than a century prior to this, as the conqueror of 
 Babylon, and the restorer of the Jewish nation 
 from captivity, Isa. xlv. 14., reigned in his stead. 
 Cyrus continued to favour Daniel, and to give 
 great advantages to the Jews, who now filled 
 almost every post of honour or renown. All 
 through the captivity, though Nebuchadnezzar by 
 his conquests mixed up in one mass as it were 
 all the nations of the earth in Babylon, the Jews 
 continued to dwell there a separate people, from 
 the depressed days of their early captivity, till 
 now, when the spoils of their land were to be seen 
 in their temples, and the chief men of the state 
 were Jews. At this time, it is clear from ancient 
 records, they were visited, consulted, studied, and 
 respected, by all the philosophers of Europe and 
 Asia. Among one of the earliest acts of Cyrus, 
 after attaining the full sovereignty, Was that de- 
 cree named by Ezra, i. 1 — 4., authorising the re- 
 turn of the ancient people of Jehovah, in which 
 he says the Lord God of heaven had charged him 
 to rebuild the Temple : he therefore offers them 
 every assistance. There was but little to tempt 
 the Jews to return to the land of Judah, and very 
 much to induce them to remain. Josephus speaks 
 D 4 
 
56 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 of the ten tribes remaining beyond the Euphrates 
 as so exceedingly increased, that in his day they 
 could scarcely be numbered ; but where are they 
 now ? Recent travellers speak of districts peo- 
 pled by Jews, in an ignorant degraded state ; 
 wherever they have incorporated with other na- 
 tions, they have fallen off. But there are yet a 
 few who have not bowed the knee to Baal, Israel 
 still dwells alone as " a nation among the nations." 
 The Jews have a proverb that " the bran returned 
 to Jerusalem, the fine flour remained in Babylon." 
 Of the twenty-four courses of the priests, only 
 four returned. The first division was led by 
 Zerubbabel, a prince of royal blood, called in Ezra 
 Sheshbazzar, and in Haggai Zechariah ; these 
 were four thousand five hundred in number, and 
 the work of erecting the Tenmle commenced as 
 soon as they arrived. They were brought back to 
 the very spot where their former stately building 
 had waved its tower above the courts, and though 
 they had difficulties, every prospect of a goodly 
 temple was before them. 
 
 The Samaritans, colonists placed in the country 
 of the ten tribes by Esarhaddon, who worshipped 
 God in conjunction with idols, were desirous of 
 helping the sons of Judah ; but they refused the 
 unhallowed union, and the building was conse- 
 quently stayed ; thence grew that bitter hatred of 
 the Jews towards the Samaritans, that they would 
 not allow a Jew to have any dealings with a Sa- 
 maritan, which we find recorded in the New Tes- 
 tament. The building of the Temple did not pro- 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 57 
 
 ceed for ten years. The people had been busy in 
 preparing houses for themselves, and makiug to 
 themselves vineyards and olive-grounds. Cyrus 
 was dead, and Darius Hystaspes sent home many 
 more of the Jews, who brought valuable offerings 
 for the Temple. The building was resumed, and 
 the city became large and populous ; and in the 
 sixth year of Darius the Temple was completed, 
 and the passover celebrated there. Sacrifices and 
 sin-offerings were offered by the Prophets Ezra 
 and Zechariah, who both prophesied at this time 
 of the future Messiah, the Saviour of men. The 
 Jews had a high respect for Ezra, who spent 
 much time in Jerusalem in collecting the Scrip- 
 tures and remodelling the laws. It was while he 
 was so employed that a wicked plot was formed 
 by Haman to destroy all the Jews in Persia. 
 The plot was discovered by Mordecai the Jew, 
 and frustrated by the prudence and courage of 
 Esther : the tale is beautifully related in the 
 Book of Esther. The Jews commemorate this 
 deliverance to the present day by their Feast of 
 Purim. At the site of the ancient Ecbatana, an 
 ancient tomb, containing two sarcophagi of dark 
 wood, richly carved, are said to be those of Esther 
 and her uncle Mordecai. 
 
 From this time we find the Persian monarchs 
 favouring the Jews. Nehemiah was permitted to 
 repair the walls of Jerusalem : this was completed 
 in fifty-two days ; but he had much to suffer 
 from the Samaritans and other enemies. Still he 
 persevered in building up the high places, and 
 D 5 
 
58 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 restoring Jerusalem to her ancient splendour. But 
 wickedness was again making rapid strides among 
 this rebellious and stiff-necked people. Marriages 
 had taken place between them and the sons and 
 daughters of the surrounding idolatrous nations. 
 The Sabbath was no longer a holy day sacred to 
 the Lord ; they had " corrupted the covenant of 
 Levi," and taken to them many and strange wives ; 
 so that their language became a mongrel speech 
 of Ashdod, Moab, and Ammon. 
 
 After the death of Nehemiah, Judea was go- 
 verned by high priests, of whom little that is good 
 can be recorded. 
 
 The Jews now became so connected with their 
 rulers, the Persians, that their history, for some 
 ages, can only be gleaned from that of Persia. 
 
 During the rapid and extraordinary conquests 
 of Alexander, we find him hastening on with 
 intent to destroy Jerusalem, which event, accord- 
 ing to Josephus, was prevented by the prayers of 
 Jaddua and the people, so that, when Alexander 
 saw the multitude in white garments, and the 
 priests in their robes, he offered obeisance as an 
 act of adoration. The next day Alexander de- 
 manded what favours the Jews required : Jaddua 
 besought that they might be allowed to live ac- 
 cording to the laws of their fathers. Alexander 
 granted all he asked, and promised the same for 
 the Jews of Babylonia and Media. Had Alexander 
 lived, much might have been done to prevent the 
 division of the nation ; but according to the pro- 
 phecy, that a mighty prince should stand up, 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. 59 
 
 "his kingdom shall be broken, and shall be 
 divided toward the four winds of heaven," he 
 died, and his kingdom was divided between his 
 generals. Under the distracted government that 
 followed the Jews suffered severely, as well as 
 under Ptolemy Lagus and Antigonus ; the 
 former of whom, hearing the Jews were so scru- 
 pulous in their observance of the Sabbath as not 
 to defend their city, entered it on that day, and 
 committed dreadful outrages. The priests are de- 
 scribed at this time, with the people, to be in such 
 close adherence to the law, as to suffer death rather 
 than break its precepts. They had only one forti- 
 fied city in their own land, in which was a small 
 square building with two doors, a square altar of 
 unwrought stones, a golden candlestick, and altar 
 for the priests, where they were employed night 
 and day in performing certain purifications. 
 
 The dominions of Alexander were now divided 
 between Cassander, Lysimachus, Ptolemy, and 
 Seleucus. Ptolemy received Syria, India, Egypt, 
 Arabia, and part of Asia Minor. Under him the 
 Jews enjoyed quiet, and the high priest " Simon 
 the Just" finally completed the canon of the Old 
 Testament: he was succeeded by his brother 
 Eleazer, in whose priesthood Antigonus Sachasus, 
 a man of great piety and learning, urged so 
 strongly the doctrine of serving God from prin- 
 ciples of love and affection, and regard for the 
 divine perfection, that his disciples eventually de- 
 nied the resurrection, and, from a popular man 
 among them named Sadoc, they were called Sad- 
 D 6 
 
60 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 ducees, and were among the most bitter perse- 
 cutors of the early Christians. Simon II. suc- 
 ceeded to the priesthood in the reign of Ptolemy 
 Philopater. This king would have denied the holy 
 sanctuary at Jerusalem, but was prevented by a 
 sudden loss of the use of his limbs, an infliction 
 for which he revenged himself on the Jews in the 
 most cruel manner, by putting to death all who 
 would not apostatise : they were sent in chains to 
 Alexandria, crowded into the hippodrome, and 
 trampled to death by elephants. Great numbers 
 were drowned in the Nile. This monster in hu- 
 man form died, and was succeeded by Antiochus 
 the Great, under whom the Jews found some fa- 
 vour and protection : he sent colonies of them into 
 Lydia, Phrygia, and other parts, the descendants 
 of whom were found by the Apostles in Asia 
 Minor, as mentioned in the Acts. At this period 
 the Romans were become a very powerful people, 
 the fourth kingdom, " strong as iron," were making 
 great incursions into Greece, and the Eastern ru- 
 lers were rapidly bending before them. Antiochus, 
 being joined by Hannibal, opposed the Romans, 
 and was defeated by them at Thermopylae, and 
 again at Magnesia : in attempting to plunder the 
 temple of Jupiter Belus, he and his escort were 
 slain, B.C. 187. On the accession of the second 
 Antiochus, the Assyrians flattered him with the 
 title of Epiphanes, or "illustrious;" but his in- 
 sane, cruel, and disgraceful conduct caused it to 
 be changed to " madman." Though a practical 
 atheist, he pretended great reverence for Jupiter 
 
HISTORY OF THE JEWS. t)l 
 
 Olympius, and tried to force the Jews into a wor- 
 ship of that deity : not without effect : the Jews 
 again fell into idolatrous practices ; some from ex- 
 amples, others influenced by fear, others hoping 
 to escape persecutions; yet disturbances arose, 
 and Antiochus hastened to Jerusalem, took it by 
 storm, and plundered the city. In a massacre which 
 lasted three days, 40,000 were slain, and as many 
 taken prisoners. The Syrian king entered the 
 sanctuary, plundered it of all its gold and silver, 
 caused swine's flesh to be sacrificed on the altar, 
 and defiled the whole building by sprinkling it 
 with the liquor in which the flesh of these abhorred 
 animals had been boiled : daily sacrifices were pro- 
 hibited, the public observance of the Jewish re- 
 ligion discontinued, and idols set up, and sacrifices 
 offered to them, on the altars which had been 
 raised to the God of Israel. A decree was sent out 
 that it w r as unlawful to worship or use customs 
 that were not in conformity with those of the 
 Greek heathens. The Jews were compelled to 
 go in procession to Bacchus, carrying ivy. Mo- 
 thers who had caused their infants to be cir- 
 cumcised were with them inhumanly butchered ; 
 while others who had gone together into caves to 
 keep the Sabbath day, were discovered, and all 
 burned together, refusing to defend themselves on 
 that sacred day. The Maccabees, destined to be 
 their deliverers, were of the tribe of Levi, de- 
 scendants of Asmoneus, hence called Asmoneans. 
 Mattathius was at the head of the family, and 
 with his five sons, Johanan, Simon, Judas, Eleazer, 
 
62 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 and Jonathan, excited beyond further endurance, 
 went through the streets crying, " Whoever is 
 zealous for the Lord and maintenance of the cove- 
 nant, let him follow me." Many flocked to their 
 standard, and an open rebellion ensued. The en- 
 raged Antiochus pushed his cruelties to greater 
 extremes than ever : every torment that a demo- 
 niacal spirit could devise was resorted to. These 
 sufferings are described in detail, and with such 
 horrifying minuteness in what is termed the fourth 
 book of Maccabees in " the Apocrypha," that to 
 these records the young reader is referred. The 
 sons and followers of Mattathius continued to in- 
 crease, and under Judas Maccabeus, the blessing 
 of the Most High went forth, the Lord of Hosts 
 sustained his army, appeared in favour of his own 
 people, and again the Jews were free. The pages 
 of history contain repeated instances of successful 
 national resistance, when the feelings of the peo- 
 ple have been thoroughly excited by oppression 
 and wrong, particularly religious oppression ; but 
 the resistance and ultimate triumph of the Jews, 
 unaided by any other country or people, stands 
 unequalled, almost, if not entirely alone, and won- 
 derfully shows forth the power of the Lord of 
 Hosts exerted in behalf of his people. The 9th 
 chapter of Daniel is considered by Hales to de- 
 scribe the events of this reign. 
 
 From this time, 143 b. c, the Jews reckon the 
 independence of their country. Simon was then 
 high priest and leader, and " the land of Judah 
 was quiet all the days of Simon." To him sue- 
 
HISTOEY OF THE JEWS. 63 
 
 ceeded John Hyrcanus, who demolished Samaria, 
 and continued to increase in power and enlarge 
 his dominions until they equalled those of David 
 and Solomon in extent. He built a palace or castle 
 in Jerusalem, in which the Asmonean princes lived. 
 Judah now again ranked high among nations ; but 
 a worm was ever at the root, and the Pharisees 
 and Sadducees introduced new religious dogmas, 
 while luxury, and its accompaniment, tyranny, 
 made rapid strides. So that Whiston remarks : 
 " Now follows the profane and tyrannical Jewish 
 monarchy : first of the Asmoneans or Maccabees, 
 and then of Herod the Great, the Idumean, until 
 the coming of the Messiah." After the death of 
 Hyrcanus, we find the Romans very troublesome 
 to the Jews, and as they were then pushing their 
 conquests over all the face of the earth, having 
 conquered Greece, they led their troops into Asia 
 Minor. At the same time that Egypt was sinking 
 under their power; Tadmor, in the Wilderness, 
 built by Solomon ; Tyre, the pride of nations and 
 the seat of commerce ; Damascus, the mother of 
 manufactures; and Jerusalem, the city of the 
 Lord, all fell before the Caesars and their vic- 
 torious generals. Asia Minor, in common with 
 other countries, became tributary to Rome, and 
 Herod was appointed ruler. Herod signalised 
 his reign by erecting stately buildings, par- 
 ticularly one on Mount Zion; he rebuilt Sa- 
 maria and called it the city of Augustus. The 
 whole nation of the Jews were required to take 
 an oath of allegiance to Augustus, whose power it 
 
64 TJNIVEKSAL HISTOKT. 
 
 was useless to dispute ; thus the sceptre, in effect, 
 departed from Judah. The temple of Janus was 
 shut, and universal peace reigned over the earth. 
 And now, in rapid succession, came the most 
 important events. The vision that appeared to 
 Zecharias in the Temple ; the Annunciation made 
 by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary; the 
 birth of John the Baptist ; and the birth of 
 Jesus the Messiah, at Bethlehem, the true Shiloh, 
 the Prince of Peace, had now come, and the 
 sceptre had departed from Judah. Believers 
 among the Jews, in all ages, had respect to the 
 promised Messiah; yet they rejected him — would 
 not receive the Lord of life and glory, but cru- 
 cified him betwixt two thieves: thus drawing 
 on themselves the ruin of their city and Temple, 
 within forty years after Christ had uttered the 
 prediction, that not one stone of the Temple 
 should stand upon another. Titus drove a plough- 
 share over the site of Jerusalem ; they were dis- 
 persed throughout the Roman empire, and have 
 remained scattered to the present time. Still they 
 have ever remained a separate and distinct people, 
 and have ever been allowed to set up a synagogue 
 wherever they dwelt. A late traveller observes : 
 " In looking at the barren hills of Judea, where 
 the beast wanders not, the bird flies not, and the 
 grass grows not, the impress of the curse of God 
 may be seen in more dreadful characters than are 
 to be seen elsewhere on this side the grave." " Zion 
 is a wilderness — Jerusalem is a desolation." 
 
AFKICA. 65 
 
 AFRICA. 
 
 The peninsula of Africa forms one of the great 
 divisions of the world, the outlines of which are 
 very clearly defined. It was known to the ancients, 
 and the theatre of many remarkable transactions 
 upwards of 3000 years ago. Yet very little either 
 is, or ever has been, known of this mysterious 
 country. Our ships have for three centuries 
 sailed round its lands, and visited various parts of 
 the border, which, like a fringe of comparative ci- 
 vilisation, surrounds this peninsula; but of the 
 vast interior, its past or present history, we 
 are still ignorant. With the exception of Abys- 
 sinia, Sierra Leone, and the country near, and 
 that part of South Africa which extends from the 
 Cape of Good Hope to Ruveechane, no part of 
 Africa has been explored by the Christian mis- 
 sionary. The curiosity of Science is baffled in her 
 searches. Commerce is arrested in its progress by 
 insurmountable barriers ; even conquest itself has 
 been turned aside by fiery deserts and impassable 
 mountains. By far the greater part of this large 
 continent is enveloped in darkness; its history, 
 and the origin of its inhabitants utterly unknown. 
 
66 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 There seems to have been but two aboriginal 
 tribes. Of these are the inhabitants of the moun- 
 tains, called by the ancients Ethiopeans, by the 
 moderns, Negroes; and the inhabitants of the 
 plains, known to the former as Lybians, to the 
 latter as Barbars. Of the four great continents, 
 Africa is the lowest in the moral and intellectual 
 scale, and dividing the continent into four quar- 
 ters, the northern ranks lowest in Christian or" 
 moral advantages. On the eastern side, through 
 Egypt and Abyssinia; on the west and around the 
 Cape, the missionary labours and efforts at im- 
 provement have worked, and are working much 
 real good, spiritually and temporally. On the 
 south-east coast, and in Lower Guinea, their la- 
 bours have been owned, and civilisation and 
 Christianity are spreading, though slowly ; but in 
 the north, the obstacles opposed to the preaching 
 of the gospel are numerous, and apparently in- 
 surmountable. Dr. Munter affirms, that the 
 Christian faith was introduced by some Christians 
 from Rome, as early as the second century ; but if 
 so, every trace of it is gone. The greater part of 
 the African tribes are Fetish worshippers, and 
 believe in witchcraft and conjuration : they adore 
 a good and an evil principle. In some parts of 
 the north, and in central Africa, the doctrines 
 of Mahomet prevail. Egypt has been called 
 " the connecting link between Africa and the 
 civilised world : " it belongs to classic and sacred 
 history; yet some slight notice may prove inter- 
 esting. The discoveries of Burckhardt, Belzoni, 
 
AFKICA. 67 
 
 Hamilton, Gosling, and others, have lifted the 
 veil from her mysterious hieroglyphics, and 
 brought the present generation into familiar ac- 
 quaintance with her pyramids, temples and ca- 
 verns, gods, mummies and amulets; the last fifty 
 years has thrown more light on these subjects 
 than preceding ages. Within a few generations 
 after the deluge, Egypt had become a great na- 
 tion, under the government of a monarch, and 
 was acquainted with trade and handicraft. Agri- 
 culture was the employment of a large portion of 
 the inhabitants ; ,the pastoral occupations too 
 were followed; mechanical arts were not unknown; 
 houses were built of brick, and the bodies of the 
 dead very curiously embalmed. Strangers bar- 
 tered with them for corn, giving spices, pearls, 
 and stones : they were in this position when the 
 brethren of Joseph were driven by famine from 
 the parched plains of Syria into this fertile and 
 plentiful land. The kingdom of Thebes, in Upper 
 Egypt, is supposed to have been founded soon 
 after the dispersion of the sons of Noah, though 
 the name does not occur in the sacred writings. 
 The seat of monarchy was afterwards transferred 
 to Memphis, and so continued until about 567 
 B. c, when it was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar. 
 The ancient periods of Egyptian history were 
 preserved by hieroglyphics, known only to the 
 priests, who affirmed that they could trace their 
 history through a period of 50,000 years. Menes 
 they said, was the first king of mortal birth: all 
 before him had been immortals. Inroads appear 
 
08 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 to have been made by tribes of Phoenician and 
 Arabian origin ; these latter were the shepherd 
 kings who are said to have governed Egypt 511 
 years. Sesostris is said to have lived in the time 
 of Moses : he conquered Libya, invaded Asia as 
 far as the Indian ocean, fortified Egypt, dug canals, 
 built temples, and covered the land with columns, 
 obelisks, and arches. After him came Kemphis, 
 Cheops, and Cephren, the builders of the pyramids 
 which still stand the wonders of the world. About 
 617 B. c. this country became involved in wars 
 with Southern Asia. Josiah king of Judah, being 
 in alliance with the Assyrian king, refused to let the 
 Egyptian army pass through his kingdom : a battle 
 was fought in the vale of Megiddo, in which Jo- 
 siah was killed. Many kings and princes followed 
 until Psammenitus, who was the last native so- 
 vereign of Egypt. Thus has the prophecy of 
 Ezekiel, ch. xxx. 13. been fulfilled, " There shall 
 be no more a prince of the land of Egypt." On 
 the death of Alexander the conqueror of Egypt, 
 Ptolemy Lagus, afterwards called Sotor, attained 
 the viceroyship. He beautified Alexandria, and 
 made it the capital of his dominions ; added Pa- 
 lestine, Syria, and Phoenicia to his dominions, and 
 died 284 b. c. He was succeeded by Ptolemy 
 Philadelphus, who founded Ptolemeus and built 
 the pharos or lighthouse. During the succeeding 
 reigns of Ptolemies, the country was torn to pieces 
 by a series of civil contests, and exposed to dis- 
 gusting scenes of vice, extravagance, and every 
 dreadful enormity. "I will set the Egyptians 
 
AFRICA. 69 
 
 against the Egyptians, and they shall fight every 
 man against his brother, and every one against his 
 neighbour." Isaiah, xix. 2. The death of Cleo- 
 patra closed the dynasty of the Ptolemies, which 
 had lasted 294 years, and Egypt became a Roman 
 province. Christianity was introduced into Egypt 
 at an early period ; for there was, at the outpour- 
 ing of the Holy Ghost in Jerusalem, proselytes 
 from Egypt, Libya, and Cyrene; and the extensive 
 commerce of Alexandria, and its proximity to Pa- 
 lestine, would offer an easy entrance for the Gospel. 
 In this land of superstition the first example of a 
 monastic life was given by Anthony of saintly fame ; 
 and so well did it please the Egyptians, that in a 
 short time nearly half the men were monks ; but 
 the church of Alexandria became corrupt at a 
 very early date. For several centuries Egypt was 
 governed by the descendants of Omar as a Ma- 
 homedan province. In 1171 Saladin, a man of 
 great power, resolution, and ambition, assumed 
 the whole command while a vizier, and in 1173 
 proclaimed himself king : not being a descendant 
 of Mahomed, he could not be called kaliffe. Sa- 
 ladin turned his arms against the Christians, and 
 performed prodigies of valour, not only in defence 
 of the cities already in possession of the Chris- 
 tians, but against those possessed by the Turks 
 also, until he had reduced nearly the whole of 
 Palestine under his control. All Europe now 
 roused themselves, in order to rescue a country so 
 dear to every Christian from the hands of infi- 
 delity. For three years, the Crusaders were baffled 
 
70 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 in all their attempts ; but the Crusade in which 
 Richard Coeur de Leon of England joined Philip 
 of France was destined to be more successful. 
 Richard was the most intrepid warrior Saladin had 
 yet encountered, and his success proportionate: 
 the whole sea coast from Jaffa to Tyre was sur- 
 rendered to the Christians, and the Pilgrims of 
 Europe travelling to Jerusalem were to be pro- 
 tected by Saladin himself. After these and other 
 concessions, a truce for three years three months 
 three days and three hours, was concluded, and the 
 remainder of the armies returned home. From 
 this period the history of Egypt is totally without 
 interest until 1250, when the Mamelukes, a band 
 of Circassian slaves, who had been trained to war, 
 drove the Sultan ab Saleh from the throne, and 
 usurped the government, which they held until 
 1517. Selim, the Turkish sultan, attacked them, 
 and overthrew their government, establishing a 
 kind of republic, in which the Mamelukes had 
 considerable power for nearly 300 years. Egypt 
 was the scene of violent contention; sometimes 
 under a sort of independent government, but more 
 frequently under various tribes of Turks, and 
 sometimes under that of the Porte. In this state 
 it was when, in 1798, the French under Bona- 
 parte landed at Morabou with 5000 troops, marched 
 to Alexandria, put to flight its Arab and Mame- 
 luke defenders, and made himself master of the 
 city. He then called together the Turkish chiefs, 
 and assured them his only desire was to rescue 
 the country from oppression, professing at the 
 
AFRICA. 71 
 
 same time the highest respect for the Moham- 
 medan religion ; but while thus professing friend- 
 ship he rapidly made himself master of one town 
 after another, until the whole of Lower Egypt 
 was under his command, from which they were 
 only driven by several years of severe contest on 
 the part of the British, in which those English 
 heroes Nelson and Sir Sydney Smith were con- 
 spicuous and brilliant actors. During this ex- 
 traordinary conflict, some acts of Bonaparte were 
 marked with such savage cruelty and reckless 
 breaches of truth and honour, as must ever stain 
 his name and character with blood. But the in- 
 ternal state of Egypt has undergone an important 
 revolution since these transactions, a revolution 
 brought about by the extraordinary talents and 
 energies of Mahomed Ali. Mahomed Ali Pasha 
 was born in Cavallo, an ancient town in Mace- 
 donia : his father was at the head of the police, 
 and Mahomed engaged in the tobacco trade ; but 
 during the French invasion he became an officer 
 in the Turkish forces, and under the auspices of 
 the English soon became distinguished by a daunt- 
 less bravery, that placed him at the head of every 
 expedition. In the first place, his plans seem to 
 have had no other end than the desire of command 
 in his corps ; but the ease with which he attained 
 one step after the other, awakened ambition, and 
 led to power, aided by the stepping-stones of force 
 and fraud. Mahomed had not enjoyed the ad- 
 vantages of education : even reading and writing 
 were attainments of later life, and seldom brought 
 
72 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 into use. Endowed with a keen sense of what was 
 best and most expedient, he at all times entered 
 with avidity into every extensive plan, and having 
 no scruples of conscience to withhold him, brought 
 them to a successful termination. With Mahomed 
 a new epoch dawned upon the East ; literature and 
 science promised to travel hand in hand with Is- 
 lamism ; and though the means used may not 
 always have been defensible, yet the result has 
 raised a lasting monument to the memory of its 
 instruments. 
 
 ABYSSINIA. 
 
 This country corresponds to the southern part 
 of ancient Ethiopia. The natives disdain the name 
 of Abyssinia, which comes from the Arabic 
 Habesh, a mixed people. They call themselves 
 Agazians, and their country Agazi, or Ghez. 
 Their history mounts to a period about 1000 years 
 B. c, from Arwo, the Serpent King. They reckon 
 five dynasties : but their history is completely 
 mingled with fable, and nothing known on which 
 reliance can be placed. That the Christian reli- 
 gion was introduced into Ethiopia at a very early 
 period, is proved by the account given of the 
 Eunuch in Acts, viii. 26. Yet it does not appear 
 to have flourished, but to have been opposed by 
 the Jews and the Kerishites until about 530, 
 when several missionaries proceeded to Abyssinia, 
 and for a time fanned the expiring embers of 
 
AFRICA. 73 
 
 Christianity into a flame, which was however af- 
 terwards crushed by hordes of Musselmen ; so that 
 their mountains alone enabled the poor Abyssi- 
 nians to maintain their natural character or their 
 religion. They were an unsettled people, fre- 
 quently engaged in wars, and apparently without 
 trade or commerce, until the 14th century, when 
 some Abyssinian priests, who visited Europe, gave 
 such a favourable account of their country, that 
 the Portuguese were induced to visit various parts 
 of the African coast, in the course of which the 
 Cape of Good Hope was discovered, and the Por- 
 tuguese became allies of the Abyssinians, and 
 assisted them in repelling the attacks of a Ma- 
 hommedan chief who reigned in the kingdom of 
 Arras, eastward of Choa. Many Catholic Mis- 
 sionaries gained access to this country during its 
 connection with Portugal ; but about the end of 
 the 16th century we find the Emperor Socinius 
 abjuring the Christian faith, and expelling all 
 Christian agents, priests, missionaries, &c, from 
 the country, which from that time was less ac- 
 cessible to the Europeans. In 1796 Bruce visited 
 Abyssinia. Its next European visitor was Salt, in 
 1805, and again in 1809 ; and it is to these tra- 
 vellers alone that we are indebted for our present 
 imperfect acquaintance with Abyssinia. 
 
 BARBARY. 
 
 Barbary is one of the regions of Africa earliest 
 known in history. The Phoenicians appear to 
 
 E 
 
74 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 have navigated its coast above 1000 years before 
 Christ. In 886 B. c. a colony of this people, 
 under Dido, founded the far-famed city of Car- 
 thage. The Romans, after the destruction of that 
 city, disputed the possession of the country with 
 the Moors, I^umidians, Africans, and Lybians. 
 Having at last made themselves masters of it, they 
 divided it into five provinces — Pentapolis, Cyre- 
 naica, Africa Propria, Numidia, and Mauri- 
 tania. In the time of Constantine a part of the 
 country had become a province of Egypt ; another 
 part was a province of Spain ; and the country 
 between was known as Africa. In the 4th cen- 
 tury the Yandals made themselves masters of the 
 Roman possessions in that part of the globe, and 
 marked their progress by blood and devastation. 
 In the early part of the 5th century Belisarius, on 
 the part of Greece, recovered Barbary, and made 
 it a part of the Greek empire ; but in 697 it was 
 subdued by the Mahommedan Arabs. The Sara- 
 cens now governed northern Africa, and under 
 them the arts and sciences flourished, and every 
 thing wore a pleasing aspect. From thence the 
 Saracens or Moors passed over into Spain, and 
 succeeded in planting their standard in every 
 valuable province. They, however, gradually de- 
 clined, and were obliged to seek the aid of the 
 Turks ; and these people laid the foundation of 
 those piratical states in Barbary which so long 
 annoyed and robbed every Christian power in Eu- 
 rope. To such a height had their piratical boldness 
 gained, at one period, that Moorish cruisers actually 
 
AFEICA. 75 
 
 lay under Lundy Island, in the Bristol Channel, to 
 rob traders going from Ireland to the fairs at 
 Bristol. Soon after the subjection of Barbary to 
 the Caliphs it was divided into a number of petty 
 sovereignties, which, though frequently changing, 
 still continue. 
 
 MOROCCO. 
 
 Morocco was the Mauritania of the Ancients, 
 and long under the dominion of the Romans. 
 After the destruction of the Roman empire it fell 
 to the Goths, from the Goths to the Yandals, 
 from the Yandals to the Greeks, from the Greeks 
 to the Saracens. After this they were divided 
 and subjugated by the Fatamites, the Zuheirites, 
 and the Maravedi, whose ecclesiastical and poli- 
 tical sway extended from Algiers to Timbuctoo and 
 Soudan, for eighty years. They were, in the 11th 
 century, overpowered by the Almohades, whose 
 princes assumed the titles of Caliphs. After 
 something like a century, intestine discord laid 
 them open to the incursions of other tribes ; until, 
 about the middle of the twelfth century, a de- 
 scendant of Mahomet seized the sceptre which he 
 bequeathed to his own family, who, notwithstand- 
 ing frequent revolutions, have preserved the sove- 
 reignty of Morocco until the present day. Mulay 
 Abderrahman ascended the throne in 1822. The 
 soil of Morocco is fertile, rich, and loamy. It is 
 never manured, except by the cattle and the burn- 
 E 2 
 
76 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 ing of stubble ; yet they frequently gather sixty 
 fold in their crops. But the Moors cultivate no 
 more than they require, and that with as little 
 trouble as possible ; yet their country abounds 
 in fruits of every kind; oranges, lemons, and 
 grapes grow in their fields and hedges. Oaks, 
 olives, and various kinds of timber grow remark- 
 ably large and fine. Iron mines have been wrought, 
 and the Atlas mountains contain valuable metals. 
 To an industrious enterprising people, such a soil 
 and such resources would be invaluable ; but the 
 Moors are intrinsically idle, and possess neither 
 ingenuity, spirit, nor enterprise, to improve the 
 native riches of their productive country. 
 
 ALGIERS. 
 
 This countiy was, in the earliest period of 
 authentic history, divided between two nations* 
 the Massyli, on the side of Africa Proper, who 
 were the subjects of Massinissa, and the Mas- 
 sassyli, towards Mauritania, who were under the 
 dominion of Syphax. On the defeat of Juba by 
 Caesar, this country became a Roman province. In 
 the sixteenth century the Spaniards invaded Al- 
 giers, when the Algerines called to their aid the 
 celebrated corsair Arnek Barbarossa, who, by va- 
 rious acts of cruelty, injustice, and oppression, 
 made himself master of the country, and with his 
 successors gave it the bad eminence of a piratical 
 state, which it held until chastised t by the British 
 
AFRICA. 77 
 
 fleet a few years since. For several centuries the 
 Algerine corsa ; rs, or pirates, were the terror of 
 Europe a_ d Asia, scourirg the Mediterranean from 
 coast to coast, and committing all kinds of depre- 
 dations and cruelties. James II., William III., 
 and George II., endeavoured to bring them to 
 reasonable terms of treaty ; but the outrageous 
 conduct of the Barbary pirates broke all treaties, 
 and called forth the indignation of the principal 
 maritime powers in Europe. In 1775 the Spa- 
 niards made an attempt at reducing them, but failed 
 for want of cordiality among the commanders. In 
 1783 another effort was made, but proved equally 
 fruitless. In 1816 a British fleet was sent out 
 under Lord Exmouth. The Algerine fleet was re- 
 duced to ashes, the batteries silenced, and one 
 half of the town destroyed, and no course left to 
 the Bey but to cast himself on the mercy of the 
 British Admiral. The terms imposed were severe, 
 but just ; and Lord Exmouth had the satisfaction 
 of giving liberty to 1211 slaves, among whom 
 there was not one Briton. No sooner, however, 
 had the Algerines recovered a little from this se- 
 vere infliction than they resumed their piracies, 
 and committed many outrages upon French and 
 Austrian vessels. In 1830 an expedition was 
 fitted out by France, and succeeded in reducing 
 Algiers, which now belongs to that country, to 
 whom, as lying opposite to Marseilles and TouIod, 
 it must be one of the most desirable countries in 
 the world. We n?ay now hope that the present 
 miserable race of barbarians who occupy Mau- 
 E 3 
 
78 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 ritania will become amalgamated with Christian 
 nations, and thus extend knowledge and civilis- 
 ation together with the sweet and peaceable doc* 
 trines of Christianity, that the religion of the 
 cross may flourish over one of the fairest and 
 most interesting tracts of this earth's surface. 
 
EUROPE. 79 
 
 A GENERAL SURVEY 
 
 THE HISTORY OF EUROPE, 
 
 Europe is the smallest of the general divisions 
 of the globe. It is said to have been peopled by 
 Japhet, a son of Noah ; but of its early history 
 very little is known. The first accounts we have 
 are those of Greece about the 19th century; but 
 these are so mixed with fable that very little can 
 be learnt from them, until about the middle of the 
 24th century, when Athens was founded by 
 Cecrops, and soon after Lacedaemon by Lelex. 
 Thebes and Corinth followed ; and in the early 
 part of the 26th century we find Italy becoming 
 a kingdom, but so mingled with fabulous history 
 that we cannot consider any of the facts really 
 historical until the founding of Rome in 3251 ; 
 and even in this, something of fable mixes. As the 
 Romans became a people and nation fable dis- 
 appears, and their restless ambition soon brings 
 e 4 
 
80 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 us acquainted with the nations of the North, which 
 have since supplied such ample subject for the 
 page of history, and among whom at this day are 
 the greatest kingdoms of the known world. 
 
 RUSSIA. 
 
 Russia, as the largest of the northern nations, 
 demands our first attention. This monarchy is 
 supposed to have been founded by Ruric, who 
 built the city of Ludaga in a.d. 862, and Chris- 
 tianity to have been introduced about 988. The 
 cities of Wladimir and Warsaw were built about 
 1156 by Juric, or George I.; but the history of 
 Russia is nothing but a detail of uninteresting 
 wars with their neighbours the Tartars and other 
 savage tribes, until about the year 1540, when 
 John Basilowitz reconquered it from the Tartars, 
 to whom it had been many years subject, and re- 
 stored its independence. 
 
 About the middle of the 16th century the 
 Russians discovered and conquered Siberia, under 
 their king Feodor, who dying in 1660, the royal 
 line became extinguished, and the country was 
 for twenty years torn and convulsed by wars; 
 when Michael, a descendant from the family of 
 Romanof was elected Czar, with hereditary 
 powers. This prince had much to contend with ; 
 but he put down or destroyed all opposers. About 
 1653 a war with the Turks commenced, which was 
 continued under Alexis till 1681, who established 
 
EUROPE. SI 
 
 the first posts in Russia in his reign. Iron and 
 copper mines were first wrought ; silk and linen 
 manufactures commenced ; internal navigation im- 
 proved; and the first vessels sent to the north 
 of Asia. His son Feodor humbled the nobility, 
 and annihilated their pretensions, by artfully burn- 
 ing their pedigrees and archives. Peter, his step- 
 brother and successor, was a man admirably cal- 
 culated by nature for making progress with a 
 nation yet in barbarism. What Philip had been 
 to Macedonia, Peter became to Russia. His first 
 aim, on coming to the crown, was the forming an 
 army modelled on European tactics. To accomplish 
 this he spared neither time nor trouble. Under his 
 father Alexis he had helped to build and navigate 
 a ship ; he now studied ship-building as an art, 
 established dockyards on the Don, and in 1696 
 equipped twenty-three galleys, besides other ves- 
 sels, with which he defeated the Turkish fleet. 
 After this he travelled through Europe in search 
 of information, worked as a common ship-builder 
 at Amsterdam, and for three years in the English 
 dockyard. Nothing was too low, nothing too high 
 for the observation and aim of Peter. He wielded 
 equally well the hatchet and the lance, the pen 
 and the sword. While in England Peter won 
 the esteem of all ranks of people, and is said to 
 have observed, that if he had not been Czar of 
 Russia he would have wished to be an English 
 admiral. He returned to Russia, carrying with 
 him upwards of 500 English engineers, artists, and 
 mechanics, all of whom he immediately employed 
 E 5 
 
82 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 in the most advantageous manner. Peter now 
 devoted himself to the finances of the state, and 
 the introduction of civilisation and modern Eu- 
 ropean dress, manners, and customs, among his 
 people. In 1700 he declared war against Sweden, 
 and found no mean enemy in young Charles XII., 
 who, however, fell at the siege of Pultowa in 
 1709, which again restored peace for that time; 
 but the whole reign of Peter was a scene of war 
 and contest with Sweden, which however ended, 
 in 1721, greatly to the glory, honour, and interest 
 of Russia. 
 
 Peter died on the 8th of February, 1725, and 
 was succeeded by his wise adviser and excellent 
 wife Catherine, who survived him but two years, 
 and was succeeded by the Empress Anne, widow 
 of the Duke of Courland, and daughter of Peter 
 the Great. After her the Empress Elizabeth, a 
 younger sister, a woman of bold and masculine 
 mind, filled the throne. In July, 1762> Cathe- 
 rine II. widow of Peter III., a princess of Anhault 
 Yerbst, ascended the throne. Catherine was a 
 woman of bold licentious manners, faulty as a pri- 
 vate character, but great as an Empress. Her reign 
 may be regarded as the most glorious and pros- 
 perous in the Russian annals. Among her earliest 
 acts was a confirmation of the peace made by 
 Peter III. with Russia. Indeed the whole reign 
 of this Empress was marked by the encourage- 
 ment given to civilisation, sciences, arts, naviga- 
 tion, and military education. She founded new 
 towns, concluded commercial treaties, divided her 
 
EUROPE. 83 
 
 empire into governments, revised and augmented 
 the laws, and even formed a code of her own; 
 lowered the taxes, relieved the poor from many 
 cruel oppressions of the nobility, and bestowed 
 many favours and privileges on the non-Catholics 
 under her protection. She was successful in her 
 wars with Turkey, Prussia, and Austria ; and, fear- 
 ful of the English dominion on the seas, she formed 
 what was called the northern neutrality, in 1780, 
 during the North American war, in which she was 
 joined by several northern countries and states. 
 The Ottoman Porte, however, was increasingly 
 embittered towards Catherine by all these acts. 
 The Crimea was a matter of constant dispute and 
 contention. Catherine steadfastly refused all Prus- 
 sian and English interference, and finally con- 
 cluded a treaty, and made peace with the Porte 
 herself, in December 1790, by which Russia ob- 
 tained Oxzakof and the lands between the Bog 
 and the Dniester. On the conclusion of the 
 Turkish war Catherine again turned her eyes on 
 Poland, and in 1793 a territory of 86,800 square 
 miles was added to the Russian empire, and such 
 grievous restrictions imposed on the remaining 
 part of Poland as caused a formidable rebellion at 
 Warsaw, headed by Kosciusko ; but it was useless. 
 A third partition took place in 1795 ; and Russia 
 extended her already gigantic dominions, which 
 now reached from the shores of the Baltic, in one 
 line, to the western end of North America and 
 the Japan Islands. 
 
 e 6 
 
M UNIVERSAL HISTOEY. 
 
 The administration of Catherine was successful 
 in the extreme. She conducted the affairs of a 
 vast but semi-barbarous empire through a very 
 critical period of European history, and left it to 
 her successor with an annual revenue doubled in 
 its amount, an aggrandisement o i territory amount- 
 ing to 240,000 square miles, and an immense army 
 and navy. She died in November 1796, and was 
 succeeded by her son Paul I. 
 
 The annals of Eastern despotism do not exhibit 
 the history of a more capricious, tyrannous, or 
 detestable monarch than Paul of Russia. His 
 long-suppressed hatred of his mother burst forth 
 after her death, and revenged itself in every act 
 of cruelty and rebellion towards those persons or 
 institutions she had favoured. The chief of the 
 secret pc-lice soon became, next to the terrible 
 Autocrat, the first person in the realm ; and their 
 united cruelties, follies, and madness, exceed the 
 powers of the pen to describe, or imagination to 
 conceive. In all his transactions with foreign 
 powers, the part he took in the wars then extend- 
 ing through all Europe, and the harshness with 
 which he treated his own nobles, was displayed the 
 same insane and cruel self-will and thirst for 
 power. Under such a government, conspiracies 
 would naturally be formed against the power and 
 even the life of the monarch. Under one of 
 these, at the head of which were three of the 
 Subof family and three of his own generals, Paul 
 was assassinated in his own bed-room, hated by 
 all, regretted by none, on the 23d of March, 1801, 
 
EUROPE. 8 a 
 
 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Alexander I., 
 a man of very different and superior character, 
 who did much to restore the laws and regulations 
 of his grandmother Catherine. 
 
 The senate and cabinet were recognised, op- 
 pression ceased to be felt, intercourse with foreign 
 countries was renewed, and peace and prosperity 
 reigned around. Alexander, however, soon found 
 himself engaged in harassing and expensive wars, 
 sometimes in conjunction with, sometimes in op- 
 position to, Napoleon Bonaparte, who was then 
 pursuing his meteor-like course. The political 
 horizon frequently changed its aspect, and Alex- 
 ander his views ; yet, on the whole, he added to 
 the dignity, wealth, and already enormous extent 
 of his empire. The unfortunate expedition of 
 Bonaparte to Russia in 1812 hastened the crisis 
 of political affairs. In July, 1815, Alexander 
 entered Paris for the second time ; and, after the 
 signing of a general peace, visited England, in 
 company with the King of Prussia and others. 
 In 1820 he banished the Jesuits from Russia and 
 Poland, as well as the large order of Freemasons. 
 Alexander died suddenly at Taganrok, on the 1st 
 of December, 1825, not without strong supposi- 
 tions of having been poisoned. 
 
 Constantine, the next brother, and heir to the 
 throne, having resigned his claim from a conscious 
 unfitness, his younger brother, the Grand Duke 
 Nicholas, ascended the throne in July, 1817. He 
 married the Grand Duchess Alexandrina of Prus- 
 sia, a lady of a strong mind, sound judgment, 
 
86 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 and pure morals, by whom he has several chil- 
 dren, and who, it is said, possesses the strongest 
 influence over him, which is ever exerted for his 
 welfare and the general good. Hitherto the reign 
 of Nicholas has been peaceful and prosperous : he 
 stands well in general esteem, though it is said 
 cruelty towards Poland darkly shades his cha- 
 racter. 
 
 DENMARK. 
 
 The three northern kingdoms, Denmark, 
 Sweden, and Norway, were anciently known 
 under the common appellation of Scandinavia ; 
 but about the time that the power of Rome began 
 to decline, they became known by their depreda- 
 tions as Northmen, or Normans. They esta- 
 blished themselves, under Rollo their leader, on 
 the coast of Normandy, founded two kingdoms in 
 England, peopled the Feroe Islands, the Orkneys, 
 the Shetlands, Iceland, and part of Ireland ; and 
 finally reached Spain, Italy, and Sicily. Every- 
 where these warriors spread the glory of their 
 name ; but they sadly tarnished its brightness by 
 their fierceness, and the cruelty of their princes. 
 The German kings of the Carlovingian race, 
 hoping to check the progress of these marauders, 
 interfered in their policy, which only served to 
 draw them more closely together, under the name 
 of Norwegians and Danes. Gorm subjugated 
 Jutland in 920, and united all the small Danish 
 
EUKOPE. 87 
 
 states under his own sceptre, thus forming the 
 kingdom of Denmark. 
 
 About this time the Christian religion was in- 
 troduced by a missionary into Denmark, but 
 struggled long with the worship of Odin. In 
 1016 5 Canute the Illustrious, great grandson of 
 Gorm, conquered the whole of Norway, com- 
 pleted the conquest of England, and subdued a 
 great part of Scotland. Under him Denmark 
 attained its highest pitch of glory : religion began 
 to gain an ascendency over the horrid rites of 
 Odin, and the blessings of social life to be univer- 
 sally acknowledged. Canute died in 1036, leav- 
 ing a mighty kingdom to weak successors. In 
 1042 England shook off its allegiance, and Nor- 
 way followed the example. 
 
 In 1047, Magnus established a new dynasty, 
 which deprived the government of all power, 
 drained the resources of the country, and reduced 
 the peasants to a state of bondage ; ruined agricul- 
 ture, and threw commerce into the hands of the 
 German Hanseatic towns. Valdemar the Great was 
 the only vigorous ruler of this dynasty ; but he had 
 too much to contend with, and in 1241 divided 
 his weakened kingdom among his sons. This 
 only produced new internal divisions and disputes 
 with the powerful Hanseatic towns, all tending to 
 weaken the state. 
 
 After the death of Olav IV., Margaret, his 
 aunt, daughter of Valdemar III., took the reins of 
 government. This princess, so justly famed in 
 Northern history, succeeded in uniting the crowns 
 
88 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, in 1388j 
 which in 1397 was solemnly ratified by the union 
 of Colmar. This union was, however, unfortunate 
 in its issue. New disturbances and troubles broke 
 out in Sweden and the German provinces, which 
 were found difficult to subdue. 
 
 In 1448, Christian L, of Oldenberg, founder 
 of the present family, was elected by the Danes, 
 and obliged to conclude a treaty with the States, 
 in which he acknowledged Denmark an elective 
 kingdom, but united Norway, Sleswick, and 
 Holstein with the crown of Denmark. 
 
 He was succeeded by his son John, in whose 
 reign the union of Colmar was dissolved, 1523, 
 and his crown wrested from him by the Danish 
 and Norwegian nobility, who placed his brother 
 Frederic on the throne. Frederic, however, found 
 a bed of thorns and a drink of bitter water among 
 the haughty aristocracy, while the oppressed and 
 injured peasantry were often in open rebellion. 
 
 After his death, Christian III. mounted the 
 throne in 1534. He divided Sleswick and Hols- 
 tein with his brothers John and Adolph ; the latter 
 of whom became the founder of the house of 
 Holstein- Got torp ; but this partition proved a 
 fertile source of family disputes. 
 
 The reigns of Frederic II. and Christian IV. 
 were full of wars with Sweden and other powers, 
 to the great injury of Denmark. 
 
 In 1648 Christian was succeeded by his son, 
 Frederic III., a man of considerable courage and 
 ability. Frederic soon found himself engaged in 
 
EUKOPE, 89 
 
 a war with Charles Gustavus of Sweden, who*- 
 aided by the Dutch, would probably have made 
 himself master of Denmark, had not Cromwell, 
 the English Protector, interposed in favour of 
 Frederic. After several treaties, broken by either 
 the Dutch or the Danes, England eventually suc- 
 ceeded in effecting a peace between them, by 
 yielding considerable territory to the Dutch and 
 Swedes. 
 
 Until 1660 the monarchy was elective, but the 
 choice was confined to the reigning family. The 
 power of the king was extremely limited, while 
 that of the nobles was exorbitant. The commons 
 had hitherto borne the burden of the government ; 
 but the kingdom was now exhausted by the war 
 which had just terminated. An assembly of the 
 States was therefore called, and, after much con- 
 tention and difficulty, the crown was declared 
 hereditary in the female as well as male line ; 
 and in 1665 the king, by virtue of the powers 
 conferred on him, promulgated the lex regia, a 
 royal line, by which the kings of Denmark were 
 declared absolute, and this has ever since been the 
 fundamental law of Denmark. Under Frederic IY. 
 commerce began to revive ; and the death of 
 Charles XII., in 1718, put an end to the strug- 
 gles with Sweden, after which a peace of nearly 
 one hundred years ensued. 
 
 Frederic Y. began to reign in 1746, and was 
 sorely pressed upon by the formidable Peter of 
 Russia. He was, however, a man of great courage 
 and judgment, and on Catherine's accession he 
 
90 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 entered into negociations and arrangements highly 
 advantageous to Denmark,* by which the ground 
 of dispute between the different lines of Holstein 
 and the kings of Denmark were effectually re- 
 moved. 
 
 Christian VII. ascended the throne in 1766, 
 and lived until 1808 ; but the greater part of that 
 time he was deranged, and for the last twenty- 
 four years his son Frederic had governed. The 
 reign of Christian was during an important period 
 of European history. The early part of his reign 
 was disturbed by Struenzee, a man of great talents 
 and restless overbearing disposition, who was 
 eventually brought to the scaffold in 1792. Den- 
 mark obtained for herself the honour of being the 
 first European power that proscribed and forbid 
 the horrible traffic in slaves, which had been car- 
 ried on to a great extent. 
 
 During the French revolution Denmark main- 
 tained a strict neutrality, until about 1800, when, 
 finding herself hemmed in by the other powers, 
 she joined the northern armed neutrality. On the 
 death of Paul, however, which changed the po- 
 litics of Russia, both Denmark and Russia en- 
 tered into a treaty with England, which treaty 
 was soon broken, and Denmark was obliged to re- 
 sign all her fleet into the hands of the English, 
 until a general peace should be concluded. In 
 1807 Denmark entered into a treaty with France, 
 and declared war against England and Sweden? 
 by which, however, she gained nothing but loss 
 and trouble ; for Bernadotte, finding himself be- 
 
EUROPE. 91 
 
 tween the great allied powers of Russia and Eng- 
 land, entered into treaties with both, and after the 
 battle of Leipzig compelled the Danes to enter 
 into a peace with Sweden and Great Britain. 
 At the general peace of 1815 Denmark obtained 
 Lauenburg and a sum of money from Prussia, in 
 exchange for Pomerania and Rugens ; and the king 
 entered into the German confederation, in which 
 he holds three votes in the duchies of Holstein 
 and Lauenburg. Since that time to 1848 Den- 
 mark had enjoyed a profound peace, and in some 
 degree recovered her commercial prosperity. But 
 the revolutionary spirit, which so suddenly spread 
 itself over great part of Europe, has broken out in 
 Denmark, and will probably produce important 
 changes ; for a bad government and limited re- 
 sources are fatal enemies to confidence or improve- 
 ment, and require great prudence and energy to 
 restore peace to a dissatisfied excited people. 
 
 SWEDEN. 
 
 The aboriginal inhabitants of Sweden were of 
 Finnic and Lapponian extraction. They appear to 
 have retreated to the higher latitudes before the 
 advancing population of the German nations. 
 They were governed by chiefs sprung from the 
 fabulous family of Odin. From the 5th to the 10th 
 century we find them assuming the name and go- 
 verning as kings of Upsala. In 994, Olof em- 
 
92 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 braced Christian! !y, and formed a regular govern- 
 ment. In 1250, the powers 1 family of Folkungen 
 mounted the throne, and the succession was fixed 
 in their family ; but, tired of their oppressors, the 
 Swedes revolted, and in 1363 gave the crown to 
 Albert of Mecklenburg. He, however, soon fell in 
 a battle against the Danes ; when Margaret, queen 
 of Denmark and Norway, umted Sweden to them, 
 which was confirmed, in 1397, by the treaty of 
 Colmar. Troubles, rebellions, and various changes 
 were produced by this union, until, in 1520, Chris- 
 tian II. of Denmark, having invaded Sweden, was 
 recognised as king by the Swedish States, but 
 soon became obnoxious to his subjects by his 
 cruelty and treachery. 
 
 Among the hostages who had been treacherously 
 carried prisoners to Denmark was Gustavus Yasa, 
 one of those superior daring and undaunted spirits, 
 which, when united with high intellect, seem formed 
 by nature for grand and mighty exploits — to com- 
 mand the whirlwind and direct the storm. Gus- 
 tavus placed himself at the head of his discon- 
 tented countrymen, and, having driven the Danes 
 out of Sweden, was, in 1523, proclaimed their 
 king, and the succession secured to his family. 
 Under Gustavus Yasa the Eeformation was intro- 
 duced and encouraged ; the States of the Church 
 added to those of the Crown ; commerce and navi- 
 gation were promoted by alliances with England 
 and Holland; many independent conquests and 
 additions were made to the kingdom ; and pros- 
 perity and improvement took the places of anarchy 
 
EUROPE, 93 
 
 and confusion. After his death several members 
 of his family succeeded with various success ; but 
 none of them very eminent, until Gustavus Adol- 
 phus ascended the throne in 16 11, in the eighteenth 
 year of his age. Under his management the king- 
 dom enjoyed a degree of solidity hitherto unknown; 
 although the progress of population and civilis- 
 ation was checked by his frequent wars with 
 Russia, Denmark, and Poland. In 1617 he con- 
 cluded a peace with Russia, by which he gained 
 Jugermanland ; and in 1629 an armistice with 
 Poland, by which he gained Livonia : the great 
 object of his wishes was now within his power. 
 
 In. June 1630, Gustavus landed in Pomerania 
 with 30,000 men, and, being joined by several 
 German Protestant Princes, gained the victory of 
 Breckenfeld over the imperious general Tilly. 
 From this time the influence of Sweden over the 
 political destinies of the north-west of Europe was 
 immense. Gustavus was every where hailed by 
 the Protestants as their Deliverer. His glory and 
 his schemes were, however, cut short at the battle 
 of Lutzen, where, in all probability, he fell by the 
 hand of a traitor in the hour of victory. Gus- 
 tavus was succeeded by his infant daughter Chris- 
 tina, during whose minority the celebrated chan- 
 cellor, Oxen sterna, held the reins of government, 
 and conducted the wars of Germany ; in which the 
 heroes, Bernard of Wiemar, Bannin, Wrangele, 
 Torstensen, and Koningsmark exalted the Swedish 
 name, and ended the contest gloriously for Sweden, 
 having added very largely to her territory and her 
 
94 UNIVERSAL, HISTORY. 
 
 possessions, her honour and her reputation. The 
 distinguishing features in the character of Chris- 
 tina were eccentricity and inconstancy. She fa- 
 voured learning and science, and affected a love of 
 philosophic ease. After renouncing that religion 
 for which her ancestors had suffered the loss of so 
 much blood and treasure, and for which her noble 
 father had sacrificed his life, she abdicated her 
 throne in 1654, and retired to a convent in Rome, 
 where she ended her inglorious days. 
 
 Christina was succeeded by her cousin, Charles 
 Gustavus, Prince Palatine of Zwiebriicken, who, 
 after a turbulent and active reign of six years, 
 restored peace to the North by his sudden death, 
 and was succeeded by his son Charles, then a 
 minor. Nothing particular occurred in his reign, 
 which as usual was disturbed by war, until 1680, 
 when Charles married Eleanor of Denmark, and 
 passed the remainder of his reign in tranquillity. 
 He died in April 1697, and was succeeded by his 
 son, the famous Charles XII., then only fifteen 
 years of age. 
 
 CHARLES XII. 
 
 Sweden was at the height of her glory when 
 Charles came to the crown. He was absolute 
 master of Sweden, Finland, Carelin, Ingerman- 
 land, Livonia, the Duchies of Bremen and Verden, 
 the Isle of Rugen, and great part of Pomerania. 
 His subjects were poor but loyal, brave and hardy: 
 
EUKOPE. 95 
 
 his finances in excellent condition, and his admi- 
 nistration in the hands of able and excellent mi- 
 nisters. But Charles, though a warrior, was no 
 statesman ; and his frantic exploits bear more the 
 character of romance than of history. His reign 
 of twenty-one years is but a succession of ill- 
 directed wild warfare, tending little to the true 
 glory of Sweden, and still less to the welfare of 
 the Northern nations. 
 
 After the siege of Pultowa Charles fled to 
 Bendar, where he placed himself under the pro- 
 tection of Sultan Achmet III. After a residence 
 of five years he suddenly appeared at Stralsund, 
 demanding the restoration of Strettin, which 
 William Frederic of Prussia had taken during his 
 absence. Failing in this, and finding England op- 
 posed to him, Charles tried to enter into a nego- 
 ciation with the Czar of Russia, hoping to indem- 
 nify himself by the conquest of Norway; but, 
 while engaged in the siege of Fredericstadt, he 
 was shot on the 13th of November, 1718. Upon 
 the death of her brother, Ulrica Eleonora, his 
 youngest sister, was elected queen, but was fated 
 to find a throne thickly planted with thorns. 
 Wars, disturbances, and revolts of every kind 
 broke out around her. No sooner was one demand 
 granted or one concession made, than another was 
 demanded with greater impetuosity. Under the 
 prevalence of the aristocracy two parties, distin- 
 guished as "Hats" and "Bonnets," distracted the 
 council. The preponderance of the " Hats " brought 
 on a war with Russia, in the midst of which 
 
96 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Eleanor died, and was succeeded by her nephew, 
 Charles Peter of Holstein, who, with his suc- 
 cessor Adolphus Frederic, held the government 
 during a few years of turbulence and disorders. 
 Gustavus III., son of Adolphus Frederic, as- 
 cended the throne in February 1771, and resolved 
 by a bold stroke to put an end to the intestine 
 divisions which had so long torn the country. He 
 declared the constitution of 1680 to be again the 
 law of the kingdom, and, relinquishing his unli- 
 mited authority, shared it with the four classes 
 comprising the states of nobility, clergy, citizens, 
 and peasantry. The energies of the kingdom now 
 gained strength : commerce and industry revived, 
 and every thing bore the semblance of prosperity. 
 He was, however, soon embroiled in a war by 
 their old enemy Russia, in which Grustavus dis- 
 played great courage and much political acumen 
 and judgment. After obtaining many decided 
 advantages for Sweden, Gustavus was assassinated 
 at a masquerade by Ankerstrom, a deed doubtless 
 prompted by the long hatred of the aristocracy. 
 Gustavus was succeeded by his son, who, being a 
 minor, his uncle, Duke Charles of Sudermania, 
 was made regent. Charles acted with prudence 
 and circumspection, and maintained the inde- 
 pendence of the country against the threats of 
 Russia, who insisted on forming the league against 
 France. Gustavus took upon himself the sove- 
 reignty in 1800, and after the death of Paui 
 entered into a treaty of commerce with Russia and 
 England, and no longer able to conceal his dislike 
 
EUROPE. 97 
 
 of Napoleon, entered into a league with England 
 against France in 1805. 
 
 Gustavus, however, was versatile, selfish, and 
 deceitful ; a violator of treaties, and a breaker of 
 pledges ; defending both England and Russia as 
 it suited his purposes. A disadvantageous war 
 with Norway exhausted its finances ; and his bad 
 conduct towards his own guards brought on his 
 dethronement, in April 1809, when his posterity 
 were for ever excluded from the Swedish throne, 
 and the Duke of Suclermania mounted it, under 
 the title of Charles XIII. ; but as he was aged, 
 and without an heir, Augustus of Sliswick was 
 named by the States as his successor. 
 
 In January, 1810, Sweden joined the conti- 
 nental system against England; and in August 
 of the same year Buonaparte forced them to elect 
 his general, Bernadotte, Prince of Porto Corvo, 
 heir to the throne, under the name of Charles 
 John, and soon acquired a powerful influence in 
 the direction of the government. By the peace 
 of 1814 Sweden obtained Norway, and resigned 
 Swedish Pomerania to Denmark. The Nor- 
 wegians, indeed, made an attempt, under Chris- 
 tian Frederic of Holstein Sliswick, to form an 
 independent kingdom, but only drew contempt on 
 themselves. Charles XIII. died in February, 
 1818, and Charles John XIV. ascended the 
 Swedish throne, though opposed by the Bourbon 
 party. In 1824 Charles named his son, the Prince 
 Oscar, viceroy of Norway; and in 1827, the 
 Crown Princess, daughter of Prince Eugene, 
 
 F 
 
98 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 former viceroy of Italy, gave birth to a son, who 
 had received the name and title of Francis Gus- 
 tavus Oscar, Duke of Upland. Charles John 
 died, after a useful and peaceable reign, univer- 
 sally respected, and was succeeded by his son 
 Oscar. 
 
 NORWAY. 
 
 As early as the year 870 A. d., we find a Nor- 
 wegian king or chief, Harold Haffager, the fair- 
 haired, spreading terror and desolation throughout 
 the Hebrides. This chief founded that authority 
 which the kings of Norway and Denmark so long 
 held over the Orkneys. Olaf I. having been con- 
 verted to Christianity in England, compelled his 
 subjects to embrace that faith, which was sup- 
 ported by his successors. Norway appears to 
 have been frequently subdued by Denmark, and 
 then again to be governed by its own kings, until 
 the latter part of the 13th century, when Mar- 
 garet (daughter of Valdemar III.), Queen of 
 Denmark, succeeded her son as Queen of Norway. 
 From that time till 1814 the two kingdoms con- 
 tinued one government. At that time the King 
 of Denmark, in his character of King of Norway, 
 ceded the kingdom to his Majesty of Sweden, to 
 be thenceforth united to that kingdom. 
 
 Norway is a cold, sterile, rocky country ; but 
 the natives are cheerful, happy, industrious, and 
 good-looking. They are a moral, religious people. 
 
EUROPE. 99 
 
 The king is the head of the Church. Norway 
 has its own language, but cannot be said to pos- 
 sess any national literature. Its eminent men 
 have written in Danish ; but the Norwegians are 
 not destitute of taste. Mathematics, natural his- 
 tory, and history are cultivated. Newspapers 
 were established in 1803 : the periodicals of Ger- 
 many are likewise read ; and they have a Royal 
 Society of Science at Drontheim. 
 
 GERMANY. 
 
 Under the name of Germania, the Romans 
 comprehended not only the wild country, covered 
 with enormous forests, lakes, and morasses, which 
 was bounded by the Danube, the Rhine, the Ger- 
 man Ocean, and the Vistula, but also Denmark, 
 Norway, Sweden, Finland, Livonia, and Poland. 
 All these countries, forming one third of Europe, 
 were inhabited by tribes whose features, manners, 
 and language bespoke a common origin, and whom 
 they believed to be an indigenous race, the imme- 
 diate offspring of the soil, without adventitious 
 mixture from other countries. 
 
 Whether the Scandinavian mythology was an- 
 ciently that of the German is an undecided ques- 
 tion : but we find in both the same gods : in both, 
 Odin or Woden is the oldest : Friga, his wife, 
 Thor, the god of Thunder, and many others, are 
 objects of equal worship in both. The Romans 
 first became acquainted with the Germans about 
 F 2 
 
100 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the year 640 of Rome, 111 before Christ, when a 
 wild tribe, calling themselves Cimbri, appeared 
 on the Alps, and defeated the Consul Papirins 
 Carbo. 
 
 The Teutones were the next, who, crossing the 
 Western, and the Cimbri and Ambrones the 
 Northern Alps, were met by Marius, who de- 
 feated the Teutones near the place now called 
 Aix, in Provence. 
 
 When Caesar had subdued the Gauls, and car- 
 ried his victorious arms to the Rhine, he found a 
 nation called Germans, whom Caesar obliged to re- 
 treat beyond the Rhine. The civil wars of Rome 
 afterwards turned the attention of its generals 
 from Germany ; and the tribes, during the inter- 
 val, made various inroads into Gaul. The body- 
 guard of Augustus was composed of Germans. 
 Tiberius advanced to the Elbe, and Germany 
 would probably have become a Roman province, 
 if his successor Varus had not, by violent mea- 
 sures, destroyed the advantages which his prede- 
 cessor had gained. The Romans under Ger- 
 manicus made another attempt to gain a footing 
 in Germany, but failed ; and from this time the 
 different German tribes greatly distracted their 
 government. Whether the Goths, as is generally 
 believed, were originally located beyond the Baltic, 
 in the extreme North, is uncertain : they are first 
 mentioned as appearing under Carracalla, A. D. 
 215, on the banks of the Danube. Here they 
 mingled with other tribes, and extended across 
 the north and towards the south-east. In 367 the 
 
EUROPE. 101 
 
 empire of the Goths was divided into two parts, 
 — the kingdom of the Ostrogoths at the Black 
 Sea, and the Visigoths in Dacia. Alaric, King: of 
 the Visigoths, took and pillaged Rome in 409. 
 
 The subversion of the Roman Empire in the 
 West, under Genseric king of the Yandals, took 
 place in 455; and in 476 Augustulus, the last of 
 the Emperors of the Occident, was seized at Ra- 
 venna by Odoacer, chief of the German auxiliaries, 
 who made himself king. Fourteen years after- 
 wards he was conquered by Theodoric, and the 
 Roman Empire in the West entirely destroyed. 
 With the destruction of the Western Empire a 
 new social constitution was introduced into Europe, 
 which with its various forms and modifications 
 appears among those of the present day. The 
 period, from the destruction of the Empire to the 
 discovery of America in 1492, is called the Middle 
 Ages, during which new kingdoms and new con- 
 stitutions were formed under the influence of the 
 feudal system, the Christian religion, and in- 
 creasing civilisation. 
 
 THE MEROVINGIAN DTNASTY. 
 
 Under the Merovingians the Franks sunk into 
 decay, but revived in the family of Pepin, the last 
 Merovingian king. Childeric III. was compelled 
 to retire to a convent in 752, when Pepin was 
 raised to the throne. Pepin died in 768, and was 
 succeeded by his son Charlemagne, who through a 
 F 3 
 
102 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 reign of forty-six years pursued one design ; viz. 
 to unite all the nations of German origin into one 
 political body, under one chief; to establish their 
 preponderance over neighbouring states; to ci- 
 vilise them by the introduction of arts and sciences; 
 and, by abolishing the power of independent dukes, 
 to unite all the branches of government in his own 
 person. In prosecution of this plan Charlemagne 
 commenced a war against the Saxons, who had 
 long struggled with his predecessors ; but it cost 
 him thirty years of hard labour to tame the spirit 
 and overturn the power of this gallant people, and 
 to introduce Christianity among them. He ob- 
 tained an easier conquest over the Longobards, 
 and united them to the crown of the Franks, and 
 in 778 conquered Spain, giving it the name of 
 the Spanish Marches. Soon after the imperial 
 dignity, which had lain in abeyance since 476, was 
 revived in the person of Charlemagne by Eope 
 Leo, who placed the imperial crown on his head 
 while kneeling at the altar in the church of 
 St. Peter, in celebration of Christmas. 
 
 Thus the empire of Charlemagne extended from 
 the Tiber to the Eider; from the Ebro in Spain 
 to the German Ocean ; and from the Atlantic to 
 the Elbe and river Raab in Hungary. Charle- 
 magne was not a mere statesman and a soldier : 
 he united to high talents in these characters a 
 genuine love for the liberal arts and sciences, and 
 did every thing in his power to promote their 
 cultivation. He brought the clergy under a better 
 discipline, administered the laws justly, and did 
 
EUROPE. 103 
 
 for a rude and barbarous age what a master spirit 
 only could effect, and what can never be estimated 
 too highly. 
 
 Charlemagne was succeeded by the only one of 
 his sons who survived him, Louis le Debonnaire, a 
 good-natured and highly devout man, but who 
 possessed none of the high, rare qualities of his 
 glorious father. Under him the kingdom was 
 divided among his four sons, and rebellions and 
 dissensions distracted every part. These were at 
 last accommodated by the celebrated treaty of 
 Verdun in 843 ; by which Lothar, as Emperor, 
 was given Italy and Lorraine; Charles, France 
 properly so called ; and Louis, all Germany on the 
 right of the Rhine. Thus Germany and France 
 became independent kingdoms. 
 
 After the death of Louis the kingdom was 
 again divided into three parts, called Bavaria, 
 Franconia, and Alemannia, by his sons Carloman, 
 Louis, and Charles-le- Gras, under whom, after 
 the death of his brothers, it was again united, and 
 he was also recognised as king of France. This 
 lasted but a short time. 
 
 In 911 the Carlovingian race were extinguished 
 in Germany, and in 919 Henry, Duke of Saxony, 
 was elected as Henry I. Five Henrys, and one 
 Conrad of the House of Saxony, succeeded each 
 other, during which many changes took place. 
 Disputes with the Popes arose: councils were 
 held, and the Crusades were undertaken, and 
 eventually proved advantageous to Germany by 
 F 4 
 
104 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 increasing commerce, and developing a better poll 
 tical constitution. 
 
 HOUSE OF HOHENSTAUFEN. 
 
 Conrad of Hohenstaufen, Duke of Franconia, 
 was elected to the crown in 1138 : he was engaged 
 in many struggles with his rebellious subjects; 
 undertook a crusade, and died two years after his 
 return from Palestine in 1152, and was succeeded 
 by his nephew Frederic of Suabia, in whose reign 
 the contests between the Guelphs and Ghibelines 
 commenced. He undertook a crusade when almost 
 seventy years of age, but was drowned in at- 
 tempting to cross the Calycadmus on horseback. 
 
 Henry IV. succeeded his father, whose am- 
 bition he inherited, but not his spirit or his virtues. 
 His reign was marked by his dishonourable im- 
 prisonment of Richard Coeur de Lion of England, 
 who on his return from Palestine, being thrown 
 by a storm on the Italian coast, was given up by 
 the Emperor to his enemy, Leopold of Austria. 
 He obtained possession of the Sicilian States in 
 1194, but governed with so much cruelty as to 
 entail eternal ignominy on his name. Henry died 
 in 1197, and was succeeded by his son Frederic, 
 who was constantly engaged in quarrels and broils 
 with the Pope. He was succeeded by Conrad, 
 Manfred, and Conradin, who was taken prisoner 
 by Charles of Anjou, and publicly executed at 
 Naples, on the 29th of October, 1218. With 
 
EUEOPE. 105 
 
 him expired the powerful House of Hohen- 
 staufen. 
 
 Rudolph of Hapsburg, a man in every way 
 fitted to hold the reins of government during so 
 stormy a period, mounted the imperial throne. 
 Hudolph united valour, gallantry, experience, and 
 prudence in his character : he took and destroyed 
 upwards of seventy castles, whose owners had 
 made robbery their profession : he united the in- 
 terests of three German electors with his own, by 
 the marriages of his daughters, and obtained Bo- 
 hemia from King Ottocar. He was succeeded by 
 Albrecht, or Albert I., a man in every respect his 
 inferior, — proud, selfish, and mean. He it was 
 whom William Tell so nobly and so boldly op- 
 posed, and from whose tyranny he rescued his 
 countrv. 
 
 Louis of Bavaria and Charles of Bohemia suc- 
 ceeded. The latter founded the University of 
 Prague, 1348. He was succeeded by his son Wen- 
 ceslaus, an arbitrary, whimsical ruler, who was 
 deposed and succeeded by his brother Sigismund, 
 a man of great talent, but faulty as his brother. 
 It was in his reign that the celebrated Council of 
 Constance was held, on account of the acknow- 
 ledged improvement necessary in the church. 
 
 The doctrines of Wickliff had been brought to 
 Prague by Jerome, who had studied at Oxford, 
 and were now making great progress in Bohemia 
 and Germany. A council was therefore con- 
 voked, in 1414, at Constance; but that council 
 incurred eternal infamy and hatred by the burning 
 F 5 
 
106 TOIVEESAL HISTOEY. 
 
 of Huss and Jerome of Prague. They both died 
 with Christian courage and fortitude ; and the 
 flame of their pile soon shed its glorious light 
 throughout Germany, — persecution only adding 
 fuel to the flame. Thus dawned that magnifi- 
 cently great and glorious day which was to shine 
 so brilliantly over the sixteenth century. 
 
 In 1419 forty, thousand people assembled on a 
 mountain, to which they gave the name of Mount 
 Tabor, and, with John Ziska at their head, held 
 public worship, and took the holy sacrament, 
 after the manner of the great reforming martyrs, 
 Huss and Jerome. 
 
 Frederic III., Duke of Austria, was raised to 
 the German throne in 1440. He reigned for 
 half a century, during which a new order of 
 things and mighty changes took place around him. 
 The Byzantine empire was destroyed by the 
 Osman Turks ; Spain united by the marriage of 
 Ferdinand and Isabella. Gunpowder was intro- 
 duced ; new universities instituted ; and the art 
 of printing introduced ; the passage of the Cape 
 of Good Hope first made, and America dis- 
 covered. But Frederic took no part in all these 
 great events and changes. Time was, however, 
 bringing great things to pass. His son Maxi- 
 milian, Archduke of Austria, married Maria, only 
 daughter and heiress of " Charles the Bold" of 
 Burgundy ; thus uniting her rich inheritance with 
 that of Hapsburg. Under the government of 
 Maximilian Germany was divided into ten 
 circles, for the better execution of the decisions 
 
EUROPE. 107 
 
 of the Imperial Chamber, before whom all com- 
 plaints were to be brought, — a fine of 1000 gold 
 marks having been imposed on all who should 
 disturb the peace. But the Almighty was work- 
 ing his own work, and vain was the arm of man 
 to oppose him. 
 
 The Reformation proceeded from the Univer- 
 sity of Wittemberg. Disaffection to the church 
 of Rome was first excited by the scandalous sale 
 of indulgences by the Dominican friar Tetzel. 
 Martin Luther, a monk of the Augustin order, 
 having been eye-witness of the corruptions of the 
 Papal court at Rome, and disgusted with the 
 sight, set himself to oppose Tetzel with great 
 zeal and fervour. At first he only declared him- 
 self hostile to the sale of indulgences : but reason- 
 ing and reflection opened his eyes, and growing 
 bold in the faith, he soon began to shake the 
 Papal hierarchy to its foundation by the thunders 
 of his eloquence and the unspeakable worth of 
 his cause. The Almighty fiat had now gone 
 forth ; a quenchless beam of light irradiated the 
 moral darkness with which Europe had been en- 
 shrouded for many centuries. Not the thunders 
 of the Vatican, the ban of Papal princes, nor the 
 voice of assembled councils, could any longer 
 withhold from the minds of men the great prin- 
 ciples of religious freedom and liberty of con- 
 science. The new doctrines were boldly preached 
 in the universities and in the pulpits, and spread 
 themselves through Sweden, Denmark, Switzer- 
 land, and England. Translations of the Scrip- 
 f 6 
 
108 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 tures were freely distributed. Luther and his 
 friend Melancthon were followed by persecution 
 from the Papal powers, and by thousands of ad- 
 miring converts. The name of Protestants was 
 given to the followers of the new doctrines, 
 because they protested against the Diet of Spires, 
 in 1529. At the Diet of Augsburg, in 1531, 
 they were permi^ed to present their profession of 
 faith, written by Melancthon in twenty-eight 
 chapters. The Diet, however, decided that the 
 new heresy should be put down. Wars and perse- 
 cutions continued to rage ; but the Reformation 
 advanced. 
 
 Ferdinand L, during his short reign, in 1558 — 
 1569, had a severe struggle with the Pope, who 
 required of him to introduce the inquisition 
 throughout Germany, and to abolish all printing- 
 presses, except those he should please to approve. 
 Ferdinand reminded his Holiness that there had 
 been Emperors before there were Popes ; that if 
 the church needed to be represented, it should be 
 by such a head as Christ himself, when on earth, 
 presented; namely, without pomp or worldly power. 
 Since that period no German Emperor has been 
 crowned at Rome. It was at this period, 1563, 
 that the Pope, in order to re-establish his influence 
 in Germany, disseminated the order of the Jesuits, 
 founded by Ignatius Loyola, in 1540. Under 
 Rudolph II., who reigned from 1576 to 1612, 
 were formed the union of the Protestants and the 
 league of the Catholics, of which the consequences 
 were the Thirty Years' War, which was secretly 
 
EUKOPE. 109 
 
 fomented by the Jesuits, in whose hands Rudolph 
 was a mere tool. 
 
 In 1619, Ferdinand II., a pupil of the Jesuits, 
 was elected Emperor, in opposition to the Elector- 
 Palatine, who accepted the crown of Bohemia, 
 relying on the assistance of his father-in-law, 
 James I. of England. The consequences were 
 war and bloodshed, that devastated the country, 
 and overflowed it with the blood of its best 
 subjects, until " He who ruleth in the councils of 
 princes, and maketh even the wrath of man to 
 praise him," brought about the deliverance of 
 Germany by the arms of Gustavus Adolphus, 
 king of Sweden. The peace of Westphalia, con- 
 cluded at Osnabriick with the Swedes, and at 
 Munster with the French, in 1648, reconciled the 
 nations of Europe, and gave Germany a new po- 
 litical form. The struggle between France and 
 Austria was, however, very often renewed, with 
 little advantage to either. 
 
 The death of Charles II. of Spain extinguished 
 the Spanish line of Hapsburg. Charles had nomi- 
 nated Philip of Aragon, grandson of Louis XIV., 
 heir to the whole monarchy. This kindled the 
 war of succession in Spain. France and Spain 
 united, and Austria was aided by Holland and 
 England during the reigns of William and Anne ; 
 George I. assisted Austria against Spain, whose 
 fleet was destroyed by Admiral Byng; and 
 George II. gave the Austrian cause his support 
 against France, which was concluded by the peace 
 of Aix-la-Chapelle. 
 
110 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 From 1763 to the war of the French Revo- 
 lution, Germany enjoyed peace under Joseph II., 
 which produced the most beneficial consequences 
 to that country, in the development of the powers 
 of the human mind, the cultivation of the arts and 
 sciences, the improvement of agriculture, increase 
 of population, and the amelioration of the admi- 
 nistration of different countries. The whole poli- 
 tical system of Europe was on the eve of a great 
 change, when Joseph died, and was succeeded by 
 his brother Leopold. 
 
 The new order of things commenced in France 
 was viewed in a very different light in Germany. 
 The German states in Lorraine and Alsace suf- 
 fered greatly, and the French, taking every ad- 
 vantage, soon overflowed Germany, but were re- 
 pulsed by an alliance formed between Germany, 
 Austria, and Prussia in 1792. The German Em- 
 pire decided to take part in the war against France. 
 Prussia soon after withdrew from the coalition. 
 
 Bonaparte, after his return from Egypt, de- 
 feated the Austrians at Marengo, in January 1800, 
 and reconquered Italy, while his general Moreau 
 gained the battle of Hohenlinden, and advanced 
 toward Vienna. The consequence of these de- 
 cisive victories was a peace concluded with Austria 
 in the name of the German empire, which placed 
 France in possession of all the German countries 
 on the left side of the Rhine, comprehending the 
 Austrian Netherlands and Lombardy in Italy. 
 This peace was afterwards interrupted, and Na- 
 poleon occupied Vienna, and gained the battle of 
 
EUROPE. Ill 
 
 Austerlitz. This was followed by the peace of 
 Presburg in December 1805, greatly to the ad- 
 vantage of France. 
 
 In 1806 the Rhenish Confederation was formed, 
 under the protection of Bonaparte, who declared 
 he no longer recognised the existence of the 
 German Empire; whereupon Francis abdicated 
 the title of Emperor of Germany, assuming that 
 of Emperor of Austria, to which he annexed his 
 German states. In 1812, not only the troops of 
 all the princes in the Rhenish Confederation fol- 
 lowed Napoleon in his Russian expedition, but 
 even Austria joined his banners. The retreat of 
 Napoleon, however, decided the fate of Germany. 
 In the treaty of Paris it was settled that Germany 
 should not again be elected into an empire ; and 
 at the Congress of Vienna the act of the German 
 Confederacy was concluded, by which the sove- 
 reign princes and free towns of Germany agree 
 to defend each other upon any attack, not to make 
 war on each other, and govern by a federative 
 Diet, in which Austria shall preside. This con- 
 federation still exists ; and under it, during a long 
 peace, many of the German states have made great 
 advances in civilisation and literary knowledge. 
 
 PRUSSIA. 
 
 The Prussians were a Sclavonic race. Their 
 early history is wrapped in such complete barbarism 
 and gross idolatry as to rob it of all interest. In 
 
112 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the twelfth century, Balislaus, king of Poland, 
 attempted to subdue the Prussians, and convert 
 them to Christianity, and called in the Teutonic 
 knights to his assistance ; but the arduous task of 
 Christianising the country occupied fifty years of 
 war and bloodshed to accomplish. From this 
 period we find Poland and Prussia engaged in 
 frequent wars, sometimes with each other, some- 
 times with other kingdoms ; frequently dependent 
 on and frequently opposed to each other, or united 
 with Sweden, until Frederic William, who reigned 
 from 1640 to 1688 with firmness and prudence, 
 obtained the entire sovereignty of Prussia, which 
 had been held in fief by the House of Branden- 
 burg. Frederic improved the administration of 
 his country, encouraged agriculture, commerce, 
 and industry, and by wise measures greatly in- 
 creased the population of his dominions. He was 
 succeeded by his son Frederic III., whose cha- 
 racter was totally unlike that of his illustrious 
 father. The father had shaken off the yoke of 
 Austria ; the son again submitted to it. The 
 father was economical : the son a spendthrift, vain, 
 and fond of show. In 1701 he placed the royal 
 crown on his own head at Konigsberg, declaring 
 Prussia a kingdom. Under his reign the Prussian 
 territory was unimportant; but he encouraged 
 the arts and sciences, founded the university of 
 Halle and the academy of sciences, and another 
 for sculpture and pictures, at Berlin. He was suc- 
 ceeded in 1713 by his son Frederic William I., — a 
 good economist, and upon the whole a shrewd 
 
EUROPE. 113 
 
 man, but a mere soldier, without any pretension 
 to taste or refinement. He laid the foundation of 
 the military power of Prussia, and left a large 
 treasury and flourishing population. His private 
 character, as depicted by his daughter the Mar- 
 gravine of Anspach-Bayreuth, is most disgusting. 
 He was succeeded by his son, Frederic II., or 
 Frederic the Great, in 1740, who (by a combination 
 of high talents and restless activity of mind, se- 
 conded by good fortune, a well disciplined army, 
 a wise government, and good laws,) raised the 
 Prussian state to a degree of power and influence 
 she had never before possessed. Bold and for- 
 tunate as a conqueror, he deserves yet greater 
 praise as a ruler. He considered himself but as 
 the first servant of the state, and presided over its 
 affairs with the care of a father, proving that 
 under a high-minded ruler the most extensive 
 liberty of the press is not incompatible with the 
 purposes of government, even under an absolute 
 monarchy. 
 
 While young, and under the tyranny of his 
 father, Frederic, encouraged by his mother Sophia 
 Dorothea, sister of George II. of England, culti- 
 vated his natural taste for the sciences and belles 
 lettres. Thus he knew how to support the rising 
 fortunes of his kingdom by keeping up that gallant 
 and warlike spirit which his own talents had at 
 first inspired; at the same time that he gave 
 every encouragement to the arts of peace and civi- 
 lisation. Although the merits of the ambitiou 
 Frederic were very great, the partition of Poland 
 
114 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 must ever remain a blot or stain upon his glory. 
 That unfortunate country had, for upwards of a 
 century, been torn to pieces by wars with Russia, 
 and internal wars full of scenes of misery, and 
 deeds of rapine secretly fomented by Catherine 
 of Russia. Frederic, ever on the watch to im- 
 prove his own position, accelerated the ruin of 
 Poland by intrigues with the courts of Vienna 
 and Petersburg ; and it is generally believed that 
 the odium of the partition rests with Frederic. 
 In the distressed and distracted state of Poland 
 this humane triumvirate (Russia, Prussia, and 
 Austria) determined that the only decisive remedy 
 was, their asserting their respective claims to cer- 
 tain districts lying within the Polish boundaries. 
 All Europe were variously occupied by national 
 concerns at that period ; so that Frederic, taking 
 advantage of opportunity, succeeded in this fla- 
 grant violation of national justice and honour, and 
 obtained the partition of Polish Prussia and of 
 Great Poland. From that time Prussia has been 
 divided into Eastern and Western Prussia. Fre- 
 deric died at Sans Souci in 1786, in the 47th year 
 of his reign and the 75th year of his age, leaving 
 a greatly enlarged territory, a full treasury, a 
 fine army, and high political influence. Whether 
 viewed as a philosopher, a soldier, or a king, he was 
 an eminently great man. But Frederic was a pro- 
 fessed infidel, a severe husband, and a violator of 
 law, justice, and humanity, when they stood in the 
 way of his insatiable ambition. 
 
 Frederic William II. succeeded his uncle in 
 
EUROPE. 115 
 
 1788, and reigned until 1797. He had not the 
 talents or abilities of his predecessor ; but inherited 
 his ambition, and was the first to take the field 
 against republican France, by which he lost a fine 
 army, and gained but little credit. Poland was 
 still an object of oppression and violence. The 
 courts of Vienna, Petersburg, and Berlin resolved 
 to divide the country among themselves. The 
 Poles were required to sign a treaty confirming 
 the partition, to which the Diet were refractory ; 
 but some of the most violent members having 
 been sent back to their provinces, the others were 
 locked into a room, and, surrounded by an armed 
 force, were obliged to sign the required declaration 
 in Sept. 1793. In this manner two- thirds of the 
 Polish territories were alienated, and in 1795 
 Russia demanded the remaining third, and was 
 supported by the king of Prussia. The unfor- 
 tunate Poles made a vigorous and spirited resist- 
 ance under Kosciusko, who opposed Suvarof with 
 great bravery but unequal power. He was defeated 
 and taken prisoner. After this the Poles could 
 no longer resist their enemies. The kingdom was 
 divided, and the existence of Poland terminated. 
 The inglorious reign of Frederic was brought to a 
 conclusion, in Nov. 1797, by death. He was suc- 
 ceeded by his son Frederic William III. The new 
 king found himself surrounded by difficulties in- 
 ternal and external. Disputes with Russia, France, 
 and England followed each other. After the battle 
 of Jena, Bonaparte occupied Berlin, the king and 
 his family retreating to Koningsberg, and JSTapo- 
 
116 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 leon made himself master of the whole kingdom. 
 At the peace of Tilsit, Frederic William recovered 
 the half of it back from the conqueror, and set 
 himself to work to improve the condition of his 
 now reduced territories. In 1812 Prussia joined 
 the Russians in a war against France ; but at the 
 peace of Paris it was settled that she should be 
 placed as in 1805. After the escape of Napoleon 
 from Elba, Prussia took part in the new war — 
 was defeated at Ligny, and shared in the glories 
 of Waterloo. At the second peace of Paris, 
 Prussia obtained a further increase of territory 
 near the Suer and Moselle, and formed the holy- 
 alliance. A constitution, founded upon the prin- 
 ciple of a national representation, has been pro- 
 mised by the king ; but has not been, nor is there 
 any appearance of its being, granted. 
 
 SWITZERLAND. 
 
 In the early periods of history this country was 
 called Helvetia, or land of the Helvetians, — a tribe 
 of German origin. It received the name of Swit- 
 zerland from one of its own cantons, eminent for 
 an early struggle to obtain independence. Under 
 Julius Caasar, Helvetia was invaded by the Romans, 
 and remained a Roman province until the empire 
 was dissolved. Christianity is supposed to have 
 been embraced in this country in the year 300. 
 In 430 the Burgundians took possession of the 
 southern and western districts, while the Alle- 
 
EUROPE. 117 
 
 manni conquered the northern and eastern parts. 
 Thus Switzerland was contended for by different 
 German states, by the Burgundians and by 
 France, all of which obtained districts which oc- 
 casionally changed masters as the various parties 
 succeeded, until 1264, when Count Rudolph, of 
 Habsburg, compelled the whole country to ac- 
 knowledge him Chief. His son and successor, Al- 
 brecht, governed them with great tyranny, and 
 having, in the Governor Gessler, found one whose 
 tyrannous folly exceeded even his own, a league 
 was entered into by a few spirited men to rescue 
 their country from his cruel oppression ; but their 
 designs were prematurely discovered by the well- 
 known incident of the refusal of William Tell to 
 comply with an absurd order of the frantic Gessler, 
 w T hich led to the most gallant struggles, for that 
 independence they at last obtained, ever recorded 
 by history. 
 
 In 1518, Zuinglius, having attacked various doc- 
 trines of the Catholic church, preached openly 
 against the sale of indulgences, as Luther had 
 done the preceding year in Germany. Religious 
 zeal descended into fanaticism, and for some years 
 distracted various cantons with division and civil 
 war. When Calvin, though differing greatly from 
 Luther, placed himself at the head of the Refor- 
 mation in Switzerland, he established his own pecu- 
 liar tenets, purified the natives of their dissensions, 
 and in time peace was restored, which lasted unin- 
 terrupted by external causes for more than three 
 hundred years, during which they overlooked the 
 
118 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 changes which time and circumstance had brought 
 about, in other countries, and, occupied with their 
 own paltry jealousies, heeded not the awful warning 
 of the French revolution, and neglected to take 
 advantage of the first seven years to compromise 
 matters with the new principles. 
 
 Unfortunately the extraordinary supineness and 
 selfishness of her rulers have stripped Switzerland 
 of the enviable distinction she might have borne 
 among the nations of Europe, and placed her in 
 the very lowest grade of the political scale. 
 
 The inhabitants of the Pays du Vaud, in 1796, 
 cast themselves on French protection ; and in the 
 beginning of 1798 a French army of 40,000 men, 
 under Generals Brune and Schauenberg, entered 
 Switzerland, defeated the Bernese, united Geneva 
 to the French republic, and established a new 
 constitution, under the name of the Helvetic Re- 
 public. The French took military possession of 
 Switzerland ; but various changes took place, until 
 the allied powers entered it in December 1813. 
 The Congress of Vienna, in 1815, recognised the 
 perpetual neutrality of the Swiss cantons, and the 
 inviolability of their territory. But, placed between 
 the rival powers of France and Austria, Switzer- 
 land will ever be in danger of becoming the seat 
 of war. The influence of Austria is everywhere 
 felt and acknowledged ; but were the cantons of 
 Switzerland united among themselves, they might 
 yet vindicate the ancient glories of their land, and 
 reclaim that heritage for which their ancestors so 
 nobly fought, instead of wasting their blood and 
 
EUROPE. 119 
 
 strength in petty quarrels and intestine broils, 
 destroying the advantages gained from neighbour- 
 ing powers, and forfeiting liberty to the worst 
 kind of despotism — that of Radicalism, which is, 
 unfortunately, their present position. 
 
 FRANCE. 
 
 The earliest accounts of France are to be found 
 in the history of Rome. When Gaul first became 
 an object of Roman ambition, it was peopled by 
 tribes called Celts or Gauls, — fierce, brave, and war- 
 like hordes, — who were at length conquered by 
 Julius Caesar, and continued to be a Roman pro- 
 vince, until the dissolution of the Western Empire 
 produced the division of territory by which 
 Europe is still distinguished. 
 
 The first race of monarchs were the Merovingian. 
 But it would be tedious to follow their history, 
 which consists of little else than a continued series 
 of usurpations and murders. By degrees the su- 
 perior influence of the Maires du Palais rendered 
 them merely nominal sovereigns. In 687 this 
 dignity became hereditary in the person of Charles 
 Martel. 
 
 Pepen Heristel, who exercised his power with 
 vigour and prudence, defeated the Saracens, and 
 conquered the Frisons. At his death, his son, 
 Pepen the Short, succeeded, and in 754 was pro- 
 claimed king at Soissons. This prince, who seems 
 to have united in himself the virtues and vices of 
 
120 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 a conqueror, died in 768 ; the epitaph inscribed on 
 his tomb was " Pepin, pe.re de Charlemagne." 
 * The reign of Charlemagne and his successors, 
 unto the treaty of Yerdun in 843, forms part of 
 the history of Germany. From this epoch the 
 history of France as a separate kingdom begins. 
 
 Charles the Bald took the reigns of govern- 
 ment. He was an energetic powerful prince, but 
 found determined enemies in the Normans, to sub- 
 due whom cost him immense trouble, blood, and 
 treasure. His more northern neighbours also an- 
 noyed and disturbed him sadly. He died in 877, 
 and was succeeded by his son Louis le Begue, "the 
 stammerer." He was deficient in prudence and 
 vigour. After a short and feeble reign he died in 
 879. Louis III. and Carloman divided the king- 
 dom. A scene of faction and confusion followed, 
 which ended by placing the Emperor of Germany, 
 Charles le Gros, on the throne of France ; but he 
 was utterly incapable of defending the kingdom 
 conferred on him. The Carlovingian race of 
 monarchs were now become a degenerate remain- 
 der of those master spirits, who, from being 
 mayors, have stepped into the thrones of their 
 masters, and was at length extinguished by Hugh 
 Capet, the founder of the Capetian or third dy- 
 nasty of France. Hugh Capet displayed the ta- 
 lents necessary to the government of a rude warlike 
 people. The same firm, undaunted spirit, which 
 gave him ascendency, rendered him formidable to 
 his enemies. He died in 996, and was succeeded by 
 his son Robert, who inherited his father's virtues, 
 
EUEOPE. 121 
 
 but not his firmness. Pope Gregory lorded it over 
 his conscience to the injury of his territory. He 
 died in 1031 ; when Henry, his eldest son, ascended 
 the throne, though opposed by his mother Con- 
 stance ; but, aided by Robert Duke of Normandy, 
 Henry succeeded in establishing himself. The 
 disputes of this reign laid the foundation of that 
 rancour which afterwards subsisted between the 
 monarchs of France and England. Henry died 
 in 1060, and was succeeded by his son Philip I., 
 who resembled his father only in the animosity 
 which he bore to William of Normandy. In every 
 part of his conduct Philip evinced a treacherous 
 and mean disposition ; a general laxity of govern- 
 ment took place, and might have been productive 
 of dreadful consequences, had not Louis VI. (le 
 Gros), who succeeded him in 1108, been a prince 
 remarkable for his many virtues. Louis sup- 
 ported Robert of Normandy, when his brother, 
 the English monarch, deprived him of the Duchy 
 of Normandy, and thus drew on himself the anger 
 and power of Henry, who constantly defeated him 
 with great loss. Louis died in 1137, and was 
 succeeded by his son Louis VII. (le Jeune), a 
 weak, superstitious, cruel prince, who, among other 
 follies, undertook an ostentatious, vain pilgrimage 
 to Jerusalem, accompanied by his wife Eleanor, 
 heiress of Guienne and Poitou, whose frivolities 
 so offended her husband, that on his return he 
 divorced her. 
 
 Henry Duke of Normandy, more intent on in- 
 
122 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 creasing his territory than his domestic felicity, 
 married Eleanor, by which he became much more 
 powerful than his sovereign, and thus was France 
 precipitated into a disastrous scene of conflict, 
 which lasted upwards of 300 years. Louis died in 
 1180. Philip II., his son, governed with such good 
 fortune, that he has been surnamed Angustin. The 
 situation of England, during the distracted reign 
 of John, gave him advantages which he managed 
 with the utmost policy, depriving her of Nor- 
 mandy and many other provinces. His reign was 
 marked by the first creation of Mareschals of 
 France. He died after a reign of forty-four years, 
 leaving his crown to Louis VII. , whose reign was 
 rendered infamous by the massacre of Beziers, 
 in which 60,000 Albigenses perished. Louis IX. 
 was so deeply tinctured by the religious super- 
 stitions of the times, as to obtain the name of 
 " Saint." He joined a crusade against the Saracens, 
 in which he was taken prisoner, and obtained his 
 ransom by the surrender of Damietta. He founded 
 the Sorbonne, and headed a new crusade to Tunis, 
 in which he died of the plague in 1270, and was 
 succeeded by his son Philip the Hardy, who, with 
 his son Philip the Fair and his three sons, occupied 
 the throne with little honour and less advantage 
 to the country, until 1328, when by the death of 
 Charles the dynasty of the Capetians expired. 
 
 At the death of Charles a regency was found 
 necessary during the precarious situation of the 
 queen. Philip of Valois and Edward III. of 
 England, grandson of Philip the Fair, by the 
 
EUROPE. 123 
 
 mother's side, affirmed their right not only to the 
 regency but to the crown. The claim was decided 
 in favour of Philip, who, after the widow queen 
 had given birth to a daughter, was declared king 
 upon the Salic law. Edward could not brook his 
 disappointment. Various jealousies and offences 
 arose between the rival monarchs. Edward was 
 for some time occupied in his favourite scheme of 
 subduing Scotland ; but at last resolved to avenge 
 the affront offered by Philip, and for this purpose 
 marched directly into France with 50,000 men. 
 For eighteen years the two countries were dis- 
 tracted and impoverished by expensive wars, under 
 different pretences; though the true cause was the 
 animosity borne by the two monarchs. In 1346 
 Edward again landed in France with 30,000 men. 
 Philip collected an army, it is said, of 126,000 men. 
 The impetuous bravery of Edward w r ould not 
 allow him to hesitate on account of inferiority of 
 numbers ; and the splendid victory of Cressy, w T ith 
 the reduction of Calais, proved that he had not 
 overrated his own powers. By the mediation of 
 the Pope a truce for three years was concluded, 
 during which Philip died, and was succeeded by 
 his son John le Bon, in 1350, who soon found 
 himself en^ao-ed in a war with England, under the 
 command of the every where victorious Black 
 Prince, who in the battle of Poictiers took the 
 French monarch prisoner. One success followed 
 another ; until a peace, highly honourable to the 
 English, was concluded in 1360. The affairs 
 of France, meantime, became almost desperate, 
 G 2 
 
124 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 John, unable to pay his ransom, remained a 
 prisoner at large in England, where, in 1384, his 
 existence terminated. 
 
 Under the reign of Charles V., after the death 
 of the Black Prince and his father, France re- 
 covered, in a great degree, her position as respects 
 England, and restored the integrity of her domi- 
 nions ; but his career was short, and that of his 
 son, Charles VI., was full of disorders, and dis- 
 astrous in the extreme. Henry V. of England, 
 taking advantage of the disturbed state of France, 
 soon found a pretext for going to war, and, land- 
 ing with 30,000 men, took Harfleur by storm, 
 overran the greater part of France, and eventually 
 made himself master of the whole kingdom ; when 
 it wa3 agreed that he should marry the Princess 
 Catherine, and from thenceforth France should be 
 annexed to the English crown. The death of 
 Henry placed England under the regency of the 
 Duke of Bedford, and was soon followed by that 
 of Charles. The young Henry was recognised as 
 king of France ; but a few adherents retained their 
 allegiance to their native prince, and gradually 
 recovered possession of parts of the kingdom. In 
 this contest France was greatly assisted by the 
 two Amazons, Joan d'Arc and Agnes Sorrel, who 
 gained more victories than any two generals. 
 After the victories of Formigny and Castillon by 
 Agnes Sorrel, the invaders were forced to abandon 
 the country ; and in 1450 Calais and the isles of 
 Jersey and Guernsey were all that remained to the 
 English. 
 
EUROPE. 125 
 
 Louis XI. ascended the throne in 1461, and, 
 after freeing himself from external enemies, turned 
 his fury against his nobles, crushing them by 
 cruelty and perfidy in every possible way, until he 
 had rendered himself absolute, and thus laid the 
 foundation of that despotic government which 
 eventually led to the blood-stained revolution of 
 France. 
 
 Charles VI. was but fourteen years of age at 
 the time of his father's death. His reign is only 
 remarkable for his having been the chosen hus- 
 band of Anne, daughter of Louis, while she was 
 regent of France, and a foolish expedition against 
 Naples. He died of apoplexy in 1498, and with 
 him expired the elder line of Valois ; and Louis, 
 Duke of Orleans, was called to the throne under 
 the name of Louis XII. The prudence and 
 wisdom of this prince, joined to his success in 
 arms, procured for him the appellation of " The 
 Titus of France." As a matter of policy, he 
 married Mary, the sister of Henry VIII. of Eng- 
 land. The successor of Louis was Francis, Duke 
 of Angouleme, Bretagne, and Valois. 
 
 Francis I. flattered himself he should be able to 
 ascend the imperial throne, but was disappointed 
 by the influence of Charles V. of Spain, which 
 created an animosity between these two princes 
 that filled not only their own countries but all 
 Europe with wars, and was terminated oniy by 
 the death of Francis, at Rambouillet, in 1547. 
 The private character of Francis was detestable, 
 and his court a scene of intrigue and debauchery. 
 G 3 
 
126 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 During his reign the reformed religion spread 
 rapidly through France, though every attempt 
 was made to suppress it by penal laws and cruel 
 persecutions, which, under the reign of Henry II., 
 was continued with the utmost bigotry and cruelty. 
 But Henry's severities, instead of exterminating 
 the Protestants, had the general effect of religious 
 persecution — increasing the number. These cruel- 
 ties were the prelude to 150 years of civil war. 
 
 The feeble and brief reign of the son of Henry, 
 Francis II., husband of Mary Stuart of Scotland, 
 was only remarkable for the intolerance of the 
 Duke of Guise who usurped the government. 
 Duriug the minority of Charles IX., the in- 
 famous Catherine of Medicis, the Queen Dowager, 
 acted as regent, and, aided by the Duke of Guise, 
 persecuted the Calvinists or Huguenots, as they 
 were nicknamed by the Catholics, and committed 
 the most horrible outrages on them, as well as 
 cruel persecutions of all other Protestants, who 
 were obliged to arm themselves in self-defence, 
 under the great and good Gaspard de Coligny, 
 Admiral of France, and the Prince of Conde. 
 Nothing was too unjust, too barbarous, too in- 
 sulting, and too cruel and revolting for Catherine 
 and her party ; notwithstanding which, Coligny, 
 and the Prince of Conde, compelled the court to 
 accommodate matters with the persecuted Calvinists 
 in three successive wars ; but the climax of Cathe- 
 rine's diabolical revenge was the massacre of St. 
 Bartholomew in 1572, when, in conjunction with 
 her son Charles IX., she inveigled the heads of 
 
EUROPE. 127 
 
 the Protestant party to Paris, under pretence 
 of witnessing the marriage of Margaret of Va- 
 lois and the young king of Navarre, afterwards 
 Henry IV. The signal was to be the tolling of 
 the great bell of the palace on the eve of St. 
 Bartholomew. The direction of this plot was left 
 to the Duke of Gruise ; and the prince of darkness 
 himself could not have found a more willing or 
 able coadjutor. The venerable Coligny was 
 stabbed in his bed, and thrown from the window 
 into the street ; where Henry, Count of Angou- 
 leme, brother to the king, spurned him with his 
 foot, exclaiming, " Courage, my friends, we have 
 begun well, let us end as well ! " For five days 
 and nights did this wretched butchery continue in 
 Paris, without respect to age, sex, or condition. 
 During the greater part of the massacre, Charles 
 stood at a window of the palace, calling out " Kill, 
 kill ! " and even fired himself on the unoffending 
 Protestants. The streets of Paris were literally 
 floating with blood, and blocked up with murdered 
 Protestants ; and not content with this, the same 
 orders were sent to all the provinces of the king- 
 dom, and it is computed that not less than 90,000 
 Protestants perished in the massacre ; but though 
 the Almighty in his wisdom had permitted this 
 diabolical work of butchery, he overruled all for 
 good. The effect of the massacre was the reverse 
 of what the Catholics and court had expected. 
 Calvinism, instead of being destroyed, became 
 more formidable from despair, and a thirst for re- 
 venge was added to a desire for civil and religious 
 G 4 
 
128 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 liberty. Powerful supporters arose, and the 
 truths of the gospel prevailed. Though Henry 
 III., who succeeded his brother in 1574, was a 
 remorseless cruel bigot, under the Prince of Conde 
 and the King of Navarre they were enabled to 
 obtain peace on terms very favourable to the 
 Protestant interest. Henry, fearing the power of 
 the Duke of Guise, got him assassinated, — a deed 
 which brought upon him the wrath of the whole 
 Catholic party, and procured his own assassination 
 by a Dominican Friar, at St. Cloud, in 1589. The 
 assassin was honoured as a Saint at Paris, and the 
 Pope expressed his approbation of the deed. Ca- 
 therine died the same year with her son. Thus 
 the fourth Capetian and second Valois branch be- 
 came extinct. 
 
 Under the reign of the gallant Henry IV. king 
 of Navarre, the Protestants obtained the edict of 
 Nantes in their favour, which was declared per- 
 petual and inviolable. In all his endeavours to 
 promote the welfare of his people he was ably se- 
 conded by his wise and talented minister, Sully ; 
 but the frantic Kavaillac assassinated this ex- 
 cellent, high-minded prince only too soon for the 
 happiness of France. His expression, s< I will not 
 rest till every one of my peasants is rich enough 
 to have a fowl for his soup on Sundays," has been 
 gratefully preserved among the people. Louis XIII., 
 unlike his father, was weak and feeble ; and under 
 the corrupt administration of his ministers, the 
 Cardinals Richelieu and Mazarin, the Protestants 
 were again the subjects of persecution. He died 
 in 1643, and was succeeded by his son Louis XI V., 
 
EUROPE. 129 
 
 termed the Great. Louis made every effort to 
 advance the commerce, wealth, and agriculture of 
 the country, and was successful in several warlike 
 undertakings ; but he revoked the edict of Nantes, 
 and obliged the Protestants to seek refuge in other 
 countries. In the opening years of the eighteenth 
 century the Duke of Marlborough eclipsed the 
 French military reputation; and one misfortune 
 rapidly succeeding another, Louis was reduced to 
 great difficulties and humiliations previous to the 
 peace of Utrecht. Louis died in 1715, after a 
 reign rendered remarkable by able ministers, 
 generals, and men of letters, such as could not 
 fail to render his reign one of the brightest in 
 history ; and had he listened less to those flatterers 
 who taught him to say, "l'Etat, c'est moi," he 
 would have left behind him a name which few 
 monarchs of ancient or modern history might not 
 envy. Louis XV. succeeded while yet a child of 
 H\e years. A regency council was formed with 
 the Duke of Orleans at its head, for the manage- 
 ment of public affairs. In 1726 Louis took the 
 reins of government into his own hands, and 
 through a long reign of troubles and internal dis- 
 contents as well as external wars, guided them 
 more in accordance with the caprice of his favourite 
 mistresses, than according to the dictates of sound 
 policy. Louis was a slave to sensual gratifications, 
 in pursuit of which he involved his country in 
 debts and difficulties, and filled his Parliaments 
 with discontents, which were only terminated by 
 his death. He was succeeded by his grandson, 
 G 5 
 
130 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Louis XVI., who found a nation highly discon- 
 tented, and ready to seize the first opportunity of 
 showing their resistance to royal authority. The 
 young king used every means in his power to 
 secure the affections of his people; but he pro- 
 bably drew the string of restraint a little too 
 tight, and thus failed to insure peace or confidence. 
 The internal peace of France was disturbed in 
 1775 by one of those dearths so common in 
 France, which, together with some regulations re- 
 specting the police of corn, excited the populace 
 to revolt and insurrection. Louis seemed willing 
 to do every thing for the happiness of his people, 
 except part with that absolute authority which he 
 conceived to be his by right of inheritance. This 
 was perhaps the greatest fault in the character of 
 Louis : this it was that led him to the unpopular 
 measure of dismissing Necker from the manage- 
 ment of the finances, and entrusting it to Joly de 
 Fleury. Necker was a great favourite with the 
 people, and his dismissal led to contests and 
 outrages on every side. Louis was sincerely de- 
 sirous of promoting the welfare of his people ; but 
 personal good qualities were totally insufficient to 
 allay the fermentations which had broken out 
 during his reign. The public supplies were ob- 
 tained by loan, and every loan increased the 
 weight of taxes : the public mind became irritated 
 and discontented; and, finally, the nation was 
 hurried into a revolution the most dreadfully 
 important on record. 
 
 During the twenty years that preceded the 
 
EUKOPE. 131 
 
 French Revolution, a mighty change in public 
 opinion, and in the mode of thinking, had been 
 brought about, partly by the writings of Voltaire., 
 Rousseau, Diderot, &c, and partly by the new 
 constitution of America, from whence many dis- 
 tinguished officers had returned with completely 
 new political ideas. Among the Tiers-etat 9 or Com- 
 mons, were many high-minded men, who now be- 
 ginning to feel their own importance determined 
 on bringing down the nobility and clergy, and 
 giving a new form to the constitution. The tree 
 of liberty was planted in Paris, and on the 17th 
 June, 1789, they met, for the first time, under 
 the name of the National Assembly. In October 
 the Bastile was destroyed, and the Assembly made 
 a public declaration of the rights of man, closed 
 the churches, or prostituted them to the worst of 
 purposes; abolished the privileges of the clergy, 
 the nobility, tithes, game, and feudalism. 
 
 FRANCE AS A REPUBLIC. 
 
 In September, 1792, France was declared a 
 republic, and royalty abolished. The tree of li- 
 berty was planted in every large town through 
 France and Belgium. From this period pen can- 
 not indite, nor tongue describe, the accumulated 
 horrors of that distracted country, under the san- 
 guinary tyrants of the day, maddened by sudden 
 power, infidelity, and unbridled passions. The 
 blood of thousands rolled down the streets of 
 G 6 
 
132 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Paris; the scaffold daily presented a scene at 
 which humanity shuddered; but these wretches 
 had lost all human feeling. Even women partook 
 largely in the sanguinary mania ; and the diaboli- 
 cal frenzy of open infidelity gloated over its vic- 
 tims, and revelled in blood and slaughter. The 
 excellent Louis, his unfortunate wife, and fault- 
 less sister, after having been made to suffer every 
 misery vice and cruelty could heap on them, were 
 brought to the scaffold, and their sufferings ended 
 by the guillotine, amidst the wild yells and insults 
 of an insensate rabble. Robespierre^ St. Just, 
 Barriere, Billaud, Yarennes, Lebou, and Collet 
 d'Herbois, are names that must for ever be hateful 
 to the Christian or rational man, and ever be a 
 stain on the page of history. Of the two children 
 of Louis, the Dauphin was cruelly imprisoned, 
 and, it is said, poisoned. The princess escaped, 
 with many others of the nobility, to England, 
 and afterwards married the Duke d'Angouleme, 
 her cousin. In 1795, France was placed under a 
 Directory, and by it gained some degree of stability 
 in its external and internal affairs. The furor of 
 republicanism had now exhausted itself. The mad- 
 dened wretches who had ruled in it had very 
 generally fallen sacrifices to their own unprincipled 
 party ; and rationality began to assume some 
 sway, though religion was overturned. Nearly 
 all Europe had taken arms against France, with 
 varied success. In 1796, Bonaparte, then a 
 young man of only twenty- six years of age, en- 
 tered Italy with an army destitute of warlike 
 
EUROPE. 133 
 
 equipments, defeated the Austrians and Piedmon- 
 tese, overran the country, and in 1797 made an 
 advantageous peace with Austria. The Venetian 
 territory was next overthrown, and with the Seven 
 Islands ceded to France. Batavia and Switzer- 
 land were subdued; and in February, 1798, a 
 republic, with a Consular constitution, was founded 
 at Eome, and Pope Pius VI. taken prisoner to 
 Paris, where he died in 1799. Egypt, Syria, 
 Austria, Spain and Portugal, Russia and Turkey 
 were attacked and invaded, and England frequently 
 threatened by this extraordinary man, who, in 
 1799, changed the government to a Consular, 
 making himself First Consul; under which cha- 
 racter he made peace with Spain, Russia, and 
 Turkey in 1801, and with England in 1802, 
 which was, however, of but short duration. In 
 1804, Napoleon was placed as hereditary Emperor 
 at the head of France, and in 1805 placed the 
 crown of the Lombardian kings upon his own 
 head, and in the course of the following year made 
 his elder brother, Joseph, King of Naples and 
 Sicily. The Principality of Lucca, with other 
 territories, were given to his sister Eliza : Eugene 
 Beauharnois, his stepson, he made Viceroy of 
 Italy, and married him to the daughter of the 
 King of Bavaria; his second brother he made 
 hereditary and constitutional King of Holland ; 
 his general, Bernadotte, was proclaimed Prince of 
 Ponte Corvo, and raised to the heirship of the 
 crown of Sweden ; to Murat, who had married 
 his sister, he gave the Prussian part of Cleves and 
 
134 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the Dukedom of Berg, with the title of Duke of 
 Cleves and Berg ; Marshal Berthier, Neufchatel, 
 and the title of Prince ; to his minister, Talleyrand, 
 the title of Prince of Benevento; and, with an 
 utter disregard of justice, overthrew the constitu- 
 tion of the German empire, which had lasted a 
 thousand years, to make way for the Rhenish Con- 
 federation, of which Napoleon was named Protector. 
 The successes of this great man (whom Ave now 
 remember as a sort of blazing meteor passing over 
 Europe, uprooting, overturning, and destroying 
 for a few brief years, and then suddenly disap- 
 pearing) were as brilliant as they were unparalleled. 
 In 1809, with all Europe acknowledging his 
 power, Great Britain alone excepted, he repu- 
 diated the Empress Josephine, and married the 
 young Archduchess Maria Louisa of Austria, — 
 hoping by this marriage to secure his posterity to 
 the empire of France ; but vain are the plans of 
 man, and foundationless the buildings of pride. 
 Not content with the immense conquests he had 
 obtained, and the height to which he had risen, 
 Bonaparte made war against Russia ; and, depend- 
 ing largely on his own presence, headed an im- 
 mense army, and marched into that country. Murat 
 entered Moscow, and kept possession two days. On 
 the third the Russians set fire to their beautiful city 
 in many parts. The conflagration was terrible, and 
 the city was reduced to ashes. The French, thus 
 deprived of all means of subsistence, were obliged 
 to retreat. The severe and early winter of 1812 
 destroyed the retreating and pursued army, — a very 
 
EUROPE. 135 
 
 small number of whom reached France to tell the 
 disastrous story. In the following March, Paris 
 surrendered to the allied armies. The fallen Em- 
 peror abdicated the throne, and was banished to 
 the island of Elba, and the Bourbons again re- 
 stored to the throne in the person of Louis XVIII. 
 He was not, however, very pleasing to the people ; 
 and Napoleon, having escaped from Elba, and 
 landed at Cannes with 600 men, in twenty days 
 replaced himself on the throne of France, from 
 which he was for ever hurled a few weeks after by 
 the results of the battle of Waterloo, and carried 
 a prisoner to St. Helena, where he laid down his 
 eventful life in 1821. 
 
 Louis XVIII. died in Sept., 1824, and was 
 succeeded by his brother Charles, who commenced 
 his reign by some popular acts ; but the overruling 
 spirit, hereditary in the Bourbons, broke out in 
 Charles ; and scarcely had five years passed, ere the 
 nation was, by three detestable ordinances drawn 
 up by Prince Polignac and his associates, impelled 
 to take up arms. A complete revolution, of three 
 days only, drove the infatuated Charles from the 
 throne — gave liberty to France, and in July, 1830, 
 placed Louis Philippe, Duke of Orleans, on the 
 throne, with the title of " King of the French." 
 Since that period France has enjoyed external 
 peace. Her religion is restored with more toler- 
 ation than formerly, and the wounds made by a 
 long struggle healed under Louis Philippe. Her 
 finances, commerce, and population have greatly 
 increased, and the intercourse with other Euro- 
 
13 6 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 pean countries greater than at any former pe- 
 riod; but France is constantly agitated by strong 
 under-currents and opposing interests, which 
 threaten her peace. Taught by hard lessons of 
 adversity, and possessing a strong and calm mind, 
 Louis Philippe is perhaps better calculated than 
 any other man in the world to rule a mercurial 
 changeable people without their feeling the iron 
 rod of power. His life has been frequently at- 
 tempted ; but he has attained an honourable old 
 age in the midst of a large fine family ; all of whom 
 he has settled advantageously, and by so doing has 
 connected himself with every crowned head in 
 Europe. The marriage of the Duke de Mont- 
 pensier with the Infanta of Spain was a violation 
 of treaties, and will probably prove as impolitic as 
 it has been offensive. In this instance the calcu- 
 lating king and father triumphed over the clear- 
 headed honourable prince and politician. * 
 
 * Since writing the above (in the early part of the present 
 year) a sudden and total revolution has taken place in France, 
 by which Louis Philippe has been hurled from the throne, and 
 his sons from their governments ; nearly all the expelled Royal 
 Family have sought shelter in England, where, as heretofore, they 
 find protection and Christian sympathy. France has again de- 
 clared herself a republic, under a National Convention; but in her 
 present excited and fearful state, who shall venture to say what a 
 day will bring forth, or how her influence and example will 
 operate on other countries and kingdoms in Europe, many of 
 which are now in commotion ? 
 
EUROPE. 137 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 The earliest inhabitants of Spain appear to have 
 been Celtic tribes, who probably entered the 
 Peninsula from the neighbouring country of Gaul, 
 and occupied the northern districts, while the south 
 was peopled by the Mauritani from the opposite 
 coasts of Africa. After a long contest Spain was 
 consolidated into a Roman province under the first 
 imperial Csesar, and the Romans maintained do- 
 minion over Spain for 400 years. In 419 the em- 
 pire of the Visigoths was founded in Spain by 
 Valia, which continued for several centuries. In 
 the early part of the 8th century, the Moors, or 
 Saracens, having conquered North Africa, led a 
 large army into Spain, contending every inch of 
 ground with the Goths, who valiantly opposed 
 them. For several centuries the kingdom was 
 divided between the Goths, who were Christians, 
 and the Moors, who were Mahommedans, each party 
 founding separate kingdoms. In the 10th century 
 independent Moorish princes were reigning at 
 Saragossa, Toledo, Valencia, Seville, Granada, 
 and Cordova ; while Castile, Arragon, Galicia, Por- 
 tugal, and many others, were governed by Spa- 
 niards. Of these, the kings of Castile seem to 
 have been the most successful against the Moors. 
 In the 12th century the transactions of .the Chris- 
 
138 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 tian kingdoms of Spain began to take a wider 
 range than heretofore, by the marriage of Philip 
 the Fair of France with Johanna Queen of Na- 
 varre. This led to important results, sometimes 
 uniting in, and sometimes dissevering France, and 
 even England, from the interests of Christian Spain ; 
 until 1469, when, by the marriage of Ferdinand of 
 Arragon with Isabella of Castile, the kingdoms of 
 Castile and Leon were united to those of Arragon 
 and Sicily. 
 
 The reign of Ferdinand and Isabella was dis- 
 tinguished by high feats of war, by the prudence 
 the firmness, and the justice of the measures taken 
 for the civil concerns of their subjects, for the in- 
 stitution of the Hermandad, or " Holy Brother- 
 hood," — an association of cities for the purpose of 
 protecting travellers and property ; in all of which 
 they were ably supported by their minister, Car- 
 dinal Ximenes. Ferdinand completed what for- 
 mer kings for many centuries had failed to effect — 
 the total subjugation of the Moors in Spain. But 
 the event which exercised most influence over the 
 world was the discovery of America by Christo- 
 pher Columbus, in 1492, — an achievement which 
 this daring navigator could not have accomplished 
 without the support of Isabella, who supplied him 
 with three small ships. Yet, amid a host of vir- 
 tuous actions, the characters of both Ferdinand and 
 Isabella were stained by deep superstition. At an 
 early age Isabella had vowed a vow to avenge the 
 injuries clone against the Catholic faith, should she 
 ever come to the crown ; and most truly did her hus- 
 
EUROPE. 139 
 
 band and herself fulfil that vow to the utmost of 
 their power. Isabella had ever been taught that 
 priests, whose exemplary lives and learning were 
 approved by the Church, were so many oracles to 
 whom she was commanded by God to give ear. 
 Thus it was that a queen, in all other respects the 
 most gentle and amiable, was led by the deep bi- 
 gotry of her education, and the councils of her 
 equally bigoted minister Ximenes, to establish a 
 tribunal so sanguinary, unjust, and horrible as the 
 Inquisition, — an invention at which the soul of 
 man revolts — whose every footstep is marked by 
 blood, and whose pestilence it will take long cen- 
 turies to overcome. This act has fixed an inde- 
 lible stain on Ferdinand, Isabella, and Ximenes. 
 
 Charles I. of Spain succeeded his father in the 
 Netherlands, his paternal grandfather in Austria, 
 and his maternal grandfather in Spain, in 1516. 
 As a Spanish monarch, this accomplished despot, 
 the cotemporary of Erasmus, Luther, and Frederic 
 of Saxony, deserves unqualified indignation and 
 reproach. It was during his turbulent, extravagant 
 reign that Mexico and Peru were conquered by 
 the first Cortes. In 1556 Charles abdicated the 
 throne, on which he ruled with reckless tyranny, 
 in favour of his son Philip, and retired to a monas- 
 tery, where he died of melancholy. 
 
 Philip II., husband of Mary Queen of England, 
 was a sanguinary, narrow-minded despot, who, 
 during a reign of forty -two years, exhausted the 
 revenues of that vast monarchy, and shed oceans 
 of blood in a vain struggle to retain the Nether- 
 
140 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 lands. Liberty prevailed, and floated its victorious 
 banners over a country laid prostrate by fanaticism 
 and bigotry. His " Invincible Armada," by which 
 he thought to overcome Britain, was shattered by 
 the only invincible and Almighty power, and its 
 remnant destroyed by the gallantry of the English. 
 
 Philip III. succeeded his father in 1598. He was 
 more imbecile, and, if possible, more bigoted and 
 superstitious than his predecessor. Under him 
 Spain lost her best and most industrious inhabi- 
 tants, by the expulsion of the Moors and Jews. 
 Under Philip IV., Portugal, though cruelly op- 
 pressed, shook off its bonds, and stood free from 
 Spain. From this to 1761 the history of Spain 
 is little more than a series of wars, external and in- 
 ternal, in which Austria, France, the Netherlands, 
 and England, were at various periods engaged, 
 with little glory to either, and certainly with loss 
 of territory, commerce, and population to Spain. 
 
 In 1761 Charles III. signed what was called 
 a family treaty between the houses of Bourbon, 
 and took part in the war of France against Eng- 
 land. During the American war she again joined 
 France against England until 1783. Charles IV. 
 succeeded his father in 1788. Urged by the family 
 treaty and his own feelings, after the execution of 
 Louis XVI. he ordered the French ambassador to 
 leave Madrid; whereupon the Republic declared 
 war upon Spain, and Spain formed an alliance 
 with England. The Spanish war was conducted 
 by Godoi, Duke of Alcudia, afterwards called the 
 Prince of Peace, with varied success. At the 
 
EUROPE. 141 
 
 peace of Amiens, Parma and Louisiana were 
 given to France. In 1803, when war was re- 
 newed between France and England, Spain en- 
 deavoured to preserve a neutrality ; but this could 
 not long continue ; and the famous victory of Tra- 
 falgar, gained in October, 1805, by Lord kelson, 
 was against the combined fleets of Spain and 
 France, by which they sustained a heavy loss. 
 Soon after the peace of Tilsit, a conspiracy, at- 
 tributed to Godoi, Prince of Peace, (who was 
 known to be a mere creature of Napoleon, and in 
 treaty with him for the partition of Portugal,) 
 caused great commotion. The palace of Godoi 
 was attacked by a furious mob ; while the French 
 troops were rapidly advancing upon the capital, 
 and Charles IV. was compelled to abdicate the 
 throne in favour of his "dearly beloved son," 
 Ferdinando Carlos. Napoleon refused to recog- 
 nise the new king, but invited him to an interview, 
 and having got him into his power, obliged him to 
 make shameful concessions ; after which the whole 
 royal family were ordered into the interior of 
 France, and Murat was confirmed lieutenant- o-e- 
 neral of the kingdom by Napoleon, who named 
 his brother Joseph king of Spain and the Indies, 
 and guaranteed him the independence of his states 
 in the four quarters of the globe. This aroused 
 the whole Peninsula to arms ; and the defence of 
 Saragossa soon taught the French what they 
 might expect from a nation in arms for its dearest 
 rights. They protested they would not lay down 
 their arms till Ferdinand and his family were re- 
 
142 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 stored. In this they craved the assistance of Bri- 
 tain ; and nobly did the heart of England respond 
 to the call. The war now became virtually a con- 
 test between France and England, under the 
 separate command of Sir John Moore, Sir Robert 
 Wilson, and Sir Arthur Wellesley (Duke of Wel- 
 lington), who took the command in 1809 ; and 
 after five campaigns, distinguished by brilliant 
 operations and persevering patriotism, the French 
 were, after the battle of Vittoria, entirely driven 
 from Spain. Bonaparte, finding the Peninsula 
 torn from his grasp, made a virtue of necessity, 
 and released Ferdinand ; but this cruel, wretched 
 bigot was wholly unworthy of the crown. He abo- 
 lished the constitution of the Cortes, and restored 
 the Inquisition in all its horrors ; and by his ty- 
 ranny excited a rebellion, which broke out in Leon, 
 Cadiz, Granada, and Seville. The king opposed 
 them vigorously ; but the rebels were two power- 
 ful, and he was obliged to put down the Inqui- 
 sition, abolish the Jesuits, give freedom to the 
 press, and restore the constitution of the Cortes. 
 Thus was a flame lighted up in Spain that con- 
 tinues to blaze to the present day. Riego, the 
 most famous Guerilla leader on record, continued 
 to annoy and distress the court party, while the 
 French again entered and laid waste the wretched 
 country. Riego was taken prisoner, and executed, 
 under circumstances of great cruelty, in 1823. 
 Many of the liberals sought refuge in Great Bri- 
 tain. Anarchy and confusion continued to reign. 
 Ferdinand exerted his power with an iron hand, 
 
EUEOPE. 143 
 
 aided by the French troops. Meanwhile the national 
 debt had increased frightfully, commerce dwindled 
 away, the arts and sciences were neglected ; and, 
 though the French troops were soon withdrawn, 
 anarchy, misrule, and wretchedness pervaded the 
 country from coast to coast. By the old law of 
 Spain, the Salic law, no female could sit on the 
 throne ; but Ferdinand, who used his power with 
 an iron hand, set aside this law in favour of his 
 daughter, Maria Isabella, who, after his death, in 
 1833, was proclaimed Queen, under the regency 
 of her mother, when a party more fanatical than 
 Ferdinand arose in favour of Don Carlos, the 
 king's brother, whom they wished to place on the 
 throne. The kingdom was distracted by war be- 
 tween the uncle and niece ; parties ran high, and 
 much blood was shed. After a long and unnatu- 
 ral conflict, Don Carlos was acknowledged King, 
 but did not maintain peace, or produce union in 
 his kingdom, which has ever since been a scene of 
 continual discord and rebellion. After the death 
 of Carlos, Isabella was again declared Queen ; but 
 her subsequent conduct was so offensive, that she 
 was obliged to abdicate in favour of her daughter, 
 who, in 1847, married her cousin, Don Francisco 
 d'Assis. At the same time, her sister, the In- 
 fanta, married a son of Louis Philippe of France, 
 the Duke de Montpensier. Neither of these 
 unions have as yet been productive of happiness, 
 either foreign or domestic; and at the present 
 moment the political horizon of Spain is dark, 
 cloudy, and tempestuous. 
 
144 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 The history of this country is so bound up in 
 those of Germany, France, and Spain, that nothing 
 need be said that has not been said of its events, 
 until they recovered their independence under 
 John Duke of Braganza, in 1668, after a war of 
 twenty years. Under John a treaty of commerce 
 was entered into between Great Britain and Por- 
 tugal. This family continued to fill the throne, 
 with various degrees of despotism, until 1760, 
 when the Marquis de Pombal, a stanch and in- 
 trepid reformer of undoubted talents, took the 
 reins of government in hand, removed the Jesuits 
 from the place of confessors to the royal family, 
 and soon after banished them from the country, 
 and confiscated their wealth. Maria Francisca 
 Isabella, daughter of Joseph, married her uncle, 
 Don Pedro, in 1760, and mounted the throne in 
 1777 ; when Pombal was turned out of office, and 
 many of his useful institutions fell with him ; and 
 the country was again divided between a bigoted 
 nobility and an ignorant clergy. In 1792 the 
 queen fell into a state of melancholy, and her son, 
 the Prince of Brazil, was appointed regent. Por- 
 tugal was in constant war with France or Spain, 
 or both, in which they were often assisted by 
 Great Britain. During the wonderful career of 
 
EUEOPE. 145 
 
 Bonaparte, Portugal, in common with other conti- 
 nental countries, suffered from French invasion 
 and rapine. The regent and his family, aided by 
 England, took refuge in Brazil, and the British 
 troops lent their powerful arms to wrest the 
 country from their cruel and rapacious invaders ; 
 and at the peace of Paris, in 1814, its independence 
 was again restored by that friendly power to 
 which the house of Braganza had more than once 
 been indebted for its political existence. But 
 Portugal proved, as heretofore, ungrateful, and 
 even rose against the English at Oporto in 1820. 
 This again introduced disorders that extended 
 themselves to Brazil, where, to appease the people, 
 through the Crown Prince, Don Pedro, the king 
 promised them a different constitution. Directly 
 after the king returned to Portugal, where he 
 reigned badly amidst conspiracies and treasons 
 until 1826, when he was succeeded by his second 
 son, Don Miguel, although Pedro, as eldest son, 
 was lawful heir, in whose behalf the Infanta, 
 Maria da Gloria, took upon herself the command. 
 Don Pedro gave the Portuguese a constitution 
 modelled on the British, vesting the crown of Por- 
 tugal in his daughter the Princess Maria da Gloria 
 and her posterity. Soon after this he abdicated 
 the throne in her favour, and married her to her 
 uncle Don Miguel. To this the queen-mother 
 opposed herself violently, and, secretly supported 
 by Spain, was proclaimed regent. Don Miguel, 
 however, arrived in Portugal with his young wife, 
 H 
 
146 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 and caused himself to be proclaimed absolute and 
 independent king under the title of Miguel I. 
 This usurpation was resented by Pedro, who, 
 resigning his kingdom of Brazil in favour of his 
 infant son, returned to Portugal, and after a 
 sanguinary war succeeded in expelling his brother 
 from the throne, and placing his daughter on that 
 bed of thorns. Maria Gloria is still the acknow- 
 ledged sovereign ; but Portugal is and long has been 
 in a state of disaffection, tumult, and distraction. 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 The most ancient history of Italy is veiled in 
 mythological darkness. Upper Italy, Gallia, Cis- 
 alpina, and Liguria, were peopled with various 
 tribes of Gauls ; Middle Italy, by Etruscan and 
 Latin tribes, the latter of whom extended into 
 Lower Italy, or Graecia Magna, peopled by co- 
 lonies of Greeks. Traditions of constant wars 
 have been handed down from the mythological 
 age; to these belong the wars in Latium: the 
 arrival of Eneas and his Trojans — the kind recep- 
 tion given him by the king of Latium, whose 
 daughter Lavinia he married. Even the foun- 
 dation of Rome, attributed to the twin-brothers 
 Romulus and Remus, and the whole epoch of Ro- 
 man kings, a period of 245 years, are veiled in 
 clouds of mythology full of conflicting traditions 
 and hopeless blanks. Rome from its very begin- 
 ning, having been founded by colonists from Alba 
 
EUROPE. 147 
 
 Longa, belonged to the league of Latin towns. 
 The constitution of Rome was founded upon the 
 distinction between Patricians and Plebeians upon 
 a very ancient form of religious worship — the 
 warlike spirit of the citizens, and the severity of 
 the patricial power. Kings were only respected 
 as they were able to maintain war against their 
 neighbours. All attacks upon royalty, and even 
 its final abolition, was the work of the patricians 
 and senate. It was a constitution like this which 
 exalted Rome to her high and palmy state, and 
 finally won for a colony, which originally pos- 
 sessed little more than a dozen square miles of ter- 
 ritory, the dominion of all the then known world. 
 
 NAPLES AND SICILY. 
 
 Charlemagne united the Lombardian crown 
 with the Frankish empire ; but the Normans 
 who had entered the service of the Lombardian 
 dukes of Benevento and Capua, succeeded in 
 making themselves masters of all Lower Italy 
 and Sicily. In 1130, Poger assumed the title 
 of the Two Sicilies, and received the kingdom 
 as a fief from the Pope Anaelet II. After 
 their extinction the house of Hohenstaufen exer- 
 cised the supreme power until 1282. The Pope 
 gave it to Charles of Anjou, brother to the King 
 of France. After the general massacre, called the 
 Sicilian Yespers, it came into the possession of 
 H 2 
 
148 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Peter of Arragon, and for two centuries remained 
 a Spanish province, since which it has been sub- 
 ject to Austria or Spain as either power prevailed. 
 In 1759, Don Carlos gave the Two Sicilies to 
 his third brother, Ferdinand, who on the com- 
 mencement of the French revolution was led into 
 a war with France. During the unrivalled suc- 
 cesses of Bonaparte, Ferdinand fled to Sicily, and 
 placed himself under the protection of the English, 
 when Napoleon named his brother Joseph king 
 of Naples ; but two years after, in 1808, called 
 him from that to the throne of Spain, and placed 
 Joachim Murat, his brother-in-law, on the throne 
 of the Sicilies ; and had Murat acted with pru- 
 dence he might probably have continued to reign 
 over the south of Italy ; but his ambition to be- 
 come sole king of Italy led him into a dispute 
 with Austria and England, that soon expelled 
 him from the throne, and finally brought him to 
 the scaffold : both Naples and Sicily were restored 
 to Ferdinand, who died in 1825, and was succeeded 
 by his son, Francis I. 
 
 SAVOY. 
 
 Savoy was formed from the remnants of the 
 ancient Burgundian dominions. The Counts of 
 Savoy got possession of Turin, Asti, and Nice, 
 and gradually enlarged their territories by mar- 
 riage and inheritance. Amadeus was first created 
 
EUKOPE. 149 
 
 Duke of Savoy in 1416, under the Emperor 
 Sigismund. 
 
 Milan was raised to a duchy under the influence 
 of the Visconti family in 1395. 
 
 FLORENCE. 
 
 The powerful house of Medici flourished in 
 Florence from the beginning of the fourteenth 
 century. In 1530 Charles V. bestowed upon them 
 the title of Dukes which had been borne by the 
 house of Este, in Modena. The Medici have 
 contributed more than any other family to the 
 welfare and prosperity of Florence, and will ever 
 be remembered with pride and gratitude by the 
 Florentines. 
 
 VENICE. 
 
 The most powerful of the Italian states was 
 the bold republic of Venice; an independent 
 commercial aristocracy, at the head of which 
 stood an elected Doge. Venice maintained her 
 independence for 1300 years; but after various 
 changes, was, with its territories, joined to the 
 Lombardo Venetian kingdom in 1814. A kind 
 of mock constitution was given to the Lombardian 
 Venetian states in 1815 ; but they have no legis- 
 lative power whatever, and the government is de 
 H 3 
 
150 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 facto absolutely arbitrary. The representation 
 consists of landed proprietors, tbe nobility, and 
 citizens/ possessing a certain amount of income, 
 but the emperor has a right to exclude whomso- 
 ever he may think proper: he also imposes the 
 taxes. The kingdom is divided into two govern- 
 ments, Milan and Yenice, under a viceroy. The 
 administration of justice is arbitrary in the extreme, 
 and wretched beyond description, and the censor- 
 ship cruelly rigid. Lombardy is without doubt one 
 of the finest and most fertile spots on the face of 
 the earth. The high enclosing mountains afford 
 an abundance of water. The soil is extremely 
 rich, and the irrigation perfect ; towns and vil- 
 lages numerous, the population immense, and the 
 skies cloudless ; but industry has and still does de- 
 cline ; there is some tolerably animated commerce, 
 but a bad government crushes the energies and 
 destroys the hopeful spirit necessary to business 
 and improvement. 
 
 PAPAL DOMINIONS, OR STATES OF 
 THE CHURCH. 
 
 The States of the Church embrace the worldly 
 dominions of the Pope, or " Stato della Chiesa." 
 It is a connected country of Central Italy. Rome, 
 the capital, according to ordinary accounts, was 
 founded by Romulus, about 700 years B. c, and 
 was governed by kings for 250 years. Ancus 
 Martius, its fourth king, built a harbour and es- 
 
EUEOPE. 151 
 
 tablished a colony at Ostia on the river Tiber : he 
 also founded the navy of Rome. Tarquinius 
 Priscus, his successor, greatly extended the power 
 of Rome. Servius Tullus divided the people into 
 classes, and imposed taxes on them. His suc- 
 cessor, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, was driven 
 from Rome in 509 b. c, and the kingly dignity 
 abolished. A republic was now created, and 
 Junius Brutus and Tarquinius Collatinus were 
 appointed consuls. Long wars with the Etrurians 
 and Latins, during which a dictator was occa- 
 sionally placed at the head of affairs, exhausted 
 the resources of the common people, and reduced 
 them to absolute dependance on the patricians. 
 In 499 b. c. the laws of the twelve tables gathered 
 from Greece and Southern Italy were promul- 
 gated, and decemvirs appointed from the pa- 
 tricians. This caused a new rebellion, and the 
 people, after many struggles, obtained a political 
 equality with the patricians. A consul was then 
 elected from each. In 389, Rome, with the ex- 
 ception of the capitol, was sacked by the Gauls 
 under Brennus, who was afterwards defeated by 
 Camillus. A long struggle with the Samnites, 
 which lasted fifty years, terminated in favour of 
 Rome, and left her the most powerful state in 
 Italy. About this time the government assumed 
 a democratic form, the legislative power being in 
 the hands of the people. About 281 b. c. the 
 Romans attacked the Tarentines, a people of Lower 
 Italy, and for the first time were involved in war 
 with a foreign power. The Tarentines invited 
 H 4 
 
152 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, to assist them, a man of 
 courage, judgment and experience, who twice de- 
 feated the Romans, but was himself totally over- 
 thrown at Benevento in 275. The Romans having 
 subdued Tarentum, directed their arms to Sicily, 
 and this embroiled them with Carthage, producing 
 a struggle which lasted twenty-five years. During 
 this time Rome formed a navy by which she de- 
 feated the Carthaginians several times. A peace 
 was made on two occasions, but soon broken. 
 Hannibal, the Carthaginian general, crossed the 
 Alps, descended upon the north of Italy, and won 
 the battle of Cannae ; but after fifteen years of 
 struggle was obliged to evacuate Italy, lost the 
 battle of Zama in Africa, and thus reduced, Car- 
 thage was forced on a humiliating peace. By the 
 conquest of Corinth, 146 B. c, the whole of Greece 
 became a Roman province ; and in the same year 
 the powerful republic of Carthage was annihilated, 
 the city itself reduced to ashes, and the whole 
 state annexed to the Roman empire under the 
 name of the province of Africa. From this time 
 internal divisions and struggles distracted the re- 
 public. Sylla, Marius, and others, played con- 
 spicuous parts at home, while Pompey and Caesar 
 strove for the mastery in power and deceit. 
 Caesar, as proconsul, made the entire subjugation of 
 Gaul and overran part of Britain, and while thus 
 engaged something like peace was restored to 
 Rome; but on his return, civil dissensions again 
 distracted the state, and led to those events in 
 which Pompey and Caesar enacted scenes at which 
 
EUROPE. 153 
 
 the world stood amazed, until the fate of Pompey 
 was decided at the battle of Pharsalia, forty-eight 
 years B. c. Caesar afterwards fell by the hands of 
 conspirators in the Forum. During the long 
 reign of Octavius, which was peaceable and pros- 
 perous, the spirit of republicanism gradually de- 
 clined. He accepted the title of Augustus, and 
 carried the grandeur of the Roman empire to its 
 greatest extent. It was during his reign that our 
 Saviour Jesus Christ was born into the world. 
 Augustus died A. d. 14, and was succeeded by his 
 stepson Tiberius. From this time to the year 69, 
 no less than eight emperors, all eminent for cruelty, 
 extravagance, voluptuous indulgence, and every 
 vice that degrades human nature, reigned over 
 the now luxurious and effeminate state and people. 
 Vespasian and his son Titus were exceptions. 
 Their reigns were marked with justice, mildness, 
 and moderation, if we except the taking and 
 entire destruction of Jerusalem. They were suc- 
 ceeded by four other emperors, more horrible, if 
 possible, than the former. Trajan reigned from 
 98 to 117. He was one of the best and wisest 
 princes that ever filled a throne ; but probably the 
 most happy period of Rome was the forty-two 
 years in which Titus, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus 
 Aurelius Antoninus reigned. From the close of 
 this period we date the rapid decay of Rome. In 
 193 the imperial dignity was sold by the guards, 
 and bought by Didius Julianus. From that time 
 military despotism, cruelty, and misrule were 
 carried to their utmost heights, while the Goths 
 H 5 
 
154 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 made great inroads into the empire, as did the 
 Vandals and other northern nations. In 233 Con- 
 stantine succeeded to the empire, embraced Chris- 
 tianity, and transferred the seat of empire to the 
 site of ancient Byzantium, building a new city called 
 Constantinople. After the death of Theodosius it 
 was divided between his two sons, Arcadius and 
 Honorius, the former retaining the Eastern, and 
 the latter receiving the Western empire. 
 
 In 455, during the reign of Maximus, Genseric 
 plundered Rome for fourteen days ; nine insignifi- 
 cant emperors followed, until 476, when Odoacer, 
 the chief of the Heruli, made himself master of 
 Rome. He was afterwards conquered by Theodoric 
 king of the Ostrogoths, and the Roman empire was 
 entirely dissolved. The Ostrogoths spread them- 
 selves over the whole of Italy, but their empire 
 was disputed by the Greek Emperors. In the 
 reign of Justinian, Narses drove out the Goths, 
 made Central Italy a Greek province, and go- 
 verned it for his imperial master till 567, when it 
 was conquered by the Longobards, who held it 
 until Pepin forced them to relinquish it to Ste- 
 phen bishop of Rome, in 755. From this time it 
 was governed by popes, good and bad, for several 
 centuries. 
 
 In 1265, the Pope called the House of Anjou 
 to the throne of Naples, to oppose the power- 
 ful house of Hohenstaufen ; but the boundless 
 ambition and vicious lives of the popes created 
 continual disturbance and internal dissensions, as 
 well as petty wars with all the neighbouring 
 
EUROPE. 155 
 
 states ; yet with all, their temporal and spiritual 
 power continued to increase, until the middle of 
 the sixteenth century, when, having reached its 
 highest pitch, it began to decline gradually ; the 
 descent was hastened by prodigalities and follies 
 that produced new evils and civil dissensions. The 
 victories of the French in Italy under Bonaparte 
 forced the Pope to make many concessions. In 
 1797 a pretext was afforded for taking the city 
 by French troops, when Berthier founded a re- 
 public with a consular constitution at Rome. 
 Pius VI. was led a prisoner into France, where 
 he died in 1799. Pius VII. by the assistance of 
 the Austrians took possession of Borne, and as- 
 sumed the papal power ; but in 1807 new disputes 
 with France arose, several states were added to 
 the French territories; a revenue of 2,000,000 
 francs was assigned to the Pope, who was com- 
 pelled to take up his residence in France, where 
 he contrived to find amusements in such pursuits 
 as a bigoted, besotted, weak-minded man w T as 
 alone capable of enjoying : among them was em- 
 broidering a petticoat for the Virgin Mary ; and 
 when, by English and Austrian money and va- 
 lour, the French were driven out of Italy, this 
 imbecile man was, after the events of 1814, en- 
 abled to resume possession of the states of the 
 Church.* He did not, however, live long, and 
 
 * The only redeeming act of his life was an attempt at draining 
 the Pontine Marshes, and putting them into a state of cultiva- 
 tion. In this attempt he spent a large sum of money ; but the 
 air continues unwholesome, and nothing more has been done. 
 
 H 6 
 
156 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 was succeeded by a miserable bigot, Leo XI., who 
 re-established the Inquisition, stretched the au- 
 thority of the Church to its utmost limits, and 
 died in 1829, and was succeeded by Pius VIII., 
 a man almost without character, not very cruel, 
 but without any active virtues, content to be the 
 head of the Church, perfect and infallible; he 
 died in 1846, and was succeeded by a man of 
 much more liberal mind, the commencement of 
 whose pontificate holds out something like a hope 
 for that beautiful but ill-governed country. 
 
 Home, the ancient Roma, the capital of the 
 states, and the residence of the Pope, though no 
 longer mistress of the world, is still one of its finest 
 and most remarkable cities, eighteen miles in cir- 
 cumference, and so long as it preserves the Pan- 
 theon, the church of St. Peter, the Colliseum, the 
 Vatican, the Sistinian chapel, its magnificent pa- 
 laces, filled with the treasures of ancient and mo- 
 dern art, its Apollo, its population, and its statues, 
 will remain the boast and wonder of Europe. Still 
 Rome, like Babylon and Persepolis, presents one of 
 the most striking lessons afforded by the pages of 
 history of the instability of human grandeur, and 
 the mutability of imperial power. To give a more 
 extended sketch of her history is here impossible ; 
 it would indeed be nothing short of giving a 
 sketch of the world for 3000 years. She has been, 
 to use the emphatic language of the Scriptures, 
 " the hammer of the whole earth," " a destroying 
 mountain which destroyed all the earth." — She 
 who had arrayed herself in the spoils of a con- 
 
EUKOPE. 157 
 
 quered world, and gathered into her treasuries the 
 riches of the people, was ten times successively- 
 taken, burnt, and sacked, by the congregated 
 hordes of the East and the North, and the star of 
 the eternal city has set in darkness. Yet the Italians 
 are still a very fine race of men, neither so grave 
 as the Spaniards, nor so volatile as the French, 
 possessing in themselves every element requisite 
 to form one of the finest nations in the world : it 
 is entirely owing to the disgraceful misgovern- 
 ment by which this lovely country has been op- 
 pressed for so many generations, that they are so 
 much behind others in political and moral rank. 
 If we consider the state of civilisation in Italy, 
 and the severity with which every means, religious 
 and political, have been employed to put down all 
 progressive improvement, the wonder will be that, 
 under such an iron scourge of despotism, we do 
 not find them sunk still deeper in the abyss of 
 social degradation than they are. " Schiavi siam, 
 si," says Alfieri ; " ma Schiavi agnor fermenti." We 
 are slaves, but slaves who rage under the yoke. 
 
 THE IONIAN REPUBLIC. 
 
 The Ionian Eepublic consists of seven large 
 islands, and a few smaller islands situated in the 
 Ionian Sea. They were early celebrated in Grecian 
 history, particularly in the Peloponnesian wars. 
 The battle of Actium, which decided the destinies 
 of the Roman empire, was fought between Santa 
 
158 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Maura and Corfu. In the thirteenth century the 
 King of Naples got possession of Corfu : in the 
 fourteenth the Venetians took these islands under 
 their protection. Upon the dissolution of the 
 republic of Venice in 1796, the Ionian islands fell 
 into the hands of the French: in 1799 they were 
 retaken by the combined fleets of Russia and 
 Turkey, and Paul declared them an independent 
 state, under the protection of the Ottoman Porte. 
 In 1810 they were all, with the exception of 
 Corfu, taken by a British squadron, and remained 
 in the hands of the British until the peace of 
 1815, when they were declared a free, single, and 
 independent state, and placed under the protection 
 of his Britannic Majesty and his successors. They 
 have a right to regulate their own internal eco- 
 nomy, subject to the approbation of Great Britain, 
 for which purpose a Lord High Commissioner 
 resides on the island. Her Britannic Majesty has 
 the right of occupying all the fortresses and 
 fortified places of the seven islands, and of main- 
 taining garrisons in them. The military force of 
 the islands is also under her orders. The geo- 
 graphical position of these islands, combined with 
 the possession of Malta, not only gives Great 
 Britain the command of the Adriatic and a naval 
 and commercial preponderance in the Mediter- 
 ranean, but opens an easy communication with 
 the states which comprised the once famed and 
 glorious Greece. 
 
EUEOPE. 159 
 
 TURKEY. 
 
 Two thousand years before the Christian era 
 Greece was inhabited by fierce and savage tribes — 
 " Children of the Soil." About 1800 years B. c. 
 Inachus and Ogyges conducted a colony of Egyp- 
 tians into this country, and founded Argos and 
 Sycion, whence they spread over the Peloponnesus. 
 About this time, Cadmus, a Phoenician, settled in 
 Boeotia. These two chiefs founded Athens and 
 Thebes. A century after, Pelops, a Phrygian 
 chief, settled at Argos, and his far-spreading de- 
 scendants gave it the name of the Peloponnesus. 
 These numerous small states naturally rivalled 
 and grew jealous of each other ; hence came wars 
 and fighting. The Trojan war probably took 
 place 1200 years b. c. After the destruction of 
 Troy, the dissensions of the dominant families and 
 the quarrels of the Heraclides and Pelopidse be- 
 came fruitful sources of internal wars. Draco, and 
 after him Solon, framed a code of laws for Athens, 
 six centuries before Christ. The colonists, how- 
 ever, continued to extend their territories from 
 the Black Sea along the shores of the Medi- 
 terranean, Thrace, Asia Minor, Italy and Sicily, 
 Sardinia and Corsica, Marseilles in Gaul, Sa- 
 guntum in Spain, and Cyrene, on the African 
 coast. Four hundred and ninety years B. c, Darius, 
 King of Persia, found a pretext for attacking 
 Greece, but his fleet was wrecked against the pro- 
 
160 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 montory of Athos, and Miltiades the Athenian 
 defeated the army at Marathon. Nine years after, 
 Xerxes, king of Persia, at the head of a countless 
 multitude, crossed the Hellespont; but Greece 
 was now saved by Themistocles, who annihilated 
 the Persian army at Salamis. Leonidas at the 
 pass of Thermopylae, and Mardonius on the plains 
 of Plataea, taught them what Greeks could dare 
 and sacrifice in the cause of liberty ; but the age 
 was prodigal of great men, and Athens rose to the 
 very summit of greatness and glory under the ad- 
 ministration of Pericles, the successor of Aris- 
 tides. Alcibiades commanded her armies ; Phidias 
 decorated her temples with the undying beauties 
 of his chisel; Sophocles and Aristophanes fur- 
 nished her theatrical entertainments ; Thucydides 
 recorded her glorious wars; Democritus, Empe- 
 docles, Socrates, and a crowd of other distinguished 
 philosophers, trained and enriched the intellect of 
 her youth, and taught them virtue. 
 
 Athens, already an object of envy to her rival, 
 Sparta, drew upon herself the deadly resentment 
 of that state by refusing to aid her in suppressing 
 a revolt of the Messenian slaves, and thus involved 
 herself in a twenty-seven years' war, that left her 
 crippled and inglorious, under subjection to thirty 
 tyrants nominated by her Spartan conqueror. The 
 kingdom of Macedon originated in a Greek colony 
 sent from Argos 813 years B.C. Its quarrels with 
 Athens commenced under Perdiccas, 454 b. c. At 
 this epoch Macedonia comprehended only Emathia, 
 Mygdonia, and Pelagonia. 
 
EUROPE. 161 
 
 When Philip mounted the Macedonian throne 
 he found his kingdom in a highly distracted and 
 weakened state ; but his policy, and the discovery 
 of gold mines in Thrace, quickly brought about a 
 change in affairs. Philip aimed at the protector- 
 ship of Greece, and the Sacred War, as it was 
 called, afforded him the means of attaining his 
 object. He entered Thessaly as an ally, but left 
 it only when declared a province of Macedonia. 
 Sparta, Athens, Thracia, and Illyria, submitted to 
 the power of this new state, which extended its 
 frontiers to the Danube and the Adriatic. Philip 
 obtained admission into the Amphictyonic Coun- 
 cil, 346 b. c, where the orator Eschines laboured 
 to obtain for him the title which the Amphictyons 
 hesitated to bestow. The battle of Cheronea, in 
 338, decided the fate of Greece, and made Philip 
 its master. 
 
 Notwithstanding the thunders of Demosthenes 
 to arouse his countrymen, deaf to the eloquence 
 of his oratory, they had not defended themselves 
 against the designs of their conqueror. Philip 
 was, however, cut off in the zenith of his glory 
 by the dagger of the assassin, in 336 B.C., and 
 was succeeded by his son Alexander, on whom 
 a diet of the Grecian states conferred the title of 
 generalissimo of their armies. 
 
 The battle of the Granicus opened up Asia 
 Minor to the victorious arms of Alexander. The 
 defeat of the Persian king Darius in person on 
 the Issus inspired him with the design of over- 
 turning the Persian monarchy. The battle of 
 
162 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Arbela, 331 B.C., the result of which was chiefly 
 attributable to the famous Macedonian phalanx, 
 was followed by the taking of Babylon, Susa, and 
 Persepolis, which placed the empire of that power- 
 ful country, so long the terror of Greece, in the 
 hands of the Macedonian hero ; who, having al- 
 ready conquered Syria, Tyre, India, and Egypt, 
 and having been declared a god at the temple of Ju- 
 piter Ammon, now subdued several kingdoms be- 
 yond the Caspian Sea, and then conducted his 
 troops across the Indus and entered India, directing 
 his course from the Jaxartes to the limits of India, 
 conquering the northern provinces. Porus, king 
 of one of these provinces, gave the Macedonian 
 some trouble by defending his country with asto^* 
 nishing intrepidity, such as commanded the respect 
 of Alexander, who made the royal captive his 
 counsellor and friend unto the day of his death. 
 He next marched his troops toward the Ganges ; 
 but a mutiny breaking out amongst his army ar- 
 rested his progress. Embarking the greater part 
 of his army on the Indus, to return by the Indian 
 coast into the Persian Gulph, he passed through 
 the deserts of Gedrosia and Carminia, and arrived 
 by this route at Babylon, 326 B.C., intending to 
 make this city his seat of government. But the 
 conqueror of the world knew not how to conquer 
 his own passions, and fell a victim to secret poison 
 or gross excess in a fit of intemperance, 323 B.C., 
 before he had completed his 33d year ; and with 
 him this immense empire fell also. A few years 
 after, and the Macedonian empire, with its meteor^ 
 
EUEOPE. 163 
 
 like founders, Philip and Alexander, had passed 
 away, serving only 
 
 " To point a moral or adorn a tale." 
 
 The troubles which followed the death of Alex- 
 ander weakened the power of Greece. The battle 
 of Ipsus, 301 B.C., gave Egypt, Palestine, and 
 Arabia to Ptolemy, Macedonia and Greece to 
 Cassander, Thrace and Bithynia to Lysimachus, 
 and the rest of Asia to the Indus or Syria, to 
 Seleucus. The weakness of the Macedonian 
 rulers led to the formation of two distinct con- 
 federations in Greece, — the ^Etolian and Achaian 
 leagues : the former was little better than a league 
 of robbers and pirates ; the latter embraced Co- 
 rinth, Athens, Sicyon, and several smaller states. 
 This league was planned by Aratus, and the 
 talents of Philopemen supported its character, 
 and gave efficiency to its measures, until it was 
 overwhelmed by the power of Kome. The battle 
 of Pydna, 168 B. c, put an end to the Mace- 
 donian dynasty ; the taking of Corinth extin- 
 guished the last sparks of Grecian freedom ; and, 
 two years after, the whole country became a Bo- 
 man province, under the name of Achaia. 
 
 The history of Greece from this time is merged 
 in that of Kome. The inhabitants of this beau- 
 tiful country soon found they had exchanged 
 masters for tyrants, under whose yoke they 
 groaned bitterly, but in vain. During the five 
 centuries that elapsed from Greece becoming a 
 Roman province till the reign of Constantine, its 
 
164 UNIVERSAL HISTOEY. 
 
 annals present but little political interest. Greece 
 was, however, during this period, the theatre of 
 events more big with importance to the destinies 
 of the human race, than all the great and glorious 
 achievements of the age of Pericles, events on 
 which depended the salvation of countless myriads 
 of immortal souls. The Apostles of Christ preached 
 the everlasting Gospel of their Master. Christian 
 churches were founded in almost every city of 
 Greece. Grecian missionaries carried the Gospel 
 of a crucified Jesus to the uttermost parts of the 
 known world, and thousands of the sons and 
 daughters of Greece won the martyr's unfading 
 crown, by attesting with their blood the doctrines 
 of the Cross. The conversion of Constantine 
 rescued the Christians from persecution ; but his 
 removing the seat of empire to Byzantium, and 
 dividing it between his three sons, proved very 
 disastrous, and exposed the country to the inva- 
 sions of Asiatic hordes. Still, however unsettled 
 the organisation and constitution of the eastern 
 empire was, its dissolution was not effected until 
 1453, when Mahomed II. took Constantinople by 
 assault, almost 1000 years after that of the western 
 had been destroyed. 
 
 For the four following centuries the Greeks 
 constantly struggled against, or under the iron 
 rule of the Turks, a people whose name begins to 
 appear in history about the middle of the sixth 
 century, when this Scythian tribe settled at the 
 foot of the Altai, in the steppes of Upper Asia, 
 between Siberia and China. They were the fol- 
 
EUROPE. 165 
 
 lowers of Mahomet, a pretended prophet, who was 
 born at Mecca, in Arabia. He asserted that he 
 was ordained to extend his religion by the sword, 
 and he so far succeeded in his mission, that before 
 his death he had conquered all Arabia, and dif- 
 fused the spirit of his religion, which rapidly pro- 
 pagated itself throughout Asia and Africa. The 
 immediate successors of Mahomet, the Kaliffs, 
 conquered Syria and Palestine. In 762, Bagdad, 
 the seat of a new monarchy, was founded ; under 
 their auspices the chiefs of this people gradually 
 engrossed the power of every state into which 
 they entered, and finally elevated themselves to 
 the several thrones. In the ninth and tenth cen- 
 turies the Turkish dynasties reigned in Palestine, 
 Syria, and Egypt, from whence they passed over 
 to Spain, and were afterwards known as Moors. 
 In the 11th century they reigned in Persia and 
 India, and founded a mighty empire in the east 
 under the name of Saracens, with whom the Cru- 
 saders contended for the possession of Palestine. 
 
 In the 13th century the Mongols, a nation dif- 
 fering in language and manners from the Tartar 
 stem to which the Turks belonged, founded several 
 states ; but the Turkomans drove them out, and 
 divided Asia Minor among their warlike Emirs 
 and their followers. One of these Emirs was 
 Osman or Othman, who in 1299 took possession 
 of the narrow passes of Olympus, conquered some 
 of the provinces of Asia Minor, belonging to the 
 Romans, assumed the title of Sultan, and on the 
 ruins of the Arabs, Seldshucks, and Mongols, 
 
166 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 founded the empire of the Ottoman Turks in Asia. 
 Between 1300 and 1500 the gallantry and acti- 
 vity of ten great princes of this dynasty, aided by 
 the heroic fanaticism with which Islamism inspires 
 its devotees, raised the Ottoman state to the 
 rank of the first military power in Europe. Soly- 
 man I. entered Europe in 1355, and made himself 
 master of the Straits which divide Europe from 
 Asia. His successor Amurath established the 
 seat of empire at Adrianople, and profiting by the 
 feebleness of the. Greeks, expelled them from 
 Thrace, and defeated the Bulgarians and Servians 
 in a dreadful battle on the plains of Cossova. 
 
 Bajazet, a prince of fierce and enterprising cha- 
 racter, directed the whole force of his power 
 against Constantinople, but was interrupted by a 
 dreadful invasion of Timour the Tartar, which 
 forced him to hurry into the Asiatic provinces to 
 check the frightful progress of his new enemy. 
 The two emperors met, and after a furious and 
 sanguinary contest from daybreak to nightfall, the 
 Sultan was taken prisoner, and the greater part of 
 his army destroyed ; but Tamerlane was not suc- 
 ceeded by such as could maintain his conquests ; 
 the Turks soon recovered their loss, and had again 
 leisure to attempt the destruction of the Greek 
 empire. It was not till 1453 that this attempt 
 was successful, when, after a violent assault of the 
 Turks, a dreadful carnage of three days, during 
 which the imperial city flowed with blood, the 
 emperor and all his warriors were overwhelmed ; 
 and thus terminated the existence of the western 
 
EUEOPE. 167 
 
 empire, in the year of the Hegira 857 and 1123 
 years after Constantine had removed the seat of 
 empire to Byzantium, and given his name to that 
 celebrated city, now the capital of the Turkish 
 dominions ; but the Turks knew not what it was 
 to enjoy peace for any long period ; they were 
 often involved in wars with the growing powers 
 of the Poles and Tartars, Russia and Austria, in 
 which they sustained repeated and severe losses. 
 In 1790 a conference was held at Reichenbach, 
 when the ministers of Britain, Holland, Prussia, 
 Austria, and Poland were present, and peace was 
 established between the Austrians and the Turks ; 
 but it was found impossible to reconcile Russia, 
 and war with varied success continued until 1812, 
 when the exhausted state of the Turks, and the 
 critical state of Russia, just then invaded by the 
 French, forced them to an accommodation, and 
 the peace of Bucharest gave an accession of fron- 
 tier to the Russians, extending from the Dniester 
 to the Pruth, comprising Bessarabia and part of 
 Moldavia. 
 
 During the sitting of congress at Laybach, at 
 the moment the Neapolitan states were invaded 
 by an Austrian army, a revolt of the Greeks burst 
 forth against their Turkish masters in Mpldavia, 
 Wallachia, the Morea, and the Greek islands. In 
 the beginning of the struggle the Greeks suffered 
 severe defeats from the Turks. Prince Ypsilanti 
 was obliged to take refuge in Austria, where by 
 an act of atrocious despotism, he was arrested and 
 sent to the fortress of Munkatsch. By the as- 
 
I 
 
 168 UNIVERSAL HISTOEY. 
 
 sistance of English loans to pay their troops, and 
 English volunteers to fight their battles, the 
 Greeks in 1821 took Tripolizza, the capital of the 
 Morea, and two constitutions, the one published 
 at Missolonghi, the other at Salona, were obtained 
 for the eastern and western continents. On the 
 1st of January, 1822, the political existence and 
 independence of Greece was proclaimed. Still 
 wars with the Turks continued, and in 1825 Ibra- 
 him, son of the Viceroy of Egypt, took possession 
 of Navarin. With this fierce and warlike chief 
 the Greeks maintained a desolating and bloody 
 struggle for the peninsula; they knew but one 
 battle cry, "freedom or death;" and this they 
 shouted as with daily diminishing numbers they 
 rushed on their enemies. Their devoted heroism 
 at last roused all Christian Europe to their aid : 
 the fleets of England, Russia, and France, swept 
 the Grecian seas of the Turkish fleet, and re- 
 lieved the Morea of their ruthless invaders. In 
 1829, the French and British announced their in- 
 tention of maintaining the independence of the 
 Greeks : when it was agreed that Greece should 
 remain under the protection of the Porte ; that 
 the Porte should formally acknowledge the in- 
 dependence of the Greeks ; that the government 
 should be hereditary in the family of a prince 
 chosen by the three powers in concert with the 
 Porte, but he is not to be a member of the reign- 
 ing families of Russia, France, or Britain. In 
 consequence of this arrangement, Otho, crown 
 prince of Bavaria, was placed on the throne as 
 
EUROPE. 169 
 
 king of Greece in January 1833 ; and under his 
 administration the states have enjoyed the blessing 
 of continued peace and freedom from the innova- 
 tions of their tyranical neighbours. 
 
 THE NETHERLANDS. 
 
 This country was formerly a part of Gallia 
 Belgica, and was called Belgium. It obtained the 
 name of Netherlands, Pays Bas or Low Coun- 
 tries, from its low situation, and the extreme flat- 
 ness of its surface, especially in Flanders, where 
 one may travel fifty miles without seeing even a 
 hillock. The north part, or Holland, is so called 
 from a German word hopl, English, hollow, and 
 implying a concave or very low country. The 
 first notice we have of the Netherlands is con- 
 tained in Caesar's Narrative of the progress of the 
 Roman arms in Gaul. About a century before 
 the Christian era the marshy country between the 
 Rhine and the Maese obtained the name of Ba- 
 tavia (generous and brave). So highly were these 
 people thought of by their conquerors, that for 
 many years the body guard of the Roman em- 
 perors were chosen from the Batavians ; but these 
 people disappeared from history in the fifth 
 century, the Belgaa or Belgians in the sixth : 
 the monarchy of the Franks which rose on the 
 .ruins of Gaul during the sixth and seventh cen- 
 turies, embraced all the provinces of the Nether- 
 lands, and planted the Christian faith there. By 
 
170 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 the peace of Verdun in 843, all the country east 
 of the Rhine, together with Batavia and Friesland, 
 were united to Germany. But as the states ad- 
 vanced, they distinguished themselves by com- 
 mercial activity, and industriously reclaiming new 
 tracts of their land from the sea: thus they ob- 
 tained power and self-confidence that enabled 
 them to struggle against the military lords of the 
 soil, which they did for upwards of two centuries. 
 In the fifteenth century the whole country was in 
 possession of the House of Burgundy, from which 
 it passed to the Spanish branch of the House of 
 Austria on the resignation of Maximillian in fa- 
 vour of his son Philip the Fair, who, dying in 
 1516, left these provinces to Charles V. The 
 Netherlands had for some time enjoyed a sort of 
 independence, though dependent on a foreign 
 power, during which they had advanced in com- 
 merce and civilisation; but Charles soon made 
 them feel and submit to his absolute authority. 
 In 1556 Charles abdicated the sovereignty of the 
 Netherlands in favour of his son Philip, a bigoted 
 Catholic, who thought the persecution of heretics 
 his most important duty ; and soon made it evi- 
 dent that, notwithstanding the stringent nature of 
 his oaths, he disregarded the interests, feelings, 
 and prosperity of his subjects in that quarter of 
 his dominions. His sister, the Duchess of Parma, 
 was appointed regent of the kingdom under the 
 direction of Granvella, a furious bigot, who in- 
 troduced a large number of licentious exacting 
 troops, so that the Duchess soon found the dis- 
 
EUROPE. 171 
 
 content of the people had arisen to an alarming 
 height, under the Prince of Orange and Count 
 Horn. The Duchess, finding they were too power- 
 ful to be slighted, complied with some part of their 
 requests, and dismissed Granvella ; but his suc- 
 cessors were rather worse than better, and Philip 
 was heard to declare, that he would rather be 
 without subjects than be a ruler of heretics. It 
 was by-and-by discovered that France and Spain 
 were concerting measures for the total destruction 
 of the Protestants ; and the fury of persecution 
 continuing to increase, the Duchess resigned her 
 regency, appointing the Duke of Alva her succes- 
 sor, a man whose bigotry, pride and stubbornness, 
 equalled those of his master. The severest punish- 
 ments were inflicted on all who had supported 
 the Prince of Orange : citadels were erected, 
 and garrisons of foreign soldiers put into them, to 
 force obedience from the people. 
 
 The Duke of Alva soon perceived that the 
 rigour he had used in enforcing his measures, 
 instead of intimidating the people, had united 
 them, and given them strength to oppose his 
 severe and arbitrary decrees. He therefore sought 
 to conciliate and attach them by promises, and 
 some few concessions ; but, finding all his ef- 
 forts tended but the more to estrange the people, 
 he resigned his power, and returned to Spain to 
 boast that in five years he had given 18,000 
 heretics into the hands of the executioner, and to 
 receive his well-merited reward, the hatred and 
 detestation of all mankind, and of none more than 
 I 2 
 
172 UNIVERSAL HISTOEY. 
 
 of the master and king he had sought to serve, 
 by sacrificing all honour and humanity, which, 
 added to the pangs of conscience, and the re- 
 proaches of that master whose servant he had 
 really been, rendered the remainder of his life a 
 period of bitter misery. 
 
 So dreadful were the oppressions, and so violent 
 the struggle for liberty for a long period, that the 
 Netherlanders would willingly have put them- 
 selves under the protection of any of the Pro- 
 testant powers in Europe. An offer of the sove- 
 reignty was made to Elizabeth of England, which 
 she refused ; but granted them loans and soldiers. 
 She also gave her support to the union of Utrecht 
 in 1579, which laid the foundation of the Com- 
 monwealth, known by the name of the United 
 Provinces. Still it was not till 1648 that a treaty 
 was concluded, by which the King of Spain re- 
 nounced all claim to the sovereignty of the United 
 Provinces. By prosecuting the arts of commerce 
 and traffic with perseverance, the United Pro- 
 vinces opened a communication with all the known 
 world, and soon began to be ranked among the 
 leading nations of Europe ; but a war with Eng- 
 land, in which they involved themselves during 
 the Protectorate of Cromwell, nearly ruined them. 
 After the peace of 1654 they again flourished for 
 a time ; but a heavy national debt burthened 
 them, and their commerce disappeared, while that 
 of England increased. The elevation of William 
 III., Prince of Orange, to the English throne, 
 served rather to involve them in difficulties with 
 
EUROPE. 173 
 
 Great Britain than to relieve them ; so that ex- 
 ternal wars and internal dissensions brought th 
 once flourishing states to the very brink of ruin. 
 
 In 1795, a new Batavian republic was formed 
 under the protection of the French ; but in 1801 
 the constitution was again changed by her ca- 
 pricious rulers, and the Batavian republic saw her 
 fleets ruined by the maritime power of the En- 
 glish ; — ■ her colonies destroyed, her commerce 
 annihilated, and the Bank of Amsterdam utterly 
 ruined. The peace of Amiens cheered their 
 prospects a little, by restoring some part of the lost 
 colonies; but the new war between France and 
 England destroyed the last hopes of this unhappy 
 country, which fell under the widely-extended 
 power of Napoleon; who, in 1806, placed his 
 brother Louis on the throne as hereditary king of 
 Holland. The misery of the country was ex- 
 treme, their debt greatly increased, and their only 
 -commerce smuggling with England. In 1810 
 Louis abdicated in favour of his son. 
 
 The victories of the allied armies, however, soon 
 drove the French out of the country ; and in 
 December, 1813, the Stadtholder William was 
 recalled from England, and made his triumphant 
 entry into Amsterdam, where he was received 
 with every demonstration of joy. After the battle 
 of Leipsic, at the Congress of Vienna, the Spanish 
 or Catholic Netherlands, which had been subject 
 to France for seventeen years, were given up and 
 united to Holland, under the name of the king- 
 dom of the United Netherlands, of which the 
 i 3 
 
174 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 sovereignty was given to the Prince of Orange, 
 who took the title of William I., King of the 
 Netherlands, which he continued to hold until 
 1831, when he abdicated in favour of his son, and 
 the countries were again divided ; when, agreeably 
 to the treaty of peace in 1814, Leopold of Saxe 
 Coburgh was placed on the throne of Belgium, 
 and John succeeded to that of Holland; and so 
 divided, the countries are more likely to prosper 
 than united, since the two nations have essentially 
 different characters, languages, religions, and po- 
 litics. The Belgians are bigoted in the extreme ; 
 the. Dutch are not. The Belgians like all that is 
 French, and hate the English ; the Dutch incline 
 to the Germans, and have a strong English bias. 
 The Belgians are rigid Roman Catholics ; the 
 Dutch are Protestants, and among them is to be 
 found almost every description of professing 
 Christians. In one thing only are they alike ; — 
 the active industry, that overcoming all difficul- 
 ties, converts their low, marshy, sandy country 
 into a cheerful garden, transforming fens and bogs 
 into corn-fields and smiling meadows, and not 
 permitting a weed to grow while it can be eradi- 
 cated. The Flemish painters have only copied 
 from nature when they represent their charming 
 cottages embowered in groups of trees and thickets 
 of surpassing beauty. 
 
EUROPE. 175 
 
 ENGLAND AND WALES. 
 
 The ancient name of Britain was Albion, the 
 various etymologies of which are fanciful, and at 
 best but conjectural. The first peopling of the 
 island is buried in profound obscurity. Its earliest 
 inhabitants are believed to have been Celtic. The 
 southern Celts, the Gaels of history, are sup- 
 posed to have passed from the Continent, and to 
 have taken possession of the southern parts of 
 Great Britain, 1000 years before the Christian 
 era. To the Celts succeeded the Goths, who, 
 under the name of Belgse, passed over into Eng- 
 land. When Csesar first invaded Britain, he 
 found it divided into tribes, of whose moral and 
 intellectual character historians speak well ; but, 
 as regards the arts of life, they were in the very 
 rudest state possible. Clothed in untanned skins, 
 with half-naked bodies dyed blue, and marked in 
 fantastical figures, they had adopted the Gallic 
 fashion of allowing the beard on the upper lip to 
 grow to an enormous length, and had from them 
 learned something of agriculture. Their food was 
 milk and the flesh of herds ; their habitations very 
 little superior to the kraels of the Hottentot. 
 These were generally in the midst of a wood, and 
 fortified by trunks and roots of trees, similar to 
 the defences of the New Zealander. They ap- 
 pear to have had some knowledge of the use of 
 arms ; and a very formidable sort of war carriage, 
 surrounded by short scythes that turned every 
 I 4 
 
176 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 way. Their religion appears to have been a dark 
 and tyrannical species of superstition, of which 
 the Druids were the priests, as they were the 
 judges of the people, dispensing rewards and 
 punishments without the interference or sanc- 
 tion of any higher tribunal. 
 
 Such were the rude inhabitants of this isle, 
 when, fifty- five years before Christ, Cassar effected 
 a landing with his infantry on the coast near Deal, 
 from which, even by his own account, he gained 
 but little glory, and scanty laurels. One would 
 think that Britain presented very little that could 
 interest a man who grasped at the sovereignty of 
 the Roman empire. It was not, however, until the 
 reio;n of Asricola that the bold warlike islanders 
 were entirely subdued. During his seven years' 
 residence in England he built a wall, stretch- 
 ing from the Clyde to the Forth. Adrian after- 
 wards built another, between the Eden and the 
 Tyne ; and, at a later period^ when Roman arms 
 could no longer be spared to England, Severus 
 built a wall parallel to that of Adrian, extending 
 from the river Tyne on the east to Bowness on 
 the Solway Frith on the west, eight feet in thick- 
 ness and twelve feet in height, exclusive of the 
 ramparts. This served to defend them against 
 the attacks of the Northern Britons, when the 
 Romans themselves, attacked on every side by 
 hordes of demi-savages, were under the necessity 
 of withdrawing their legions from England to 
 assist them at home. 
 
 The Britons were now free ; but the arts of 
 
EUROPE. 177 
 
 civilisation and luxury had unfitted them to enjoy 
 liberty, or contend against their northern foes, 
 the Picts and Scots. Vainly they entreated the 
 Romans to return : it was no longer in their 
 power ; for the Huns were to them more terrific 
 than the Picts and Scots to the islanders. Dis- 
 appointed of aid from the Romans, they applied 
 for assistance to the Saxons, a people inhabiting 
 the Chersonesus Cimbrica, or the peninsula 
 bounded by the Baltic Ocean on the north and 
 east, the Elbe on the south, and the German 
 Ocean on the west. The Saxons, a bold warlike 
 people, readily accepted the invitation, and sent 
 over 1600 men under Hengist and Horsa, who 
 soon enabled them to chase the enemy. The 
 Saxons, glad to exchange the bleak shores of the 
 Baltic for the fertile, smiling pastures of England, 
 brought over immense numbers of adventurers, 
 and succeeded in making themselves masters of 
 the island ; but their manners and doings partake 
 more of fable than of history. Certain it is that 
 they became its masters, and continued so, with 
 some interruptions by the Danes, until the tenth 
 century. 
 
 The history of the Anglo-Saxons, while it 
 continued divided into the independent kingdoms 
 of the Heptarchy, is exceedingly obscure and con- 
 fused. The whole consists of a succession of 
 murders, plots, treasons, acts of violence and tyr 
 ranny, and deeds of dark superstition. Every 
 prince was at war with his neighbours, and every 
 state in turn annexed to its more powerful rival ; 
 i 5 
 
178 UNIVERSAL HISTOEY. 
 
 until Egbert, by the exertion of a master mind, 
 succeeded, in 827, in uniting in his own person 
 what had been the seven kingdoms, under the 
 name of England. From this time to 1017 the 
 Saxon kings struggled against the warlike hardy 
 Danes with various success, but certainly enjoyed 
 very little peace in a country they had conquered, 
 it is said, by stratagem. The Danes were op- 
 posed and conquered by Harold, the son of a 
 popular nobleman, who was again opposed by 
 William of Normandy, who pretended that the 
 crown had been left to him by Edward the Con- 
 fessor ; and, in a battle fought at Hastings in 
 Sussex, with obstinacy and intrepidity commensu- 
 rate to the stake for which they contended, Harold 
 and his two brothers fell, and gave the victory to 
 William, in October, 1066. 
 
 William, preferring to be considered a lawful 
 king rather than a conqueror, was crowned by the 
 Archbishop of York at Westminster Abbey ; and, 
 for a time, seemed to govern impartially ; but, by 
 degrees, he rilled every post of value or honour 
 with Normans, and confiscated the estates of com- 
 plaining or rebellious English nobles, bestowing 
 them also on his followers ; thus forcing them to 
 submission by acts of coercion and robbery, rather 
 than winning their affections. The latter part of 
 William's life was embittered by domestic broils ; 
 his sons quarrelled among each other, and the 
 eldest, Robert, proved the most troublesome of his 
 enemies. The feudal law was introduced in this 
 reign. 
 
EUROPE. 179 
 
 William died in 1087, and was succeeded by 
 his second son, William Rufus, or the Red. He 
 was aided by the intrigues of Lanfranc, an eccle- 
 siastic, in obtaining the crown, and maintained it 
 with violence. He treated his subjects with un- 
 common severity. Robert, the true heir, desirous 
 of signalising himself among the Crusaders, mort- 
 gaged his territories to William for 10,000 merks, 
 a sum which he extorted from his subjects. William 
 was accidentally killed in the New Forest, in 1100. 
 A retributive Providence seems manifest here. 
 The forest had been laid out by the conqueror, 
 regardless of the rights of property or the sanc- 
 tities of religion, and in it two of his sons met 
 their deaths. 
 
 Rufus was succeeded by his youngest brother, 
 Henry, to the prejudice of Robert, who made 
 some struggles to recover his dominions, but was 
 found unfit for government, and yielded to Henry, 
 who granted him a pension of 3000 marks, but 
 afterwards thought this too much, and seized an 
 opportunity of making him relinquish it. Robert 
 could not satisfy even his Norman subjects, and 
 Henry, taking advantage of their discontents, 
 invaded Normandy, made it his own, and kept his 
 brother a prisoner in Cardiff Castle for the re- 
 mainder of his unfortunate life. Henry had one 
 daughter, married to Frederic of Austria, and one 
 promising son, whom he had taken to Normandy, 
 to be acknowledged by his Norman subjects. On 
 his return the vessel was wrecked, and the prince, 
 with all on board, drowned. Henry died in 1135, 
 I 6 
 
180 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 leaving his daughter Matilda heiress to the crowns 
 of England and Normandy. 
 
 Matilda ascended the throne, but her right was 
 disputed by Stephen, who had married a daughter 
 of William I. Stephen was not deficient in mi- 
 litary skill or ardour, and many battles were 
 fought between the two parties ; but the death of 
 the Earl of Gloucester deprived Matilda of her 
 last hope, and she left England; but just then 
 Henry Plantagenet, her son by a second marriage, 
 took up the cause, and soon reduced Stephen to 
 terms of accommodation, from which he was 
 released by death in 1154, and Henry succeeded 
 him. 
 
 Henry, on mounting the English throne, was 
 the most powerful, and proved himself the most 
 able sovereign in Europe. Beside his English 
 and Norman dominions, he possessed in right of 
 his father, Anjou, Lorraine, and Maine in France ; 
 and in right of his wife, Guienne, Poitou, Saint- 
 onge, Auvergne, Perigord, Angoumois, and Li- 
 mosin. To these he soon annexed Brittany and 
 the county of Nantz, thus becoming master of 
 more than one-third of the French monarchy. At 
 home his vigour and prudence restrained the 
 clergy, and kept his turbulent barons at peace. 
 Thomas a Becket, who had been raised to be 
 primate of all England, an insolent, proud, and 
 overbearing priest, gave him some trouble; the 
 assassination of this audacious prelate, however, 
 soon relieved him from the annoyance, but 
 brought him into disgrace with the church. In 
 
EUROPE. 181 
 
 the mean time Henry undertook the conquest of 
 Ireland. He had received a grant from Pope 
 Adrian, and pursued it so vigorously that in a 
 few months he subdued the whole island to his 
 own power. He also took William, king of 
 Scotland, prisoner at Alnwick, and compelled him, 
 his nobles, and his bishops to do homage to him as 
 Lord of Scotland; but successful as he appears, 
 his private life was embittered by family divisions. 
 He died at Saumur in July, 1189, and was suc- 
 ceeded by his son Richard. 
 
 Richard inherited all the bravery and warlike 
 talent of his father, and all the romantic supersti- 
 tion of the age. Fired with the prevalent frenzy 
 of crusading, which then pervaded Europe, the lion- 
 hearted monarch, disregarding any evils which 
 might fall on his own dominions, joined the Cru- 
 sade, and proceeded to the Holy Land, where his 
 achievements are better fitted to the pages of 
 romance which they have filled, than to the sober 
 page of history. Returning home, he was taken 
 prisoner by Leopold of Austria, and after some 
 time redeemed by the payment of a large sum by 
 his subjects ; but the restlessness of his disposition 
 chased repose from his own bosom and from those 
 of his people. He undertook an expedition to 
 France, where he was shot with an arrow by one 
 of the turbulent revengeful spirits with which he 
 was surrounded, and died at Rouen in 1199. 
 
 John, the younger brother of Richard, who had 
 long sought to obtain the crown by sinister 
 methods, now ascended the throne by succession, 
 
182 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 but soon convinced those who had advocated his 
 claims how utterly unworthy he was of the dig- 
 nity to which he had so eagerly aspired. His 
 follies, his crimes, and his ill-concerted attacks 
 upon his nobles, alienated from him the affections 
 of his subjects. In this situation he undertook to 
 wrest from the ecclesiastics many of their pri- 
 vileges, but he had neither prudence to form a good 
 plan, nor resolution to carry through a bad one, 
 and his nobles formed the determination of com- 
 pelling him to accede to such terms as they deemed 
 necessary for securing their own interests. John, 
 after a feeble, irresolute, and childish resistance, 
 was obliged to yield, and at Eunnymede — yet 
 held in reverence for the important event — signed 
 "Magna Charta" or " Great Charter," the found- 
 ation of British liberty. After this he raised a 
 body of troops for the purpose of reducing his 
 barons ; but they called in the aid of the king of 
 France, and before the affair could be settled, 
 John died in the eighteenth year of his reign. 
 
 The Earl of Pembroke, who had been a firm ad- 
 herent of John, got his son Henry, scarcely ten 
 years of age, proclaimed king, and himself ap- 
 pointed regent, and his abilities preserved tran- 
 quillity; but when Henry took upon himself 
 command, all tranquillity fled. The chief aim of 
 Henry seemed to be to raise money, in order to 
 waste it in a lavish expenditure on pleasures far 
 from refined. The nobles had recourse to arms : 
 a parliament was summoned for the. purpose of 
 redressing grievances, which presents the first 
 
EUKOPE. 183 
 
 rough outline of our present House of Commons. 
 The charter of privileges was confirmed, and a 
 committee appointed, under the powerful Earl of 
 Leicester, for carrying on the business of the 
 nation in the intervals of parliament. At last, 
 Prince Edward overthrew the authority of the 
 earl, who was killed in battle, and restored his 
 father to the freedom and power of which he had 
 long been deprived, and then himself joined a 
 crusade to the Holy Land. Henry died soon 
 after in 1272, and the fifty-seventh year of his age. 
 
 Edward I., on his return, succeeded to the crown 
 without opposition, and restored to the civil ad- 
 ministration that authority and regularity which, 
 during the weak reign of his father, had been 
 nearly annihilated. Edward undertook and ac- 
 complished the conquest of Wales, giving to his 
 son the title of " Prince of Wales," which title has 
 ever since been held by the eldest son of the king. 
 The Welsh were the only remains of the ancient 
 Britons, and had preserved among their mountain 
 fastnesses the laws and customs of their ancestors, 
 free from foreign admixture. They made a gallant 
 resistance, but were overpowered, and obliged to 
 submit to receive the laws of England. Edward 
 attempted also to reduce Scotland to his sway, but 
 did not fully succeed. He died at Carlisle in 1367, 
 urging his son with his last breath to prosecute 
 the war against Scotland, and never to desist 
 until he had annexed that kingdom to his English 
 dominions. 
 
 The disposition and the capacity of Edward II. 
 
184 UNIVERSAL HISTOHY. 
 
 were unlike those of his father. The war with 
 Scotland was a series of failures, until the battle 
 of Bannockburn ensured the independence of that 
 kino-dom. The weak mind of Edward was inca- 
 pable of regulating or controlling the lawless 
 conduct of his own barons. Frequent quarrels led 
 to civil wars, and his wife Isabella, a bold, in- 
 triguing, inconstant woman, joined the discontents, 
 and having, with her paramour Mortimer, fled to 
 France, she returned and invaded England, the 
 malcontents from all quarters flocking to her 
 standard. Edward found himself obliged to submit ; 
 he was deposed, cast into prison, and at last 
 murdered under circumstances of the most bar- 
 barous cruelty. 
 
 On the young prince's accession, he evinced 
 a disposition the very reverse of his father. 
 Edward commenced his reign with vigorous mea- 
 sures; seized Mortimer, and condemned him 
 to death, and confined the queen in the castle of 
 Risings, on a small pension. He next undertook 
 the invasion of France, but returned unsuccessful. 
 He, however, carried on at the same time very 
 successful wars against France and Scotland. In 
 the former country his son, usually called the 
 Black Prince from the colour of his armour, 
 gained the highest character for valour, prudence, 
 and honour. The battles of Cressy and Poitiers 
 ended in the most complete and glorious victories 
 recorded in history ; but the Prince did not live 
 to reap the reward of his valour. He died 1376, 
 and his father in 1377. It was in this rei&;n that 
 
EUKOPE. 185 
 
 the legislative proceedings were first given in 
 English ; hitherto they had been given in French, 
 often to the detriment of the people, " because 
 they were impleaded, shown, and judged in the 
 French language." 
 
 Richard II., the son of the Black Prince, as- 
 cended the throne of his grandfather when only 
 eleven years of age. The administration of the 
 government had been in a great measure en- 
 trusted by Edward to his second son, the Duke 
 of Lancaster, in his old age, and the Duke still 
 continued to hold it. Eichard was wild and 
 immoderate in his expenses. To meet them a 
 poll-tax was imposed that gave great offence, 
 and led to the celebrated insurrection of the po- 
 pulace, headed by Wat Tyler. Eichard, after 
 a career of folly, extravagance, and imbecility, 
 was deposed by his own parliament, and the 
 Duke of Lancaster raised to the throne by the 
 title of Henry IV. in 1399. 
 
 The manner in which Henry obtained the 
 crown naturally rendered his reign very turbu- 
 lent, and laid the foundation of the long and 
 bloody contest between the Houses of York and 
 Lancaster. Eebellions and insurrections were 
 quelled by the vigour and promptitude of his 
 measures. Still the kingdom was shaken to its 
 very foundation. The most important rebel- 
 lion during his reign was conducted by the Earl 
 of Northumberland, who, by treaty with the 
 Welsh and Scots, raised a formidable body of 
 forces, which ill health obliged him to entrust 
 
186 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 to the command of his son, Harry Hotspur, 
 who was slain in the conflict, and his troops 
 routed so completely as to leave the rebels at the 
 king's mercy. It was in this reign that the 
 doctrines of Wickliffe, which led to the Re- 
 formation, were preached, and considerably ac- 
 celerated by the cruelty of the clergy, and the 
 burning of heretics, with other measures taken 
 in their short-sighted wisdom to extirpate opinions, 
 and destroy a work planned by the Lord of 
 Hosts, and directed by unerring wisdom. 
 
 Henry V. succeeded his father in 1413. His 
 early years had been dishonourably distinguished 
 by riot and dissipation; but no sooner were the 
 reins of government in his hands, than all the 
 energies and activity of his mind and body were 
 directed to honourable and useful pursuits. His old 
 companions were provided for, and the laws admi- 
 nistered with the strictest justice and regularity. 
 Taking advantage of the disorders that reigned 
 in France, Henry invaded that country with 
 30,000 men in 1415. The celebrated victory of 
 Agincourt enabled him to conclude a peace on 
 terms which rendered the English king no less 
 powerful in France than in England. Henry 
 married Katherine, daughter of the French king, 
 and it was agreed that should they have a son he 
 should be heir to both kingdoms. The life and 
 reign of Henry were short ; but very few monarchs 
 have left such high claims to respect and admi- 
 ration as Henry elicited by a reign of ten years : 
 he died in 1422. 
 
EUROPE. 187 
 
 During the reign of Henry VI. England was 
 a sufferer by all the confusion and misery of a 
 long minority. This was followed by the hor- 
 rors of a civil war. Henry was a poor crea- 
 ture, of a weakly body, and still more feeble 
 mind, the tool and creature of those who, in- 
 fluenced by venal or base motives, chose to take 
 the trouble of guiding him. He was married to 
 Margaret of Anjou, a woman of masculine mind, 
 uncommon capacity, and great talents for go- 
 vernment. Had Margaret reigned alone, or been 
 the wife of a man whose talents commanded re- 
 spect, she would have been a noble and shining 
 character; but unfortunately united to a man 
 whom she despised, she more frequently involved 
 the kingdom in confusion than produced peace by 
 her influence. During this reign the French 
 began to recover the possessions they had pre- 
 viously lost to the English ; the Maid of Orleans, 
 having inspired her countrymen with some of her 
 own enthusiasm, chased the terrified English from 
 their dominions. But the civil commotions which 
 followed were more injurious to England than the 
 loss of France. Richard, Duke of York, advanced 
 his claim to the throne occupied by the House of 
 Lancaster, and two rival factions rent the nation 
 in twain. In this contest the powerful mind of 
 the queen was strongly contrasted with the imbe- 
 cility of her husband. She repeatedly defeated 
 the forces of the Duke of York in person, ob- 
 tained the freedom of the king, and deserved a 
 better fate than awaited her, after her unpre- 
 
188 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 cedented valour and devotion to the royal cause, 
 and the death of her old enemy, the Duke of 
 York. — Edward, son of the Duke, put himself at 
 the head of the remnant of his father's army, 
 pushed on to London, and in 1461 was proclaimed 
 king. 
 
 Edward IV. had now obtained the crown, 
 but his possession of it was very insecure. The 
 queen had still an army, and met the army of 
 Edward in the open field, where the House of 
 York gained a complete victory. Warwick, who 
 had in fact placed Edward on the throne, offended 
 by his marrying Elizabeth Woodville, soon taught 
 him to fear his power, and after some struggles 
 forced the king to fly, and replaced Henry on the 
 throne, from which he had formerly driven him. 
 Edward soon returned, and in a bloody battle 
 Warwick was killed, and his army destroyed. 
 Thus expired the last prop of the unhappy Mar- 
 garet of Anjou. The imbecile Henry was con- 
 fined in the Tower until his death. Margaret was 
 ransomed by the king of France, in which country 
 she lingered out her sad existence. Edward, un- 
 opposed, indulged his evil passions in punishing 
 former offenders, and all who excited his ready 
 jealousy; he died in 1482, and was succeeded by 
 his son. 
 
 Edward V. was but thirteen years of age when 
 his father died. The Regent, Gloucester, formed 
 the design of mounting the throne. Deformed in 
 body and mind, no sense of justice or honour im- 
 peded his progress: having made himself master of 
 
EUROPE. 189 
 
 the persons of the king and his brother, he confined 
 them both in the Tower, under pretence of secu- 
 rity. Lord Hastings and other noblemen, who 
 were faithful to the princes, were put to death. 
 The young king and his brother soon fell victims 
 to the vile and base acts by which Gloucester suc- 
 ceeded in usurping the throne, under the name of 
 Richard III. His right to the crown was con- 
 firmed by Parliament ; and to render it even more 
 secure, he formed the resolution of poisoning his 
 wife, Anne, daughter of the Earl of Warwick, and 
 marrying Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Edward IV. 
 The throne, however, gained by so many crimes, 
 was destined to be held but a short time; his 
 cousin, Henry Earl of Richmond, the last branch 
 of the line of Lancaster, landed in Wales, and 
 met Richard, with a large army, on Bosworth Eield, 
 where Richard found a more honourable death than 
 his vices deserved. 
 
 Henry was proclaimed King on the field, and 
 crowned in 1485, under the title of Henry VII., 
 and the following year married Elizabeth, daugh- 
 ter of Edward IV., thus ending the dynasty of 
 the Plantagenets, and uniting the factions of 
 York and Lancaster, which had for so many 
 years filled the kingdom with discord and battle. 
 The malcontents of the House of York were 
 still numerous; even the birth of a son, uniting 
 all the claims of both Houses, could not allay 
 animosities. Henry's prepossessions against the 
 Yorkists were inveterate, and his temper led 
 him to terrify them into obedience by severity, 
 
190 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 rather than court them by kindness. Several im- 
 postors, personating the young Duke of York, 
 who, report said, had escaped his uncle's cruelty, 
 contributed to perplex and disturb his reign ; he, 
 however, succeeded in putting down all opposition, 
 and establishing his authority. In political af- 
 fairs he was the most useful king that had 
 filled the English throne since Alfred; he pro- 
 moted industry and commerce; and expended 
 14,0007. in building one ship, called " The Great 
 Harry," which may be considered as the founda- 
 tion of the English navy. The Government, ere 
 this, always hired or pressed vessels of merchants. 
 Henry died in April, 1599. 
 
 Henry VIII. ascended the throne at eighteen 
 years of age, under very auspicious circumstances. 
 He was prevailed upon, against his will, to marry 
 Catherine, infanta of Spain, widow of his brother. 
 Seduced by the artifices of the Pope and the King 
 of Spain, Henry entered into league with them 
 against France, which involved him in wars with 
 France and Scotland alternately, until his treasures 
 were quite exhausted. Wolsey, at once Archbishop 
 of York, Bishop of Durham, a Cardinal, Pope's 
 Legate, Lord Chancellor of England, Prime Mi- 
 nister of State, and master of Henry's thoughts 
 and affections, endangered both his own and his 
 master's power by endeavouring to raise money. 
 Henry, having seen and loved a younger woman, 
 desired to divorce Catherine on pretence of con- 
 scientious scruples; but the Pope was too closely 
 allied to her family to yield ready assent. Wolsey 
 
EUROPE. 191 
 
 was despatched to use his influence with the Pope, 
 but was in the state of a man serving two masters, 
 and offended both. Henry decided on acting for 
 himself, and obliged the clergy to pronounce a 
 divorce. He then married Anne Boleyn, but after- 
 wards accused her of infidelity, and caused her to 
 be executed. Jane Seymour, one of her maids of 
 honour, succeeded her, who dying in child-birth, 
 Henry married Anne of Cleves, but would not 
 live with her. His next wife was Catherine 
 Howard, niece to the Duke of Norfolk, who shared 
 the fate of Anne Boleyn. His last wife was 
 Catherine Parr, who proved a kind mother to his 
 daughters, and survived him. It was during the 
 vicious reign of this bad man, that the Reforma- 
 tion took place in England. Henry, although he 
 had written a book in defence of the Catholic 
 faith, gladly seized on an occasion that offered him 
 the means of possessing the wealth which had, 
 for ages, accumulated in the churches and mo- 
 nasteries. His caprice, however, in matters of 
 faith, was as conspicuous as in marriage ; his 
 great aim was wealth to lavish on his vices, and 
 for this he overturned the institutions, and dis- 
 persed the ecclesiastics without mercy. Henry- 
 seems to have been a bad man, used as an in- 
 strument by Providence, to bring about a great 
 and glorious work, of which no honour nor merit 
 is due to him. He died in 1547, and was suc- 
 ceeded by his son Edward VI. 
 
 Edward was but nine years old when he suc- 
 ceeded his father ; his short reign, or rather that 
 
192 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 of the Regent Earl of Hertfort, afterwards Duke 
 of Somerset, was distinguished chiefly by the sup- 
 port and encouragement given to the Reformers, 
 and the consequent success of the Reformation, 
 which made rapid advances under this pure- 
 minded, amiable, and excellent young man, who 
 was removed from the evil to come by consump- 
 tion, in the eighteenth year of his age, when by 
 the intrigues of Dudley, Duke of Northumber- 
 land, his lovely daughter-in-law was raised to the 
 throne for a few days only, an elevation which, 
 under the cruel Mary, lost the lives of both Lady 
 Jane and her husband, Lord Guildford Dudley, 
 and taught the politic but mistaken Duke how 
 short-sighted and fallible is human wisdom, and 
 worldly ambition. 
 
 Mary, daughter of Henry VIII., by Catherine 
 of Arragon, was undoubtedly heir to the crown, 
 and obtained it without difficulty. She was a 
 furious bigot, hating everything opposed to the 
 Roman faith, and found in Bishop Bonner a 
 kindred spirit, ready to execute her cruel man- 
 dates to the utmost letter. Hence all Edward's laws 
 were abrogated, and the fires of Smithfield kept 
 in a blaze with Protestant martyrs. 
 
 Political motives induced Philip of Spain to 
 marry Mary, but her subjects would not allow 
 him any share of power, an affront he bitterly re- 
 sented, and revenged on his wife, who appears to 
 have weakly attached herself to a man who cared 
 not for her or her interests. By his inattention 
 Calais was lost to the English, which, added to 
 
EUROPE. 193 
 
 other griefs and vexations, broke the hard heart 
 of Mary, who died in 1558. 
 
 Elizabeth, a daughter of Henry by Anne 
 Boleyn, succeeded her sister Mary. Elizabeth 
 was attached to the Protestant faith, and resolved 
 to establish it in England, to which she found but 
 little opposition, as Mary's persecutions had ren- 
 dered the very name of the Catholic faith odious. 
 Having concluded a peace with France, Elizabeth 
 found work for her active vigorous mind nearer 
 home. Pope Paul denied her legitimacy and right 
 to the crown, claiming it for Mary Queen of 
 Scots. To put it out of Mary's power to assert 
 and press this dangerous claim, was a great point 
 in Elizabeth's policy, and unhappily want of pru- 
 dence in Mary, and the offence her gay continen- 
 tal manners gave the formal puritanic Scots, but 
 too effectually aided the artful purposes of Eliza- 
 beth, who in the youth, beauty, and fascinations 
 of her lovely cousin and rival, found cause for a 
 deadly hatred, that led her to take advantage of 
 the unhappy Mary's confidence, and keep her a 
 close prisoner for eighteen years, and then, by as- 
 serting a prerogative to which she had no right, 
 bring her to the scaffold. 
 
 Philip of Spain, actuated by bigotry and per- 
 sonal animosity, determined to attack Elizabeth 
 in her own dominions, and annihilate her and her 
 heretical kingdom together, and for this purpose 
 fitted out the largest and most powerful fleet 
 Europe had yet seen, manned with good sailors 
 and soldiers. But a higher power than Spain or 
 
 K 
 
194 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 England overruled the destined Armada : what the 
 navy of Elizabeth could not do, was done by the 
 Lord of Hosts. The winds blew, and the devas- 
 tating tempest finished the destruction begun by 
 the English fleet. Elizabeth was particularly 
 fortunate in her ministers, to whom she owed 
 much of her glory, but inheriting her father's ca- 
 pricious temperament, with the intolerant spirit of 
 her sister, she was an uncertain friend, and a way- 
 ward haughty mistress, vain, violent, and over- 
 bearing:. Still her character was colossal as a 
 queen. Lord Burleigh always spoke of her as 
 " the wisest woman he ever knew." Worn out 
 with care and the canker-tooth of a reproachful 
 conscience, Elizabeth died in 1663, and was suc- 
 ceeded by James VI. of Scotland, who, as grand- 
 son of Henry VII. 's daughter, was nearest heir to 
 the crown. 
 
 "When James I. ascended the throne, the Ca- 
 tholics looked for toleration from a prince born of 
 a long line of Catholics, whose mother had been a 
 martyr to their cause. The Presbyterians, on the 
 other hand, expected much from a prince educated 
 in Presbyterian principles. But James disap- 
 pointed both parties, destroying alike their fears 
 and their hopes. Dissimulation was a leading 
 feature in his character, and unlimited power the 
 first desire of his heart. Disappointed and angry, 
 the Papists formed a plot for destroying the king, 
 his family, and the whole parliament ; the conspi- 
 racy was happily discovered, and the conspirators 
 suffered as they merited. James, unfortunately, 
 
EUROPE. 195 
 
 had high notions of the royal prerogative, without 
 the power of maintaining it : hence his reign was 
 a perpetual struggle between the crown preroga- 
 tive and the rights of the people. He was extra- 
 vagant and lavish in court and personal expenses, 
 so that he was in constant money difficulties and 
 disputes. To raise money he sold titles of nobi- 
 lity, and first created baronets at 10,000/. each. 
 James desired a union of the two countries, but 
 national animosities and prejudices could not yet 
 be overcome. His reign was inglorious, and he 
 died generally despised, after having filled the 
 throne twenty-two years. 
 
 Charles I. succeeded his father, and to the same 
 exalted notions of prerogative, united a stiff, per- 
 verse, and sour temper, with harsh, reserved, and 
 dogged manners ; unhappily he maintained a re- 
 solute adherence to arbitrary maxims, and illegal 
 methods of raising money, so that his government 
 grew daily more unpopular, and his Commons at 
 last refused to grant him supplies, unless they got 
 redress of grievances. In this dilemma Charles 
 pursued the most offensive and infatuated line of 
 conduct, dissolving parliaments, imprisoning mem- 
 bers, persecuting and prosecuting all who opposed 
 him, forcing his own high church notions on all 
 ranks and persuasions, and even permitted Arch- 
 bishop Laud to involve him in an expensive and 
 disastrous contest with the Scotch by forcing on 
 them an episcopacy, against which they were de- 
 termined. A great struggle for civil and religious 
 freedom now took place. Hampden and Pym 
 K 2 
 
196 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 headed the patriots; and Charles, having lost his 
 only effective counsellor, when he basely forsook 
 and afterwards murdered Strafford, found himself 
 unable to contend against the public voice; he 
 now endeavoured to ingratiate himself with the 
 Scots by various means, but they were too pru- 
 dent to involve themselves in war for a prince in 
 whom they had lost all confidence ; they therefore 
 delivered him up to the Parliamentary Commis- 
 sioners, and under the growing power of Cromwell, 
 who was now not only head of the army, but 
 almost supreme in the kingdom, the unhappy 
 Charles was tried by a self-appointed tribunal of 
 barbarous fanatics, condemned and executed, in 
 1648. A Commonwealth, for which the people 
 loudly clamoured, was declared ; but the power of 
 Cromwell in the nation was now supreme, he was 
 declared Protector, and invested with the prero- 
 gatives of a king. During his administration 
 Cromwell maintained liberal views of civil and 
 ecclesiastical polity, with vigour, decision, and 
 promptitude of measures, which, with the terror of 
 his fleets and armies, rendered him as much an 
 object of respect and fear abroad as at home ; yet 
 was his power pain, his grandeur misery, his con- 
 fidence distrust, and his repose anxiety. An ob^ 
 ject rather of compassion than envy, he died in 
 1658. Different parties, growing weary of anarchy 
 and its consequent confusion, now began to wish 
 for the old Constitution, and their former race of 
 monarchs. 
 
EUROPE. 197 
 
 General Monk, a firm friend of the Stuarts, 
 taking advantage of this reaction, soon succeeded 
 in bringing back a son of Charles I., who, with 
 the approbation of all ranks, was placed on the 
 throne in 1660, under the title of Charles II. 
 Unfortunately, no restraint was laid upon the au- 
 thority of Charles II., who seems to have profited 
 very little by the sad fate of his father ; he ap- 
 peared to consider sovereignty only valuable as a 
 means by which he might indulge his profligacy 
 with impunity. Had the Commons granted all 
 he required, it is probable the reckless good-nature 
 of Charles would have led him to allow them to 
 manage the affairs of the nation as they chose; 
 but to the king's incessant demands for supplies 
 the Commons answered with remonstrances as to 
 his conduct. At this crisis the Duke of York, 
 brother to the king and heir apparent to the 
 crown, openly declared himself a Catholic, — than 
 which nothing could be more offensive to the 
 country. The Commons now refused Charles 
 any further supplies, and he in a fit of anger dis- 
 missed his Parliament, and directed the reins of 
 government in the most arbitrary manner, and, in 
 opposition to his people, and indeed to all Europe, 
 supported the French king in his measures. The 
 French king supplied Charles with money, and 
 engaged him in a war against Holland, whose naval 
 force was at that time very formidable. Charles 
 brought his reign of folly, extravagance, and ar- 
 bitrary measures to an end, by dying in 1684. 
 K 3 
 
198 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 The Duke of York succeeded, in default of lawful 
 issue, under the title of James II. ; and, as if to 
 render himself more odious than his father and 
 brother had done, exerted his power to the very 
 verge of despotism, in the attempt to re-establish 
 Popery in his dominions. The opposition he met 
 should have convinced him that this was impracti- 
 cable ; but opposition only exasperated his narrow 
 mind, and rendered him even more obstinate, so 
 that it was evident he preferred the ruin of the 
 country to a failure in his mad designs. 
 
 In this extremity, the eyes of the people turned 
 on William Prince of Orange, nephew and son-in- 
 law to James, who eagerly accepted an invitation 
 to come over to England. James, deserted by his 
 adherents when his power waned, fled to France, 
 and soon after entered a monastery, taking upon 
 himself the oaths of the order. William was re- 
 ceived very joyfully, and after some debate was, 
 with his wife, the princess Mary, raised to the 
 throne as king and queen of England, and crowned 
 William and Mary. The people, taught by ex- 
 perience the necessity of defining the powers and 
 privileges of both prince and people, now framed a 
 bill of rights which fixed the English government 
 in that happy state of freedom and moderation 
 which has ever since characterised it. But though 
 this revolution was brought about with apparent 
 ease and unanimity, William was not quite popu- 
 lar, nor James entirely without friends, parti- 
 cularly among the Poman catholics of Ireland, 
 where James appeared in person, and was soon at 
 
EUROPE. 199 
 
 the head of an army ; but at the memorable battle 
 of the Boyne his last hope expired, and William 
 found himself firmly seated. James agaiu took 
 refuge in France, and soon after entered a monas- 
 tery, more gratified and happy in the title of saint, 
 than he had ever been in that of king. William 
 was involved in hostilities with the French till the 
 battle of La Hogue made an impression on the 
 French never to be forgotten. After a quiet, 
 tranquil reign, William died in 1702, and was suc- 
 ceeded by the Princess Anne of Denmark, the 
 nearest protestant heir to the crown. 
 
 Anne's administration was distinguished by vio- 
 lent animosities among the existing factions, when 
 the terms Whig and Tory expressed open and un- 
 disguised hatred; and a war with France, in which 
 the battles of Blenheim and Bamillies, under the 
 command of the Duke of Marlborough, raised the 
 reputation of English arms and valour to an un- 
 precedented height of glory and renown. But the 
 great event of this reign was the union of Scotland 
 with England, a measure which has tended to in- 
 crease the power, the importance, and the peace 
 of both countries. After a reign of incessant al- 
 tercation, Anne died in 1714, and with her ended 
 the line of Stuarts, who had swayed the sceptre of 
 England 112, and that of Scotland 343 years. 
 
 George I., elector of Hanover, maternally de- 
 scended from Elizabeth, daughter of James 1., 
 succeeded Anne on the throne of Great Britain. 
 Under this prince the Whigs regained that place in 
 the national councils, of which they had been de- 
 El 4 
 
200 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 prived in the former reign. George was too 
 warmly attached to his paternal continental do- 
 minions to deal even-handed justice on his new 
 subjects, and in struggles between factions, often 
 sacrificed the interests of Britain to those of Ha- 
 nover. In 1715, the earl of Mar raised the 
 standard of rebellion in Scotland, and publicly 
 proclaimed the heir of the house of Stuart, the 
 Chevalier St. George, king. Some other fiery 
 spirits among the malcontent Scotch joined him ; 
 but the duke of Argyle put their forces com- 
 pletely to the rout, and the Chevalier, with Mar, 
 Drummond, and a few others, escaped to the con- 
 tinent. The Spaniards attempted to defend the 
 cause of the Pretender by sea, but their fleet was 
 dispersed by a storm off Cape Finisterre. George 
 died at Osnaburg in June, 1727, and was suc- 
 ceeded by his son George II., who with his crown 
 inherited his father's partiality for his continental 
 possessions : but the British monarchs had now 
 learned, that to oppose the will of Parliament was 
 to draw mischief, and even ruin, on themselves. 
 George, therefore, retained his father's minister, 
 Walpole, who is said to have been the first 
 minister who used illegal means to secure elec- 
 tions. Like every man in power, he had many 
 enemies ; and this part of his conduct was eagerly 
 seized on to disgrace the minister, who soon after 
 resigned, and was created earl of Orford. 
 
 The German territory was at this time a scene 
 of warfare, and Hanover was in danger. George, 
 to save his favourite dominions, was soon at the 
 
EUEOPE. 201 
 
 head of an army ; found himself at Dettingen, and 
 obtained a complete victory. Another effort was 
 made in favour of the Pretender by his son Charles 
 Edward, who crossed over to Scotland and pro- 
 claimed his father king at Perth. Having gained 
 a battle at Preston Pans, he marched into Eng- 
 land, but finding himself disappointed in the as- 
 sistance he had expected from the English Tories, 
 retreated towards Scotland, and after several de 
 feats, found himself obliged to hide in the wilds 
 of Inverness, there, for a long time, scarcely dar- 
 ing to beg the scanty food he eat, and with dif- 
 ficulty effected his escape, with Cameron of Loch- 
 iel and a few other followers, in a vessel hired for 
 the purpose. This reign was constantly disturbed 
 by wars and disputes with Scotland or France 
 and India. The French provoked reprisals on the 
 coast of America, by which they eventually lost 
 the best part of their possessions in North 
 America, and many of their West India Islands. 
 A peace was at last concluded, on advanta- 
 geous terms, though not to the satisfaction of the 
 country. It was during this war that George II. 
 died, in 1752. The alteration of the style, ac- 
 cording to the Gregorian Calendar, and in unison 
 with all Europe, took place, by merging the 
 days between the third and the fourteenth of 
 September. 
 
 George III., grandson to George II. and eldest 
 son of the late Duke of York, ascended the throne 
 in 1760. He had been born in England, and 
 gained general good will by declaring that he con- 
 El 5 
 
202 UNIVEKSAL HISTORY. 
 
 sidered himself an Englishman, possessed of aii 
 English heart, and determined to support the re- 
 ligion of his country, and administer her laws faith- 
 fully. It was so long since the English had been 
 governed by one of their own country, and they 
 had suffered so much under the rule of foreigners, 
 that they gladly hailed their half-English king, 
 and gave to him the confidence and aifection of 
 their warm hearts. George, on coming to the 
 Crown, was well disposed to procure peace to his 
 dominions ; but his ministry judged it prudent to 
 continue hostilities until more advantageous terms 
 could be obtained from the French. After this 
 unsatisfactory conclusion of a war, which had 
 been undertaken chiefly in defence of the colonies 
 in America, when the ardour of defeat was over, 
 and people began to think calmly on the great 
 increase of taxes produced by the war, a general 
 feeling arose that it was unfair the whole burden 
 should fall on the English, and that the American 
 colonists ought to help to pay some part of the in- 
 terest on a debt incurred for their benefit. The co- 
 lonists did not deny the justice of this, but claimed 
 to be represented in Parliament, and thus only taxed 
 by their own consent. Rational as this appears, it 
 was not granted. The impolitic and unfortunate 
 administration of Lord North, for twelve successive 
 years, were deaf and blind to the complaints, re- 
 monstrances, and representations of the colonists, 
 as well as certain demonstrations of feeling in 
 different parts of America, and persisted in levying 
 port-clues, duties on imported goods, particularly 
 
EUROPE. 203 
 
 tea, and other injudicious measures, until re- 
 bellion broke out in America ; the colonists pro- 
 claimed themselves independent of the mother- 
 country, and war was declared : the excitement in 
 England was terrible, and continued to manifest 
 itself on various occasions, during the seven years' 
 continuance of that calamitous war. A frightful 
 scene of confusion and riot was exhibited, not only 
 in London, but in many parts of England, during 
 the summer of 1780, by the excited populace, on 
 account of the Catholic Relief Bill, fermented by 
 the madman-like conduct of Lord George Gordon. 
 About this time the famous armed neutrality of 
 the Empress of Russia aimed a severe blow at 
 our continental connections, and the appearance of 
 Hyder Ally threatened the safety of our posses- 
 sions in India. All this news contributed to raise 
 the feelings, and call forth the energies, of the 
 English nation. At length the administration of 
 Lord North and that of the Coalition Ministry 
 came to an end, and Mr. Pitt, then only in his 
 twenty-fourth year, was appointed first Lord of 
 the Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer, 
 and immediately concluded a peace between Great 
 Britain and the colonies, acknowledging their in- 
 dependence, under the name of the United States. 
 Thus, after a ruinous warfare of seven years, 
 the colonies were for ever lost to England. A 
 treaty, offensive and defensive, was also signed 
 with Prussia, in 1788. But England was not 
 long permitted to enjoy peace. The situation of 
 France soon became an object of engrossing and 
 K 6 
 
204 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 overwhelming interest to all Europe. Britain 
 was not among the least interested spectators of 
 that political and moral revolution which now con- 
 vulsed what has been called her hereditary foe. 
 The writings of Burke, Paine, Mackintosh, and 
 others inflamed the zeal of conflicting parties, in 
 several instances, far beyond the bounds of mo- 
 deration. 
 
 On the execution of Louis, the French Ambas- 
 sador was ordered to withdraw within six days. 
 The English Ambassador had been previously re- 
 called, and war was declared by the national con- 
 vention of France against England and Holland 
 early in 1793. Thus commenced a war, then con- 
 sidered by the British cabinet a matter to be easily 
 adjusted, that for twenty-five years deluged 
 Europe with blood, overturned dynasties, de- 
 throned kings, unseated popes, swept countries 
 from modern maps, raised men of low degree not 
 only to the first ranks in the senate, the army, 
 and the navy, but to principalities and thrones, 
 and gave to one individual the greatest extent of 
 power and command the world ever saw united 
 in the same person. 
 
 The resources of France were stronger than 
 had been calculated on, and after a few years of 
 insane fury and slaughter at home, the course of 
 her armies, under such men as Moreau, Kleber, 
 Hoche, and Buonaparte, could only be met and 
 arrested by the Nelsons, the Sydney Smiths, the 
 Abercrombies, the Moores, and the Wellesleys 
 of Great Britain, who, during the tremendous 
 
EUROPE. 205 
 
 struggle with the Republic, the Consulate, and 
 the Empire of France, and by them embroiled 
 with other kingdoms, stood single-handed, not 
 only against all Europe, but at one period against 
 that and America also. The strength of Christian 
 England, however, was in a praying people. The 
 God of battles triumphed, and in 1815 a treaty of 
 peace was finally concluded in Paris, of which the 
 English were a second time in possession. After 
 the British troops had driven the hitherto un- 
 conquerable Buonaparte from the country, and 
 restored the old Bourbon family to the throne, 
 it was agreed, that in order to support them in 
 their newly recovered dynasty, 150,000 troops 
 should remain in Paris for five years, under the 
 command of the Duke of Wellington; and Napo- 
 leon, the " World Tyrant," finding it impossible 
 to escape, surrendered himself to Captain Mait- 
 land of the Bellerophon, expressing a hope that he 
 should live in England for the remainder of his 
 life. He was, however, not an English prisoner, 
 but a prisoner of the allies; and it was determined 
 to fix his future abode on the Island of St. Helena, 
 where he lingered a few wretched years, and died 
 a miserable object of blighted ambition. 
 
 During the last ten years of the life of George 
 III. he was deprived of sight and reason, and 
 lived entirely at Windsor, under the watchful care 
 and affectionate superintendence of his faithful 
 wife and queen, until her death. The Prince of 
 Wales, afterwards George IV., was appointed 
 regent. It was during his regency that peace was 
 
206 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 concluded with France. The Algerines were sub- 
 dued, and their cities laid in ashes, under Lord Ex- 
 mouth, and prosperity everywhere crowned the 
 British name in foreign undertakings. But at 
 home disaffection and riots disturbed the kingdom, 
 while the country suffered severely from great com- 
 mercial distress, when a painful event added to the 
 general gloom. — The only daughter of the regent, 
 and heiress to his throne, had married Leopold of 
 Saxe Coburg, — a union that, from the solid basis 
 on which it was founded, promised a life of much 
 felicity. But the all-wise Disposer of events saw 
 fit to disappoint her people's hopes, by calling her 
 from a state of earthly peace and glory, we trust* 
 to one of eternal bliss and glory unspeakable, in 
 the year 1817, scarcely two years after her ap-^ 
 parently propitious marriage. As soon as the nation 
 recovered a little from the stunning effects of this 
 unexpected loss, the unmarried members of the 
 royal family began to seek alliances ; — the Duke of 
 Clarence, in 1818, married the Princess of Saxe 
 Meningen, and the Duke of Kent the Princess 
 of Lemingen. This year Charlotte, queen of 
 George III., died, crowned with age and domestic 
 virtues, and in 1820 the "good old king" was 
 called from time into eternity. 
 
 The first act of George. IV. showed he knew 
 how to govern : all the officers of the Crown were 
 retained, and he made a public declaration, that 
 " it would ever be his desire to promote the hap- 
 piness and welfare of his people, and maintain, 
 unimpaired, the religion, laws, and liberties of this 
 
EUROPE. 207 
 
 kingdom." The reign of this monarch was sig;- 
 nally marked by commercial difficulties and specu- 
 lations. Among the latter was the memorable 
 joint-stock companies, which led to the ruin of 
 many opulent families, who thus made haste to be 
 rich. In 1824 a war broke out between the East 
 India Company and the Burmese sovereign, which 
 lasted about three years, but ended by the subju- 
 gation of the Burman empire, and a vast increase 
 of territory to the East India Company. In 
 obedience to the voice of a certain part of the 
 nation, a Bill was brought into and passed both 
 Houses of Parliament for the emancipation of 
 Roman Catholics, but was lost. It was, however, 
 often renewed, and in 1829 it obtained the King's 
 sanction, and, since that time Roman Catholics 
 are allowed to sit in both Houses of Parliament, 
 and fill the highest offices of state. George IV. 
 died in 1830, and was succeeded by his brother, 
 
 William IV., on whose accession all the ministers 
 and great officers were reappointed to their places : 
 but this was of short duration ; the necessity of 
 Parliamentary reform, which had so long agitated 
 the nation, was now brought forward with re- 
 newed vigour; circumstances, both foreign and do- 
 mestic, favoured the cause ; the changes in France 
 inspired the English with new hopes ; Lord John 
 Russell framed a Bill, a change of Ministry took 
 place, and a House of Commons, fashioned ac- 
 cording to their own mind, followed. The suc- 
 cess of the measure now seemed certain. It was, 
 however, lost this session, and dreadful outrages 
 
208 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 throughout England was the consequence ; and 
 not only in England, but in Scotland and Ire- 
 land, was the same determination manifested. In 
 the midst of this distraction, the Almighty per- 
 mitted the destroying angel to pass over the 
 country in the form of pure Asiatic cholera mor- 
 bus, which proved fatal to thousands, one out of 
 every three attacked by it falling a victim to that 
 which must be regarded as a punishment on a 
 guilty nation. 
 
 In the summer of 1832 the long-desired mea- 
 sure of a Reform Bill was triumphantly carried ; 
 and thus the greatest change that had taken 
 place in the British constitution since the Re- 
 volution of 1688 was brought about, and the 
 storm, which had long rocked the country, was 
 hushed to peace. The first Reform Parliament 
 met in February, 1833, and their first business 
 was to break asunder and shake off entirely the 
 shackles of slavery from the West India slave 
 population. A remuneration was granted to the 
 slave-holders, and thus the dark stain of slavery 
 was washed out of the British annals. 
 
 Ireland was at this time in a deplorable con- 
 dition ; famine, disease, and crime devastated the 
 country; all these were in a great measure the 
 children of that dreadful agitation, so recklessly 
 kept alive by the pretended friends, but real ene- 
 mies, of that ill-fated country, which has been for 
 a long series of years, and still continues to be, 
 the greatest difficulty which the British ministry 
 has to encounter. During the session of 1835 
 
EUROPE. 209 
 
 the famous bills for the reformation of Corpora- 
 tions, the Poor Laws, the Registration and Mar- 
 riage Bills, were all passed, by which dissenters 
 were allowed to celebrate marriages in their 
 chapels, agreeably to their own forms and cere- 
 monies, with many other privileges. William IV. 
 died after a short illness, in June 1837, in the 
 seventy-third year of his age, and tenth of his 
 reign, universally loved and respected; and was 
 succeeded by Alexandrina Victoria, only child of 
 the late Duke of Kent, then in her eighteenth 
 year. 
 
 As Queen Victoria I., her accession to the 
 throne was hailed with more than ordinary enthu- 
 siasm : all ranks and all parties in the state and 
 kingdom, vied with each other in manifesting 
 their affectionate allegiance to their youthful and 
 interesting sovereign. In November the city of 
 London distinguished itself by giving the Queen 
 a most magnificent banquet, and nothing could 
 exceed the glad enthusiasm that prevailed as she 
 passed through the brilliantly illuminated streets, 
 or the splendour of the whole event. The follow- 
 ing year was rendered remarkable by a turbulent 
 spirit which broke out among the lower classes, 
 who now formed themselves into a regular but 
 badly organized body, under the name of Chart- 
 ists. Government found it necessary to take up 
 the matter, and by vigorous measures they have 
 been kept down, though not disbanded. In Feb- 
 ruary 1840, her Majesty was united in marriage 
 to her cousin Albert, Prince of Saxe Coburg and 
 
210 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 Gotha, a marriage which has been productive of 
 much mutual domestic happiness, and every way 
 conducive to the welfare of the nation, and in 
 none more than in presenting a bright example of 
 conjugal and parental felicity, combined with the 
 performance of every relative and national duty. 
 About this time, disputes respecting the contra- 
 band traffic in opium, carried on in the East In- 
 dies, brought on collisions between the Chinese, 
 authorities and the British subjects at Canton, 
 which led to hostilities, that, though quelled for a 
 time, broke out again with renewed animosity, and 
 led to a war with China, which was, however, con- 
 cluded on terms very advantageous to Great Bri- 
 tain. Great exertions, have been made, and are 
 now making, for the christianizing of the Chinese 
 people. Missionaries have been sent out by the 
 Church and by the Methodists; churches and 
 chapels have been built, the Bible has been exten- 
 sively circulated, the gospel preached, and its doc- 
 trines promulgated widely, with a fair prospect of 
 bringing thousands, and happily the whole large 
 population of China, experimentally acquainted 
 with the way of salvation, through the atoning 
 blood of a crucified Redeemer. 
 
 The British arms were also very successful in a 
 war with the Affghans in the East Indies ; but 
 it was a bloody, unchristian war, and deeds were 
 committed at which humanity instinctively shud- 
 ders. It is true the Affghans were barbarous, 
 fierce, and cruel in disposition, but their oppo- 
 nents were professedly Christians, and should 
 
EUROPE. 211 
 
 have remembered, that, "Vengeance is mine; and 
 I will repay it, saith the Lord." In the following 
 year, the Ameers of Scinde provoked the British 
 troops to warfare, under Sir Charles Napier ; the 
 result of which was, that the six Ameers, who go- 
 verned that country with a rod of iron, were cap- 
 tured, and the whole of Scinde annexed to the Bri- 
 tish dominions, and Sir Charles Napier appointed 
 Governor ; since which he has been employed in a 
 terrible contest with the Sikhs, in which the Bri- 
 tish army was again successful. Several impor- 
 tant Acts have been passed, tending to ameliorate 
 or remove the cause of discontent, and bring into 
 force such measures as shall give freedom and peace 
 to every part of the British dominions ; among 
 these was the repeal of the corn-laws, so long 
 clamoured for in vain. This was perhaps facili- 
 tated by a failure of the potato crop, by which 
 Ireland in particular was threatened by famine, 
 and the wisdom of this measure appears to have 
 been manifested in the ensuing autumn and win- 
 ter. The potato crop having failed a second year, 
 sickness and famine made dreadful ravages in 
 many parts of Great Britain; but in Ireland, 
 where the chief means of subsistence is the potato, 
 famine and fever raged in all their horrors, sweep- 
 ing away thousands. The Government and the 
 people of England, forgetful of their domestic 
 evils, willingly and liberally stretched out the 
 hand of brotherly and Christian kindness, without 
 which the whole nation must have perished. A 
 day of general fasting and humiliation was ap- 
 
212 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 pointed, and the Lord heard and answered prayer. 
 A fine summer and abundant harvest followed, and 
 the song of praise and thanksgiving resounded 
 through the country. Would we could say, peace 
 and joy were diffused over Ireland ; but nothing 
 done or said by the English can produce satisfac- 
 tion, to say nothing of gratitude. It boots not 
 that in every city, town, and village, active exer- 
 tions and domestic privations are being daily made 
 to procure the means of aiding our Irish brethren. 
 The old animosity of the Celt against the Saxon 
 remains, and is but too frequently exhibited in 
 awful, frightful scenes of rapine, murder, and 
 bloodshed. Great commercial distress has marked 
 the year 1847, and failures to an enormous amount 
 have reduced many wealthy families to poverty. 
 Yet is England a favoured nation above all others, 
 and ready above all others to aid, assist, and shel- 
 ter the distressed of all countries, and is at this 
 moment opening her arms to receive and comfort 
 the exiled Louis Philippe of France, with his 
 children and grandchildren, driven by a fickle, rest- 
 less nation and people (who have just declared them- 
 selves a republic), to seek safety and protection 
 from hereditary foes. Surely we are a people, a 
 church, and a nation, blessed of the Lord, and 
 great in the might of Israel's God. 
 
 SCOTLAND. 
 
 The Scots, like every nation whose origin is 
 uncertain, claim a very high degree of antiquity ; 
 
EUROPE. 213 
 
 but the first part of their authentic history is their 
 invasion by the Romans under Agricola, in or 
 about the year 72. The Romans found the Scots 
 in a state of barbarity, and, having driven them 
 into the shelter of their inaccessible mountains, 
 rather than subdued them, erected a chain of forts 
 which protected the frontiers of the Roman pro- 
 vinces in England. In the time of Adrian the 
 frontiers extended from Tynemouth on the east, 
 to Carlisle on the west. These fortifications and 
 ramparts were frequently broken down and re- 
 built, as their incursions into England and the 
 defence offered rendered necessary. Before the 
 Romans withdrew from England, we find them 
 building a stone wall across the north of the 
 island, to protect the islanders from those savages 
 the Picts and Scots, two rival nations who pos- 
 sessed the country we call Scotland. The Picts 
 were afterwards vanquished by Kenneth, who in 
 845, united the two kingdoms under the name 
 by which it is now known ; but for a long while 
 nothing interesting offers in its history, unless it 
 may be the piratical incursions of the Danes. In 
 1056, Malcolm, having avenged himself on the 
 murderer of his father, Macbeth, found himself 
 involved in a war with William of Normandy, 
 who, after coming to England, marched against 
 Malcolm, and forced him to do homage for his 
 territory. 
 
 After the death of William, Malcolm made a 
 struggle to recover his kingdom — a struggle 
 
214 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 which continued with Donald Bane, Duncan and 
 Edgar, until 1124. David, who succeeded, was a 
 weak prince in body and in mind. He was suc- 
 ceeded by his brother William, who recovered 
 from Henry II. of England the earldom of Nor- 
 thumberland, but wanting caution was taken pri- 
 soner, and detained in captivity until he con- 
 sented to declare himself a vassal to England, and 
 do homage for his whole kingdom. Richard, how- 
 ever, remitted these terms, and declared Scotland 
 an independent kingdom partly for the payment 
 of 10,000 marks, and partly hoping to make 
 friends of the Scots, while he went on the crusade 
 into Palestine. William continued a faithful ally 
 to England until his death, but his son and suc- 
 cessor, Alexander II., took part with the English 
 barons in their contentions with John. His son, 
 Alexander III., was betrothed to the daughter of 
 Henry III. When he proceeded to England to 
 claim his bride, her father thought it a good op- 
 portunity for demanding a renewal of vassalage ; 
 but the firmness of Alexander induced him to 
 give up his absurd pretensions, and Alexander 
 succeeded in adding to his dominions several 
 neighbouring islands, the Orkneys and Shetlands 
 in particular. He was killed while hunting at 
 Kinghorn in 1285. The English throne was at 
 this time filled by Edward I., who had long wished 
 to add Scotland to his dominions. Alexander, 
 before his death, had given his daughter Margaret 
 in marriage to the king of Norway, and the Scots 
 declared that the posterity of Margaret should be 
 
EUROPE. 215 
 
 accounted lawful heirs to the throne. Margaret 
 died, leaving one child, Margaret, usually called 
 " The Maiden of Norway." Edward, hoping to 
 unite the kingdoms peaceably, sought "the Maiden " 
 in marriage for his son the Prince of Wales ; but 
 this union was prevented by the death of the 
 Princess in 1270. 
 
 The line of Alexander being thus extinguished, 
 many claimants, each supported by specious pre- 
 tensions, appeared. Among them were John Ba- 
 liol and David Bruce, both descendants from 
 David I. through their grandfather, David, Earl 
 of Huntingdon, who was grandson to David I. 
 The imperfect law of succession could not decide 
 between claims which both were determined to 
 maintain. Civil war was therefore threatened, 
 when Edward offered his judgment in the deci- 
 sion. Anxious to avoid the horrors of war, this 
 offer w r as eagerly accepted. Edward demanded 
 that all the strong places should be put in his pos- 
 session, that he might be able to enforce his de- 
 cision. This was granted, and Edward thus 
 supported, affected to consider Scotland as a fief 
 of the English crown, and as such, subject to the 
 King of England as superior. Of the claimants 
 he decided Baliol to have the best right. He was 
 therefore clothed in the pageantry of royalty, but 
 constantly made to feel his inferiority by being 
 summoned to London on the most frivolous pre- 
 tences, and treated with insult and contumely, 
 which unable to bear, he retired in indignation to 
 his own country, and Edward proceeded to gain 
 
21fr UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 by conquest what he had failed in securing by 
 cunning. 
 
 Among the heroes who defended the liberty 
 of their country was Sir William Wallace, a man 
 of good birth, undaunted valour, immense sta- 
 ture, unequalled strength, insensible to fatigue 
 or hunger, and full of genuine patriotism. His 
 spirit revived the dying embers of freedom: a 
 large number of forces collected around him, and 
 for a time victory followed their footsteps. At 
 Stirling and all the way into England, and through 
 the northern counties they conquered all before 
 them, and Wallace was declared regent of Scot- 
 land ; but victory, as if affrighted at this, then de- 
 serted him. Edward, who had been engaged with 
 war in France, returned, placed himself at the 
 head of his army, and soon made himself master 
 of the kingdom; while Wallace the noble champion 
 of his country's rights, after encountering unheard 
 of difficulties and dangers, was by the treachery of 
 his friend, Sir John Monteith, betrayed into the 
 hands of Edward, carried to London, and in- 
 humanly executed as a public traitor. 
 
 Robert de Bruce, grandson of the Bruce who 
 had disputed the crown, now made a strong effort 
 to place himself on the throne, which after much 
 trouble and fighting he effected by a decisive battle 
 at Bannockburn, near Stirling, in 1314, against 
 Edward II. 
 
 On the death of Robert Bruce, 1328, his son, 
 David II. was proclaimed king, but had to contend 
 with Baliol. In a war between England and 
 
EUROPE. 217 
 
 Scotland he was taken prisoner, and detained in 
 captivity eleven years, when he was liberated on 
 paying 100,000 marks, after which he returned to 
 Scotland, and shortly after died in 1371. 
 
 David was succeeded by his nephew, Robert II., 
 the first of the family of Stuart who sat on the 
 throne of Scotland. In his reign was fought the 
 battle of Otterburn, on which the ballad of Chevy 
 Chace is founded. He died in 1399, and was suc- 
 ceeded by his son John, also called Robert. 
 Scotland was now at peace with England, but 
 rent to pieces by the feuds of its own barons, 
 among whom were the famous Earl Percy, and 
 Duke of Albany. Robert sent his son James to 
 France for education and safety ; but in passing 
 through England he was taken prisoner, which so 
 affected his father that he died of grief, and the 
 Duke of Albany was appointed regent. The 
 young prince was detained a prisoner nineteen 
 years, during which time he was most carefully 
 educated. On his return he endeavoured to 
 correct those abuses which the feudal system in 
 its rudest form had introduced ; but this was dis- 
 pleasing to his ferocious barons, to whom he soon 
 became odious. He was assassinated while at 
 supper in a convent near Perth, in 1437. 
 
 His son, James II., was but seven years old at his 
 father's death, A long and feeble regency occa- 
 sioned many miseries ; but James, on assuming the 
 reins of government, gave promise of great pru- 
 dence and wisdom, promise which raised the hopes of 
 his people, only to disappoint them. He was killed 
 L 
 
218 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 by the accidental bursting of a cannon, at the 
 siege of Roxburgh. His son, James III., was 
 then scarcely seven years of age, and again the 
 country groaned under the miseries of an ag- 
 gressive regency, from which the manhood of 
 James did not relieve them. Of a poor, mean 
 disposition, and contemptible abilities, he chose 
 his associates from among men of low birth, and 
 vulgar, coarse habits ; hated the nobility, and was 
 in turn despised by them. In an insurrection, 
 amounting to open rebellion, James led his forces 
 to an engagement near Stirling, but, like a coward 
 as he was, at the first onset was thrown from his 
 horse, and being carried into the house of a miller, 
 was stabbed by a person who visited him under the 
 guise of a priest. James IV. was crowned while 
 a minor, but his reign seems to have been more 
 free from disaster, and, on the whole, more quiet 
 and prosperous than that of any of his predeces- 
 sors. He married the daughter of Henry VII., 
 and thus laid the foundation of a union between 
 the two kingdoms. Yet he was induced to espouse 
 the French interest against the English, and fell 
 in the battle of Flodden Field, in 1513. The 
 death of James once more imposed a long mino- 
 rity, more turbulent, if possible, than any that 
 had gone before it, notwithstanding the influence 
 of the queen-mother to prevent hostilities with 
 England. 
 
 James V. inherited the strong attachment of 
 his family for France, which induced him to marry 
 the daughter of a French king. This princess 
 
EUEOPE. 219 
 
 did not long survive, and James soon after mar- 
 ried the intriguing Mary of Guise. James, 
 in many respects, saw and pursued the welfare 
 of his country, but his connexion with and at- 
 tachment to the French, gave him a distaste for 
 his own nobility, and estranged them from him, 
 besides embroiling him with the English. Had 
 James been a patriot, he might have been useful, 
 valuable, and beloved; but, wanting patriotism, 
 he failed in all his undertakings, and died of grief 
 a few days after his disgraceful defeat at Solway 
 in 1542. 
 
 Mary of Guise, the queen-mother, had the art 
 to get herself appointed regent, and though de- 
 testing the progress the Reformation w^as then 
 making under Elizabeth, contrived to hide her 
 malice, and to live on tolerable terms with her 
 nobility. The young and beautiful Mary, only a 
 few hours old when her father died, was early 
 sent to France, to be educated, and, under the 
 influence of her relatives, the Guises, was mar- 
 ried to the eldest son of the King of France, 
 who ascended the throne under the name of Francis 
 II., but did not live long enough to enjoy the 
 power he inherited. 
 
 After the death of Francis, Mary returned to 
 the land of her birth, and ascended the throne 
 of her ancestors ; but, alas ! she did not bring 
 with her the mind, manners, nor habits suited 
 to her native land, nor the prudence and steadi- 
 ness that might have saved her from the faults 
 and misfortunes of her ancestors. Hoping to 
 L 2 
 
220 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 render her more thoughtful, the people urged 
 her to marry ; and consulting her taste and fancy 
 rather than the policy that would conduce to the 
 good of her country, Mary married Lord Darnley, 
 a man of fine person and agreeable fascinating 
 manners, but a foolish, headstrong, brutal cha- 
 racter. His coarseness, neglect, and ill con- 
 duct soon turned the warm love of Mary into 
 bitter hatred. Her chief pleasure seemed to be 
 in the company of an Italian siuger, called David 
 Rizzio. 
 
 Surrounded as she was by the cold, formal, pu- 
 ritanic Scots, the imprudence of Mary found but 
 little excuse or lenity. Still, with the infatuation 
 of her race, she persevered in seeking her own gra- 
 tification, until Darnley caused Itizzio to be cruelly 
 murdered, almost before her face ; when Mary's 
 warm heart suddenly grew hard, and thirsted for 
 revenge. Meanwhile Bothwell, a man of un- 
 bounded ambition, contrived to gain the favour of 
 Mary by various services. Influenced by these, 
 and urged by resentment to revenge the murder of 
 her favourite, she did not prevent — to say no 
 more — that of her husband; and, to give the 
 finishing stroke to her crimes, married Bothwell, 
 who was well known to have been a principal in, 
 if not the perpetrator of, Darnley 's untimely end. 
 She was made a state prisoner, and condemned 
 by all ranks ; notwithstanding which she effected 
 her escape, and threw herself on the protection of 
 Elizabeth of England, who but too eagerly seized 
 the opportunity of crushing one whom she con- 
 
EUEOPE. 221 
 
 sidered a rival, and hated for her beauty and fas- 
 cinations. 
 
 After a cruel imprisonment of nineteen years, 
 the unfortunate Scottish queen ended her life and 
 her suffering on the scaffold, leaving an indelible 
 stain on the name of her proud, unfeeling relative, 
 who had taken on herself the office of protectress. 
 
 James VI., the son and successor of Mary, 
 after having governed Scotland for some time 
 with a tolerable share of ability, was, by the 
 death of Elizabeth, called to the English throne, 
 in right of his descent from Henry VII. From 
 that time Britain was governed by one prince, 
 but Scotland had its parliaments and a shadow of 
 independence, until the reign of Queen Anne, 
 when, by the Union, Britain became one king- 
 dom. This measure at first gave great offence 
 to all ranks in Scotland ; but the rapid progress 
 in wealth and in power made by Britain, and 
 largely participated in by Scotland, has long since 
 reconciled all parties, and fully proved the wisdom 
 of the measure. 
 
 IKELAND. 
 
 The Irish even surpass the other parts of 
 Great Britain in their pretensions to an existence 
 of remote antiquity, the Deluge itself scarcely 
 limiting their retrospective views. If we believe 
 some of her native writers, Ireland " was a great 
 and flourishing kingdom when the whole con- 
 " L 3 
 
222 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 tinent of Europe was a continued forest, or 
 peopled by tribes not surpassing in civilisation the 
 Indians of North America." We are not in- 
 formed by what desolating reverses this flou- 
 rishing state of ■ society was destroyed ; but 
 certain it is, that the first authentic history we 
 have describes it as fully as rude and barbarous 
 as its British and Gaulish neighbours. There is 
 good historic proof that the Celts either went, or 
 were driven by the Gauls, into Ireland ; but when 
 is not so clear. The few glimpses of Irish history 
 that can be obtained, before the tenth century, 
 show that it was invaded by the Romans under 
 Agricola ; that at one period it was called Scotia, 
 and that Christianity was introduced about the 
 fourth century. In the sixth century so many 
 holy men were sent out to propagate the Gospel, 
 that it was dignified by the title of Insula Sane- 
 torum, or " Island of Saints." When Henry II., 
 taking advantage of the situation of Dermot, 
 carried troops into Ireland, with a determination 
 to conquer the island, he found it divided into 
 five small kingdoms of demi- civilised inhabitants, 
 badly governed, and torn to pieces by fierce and 
 savage contentions. With no great difficulty the 
 whole country was subjugated to the power of 
 Henry, who, having made Strongbow governor, 
 returned to England. 
 
 Richard paid little attention to Ireland ; but 
 John endeavoured to give it laws, and Henry III. 
 extended Magna Charta to this portion of his do- 
 minions. 
 
EUROPE. 223 
 
 During several succeeding reigns the Irish, 
 assisted sometimes by the Scotch, sometimes by 
 the French, were found a troublesome and un- 
 profitable appendage to the British crown. 
 
 In the reign of Elizabeth the Spaniards as- 
 sisted the Irish in endeavouring to throw off the 
 English yoke, but did not suceeed ; on the con- 
 trary, Elizabeth fully confirmed the English do- 
 minion in that island. James planted colonies 
 from England and Scotland in various parts of 
 the country ; introduced a just and impartial ad- 
 ministration of justice, and opened the way for 
 future improvements and an increase of civilisa- 
 tion, which gradually took place ; but, contrary 
 to expectation, increase of knowledge only ren- 
 dered them the more dissatisfied, teaching them 
 to believe that they had been unjustly deprived of 
 privileges which they were determined to recover. 
 
 The history of Ireland for the last century is 
 only that of resistance to England, and opposition 
 to her government, with insane atrocities and 
 rebellions that must ever stain the page of his- 
 torv. 
 
 During the French revolution the French 
 offered to lend them assistance to throw off the 
 yoke of Britain, which they found so hateful. 
 These designs soon precipitated the nation into all 
 the horrors of rebellion and civil war, and the 
 most savage outrages were committed by the 
 " United Irishmen," a society who found means 
 of opening a correspondence with the French 
 Directory ; and a plan of invasion having been 
 L 4 
 
224 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 concerted. La Hoche, with a few miserable troops, 
 landed in Ireland in 1796, but were soon forced 
 to surrender unconditionally. It was at last 
 found necessary to repress the rebellion by vigor- 
 ous measures. Many of the delegates were 
 seized in different parts. An attempt to seize the 
 castle was, by the force of arms, rendered ineffec- 
 tual. Several towns were attacked by the rebels, 
 and outrages that disgrace humanity committed. 
 They were, however, weakened by repeated de- 
 feats, when Government sent Lord Cornwallis to 
 Ireland as lord-lieutenant — a man whose military 
 talents were as great as his virtues and moder- 
 ation were exemplary. He immediately held out 
 the olive-branch of peace, and a bill of amnesty 
 was passed, so that at last this alarming rebellion 
 was completely defeated, their French allies 
 having forgotten all promise of assistance after 
 their one puny effort. To prevent as much as 
 possible similar insurrections, and to consolidate 
 the interests of the British empire, it was resolved 
 to unite the kingdoms of England and Ireland as 
 one. To this a strong opposition was made, 
 headed by Mr. Grattan; but it was eventually 
 carried, by a large majority, in 1799. 
 
 A rash attempt was made in 1803 by a few 
 discontented, wild young men to overturn the 
 order thus introduced, with no other advantage 
 than ruin to themselves. It was hoped that this 
 measure would procure lasting peace, and with it 
 prosperity to Ireland ; but alas, for that ill-fated 
 country, ill-disposed persons are ever to be found 
 
EUROPE. 225 
 
 ready to fan into a flame the half-smothered embers 
 of insurrection and rebellion that lie hidden in 
 their excitable, impassioned natures. For many 
 years O'Connell kept the country in a constant 
 agitation, the consequence of which was a fright- 
 ful state of crime, famine, and disease. In the 
 year 1833, in one province alone there were 
 196 murders and 2000 burglaries and house- 
 breakings. The cry was " Give us our rights." 
 " Give us Catholic Emancipation." The Govern- 
 ment yielded. Catholic Emancipation was granted, 
 by a bill giving them seats in the Houses of Lords 
 and Commons, and all the privileges enjoyed by 
 Englishmen. No sooner was this granted than a 
 loud cry was raised for a repeal of the Union, 
 which O'Connell had even the temerity to propose 
 in the House. In Ireland he traversed the country 
 from end to end, stirring up sedition by collecting 
 monster meetings, and talking the excited mul- 
 titude into madness. Death has at length re- 
 leased the country from a man who under the 
 guise of pure, warm patriotism was the greatest 
 enemy it ever had. 
 
 In 1845 an increased grant was made to the 
 College of Maynooth for the education of the 
 Catholic priesthood. Another measure has been 
 adopted for the enlargement of academical edu- 
 cation in Ireland, by winch religion and education 
 are divorced, and at liberty to part company. It 
 has been called " a gigantic scheme of godless 
 education." The bill was brought in and carried 
 to conciliate the Koman Catholics in Ireland, but 
 l5 
 
226 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 like every other effort to serve, assist, or conciliate, 
 it has as yet proved abortive. The failure of the 
 potato-crop in 1845 and 1846, produced famine 
 and disease to a frightful extent. The Govern- 
 ment and the nation of England rescued them 
 from this scene of death and desolation, but failed 
 in making any impression on the better parts of 
 their nature. The year 1847 was distinguished 
 by wrong and outrage. Truly this people are a 
 rebellious people, and their only cure is in an 
 increase of Gospel light and love to God. How 
 that is to be imparted, He alone, in whose hands 
 are the hearts of all men, can show. 
 
AMERICA. 
 
 America, which extends from north to south 
 of the western hemisphere, and now holds a po- 
 sition of great importance in the scale of nations, 
 was unknown to the ancient world ; nor did the 
 moderns conceive of such a country until the 
 indefatigable and enterprising Columbus with in- 
 credible difficulty obtaining assistance from Fer- 
 dinand and Isabella of Spain, set sail in 1492, 
 with a very small number of men and three vessels 
 to go westward in search of adventure, and after 
 a voyage of thirty-three days amidst the murmurs 
 of a discontented crew, landed at one of the Ba- 
 hama Islands. He afterwards discovered Cuba 
 and Hispaniola, but never succeeded in landing 
 on Continental America. 
 
 Columbus died in poverty at Valladolid in 1506 ; 
 but the wealth he had brought into Europe tempted 
 many persons to prosecute researches at their own 
 expense. One of these was Americus Vesputius, a 
 merchant of Florence, who started to South Ame- 
 rica, and from him the country takes its name, 
 though that honour was justly due to Columbus. 
 The wealth and description of the rich and beautiful 
 L 6 
 
228 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 country brought home by merchants and other 
 adventurers, raised in the avaricious Spaniards a 
 desire to possess some part of a land abounding 
 in gold, silver, and precious stones. 
 
 Fernando Cortez was therefore fitted out with 
 an armed force from Cuba, and departed with a 
 determination to subdue the empire of Mexico, 
 a powerful country inhabited by a polished and 
 intelligent race, under the mild and peaceful 
 government of Montezuma; who, as a nation, 
 ranked very high as warriors among surrounding 
 nations. 
 
 Mexico, their capital, was a splendid city, glit- 
 tering in shops, jewellery, gold, silver, and magni- 
 ficent palaces; but valiant warriors though they 
 were, they were so alarmed at the sight of 
 armed Spaniards mounted on what appeared to 
 them monsters (for they had never seen horses), 
 that they offered very little resistance. Along the 
 coast, and at their capital, Montezuma met and 
 received the Spaniards with the utmost kindness, 
 more anxious to preserve his people from the 
 effects of their artificial thunder, and the terrific 
 animals that bore them, than to defend his beau- 
 tiful city. This mildness met a very ungrateful 
 return from the Spaniards, who, having made 
 Montezuma prisoner by stratagem, soon after 
 killed him. The unhappy Mexicans elected Gua- 
 temozin their king, and under him made great 
 efforts to recover their freedom from the inhuman 
 and cruel Spaniards, who, in their lust after 
 wealth, spared neither age nor sex : no enormity 
 
AMERICA. 229 
 
 was too great or too revolting for theni to commit. 
 The poor Mexicans fell in thousands before what 
 they called " the Spanish thunder." 
 
 Guatemozin was taken prisoner, and suffered 
 every torture that the unbridled passions of man 
 could suggest. He was accused of having hidden 
 treasures, and to make him confess where they 
 were hidden, no imaginable torture was spared. 
 While extended over a slow fire of burning coals, 
 his high priest, who was suffering the same kind of 
 torture near him, uttered, in his extremity, some 
 words of reproach. Guatemozin mildly turned 
 his eyes on the priest, saying, ; — " Do I then re- 
 pose on a bed of roses?" It was by the basest 
 arts, the most lawless plunder, the most cruel, 
 disgusting and inhuman acts of villany, that 
 the Spaniards made a complete conquest of this 
 country. 
 
 In 1525, scenes of the same horrible description 
 were again perpetrated by the ferocius Pizarro and 
 Almagro, in the conquest of Peru. Many de- 
 scriptions have been written, but nothing that the 
 pen can paint w T ill half equal the barbarities of 
 these monsters, miscalled Christians. At length 
 the wretched Peruvians abandoned Cusco, their 
 capital, and were glad to escape with their lives, 
 leaving the mangled remains of those they loved 
 behind, and fled into the interior of their but 
 too inviting country. Increase of wealth does 
 not always add to the welfare or true prosperity 
 of a country. Spain gained the rich provinces of 
 South America, but lost her energy and industry. 
 Who would work, when gold, silver, and pre- 
 
230 UNIVERSAL HISTORY, 
 
 cious stones in abundance were to be had for 
 fetching? Has the national character been im- 
 proved by these acquisitions ? The present state 
 of Spain and Portugal will answer the question. 
 
 Soon after the discovery of South America, 
 John Sebastian Cabot, an Englishman in the 
 Portuguese service, discovered Newfoundland, and 
 all that part of the north-east coast, known as 
 the United States. It was peopled by different 
 tribes of Indians under their respective chiefs, a 
 wild, savage, warlike people, often at war with 
 each other ; capable of enduring fatigue, and the 
 most excruciating agonies without a pang. There 
 was not much in North America to excite the cu- 
 pidity or avarice of men, but it held out the pro- 
 spect of a home and maintenance to many who 
 could not find either in their native countries. 
 Thus settlements were rapidly formed by the 
 French, Portuguese, Dutch, and English. The 
 severe oppressions to which the Nonconformists 
 were subject under Charles and James II. drove 
 a body of them to seek refuge in the New World, 
 and these " pilgrim fathers " laid the founda- 
 tions of Pennsylvania, New York, and several other 
 states ; Virginia, Carolina, and Georgia, with 
 some others, were colonised by England, during 
 the reigns of Anne and George I. 
 
 The United States were, in fact, chiefly colo- 
 nies of Great Britain, and remained subject to 
 the British crown, until various taxes, some of 
 them considered burthensome and unjust, were 
 levied without the consent of the colonists, who 
 now began to feel their own strength, and deter- 
 
AMERICA. 231 
 
 mined to resist taxation altogether. In July, 
 1776, the representatives of the different states 
 assembled in congress, and published a declaration 
 of independence ; thus separating at once from the 
 mother country. The French, ever eager to em- 
 brace an opportunity of humbling England, em- 
 braced the American cause. After a struggle of 
 seven years against Great Britain, during which 
 the Americans displayed great valour, courage, 
 and prudence, their independence was recognized 
 by the mother country, and America became a 
 free nation, and formed a liberal constitution 
 under a federal republic, then consisting of thir- 
 teen states. Eleven new states have since been 
 added, besides three territories not yet erected 
 into states. Population, trade, and commerce are 
 greatly increasing. 
 
 In 1812 America declared war against Great 
 Britain, but peace was happily restored in 1814. 
 Lower Canada was conquered from the French, 
 and confirmed to Britain in the peace of 1763. 
 Many of the European inhabitants are of French 
 extraction and Roman Catholics, and have a 
 bishop appointed by her Britannic Majesty ; but 
 Protestantism is professedly the religion of Canada, 
 under an English bishop. For many years Canada 
 was a clog round the neck of Great Britain, and 
 except as a refuge for her overgrown population, 
 it is doubtful whether even now it be of any real 
 advantage. 
 
 Soon after the invasion of Spain by the French 
 in 1808, the Spanish colonies of South America, 
 
232 UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 which had hitherto been vice-royalties of Spain, 
 began to be agitated by a revolutionary spirit, 
 which was with difficulty kept down for a few 
 years; but in 1821 Mexico, or New Spain, de- 
 clared its independence; in 1822 a native mi- 
 litary chieftain, Augustin Iturbide, caused him- 
 self to be proclaimed emperor, but was obliged to 
 abdicate in a year; and in 1824 the Mexicans 
 adopted a constitution of government formed on 
 the model of the United States. In the fol- 
 lowing years all the Spanish colonies, one after 
 another, with the exception, perhaps, of Brazil, 
 declared themselves independent, and formed 
 separate republican constitutions. 
 
 But the people were not prepared by character, 
 education, religion, or habit, to support their con- 
 stitutions ; and hitherto these new republics have 
 presented little else than misrule, revolution, and 
 disaster. 
 
 When Bonaparte declared war against Portugal, 
 the regent, with all the royal family, escaped to 
 Brazil, which was raised to the rank of a kingdom 
 in 1815. In 1816, by the death of his mother, 
 John succeeded to the crown of Portugal, and in 
 1821 returned to Portugal, leaving his son, Pedro, 
 as regent. Brazil, however, in common with the 
 other provinces, declared its own independence in 
 1822 ; but with this difference — instead of a re- 
 public, Pedro was crowned Emperor of Brazil. 
 On the death of John, in 1826, Pedro declared 
 his daughter, the Donna Maria Gloria, Queen of 
 Portugal; and in 1831 he abdicated the throne of 
 
AMERICA. 233 
 
 Brazil in favour of his son, Pedro EL, then only 
 six years of age, who is Emperor of Brazil ; but 
 the government is under a regency. Brazil is 
 now an hereditary monarchy, with a legislative 
 assembly, consisting of a senate appointed by the 
 emperor, and a house of representatives elected 
 by the people. The religion of the state is Roman 
 Catholic. All other Christians are tolerated, so 
 far as to be allowed to perform their services in 
 private; but public worship, or the building of 
 churches, is strictly prohibited to all but Roman 
 Catholics. 
 
CONCLUSION. 
 
 Since this little work has been written, and 
 while passing through the press, so many and such 
 great changes have rapidly chased each other over 
 Europe, and the political horizon is still so dark 
 and cloudy, that it has been found impossible to 
 conclude the separate histories satisfactorily. The 
 position of France, the leader in this revolu- 
 tionary race, remains one of doubt, distraction, 
 and a fearful looking forward. Denmark and 
 Prussia are almost equally unsettled. The King 
 of Bavaria has preferred his Amazonian mistress 
 to his throne, of which Maximilian holds uncer- 
 tain possession. The venerable Emperor of Aus- 
 tria seeks shelter from " the pelting of the pitiless 
 storm," by hiding his grey hairs in retirement ; 
 while Italy, roused from her " dolce fa^ niente," 
 has snatched the state from papal power, and 
 struggles for her place among nations. Even im- 
 perial Russia is shaken to her centre; and the 
 Poles again look up with hope. Great Britain, 
 strong in her insular position, her excellent con- 
 stitution, and the loyal hearts of her faithful sub- 
 
CONCLUSION. 235 
 
 jeets, ever ready to afford protection to the exile, 
 acknowledges that her true bulwarks are a pray- 
 ing, God-serving people, — her true strength the 
 Lord God, strong in battle, — and her sure de- 
 fence the Most High, in whose hands are the four 
 winds of heaven. 
 
EXERCISES 
 
 UNIVERSAL HISTORY 
 
 1. How is it necessary to divide time, as respects 
 
 History ? 
 
 2. What is the advantage gained by this division ? 
 
 3. What is the next division of History ? 
 
 4. Did God make any covenant with Noah ? and, if so, 
 
 what was it ? 
 
 5. What circumstances, connected with the building of 
 
 Babel, do you recollect ? 
 
 6. Relate the circumstances of the call of Abraham. 
 
 7. At what period, and by whom, was the Assyrian 
 
 monarchy founded ? 
 
 8. Who was Sardanapalus, and what did he ? 
 9- What king rendered the Egyptians famous ? 
 
 10. In what period was Rome governed by kings ? 
 
 11. Who was Cyrus, and at what period did he live ? 
 
 12. What does the seventh period contain ? 
 
 13. How T many years elapsed between Constantine the 
 
 Great and the extinction of the Western Empire ? 
 
 14. What does the eighth period comprehend and contain ? 
 
 15. In what period were the Romans invaded by the 
 
 Vandals and Visigoths ? 
 
 16. In what period was the Carlovingian race founded ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 237 
 
 1 7. What does the eleventh period contain ? 
 
 18. What period contains the history of the Crusaders ? 
 19- Were there ever two popes at one time ? 
 
 20. In what period do you find the history of Tamer- 
 
 lane and Bajazet ? 
 
 21. During which period was America discovered ? 
 
 22. What are' the chief events of the fourteenth period ? 
 
 23. In which period flourished Charles XII. of Sweden 
 
 and Frederic the Great ? 
 
 24. In which, Pope Leo X., Henry IV. of France, and 
 
 Philip II. of Spain ? 
 
 25. In which, Alexander, Darius, Porus, and Cyrus ? 
 
 26. In which was the conquests of the Romans over 
 
 Asia Minor and Syria ? 
 
 27. In what period do you place the battle of Trafalgar, 
 
 the Revolution and Reign of Terror in France, the 
 accession of the Duke of Cumberland to the throne 
 of Hanover, and the burning of Moscow ? 
 
 28. Into how many periods do you divide History ? 
 
 29. At what date do we place the universal deluge ? 
 
 30. How was the world re-peopled ? 
 
 31. Where is the Garden of Eden supposed to have stood? 
 
 32. Did God give any signal proof of displeasure with the 
 
 sons of men after the flood ? 
 
 33. When, and by whom, was the first monarchy founded ? 
 
 34. With what kingdom was this monarchy united, and 
 
 what name did it then assume ? 
 
 35. What were the circumstances that led to this event ? 
 
 36. Who founded the Macedonian empire, and how ? 
 
 37. Which of the four divisions of the globe is the most 
 
 illustrious ? 
 
 38. Why? 
 
 39. Who was Porus ? 
 
 40. From what does India take its name ? 
 
 41. What is said of Nadir Shah ? 
 
 42. Who was Allahabad, and what his fate ? 
 
 43. Have the British possessions in Asia ? 
 
 44. What are they doing for the natives ? 
 
 45. Where is the most authentic record to be found ? 
 
 46. Of what peculiar family do the Scriptures speak ? 
 
 47. Has this family been kept a distinct people ? 
 
238 EXERCISES ON 
 
 48. Is there anything remarkable relating to their land ? 
 
 4.Q. At what date does the history of the Jews commence ? 
 
 50. How old was Abraham at his first call ? 
 
 51. What happened at Moreh ? 
 
 52. Into what snare did Abraham fall ? 
 
 53. Who were the parents of Ishmael and Isaac ? 
 
 54. Where are the descendants of Ishmael to be found ? 
 
 55. What is their religions faith ? 
 
 56. Why was Esau called Edom ? 
 
 57. Was Jacob willing to enter into the plans of his 
 
 mother ? 
 
 58. Did Rebekah seek a temporal or spiritual blessing for 
 
 her son ? 
 
 59. What became of the brothers ? 
 
 60. Did Jacob incur any punishment for his actions ? 
 
 61. With whom did Jacob dwell ? 
 
 62. Why did he leave that country ? 
 
 63. Did the brothers meet again ? how and where ? 
 
 64. Where did Jacob take up his abode ? 
 
 65. What circumstances occurred to him there ? 
 
 66. How did Jacob acknowledge his sinfulness ? 
 
 67. Has any modern traveller discovered the burying- 
 
 place of Rachel ? 
 
 68. Why did the sons of the patriarch go into Egypt ? 
 
 69. Is there any appearance that the patriarch was a par- 
 
 tial father? 
 
 70. To what consequences did the evil act of the bro- 
 
 thers lead ? 
 
 71. What has been said of Egypt ? 
 
 72. How do you account for its downfall ? 
 
 73. What led the Israelites first into Egypt ? 
 
 74. How did they incur the anger of Pharaoh ? 
 
 75. Where did Moses receive the laws ? 
 
 76. What was the peculiar blessing given to Ephraim 
 
 and Manasseh ? 
 
 77. Did Pharaoh let the Israelites go willingly ? 
 
 78. What induced Moses to ask permission of Pharaoh 
 
 for the departure of the Jews ? 
 
 79. In what way did Moses, when young, show his dis- 
 
 like to the Egyptians ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 239 
 
 80. Why was Moses not allowed to enter the promised 
 
 land ? 
 
 81. In what way did the names appropriated to the trices 
 
 prefigure their fate ? 
 
 82. Where was the wilderness in which the Jews wan- 
 
 dered ? 
 
 83. How were they directed in their journeyings ? 
 
 84. How do modern travellers describe the rock struck 
 
 by Moses ? 
 
 85. What number crossed into Canaan ? 
 
 86. Where was Canaan situated, and how peopled ? 
 
 87. Have the prophecies of Balaam been fulfilled? 
 
 88. Who remained of those sent to examine the land ? 
 
 89. Where did Miriam die ? 
 
 90. What became of Jericho ? 
 
 91. Was any prophecy fulfilled by its being rebuilt? 
 
 92. Where are the conquests of the Jews related ? 
 
 93. Is the history of the Jews a common one ? 
 
 94. Why were the inhabitants of Canaan driven out ? 
 
 95. What was the original cause of the idolatrous prac- 
 
 tices of the Jews ? 
 
 96. Who was the first judge ? 
 
 97. Whose manners do those of the Bedouins resemble ? 
 
 98. When and by whom were the Jews first taken into 
 
 bondage ? 
 99« By whom and when were they rescued ? 
 TOO. What lesson does the history of Eli teach? 
 
 101. What does that of Samuel and his parents teach ? 
 
 102. What did the Jews desire in the days of Samuel ? 
 
 103. What do you know of the character of Saul ? 
 
 104. What brought Saul into difficulties ? 
 
 105. Whom did he consult when old? 
 
 106. What became of the body of Saul after his death ? 
 
 107. How many years was this after the Jews had settled 
 
 in Canaan ? 
 
 108. Where did David cause the ark to be removed ? 
 
 109. Can you tell me what Psalms are supposed to have 
 
 been written on this occasion ? 
 
 110. Was David a judicious father ? 
 
 111. What building did David design and plan ? 
 
 112. How did Solomon begin his reign ? 
 
 # 
 
240 EXEKCISES ON 
 
 113. What was the extent of his dominions ? 
 
 114. Describe the completion and dedication of the 
 
 Temple ? 
 
 115. What is the character of the Proverbs of Solomon ? j 
 
 11 6. Into what sins did Solomon fall? 
 
 117. What was the declaration of God? 
 
 118. Were the tribes obedient to Rehoboam? 
 
 lip. Who opposed him, and what were the consequences? 
 
 120. How did the Levites behave ? 
 
 121. What awful circumstances followed this ? 
 
 122. How did the kingdom of Judah prosper ? 
 
 123. What is evident through the whole history of Judah 
 
 and Israel ? 
 
 124. What was the character of Jehoshaphat? 
 
 125. What relative was Jezebel to Dido ? 
 
 126. Did the prophet Elijah warn the children of Israel 
 
 at this time of their faults ? 
 
 127. Where did he hide himself from the furious Ahab ? 
 
 128. What proof did he offer that he was sent by God ? 
 
 129. What were the peculiar sins of the Israelites at this 
 
 time ? 
 
 130. Of whom was Elijah a type? 
 
 131. How did Jeroboam enlarge his dominions ? 
 
 132. For what was the temple in Samaria built ? 
 
 1 33. In whose reign were the Olympiads first celebrated ? 
 
 134. In whose reign did Isaiah prophesy ? 
 
 135. Were the Israelites attentive to his prophecies? 
 
 136. What did Jotham do for the city of Jerusalem ? 
 
 137. At what period were the Jews taken captive by the 
 
 Assyrians ? 
 
 138. In what state was Jerusalem and the Jewish nation 
 
 at this period ? 
 
 139. Did they improve at all in the reign of Hezekiah ? 
 
 140. To what was Canaan exposed by its position ? 
 
 141. Who formed an alliance with Egypt, and revolted 
 
 from the Assyrians ? 
 
 142. Who besieged Samaria, and how long did the siege 
 
 last? 
 
 143. Where were the tribes carried, and what is said of 
 
 them ? 
 
 144. Who invaded Judea ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 241 
 
 1 45. What happened to his armies ? 
 
 146. What are now the only remains of ancient Jeru- 
 
 salem ? 
 
 147. In wftat state did Maundrell find them ? 
 
 148. What would the description of Babylon, Tyre, 
 
 Egypt, and Idumea he ? 
 149- Which is the most wretched reign in the history of 
 Judea ? 
 
 150. What became of Manasseh ? 
 
 151. Did he ever return to Jerusalem ? 
 
 152. What happened in Jerusalem during the reign of 
 
 Josiah ? 
 
 153. To whom were the Israelites now vassals? 
 
 154. At what period did Nebuchadnezzar destroy Jeru- 
 
 salem ? 
 
 155. Were any left in Jerusalem at all? 
 
 156. What became of the remnants of the ten tribes ? 
 
 157. Did any other people possess Palestine? 
 
 1 58. Was any prophecy fulfilled by this ? 
 
 15y. What were the two great ruling powers of the 
 world at this period ? 
 
 160. What induced Nebuchadnezzar to treat the Jews 
 
 with some degree of respect ? 
 
 161. Who was Daniel and his companions? 
 
 162. What lesson may be learned from their history? 
 
 163. What nations did Nebuchadnezzar subdue, and what 
 
 does he appear to be ? 
 
 164. Who subdued the mighty Babylon ? 
 
 165. Had the Jews grown reconciled to their residence in 
 
 Babylonia ? 
 
 166. Did they live there as a separate people? 
 
 167. What was among the earliest acts of Cyrus? 
 
 168. Was the permission eagerly embraced? 
 
 169. What proverb have the Jews relating to this? 
 
 170. How long had the Jews been in captivity? 
 
 171. Who led them back? 
 
 172. What did they first do? 
 
 173. Did the temple proceed rapidly ? 
 
 1 74. When was it completed ? 
 
 175. Whence grew the bitter hatred between the Jews 
 
 and the Samaritans ? 
 
 M 
 
242 EXEECISES IN 
 
 176. What plot was formed to destroy all the Jews in 
 
 Persia ? 
 177« Does any memorial remain of the circumstance? 
 
 178. Did Jerusalem regain her ancient splendour? 
 
 179. Did the Jews continue pure in their faith? 
 
 180. With what country does their history now become 
 
 blended ? 
 
 181. What privileges did Alexander grant them ? 
 
 182. How did Ptolemy Lagus act towards the Jews? 
 
 183. What temple had they now ? 
 
 184. Who completed the canons of the Old Testament? 
 
 185. What was the origin of the Sadducees? 
 
 186. What was the conduct of Ptolemy Philopater towards 
 
 the Jews ? 
 187» What did Antiochus the Great for them ? 
 
 188. Is this name noticed in the New Testament? 
 
 189. Which was the kingdom '? strong as iron ?.',' 
 
 190. Who was killed in attempting to plunder the temple 
 
 of Jupiter Belus ? 
 
 191. Did the Jews again fall into idolatry? 
 
 1 92. What causes may be found for this ? 
 
 193. What numbers are said to have fallen in Jerusalem 
 
 by the massacre of Antiochus ? 
 
 194. What was the conduct of Antiochus as respected the 
 
 altars ? 
 
 195. Were the sufferings of the Jews great? 
 
 1 96. Who were their deliverers ? 
 
 1 97. Who were the Maccabees ? 
 
 198. What was the result of this struggle ? 
 
 199- What did the Jews reckon from this period ? 
 
 200. What did John Hyrcanus ? 
 
 201. What did Judah now rank? 
 
 202. What does Whiston remark of the Asmonians ? 
 
 203. Who now became troublesome to the Jews ? 
 
 204. Who was appointed their governor ? 
 
 205. How did Herod signalize his reign ? 
 
 206. By whom were the Jews now entirely subdued ? 
 207* What remarkable points do you find in the history 
 
 of the Jews ? 
 
 208. What appear to have been their peculiar sins ? 
 
 209. How did they receive our Saviour Christ the Lord ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTOKY. 243 
 
 210. How may Palestine be now described ? 
 
 211. Was Africa known to the ancients? 
 
 212. What proof have we of this ? 
 
 213. How many aboriginal tribes were there, and what 
 
 were they called ? 
 
 214. What part of Africa ranks lowest in moral and in- 
 
 tellectual value ? 
 
 215. When was the Christian faith first introduced ? 
 
 21 6. What are the principal doctrines professed in Africa? 
 217- What has contributed to render Africa familiar to 
 
 the present age ? 
 
 218. What do you know of Sesostris? 
 
 219' By whom are the pyramids supposed to have been 
 
 built ? 
 
 220. Who built Alexandria ? and who the Pharos ? 
 
 221. When did Egypt become a province of Rome ? 
 
 222. Who was Saladin ? and what do you know of him ? 
 
 223. Who were the Mamelukes ? 
 
 224. How long did they hold power in Egypt ? 
 
 225. What occurred in Egypt in 1 798 ? 
 
 226. From whence comes the name Abyssinia ? 
 
 227. What induced the Portuguese to go into Abyssinia ? 
 
 228. What did the Emperor Socinius? 
 
 229. To whom are we indebted for our knowledge of 
 
 Abyssinia ? 
 
 230. At what date and where did Dido found a city ? 
 
 231. When did this country first become known as 
 
 Africa ? 
 
 232. When did the Vandals make themselves masters of 
 
 some parts of Africa ? 
 
 233. Who were the Saracens ? 
 
 234. For what has Barbary been eminent ? 
 
 235. What was Morocco anciently called ? 
 286. Who first assumed the title of Caliph ? 
 
 237. Who ascended the throne of Morocco in 1822? 
 
 238. What do you know of Mohammed Ali Pacha? 
 
 239. Between whom was Algiers originally divided ? 
 
 240. Whose aid did the Algerines seek against the Spa- 
 
 niards ? 
 
 241. Who sought to subdue this country ? 
 
 242. To what country does it now belong ? 
 
 M 2 
 
244 EXERCISES IN 
 
 243. By whom and when was the first monarchy of 
 
 Russia founded ? 
 
 244. When does the history of Russia become interest- 
 
 ing ? 
 
 245. What do you know of the Czar Michael ? 
 
 246. By whom and when were the first posts established 
 
 in Russia ? 
 
 247. What king made the greatest progress in civilising 
 
 Russia ? 
 
 248. Where and how did he obtain his information ? 
 
 249. What was the character of the widow of Peter III., 
 
 and what the character of her reign ? 
 
 250. When was the third partition of Poland ? 
 
 251. What is the extent of the Russian territory ? 
 
 252. Who in the early part of the nineteenth century in- 
 
 vaded Russia ? 
 
 253. What was the result of this invasion ? 
 
 254. How died Paul I. ? 
 
 255. What were Denmark, Sweden, and Norway originally 
 
 called ? 
 
 256. Under what chief did the Danes first become emi- 
 
 nent ? 
 
 257. When did Denmark first become a kingdom ? 
 
 258. When did Denmark obtain its highest pitch of 
 
 glory ? 
 
 259. When did religion first make its way ? 
 
 260. Who was Margaret of Valdemer ? 
 
 261. Who was the founder of the family of Oldenburg ? 
 
 262. Who was the founder of the house of Holstein- 
 
 Gottorp ? 
 
 263. What occurred in 1660? 
 
 264. What in 1718? 
 
 265. What was the character of Frederic ? 
 
 266. Who was Struenzee ? 
 
 267- Who were the aboriginal inhabitants of Sweden ? 
 
 268. When did that country first embrace Christianity ? 
 
 269. With what countries has it been repeatedly united ? 
 
 270. Who was Gustavus, and what did he do for that 
 
 country ? 
 
 271. Who tended to exalt the Swedish name? 
 
 272. Who was Christina, and what did she ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 245 
 
 273. Of what character are the exploits of Charles XII. ? 
 
 274. Was it ever a commercial country ? 
 
 275. What did Bonaparte in Sweden ? 
 
 276. Who is now king of that country ? 
 
 277. Describe the country and natives of Norway. 
 
 278. Has Norway any national literature ? 
 279- Where is the first notice of Germany ? 
 
 280. Of what country does Germany appear to be com- 
 
 posed ? 
 
 281. When did the Romans first attempt to subdue it ? 
 
 282. Where was the empire of the Goths and that of the 
 
 Visigoths ? 
 
 283. What effect had the destruction of the western em- 
 
 pire? 
 
 284. Who was the first Merovingian king ? 
 
 285. What did Charlemagne for Germany ? 
 
 286. What was Spain called in 778 ? 
 
 287. What was the extent of the empire of Charlemagne ? 
 
 288. What happened after the death of Louis le De- 
 
 bonnaire ? 
 
 289. Who established the house Hohenstaufen ? 
 
 290. With whom did that house expire ? 
 
 291. What do you know of Rudolph of Hapsburg? 
 
 292. Who founded the university of Prague ? 
 
 293. What happened in the reign of Albrecht I. ? 
 
 294. What did Jerome of Prague ? 
 
 295. For what was the Council of Constance invoked ? 
 
 296. What happened on a mountain called Mount Tabor? 
 
 297. When did Frederic III. come to the German throne ? 
 
 298. Describe his reign. 
 
 299- At what time did the Reformation take place, and 
 how proceed ? 
 
 300. Why were the Christians called Protestants ? 
 
 301. What was the nature of the contest between Fer- 
 
 dinand I. and the Pope ? 
 
 302. Who founded the order of Jesuits ? 
 
 303. What extinguished the line of Hapsburg ? 
 
 304. At what period did Germany enjoy the greatest 
 
 degree of peace ? 
 
 305. What effect had the revolution of 1789 upon Ger- 
 
 many ? 
 
 31 3 
 
246 EXERCISES IX 
 
 306. When, and by whom, was the title of Emperor of 
 
 Germany changed to that of Emperor of Austria ? 
 
 307. When was the Germanic Confederation established ? 
 
 308. From what race are the Prussians descended ? 
 
 309. Who attempted to introduce Christianity ? 
 
 310. Who first obtained the entire sovereignty of Prussia? 
 
 311. Under whom was this independence lost? 
 
 312. Who laid the foundation of the military of Russia ? 
 
 313. What do you know of Frederic the Great ? 
 
 314. Who was his mother ? 
 
 315. What remains a stain upon his glory ? 
 
 316. When, and by whom, was Poland again partitioned ? 
 
 317. Who finally destroyed this country? 
 
 318. What were the consequences of the battle of Jena ? 
 
 319. What was gained by the peace of Tilsit ? 
 
 320. What of the peace of Paris ? 
 
 321. What was the original name of Switzerland, whence 
 
 derived ? 
 
 322. When did it become a Roman province ? 
 
 323. At what period was Chistianity introduced ? 
 
 324. In what manner, and at what period, did William 
 
 Tell become famous ? 
 
 325. What effect had the doctrines of Luther and Calvin 
 
 in Switzerland ? 
 
 326. What did the inhabitants of the Pays du Vaud in 
 
 1796? 
 327- When did Switzerland become united to France ? 
 
 328. When did she recover her independence ? 
 
 329. What is now her position ? 
 
 330. Where are the earliest accounts to be found of the 
 
 history of France ? 
 
 331. What was the country then called ? 
 
 332. By whom were they conquered ? 
 
 333. What was their first race of monarchs ? 
 
 334. Whose influence rendered these sovereigns nominal ? 
 
 335. Who was Pepin ? 
 
 336. When does the history of France, as a separate king- 
 
 dom, begin ? 
 
 337. When did the Emperor of Germany take possession 
 
 of the throne of France ? 
 
 338. Who were the Carlovingian race ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 247 
 
 339- Which was the third dynasty of France, by whom 
 founded ? 
 
 340. What were the effects on England of the disputes 
 
 between Robert of Normandy and his brother 
 Henry ? 
 
 341. Who were the husbands of Eleanor, heiress of 
 
 Giuenne ? 
 
 342. When was the first creation of Marechals in France? 
 
 343. What rendered the reign of Louis VIII. infamous ? 
 
 344. Who founded the Sorbonne ? 
 
 345. What produced disputes between Philip of France 
 
 and Edward of England ? 
 
 346. What happened to John-le-bon ? 
 
 347. What two females became famous by their victories ? 
 
 348. Who did Louis XII. marry, and what was he called ? 
 
 349. In whose reign did the reformed religion spread in 
 
 France ? 
 
 350. To what did the bigotry of Henry II. lead? 
 
 351. Who was Catherine de Medicis ? 
 
 352. Who was the Prince of Conde ? 
 
 353. Relate the circumstances of the massacre of St. 
 
 Bartholomew. 
 
 354. How died Henry III., and what was his character ? 
 
 355. What was the character of Henry IV., and what his 
 
 death ? 
 
 356. Describe the reign of Louis XIV. 
 
 357. In what state did Louis XVI. find the nation ? 
 
 358. What was the family fault of the Bourbons ? 
 
 359. What was the effect on the French nation of the 
 
 writings of Voltaire and others, and the American 
 independence ? 
 
 360. When was the tree of liberty first planted in France ? 
 
 361. When was France first declared a Republic? 
 
 362. Describe the country until 1795? 
 
 363. When did Bonaparte first become known, and who 
 
 was he ? 
 
 364. When was the Venetian territory overthrown ? 
 
 365. When did France become a republic with a consular 
 
 constitution ? 
 
 366. What was Napoleon proclaimed in 1804 ? 
 
 31 4 
 
248 EXERCISES IN 
 
 367. What countries did lie bestow on his family and 
 
 generals in 1805-6? 
 
 368. What was the effect of his attack upon Russia ? 
 
 369. What occurred in 1 8 1 5 ? 
 
 370. Where did Bonaparte die ? 
 
 371. What happened in July, 1830 ? 
 
 372. Was Louis Philippe a prosperous king ? 
 
 373. What happened in 1847? 
 
 374. From whom are the inhabitants of Spain descended ? 
 
 375. Have the north and south the same origin ? 
 
 376. When did Spain become a Roman province ? 
 
 377. How long did they preserve their dominion ? 
 
 378. By whom and when was the empire of the Visigoths 
 
 founded in Spain ? 
 
 379. When did the Moors enter Spain ? 
 
 380. In what state was Spain in the 10th century ? 
 
 381. When did Spain become one kingdom ? 
 
 382. In whose reign were the Moors expelled? 
 
 383. When and by whom was the Inquisition established ? 
 
 384. What was the character of Charles I. of Spain ? 
 
 385. Who was the husband of Mary, Queen of England ? 
 
 386. Describe his character and actions. 
 
 387. Who expelled the Moors and Jews ? 
 
 388. With whom has Spain been frequently at war ? 
 
 389. What treaty was signed in 176l ? 
 
 390. What occurred after the death of Louis XVI. ? 
 
 391. What conspiracy was attributed to the Prince of 
 
 Peace, and what were its effects ? 
 
 392. When did the French enter Spain ? 
 
 393. Who did Napoleon place as king over it ? 
 
 394. To whom were the Spanish indebted for assistance ? 
 
 395. How did Ferdinand act after his restoration ? 
 
 396. Who was Riego, and what was his fate ? 
 
 397. What produced quarrels between Don Carlos and 
 
 his niece ? 
 
 398. What royal marriages lately took place in Spain ? 
 399' With what other countries is the history of Portugal 
 
 bound up ? 
 
 400. What did John, Duke of Braganza, for the country? 
 
 401. What did the Marquis di Pombal? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 249 
 
 402. When and why was the Prince of Brazil appointed 
 
 Regent ? 
 
 403. What became of the Regent and his family when 
 
 the French entered Portugal ? 
 
 404. Who were Don Miguel and Maria da Gloria ? 
 
 405. Who succeeded to the throne of Portugal ? 
 
 406. To what does the early part of the history of Italy 
 
 belong ? 
 407- In what is the epoch of Roman kings involved? 
 
 408. On what was the constitution of Rome founded ? 
 
 409. What was the original size of the Roman colony, 
 
 and to what did it extend ? 
 
 410. What crowns were united by Charlemagne? 
 
 411. Who first assumed the title of king of the Two 
 
 Sicilies ? 
 
 412. Into whose possession did Naples and Sicily fall, 
 
 after the Sicilian Vespers ? 
 
 413. To whom did Don Carlos give the Two Sicilies, 
 
 1759? 
 
 414. Whom did Napoleon make king of the Two Sicilies ? 
 
 415. Who and when was first created Duke of Savoy? 
 
 416. Under whose influence was Milan raised to a duchy? 
 
 417. What do you know of the house of Medici ? 
 
 418. Which was the most powerful of the Italian states ? 
 
 419. How long was this independence preserved? 
 
 420. With whom was it then joined ? 
 
 421. What is its present government? 
 
 422. What part of Italy do the States of the Church 
 
 embrace ? 
 
 423. By whom and how was Rome founded ? 
 
 424. What did Ancus Martius for Rome ? 
 
 425. What Servius Tullus ? 
 
 426. What government succeeded that of kings ? 
 
 427. Who were the first consuls ? 
 
 428. What long wars impoverished the Romans ? 
 
 429. What were the laws of the Twelve Tables ? 
 
 430. Relate what you know of the Decemviri. 
 
 431. By whom was Rome sacked under Brennus? 
 
 432. With whom did Rome struggle for fifty years ? 
 
 433. Who were the Tarentines ? 
 
 434. What embroiled the Romans with them ? 
 * M 5 
 
250 EXERCISES IN 
 
 435. With whom did Rome now struggle for twenty-five 
 
 years ? 
 
 436. When did she first possess a navy ? 
 
 437. Who were the principal generals in the wars between 
 
 Carthage and Rome ? 
 
 438. By what conquest did Greece become a Roman pro- 
 
 vince ? 
 
 439. What did Caesar ? 
 
 440. With whom did he contend ? 
 
 441. Where was the fate of Pompey decided? 
 
 442. How did Caesar die ? 
 
 443. When was the Roman empire at its greatest extent ? 
 
 444. What important event happened about this period ? 
 
 445. What was the general character of the emperors who 
 
 succeeded Tiberius ? 
 
 446. What was the character of Trajan ? 
 
 447. By whom was Jerusalem destroyed ? 
 
 448. When and by whom was the Imperial dignity bought 
 
 and sold ? 
 
 449. When was the seat of empire transferred ? 
 
 450. By whom was it transferred, and where ? 
 
 45 1 . What was the next division ? 
 
 452. By whom was the Roman empire eventually des- 
 
 troyed ? 
 
 453. When was it made a Greek province, and by whom ? 
 
 454. How long was it governed by Popes ? 
 
 455. What happened in 1797 ? 
 
 456. Where did Pope Pius VII. reside, and what was his 
 
 character ? 
 
 457. What was the character of Leo XI ? 
 
 458. How would you describe the remains of ancient Rome? 
 
 459. What renders it still interesting ? 
 
 460. With what other countries may she be ranked, and 
 
 what is the lesson they afford ? 
 
 461. What is the character of the Italians ? 
 
 462. Of what does the Ionian republic consist ? 
 
 463. Where do we find them particularly celebrated ? 
 
 464. To whom have they been in subjection ? 
 
 465. When did they become independent ? 
 
 466. Under whose protection are they ? 
 
 467. How long before the Christian era was Greece inha- 
 
 bited ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 251 
 
 468. Who founded Argos and Sicyon ? 
 
 469. Who founded Athens and Thebes ? 
 
 470. Whence came the name of Peloponesus ? 
 
 471. At what period was the Trojan war? 
 
 472. How long before Christ did Solon form his code of 
 
 laws ? 
 
 473. What was the extent of their dominion at the Persian 
 
 invasion ? 
 
 474. W ho saved the Greeks from the Persians ? 
 
 475. What did Alcibiades, Pericles, and Phidias ? 
 476*. What do you know of Socrates ? 
 
 477. In what ways did Athens offend Sparta? 
 
 478. In what did the kingdom of Macedon originate ? 
 479- W r ith what state was it often at war ? 
 
 480. What enabled Philip to redeem the state of Macedon ? 
 
 481. What were Philip's aims, and what forwarded those 
 
 aims ? 
 
 482. What battle made Philip master of Greece ? 
 
 483. How did Philip die, and who succeeded him ? 
 
 484. Over what countries did Alexander extend his arms? 
 
 485. Where did he meet his death, and in what manner ? 
 
 486. How was the kingdom divided after the battle of 
 
 Issus ? 
 
 487. What were the iEtolian and Achaian leagues? 
 
 488. When did the country become a Roman province ? 
 489» Of what events w T as Greece the theatre in the first 
 
 few centuries ? 
 
 490. When was the conversion of Constantine, and what 
 
 its consequences ? 
 
 491. Who took Constantinople, and destroyed the western 
 
 empire ? 
 
 492. At what period do the Turks appear in history ? 
 
 493. Who were the Kaliffs ? 
 
 494. When did the Turkish dynasties reign in Palestine ? 
 
 495. Who were the Mongols and Emirs ? 
 
 496. Who founded the Ottoman Turks in Asia, and on 
 
 what ? 
 
 497. Did this nation attain great military pow T er ? 
 
 498. Who was Timour the Tartar ? 
 
 499- Who did he oppose, and with what success ? 
 500. When did the western empire terminate ? 
 M 6 
 
252 EXERCISES IN 
 
 501. For what purpose was a conference held at Rei- 
 
 ch en bach ? 
 
 502. What was the fate of Prince Ypsilanti ? 
 
 503. By whom were the Greeks dreadfully oppressed ? 
 
 504. When and in what manner was the Morea relieved ? 
 
 505. When was Greece erected into a kingdom ? 
 
 506. Who was made king of Greece ? 
 
 507- What was the Netherlands originally called ? 
 
 508. When did the Netherlands become subject to Rome ? 
 
 509. What preference was shown to the Batavians ? 
 
 510. When was the Christian faith planted in the Ne- 
 
 therlands ? 
 
 511. Who was the Duchess of Parma, and how did she 
 
 govern ? 
 
 512. What was the declaration of Philip ? 
 
 513. What was the boast of the Duke of Alva? 
 
 514. Was this kingdom ever offered to an English 
 
 sovereign ? 
 
 515. When was the battle of Leipsic? 
 
 516. What was the ancient name of Britain ? 
 
 517. Is any thing known of the peopling of this island ? 
 
 518. In what state did Caesar find the Britons? 
 519- Describe their war carriages. 
 
 520. Describe their religion. 
 
 521. Did the Romans find the island an easy conquest? 
 
 522. Did the islanders afterwards become attached to their 
 
 conquerors ? 
 
 523. Why did the Romans withdraw ? 
 
 524. Who most annoyed the islanders ? 
 
 525. What did Severus do for them ? 
 
 526. Did the Romans assist them against the Picts and 
 
 Scots ? 
 
 527. To whom did they next apply ? 
 
 528. How did the Saxons act towards the Britons ? 
 
 529. Is the history of the Heptarchy clear ? 
 
 530. Who united the kingdoms ? 
 
 531. Who now struggled for the empire ? 
 
 532. Who was William the Conqueror ? 
 
 533. What were his pretences to the crown of England ? 
 
 534. Having obtained it, did he govern the kingdom well? 
 
 535. What domestic troubles assailed William ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 253 
 
 536. What particulars can you relate of his reign ? 
 
 537- How were the dominions of William divided among 
 
 his sons ? 
 
 538. What were their separate characters ? 
 
 539- What steps did Henry take to obtain Normandy ? 
 
 540. What misfortune hastened his death ? 
 
 541. What was the claim of Stephen ? 
 
 542. What the character of Matilda? 
 
 543. Who was Henry Plantagenet, and why so called ? 
 
 544. Who did he marry ? 
 
 545. What difficulties did he find with the church govern- 
 
 ment ? 
 
 546. What can you relate of Thomas a Becket ? 
 
 547. What grant did Henry obtain from Pope Adrian ? 
 
 548. From what countries did he claim homage ? 
 
 549. Can you relate any anecdote of his wife ? 
 
 550. Who was Richard I., and what was his character ? 
 
 551. What expedition did he engage in ? 
 
 552. Was he successful in Palestine ? 
 
 553. What happened as he returned ? 
 
 554. Can you relate the circumstances of his death ? 
 
 555. What can you relate of the history of John ? 
 
 556. What was the event of his quarrel with the Pope ? 
 557^ What was the famous deed he was compelled to 
 
 sign ? 
 
 558. Where and how did he die ? 
 
 559. What friend of John proved a friend to his son ? 
 
 560. At what age did the young Henry take the com- 
 
 mand ? 
 
 561. Where have we the first outline of the British par- 
 
 liament ? 
 
 562. Who was the Earl of Leicester ? 
 
 563. What did he do for the kingdom ? 
 
 564. Who succeeded Henry ? 
 
 565. What did Edward do for the Welsh ? 
 
 566. Who were the Welsh ? 
 
 567. What title was given to his eldest son ? 
 
 568. What charge did he give that son when dying ? 
 
 569. Did Edward II. observe the commands of his father ? 
 
 570. Who did he marry ? what was her character ? 
 
 571. What was the death of Edward? 
 
254 EXERCISES IN 
 
 572. What became of Isabella ? 
 
 573. What circumstance led. Edward III. into France? 
 
 574. What was the character of his son ? 
 
 575. What advantages were gained over France ? 
 
 576. In whose reign were law pleadings first given in 
 
 English ? 
 
 577. To whom was the administration of government 
 
 given during the latter part of Edward's reign ? 
 
 578. What caused the insurrection headed by Wat Tyler ? 
 579« What character would you give Richard II. ? 
 
 580. To what contest did the accession of Henry IV. 
 
 lead ? 
 
 581. What important rebellion took place during this 
 
 reign ? 
 
 582. Can you relate the particulars? 
 
 583. What doctrines were now preached? 
 
 584. What measures tended to strengthen them ? 
 
 5S5. By what was the youth of Henry V. distinguished ? 
 
 586. Did his character change when he became king? 
 
 587« Can you relate his successes in France ? 
 
 588. How would you describe the reign and character of 
 
 Henry V. ? 
 
 589. What was the character of Henry VI. ? 
 
 590. To whom was he married ? 
 
 591. What was her character ? 
 
 592. With whom had he frequently to contend ? 
 
 593. What nobleman was alternately the friend of both 
 
 parties ? 
 
 594. How did the dispute end ? 
 
 595. What was the fate of Margaret ? 
 
 596. What was the conduct of Edward when left to 
 
 himself ? 
 597- Who was the regent Gloucester ? 
 598. What do you know of Lord Hastings and his fate ? 
 599* How did Gloucester obtain the throne ? 
 
 600. How did he die, and who succeeded ? 
 
 601. What factions were united by his accession and 
 
 marriage ? 
 
 602. What sum did Henry spend on one ship ? 
 
 603. How would you describe his reign ? 
 b'04. Whom did Henry VIII. first marry ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 255 
 
 605. Who was his particular friend and adviser ? 
 6'06. How did this friend endanger his own and his mas- 
 ter's power ? 
 
 607. Did the Pope willingly consent to a divorce from 
 
 Catherine of Arragon ? 
 
 608. Can you tell me who were the several wives of 
 
 Henry ? 
 
 609. Who were the mothers of his three children ? 
 
 610. What can you tell me respecting Cardinal Wolsey ? 
 
 611. For what great work was Henry VIII. raised up? 
 6'12. Describe to me the short life and character of Ed- 
 ward VI. ? 
 
 613. In whom did Mary find a kindred spirit ? 
 
 614. What means did she take to suppress the Reform- 
 
 ation ? 
 
 615. Whom did she marry ? 
 
 616. What cause of offence did the English give Philip ? 
 
 617. At this period, what remained to England of all the 
 
 conquests in France ? 
 6l 8, Was Calais retained ? 
 
 619. What were the first acts of Elizabeth on coming to 
 
 the throne ? 
 
 620. Did she find any difficulty ? 
 
 621. What was the origin of Elizabeth's dislike to Mary 
 
 of Scotland ? 
 
 622. Do you consider Elizabeth a great character ? 
 
 623. What were her principal faults ? 
 
 624. How did Lord Burleigh speak of her ? 
 
 625. What was the great secret of Elizabeth's success ? 
 
 626. Was her age happy ? 
 
 627. What were the stains on her character, and what the 
 
 pearls in her crown ? 
 
 628. What were the claims of James I. to the throne of 
 
 England ? 
 
 629. What was the leading feature in his character ? 
 
 630. What the first desire of his heart ? 
 
 631. How would you describe his reign ? 
 
 632. What new plan did he take for raising money ? 
 
 633. Did Charles I. inherit the opinions of his father ? 
 
 634. What were the manners and temper of Charles ? 
 
 635 . What made his government unpopular ? 
 
 636. Do you consider he was an arbitrary man ? 
 
256 EXERCISES IN 
 
 637. In what acts was his character manifest ? 
 
 638. How did he act by the Scots ? 
 
 639. Can any fault in a king be an excuse for his murder ? 
 
 640. Are historians agreed as to the character of Crom- 
 
 well ? 
 
 641. By what authority was Charles condemned and exe- 
 
 cuted ? 
 
 642. What were the peculiar characteristics of Cromwell ? 
 
 643. Was he a happy man ? 
 
 644. Who succeeded in bringing the Stuarts back ? 
 
 645. Was Charles II. well received ? 
 
 646. What can you relate of his previous adventures ? 
 
 647. In what manner did Charles II. govern his kingdom ? 
 
 648. What romantic tale is connected with his marriage ? 
 
 649. Did he profit by the fate of his father ? 
 
 650. What did the Commons refuse? 
 
 651. What measures did Charles then adopt? 
 
 652. How would you describe his reign ? 
 
 653. Was James II. an improvement on his father and 
 
 brother ? 
 
 654. What was his great aim ? 
 
 655. What did his conduct prove ? 
 
 656. What steps were taken by the people ? 
 
 657. Who was William ? 
 
 658. Was any resistance offered to this revolution ? 
 
 659. What precautions were taken to prevent a recurrence 
 
 of former evils ? 
 
 660. What was the fate of James ? 
 
 661. Can you relate the occurrences in Ireland? 
 
 662. By what was the reign of William and Mary dis- 
 
 tinguished ? 
 
 663. Who was Anne, and what her claim to the throne ? 
 
 664. By what was the administration of Anne distin- 
 
 guished ? 
 
 665. In what wars was she engaged ? 
 
 666. Does any monument still exist of her gratitude to 
 
 her officers ? 
 
 667. Who were the popular characters of this reign ? 
 
 668. What was the great event of this reign ? 
 
 669. How would you designate the reign of Anne ? 
 
 670. Did the country flourish under her administration ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 257 
 
 6?1. By what claim and descent did George I. ascend the 
 throne ? 
 
 672. Do you think he was a patriotic king of England? 
 
 673. How was his reign disturbed ? 
 
 6*74. Who was the Pretender, and who supported his 
 claim ? 
 
 675. Do you think he ever had a reasonable prospect of 
 
 success ? 
 
 676. Relate all you recollect of his history and claims. 
 
 677. What can you tell me of Lord Orford ? 
 
 678. What lesson had the British monarchs learned ? 
 
 679. How was Hanover governed at this period ? 
 
 680. Who was Charles Edward ? 
 
 681. Relate all you know respecting him. 
 
 682. By what was this reign disturbed ? 
 
 683. What did the English to assist the French in Ame- 
 
 rica ? 
 
 684. Did any change in the style take place ? 
 
 685. Who was George III. ? 
 
 686. In what way did he obtain the good-will of his 
 
 subjects on first coming to the throne ? 
 
 687. In what state did George III. find his kingdom ? 
 
 688. What produced the American war? 
 
 689. Did any remarkable events take place in 1780? 
 
 690. Who was Hyder Ally ? 
 
 691. Who was Mr. Pitt? 
 
 692. What was his first act on coming into power ? 
 
 693. What was the result of the American war ? 
 
 6Q4>. What circumstances now began to agitate England? 
 
 695* When did England take up arms against France ? 
 
 696. Who was Napoleon Bonaparte ? 
 
 697« Who were his principal officers ? 
 
 698. What English officers contended with them? 
 
 699- With what countries was England engaged in war ? 
 
 700. What was the result of this war ? 
 
 701. What was the state of George III. during his latter 
 
 years ? 
 
 702. How long was England governed by a regency ? 
 
 703. What particular circumstances marked the regency ? 
 
 704. What circumstances attended the coronation of 
 
 George IV. ? 
 
258 EXEKCISES IX 
 
 705. What remarkable acts passed this year ? 
 
 706. What was the character of William IV. ? 
 
 707. Did he make any great change in the constitution ? 
 
 708. What passed respecting slavery ? 
 70,9. What was the state of Ireland ? 
 
 710. Describe this reign ? 
 
 711. Who was Alexandrina Victoria? 
 
 712. What were the feelings of the people on her accession 
 
 to the throne ? 
 
 713. Whom did she marry ? 
 
 714. What has disturbed her reign ? 
 
 715. What has occurred in India? 
 
 716. State the principal battles? 
 
 717. What has occurred in China ? 
 
 7 18. What were the consequences ? 
 
 719. What is the state of Ireland ? 
 
 720. Does Scotland claim high antiquity ? 
 
 721. In the time of Adrian what were her territories ? 
 
 722. Who were Malcolm, Macbeth, and Duncan ? 
 
 723. When does Scotlanl first become an ally of Eng- 
 
 land? 
 
 724. Did she take any part in the quarrel between John 
 
 and his barons ? 
 
 725. Who was the maiden of Norway ? 
 
 726. Who were John Baliol and David Bruce, and from 
 
 whom descended ? 
 
 727. Who was William Wallace ? 
 
 728. Relate all you know concerning him ? 
 
 729. Who was David II. ? 
 
 730. What circumstances can you relate of him ? 
 
 731. Who was first of the family of Stuart ? 
 
 732. Who was the Duke of Albany ? 
 
 733. What young prince was detained and educated in 
 
 England ? 
 
 734. Was the feudal system prevalent in Scotland ? 
 
 735. Who was James II.? 
 
 736. What promise did the early part of his reign hold 
 
 out? 
 
 737. Have regencies been injurious to Scotland? 
 
 738. Relate what you know of James III. ? 
 
 739. What marriage led to a union between England anfl 
 
 Scotland ? 
 
UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 259 
 
 740. Was James V. a patriotic king ? 
 
 741. Who was Mary of Guise, and who married her? 
 
 742. What brought Mary Queen of Scots from France ? 
 
 743. Relate what you know of her history. 
 
 744. Who was James VI. ? 
 
 745. What circumstances gave him possession of the Eng- 
 
 lish throne ? 
 
 746. Do the Irish make any pretence to a remote an- 
 
 tiquity ? 
 
 747. What is the first knowledge we have of them ? 
 
 748. At what period were they called an island of saints ? 
 
 749. In what state were they when Henry subdued them? 
 
 750. Have they been a valuable appendage to the throne 
 
 of England ? 
 
 751. Who confirmed the British dominion in that island? 
 
 752. AVhat did James I. for them ? 
 
 753. What is the history of Ireland for the last century ? 
 
 754. What disaffected spirits have disturbed it ? 
 
 755. What privileges have been granted them ? 
 
 756. What appears to be the only cure for their evils ? 
 
 757. What part of America was first discovered, and by 
 
 whom ? 
 
 758. In what state did the Spaniards find Mexico and 
 
 Peru ? 
 
 759. What feature marked the Spanish conquests ? 
 7t»0. What was the effect to Spain of these conquests ? 
 
 761. What discoveries were made by Sebastian Cabot ? 
 
 762. How and by whom was North America colonized ? 
 
 763. To what particular description of people did it offer 
 
 a refuge ? 
 
 764. When did they declare themselves independent of 
 
 the mother country ? 
 
 765. What peculiar qualities did they display during the 
 
 war ? 
 
 766. What government did they establish ? 
 76'7. Of how many states does America consist ? 
 
 768. To whom does Canada belong? 
 
 769. Is it valuable ? 
 
 770. Under what chief did the Spanish colonies declare 
 
 their independence ? 
 
 771. Were the people prepared for independence? 
 
260 EXERCISES IN UNIVERSAL HISTORY. 
 
 772. What have been the features of the republic ? 
 
 773. Who was the Emperor of Brazil ? 
 
 774. Relate all you know about him and his family. 
 
 775. What is the religion of these states ? 
 
 776. Are other Christians tolerated ? 
 
 777* Are they all allowed to build places of worship ? 
 
[ JievDerpouyaer 
 
 J .uaoopotq/ser 
 ' Webuchadnczzar 
 J EvUAftrodcuih, 
 *"H 2Z*gl(f,ar 
 xraiW JBeUhozxar 
 takes 3aJrvioxL 
 
A CHRONOLOGICAL CI 
 
CKar/ernae?ri/' 
 £rnperxr 
 
 Mtraehu) 
 
 CenstanUneHL 
 
 Constantinelf 
 
 Jiutmian IL 
 
 IhHimeus 
 
 leoMZ 
 
 OmstantiheV 
 
 Irene 
 
 lomiards 
 invade Italy 
 
 Si/xphorusI 
 MUkae'lL 
 
 IheHenehloat 
 
 OtkoH 
 OtnoJU 
 
 Germvmy idudy 
 
 BenryM 
 Conrad 
 
 leoTL 
 
 Bcmantu 
 CantbmtinetnL 
 UnmanitsJZ 
 BasHIZ 
 
 Ihj: Monarchy 
 rfCnarttmagne 
 /tixmtmbeirt' 
 
 J&nryJT 
 
 Isaac 
 
 Mirny r 
 
 ZothartiisH 
 
 ConradUl 
 
 , Jrriie/vel 
 Barbarmtaa 
 
 fhilip 
 6ttu> 
 
 Comnenus 
 TohnCamnei 
 Xnutd Com: 
 
 JohnCamnenus Jerusalem (abet 
 
 Conrad 
 
 Kodotyhut 
 -Jd-oiphut 
 Albert 
 JXmjyJZC 
 
 IhrJxrrmnnF 
 frur Italy, cirrpt 
 Milan {•Mantua 
 
 i'li art et tfjqftm 
 
 rvitii)aemSaal/ 
 
 andSmlu 
 
 Fmnufy rS.V/iti>. : 
 
 <jniirmi7ft*ran;/ 
 
 Fderthermel 
 
 AlexiiisIL 
 
 -dndmnictu 
 
 Comnenus 
 
 ZsaacAngehi 
 Jngehts 
 
 36'ekad. 
 laledleaus 
 
 AnJrrmicus 
 
 John 
 Canfrteuztne 
 
 John, 
 Faleelegus 
 
 Second Crasadt 
 
 ITurd Crusade 
 
 Suasseriand 
 
 betvmes 
 independanlr 
 
 tfmtrslaus 
 
 lalecUgu* 
 
 Union (fCahnar 
 b>l wfailiJfarg f 
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 CrERMAXY 
 
 SRAIJV teKKEK£MEHU! JSTX2TT3 |l4O0 
 
A CHRONOLOGICAL 
 
 
 r 
 
 ItRtTAlX 
 
 FRAXCE GKKM.L.YI 
 
 ,,-. 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 1 
 
 -■ 
 
 I 
 
 Li 
 
 THE 
 
 ao 
 
 MAN 
 
 
 
 
 
 |u 
 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 
 r 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 MM 
 
 *■* 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 SWm. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 J> f ,n 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 la 
 
 £/hrt 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 .IVrrJll,,/*-' 
 
 »;i),.,„, ../■ 
 
 .V„„„„„,',, 
 
 n,/, r r 
 
 out f., 
 
 IM..JI 
 
 mk.m 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 III ":■■„• /:>,*, 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 i 
 
 m»n,i 
 
 am w 
 
 j/„r,r 
 
 llmryU 
 
 tMylUuVUtt 
 
 Jhj~,,i 
 
w 
 
 XPrter. 
 
 fleeter:* >r^ 
 
 Jtus7<* I ivimJ 
 
 ETTT ITATT 
 
 IOEES IxrttTS 
 
 VtrjbsixmA. 
 
 jiid. 
 
 Leopold!. 
 
 JSSnoof 
 HelffTum. 
 

 
 A CHRONOLOGICA 
 
 
 
 H^-h-™ 
 
 
 
 
 
 " ( f 
 
 
 «./ 
 
 ,„...- 
 
 p 
 HI 
 
 
 
 , 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 
 ::,, 
 
 
 ,. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ! 
 4 
 
 ''.',':,.'.;;' ' 
 
 
 ...„...,;;.', 
 
 
 
 < 
 
CHKONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 In the annexed Chronology the vowels a, e, i, o, u, repre- 
 sent 1, 2, 3, 4s, 5 ; the diphthong au 6, oi 7, ei S,ou9: b stands 
 for 1, d for 2, t for 3, f for 4, I for 5 } s for 6, p for 7, k for 8, 
 n for 9« 
 
 The diphthongs stand for one figure only, y and ss stand for 
 0., and g for two Os. Pronounce y as w, to distinguish it from 
 i: thus kyt (803), pronounce kwit. 
 
 After a. i). 999* there are no letters in the abbreviation to 
 express 1000, it being understood thus — ap stands for 1017- 
 
 c. 
 
 4004. Creation of the World according to the 1 ^ , , 
 
 Hebrew Scripture Text . J Crea. heb. ogo. 
 
 5872. According to the Septuagint Version . Crea. sep. leipe. 
 
 4700. According to the Samaritan Version . Crea. sam. foig. 
 
 2348. Universal or Mosaic Deluge . . Deluge — etok. 
 
 2247. The Building of Babel ; Dispersion of \ „ , , 
 
 Mankind ; Confusion of Language. J * ' e °P" 
 
 2219. The Assyrian Monarchy founded, and! A , 
 
 Nineveh built by Assur . . ] Ass * m ' edan ' 
 
 2217. The Babylonish Monarchy founded by i „ ' , 
 
 Nimrod ... . .j Bab - In « ed °P- 
 
 2188. Menes or Misraim founds the Egyp-"1 ,-, , , . 
 
 tian Monarchy . . . . ) E ^ m. dakk. 
 
 2084. Egypt governed by the Shepherd Kings Shep. Egy. byko. 
 2040. Moeris was King of Thebes and Mem- 7 „ , T 
 
 phis ..... .j E «y- Moer - b y f y- 
 
 1996. The Birth of Abraham . . . Abram. b.. anous. 
 
 1897. Sodom and Gomorrali destroyed . S. & G. burnt akoup. 
 
 1874. Shepherd Kings expelled from Egypt. Shep. driven akoif. 
 1856. The Kingdom of Argos in Greece"! . ., . 
 
 founded by Inachus . . . ] Ar S os f ' akus ' 
 
 1836. Jacob and Esau born . . J.&E. born akis. 
 
262 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 B. C. B. C. 
 
 1825. The Shepherd Kings abandon Egypt . Shep. go akel. 
 1796. The Deluge of Gyges in Africa . Del. Gyg. apous. 
 
 1722. Sesostris made King of Egypt . Ses. Egy. aped. 
 
 1571. Moses was born in Egypt . Moses born aloib. 
 
 1556. The Kingdom of Athens founded by 1 Cec Af alug 
 
 Cecrops . . • • -J 
 1529. The Deluge of Deucalion in Thessaly. Del. Deu. alen. 
 1522. The Amphyctionic Council instituted; Amp. con. bled. 
 1520. Corinth built .... Cor. built bley. 
 
 J 493. Cadmus introduced the Letters of the 1 ^ B c a fout. 
 
 Alphabet into Greece . • • ) 
 1491. The Israelites brought out of Egypt ) Jewg ^ afoub 
 
 by Moses S 
 
 1453. The Olympic Games celebrated in 1 Q1 ^ bok 
 
 Greece ) 
 
 1452. The Five Books of the Pentateuch } ^.^ bo[ ^ 
 
 written ) 
 
 1450. Death of Moses ; Joshua leads the Is- ) 
 
 raelites into Canaan . • . } 
 
 1425. Israel governed by Judges 
 1322. Belus reigns in Babylon 
 1267. Ninus reigns over Assyria 
 1252. Tyre, the Capital of Phoenicia, built . 
 1225. Thebes besieged .... 
 
 1215. Semiramis was Queen of Babylon 
 1202. Salamis built by Teucer 
 1 1 93. Commencement of the Trojan War . 
 1184. Troy taken and burnt by the Greeks . 
 1079. Saul chosen King of Israel, 1046 ; the ) 
 
 Rebellion of Absalom . . . y 
 
 1069. Codrus, King of Athens, devotes his ) Co(Jrus At b 
 
 Life for his Country . . . y 
 1055. David made King of Israel; and the ) David kino . a ]u 
 
 Dedication of Solomon's Temple . ) 
 980. The Separation of the Ten Tribes of \ Ten vQ neiz 
 
 Israel from Judah . . . ) 
 
 970. Jeroboam introduced Idolatry, and set \ j eTQ -^^ nQ ^ 
 
 up Idols . . . . . ) 
 
 The Prophet Elijah prophesied at this { EHj - ah proph< _ 
 
 period .....) 
 
 904. Jerusalem plundered by the Philistines Holy Phil. nyf. 
 886. The Poems of Homer brought out of) Hom> fetch jj e i s 
 
 Greece . . • .3 
 
 869. Carthage built by Dido . . . Car. built kaun 
 
 837. Lycurgus legislates for Sparta . . Lycur. laws kip. 
 
 820. Nineveh taken by Arbaces, and the } Nin> jlt key 
 
 Assyrian Monarchy destroyed . y 
 116. The First Olympiad . . . Count, olym. pois. 
 
 Moses dies 
 
 boly. 
 
 Jews 
 
 l'udg. 
 
 afel. 
 
 Bel. 
 
 Bab. 
 
 ated. 
 
 Nin. 
 
 Ass. 
 
 adaup. 
 
 Tyre 
 
 built 
 
 adud. 
 
 Thebes bes. 
 
 adel. 
 
 Semi. 
 
 Bab. 
 
 adal. 
 
 Sal. 
 
 built 
 
 beyd. 
 
 War 
 
 Troy 
 
 bant. 
 
 Troy 
 
 burnt 
 
 abeif. 
 
 Saul 
 
 king 
 
 bypou, 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 263 
 
 c. 
 
 769. Syracuse built ; the Prophets Isaiah, ) § rac f 
 
 Hosea. and Joel prophesied • 3 * 
 
 753. Rome founded by Romulus . . Rome f. put. 
 
 725. Hezekiah, Tenth King of Judah . Hezek. Judah pel. 
 719. Shalmaneser destroyed the Cities of"l 
 
 Samaria, and carried the seven Tribes I o, „ -i. 
 
 into Captivity, which ends the j F 
 
 Kingdom of Israel . . .J 
 
 715. Numa Pompilius, Second King of) Num& Rome 
 
 Rome ) J 
 
 703. Corcyra founded .... Corey, f. pyt. 
 
 696. The Reign of Manasseh, Sixteenth ) ^ r T , , 
 
 x » T j ' . J- Manass. Judah sous. 
 
 King of Judah, commenced . ) 
 
 681. The Assyrians, under Esarhaddon, in-"j 
 
 vaded Judaea, led Manasseh a pri- I Ass. and Bab. seib. 
 
 soner to Babylon, and united the j Manass. prison, seib. 
 
 Kingdoms of Assyria and Babylon . J 
 
 672. Tullus Hostilius, Third King of Rome Tull. Rome soid. 
 
 667. The Combat between the Horatii and ) „ . „£ . . 
 
 ~ . ... J-H.&L.nght saup. 
 
 Cunatii .... 3 r 
 
 The Prophet Isaiah martyred . . Isaiah killed — 
 
 658. Pausanias, King of Sparta, founds By- \ „ ~ , 
 
 zantium . . . • 3 
 
 Phrartis, King of India . . . Phrartis k. — 
 
 640. Ancus Martius, Fourth King of Rome A.M. Rome soz. 
 639. The great Passover held bv Joash, ) T , 
 
 King of Judah . * . j Joash pasS ' Sin 
 
 624. Draco, Legislator of Athens . . Draco — sef. 
 
 616. Tarquinius Priscus, Fifth King of Rome Tar. P.Rome sas. 
 
 608. Josiah killed in Battle with Pharaoh ) T . , ... , , 
 
 Necho . . m . . .| Josi - kllled s >' k - 
 
 Habbakkuk and Jeremiah prophesied ) Hab. pro- — 
 
 at this time . . . ) & J. phecy 
 
 605. The Commencement of the Jewish Cap- 1 T , , 
 
 tivity under Nebuchadnezzar . ) ^ • 
 602. Nebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem and ) 
 
 the Temple, and leads the Jews to > Temple burnt syd. 
 
 Babylon . . . . ) 
 
 601. Nineveh taken by Nebuchadnezzar;)-^, ^. , 
 
 End of the Assyrian Empire ) ' ' " 
 
 599. Cyrus the Great born . . . Cyrus born loun. 
 
 594. Solon, Legislator of Athens . . Solon — louf. 
 
 578. Servius Tullius, Sixth King of Rome Serv.T.Rome loik. 
 
 572. Nebuchadnezzar invaded Egypt ; be- ) m A . ■> • • 
 
 i j . i rp bjtr t i Tyre taicen loid. 
 
 sieged and took 1 yre . ) J 
 
 551. Confucius, the Chinese Philosopher, ) ~ c . . . 
 
 , V Conf. born lub. 
 
 born . . . ) 
 
 537. Cyrus besieged and took Babylon;) „ . , ,. 
 
 thus ends the second great Monarchy y * ' 
 
264 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 B. C. B. C. 
 
 536. Cyrus ascends the Throne of Persia and "] 
 
 ends the Jewish Captivity, which I Cyrus reigns lis. 
 
 had lasted seventy Years . . J 
 Daniel prophesies .... Dan. writes len. 
 529. Cyrus died, and was succeeded by 7 ^ g ^- es 
 
 Cambyses, who died . . • 3 
 
 522. And was succeeded by Darius . Dar. reigns led. 
 
 516. The second Temple at Jerusalem 7 T k don£ ^ 
 
 finished ..... 3 
 510. The Pisistratidas expelled from" Athens Pisis. ban. uby. 
 509. The kingly Government abolished in \ N j. , 
 
 Rome S § y * 
 
 504. Sardis taken and burnt by the Athenians Sardis burnt lyf. 
 498. Lartius created Dictator at Rome . Die. Rome fouk. 
 490, The Battle of Marathon . . . Mar. batt. ony 
 
 486. Xerxes succeeds Darius on the Throne 7 -^ re i«rns feis 
 
 of Persia . . . } • - 
 
 485. Coriolanus banished from Rome . Corio. exile feil. 
 483. Aristides banished from Athens . Arist. exile feit. 
 
 480. Leonidas and his Spartans fall at Ther- 7 q, twQ ^ 
 
 mopylae . . . . .3 
 
 The Greeks gain a naval Victory at 7 Greekg . _ 
 
 Salamis over the Persians . 3 
 
 479. Victoriesof PlataeaandMycale; Xerxes 7 Xerxes flees foiu 
 
 leaves Greece . . . . 3 
 470. The Persians defeated by Cimou, Son 7 a con 
 
 ofMiltiades . . . . $ H )i 
 
 469. Capua founded by the Tuscans . Capua built faun. 
 
 463. Egypt revolts from the Persians . Egy. rebel, faut. 
 
 452. The two Books of Chronicles written > Ezm ^-^ fud 
 
 by Ezra . . . . y 
 
 Creation of the Decemviri at Rome ; 7 Dec Rome ^ 
 
 Laws of the Twelve lables . ) 
 431. Peloponnesian War begins ; great": 
 
 Plague at Athens; Old Testament I War plag. end. — 
 
 ends . . . • - .J 
 
 423. Darius Nothus, King of Persia . D.N. king fet. 
 
 413. Egypt throws off Allegiance'to Persia Egy. free fat. 
 412. Athens governed by a Council of Four 7 Atheng m fed# 
 
 Hundred ..... 3 
 404. End of the Peloponnesian War. . Pelop. over fyf. 
 
 403. Athens taken by Lysander ; Govern- 7 Athem troub]f t 
 
 ment of the Thirty lyrants . 3 
 401. Retreat of the Ten Thousand . . Greeks retreat fyb. 
 
 Thrasybulus delivers Athens from the 7 Athens f ree _ 
 
 Thirty Tyrants . . * 3 
 
 385. Rome taken by the Gauls under Bren- 7 Rome taken ^ 
 
 nus ..... 3 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 265 
 
 c. 
 
 385. About this Time died Thucydides and 1 r™ v 
 
 Xenophon, Historians . . \ ^^ & Xen " tol - 
 382 The Citadel of Thebes taken by the ) ™ . 
 
 Spartans . . ,.,..•'. J ™ ebestrou M. teid. 
 
 380. Thebes delivered by Epaminondas . Sara. Epam. teiz. 
 
 371. Battle of Leuctra .... Leuc. batt. toib. 
 
 363. Battle of Mantinea . . . Manti. batt. taut. 
 
 362. Curtius leaped into the Gulph near the > ~ ,„ 
 
 Forum . . . . . \ Curtl ' S ulf ' taud - 
 
 356. Alexander the Great born . . Alex, born tus. 
 
 348. Plato the Philosopher died . . Plato dies tok. 
 346. Philip of Macedon became a member ) Dn 
 
 of the Amphictyonic Council . \ PhlL wlse tos ' 
 
 343. The War between the Romans and ) „ 
 
 Samnites j Rome & Sam. tot. 
 
 340. The Carthagenians defeated near Agri- > „ n 
 
 gentum . . . . . } Car ' sad to 7- 
 
 338. Battle of Cheronaea .... Cheron. batt. tik. 
 336. Alexander becomes King of Macedon, 1 A1 ,. 
 
 and destroys Thebes . . .3 Alex ' km S tls - 
 335. Darius Codomanus is King of Persia . D.C. Persia til. 
 334. Alexander defeats the Persians at the ) A1 „ 
 
 Granicus \ Alex ' Gram ' tlf - 
 
 333. defeats them at Issus . Alex. Issus tii. 
 
 332. conquers Egypt and takes } ^ ~ 
 
 Tyre . . . . # [ %y. & Tyre tid. 
 
 331. defeats Darius at Arbela . Alex. Arbela tib. 
 
 330. Darius Codomanus killed: with him V -p. _ 
 
 ends the Persian Empire . . \ DL - dies tlz - 
 
 Alexander takes possession of Susa, and 7 
 
 burns the Palace of Persepolis . \ leX * at SuSa tlz " 
 328. Passes into India; defeats Porus; pene- 
 trates to the Ganges; returns by the 
 
 Indus to the Euphrates, and in 324 
 
 is killed at Babylon in a fit of in- 
 
 temperence, in the thirty-third year I 
 
 of his age ! 
 
 321. The Romans made to pass under the 7 „ 
 
 Yoke by the Samnites . . \ Rome D0WS teb - 
 
 320. Ptolemy Lagus carries 100,000 Jews j _ 
 
 captive into Egypt . . .\ Jews E SY- tey. 
 
 303. The Freedom of the Greek Tribes re- ) „ c 
 
 stored by Demetrius . . .3 Greece free lzt - 
 
 301. Battle of Ipsus in Phrygia . . Ipsus batt. tyb. 
 
 300. Antioch founded by Seleucus . . Antioch f. ig. 
 
 298. Demetrius Poliorcetes takes Athens . Demet. Ath. douk. 
 284. Ptolemy Philadelphus King of Egypt P.P. Egy. deif. 
 
 Alex. Porus tek. 
 
266 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 B. C. B. C. 
 
 283. The Alexandrian Library formed . Alex, books deit. 
 280. Italy invaded by Pyrrhns, King of 1 p fa j , 
 
 Epirus . . . . . 3 J 
 277. The Septuagint translated . . Sep. same doip. 
 
 The Carthagenians totally defeated in ) Car> ]eaye j. 
 
 Sicily ; evacuate Italy . . 3 
 
 264. First Punic War begins . . . . Punic war dauf. 
 255. Regulus defeated and taken Prisoner > ^ ™ v j i 
 
 by the Carthagenians , . . . 3 " & • 
 
 253. Manasseh chosen High Priest by the ) Jewg . gt dot 
 
 Jews . . . . .3 v 
 
 241. End of the first Punic War . . Punic ends dob. 
 
 235. The Temple of Janus shut for the first 1 ™ 1 1 r d'l 
 
 time since the Reign of Numa .3 " 
 
 218. Second Punic War commenced . Punic sec. dak. 
 
 216. Hannibal gains the Battle of Cannas Cannasbatt. das. 
 212. Syracuse taken by Marcellus after a ) g dad> 
 
 Siege 01 two years ... • 3 
 
 211. Antiochus conquers Judea . . Antio. Judea dab. 
 
 210. The Scipios conquer Asdrubal, and 7 «. • ■ c • a 
 
 take New Carthage in Spain . 3 *' 
 
 203. Hannibal recalled to Africa ? . . Hanni. returns dyt. 
 
 20L R ^ i e oleadsS yP haxintriumpht °|Syph. Rome dya. 
 
 196. The Battle of Zama ends the second I ^^ h ^ bous 
 
 Punic War . . . .3 
 
 190. The Romans enter Asia . .In Asia any. 
 
 173. War between Rome and Macedon . Rome & Mac. apt. 
 
 170. Antiochus Epiphanes takes and plun- 1 . ,. , 
 
 , T 1 c Antio. robs apy. 
 
 ders Jerusalem .... 3 rj 
 
 167 Perseus of Macedon defeated ; End 1 Mace endg 
 
 of the Kingdom of Macedon . •) 
 166. Judas Maccabeus expels the Syrians \ j ^ J u dea ba 
 
 from Judea . . . 3 
 
 150. The third Punic War commenced . Punic ter. buy. 
 146. Corinth taken by Mummius . . Cori. Mum. bos. 
 
 145. Carthage taken and totally destroyed ) ,, ~ • , 1 
 
 r t-. f ^- ar - nnis bol. 
 
 by the Romans . . . .3 
 
 135. Antiochus besieges Jerusalem ; the \ „ , s i e s-e bil 
 
 Apochrypha ends . . . \ 
 
 133. Tiberius Gracchus murdered . . Tib. killed att. 
 
 131. Caius Gracchus murdered . . C. G. killed ata. 
 
 111. The Beginning of the Jugurthine War Jug. war bab. 
 
 109. Samaria utterly destroyed by Hyr- ) gam< dead , 
 
 canus . . . . .3 ' 
 
 108. Jugurtha defeated by Maiius . Jug. broken byk. 
 
 103. Jugurtha starved to death at Rome . Jug. dies byt. 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 267 
 
 B- C B. C. 
 
 90. Sylla defeats the Samnites and their ) c ,, 
 
 "Allies { S > rlla W ^ 
 
 88. Civil War between Marius and Sylla: ) c rt a nr • i • 
 
 Sylla takes possession of Rome . J S y lla& Marius ke1 ' 
 86. Sylla defeats Mithridates, King of} c „ -, , 
 
 Pontus . ... .{ S ' vlla Pont ^kau. 
 
 82. Sylla perpetual Dictator; his enor- } c ,, , 
 
 J rK U ' f Sylla great ke. 
 
 mous Cruelties . . . y J ° 
 
 78. Lays down his Power, and dies .. Sylla dies pei. 
 
 72. Pontus reduced to a Roman province Pont, taken oid. 
 
 Hyrcanus High Priest of the Jews. . Hyrca. priest pe. 
 
 69. Hyrcanus made King, but dethroned > H t « 
 
 by his brother Aristobulus . jj v • & ou ' 
 
 Crassus and Pompey chosen Roman ) Crassus and 
 
 Consuls \ Pompey 
 
 63. Pompey takes Jerusalem, and restores T 
 
 Hyrcanus to the Government of j- P. does much aut. 
 
 Judea . .. . .J 
 
 62. Conspiracy of Cataline . . Sly Cat se. 
 
 59. Pompev, Crassus, and Caesar form the 7 -o n n * • i 
 
 C T.K. / ! t P.C.C.tnum. lou. 
 
 nrst Iriumvirate . . . 5 
 
 58. Cicero banished . . . Cice. driven lei. 
 
 54. Caesar invades Britain . . Caesar Britain lo. 
 
 49. Caesar passes the Rubicon . . Caesar cross fou. 
 
 48. Battle of Pharsalia ; Pompey defeated Pharsa.batt. fei. 
 
 Pompey killed in Egypt . . Pom. killed fei. 
 
 The Alexandrian Library, containing > „ . , ._ _ . 
 *™™ n i i I f Books burnt feu 
 
 400,000 volumes,, burnt . . > 
 
 45. Julius Caesar reforms the Kalendar, the T 
 
 Solar Year introduced instead of the l Solar year ol. 
 
 Lunar . . . J 
 
 44. Julius Caesar killed in the Senate . J. Csr. killed of. 
 43. Second Triumvirate, founded by Oc- \ ™ • 
 
 tavius, Mark Antony^ and Lepidus ) 
 
 40. Herod made Governor of Judea . Herod Jud. fy. 
 
 31. Battle of Actium : End of the Com- > . . . _ ., 
 ,., \ Act. batt. lb. 
 
 monwealth . . . ) 
 
 Cleopatra and Mark Antony died . Cleo. & Mark — 
 
 30. Alexandria taken by Octavius . Octa. Alex. ty. 
 
 27. Octavius receives the Title of Augustus Octa. emp. ep. 
 
 25. Cornelius Nepos, Historian, died . C.Nps.dies el. 
 
 10. The Temple of Janus shut . Peace by 
 
 8. The Kalendar corrected by Augustus Augts. corre. k. 
 
 4. Jesus Christ born four Years before the 7 Jesus Christ 7 n 
 
 Vulgar Era . . . £ born £ 
 
 N 2 
 
268 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 D. 
 
 5. Dionysius and Titus Livius, Historians, } 
 flourished . . . f 
 
 14. Tiberius made Emperor of Rome 
 1 9. The Jews banished from Rome 
 
 26. John the Baptist preaches 
 
 27. Pilate made Governor of Judea 
 
 32. John Baptist beheaded 
 
 33. Jesus Christ our Redeemer crucified 
 35. The Conversion of St. Paul 
 39. St. Matthew writes his Gospel 
 41. Herod persecutes the Christians; im- ) 
 
 prisons Paul . . . ) 
 
 43. Claudius made an Attempt on Britain 
 
 44. St. Mark writes his Gospel . 
 
 45. Vespasian visited Britain 
 
 50. St. Paul preaches in the Areopagus, 
 
 at Athens 
 
 51. The British King, Caractacus, carried ) 
 
 prisoner to Rome . . y 
 
 54. Nero made Emperor of Rome 
 
 55. poisoned Britannicus 
 
 59 ' "deX ^^ MOth6r ' Agrlppina ' *°}a parricide un. 
 
 64. cruelly persecutes the Christians — persecutes auf. 
 
 causes Rome to be set on fire . — burns — 
 
 67. Massacre of the Jews by Florus, at ) T . 
 
 ,-, ni _ , . j A1 j • f Jews troub. aup. 
 
 Cassarea, Ptolemais, and Alexandria ) r 
 
 St. Peter and St. Paul put to death . Peter & Paul — 
 
 Josephus, the Jewish Historian, made ) T 
 
 (jovernor or (jalilee . . \ * 
 
 Two 
 
 histori. 
 
 1. 
 
 Tib. 
 
 emp. 
 
 af. 
 
 Jews 
 
 exp. 
 
 an. 
 
 John 
 
 preach 
 
 es. 
 
 Pilate 
 
 Jud. 
 
 ep. 
 
 John 
 
 decap. 
 
 id. 
 
 J. C. 
 
 cruci. 
 
 it. 
 
 Saul 
 
 chang. 
 
 il. 
 
 Matt. 
 
 writes 
 
 in. 
 
 Herod furious 
 
 ob. 
 
 Claud. 
 
 . Brit. 
 
 ot. 
 
 Mark 
 
 writes 
 
 of. 
 
 Ves. 
 
 comes 
 
 fo. 
 
 Paul at Ath. 
 
 uz. 
 
 Carac. 
 
 at Rome 1 
 
 Nero 
 
 
 
 lo. 
 
 A 
 
 brute 
 
 11. 
 
 68 & 69. Galba, Otho, and Vitellius, bad , 
 
 emp. sei. 
 
 sou. 
 
 pel. 
 
 d? Ba 
 Emperors of Rome . . . y 
 
 70. Vespasian made Emperor ; and his ) „ i ^ • 
 
 son, Titus, destroyed Jerusalem . $ ? ^ 
 
 78. A dreadful Pestilence at Rome, 10,000 )p, R 
 
 dying in one day . • 3 °* 
 
 79. Scotland invaded by the Romans . Scot. Rome pou. 
 
 Herculaneum and Pompeii destroyed ) u o d i • i 
 v t- c hi i. -tr • J-H.&P. buried — 
 
 by an Erruption or Mount Vesuvius ) 
 
 Pliny, the Elder, venturing too near ) p.. _ 
 
 the burning Lava, was suffocated . ) ' 
 
 80. Agricola makes Conquests in Britain . Agric. comes ky. 
 93. Josephus died . . . Jos. dies out. 
 95. The Christians suffer dreadful Perse- ) ^^ troub> ^ 
 
 cution . . . ) 
 
 St. John writes the Apocalypse, in ba- ) y , p 
 nishment, at Patmos 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 269 
 
 -A.- D. A. D. 
 
 98. Trajan made Emperor of Rome, and 7 ^, Rome n " 
 
 forbids Christian Assemblies . 3 
 
 107. Trajan obtains great Victories in the 7 Tr£u lu , . 
 
 115. The Jews in C^ene murder 200,000 ) Jewg ^ ^ 
 
 Greeks and Romans . . 3 
 
 120. A Wall built by Adrian across the 7 . ,. . 
 
 Island of Britain . . $ 
 
 Plutarch died . . . Plu. dies — 
 
 bid. 
 
 132. Adrian published his perpetual Code 7 . , . , 
 
 of Laws . . . . .3 
 
 135. The Romans overrun Judea, and de- 7 T A ,., 
 
 j ^o^ ™^ t r Judea overrun bil. 
 
 stroyed 580,000 Jews . . . ) 
 
 137. Jerusalem rebuilt by Adrian, and 7 „ i 1 m.i,- 
 
 called CElia Capitolina . .\ Uo1 * **"*>* 
 
 154. An Apology for the Christians pub- 7 j^ defendsbuf - 
 
 hshed by Justin Martyr . . 3 
 167. The Martyrdom of Polycarp and 7 polyc ^ . 
 
 Pionices in Asia ....)" r 
 
 177. The Christians persecuted at Lyons . C. troub. again boip. 
 189. The Romans defeated by the Sara-"] 
 
 cens : this their first mention in J- Sarac. rise bein. 
 
 History . . . . .J 
 
 193. Didius Julianus purchases the Roman 7 Rome boughtbout 
 
 Severus declared Emperor of Rome . Sev. erap. — 
 195. besieges and takes Byzantium Takes Byzan. anu. 
 
 208. Severus and his Sons, Caracalla and 7 y. . t> -. j * 
 
 Geta, visit Britain ... 3 • >' • 
 
 209. The Picts and Scots repulsed, and al 
 
 Wall built by Severus between the > Picts driven dyn. 
 
 Rivers Forth and Clyde . . J 
 
 220. Diogenes Laertes died ... Dio. L. dies dey. 
 222. A Tribute paid by the Romans to the 7 „ 1 j 
 
 Goths . . . . . S PayS 
 
 226. The Persians totally defeated by the 7 p _, 
 
 Romans 3 4* 
 
 236. A severe Persecution of the Christians C. again sad dis. 
 244. Philip the Arabian made Emperor of 7 p, ., . , , ~ 
 
 Rome 3 
 
 St. Cyprian elected Bishop of Car- ) p ^ 
 
 thage ^ yP- 
 
 249. Decius, a persecutor of the Christians, 7 wicked Bqc[ don 
 
 made Emperor of Rome . . 3 
 
 259. The Persians ravage Syria . . Pers. in Syr. dun. 
 
 260. The Temple of Diana at Ephesus 7 Dian burng 
 
 burnt ...... S 
 
 111. The Ale manni and Marcomanni ravage 7 E ravao . 
 
 the Roman Empire . . . ) v ' e " l 
 
 - N 3 
 
270 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 273. Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra, defeated") 
 
 by Aurelian, and carried Captive to V Zen. taken epi. 
 
 Rome . • • • J . 
 
 283. Fingall, King of Morven, dies . . Fin. dies eki. 
 286. Rome attacked^by the northern Na- 7 Rome attac beis# 
 
 tions . . . • • «3 
 
 Longinus, Secretary to Zenobia, died Zen. sec. — 
 292. The Roman Empire partitioned be-~| 
 
 tween two Emperors and two VTwo emp. ene. 
 
 Csesars . • • • -J 
 
 312. Constantine the Great succeeded to"| _ 
 
 the whole Roman Empire, and em- V Cons, chris. tad. 
 
 braced the Christian Religion . J 
 325. First General Council at Nice, the Doc- \ Nice CQun tel> 
 
 trines of Arius condemned J 
 
 329. Constantine removes the Seat of Em- 7 Goe§ East ten> 
 
 pire to Constantinople. . • } ... 
 
 337. Constantine dies ; the Empire divided Emp. divi. tip. 
 361. Julian, called the Apostate, abjures \ JuJL apost> isa> 
 
 Christianity . . . • 3 
 
 378. The Goths advance to the Gates of 7 Goth3 Const, ipei. 
 
 Constantinople . . • • 3 
 
 379. Theodosius the Great, Emperor of the 7 Theod> East tom> 
 
 East 3 
 
 383. The Huns overrun Mesopotamia . Huns Mes. teit. 
 About this period lived Eusebius and 7 Euse & Eutro# _ 
 
 Eutropius, Historians . . • 3 
 395. The Sons of Theodosius succeed to"! 
 
 the East and West Empires ; Ar- l Arc# & Honor, toul. 
 
 cadius Emperor of the East, and j 
 
 Honorius of the West . . .J 
 
 400. Italy ravaged by Alaric the Goth . Alaric ravag. og. 
 
 403. Alaric defeated near Pollentia . . Alaric bends fyt. 
 
 404. Fergus, King of Scotland, began to 7 Ferg> gcot> fyf# 
 
 reism . . • • • • 3 
 406. The Vandals invade France and Spain Vand. invade fys. 
 410. Rome sacked and burnt by Alaric . Rome scourged fay. 
 416. The Bishops of Africa condemned the 7 Mitres condemn fas. 
 
 Pelagian Heresy . • -3 
 
 420. Pharamond, first King of the Franks, 7 p hara F ran ks ody. 
 
 commenced his Reign . 3 
 
 424. Valentinian III. made Emperor of I yalent. West odo. 
 
 the West 3 , 
 
 426. The Romans finally leave Britain . Rom. leave ods. 
 431. The Third General Council held at 7 Coun Ephe ota 
 
 Ephesus ...... j 
 
 Pelagius the Heretic died . . Pelag. dies — 
 
 439. The Vandals invade and plunder Italy Vand. Italy fin. 
 
 The Vandals take Carthage, and esta- 7 T&ke Car _ 
 
 blish a Kingdom in Africa . . ) 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 271 
 
 445. The Britons seek Aid from the Romans ~) „ .. , c , 
 
 > Brit, entreats fol. 
 
 a. n. • a. D. 
 
 ie Britons seek Aid from the ] 
 against the Picts and Scots 
 448. The Romans pay a heavy Tribute to 1 R AftM f t 
 
 Attila . . ... .y ome la ° 
 
 450. Attila ravages Germany and France . Attila G. & F. oly. 
 
 451. Theodric, King of the Visigoths, killed ) „« , -,i j i 
 
 in battle . . ! . . \ ^^ kllled ° la ' 
 
 The Saxons land in Britain under ? -o ^ 
 
 „ • . . n > Sax. Brit. — 
 
 Hengist and Horsa . . . } 
 
 The Fourth General Council held at ) r-, r>* ^ 
 
 Chalcedon \ CoUn - ChaL ~ 
 
 452. Foundation of the City of Venice . Venice f. old. 
 
 455. Rome taken and plundered by Gen- ~) ^ ^ c 1 
 
 ■ 4.U- xt o 1 r Rome Gens. ful. 
 
 seric the Vandal . . . . ) 
 
 468. The Visigoths drive the Romans out ? T7 . • ,. . , r , 
 n s *? > Visi. disturb fauk. 
 
 470. The Kingdom of Sussex founded by \ p,,, ~ 
 
 Ella, who defeats the British Princes ) ' ' ™* 
 
 472. An Eruption of Mount Vesuvius seen ) v , .1 
 
 from Constantinople . . . y ^ 
 
 476. Ro ^^aken by Odoacer, now King ) Qdoa king opau> 
 
 The Western Empire extinguished, i 
 
 507 Years after the Battle of Actium, I West, ends — 
 
 1224 after the Building of Rome . J 
 
 488. Theodric the Ostrogoth acknowledged ~) ~,, n > ■, 
 
 -tr- c Ti 1 u iL -o rP r Theo. Zeno o^k. 
 
 King 01 Italy by the Empei-or Zeno y 
 
 490. Ireland, famous for its Schools and 1 y • ^ 1 
 
 Learning, called the Isle of Saints ) ' ^ *' 
 
 491. St. Patrick, Patron of Ireland, dies . St. P. dies ona. 
 
 497. Clovis, King of Franks, converted to ) ^ . , 1 
 
 r,. ' s K r Clovis changed onoi. 
 
 Christianity . ) ■ & 
 
 500. The Burgundians become tributary to ) „ 
 
 clovis . . . . . . \ Bur 8- p a y u s- 
 
 507. Clovis defeats Alaric the Visigoth . Clovis gains lyp. 
 
 510. Clovis makes Paris the Capital of the } -p. • . • e 1 
 
 Tr* j • *• t* ' t r Jr/aris cniet lay. 
 
 Kingdom ot b ranks . ) J 
 
 51U Clovis died, and the Kingdom was di- ) m • j- it. 
 
 . , , , ' 1 • c r Clovis dies lab. 
 
 vided between his Sons . . ) 
 
 515. Arthur, King of the Britons, supposed ) ArthurBrit laL 
 
 to have begun his Reign . . ) 
 
 516. Time computed by the Christian Era Anno D. las. 
 
 525. Antioch and other Cities destroved by ~) A ^. , , , 
 
 ^ ., , J 5- Anti. quakes lei. 
 
 an Earthquake ....... 3 ^ 
 
 532. Cosroes succeeds to the Throne of Persia Cos. Pers. lid. 
 
 A great Insurrection at Constantinople } „ , .. . 
 
 subdued by Belisarius . . ) 
 
 537. Belisarius subdues the Ostrogoths in! 
 
 Italy, and takes Rome, but refuses L Bel. refuses lip. 
 
 the Crown . . . . .J 
 
 » 4 
 
272 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 542. Belisarius takes Barbary,and makes it 7 g^ -g a ^ i od 
 
 Part of Greece . . • • S 
 550. The Kingdom of Poland established 7 p oL f uly< 
 
 by Lechus • 3 
 
 558. The Huns broke in upon Thrace ; de- 7 Bq[ opposes i u k. 
 
 feated by Belisarius . • • } 
 
 566. Narses invites the Lombards to invade 7 Nar j jQm laus 
 
 Italy S 
 
 568. In two Years they conquered that 7 Lom take lau k. 
 
 Country . . • • 3 
 
 571. Mahomet, the False Prophet, was born 7 Mah> born upa> 
 
 at Mecca • 3 
 
 580. About this time the Latin Tongue 7 Latifl dead uky> 
 
 ceased to be spoken in Italy . . j 
 590. Antioch, with 30,000ofits Inhabitants, 7 AntL sinks anVt 
 
 destroyed by an Earthquake . J 
 
 595. Gregory of Tours, the Historian, died Greg. his. loul. 
 
 596. The Anglo-Saxons converted to Chris- } gax> c h an ged lous. 
 
 tianity by Augustine the Monk . ) 
 602. Focus, Emperor of the East, acknow- 7 Fqc d> 
 
 ledges the Supremacy of the Popes \ 
 605. The Monk Augustine died i_ .A monk dies syl. 
 607. The Pantheon at Rome was dedicated 7 p an ]vj ar i a S yp. 
 
 to God, the Virgin, and the Saints $ 
 609. A dreadful Massacre of the Christians 7 c & j suffer syn. 
 
 by the Jews . • ^ • • 3 
 
 )thaire, King of France, introduc 
 
 the Maires du Palais as Regents 
 
 •usalem taken by the 
 
 Cosroes the Second 
 
 e Era of the Hegir 
 
 Mahomet from Mecca to Medina 
 625. The Persians, under Cosroes, besiege 7 Cog> Con# se j 
 
 Constantinople . . • 3 
 
 632. This Year the Prophet Mahomet died Mah. dies sid. 
 636. Jerusalem taken by the Saracens, who 7 H , capt i ve s i s . 
 
 kept possession of it 463 Years . 3 
 640. In this Year the Library of Alexandria, 1 
 
 which had been founded by Ptolemy [ Sarac> burn soy . 
 
 Philadelphus, was burnt by the f 
 
 Saracens . • •) 
 
 648. The Saracens take Cyprus . . Sarac. Cyp. sok. 
 
 653. The Saracens take Rhodes arid destroy 7 Giant# fa n s sut . 
 
 the Colossus . • • • 3 
 
 659. Nubia afforded an Asylum to the per- 7 Chris h j de sun# 
 
 secuted Christians . . • ) ' 
 
 669. The Saracens ravage Sicily . . Sara, ravage saun. 
 672. They besiege Constantinople, but their 7 Sara> Con soid# 
 
 Fleet is destroy ed by the Greeks $ 
 
 613. Clothaire, King of France, introduced 7 ]vi a i res rxxle 
 
 the Maires du Palais as Regents $ 
 616. Jerusalem taken by the Persians under 7 Ho]y p er> sas# 
 
 622. The Era of the Hegira or Flight of 7 Hegira __ sa d. 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 273 
 
 A. B. 
 
 677. 
 
 685. 
 
 690. 
 695. 
 
 697. 
 700. 
 713. 
 714. 
 716. 
 726. 
 
 Fran. 
 
 The Saracens attempt to land in Spain, ~| 
 
 but are repulsed by the King of the I Try Spain soip. 
 Visigoths . . . • .J 
 
 The Saxons totally subdue Britain., and! 
 
 the Britons retreat into Wales and I Sax. Hep. seil. 
 Cornwall . . . . .J 
 
 Pepin Heristel, Maire du Palais, ac- 
 quires the chief Power in France 
 
 Leontius, Emperor of the West, is de- 
 throned, and mutilated by Tibe- I Tib. cruel soul, 
 rius, Emperor of the East . . J 
 
 Barbary subdued by the Mahomedan 1 Barb subdued g 
 Arabs . . ... . S 
 
 The Saracens defeated with great " 
 Slaughter by Heracletus 
 
 | Pep. 
 
 Sarac. routed oig. 
 
 Spain conquered by the Saracens under J Sarac> g . 
 
 Muca . . . . . ) 
 
 Charles Martel, Maire du Palais, go- j q jyj p ran pa £ 
 
 Leo. East pas. 
 
 732. 
 736. 
 
 740. 
 
 742. 
 
 749. 
 751. 
 754. 
 
 Maire du Palais, go- 
 verns all France for twenty-six Years 
 Leo, the Isurian, is made Emperor of } 
 
 the East $ 
 
 Leo forbids the Worship of Images,"^ 
 
 which causes a great Rebellion of his I 
 
 subjects; they are supported by > Forbids images pes. 
 
 Pope Gregory, who defended the J 
 
 Practice . . . . .J 
 
 Leo confiscates the Imperial Domains") 
 
 of Sicily and Calabria, in order to I Leo angry — 
 
 punish the Pope . . . .J 
 Charles Martel defeats the Saracens . C. M. Sara. pid. 
 Leo persecutes the Monks . . Leo monk oits. 
 
 The Duchy of Spoletto seized by the" 
 
 Normans, but recovered by the 
 
 Pope 
 
 Constantine, Emperor of the East, de- 
 clares himself an enemy to Image 
 
 and Saint Worship 
 The Race of the Abassidse become 1 
 
 Caliphs of the Saracens . . . ) 
 
 Pepin le Bref, founder of the Carlo- \ p 
 
 vingian Race . . . . ) 
 
 Pope Stephen seeks Assistance from ) ~ , y ? 
 
 Pepin against the Lombards . . ) ^ • P • 
 
 Abdal Rahman takes the Title of King L, <, . _^ 
 
 of Cordova, and founds the Domi- l * 
 
 nion of Moors in Spain . . J 
 
 John of Damascenus dies . . . J. of D. dies oisy. 
 Almenzor builds Bagdad ; it becomes 7 chief d 
 
 the Seat of Empire . ) ° * 
 
 N 5 
 
 - Spo. seized poy. 
 
 ► Cons, right pod. 
 
 Sara. cali. pon. 
 
 Carlo, pub. 
 
274 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. -A.D. 
 
 767. The Turks ravage Asia Minor . . Turks A. S. paup. 
 772. Charlemagne, sole Monarch of France, \ Ch ^ k{ .^ 
 
 makes war against the Saxons . j " h F 
 
 774. Charlemagne puts an end to the King- ) 
 
 dom of the Lombards, which had > Lom. ended poif. 
 existed 206 years . . . . ) 
 
 775. A Battle fought between the Christians ~| 
 
 and Moors at Roncesvalles, in I t> ]__ \r\\\ e A ^oii 
 
 Spain, where Rolando their chief j * " 
 
 was killed . . . . .J 
 
 781. The Empress Irene restores the Wor-1 
 
 ship of Images in the Eastern Em- J- Images East. peib. 
 
 pire ....... J 
 
 785. Charlemagne subdues the Saxons . Char. Sax. peil. 
 787. The Danes first land in England . Danes Brit. peip. 
 794. Charlemagne defeats and extirpates } ^^ jj ng fi 
 
 the Huns . . . . . ) 
 
 800. Charlemagne erects a new Empire in 1 
 
 the West, and is cvowned Emperor J- Char. Emp. eig. 
 
 at Rome . . . . -J 
 
 Haroun Al Raschid, a powerful Caliph 1 
 
 of the Saracens, seeks the Alliance of J- An ally — 
 
 Charlemagne . . . .J 
 
 814. Charlemagne dies, and is succeeded by } Char> dieg kaf 
 
 Louis le Debonnaire ... 3 
 
 816. The Eastern Empire ravaged by Earth- V Fire &death ^ 
 
 quake, Famine, Conflagration, &c. ) 
 
 817. Louis Je Debonnaire divides the Em- > j^. ^.^ ^ 
 
 pire between his Sons . . .3 ' "" 
 
 827. The seven Kingdoms of the Saxon Hep- 1 
 
 tarchy united under Egbert, first > Sax. Hep. one kep. 
 
 King of England . . .J 
 
 834. A Battle between Egbert and the! 
 
 Danes at Hengsdown Hill; the I g & jy anes j,-f 
 
 Danes defeated with great Slaugh- j 
 
 ter J 
 
 838. Ethelwolf second King of England . Ethel. Engl. kik. 
 845. The Normans plunder Hamburg and > N lund kol 
 
 enter Germany . . . . ) I 
 
 848. The Venetian Fleet destroyed by the \ Ve nice fleet kok. 
 
 Saracens .....} 
 851. Pope Joan died, having filled thel p Joandi ^ 
 
 Papal Chair tor two years . . J 
 
 867. The Danes overrun England. . . Danes Eng. kaup. 
 872. Alfred the Great, King of England . Good Alf. eipe. 
 
 879. The Kingdom of Aries begins . . Aries f. koin 
 
 880. The Normans overrun France . . Nor. Fran. keiz. 
 
 881. The University of Oxford founded by \ j-, . ^ , • 
 
 Alfred .. . . . . $ 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 275 
 
 887. The Normans besiege Paris, which "| Non Parig k . 
 
 is defended by Count Eudes, who J- £ u( j" ^ F * 
 
 becomes King of France . J 
 
 890. Alfred divides England into Counties, 7 F « . . 
 
 Hundreds, and Tithings . . J °* ° 1V1 - emy 
 
 901. Edward the Elder succeeds Alfred as 7 -p, j , , 
 
 King • 3 ' 
 
 912. The Normans establish themselves in ) £ Q j -^ or Qu ^ e 
 
 Normandy under their leader Rollo 3 
 915. The University of Cambridge founded 7 ^ ^ Qubs> 
 
 by Edward the Elder . . .3 
 
 920. The Kingdom of Denmark founded by 7 -Q en ^ oudv 
 
 Gorm 3 
 
 957 Antioch recovered from the Saracens 7 ^ nt « ^. ee na 
 
 by Nicephorus ....)' 
 968. Egypt conquered by Mois, the Fata- 1 
 
 mite Caliph. This dynasty filled > Egy. con. ousk 
 the throne of Egvpt until 1171 . J 
 987. Hugh Capet, founder of the Capetian 7 R h c . 
 
 Race, ascended the 1 hrone of b ranee 3 
 991. The Arabic Numeral Cyphers intro- 7 One, two, l noub 
 duced into Europe . . .3 three J 
 
 1002. The Massacre of the Danes by Ethel- 7 j^ ttie j s | 
 
 red, King of England . . . S 
 
 1005. Churches first built in the Gothic 7 Gothic _ j 
 
 Style 3 
 
 1013. The Danes get possession of England Danes Eng. at. 
 1016. Canute conquered Norway, completed "| 
 
 the Conquest of England, and sub- I Canu. Eng. as. 
 dued Part of Scotland . . .J 
 
 1025. Musical Characters invented by Guido 7 -p o re m » g] 
 
 Aretino, a Monk . . . . ) 
 1040. Macbeth murders Duncan, and usurps 7 M&c gcot ^ 
 
 the Throne of Scotland . . . ) ' ' 
 
 1041/ The Saxon Line is restored in England 7 -g^ g ax ^ 
 
 by Edward the Confessor . . § 
 1043. The Turks subdue Persia . . Tur. conq. ot. 
 
 1049. Pope Leo IX., the first Pope who £ LeQ arm ^ 
 maintained a regular Army 
 
 1054 Pope Leo taken Prisoner by the Nor- 7 Lqq t&ken uf 
 
 mans ) 
 
 1055. The Turks take Bagdad and overturn 7 CaU fe ^ ul 
 
 the Empire of the Caliphs . £ 
 
 1057. Isaac Comnenus made Emperor of 7 j Com We§t 
 
 the West . . . $ ' 
 
 1058. Robert Guiscard the Norman drives 7 g^ gici ^ 
 
 the Saracens out of Sicily . . £ 
 
 1065. The Turks take Jerusalem from the 7 H , Turk auJ 
 Saracens ... . . .3 
 
 n 6 
 
276 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1066. William the Norman conquered Ha- 
 rold, and was crowned King of \ Wil. 
 England 
 
 1068. Margaret sister of Edgar Atheling | Md ScQt gei> 
 
 married Malcolm, King ot Scotland ) 
 1070. William introduced the Feudal Law | p eu ^ ^ 
 
 into England •) 
 
 1079. Doomsday Book compiled . . Doomed — oin. 
 
 Archbishop Lanfranc died . . Lanf. dies — 
 
 1095. The first Crusade to the Holy Land, 7 Cru . nu 
 
 against the Saracens . . . ) 
 
 1098. Antioch taken by the Crusaders . Take Anti. ouk. 
 
 1099. Jerusalem taken by Godfrey of Bou-1 
 
 logne; Knights of St. John insti- ^Take Holy oun. 
 tuted J 
 
 1 135. The Order of Knights Templars insti- 7 Rol Jolm ail 
 
 tuted S * 
 
 1136. Lothaire re-conquers Italy . . Lot. Ita. ats. 
 
 1137. Aquitaine united to the Throne of7 . join> b ^ 
 
 France . . • • -3 
 
 1139. Duke Alphonso rescues Portugal from 7 Portu.bin. 
 
 the Saracens, and is made King . j 
 
 1140. Stephen made Prisoner, at the Battle 7 K taken 
 
 of Lincoln, by the Empress Matilda. ) 
 1147. The Second Crusade undertaken . Cru. sec. bop. 
 1154. TheFamilyof Anjou,orPlantagenet,7 pian> comes buf 
 
 succeed to the British Crown . ) 
 
 1156. Wladimer and Warsaw built by Juric 7 w w hu{{t bus 
 
 or George I. . • • • 3 
 
 1157. The Dynasty of the Princes of Wla- 7 prince m&± , 
 
 demar began with Andrew 1. . ) 
 
 1159. The Bank of Venice instituted . . Veni. bank bun. 
 
 Pope Adrian, an Englishman named 7 p ^ 
 
 Breakspeare, died . . . 3 
 
 1164. The Order of Teutonic Knights insti- 7 ^j*- Teu bauf 
 
 tuted in Germany . . .3 
 
 1187. Saladin obtains a great Victory over 7 g^ ing ^ 
 the Christians near 1 iberias . 3 
 
 Saladin takes Jerusalem . . . Takes Holy — 
 
 1202. Constantinople taken by the French 7 Cons taken d , 
 
 and Venetians • 3 
 
 1204. The Inquisition established by Pope 7 InnQ Jn . d f 
 
 Innocent III 3 ' ' 
 
 1208. London obtains a Charter for electing 7 M & m d , 
 its Mayor and Magistrates . . $ '" s ' J 
 
 Tuscany becomes a Republic . . Tusc. repu. — 
 1210. Crusade against the Albigenses under 7 Alt> . w&r , 
 
 Simon de Montford . . . ) 
 1215. Magna Charta signed by John . . . Magna Chart, ebu. 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 277 
 
 A. D. A. D. 
 
 1220. Generis Khan, with his Tartars, con- 7 ~ ^ r , -p, , . 
 r>- jdi.^a- fG. Khan Pers. dek. 
 
 quers Persia and Part of Asia . ) 
 
 Dies Stephen Langton, Archbishop of 7 T ,. 
 
 Canterbury . . . .J Ua ^' dies _ 
 
 1234. The Inquisition committed to the Do- 7 ,-. T . ,.„ 
 
 • • » T , > Uom. Inqui. dif. 
 
 minican Monks . 3 ^ 
 
 1237. The Tartars subjugate Russia . . Russ. bows dip. 
 
 1242. Wars of the Guelphs and Ghibellines. Gue.& Gib. dod. 
 
 1251. Stockholm built .... Stoc. built dub. 
 
 1258. Bagdad taken by the Tartars ; End of 7 , , , 
 
 the Saracen Empire . . .\ Sarac ' ends duk ' 
 
 1263. The Norwegians invade Scotland ; 7 ^ ~ 
 
 defeated at Largs by Alexander III. ) 
 
 1263. The Western Isles conquered by Den- 7 . -^ 
 
 , r Azores Den. — 
 
 mark . . . . . . ) 
 
 1265. Representatives first sent to Parlia- 7 ,, -, , 
 
 . , r, , J- Boro. par. daul. 
 
 ment by Boroughs . } r 
 
 1266. Sicily conquered by Charles of Anjou. Sici. Anjou daus. 
 1272. Provence united to the French Crown. Pro. join doid. 
 
 1282. Sicilian Vespers ; 8000 French were 7 c . . , ., 
 
 j (• Sici. vesp. deid. 
 
 massacred .....). r 
 
 1283. Wales conquered by Edward I. . Wales taken deit. 
 
 1284. Roger Bacon, a philosopher, died . R. Bacon dies deif. 
 
 1291. Died Michael Scott, the Mathematician ") ,, „ <^-,, , , 
 A ixj • • YM. Scott dies doub. 
 
 and Musician ... .J 
 
 Ptolemais taken by the Turks ; the 7 p , , 
 
 last Crusade . . . .3 
 
 1298. William Wallace chosen Regent of 7 nr., , , 
 
 Scotland .... . 3 WlL reg " d0uk ' 
 
 1299. Ottoman Empire founded by Oth- ? ~ ix „ , 
 
 man I. . . . . { 0tt0 ' f ' do « n - 
 
 1 302. The Mariner's Compass discovered at 7 A . , , 
 
 Naples . . . . . ) A S ulde ^ 
 
 1304. William Wallace the Scottish Hero, 1 
 
 basely betrayed ; put to death by y Wil. taken tyf. 
 
 Edward I. of England . . J 
 
 1308. Seat of the Popes transferred to Avig- 7 -p, ' 
 
 r ° > Pope moves tyk. 
 
 non ...... 3 r J 
 
 1312. The Knights Templars suppressed by 7 -. r . -. , . , 
 
 Philiplhe Fair . . .\ Km ' ^1. tad. 
 
 1324. Sardinia given by Pope Bonifacius 7 „ . „ 
 
 VIII. to the House of Arragon. . 3 San S lven tef - 
 
 1332. Edward Baliol crowned King of the 7 -r> 1 o ,-i 
 
 c . . & Y Bal. Scon. tid. 
 
 Scots at Scone . ) 
 
 1339. First Doge of Venice elected . . Doge tin. 
 
 1340. Gunpowder invented by Swartz, a 7 . , , 
 
 Monk of Cologne . . . J A destroyer toy. 
 
 Oil painting invented by Van Eyk . Oil p. — 
 
 1346. The Battle of Cressy . . . Batt. Cress, tos. 
 
278 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. A " D - 
 
 1350. The Order of the Garter instituted by 7 Um[ go ; t t 
 
 Edward III. .... S 
 
 J 352. The Turks first enter Europe . . Tur. Eur. tud. 
 
 1354. William Tell, the Swiss Patriot, 7 TeU drQW> tuf 
 
 drowned . . • • -3 
 
 1356. John II., King of France, taken Pri- 7 Batt p oi tug 
 
 soner at the Battle of Poictiers . $ 
 
 1362. The Law Pleadings in England changed 7 Enal {n CQmt igd 
 
 from French to English . . ) 
 
 1377. The Doctrines of Wickliffe first pro- 7 wick doc _ to ; p> 
 
 pagated in England . . . ) 
 
 Boccaccio, aTuscan Writer and Scholar, 7 Bqcc dieg 
 
 died $ "" ... 
 
 1383. Cannons first used by the English . Great guns lkx. 
 
 1390. Revolt in Sweden .... Swe. revolt my. 
 
 1392. Cape of Good Hope discovered by the | Cape Hope ind> 
 
 Portuguese • 3 
 
 1395. Tamerlane the Tartar subdues Persia Tarn. conq. toul. 
 1397. Sweden and Norway united to Den- 7 Calmar _ toup< 
 
 mark under Margaret . . . ) 
 
 1402. Battle of Hallidoun Hill; the Scots | Batt HaUi fyd> 
 
 defeated ..... 3 
 
 1403. Battle of Shrewsbury ; Hotspur killed Batt. Shrew, fyt. 
 1405. Tamerlane, the Eastern Conqueror, } Tam ^ f .* 
 
 died Vi ' 
 
 1 408. Owen Glendower, the Welsh Hero, died O. Glen, dies fyk. 
 1411. University of St. Andrews, in Scotland, ) v ^ gt _ Ann fab> 
 
 founded * . • • 3 
 
 1415. John Huss condemned by the Council 7 Huss> burnt fal> 
 
 of Constance for Heresy, and burnt. 3 
 Henry V. invaded France with 30,000 7 Hen _ invades _ 
 
 men . . • • • • 3 
 
 1417. Savoy erected into a Duchy with Pied- 7 g gi . fep> 
 
 mont by the Emperor Sigismond . ) 
 Paper first made from Linen Rags . Rag. pa. fap. 
 1420. The Island of Madeira discovered by 7 Made j ra f ez . 
 
 the Portuguese . -3 
 
 1425. The Court Sessions of Scotland insti- 7 gcoL segs> feL 
 
 tuted by James I. • -3 
 
 1428. Joan of Arc, Maid of Orleans, raises 7 Joan of Arc odei< 
 
 the Siege of that Town . .3 
 
 1430. Henry VI. is crowned in Paris . Hen. in Par. oty. 
 
 1435! Sicily united to Naples . . Two Sici. fil. 
 
 1440. The Art of Printing discovered by 7 p rintino . foy . 
 
 John Guttenburg, of Strasburg . 3 
 1448. Christian of Oldenburg unites Norway^ 
 
 and Sleswick Holstein with Den- V Swed. left fok. 
 
 mark . • «J 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 279 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1453. Constantinople taken by the Turks;' 
 
 Eastern Empire of the Romans be- J- East ends fut. 
 comes extinct 
 
 1459 ' denied ° f **!*"?* ^ C ° PPer ** I Co PP . engra. fun. 
 
 1461. The Battle of Towton . . Towt. batt. 
 
 1469. Castile and Leon, Arragon and Sicily,"] 
 
 united by the Marriage of Ferdi- I Arag. & Cast. faun. 
 
 nand and Isabella . . J 
 
 1471. The Battle of Barnet ; Warwick kill- ~) ^ , 4 - ., 
 
 , ■ ., T . • j n . j r- Barn. batt. foib. 
 
 ed ; the Lancastrians defeated . 3 
 
 1474. The Cape Verd Islands discovered by) r TT ■, 
 
 ., -A . J V Cap. Verd opo. 
 
 the .Portuguese . • 3 
 
 1479. Russia frees herself from the Tartars . Russ. free foin. 
 
 1485. Battle of Bosworth ; Accession of the"] 
 
 House of Tudor ; union of the Red I Bos. batt. feil. 
 
 and White Roses . . J 
 
 1491. Caxton, the first English Printer, died Caxt. dies ona, 
 
 1492. The Moors expelled from Spain . Moors driven one. 
 America discovered by Christopher \ . 
 
 Columbus . . . y 
 
 1497. Cape of Good Hope doubled by Vasca | c doub onoi> 
 
 de Gama . . • 3 
 
 1498. Savonarola burnt by Pope Alexander 1 c , 
 
 X7T n , - , J K M , r,, ., J- Savan. burnt onei. 
 VI. tor daring to preach the 1 ruth 3 
 
 1499. Sebastian Cabot lands in North A me- \ p , . . - 
 
 rica . . . ) 
 
 1500. Brazil discovered by the Portuguese Brazil ug. 
 
 Germany divided into Circles by Maxi- 1 ^ 
 
 ... J J > Lrer. cir. — 
 
 mihan . . . \ 
 
 1509. Gardening first introduced into Eng- 
 land : before this Vegetables were Garden lyn. 
 imported from the Netherlands 
 
 1511. Cuba conquered by the Spaniards . Cuba conq. lab. 
 
 1513. Battle of Flodden Field . . Flod. batt. lat. 
 
 1515. Francis I. succeeds to the Throne of 1 ^ . , , 
 
 France . . \ Fran " piU laL 
 
 1516. The Kingdom of Algiers seized by \ Barb AW ^ ]ag 
 
 Barbarossa . . . ^ • e ■ • 
 
 1517. The Reformation commenced in Ger- \ ghake , 
 
 many . . . . ^ iff- 
 
 Cardinal X imenes Premier of Ferdi- J ^ ^ _ 
 
 nand, King of Spam, died . > 
 
 The Turks overpower the Mamelukes } Turk & Mame 
 
 in Egypt . .$ 
 
 1520. Sweden and Denmark united . S. & D. one ley. 
 
 1521. The Conquest of Mexico completed by 1 -, T , . 
 
 t-, ■*, ~ ■ . r " > Mex. conq. leb. 
 
 Fernando Cortes . . ) > 
 
 1522. First Voyage round the World, per- 1 AU rQund kgd 
 
 formed by Magellan . . 3 
 
280 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 D. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 Rhodes taken by the Turks . Rhodes taken ked. 
 
 1524. Chevalier de Bayard stabbed . Bay. stab. lef. 
 The Protestant Faith embraced b y|s.&D. ref. 
 
 Sweden and Denmark . . ) 
 
 1525. Prussia becomes a Dukedom under 1 jy u ^ e ^1. lei. 
 
 Albert of Brandenburg . ) 
 
 1527. Rome taken and plundered by Charles j Car> * fi Romelep. 
 
 The Empire of Peru invaded by \ p eru troubl> _ 
 Pizarro . . .3 
 
 Hungary falls to the House of Aus- } jj un „ & ^us. 
 
 tria by Marriage . .3 
 
 1529. The Diet of Spires against the Hugue- \ g . decree len. 
 
 nots or Protestants . . $ 
 
 15S0. Cardinal Wolsey died . . Wolsey dies liz. 
 
 1531. Alexander, the first of eight Sovereigns 7 Alex> of Me ^i. lib. 
 from the House of Medici .3 
 
 1534. The Reformation in England . Engl. ref. lif. 
 Barbarossa seizes the Kingdom of "I Tun geiz 
 
 Tunis . . .J 
 
 1535. The Order of Jesuits instituted . Loyol. hi. 
 
 1536. Died, Erasmus, a Professor and learned 1 Erag> dies lig 
 
 Writer of Divinity .J 
 
 Sir Thomas Moore beheaded . Moor, decap. — 
 
 1540. Dissolution of Monasteries in England \ Monas disso loz 
 by Henry VIIL . • J 
 
 1545. The Council of Trent began, which \ Coun Trent ] ol> 
 
 lasted eighteen years . . J 
 
 1546. Cardinal Beaton, Bishop of St. An-1 Bga assasSm l os . 
 
 drews, assassinated . . J 
 
 Died, Luther, the Father of the Re- \ Luther dies _ 
 formation . • J 
 
 1547. The Conspiracy of Fiesco, at Genoa . Sly t Fiesc. lop. 
 1552. Died, Leland, the Father of English "I Ant ^ Lel lud> 
 
 Antiquaries . • J 
 
 1554. Several Bishops burned by order of 1 Cruel Mary luf 
 
 Mary . . -J 
 
 1556. Died, Ignatius Loyola, Founder of the / L , dieg lus 
 Jesuits . . • ) 
 
 Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, "1 Cran< burnt 
 
 burnt for the Protestant Faith . J 
 Calais lost to the English . Calais bad luk. 
 
 The party of Conde conspire against \ Con( j, Guige 
 
 that of Guise ; Civil Wars in France J 
 The Reformation in Scotland prose- \ gcot ref> 
 
 1558, 
 1560 
 
 1561, 
 
 cuted by John Knox 
 Mary Queen of Scots arrives in Scot- \ g^ Mary laub 
 from France . • J 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 281 
 
 Don John upa. 
 ► St. Bartho. loid. 
 
 A. d. a. 
 
 1566. The Netherlands revolt from Philip "\ Net> re b e l uss. 
 
 David Rizzio murdered at the Palace 7 „ , j 
 of Holyrood . • ) 
 
 1568. Mary seeks Protection in England . Mary comes usei 
 
 1 57 1 . Don John of Austria defeats the Turks 1 
 
 at Lepanto . . J 
 
 1572. Horrible Massacre of the Protestants 
 
 under Catherine de Medicis and 
 
 Charles I X„ of France 
 1574. Socinus propagated his Opinions, and") gocii hereg> loif 
 
 founded the Sect of Socinians .J 
 
 Sebastian of Portugal invades Africa Afri. troubl. — 
 1559. The Republic of Holland commenced Dutch re lun. 
 1580. Portugal seized by Philip II. . . Phil. seiz. leiz. 
 
 Sir Francis Drake circumnavigates the ? rj t< a - i 
 
 Globe ..... 5 
 
 1584. Virginia discovered by Sir Walter 7 y iro . m i a j^jjj 
 
 Raleigh } ° 
 
 1587. Mary of Scotland beheaded at Fother- 7 p __ i\f arv \ e ' 1D 
 
 ingay Castle . . . . ) 
 
 1588. The Spanish Armada destroyed . . Fleet sinks leik. 
 
 1589. Henry le Grand, first of the Bourbon 7 -Roorbon lein 
 
 Branch ...... 3 
 
 1596. Cadiz taken by the English . . Cadi, taken lous. 
 
 1598. Edict of Nantes, tolerating Protestants 7 Nant decree louk. 
 in France . . . . ,3 
 
 Tyrone's Rebellion in Ireland . . Tyro, rebel — 
 
 Cecil, Lord Burleigh, Premier to Queen 7 r ., ,. 
 
 Elizabeth, died . . ' . . $ Ceci1 meS _ ~" 
 
 1600. Gowrie's Conspiracy in Scotland . . Sly Gowri. aug. 
 East India Company established . East comp. — 
 
 1601. Tycho_Brahe, Danish Astronomer, died Tycho dies syb. 
 
 1603. Union between Scotland and Eng- 7 c : ^ 
 
 land } Sc0t & Eng * Syt ' 
 
 1604. Duc^SuJly, d P^erofHenryIV.| Sully ^ ., f 
 
 1608. Galileo discovers Jupiter's Satellites . Moon syk. 
 
 Arminius founds his Sect . . . Armin.heres — 
 
 1610. Henry IV. of France murdered by 7 Ren R 
 
 Roubilhac ..... 3 J 
 
 Hudson's Bay discovered . . . Hud. bay — 
 
 1611. Baronetsfirst created and Titles sold by 7 -r, . 
 
 T T • > Baronet sab. 
 
 James I. . . . . .3 
 
 1617. Rebellion in Bohemia followed by ) D , 
 
 thirty Years of War . . 7 . J Bohe. war sap. 
 
 1619. Dr. Harvey discovers the Circulation 7 ™ 
 
 of the Blood . . . .J FW 0n san ' 
 
 Sir Walter Raleiarh executed . . Ralei. killed — 
 
282 
 
 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1620. 
 
 1621. 
 1625. 
 
 1628. 
 
 1635. 
 1638. 
 1640. 
 
 1641. 
 
 1642. 
 
 1643. 
 1644. 
 1649. 
 
 1650. 
 
 1652. 
 
 1653. 
 
 1654. 
 
 1658. 
 1659. 
 
 1660. 
 
 1662. 
 
 1664. 
 1665. 
 1666. 
 
 1667. 
 
 1669. 
 1678. 
 1683. 
 
 West 
 
 seb. 
 sel. 
 
 killed sek. 
 
 Fran, 
 taken 
 
 driven 
 
 sir. 
 
 sik. 
 
 mass. sob. 
 
 war sod. 
 
 decapi. sot. 
 revo. sof. 
 
 decapi. son. 
 
 batt. 
 
 sud. 
 
 Battle of Prague . . . . Prag. batt. 
 
 Navarre united to France ... . Navar. one 
 
 Batavia built and settled by the Dutch. Batav. built 
 First English Settlement in West In • \ „ , 
 
 dies on the Island of Barbadoes . 5 
 Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, assassi- } y. ,,. 
 
 nated ) 
 
 The French Academy instituted . Learn 
 
 Bagdad taken by the Turks . . Bag. 
 
 John Duke of Braganza expels the } „ 
 
 Spaniards from Portugal . • j ' 
 
 Irish Rebellion and Massacre of Protes- \ T 
 
 tants . . . . . • ) 
 
 Civil Wars in England commenced \ „ 
 
 under Charles I. *". . . . ) g * 
 Abp. Laud condemned and beheaded . Laud 
 Revolution in China by the Tartars . Chin. 
 Charles beheaded ; the Common- \ ^^ 
 
 wealth in England begins . . ) 
 
 Marquis of Montrose put to death ; } ^ 
 
 Battle of Dunbar . . . . ) 
 
 The first War between the Dutch and ? ^ o r» 
 
 „ .. , > E. & D. war 
 
 English ) 
 
 Oliver Cromwell declared Protector . Oli. Crom. sut. 
 
 Admiral Perm takes Possession of Ja- } p j 
 
 maica for the English . . . j 
 
 Christina of Sweden resigns be*i CtaMn/abdfcuf 
 
 Crown to Charles X. . . . ) 
 
 Died Inigo Jones, a classic Architect . Inigo dies 
 Dunkirk delivered to the English . Dun. Engl. 
 The Peace of the Pyrenees between ) p 
 
 France and Spain . . . • j 
 Charles II. — Restoration of Monarchy \ rr- 
 
 by General Monk . . .J S 
 
 The Royal Society instituted in Eng- ) R , g auge 
 
 land 3 
 
 Dunkirk resold to the French . . Dunk, sold — 
 
 The second Dutch War begins . . Quarrel again sauf. 
 
 The great Plague in London . . Plague saul. 
 
 The great Fire in London . . . Fire saus. 
 
 Sabatei Levi pretends to be the Mes- } r • asD ; res _ 
 
 siah S 
 
 Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and NewT 
 
 York confirmed by the Peace of J- Peace of Bred, saup 
 
 Breda . . . . . .J 
 
 suk. 
 
 again ausy. 
 
 Candia taken by the Turks 
 The Habeas Corpus Act passed 
 Executions of Lord Russell and 
 gernon Sydney ... 
 
 Al 
 
 Candiataken saun. 
 Habeas Corpus soik. 
 
 > Russel. Syd. seit. 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 283 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1683. 
 
 1686. 
 1688. 
 1689. 
 1690. 
 
 1692. 
 
 1695. 
 1701. 
 
 1702. 
 
 1703. 
 1704. 
 
 1706. 
 
 1706. 
 
 1712. 
 
 1715. 
 
 v Solar 
 
 Scot. 
 Batt. 
 
 171! 
 
 1720. 
 1725. 
 
 1726. 
 1728. 
 
 Vienna beseiged by the Turks, raised } y 
 
 by John Sobieski . . . .3 
 
 Revocation of the Edict of Nantes by 
 
 Louis XIV 
 
 The Newtonian Philosophy published 
 
 in England .... 
 Revolution in Britain ; Abdication of 
 
 James II. .... 
 William abolishes Episcopacy in Scot 
 
 land ..... 
 Battle of the Boyne . 
 Died George Fox, Founder of the Sect 
 
 called Quakers 
 Hanover made the ninth Electorate of 
 
 the Empire .... 
 Namur taken by King William 
 James II. died at St. Germain's 
 Prussia becomes a Kingdom 
 War declared by England" against 
 
 France and Spain 
 Admiral Rooke takes Gibraltar 
 The Battle of Blenheim . 
 Peter the Great founds St. Petersburg 
 Union of English and Scotch Parlia- 
 ments ..... 
 Battle of Oudenarde 
 Minorca taken by General Stanhope 
 Civil War in Switzerland between the 
 
 Protestants and Catholics 
 Rebellion in Scotland in favour of the 
 
 Pretender, Charles Edward . 
 This Year died the learned and pious 
 
 Matthew Henry . 
 George Burnet, Bishop of Salisbury 
 
 an eminent Writer 
 Archbishop Fenelon, of Cambray, i 
 
 useful French Writer . 
 Malebranche and Leibnitz, Philoso 
 
 phers ..... 
 Charles XII. of Sweden killed at the 
 
 Siege of Fredericshall . 
 The South- Sea- Bubble Scheme burst 
 Died the Czar Peter the Great, sue 
 
 ceeded by the Empress Catherine 
 There was a great Earthquake at 
 
 Palermo . ... 
 
 A Treaty, offensive and defensive, be 
 
 tween Spain, England, France, and I p 
 
 Holland, by which the Peace of [ ' 
 
 Europe was established . . J 
 
 shot 
 
 A. D. 
 
 seit. 
 
 Nant. revok. — 
 
 sys. 
 
 Revo. Engl. 
 
 Epis. 
 Boyne 
 
 seis. 
 
 seik. 
 
 sein. 
 auny. 
 
 G. Fox dies — 
 
 Hano. rais. soud. 
 
 Namur poor soul. 
 Jam. sec. dies pyb. 
 Pruss. king — 
 
 War with F. & S. pyd. 
 
 Gibr. Rooke pyt. 
 Batt. Blen. pyf. 
 Petersb. f. — 
 
 Scot, repre. pys 
 
 Ouden. Batt. — 
 Minor, taken — 
 
 War in Swit. pad. 
 
 Rebel. Scot. pal. 
 
 M. Hen. dies — 
 
 Burnet — — 
 
 Fenelon — 
 
 — 
 
 Malebranche 
 
 
 
 Leibnitz 
 
 . — 
 
 Car. killed 
 
 pak. 
 
 A bubble 
 
 pey 
 
 Czar Peter 
 
 pel. 
 
 Pal 
 
 
 erm. qua. pes. 
 
 again pen. 
 
284 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 r>. 
 
 pit. 
 
 pit. 
 
 pis. 
 
 1 728. Seven Cherokee Indian Chiefs laid their ~j 
 
 Crowns at the Feet of the English „ , . 
 
 King, acknowledging themselves his f Seven submit * ,en ' 
 
 Subjects . . , . . j 
 
 1730. The Turks defeated by the Persians, 7 *[ -* 
 
 under Kouli Khan . . . \ Kouh con * olt >' 
 
 1733. The Jesuits expelled from Paraguay Jesui. Parag. ] 
 
 1734. A Treaty of Commerce entered into) ^ , .,,0 
 
 between Great Britain and Russia \ Tradewith Russ 
 
 1736. Kouli Khan, or Nadir Shah, is pro- > Tr i- t 
 
 claimed King of Persia . . \ Kouh kin S 
 
 1737. The House of Lorraine succeeds to ) ,, ,. . e „ 
 
 that of Medici . \ Medlcl falIs P'P" 
 
 1738. The Russians invade the Crimea . Russ. Crim. pik. 
 
 1738. This Year died Dr. Boerhaave, the } « , 
 
 Dutch Chemist and Botanist . . \ Boerhaave *« - 
 Fahrenheit, the Inventor of the Ther- ) ^ , , . 
 
 mometer, and Lord Lansdowne . \ * anrenheit W ~ 
 
 1739. Nadir Shah makes great Conquests in 1 ^ ,. , T , 
 
 the Mogul Empife . . .\ * adir Mo S ul P in " 
 
 A Treaty entered into between Great 1 ^ * -^ 
 
 Britain and Denmark . . . J Engl. & Den. _ 
 Portobello taken by Admiral Vernon Portobello — 
 
 Peace concluded between Russia, Aus- } „ A ™ , 
 
 tria, and the Turks . . . \ Russ ' Aus ' & Turk * " 
 
 1741. War between Poland and Hungary, } w . c 
 
 and between Russia and Sweden . { War a § ain 0lfa " 
 Carthagena taken by Admiral Vernon Cartha. taken — 
 Died Rollin, Writer of Ancient History Rollin dies — 
 
 1742. This Year died Dr. Edmund Hal ley, ?„,,,• A 
 
 the great Mathematician . \ Halle y dies P od ' 
 
 1743. A War breaks out in Germany, in") 
 
 which the British, Hungarians, I German war pot. 
 French, and Austrians are engaged J 
 
 1744. Great Britain declares War against 1 ^ ^ * 
 
 France .... ^Eng.&F.war pof. 
 
 Commodore Anson completes his 1 „ j 
 
 Voyage round the World . . \ Ans0n r0Und ~ 
 
 1745. Louisberg and Cape Breton taken by 1 T . , 1 h , 
 
 the French Troops . . \\ Loulsb ' taKen P° l 
 
 A Rebellion breaks out in Scotland! c . nu v , 
 in favour of the Pretender . . J bcot Cn « -^ ~ 
 
 1746. Count Saxe takes Brussels and Ant- ) „ B . . 
 
 werp £Pruss.&Ant. pos. 
 
 The Battle of Culloden, in which the 1 „ , , n „ 
 
 Pretender is totally defeated . . \ Batt ' LuI1 °- ~ 
 
 A dreadful Earthquake at Lima, which > T . , 
 
 destroyed the City . . . J Llraa ^ uakes ~ 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 285 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1747. 
 
 1748. 
 1749. 
 
 1752. 
 
 1753. 
 1754. 
 
 1755. 
 1756. 
 
 1758. 
 1759. 
 
 1760. 
 1762. 
 
 1763. 
 
 1764. 
 
 1766. 
 1768. 
 
 1769. 
 1770. 
 
 1772: 
 
 New Style pud. 
 
 Kouli Khan assassinated, and Persia "| 
 
 divided between the Governors of > Kouli assass. 
 
 the Provinces . . . .J 
 The Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle . . Peace of Aix. 
 
 The Pope Benedict XIV. and the ] 
 
 Venetians enter into a Treaty > Pope & Vene. 
 
 against the Algerines . . .J 
 
 The New Style is introduced into Bri- 
 tain, Sept. 3rd being reckoned the 
 
 14th . . 
 
 The British Museum established at 
 
 Montague House . 
 A great Eruption of Etna, and 
 
 Earthquake at Constantinople 
 This Year died Henry Fielding 
 
 Author of " Tom Jones" 
 Lisbon destroyed by an Earthquake 
 War declared between Great Britain 
 
 and France .... 
 Senegal taken by the English . 
 The English take Louisburg and Fort 
 
 de Quesne .... 
 General Wolfe is killed at the taking ? w if ^'li j 
 
 pop. 
 
 pok. 
 
 pon. 
 
 put. 
 puf. 
 
 } 
 \ 
 
 } 
 
 > Fielding dies — 
 Lisbon sinks pul. 
 
 > Eng. & F. again pus. 
 Senegal taken puk. 
 
 > Engl. Ame. — 
 
 Brit. Muse. 
 Etna boils 
 
 pun. 
 
 French Fleet 
 Canada ours 
 
 oisy 
 
 of Quebec 
 The French Fleets defeated by Bos- \ 
 
 cawen and Hawke ... 3 
 Montreal and Canada taken by the 
 
 British 
 
 Martinico and Havannah surrendered ) -» r ... 
 
 to the English . . . . \ Martim - ° urs 01se ' 
 The Jesuits banished from France . Fran. Jesuit — 
 The Peaee of Paris between Great ? -n r- -n • 
 
 Britain, France, and Spain . . \ PeaCe ° f PanS P aut 
 
 Many Groups of Islands discovered in } j , 
 
 the South Seas by Admiral Byron $ 
 The Stamp Act repealed for America Ame. repeal 
 The Royal Academy of Arts was estab- \ p^,^ * j 
 
 found 
 
 pauf. 
 paus. 
 pauk. 
 
 lished in London . . . ) ^ 
 
 Corsica united to France . . Corsi. Fran. 
 
 This Year died Seeker, Archbishop of 1 q 1 _■• 
 
 Canterbury; and the Abbe Win- L 
 
 kelman murdered ... 
 War between Russia and the Turks 
 The Accession of the House of Bour- "1 
 
 bon to Spain . . . . j Bourb. Spain 
 
 Revolution in Denmark; Struensee be- 1 
 
 headed, and the English Queen > Change in Den. poid. 
 
 banished . . . . .1 
 
 Poland dismembered by Russia, Prus- 
 sia, and Austria 
 
 Wink, assass. — 
 Russ. & T. war paun. 
 oipy. 
 
 Polan. divi. — 
 
286 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 a. d. *• D " 
 
 177S. Captain Cook completed his second 1 Twice round it 
 
 Voyage round the World . J 
 
 1775. A great Dearth in France . . Dearth Fran. poil. 
 
 1777. Philadelphia taken by the British Ip^ taken poip> 
 
 Troops .... J 
 
 1778. The Americans declare their Inde-| Ame daim poik 
 
 pendence J 
 
 1779. The Crimea becomes independent Crim. free poin. 
 Captain Cook was killed by the Sa ""l Qwhye. 
 
 vages of Ovvhyee . J 
 
 A great Eruption of Vesuvius . . Ves. boils — 
 
 1780. Charleston surrenders to the British Chtown.taken oiky. 
 Popish Riots all through England . Popish riots — 
 War declared between Great Britain J Tj utcn ter# 
 
 and Holland . . • .3 
 
 1782. The French Fleet defeated off Domi-l Rodneins j d 
 
 nica by Admiral Rodney • -J 
 
 1783. The Independence of America ack-\ Ame< fi . ee - t 
 
 nowledged, and Peace proclaimed J 
 
 1784. The War between Great Britain and"| 
 
 Holland ended, after five Years' <-Eng. & H. ag. peif. 
 
 Contest . . • • «J 
 
 1787. The Assembly of the Notables con- > First stpp peip> 
 
 vened at Paris . 3 
 
 Warren Hastings impeached on al 
 
 Charge of gross Misdemeanours J- Warren Hast. — 
 
 during his Government in India . J 
 Oczakaw besieged and taken by Po- 1 0cza taken 
 
 temkin 3 
 
 17S8. The young Pretender, Charles Ed- ) Ch>Ed> dks peik . 
 
 ward, died at Rome , . .3 
 
 1789. The States General assemble at Paris, 1 An assembIy pein . 
 
 and form a National Assembly . J 
 The Bastile destroyed and the Go- 1 Bagt razed ___ 
 
 vernor murdered . . . . I 
 The Austrians driven out, and the Ne- \ ^ eL free 
 
 therlands declared free . . J 
 
 Decree for dividing France into eighty- \ France d j v ; # _ 
 
 three Departments . J 
 
 1790. Monastic Establishments and Titles of 7 Equa ]i ty om y # 
 
 Nobility suppressed . . . ) 
 Abdul Hamid died, and Selim III. > Abdul H. dies ~ 
 
 mounted the Imperial Throne . ) 
 A Conference held at Reichenbach^ 
 
 between Britain, Holland, Prussia, 
 
 Austria, and Poland, when Peace 
 
 was made between the Austrians 
 
 and Turks . 
 War commenced in India with Tippo # T j war> 
 
 Sultan . . • • • 3 
 
 Reichenbach — 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 287 
 
 Louis taken poub. 
 
 1791. King of France and his Family at-"| 
 
 tempt an Escape; are arrested at l 
 Varennes . . . .J 
 
 — — accepts the Constitution . . Accedes 
 
 1792. Gustavus III. of Sweden assassinated "| 
 
 by Ankerstrom . . . . J Gustav.assass. oine. 
 Duke of Sudermania declared Regent 1 
 
 in Sweden . . . . : v 
 
 Awful Disturbances in Paris ; King = 
 
 and Queen in danger; the Swiss 
 
 Guards massacred by the Populace 
 A frightful Massacre of the State 
 
 Prisoners 
 A Republic declared, with Fraternity 
 
 and Assistance to all Nations who f Paris distressed — 
 
 desire to recover their Liberty 
 The Royal Family made Prisoners in 
 
 the Temple 
 Savoy is incorporated with the Re- 
 public ..... 
 
 1793. Louis brought to Trial; condemned, "5 
 
 and beheaded by the Guillotine . J Louis decapi. pout. 
 
 Russia declares War against France . R U ss. oppose 
 
 The Convention declares War against "1 
 
 England and Holland . . j En g- & Ho] - — 
 
 Toulon surrenders to the Fleet of Lord | 
 
 Hood . . . . . J Toulon taken — 
 
 Maria Antoinette, Queen of France, T 
 
 condemned and beheaded the same L Maria decani 
 
 ^y ; J 
 
 All the principal Men of the Govern- "1 
 
 merit Party guillotined . j Man y g™Uo. — 
 
 The Reign of Terror at its height I 
 
 under Robespierre . . J I error — 
 
 1794. The Princess Elizabeth of France be- "1 
 
 headed . . . f ^ z - decapi. pouf. 
 
 The English Parliament suspend the I 
 
 Habeas Corpus Act . . . j 
 
 The French Fleet defeated off Ushant"! 
 by Lord Howe . . . .j" 
 
 In July, the infamous Robespierre, 
 with many of his Associates, receive 
 their just Reward, and are dragged 
 to the Scaffold by the Wretches 
 they upheld ..... 
 
 This Autumn remarkable for the 
 Trials of Tooke, Thelwall, and 
 others, for Treason 
 
 A Reign of Terror commenced in the 
 Republic of Geneva 
 
 :} 
 
 H.C. null _ 
 
 Howe Ushant 
 
 Robesp. killed 
 
 Trial treason — 
 
 Terror Swiss 
 
288 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1795. The Stadtholder seeks Refuge in"| 
 
 England ; French, under Piche- > Statd. Engl. poul. 
 grew, overrun Holland . . J 
 
 The i'^ i 5 1 A^T re,1 -iS I f til,g8 C0 ""l Warren acquit. - 
 eluded by his Acquittal . J ^ 
 
 Lyons reduced to Ruins and its loyal 1 L ^y _ 
 
 Inhabitants massacred . . . J ' 
 
 Belgium included in the French Re-1 Bel . b> __ 
 
 public . . . . . . J 6 ' 
 
 The Cape of Good Hope taken by thel - Eno .j c jj e 
 
 British J & • • P 
 
 Poland again divided between Russia, "1 
 
 Austria, and Prussia, and Stanislaus |> Pol. div. again — 
 
 II. deposed . . . . .J 
 The " New Batavian Republic'''' formed, "1 -p . . ■. 
 
 under the Protection of France .J • I • 
 
 1796. The Inhabitants of the Pays du Vaud 1 
 
 and other Swiss Cantons cast them- J- Swiss cry pous. 
 selves on the Protection of France J 
 Catherine II. of Russia dies ; is sue- "I ^ , i. 
 ceeded by her Son Paul . . J 
 
 1797. The Dutch Fleet defeated; captured 1 Dunc Dutch p 
 
 by Lord Duncan ... J 
 
 The Venetian Republic overthrown . Vene. finis. 
 
 1798. Rome declared a Republic by the "| 
 
 French ; Pope Pius VI. led Pri- > Pius captive pouk. 
 
 soner to Paris . . . .J 
 
 Ireland in open Rebellion . . Ire. rebel. — 
 
 The French Fleet totally defeated by~l j, ,. -j^-. 
 
 Lord Nelson at the Nile . .J 
 The French take Military Possession^ 
 
 of Switzerland, under the Name of I Helve, repub. — 
 
 the Helvetic Republic . . .J 
 
 1799. Seringapatam taken < by the .British ; \ Ti ki]led 
 
 the Sultan, Tippoo Saib, killed . J ^ r 
 An Expedition of the British Troops \ 
 
 against Holland . . . .J 
 
 France under the Consulate Govern- 1 -^ 
 
 ment ; Bonaparte First Consul . ) P ' 
 
 1800. Battle of Marengo, which decided thel fiatt Maren ei(T# 
 
 Fate of Italy . . . .J °' 
 
 Pope Pius VII. resumed the Govern-^ p. r 
 
 ment of Rome . . . .J 
 
 Malta taken by the British . . Malta ours — 
 
 1801. Union of Great Britain with Ireland . Engl. & Ire. eiza. 
 First Imperial Parliament met in"! 
 
 January ..... J — 
 
 Mr. Pitt, after being Prime Minister » p. i eaves 
 
 for Eighteen Years, resigns . . J ' 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 289 
 
 A. D. A. D. 
 
 1801. The Emperor of Russia, Paul, dies,! A1 „ 
 
 and is succeeded by Alexander I. j Alex * Kuss> eiza ' 
 Cairo taken by the British . . Cairo ours — 
 
 Alexandria taken by the British; Sir") A1 
 
 Ralph Abercrombie killed . .j" A1 ex. ours — 
 This year died the Russian General! „ ,. 
 
 Surwaroff .... J Surwaroff dies.- 
 Cowper the Poet ; Dr. Blair . . Cowper, Blair — 
 
 Lavater the Swiss Physiognomist . Lavater — 
 
 1802. Peace of Amiens .... Amiens kyd. 
 Religion re-established in France ; the "j 
 
 King of Sardinia resigns his Crown y 
 to his Brother . . . .J 
 
 1 803. Hostilities recommenced between Bri- > „ r \ 
 
 tain and France . . . \ War anew ^ 
 
 1804. Mahomed Ali and his three Sons first \ AV -^ , 
 
 became powerful in Egypt . J g7 ' Y 
 
 1805. The memorable Battle of Trafalgar/ 
 
 A complete victory gained over the 
 
 combined fleets of France and > Nelson kyl. 
 
 Spain, by Lord Nelson, who fell in 
 
 the battle .... 
 
 1806. Buenos Ayres in South America taken ? t> i 
 
 by the British .... J Buenos ours k y & 
 Joseph Bonaparte made King of Na- 1 j j> t » 
 
 pies and Sicily . . . \ •&"""' 
 
 Eugene Beauharnois made Viceroy of) t, 
 
 Italy . m . . . .{Euge.vxce. - 
 
 Louis Bonaparte King of Holland L. Bona. Hoi. — 
 
 German Constitution overthrown for") r 
 
 the Rhenish Confederation . . J Lrerman y — 
 
 Hostilities recommenced between ) t> o t» 
 
 France, Prussia, and Russia . j Pruss ' & Russ — 
 
 This year died the great rival Poli- 1 -p „.„ ,. 
 
 ticians, Mr. Fox and Mr. Pitt . J F ° X & Plttdie ~ 
 
 1807. Copenhagen taken by the British, and ) ^ : . , 
 
 the Danish Fleet captured . . J C °P en ' taken k ?P' 
 
 A decisive Victory over the Russians ) t. ,-, . , 
 
 by the French at Friedland . $ Katt " * ned ' _ 
 
 Peace of Tilsit, between France, Rus- ~i rp., . 
 
 sia, and Prussia . . . ) 
 
 Tuscany given to Napoleon . . Tusc. given 
 
 Spain and France unite against Portugal Portu. troubl. 
 
 1 808. Ferdinand and his Family made Pri- > t, , , 
 
 soners by Bonaparte . . \ Fer ' ca P tlve k y k 
 
 Hostilities between Spain and France. 
 Joseph Bonaparte made King of Spain ) T „ „ . a T , 
 
 and India . . . . . \ X Bona. Spain &Ind. 
 
290 
 
 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 Maria Bona. kay. 
 
 1 808. A general Revolt in Spain against their " 
 
 Invaders the French ; Sir Arthur 
 
 Wellesley (Duke of Wellington) J-Penin. war. kyk. 
 
 sent out with a large Army to the 
 
 Assistance of Spain 
 
 1 809. Wars between Austria and France con- 
 
 cluded, after the Battle of Wagram, [ Peace Vien. kyn. 
 
 by the Peace of Vienna 
 The British Fleet take and destroy } ^Ivl^ 
 
 Flushing . . . . • ) 
 
 The Marriage between the Empress 1 
 
 Josephine and the Emperor Napo- j- Jos. 
 
 leon dissolved ... J 
 
 1810. Bonaparte married the Archduchess " 
 
 Maria Louisa of Austria . 
 Holland and the Hanseatic Towns an- \ 
 
 nexed to France . . .J 
 
 George III. of England disabled fori 
 
 public Business by the Death of his V Geo. sick 
 
 Daughter Princess Amelia . J 
 
 1812. Hostilities between Russia, Poland, 1 jjostili 
 
 and France ...._) 
 The Hon. Spencer Perceval shot in the 1 
 
 Lobby of the House of Commons I Perceval 
 
 by Bellingham 
 The French take Smolensko by Storm ;^ 
 
 they enter Moscow ; the Inhabitants 
 
 set fire to the City, which continued 
 
 burning Three Days; the French 
 
 retreat, under the command of the 
 
 King of Naples; the greater Part 
 
 of the Army lost from dreadful Pri- 
 vations and Cold ; Bonaparte deserts 
 
 his Army, and makes a disgraceful 
 
 Retreat . . . • 
 
 1813. The Battle of Vittoria gained by the 
 
 Duke of Wellington 
 The Battle of Leipsic, gained by the 1 
 
 allied Armies of Russia, Prussia, V Lei ic batt 
 
 and Austria, over Bonaparte . J 
 The Netherlands throw off the French 1 
 
 kad. 
 
 shot — 
 
 }> Russ. campa. — 
 
 Vitto. batt. 
 
 ° f ) 
 
 Yoke, and recall the Prince 
 Orange from England 
 1814. The Allies enter Paris ; Napoleon ab- 
 dicates the Throne of France, re- 
 serving to himself the Majesty of 
 the Island of Elba, to which he 
 retired 
 
 Nethe. revolt — 
 
 Nap. abdi. kaf. 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 291 
 
 Peace 
 
 Ney shot — 
 
 [• Pacha dies kas. 
 
 1815. Bonaparte quits Elba, arrives at Paris, ~] 
 
 and replaces himself on the Im- I Nap. returns kal. 
 
 perial Throne . ... J 
 
 Napoleon personally defeated at Water- ~| 
 
 loo, in a decisive Battle against the J- W aterloo — 
 
 English and Prussians . . J 
 
 The Allies a second Time in possession \ 
 
 of Paris ..... 3 
 Napoleon abdicates in favour of his 
 
 Son, and throws himself upon the 
 
 Protection of the English ; and is 
 
 by the Allied Powers banished to St. 
 
 Helena. A general Peace through- 
 out all Europe .... 
 Marshal Ney, General under Bonaparte, 
 
 shot ..... 
 
 1816. Tussan Pacha died of the Plague in 
 
 Egypt ..... 
 Lord Exmouth destroys the Fleet and! 
 
 Town of Algiers, forced the Dey to I c dves freed __ 
 
 submit, and gave Liberty to 1211 j r 
 
 Christian Captives . . J 
 
 Princess Charlotte, Daughter of the") 
 
 Regent, George IV., married Leo- I Char. Leop. — 
 
 pold of Saxe- Coburg . . 
 
 Princess Mary, Daughter of George 1 
 
 III., married her Cousin, the Duke l Mary Glou. — 
 
 of Gloucester . ... 
 
 Mesmer, Author of " Animal Magnet- 1 , T ,. 
 
 „ j. •, ° J- Mesmer dies — 
 
 ism, died .... 
 
 Dr. Ferguson, the Historian, and Brins-T -r, „, ., 
 
 ley Sheridan, the Statesman, died j Fer g uson & Sheridan. 
 
 1817. Death of the Princess Charlotte ofl 
 
 Wales and Saxe-Coburg, in Child- I A princess dies kap. 
 birth J 
 
 1818. William, Duke of Clarence, married 
 
 the Princess of Saxe-Meiningen 
 
 The Duke of Kent married the Prin- 
 cess of Leiningen 
 
 Kosciusko, a noble Polish Patriot and 
 
 \ Duke marries. 
 .Kent mar. eibei. 
 
 In this year died Charlotte, Queen of 1 
 
 General, died in Switzerland < Kosciusko dies 
 
 England, the faithful and excellent \ Queen — — 
 Wife of George the III. . . J 
 
 Riots in Manchester and various Parts ) -r,. , ~ r 
 
 of England .... ) Rlots Man ' ~ 
 1819. A dreadful Earthquake in the Eastl „ ^ , 
 
 Indies J- as s a. 
 
 o 2 
 
292 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 A. D. &• »' 
 
 1819. In the December of this Year died"| 
 
 George III., in the eighty-second J. Geo. ter. dies kan. 
 Year of his Age . . .J 
 
 1820. TheDukede Berri murdered by Louvel Berri killed key. 
 A Revolution in Spain . . . Spain revolt — 
 In January of this Year died the Duke 7 j£ ent d j es 
 
 of Kent, fourth Son of George III. 5 
 A Conspiracy, of a sanguinary Nature, "J 
 
 was discovered in Cato Street ; the I r onsD j racv 
 
 chief Plotters taken, and deservedly j V J 
 
 punished .... J 
 The Morea the Theatre of the Greek 7 Reyo Q fee 
 
 Revolution .... 3 
 Caroline Wife of George IV. returned*! 
 
 from Italy, and claimed to be con- l Caroline — 
 
 sidered Queen of England . J 
 
 Bill of Pains and Penalties, on which ~| 
 
 Queen Caroline was tried, but not l acquitted — 
 
 found guilty .... J 
 Ali Pacha declares himself independent 7 . ^ Pacha 
 
 of Turkey .... 3 
 
 1821. Bonaparte dies at St. Helena . Nap. dies eida. 
 The Republic of Columbia secured by ~l Q j um# re pub. ■*• 
 
 the Bolivar at Carababo . .J 
 Queen Caroline dies . . . Carol, dies — 
 
 Struggles of the Greeks to free them- 7 Greeks free _ 
 
 selves from the Mahomedan Yoke 3 
 
 1822. The Holy Alliance displeased with the 1 Hq1 ^ eide ^ 
 
 new Constitution of Spain J 
 
 An Empire erected in Brazil . . Brazi. emp. — 
 The Population of the Island of Scio 7 Massacre __ 
 
 massacred by the Turks . . 3 
 Brazil proclaims its Independence . Brazi. indepen. — 
 Herschel, the Astronomer, Discoverer 7 Herschel dies _ 
 
 of " Uranus, died . .3 
 Shelley, the Poet, drowned at Leghorn Shelley — 
 Canova, the celebrated Sculptor, died Canova — 
 Ismael Pacha assassinated during a 7 j smael p ac h a 
 
 Revolution at Sennaar . .3 
 
 1823. A memorable iEra of Joint- Stock Com- 1 
 panies, which resulted in the Ruin i- Joint Stock ket. 
 of many opulent Familes . . J 
 
 ui uimiy upmeui, o.'»iiiiica . . j 
 
 The gallant Guerilla Chief, Riego, 1 R . Q kiUed _ 
 cruelly put to death . . . j ° 
 "rid,! 
 
 The French have possession of Madrid, "J p r ^ ]\j adr i u 
 and assist Ferdinand VII. to estab 
 
 lish a Tyranny 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 293 
 
 1823. George IV. presents his Father's va- 
 
 luable Library to the British Mu- 
 seum ; 10,000/. were voted for the 
 erection of a Building for its Re- 
 ception ..... 
 A Republic formed in Mexico . 
 
 1824. Treaties of Amity and Commerce con- 
 
 cluded by England with Mexico, 
 Columbia, and Buenos Ay res 
 
 Library 
 
 ket, 
 
 1825. 
 
 Mex. Repub. — 
 Ame. trade kef. 
 
 Many Restrictions on Imports and 1 T 
 Exports removed . . . . J m ' 
 
 1 1 Duti. 
 . War 
 
 Protection Duties between France and 
 
 Ireland removed . 
 War with the Ashantees in Africa 
 
 remo. 
 Afri. 
 
 War Birma. 
 
 -> 
 
 ill. 
 
 This year a War broke out between"] 
 the East India Company and the 
 sovereign of the Birman Empire. 
 Several splendid victories were ob- 
 tained by the British, who eventu- 
 ally added several large provinces 
 to the British possessions, and ob- 
 tained a considerable sum of money 
 for defraying the expences of the war: 
 the enemies' armies annihilated, and 
 the country rendered desolate 
 
 The Independence of the South Ameri- 
 can Provinces acknowledged by J- S. Ame. indepen. 
 Britain, and Consuls appointed 
 
 Mahomed Ali built Mosques in every "1 
 
 Egyptian Village at his own ex- L Crescent 
 pence J 
 
 This year Louis XVIII. died, and 
 was succeeded by Charles X. 
 
 Alexander Emperor of Russia died . Alex. — 
 
 Ibrahim Pacha, son of the Viceroy of] 
 Egypt, lands in the Morea, takes 
 Navarin, and commits fearful ra- 
 vages . . . . . .J 
 
 1 826. A War breaks out between the Rus- > „ ,, . , 
 
 sians and Persians . . . | Russ ' & Perei - kes ' 
 
 Troops sent from England to assist"] 
 
 the Portuguese and Don Pedro J- Pedro help, 
 against the Rebels . . .J 
 
 This year died Frederic Duke of York, > -,-, , , „ , , 
 heir presumptive to the Crown . \ Fred ' of * crk ke P' 
 
 o 3 
 
 Louis dies — 
 
 Navarin tak. kel. 
 
 1827. 
 
294 
 
 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 •Canning dies kep. 
 
 Make 
 Algi. 
 
 peace 
 Fran. 
 
 eity. 
 
 Geo. quar. dies. 
 
 - Car. ten. abdi. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1827. George Canning, one of the greatest 
 
 and most upright Statesmen Eng- 
 land ever knew, fell a sacrifice to 
 the cares and anxieties of his public 
 duties . • • • ■ ' s 
 
 The Battle of Navarino . . . Navari. batt. — 
 
 1828. The Russians declare War against the! Rusg & Turk kek 
 
 Turks J 
 
 1829 Catholic Emancipation conceded ; Ca- j 
 
 tholics allowed to sit in both Houses \ Catho. emanc. ken 
 of Parliament . • • • J 
 
 Russians in possession of Adrianople . 
 Peace signed at Adrianople 
 1830. Algiers taken by the French 
 
 This year died George IV., and is suc- 
 ceeded by his brother William IV. 
 A Revolution in France ; Charles X. 
 expelled ; and Louis Philippe, Duke 
 of Orleans, raised to the Throne as 
 " King of the French" 
 This year died Bolivar, the Liberator of 1 Bolivar dies eity. 
 
 South America, and . • • J 
 
 Sir Humphrey Davy, to whom Chemis- 1 
 
 try and Natural Philosophy are \ Sir H. Davy — 
 deeply indepted . . • • J 
 Holland and Belgium made separate "1 H & Bel diyid> eita# 
 
 and independent Kingdoms . • J 
 William Frederic Louis VI. retained "1 
 
 Holland, called King of the Nether- j-W. Fred. 
 
 lands . . • • • • J 
 
 Leopold of Saxe-Coburg made King j Leopold # _ 
 
 of Belgium . • • • J 
 
 Great Changes in the British Ministry Changes 
 Disturbances and Outrages throughout 1 Troubles 
 
 the Kingdom . • • J 
 
 An incendiary Fire in Bristol, which" 
 destroyed the Episcopal Palace, the 
 Excise Office, the Mansion House, 
 and the greater part of Queen 
 Square . . • • . 
 
 Great Britain visited by Asiatic Cho- "| 
 
 lera Morbus, which carried off V Cholera — 
 
 thousands by its pestilence . . J 
 1832. The Independance of Greece recog-"| 
 
 nised, and Otho, Prince of Bavaria, V Greece indepen. kid. 
 made King J 
 
 This year died Baron Cuvier, the great \ Cuyier & es __ 
 
 French Naturalist • • -J 
 
 1831. 
 
 Fires 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 295 
 
 A. I>. 
 
 1832. 
 1833. 
 
 ] 834. 
 1835. 
 
 1836, 
 
 1837. 
 
 1838. 
 
 1839. 
 
 1340. 
 
 The Reform Bill passed . 
 
 The first Reform Parliament met in "J 
 February ; many old Boroughs I 
 disfranchised, new ones made, and | 
 Counties divided. . . .J 
 
 Charter of the Bank of England re- "^ 
 newed . . . . .J 
 
 The Trade to India and China thrown \ 
 open J 
 
 The Slave Trade utterly abolished 
 
 Died, Joseph Nollikins, an eminent "1 
 Sculptor . . . . . J 
 
 Both Houses of the British Parliament ^ 
 destroyed by Fire . . . J 
 
 An Attempt made to assassinate Louis 
 Philippe of France, by Fieschi and 
 his " Infernal Machine " 
 
 Bills passed in the British Parliament ' 
 for the Reform of Corporations ; for 
 the Marriage of Dissenters in their 
 own chapels; for the Commutation 
 of Tithes ; and the nearer Equalisa- 
 tion of Episcopal Sees . 
 
 Great Fire in New York, which de- 
 stroyed property to the estimated 
 amount of 20,000,000 dollars 
 
 This year died William IV., and was" 
 succeeded by his Niece, Alexandrina 
 Victoria 
 
 Hanover separated from England ; 
 Ernest, Duke of Cumberland, suc- 
 ceeds as King 
 
 Revolt and Insurrection in the Canadas 
 
 The Great Western Steam-ship, the 
 first that ventured to cross the At- 
 lantic by the power of Steam only, 
 made a prosperous Passage to New 
 York in fifteen days 
 
 Peace and Tranquillity restored to the ' 
 Canadas and Jamaica 
 
 Died, Charles Maurice Talleyrand, an ^ 
 eminent French Diplomatist . J 
 
 England disturbed by the Meetings! 
 of disaffected turbulent Men, calling y 
 themselves Chartists . .J 
 
 Queen Victoria marries Albert, Prince") 
 of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha . J 
 
 A. D. 
 
 Reform kid. 
 
 New boroughs kit. 
 Bank Chart. — 
 
 Slave abo. — 
 
 Nollikins dies — 
 
 Parli. burnt kif. 
 Sly Fieschi kil. 
 
 Corpo. ref. 
 Diss, marri. 
 
 Fire N. York kis. 
 
 Victoria kip. 
 
 Erne. Han. — 
 
 Cana. rebel — 
 
 Steam 
 
 kik. 
 
 Peace C. & J. — 
 Talleyrand dies — 
 
 Chartists kin. 
 
 Vic. & Alb. koy. 
 
296 
 
 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 
 
 ; } 
 
 1840. A serious Collision between the Chi- 
 
 nese Authorities and the British Sub- 
 jects at Canton 
 
 Peace concluded with Egypt and 
 France 
 
 War in Cabul ; Dost Mahomet taken 
 prisoner 
 
 1 841 . The Armoury in the Tower of London \ 
 
 burnt down . . J 
 
 Peace restored with China ; Trade 
 thrown open, and exertions com 
 menced for Christianising China 
 
 1842. A frightful Accident on the Railway "j 
 
 between Paris and Versailles, by I 
 
 which eighty persons were killed or J 
 
 burned . . .1 
 
 The Affghans in the East Indies sub»~| 
 
 dued ; great Accession of Territory l 
 
 to the British . . J 
 
 A dreadfully destructive Fire in Ham- i 
 
 burg . . . J 
 
 Treaty of Arrangement made between "1 
 
 England and America . J 
 
 A great Fire in Liverpool, which de- ~ 
 
 stroyed Property to the amount of 
 
 500,000Z. 
 Died, David Wilkie, Painter of Fami- \ 
 
 liar Life . . .J 
 
 1844. South Wales disturbed by " Rebecca 1 
 
 Riots" . . .J 
 
 War with Scinde in the East Indies, 
 conducted by Sir Charles Napier, 
 who was every where victorious 
 
 1 845. Many Concessions made to the Roman 
 
 Catholics, and to the Jews, by the 
 British Legislature 
 
 Several bloody Encounters between the 
 Sikhs and the British Troops under 
 Sir Charles Napier, in the East In- 
 dies ; the Sikhs disbanded at Fero- 
 zepoor ; an Increase to the British 
 Territories. 
 
 A general Failure in the Potato Crop 
 Ireland greatly distressed 
 
 1846. The Duties on Corn abolished 
 The Queen of Spain married to Don"l 
 
 Francesco D'Assis, Duke of Cadiz . J 
 
 China war 
 
 koy. 
 
 Egy. peace — 
 
 Cabul war r- 
 
 Fire tower kob. 
 
 China open — 
 
 1 
 
 Rail. 
 
 fire 
 
 kod 
 
 Affghs 
 
 . subduec 
 
 — 
 
 Fire 
 
 Ham. 
 
 — 
 
 Engl. 
 
 Ame. 
 
 — 
 
 Fire 
 
 Liver. 
 
 — 
 
 Wilkie dies 
 
 — 
 
 Rebec 
 
 
 kof 
 
 War 
 
 Scinde 
 
 — 
 
 Concessions 
 
 kol. 
 
 :} 
 
 Batt. Ferozepoor. 
 
 Potato fail. — 
 
 Corn duties kos. 
 Span, marri. — 
 
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. 297 
 
 A. D. 
 
 A. D. 
 
 1846. The Infanta of Spain married to the , 
 
 Duke de Montpensier . J- Infanta mam. kos. 
 
 A tremendous Hurricane at Trinidad ; | „ . ™ . 
 
 much Damage done . .J ±lum ' lnn * ~~ 
 
 The colossal Statue of the Duke of 1 
 
 Wellington raised at Hyde Park j-Duke exalted — 
 
 Corner . . .1 
 
 A Shock of an Earthquake felt at"! A , 
 
 Perth, in Scotland . # J Scot, quakes - 
 
 Famine and Fever in many parts ofl -r. • -, 
 
 Ireland . . j Famine Ire. — 
 
 1847. Count Leopold Berri died at Padua,"] 
 leaving an unique Library, composed I T , , „ . . 
 of Works written by Females : f Leo P old Bem k ° P * 
 nearly 30,000 volumes . J 
 
 Fire Ger. — 
 
 -Hong Kong — 
 
 Loan 
 
 A very destructive Fire at Wednierode, 
 
 in Germany 
 Admiral Davis went with Troops and 
 
 his Fleet from Hong Kong to Can- 
 ton, attacked the Bogue Forts, took or 
 
 destroyed 876 Guns, made a Treaty, 
 
 and returned in thirty-six hours 
 A Loan of 8,000,000/. contracted for 
 
 the Relief of Ireland 
 Subscriptions for the Relief of Distress 
 
 in Ireland, exceeding 500,000/., made 
 
 by all classes in England 
 Immense Failures on Stock Exchange."' Failures 
 A great Erruption of Mount Vesu-"| 
 
 vius . . \ 
 
 An Insurrection against the Pope,! T 
 
 which lasted three days . j Insurrection 
 
 THE END. 
 
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