 CHAPTER IX. As soon as Peter had sufficiently glutted his vengeance on those he chose to consider, either justly or unjustly, as implicated in the rebellion, he turned his attention at once to the work of introducing the improvements and reforms which had been suggested to him by what he had seen in the western countries of Europe. There was a great deal of secret hostility to the changes which he thus wished to make, although everything, like open opposition to his will, had been effectually put down by the terrible severity of his dealings with the rebels. He continued to urge his plans of reform during the whole course of his reign, and though he met, from time to time, with a great variety of difficulties in his efforts to carry them into effect, he was, in the end, triumphantly successful in establishing and maintaining them. I shall proceed to give a general account of these reforms in this chapter, notwithstanding that the work of introducing them extended over a period of many years subsequent to this time. The first thing to which the Tsar gave his attention was the complete remodeling of his army. He established new regiments in place of the old guards and put his whole army on a new footing. He abolished the dress for which the guards had been accustomed to wear, an ancient Muscovite costume which, like the dress of the Highlanders of Scotland, was strongly associated in the minds of the men with ancient national customs, many of which the Emperor now wished to abolish. Instead of this old costume, the Emperor dressed his new troops in a modern military uniform. This was not only much more convenient than the old dress, but the change exerted a great influence in disenthralling the minds of the men from the influence of old ideas and associations. It made them feel at once as if they were new men, belonging to a new age, one marked by a new and higher civilization than they had been accustomed to in former years. The effect which was produced by this simple change was very marked, so great is the influence of dress and other outward symbols on the sentiments of the mind and on the character. Peter had made a somewhat similar change to this in the case of his household troops and private bodyguard at the suggestion of General Defort, sometime previous to this period, but now he carried the same reform into effect in respect to his whole army. In addition to these improvements in the dress and discipline of the men, Peter adopted an entirely new system in officering the troops. A great many of the old officers, all those who were proved or even suspected of being hostile to him and to his measures had been beheaded or sent into management, and others still had been dismissed from the service. Peter filled all these vacant posts by bringing forward and appointing the sons of the nobility, making his selections from those families who were either already inclined to his side or who, he supposed, might be brought over by the influence of appointments and honors conferred upon their sons. Of course, the great object of the Tsar in thus reorganizing his army and increasing the military strength of the empire was not the more effectual protection of the country from foreign enemies or from any domestic violence which might threaten to disturb the peace or endanger the property of the public, but only the confirming and perpetuating of his own power as the sovereign ruler of it. It is true that such potentates as Peter really desire that the countries over which they rule should prosper and should increase in wealth and population, but then they do this usually only as the proprietor of an estate might wish to improve his property, that is, simply with an eye to his own interest as the owner of it. In reforming his army and placing it as he did on a new and far more efficient footing than before, Peter's main inducement was to increase and secure his own power. He wished also doubtless to preserve the peace of the country in order that the inhabitants might go on regularly in the pursuit of their industrial occupations, for their ability to pay taxes required for the large revenues which he wished to raise would increase or diminish. He knew very well, just in proportion to the productiveness of the general industry. Still, his own exaltation and grandeur were the ultimate objects in view. Young persons, when they read in history of the power which many great tyrants have exercised and the atrocious crimes which they have committed against the rights of their fellow men, sometimes wonder how it is that one man can acquire or retain so absolute a dominion over so many millions as to induce them to kill each other in such vast numbers at his bidding. For, of course, it is but a very small number of the victims of a tyrant's injustice or cruelty that are executed by his own hand. How is it then that one weak and often despicable and hateful man can acquire and retain such an ascendancy over those that stand around him, that they shall all be ready to draw their swords instantaneously at his bidding, and seize and destroy, without hesitation and without mercy, whomesoever he may choose to designate as the object of his rage and vengeance? How is it that the wealthiest, the most respected, and the most popular citizens of the state, though surrounded with servants and with multitudes of friends, have no power to resist when one of these neuros conceives the idea of striking him down, but must yield without a struggle to his fate as if to inevitable destiny? The secret of this extraordinary submission of millions to one is always an army. The tyrant, under the pretense of providing the means for the proper execution of just and righteous laws, and the maintenance of peace and order in the community, organizes an army. He contrives so to arrange and regulate this force as to separate it completely from the rest of the community, so as to extinguish as far as possible all the sympathies which might otherwise exist between the soldiers and the citizens. Marriage is discouraged, so that the troops may not be bound to the community by any family ties. The regiments are quartered in barracks built and appropriated to their special use, and they are continually changed from one set of barracks to another in order to prevent their forming too intimate and acquaintance with any portion of the community, or learning to feel any common interest or sympathy with them. Then, as a reward for their privations, the soldiers are allowed with very little remonstrance or restraints to indulge freely in all such habits of dissipation and vice, as will not at once interfere with military discipline or deteriorate from the efficiency of the whole body as a military corps. The soldiers soon learn to love the idle and dissolute lives which they are allowed to lead. The officers, especially those in the higher grades of rank, are paid large salaries, are clothed in a gaudy dress which is adorned with many decorations, and they are treated everywhere with great consideration. Thus they become devoted to the will of the government, and lose gradually all regard for and all sympathy with the rights and welfare of the people. There is a tacit agreement between them and the government, by which they are bound to keep the people in a state of utter and abject submission to the despot's will, while he, on his part, is bound to collect from the people thus subdued the sums of money necessary for their pay. Thus it is the standing army which is that great and terrible sword by means of which one man is able to strike awe into the hearts of so many millions and hold them all so entirely subject to his will. It is in consequence of having observed the effect of such armaments in the despotisms of Europe and Asia that the free governments of modern times take good care not to allow large standing armies to be formed. Instead of this, the people organize themselves into armed bands, in connection with which they meet and practice military evolutions on appointed days, and then separate and go back to their wives and to their children and to their usual occupations, while in the despotic countries where large standing armies are maintained, the people are strictly forbidden to possess arms or to form organizations or to take measures of any kind that could tend to increase their means of defense against their oppressors in the event of a struggle. The consequence is that under the free governments of the present day the people are strong and the government is weak. The standing army of France consists at the present time of 500,000 men, completely armed and equipped, and devoted all the time to the study and practice of the art of war. By means of this force one man is able to keep the whole population of the country in a state of complete and unquestioning submission to his will. In the United States, on the other hand, with a population nearly as great, the standing army seldom amounts to an effective force of 15,000 men, and if a president of the United States were to attempt by means of it to prolong his term in office or to accomplish any other violent end, there is perhaps not a single state in the union, the population of which would not alone be able to put him down. So strong are the people with us, and so weak in opposition to them, the government and the army. It is often made a subject of reproach by European writers and speakers in commenting on the state of things in America that the government is so weak, but this we consider not our reproach, but our glory. The government is indeed weak, the people take good care to keep it weak, but the nation is not weak, the nation is strong. The difference is that in our country the nation chooses to retain its power in its own hands. The people make the government strong enough from time to time for all the purposes which they wish it to accomplish. When occasion shall arise, the strength thus to be imparted to it may be increased almost indefinitely, according to the nature of the emergency. In the meantime the people consider themselves the safest depository of their reserved power. But to return to Peter, of course, his policy was the reverse of ours. He wished to make his army as efficient as possible and to cut it off as completely as possible from all communion and sympathy with the people, so as to keep it in close and absolute subjection to his own individual will. The measures which he adopted were admirably adapted to this purpose. By means of them he greatly strengthened his power and established it on a firm and permanent basis. Peter did not forget that during the late rebellion the influence of the church and that of all the leading ecclesiastics had been against him. This was necessarily the case for in a church constituted as that of Russia then was, the powers and prerogatives of the priests rested not on reason or right but on ancient customs. The priests would therefore naturally be opposed to all changes, even improvements in the usages and institutions of the realm for fear that the system of reform, if once entered upon, might extend to and interfere with their ancient prerogatives and privileges. An established church in any country where by means of the establishment the priests or the ministers hold positions which secure them, the possession of wealth or power is always opposed to every species of change. It hates even the very name of reform. Peter determined to bring the Russian church more under his own control. Up to that time it had been in a great measure independent. The head of it was an ecclesiastic of great power and dignity called the patriarch. The jurisdiction of this patriarch extended over all the eastern portion of the Christian world and his position and power were very similar to those of the Pope in Rome who reigned over the whole western portion. Indeed so exalted was the position and dignity of the patriarch and so great was the veneration in which he was held by the people that he was as it were the spiritual sovereign of the country just as Peter was the civil and military sovereign and on certain great religious ceremonies he even took precedence over the czar himself and actually received homage from him. At one of the great religious anniversaries which was always celebrated with great pomp and parade it was customary for the patriarch to ride through the street on horseback with the czar walking before him holding the bridle of the horse. The bridle used on these occasions was very long like a pair of reins and was made of the richest material and ornamented with golden embroidery. The czar walked on in advance with the loop of the bridle lying over his arm then came three or four great nobles of the court who held up the reins behind the czar one of them taking hold close to the horse's head so as to guide and control the movements of the animal. The patriarch who as is the custom with priests was dressed in long robes which prevented his mounting the horse in the usual manner set upon a square flat seat which was placed upon the horse's back by way of a saddle and rode in that manner with his feet hanging down upon one side. Of course his hands were at liberty and with these he held a cross which he displayed to the people as he rode along and gave them his benediction. After the patriarch there followed on these occasions an immensely long train of priests all clothed in costly and gorgeous sacri-dotal robes and bearing a great number and variety of religious emblems. Some carried very costly copies of the gospels bound in gold and adorned with precious stones others crosses and others pictures of the Virgin Mary. All these objects of veneration were enriched with jewels and gems of the most costly description. So far however as these mere pageants and ceremonies were concerned Peter would probably have been very easily satisfied and would have made no objection to paying such a token of respect to the patriarch as walking before him through the street once a year and holding the bridle of his horse if this were all. But he saw very clearly that these things were by no means to be considered as mere outward show. The patriarch was at the head of a vast organization which extended throughout the empire all the members of which were closely banded together in a system the discipline of which made them dependent upon and entirely devoted to their spiritual head. These priests moreover exercised individually a vast influence over the people in the towns and villages where they severally lived and performed their functions. Thus the patriarch wielded a great and very extended power almost wholly independent of any control on the part of the Tsar, a power which had already been once turned against him and which might at some future day become very dangerous. Peter determined at once that he would not allow such a state of things to continue. He however resolved to proceed cautiously so he waited quietly until the patriarch who was then in office died. Then instead of allowing the bench of bishops as usual to select another in his place he committed the administration of the church to an ecclesiastic whom he appointed for this purpose from among his own tried friends. He instructed this officer who was a very learned and very devout man to go on as nearly as possible as his predecessors the patriarchs had done in the ordinary routine of duty so as not to disturb the church by any apparent and outward change but he directed him to consider himself bizarre as the real head of the church and to refer all important questions which might arise to him for decision. He thus in fact abrogated the office of the patriarch and made himself the supreme head of the church. The clergy throughout the empire as soon as they understood the arrangement were greatly disturbed and expressed their discontent and dissatisfaction among themselves very freely. The czar heard of this and selecting one of the bishops who had spoken more openly and decidedly than the rest he ordered him to be degraded from his office for his contumacy. But this the other bishops objected to very strongly. They did not see in fact they said how it could be done. It was a thing wholly unknown that a person of the rank and dignity of a bishop in the church should be degraded from his office and that besides there was no authority that could degrade him for they were all bishops of equal rank and no one had any jurisdiction or power over the others. Still not withstanding this they were willing they said to sacrifice their brother if by that means the church could be saved from the great dangers which were now threatening her and they said that they would dispose the bishop who was accused on condition that Peter would restore the rights of the church which he had suspended by allowing them to proceed in the election of a new patriarch to take the place of the one who had died. Peter would not listen to this proposal but he created a new bishop expressly to depose the one who had offended him. The latter was accordingly deposed and the rest were compelled to submit. None of them dared any longer to speak openly against the course which the czar was pursuing but writings were mysteriously dropped about the streets which contained censures of his proceedings in respect to the church and urged the people to resist them. Peter caused large rewards to be immediately offered for the discovery of the persons by whom these writings were dropped but it was of no avail and at length the excitement gradually passed away leaving the victory wholly in Peter's hands. After this the czar affected a great many important reforms in the administration of the affairs of the empire especially in those relating to the government of the provinces and to the collection of the revenues in them. This business had been hitherto left almost wholly in the hands of the governors by whom it had been grossly mismanaged. The governors had been in the habit of grievously oppressing the people in the collection of the taxes and also of grossly defrauding the emperor in remitting the proceeds to the treasury. Peter now made arrangements for changing the system entirely. He established a central office at the capital for the transaction of all business connected with the collecting of the revenues and then appointed collectors for all the provinces of the empire who were to receive their instructions from the minister who presided over this central office and then make their returns directly to him. Thus the whole system was remodeled and made far more efficient than it had ever been before. Of course the old governors who in consequence of this reform lost the power of enriching themselves by their oppressions and frauds complained bitterly of the change and mourned like good conservatives the ruin which this radicalism was bringing upon the country but they were forced to submit. Whenever there was anything in the private manners and customs of the people which Peter thought was likely to impede in any way the effectual accomplishment of his plans he did not hesitate at all to ordain a change and some of the greatest difficulties which he had to encounter in his reforms arose from the opposition which the people made to the changes that he wished to introduce in the dress that they wore and in several of the usages of common life. The people of the country had been accustomed to wear long gowns similar to those worn to this day by many oriental nations. This costume was very inconvenient not only for soldiers but also for workmen and for all persons engaged in any of the common avocations of life. Peter required the people to change this dress and he sent patterns of the coats worn in Western Europe to all parts of the country and had them put up in conspicuous places where everybody could see them and required everybody to imitate them. He however met with a great deal of difficulty in inducing them to do so. He found still greater difficulty in inducing the people to shave off their mustaches and their beards. Finding that they would not shave their faces under the influence of a simple regulation to that effect he assessed attacks upon beards requiring that every gentleman should pay a hundred rubles a year for the privilege of wearing one and as for the peasants and the common people everyone who wore a beard was stopped every time he entered a city or town and required to pay a penny at the gate by way of attacks or fine. The nuisance of long clothes he attempted to abate in a similar way. The officers of the customs who were stationed at the gates of the towns were ordered to stop every man who wore a long dress and compel him either to pay a fine of about fifty cents or else kneel down and have all that part of their coat or gown which lay upon the ground while they were still in that posture cut off with a pair of big shears. Still such was the attachment of the people to their old fashions that great numbers of the people rather than submit to this curtailing of their vestments preferred to pay the fine. On one occasion the czar laying aside for the moment the system of severity and terror which was his usual reliance for the accomplishment of his ends concluded to try the effect of ridicule upon the attachment of the people to old and absurd fashions in dress. It happened that one of the fools or gestures of the court was about to be married. The young woman who was to be the gestures bride was very pretty and she was otherwise a favorite with those who knew her and the czar determined to improve the occasion of the wedding for a grand frolic. He accordingly made arrangements for celebrating the nuptials at the palace and he sent invitations to all the great nobles and officers of state with their wives and to all the other great ladies of the court giving them all orders to appear dressed in the fashions which prevailed in the Russian court one or two hundred years before. With the exception of some modes of dress prevalent at the present day there is nothing that can be conceived more awkward inconvenient and ridiculous than the fashions which were reproduced on this occasion. Among other things the ladies wore a sort of dress which the sleeves so it is said were ten or twelve yards long. These sleeves were made very full and were drawn up upon the arm in a sort of puff. It being the fashion to have as great a length to the sleeve as could possibly be crowded on between the shoulder and the wrist. It is said too that the customary salutation between ladies and gentlemen meeting in society when this dress was in fashion was performed through the intervention of these sleeves. On the approach of the gentleman the lady by a sudden and dexterous motion of the other arm would throw off the end of her sleeve to him. The sleeve being very long could be thrown in this way half across the room. The gentleman would take the end of the sleeve which represented we are to suppose the hand of the lady and after kissing and saluting it in a most respectful manner he would resign it and then the lady would draw it back again upon her arm. This would be too ridiculous to be believed if it were possible that anything could be too ridiculous to be believed in respect to the absurdities of fashion. A great many of the customs and usages of social life which prevailed in those days as well as the fashions of dress were inconvenient and absurd. These the czar did not hesitate to alter and reform by proceedings of the most arbitrary and summary character for instance it was the custom of all the great nobles or boyers as they were called to go in grand state whenever they moved about the city or in the environs of it attended always by a long train of their servants and retainers. Now as these followers mostly on foot the nobles in the carriages or in the winter in their sledges or sleighs they were obliged to move very slowly in order to enable the train to keep up with them. Thus the streets were full of these tedious processions moving slowly along sometimes through snow and sometimes through rain. The men bareheaded because they must not be covered in the presence of their master and thus exposed to all the inclemancy of an almost arctic climate. And what made the matter worse was that it was not the fashion for the nobleman to move on even as fast as his followers might easily have walked. They considered it more dignified and grand to go slowly. Thus the more aristic frantic a grandee was in spirit and the greater his desire to make a display of his magnificence in the street the more slowly he moved. If it had not been for the banners and emblems and the gay and gaudy colors in which many of the attendants were dressed these processions would have produced the effect of particularly solemn funerals. The Tsar determined to change all this. First he set an example himself of rapid motion through the streets. When he went out in his carriage or in his sleigh he was attended only by a very few persons and they were dressed in a neat uniform and mounted on good horses and his coachman was ordered to drive on at a quick pace. The boyers were slow to follow this example but the Tsar assisted them considerably in their progress toward the desired reform by making rules limiting the number of idle attendants which they were allowed to have about them and then if they would not dismiss the super numeraries he himself caused them to be taken from them and sent into the army. The motive of the Tsar in making all these improvements and reforms was his desire to render his own power as the sovereign of the country more compact and efficient and not any real and heartfelt interest in the welfare and happiness of the people. Still in the end very excellent results followed from the innovations which he thus introduced. They were the commencements of a series of changes which so developed the power and advanced the civilization of the country as in the course of a few subsequent reigns had the effect of bringing Russia into the foremost rank among the nations of Europe. The progress which these changes introduced continues to go on to the present time and will perhaps go on unimpeded for centuries to come. End of Chapter 9 Reforms Recording by Russ Lemker Chapter 10 of Peter the Great This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Russ Lemker Peter the Great by Jacob Abbott Chapter 10 The Battle of Narva The reader will perhaps recollect how desirous Peter had long been to extend his dominions toward the west so as to have a seaport under his control on the Baltic sea. For at that time when he succeeded to the throne the eastern shores of the Baltic belonged to Poland and to Sweden so that the Russians were confined in a great measure in their naval operations to the waters of the Black and Caspian seas and to the rivers flowing into them. You will also recollect that when at the commencement of his tour he arrived at the town of Riga, which stands at the head of the Gulf of Riga, a short branch of the Baltic, he had been much offended at the refusal of the governor of the place, acting under the orders of the King of Sweden, to allow him to view the fortifications there. He then resolved that Riga and the whole province of which it was the capital should one day be his. The year after he returned from his travels, that is in 1699, the country being by that time restored to its ordinary state of repose after the suppression of the rebellion, he concluded that the time had arrived for carrying his resolution into effect. So he set a train of negotiations on foot for making a long truce with the Turks, not wishing to have two wars on his hands at the same time. When he had accomplished this object he formed a league with the kingdoms of Poland and Denmark to make war upon Sweden. So exactly were all his plans laid that the war with Sweden was declared on the very next day after the truce of the Turks was concluded. The King of Sweden at this time was Charles XII. He was a mere boy being only at that time eighteen years of age and he had just succeeded to the throne. He was, however, a prince of remarkable talents and energy and in his subsequent campaigns against Peter and his allies he distinguished himself so much that he acquired great renown and finally took his place among the most illustrious military heroes in history. The first operation of the war was the siege of the city of Narva. Narva was a port on the Baltic. The situation of it, as well as that of the other places mentioned in this chapter, is seen on the adjoining map, which shows the general features of the Russian and Swedish frontier as it existed at that time. Narva, as appears by the map, is situated on the sea coast near the frontier, much nearer than Riga. Peter expected that by the conquest of this city he should gain access to the sea and so be able to build ships which would aid him in his ulterior operations. He also calculated that when Narva was in his hands the way would be open for him to advance on Riga. Indeed, at the same time while he was commencing the siege of Narva, his ally, the King of Poland, advanced from his own dominions to Riga and was now prepared to attack that city at the same time that the Tsar was besieging Narva. In the meantime, while the news of these movements was sent by couriers to the King of Sweden and the conduct of Peter in this suddenly making war upon him and invading his dominions made him exceedingly indignant. The only cause of quarrel which Peter pretended to have against the King was the uncivil treatment which he had received at the hands of the Governor of Riga in refusing to allow him to see the fortifications when he passed through that city on his tour. Peter had, it is true, complained of this insult as he called it and had set commissioners to Sweden to demand satisfaction and certain explanations had been made until Peter professed not to be satisfied with them. Still, the negotiations had not been closed and the government of Sweden had no idea that the misunderstanding would lead to war. Indeed, the commissioners were still at the Swedish court continuing the negotiations when the news arrived that Peter had at once brought the question to an issue by declaring war and invading the Swedish territory. The King immediately collected a large army and provided a fleet of 200 transports to convey them to the scene of the action. The preparations were made with great dispatch and the fleet sailed for Riga. The news, too, of this war occasioned great dissatisfaction among the governments of Western Europe. The government of Holland was particularly displeased on account of the interference and interruption which the war would occasion to all their commerce in the Baltic. They immediately determined to remonstrate with the Tsar against the course of the war. He induced King William of England to join them in the remonstrance. They also, at the same time, sent a messenger to the King of Poland, urging him by all means to suspend his threatened attack on Riga until some of the measures could be taken for accommodating the quarrel. Riga was a very important commercial port and there were a great many wealthy Dutch merchants there whose interests the Dutch government were very anxious to protect. The King of Sweden arrived at Riga at just about the same time that the remonstrance of the Dutch government reached the King of Poland who was advancing to attack it. Augustus, for that was the name of the King of Poland, finding that now, since so great a force had arrived to Sakhore and strengthened the place, there was no hope for success in any of his operations against it, concluded to make a virtue of necessity and so he drew off his army and sent word to the Dutch government that he did so in compliance with their wishes. The King of Sweden had of course nothing now to do but to advance from Riga to Narva and attack the army of the Tsar. This army was not however commanded by the Tsar in person in accordance with what seems to have been his favourite plan in all his great undertakings he did not act directly himself as the head of the expedition but putting forward another man an experienced and skillful general in an ordinate position as a lieutenant. Indeed he took a pride in entering the army at one of the very lowest grades and so advancing by a regular series of promotions through all the ranks of service. The person whom the Tsar had made commander in chief at the siege of Narva was a German officer his name was General Kroi. General Kroi had been many weeks before Narva at the time when the King of Sweden arrived at Riga in taking the town the place was strongly fortified and the garrison though comparatively weak defended it with great bravery. The Russian army was encamped in a very long strong position just outside the town. As soon as the news of the coming of the King of Sweden arrived the Tsar went off into the interior of the country to hasten a large reinforcement which had been ordered and at the same time General Kroi sent forward large bodies in ambuscade along the roads and defiles through which the King of Sweden would have to pass on his way from Riga but all these excellent arrangements were entirely defeated by the impetuous energy and the extraordinary tact and skill of the King of Sweden. Although his army was very much smaller than that of the Russians he immediately set out on his march to Narva but instead of moving along the regular roads and so falling into the ambuscade he turned off into back and circuitous byways so as to avoid the snare all together. It was in the dead of winter and the roads which he followed besides being rough and intricate were obstructed with snow and the Russians had thought little of them so that at last when the Swedish army arrived at their advanced posts they were taken entirely by surprise. The advanced posts were driven in and the Swedes pressed on the Russians flying and carrying confusion to the posts in the rear. The surprise of the Russians and the confusion consequent upon it were greatly increased by the state of the weather for there was a violent snowstorm at the time and the snow blowing into the Russian's faces prevented their seeing what the numbers were of the enemy so suddenly assaulting them or taking any effectual measures to restore their own ranks to order when once deranged. When at length the Swedes were driven in the advanced posts reached the Russian camp itself they immediately made an assault upon it. The camp was defended by a rampart and by a double ditch but on went the assaulting soldiers over all the obstacles pushing their way with their bayonets and carrying all before them. The Russians were entirely defeated and put to flight. In a route like this the conquering army maddened by rage and by all the other dreadful excitements of the conquest upon furiously upon their flying and falling foes and destroy them with their bayonets in immense numbers before the officers can arrest them. Indeed the officers do not wish to arrest them until it is sure that the enemy is so completely overwhelmed that their rallying again is utterly impossible. In this case twenty thousand of the Russian soldiers were left dead upon the field. The Swedes on the other hand lost only two or three thousand. Besides those immense numbers were taken prisoners. General Kroy and all the other principal generals in command were among the prisoners. It is very probable that if Peter had not been absent at the time he would himself have been taken too. The number of prisoners was so very great that it was not possible for the Swedes to retain them on account of the expense and trouble of feeding them and keeping them warm at that season of the year so they determined to detain the officers only and to send them away. In doing this besides disarming the men they adopted a very whimsical expedient for making them helpless and incapable of doing mischief on their march. They cut their clothes in such a manner that they could only be prevented from falling off by being held together by both hands and the weather was so cold the ground more over being covered with snow that the men could only save themselves from perishing by keeping their clothes pitiful plight the whole body of prisoners were driven off like a flock of sheep by a small body of Swedish soldiery for a distance of about a league on the road toward Russia and then left to find the rest of the way themselves. The Tsar when he heard the news of the terrible disaster did not seem much disconcerted by it he said that he expected to be beaten at first by the Swedes they have beaten us once said he and they may beat us again but they will teach us in time to beat them. He immediately began to adopt the most efficient and energetic measures for organizing a new army he said about raising recruits in all parts of the empire he introduced many new foreign officers into his service and to provide artillery after exhausting all the other resources at his command he ordered the great bells of many churches and monasteries to be taken down and cast into canon End of Chapter 10 The Battle of Narva Recorded by Russ Lemker Chapter 11 of Peter the Great This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Russ Lemker Peter the Great by Jacob Abbott Chapter 11 The Building of St. Petersburg The struggle thus commenced between the Tsar Peter and Charles XII of Sweden for the possession of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea continued for many years At first the Russians were everywhere beaten by the Swedes but at last as Peter had predicted the king of Sweden taught them to beat him The commanders of the Swedish army were very ingenious in expedience as well as bold and energetic in action and they often gained an advantage over their enemy by their wit as well as by their bravery One instance of this was their contrivance for rendering their prisoners helpless on their march homeward after the battle of Narva by cutting their clothes in such a manner as to compel the men to keep both hands employed as they were walking along the roads and holding them together On another occasion when they had to cross a river in the face of the Russian troops posted on the other side they invented a peculiar kind of boat which was of great service in enabling them to accomplish the transit in safety These boats were flat-bottomed and square the foremost end of each of them was guarded by a sort of bulwark formed out of a plank and made very high This bulwark was fixed on hinges at the lower end so that it could be raised up and down It was of course kept up during the passage across the river and so served to defend the men in the boat from the shots of the enemy But when the boat reached the shore it was let down and then it formed a platform or bridge by which the men could all rush out together onto the shore At the same time while they were getting these boats ready and placing the men in them the Swedes having observed that the wind blew across from their side of the river to the other fires on the bank and covered them with wet straw so as to cause them to throw out a prodigious quantity of smoke The smoke was blown over to the other side of the river where it so filled the air as to prevent the Russians from seeing what was going on It was about a year after the first breaking out of the war that the tide of fortune began to turn in some measure in favor of the Russians About that time the Tsar gained possession of a considerable portion of the Baltic shore and as soon as he had done so he conceived the design of laying the foundation of a new city there with the view of making it the naval and commercial capital of his kingdom The plan was carried most successfully into effect in the building of the great city of St. Petersburg The founding of this city was one of the most important transactions in Peter's reign Indeed, it was probably by far the most important and Peter owes perhaps more of his great fame to this memorable enterprise than to anything else that he did The situation of St. Petersburg will be seen by the map in the preceding chapter At a little distance from the shore there is a large lake called the Lake of Ladoga An outlet of the Lake of Ladoga is a small river called the Neva The Lake of Ladoga is supplied with water by many rivers which flow into it from the higher lands lying to the northward and eastward of it and it is by the Neva that the surplus of these waters is carried off to the sea The circumstances under which the attention of the Tsar was called to the advantages of this locality were these He arrived on the banks of the Neva at some distance above the mouth of the river in the course of his campaign against the Swedes in the year 1702 He followed the river down and observed that it was pretty wide and that the water was sufficiently deep for the purpose of navigation When he reached the mouth of the river he saw that there was an island at some distance from the shore which might easily be fortified and that when fortified it would completely defend the entrance to the stream He took with him a body of armed men and went off to the island in boats in order to examine it more closely The name of this island was then almost unknown and was translated throughout the world as the seat of the renowned and impregnable fortress of Kronstad There was a Swedish ship in the offing at the time when Peter visited the island and this ship drew near to the island and began to fire upon it as soon as those on board saw that the Russian soldiers had landed there This cannonading drove the Russians back from the shores but instead of retiring from the island they returned to the main rocks The Swedes supposed that the Russians had gone around to the other side of the island and that they had there taken to their boats again and returned to the main land so they determined to go to the island themselves and examine it in order to find out what the Russians had been doing there They accordingly let down their boats and a large party of Swedes embarking in them rode to the island Soon after they had landed the Russians rushed out upon them to a sharp contest drove them back to their boats several of the men were killed but the rest succeeded in making their way back to the ship and the ship soon afterward weighed anchor and put to sea Peter was now at liberty to examine the island, the mouth of the river and all the adjacent shores as much as he pleased He found that the situation of the place was well adapted to the purposes of a seaport The island would serve to defend the mouth of the river and bring the side of it to an afford an entrance for the ships The water too was deep in the river and the flow of the current smooth It is true that in many places the land along the banks of the river was low and marshy but this difficulty could be remedied by the driving of piles for the foundation of the buildings which had been done so extensively in Holland There was no town on the spot at the time of Peter's visit to it but only a few fishermen's hut and the ruins of an old fort a few miles above Peter examined the whole region with great care and came decidedly to the conclusion that he would make the spot the site of a great city He matured his plans during the winter and in the following spring he commenced the execution of them The first building that was erected was a low one-story structure made of wood to be used as a sort of office and place of shelter for himself while superintending the commencement of the works that he had projected This building was afterward preserved for a long time with great care as a precious relic and souvenir of the foundation of the city The czar had sent out orders to the governments of the different provinces of the empire requiring each of them to send his quota of artificers and laborers to assist in building the city This they could easily do for in those days all the laboring classes of the people were little better than slaves and were almost entirely at the disposal of the nobles, their masters In the same manner he sent out agents to all the chief cities in western Europe with orders to advertise there for carpenters, masons, engineers, shipbuilders and persons of all the other trades likely to be useful in the work of building the city These men were to be promised good wages and kind treatment and were to be at liberty at any time to return to their respective homes The agents also at the same time invited the merchants of the countries that they visited to send vessels to the new port laden with food for the people that were to be assembled there and implements for work and other merchandise suitable for the wants of such a community The merchants were promised good prices for their goods and full liberty to come and go at their pleasure The czar also sent orders to create many leading boyars or nobles requiring them to come and build houses for themselves in the new town They were to bring with them a sufficient number of their serfs and retainers to do all the rough work which would be required and money to pay the foreign mechanics for the skilled labour The boyars were not at all pleased with this summons They already possessed their townhouses in Moscow with gardens and pleasure grounds in the environs The site for the new city was very far to the northward of the cold and inhospitable climate and they knew very well that even if Peter should succeed in the end in establishing this new city several years must elapse before they could live there in comfort Still, they did not dare to do otherwise than to obey the emperor's summons In consequence of all these arrangements and preparations immense numbers of people came into the site of the new city in the course of the following spring and summer The numbers were swelled by the addition of the populations of many towns and villages along the coast that had been ravaged or destroyed by the Swedes in the course of the war The works were immediately commenced on a vast scale and they were carried on during the summer with great energy The first thing to be secured, of course, was the construction of the fortress which was to defend the town There were wharves and piers to be built too in order that the vessels bringing stores and provisions might land their goods The land was surveyed out, building lots assigned to merchants for warehouses and shops and to the boyars for palaces and gardens The boyars commenced the building of their houses and the czar himself laid the foundation of an imperial palace But notwithstanding all the preparations and precautions which Peter had taken to secure supplies of everything required for such an undertaking and to regulate the work by systematic plans and arrangements The operations were for a time attended with a great deal of disorder and confusion and a vast amount of personal suffering For a long time there was no proper shelter for the laborers Men came to the ground much faster than huts could be built to cover them and they were obliged to lie on the marshy ground without any protection from the weather There was also great scarcity of tools and implements suitable for the work that was required in felling and transporting trees and in excavating and filling up in the surface were required In constructing the fortifications for example, which in the first instance were made of earth it was necessary to dig deep ditches and to raise great embankments There was a great deal of the same kind of work necessary on the ground where the city was to stand before the work of erecting buildings could be commenced There were dykes and levees to be made along the margin of the stream to protect the land from the inundations which it was subject when the river was swollen with rains There were roads to be made and forests to be cleared away and many such other labors to be performed Now, in order to employ at once the vast concourse of laborers that were assembled on the ground in such a works as these an immense number of implements were required such as pickaxes, spades, shovels and wheelbarrels But so limited was the supply of these conveniences that the earth which was required for the dykes and embankments was brought by the men in their aprons or in their skirts of their clothes or in bags made for the purpose out of old mats or any other material that came to hand It was necessary to push forward the work promptly and without delay not withstanding all these disadvantages for the Swedes were still off the coast with their ships and no one knew how soon they might draw near to be made upon the place or even land and attack the workmen in the midst of their labors What greatly increased the difficulties of the case was the frequent falling short of the supply of provisions The number of men to be fed was immensely large for inconsequence of the very efficient measures which the czar had taken for gathering men from all parts of his dominions it is said that there were not less than 300,000 collected on the spot in the course of the summer and as there were at that time leading to the place, all the supplies were necessarily to be brought by water but the approach from the Baltic side was well nigh cut off by the Swedes who had at that time full possession of the sea Vessels could however come from the interior by way of Lake Ladoga but when for several days or more the wind was from the west these vessels were all kept back and then sometimes the provisions fell short and the men were reduced to great distress to guard as much as possible the danger of coming to absolute want at the times when the supplies were thus entirely cut off the men were often put on short allowance beforehand the emperor it is true was continually sending out all requisitions for more food but the men increased in number faster after all than the means for feeding them the consequence was that immense multitudes of them sinkened and died the scarcity of food combined with the influence of fatigue life fed working all day in the mud and rain and at night sleeping without any shelter brought on fevers and dysentery and other similar diseases which always prevail in camps and among large bodies of men exposed to such influences as these it is said that not less than a hundred thousand men perished from these causes at St. Petersburg in the course of the year Peter doubtless regretted this loss of life as it tended to work but after all it was a loss which he could easily repair by sending out continually to the provinces for fresh supplies of men those whom the nobles and governors selected from among the serfs and ordered to go had no option they were obliged to submit and thus the supply of laborers was kept full notwithstanding the dreadful mortality which was continually tending to diminish it if Peter had been willing to exercise a little patience and moderation in carrying out the probable that most of this suffering might have been saved if he had sent a small number of men to the ground the first year and had employed them in opening roads and establishing granaries and making other preliminary arrangement and in the meantime had caused sores of food to be purchased and laid up and ample supplies of proper tools and implements to be procured and conveyed to the ground so as to have had everything ready for the advantageous of employment the number of men in the following year everything would perhaps have gone well but the qualities of patience and moderation formed no part of Peter's character what he conceived of and determined to do must be done at once at whatever cost and a cost of human life seems to have been the one that he thought less of than any other he rushed headlong on notwithstanding the suffering which his impetuosity occasioned him which solemnized the entrance into being of the newborn city was composed of the groans of a hundred thousand men dying in agony of want of misery and despair Peter was a personal witness to this suffering for he remained during a great part of the time on the ground occupying himself constantly in superintending and urging on the operations indeed it is said that he acted himself in planning the fortifications and in laying out the streets of the city he drew many of the plans with his own hands for among the other accomplishments which he had acquired in the early part of his life he had made himself quite a good practical draftsman when the general plan of the city had been determined upon and proper places had been set apart for royal palaces and pleasure grounds and public edifices of all sorts that might be required squares, docks, markets and the like a great many streets were thrown open for the use of any persons who might choose to build houses in them a vast number of the mechanics and artisans who had been attracted to the place by the offers of the czar availed themselves of this opportunity to provide themselves with homes and they proceeded at once to erect houses a great many of the structures thus built were mere huts or shanties made of any rude materials it came most readily to hand and put up in a very hasty manner it was sufficient that the tenement afforded a shelter from the rain and that it was enough of a building to fulfill the condition on which the land was granted to the owner of it the number of these structures was however enormous it was said that in one year there were erected 30,000 of them there is no instance in the history of the world of so great a city springing into existence a marvelous rapidity as this during the time while Peter was thus employed in laying the foundations of his new city the king of Sweden was carrying on the war in Poland against the conjoined forces of Russia and Poland which were acting together there as allies when intelligence was brought to him of the operations in which Peter was engaged on the banks of the Neva he said it all very well he may amuse himself as much as he likes in building the city there but by and by when I am a little at leisure I will go and take it away from him then if I like the town I will keep it and if not I will burn it down Peter however determined that it should not be left within the power of the king of Sweden to take his town or even to molest his operations in the building of it if any precautions on his part could prevent it he had caused a number of risks and batteries to be thrown up during the summer these works were situated at different points near the outlet of the river and on the adjacent shores there was an island off the mouth of the river which stood in a suitable position to guard the entrance this island was several miles distance from the place where the city was to stand and it occupied the middle of the bay leading toward it thus there was water on both sides of it water was deep enough only on one side to allow the passage of ships of war Peter now determined to construct a large and strong fortress on the shores of this island placing it in such a position that the guns could command the channel leading up the bay it was late in the fall when he planned this work and the winter came on before he was ready to commence operations this time for commencing was however a matter of design on his part as the ice during the winter would assist very much he thought in the work of laying the necessary foundations for the fortress was not to stand on the solid land but on a sand bank which projected from the land on the side toward the navigable channel the site of the fortress was to be about a cannon shot from the land and there being surrounded by shallow water on every side it could not be approached either by land or sea Peter laid the foundations of this fortress on the ice by building immense boxes of timber and plank and loading them with stones when the ice melted in the spring these structures sank into the sand and formed a stable and solid foundation on which he could after world build at pleasure this was the origin of the famous castle of Kronstadt which has since so well fulfilled its purpose that it has kept the powerful navies of Europe at bay in time of war and prevented from reaching the city besides this great fortress Peter erected several detached batteries at different parts of the island so as to prevent the land from being approached at all by the boats of the enemy at length the king of Sweden began to be somewhat alarmed at the accounts which he received of what Peter was doing and he determined to attack him on the ground and destroy his works before he proceeded any further with them with the admiral of the fleet to assemble his ships to sail up the Gulf of Finland and their attack and destroy the settlement which Peter was making the admiral made the attempt but he found that he was too late the works were advanced too far and had become too strong for him it was on the 4th of July 1704 that the Russian scouts who were watching on the shores of the bay saw the Swedish ships coming up and consisted of 22 men of war and many other vessels besides the forts and batteries the Russians had a number of ships of their own at anchor in the waters and as the fleet advanced a tremendous cannonade was opened on both sides the ships of the Swedes against the ships and batteries of the Russians when the Swedish fleet had advanced as far toward the island as the depth of water would allow they let down from the decks of their vessels a great number of flat bottom boats which they had brought for the purpose and filled them with armed men their plan was to land these men on the island and carry the Russian batteries there at the point of the bayonet but they did not succeed they were received so hotly by the Russians that after an obstinate contest they were forced to retreat they endeavored to get back to their boats but were pursued by the Russians and now as their backs were turned they could no longer defend themselves and a great many were killed even those that were not killed did not all succeed in making their escape a considerable number finding that they should not be able to get to the boats threw down their arms and surrendered themselves prisoners and then of course the boats which they belonged to were taken five of the boats thus fell into the hands of the Russians the others were rode back with all speed to the ships and then the ships withdrew thus the attempt failed entirely the admiral reported the ill success of his expedition to the king and not long afterward another similar attempt was made but with no better success than before the new city was now considered as firmly established and from this time it advanced very rapidly in wealth and population Peter gave great encouragement to foreign mechanics and artisans to come and settle in the town offering to some lands to others houses and to others high wages for their work the nobles built elegant mansions there in the streets set apart for them and many public buildings of great splendor were planned and commenced the business of building ships too was introduced on an extended scale the situation was very favorable for this purpose as the shores of the river afforded excellent sites for dry dockyards and the timber required could be supplied in great quantities from the shores of Lodoga in a very few years after this the first foundation of the city Peter began to establish literary and scientific institutions there many of these institutions have since become greatly renowned and they contribute a large share at the present day Ilan that surrounds the celebrated city and which makes it one of the most splendid and renowned of the European capitals Chapter XI The Building of St. Petersburg Recording by Russ Lemker Chapter XII of Peter the Great This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Peter the Great by Jacob Abbott Chapter XII The Revolt of Mizeppa 1708 In the meantime the war with Sweden went on. Many campaigns were fought for the contest was continued through several successive years The King of Sweden made repeated attempts to destroy the new city of St. Petersburg but without success On the contrary the town grew and prospered more and more and the shelter and protection which the fortifications around it afforded to the mouth of the river and to the adjacent roadsteads enabled the tsar to go on so rapidly in building new ships and thus increasing in strengthening his fleet that very soon he was much stronger than the King of Sweden in all the neighboring waters so that he not only was able to keep the enemy very effectually at bay but he even made several successful descents upon the Swedish territory along the adjoining coasts But while the tsar was thus rapidly increasing his power at sea the King of Sweden proved himself the strongest on land He extended his conquests very rapidly in Poland and in the adjoining provinces and at last in the summer of 1708 he conceived the design of crossing the Nipper and threatening Moscow which was still Peter's capital He accordingly pushed his forces forward until he approached the bank of the river He came up to it at a certain point as if he was intending to cross there Peter assembled all his troops on the opposite side of the river at that point in order to oppose him But the demonstration which the King made of an intention to cross at that point was only a pretense He left as efficient number of men there to make a show and secretly marched away the great body of his troops in the night to a point about three miles further up the river where he succeeded in crossing with them before the Emperor's forces had any suspicion of his real design The Russians who were not strong enough to oppose him in the open field were obliged immediately to retreat and leave him in full possession of the ground Peter was now much alarmed He sent an officer to the camp of the King of Sweden with a flag of truce to ask on what terms the King would make peace with him But Charles was too much elated with his success in crossing the river and placing himself in a position from which he could advance without encountering any further obstruction to the very gates of the capital to be willing then to propose any terms So he declined entering into any negotiation saying only in a haughty tone that he would treat with his brother Peter at Moscow On mature reflection however he seems to have concluded that it would be more prudent for him not to march at once to Moscow and so he turned his course for a time toward the southward in the direction of the Crimea The secret reason which induced the King of Sweden to move thus to the southward which Peter did not for a time understand The country of the Cossacks lay in that direction and the famous mezepa of whom some account has already been given in this volume was the chieftain of the Cossacks and he, as it happened had had a quarrel with the Tsar and in consequence of it had opened a secret negotiation with the King of Sweden and had agreed that if the King would come into his part of the country he would desert the cause of the Tsar and would come over to his side with all the Cossacks under his command The cause of mezepa's quarrel with the Tsar was this He was one day paying a visit to his Majesty and while seated at table Peter began to complain of the lawless and ungovernable character of the Cossacks and to propose that mezepa should introduce certain reforms in the organization and discipline of the tribe with a view of bringing them under more effectual control it is probable that the reforms which he proposed were somewhat analogous to those which he had introduced so successfully into the armies under his own more immediate command mezepa opposed this suggestion he said that the attempt to adopt such measures with the Cossacks would never succeed that the men were so wild and savage by nature and so fixed in the rude and irregular habits of warfare to which they and their fathers had been so long accustomed that they could never be made to submit to such restrictions as regular military discipline would impose Peter, who could never endure the least opposition or contradiction to any of his ideas or plans became quite angry with mezepa on account of the objections which he made to his proposals and as was usual with him in such cases he broke out in the most rude and violent language imaginable he called mezepa an enemy and a traitor and threatened to have him impaled alive it is true he did not really mean what he said his words being only empty threats dictated by the brutal violence of his anger still mezepa was very much offended he went away from the tsar's tent muttering his displeasure and resolving secretly on revenge soon after this mezepa opened the communication above referred to with the king of Sweden and at last an agreement was made between them by which it was stipulated that the king was to advance into the southern part of the country where of course the Cossacks would be sent out to meet him and then mezepa was to revolt from the tsar and go over with all his forces to the king of Sweden side by this means the tsar's army was sure they thought to be defeated and in this case the king of Sweden was to remain in possession of the Russian territory while the Cossacks were to retire to their own fortresses and live thenceforth as an independent tribe the plot seemed to be very well laid but unfortunately for the contrivers of it it was not destined to succeed in the first place mezepa's scheme of revolting with the Cossacks to the enemy was discovered by the tsar and almost entirely defeated before the time arrived for putting it into execution Peter had his secret agents everywhere and through them he received such information in respect to mezepa's movements as led him to suspect his designs he said nothing however but maneuvered his forces so as to have a large body of troops that he could rely upon always near mezepa and the Cossacks and between them and the army of the Swedes he ordered the officers of these troops to watch mezepa's movements closely and to be ready to act against him at a moment's notice should occasion require mezepa was somewhat disconcerted in his plans by this state of things but he could not make any objection for the troops that stationed near him seemed to be placed there for the purpose of cooperating with him against the enemy in the meantime mezepa cautiously made known his plans to the leading men among the Cossacks as fast as he thought it prudent to do so he represented to them how much better it would be for them to be restored to their former liberty as an independent tribe instead of being in subjugation to such a despot as the tsar he also enumerated the various grievances which they suffered under Russian rule and endeavored to excite the animosity of his heroes as much as possible against Peter's government he found that the chief officers of the Cossacks seemed quite disposed to listen to what he said and to adopt his views some of them were really so and others pretended to be so for fear of displeasing him at length he thought it time to take some measures for preparing the minds of the men generally for what was to come and in order to do this he determined on publicly sending a messenger to the tsar with the complaints which he had to make in behalf of his men the men knowing of this embassy and understanding the grounds of the complaint which Mizeppa was to make by means of it would be placed he thought in such a position that in the event of an unfavorable answer being returned as he had no doubt would be the case they could be the more easily led into the revolt which he proposed Mizeppa accordingly made out a statement of his complaints and appointed his nephew a commissioner to proceed to headquarters and lay them before the tsar the name of the nephew was Warnorowski as soon as Warnorowski arrived at the camp Peter instead of granting him an audience and listening to the statement which he had to make ordered him to be seized and sent to prison as if he were guilty of a species of treason in coming to trouble his sovereign with complaints and difficulties at such a time when the country was suffering under an actual invasion from a foreign enemy as soon as Mizeppa heard that his nephew was arrested he was convinced that his plots had been discovered and that he must not lose a moment carrying them into execution or all would be lost he accordingly immediately put his whole force in motion to march toward the place where the Swedish army was then posted ostensibly for the purpose of attacking them he crossed a certain river which lay between him and the Swedes and then when safely over he stated to his men what he intended to do the men were filled with indignation at his proposal which being wholly unexpected came upon them by surprise they refused to join in the revolt a scene of great excitement and confusion followed a portion of the Cossacks those with whom Mizeppa had come to an understanding beforehand were disposed to go with him but the rest were filled with fixation and rage they declared that they would seize their chieftain bind him hand and foot and send him to the tsar indeed it is highly probable that the two factions would have come soon to a bloody fight for the possession of the person of their chieftain in which case he would very likely have been torn to pieces in the struggle if those who were disposed to the revolt had not fled before the opposition to their movement had time to become organized Mizeppa and those who adhered to him about two thousand men and all went over in a body to the camp of the Swedes the rest led by officers that still remained faithful marched at once to the nearest body of Russian forces and put themselves under the command of the Russian general there a council of war was soon after called in the Russian camp for the purpose of bringing Mizeppa to trial he was of course found guilty and sentence of death with a great many indignities to accompany the execution was passed upon him the sentence however could not be executed upon Mizeppa himself for he was out of the reach of his accusers being safe in the Swedish camp so they made a wooden image or effigy to represent him and inflicted the penalties upon the substitute instead in the first place they dressed the effigy to imitate the appearance of Mizeppa and put upon it representations of the medals ribbons and other decorations which he was accustomed to wear they brought this figure out before the camp in presence of the general and of all the leading officers the soldiers being also drawn up around the spot a herald appeared and read the sentence of condemnation and then proceeded to carry it into execution as follows he tore Mizeppa's patent of knighthood in pieces and threw the fragments into the air then he tore off the medals and decorations from the image and throwing them upon the ground he trampled them under his feet then he stuck the effigy itself a blow by which it was overturned and left prostrate in the dust the hangman then came up and tying the halter around the neck of the effigy dragged it off to a place where a gibbet had been erected and hanged it there immediately after the ceremony the Cossacks according to their custom proceeded to elect a new chieftain in the place of Mizeppa the chieftain thus chosen came forward before the Tsar to take the oath of allegiance to him and to offer him his homage End of Chapter 12 Chapter 13 of Peter the Great This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Russ Lemker Peter the Great by Jacob Abbott Chapter 13 The Battle of Poltava In the meantime while these transactions had been taking place among the Russians the king of Sweden had been gradually making his way toward the westward and southward into the very heart of the Russian dominions. The forces of the emperor, which were not strong enough to offer him battle, had been gradually retiring before him. But they had devastated and destroyed everything on their way in their retreat so as to leave nothing for the support of the Swedish army. They broke up all the bridges too and obstructed the roads by every means in their power so as to impede the progress of the Swedes as much as possible since they could not wholly arrest it. The Swedes however pressed slowly onward. They set off to great distances to procure forage for the horses and food for the men. When they found the bridges down they made detours and crossed the rivers at fording places. When the roads were obstructed they removed the impediments if they could and if not they opened new roads. Sometimes in these cases their way led them across swampy places where no solid footing could be found and then the men would cut down an immense quantity of bushes and trees growing in the neighborhood and make up the branches into bundles called fascines. They would then lay these bundles close together on the surface of the swamp and then level them off on the top by loose branches and so make a road firm enough for the army to march over. Things went on this way until at last the father progress of King Charles was arrested and the tide of fortune was turned wholly against him by a great battle which was fought at a place called Polthaua. This place which after so protracted a struggle at length suddenly terminated the contest between the King and the Tsar of course attracted universal attention at the time because King Charles and Peter were the greatest potentates and warriors of their age and the struggle for power which had so long been waged between them had been watched with great interest through all the stages of it by the whole civilized world. The battle of Polthaua was in a word one of those great final conflicts by which after a long struggle the fate of an empire is decided. It has greatly attracted the attention of mankind and has since taken its place among the most renowned combats of history. Polthaua is a town situated in the heart of the Russian territories three or four hundred miles north of the Black Sea. It stands on a small river which flows to the southward and westward into the Dnieper. It was at that time an important military station as it contained great arsenals where large stores of food and of ammunition were laid up for the use of Peter's army. The king of Sweden determined to take this town. His principal object in desiring to get possession of it was to supply the wants of his army by the provisions that were stored there. The place was strongly fortified and it was defended by a garrison. But the king thought that he should be able to take it and he accordingly advanced to the walls, invested the place closely on every side and commenced a siege. The name of the general in command of the largest body of Russian forces near the spot was Mensikov. And as soon as the king of Sweden had invested the place, Mensikov began to advance toward it in order to relieve it. Then followed a long series of maneuvers and partial combats between the two armies, the Swedes being occupied with the double duty of attacking the town and also defending themselves from Mensikov, while Mensikov on the other hand was intent, first, on harassing the Swedes and impeding as much as possible their siege operations and secondly on throwing Sukurs into the town. In this contest Mensikov was on the whole most successful. He contrived one night to pass groups through the gates of Poltava into the town to strengthen the garrison. This irritated the king of Sweden and made him more determined and reckless than ever to press the siege. Under this excitement he advanced so near the walls one day in a desperate effort to take possession of an advanced part of the works that he exposed himself to a shot from the ramparts and was badly wounded in the heel. This wound nearly disabled him. He was obliged by it to confine himself to his tent and to content himself with giving orders from his couch or litter where he lay helpless and in great pain and in a state of extreme mental disquietude. His anxiety was greatly increased in a few days in consequence of intelligence which was brought into his camp by the scouts that Peter himself was advancing to the relief of Poltava at the head of a very large army. Indeed the tidings were that this great force was close at hand. The king found that he was in danger of being surrounded nor could he well hope to escape the danger by a retreat for the broad and deep river Dnieper which he had crossed to come into the siege of Poltava was behind him and if the Russians were to fall upon him while attempting to cross it he knew very well that his whole state would be cut to pieces. He lay restless on his litter in his tent, his thoughts divided between the anguish of the wound in his heel and the mental anxiety and distress produced by the situation that he was in. He spent the night in great perplexity and suffering. At length toward morning he came to the desperate resolution of attacking the Russians in their camp inferior as his own and now to theirs. He accordingly sent a messenger to the Field Marshal who was chief officer in command under himself, summoning him to his tent. The Field Marshal was aroused from his sleep for it was not yet day and immediately repaired to the king's tent. The king was lying on his couch quiet and calm and with an air of great serenity and composure he gave the Field Marshal orders to beat to arms and march out to attack the Tsar in his entrenchments as soon as daylight should appear. The Field Marshal was astonished at this order for he knew that the Russians were now far superior in numbers to the Swedes and he supposed that the only hope of the king would be to defend himself where he was in his camp or else to attempt a retreat. He however knew that there was no one but to obey his orders. So he received the instructions which the king gave him said that he would carry them into execution and then retired. The king then at length fell into a trouble to sleep and slept until the break of day. By this time the whole camp was in motion the Russians too who in their entrenchments had received the alarm had aroused themselves and were preparing for battle. The Tsar himself was not the commander. He had prided himself as the reader will recollect in entering the army at the lowest point and in advancing regularly step by step through all the grades as any officer would have done. He had now attained the rank of Major General and though as Tsar he gave orders through his ministers commander and chief of the armies directing them in general what to do still personally in camp and in the field of battle he received orders from his military superior there and he took pride and pleasure in the subordination to his superior's authority which the rules of the service required of him. He however as it seems did not always entirely lay aside his imperial character while in this instance while the men were formed in array and before the battle commenced he rode to and fro among their lines encouraging the men and promising as their sovereign to bestow rewards upon them in proportion to the valor which they should severally display in the coming combat. The King of Sweden too was raised from his couch placed upon a litter and in this manner carried along the lines where the battle was to begin. He told the men that they were about to attack an enemy more numerous than themselves but that they must remember that at Narva 8000 Swedes had overcome a hundred thousand Russians in their own entrenchments and what they had done once he said they could do again. The battle was commenced very early in the morning it was complicated at the beginning with many marches counter marches and maneuvers in which the several divisions of both the Russian and Swedish armies and the garrison of Poltava all took part. In some places and at some times the victory was on one side and at others on the other. King Charles was carried in his litter into the thickest of the battle where after a time he became so excited by the contest that he insisted on being put upon a horse. The attendants accordingly brought a horse and placed him carefully upon it but the pain of his wound brought on faintness and he was obliged to be put back in his litter again. Soon after this a cannon ball struck the litter and dashed it to pieces. The king was thrown out upon the ground those who saw him fall supposed that he was killed and they were struck with consternation they had been almost overpowered by their enemies before but they were now wholly disheartened and discouraged and they began to give way and fly in all directions. The king had, however, not been touched by the ball which struck the litter. He was at once raised from the ground by the officers around him and borne away out of the immediate danger. He remonstrated earnestly against being taken away and insisted upon making an effort to destroy his men but the officers soon persuaded him that for the present, at least, all was lost and that the only hope for him was to make his escape as soon as possible across the river and thence over the frontier into Turkey where he would be safe from pursuit and could then consider what it would be best to do. The king at length reluctantly yielded to these persuasions and was borne away. In the meantime the Tsar himself had been exposed to great danger in the battle and like the king of Sweden he had met with some very narrow escapes. His hat was shot through with a bullet which half an inch lower would have gone through the emperor's head. General Mensikov had three horses shot from under him but not withstanding these dangers the Tsar pressed on into the thickest of the fight and was present at the head of his men and the Swedes were finally overwhelmed and driven from the field. Indeed he was among the foremost who pursued them and when he came to the place where the royal litter was lying broken to pieces on the ground he expressed great concern for the fate of his enemy and seemed to regret the calamity which had befallen him as if Charles had been his friend. He had always greatly admired the courage and the military skill and manifested in his campaigns and was disposed to respect his misfortunes now that he had fallen. He supposed that he was unquestionably killed and he gave orders to his men to search everywhere over the field for the body and to guard it when found from any further violence or injury and to take charge of it that it might receive an honourable burial. The body was of course not found for the king was alive and the son of the wound in his heel uninjured. He was born off from the field by a few faithful adherents who took him in their arms when the litter was broken up. As soon as they had conveyed him in this manner out of immediate danger they hastily constructed another litter in order to bear him farther away. He was himself of course extremely unwilling to go. He was very earnest to make an effort to rally his men and if possible save his army from total ruin. But he soon found that it was in vain to attempt this. His whole force had been thrown into utter confusion and the broken battalions flying in every direction were pursued so hotly by the Russians who in their exultant fury slaughtered all whom they could overtake and drove the rest headlong in a state of panic and dismay which was holy uncontrollable. Of course some escaped but great numbers were taken prisoners. Many of the officers separated from their men, wandered about in search of the king, being without any rallying point until they could find him. After suffering many cruel hardships and much exposure in the lurking places where they attempted to conceal themselves great numbers of them were hunted out by their enemies and made prisoners. In the meantime those who had the king under their charge urged his majesty to allow them to convey him with all speed out of the country. The nearest way of escape was to go westward to the Turkish frontier which as has already been said was not far distant, though there were three rivers to cross on the way the Dnieper, the Bog and the Dnieper. The king was very unwilling to listen to this advice. Peter had several times sent a flag of truce to him since he had entered into the Russian dominions expressing a desire to make peace and proposing very reasonable terms for Charles to accede to. To all these proposals Charles had returned the same answer as at first which was that he should not be ready to treat with the Tsar until he arrived at Moscow. Charles now said that before abandoning the country altogether he would send a herald to the Russian camp to say that he was now willing to make peace on the terms which Peter had before proposed to him if Peter was still willing to adhere to them. Charles was led to hope that this proposal might perhaps be successful from the fact that there was a portion of his army who had not been engaged at Poltava that was still safe and he had no doubt that a very considerable number of men would succeed in escaping from Poltava and joining them. Indeed the number was not small of those whom the king had now immediately around him for all that escaped from the battle made every possible exertion to discover and rejoin the king and so many straggling parties came that he soon had under his command a force of one or two thousand men. This was of course but a small remnant of his army. Still he felt that he was not wholly destitute by means and resources for carrying on the struggle in case he should refuse to make peace. So he sent a trumpeter to Peter's camp with this message but Peter sent back word that his majesty's assent to the terms of peace which he had proposed to him came too late. The state of things had now he said entirely changed and as Charles had ventured to penetrate into the Russian country without properly considering the consequences of his rashness he must now think for himself how he was to get out of it. For his part he added he had got the birds in the net and he should do all in his power to secure them. After due consultation among the officers who were with the king it was finally determined that it was useless to think for the present of any further resistance and the king at last reluctantly consented to be conveyed to the Turkish frontier. He was too ill from the effects of his ride on horseback and the distance was too great for him to be conveyed on a litter so they prepared a carriage for him. It was a carriage which belonged to one of his generals and which by some means or other had been saved in the flight of the army. The route which they were to take led across the country where they were scarcely any roads and a team of twelve horses was harnessed to draw the carriage which conveyed the king. The confused mass of officers and men who had escaped from the battle and had succeeded in rejoining the king were marshaled into something like a military organization and the march or rather the flight commenced. The king's carriage attended by such a guard as could be provided for it went before and was followed by the remnant of the army. Some of the men were on horseback others were on foot and others still sick or wounded by the arrogance of the country which were drawn along in a very difficult and laborious manner. This mournful train moved slowly on across the country seeking of course the most retired and solitary ways to avoid pursuit and yet harassed by the continual fear that the enemy might at any time come up with them. The men all suffered exceedingly from want of food and from the various other hardships many became so worn out by fatigue and privation that they could not proceed and were left by the roadsides to fall into the hands of the enemy or to perish of want and exhaustion while those who still had strength enough remaining pressed despairingly onward but little less was to be pitied than those who were left behind. When at length the expedition drew near to the Turkish borders the king sent forward a messenger in command on the frontier asking permission for himself and his men to pass through the Turkish territory on his way to his own dominions. He had every reason to suppose that the Pasha would grant this request for the Turks and Russians had long been enemies and he knew very well that the sympathies of the Turks had been entirely on his side in this war. Nor was he disappointed in his expectations. The Pasha received the messenger very kindly and offered him food and supplied all his wants. He said moreover that he would not only give the king leave to enter and pass through the Turkish territories but he would give him efficient assistance in crossing the river which formed the frontier. This was indeed necessary for a large detachment of Russian army which had been sent in pursuit of the Swedes was now coming close upon them and there was danger of there being overtaken and cut to pieces or taken prisoners before they should have time to cross the stream. The principal object which the Tsar had in view in sending a detachment in pursuit of the fugitives was the hope of capturing the king himself. He spoke of this, his design, to the Swedish officers who were already his prisoners saying to them jocosely for he was in an excellent humor with everybody after the battle I have a great desire to see my brother the king and to enjoy his society so I have sent to bring him you will see him here in a few days. The force dispatched for this purpose had been gradually gaining upon the fugitives and was now very near and the Pasha on learning the facts perceived that the exigency was very urgent. He accordingly sent off at once up and down the river to order all the boats that could be found to repair immediately to the spot where the king of Sweden crossed. A considerable number of boats were soon collected and the passage was immediately commenced. The king and his guards were brought over safely and also a large number of the officers and men. But the boats were, after all, so few that the operation proceeded slowly and the Russians who had been pressing on with all speed arrived at the banks of the river in time to interrupt it before all the troops had passed and thus about five hundred men they were all made prisoners and the king had the mortification of witnessing the spectacle of their capture from the opposite bank which he had himself reached in safety. The king was immediately afterward conveyed to Bender a considerable town not far from the frontier where for the present he was safe and where he remained quiet for some weeks in order that his wound might have opportunity to heal. Peter was forced to content himself with postponing for a time the pleasure which he expected to derive from the enjoyment of his brother's society. The portion of the Swedish army which remained in Russia was soon after this surrounded by so large a Russian force that the general in command was forced to capitulate and all his troops were surrendered as prisoners of war. Thus, in all, a great number of prisoners, both officers were sent to Peter's hands. The men were sent to various parts of the empire and distributed among the people in order that they might settle permanently in the country and devote themselves to the trades or occupations to which they had been trained in their native land. The officers were treated with great kindness and consideration. Peter often invited them to his table and conversed with them in a very free and friendly manner in respect to the usages and the military, especially those which related to the military art. Still, they were deprived of their swords and kept close prisoners. One day, when some of these officers were dining with Peter in his tent and he had been for some time conversing with them about the organization and discipline of the Swedish army and had expressed great admiration for the military talent and skill which they had displayed in the country. He at last poured out some wine and drank to the health of his masters in the art of war. One of the officers who was present asked who they were that his majesty was pleased to honor with so great a title. It is yourselves, gentlemen replied the czar. The Swedish generals, it is you who have been my best instructors in the art of war. Then, replied the officer, is not your majesty a little to treat the masters to whom you owe so much, so severely. Peter was so much pleased with the readiness and wit of this reply that he ordered the swords of the officers all to be restored to them. It is said that he even unbuckled his own sword from his side and presented it to one of the generals. It ought perhaps to be added, however, that the habit of drinking to excess which Peter seems to have formed early in life had before this time become quite confirmed, and he often became completely intoxicated at his convivial entertainments so that it is not improbable that the sudden generosity of the czar on this occasion may have been due in considerable degree to the excitement produced by the brandy which he had been drinking. Although the swords of the officers were thus restored to them they were themselves still held as prisoners until arrangements could be made for exchanging them. In order, however, that they might all be properly provided for he distributed them around among his own generals giving to each Russian officer the charge of a Swedish officer of his own rank granting, of course, to each one a proper allowance for the maintenance and support of his charge. The Russian generals were severally responsible for the safekeeping of their prisoners and such cases is never strict for it is customary for the prisoners to give their parole of honor that they will not attempt to escape, and then they are allowed within reasonable limits their full personal liberty so that they live more like the guests and companions of their keepers than as their captives. The King of Sweden met with many remarkable adventures and encountered very serious difficulties before he reached his own kingdom but it would be foreign to the subject of this history to relate them here. As to Mazepa he made his escape too with the King of Sweden across the frontier. The Tsar offered a very large reward to whoever should bring him back either dead or alive but he was never taken. He died afterward at Constantinople at a great age. One of the most curious and characteristic results which followed from the Battle of Poltava was the promotion of Peter in respect to his rank in the army. It was gravely decided by the proper authorities after drew deliberation that in consequence of the vigor and bravery which he had displayed on the field and of the danger which he had incurred in having had a shot go through his hat he deserved to be advanced to grade in the line of promotion so he was made successful. Thus ended the great Swedish invasion of Russia which was the occasion of the greatest and indeed of almost the only serious danger from any foreign source which threatened the dominions of Peter during the whole course of his reign. End of Chapter 13 The Battle of Poltava Recording by Russ Lemker of Edina Minnesota