Jan.-July 1762.

they should have done!) that the better men necessary to pro'duce these were nowhere forthcoming '50

For the first two or three months, Peter was the idol of all the world: Such generosities and magnanimities; such zeal and diligence, one magnanimous improvement following another! He had at once abolished Torture in his Law Courts; resolved to have a regular Code of Laws,-and Judges to be depended on for doing justice. He 'destroyed monopolies ;' 'lowered the price of salt. To the joy of everybody, he had hastened (January 18th, second week of reign) to abolish the Secret Chancery,a horrid Spanish-Inquisition engine of domestic Politics. His Nobility he had determined should be noble: January 28th (third week of reign just beginning), he absolved the Nobility from all servile duties to him: "You can travel when and where you please; you are not obliged to serve in my Armies; you may serve in anybody's not at war with me!" under plaudits loud and universal from that Order of men. And was petitioned by a grateful Petersburg world: "Permit us, magnanimous Czar, to raise a Statue of your Majesty in solid Gold?" "Don't at all!" answered Peter: "Ah, if by good governing I could raise a memorial in my People's hearts; that would be the Statue for me!"51 Poor headlong Peter!-It was a less lucky step that of informing the Clergy (date not given), That in the Czarship lay Spiritual Sovereignty as well as Temporal, and that he would henceforth administer their rich Abbey Lands and the like;-this gave a sad shock to the upper strata of Priesthood, extending gradually to the lower, and ultimately raising an ominous general thought (perhaps worse than a general cry) of "Church in Danger! Alas, is our Czar regardless of Holy Religion, then? Perhaps, at heart still Lutheran, and has no Religion?" This, and his too headlong Prussian tendencies, are counted to have done him infinite mischief.

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Herr Büsching sees the Czar on Horseback. When the Czar's own Regiment of Cuirassiers came to Petersburg, the Czar, 'dressed in the uniform of the regiment, rode out to meet it; ' and returning at its head, rode repeatedly through certain quar

So Büsching's Beyträge, vi. ('Author's own Biography') 462 et seq. 51 Hermann, v. 248.

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Jan.-July 1762.

ters of the Town. His helmet was buckled tight with leather straps under the chin; he sat his horse as upright and stiff as a wooden image; held his sabre in equally stiff manner; turned fixedly his eyes to the right; and never by a hairsbreadth changed that posture. In such attitude he twice passed my house with his regiment, without changing a feature at sight of the many persons who crowded the windows. To me' (in my privately austere judgment) 'he seemed so kleingeistisch, so small'minded a person, that I'-in fact, knew not what to think of it.52

Hordt sees the deceased Czarina lying in State. One day, after dining at Court, General Korf proposed that we should 'go and see the Lit de Parade (Parade-Bed) of the late Czarina, which is in another Palace, not far off. Count Schuwalof' (not her old lover, who has died since her, poor old creature; but his Son, a cultivated man, afterwards Voltaire's friend) accom'panied us; and, his rooms being contiguous to those of the dead Lady, he asked us to take coffee with him afterwards. The Imperial Bier stood in the Grand Saloon, which was hung 'all round with black, festooned and garlanded with cloth-ofsilver; the glare of wax-lights quite blinding. Bier, covered with cloth-of-gold trimmed with silver lace, was raised upon steps. A rich Crown was on the head of the dead Czarina. 'Beside the bier stood Four Ladies, two on each hand, in grand 'mourning; immense 'crape training on the ground behind them. Two Officers of the Life-Guard occupied the lowest steps: on the topmost, at the foot of the bier, was an Archimandrite (superior kind of Abbot), who had a Bible before him, from which he read aloud,-continuously till relieved by another. This went on day and night without interruption. All round 'the bier, on stools (tabourets), were placed different Crowns and the insignia of various Orders,-those of Prussia, among ' others. It being established usage, I had, to my great repug'nance, to kiss the hand of the corpse! We then talked a little to the Ladies in attendance (with their crape trains), joking about the article of hand-kissing; finally we adjourned for 'coffee to Count Schuwalof's apartments, which were of an 'incredible magnificence.' That same evening, farther on,—

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2 Büsching's Beyträge, vi. 464.

Jan.-July 1762.

'I supped with the Czar in his Petit Appartement, Private Rooms' (a fine free-and-easy nook of space!) The company 'there consisted of the Countess Woronzow, a creature without any graces, bodily or mental, whom the Czar had chosen for his Mistress' (snub-nosed, pock-marked, fat, and with a pert tongue at times), 'whom I liked the less, as there were one or 'two other very handsome women there. Some Courtiers too; ' and no Foreigners but the English Envoy and myself. The supper was very gay, and was prolonged late into the night. These late orgies, however, did not prevent his Majesty from 'attending to business in good time next morning. He would 6 appear unexpectedly, at an early hour, at the Senate, at the 'Synod' (Head Consistory), 'making them stand to their duties,' -or pretend to do it. His Majesty is not understood to have got much real work out of either of these Governing Bodies; the former, the Senate, or secular one, which had fallen very torpid latterly, was, not long after this, suffered to die out altogether. Peter himself was a violently pushing man, and never shrank from labour; always in a plunge of hurries, and of irregular hours. In his final time, people whispered, "The Czar is killing himself; sits smoking, tippling, talking till 2 in the morning; and is overhead in business again by 7!"

Czarina Elizabeth's Funeral, as seen by Hordt (much abridged). 'At 10 in the morning all the bells in Petersburg broke out; ' and tolled incessantly' (day or month not hinted at,—nor worth seeking; grim darkness of universal frost perceptible enough; clangour of bells; and procession seemingly of miles long,―on this extremely high errand!)-Minute-guns were fired from the 'moment the procession set out from the Castle till it arrived 'at the Citadel, a distance of two English miles and a half. 'Planks were laid all the way; forming a sort of bridge through 'the streets, and over the ice of the Neva. All the soldiers of 'the Garrison were ranked in espalier on each side. Three hun'dred grenadiers opened the march; after them, three hundred 'priests, in sacerdotal costume; walking two-and-two, singing 'hymns. All the Crowns and Orders, above mentioned by me, were carried by high Dignitaries of the Court, walking in single 'file, each a chamberlain behind him. Hearse was followed by

Jan.-July 1762. 'the Czar, his black cloak carried by Twelve Chamberlains, each 'a lighted taper in the other hand. Prince George of Holstein' (Czar's Uncle) came next, then Holstein-Beck' (Czar's Cousin). Czarina Catharine followed, also on foot, with a lighted taper; 'her cloak borne by all her Ladies. Three hundred grenadiers 'closed the procession. Bells tolling, minute-guns firing, seas of 'people crowding.'-Thus the Russians buried their Czarina. Day and its dusky frost-curtains sank; and Boötes, looking down from the starry deeps, found one Telluric Anomaly forever hidden from him. She had left of unworn Dresses, the richest procurable in Nature (five a-day her usual allowance, and never or seldom worn twice), '15,000 and some hundreds."53

Hordt is of the new Czarina Catharine's Evening Parties. "The 'Czarina received company every morning. She received every'body with great affability and grace. But notwithstanding her 'efforts to appear gay, one could perceive a deep background ' of sadness in her. She knew better than anybody the violent '(ardente) character of her husband; and perhaps she then She also had her circle

(

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already foresaw what would come.

every evening, and always asked the company to stay supper. 'One evening, when I was of her party, a confidential Equerry of the Czar came in, and whispered me That I had been searched for all over Town, to come to supper at the Countess's (that 'was the usual designation of the Sultana,'-das Fräulein, spelt in Russian ways, is the more usual). I begged to be excused 'for this time, being engaged to sup with the Czarina, to whom ' I could not well state the reason for which I was to leave. The Equerry had not gone long, when suddenly a great noise was heard, the two wings of the door were flung open, and the Czar ' entered. He saluted politely the Czarina and her circle; called 'me with that smiling and gracious air which he always had; 'took me by the arm, and said to the Czarina: "Excuse me, Madam, if tonight I carry off one of your guests; it is this 'Prussian I had searched for all over the Town." The Czarina laughed; I made her a deep bow, and went away with my 'conductor. Next morning I went to the Czarina; who, without mentioning what had passed last night, said smiling, 53 Hermann, v. 176.

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Jan.-July 1762. "Come and sup with me always when there is nothing to pre"vent it."

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February 21st, Hordt at Zarskoe-Zeloe. On occasion of the Czar's birthday' (which gives us a date, for once), there were great festivities, lasting a week. It began with a grand ' Te Deum, at which the Czar was present, but not the Czarina. She had, that morning, in obedience to her husband's will, 'decorated "the Countess" with the cordon of the Order of St. 'Catharine. She was now detained in her Apartment "by indisposition ;" and did not leave it during the eight days the fes'tivities lasted.' This happened at the Country Palace, ZarskoeZeloe; and is a turning-point in poor Peter's History.55 From that day, his Czarina saw that, by the medium of her Peter, it was not she that would ever come to be Autocrat; not she, but a pock-marked, unbeautiful Person, with Cordon of the Order of St. Catharine,-blessings on it! From that day, the Czarina sat brooding her wrongs and her perils,-wrongs done, very many, and now wrongs to be suffered, who can say how many! She perceives clearly that the Czar is gone from her, fixedly sullen at her (not without cause);—and that Siberia, or worse, is possible by and by. The Czarina was helplessly wretched for some time; and by degrees entered on a Plot;-assisted by Princess Dashkof (Sister of the Snub-nosed), by Panin (our Son's Tutor, "a genuine Son, I will swear, whatever the Papa may think in his wild moments!"), by Gregory Orlof (one's present Lover), and others of less mark;—and it ripened exquisitely within the next four months!

Hordt hears the Praises of his King. 'Next day' (nobody can guess what day) 'I dined at Court. I sat opposite the Czar, who talked of nothing but of his "good friend the King of Prussia." 'He knew all the smallest details of his Campaigns; all his 'military arrangements; the dress and strength of all his Regi'ments; and he declared aloud that he would shortly put all his 'troops upon the same footing' (which he did shortly, to the great disgust of his troops).- Rising from table, the Czar him'self did me the honour to say, "Come tomorrow; dine with me en petit appartement" (on the snug, where we often play 55 Hermann, p. 253.

Michaelis, ii. 627: 21st February 1728.'