he often obliges their Children to the meaneft Service, as being common Soldiers in his Foot-guards, and raises Perfons of no Extraction to the great Employments. The Bojars, or Privy Counsellors, had formerly the chief Direction of all the The Bojars. Pricaffes, or Offices: The Ocolnitzen were their Affiftants, being a lower Sort of Privy Counsellors, only admitted on extraordinary Occafions. The Dumnoy are the Judges of The Dumnoy all the Proceffes, and the Diacks the

and Diacks.

Secretaries: Every Pricaffe was compofed of those Officers, and had a fovereign Jurisdiction of Life and Death, independent one of another, which often caufed no fmall Confufion; they were above thirty in Number, for the feveral Branches or Provinces of the Empire; and though they are ftill kept up, yet the head Officers, as Bojars and Ocolnitzen, have been dropt by Degrees, and most of them left to the Diacks, or Secretary. In 1710, the Czar fell upon a new Scheme, which New Scheme. in Time may caufe great Alterations; he has divided the Empire into eight Governments.

Mosco, with all its Dependencies, is given to Mr Strefnoff, the Prefident at War.

ARCHANGEL, to Prince Galliczyn, formerly Envoy at Vienna.

ASOPH and the DoN, to Count Apraxin, HighAdmiral.

CASAN

CASAN and ASTRACAN, to Lieutenant General Apraxin, his Brother,

CHIOFF and the UKRAINE, to Lieutenant General Galliczyn, who was Commiffary of War with Mufcovite Troops in Saxony.

SIBERIA, to Prince Gagarin.

LIVONIA, INGARIA, PLESCOW and NOVOGROD, to Prince Menzicoff the Favorite.

SMOLENSKO, to Monfieur Soltikoff.

VERONITZ and the Ship-Yards, are to be a fmall Government apart, which the Czar, referves in petto.

Thefe Governors have the Difpofal of all Employ

ments Civil and Military, receive the Revenues, and defray all the Expences in their feveral Provinces, and send a certain Sum Yearly into the great Treafury, clear of all Charges; they have absolute Power, except in relation to the regular Troops, who are never to be under their Direction, nor paid by them, though quartered in their Jurifdiction, but are to receive their Orders immediately from the Czar and his Generals.

The present Czar is in his thirty-eighth Year, a handfome Prince, of a strong Constitution but of late much broke by irregular Living

The Czar.

and other Fatigues: He was very fubject to Convul

1

fions,

fions, faid to be the Effects of Poifon from his Sifter Sophia in his Youth, which made him fhy of being feen, but of late they are much mended. He is extremely curious and diligent, and has farther improved his Empire in ten Years, than any other ever was in ten Times that Space; and, which is more furprifing, without any Education, without any foreign Help, contrary to the Intention of his People, Clergy, and chief Minifters, but merely by the Strength of his own Genius, Obfervation and Example: He has gradually paffed through all the Employ ments of the Army, from a Drummer to Lieutenants General; of the Fleet, from a common Seaman to Rear Admiral; and in his Ship-yards, from an ordinary Carpenter to Mafter-Builder: Farther Particulars, though agreeable, would be too long for this Place: He is good-natured but very paffionate, though by Degrees he has learnt to conftrain himfelf, except the Heat of Wine is added to his natural Temper; he is certainly ambitious, though very modeft in Appearance; fufpicious of other People; not over fcrupulous in his Engagements or Grati tude; violent in the first Heat, irrefolute on longer Deliberation, not rapacious, but near in his Temper and Expence to Extremity; he loves his Soł diers, understands Navigation, Ship-building, Fortification, and Fire-working: He fpeaks High-Dutch pretty readily, which is now growing the Court Language. He is very particular in his way of Living; when at Mofco he never lodges in the Palace, but in a little Wooden Houfe built for him in the Subburbs as Colonel' of his Guards; He has neither

Court,

Court, Equipage, or other Distinction from a private Officer, except when he appears on publick Solemnities.

The Court.

The Court of the former Czars was very numerous and magnificent, being filled on folemn Occafions by the Bojars, or Privy. Counsellors, with all the Officers of each Pricaffe, by the Nobility and Gentry, who were obliged to Attendance by Titles of Honour and Diftinction without any Salary; as the Krapfhecks, or Carvers, who are only two of the firft Nobility, this Employment being reckoned very confiderable: The Stolnicks, or Sewers, who are also used to carry any Meffage of Importance, to receive Embaffadors, &c. The Spalnicks, or Gentlemen of the Bedchamber; which two laft Titles are in great Number, and defcend from Father to Son, though generally confirmed by the Prince: And lastly, by the Gofts, or chief Merchants. On public Feafts or Ceremonies all thefe received rich Gowns of Brocade lined with Furs from the Treasury, which they returned as foon as the Appearance was over; but the prefent Czar has quite abolished these Formalities, without fettling any other Court; fome fay, to fpare the Expence during the War, or rather from his particular Temper which is averfe to fuch Conftraints. On any Ceremony, he is attended by the Officers of his Army, and Nobility without any Diftinction, which makes a tolerable Show.

VOL. II,

His

His Favourite Alexander Menzicoff is born of very mean Parents; was accidentally met by The Favourite. the Czar in the Streets when a Boy, and for fome unlucky Answers preferred to ferve one of his Gentlemen; from which Step he is grown by Degrees the most powerful Subject in Europe; his Diligence and Dispatch have been his chief Recommendation; and fome have thought their Intimacy rather resembled Love than Friendship, they having frequent Jars and constant Reconcilements, though fome fuch Accident may once prove fatal, as has already been very near. His Parts are not extraordinary, his Education low, for the Czar would never let him learn to read or write, and his Advancement too quick to give him Time for Obfervation or Experience. Under the Czar's Name, he uses an abfolute Power in all Affairs; makes every Intereft give way to his private Paffions; in which he often contradicts the Czar's Orders, and if it comes to be contefted, generally carries the Point from his Mafter; he is not beloved by the common People, and much lefs by the old Nobility and chief Officers, who have a strong Cabal against him, headed by the High-Admiral Apraxin. He was made Prince of the Empire in 1706; Duke of Ingria in 1707; and Felt Marfhal in 1709. He is a violent Enemy to Felt Marshal Sheremotoff, and has often brought him to the Brink of Ruin. He has formed a Court after the Fashion of the little German Princes, of Chamberlains, Marfhals, Secretaries, &c. moft Foreigners.

Monfieur