Year 1386. by the Duke de Jagillon who embrac'd the Christian Religion that he might marry Hedwige Daughter to Lewis King of Poland and Hungary and who with his Religion changed also his Name and was called Viadislaus For the Polanders were Christians long before having received the Faith of Christ ann 964 in the Reign of Miecislans I. who after he had divorced seven Pagan Wives was converted and marry'd the Daughter of Boleslaus King of Bohemiae who was a Christian These two Estates are contiguous to one-another and are now but one Body being united in the same Interest under the Government of the same King and in the Profession of the same Religion especially since the Diet held at Grodeck on the River Bug between the Polanders and the Lithuanians in the year 1413. where the Union was renew'd and where it was concluded that for the future they should have the same Laws and Privileges and that the King should be elected by the joint Consent of the Nobility of the two Estates which was ratified and signed by all the Senators of Poland and Lithuania Nevertheless they are governed by distinct Officers each of them having a Grand Marshal and a Petty or Sub-Marshal whom they call the Marshal of the Court a Chancellor Vice-Chancellor and Treasurer who are all Senators those of the Crown for Poland and those of the Dutchy for Lithuania and are equal in Dignity and Power only those of the Crown take place of those of the Dutchy The Office of the Grand Marshal is to keep the Peace and prevent Tumults or Disturbances both in the Diets and in the King's Houshold to punish Offenders even with death and without Appeal from his Judgement except in cases of great Importance which may be brought before the King He has also Power to command Silence to give leave to speak to introduce Ambassadors to appoint them their Lodgings and to fix the prices of all Commodities and Merchandizes This last Branch of his Authority is extreamly advantageous to him for the Merchants give him very Considerable Presents that they may have leave to sell their Goods at exorbitant Rates The Chancellors and the Vice-Chancellors of the Crown are chosen by turns out of the Clergy and Laity But those of the Dutchy are always Lay-men The Chancellor and the Vice-Chancellor make use of the same Seals and either of them may be used indifferently for they have both an equal Authority only the latter gives place to the former and never gives judgement but in his absence The Chancellor by his Office is the Judge of all Civil Affairs and matters relating to the Kings Revenue 'T is also his Duty to take Care that nothing be done contrary to the Laws or Injurious to the Liberty of the People and that the Intrigues of Foreigners may not be prejudicial to the Republick The Authority of the Chancellors and Vice-Chancellors is so great that in several cases they may affix their Seals without the Kings Order and refuse to seal such things for him as are contrary to the Constitutions of the State 'T is the Office of the Chancellor or in his Absence of the Vice-Chancellor to answer all the Harangues that are made to the King by Ambassadors and he of the two who is a Clergyman hath power over the Secretaries Priests and Preachers of the Court and over the Ceremonies of the Church The Treasurer is properly the Keeper of the publick Treasure which is brought to him by four other Officers who keep an exact Account of it and are obliged to give one Copy to the King and another to the Treasurer His Office impowers him to prevent the wasting or embezelling of the Revenues of the Republick and of those which are appointed for maintaining the King's Table and therefore he ought to sign all the Contracts the King makes which otherwise would be void He ought also to take care that the Republick do not sustain any damage by the Contracts that are made for the Coyning of New Money When the Treasurer is called to an Account the General Diet orders a Committee of a certain Number of Persons to examine his Accounts and to give him an Acquittance without which the Republick may still call him to an Account for the Administration of his Imployment And therefore since this Acquittance is of such vast importance to the Grand Treasurer great Interest is always made about the Nomination of the Commissioners that are appointed to examine his Accounts because he is obliged not only to entertain the Commissioners but also to give them considerable Presents to obtain his discharge The Petty or Sub-Marshal or the Marshal of the Court who is the last of the five Officers that are Members of the Senate executes the Office of the Grand Marshal in his absence and in case of the Death or Demise of that Officer he succeeds in course as the Vice Chancellor is in such cases promoted to the dignity of the Chancellor So that before a Man can be Grand Marshal or Chancellor he must first be Petty Marshal or Vice Chancellor CHAP. II. Of the Division of Poland into Provinces THE Kingdom of POLAND formerly contained Fifteen great Provinces which the King retains still in his Title as King of Poland Duke of Lithuania Russia Prussia Massovia Samogitia Livonia Volhinia Kiovia Podolia Podlassia Smolensko Siâ—eria and Czerniechovia But at present there are no more than nine Provinces subject to the Crown of Poland viz. Great and little Poland the great Dutchy of Lithuania Russia Prussia Massovia Samogitia upper Volhinia and Podlassia or Podlachia Great POLAND is so called because Lechus first King of the Polanders settled his Residence at Gnesna in this Province It is also called Lower Poland and Posnania is the principal City This Province contains eight Palatinates viz. Posnâ—â—â— Kalisch Lencici Brest Inowlocz Siradiae Kawa and Ploosko It is bounded on the North with Prussia on the South with Little Poland on the East with Massovia and on the West with Silesia and the New Marquisate of Brandâ—nburg The River Warta runs through the middle of the Province Little POLAND which is also called Upper POLAND contains three 〈◊〉 Cracow Saâ—domir and Lublin It borders with Massovia and Great Poland on the North Mount Crapat on the South Black Russia on the East and Silesia on the West and the River Vistula runs through it The City of Cracow is the Metropolis of this Province and of the whole Kingdom The Starosta of Cracow is not only Governour of the Castle but also the Defender of the Peace and of the publick Tranquility which entitles him to a large Jurisdiction both over the Inhabitants of Towns and the Gentry As for the great Dutchy of Lithuania tho Jagillon began to unite it to the Crown of Poland Anno 1386 and tho that union was afterwards renew'd in the Diet held at Grodeck between the Polanders and the Lithuanians in 1413 yet it still retained its own Dukes and
persons of all Ranks and Sexes into Slavery so that Thracia Scythia and almost all Asia was fill'd with Polish Slaves The Tartars are naturally so hardy that they swim over the Rivers in the Winter when there is no Ice which without doubt proceeds from the Mothers washing their Infants with cold Water They cross the great Rivers such as the Boristhenes after this manner each of them prepares several Faggots or Bundles of Rushes or Reeds which he ties to two Poles upon these he lays his Clothes Arms Saddle and all that he intends to carry along with him then he ties this little Bridge of Fagots to his Horse's Tail after which with one hand he takes hold of the Horse's Main and whips him with the other and in this equipage passes the River stark naked When the Tartars take the Field to make Incursions they agree beforehand that when they are pressed too hard by the Enemy they shall divide into several Parties each of which shall retire by a different way and that they shall afterwards rendezvous at a certain place They take these Precautions that those who pursue them seeing many tracts of Horses feet may not know which to follow They are so afraid of being killed or taken Prisoners that when they are press'd by their enemies they fly with such an amazing swiftness that having tir'd one of their Horses they leap from him at a full gallop upon the back of another without dismounting and if they find that they are still hotly pursu'd they first throw away their Sabre then their Bow and their Arrows and at last without alighting from their Horse they cut the Girths and drop the Saddle and by that means ease their Horses If in their flight they meet with a Defile or narrow passage they gallop thro' it with so much precipitation and disorder that they ride over one-another without minding those who command them no not the Cham who is their Prince which is an evident sign that they are all extreamly apprehensive of being kill'd or taken Prisoners The Cham who at present governs the Crim Tartars is of the Family of Gilerey and both he and all those of his Race are cloath'd in Silk the Officers in Cloth and the rest in Sheep-skins with the woolly sides next their skin in the Winter but they turn 'em outwards in the Summer or in rainy weather They wear no Turbans as the Turks and Persians do but Caps like the Polanders their Arms are a Sabre with a Bow and Arrows every one of them carries a Knife and an Awl to make Whips and Straps which serve to tye the Slaves whom they take in their Incursions they are extreamly afraid of Fire-arms their greatest strength consists in the swiftness of their Horses which are very ugly but never tire and each Tartar has many of them which he leads along with him and they know their Masters so well that they follow 'em when they fly without losing 'em or running away from ' em Their usual Food is Horse-flesh which they like so well that they prefer it before Beef I have seen some Tartars who were Prisoners in Poland eat Horses that dy'd of any Distemper and even devour the Head Feet and Intrails None but the Rich eat Bread and the rest live upon Milk Millet and Turkey Wheat They are very lazy when they are in their own Country but are extreamly laborious and vigilant when they go abroad upon an Expedition The Poor kill no Horses to eat unless they be sick and when they kill one they give part of it to their Neighbors they make a sort of Pudding with the Blood of the Horse they kill and the Meal of Turkey Wheat or Millet which they reckon to be a very delicious Ragou They eat but little Salt because they believe it to be bad for the eyes and since they are Mahometans 't would be needless to add that they eat no Bacon These are some of the most remarkable Observations I made during my abode in Crim Tartary The Tartars are divided into Hords or Cantons almost like the Switzers These Hords are unequal in bigness number and strength the greatest of them all is that betwixt Kilia and Bialogrod which are two Towns one at the mouth of the Niester and the other at the mouth of the Danube Next to this the most considerable is that of Oczacow a City and Fort which the Turks call Dziarerimenda at the mouth of the Boristhenes the smallest of all the Hords is that of Kipozako which takes its Name from the River that runs by the Town The Cham of the Tartars never goes out of the Crim to take the Field unless all the Hords march with him There are also some Mahometan Tartars subject to Poland who live in Lithuania near Vilna where they possess Lands and work as the other Lithuanians do they were establish'd there by Vitold Uncle to King Vladislaus Jagellon after he had expel'd 'em out of the Lower Volhinia King Jagellon had also Tartars in his Army when he routed the Teutonic Knights in the Year 1386. After this short account of the Tartars I proceed to take a view of the Cossacks and first of Vkrania CHAP. V. Of Ukrania and the Cossacks with an Account of the Lithuanians and Livonians LOwer Volhinia and Lower Podolia are both comprehended under the name of Vkrania which in the Sclavonish tongue signifies a Frontier because those Provinces are the Frontiers of the Turks and Tartars who are the most terrible Enemies of Poland This is a very large Country containing above 300 miles from East to West and above 180 from North to South Kiovia scituated on the Boristhenes is the capital City and was once one of the largest Towns in Europe but it has been so often pillag'd and harass'd by the Tartars that there is nothing to be seen in it at present but ruin'd Houses and Cottages with a Fort in which the Muscovites keep Garrison The Boristhenes which is one of the greatest Rivers in Europe runs thro' the middle of the Country and receives all the other Rivers that water it The first Rendezvous of the Cossacks who were originally Russian Peasants was in the Isles of the Boristhenes especially that of Tamahoâ—ka from whence they spread themselves thro' all Vkrania betwixt the Cities of Kiovia and Czyrkassy At that time they liv'd only by Hunting and Fishing they are call'd the Zaporovian Cossacks because they inhabit along the Boristhenes to distinguish them from those who live on the Banks of the Tanais or Don which empties itself into the Palus Meotis Stephen Battori King of Poland was the first who brought the Cossacks under Military Discipline and appointed them the City of Trethymirow upon the Boristhenes about twelve leagues below Kiowia for their place of rendezvous for heretofore they had no Leaders and were so far from observing Discipline that they march'd rather like Freebooters than Soldiers But from that time they began to make
Capital City of Upper Podolia 'T is now in the hands of the Insidels The Sixteenth is the Bishoprick of Smolensko which is scituated on the Boristhenes the Metropolis of a Dutchy and of a Palatmate heretofore depending upon Lithuania but now in possession of the Muscovites 'T is to be observ'd that most of the Bishops have in their Diocesses a Suffragan or Subordinate Bishop in Partibus Infidelium because those who bear the Title imagine that they were only made Bishops that they might have a Place in the Senate and enjoy a sufficient Revenue to support that Dignity They allow a small Pension to their Substilties for the pains they take in giving Orders and performing all other Episcopal Functions CHAP. X. Of the Palatins Castellans and Officers of State who are Senators THE First Secular Senatos are 36 in Number viz. 32 Palatins who are properly Governours of Provinces 3 Castellans and one Starosta The First of all the Secular Senators is the Castellan of Cracow who was advanc'd to that Dignity by King Boleslaus Crivoustus about the year 1103. This Prince being provok'd by the Insolence of Scarbimirus Palatin of Cracow who was perpetually endeavouring to stir up the People to Rebellion expell'd him out of the Senate and threw him into Prison where he died And that he might leave an Eternal Mark of his Resentment to Posterity he made an Edict or Constitution by which it was Ordain'd that for the future the Castellan of Cracow should always precede the Palatin The Second and Third Places belong by Turns to the Palatin of Cracow and Posnania The Palatinat of Cracow is in Upper Poland and that of Posnanania in the Lower or Greater Poland In this Palatinate there is a Town called Srim scituated on the River Varta about Four Leagues above Posnania near which there is a Mountain where they dig up Pots Pitchers and other Earthen Vessels all form'd by Nature which are soft and afterwards harden in the Air. The Fourth is the Palatin of Vilna in Lithuania The Fifth the Palatine of Pandomir a City of Upper Poland scituated on the Vistula The Sixth The Castellan of Vilna The Seventh The Palatin of Kalisch a City of Great Poland The Eighth The Palatin of Troki a City of Lithuania scituated upon a Lake The Ninth The Palatin of Siradia a City of Lower Poland scituated on the River Varta about Six Leagues from Kalisch and Eleven from Lencicia The Tenth The Castellan of Troki The Eleventh The Palatin of Lencici a City of Lower Poland scituated upon an Eminence about Four Leagues Eastwards from the River Varta The Twelfth The Starosta of Samogitia The Thirteenth The Palatin of Brest or Bressici a City of Lithuania the Metropolis of the Province of Polesia scituated on the River Bug. The Fourteenth The Palatin of Kiovia in Lower Volhinia But this Palatinat is only Titular because the Muscovites have kept the possession of the Town ever since the Cossacks put it into their hands The Fifteenth is the Palatin of Inowlocz a City of Lower Poland scituated on the River Germ about Two Leagues below the Lake Guplo and Five from the Viscula The Sixteenth The Palatin of Russia so called from the Name of the whole Province though there are several Palatinats in it and though he is only Palatin of Leopold The Seventeenth The Palatin of Upper Volh nia or of Lucâ—oria The Eighteenth The Palatin of Upper Podolia which was farmerly a Province of Poland There are many Wild Oxen and Asses in this Country It extends from Upper Volhinia to the Niester and from Lower Podolta to Russia The Chief Cities of Upper Podolta are Caminiec scituated on the River Smotrzy and Bar seated on the Row which empties it self into the Bug about Seven Leagues below Braclaw But this Palatinat is at present a meer Titular Dignity because the Turks have been Masters of it ever since the loss of Caminiec The Nineteenth The Palatine of Smolensko This Palatinat is also Titular because the Muscovites have possessed it since the Year 1654. The Twentieth The Palatin of Lublin a City in Upper Poland seated on a Brook which falls into the River Vieprz about Two Leagues below the Town The 21th The Palatin of Losk a City of Lithuania seated on the River Dzwina The 22th The Palatin of Belcz a City of Black Russia about Three Leagues Eastward from the River Bug. In this Palatinat there is a Lake which grows dry once every Three years the Waters retiring with a great Noise into the Cavities of the neighbouring Hills But they return some time after and 't is only during this Interval that they can take the Fish The 23th is the Palatin of Nowogrodeck a City of Lithuania about Three Leagues from the River Niemen The 24th is the Palatin of Plocsko a City of Lower Poland scituated on the Vistula about Three Leagues from the Dutchy of Massovia The 25th The Palatin of Vitepsk a City in the Dutchy of Lithuania scituated on the River Dzwina The 26th is the Palatin of Massovia which is a Province of Poland the Metropolis whereof is Warsaw scituated on the Vistula The 27th is the Palatin of Polaquia or of Bielsk a small City about Four Leagues from the River Narew In this Palatinat is the Lake Augustow which is Five Leagues long and half a League broad The 28th is the Palatin of Rava a City in Lower Poland The 29th is the Palatin of Brzesty a City in Lower Poland about Four Leagues from Plocsko In this Palatinat is the Lake Gulplo which is very full of Fish and is Four Leagues long and one broad This Lake is the Head of the River Germ which runs to Inowlocz and in the Palatinat of Kalisch changeth its Name to Netec and afterwards empties it self into the River Varta The 30th is the Palatin of Chelm a City of Black Russia about Seven Leagues from the River Bug towards the East In this Palatinat there is a Lake called Biale which signifies White It s Water is extreamly black and the Fish very good 'T is said the Water of this Lake Polisheth every thing that is washed with it during the Months of April and May. The 31th is the Palatin of Mseislaw a City in the Dutchy of Lithuania scituated on the River Sosz which empties its self into the Borysthenes about Forty Leagues lower The 32th is the Palatin of Marienburg a City in Royal Prussia scituated on one of the Arms of the Vistula which falls into the Frischaff This City was heretofore the Seat of the Great Master of the Knights of the Teutonic Order and in the Church of the Castle are still to be seen a great many Forms or Seats which formerly belonged to those Religious Knights of St. Mary The 33th The Palatin of Braclaw a City in Lower Podolia scated on the River Bug. This Palatinat which contains all the Lower Podolia is at present only Titular There is a Lake in the Desarts betwixt this Province and
St. Basil who are under the Vow of Chastity As for the Curats of their Parishes those who are admitted to Orders after their Marriage are not oblig'd to separate from their Wives But they cannot Marry after their Ordination and when their Wives die they must for ever afterwards live in Celibacy Their Liturgy is in the Russian Language which as well as the Polish is properly a Dialect of the Slaâ—ouie They believe that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father by the Son and that the Pope is not the Head of the whole Church but only the first of the Two Patriarchs and that he of Constantinople whose Authority they acknowledge is the Second and yet Independant on the first In all other Articles of Faith they agree with the Catholicks But their Ceremonies and Ornaments are different from those of the Latins and Armenians They Pray standing and make a great number of Genuflexions which they reckon with Beads They Administer the Sacrament in both kinds after this manner The Priest Consecrates several little Loaves of Leaven'd Bread and after he has taken the Sacrament himself he breaks these Loaves into little pieces and puts them into the Chalice with the Consecrated Wine Then with a little Silver Spoon which serves only for that Use he takes one of those pieces with a little Wine out of the Chalice and gives the Sacrament to those who approach him by pouring that little piece of Bread with the Consecrated Wine into the Mouth of each Communicant They Communicate standing holding their Arms a-cross their Breasts and also make their little Children receive the Communion After all the People have Communicated the Priest consumes all that is left in the Chalice The Third Bishoprick is that of Cracow which is the Capital City of the Kingdom scituated upon the Vistula in the Upper or Little Poland This Bishoprick was heretofore an Archbishoprick founded by Mieceslaus in the Year 964. immediately after he had imbraced the Christian Faith But that Dignity was lost by one Lampert who being of a Potent Family neglected to send to Rome for the Pallium 'T is observable that several Prelates have held both this Bishoprick and the Archbishoprick of Gnesna at the same time The Bishop of Cracow stiles himself Duke of Siberia All the Nobility of that Dutchy are under his Authority and are exempted from the Jurisdiction of the Royal Coarts This Metropolis is compos'd of 3 Citties joyâ—â—d together viz. The Antient City which was built by King Cracus Casimirie which was built by Casimir the Great with a design to establish an Academy in it and that which is between them both the two latter being joyned by a Bridge The Jews who before the Year 1494. were dispers'd promiscuously throughout the whole City since that time are oblig'd to reside in Casimirie for upon the occasion of a Fire which burnt down part of the City the Soldiers drove the Jews out of all the Houses they possess'd and ever since they are only permitted to live in Casimirie from whence they come every Market-day to the Old City Queen Hedwige the Wife of Vladislaus Jagellon who was a Princess of great Vertue and Piety designed to have finished the Academy which King Casimir the Great began to Erect at Cracow and after the Death of that Queen who left considerable Legacies to the Poor the King her Husband took care to continue her Pious Design in order to which he established 2 Colleges in that City and brought Masters thither from Prague to Instruct the Youth These Colleges are almost like those of Paris There are some endow'd Scholarships and the Students are oblig'd to very little Exercise In one of these Colleges which is call'd the Academy there is a certain number of poor Scholars who receive Weekly Charity to keep them from starving which with what they get by begging Alms in the Streets at Night enables them to 〈◊〉 their Studies The 〈◊〉 is the Bishoprick of Cujavia and Pomeâ—â—â—◠〈◊〉 is compos'd of the Palatinate of 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 in the Lower or Great Poland The Bishop's Seat is at Wiadislow a City on the Vistula about Four Leagues above Thorn The Fifth is the Bishoprick of Vilna which is the Metropolis of the Dutchy of Lithuania scituated on the River Vilia which falls into the Niemen below Kowno This City is Large and very Populous The Sixth is the Bishoprick of Posnania which is a City of Lower Poland in the Palatinate of the same Name scituated on the River Varta There is an old Castle upon a Rising Ground and the Cathedral Church is without the City which is indifferently Large and Populous The Seventh is the Bishoprick of Plocsko a small City in Lower Poland scituated on the Vistula about Five Leagues above Wladislaw The Bishops Seat is at Pultausk in Massovia scituated on the River Narev which meets with the Bug about Two Leagues lower The Bishop of Plocsko is Soveraign of the Territory of Pultausk and there is no Appeal from his Sentence not even to the King The Eighth is the Bishoprick of Warmia in Royal Prussia The Episcopal Seat is at Frawenherg a small City near Frischhaff The Bishop of Warmia is President of Royal Prussia and all the Nobility of his Diocess depend upon him and are exempted from all the Royal Jurisdictions The Ninth is the Bishoprick of Luceoria or Lucko which is the Capital City of Volhinia The Tenth is the Bishoprick of Premislia which is a City of Black Russia upon the River Sana about 6 Leagues above Jeroslaw and 12 from Leopold towards the West There are two Bishops in this City one a Latin Catholick and the other a Greek Schismatick One Orichowski Canon of this Cathedral was the first who at the beginning of the Reformation maintained that 't was lawful for Priests to Marry and afterwards Marryed himself Anno 1549. in the Reign of Sigismund Augustus The Eleventh is the Bishoprick of Samogitia This Prelate has no particular Seat except at Midnich which is one of the Chief Burroughs of that Province The Twelfth is the Bishoprick of Culm a City of Royal Prussia scituated on the Vistula about 6 Leagues above Thorn This Prelate formerly preceded the Bishop of Warmia The Thirteenth is the Bishoprick of Chelm in Black Russia There are Two Bishops in this City one a Latin Catholick and the other a Greek Schismatick But the Latin Bishop remov'd his Seat to Kranostaw another City in the same Palatinat Seated on a Great Lake through which runs the River Vieptz by reason of the frequent Irruptions of the Tartars and Cossacks who have ruin'd the City of Chelm The Fourteenth is the Bishoprick of Kiowia the Metropolis of Volhinia and of all Vkrania This City is the Seat of a Greek Schismatical Archbishop who was formerly Primate of all the Russians The Inhabitants of Kiowia are Schismaticks and now Subject to the Great Duke of Muscovy The Fifteenth is the Bishoprick of Caminiec which is the
of his Bishoprick But that Prelate resolving to maintain the Honour and Interest of his Country and being equally Proof against Promises and Threatnings reply'd That he was sensible their Master deserv'd a Crown but that he could not make himself Master of Lithuania without violating the Oath he had taken touching the Union of that State with Poland and therefore he advis'd him to lay aside that pernicious design which would be so far from being either honourable or advantageous to him that it would be an eternal Reproach to him and would hasten the Ruin of his Country That he should not flatter himself with thinking that the Germans and Teutonic Knights would be his faithful Allies since they were irreconcilable Enemies both to the Lithuanians and Polanders That their only design was to weaken both the one and the other and of most firmly united Friends as they were to make them become mortal Enemies that they might be able to execute their Designs upon those two Nations and make 'em the Instruments of their own Ruin That the King of the Romans could not forbear discovering his treacherous Intentions declaring with a kind of Ostentation that He had cast a Bone between two Dogs that they might worry one-another Vitold was so mortified with this Answer that his Grief threw him into a Fit of Sickness and his Death which follow'd soon after broke the Measures which Sigismund had taken to disunite Lithuania from Poland I have insisted the longer upon this Story to shew that after the Germans had taken Silesia from the Polanders they were still forming new Projects to weaken ' em And from hence we may also take notice of the terrible Consequences of the mistaken Politics of some Princes who intrust their Subjects with too large a Share in the Government for 't is plain that by an excessive Kindness to his Uncle this excellent King was in danger of losing both Poland and Lithuania By the Peace concluded in the Abby of Oliva near Dantzick the third of May 1660 of which the French King was Guarantee the Polanders yielded up Livonia to the Swedes and the Soveraignty of Ducal Prussia to the Elector of Brandenburg and as for Silesia 't is so long since they lost it that they think no more of recovering it for it seems to be one of their peculiar Qualities to lose the remembrance of their Losses Thus Poland is at present border'd on the North with Livonia and Muscovy on the South with Upper Hungary and Transylvania on the East with Vkrania which belongs to the Turks and the Dutchies or Palatinates of Smolensko Siberia Czernichowia and Kiowia which are under the Dominion of the Muscovites and on the West with Sitesia which belongs to the Emperor Since I observ'd that the Revolt of the Cossackâ— was the occasion of the loss of all Vkrania and brought the Tartars into Poland I must in the next place take a short view of those two Nations and first of the Tartars CHAP. IV. Of the Tartars 'T IS observ'd of this Warlike and Barbarous Nation that they never Fight in Ranks and that in their flight they shoot Arrows behind them that their Poverty and their Swiftness makes 'em in a manner invincible and that they seem only to be born to pillage and impoverish their Neighbours They are descended from the great Tartars of Asia and left Mount Imaus beyond the Caspian Sea in the Year 1188. extending themselves along the Volga the Tanais and the neighbouring places and in that Peninsala which the Ancients call'd Taurica Chersonesus and which is now call'd the Crim. This is the Reason why they are and have been known by divers Names for those who inhabit the Peninsula are call'd Crim Tartars those who extend themselves to the River Don or Tanais which comes from Muscovy and discharges itself into the Palus Maeotis are call'd Nogais and both of them are call'd Petty Tartars to distinguish them from the Great Tartars of Asia The Crim is divided into two parts the Northern and the Southern the latter is cut thro the middle by very high and almost inaccessible Mountains The capital City of this Peninsula is Caffa which is a considerable Port on the Black Sea to the Eastward which Mahomet the Emperor of the Turks took from the Genoese in the year 1475. The whole Peninsula is but 78 leagues in length and 40 in breadth 'T is border'd with the Palus Sukamorzi towards the North the Black Sea on the South and West the Palus Maeotis and the Cimmerian Bosphorus which separates it from Circassia towards the East It is joyn'd to the Continent by a very narrow Isthmus towards the North near the Town of Precop After the year 1188 when the Tartars came into that Peninsula it continu'd under the Dominion of one Soveraign Independant from the Grand Signior But as Divisions among Princes is frequently the occasion of their ruin so the Crim became subject to the Turk by the Animosities that happen'd betwixt two Brothers For Machmetkirey Chan of the Crim Tartars the Ally and Friend of the Turks had two Brothers who revolted against him but not being strong enough to resist him they put themselves under the protection of Stephen Battori King of Poland and Machmetkirey after he had several times in vain demanded them of that King pray'd Amurath Emperor of the Turks to require 'em in his own name The Grand Signior comply'd with his Request and prevail'd with the King of Poland to send 'em to Constantinople with an Ambassador to assist at the Circumcision of his Son But when Amurath had those two Princes in his power instead of restoring them to Machmetkirey their Brother he resolv'd to retain them as Hostages for his Fidelity and by that means to keep him in a perpetual dependance upon the Port. The Grand Signior being at that time engag'd in a War with the Persians he desir'd the Cham of Tartary to assist the Turks in Asia and upon that condition promis'd to deliver up his Brother Upon this Assurance Machmetkirey march'd ed from Tartary with a powerful Army in order to assist him but understanding as he was passing thro' Mingrelia that the Turks were totally routed by the Persians he march'd back to his own Country where he expected to find his Brothers but perceiving that Amurath had disappointed him he was so enrag'd that the Grand Signior was forc'd to appease him with Presents and to send Ambassadors to make his excuse for not performing his Promise pretending that he was afraid to send back the two Princes in his absence lest they should have rais'd some disturbances and assuring him that he would put them very speedily into his hands Not long after these two Princes made their escapes from Constantinople and by the assistance of some other Tartars and of the Muscovites rais'd a new War against their Brother which oblig'd Machmetkirey to demand Succours of Amurath who promis'd to furnish him with some Troops but sent
their Drums and Trumpets and by discharging several Volleys of Canon round their Camp the new-rais'd Polanders believ'd that they were rejoycing for the arrival of the Tartars whom they expected which put 'em into such a consternation that they resolv'd upon a sudden flight their Officers not being able to stop them The disorder was so great and the flight so precipitate that the Cossacks were for a whole day of opinion that it was only a Feint to draw them from their Post but at last having detach'd some Troops to observe the Enemy they understood that there was not one Soldier left in the Polish Camp whereupon they marched immediately and pillag'd all the Baggage that the Polanders had left And the Tartars arriving afterwards in their Army they carried Terror and Desolation into the very Heart of the Kingdom Such was the fatal effect of a panick Fear that surpriz'd those new-rais'd and undisciplin'd Troops The Polish Army being thus totally dispers'd at Pilaveze a small City in Vpper Volhinia about two leagues from Chmielnich on the River Bugg the Tartars and Cossacks besieg'd Leopold with an Army of 300000 Men and at the first Assault took the Castle but they met with a more than ordinary resistance from the Town tho it was neither strong by Nature nor Art and defended by a small Garrison When these Barbarians perceiv'd that they could not make themselves Masters of the City they demanded 200000 Crowns of Gold for its ransom and the Burghers not being able to pay so exorbitant a Sum and fearing the Event of a Siege gave them 1200 Marks of uncoin'd Silver among which there was a great quantity of Church-plate but they not being satisfy'd with so small a sum continu'd to press the City which oblig'd the Burghers to give them 16000 Livres more which they rais'd with extraordinary difficulty and besides they gave them the holy Ornaments Cloth Silks and abundance of Furrs for tho' the City wants the Convenience of a River 't is a place of great Trade because it is the Metropolis of all Russia Thus the Cossacks and Tartars rais'd the Siege of Leopold October 24 1648 after which they ravag'd the Country and after the Tartars return'd home the Cossacks alone laid Siege to Zamoiscia a Town seated upon a Lake in the Palatinate of Belcz fortified with seven Bastions and beautified with an Academy which John Zamoski Chancellor and General of the Army of the Crown founded there It is famous for the vigorous resistance it made against Chemelnski General of the Cossacks who besieg'd it with an Army of above 60000 Men towards the end of the Year 1648. The Year following King John Casimir sent Deputies to Chemelnski to endeavour to bring him to a sense of his Duty and in the mean time to entreat him to restrain the Violence of his Troops and to hinder them from making Incursions But Chemelnski answer'd fiercely That he would put himself under the Protection of the Port if the Polanders would not grant him all the Conditions he requir'd The King who was resolv'd to leave no means unattempted to overcome the Obstinacy of the Cossacks sent other Deputies to treat with 'em concerning Articles of Peace they found Chemclnski at Pereaslaw where they deliver'd to him in the King's Name the Batoon of a General on the 20th of February 1649 and receiv'd his Proposals which look'd rather like absolute Commands than Conditions of Peace for he exclaim'd with great vehemency against Visnovieshi and Czaplinski and declar'd with an infupportable Insolence That he would never be at quiet till he had chastiz'd them for all the Injuries they had done to the Cossacks That Visnovieski must be punish'd and Czaplinski put into their hands as the Authors of all these Disasters That Potoski was not free from the Crime of having persecuted the Cossacks even into the Isles of the Boristhenes whither they had retir'd to save their Lives That nevertheless Potoski who was then a Slave in the Crim was punish'd sufficiently for all his pernicious Designs That to those three he might add the great Standard bearer of the Crown who had robb'd him of his Inheritance and had quarter'd his Troops in the Territories of the Cossacks where they committed all manner of Barbarities but that he did not impute all those Disorders so much to him as to Visnovieski and Czaplinski That therefore the Punishment as well as the Blame ought to fall upon those two and that if they were not punish'd he would perish with all the Army of the Cossacks or Poland itself should perish with its Senate Generals Lords and all the Nobility King Casimir perceiving the Design of the Cossacks by this Answer drew his Forces together and on the other hand Chemelnski call'd in the Tartars who came to his assistance with a formidable Army and attack'd a body of the Polish Troops which was encamp'd at Zbaras a small City of Lower Podolia upon the Frontiers of Lower Volhinia about ten leagues from Braclaw towards the North famous for the brave defence that a small number of Polanders made against an infinite number of Cossacks and Tartars who kept them invested for two months and thrice attack'd their Retrenchments without being able to force them for the Polanders defended themselves with so incredible a Valour that they gave their King time to come to their relief The Cossacks and Tartars hearing of their approach march'd secretly to Zborow on the River Bog to meet him where being defeated by King Casimir and understanding that another Party of Cossacks was routed by the Lithuanians they concluded a Peace with Poland which was afterwards ratified in the Dyet held at Warsaw in the same Year 1649. After the Peace was concluded with the Cossacks at Zborow Chemelnski their General growing daily more powerful and insolent assisted the Cham of Tartary against the Circassians without the King 's Leave and afterwards having receiv'd Succours from the Cham he attack'd the Hospodar of Moldavia from whom he exacted a great Ransom with a Promise to give his Daughter in Marriage to his Son Timothy But not being satisfied with so considerable an Alliance he sent Deputies Anno 1650 to the Port to desire some Auxiliary Forces and to put himself under the protection of the Turks Thus he shook off the Yoke of the Republic of Poland and the Cossacks made themselves Masters of all Vkrania which was an extraordinary mortification to the Polish Nobility who had just re-enter'd upon the Estates they had lost during the Insurrection of those Rebels King Casimir having lost all Hopes of reducing them by Promises or Favours resolv'd once more to have recourse to Force In pursuance of this Resolution he summon'd the Arrierban in the Year 1651 and led them with his whole Army into the Fields which depends upon the City of Lesinow beyond Beretesko a City of the Palatinate of Luceoria on the River Ster about a league from the Frontiers of Russia In
this place he found the Cossacks and Tartars joyn'd together whom he attack'd and fought for three days together during which time the Battel was very obstinate on both sides but at last the Polish Army obtain'd an entire Victory over the Cossacks and Tartars and put Chemelnski and the Cham who commanded in person to flight This deseat oblig'd Chemelnski to make a Peace with Poland which was concluded Sept. 28. 1651 but lasted not long for soon after the Cossacks being enrag'd by the Insolency of the Polish Nobility and fearing to fall again into their ancient Bondage attack'd the Army of the Republic and totally routed it I observ'd before that Chemelnski had always the Policy to enter into an Alliance with such Princes who were best able to support him In pursuance of this Maxim as soon as he understood that the Tartars had made a Peace with Poland not daring to rely upon his own single strength he put himself under the protection of the Muscovites in the year 1654 and made a League with 'em which cost the Polanders the City of Smolensko which the Muscovites took the same year Chemelnski dying Anno 1658 the Cossacks chose one Vihowski for their General and threaten'd that they would put themselves into the hands of the Turk or the D. of Muscovy if the Republic would not grant all that they demanded upon which King John Casimir considering that it would be equally disadvantageous to his Kingdom whether they submitted to the Duke of Muscovy or the Turks concluded a Peace with 'em by which it was agreed that all their Captains should be Gentlemen of Poland That Vihowski their General should be Palatin of Kiowia That the Bishops of the Greek Religion should be admitted to the chief Offices and That the Metropolitan of Kiowia should have the rank of a Senator Besides the Starostie of Lubomliana was given to Vihowski and that of Bobrois to Nieczaio on condition that they should hold them as Fiefs of the Republic These Conditions was afterwards ratified by the Diet And by this means the Cossack Captains from miserable Peasants of Russia as they were by their Birth were advanc'd to the Dignity of Polish Noblemen I have already observ'd that the revolt of the Cossacks was partly occasion'd by the Tyranny of the Polish Gentlemen for they were their Lords and had power of Life and Death over 'em as they have still in Poland over all their Peasants Those of Vkrania not being able to support their Insolency began to revolt and by degrees expel'd all the Nobility There were several great Lords who by this revolution lost above 100000 Crowns a Year among whom was the above mention'd Prince Visnovieski whose Son I have seen in Poland so poor that he had only a yearly Pension of Six thousand Livres which Queen Mary Louise allow'd him to subsist upon but Fortune afterwards rais'd him to the Throne upon the abdication of King Casimir as I shall have occasion to observe in its proper place That fatal Revolt of the Cossacks which began in the Reign of Sigismund III augmenting by degrees under the following Kings not only depriv'd many Polish Gentlemen of their Estates and gave the Tartars occasion to carry away above a million of persons into Slavery but was also the cause of the decay of the Christian Religion throughout Vkrania For it may be reasonably suppos'd that the Turks endeavour to settle Mahometism in that Country in imitation of all Conquerors who the Letter to secure the Fidelity of the people whom they subdue force them to receive their Religion as the most effectual way to keep 'em in Obedience to their new Masters And even tho' the Turks should not endeavour to settle Mahometism in all their Conquests it wou'd at last become the modish Religion since 't is usual for people to take the Language and Religion of a Prince whose Favour they are desirous to procure The Cossacks having under several Generals maintain'd a War against the Polanders who perpetually labour'd to reduce them they were at last oblig'd to call in the Turks and to put themselves under their protection Thus were those Infidels admitted into Vkrania and easily made themselves Masters of the City of Caminiec which they found destitute of all sorts of Provisions nevertheless they took it by Capitulation But they were so far from observing the Articles they had granted by which the Inhabitants were to continue still in the profession of their ancient Religion that as soon as they were Masters of the place they carried away into Slavery all the people of that unhappy City and left no mark of its having been once inhabited by Christians but only the Cathedral Church which they have also turn'd to a Mosque These are the fatal Consequences of the insupportable Tyranny of the Gentlemen of Poland and of their unjustifiable Cruelty to their Subjects But long before the Turks invaded Poland they look'd upon Vkrania as a Country which they resolv'd to conquer at any rate and which they might easily subdue if the Cossacks should be oblig'd to desire their protection Besides they were willing to take hold of so favourable an Opportunity to deliver themselves from such cruel and formidable Enemies who had so often harass'd 'em by their Pyracies on the Black Sea They had made Peace with the Emperor and consequently were not oblig'd to keep an Army in Hungary and after the abdication of King John Casimir who was a valiant Prince the People had chosen a peaceable King in his place They consider'd also that the Revolt of the Cossacks gave them a free passage into a pleasant and fertile Country such as Vkrania certainly is and invited 'em to make themselves Masters of Caminiec which is the Key of that Province For that City which is the Metropolis of Upper Podolia is fortified by Nature being situated on a Rock environ'd by a very deep broad and sleep Ditch which is sill'd with Water by the River Smotrzy which almost quite surrounds the City so that it leaves only a narrow passage into it and 't is that entry only which is fortified by Art all the rest being sufficiently defended by Nature Nevertheless it must be acknowledg'd that the Hills that are beyond the Ditch being higher than the City the Garrison in a Siege might be very much incommoded with Artillery But 't is not such an Inconveniency as this that can oblige a place of strength to surrender nor will it ever be reduc'd by so distant an attack and after all the City of Caminiec will ne'r be retaken by the Polanders unless the Port be one day reduc'd as low as Poland was when the Turks took it In the Reign of King Michael the Polanders were so firmly perswaded of the impossibility of reducing that place and of the difficulty of putting an end to the War with the Grand Signior that they made a shameful Peace with him and oblig'd themselves to pay him a yearly Tribute
boldness to Attack Poland as they did in the Reign of King Michael where they enter'd Vkrania with a Powerful Army and easily made themselves Masters of Caminieck which the Polanders could never retake since But as Poland could not choose a poorer so they could not have Chosen a more liberal Prince than King Michael And as he was wholly destitute of the means to display that Noble and Princely Quality so Providence order'd that as soon as he was Proclaim'd King he found himself Master of richer Furniture and a greater quantity of Plate than any of the Kings His Predecessours had ever enjoy'd For all the Senatours and Gentlemen who were able to make any considerable Presents strove with a kind of Emulation to express their Affection to their New Soveraign so that on the Day of his Election he was so amaz'd at such a sudden and unexpected Alteration that he cou'd hardly forbear looking upon it as a Golden Dream He was no sooner Proclaim'd but the Chancellour began to Insinuate that He ow'd his Crown to him nor was it a difficult task to Impose upon a Prince who was easily Govern'd and had more good Nature than Judgment Thus the Chancellor had the pleasure to see that his Power was as great as his Ambition but that satisfaction was sufficiently moderated by the Troubles and Divisions that happen'd under his Ministry for having perswaded the King without the consent of the Republick to Marry the Emperor's Sister by whom he had no Children There was such a considerable Party form'd against that Prince that he was in perpetual danger of being Dethron'd and reduc'd in a Cloister to greater Miseries than that which he suffer'd before his Election And to heighten His Asslictions he perceiv'd that Queen Eleanor his Wife was engag'd in the Party that wou'd have oblig'd him to Resign His Crown that she might Marry a handsom and brave Prince whose Picture she had seen and who without doubt had been King of Poland if Death jealous of the happiness of that Country had not snatch'd him away in the flower of his Age to the regret of all the World and particularly of Q. Eleanor who cou'd not forbear expressing her sorrow by her Tears when she heard the News of his death Among the several Princes who pretended to dispossess King Michael Duke Augustus Ernest of Brunswick Bishop of Osnabrug who would have willingly exchang'd both his Bishoprick and Religion for the Crown of Poland was one But he was Marry'd he would have met with greater obstacles than the Prince I just nown mention'd CHAP. XV. Of the Diets in general THo' as a mark of the Obedience and Respect which Christians are oblig'd to pay to the Clergy the Polanders have thought fit to give the Bishops the Precedency in their Diets as being the Ministers and Dispensers of Holy Things it hath been sometimes observ'd that the Laity have taken the liberty to dispute that Honour with them Thus at the Diet held at Lublin 1501. under the Reign of Alexander the II. there happen'd a great contest betwixt the Bishops and the Temporal Senators for tho' the latter were willing that the Bishops should be Seated all in a Row on the King 's Right hand they desir'd that they might also sit in a Row on his Left hand that so they might not be altogether beneath them This Controversy was long and hotly agitated but at last the King decided it in favour of the Bishops declaring That they should still enjoy their Ancient Priviledge to sit next the King both on His Right and Left hand A General Diet in Poland is a Meeting of the Nobility in one place to Consult about the Affairs of the Republick The King may appoint the Meeting where he thinks fit except the Diet of the Coronation which can only be held at Cracow but as for the rest it has been always in the King's Power to appoint the place of their Meeting 'T is true that for some time they have been always held at Warsaw But the Lithuanians having made a Complaint some years ago that they were expos'd to all the Inconveniencies of a long and tedious Journey it was agreed that one of Three Diets should for the Conveniency of the Lithuanians be held at Grodno a City of Lithuania in the Palatinat of Troki on the River Niemen about Twenty Leagues from Vilna 'T is seated partly upon a Plain and partly upon an Eminence and is Defended by a Castle which was taken and Sack'd by the Muscovites in the Year 1655 when the Whole Kingdom was harrass'd by the Swedes The other Two Diets are to be held at Warsaw which from the Election of Sigismond III. to that of John III. was always the Residence of the Kings of Poland It is Scituated on the Vistula in the Province of Massovia and the Diocess of Posnania There is a fine Palace in this City which Sigssmund built after his Election but there are no Avenues to it and the place where it is Scituated is so straightn'd that one must in a manner Divine how to go into it It has a very fine Prospect but is wholly destitute of Water Gardens or Trees Nor can those Defects be supply'd because on the one side it is bounded by the Houses of the City and on the other by the Vistula Warsaw is composed of Two Cities joyn'd together The Old Town which is Wall'd with Brick is small and ill Paved as are all the Cities of Poland but to make amends 't is Populous and enjoys a good Trade The New Town which is joyn'd to it is not considerable Besides those Two Cities there is also the great Suburb of Cracow the Houses of which are for the most part built and cover'd with Wood except some Pallaces which certain Persons of Quality had begun to Build before the Swedish Invasion both because the Kings Vladislaus and Casimir had a Palace there where they usually Resided and because those Princes design'd to enclose that Suburb and the Two Cities with 16 Bastions which they had already Mark'd out and whereof some footsteps are yet to be seen The above-mention'd Palace where the Kings Vladislaus and Casimir Resided has a Garden but is destitute both of Water and Trees There is still a Chapel in that Suburb called the Muscovites Chapel which Sigismond III. built for the Burying place of a Duke of Muscovie and his Brother who died in Prison at Gostynin in the Palatinat of Rava about Three Leagues from the City of Plocsko upon the Vistula to leave to Posterity a Monument of his Victories over the Muscovites It was some time ago given to the Dominican Fryars who have settl'd a Convent in it 'T is the Custom in Poland to hold Petty Diets in all the Palatinats before they hold a great or General Diet. These Petty Diets must be summon'd Three weeks before they can be held and held Six weeks before the General Diets In order to their Meeting the King sends
not be Crown'd and that the austrian Faction oppos'd it both because she was a French-woman born and because she was but a private Gentlewoman But the event show'd the contrary for she was Crown'd at Cracow with her Husband without the least opposition But if a Queen of Poland be not a Catholick she cannot be Crown'd as it happen'd to Helen the Wife of Alexander I. and Daughter to the Duke of Muscovy who being of the Greek Church and refusing to imbrace the Roman Catholick Faith the Republick would never consent that She should be Crown'd Tho' according to the Constitutions of the Republick and the Ancient Laws of the Kingdom both the Kings and Queens of Poland ought to be Crown'd at Cracow we find that this Ceremony has been sometimes perform'd in other places For Queen Cecilia the Wife of Vladislaus IV. was Crown'd at Warsaw in the Year 1637. And tho' there was a Law made the next Year that the Queens should always be Crown'd at Warsaw Anno 1670. 'T is true this was done with the consent of all the Orders of the Republick When the Queen is Crown'd the King must desire it of the Republick he must be present at the Ceremony himself Conduct her to the Church and present her to the Archbishop of Gnesna or to the Bishop who is to perform the Ceremony The Archbishop Anoints Her with the Consecrated Oil and puts the Crown upon Her head the Scepter into Her right hand and the Globe of Gold into Her left The Queens of Poland have no Officers but a Marshal and a Chancellor neither of whom are Senators but only Judges of the Differences that happen among her Domesticks They Answer the Harangues that are made to the Queen when an Ambassador makes her a Compliment in His Master's Name or when a Present is made to her at the Marriage of a Maid of Honour The King furnishes the Queen with Money to defray the Charge of her Houshold But after the King's death she must maintain her self and all her Retinue with the Revenue which the King bestows upon her with the Consent of the Republick both for her Dowry and for her Marriage-Present These Revenues are call'd the Reformation and consist of the Reversion of a certain number of Starosties which she cannot enjoy till they become vacant by the Death of the present Possessors So that a Queen of Poland is frequently kept from her Estate till she be just ready to leave it For sometimes those who possess the Starosties that are in her Reformation out-live her But if the King die before the Queen's Reformation be settled upon her the Republick allows her a Yearly Pension out of the Crown-Lands as they did to Queen Eleanor in the Year 1674 after the Election of King John for they were so king to that Princess as to give her a Yearly Pension of 120000 Livres by an express Article which was afterwards inserted in the Pacta Conventa but she chose rather to quit both that and the Kingdom than to see a French Gentlewoman succeed a Princess of the House of Austria CHAP. XXI Of the Polish Army THERE is so little Order or Discipline observ'd in the Polish Army that the Country is frequently harrass'd by those who are paid to defend it and the Republick is oblig'd to Raise New Troops every Year At the first there were few Cities in Poland But when the Inhabitants grew more Industrious in Cultivating the Ground they were perpetually molested by their Neighbours who by frequent Inrodes endeavour'd to deprive 'em of the fruit of their Labours In order to oppose these Invasions the Kings caused Castles and Fortresses to be built in the Cities which always subsisted so long as they were Protected by the Royal Authority and defended by good Officers and Disciplin'd Soldiers But since those Forts were neglected several Lords have endeavour'd to usurp the Posession of 'em that they might extend their Dominion over the Cities and oppress the Burghers as they do the Peasants in the Villages Those whom the Kings entrusted with the Government of those Places did not employ the Revenues that were annex'd to 'em in Repairing the Walls and Fortificatious whence it comes that all their Cities are open and that the Soldiers who are put there into Winter Quarters may go out when they please and Ravage the Country For when a Regiment is to be sent from one end of the Kingdom to the other the Commander is only Order'd to set out and to go to the place appointed without mentioning either the time or the places through which he is to March or the Cities where he is to Quarter so that he may run through the Whole Kingdom and so sometimes spend a Moneth or six Weeks in Marching to a place which he might have reach'd in Eight days 'T is plain that these disorderly Marches must of necessity waste and destroy the Cities and Villages through which the Soldiers pass Nor is the Law able to to remedy such an insupportable Grievance because it is not the Custom in Poland to establish Magazins and Store-houses in any place The Gentlemen who go to the Army spend the best part of their Estates in furnishing themselves with Magnificent Arms fine Horses and rich Apparel maintaining a Numerous Train of Servants Their Estates alone are not sufficient to defray so vast a Charge and besides they receive no Pay for a considerable time after they enter into the Service so that they are in a manner constrain'd to Oppress the People that they may be able to support their extravagant vanity Some who are naturally of a less violent temper endeavour to excuse a Fault which they are forc'd to acknowledge by laying the blame upon the Court pretending that the King bestows the Royal Gifts of the Republick and the Offices and Dignities upon the Courtiers or other great Lords who either have no need of 'em or do not deserve 'em in stead of giving 'em to those who have done good Service in the Army where they have spent their Estates and expos'd their Lives for the defence of their Country Others accuse those who are entrusted with the management of the Finances who make 'em wait very long for their Pay and even then oblige 'em to quit part of it that they may procure the rest These Grievances exasperate their Minds and frequently occasion great Complaints in the Diet. When they Levy Soldiers in Foland the Captains exact Contributions on those Places where they Raise their Men and give very little to the Soldiers Retaining the Money they Receive on the Publick Account always finding some unjust pretext to Defraud the Soldiers of their Pay who are consequently under a strong Temptation to Rob and Pillage the Country the Officers not daring to Restrain a Disorder which is occasion'd by themselves To put a stop to these Irregularities it has been frequently Propos'd to the Diets by some Wise and Considering Persons to keep the Soldiers always
always afraid that he shall never be Paid Others Travel on Horseback and carry along with them a Small Stiched Quilt to Lye upon being about an Inch thick and a Foot and a half broad which they fold double and lay it under the Saddle and when they arrive at the Inn they give the Gospodarz Money to bring them some Brown Bread Beer and a little Oates so that all the Charge for the Lodging of a Polish Gentleman and of his Horse does not often amount to above 5 or 6 Gros which are worth no more than Two pence And consequently that which is so Incommodious to Strangers is very Convenient for those of the Countrey because they can Travel 100 Leagues on Horseback without spending above 50 Pence As for the Lords and Ladies they Travel alwayes in Coaches and carry Waggons along with them with Provisions and Beds for themselves and their Women but their Attendants who follow 'em on Horseback are forc'd to content themselves with such Lodgings as I describ'd before I must not forget to intimate that a Traveller ought to be very careful in passing over the Bridges because they are generally bad and the Polanders take no care to keep them in Repair Those who Travel in Winter ought to provide a sufficient quantity of Brandy and a Furr'd Bag to put their Feet into For 't is so Cold in Poland that those who are in a Coach Wagon or Calash cannot otherwise endure it and since the Lakes and Rivers are so Frozen that they easily Travel upon the Ice They must take care when the Earth is cover'd with Snow to procure a Sledge upon which they must place the Coach or Calash and draw the Sledge with the Horses Travellers are very much incommoded in Winter especially on Holy-dayes for the Cold is so piercing that 't is impossible to be in a Chamber without a Stove in it And besides on such solemn occasions all the Peasants of the Village who usually drink nothing but Water meet together to Carouse with Beer and Brandy and then Sing and Dance all Night so that the weary Traveller cannot so much as shut his eyes I have said enough to convince the Reader that the manner of Travelling in Poland is extreamly Inconvenient to Strangers As for the Native Polanders who Travel on Horseback in the Winter they have great Boots into which they put Chaff or chopp'd Straw to keep their Feet warm and before they Mount their Horses they drink a large Draught of Brandy to preserve 'em from the Cold. The Coachmen use the same precaution from the Cold for otherwise they could never endure the Sharpness of the Weather which is so excessively violent that when a Man Travels with his Face expos'd to the Air his Nose sometimes Freezes Those who have the Misfortune to meet with such a Disaster must apply Snow to the part and carefully avoid entering into a Room wherein there is a Stove or into any warm place for otherwise they would run the hazard of losing their Nose There is no Travelling by Post in Poland tho' there are Posts for Carrying Letters and Pacquets This Custom was first establish'd by Order of the Republick in the Reign of Vladislaus IV. Anno 1647. For before that time the King's Orders were carry'd by Gentlemen of the Court who oblig'd the Starosta's to furnish 'em with Horses and Provisions CHAP. XXIX Of the Polish COINS THE Pieces of Gold which pass Currently in Poland are Ducats which are worth 2 French Crowns or 2 German Rix Dollars or 7 Livres of Dantzick Money or 12 Livres of the Currant Money of Poland that is in Chelons A Chelon is a piece of Copper smaller than a French Denier 3 Chelons make a Polish Gros and 3 Gross 2 Pence of the Countrey Money So that to make up these 2 Pence which are not worth above one of our Pennys there must be 9 Chelons which are not worth and weigh no more than 2 English Farthings whereby one may easily judge how much the Countrey is Ruin'd by so base a Coyn which was first Introduc'd in a pressing exigency to satisfie the Army which had Confederated for want of their Pay The Introducing of base Money into Poland is no new thing as it appears by that which was Coyn'd by the Officers of Casimir IV. and afterwards occasion'd a Complaint to the Diet held at Peortrkow in 1459. For at that time the Kings had the Privilege of Coyning the Money and the first who yielded it up to the Republick was Sigismond III. in the Year 1632. There is another Base Coyn in Poland call'd Tinfe which was also brought into the Kingdom in the Year 1663 to pay the Confederated Army The Tinfe which is a little larger than a French Fifteen pence is of Silver of a Base Allay 'T is worth 30 Gros of Chelons which make 20 Pence of Poland or 10 Common Pence Besides the Tinfes there is another sort of Money call'd Choustack which is also a Piece of Silver of Base Allay and less than a French Sou 'T is worth 10 Gros of Poland so that 3 of 'em make a Tinfe These Base Coyns do not pass so currently at Dantzick nor in any part of Prussia for the Tinfes are not worth above 18 Gros and the Choustacks Six Gros of Dantzick Money because the Chelons of Dantzick are worth more than those of Poland which do not go at all there The Money of Dantzick consists in Ducats of Gold Ourts Choustaques and Chelons The Ducat as I Intimated before is worth 2 Rix Dollars or 2 French Crowns An Ourt is a Silver Coin of the bigness of a French Piece of Fifteen Pence and is worth 18 Gros of Dantzick or 30 Gros of Polish Money A Choustaque is worth 6 Gros of Dantzick 10 Gros of Polish Money and there must be 3 Chelons Dantzick to make a Gros Yet 18 Gros of Dantzick Chelons make 30 Gros of Polish Chelons Thus a Tinfe which is worth 30 Gros of Polish Chelons is worth but 18 Gros of Dantzick Chelons The Ducat which is worth 12 Francks of Polish Chelons is worth but 7 Franks of Currant Money of Dantzick Five Choustaques or an Ourt and 2 Choustaques make a Livre of Dantzick Money because 5 Choustaques make 30 Gros and 30 Gros make 20 Pence This difference in the value of the Coins ought to be heedfully observ'd by Strangers who have occasion to pass through Dantzick because the Bankers take all opportunities to Impose upon ' em An APPENDIX CONTAINING A Chronological Abridgment Of the HISTORY of POLAND Some Remarks upon the Government of that Kingdom And the ABDICATION of K. JOHN CASIMIR And an Account Of the Present State of SOCINIANISM in that COUNTREY Lechus An. Dom. 550. THE Polish Historians asscribe the Foundation of their Monarchy to Lechus and some of 'em think that the Poles or Polanders were first call'd Polachs from the Name of this Prince He Built the City of Gnesna