Part 10 (2/2)

Nor was he disappointed in his expectations. The pasha received the messenger very kindly, offered him food, and supplied all his wants.

He said, moreover, that he would not only give the king leave to enter and pa.s.s through the Turkish territories, but he would give him efficient a.s.sistance in crossing the river which formed the frontier.

This was, indeed, necessary, for a large detachment of the Russian army which had been sent in pursuit of the Swedes was now coming close upon them, and there was danger of their being overtaken and cut to pieces or taken prisoners before they should have time to cross the stream.

The princ.i.p.al object which the Czar 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 excellent humor with every body 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 wished to cross. A considerable number of boats were soon collected, and the pa.s.sage 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 pa.s.sed, and thus about five hundred men fell into their hands. 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 obliged 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 the troops were surrendered as prisoners of war. Thus, in all, a great number of prisoners, both of officers and men, fell into 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 customs which prevailed in their own country, 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 campaigns which they had fought, 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 t.i.tle.

”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 ungrateful 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 a 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 safe-keeping of their prisoners; but the surveillance in 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 Mazeppa, he made his escape too, with the King of Sweden, across the frontier. The Czar offered a very large reward to whoever should bring him back, either dead or alive; but he never was taken. He died afterward at Constantinople at a great age.

One of the most curious and characteristic results which followed from the battle of Pultowa was the promotion of Peter in respect to his rank in the army. It was gravely decided by the proper authorities, after due 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 through his hat, he deserved to be advanced a grade in the line of promotion. So he was made a major general.

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.

CHAPTER XIV.

THE EMPRESS CATHARINE.

1709-1715

Duration of the war with Sweden--Catharine--Her origin--Dest.i.tution--Her kind teacher--Dr. Gluck--She goes to Marienburg--Her character--Mode of life at Marienburg--Her lover--His person and character--Catharine is married--The town captured--Catharine made prisoner--Her anxiety and sorrow--The Russian general--Catharine saved--Catharine in the general's service--Seen by Menzikoff--Transferred to his service--Transferred to the Czar--Privately married--Affairs on the Pruth--The emperor's danger--Catharine in camp--A bribe--Catharine saves her husband--The vizier's excuses--A public marriage determined on--Arrangements--The little bridesmaids--Wedding ceremonies--Festivities and rejoicings--Birth of Catharine's son--Importance of the event--The baptism--Dwarfs in the pies--Influence of Catharine over her husband--Use which she made of her power--Peter's jealousy--Dreadful punishment--Catharine's usefulness to the Czar--Her imperfect education--Her final exaltation to the throne

It was about the year 1690 that Peter the Great commenced his reign, and he died in 1725, as will appear more fully in the sequel of this volume.

Thus the duration of the reign was thirty-five years. The wars between Russia and Sweden occupied princ.i.p.ally the early part of the reign through a period of many years. The battle of Pultowa, by which the Swedish invasion of the Russian territories was repelled, was fought in 1709, nearly twenty years after the Czar ascended the throne.

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