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AUTHOR: SHEARWOOD, JOSEPH ALEXANDER, 1844- TITLE: RUSSIA'S STORY PLACE: LONDON DA TE : 1918 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT BIBLIOGRAPHIC MICROFORM TARGET Original Material as Filmed - Existing Bibliographic Record Master Negative # 947 Sh3 ^•"'P"'P"F' ^m^^mrtmrni^ Restrictions on Use: Shearwood, Joseph Alexander, 1844- Russia's story; being a short popular history of Russia from the earliest times, and sketching the part Russia has taken as yet in the great war, together with an account of the revolution, by J. A. Shearwood ... New and rev. ed. London, Jarrolds limited, 1918. XV a. xxvfiit 228 p. incl. geneal. tables, front., ports, 19^*^". 1. Russia — Hist. ( Library of Congress 'J 18-17362 DK41.S6 1918 TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA REDUCTION RATIO FILM SIZE: j5 /)0 /^ IMAGE PLACEMENT: ,IA(7ll^ IB HB /] ~r DATE FILMED:_j//_/^5Z±I_ INITIALS 'i' /> :J_/_.. FILMED BY: RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS. INC WOODBRIDGE. CT c Association for information and Image IManagement 1100 Wayne Avenue, Suite 1100 Silver Spring, Maryland 20910 301/587-8202 Centimeter 12 3 4 LUJ lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll TTT 5 iiiliiii 6 iiliiii 8 ^M #rt+i 9 10 iiiliiiilniiliiii TTTl I 11 12 13 14 15 mm iMilMiilm jJm|| iiiiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiil m Inches .0 I.I 1.25 1^ 12.8 150 1^ 3.2 40 1.4 2.5 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.6 MflNUFfiCTURED TO RUM STflNDRRDS BY nPPLIED IMPGEp INC. ►■*t.i ':.*■. ..^ J- Columbia ©nibersiitp in rtje Citp oC Belt) gorfe LIBRARY ^J RUSSIA'S STORY PkTI K iHK (iRKAl Reiencil lt>82 1725 I- >o)itisJ>ii\t' RUSSIA'S STORY BEING A SHORT POPULAR HISTORY OF RUSSIA FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES AND SKETCHING THE PART RUSSIA HAS TAKEN AS YET IN THE GREAT WAR TOGETHER WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE REVOLUTION BY J. A. SHEARWOOD, B.A. AUTHOR OF "REAL PROPERTY ABRIDGMENT," *' OUTLINE OF CONTRACT," ETC. ETC. NEW AND REVISED EDITION JARROLDS PUBLISHERS (LONDON) LIMITED 1918 u J h :: r 4 "7 ^ I S4i 3 CONTENTS Genealogical Table Chronological Table Preface Authorities for Russian History Dissertation on former hostile feeling between England and Russia PART I Origin Derivation of " Russian " Serfdom Oleg .... Igor .... Svatoslaf . Vladimir the Great . Sviatopolk the Miserable Jaroslav the Wise . iziaslav Vladimir Monomachus Appanages Mongol Invasion Golden Horde . Ivan I ("the Purse") Ivan II (Prince of all the Russias) Tartar Defeat . Vassilv I . Vassily II (the Blind) Ivan the Great Last Tartar Invasion Vassily III Ivan IV (the Terrible) Feodor I . Boris Godunof . PAGK vu xi « • • xm x\ii xix I 3 4 6 7 9 12 13 15 17 i8 19 23 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 34 37 38 47 49 VI RUSSIA'S STORY PART II Period of Troubles Feodor II • • House of Romanoff (Michael) The Cossacks Feodor III Peter I (the Great) . Battle of Pultova . Catherine I Peter II . Anne . • • • Elizabeth . Catherine II (the Great) Partition of Poland Paul . • • • Alexander I Nicholas I Polish Rebellion Crimean War Alexander II Alexander III • Nicholas II War with Japan Balkan Wars The Great War PART III The Revolution Addendum . PAGK 51 51 52 56 60 63 80 89 90 91 93 96 99 106 115 127 130 135 137 147 152 153 165 168 198 215 ^ *) ^ GENEALOGICAL TABLE THE HOUSE OF RURIK Rurik, 862-879- i Oleg, 879-912. Igor, 912-945- sons. Sviatolaf, 957-972. I 1 Vladimir I (990-101 5 - Yaropo k (Kief), Oleg (Devaaus), (1st Christian Killed by Killed by sovereign). Vladimir. Yaropolk. had Sviatopolk (Kief), the Miserable. six sons. r Varoslav Iziaslav Boris Gleb Sviatolav Vscvolod (the Wise), (Polotsk). (Rostof)- (Morom). (Devilaus). (\olhynia). 1019-1054. had six sons The Period of the Appanages (1054-1238). Iziaslav, 1054-1078. Sviatopolk, 1092-1 1 13 Ysevolod (Kief), 1078-1092. and four others sons, who all fought one another. Vladimir Monomachus (Kief), 1113-1125. The Mongol Invasion, 11 24. George Dolgorouski, II57-H59- vu Vlll RUSSIA'S STORY GENEALOGICAL TABLE IX Yuri, half wittcd. Vsevolod, 1 176-1212. Yaroslav Vsevolodvitch, 1236- 1246. Alexander Nezsky, 1352-1263. I Daniel, 1 263-1 303. I Ivan I (Kalita), 1 328-1 341. I Simeon the Proud, 1341-1353. I Ivan II, 1353-1359- Dimitri Donskoi, 1362-1389. I Vasili I, 1389-1425. Vasili II (Basil the Blind), 1425- 1463. Ivan III, 1462-1505. Vasili III, 1505-1533- Ivan IV, 1533-1584- Fcodor,* 1 584-1 598. Dmitri or Demetrius m. Irene Godunov, died 1591. Boris' sister. Boris, 1 598- 1 605. Feodor, murdered. False Dmitri. Marina, his bride, crowned and imprisoned. Basil Shuiski, elected by Boyars. New False Dmitri. Marina claims him as her husband. Never elected. Murdered 1610. Ladislaus, Pole, seizes the throne for two years. * House of Kurik died with him. O < o o CO o £ N. H I < ^ a «» X 5cS< 1^-2 o u IT'S S 1 o ■" a V •S *» Sen -2 i 1 as » ^ so I m »^ so M vo g r> o \o u ..a (A •I J2 w (CI (A OB t^ « "-I -H I " > NO -2 ^ •§51" :s in S5 6 M &4 QO 00 i- H H to G O r- Q < < O ro .00 Oh *" u o as < X H QO ■3 ** S5" -8 M4 M MOO I so 6 U I "•IT a . ^ . M It u a 9 o U 6« »-r»i < 6 V -a G < > 1-4 !>. Genghis CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF THE RULERS OF RUSSIA Rurik, 862. Oleg, 879. Igor, 912. Svatoslaf, 957- Vladimir the Great, 990. Svialopolk (the Miserable), 1015. Jaroslav (the Wise), 1054. Vladimir Monomachus, iii3- Internal dissensions. The Mongol Invasion. Khan, 1224. Yury or George. Jaroslav. Ivan I. Simeon the Proud, 1340- Ivan II, 1353- Demetrius Donskoi, 1359. Basil I, 1389- Basil II (the Blind), 1425- Ivan III (the Great), 1462. Vassili, 1505- Ivan IV (the Terrible), I533- Feodor I, 1584. Boris Godefroi, 1598. Feodor II, the False Demetrius, 1605. THE HOUSE OF ROMANOFF Michael, 1613. Alexis, 1645. Feodor III, 1676. SI Genghis CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF THE RULERS OF RUSSIA Rurik, 862. Oleg, 879. Igor, 912. Svatoslaf, 957- Vladimir the Great, 990. Sviatopolk (the Miserable), 1015. Jaroslav (the Wise), 1054. Vladimir Monomachus, iii3- Internal dissensions. The Mongol Invasion. Khan, 1224. Yury or George. Jaroslav. Ivan I. Simeon the Proud, 1340- Ivan II, 1353- Demetrius Donskoi, 1359. Basil I, 1389. Basil II (the Blind), 1425- Ivan III (the Great), 1462. Vassili, 1505. Ivan IV (the Terrible), 1533- Feodor I, 1584. Boris Godefroi, 1 598. Feodor II, the False Demetrius, 1605. THE HOUSE OF ROMANOFF Michael, 1613. Alexis, 1645. Feodor III, 1676. n Xll RUSSIA'S STORY Ivan V, jointly with Peter, 1682, Sophia, Peter's sister, con- triving to have herself nominated joint sovereign with them. Peter I (the Great), 1682. Catherine I, 1725. Peter II, 1727. Anne, 1730. Ivan VI, 1740. Elizabeth, 1741. Peter III, 1761. Catherine II (the Great), 1762. Paul, 1796. Alexander I, 1801. Nicholas I, 182$. Alexander II, 1855. Alexander III, 188 1. Nicholas II, 1894. Note, — In the early and disturbed times some of the rulers mentioned were only sovereigns of particular towns or dis- tricts. For instance, Yury was Grand Duke of Suzdal. It was Ivan II who first styled himself Prince of all the Russias (see p. 28). PREFACE TO THE NEW EDITION This edition brings Russian history down to date. The early portion of the v^rork has been but little altered from the former edition. The Japanese war and other events of importance have been added, but there has been con- siderable difficulty in dealing accurately with Russia's share of the incidents of the present campaign and the great revolution which the war has brought about. In- formation to hand cannot be said to be reliable, is fre- quently contradictory, and it is only the main features which can be stated with confidence. For instance, there is no doubt that this world-struggle began by Germany's declaration of war against the Czar, nor that the Russian armies, when not interfered with by treachery at home and when properly supplied with munitions and other necessaries, fought admirably, captured thousands and thousands of prisoners, and also suffered immense losses themselves; and if those in power had the interests of their country at heart, the disasters of 191 5 and subse- quently would never have occurred. Some of the causes which led to the Revolution are still shrouded in mystery ; but there is no doubt but that it was a people's revolution, much resembling in that respect the French Revolution of more than a century ago ; that the starvation of the masses, the weakness of the Czar, the treachery of many in power, the enormous influence of the infamous monk Rasputin, until his assassination the virtual ruler of Russia, were the main factors which developed it, and the conclusion at which we at first arrived was that the country had made a stride of a hundred years in the course of a few weeks. But she is not out of the wood yet ; the nation is new to power and has not jret grasped how to xui RUSSIA'S STORY XIV handle it In the immense empire there are many factions ^d many traitors, and it will require almost superhnmao exertions on the part of true Patnots whom ^e PraV tn near future may produce, to gu.de the sh.p of state arignt through the sea of troubles loommg ahead. The reveUtions which have come to us about ine influent of Rasputin has startled the Western world and thrrs more tha'n grave doubts upon the smcenty of the czarina and even of the Czar himself (-^o isjeport^ o have said when he heard of his death, that he woum ^ver Russia with scafiolds) to the allied cause; these Xw the uuer disregard of the classes to the suflenngs ^d lives of the masses, though indeed the history of the countrv from its earliest times has afforded abundant uSion of this. The bulk of the populat- o^^^^^^^ widely extended Empire has long existed m the night ot TgnorLce. being utterly at the mercy "^ ^ ~"^f Jr„*i a few designing plotters and intriguers and a ^uler without understanding of or sympathy towards h'l^="t,^/t=- f„^ revolution has. it is to be hoped, rernoved ttos state of things for ever ; but it came too quickly for the masses to Se either the value of their freedom or their newly acquired power ; this realization must be of gradua g^wth • and in the meantime there is the danger of artful Td unprincipled men and Gennan agents 'ead.ng the ^mple ^pulation into the pitfalls of anarchy and urther ttoubler Her present situation is a truly deplorable one, a,^ i the faction who have just now the upper hand are ^^ displaced by the nation, she will incur the disgust and contempt of the whole civilized worid. England and mnc's ill desire to be friendly, believing that the Russian masses are too ignorant and ""tutored to assert themseWe for be it remembered that the population of the Russias is some 185 millions, of whom 85 millions are peasants. ;o per cent of whom can neither read nor wute and had no opportunity of thinking lor themselves before the Revolu^ tfon Therefore we stiU preserve a. hope that the leader, of a right-thinking party may spring up, have the counten- ance 0I the nation, awaken it from its torpor and present PREFACE TO NEW EDITION xv degraded condition, and remain true to the compact solemnly entered into with the Allies against a separate peace. At present no ray of hope is discernible, and it is to be feared that Russia, even if she recovers, cannot be of any further service in the present war. The injury already done by the Bolsheviks is too deep. Some million and a quarter prisoners of war are to be released. The Russian armies are disorganized and deserting in large masses, and her solidarity as a fighting force is destroyed. It is pitiable that this work should be concluded with such a gloomy prospect before the country to which it relates, but let us hope that, assuming the pubhc take as kindly to this edition as they did to the former one, our next impression may narrate a situation totally changed, and describe the huge country as having taken an honour- able position again amongst the Great Powers of the world and recovering prosperity under some form of Consti- tutional Government which possesses the confidence of her people. ^ THE AUTHOR. January, 1918. RUSSIA'S STORY LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PbTBR THl Great Frontisfiect Facini pa£t Ivan IV (thr Terrible) 3^ Czar Michael 5* Ivan VI 92 Peter III 94 Catherine II (the Great) 9^ Paul I >o6 Alexander II 138 I PART I ORIGIN Great uncertainty appears to prevail as to the origin of the various tribes which compose the extensive empire of Russia. The major part are probably of Slavonic extraction, a race who, according to Malte-Brien and Gattarer, made their appearance in Europe before even the foundation of Rome. Most antiquarians derive the name Slavonic from '* Slava " (glory), while some assert it is from ** Slova '* (speech). An historian of the sixth century describes these tribes as tall, with light hair and sallow complexions. This is probable, as fairness is still a char- acteristic of the Russians. They were a nomadic people, hardy, and devoted to war, and spread over Europe and Asia with great rapidity. Their religion was a pagan worship and tinged with cruel superstitions. Like the B 2 RUSSIA'S STORY Druids they indulged iix human sacrifices, and women were generally the victims. Widows were also consumed at the funeral pile and sometimes female slaves— the idea being that, as their lords would need attend- ance in the next world, the sooner they joined them the better. Their habits were singularly dirty • they were said to undergo ablutions three 'times in their Uves— at birth, bridal, and death. Their principal redeeming quali- ties appear to have been frugality and hospi- tality, the last of which was carried to such an extent that a poor man would steal from a rich if unable to supply his guest himself. Though brave and fearless, they were indolent and willing cheerfully to acknowledge supe- riority, and in the fourth century were easily overthrown by the Ostrogoths, who, in their turn, were subdued by the Huns. They appear to have first served, then mingled with, and ultimately to have absorbed their conquerors, as the Saxons absorbed the Normans in our own country ; for afterwards we find them in Dacia, whence they made predatory incursions against and finally were instrumental in accomplishing the downfall of the Western Empire. When the Bulgarians settled in Dacia they were driven out, and taking a north-easterly direction they made „ TERM -RUSSIAN"— DERIVATION 3 their permanent abode in the territories which comprise the most important portion of the present Russian Empire. RURIK (862-879) DERIVATION OF THE TERM RUSSIAN It was some time in the ninth century that the name Russian first became known. Its origin is uncertain. One account is that it comes from a Varingian chief, Rurik or Roderick, a Viking from Denmark, who with his brothers, Sinens, and Truvor, also Vikings, laid a contribution on the native tribes and then took their residence at Novgorod, which was originally the centre of a Slavonic federation and formed an important com- mercial link between the East and West. It is said that Gostomysl, its ruler, feehng that his end was near and that his people were threatened with domestic perils, sent envoys to the Varingian tribe of Rus and invited them to come over. But Rurik was practi- cally an invader. Anyhow, he established a dynasty which lasted some seven hundred years. Dr. Lardner, in his history of Russia, thinks it probable that the propitious god- desses of the Slavi, beautiful water nymphs !» 4 RUSSIA'S STORY called Russalki, had something to do with the name ; they, he says, were always repre- sented in picturesque half costume and in the most poetic attitudes; therefore the Slavi might have given the name of their favourites to the country. The other versions are that of Lacombe, who thinks the name came from a prince called Russus, and Malte- Brian, who would attribute it to Rhoxham, an early Gothic tribe. The territory possessed by Rurik was extensive although the inhabitants were few, especially the Slavonians. The feudal system of Russia is said to have commenced with him ; but as the Slavi, when on the banks of the Danube, must have been famiharized with the quasi-mihtary tenures on which the frontier fortresses of the Empire were held, and which Sir Henry Maine (probably the best authority of the day on the subject), considers to be the true origin of the feudal system, it is much more likely that they were acquainted with it long before. SERFDOM However, Rurik, unable personally to super- intend his dominions, appointed Governors, giving them estates (interests somewhat SERFDOM 5 analogous to our entailed estates) in their offices, determinable on breach of their oath of allegiance, or of other military ser- vices. These Governors in their turn sub-let to the Serfs on terms similar to what they themselves held, though perhaps the con- ditions were more of an agricultural nature, but in course of time the compact was for- gotten — ^the strong prevailed over the weak — and the condition of the vassal became one of abject slavery. In fact, there is little reason to doubt that Russian Serfdom was similar to our villainage, but it lasted much longer, owing to her slow progress in civihza- tion from local and other circumstances. Ascold and Dir, two other Viking adven- turers, founded Kief, made an expedition down the Dnieper and attacked Constanti- nople (then Byzantium). The Emperor Michael was absent fighting. The alarm into which the people were thrown by the appearance of these adventurous foes, whose name they had scarcely heard before, was excessive, but a great storm arose, which destroyed their fleet, and saved the town. Terrified at this disaster, the Russians desired to learn the faith of the God who protected the beautiful city. So runs the story. How- ever, this much is certain, Ascold added I 6 RUSSIA'S STORY Kief to Rurik's dominions, penetrated to the Black Sea, and brought back the seeds of Christianity. Rurik also annexed the settle- ments of his brothers. OLEG (879-912) Rurik, when dying, chose a relative, Oleg (a Scandinavian), to be guardian to his infant son Igor. Oleg, a man of little scruple and great enterprise, resolved still further to consolidate the conquests. Kief was in the suzerainty of Ascold, who had made it ; Oleg, with his retainers, disguised as merchants, journeyed by there, begging an interview with the Governor, who readily granted it. They then surrounded and stabbed him, and Oleg, gazing en the town, and struck with its beauty, cried : ** Let Kief be the mother of all Russian cities.'' He made it his residence, enlarged and beautified it. A second expedi- tion against Constantinople was undertaken by this Prince ; eighty thousand men em- barked in two thousand vessels, and besieged the city. Leo, the philosopher, the then Greek Emperor, ordered a chain of iron to be slung across the harbour, thus preventing the approach of the barbarians. Oleg, fertile in expedient, drew his vessels on shore, fixed OLEG— IGOR 7 wheels under their keels, and thus by aid of their sails and a slight pushing, advanced his armament to the very gates : aghast at the appearance of a fleet saihng over the land, and at the rumours of the barbarities practised by the Russians on their enemies, the faUing Eastern Empire was frightened into a dis- graceful truce. Oleg did not long survive his triumph. The legend says he had a favourite horse, and on its being foretold to him that this horse would be the cause of his death he ceased riding it. Afterwards, remembering its existence and inquiring for it, he was in- formed that it was just dead. Curious to see its body and believing all cause for alarm over, he paid a visit to its remains and put his foot on its skull ; then a mighty serpent started out and stung him. He died of the wound. IGOR (912-945) Igor, the rightful heir, succeeded. He undertook another expedition to Constan- tinople and exacted another tribute. But his army was destroyed by a combustible inven- tion, now lost, denominated Greek fire. Water, instead of extinguishing it, is said to have imparted to it fresh vigour. In the account given of the defeat by the chronicler, s RUSSIA'S STORY the Slavs are represented to say, " The Greeks have a fire like lightning, and that is why they have conquered us." In truth, they guarded the secret of its manufacture with great caution. Igor, on his return. Was slain by his own subjects. He was an incompetent ruler, possessing the barbarity of Oleg without his genius. His reign is chiefly remarkable for the ingenuity of the cruelties practised by his soldiers on the unfortunate Greeks — cruelties so refined that, considering the state of in- tellect at the time, we may well wonder how they were thought of at all. His widow, Olga, succeeded as Regent to his son, and avenged his death by shutting up a number of his murderers in a vapour bath, where they were suffocated, and destroyed their town by fixing lighted matches on to the tails of swallows and letting them fly over the roofs — so at least the ancient chronicle tells us. Olga was a lady of great sense and beauty, and her name is still dear to a Russian. She embraced Christianity under the name of Helen, a religion which had latterly been making great progress, and was baptized at Byzantium in a.d. 957. In fact, the Russian idea of Christianity came from Byzantium. In her time (945-957) there appears to have SVATOSLAF 9 been peace between the Greek Empire and her people. SVATOSLAF (957-972) But Svatoslaf, her son, on attaining man's estate, soon showed that he had in him the adventurous spirit of Ascold and Oleg. At the head of a mighty army he entered Bul- garia, impaled some twenty thousand of its people, and was regaling his troops in the town of Perislav when he received intelligence that Olga, his mother, was shut up in Kief by a rebel Tartar tribe. Nestor, the historian, who is as fond of the marvellous as Herodotus or Livy, tells us how a young soldier of the beleaguered garrison eluded the enemy, swam the river, and brought news of the perilous condition of his royal mistress, how a Russian general with very inferior forces attempted the relief of the town, and how, finally, Svatoslaf returned and put everything to rights. But on the death of his mother, '' the day star of her country,*' he again commenced war against the Greeks, a war which was signalized by battles of a far more sanguinary and decisive nature than any that had been fought between the two nations before. Under their Emperor Zinistes, the Greeks lO RUSSIA'S STORY seem to have infused into themselves some of their ancient spirit. A fierce contest took place at Perislav, in which the Russians must have been worsted, as they were afterwards besieged in the city. At a truce, concluded somewhere in the Balkans between the two monarchs, the Russian agreed never to molest the Greek Empire again, and with the excep- tion of one expedition under Jaroslav in 1043, there was a cessation of invasions for eight hundred years, the reason for which may be attributed rather to the accession of strength those provinces received after they were in the hands of the Turks, than to any reverence of the descendants of Svatoslaf to the oath of their predecessors. Returning to Russia, the king and his army were attacked by a hostile tribe at the mouth of the Dnieper and slain to a man. Thus perished the last of the pagan kings. CHARACTER OF SVATOSLAF The name, meaning ''holy glory," is Slavonic. Karamsin calls him the Alexander of Russian history, and considers his exploits rival those of Homer's heroes. But in truth he was a savage of the grossest type, and apparently the somewhat common attribute of personal bravery was his only redeeming SVATOSLAFS CHARACTER n point. During the administration of Olga, his mother, the social condition of the country had somewhat improved, but he was of too debased a nature to take an interest in any- thing but the brute pleasure of fighting, and was, like the Richard Cceur de Lion of our history, utterly indifferent in regard to what dangers the nation might be exposed to at home, so long as he could gratify his appetite abroad. Indeed, for some time he wandered about the Caucasus searching for an enemy to fight with. He was hardy in disposition, would be content with the coarsest food, even horseflesh — was agreeable to share the toils of the meanest soldier— cared for neither tent nor baggage, could bear ahke the ex- tremes of heat and cold, and usually had no pillow but his saddle. The Petchenegan chief who slew him made a drinking cup of his skull, and had the following words inscribed : '' In the attempt to seize the property of others thou didst lose thine own." His death terminates the rudest period of Russian history, for under the next reign a marked improvement in civil and social matters is noticeable. He divided his king- dom amongst his three sons, Yaropolk, Oleg, and Vladimir, an act which gave rise to a civil war, ultimately terminating in favour of 12 RUSSIA'S STORY Vladimir, the younger, who appears to have slain his brother and added his wife to his list of concubines. VLADIMIR THE GREAT (980-IOI5) The administration of this prince was at first violent, but after his conversion to Christianity, which occurred in consequence of his marriage with Anna, the daughter of Basil, Emperor of the East, it was remark- able for its prudence and wisdom. He added Galicia, or Red Russia, to his dominions, estab- lished schools throughout Russia, encouraged the study of the fine arts, which had been introduced owing to intercourse with Con- stantinople, and imbued the people with a taste for culture of which they had known nothing before. Because of the changes he made in the condition of the Empire he was styled the Great. His method of instilling the truths of Christianity into the minds of his people was by convincing them of the utter imbecihty of the heathen gods. The image of Peroun, the principal idol, was fastened to a horse's tail and thrown into the Dnieper, and a church built where it had stood. In his old age his children rose against him, and while starting on an expedition to quell the rebellion he died suddenly. In spite \ ? VLADIMIR— SVIATOPOLK 13 of the many atrocities committed during the earlier years of his reign, the people deeply mourned his loss ; for the dead could not speak from the grave, and the living had forgotten their existence— while the structures his intellect had reared were present before their eyes, and, through him, they knew they revelled in a prosperity which in youth they dreamed not of. He was enrolled amongst the saints of the Church, and an order of knighthood still exists which is taken from his name— though it dates only from the time of Catherine. From his time, Christianity may be considered established. Vladimir divided his dominions amongst his sons. Jaroslav took Novgorod ; Boris, Rostov ; Iziaslav, Polotsk ; Gleb, Muron ; and Sviatoslav the Drevlians. SVIATOPOLK THE MISERABLE (1OI5-IOI9) But Sviatopolk, the son of his murdered brother, seized Kief (1015). In any case Boris was the rightful heir. The usurper sent a friendly deputation to Boris, professing to be desirous of making some agreement about sharing the kingdom ; but with the deputa- tion was despatched a band of assassins, who swore they would not return without the iriSam 14 RUSSIA'S STORY young prince's head. They stabbed him while engaged in evening prayer, and carried him still living to Sviatopolk, who completed the murder himself. Gleb was shortly after- wards assassinated ; Iziaslav fled, and Sviato- polk fancied himself in secure possession of the throne. But the fourth brother, Jaroslav, Prince of the Novgorod, who, possessed of more energy than the rest, raised a great army, defeated him in battle and entered Kief in triumph. He fled to the King of Poland, Boreslaus (surnamed ** the brave "), who, though weakened by a long war with Germany, was induced to lend forces to re-establish him. Nay, more, he headed them himself. The River Bug divided the hostile armies. The corpulency of the King of Poland excited great ridicule amongst the enemy. The king's temper was hot, and, irritated at some jeering remark wafted by the breeze across the river, he lost his self-control and rode into the stream at the foe. His soldiers seizing their arms of course followed. It was an im- prudent step, but, like many bold ones, successful. Jaroslav was taken by surprise, his troops were routed, and he retreated to Novgorod, while Sviatopolk was reinstated. JAROSLAV THE WISE 15 I JAROSLAV THE WISE (1OI9-IO54) But he did not keep his place long ; he was unpopular, and when Jaroslav attacked him again his subjects were unwilling to fight for him. He took refuge in Bohemia and died in obscurity. He was called by some *' The Accursed," and by some '' The Miserable." His short (four years), unhappy, and cruel reign presents a marked contrast to that of Jaroslav, who held the throne for five-and- thirty years (1019-1054), and who raised Kief to such power and magnificence that it was considered a new Constantinople. His soubri- quet was *' The Wise." He first gave a code of laws, called Russkaya Pravda, to the huge and barbarous country. They were promulgated in 1020, and in many respects were similar to the Twelve Tables at Rome — and to our laws under the Saxons — in fact to most laws in early communities, where the rudeness of the manners of the people compels criminal jurisprudence to be brought into great prom- inence in comparison with civil. In the case of murder, as in the laws of Alfred, the next- of-kin had the election of blood for blood, or a pecuniary composition varying in amount according to the station of the slain man. The wergild for the death of a boyar was i6 RUSSIA'S STORY much the same as for that of a thane in the Saxon times in England, but their degrees of station were three— viz. the boyars, the middle class, and the serfs ; whereas we then had but two classes, thanes and ceorls, unless the lesser thanes can be considered as distinct from the greater, an idea which Hallam appears to negative, except in the sole respect of not having seats in the Witan : for in England the middle-class— that class so mighty now — that class to which we owe our wealth and prosperity — was almost unknown in the days of our Saxon ancestors. The reasons assigned in Jaroslav's code for a freeman becoming a serf bears a remarkable resemblance to those by which a man became a slave by the laws of the Twelve Tables of Rome : the debtor, the perjurer, he who marries a serf, he who sells himself, all these lost freedom ; there is but one case missing, viz. that of the prisoner of war. The ordeals of fire and water are also mentioned as modes of trial, but they had to be undergone by the accuser to prove the truth of his assertions if unable to call witnesses, and not by the defendant in order to purge himself, as with us. Jaroslav was not as wise in war as in peace. For a fancied insult to a Russian in Constan- tinople, he carried armies and havoc amongst JAROSLAV— IZIASLAV 17 V . the Greeks. There was a prophecy in the capital in those days that the Russian would one day rule at Constantinople. People were afraid that the day had come. But it had not, for again the terrible Greek fire was brought into play ; again were the fleets of the Russians destroyed ; again were their armies scattered. The day had not come then ! The expedition ending thus disastrously, Jaroslav had prudence enough not to undertake another. The remainder of his reign was peaceable ; under him, as under Vladimir, the country made great strides forward, but that progress was only to be lost by dissen- sions of his successors, for he divided Russia amongst his six sons — a remarkably im- prudent step for so wise a prince. The con- sequence was that their disputes and jeal- ousies undid all that he had done, and probably have been influential in retarding Russian civilization. IZIASLAV (I054-IO78) Of his six sons, Iziaslav, the eldest, was to enjoy a sort of nominal sovereignty ; but his brothers rose against him, and the land con- tinued to be a scene of war and confusion for years. Iziaslav died in 1078, leaving Kief to i8 RUSSIA'S STORY his brother Vsevolod, on whose death, in 1093, Sviatopolk, his (Iziaslav's) son, succeeded, and reigned till 11 13. Vsevolod married a Greek princess, daughter of Constantine Mono- machus, and from his Greek grandfather Vladimir himself received the name of Mono- machus. VLADIMIR MONOMACHUS, *' THE FIGHTER ALONE '* (1113-II25) was sent for by the people of Kief to be their ruler. He wedded Githa, the daughter of Harold, the last of the Saxon kings, who perished at the battle of Hastings, thus form- ing a link with England. There was no other marriage of a Russian with an English princess until the Duke of Edinburgh married Mary, the only daughter of the Czar Alex- ander n. The throne had been previously offered to Vladimir, but, with a generosity unusual for the time and country, he refused to accept it, on the ground that his cousin Sviatopolk had a prior claim. His character resembled that of Jaroslav. By great tact he contrived to allay the dis- sensions between the princes which had con- tinued for so long and which were bringing destruction and ruin upon the country. His renown spread to other lands ; it elicited } ' VLADIMIR— THE APPANAGES 19 from the Greek Emperor a costly present, viz. a tiara cross and chain made of gold, together with the coronation cloak of the Emperor Constantine. These are still pre- served at Moscow, which was just then springing into existence. Kief, the mother of Russian cities, began to lose its importance after this reign. In 1 169 it was sacked in one of the struggles continually going on, and after 1204 it became merely a dependency of Sugdal, and Russia had no political centre. After the death of Vladimir internal dis- sensions broke out afresh. In thirty-two years eleven princes in turn had secured the sovereignty, each holding it till a stronger than he came to displace him. The wretched serfs could obtain no protection, their home- steads were laid desolate, their crops were destroyed, and the country presented but one scene of rapine and pillage, the central authority being reduced to almost nothing. THE APPANAGES (1054-I238) What is called the period of the Appanages, or minor principaUties, really commenced after the death of Jaroslav and lasted for two centuries. Its rise was owing to the moral 20 RUSSIA'S STORY weakness of the princes and the non-existence of primogeniture. Pagodia traces it to the idea of the right which the princely families conceived they had to rule over the land which their fathers had won. During this period there were five important princi- palities, viz. (i) Kief (declining, as stated supra), which together with (2) Novgorod were the oldest cities ; (3) Smolensk ; (4) Chernigov ; (5) Sugdal, whose capital was Vladimir, founded by Vladimir Monomachus. One man rose into notice during this turbulent epoch. He was Andrew, son of Igor, Prince of Suzdal, a territory lying in the centre of Russia. He had the discernment to see that the cause of this hundred years of civil war was the fatal sovereignty of Kief, or what remained of it ; and accordingly conceived the idea of making the city of Vladimir the capital. With this view he carried away a beautiful statue of the Virgin and set it up in Vladimir. He pillaged Kief, and it passed into the hands of his younger brother, but never recovered its position ; but Vladimir (founded by Monomachus) rose in its stead. He also improved the city of Moscow, which was rapidly rising in impor- tance, and next to Novgorod was the most flourishing city in Russia ; for Kief had fallen PETTY SUZERAINTIES 21 from its place, its buildings and churches were destroyed, its inhabitants had fled, its commerce and its beauty vanished. Indeed, considering the number of fights and contests which had taken place within its walls, it is surprising that one stone was left upon another. Andrew's endeavours were to re- unite Russia, making her one extensive kingdom once again. But he was unsucessful, for Novgorod, the most prosperous city, remained isolated, though it submitted to Vsevolod and Kief followed its example. His own principality, Suzdal, was the only one in which the semblance of order was preserved. But even that, after his assassina- tion (1174), was broken up by his successor into separate parts, over which were estab- lished governors. The state of Russia at this time was therefore an immense territory split up into a number of petty suzerainties sup- posed to be feudatory, but in fact allodial. This system, fatal to the rise of cities or the spread of commerce, had commenced at the death of Vladimir I, and, in spite of the exertions of Vladimir Monomachus and Andrew, had been on the increase ever since. Is it then surprising that the country fell an easy prey to the Mongols, whose hand pressed as heavily upon her — aye, more heavily than t 22 RUSSIA'S STORY that of the Norman pressed upon the Saxons ? These feudatories were perpetually at war. Their number at one time must have amounted to more than seventy. Few of them would acknowledge the superiority of one over another, and fewer that of the central government over all of them. Nestor beheves the secret of the feuds to have been the law of descent, viz. that the next brother took the place of the deceased instead of his eldest son. But there is no reason for this statement ; indeed the son, being young, would naturally be incHned to submit to his uncle. One would fancy this system more conducive to order than the usual one of representation. The division of his possessions by Vladimir is more probably the event which gave a start to the intestine wars, as the quarrels of his sons were imitated by their inferiors, till the country became nothing but a scene of feud and outrage. Had one sovereign succeeded Vladimir, and the principle of the unity of the chief magistracy been adhered to, the development of the country would no doubt have continued, and the Mongolian inroads been repelled, with the result that Russia might have rivalled the Western Powers in advanced civilization. The Western Powers are scarcely of earlier date ; but the internal > V MONGOL INVASION 23 V dissensions by which they have been torn, though producing greater convulsions while they lasted, were not so disastrous in their results. Thus the rebelhons of great feud- atories like the Dukes of Burgundy in France, or Warwick (the kingmaker) in England, though threatening to subvert the dynasties at which they were aimed, and tremendous in their immediate effects, left the countries no weaker in the end. A comparison in ordinary life may be drawn to the con- sequences of great griefs and small ones. A great grief may be worse to bear for the time, but it seldom kills ; it is the succession of small ones which wear the soul away. The only other country which has been for a con- siderable time wasted by petty wars is Scot- land, when a separate kingdom ; and the con- sequences she still feels. Consider how thin are her population— and how poor as a rule ! But to return. THE MONGOL INVASION (1224). GENGHIS KHAN The Mongols, or Tartars, came from South- Eastern Siberia ; they were a nomad tribe, carrying on their depredations in Central Asia and South-Eastern Europe. Early in the thirteenth century, Genghis Khan, *' the • ir. ij m i 24 RUSSIA'S STORY great chief/' so called by a dervish who pro- phesied that the whole world should bow to him, led them. His principal exploit was the capture of Pekin, which he burnt. In 1224 he obtained a victory over the Russians on the banks of the River Kalka, near to the Sea of Azof, but his best years were spent in war with China. It was Bati, his grandson, who in 1237 defeated Daniel, Prince of Kalisch, burst into Russia, destroyed Bezan, Perislav, Moscow, and Kief ; in fact every city of im- portance except Novgorod, which was pre- served by Alexander Newsky, who died in 1263, on return from paying Mongol tribute. Alexander defeated the Swedes, the Livonians, and then the Lithuanians, and his fame spread throughout Russia, and spared her from a fresh Tartar invasion. He became ruler of Vladimir. Bati was noted for his cruelties. The women and children were put to torture ; the men who were strong sold into slavery, and the aged executed wholesale. Those who did not resist were treated with the same barbarity as those who did. Houses were pillaged, towns laid desolate. The churches, domes, and other buildings in the large cities were destroyed. In Vladimir not one inhabitant survived the massacre nor was a single house BATI— HIS CRUELTIES 25 left standing. Yury, or George, the Grand Duke of Suzdal, left the city on the approach of the barbarians in order to collect an army, confiding its protection to a boyar, who was destitute of the skill and courage necessary for the occasion. The Grand Princess and her children had taken refuge in the interior of the cathedral ; the enemy set fire to it and they were burnt to death." Yury, maddened at the loss of his capital, wife, and children, attacked the Tartars on the banks of the River Sit with an insufficient force, and he and his army were slain to a man. Jaroslav, brother of Yury, governed at Novgorod. He took possession of Kief on his brother's death, and afterwards one of his generals defended it for some time against a second attack. This general, when it fell, had the shrewdness to save his life and benefit his country by obtaining a hearing with Bati, and pointing out to him that there was no further spoil to be gained in Russia, but plenty in Hungary and Poland ; that it was useless destroying any more of the Russian people, as owing to their weakness from dis- sensions within and invasions from without the Mongols need fear no reprisals from them. 26 RUSSIA'S STORY THE GOLDEN HORDE Bati pursued his conquests and established on the Volga the Khanate of the Kaptschak, or the Golden Horde. This meant the head- quarters of the Khan ; it was so called from the gilded tapestry which graced the Khan's tent, tapestry given to Genghis by the Emperor of China, and it afterwards meant the whole Tartar Empire. Bati was not Khan of Tartary himself, his uncle was the great Khan ; therefore the Khanite Bati set up must have been a sort of branch sovereignty owing nominal subjection to the great Khan. Jaroslav made friends with Bati, and so Nov- gorod was never destroyed ; yet the whole of Russia groaned under Tartar oppression till freed by Ivan the Great at the end of the fifteenth century. The Church alone kept the people together ; they remembered they were one ; they worshipped the same God, and the priests cheered them by the assurance that the day would come when the heathen would be swept from the land and the Christian would enjoy his own once more. In 1272 the Tartars embraced Islamism. They allowed the Russians to continue under their own rulers, never trying to turn them into Mongols, but they exacted tribute from them, punished r THE TEREM— IVAN I, "KALITA'' 27 the slightest disobedience to their orders with devastating invasions, and on the whole made their condition intolerable. Russia had be- come almost orientalized under them ; for instance, the Terem, the house set apart for women's seclusion (a Greek name), owes its origin to them, a seclusion not entirely removed until the time of Peter the Great. The princes even continued their private quarrels, and at times one of them would entreat the assistance of their oppressors against another, as George did against his brother Michael, the rightful Prince of Nov- gorod. In 1304, Michael, wishing to spare the blood of his subjects, offered to repair to the great Khan himself, beyond the wall of China, and offer explanations. When there he was slain, and George succeeded him, who in his turn was slain by the son of Michael, who, again, was slain by orders of the Khan, and IVAN I (1328-I341), CALLED KALITA (*' THE PURSE ''), another brother of Michael, became Grand Prince of Novgorod and Vladimir. He estab- lished his residence at Moscow, which from that time became the capital. Moscow had been founded by Yuri, or Yeorge, son of \ 28 RUSSIA'S STORY Vladimir Monomachus, called the '' long- handed.'* The name is taken from the river it overlooked. *' Kremhn *' comes from Kremel, the Tartar for fortress. The KremUn was built by Ivan III. By keeping on good terms with the Tartars on the one hand, and by artfully crushing and amalgamating the smaller states on the other, Ivan paved the way for that freedom which was not obtained till nearly one hundred and fifty years later, in which policy he was followed by his successors, Simeon the Proud (1340-1353) and IVAN II (1353-1358), who styled himself '' Prince of all the Russias," thus suggesting the idea of national unity throughout the hitherto divided country. He succumbed to the plague called the Black Death, then raging. In 1340 Galicia was annexed to Poland by Casimir the Great. Guidemia, a Lithuanian (1315-1340), had got possession of Kief and Vilna, the capital of Lithuania, and, under one Jagiello, Kief and Lithuania became united to Poland, and did not return to Russia till 1568, in the time of Alexis, when the " Home Rule '' of Lithuania ended. t DEMETRIUS DONSKOI 29 \ i DEMETRIUS DONSKOI (1359-I389) Demetrius, the son and successor of Ivan II, was less cautious than Ivan : he opposed the Tartars in arms, and for the first time they encountered a serious resistance from the Russians. The habits of the Tartars had changed. The once hardy race were not what they were. Conquest and association with civilized nations had imparted the germs of weakness to them. Desire for money had supplanted desire for blood ; it was more agreeable for them to enjoy the vast spoils their fathers had collected together than to organize expeditions to obtain new ones. TARTAR DEFEAT (1380) However, they, in conjunction with Prince Tagellon of Poland, in 1378 attempted an invasion ; but Demetrius, aided by his brother, Vladimir '' the Brave,'* inflicted a severe defeat on them by the River Don, at the Field of Woodcocks, and the day of the victory, '* The Saturday of Demetrius," is still observed in Russia. They gave him the name of Donskoi, or Demetrius of the Don. But this victory was dearly paid for. When 30 RUSSIA'S STORY Demetrius was absent, a Tartar army ap- peared at the gates of Moscow (in 1382), obtained admittance by cunning, and, accord- ing to their usual custom, massacred the people and destroyed the buildings. There- fore the fruits of the successful battle were entirely lost. Demetrius did not risk another battle, but consented to pay a tribute and to acknowledge Tartar domination throughout Russia : which his son Basil continued to allow. VASSILY I, OR BASIL (1389-I425) INVASION BY TAMBERLINE But now the Tartars had begun to war amongst themselves. Although their power was broken, they still lingered on the Russian frontier till the close of the sixteenth century. But the rule of Mongolian tyranny was ever from the time of Demetrius. In 1392 Tamber- line, a famous conqueror, and supposed to be a descendant of Genghis Khan (though early in life he was so poor that he possessed merely a single camel) defeated Tok-ma-tisch, the great Khan, who in 1382 had almost levelled Moscow, and afterwards, with four hundred thousand men, entered Russia, but did not advance as far as Moscow, stopping at the TAMBERLINE— BASILTHE BLIND 31 Don instead ; by following its course he arrived at Azof, a flourishing mercantile cit3^ which he plundered, and removed the spoil to Samarcand. VASSILY II, OR BASIL THE BLIND (1425-I462) Basil was succeeded by his son Basil the Blind, who had his eyes put out in 1446, having been taken prisoner by a prince called Demetrius, whose cousin Basil, in his earher years, in a fit of passion had also blinded. He was released later, put again on the throne, and reigned some years. The mode of his death was strange ; to cure a low fever which hung upon him, his physicians suggested singeing his body with a fungus set alight ; unfortunately the remedy did not have the desired effect, and the prince died instead. This was the last ruler who acknowledged Tartar supremacy, their power now being broken, and his successor effectually eman- cipated the nation from their dominion. The Cossacks sprang into notice somewhere about this time. They were a tribe living on the borders of the Don and Dnieper, Christians and warriors. They had one chief — the rest of them being equal, and bore the same long 32 RUSSIA'S STORY lances and rode the same small horses as they do this day. At this period (1453) Constan- tinople was taken by the Turks, and the Greek Empire fell. The event excited much sym- pathy in Russia ; the head of the ancient Church, which was the universal worship throughout the Empire, and which was its prop during the dread time of Tartar tyranny, had fallen by the hand of the infidel. True, it must have been foreseen for years; but that did not lessen the grief when the blow came, nor were the Russians pleased to see a nation of unbelieving warriors estabhshed on their borders in the place of the reverenced imbellicose Greek Empire. The feeUng of hatred between the Muscovite and Turk, which has never since been quelled, sprung up on the first establishment of the latter in Europe ; and the headship of the Greek religion was transferred to Russia, where it has remained ever since. IVAN THE GREAT [ill] (1462-I505) Ivan Basilovitch, great-grandson of Dimitri Donskoi, surnamed the Great, mounted the throne in 1462. He was probably so called more from the length of his reign, which ' IVAN THE GREAT— MARFA 33 lasted for forty-three years, and from the conspicuous place Russia began to occupy during it, than from any merits of his own. It was in his time that the Tartars were finally expelled, that communications with the Western Powers were commenced, and that Russia became worthy of the dignity of being styled an independent nation. Also her dominions were much extended by him. Novgorod had hitherto been only nominally subject to the ruler at Moscow. It was governed by the widow of the last prince, Marfa, a woman of talent and spirit, but who hated Ivan. Her desire was to shake off even the shadow of dependence, and to further this aim she entered into a treaty with Casimir, the King of Poland ; but before he could despatch troops to her aid Ivan was in Nov- gorod, which he reduced to subjection and incorporated with the Empire. The great bell of the cathedral, most of the riches accumu- lated at various times by merchants, jewels and precious stones, were conveyed to the capital ; until this time Novgorod had un- deniably been the first city in war, in com- merce, and in progress in Russia. I « 34 RUSSIA'S STORY LAST TARTAR INVASION Ivan's second wife was the Princess Zoe, a daughter of Thomas Palaeologus, brother to the last Greek Emperor, who was then Uving at Rome. Her name was then changed to Sophia, according to Greek Church custom. This alliance was favoured by Pope Sixtus IV, who hoped to unite the Greek and Latin Churches. With her was adopted the crest of the Greek Imperial family, the double-headed eagle. She was instrumental in inducing the monarch to throw off Tartar tribute, which he would have no doubt continued to render, as he was personally averse to war. The refusal to acknowledge the supremacy of the Khan Achmet brought a Tartar army into Russia. But this army, though large, was timid, and the Khan does not appear to have been a daring leader. Ivan also hesitated at engaging, so, after much manoeuvring, the strange sight of two armies, each retreating from the other and covering its retreat by its advanced guard, might have been seen — a sight which once again, after a lapse of many years, occurred in Russia ; but the com- batants then were of a different stamp, the causes of the retreat dissimilar, and the results far more terribly disastrous to the vanquished. It was when Napoleon, after abandoning THE TARTAR RETREAT 35 Moscow and advancing on the heights of Kalouga, alarmed at their inaccessibility and at the apparently impregnable positions of the Russian armies, gave up the idea of forcing them, and with anguish unutterable resolved to retreat to Germany on the war-worn track by which he had come, instead of, as he hoped, by the fertile land of Poland ; on the other hand, the Russians, terrified by the prestige of the French arms and the seeming boldness of Napoleon's advance, had also intended to abandon Kalouga without a struggle ; so both armies, though the other knew it not, were running away. But when the Russians were assured of Napoleon's retreat the effect on their courage was electrical, and resulted in the total destruction of the French army. Had Napoleon persevered in his intention of crossing the mountains he would have done so without serious loss, and the fate of the world might have been changed. But the retreating armies of which we are speaking were of another stamp, both as to leaders and men, and the consequences were only important in that no further invasions were attempted by the Tartars, for the Khan was soon after murdered and the Mongol Empire expired with him, the supremacy over Russia having lasted for three centuries. 36 RUSSIA'S STORY There were no important wars in this reign, but Ivan increased his territory, annexing Viatka and Tver in 1489 and extending his Empire westward to the Desna and north- ward to the Pechora. He also encouraged hterature and art, had the greater part of the KremUn built, and in his reign more attention was given to diplomatic connections with foreign Powers, in which intercourse Ivan assumed the name of Czar, derived, according to Karamsin, from an eastern word signifying '* power,'' and used by the Assyrian kings, as in '' Belshazzar,'' '' Nebuchadnezzar." It is really the Slavonic form of Caesar. Ivan was noted for his pusillanimity in war and his severity at home, of which severity the following incident may be quoted as an example. His favourite son, being ill, was attended by a physician, who, in the way of conversation^ said that he would stake his hfe on the Prince's recovery. When the Prince died Ivan had the physician executed. But his cruelties were trifling when compared with those of some of his successors ; in truth, few Russian rulers have been remarkable for their clemency ; scarcely a page of her history can be turned over without some painful scene of bloodshed. IVAN THE TERRIBLE 37 VASSILI (IVANOVITCH) III (1505-I533) Ivan died after a reign of forty-three years, leaving a grandson by Ivan, his eldest son, who predeceased him. Dreading the evils of a minority he was succeeded to the throne by his son Vassili, or Basil, whose period of power was in no way remarkable, save for his victories over the Lithuanian knights and the addition of Smolensk to his dominions. Also in 15 11 (according to Horsey 's Diary) the Mongols made another raid and burnt Moscow. His character and mode of government was akin to that of his father, though perhaps on the whole milder. By his second wife, Helen Ghriska, the daughter of a Lithuanian noble (his first wife he had divorced for being barren), he left two sons, Ivan and Yury. Yury was half-witted ; Ivan was '' Ivan the Terrible," the hero of many a startling and awful story. Legend avers that a fearful storm burst over Moscow on the night of his birth, indicating the anger of Heaven at the event. He was in the nursery when left without his father, and his mother became Regent ; she was cruel and unprincipled, and having put out of the way her principal enemies with as little scruple as Richard III did in our own history, she made ■•KkX***"*** 38 RUSSIA'S STORY the Captain of the Guard her favourite. For some time they ruled vigorously and with discretion. One day the Queen was suddenly poisoned. Her crimes prevented the least sorrow being felt at the event ; but history tells us how the little Czar threw himself with a burst of grief on the neck of his dead mother and kissed her again and again, then vowed a lifelong vengeance on the people who rejoiced at her loss, and terribly he kept his vow. Teleunef, her lover, was thrown into a dungeon, where he perished from hunger, and the boyars contested for the protector- ship. Ten years' confusion followed, and the kingdom was not entirely at peace, nor the last remains of the Appanages gone, until Ivan became eighteen, and assumed the reins of government. IVAN IV (the terrible) (1533-I584) He was the first Emperor who was solemnly crowned with the title of Czar. The Empire was now powerful and strong. The monarch could ensure the implicit obedience of the nobles and people ; he possessed an army of three hundred thousand men ; there were no enemies at home or abroad, the relations with Poland and other States were friendly. The 1 Ivan I\', The Tkkkiki.k Kirst Czar of Muscovy. Keignol 1533- 15S4 I'o jacf />a^f 38 MOSCOW BURNT— ANASTASIA 39 Tartars were crushed and their Golden Horde was no more ; merchants, scientific and other erudite men poured into the country, which was beginning to be feared by foreign States, and was rapidly increasing in prosperity. The first event after Ivan assumed the reins of government himself was a fire, which destroyed a large part of Moscow. Ivan did not, like Nero (to whom he has often been compared), make it an opportunity for festiv- ities ; but, on the contrary, it produced a wholesome effect upon him, and was instru- mental in retarding the growth of his career of vice. Other causes also tended to retard it — ^the chief of which were the admonitions of the priests and the gentle influence of his young wife Anastasia Rumanova, a Russian ; the worst acts of his life did not occur until after her death. His first attention was directed towards internal reforms, and then he indulged in some military exploits. The city of Kazan, near the Volga, was the only place in Russia which still belonged to the Tartars. Ivan, with a hundred thousand men, marched against the city, took it with some difficulty, and made it a portion of his Empire. On his return from this successful campaign, a messenger saluted him, announcing that in his absence the Czarina had given birth to a 40 RUSSIANS STORY son. It is said that in his delight he clasped the messenger to his arms, and having nothing else at hand to give him, presented him with his horse and royal mantle and continued his journey on foot. This anecdote forms a strange contrast to his moroseness in later times. The first communication with England took place in his reign. Some EngUshmen under R. Chancellor and Sir Hugh Willoughby, charged with the discovery of the Frozen Ocean, were shipwrecked and brought to the Czar, who received them most hospi- tably, and soon after Queen Mary of England concluded a commercial treaty with him and a Russian company was formed. In 1556 the exchange of ambassadors commenced, which was shortly afterwards followed by exchange of presents. Archangel was discovered, and some other places in the direction of the North Pole and in Northern Asia. After Ivan had been on the throne thirteen years, Anastasia died. He was deeply attached to her, and bitterly mourned her loss. The worst passions of his nature now broke out, and his reign was dis- graced by atrocities which rivalled those of Nero or Caligula. Some of his actions were so curious that it may be doubted whether IVAN AND HENRY VIII 41 \ \ the loss of his wife had not softened his brain, and whether what he did latterly may not be attributed to madness rather than to vice. For instance, at one time he took it into his head suddenly to depart no man knew whither. The people feared, yet they loved him, and after a month or so his hiding-place was dis- covered and they entreated him to return. It is a curious fact in history that often a cold- blooded tyrant continues to keep the affec- tions of his people in spite of the most out- rageous acts, while a merciful prince some- times loses them for the merest trifle. Witness Henry VIII and this Ivan. What had either of them ever done that a single tear should be shed when they died ? Posterity may well marvel that their people did not rise against them in a mass — that they quietly allowed the will of one to inflict misery on thousands. The truth is that these men had a strength of character which awed and kept the people in check. COMMENCEMENT OF A STANDING ARMY On Ivan's return he instituted a new body- guard called Opritshniks, or Select Legion. This was the first foundation of a standing army in Russia, and was better known by the 42 RUSSIA'S STORY name of the Strelitz ; it was soon increased to six thousand men, who rode the streets with a dog's head and a broom suspended from the saddle-bow ; the former was to show how they worried the enemies of the Czar, and the latter how they swept them off the face of the earth. As Ivan grew older his passion for blood increased. He put to death Alexandra, the widow of his brother Yuri. He built the Church of St. Basil at Moscow and ordered the architect's eyes to be put out, so that he should never build another to rival it. On one day as many as six princes were beheaded and a seventh impaled. The streets and city gates were filled with the dead, and the sur- vivors were afraid to bury them lest they should rouse the wrath of the monster by appearing to sympathize with the victims of his fury ; his vengeance was extended also to the weaker sex : he would often cause the lady of a noble, who had incurred his dis- pleasure, to stand for hours in an indeUcate position in the pubhc sight before he put her to death. It were tedious to dwell upon the enormities of Ivan, so one or two of his crown- ing acts shall alone be noticed. Tidings came to him of a conspiracy in Novgorod. He marched with his select legion to the place, literally exterminating the inhabitants of the ATROCITIES OF IVAN 43 ! i towns as he went along. When he entered the city he celebrated mass in the cathedral ; then he ordered a deliberate massacre of the whole population. The work took five weeks ; husbands and wives, mothers and children, were either flung into the Volkhof or dis- patched by the spears of soldiers. Then the shops and warehouses were plundered, Ivan superintending the work in person. When it was nearly done, he ordered as a mockery a general pardon to the few who remained alive ; to whom, deprived of those they loved, and stripped of their property, death would have been a mercy. Sixty thousand victims lay dead in the streets ; to some ten thousand living this boon was offered. The pillage of the Mongols and the devastation of the contesting factions had never inflicted such visitations on the Russian cities as the caprice of their own ruler. An historian has said that if he only had lived long enough he would have exterminated the entire population of his Empire. His amusements were of the same nature as his punishments ; letting bears loose among the people, while he stood at the windows to watch the result ; chopping off the noses or ears of his boyars when they came to pay their respects ; laying traps and mines in the ■ 44 RUSSIA'S STORY streets for the benefit of the passers-by. etc. etc No man was safe from his vengeance, no woman from his passion. His amours were carried on even without regard for decency ; fathers were ordered to bring their daughters and bridegrooms their brides. One of his favourite pastimes was interrupting a mam- age ceremony and taking away the lady ; virtue was no protection, innocence no screen. He had seven wives, one more than Henry VHI, but was not attached to any save Anastasia, " the day star of his exist- ence." However, there is no record of any ot them being executed. He was refused by the Princess Catherine of Poland, which led to a war between him and her father. His last act was one of his worst. His favourite son, who had been his companion, and was almost the only being he loved— the Unk which con- nected him with Anastasia— one day rushed into his presence and begged to have the privilege of leading the army which was hastening to the relief of Narva, then being besieged by Charles IX of Sweden. The father, always suspicious, fancied the request might be merely a cover to dethrone him. as he knew his son was averse to his misdeeds and was loved by the soldiers. " Wretch, would you plot my life ! " he shouted, and IVAN KILLS HIS SON 45 struck a fearful blow at the unfortunate boy, who fell to the ground and died. Then the demon of remorse came upon the father. " He sate in silence on the ground, The old and haughty Czar ; Lonely, though princes girt him round, And leaders of the war. He had cast his jewelled sabre, Which many a field had won, To the earth beside the youthful dead, His first and fair- born son." Mrs. Heman's poem then gives a touching description of the agony of the father's mind. He refused any consolation, shunned his courtiers and buried himself in a palace which he had built near Moscow, and there gave way to the wildest despair. This last act, unnatural and groundless, for the son was attached to his father, was his death-blow. In March, 1584, he was seized with a dangerous illness. Some astrologers predicted his approaching end, but a threat to strangle them soon made them hold their tongues. He then began to arrange his affairs. As if to make up for the crimes of his life, he, on his deathbed, reduced some of the heavy taxes he had levied on his subjects, and ap- pointed excellent counsellors for his surviving son, Feodor. But when he rallied a Uttle the 46 RUSSIA'S STORY vices of his character returned. His daughter- in-law, paying him a visit, was obUged to retire precipitately, her honour not being safe with him. The day arrived on which the astrologers had foretold his death ; he ordered them to be executed for their false prophecy, but died before the mandate could be carried out. Like Henry VHI, his last order was for a murder, and in both cases the victims were saved by the tyrant's decease. The greater part of Siberia was acquired during Ivan's reign by a band of Cossacks under Yarmak, a general whose courage and judicious behaviour are worthy of the highest commendation, especially when we consider the impious character of his master. He obtained a pardon by giving up his acquisitions to the Czar, for he had been deemed a robber and condemned to death. Siberia before this was only visited by traders in search of firs. Sirbir, no longer existing, was the leading town at that time. It was taken by the Cossacks, and gave its name to Siberia. It lay in the vicinity of Tobolsk. The Russians did not get possession of the left bank of the River Amour till much later, about 1856. .,% I FEODOR— BORIS— DEMETRIUS 47 FEODOR I (1584-1589) Feodor, the second son of Ivan, by Anastasia, was the last monarch of the Varingian line, which had occupied the throne for over seven hundred years. He was the exact reverse of his father : in intel- lect he was weak ; spirit he had none ; his appearance was insignificant and calculated neither to inspire affection nor fear. His chief amusement lay in the ringing of church bells. The Regency which his father had ap- pointed continued to govern, as Feodor was incapable of doing so. The leader of this Regency was Boris, brother of Irene, Feodor's wife, a man of craft and ambition who hoped one day to obtain the throne himself, as Feodor had no children nor was he likely to have any. There was one more survivor of the line of Rurik, Dmitri, or Demetrius, a son of Ivan by his last wife, and still a child. Boris con- trived to have him assassinated at Uglich (1591), to pave his own way to the throne ; and when Feodor died in 1598, after a reign of fourteen years, terminating a long line of Muscovite princes, he was unanimously made Czar. Feodor kept up the relations with England 48 RUSSIA'S STORY It 1 but aboUshed the monopoly of trade which Ivan, his father, had given to the Enghsh. EUzabeth expressed great irritation when this monopoly was taken away. Ivan the Terrible had been partial to the Enghsh, and several resided at his Court. Shortly before his death he had a long discussion with one of them on the value of jewels, as they were looking over the many and priceless gems which he and his predecessors had acquired by conquest, plunder, and extortion. He also desired a wife from England ; some writers say he made proposals to EUzabeth herself, though this is merely what almost every foreign potentate is accused by some historian or another of having done ; but it is well known that he was anxious to obtain the hand of Lady Hastings, a relation and ward of the Queen : but EUzabeth, no doubt alarmed at his violence and barbarity, was averse to the match, and though she received his am- bassadors and messages on the subject with urbanity, exercising her usual ingenuity she contrived to have the marriage postponed and then abandoned, without giving offence to the autocrat. Besides, as Ivan had more than one wife living she could not weU have allowed a lady under her protection to be added to the Ust. BORIS, BROTHER OF IRENE 49 BORIS GODUNOF (1598-1605) Although, as above stated, Boris was elected Sovereign without opposition, yet he found great difficulty in holding his place. His policy was to weaken the power of the nobility and increase that of the Crown. Other nobles who had been members of the Protectorate considered their claim as good as his own, and plots were continually being hatched to overthrow him, which he could only suppress by instant and numerous execu- tions. Sometimes he would stand up when banqueting and denounce such and such a person as a traitor. This conduct made the people begin to fear that a second reign of terror was likely to commence, and the temper of the nation was not inclined to tolerate it, as they did under Ivan ; for the unquestioned power of the house of Rurik, from the length of the time of its supremacy, as well as from its having shared with the people the evils of the Tartar oppression, and from its having been instrumental in shaking off that oppres- sion, seemed to be identified with the interests of the nation, and the superstitious people would no more have thought of displacing one of its rulers than they would of denying the power of the God who placed him there. But 50 RUSSIA'S STORY the present case was of a widely different nature : this man was merely raised to the throne for want of an heir of the legitimate line, and having been chosen by the people the tenure of his supremacy should be co- eval with his pleasing them ; therefore, when a youth calling himself Demetrius (the Perkin Warbeck of Russia), pretending to be that son of Ivan who was murdered by Boris, encouraged by the Polish Prince Adam, arrived with a PoUsh army, the people flocked to his standard. He might be the rightful heir ; there was a chance of it ; at all events Boris was not, and had forfeited all claim to their protection by commencing a despotic sway. li'l PART II PERIOD OF TROUBLES FEODOR II.— THE FALSE DEMETRIUS (1605-1613) A BATTLE was saved by Basumanov, Boris' general, near Novgorod, and then another battle was fought at Dotrinichi, near Orel which Bons won, but in a few days after he died mysteriously, some said by poison His son Feodor succeeded him, and his bride. Manna, was crowned on May i8th. But a rising took place on May 29th. and Feodor and his mother were murdered and Marina imprisoned. Then Demetrius, proclaimed czar by General Basumanov, reigned in his stead. But he proved as worthless as his pre- decessor, and was also killed. A precedent hawng been established, other personators of the murdered Demetrius sprang up. Mean- while Russia's external enemies, ever ready to take advantage of her internal dissensions began to move. For with the death of Boris ended the vigorous rule and consoUdation of the Empire, and disputes succeeded which 5« 1 Mi 52 RUSSIA'S STORY lasted for nearly thirty years. Basil Shuiski. and then a pretender, whom Marina pretended to be her husband (escaped, not murdered), seized the throne, and afterwards Ladislaus, a Polish prince, occupied it for two years^ The King of Poland took Smolensk and besieged Moscow. Charles IX of Sweden attacked Novgorod, and Russia was smkmg into the same state of weakness as when it was divided for so long before ; in fact it was threatened to become subject to Poland. But the Church held together, and showed an excellent example to the people by their many acts of heroism. THE HOUSE OF BOMANOFF. MICHAEL (1613-1645) The Poles were expelled in 1612, and the bovars assembling chose Michael, of the family of Romanoff, though he was only sixteen years of age, for their ruler The Romanoffs were an ancient noble famdy, and Michael was grand-nephew to the Czanna Anastasia, the first consort of Ivan IV— a fact which, perhaps, had something to do with his election. . . , „j The choice of the nobles this time happened to be in the right direction, for Michael was I f. C/\K MicnAKi. The founder ot ihc Koinaiioff Dynasty. Keigneii i6i3-;645 R 7 a face page 5a I I MICHAEL ROMANOFF 53 possessed of ability, firmness, and judgment, and sorely Russia needed them all — for she was beset by enemies on every side. The Crimean Tartars, a Khanate of some hundred years' standing, but which had never proved itself so actively hostile to the Empire as the Tartars of Kiptchak, was overrunning the South. The famous Gustavus Adolphus, now King of Sweden, had threatened Nov- gorod, and the King of Poland was advancing with another army, still hoping that he might force the Russians to elect his son Ladislaus as their Czar, and thus unite Russia with his own dominions. Alas, could he have foreseen how different the result would one day be ! Michael first turned his attention to the Swedes and concluded a treaty with Gustavus at Stolbova (1617), in which that magnificent chieftain, though victorious in every en- counter, agreed to withdraw his armies in return merely for the provinces of Livonia and Ingria. A treaty was next concluded with Poland. But when Ladislaus succeeded his father war broke out again and the Russians lost Smolensk. Michael was not very successful in war, but his administration at home was admirable, though his power was much more limited than that of any of his predecessors. For the Russians, warned 54 RUSSIA'S STORY by precedent as to the evil of entrusting too much power to their ruler, had resolved at his accession to have a written constitution — of which the headings were : (i) That the Czar would protect the Greek religion. (2) That he would neither make new laws nor aboUsh old ones. (3) That all cases should be tried according to the laws and to pre- scribed forms. (4) And that he would not make war or peace without the consent of the nation. The grievances of the people against their sovereigns are in all countries ancient and modern much alike, for history repeats itself, and when they do, as most nations have done, contrive to get in black and white a list of the things which the king may do and which he may not do, the lists are pretty much the same. There was missing here, however, any provision against a favourite exaction of monarchy, viz., that of raising money without consent. Its absence cannot be very satisfactorily accounted for ; as it is certain that Ivan the Terrible, and some others, levied cruel tributes on the people. When Michael was established on the throne disturbances ceased and pretenders disappeared as though by magic. Demetrius was allowed to rest in his grave. Progress DISTURBANCES CEASE 55 and the study of the fine arts, which had slumbered for years, were revived ; diplo- matic relations with England and other countries, which had been suspended since the death of Feodor, were renewed, and Russia began to assume the appearance of a compact Power, though not yet of a European one. Michael being of a pacific disposition, and not given to stretchings of the preroga- tive, was not disturbed by continual fear of insurrections or plots ; these, if without cause, would not have found favour for a moment ; the people were wearied of war, and what is more, the house of Romanoff was well-beloved. It was connected with that of Rurik through their most adored princess. The father of the Czar was the leader of the priesthood — of that ancient and magnificent worship to which the people were so devoted, which had held her together during the dark Tartar period, and which was the successor of the famous reUgion of the fallen Eastern Empire. So Michael lived in peace and prosperity, and died in 1645, regretted and respected. 56 RUSSIA'S STORY ALEXIS (1645-1676) His son Alexis was similar to himself in character, but of superior talents in war. Tall and commanding in appearance, with a sweet smile and a gentle yet manly face, generous to a fault, possessed of feeUngs so sensitive that he never inflicted the punish- ^ ment of death if it could possibly be avoided ; * so compassionate that he would send money from his privy purse to ameliorate the condi- tion of captives in Siberia, the second prince of the House of Romanoff won more esteem than even his father had done. He is also stated to have given money to Charles II when he was a wanderer. Another false Demetrius certainly sprung up against him, but he met with no encouragement, although supported by Queen Christina of Sweden, and the Strelitz caught and hanged him. THE COSSACKS Alexis was drawn into a foreign war which terminated fortunately, as he recovered Smo- lensk for Russia . The Cossacks of the Ukraine were nominally under the subjection of the King of Poland, and the Polish nobles, desir- ing to change this nominal to a real subjection THE COSSACKS 57 to achieve their end, began to tax and plunder them. The Cossacks bore it patiently for some time, but the last straw broke the camel's back ; the King of Poland, Cassimir, edged on by the Jesuits, issued a decree commanding them to renounce the Greek Church and become Roman Catholics. In addition to this, the Hetman, or leader of the Cossacks, labouring under a false accusation of treason, fled to the Crimea. While there he heaYd that his house had been destroyed, his wife so maltreated that she died, even his children burnt alive. He told the tale of his woes with such effect in the Crimea that he induced some forty thousand of the Tartars there to follow him, and take vengeance on the Poles. At the same time the Cossacks rose en masse, and, appeaUng for aid to Alexis, offered to transfer their tribute and oath of allegiance to him in return for his assistance. What with Russians, and Tartars, and Cos- sacks, John Cassimir and his Poles were hardly put to it ; although by bribery they induced the Crimean Tartars to return, yet the Cos- sacks and Russians took Smolensk in 1654, at which time Charles X of Sweden, who had succeeded Christina, the daughter of the illustrious Gustavus, joined in, and a savage war was waged for seven years. It was con- 58 RUSSIA'S STORY i -^ eluded by the Treaty of Andrassan, which gave to Alexis the Dnieper and the Ukraine beyond it. In 1663 the postal service was insti- tuted. Also another treaty in 1667 gave many important provinces situated between Cour- land and Muscovy to Russia, and supremacy over the Cossacks, who have ever since been dependent on her. But this supremacy brought on a civil war. A Russian Governor of the Don, not having sufficient tact to understand the nature of these wild tribes, executed one of their leaders. Radzin, his brother, instantly com- menced a rebelUon which threatened to assume the most formidable proportions, especially as he was joined by many Russians who were discontented at the treatment of Nicon, a Patriarch of the Church and formerly a great iavourite of Alexis, who had revised the Bible but had lately fallen into disgrace. The united forces of the insurgents amounted at one time to two hundred thousand men, and they contemplated a complete separation from Russia, Astrakhan to be their capital. Unfortunately for themselves they were a mere rabble— disorderly and ill-discipUned. Radzin was induced to go to Moscow, on ALEXIS DIES— PROGRESS 59 some suggestion as to compromise offered. When there, his head was struck off. De- prived of their leader his army fell to pieces, and twelve thousand executions soon put everything to rights. The Emperor was neither privy to his visit, nor to the scenes which followed it. In 1676 Alexis got ill, and insisted on being attended by some old Pohsh woman— a quack. He died in consequence, at the early age of forty-seven, after a reign of thirty-one years, as regretted and beloved as his father had been. He left three children bv his first wife. Maria— Feodor, Ivan, and Sophia— and one, Peter, by Natalia Narishkina. Not long before his last illness the first ships were constructed, though little attention was given to maritime enterprise till Peter the Great built a navy. A code of laws, still pre- served, was compiled by him, which bore the name of Uloshenije. Factories, schools, gal- leries and warehouses sprang up all over Russia, and foreigners flocked from Western Europe to work them. Mines were opened and canals dug directly men saw that the state of the Empire was such that there was a fair chance of enjoying the fruits of tkeir labour — and industry, paralysed during the 6o RUSSIA'S STORY ferocious and stormy times, now advanced with great strides. FEODOR III (1676-1682) Feodor, the eldest son of Alexis, did not enjoy the Imperial dignity long; he was delicate and sickly, yet during the six years that he was in power he reformed many abuses in the civil and home administration. The leading anecdote related of him is his humbling the power of the boyars, whose hauteur and self-conceit was becoming in- sufferable. They prided themselves on the antiquity of their patents of nobility ; none would serve under another whose patent was more recent than his own. Feodor ordered a general assembly to be convened, command- ing them to attend with these patents, which he collected into a heap and set fire to, thus destroying all evidence of the length of the titles. This step, though unpopular, was most judicious, as perpetual dissensions amongst the peers are fatal to the welfare of an Empire. A war with Turkey, then in the zenith of her power, which had been com- menced by Alexis, was continued by Feodor. The Turks had attacked Poland and the Russians assisted the Poles ; but the Poles, FEODOR III 61 led by John Sobieski, required but little aid from without : the terrible Mohammedans were repulsed and a truce for twenty years agreed upon. The character of Feodor was not unlike that of Edward VI (of England), but though so sickly he governed with greater authority than Edward did, and took more energetic measures. He was amiable in dis- position, most amiable, and ever regardful of the good of his subjects. The country was blessed with peace and prosperity while he lived, and it mourned him when he died. He died childless in 1682, having married a Polish lady much against the will of the Church; but he considered that selecting a wife from the native stock tended to check instead of to encourage the intermixing of the Russians with other nations. It had been the common practice in Russia for the Czar to choose a wife from his subjects ; this, perhaps, is a better plan than insisting on royalty inter- marrying with royalty, for royal families are so few that it must eventuate in those of the same kin mixing. Ivan, his brother, the next son of Alexis in order of birth, was nearly blind and utterly unfit to succeed him ; nor was he inclined to do so, and their half brother, Peter, the son of the second wife of Alexis, Natalia Narishkina, would have been made 62 RUSSIA'S STORY PETER THE GREAT 63 I Czar without opposition had not Sophia, his sister, prevented it. Witli the assistance of Galitzin, Feodor's Prime Minister, she con- trived to have herself proclaimed co-sovereign jointly with the two Czars, and she and Galitzin governed between them. Their first endeavour was to try to eradicate all the better qualities in the mind of Peter, who was a child, and thus render him incapable of dis- placing them. They gave him many and noisy companions to addict him to pleasure, and render him averse to any ideas of ambi- tion. But the princely boy, knowing his sister was depriving him of his rightful herit- age and resolving to strain every nerve to get it one day back, trained his companions as a band of soldiers, thus initiating himself in childhood to the art of war. Early in life he gave signs of that indomit- able perseverance which enabled him to sub- due so many apparently insuperable diffi- culties, and, in spite of overwhelming defeats and disasters, to lay the foundations of a mighty Empire. An instance of this per- severance is shown by his overcoming his fear of water. When little more than a baby, the carriage, in which he was sleeping on his mother's lap, drove over a bridge under which there was a waterfall, whose rushing sound terrified him so exceedingly that afterwards the sight of water almost threw him into convulsions ; yet by degrees he compelled himself to overcome this, and not only became an expert swimmer, but made Russia a naval power and spent much of his time on that element on which none of his predecessors had ventured. As he grew older, his deter- mination to drive Sophia from her false position became more apparent. One day, when she was going to church, attired in regal robes, he told her openly she had no right to that place. Seeing many of the people sided against her, she organized a plot to assassinate him. This plot was detected. After some fighting, and bloodshed, she was deposed and immured in a convent, and Peter obtained possession of the Government, which he swayed with such renown till 1725, and com- menced that grasping policy which has sub- sequently nearly doubled the size of the Russian Empire. PETER THE GREAT (1682-I725) The reign of Peter the Great is the turning- point of the history of Russia. The solidity and strength of the Empire is due to himself and to his successors, who have carried on the :i 64 RUSSIA'S STORY programme he framed. S^gur ViUebois and others unite in bestowing lavish praises upon him, and consider him one of the greatest Ughts of modern days. i BEGINS SHIPBUILDING His first work was to give Russia a navy. Walking one day at the summer palace of Ismaelof , he saw*' an old EngUsh shallop half in pieces. '' Why," he asked Timmermaim, a German who was instructing him, *' is it differently built from the boats on the Moskva ? " *' Because it goes with sails," was the reply. Peter wanted to make a trial of it. Brandt, a Dutch shipwright, was sent for, who put it in order. A stimulus being thus given to encourage the art of shipbuild- ing, Peter had several vessels made. More- over, he took a voyage on the frozen ocean, which no former monarch had ever seen. He then employed Dutch and Venetian carpenters, and ships of all descriptions were constructed on the Don. The object of building them in that place was that they would be useful m expeditions to crush the Crimean Tartars and to fight the Turks, for Peter was resolved to exterminate the enemies who for so long had harassed the borders of his Empire. He saw REFORMS OF PETER «S that Russia was far behind other European States in every respect, and knew that she would never be on a level with them while liable to attacks from all quarters. A navy was necessary for her protection ; the want of it had prevented intercourse with abroad, and kept her in a state of barbarism while other nations were advancing in intelligence. The visits of foreigners were the only stars in her night of ignorance, although it was not an encouraging country for foreigners to come to. They were kept under a perpetual system of espionage, the Russians being a suspicious people. They were often inhospitably treated, and the style of food, ways of living, and domestic habits of the Russians generally were not of a nature calculated to enhance the comfort of any visitor from another country. To reform all this, Peter set to work with energy. His favourites were selected from intelligent foreigners. Gordon, a Scotchman, commanded the army, though Le Fort, a Swiss, his principal adviser, was nominally the leader. Peter's object was to change it from being merely a large assembly of peasants indifferently armed, to a body like the disci- plined hosts of France and Germany. With this view he studied European languages, and became proficient in most of them before I HI 'Sl( 66 RUSSIA'S STORY he was twenty ; thus, obtaining the means of access to works on miUtary aifairs, he was enabled to plan the framework of the con- struction of a large and well-trained force. This army was to be serviceable for other vast ideas which he cherished. His country was an inland one, and had, consequently, none of the advantages which nations with an extensive seaboard possess. But at mighty distances lay the Caspian, the Baltic, the Black Sea and the Euxine. Could he but extend his dominions to the shores of all these seas, what a nation might Russia become — and thus projects of ambition and territorial extension opened to this enterprising man, projects in which he and his successors have so determinedly persevered, projects to whose reahzation he devoted all his intellect — all his brain — all those powers which God had given him : powers which God gives but to few ! — the head to scheme, the determination to achieve, the resolution which no disaster daunts, the courage which quails at no peril, no hardship destroys, the self-denial which will put up with anything to forward the one grand purpose — the will which shapes that of thousands to its own ends ; in short, the gifts of the great— the gifts of Sylla, of Caesar, and of Napoleon. I f PETER UNPOPULAR SIEGE OF AZOV 67 His first exploit was a success. It was the Siege of Azov. The Turks, fighting with the Poles and Germany, were scarcely in a condi- tion to resist a large expedition ; so war was declared against them, and Azov blockaded. After some resistance it capitulated. Peter celebrated a triumph, and then resolved to visit Europe to view civihzation in its matured state and bring the germs of it home. His going was very unpopular, and nearly cost him his life. His encouragement to foreigners, and endeavours to convert Russia into a European instead of an Asiatic Power, as she had been under the Ruriks, his attempts to break up the old customs and enUghten the Empire against its will, and his introducing European officers and the European system to the army, had given deep offence to his subjects, and now an avowed declaration to desert his Empire for that West of which they were so jealous made the discontent reach its culminating point : a plot was hatched by the Strelitz to dethrone him and place Sophia again on the throne. On its being revealed, as plots so often are, Peter arranged with his guards to surround the house where the con- spirators were plotting. But his eagerness ' I > 68 RUSSIA'S STORY carried him there before their arrival, and he found himself alone in a room with the very men who were planning his destruction. But his presence of mind did not forsake him. '* Seeing a light," he began, '' I thought a banquet was going on, and I came to share." The traitors, recovering their surprise, drank with their monarch ; but soon looks and signs were exchanged. '' Is it time ? " whispered one. '' Not yet," was the answer. Then Peter heard the tramp of soldiers below, and rising up he smote the speaker to the ground, shout- ing : '' If it is not time for you, scoundrel, it is for me." The guards rushed in— the assassins were secured, and the conspiracy crushed. A terrible vengeance, typical of the ferocity of Russian character, native even in the best of her monarchs, was the sequel. HE VISITS EUROPE The train which visited Europe consisted of about two hundred persons, Le Fort being its leader and the Czar himself going as a private individual. Never before had a Russian ruler thrown aside that ostentation and pomp so loved by semi-barbarian monarchs, or never had any one of them left their dominions except at the head of an army, and bent on PETER IN ENGLAND 69 some errand of war. The people did not know what to make of this strange conduct — ^in any case they did not like it. CROSSES TO ENGLAND At Amsterdam Peter worked in the dock- yards like a common carpenter ; and while his retinue were living in splendour, he took up his abode in a workman's hut. In 1698 he crossed over to England, and in addition to shipbuilding studied mathematics, as- tronomy, watch-making, and engineering. When there he continued the same style of living, taking little lodgings at Deptford. At one time, too, he was residing at Mr. Evelyn's house, as we learn from the well-known diary. When he went away William III made him a present of his yacht, in which he took back a little army of artificers and craftsmen. In return he gave the English king a magnificent diamond, which he presented wrapped in a piece of dirty brown paper. His stay in Germany was cut short by another plot, instituted by the StreUtz. He hastened home, crushed the confederacy, and abolished the Strelitz corps altogether — which had been his intention for some time, and he had now an excellent excuse. His vengeance i'l ■i i i.i 70 RUSSIA'S STORY on the originators of the plot again assumed a character of frightful ferocity. HOME REFORMS He then busied himself with reform. The success with which he carried it out is in- dicative of the greatness of his character, for almost every measure he proposed was un- popular and distasteful to the people. Even that most dangerous and difficult task, viz. the reformation of the Church, was accom- plished with ease by him. He abolished celibacy in the clergy, took from them the power of capital punishment which they had enjoyed for ages, abohshed the dignity of patriarch, added its revenues to the military chest, and reduced the number of con- vents. He also regulated the calendar, making the year begin on January ist, and not September ist, as hitherto ; insisted upon an entire change of dress amongst all the people, compeUing them to cut off their beards and abandon their Asiatic costume, adopting the European model ; established observa- tories, roads, post-offices, engineering works, theatres, even the much-abused practice of smoking — this last, probably, not because of the merits of the habit itself, but in unison ( I d li I ALLIANCE WITH POLAND 71 with his scheme of avowed enmity to ignor- ance and superstition ; for the priests had for- bidden smoking, considering it an unclean and sinful habit, and connecting it with the idea of hell. In short, he did his best to make Russia like the lands he had travelled through, conferring thereby, though against her will, immortal benefits on his country. On the death of Charles XI of Sweden, and the accession of his son, a boy, Peter saw an oppor- tunity of recovering the provinces of Ingria and Carelia, which had formerly belonged to Russia but had been wrested from her in the time of the false Demetrius. Accordingly he concluded an alliance with Poland, and laid siege to Narva. But his army, though large, was not entirely composed of disciphned troops, and he found it difficult to compete on equal terms with the Swedes. WAR WITH SWEDEN ^ Charles XII of Sweden, though only eighteen, was not of a nature likely to be daunted by the number of his enemies, or, indeed, by anything. He soon startled the world by the display of surprising military talents, and an unbounded ambition which induced him to turn a defensive warfare into I 72 RUSSIA'S STORY ] an aggressive one. Having beaten the Danes, in the middle of winter he advanced against the Russians. His operations were crowned with success ; in a few months Peter's army was driven off the field, and Charles might have dictated terms at Moscow itself had not he preferred directing his attention to the Poles. In the meantime, Peter raised more troops and attacked the Swedes again. In 1702 he won a battle at Einbach and captured Marienburg. Amongst the prisoners taken was a peasant girl, Catherine, the widow of a soldier who had been killed in the defence of the town. She was Peter's future consort, and destined to be one day Empress of all the Russias. There is scarcely any other instance in history of an obscure captive becoming Empress of the Empire to which she was led in chains. Noteburg was next attacked and taken with great difficulty, although the Swedish garrison was much reduced. " We can beat the Swedes at two to one," said Peter. *' Let us persevere, and we may one day beat them on equal terms." The capture of Noteburg was of some importance as it was on the Neva, and a key to the Baltic. Peter appreciated its importance— he changed its name to Schlusselberg (Schlussel, a key). He also took a fortress more important still — ST. PETERSBURG FOUNDED 73 Nientschanty, and began to build a town there. That town was Petersburg, the present capital of Russia, called since 1914 Petrograd. His ships had a good deal to do with his successes. They were often engaged in combats with Swedish vessels, and did not come off badly. The King of Sweden was, however, not present in person ; with the bulk of his army he was gaining repeated successes over Augustus of Poland, whom he resolved to dethrone before again attacking the Czar. But by his absence he had allowed Peter to obtain his main object — an acquisi- tion of vital importance in the history of Europe, and wWch was the beginning of Russia's being considered one of the great Powers — viz. getting a seaboard and a footing on the Baltic. FOUNDATION OF ST. PETERSBURG Peter set to work about building the town which took his name, and which is now the fourth city in Europe, with wonderful alacrity. In a year's time forty thousand houses were made ; there were wharfs, canals, and bridges, and, what was more important, on the Uttle island of Cronslot and on another, Ostrof, formidable defences. i t } 74 RUSSIA'S STORY The Swedes were much surprised when they saw fortifications and bastions where a few months ago a swampy morass alone had been. On the 27th May, 1703, the first stone of the future city was laid, and by the end of that year it was a fortified town of consider- able size. Too great praise cannot be given to the judgment which selected the site, nor to the determination which accompUshed, in time of war, a work which usually, in a time of peace, would have occupied a much longer period. Obstacles of all kinds had to be com- bated with. The soil was so unhealthy that ten thousand workmen perished during the building ; the amount of drainage which had to be done was incredible. The people, especially the boyars, heard with great irritation that a new town on a dreary sea waste, cold, and half the year blocked with ice, was to be made the capital ; also at the most undesirable extremity of the Empire, in a place, in fact, which had only recently belonged to them, and which they might again at any moment lose, and that they were to live there and be turned into sailors and navigators. However, Peter was resolved upon it, and so, against their incUnations and for the good of their descendants, a large part of an inland CHARLES XII DESPISES PETER 75 people were turned to some extent into a maritime one. When the new town was in a fair state of defence, the attack on Narva was renewed. Charies XII sent little help to the town, occupied as he was in deposing the King of Poland. He occasionally looked that way, and then only with scorn at what Peter was doing. " Let him build his mud huts," he said, '' we will come and set fire to them one day." FALL OF NARVA Dorfut was taken by a stratagem. Peter had dressed up some of his soldiers like Swedes, and when they pretended to attack the others, the garrison, thinking that relief had arrived, made a sally ; then both the seeming friends and foes fell upon them, and the town was taken. Soon after Narva itself fell. When Charles heard of this, in anger he vowed that a few months would find him in Moscow, and he would dethrone Peter as he had dethroned his aUy Augustus. '' So my brother of Sweden thinks himself Alexander," said Peter. '' But, anyhow, he shall find that I am not Darius." 76 RUSSIA'S STORY PETER ASSISTS THE POLES I He entered into a new treaty with Augustus and sent large forces to assist him. With united armies, amounting to nearly three hundred thousand men, they commenced operations. But Charles carried all before him. Peter was defeated at Gemaurs and again at Jacobstad, and then called back to Russia by a revolution in Astrakhan. Augustus endeavoured to make terms with the con- queror, for he was wearied by his ill-success ; he could make no head himself against the enemy, and the Russian armies which pro- tected him were worsted in every encounter as well. He agreed to relinquish all claim to the crown of Poland, and even to deliver up the Czar's Ambassador, a general of the Russian army, who had been fighting for him. Although, while the matter was in treaty and not yet concluded, the Russians gained a victory at Kalish — the first they had won — over one of Charles' generals, yet Augustus proceeded with the agreement, and even begged the pardon of the Swedish general, Maderfield, for his allies having beaten him. He also deUvered up the Ambassador, who was broken alive on the wheel at Casimer — an indeUble stain on the illustrious memory of SUCCESSES OF CHARLES XII 77 Charles, for that prince, in spite of his many virtues, was capable sometimes of great acts of cruelty, of which the following fact is another instance. In advancing through Massovia six thousand peasants disputed his passage, deputing one of their body first to address him. This was an old man of gigantic stature, clad in white, and armed with two carbines. The Swedes, not understanding what he said, fell upon him and killed him, even in the presence of their king; where- upon the peasants rose in arms. Charles seized upon all he could and compelled them to hang one another ; when there was but one left he was forced to hang himself. Having finished the campaign in Poland, Charles resolved to invade Russia and dictate terms to Peter at Moscow. Two attempts have been made in the history of the world to traverse the dreary wastes which separate the Russian capital from the rest of Europe ; both have been made by renowned commanders at the head of magnificently trained and veteran armies, accustomed to a long course of victory, and both failed disastrously — robbed the monarchs who attempted them of the fruits of uninterrupted conquest, and, finally, occasioned their downfall. The fame of Charles had now spread through 78 RUSSIA'S STORY Europe. France endeavoured to court his friendship as an ally against Austria, and persuade him to make peace with the Czar, but to no avail. CHARLES XII INVADES RUSSIA At the head of eighty thousand men he entered Grodno, Peter flying before him. He had already taken three capitals, and was on the high road towards a fourth. But he did not reckon on the impracticable nature of the country or the craftiness of its defenders. Peter, knowing he was no match for Charles in the field, resolved to draw him into the heart of the Empire, where he could obtain no supplies for his army, and where the greater part must perish if compelled to remain during the winter. Charles, like Napoleon a hundred years later, disregarded these obstacles, and, flushed with victory, came on. His chief advisers, Levenhaupt and Patkul, two of the greatest men of the century, en- deavoured to dissuade him, but he would listen to no advice. The result of this un- happy campaign can be imagined ! The brave Swedes, in the inclement season, marching through deserts, wastes, and forests, exposed EVENTS LEADING TO PULTOVA 79 to ceaseless attacks from the enemy and to the pitiless cold, perished by hundreds. In spite of one or two brilliant victories their situation became more desperate every day, for these victories were worse to them than defeats. Levenhaupt with ten thousand men beat forty thousand Russians, but he lost his pro- visions and artillery, which he was obliged to abandon ; the Dnieper was crossed success- fully m the face of a most furious attack, and terrible loss was inflicted on the enemy,' but its passage still put Charles further from all supplies. Again, like Napoleon, the hand of fate seemed upon him, and his unaccountably strange conduct goes to prove the truth of the saying that the gods first blind those they resolve to ruin. He agreed to meet Leven- haupt, whom he had sent back to Livonia for supplies— on a certain day at Siesna, but he forgot all about it— and Levenhaupt, on arriv- ing at the rendezvous, was attacked by an enemy greatly superior, as above detailed and lost the very things he was going to bring to Charles. Poland was in arms, directly his back was turned, against Stanislaus, whom he had placed on the throne, and Peter, in spite of the in- vasion of his country and his repeated defeats was still strong enough to send troops to assist! 1 i f 80 RUSSIA'S STORY The winter, as in 1812. was one of the most severe known for years ; the Cossacks of the Ukraine, whom Charles had expected to ]om him were not much incMned to do so, and yet. in spite of every warning, nature and man on all sides hostile, the infatuated Prince and his devoted army pressed on. BATTLE OF PULTOVA (1709) The result is familiar to students of history. Encircled in a web in the ill-fortified town of Pultova, he was obliged to give battle at a disadvantage, and that at a time when his soldiers were without even sufficient powder and shot. After fighting desperately, and performing prodigies of valour, the Swedish army, now reduced to twenty-seven thousand men, was defeated, six thousand were slain, and fourteen thousand surrendered. ITS RESULTS That day reversed the verdict of a hundred victories. Once more, Uke Napoleon, Charles, with a small escort, escaped to Bender, leaving his military chest, artiUery— in fact every- thing—in the hands of the enemy. Sir Edward Creasy justly considers this one of the most BATTLE OF PULTOVA 81 decisive battles of the world. Had Charles won, Russia would have been flung back to her anaent barbarism, from which Ihe never might have emerged, and all that Peter achieved for her would have been undone He said himself, directly he was assured of victory, that the foundations of St. Petersburg now stood firm. ^ By the result of Pultova, Sweden as a great Power was crushed, and Russia rose on her ruins. From that day she held a place among European nations, and commenced the aggres- sive policy she has ever since pursued. Few regre that Hannibal lost Zama, or tZ pity that Charles lost Pultova. Had he won there probably might still have been a greS Scandinavian power in the north ; but as Germany has since become so powerful it would scarcely be well for Europe to h^ve another first-class nation of the same rale close by her. Sir de Lacy Evans, in his Des^s o/tei«, and others who deplored the results of the victory wrote long before Germany had become umted, and when Russia appeared more formidable than she does now In anv case Charles had nobody but himself to thank for his disaster. The utter want of judgment he showed m persistently pressing fofwaS G I 82 RUSSIA'S STORY appears inconceivable ; it could only have been actuated by a bUnd faith in his own good fortune, or' an unjustified contempt for lus adversary. Yet so great was his prestige that, until certain news of his defeat came all the world thought he would wm. He has often been compared to Alexander and Peter to Philip. As above mentioned Peter once made the comparison. Latrille docs not go so far, he merely says that Charles was worthy to have been the first soldier of Alexander But, excepting that they resembled each other in want of caution and recklessness, there seems to be no other grounds for the compari- son. The comparison of Peter to Phihp is much more appropriate. Similar m pohcy and statecraft, similar in foresight and pre- vision-equally attentive to the thousand and one little things without which true greatness is never complete— the Macedonian monarch and the Muscovite Czar both triumphed over their enemies, and laid the foundations of the supremacy of their respective countries. Sir Edward Creasy also draws attention to the similitude between the conduct of Russia after Pultova, which put her in a position to be the oppressor instead of the oppressed, and that of ancient Rome. He says the scheme of extension of dominion by both has ACQUISITIONS BY RUSSIA 83 been by first appearing in the character of the protector of various nationalities, and then when opportunity offered, by absorbing them. It is true that the gradual annexations which have vastly magnified the size of Russia — in fact, more than doubled it — ^have dated from the time of Peter's accession. Livonia, Ingria, Carelia, Esthonia, her fairest pro- vinces, have been wrested from Sweden. Almost the whole kingdom of Poland may be said to be hers, and we read from The Progress of Russia in the East that her acquisitions from Turkey are larger than Germany, from Persia than England, from Tartary than half Europe, and from Sweden more than is left to that ancient monarchy, and that in sixty- four years she had advanced her frontier 850 miles towards the central capitals, 450 towards Constantinople, and within a few from the capital of Sweden, from which last, when Peter the Great mounted the throne, it was distant more than three hundred miles. On the news of Pultova becoming known, the Elector of Saxony re-entered Poland. Stanislaus was soon deposed, and Frederick Augustus enjoyed his own again. Denmark then claimed Schonen, Prussia claimed Pomerania, and the Lion of the North would hi 84 RUSSIA'S STORY have been rent to pieces but for the inter- position of the Empire and the mantime Powers. The campaign with Sweden, and the life and death struggle from which Russia through the prudence of her Czar, emerged victorious, was the chief event in Peters reign. His increased importance after it was won is illustrated by the following incident. The Russian Ambassador in London had been arrested for debt, and although he was soon released, Peter, when he heard of it, was furious at the indignity offered to the repre- sentative of himself. The legality of the arrest was dubious, and an Act was passed shortly after declaring the persons of Am- bassadors sacred. But Peter was far from satisfied at this ; he demanded the instant execution of the culprits. Queen Anne s Government repUed that England was a con- stitutional monarchy, and the sovereign had no power to touch even the hair of the head of any of her subjects, unless by permission of the law ; and here the matter rested. How- ever, after the battle of Pultova the Enghsh Government sent him a copy of the Act. beautifully framed, and an apology, clearly showing thereby that they thought him a far more important member of the European family than before. Peter celebrated a PERIL OF PETER IN TURKEY 85 magnificent triumph, in which procession, as captives, walked the illustrious Levenhaupt and Rcnschiold. WAR WITH TURKEY Peter then turned his attention to pacific arts, in which he was soon interrupted by a war with the Turks. Charles had taken refuge with the Sultan, whom he did his utmost to induce to assist him against the Czar. But the Sultan, although bribed by the gold taken from Charles' own military chest— the plunder of Poland and Saxony— for a long while would not. However, in the end Charles was successful, war was declared, and the Russian Ambassador committed to the Seven Towers. This was a curious pro- ceeding ; but the Turks considered that every war they made was a just one. and that their opponents being in the wrong, and having incurred the wrath of Heaven, should be punished individually as well as collectively. Peter took the initiative and advanced to the northern bank of the Pruth, but not being supported by the Moldavians, on whom he had rehed. he was surrounded by the Turks and placed in a position of extreme peril. In fury and despair he locked himself in his tent, resolving the next morning to attempt 86 RUSSIA'S STORY to cut through. Though success was more than doubtful, yet he would not be taken prisoner. He had ordered none to approach him ; and none dare do so save one, Catherine, his wife, whose voice had power to charm him and bring him to reason even in his most savage moments. She suggested negotiation, and he listened. The Grand Vizier, unwilling to drive thirty-five thousand men to extremi- ties, granted a truce, much to the chagrin of Charles, and at the price of the restoration of Azoff and the demolition of certain forts. DEATH OF CHARLES XII The war with Sweden was continued, and a naval victory (the first ever gained by Russia) was won in 1714. The state of that kingdom became so desperate that Charles was induced to return, and in 1715 he defended Stralsund with marvellous address against the Danes, Saxons, and Prussians. With his former genius he also won several victories over the Russians, and might have wrested from Peter some of his acquisitions had not one night, at the siege of Fredericshal, when the ground was like iron and the cold so great that the soldiers on duty often dropped down dead, a cannon-ball from the ramparts struck him CHARLES Xll AND PETER 87 as he was going to view their defences by star- light. He died as he had Uved, with his sword (a fitting emblem of his career) in his hand. Dazzled by his military achievements, he has transmitted to posterity greater renown than he deserved. Except in the art of war he was in no way Peter's equal. The one found Sweden great, and stripped and ruined it. The other found Russia in barbarism and darkness, and made it a first-rate Power. The death of Charles was the signal for peace, and the Treaty of Nystadt was completed. Peter was formally acknowledged Emperor by all the European Powers. He had now arrived at the pinnacle of his glory, and had leisure to prosecute his ideas of civil advance- ment. After interfering in the affairs of Persia, for which he received the provinces of Ghilan, Mayanderin, and Astrabad, on the Caspian, he paid a visit to France, where he persuaded several artists to follow him back and settle in Russia. He initiated the factory system and developed native manufacturing industry, but he did nothing to alleviate the disabiUties of the serf population or instil popular appreciation of the advantages of agriculture. However, he estabUshed a board of trade, had the great canal completed which joins the Caspian to the Baltic, remodelled 88 RUSSIA'S STORY the courts of law, and devoted himself with the energy he had displayed before he was in- terrupted by the war with Sweden, to civilize his people. But still he could not civilize himself. He was unfathful to his first wife, Eudoxia, to whom he was at first much attached, and on their becoming alienated he banished her to Ladoga, where she remained till recalled by Peter II, her grandson, who wished to place her on the throne again. She died in 1731. He was capable of the grossest and most cruel acts in fits of passion, and sometimes even with premeditation. His putting to death Alexis, the heir to the throne, who was his only son by his first wife, will ever disgrace his memory. No doubt the Prince was dis- sipated, worthless, and of a character likely to incur the disgust of so superior a man as his father. Still, scarcely any conduct short of an attempt at patricide could warrant a father in allowing sentence of death to be passed on his son. It was proved that the Prince had wished his father's death, but he had committed no act to accelerate it. The influence of Catherine over Peter was so great that the real reason, most Ukely, was that he wished her infant to succeed ; in addition, the prospect of having a successor who would DEATH OF PETER 89 undo all the good he had done must indeed have been distasteful to him. Her influence was wonderful, especially considering the lowly condition from which he had raised her, and that her previous character was not free from stain; for not only had she been his mistress, but that of one of his generals; indeed that she, the widow of a common soldier, a mere camp follower, should become the lawful consort and most influential adviser of one of the most powerful and re- markable men the world has ever produced, and finally the ruler of a mighty Empire, seems incredible. For in 1721, Peter issued a ukase (afterwards cancelled by Paul) that a Sovereign should have the power of naming his successor, and on January 28th he died, at the age of fifty-three, naming his successor to be Catherine. CATHERINE I (1725-I727) On his death she swayed Russia alone ; and though some reports state that she fell into her old vicious habits latterly, there is prob- ably no foundation for this. Most chroniclers admit that she took to drinking, and that was the cause of her death, which occurred two years after that of her husband — namely, in 1727, in the fortieth year of her age. 90 RUSSIA'S STORY According to the Story of the Nations (Russia) two events in her reign added to the glory of Russia : viz. the founding of the Academy of the Sciences, and sending Behring, a Dane, on an exploring expedition to Kamchatka. PETER II (1727-1730) As Peter the Great by a ukase had per- mitted Catherine to choose her successor, she chose Peter, the son of the unfortunate Alexis, a child, and in default of issue EUzabeth, and then Anne, her daughters. The Government was carried on by a Council, of which Men- shikov, who had complete influence over the Empress, was the head. Menshikov had been the chief minister of Peter, and had recom- mended him to place his grandson on the throne on the ground of EUzabeth and Anne being illegitimate. He was made the guardian of the young Czar till he was seventeen, and had, with Ostermann the Chancellor, a man of lowly origin but who had risen into great favour with Peter, almost supreme power till he gradually fell into disgrace, and four months after he had produced to the Council the will of the Empress, Peter signed the ukase which condemned him to banishment and deprived him of his honours. He was i ABOLITION OF PRIMOGENITURE 91 sent with his family to Siberia, where he died in 1729. The Czar himself died in 1730. He had been engaged to Marie, Menshikov's daughter, but on the disgrace of the family transferred his affections to Catherine Dolgor- ouki, daughter of his successor to power. She offended him and was in turn disgraced, as were her family, at the instance of Biren. Elizabeth, on becoming Empress, recalled her from a convent. ANNE I (IVANNOVNA) (1730-I740) The Council, on assembling to settle the succession, set aside the will of Catherine and offered the Crown to Anne, the widowed Duchess of Courland, daughter of Ivan, the elder brother of Peter the Great, under certain restrictions which, if adhered to, would have made Russia a constitutionally governed country. But as it was, Anne ascended the throne with the same unbridled power as her predecessors. She was a coarse, hard woman, given to orgies and a lascivious mode of living. Her reign is unimportant. The only incidents worthy of notice are the abolition of primogeniture, which was imposed by Peter the Great on real property, and a war with Turkey, in which the Russians were ) i 90 RUSSIA'S STORY According to the Story of the Nations {Russia) two events in her reign added to the glory of Russia : viz. the founding of the Academy of the Sciences, and sending Behring, a Dane, on an exploring expedition to Kamchatka. PETER II (1727-1730) As Peter the Great by a ukase had per- mitted Catherine to choose her successor, she chose Peter, the son of the unfortunate Alexis, a child, and in default of issue Ehzabeth, and then Anne, her daughters. The Government was carried on by a Council, of which Men- shikov, who had complete influence over the Empress, was the head. Menshikov had been the chief minister of Peter, and had recom- mended him to place his grandson on the throne on the ground of Ehzabeth and Anne being illegitimate. He was made the guardian of the young Czar till he was seventeen, and had, with Ostermann the Chancellor, a man of lowly origin but who had risen into great favour with Peter, almost supreme power till he gradually fell into disgrace, and four months after he had produced to the Council the will of the Empress, Peter signed the ukase which condemned him to banishment and deprived him of his honours. He was ABOLITION OF PRIMOGENITURE 91 sent with his family to Siberia, where he died in 1729. The Czar himself died in 1730. He had been engaged to Marie, Menshikov's daughter, but on the disgrace of the family transferred his affections to Catherine Dolgor- ouki, daughter of his successor to power. She offended him and was in turn disgraced, as were her family, at the instance of Biren. Ehzabeth, on becoming Empress, recalled her from a convent. ANNE I (IVANNOVNA) (1730-I740) The Council, on assembling to settle the succession, set aside the will of Catherine and offered the Crown to Anne, the widowed Duchess of Courland, daughter of Ivan, the elder brother of Peter the Great, under certain restrictions which, if adhered to, would have made Russia a constitutionally governed country. But as it was, Anne ascended the throne with the same unbridled power as her predecessors. She was a coarse, hard woman, given to orgies and a lascivious mode of living. Her reign is unimportant. The only incidents worthy of notice are the abolition of primogeniture, which was imposed by Peter the Great on real property, and a war with Turkey, in which the Russians were 92 RUSSIA'S STORY commanded by Lacy, an Irish soldier of fortune who had formerly been in the service of James II, and who had followed him in his exile to France. The Russians were successful, but nothing came of the war, and Lacy died, when Governor of Riga, in 175 1. The favourite minister of Anne was a man named Biren, the grandson of a stable-boy belonging to the Duke of Courland and the reputed son of a groom. This Biren was a detestable character, but he remained the actual ruler of Russia for years. The Empress died in 1740, and Biren becane Regent to Ivan Antonovitz, who was named by Anne as her successor. Ivan was the grandson of Catherine, Duchess of Meck- lenburg, who had left a daughter, also named Anne, wedded to Antony Ulrich, Prince of Brunswick, in 1739. IVAN VI (1740-1741) Biren did not remain Regent long. He became the victim of a plot, was banished to Siberia, and Anne, Duchess of Brunswick, the mother of the Czar, became his guardian. But another plot deprived Ivan of the throne. It was conceived by Elizabeth Petrovna, called '4e catin du Nord " by her enemy, ^ Ivan VI keigneil 174C-1. Assas>inated 1764 To face page g2 ■kirtMMlM mmm md,^m> ELIZABETH OUSTS IVAN VI 93 Frederick the Great, daughter of the great Peter and Catherine, in order to secure the succession to herself, which she did in 1741, with the help of Field-Marshal Munich. ELIZABETH (1741-I761) was a woman of some attractions in her youth, but lost them when she ascended the throne, which she did in the thirty-second year of her age. She put forward her nephew Peter, the son of the Duke of Holstein, and her sister Anne as her successor. In 1744 he married the Princess Sophia of Anhalt, and both he and his wife became members of the Greek Church, Sophia taking the name of Catherine. The reign presents few features of interest ; her succession was an usurpation, probably not her own doing but at the instance of her minister, Lestocq : nevertheless, it was hailed with delight by the nation, and the shouts of the soldiers rang through the streets. Little Ivan, whom she was ousting, clapped his hands and shouted too. *' Poor child," said Elizabeth, '' you little know these shouts celebrate your own undoing.'' In the War of the Austrian Succession Elizabeth took the part of Maria Theresa, and she also sided with Austria in the Seven Years' War. A victory 94 RUSSIA'S STORY was gained in 1759 over Frederick the Great at Kiinersdorf, and in the next year General Soltikof defeated the Prussians again after a terrible battle. In 1761 Colberg was invested and Berlin taken by the Russians, laid under contribution and magazines destroyed, driv- ing Frederick to the depths of despair, but nothing further was done, for Elizabeth died and Peter III, being an admirer of Frederick, resolved to abandon the Austrian Alliance. The character of Elizabeth is not commend- able. She was dissipated and had many lovers, and is said to have been privately married to her favourite Alexis Razonmikna, the son of a drunken Cossack. The un- fortunate Princess Tarakanov, who was sub- sequently caught by a trick and put to death by Catherine II, was their daughter. Eliza- beth abolished the punishment of death, but she introduced the torture instead. One of her commandants had usually ten thousand malefactors, more or less, under his care with their tongues torn out or ears or noses cut off or otherwise disfigured. The system of lettres de cachet was borrowed from France, and it is roughly computed that some eighty thousand people were sent to Siberia by the orders of her Government. Elizabeth was vain and extravagant to a S-SR-*-^ Pktek III. 1 761 -1 762 Assassinated I "62 111 till ■ pit^i ^4 i PETER III 95 degree. Sixteen thousand dresses — many never worn — were found at her death, and chests of ribbons, shoes and stockings. With her death the direct House of Romanoff became extinct, Peter III, the next Czar, being the son of the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp and Anne, the elder sister of Elizabeth. PETER III (JANUARY 5, I762) Peter was not liked by the nation. He was elected as her successor by Elizabeth, in con- sequence of the law made by her father allow- ing a sovereign to nominate the successor. He at once made peace with Frederick the Great, his attachment for whom, together with his German habits and German guard, were singularly distasteful to the nation. Yet during his short reign he did good. He repealed the laws as to torture, recalled many exiles and forgave those who had been his enemies. But when his humanity and moder- ation have been mentioned, the enumeration of his good points ceases. He was weak and irresolute in character, addicted to drinking and without principle. What led to his im- mediate downfall was the quarrel with his wife. He was openly unfaithful to her, vowed to divorce her and make her son Paul illegiti- |i 96 RUSSIA'S STORY mate. But Catherine was a character formed of another mould to her husband. Taking the initiative, by a coup d'etat she seized the Government, and all save Munich, an old general, deserted Peter. Munich advised him to put himself at the head of his troops and rely on their allegiance. But his courage failed him. He, however, consented to go to Cronstadt ; when they arrived they found Catherine's partisans had already seized the place. '' Show yourself to them, remind them of their oaths to you, their Emperor," cried the spirited old man. But Peter retired trembling into the cabin. Munich followed him. '' Let us sail to the fleet," he said, '' and with their aid recover Russia." No— Peter lacked the energy to take any decisive step. He threw himself on his wife's mercy. He might as well have asked it from a tigress. In a week he was dead, and with the throne firmly grasped in her bloodstained hands Catherine the Great commenced her memor- able reign. CATHERINE II (JULY I4, I762-I796) Her foreign policy was a continuance of that of her husband. The treaty with Frederick was renewed, but she did not im- mediately take any active part in the war. <,>iJEKN CaTHKRINE II Reigned 1762 1796 y 1 1 [ : ''' I 'J\> jaci- /> The accession of Alexander was hailed with deUght by the people. He was only twenty- ) three years of age, and had married th^ Princess Louisa of Baden at sixteen^^^^on- sidering his youth, the wisdom of the measures by which he commenced his rule was sur- prising. The declaration of armed neutrahty was cancelled, the EngHsh prisoners released ; the prohibition which Paul had laid on the importation of corn revoked, and every en- deavour made to spread the blessings of peace. \ Yet he increased the army to five hundred l thousand men, and continued the grasping ) poUcy of his predecessors in the East, for he seized Georgia and added it to the already inflated Imperial dominions. The English system of farming was brought into Russia / by his directions, and trade with Ckina ii6 RUSSIA'S STORY opened ; fishing establishments were started in the White Sea, and a voyage round the world undertaken for the purpose of spreading Russian commerce and mercantile connec- tions. By a treaty between Great Britain, Russia, Denmark and Sweden, the embargo placed on British property was removed, the rights of neutral navigation restored, the ships captured by England released, and the islands she had taken in the West Indies surrendered. This treaty was brought about by the vigour of Nelson. The death of Paul was a great blow to France, for when Russia seceded from the armed neutrality it fell to pieces. Yet these pacific measures did not continue long. Napoleon had seized the Duke d'Engheim on German soil, and the Czar, as Protector of the Germanic Confeder- ation, was bound to remonstrate. The remonstrance was treated with contempt, and on the seizure of Genoa, the Czar, fearing French aggression would eventually subvert all Europe if the other Powers did not combine in united action, again joined his arms with England and Austria, After the breach of the Treaty of Amiens, a league was formed between England and Russia, and afterwards joined by Austria, NAPOLEON'S VICTORY 117 in which the contracting parties bound them- selves to resist the encroachments of France. This was the third coaUtion, and by Austria joining, the army designed for the invasion of England was drawn away from Boulogne. The Austrian armies, though numerically superior to the French, were worsted in every encounter. General Mack surrendered at Ulm with thirty thousand men, and Vienna was taken before a junction could be effected with the Russians. The Czar had accompanied his army in person, and the two Emperors from a hill, on the 2nd December, 1805, saw the utter rout of their armies at Austerlitz, which was one of Napoleon's greatest victories. Francis pur- chased peace at the price of Dalmatia and Albania, and Alexander retreated to his own dominions. Thuse nded t he third coaUtion against France. MnTliF' fourth, two yearp) later, Austria did not take any part. It was formed by Russia, Prussia, Sweden and Eng- land. The rapidity of the French movements enabled them to attack Prussia before the Russians could assist, and the fields of Jena and Auerstadt laid that country at the feet of Napoleon. The Russians met the French on the plains of Poland, and an indecisive battle was fought, in which a Prussian corps. i.>' m^ IMSIBSS*'" • ii8 RUSSIA'S STORY under General Lestocq, saved the Russian army and protected its retreat. The next year the victory of Friedland decided the campaign and compelled Alexander to sue for peace. TREATY OF TILSIT The terms granted to him were easy, as Napoleon was anxious to acquire the friend- ship of the ruler of so extensive an Empire. Besides his ideas of conquest did not then extend in the direction of Russia, and she, owing to her power in the East, might be a useful ally against England. The interview which preceded the Treaty of Tilsit was followed by others, and a personal friendship grew up between the Emperors, cemented by the hope that each might assist the other in his views of aggrandisement. Alexander obtained Napoleon's sanction to uniting Russia with Finland, a Swedish province, and with Moldavia and Wallachia, provinces of the Turkish Empire. The Con- federacy of the Rhine was extended to the Elbe, and Alexander promised his adherence to the Continental system laid down by the decree of the 21st November, 1806. England saw Russia escape from her in- fluence with great regret, but wishing to keep THE CONTINENTAL SYSTEM 119 a footing in the Baltic she required Denmark to enter into an offensive and defensive alliance, and as a guarantee to give up her capital and fleet, to be restored at the end of the war. On Denmark's refusal a bombard- ment took place, in which the Danish fleet was captured and taken to England. Den- mark then adhered to the Continental system, following the example of Russia and all the seaboard of the Baltic yielded to the yoke of France. Meanwhile Turkey, egged on by Napoleon, had previously declared that no armed Russian ship should pass through the Straits of Marmora. Whereupon Alexander declared war upon her and sent an army to the Danube, which overran the principalities. The English dispatched a fleet against the Turks, but being inferior in numerical strength to that of the Porte it came back without having effected anything. It was commanded by Sir John Duckworth. There was another expedition sent against Egypt equally un- successful. England has often been fond of sending expeditions on a small scale— a bad poUcy, as they exhaust the strength of a nation, and are seldom Ukely to do material good; besides, they have generally been failures. The seventh article of the Treaty of ^1 %] j I20 RUSSIANS STORY Tilsit contained a direct design to dismember the Ottoman Empire ; but there were other secret clauses, the nature of which have never exactly transpired, but which were aimed at endangering the peace of the world. Their tendency was as follows : Russia to conquer in Asia as much as she pleased. Napoleon to take Spain and Portugal, including Gibraltar. Russia to assist France to hold Malta, and no peace to be granted to England until she surrendered it. The Mediterranean to be navigated by French, Russian, Spanish and Italian vessels only. Egypt to be given to France and Turkey to Russia. The bait was too tempting for Alexander to resist ; and thus, while EngUsh subsidies in his treasury were as yet unexhausted, without the slightest excuse he lent himself to aid Napoleon to destroy her. He threatened to revive the armed neutrality, and insisted that the Danish fleet taken at Copenhagen should be given up. On England's refusal, he declared war. But his trade was annihilated by the British fleet, his squadron in the Tagus surrendered, and he was shut up in the Baltic. Still, EngUsh money again flowed in when he and Napoleon quarrelled ; indeed, if it had not been for this and the Treaty of Bucharest, which liberated the army acting against the Turks, the result k h NAPOLEON INVADES RUSSIA 121 of the French invasion might have terminated very differently. It is inconceivable that the Turks should have made peace at a period so advantageous for their enemy, especially as the terms were not favourable to themselves. Napoleon resolved to subdue Spain. In 1808 he strengthened his alliance with Alex- ander, and the two sovereigns concluded a treaty by which Napoleon acknowledged the three provinces invaded by Russia as being an integral part of the Russian Empire, and Alexander, in return, acknowledged the Na- poleonic dynasty in Spain. Austria, in the meanwhile, formed a fifth coalition with England, which drew Napoleon from the Spanish peninsula. The decisive Battle of Wagram again brought that Empire into complete subjection, and was succeeded by the Peace of Schonbrunn. The breach between Alexander and Na- poleon, which led to the sixth coalition against the latter, originated with the dispossession of the Duke of Oldenburg, brother-in-law to Alexander. The breach widened, and on the 25th June, 1812, Napoleon crossed the Niemen at the head of four hundred thousand men and defeated the Russians at Smolensk*, and soon after at the great Battle of Borodino, which gave him the entry to .11 m \ 122 RUSSIA'S STORY Moscow. The city was deserted, and Na- poleon entered the KremHn without resistance, where he hoped to establish his winter quarters and enjoy the fruits of his victories. But frightful conflagrations broke out, and the city sank in flames. As it no longer afforded an asylum against the coming winter, Na- poleon ordered a retreat across the war-worn road through which he had come. The army proceeded in pretty good order as far as the Beresina, though ceaselessly harassed by clouds of Cossacks and starving through want of supplies. There the cold attacked them with unprecedented severity, and the retreat became nothing more than a disorganized flight. Napoleon himself, feeling that his presence was necessary at Paris, in order to quell disaffections, quitted the army on the 5th December, and arrived at Wilna destitute of everything, and thence proceeded to Paris, where he raised another army, and took the field again in the ensuing spring, Prussia now joined the coalition against him, but he won the brilliant victories of Lutzen, Bautzen, and Wurschen, and negoti- ations were opened at Prague. Napoleon suddenly dissolved this Congress after it had sat a short time, and then Austria also deserted him. Still, wherever he commanded in person CONGRESS OF VIENNA 123 he was a victor, as at the splendid Battle of Dresden. But the allies, who now had numerical superiority, defeated his marshals in turn. A final battle was fought under the walls of Leipzic, where nearly half a million men were engaged and the French were out- numbered by two to one and grievously defeated. Napoleon afterwards raised another army and won some more brilliant victories ; but this does not immediately concern the history of Russia, though Russian troops were with the allies who were invading France, nor does his abdication. At the Congress of Vienna, where the allies met after the abdication, the Emperor Alexander presided. Its object was to divide the spoils of the great Empire of Napoleon. Russia obtained the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, under the name of the Kingdom of Poland and with the pledge of governing it in a con- stitutional manner. It was at the instance of Alexander that Napoleon was allowed to retain the Imperial title when the Island of Elba was assigned to him. The Powers had not assembled for long at Vienna, and had already begun to disagree on the details of the division of Europe, when tidings arrived of the escape of Napoleon from Elba. The Congress was broken up, and they all united 124 RUSSIA'S STORY to face the common foe, whom they pro- nounced to be an enemy to the tranquillity of the world. Each Power stipulated to con- tribute its quota to the million of men to be raised against him, and Russia engaged to furnish one hundred thousand. But Waterloo was won while the Russians were yet a long way off— if, indeed, mobilized ; and so she did not share in the final crushing of the man who had been the scourge of Europe for more than twenty years. The Emperor Alexander participated with the other Continental Powers in becoming a member of the Holy Alliance — that agreement formed nominally for the maintenance of religion, peace and justice, but in reality for the crushing of free aspirations and the maintenance of despotism, and which the signatory powers made an excuse for meddUng with the liberties of the various peoples and encouraging the monarch- ical system. In 1820 the Jesuits were expelled from Russia, owing to their designs and intrigues to obtain proselytes, the Czar being an advocate for Uberty of conscience, though jly imbned w^^^ rpliginn<; principles. In 1821 Alexander appropriated the coast .on the West of North America, now known as "Russian America. None of thejowers Qb*^ THE HOLY ALLIANCE 125 jected to this, but England and the United States took umbrage at his declaration because he claimed the monopoly of fishing north of the Aleutian Isles. However, the matter was amicably settled, and the right of fishing shared. In 1822 the signatory powers of the Holy Alliance met at Verona to discuss the pro- priety of interfering with Turkey in her war with Greece. The Emperor Alexander on that occasion said to Chateaubriand, *' that God had not placed at his disposal eight hundred thousand men to gratify his ambition, but to protect religion and right,'' words utterly at variance with his past conduct, for with what object should he have schemed with Napoleon as to the division of Turkey by force of arms, and the annexation of Sweden, except to gratify his ambition ; with what purpose, also, were his acquisitions in the East made. Yet on the whole he was un- deniably a kind liberal-minded and humane man, and one of the best of the Russian rulers. His reign was a progressive one, during which the condition of the serfs was improved and several Universities were founded. They say he shed tears, and was bitterly affected to witness the deplorable state of the French army when it reached Riga, on retreating ii f^i 126 RUSSIA'S STORY from Moscow. He abolished serfdom alto- gether in some parts of his dominions, though he did not consider his country in a sufficient state of advancement to justify his doing away with it altogether, and we hear of no unjust executions or banishments by his orders. His private Ufe was not happy, in spite of his reUgious principles. He deserted his wife Ehzabeth for a Polish lady, the Countess Navarshkin, who was unfaithful to him, and whose only daughter by him, to whom he was deeply attached, died of consumption at the early age of eighteen. The number of secret societies — and, con- sequently, of conspiracies — increasing at the close of his reign made him uneasy and sus- picious and led to the dismissal of his admir- able minister, Spiranski, and his putting affairs into the hands of Arakchezen, who instituted miUtary colonies and caused dis- affection throughout the Empire. He went to Taganrog for the sake of his health, and soon after became ill ; he refused advice at first, got worse rapidly, and died in November, 1825 — his last hours being em- bittered by the revelation of another con- spiracy. His consort, Elizabeth, survived him five months. 1 NICHOLAS— PLOT AGAINST HIM 127 NICHOLAS I (1825-1855) In accordance with the law of succession as altered by Paul, his brother Constantine was heir, but he refused the honour on the ground of incapacity, and the next brother, Nicholas, became Czar of all the Russias. Nicholas was no sooner seated on the throne than a plot was hatched to overthrow him. Its professed object was to give the sovereignty to Constantine ; but, considering he had re- fused it already, that could scarcely be the case. It really was organized to reform in- ternal abuses and give Russia a more consti- tutional government. This appears from the examination of some of the prisoners after its suppression. For example, Nicholas said to one of them, '' Bestujef, I would pardon you if I only knew I should possess a faithful sub- ject hereafter." '' Why, sire, that is just what we complain of ; there is no law : the Emperor can pardon or punish as he pleases." On a remark another made, Grand Duke Michael exclaimed : *' That fellow ought to have his mouth stopped with a bayonet." " You have asked us, then," said the prisoner, '' why we desire a constitution ; it is in order that things hke that should not be said." This insurrection was not suppressed without ( M ' ii* r\ i. 128 RUSSIA'S STORY much loss of life, it having spread amongst the soldiers and obtained considerable pro- portions. The bodies of the fallen were cast into the Neva by hundreds ; holes in the ice having been made for that purpose. Colonel Pestal, who was at the head of it, and thirty- five others, were hanged, and the rest pun- ished with more or less severity. A beauti- ful hymn — set to music, once popular in England — has been composed about Pestal, beginning : " The morning breaks, the day for me Which has no morrow." The foreign policy of Nicholas commenced by a war with Persia in 1826, in which the Russians were easily victorious, and the Provinces of Erivan and Nachitschevan were added to the Empire, and eighty million roubles to the Treasury. INTERFERENCE WITH TURKEY The interference in the Greek rebellion was the most important matter in the earlier portion of this reign. In April, 1826, the Duke of Wellington and Count Nesselrode had signed the first protocol which led to the Treaty of London. BATTLE OF NAVARINO 129 England, France, and Russia sent squadrons to the Levant, where the Turkish and Egyptian fleet lay under the command of Ibrahim Pacha. There was an arrangement that it should remain there till the affairs of Greece were settled. The Turks attempted to violate this agreement and an engagement took place in the Bay of Navarino, on the 27th October, 1827, in which the Turkish and Egyptian fleets were destroyed. Next year Prince Wittegenstein, with 150,000 men, \ entered the principalities, and General Paski- ovitch took Kars. Complete success attended the Russian arms, for Turkey was worn out by her preceding struggle with Greece. Varna fell, and also Erzeroum in Asia. In 1829 the Balkans were crossed, and General Diebitsch occupied Adrianople with little opposition. Had the Turks been well led or fought better the Russian army south of the Balkans would have been annihilated, for their numbers were terribly thinned by sick- ness ; and although their situation at Adrian- ople was most precarious, yet they managed to conclude an advantageous treaty which takes its name from that place and which burdened Turkey with a heavy debt and gave to Russia Anapa, Poti, and some coast-Une on the Black Sea, and in many minor details Mil I30 RUSSIA'S STORY tended to spread her influence over the Ottoman Empire and its dependencies. REBELLION IN POLAND No sooner was peace with Turkey made than a violent revolution broke out in Poland. The Grand Duke Constantine of Russia, though he had ten thousand men to back him, evacuated Warsaw, and the Poles had it all their own way until General Diebitsch arrived with an army of 120,000 men to oppose about fifty thousand— all the Poles could raise. But they fought with the utmost bravery ; a battle was won at Wavel and another at Grochow, and it seemed as though the gallant little kingdom was going to sUp out of the Czar's hand altogether. The overflowing of the Vistula for some time suspended hostil- ities. Nevertheless, directly they could cross it the Poles recommenced their successes ; not only did they win in many minor en- counters, but gained a great victory at Izanie, where three thousand Russians were slam. General Divernicki, who led the right division, especially distinguished himself for his courage and daring; but ultimately being driven across the Austrian frontier Wwas compelled to lay down his arms to the Austrians. They POLISH REBELLION 131 say, as he and his fellow-prisoners passed through Pressburg the enthusiasm was im- mense ; the ladies plucked the buttons from his coat and hung them in gold chains from their necks. Skrzynecki, the PoUsh com- mander-in-chief, then gained a long-contested battle at Ostrolenka, in which the Russians lost ten thousand men and the Poles lost seven thousand. Irritation at his repeated defeats, or the cholera, killed Diebitsch, and the Grand Duke Constantine died soon after. Their repeated victories had so thinned the Polish ranks, while the Russians were replenished by newly levied masses, that the odds became too great and it was absolutely impossible to obtain further successes ; the insurrection resulted in the capture of Warsaw and the submission of Poland to the Czar. THE NUNS OF MINSK The journals and reviews of the period abound with details of how replete was the measure of vengeance ; how men, women and children were sent en masse to die in the mines of Siberia. How many A Polish mother sat and wept, Afar in wild Siberia's land, 132 RUSSIA'S STORY and how, contrary to the privileges given by the late Emperor Alexander, Poland was in- corporated with Russia. No doubt the vanquished were treated with great cruelty, and severities were extended to many who had no share in the rebellion. For the behaviour towards the nuns of Minsk, for example, there is no excuse. Their religion — called the Uniate, or United Greek Church — was a schism which had placed itself in com- munion with Rome, and which the Czar was resolved to root out . One day soldiers entered their establishment and made them chose between reformation or Siberia. The lady abbess, scorning the offer, bid her flock prepare to go. They were ironed in couples by the hands and feet, put to the hardest and cruellest work, and with food so scanty that the very beggars brought them bread. As this would not make them renegades, they were ordered to be flogged twice a week, fifty lashes at a time. They were then confined in dungeons full of worms and vermin which crawled over their bodies as they slept. They were made to bring water from the river, holding the jars at arms length lest the water should be polluted. Often their strength failed them, and they could not ; then their tormentors threw the water over them and THE CAUCASUS 133 made them fetch more. In winter their clothes— which they were not allowed to change — often turned into sheets of ice. It is endless to recount the ingenuity and number of the barbarities they suffered. Many were stripped and flogged till they died. At last three or four escaped and arrived at Posen, where they told the worid their story. The Caucasus had long been desired by Russia. The mountaineers barred her from the South and at their pleasure they could open or shut the passage to Asia. Besides, they were continually making raids against the Russian garrisons. Therefore, when the disturbance in Poland was quelled the Govern- ment turned their attention to that quarter. But, though immensely superior in arms, men, and artillery, the bravery of the moun- taineers was such that they could make no impression. The number of soldiers their attempts at subjugation cost them has been carefully concealed from the world. In 1833 Muhammed Ali Pacha, Viceroy of Egypt, revolted against the Porte ; his arms were so successful that the Sultan was obliged to accept aid wherever he could get it. Here, then, was an excellent opportunity for the Czar's interference. The advances of the Pacha were at once stayed, and the Treaty of 134 RUSSIA'S STORY Unkiar Skelessi was concluded, by which the Porte undertook to close the Dardanelles in favour of Russia against all foreign vessels of war. Further dissensions arising between the Sultan and the Pacha, England and France took the matter in hand, and in a Convention held in London this treaty was imphedly set aside, and the Sultan undertook to admit no foreign vessel of war so long as the Porte was at peace. In 1840 an expedition against Khiva was undertaken, which turned out to be a failure, and in 1844 the Czar visited England. The Eastern question was then discussed, but none knew the formidable proportions it would assume in a few years. HUNGARIAN REBELLION Russia appeared next on the European stage in aiding to suppress the Hungarian rebellion under Kossuth and Georgey. Her reason for doing so was to support the principle of monarchy, for at that season the events of 1848 had caused considerable un- easiness. The Hungarians, who had already defeated the Austrians, might also have beaten the Russians had it not been for the treachery of Georgey. As it was, the in- CRIMEAN WAR 135 surrection was put down, and Russia was rewarded by the neutraUty of Austria in the Crimean War, though Russia considered that neutrality to be both unfriendly and un- grateful, seeing that she had saved the Austrian Empire from dismemberment and deemed that she should have assisted her against England and France. CRIMEAN WAR Soon after Louis Napoleon was established on the throne of France he began to take steps to secure the goodwill of the Roman Catholics. Owing to this a dispute arose between him- self and Nicholas as to the possession of the holy places. The Czar, as head of the Greek Church, had long been endeavouring to obtain from the Sultan concessions, giving that Church the principal authority. Though the Latin community was much smaller than the Greek, the Emperor of the French claimed for them an equal right. This quarrel would no doubt have been arranged amicably had not the rapacity of Nicholas induced him to interfere in the affairs of the principahties and to concentrate armies in Bessarabia. The best Russian generals were defeated by Omar Pacha at Oltenitza, and on other occasions r.jmi ' a m m m aw'^ 136 RUSSIA'S STORY and the Czar, irritated to excess, found it im- possible to make progress. Meanwhile Eng- land and France had declared war, and their forces began slowly to assemble at Gallipoli and then at Scutari and Varna, while their fleets proceeded to the Black Sea and the Baltic. The Turkish fleet was destroyed by the Russians at Sinope with a loss of four thousand men ; but the allies in return bom- barded Odessa, while in the Baltic Bomarsund was destroyed. Their armies, not being any longer required at Varna, as all danger of the Russians crossing the Danube was over, meditated a descent into the Crimea. They were not opposed at landing, and after a deter- mined resistance captured the heights of Alma. Many think that had they proceeded directly to Sebastopol it would have capitu- lated, and the war have been terminated. However they did not do so, but took up a position at Balaclava. Marshal St. Arnaud, the commander-in-chief of the allied armies, resolved to attack Sebastopol on the north side. The siege began on the 17th October, 1854, and on the 25th was fought the Battle of Balaclava, in which the Russians were beaten while attempting to cut the alUes off from the town by capturing the Turkish redoubts. On the 5th Novem- TREATY OF PARIS 137 / ber with fifty thousand men they sur- prised the EngUsh camp at Inkerman, but after an attack lasting several hours, though vastly superior in numbers, could make no impression, and on the arrival of the French retreated in confusion, with a loss of fifteen thousand killed and wounded. Nicholas died on the 2nd March, 1855, and Alexander succeeded. ALEXANDER II (1855-1881) The war was continued : the i8th June witnessed the unsuccessful attempts on the Malakoff and Redan, and the final bom- bardment took place on the 5th September, 1855. In March, 1856, a Treaty was con- cluded at Paris neutraUzing the Black Sea (which clause was abrogated by the conven- tion of London in 1871), setthng the free navigation of the Danube, by the cession of Sulina and Kilia to the State, to be called Roumania later, rectifying the Russian frontier on the south by taking from her a portion of Bessarabia. England is said to have lost mihtary prestige by this war, and, no doubt, many blunders, such as the charge of the Light Brigade and the mismanagement of the commissariat department, were com- '•mnmtkm 138 RUSSIANS STORY mitted. Yet we must remember that the allied troops were, on the whole, successful ; and that Russia, fighting in her own territory and with a vast superiority in point of numbers, was worsted in almost every en- counter, and, further, that England and France did not put forth their full strength. Perhaps the advantages which might have been expected were not reaped by the treaty, for Russia was so exhausted that she could not have protracted the contest much longer. Nevertheless, the fortifications and stores of Sebastopol were destroyed, and it was ren- dered incapable of being a menance to Con- stantinople again. During the twenty years which elapsed between that time and the next war with Turkey the Czar devoted himself to internal reforms. The desire of Alexander I to abolish serf- dom was carried out by Alexander II. In 1861 twenty-three milUon serfs obtained Hberty, a reform which also had been medi- tated by Nicholas. The landlords, on receiv- ing an indemnity, released the serfs from their seignorial obligations, and the lands of each village commune became their property. By a treaty with China in 1858 Russia acquired all the left bank of the River Amur and a new port, named Vladivostock, was .^.> Ai.i:\am)i:k II Rei^neii 1S55-18S1. Assassinated 18S1 lo jacf pait 138 POLISH REBELLION 139 created. Also the country became threaded with railways, which though built chiefly for military purposes, and which have added enormously to her liabilities, have also been instrumental in bringing together the various peoples of her vast Empire. Her military history since the Crimean War until the present struggle confines itself to another insurrection in Poland, to the war with Turkey in 1877, and that with Japan in 1904. Poland had been for years in a disturbed state, and even before 1863 the Russian Government was aware that a secret political agitation was going on, and in order to stifle it they took advantage of the periodical con- scription to send away all young men who were supposed to be sympathetic with the movement. Many of these escaped and formed themselves into armed bands, making the Austrian and Prussian frontiers the bases of their operations. Prussia being under Russian influence at that time, executed a convention with Russia, allowing Russian troops to follow the insurgents into Prussian territory. Austria, who got but little advantage by the original partition of Poland, assumed a neutral attitude. The Polish cause was mOst popular in England and France. Meetings h 140 RUSSIANS STORY were held in England in which responsible men took part, urging that England, as a signatory Power to the Treaty of Vienna of 1815, should call on Russia to recognize the rights secured to Poland by that treaty. The Emperor Napoleon would have gone to war had England joined him, and his attitude deeply wounded the Czar's susceptibilities. The French people were especially enthusi- astic for Poland. Prince Napoleon in the Senate urged intervention. Montalembert called Poland " the nation in mourning." A dispatch was drawn up by Lord Russell draw- ing the attention of the Russian Government to six proposals. But Lord Palmerston, mis- trusting the Emperor of the French, would not interfere further, and the insurrection being unsupported was crushed with great severity. After a gallant struggle, hundreds of prisoners (male and female) were shot, flogged, or sent to Siberia. Perhaps greater severity was used because of the feeble remonstrances of the Western Powers. From that period the fear of Russian aggression was for some years the bugbear of Europe. Had England and France set their hands down firmly on that favourable opportunity, and insisted on a rectification of the wrongs of Poland, a State, semi-sovereign and entirely CAUCASUS SUBDUED 141 independent, in that advantageous geogra- phical situation, would have acted as an additional check to Russian encroachments and the development of monarchical prin- ciples. The warding off of England and France was greatly due to the assistance Bismarck rendered to Prince Gorchakoff, with the result that St. Petersburg and BerUn became most friendly, a friendship which lasted till 1878. RUSSIA IN THE EAST On the conclusion of the Crimean War it was announced to the world that the Russian poUcy would forthwith be peaceable and devoted to internal reforms — a policy in- augurated by the abolition of serfdom. Yet at that very time, in 1856, the Czar sent eighteen thousand men to break down the barriers of the Caucasus and open for the Empire the plains and cities of Asia. Three years it took to subdue the brave Circassians, who fought for their mountain homes. In September, 1859, ^^e illustrious Schamyl, who had become I man, the sacred ruler of the country, in 1834, ^^^ who had shown considerable administrative ability, was taken prisoner, and the command of the eastern as well as of the western shores of the Caspian .»*pPpr ■ ^^ r "^ Hlftf i^^^^J *y * Ti> ' ..^.fejK - I: 142 RUSSIA'S STORY acquired. Many Circassians, sooner than submit to Russian domination, emigrated. Then commenced the advance in the direc- tion of India. Stealthily Russian armies crept along the banks of rivers famous in ancient history. In 1865 she annexed the Khanate of Toshkand, in the Valley of the Chirchik, with a population of three miUions. In 1866 Khogend, and in 1867 Khokand was seized. Then she approached Bokhara, and defeated the Ameer. Then advancing along the Oxus in Central Asia, she quartered troops near one of the most famous and sacred of cities, Samarcand, and on the Governor remonstrating the city was taken in 1868. This created a great sensation, and was evidently done to strike terror amongst the potentates and people of Asia. Owing to this, remonstrances were made by Lord Granville, to the effect that Russia was approaching the northern borders of the Oxus, and inquiries as to whether they were going any farther. Prince Gortschakoff said '* No," and that Afghanistan, which had been involved in civil war since the death of Dost Mahommed in 1863, was completely outside Russian influence. In 1869 a naval fort had been estabUshed on the Caspian at Krasnovodjk, and in 1870 ANDRASSY NOTE 143 another at Ichikislar at the mouth of the Atrek, close to the Persian frontier. In 1872 Lord Loftus represented to the EngUsh Government that preparations were being made to take Khiva. This Prince Gort- schakoff denied, adding that the Czar had issued orders that Khiva was not to be touched, and yet in two months it was stormed, and the whole territory annexed shortly after. This act was, however, accepted by England, Khiva being a thousand miles from the Indian frontier, and a promise being again given that there should be no further advance. ANDRASSY NOTE Turkish rule was becoming more and more distasteful to many populations under the sway of the Sultan, various nationalities being huddled together and agreeing in nothing but common hatred of Ottoman rule. In July, 1875, disturbances broke out in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and they spread rapidly. Count Andrassy drew up a note to the Porte (December 30, 1875), in which the three Empires stated that the Porte had never carried out its promises of reform, and some combined action of the European Powers was necessary, as her rule over her subject pro- ^ 144 RUSSIA'S STORY i . vinces was most incapable, consisting either of extreme oppression or the total relaxation of authority. Turkey promised to undertake the necessary reforms, but that was all she did. Then followed the Berlin memorandum, pointing out the increase of disturbance and the necessity of carrying out her pledges. But England would not join in the memor- andum, and it was abandoned. Soon after Bulgaria rebelled — a rising, which was crushed with great severity, and wholesale massacre, which was revealed to the world by the Daily News under the heading of ** Bulgarian Atrocities." In July, 1876, Servia and Monte- negro declared war against Turkey, but they also were crushed with ease, although materi- ally assisted by Russian recruits. Then followed a conference of the Powers at Con- stantinople, equally futile in its results. At last Russia declared war, nominally with a view of securing the safety of the Christians under Turkish rule and restoring general tranquillity. The Russians successfully crossed the Danube, and appeared at first to be likely to carry everything before them. But afterwards reverses came. They had under- valued the fighting powers of the Turks. Defensive works were thrown up at Plevna by Osman Pasha, and the Russians were TREATY OF SAN STEFANO 145 repulsed with great loss there. They also met with other defeats. The plan of campaign was entrusted to General Todleben, who had formerly defended Sebastopol, and the tide turned. Kars fell on the i8th November, 1877. Plevna was reduced soon after, and the Russian armies got within sight of Con- stantinople. This advance made England bestir herself. The Mediterranean fleet moved towards the Dardanelles. A sum of six millions was voted for miUtary expenses, and when a rumour arrived that the Russians were actually moving upon Constantinople, the fleet passed the Dardanelles and anchored within a few miles of that city, and Great Britain and Russia were on the brink of war. TREATY OF SAN STEFANO The Treaty of San Stefano, by which Russia secured almost entire independence for the Christian provinces and the creation of a great Bulgarian state, was signed on the 3rd March, 1878. This treaty England refused to recognize, as giving too great power to Russia in the south-east of Europe. When war seemed inevitable, England having called out her reserves and summoned a contingent HI 146 RUSSIA'S STORY of Indian troops to Europe, Prince Bismarck appeared as arbitrator, proposing that a Congress should be held at Berhn, and the Treaty of San Stefano discussed there. To this Congress the EngUsh Prime Minister, Lord Beaconsfield, went in person, and the result was the Treaty of Berlin, signed June 15, 1878, Turkey recognizing the inde- pendence of Servia, Roumania, and Monte- negro, making Bulgaria a self-governing state, under the suzerainty of the Sultan, giving in Asia, Ardahan, Batoum, and Kars to Russia, and so much of Bessarabia as had been de- tached by the Treaty of Paris, 1856, to Russia, thus restoring to her everything that she had lost in the Crimean War — the Treaty of London, of 1871, having previously rescinded those clauses of the Treaty of Paris which closed the Black Sea to her navy and its shores to her arsenals, a rescission which was greatly due to the diplomacy of Bismarck, which was influenced in her favour. Although Bessarabia was recovered, yet Russia lost prestige in this war. The earlier reverses sustained by her through the spirited resistance of the Turks, and the fact that the threatening attitude of England and Austria kept her off Constantinople, all told against her. ALEXANDER ASSASSINATED 147 The close of the Czar's reign was disturbed by plots ; one attempt on his hfe had been made in 1867, when he was the guest of the Emperor Napoleon at the Paris Exhibition of that year : three others occurred in 1879, and the last, which was successful, in 1881, he being destroyed by a hand grenade thrown at him in the capital. He was an excellent ruler, and his reign had been most beneficial to his subjects. His murder was universally condemned as a dastardly crime, its perpetrators, the Nihil- ists, being then at the height of their ex- cesses. His only daughter, Mary, became the wife of the second son of Queen Victoria, the Duke of Edinburgh, and his second son, Alexander, who succeeded him (the eldest Nicholas being dead), was married to a sister of Queen Alexandria. ALEXANDER III (1881-1894) In Alexander HI the Russians had an honest man of simple tastes and amiable character, but he never sympathized with liberaUsm, and, consequently, his pohcy was reactionary. The chief features of his reign are the gradual progress of Russia in Western Asia, the inauguration of the Siberian Rail- I M^ '«wi>' * ' »" '. i> i i rt » u -^# I '\ 148 RUSSIANS STORY way— a great engineering feat, which was opened in 1894— from Chelyabinsk to Towsk. The Nihihsts continued their attempts against the Royal Family, and the consequent terrorism to which the Czar was subjected is supposed to have undermined his constitu- tion. There was a certain material prosperity m the towns in this reign. Warsaw, for instance, nearly tripled its population, and another step was the gradual Russification of the towns of the Baltic provinces ; but the most important events were concentrated in the Balkan Peninsula. The Czar resented the attempts of Austria to increase her influence there which had been partially conceded by Alexander II, by the Treaty of Reichstadt, in Bohemia, in 1876, providing that if Russia should liberate Bulgaria by force of arms, Austria should enter into possession of Bosnia and Herzegovina. MERV TAKEN In spite of her promise to Great Britain, Russia continued her advance along the Northern frontier. She sustained several reverses from the Turcomans, till in 1881 General Skobeloff, after a terrible battle, completely crushed them. Geok Tepe and THE PENJDEH AFFAIR 149 the Akhal Tekkeh on the Persian border were annexed. Merv was next pounced upon in 1884, a very important position, commanding, as it does, the Valley of the Murghab. Then they took Sarakus, commanding the Valley of the Heri-Rud. This again drew the attention of the British Government to the leaps and bounds by which Russia was getting nearer and nearer to India. THE PENJDEH AFFAIR The tension with Great Britain in 1885 arose on the question of the delimitation of the Afghan boundary. In 1872 a frontier had been proposed by Lord Granville and accepted by Russia, and it was agreed that it should be defined again more accurately. General Zelenoi was to represent Russia and Sir Peter Lumsden England. When Sir Peter arrived, in the autumn of 1884, he found no Russian coadjutor, and the English Com- mission waited for months in the bleak regions of the Murghab and Heri-Rud for the Russian Commissioners, who delayed their arrival on different pretexts, while troops were sent daily in the direction of Merv, and having crossed the frontier agreed upon in 1872, took up positions threatening Herat — ISO RUSSIA'S STORY I ' •^1 the province which bears the same name as the capital, being the most fertile in Central Asia and where an army could obtain food and material, and whose inhabitants, if trained, would make excellent soldiers. The possession of Herat by Russia would give her an im- mense advantage, should she meditate a descent upon India ; all conquerors of India, except the EngUsh, have passed through Herat : it was the central trade route to India and the former capital of Central Asia ; be- sides being an oasis in the surrounding deserts it would make an excellent basis for military operations from the north. The Russians had fleets on the Caspian which would serve as transports in time of war. Railways were being put down in the direction of Sarakus, and the Une already ran from the western bank of the Caspian to the most important places in European Russia, thus opening a communication with all the arsenals and fortresses in the Empire of the Czar. The positions which the Russians seized were Pul-i-Kishti, Pul-i-Khatum and Zat- fagar. At this England made strong remon- strances. It was agreed, however, that the Russian troops should retain their positions during the settlement of the frontier. But General Komoroff, a distinguished soldier, KOMOROFF DEFEATS AFGHANS 151 who had taken over the command from Colonel Alikanoff before Ak Tepe, attacked the Afghan force stationed at Penjdeh, defeated them, and killed five hundred or more, on the thirtieth of March, 1885. This action pro- duced a rising war feeling in England, and the situation became very menacing, the two countries being brought to the verge of hostilities. This was the occasion on which Mr. Gladstone laid down in the House of Commons, in a memorable speech, the dictum, *' We will not close this book until, etc.," an explanation and apology was offered for the wanton outrage. However, on an explana- tion being demanded. General Komoroff alleged that the Afghans were the aggressors, and, further, that orders to stay hostilities had not been communicated to him. The excuse was a lame one, and denied by Sir Peter Lumsden ; but the matter was patched up and a compromise agreed to, to the effect that the dispute should be settled by an arbitration, which never came off. However, an arrangement was effected, England agree- ing, with the consent of the Ameer, to give up her claim to Penjdeh and Russia to Zulkikar, and a definite limitation of the frontier was marked out. This was the last dispute with Russia, and the Russiphobia, so long existing 152 RUSSIA'S STORY in England, may be said to have commenced to wane since then, and it quite died out after the Russo-Japanese War, the triple entente supplanting it, and now Russia and England are firm allies, though very recent events tend to quaUfy this statement. The health of the Czar gradually declined, and he died in Livadia on the first of Nov- ember, 1894, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Nicholas. NICHOLAS II (1894-I917) The new Czar, and probably the last, married the Princess Mix of Hesse, grand- daughter of Queen Victoria, and the Czare- vitch was born in 1904. He encouraged the Russification of Finland and the cementing of the Franco-Russian Alliance. In 1898 the King of Roumania, with his heir, visited St. Petersburg. The Czar sym- pathized with his father's aspirations for making Russia a homogeneous Empire, and was averse to prosecute the Jews and the schismatics. Her expansion in Asia, stimu- lated by the construction of the Trans- Siberian Railway, took the direction of Northern China and aimed at bringing Man- churia under Russian influence. She objected JAPANESE WAR i53 to any annexations by Japan, and obtained a long lease of Port Arthur, with a permission to unite it to the Trans-Siberian Railway by a branch line. Japan objected, declaring she would never tolerate Russian influence to control Manchuria. THE WAR WITH JAPAN Russia expected the Japanese to give way, but to her surprise they did not, and the war arose from Russia's delay in answering the proposals of Japan for recognizing the terri- torial integrity and independence of China in Manchuria and in the Korea, and of equal opportunities being afforded for both Japan and Russia in those countries. When the reply was received the Korea question alone was dealt with, and Russia was invited to reconsider her reply, which she decUned to do. Japan thereupon severed diplomatic relations and hostiUties began soon after— on the eighth of February, 1904. Japanese successes commenced early. The Russians were defeated near the Ai River, with a loss of over 2,600 men, and Feug- huang - Cheng, with its large stores, fell into the hands of the Japanese. After eight days' fighting, Kiu-Chau, from which the Rus- sians had retired, was carried. The Japanese >ii^ 1: i= %■ 154 RUSSIANS STORY then attacked Nan-shan and Nan-kuan-ling, which the Russians had converted into a permanent position, outflanked their trenches and compelled them to retire in the direction of Port Arthur. This retirement uncovered Dalny, which was occupied by the Japanese on the thirtieth of May and converted into a naval base. The Japanese General, Oku, leaving General Nogi to advance on Port Arthur, defeated the Russians under General Stockenberg at the Battle of Telissu ; a further success was achieved by General Kuroki, who captured the Mo-tien-Ung and To-Ung Passes, commanding the road to Liao- yang and also to Mukden, which the Russian General, Kellev, unsuccessfully attempted to recapture with thirty thousand men, but was himself killed in the battle. The Russian fleet in Port Arthur, whose safety was endangered by the advances of General Nogi, put to sea, and encountered the Japanese fleet under Admiral Togo, and was beaten, although numerically stronger, and returned to Port Arthur. About the same time the Vladivostok squadron, on its way to meet the Port Arthur fleet, was worsted by Admiral Kanimura's fleet in the Tsushima Straits. General Nogi's army took up a line of positions extending from Louisa Bay on the # JAPANESE DEFEAT RUSSIANS 155 west to a Une of heights on the left bank of the Taho River on the east. A summons to surrender sent to General Stoessel not being complied with, the inner ring of Port Arthur fortifications were assaulted, the assault last- ing six days and costing the Japanese nearly sixteen thousand men. Heavy fighting was meanwhile taking place between the three Japanese armies in the north and the Russians. Kuroki's forces advancing to threaten Kuropatkin's com- munications left a considerable gap between his troops and the main army, which allowed Kuropatkin, who hoped to be supported by Orloffe, who held a stronger force near Mukden, to envelop and destroy Kuroki's right. Kuroki, however, though he failed to cut Kuropatkin's communications, occupied Liao-yang, about 220,000 men being engaged on either side. Some disappointment was felt at Kuroki having failed to convert this Liao-yang victory into a Sedan, but it is really surprising that he succeeded at all, and not that the Russians retired in good order to Mukden. Meanwhile, desperate fighting continued round Port Arthur. A prolonged attack was deUvered on positions east and west of the railroad and captures were made which en- 156 RUSSIA'S STORY abled the Japanese to rain shot and shell over the town and harbour. Their army extended from the neighbourhood of the Hun River, about twenty miles east of Mukden beyond the Sha River, over a front of sixty miles. Ten days' fighting cost the Russians sixty thousand men. Kuropatkin had come to the relief of the town with the Manchurian army, but his only capture was that of Lonely Tree Hill, while the Japanese, by their capture of Metre Hill, could direct their heavy guns upon the Russian fleet, and on the thirty-first of December the fortress surrendered. But the war did not end then. The Russians had three hundred thousand men in the field, and in three weeks* fighting, up to the twelfth of March it was estimated they lost in casualties nearly 140,000 men— 27,700 being killed. Russia, in the hope to avert the fall of Port Arthur, despatched her Baltic fleet to the seat of war in October. Its first achieve- ment was to fire upon some EngHsh fishing boats in the North Sea, with fatal results, which led to complications with England. The matter was referred to an International Court of Inquiry, but which did not settle several questions at issue between the two nations in connection with the seizure of FALL OF PORT ARTHUR 157 British ships and the Russian declaration as to what was contraband. When this fleet arrived at Madagascar they were greeted with the news of the fall of Port Arthur and the partial annihilation of the Russian army at Mukden. But they pro- ceeded to Korea, where they met Admiral Togo off Tsushima. An engagement followed (on May 27) in which the Russian fleet was totally defeated. Port Arthur had surrendered on the first of January, 1905, and Saghalien on the thirty- first of July. Peace proposals were first made by Presi- dent Roosevelt, and were accepted by both parties ; but the treaty of peace was not signed till October. By this Treaty (of Ports- mouth, U.S.) Russia recognized Japan's paramount interests in Korea, transferred Port Arthur and the railway south of Chang- chun, the southern half of Saghalien, and certain fishing rights to Japan. Manchuria was to be evacuated and China to have restored to her her sovereign rights over those parts occupied by her troops. These extremely moderate terms, after almost un- equalled victories, occasioned bitter dis- satisfaction in Japan, which vented itself in riots. 158 RUSSIA'S STORY Japan's claim for a pecuniary indemnity was abandoned by her owing to the exertions of President Roosevelt in the interests of peace. The Japanese successes at sea only left Russia with ten out of eighty-three vessels, and her expenditure was declared to be ^^209,000,000. Russia's loss of the war was greatly due to her being hampered by troubles at home, which greatly increased after its conclusion. The years 1905, 1906, and 1907 were marked by political murders and incendiar- isms, the first victim (in 1907) being the Prefect of St. Petersburg. The fall of Port Arthur had increased the public discontent ; also the demand for a representative assembly. Strikes and riots occurred, and at the begin- ning of 1905 there was a terrible massacre of people by the troops at the gates of the Winter Palace, the strikers endeavouring to reach the square in front of the palace, where a priest (Father Gapon) had urged the Czar to meet his people and receive a petition from them, but the Czar remained at Tsarkoe-Selo, where he was then residing. Other riots occurred in various parts of the Empire, and in March, 1905, Poland was placed in a state of siege. On August 19th of that year, an Imperial manifesto was issued, announcing DISTURBANCES IN RUSSIA 159 that while preserving the fundamental law regarding autocratic power, the Czar had decided to summon elected representatives from the whole of Russia to take an active part in the elaboration of the laws, and this body should be called Gosondarstvennaia Duma (State Council), and it should assemble in January, 1906 ; also that the Minister for the Interior should submit regulations for the election of this Duma in fifty governments and the military province of the Don, the total number of members to be 412. Insurrections, however, continued ; one rail- way strike in October, 1905, assumed colossal proportions, isolating St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Warsaw, the object being to compel the Government to summon an assembly elected by universal suffrage, and although a consti- tution was signed at Peterhof concerning civil freedom, an extended suffrage and legis- lative Duma, which at first gave satisfaction, still colhsions occurred between the military and the people, and terrible atrocities on Jews were reported from Odessa and other towns. Also general risings continued through the Empire, which remained in a very agitated state. In March, 1906, an Imperial manifesto laid down regulations for the Duma and the ,6o RUSSIA'S STORY Council of the Empire, which were to be convoked and prorogued annually by Impenal XJksLSC . The first Duma was opened on the twenty- seventh of April of that year. But its insti- tution did not bring about internal quiet Strikes and insurgent action w^^^^^* ^f^Jy occurrence, and it became evident that so long as a Ministry was not chosen from the Duma there could be no co-operation between that body and the Government and that its labours must be fruitless. The second Duma met in March, 1907, its temper being more democratic than the hrst, and the third Duma assembled on the four- teenth of November, 1908, the first year of comparative quiet after the war with Japan This Duma, purged of its irreconcilable elements, and the temper of the nation being disillusioned and weary of anarchy, was allowed to do considerable beneficial work. Count Ignatieff, author of the Treaty of San Stefano and a famous diplomatist, died on the sixth of July. The Baltic and the North Sea agreements were concluded, and steps were taken for a meeting of the Powers which had signed the Treaty of Berlin, to consider the arrangements necessary in consequence of the declaration ACCOUNT OF SERVIA 161 of Bulgarian independence and the annexa- tion by Austria of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The agitation in Servia caused by the annexa- tion of these places led to the brink of war between the countries in question. But, being unsupported by Russia, Servia gave way, and a war of tariffs merely followed, which closed the Austrian frontier and left Austria only a commercial outlet at Salonika, which Turkey dominated. Servia, which was a province of Turkey, had revolted in 1804, under Czerni George, who governed it as an independent nation. It was allied to Russia till 1812, when Russia, pressed by Napoleon, concluded peace with Turkey at Bucharest, forgetting Servian interests entirely. Turkey then reconquered it, but by a second insurrection in 18 15 it regained its autonomy under the suzerainty of the Sultan, which continued till 1879. The third Duma passed a measure in 1910 which was of great benefit to the mass of the Russian peasantry, and in the same year appeared manifestations of nationalism by the Government and the Duma ; but a measure calculated to give the Russian peasant element in the Baltic and Don Cossack provinces a preponderance of repre- sentation over the Polish land proprietors. i i M l62 RUSSIA'S STORY who had only elected Poles to sit in the State Councils at St. Petersburg, brought on a ministerial crisis. The Duma did all they could to extend national education, and their financial work was most commendable. They also devoted considerable attention to the progress of national defence, and adopted General Baden- Powell's system of boy scouts, who were also called play soldiers and trained. The third Duma completed its five years in 1912, during which time 2,340 of the 2,572 Bills which it laid before Government were passed, and the elections for the fourth Duma resulted in a defeat for the centre party, who were composed of NationaUsts and Octobrists, namely, the supporters of the Imperial Government manifesto of October 20, 1905, under which the first Duma was elected, the Right objecting to that manifesto because it gave the Duma too much power, and the Left because it gave them too little. Russian relations with England continued most cordial ; the Russian Foreign Minister came to confer with the British Government about the warUke look in the Balkans and the conditions of peace with Persia, with the result that there was complete harmony both as to the maintenance of the triple entente CONVENTIONS WITH CHINA 163 and as to partitioning Persia, which neither side desired. Other important events of the year were conventions with China and Japan, the latter settling the last of the questions at issue since the war, namely, the condemna- tion of two Russian hospital ships, of which the Mikado now ordered the surrender. There had been trouble with China about the revision of the treaty of 1881 and, towards the end of the year 1912, about the inde- pendence of Northern Mongolia, Russia hav- ing recognized its autonomy without impugn- ing the sovereignty of the Chinese— a recogni- tion which caused irritation and created ill- feehng on the part of the latter country. In the Morocco crisis of 1911, the attitude of England in support of France was assisted by Russia, thus making it understood that the alliance between France and Russia continued in full force. The Premier, Stolypin— the ablest head of the Russian Government since Count Witte and the terror of the Finns and the SociaUst revolutionists— was shot in September in the same year, at a gala performance at Kiev, an incident which was deplored all over Russia. In that year (1911) difficulties arose between Russia and the United States, owing to the i64 RUSSIA'S STORY Russian refusal to abolish disabilities in the case of foreign Jews, while Aiiglo-Russian relations improved and remained on a most satisfactory footing. Russian finances were m a favourable condition in 1912. but her grain export trade suffered owing to the closing of the Darden- elles, in consequence of the Turko-Italian and Balkan wars. . Russia, the same as other Powers mam- tained an attitude of neutrality in the war between Italy and Turkey, yet pubhc opimon leaned to the side of Italy. The Goverrunent had made protests to Turkey agamst her threatened invasion of Montenegro m con- sequence of the sympathy she showed to Italy and the Albanians. Further great cordiality was shown to King Peter of Serbia when he visited St. Petersburg m September, iqii, for the wedding of his daughter Helena, and a friendly agreement was entered mto with Germany in relation to railway conces- sions in Persia, and it was arranged that Teheran should be linked with the Bagdad route and Russia should have permanent control of it. Germany promised not to mter- fere with Russia's diplomacy m Persia and Russia gave Germany permission to accelerate the coiStruction of the Bagdad Railway and FIRST BALKAN WAR 165 get a concession from Persia for a railway from Khanikan, the last station on the German Une of the Turko-Persian frontier to Teheran, thus facilitating the competition of German goods with those of Russia in the markets of North Persia. This harmony was officially described as linking the two nations together in a firm and lasting friendship, a description which has been totally nuUified by the outbreak of the present war and which even then was much criticized by the Russian press as giving Germany every advantage to the detriment of Russia, which gained nothing of any importance. THE BALKAN WARS The first Balkan War broke out in 1912. After a long period of tension, owing to the Macedonian question and an abortive attempt at arrangement by the Powers, Montenegro declared war upon Turkey on the eighth of October, 1912, and Greece, Bulgaria, and Serbia joined in. They were remarkably successful, and it became clear that the map of Eastern Europe must be altered. Monte- negro, though she worsted the Turks in every encounter, did not take Scutari, the real object of her campaign. The Greeks captured 11 1 66 RUSSIA'S STORY ] Salonica and the Bulgarians occupied Mustifa Pacha and advanced to the first line of the defences of Adrianople, to which place they laid siege, having won the battles of Kirk Kilisse and Salu Burgas. The Powers then intervened, and in Dec- ember peace delegates met in London. But Turkey refused to give up Adrianople or to allow the Powers to arrange about the iEgean Islands, and so the conference came to an end on the first of February, 1913. Adrianople was attacked by the Bulgarians, while Montenegro pursued the siege of Scutari, and in the end both capitulated. The chief obstacle to the conclusion of peace was the demand of the Balkan League for the cession of Adrianople ; also Roumania re- quired compensation for remaining neutral throughout the war. After some further fighting a second peace conference was held in London on the twentieth of May, Roumania having agreed (on May 7) about SiUstria, but claiming a rectification of the Dobrudja frontier, Dobrudja having been given to her by Russia under the Treaty of BerUn, Russia taking Bessarabia in exchange. Bulgaria and Serbia agreed to submit to the arbitration of Russia, but affairs had gone too far to make a pacific solution possible. SECOND BALKAN WAR 167 and the allies, flushed with victory, would not abandon any of their conquests. So the second Balkan War commenced on the thirtieth of June by the Bulgarians attacking the Serbian and Greek positions. Roumania, after a warning to Bulgaria, also joined, and her army entered SiUstria. Turkey again became a beUigerent, and the Turkish army recaptured Adrianople, thus completing a list of Bulgarian disasters, Bulgaria having been worsted throughout. An armistice was at length signed at Bucharest on July 31, between Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro, Rou- mania and Serbia, followed by a treaty of peace on August loth, which rectified the Serbo - Bulgarian, Roumano - Bulgarian and Graeco - Bulgarian frontiers. This second Balkan War was really fought for the Ubera- tion of Christians from Turkey and to enlarge the territories of the Christian Balkan States. Turkey retained Adrianople, Dunotika and Kirk Kilisse by agreement signed on the eighteenth of September between Bulgaria and Turkey, ratified on the twenty-ninth of September. Therefore, by the two Balkan wars Bulgaria lost Macedonia, which was divided between Turkey and Greece, and for which the war was professedly fought. By the Treaty of London, signed on the thirtieth 1 68 RUSSIA'S STORY of May (mentioned above), the Turkish frontier of Thrace started from a point in the Black Sea east of Midiah, following the course of the River Ergene as far as Maradli and terminating at Cape Erige, the rest of European Turkey being ceded to the aUies and Crete to Greece. THE GREAT WAR The nations of Europe were at perfect peace with one another, although far-seeing persons knew that compHcations might arise at any moment. The aggressive attitude of Germany, evidencing itself now and then, as in the Morocco crisis of 1906, also at the time of the Algeciras conference, and later, when the second Morocco question, the Agadir affair, arose, had shown Europe on how precarious a basis the general tranquillity hung. Germany, Austria, and Italy were bound by a defensive alliance, opposed to which was what is called the Triple entente — Russia and France being bound together by treaty and England having a mutual under- standing with them, though preserving free- dom of action. Thus when M. Javolsky, Russian Minister, inquired England's attitude in 1908, the Balkan crisis originating in the ORIGIN OF THE GREAT WAR 169 annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sir Edward Grey told him that nothing more than diplomatic support could be expected from Great Britain. Servian aspirations were jealously watched by Austria but countenanced by Russia. It seems clear that war would not have broken out as it did if Russia had not supported Servia. For Russia had never been at variance with Germany since the partition of Poland, though it was generally anticipated that some day there would be a conflict with Austria owing to the attitudes of the two Empires in relation to the Balkans. The manner in which Germany intended to act, in defiance of international law and of all treaty obligations, was heralded by the proposal of the German Chancellor to the British Ambassador immediately after a council held at Potsdam on the eve of the ultimatum to Russia (July 29), asking Great Britain to stand neutral while France was stripped of her Colonies and Belgian neutrality disregarded, on the grounds of Germany's necessity. Russia was not ready for war, and did not desire war ; she was busy with her internal affairs and not anxious to incur the vast outlay which war must entail : besides, there was no bone of contention between I/O RUSSIA'S STORY Germany and herself, although she must have been aware that Germany looked with a jealous eye on her alUance with France. Popular ignorance in England deemed Russia's soldiers to be countless, and in the early stages of the war talked about the Russian steam roller which was to sweep everything before it, of the clouds of Cossacks and the Russian troops passing through England on their way to the Western front, while the real truth was that she was totally unprepared for war ; her vast territorial extent delayed mobilization and increased difficulties of transport. Her train communi- cation was deficient, while the German Eastern frontier was gridironed with a net- work of strategic railways. There were shortages of equipment of every kind, from clothing to great guns. The roads were bad — she needed supplies — she needed money. She was vulnerable in Poland, being hemmed in on three sides. But her mobilization was admirably conducted and the war brought a soUdarity and union amongst the Russian people which they had never experienced before. Also a wise step of the Czar was the suppression of the liquor traffic, which was submitted to without a murmur. The Russian navy had been almost annihil- THE RUSSIAN NAVY 171 ated in the war with Japan. In the opening of that campaign it was crippled by the in- capacity of its admirals; it lost its best admiral at the sinking of the Petropavlovsk, and at the last battle, that of Tsushima, a fleet weatied by a long unlucky voyage had to contend with another, the Japanese, navy hardened by war and flushed with victory. The renaissance of the navy may be said to have commenced in 1912, in which year the Duma passed a bill which involved a con- siderable expenditure on ship-building (fifty milhons) and on the construction of naval ports ; but still, at the commencement of the War of 1914 it laboured under considerable disadvantages both in number of ships and their equipment as compared with that of Germany. The determination of Russia to protect Serbia gave Germany an excuse for plunging the world into the present terrible conflict, and the order of events may be detailed thus : The Serb Nationalist movement which existed in Bosnia and Herzegovina had brought on the war between Russia and Turkey in 1877, and continued when Austria took over the administration of the provinces, under the Treaty of BerHn, in 1878. In 1908 Austria proclaimed their annexation, and the ,72 RUSSIA'S STORY Serbian attitude, encouraged by Russia, again nearly produced war ; Serbian suc- cesses in the Balkan Wars fomented her national aspirations, while the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Ferdinand, on the twenty-third of June, 1914. attributed to Serbian machinations, roused intense anger in Austria, which country had the then sympathy of Europe. The Serbian Govern- ment was willing to investigate the matter, and a court martial had been set up at bara- ^Tn the part of Russia, her Foreign Minister had just stated in the Duma the policy of "the Balkans for the Balkans," and it was known that Russia would not be indifferent to any humiliation of Serbia. On the twenty-third of July Austna de- livered an ultimatum at Belgrade requinng an answer in forty-eight hours. She made ten demands, each of which would ehminate from Serbian life all that would be hostile to her The Russian Foreign Mimster in St. Petersburg then summoned the French and English Ambassadors to him, told theni that Austria's step meant imminent war, and asked for their support ; which France as she was bound to do, gave. Great Britain pressed Austria for an extension of the ULTIMATUM TO SERVIA 173 time limit, and made three attempts for peace. Austria refused to extend the limit, and was obdurate to any concession of her terms. The Serbian reply agreed to all the demands save one, namely, the participation of Austnan officers in Serbian judicial proceedings, thus showing her desire for a settlement. Russia openly declared that she would intervene if Serbia was crushed, to which Austria repUed that attack would be merely punitive and that she would not take any territory from Serbia. She declared war on the twenty- eighth and Russia then ordered a partial mobilization. It was now clear that a European War was imminent, but Sir Edward Grey, the English Foreign Minister, still laboured for a settle- ment, although England was not, as yet, directly involved. He proposed a Congress of the Powers in London, but Germany refused, the German Chancellor telling the British' Ambassador that he was trying to mediate at Vienna and St. Petersburg. Although peace negotiations continued for the next few days the situation became mani- festly more serious than ever. Germany pressed Great Britain for a pledge to remain / neutral in the event of a war between her and 174 RUSSIA'S STORY France and Russia, which Sir Edward Grey at once refused to give. But for a few hours there seemed to be a hope of peace. Russia was able to inform the British Government that Austria was wiUing to discuss the whole question of her ultimatum to Serbia, and asked the British Government to assume the direction of these discussions. But on the thirty-first of July Germany suddenly des- patched an ultimatum to Russia demanding that she should demobolize in twelve hours, and on her refusal a declaration of war was presented. France being bound to Russia by treaty was also questioned as to her attitude and replied by mobilization. Germany then invaded the small neutral State of Luxem- bourg, whose neutrahty had been guaranteed by all the Powers at the Treaty of London, in 1867, and war with France became also an accomphshed fact. The Czar, on the declara- tion of war against him, telegraphed to the King of England as follows : ''In this solemn hour I wish to assure you once more that I have done all in my power to avert war." There can be no doubt but that was so. Although the Russian people had the interests of the Serbian race so much at heart, and were resolved to prevent their being wiped out of existence, as there can be but THE GREAT WAR BREAKS OUT 175 little doubt that that was Austria's intention, in spite of her contrary assurances, yet the attitude of the Russian Government was most conciliatory throughout, and the ulti- matum of Germany, at a time when the prospects of peace looked brighter, was so unnecessary and showed that she was bent on war. England still remained neutral, although she had given a conditional promise of naval assistance to France and had sent three warnings to Germany as to the effect that a violation of the neutrality of Belgium would produce upon the British people, and she kept her fleet, of which there had been a great review but a fortnight previously, together. But a violation of the Belgian territory by the German armies produced an appeal from the King of the Belgians to King George, followed by an ultimatum from England to Germany, which was disregarded, and at midnight, on the fourth of August, England also declared war. The Russian troops at the outbreak of the war were composed of three different armies, one of which invaded East Prussia, the second aimed at the Carpathians, and the third made Galicia its objective. 176 RUSSIA'S STORY At first success attended the Russian arms. On the nineteenth of August they won a battle at Stalluponen, on the road to Tilsit, and occupied Soldanan, while the Germans were driven to Intersburg, which the Russians also captured. The Germans failed in attempt ing to turn the Russian left, and the end of the month saw the latter in possession of a considerable portion of East Prussia but some of the country they had captured had to be abandoned, owing to the advances of General Hindenburg. On the tenth of September the Russians sustained a severe check at Tannenburg, Hindenburg putting into force a device somewhat similar to that practised by Hannibal at the ancient battle of Thrasymene, namely, by enticing the Russians on to the swampy regions of the Masurian Lakes and then suddenly springing on their flank, entaiUng on them a loss of some fifty thousand men. This led to the abandonment of an offensive in East Prussia. Tilsit however, on the road to Komgsberg, was occupied by them, but they failed to reach the Niemen. On the first of September the name of the Capital was changed from St. Petersburg to Petrograd, and on the seventh the aUies agreed to make no separate peace. PROGRESS OF THE WAR 177 The drink prohibition in Russia dates from the twenty-ninth of October. On the twenty-seventh of October, without any warning, the Turks attacked certain Russian forts in the Black Sea, and after some prolonged fighting, finishing with a three days' battle, in which a whole Turkish Army Corps surrendered, they were driven back. In the South the Austrians invaded Poland, striking for the Kieff and Moscow Railway, and were covered by an advance eastward from Lemberg ; but the Russians, under the command of General Russky, repulsed them, and took Lemberg on September 3, which remained in Russian possession till the end of the year. The Russian General Brusiloff, advancing from the north-east, drove back the Austrians, captured Jaroslaw and invested Przemysl on the twenty-eighth of September, and the Russians held nearly the whole of Galicia. They invarably beat the Austrians in battle, and moved towards Cracow, while detachments entered the Carpathians and advanced towards the plains of Hungary. The immediate effect of the Russian defeat at Tannenberg was the transfer of four or five German Army Corps to the Polish frontier, and on October 14 the siege of Przemysl was raised, and Lodz and all Poland, west of the N 178 RUSSIA'S STORY Vistula, were in the possession of the Austrians. The Austro-Germans resumed the offensive in October, hoping to break the Russian centre between Pilna and Radem. Supported by an advance from Mlava towards the River Narow, they attacked Warsaw, but were driven back by a Russian counter-attack. On the twenty-seventh of October the Rus- sians were at Lodz. By November the third the Russians occupied Kielce and Sandonierz on the Vistula, to the south of Warsaw, and on the eighth resumed the invasion of East Prussia, penetrating the German Province of Posen. In Galicia, on November 13, they occupied Thurnow and resumed the siege of Przemysl (which fell on the twenty-second of March, 1915), and about three weeks later they in- vested Cracow ; but neither place was taken, and by the twelfth of December their advance was arrested by heavy rains, but they still held a great part of Galicia. On November 18 the Germans broke the Russian Hues at Knovno, and advanced towards Warsaw, approaching to within forty miles of that capital. On December 8 they re- captured Lodz, but were unable to proceed further. On December 9 the Russian front retired beyond Lodz, which the Germans had RUSSIA HOLDS HER OWN 179 recaptured after a great battle, taking sixty thousand prisoners and one hundred guns, for which achievement Hindenburg was created a field-marshal. The German offensive towards Lovicz continued, and by the twenty-third they were established north of Sochaczew, some thirty miles from Warsaw, Russian attacks in great force preventing them from getting nearer. Meawa, a town not far from the Prussian frontier was retaken by them on the twentieth of December, from whence their line ran to Ilow-Lowicz. After three days' fighting the enemy were repulsed there, and also on the Pilica and the lower reaches of the Nida. The second Austrian advance was pro- jected by Hindenburg, who had been trans- ferred to the chief command in Poland. Offensive operations were again undertaken, and the result was that the advance of the Russian armies was arrested and they occupied at the close of the year 1914 a Une running north and south from the Lower Bzura along the Rawa across the PiUca to the line of the Mida and of the Dunajety. The Germans dug themselves in between the Bzura and the Rawa and firmly en- trenched themselves in that position. ,8o RUSSIA'S STORY The leading dates may be summarized as follows : i8th August, 1914.— Russians won Stall- uponen. 3rd September, 1914.— Lemberg taken. loth September, 1914.— Russian defeat at Tannenburg. 28th September, 1914.— First Siege of Przemysl. I4tli October, 1914.— Siege abandoned. Lodz and aU West Poland in Austrian possession. 8th November, 1914.— Russians resumed invasion of East Prussia. I2th November, 1914.— Second Siege of Przemysl. i8th November, 1914.— Germans broke Russian Unes at Knovno. 8th December, 1914.— Germans recaptured Lodz. I2th December, 1914.— Russian advance arrested. To sum up in a few words : The fighting on both sides after the war broke out was in its earliest stage an offensive, undertaken with a view to secure a firm defensive. The Russian invasion of East PRZEMYSL FALLS 181 Prussia was successful until their defeat at Tannenberg by Hindenburg. The operations in GaUcia and the Carpathians opposing the Austrian advance may also be said to have been successful, as the Russians proved themselves the better soldiers, and the Austrians were repeatedly beaten until Hin- denburg assumed the chief command in Poland, and even then at the close of the year they still held a considerable portion of German territory. The taking of Przemysl in March, 1915, was a great achievement, and the tide did not really begin to turn until the general advance of the Germans, under Hin- denburg, in May, 1915, when they lost all their previous gains and more. The reason of their reverses may be attributed to lack of ammuni- tion, as well as to the overwhelming number of the forces opposed to them, and the want of sufficient railway accommodation to bring up reserves. The end of 1915 finds the Germans in Russian territory instead of Russians occupy- ing German, as in the previous year. According to date, the events of 1915 may be summarized thus : 23rd March.— Przemysl taken by the Rus- sians. 8th May.— Germans occupy Libau. l82 RUSSIA'S STORY Hindenburg's Grand Offensive begun 3rd June. — Przemysl retaken. 22nd June. — Lemberg recaptured. 31st June. — Lublin evacuated. 4th August.— Fall of Warsaw. Taken by Prince Leopold of Bavaria. 17th August. — Fall of Knovno. i8th August. — Russian naval victory. 2nd September. — Fall of Grodno. i8th September. — Vilna occupied. 6th October.— Austro - Germans invade Serbia. i6th October. — German advance on Riga. 27th October. — Varna bombarded by the Russians. 5th November. — Germans take Nish and secure the Berlin-Egypt Railway. nth November. — Russian success at Riga. Thus the Russian successes of 1914 were not continued during 1915 ; in fact, by the summer of that year she lost, as just stated, all and more than she had formerly gained. After the Germans were checked in the north and the Austrians beaten in the south and driven over the Carpathians, the main southern Russian army advanced towards GERMAN ADVANCE IN 1915 183 Hungary. In January they had defeated the Turks at Sarykamysh, and again near Kara Urgen, in the Caucasus. Hindenburg had been held back before Warsaw at the close of 1914, and Mackensen, acting under him, had failed to penetrate the Russian lines to the west of that city. There was hard fighting during the months of January and February, 1915. A German onslaught from East Prussia defeated the Russians on the tenth of February, while Austro-Germans tried to recover Eastern Galicia, but were beaten back, not getting further than Buligrad, and on the twenty-fifth of February the Germans, who had sur- rounded Prasnysz on the south, were in their turn enveloped, and retreated towards Mlava, leaving some ten thousand prisoners in the hands of the Russians. Shortly after Przemysl fell, on the twenty-second of March. Between 19th March and 12th April the Russians (it was said) had captured seventy thousand men and nine hundred officers. The great German offensive commenced in Western Galicia at the beginning of May, and on the second of that month an army, under Mackensen, burst through the Russian defences on the Dunajee and compelled the whole of the Russian southern army to re- !!^ H t II tl 184 RUSSIA'S STORY treat, losing half GaUcia. The San was crossed, with great loss of life, and, on the third of June, Przemysl was recaptured. A huge German army, consisting of some thirty- five army corps, attacked the army under General Ivanoff, forced it back, essayed to separate the Russian southern and central armies, recaptured Lemberg, and aimed at LubUn and Brest-Lit ovsk. Another German offensive coming from East Prussia attacked the Russians at Narew, where there was furious fighting ; but the Russians were, owing to the lack of munitions, unable to make a long stand, and the German offensive extended up to the Baltic. In the middle of July, Kraznostaw on the Wiepry fell to Mackensen and the Archduke Ferdi- nand. Mackensen advanced to the Cholm- Lublin line, another force was over the Narew, another over the Vistula, a third on the Niemen, and a general Russian retirement became compulsory, Warsaw being abandoned on the fifth of August. But the retreat was admirably conducted by the Grand Duke Nicholas, in spite of his great want of shells and of munitions of all kinds, and the army was saved from being encompassed, though the fortresses fell in succession. Any attempt to seriously protect them must have placed GERMAN SUCCESSES IN 1915 185 the army in great jeopardy, and its preserva- tion was necessarily the first consideration. Kovno, which guarded the trunk railway from East Prussia to Vilna and Minsk, fell on the seventh of August, then Novo Georgievsk on the nineteenth, then Osovie, then Brest- Litovsk on the twenty-fifth, and lastly, Grodno on the second of September. A change in the supreme command then took place, the Czar assuming the leadership in person, while the Grand Duke Nicholas went to the Caucasus. The Russian army retreat- ing from Vilna was for a time in peril, but got clear of the enemy, and the retreat ended on the line Riga-Dvinsk-Rovno. Therefore the year concluded by seeing the Germans in possession of Poland and Courland and the greater portion of GaUcia, some 125,000 square miles, being an area more than half the size of Germany itself, though Ivanoff still held a small portion of it at the end of the year, driving the Austrians out of Luck at the close of September and in October breaking the Austro-German line on the Strypa at Hajworonka, and gaining a victory in GaUcia at the beginning of November. The town of Pinsk surrendered to Mac- Icensen on the fifteenth, and Vilna was occupied by the Germans on the eighteenth 1 86 i! RUSSIA'S STORY of September, and on the sixth of October the Austro-German invasion of Serbia com- menced. The sixteenth witnessed an advance on Riga, but the twenty-third was signalized by a Russian victory, and on the twenty- seventh they bombarded Varna in the Black Sea. On the fifth of November the Germans took Nish, in Serbia, and secured the Berlin- Egypt Railway route ; but the Russians gained a success at Riga on the eleventh of November. In Asia, on the tenth of Dec- ember, they occupied Hamaden, and Kum on the twenty-first, a place lying south of the Caspian and near to Teheran. This closes the chief mihtary events of the year 1915. The British retreat to Kut-el-Amara took place about three weeks previously, on the twenty- ninth of November. Therefore the year 1915 witnessed great changes in the fortunes of Russia. In 1914 people talked of the Russian steam-roller, of her having eight million men in the field (which must have been a gross exaggeration), and of her advance in East Prussia towards Berhn. Austria was deemed to be entirely defeated, and the earlier part of 1915 saw Russia on the Carpathian mountains ready to invade Hungary ; but in the autumn of that year Galicia and Poland were entirely PARTIAL RECOVERY IN 1916 187 lost, and the Russian army was retreating, under great difficulties, to its own frontiers, in spite of the most resolute resistance. The close of the year, however, witnessed a revival. The lack of ammunition, shells, and heavy guns was to some extent remedied, about two million recruits had been embodied, and the German attempts to reach the Baltic failed, though Serbia, Russia's protege, had been overrun, chiefly owing to Bulgarian dis- affection, aided by the accession of an enormous number of German troops detached from the Russian frontier. The heavy task which she had to face since her severe reverses on the Dunajee and Biala, namely, to organize munitions and to train new armies, was successfully accompUshed. SuppUes reached her from Japan and from the United States, and the Empire presented the look of a vast military camp, with recruits continually drilling in all the great cities. The village of Kuiasa was retaken, and the enemy driven back to the right bank of the Dniester, and between there and the Rouman- ian frontier the wire entanglements of the Germans were forced, while the Austrians failed in breaking the Russian hold on Galicia. Through the energy of her forces, the intended attack on Salonica was delayed, while a great \ fl 1 88 RUSSIA'S STORY offensive against the Austrians was prepared on the Bessarabian front. The year 1916 has by no means been so unfavourable for Russia as the preceding year, a new life being imparted to the Eastern giant ; yet, from the difficulty of obtaining accurate information and the widely divergent accounts to hand from different sources, the accuracy of the facts of the great struggle cannot be entirely relied upon. An exact history of the Russian share in the war will probably not be obtainable until some time after it is over. However, accord- ing to official despatches and the accounts of correspondents, the following is a brief resume of the main features of the contest in 1916. In January General Kuropatkin attacked on the Dvina front, and also the Russians defeated the Turks at Kapri-Keni and Hassan Kala, forcing them upon Erzeroum, which town General Yudenich stormed in February, taking some thirteen thousand prisoners. Erzeroum is the chief city in Turkish Armenia, lying some 6,500 feet above sea-level, and has a population of over fifty thousand. It has belonged to Turkey since early in the sixteenth century, though it has been in Russian possession in 1829 and 1878, but was on each occasion restored to the Turks. TREBIZOND TAKEN 189 The month of March was marked by heavy fighting near Riga, in which the Russians held their own. In April, General Yudenich took Trebizond, the defending Turkish army numbering nearly fifty thousand men. May witnessed severe counter-attacks on the Russian forces by the Turks in Armenia, which the Russians repelled. In June a Russian offensive opened on the Southern front, along a distance of some 220 miles in Volhynia, Gahcia, and Bukovina, driving deep wedges on Luck, the Volhynia stronghold, and on the Styr and the Strypa they regained nearly all the territory they had lost since the preceding September. General Brusiloff , successor to General Ivanoff in command of the Southern army, captured Torchin, marking an advance in the direction of Vladimir Volynsk, an ancient town where the PoUsh, Russian, and Galician frontiers meet and lying fifty miles west of Luck, push- ing the enemy back from the southern part of the Pripet Marshes to the Roumanian frontier. Snialyn, lying south of the Dniester, was next occupied, and then Czernovitz, the capital of Bukovina, was taken on the nineteenth, the Austrian losses in all being reputed to amount to the enormous total of 232,000 and 114,000 prisoners. I90 RUSSIA'S STORY In Armenia, Erzingan was captured by General Evert. In July the town of Beres- tecxko fell, which lies south of the Lipa, and on the Styr General Sakharoff' s army broke the Austrian front south of Lutsk, in Volhynia, capturing the town of Brody (July 28) and approaching the crests of the Carpathians. There was heavy fighting on the Pripet Marshes, without much result, though the Russians held the line of the Stokhod — the result of seven weeks' persistent effort being that General Brusiloff gained important successes in GaUcia, got possession of the Lemberg-Tarnopol railway, defeated large Austrian forces north-west of Kimpolung and drove the enemy back from Delatyn, the whole sector of the winter base established by them in front of Tarnopol and Bucnez having fallen into his hands, and the entire line of the Strypa, the Austrian General Bothmer re- treating to escape envelopment. Therefore, by the end of August the Russians occupied territory to the extent of ten thousand versts (six thousand square miles), together with an immense quantity of guns, stores, and material. On the twenty-seventh of August Roumania declared war, seized the Carpathian passes of the Transylvanian Alps, occupying about ROUMANIA JOINS IN THE WAR 191 a third of the province on a front of about 350 miles, bombarded Hermanstadt, and captured the Iron Gates of the Danube. The Russians sent forces to help them, and Brusiloff 's advance into Gahcia was at an end, but he is said in all to have inflicted a loss of eight hundred thousand men upon the enemy in four months, including four hundred thousand prisoners. Early in September the Roumanians over- came the difficulties of throwing pontoons across the Danube and estabUshed sixteen battalions on the southern bank between Rustchuk and Tutrakan, but Mackensen, who commanded south of the Danube, destroyed the pontoons and compelled General Averesco to recross and abandon the position. That month also witnessed a fearful struggle between the river Pripet and the Carpathians, and the Russians occupied heights on the Hungarian frontier, from Bukovina and in the region of Mount Kapul, carrying Mount Kapul and the whole chain north of that mountain. Also the Russians and Roumanians held on to the Dobrudja during October against the attacks of Falkenhayn, and the Russians helped to defend the passes into Roumania, but Mackensen compelled them to abandon the Dobrudja. 192 RUSSIA'S STORY Hindenburg after severe fighting recovered Transylvania, and after a hard fought battle at Tirgu Jiu occupied Craiova on Novem- ber 2 1st. Mackensen crossed the Danube on the twenty-third of November, took Constanza on the twenty-fourth, and joined Falkenhayn, who commanded the German ninth army. They won a battle at Arges, and on the sixth of December entered Bucharest, the Roumanians retreating to- wards the Sereth, where they gained Russian protection, the Russian army, which had failed in forcing the Carpathians in face of the Austrians, having . advanced south to their relief. One disadvantage to Roumania was that her frontiers were surrounded by enemies, except on the side abutting on Russia and the Black Sea, and the strength of her armies (about four hundred thousand) was dispro- portionate to the length of her frontiers, the open frontier of the Dobrudja being one hundred miles long, for instance. She also appears to have declared war before she was ready to contend with the armies Falkenhayn and Mackensen could bring against her, and the Russian assistance was not sufficiently strong to save her. Although Brusiloff did his utmost to fight in the Carpathians, and ROUMANIAN REVERSES 193 thus draw pressure away from Roumania, he was unsuccessful, and the German troops overran Wallachia, taking position after position, and on the sixth of December Bucharest was occupied by Mackensen. General Averesco was beaten on the Argesul after a three days' battle. On the twelfth came the foolish German overtures of peace, which have been so disdainfully treated by the allies, ignoring, as they (the Germans) did, their reverses in the West, and elsewhere, and posing as conquerors when, as was suspected in some quarters, they were getting towards their last gasp. As, however, this work concerns Russia alone, we merely state the Czar's manifesto to his army and navy. It may be interesting as it is doubtless his last. THE MANIFESTO It is now more than two years since Germany, in the midst of peace and after secretly -preparing over a long period to en- slave all the nations of Europe, suddenly attacked Russia and her faithful ally, France. This attack compelled England to join us and take part in our battle. The complete disdain which Germany showed to principles of international law, as Ik 1 ii k ■ i ii. 194 RUSSIA'S STORY demonstrated by the violation of the neutral- ity of Belgium and her pitiless cruelty towards the peaceful inhabitants in the occupied provinces, little by little united the Great Powers of Europe against Germany and her ally, Austria. Under the pressure of the German troops, which were well provided with the technical aids to warfare, Russia, as well as France, were compelled in the first year of the war to give up a portion of their territory, but this temporary reverse did not break the spirit of our faithful allies, nor of you, my gallant troops. In time, by the concentrated efforts of the Government, the inequalities between our own and the German technical resources were gradually reduced. But long before this time, even from the autumn of 1915, our enemy was experiencing difficulty in retaining a single portion of Russian soil, and in the spring and summer of the current year suffered a number of severe defeats and assumed the defensive along the whole front. His strength apparently is waning, but the strength of Russia and her gallant allies continues to grow without faihng. CZAR'S MANIFESTO 195 (German haste for Peace) Germany is feeling that the hour of her complete defeat is near, and also the hour of retribution for all her wrong-doings and for the violation of moral laws. Similarly, as in the time when her war strength was superior to the strength of her neighbours, Germany suddenly declared war on them, so now, feel- ing her weakness, she suddenly offers to enter into peace negotiations. Particularly she desires to begin these negotiations and to complete them before her military talent is exhausted. At the same time, she is creating a false impression about the strength of her army by making use of her temporary success over the Roumanians, who had not succeeded in gaining experience in the conduct of modern warfare. But if, originally, Germany was in the position to declare war and fall upon Russia and her ally, France, at her most favourable time, having strengthened in war-time the Alliance in which is to be found all-mighty England and noble Italy, this AlUance, in its turn, has also the possibility of entering into peace negotiations at such a time as it considers favourable. The time has not yet arrived. The enemy 196 RUSSIA'S STORY has not yet been driven out of the provinces occupied by him. The attainment by Russia of the tasks created by the war— the regaining of Constantinople and the Dardanelles as well as the creation of a free Poland from all three of her now incomplete tribal districts— has not yet been guaranteed. To conclude peace at this moment would mean the failure to utilize the fruits of the un- told trials of you, heroic Russian troops and fleet. These trials, and still more the sacred memory of those noble sons of Russia who have fallen on the field of battle, do not permit the thought of peace until the final victory over our enemies. {Let us he firm) Who dares to think that he who brought about the commencement of the war shall have it in his power to conclude the war at any time he likes ? I do not doubt but that every faithful son of holy Russia under arms who entered into the firing line, as well as those working in the interior for the increase of her war strength or the creation of her industry, will be con- vinced that peace can be given to the enemy only after he has been driven from our borders, and then only when, finally broken, he shall CZAR'S MANIFESTO i97 give to us and our faithful aUies reliable proof of the impossibiUty of a repetition of the treacherous attack and a firm assurance that he will keep to these promises. By the strength of these guarantees he will be bound to the fulfilment in times of peace of those things which he undertakes. Let us be firm in the certainty of our victory, and the All Highest will bless our standards and will cover them afresh with glory, and will give to us a peace worthy of your heroic deeds, my glorious troops— a peace for which the future generation will bless your memory, which will be sacred to them. Nicholas. M > 4 PART III THE REVOLUTION, 1917 An event of stupendous magnitude oc- curred in Russia last year, so stupen- dous that its effects probably will not be capable of being properly estimated by the world at large for some time to come. The Czar has abdicated, and the ancient dynasty of the Romanoffs, which has existed since the Boyars in 1612, called Michael, the head of that house, to the throne, is overthrown, never again, as far as can be seen at present, to rule the Empire of all the Russias. Russia has always been the symbol of autocratic power and the White Czar a despot ; the *' little father," as he has been called by his people, numbering some 160 or 170 miUions, whose rule extended from the Baltic to the Pacific and from the Arctic Circle to the Caucasus — one may almost say, from the highest civihza- tion of Europe to the lowest barbarism of Asia — is now a private person, and, moreover, in durance vile. The Enghsh nation has rejoiced at the change, believing that German 198 RUSSIAN FIRST SUCCESSES 199 influence is to the fore at the Russian Court, and apt to shake the fidelity of the ally to whom we have advanced some 400 millions for its aid in the war. Doubtless it is so, but we must remember that it was Russia against whom Germany first declared war, that Russia in 1914 gained many victories over the enemy, made con- siderable advances into East Prussian terri- tory, had had thousands and thousands of her soldiery killed in battle, and was only driven back in 1915 owing to her lack of munitions, and further, that she recovered in 1916 a part of what she had lost. She was a faithful ally to the entente Powers for more than two years, and it was only in the autumn of 1916 that it was believed that she was on the verge of making a separate peace with Germany through her Premier, M. Sturmer, a rumour which has in no way been verified, but which, doubtless, has some foundation. The same may be said with numerous reports since, about Russia breaking with her allies. We have no exact information as to the intrigues working in Russia, nor are we Ukely to have, but what does come to the surface induces us to believe that Russia is still staunch to us, though there is no doubt that even before the Czar's fall there was hidden in- i 200 RUSSIA'S STORY I i I) fluence working, and it is that influence which has produced the present situation. From the close of 1916 there had been but little intelligence touching the Russian front. As usual, there were accounts of stray skirm- ishes and rumours of impending events, but no more. A few persons who had secret in- formation suspected that a cyclonic change was impending, but to the bulk of the British public it came as a surprise and burst like a thunderbolt upon a startled world. Nothing can be said against the Czar personally. His private character is estim- able as compared with the characters of other ^ rulers of the Empire. But his position de- manded something more than a king of a kind and amiable disposition, and had he been fashioned in a sterner mould it is un- likely that the revolution would have taken place at all. We must remember that most of the upheavals in the world's history have taken place when a weak-kneed monarch was on the throne. To take two notable examples: the dethronement of Charles I in England, and the French Revolution. The Enghsh struggles for constitutional rights may be said to have continued persistently during the Plantagenet and the later Tudor periods, but they never assumed the form of upsetting CZAR'S WEAKNESS 201 regal power, but merely to obtain popular rights ; dynastic changes occurred through other causes, as the claims of particular aspirants to the throne. Henry VII and Henry VIII, and even Elizabeth, had lofty notions of the royal prerogative and England was almost a despotism under their rule ; yet they were rulers of power and character, and, moreover, had the tact to cover their acts with parliamentary sanction. Hence they were popular, and there was no desire to depose them. But when a weak ruler succeeded, with the same notions of the personal irresponsibility of the sovereign, but without craft or conduct, the nation insisted on and ultimately fought for their rights, and the result was the overthrow of the Crown. So with the French Revolution. The House of Bourbon oppressed the French people for centuries, making life almost intolerable for them, yet they tamely endured it ; but they revenged upon the first weak ruler the crimes of his ancestors. The Czar, seeing that he was completely in the hands of pro-Grerman advisers, may be deemed fortunate in having escaped with his life, and the leaders of the Revolution in having achieved their aims with so little blood- 202 RUSSIA'S STORY shed and opposition ; the more so considering that Russia is still a half-civilized country, where human life is deemed of little account. We say *' with so little bloodshed '* advisedly. It is true that there were thousands killed at Petrograd during the fighting with the police, but yet that is small considering the popula- tion of the Russian Empire, the vastness of the achievement and the fact that the country, from its very infancy, has been under the power of despotic princes, as its history proves ; also the fact that, whenever conflicts have hitherto taken place blood has been wasted like water and life thought nothing of. In fact, any person knowing Russia, if con- sulted a year (say) ago about the cost of a revolution, would have predicted a bitter struggle prolonged for months and extending to every city of importance in the Empire. Yet the fighting was all over in a week, and confined to the Capital. Its shortness is due to the army (the Cossacks especially) siding with the people, so that the police, that most corrupt and venal body, alone held out for the Government. If the army had wavered, the Revolution must assuredly have failed. Further, the people were all with the revolu- tionists ; the Government and the Court were detested and had the confidence of none — not THE REVOLUTIONISTS 203 even of the most ignorant of the peasantry. Russia, as we know, has been a country of unrest for years. We have deemed it the cradle of the secret societies of anarchists and nihilists, whose aim is the destruction of exalted persons. But the present revolution- ists are different to these. Anarchists and nihilists aim at the murder of individuals whom they stigmatize as tyrants; their motive is revenge and their object destruction. The revolutionist is a patriot ; his object is the development and improvement of his country and the sweeping away of abuses and of evil rule. The rule of the Governments of Russia has for centuries been bad, and even if a Czar has some good qualities, as we have shown in the previous history that many of them had the interest of their people at heart, they have been so surrounded and influenced by ministers and flatterers seeking their own ends that no beneficial result has passed to the people, who have remained in poverty and starvation, or on the borders of it. The police have even been the chosen instruments of the Governments for the oppression of the masses. From the heads downwards they are accessible to bribes, fawning to those above them and crushing those below, with every human sympathy 204 RUSSIA'S STORY ^ ' extinct in their breasts. The secret police service was instituted years ago by Govern- ment to keep the people down with an iron hand and prevent any enlightenment as to their real position. But a few men of understanding started the revolutionary party, a body compulsorily secret also, and designed to combat the official oppressors. This party had largely increased, but lack of organization or one accident or another has prevented their making any head hitherto, and all risings have proved abortive — the recent one of 1905, to wit, which was suppressed owing to the vigilance of the Government in forcing a premature outbreak. The object of this party of revolution is the development of the resources of the country, the improvement of the condition of the people, and the overthrow of ministers and rulers who work for their own ends and are totally regardless of the welfare of those over whom they are placed. The qualities displayed by the leaders of the present revolutionary party affords a brilliant illustration of the innate humanity and self- control of the Russian people. No desire for revenge, no private hostility, no wanton bloodshed, no needless destruction of property OBJECT OF THE REVOLUTION 205 characterized this movement, but it was undertaken with the sole intention to displace a corrupt Government and a helpless Czar, who were playing into the hands of the enemy and acting falsely to the common cause to which the Empire had bound herself in 1914, and to give to its vast masses the rights which had been so long denied to them. True, there was considerable blood- shed during the five days of the struggle, but this was chiefly due to the poUce, the minions of the Government, firing from machine guns into the congested masses of the people, who for a while bore it patiently ; further, there is little room for doubt but that a massacre on a still greater scale was designed by the authorities on a deliberate plan to crush a rising which they had instructed their agents, the agitators, to foment. Compare this Revolution with the French Revolution of 1789— and yet the French civilization amongst the lower classes was higher then than that of the Russian at the present day, and the nation had not been downtrodden for a longer period. Soon after the commencement of the war the revolutionary leaders began to distrust the Government and suspect that it was under the German influence which has long ll 206 RUSSIA'S STORY been prevalent in Russia. It was even sus- pected that Protropopoff, who was in charge of affairs after the fall of Sturmer, desired to force a revolt, crush it brutally, and then proclaim that such a revolution left Russia no alternative but to conclude a separate peace with Germany, thus putting the country under Germany's heel and breaking with the allies. Certain it is that the pohce in Petro- grad were largely increased, that machine guns and ammunition, etc., were placed on the roofs of public and large buildings, churches, etc., and that suppHes of food were diverted from Petrograd and from the front and sent to the Ural Mountains, where supphes were plentiful, and other things were done which pointed to betrayal of the country, such as an international disorganization of the railway system, thus staying transport : all which is admirably described in a recent work by Mr. Stinton Jones (entitled Russia in Revolution), who was in Petrograd when it took place and an eye-witness of the struggle. The shortage of provisions became very serious, and on the sixth of March (twenty- first of February Russian time) workers from some of the larger munition works came out on strike, with a view to bring their deplor- able state of starvation to the notice of the THE REVOLUTION 207 Government. These were joined the next day by a far larger number, and on the eighth of March food was practically unobtainable, and all workers, together with their women and children, formed processions, marching through the streets and crying *' Give us bread." But all was perfectly peaceful, though many agitators in the pay of the police joined in the processions and tried to foment disturbances. Many of the police, too, were dressed in soldiers' uniforms. On the ninth of March further confusion was caused by the tramcars being stopped by the agitators, thus impeding business, and the Cossacks were told to break up the proces- sions, which they did very good-humouredly, not using their whips, as usual, and they were cheered by the people. Things remained peaceful during the ninth, and the vodka stores were secretly guarded by armed men sent by Mr. Rodranko, the President of the Duma. But the crowds did not disperse, and on the tenth were joined by still larger numbers. Violence now commenced. The head police officer ordered an immense mass collected in the Square outside the Nikolai Station to disperse, and drew his revolver, whereupon a Cossack shot him dead. This made the people understand that the Cossacks h 208 RUSSIA'S STORY Jill were with them and led them not to fear the poUce, who fired several volleys into the crowd. On the eleventh of March (which was Sunday) the Czar telegraphed to Mr. Rodjanko to dissolve the Duma. This the Duma Com- mittee dechned to do, and on the twelfth two regiments revolted and joined the people, shooting down their officers. The poUce had continued to fire on the people all through the eleventh and twelfth, and now the people, being possessed of arms, shot down the soldiers, wrecked the arsenal, and then the Courts of Justice and the prison adjoining, and afterwards the poHce stations, letting out the prisoners, The revolutionary leaders then met in Duma House to discuss their plans. Mr. Rodjanko had previously apprised the Czar by telegram of the seriousness of the situation, requesting him to appoint someone trusted by the country to form another Ministry. He also sent copies to the Commanders of the Southern, Middle and Northern armies, re- ceiving replies from Generals Brusiloff and Russki. The pohce were killed and defeated, the records burnt, and thousands of passports destroyed, thus ending the famous Russian PROGRESS OF REVOLUTION 209 passport system, and then the Revolution may be considered accomplished. Troops were telegraphed for from various quarters, but all on arriving joined the revolutionists. But three companies defended the Admiralty, where most of the Ministers were in hiding. On Tuesday the famous Astoria Hotel was sacked, there being considerable bloodshed, owing to the resistance of several Russian officers residing there ; but English officers also there were treated with great considera- tion, as were the foreigners and English resid- ing at Petrograd, all through the Revolution, a point specially noticed by Mr. Hinton Jones in his work, for be it remembered that the Revolution took place because the leaders were convinced that their Government was betraying the cause of the Allies and acting for Germany, and designed to slaughter and starve the multitude. The slaughter in the streets on the eleventh and twelfth of March was terrible, the machine guns of the police mowing the people down in masses, till on the thirteenth the latter got the upper hand and made the fortress of SS. Peter and Paul their head- quarters. The telegrams sent to the Czar were ignored ; it was averred that they were kept back from him by the Ministers in attendance. I li 2IO RUSSIA'S STORY On the fifteenth he abdicated in favour of his brother, Prince Michael, who when the Provisional Government placed the manifesto before him, refused to take the throne. The Executive Committee of the Duma had appointed a Government, consisting of twelve members, on the fifteenth of March, order being then restored. The citizen militia, an admirable body of men, materially assisted in the preservation of order, and a blizzard which swept the city on the seventeenth also helped, as it kept the people in their houses and the streets clear. Starvation, of course, continued for some days after the crisis was over, but thanks to the patience and endurance of the people, their cheerfulness and making the best of the situation, together with the generosity of those who had previously been able to collect stores of food, the trouble was bridged over without further violence. The Empress was at the palace at Tzarskoe Selo during the fighting ; it was said she was in hysterics continually, a report easy to believe. The Czar himself remained at Peskof , a small town south-west of Petrograd, and such Ministers as were arrested were detained to await trial for their plan to ruin their country. RASPUTIN—HIS CHARACTER 211 The facts, then, were these, summed up in a small compass : There had been discontent with the conduct of the Government and suspicion of German influence in Court circles for a considerable time, but it was deemed that no risings would be attempted while the war was in progress. The sinister influence of a man of atrocious character — a mock monk who was known by the name of Rasputin, though his real name was Gregory Novikh— was understood to be all-powerful with high officials and amongst the female aristocracy. This person had been justly murdered in 1916, but revelations of his character were disclosed after his death and fomented the popular discontent. He appears to have possessed an extraordinary hypnotic influence upon women, having remarkable steel-grey eyes. He was of low origin— an illiterate tnujik, coming from Tobolsk, where he had been imprisoned and publicly flogged before he burst upon Western Russia. He professed to work miracles, and posed as a "holy man," whereas he was merely a sensualist and a sot. He, of course, affected a deep piety, and exercised a strange fascina- tion over some of the principal women at the Court of Petrograd. He was believed to have the power of effecting miraculous cures, and . J lii 2,2 RUSSIA'S STORY his influence even extended over the Czarina. On one occasion, when imprisoned, he was permitted to telegraph to the Empress, and an order came down for his release from the Czar himself. The removal of the Grand Duke Nicholas from the post of Commander- in-Chief is said to be due to him. in revenge for a severe castigation which the Duke had formerly inflicted on him. After lie was shot his body was thrown off the Krestofki Bridge, but recovered, and report avers it is buried in the grounds of the Tzarskoe Selo Palace Although holding no official position himself there is no doubt but that he had the disposal of high offices of State, and was a man for an aspirant to curry favour with. ,. , „^. The revolutionary leaders certainly did not intend an immediate overthrow of the Govern- ment and fall of the Crown. Also they feared that on anv appearance of disturbance the cir would close the Duma, which had opened in February. But in times of popular excite- ment the horse sometimes takes the bit in its mouth and runs away-that is. matters 20 far beyond what the originators intend. This Revolution began by the people wishing the authorities to notice their urgent cry for bread, and was brought to a head by the in- human action of the poUce m mowing the PROBABLE FUTURE 213 multitude down by cannon. The admirable feature through it all was the praiseworthy self-control of the insurgents, the absence of any desire for rapine or vengeance, and their unanimity in desiring to achieve the one object— the removal of the enemies of the country, a wish that was endorsed by Moscow, and all the great cities of the Empire, when the intelligence spread to them. As to the future, no one can hazard a forecast. We cannot expect that after so mighty a Revolution things will quietly settle down. There are several parties in Russia, each with their own aims and their own secret intrigues that the world knows nothing of. The Royalist party will, naturally, attempt to recover their lost position, and they will have what remains of the police with them. The people, though intoxicated with the liberty which they have never known before, cannot yet appreciate its advantages — ^it is so new to them. The pro-Germans will use all their endeavours to bring about a separate peace, and, in its default, to foment civil war and disturbances, and there are other parties, such as the Nihilists, who will take advantage of the unsettled state of the country to further their own aims. VI , 214 RUSSIA'S STORY For the moment the Duma and the Pro- visional Government seem firm and staunch to the allies ; any idea of a separate peace appears to be discredited ; the peoples of the vast Empire, as far as can be seen, are unanimously overjoyed at the change of affairs, and there is no symptom of any resort to mob rule or rapine or destruction of property. (Note. — This was written before the Bolsheviks got the upper hand. Things are now changed and the outlook is not reassuring. Seeposf). V ' ADDENDUM In order to bring this history completely up to date a short resume is now given of the events which are stated to have occurred in Russia since this work went to press. We pass no comment as to their significance, but the reader can easily appreciate the fact that they are of great importance. After the Revolution became a fait ac- compli, news was for a time scanty. The Ministers of the Czar, or such of them as were caught, were confined in the old fortress of Peter and Paul, which faces the winter palace across the Neva, occupying the same cells in the Trubelskoi Bastion in which former revolutionaries were confined until they mounted the scaffold. Amongst them were President Sturmer, Count Fredericks, the gendarmerie officer, Sobieschanski, *' the hangman," Sukhom- linoff, the war minister and his wife, Proto- popoff, minister of the Interior, Madame Vnirubova, an admirer and disciple of the 315 ii!! ..I 2l6 RUSSIA'S STORY ii villainous Gregory Rasputin, and some others. Reliable information towards the close of June was to the effect that things were by no means quiet politically. A silent struggle between the anarchists and the Provisional Government was going on, while the " little Russians " of the Ukraine and the Finns demanded separation from Russia, but the general disposition of the people was against a separate peace. At the beginning of July the world heard that Brusiloff had resumed the offensive, the capture of Koninkly being announced with over 8000 prisoners. On the 17th an advance of eight miles south of the Dneister, and some fifty-six miles south-east of Lemberg by General Korniloff was reported, and that the number of prisoners had swollen to 26,000, further that Halicz had been captured on July nth. But these successes were short-lived. About the 20th July inteUigence was to hand to the effect that mutinous symptoms were observable in Brusiloff 's army, that detachments would not advance against the enemy and hence positions were lost. An attempt was made to kill General Kerensky, the war minister, at Polotsk, east of Dvinsk, but he fortunately escaped. On SHORT-LIVED SUCCESSES 217 the 24th July the Russians lost Tarnopol in Galicia, which had been taken by them in August, 1914, and held ever since ; also the Germans occupied Kolomea. On the 2nd August, Brusiloff resigned, and Korniloff succeeded. Brusiloff had succeeded Ivanoff early in 1916, and in his great drive from the Pripet to the Roumanian frontier in that year, he is reported to have taken 360,000 German and Austrian prisoners. Korniloff was himself made a prisoner when Mackensen broke through the Dunajetz, but after some fifteen months he escaped. On the 7th August the Austro-Germans crossed the Russian frontier and entered Bessarabia, taking Prosskaroff and Kamenetz, the capital of Podalia, situated on the river Smotrich, a tributary of the Dneister, thus showing a design to cut off the Russian forces in the Carpathians and Roumania. Czernovitz, the capital of Bukovina, was taken on the 4th August, thus changing hands for the sixth time since the war began. In September, 1915, the Russians took it, and it was lost but retaken a couple of months later. In February, 1916, the Austro- Germans took it, but they were driven out in the same year. Kimpolung was abandoned ; therefore the p 2 f y 218 RUSSIA'S STORY result was that all Galicia, save a small portion south-west of Brody and half of Bukovina, was lost to the Russians. M. Kerensky was looked upon as the only man who could save the country, the dis- affection amongst the army increasing, and, being attributed to German intrigues and to the anti-revolutionists who aimed at the return of the Czar, who with the Czarina had, on the 15th August, been sent to Tobolsk. Kerensky was totally unknown before his swift rise. He was an obscure student of law, and the Revolution gave him his opportunity. He has a magnetic personality and a com- mand over the masses, and enjoys the chance, if he can deal with the situation, of handing down a famous name to posterity. He succeeded in forming a cabinet com- posed of every political party which expressed confidence in him, the only members of the old Provisional Government being M. Terest- chenko and Professor Nakrasoff. A great meeting held at Moscow terminated on Wednesday, August 29th. Though there were many disagreements it showed the unanimous desire of the Conference against a separate peace, and the speakers candidly proclaimed their views. On September 3rd Riga was taken by the KORNILOFF DISMISSED 219 Germans, and by September 8th they had advanced more than forty miles east of that place, Petrograd being only about three hundred and fifty miles distant. At this time Sturmer died, totally unre- gretted. He was denounced by M. MihukoH as being the Judas of Russia ; he betrayed Roumania, causing her to fight when not ready, and then refused help, trusting that when she was invaded as far as Sereth a separate peace would ensue. On September loth Korniloff demanded from Kerensky the powers of a dictator. Kerensky then dismissed him from command, together with his chief of staff General Lukornsky, and appointed General Klem- bovsky as GeneraUssimo ; Petrograd was declared in a state of siege and civilians advised to leave the city. Korniloff advanced with an army against Petrograd and arrived within some thirty miles of it. He then ap- peared to be collapsing, and General Krisnoff, the commander of his troops, shot himself. Korniloff was arrested on the i6th September, and Kerensky himself took the headship of the army, appointing General Alexeieff his Chief of Staff. Russia was proclaimed a Republic and a Council of five appointed : viz. Terestchenko, 220 RUSSIA'S STORY I Foreign Minister ; Verkhovsky, War ; Ver- derevsky, Marine, and Kikitine, Minister of Posts. By September 22nd the Germans had captured the Dvina Une and Jacobstadt, and General Alexeieff retired from the command. At the beginning of October the prospects looked more gloomy still. The Soviet or Workmen and Soldiers' Council began plunder- ing the public funds ; famine, induced by bad cultivation, primitive implements, insufficient manure, restricted rotation of crops, and other contributory causes, stared the country in the face. The army lost disciphne and became useless mobs. What next happened was a struggle between Kerensky and the Anar- chists, and the high hopes with which the Revolution began disappeared. In the middle of October the Germans landed naval forces, supported by one or two divi- sions, on the island of Osel, and Arenburg, its chief town, was in flames. The next place Hapsol, on the coast of Esthonia, is only sixty miles from Revel. The 19th October witnessed a naval fight in the Gulf of Riga, and Moon Island was captured. This concluded the important fighting with the Germans. PLOTS AGAINST KERENSKY 221 One Lenin, aUas Cerderboum, reported as a German agent, commenced plotting against Kerensky as early as July last, and fighting took place in November between the Maximalists (Bolsheviks), the left of the Social revolutionists, and the Minimalists, or Moderates, which lasted about a week, when the latter were defeated, as was an attempt of the military cadets to usurp power. Kerensky then made an armed attempt, which failed, ending in his troops making terms with the Bolsheviks and he taking to flight. Lenin then became Premier of the Work- men's Government, with Trotsky as his Foreign Minister. Kaledin, the Cossack Hetman, had the control of the food supplies and declared war upon the Bolsheviks at Novo-Tcherback, Karkoff being in his hands, and Moscow being cut off from South Russia. Little is known of Kaledin except that he was a good leader. In Brusiloff's ofl[ensive in Volhynia he was one of his most trusted commanders. Meanwhile the army deserted in large numbers, and Brusiloff himself was reported to be lying wounded at Moscow. As early as November came rumours of an armistice with Germany. By Decenaber 3rd local armistices were akeady in force in many > Mbwi^ I— *M 233 ii ill' 'nlw RUSSIA'S STORY sectors, and the Russian army from Pripet to the south of the Lipa (a distance of some 200 miles) had decided on a truce, and peace pourparlers were commenced between the Maximalists and Germany. Ukrainian sol- diers in numbers left the front. Hostilities were suspended by December 8th. General Tcherbatchieff (commanding the Russo-Roumanian forces) could not keep his troops together and so the Roumanians were forced into the truce. Trotsky then sent an insolent note to the Allies at the instance of the Bolshevik traitors at Petrograd, asking them to disclose their aims. On the I2th December, news to hand averred that Korniloff with 4000 men was fighting the Leninists at Tautarovno. On the 22nd December it was stated that General Kaledin gained a substantial victory and General Tcherbatchieff, commander-in- chief on the Roumanian front, had been ap- pointed to a similar position in Ukraine, and also that the Maximalists had dispersed the military Rada at Pakoff, representing over 200,000 Ukrainian troops. The Ukraine, however, an immense territory to the south-west of Russia, was about the first to make peace with Germany. At the time we go to press there is no Russian army. The bulk of the troops have PERFIDY TO ALLIES 223 deserted and gone home. The Bolsheviks have made peace, declaring the}^ will not fight the Germans, who are composed mainly of the peasant class, with whom they have no quarrel, and Trotsky at Brest-Litovsk has been heard to state that the war is at an end. The execrable conduct of Russia as repre- sented by those now in power cannot be too severely censured. Russia has proved faithless as an ally, has done incalculable harm to the allied cause by allowing German armies in the East to pro- ceed to the West, forgetting she is the cause of the World War by mobilising in aid of Servia, and oblivious of the assistance in munitions and in money we have rendered her. Even before the Empire's fall there were clandestine overtures by many of those in power with the joint enemy, and the dastardly Rasputin was in high favour, and finally the events of the last few weeks show themselves as the vilest epoch in Russian history, and point to her extinction as a great power. CONCLUDING REMARKS ON THE EXISTING SITUATION April, 1918. Such is the state of things existing at the time the latest portion of this work finally leaves our hands. i« 224 RUSSIA'S STORY The Bolsheviks, professing to act for the whole Russian nation, having made peace with Germany, the Russian army has been entirely disbanded, and thousands and thousands of German prisoners in Russia have been re- leased, and have now joined the German armies fighting in the West. There has been but little news relating to Russia for some days. Things externally seem quiet there, but no doubt bloodshed and anarchy are continu- ing. The enormous amount of munitions and supplies, not to speak of money which the EngUsh have so liberally supplied to Russia, are in the hands of the Germans. Japanese intervention for the protection of Siberia is being discussed, but the Japanese Government have not made up their minds. To conclude, the conduct of Russia appears dastardly beyond description, the only excuse for their villainy being that this governing body, which professes to represent the nation, does not really do so. They have betrayed the allied cause, which they are now injuring to the utmost in their power. The bulk of the people seem to be paralysed, and history affords no precedent of such a complete down- fall of a great people and wreck of a once great power. INDEX Alexander I, 115 Napoleon, War with, 1 16-21 Treaty of Tilsit, ii8~20 Alexander II, 137 Internal reforms, 141 Abolishes " serfdom," 138 Insurrection in Poland, 139 Subdues the Caucasus, 141 Advances towards India, 142 War with Turkey (1877), M4 Assassination of, 147 Alexander III, 1 47 Alexis, 56 Heir to Peter the Great, 88 Anastasia(firstwifeof Ivan IV), 38 Andrew, son of Igor, 20 Anne I, 91 Appanages, the, 19 Armed neutrality of 1780, loi 113 Army : Standing Army com- menced, 41 Ascold, 5 Austerlitz, Battle of, 117 Azov, Siege of, 67 Balkan Wars, 165-7 Basil the Blind, 31 Bati, 24 Berlin taken, 94 Boris Godunof (made Czar), 47-9 Bulgarian atrocities, 144 Bulgarians driven out of Dacia, 2 Calendar regulated, 70 Cassimer, John, and Poles attacked by Russians and Tartars, 57 Catherine I, 89 Catherine II (the Great), 96 Her favourites, 102 Partition of Poland, 99 War with Turkey, 99 Journey to the Crimea, 103 Character and death, 104 Charles XII of Sweden in- vades Russia, 78 Coalitions against Napoleon, 117, 121 Constantinople, First expe- dition against, 5 Second expedition, 6 Fall of, 32 Constitution, a written, 1 5 Cossacks, the, 56 Crimea seized, 99 Crimean War, 135 Demetrius DonsLoi, 29 Field of Woodcocks, 25 Derivation of the term "Russians," 3 Dissensions at home, 158 Duma, First, 159, 160 Second, 160 Third, 160 Fourth, 162 225 226 RUSSIA'S STORY Elizabeth, 93 England, First communication with, 40 Eudoxia, wife of Peter the Great, 88 Feodor I (last monarch of the Varingian line), 47 Feodor II, 51 Feodor III, 60 Feudatories, Wars of the, 19 France, War with, 109 Frederick the Great, War with, 93 Friedland, Battle of, 118 Galatzin, 62 Genghis Khan, 25 Germany, Agreement with, 64 Golden Horde, 26 Hungarian rebellion under Kossuth, 134 Ignatieffdied, 160 Igor, 7 Ivan I ("The Purse"), 27 Ivan II (prince of all the Russias), 28 Ivan III (the Great), 33 Tartars finally expelled, 33 Ivan IV (the Terrible), 38 Assumes the title of Czar. 38 His atrocities, 43 Kills his son, 45 Ivan V, 61 Ivan VI., Antonovitch, 92 Iziaslav, 17 Japan, War with, 153-7 Jaroslav (brother of Yury), 25 Jaroslav (the Wise), 14 Makes Kief magnificent, 15 Gives code of laws, 15-16 ^Var against the Greeks, 17 Divideshis kingdom amongst his six sons, 17 The country progresses under, 17 Kief annexed, 6 Becomes powerful, 1 5 Loses importance, 19 Becomes dependency of Sugdal, 19 Pillaged, 19 Kremlin built, 28 Ladislaus seizes the throne, 52 Laws, First code of, 1 5 Lettres de Cachet System, 94 Merv taken, 148 Michael, 52 House of Romanoff, 52 Written Constitution, 54 Minsk, Nuns of, 131 Mongols, 25 Moscow becomes the capital, 27 Narva taken by Peter, 75 Napoleon, War with, 109-123 Nicholas I, 127 Plot against, 127 War with Persia, 128 War with Turkey, 128 Rebellion in Poland, 130 Visits England, 134 Crimean War, 135 Nicholas II, 152 Marries Princess Alix of Hesse, 152 War with Japan, 153 Japanese successes, 154 INDEX 227 Nicholas II— 152 Port Arthur surrenders, 157 Baltic Fleet fires on English fishing boats, 156 Treaty of Portsmouth, U.S., 157 ^s Disturbances in Russia, 158 Deposed, 210 Sent to Tobolsk, 218 Nicon, patriarch, 58 Novgorod incorporated with the Empire, 33 Pillaged by Ivan, 43 Oleg, 7 Olga, 8 Opritshniks formed, 41 Origin of the Russians, i Orloff, favourite of Catherine, 103 Partition of Poland, 99 Paul, 106 War with Napoleon, 109 Death of, 114 His character, 107 Penjdeh affair, 148 Period of the Appanages, 19 Perislav, Battle at, 9 Peter I (the Great), 63 Begins shipbuilding, 64 Foundation of St. Peters- burg, 73 Fall of Narva, 75 Assists the Poles, 76 Fights the Turks, 85 Plot against, 69 Sie^e of Azov, 67 Visits England, 69 Home Reforms by, 70 War with Sweden by, 7 1 Results of Battle of Pultova, 80 Peter II, 90 Peter 111,95 Poland, Partition of, 99 Poles besiege Moscow, 52 Postal service instituted, 58 Pultova, Battle of, 80 Revolution, the, 198 Romanoff, House of, 52 Rurik, 3 Ruskaya Pravda, 15 St. Petersburg founded, 73 Serfdom, 5 Servia, History of, 161 Nationalist movement in, 171 Austria declares war on, 172 Siberia acquired, 46 Simeon (the proud), 28 Sirbir,gave its name to Siberia, 46 Stolypin shot, 163 Suwarof's victories, no Svatoslaf, 9 Enters Bulgaria, 9 War against the Greeks, 9, 10 His character, 11 Last of the Pagan Kings, 9-1 1 Sviatopolk, the Miserable or the Accursed, 13 Seizure of Kief, 6 Tamberline's invasion, 30 Tartar, last invasion, 34 Tartars expelled, 35 Treaty of London, 137 Treaty of Paris, 137 Treaty of Tilsit, 118, 120 Treaty of Unkiar Skelezzi, 134 Vassili I, 30 Vassili II (the Blind), 31 Vassili III, 37 Smolensk added to Russia, 37 } 228 RUSSIA'S STORY Vladimir the Great, 12 Galicia or Red Russia founded, 12 Monomachus, 18 Weds Githa, daughter of Harold, 18 War, the Great, 168 et seq. Origin, 169 State of Russia at commence- ment of, 170 War declared by Germany on Russia, 174 England declares war on Germany, I75 Russian successes, 170 Reverse at Tannenburg, 176 St. Petersburg changed to Petrograd, 176 No separate peace between Allies, 176 Drink prohibition, i77 Defeats of Austrians, 177 Przemysl taken, 178 „ retaken, 184 Lemberg taken, I77 Advances in Galicia, I77 War, the Great— 168 et seq. Summary of events of 19 Mi 180 Summary of events of I9»5f 182 German great offensive, 183 Successes in 1916, 188 Erzeroum and Trebizond taken, 188, 189 Assists Roumania, 191 Roumanian reverses, 193 Czar's manifesto, 193-7 Details of the Revolution, 199 Deposition of the Czar, 210 Kerensky forms a Cabinet, 218 Kerensky deposed, 218 Wars between feudatories, 19 Yermak, 46 Yury, or George, 35 (half-witted brother Ivan IV), 37 to Zoe, Princess, 34 „ name changed to Sophia, 34 11 i PKINTBD BY WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, I TD PLYMOUTH, BNGLAND ii Shearwood Russia's story 34-7 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES 1010651624 l>^2. ^^3 m I- - ®^