Few victories have ever had such important consequences as that which the czar won at Pultowa; in one fatal day Charles lost the fruits of nine years' victories; the veteran army that had been the terror of Europe was completely ruined; those who escaped from the fatal field were taken prisoners, but they found a fate scarcely better than death, for they were transported by the czar to colonize the wilds of Siberia; the elector of Saxony re-entered Poland, and drove Stanislaus from the throne; the kings of Denmark* and Prussia revived old claims on the Swedish provinces, while the victorious Peter invaded not only Livonia and Ingria, but a great part of Finland. Indeed, but for the interference of the German emperor and the maritime powers, the Swedish monarchy would have been rent in pieces. Charles, in his exile, formed a new plan for the destruction of his hated rival; he instigated the Turks to attempt the conquest of Russia, and flattered himself that he might yet enter Moscow at the head of a Mohammedan army. The bribes which Peter lavishly bestowed on the counsellors of the sultans, for a time frustrated these intrigues; but Charles, through his friend Poniatowski, informed the sultan of his vizier's corruption, and procured the deposition of that minister. Pupruli, who succeeded to the office of vizier, was averse to a Russian war, but he was removed at the end of two months, and the seals of office given to the pacha of Syria, who commenced his administration by sending the Russian ambassador to the prison of the Seven Towers. The czar made the most vigorous preparations for the new war by which he was menaced (A. D. 1711). The Turkish vizier, on the other hand, assembled all the forces of the Ottoman empire in the plains of Adrianople. Demetrius Cantemir, the hospodar of Moldavia, believing that a favorable opportunity presented itself for delivering his country from the Mohammedan yoke, invited the czar to his aid; and the Russians, rapidly advancing, reached the northern banks of the Pruth, near Yassi, the Moldavian capital. Here the Russians found that the promises of Prince Cantemir were illusory; the Moldavians, happy under the Turkish sway, treated the invaders as enemies, and refused to supply them with provisions; in the meantime, the vizier arriving, formed a fortified camp in their front, while his vast host of light cavalry swept round their lines and cut off all foraging parties. The Russians defeated three successive attempts to storm their intrenchments; but they must have yielded to the effects of fatigue and famine, had not the emperess Catherine,† who accompanied her husband during the campaign, sent a private message to the vizier, which induced him to open negotiations. A treaty was concluded on terms which, though severe, were more favorable than Peter, under the circumstances, could reasonably have hoped; the Russians retired in safety, and Charles • The Danish monarch invaded Schonen, but his troops were defeated by the Swedish militia, and a few regiments of the line, commanded by General Steenbock. When intelligence of this victory was conveyed to Charles, he exclaimed, "My brave Swedes! should God permit me to join you once more, we will beat them all." † Catherine was a Livonian captive, of low condition, whom the emperor first saw waiting at table. Her abilities and modesty won his heart, he raised her to his throne, and never had reason to repent of his choice. reached the Turkish camp, only to learn the downfall of all his expectations. A new series of intrigues in the court of Constantinople led to the appointment of a new vizier; but this minister was little inclined to gratify the king of Sweden; on the contrary, warned by the fate of his predecessors, he resolved to remove him from the Ottoman empire (A. D. 1713). Charles continued to linger; even after he had received a letter of dismissal from the sultan's own hand, he resolved to remain, and when a resolution was taken to send him away by force, he determined, with his few attendants, to dare the whole strength of the Turkish empire. After a fierce resistance, he was captured and conveyed a prisoner to Adrianople; on his road, he learned that Stanislaus, whom he had raised to the throne of Poland, was likewise a Turkish captive; but, buoyed up by ardent hopes, he sent a message to his fellow-sufferer, never to make peace with Augustus. Another revolution in the divan revived the hopes of Charles, and induced him to remain in Turkey, when his return to the North would probably have restored him to his former eminence. The Swedes, under General Steenbock, gained one of the most brilliant victories that had been obtained during the war, over the united forces of the Danes and Saxons, at Gadebusch, in the dutchy of Mecklenburg; but the conqueror sullied his fame by burning the defenceless town of Altona, an outrage which excited the indignation of all Europe. This, however, was the last service that Steenbock could perform to his absent master; unable to prevent the junction of the Russians with the Danes and Saxons, he retreated before superior numbers, and, by the artifices of Baron Goertz, obtained temporary refuge in a fortress belonging to the duke of Holstein. The allies, however, pursued their advantages so vigorously that Steenbock and his followers were forced to yield themselves prisoners of war. Goertz, however, in some degree averted the consequences of this calamity by a series of political intrigues, which excited various jealousies and discordant interests between the several enemies of Sweden. The czar in the meantime pushed forward his conquests on the side of Finland; and the glory of his reign appeared to be consummated by a naval victory obtained over the Swedes near the island of Oeland (A. D. 1714). This unusual success was celebrated by a triumphal entry into St. Peterburgh, at which Peter addressed his subjects on the magnitude of the advantages they had derived from hist government. Charles heard of his rival's progress unmoved; but when he learned that the Swedish senate intended to make his sister regent, and to make peace with Russia and Denmark, he announced his intention of returning home. He was honorably escorted to the Turkish frontiers; but though orders had been given that he should be received with all due honor in the imperial dominions, he traversed Germany incognito, and toward the close of the year reached Stralsund, the capital of Swedish Pomerania. Charles, at the opening of the next campaign, found himself surrounded with enemies (A. D. 1715). Stralsund itself was besieged by the united armies of the Prussians, Danes, and Saxons, while the Russian fleet, which now rode triumphant in the Baltic, threatened a descent upon Sweden. After an obstinate defence, in which the Swedish monarch displayed all his accustomed bravery, Stralsund was forced to capitulate, Charles having previously escaped in a small vessel to his native shores. All Europe believed the Swedish monarch undone; it was supposed that he could no longer defend his own dominions, when to the inexpressible astonishment of every one, it was announced that he had invaded Norway. His attention, however, was less engaged by the war than by the gigantic intrigues of his new favorite Goertz, who, taking advantage of a coolness between the Russians and the other enemies of Sweden, proposed that Peter and Charles should unite in strict amity, and dictate the law to Europe. A part of this daring plan was the removal of the elector of Hanover from the English throne, and the restoration of the exiled Stuarts. But while the negotiations were yet in progress, Charles invaded Norway a second time, and invested the castle of Frederickshall in the very depth of winter. But while engaged in viewing the works, he was struck by a cannon-ball, and was dead before any of his attendants came to his assistance (A. D. 1718).* The Swedish senate showed little grief for the loss of the warlike king; on the first news of his death, his favorite, Baron Goertz, was arrested, brought to trial, and put to death on a ridiculous charge of treason. The crown was conferred upon the late king's sister, but she soon resigned it to her husband, the prince of Hesse, both being compelled to swear that they never would attempt • Dr. Johnson's character of Charles XII. is the best comment on the life of that adventurous warrior : "On what foundation stands the warrior's pride, How just his hopes, let Swedish Charles decide; A frame of adamant, a soul of fire, No dangers fright him, and no labors tire; War sounds the trump, he rushes to the field; And one capitulate, and one resign; Peace courts his hand, but spreads her charms in vain : On Moscow's walls, till Gothic standards fly, And all be mine beneath the polar sky.' The march begins in military state, And nations on his eye suspended wait; Stern famine guards the solitary coast, He comes, nor want, nor cold, his course delay; His fall was destined to a barren strand, A petty fortress, and a dubious hand; He left the name, at which the world grew pale, the re-establishment of arbitrary power. Negotiations for peace were commenced with all the hostile powers, and treaties concluded with all but Russia (A. D. 1720). The appearance of an English fleet in the Baltic, coming to aid the Swedish squadron, however, finally disposed the czar to pacific measures; and he consented to grant peace, on condition of being permitted to retain Ingria, Livonia, and part of Finland (A. D. 1721). Thus the great northren war terminated, just as it was about to be connected with the politics of southern Europe. CHAPTER VIII. GROWTH OF THE MERCANTILE AND COLONIAL SYSTEM. SECTION I.-Establishment of the Hanoverian Succession in England. DURING the wars that had been waged against Louis XIV., the funding system was established in England; it commenced by the founding of a national bank (A. D. 1694), which lent its capital to the government at a lower rate of interest than was then usual. Further loans were contracted to support the exigences of the wars; parliament guarantied the payment of the interest, without entering into any obligation to restore the capital, which was transferable to any one. The gradual extension of the wealth of the nation facilitated the growth of this system, which soon gave England commanding influence on the continent. The facilities of raising money possessed by the English government enabled it to conclude subsidiary treaties, and set the armies of allied states in motion. Internally the funding system wrought a still greater change; a great portion of the political influence previously possessed by the landed aristocracy was transferred to large capitalists and manufacturers; the banking and funding systems afforded great facilities for accumulating the profits of industry, and thus fostered the growth of an intelligent and opulent middle class, whose strength was soon displayed in the increasing importance of the house of commons. Even at the treaty of Utrecht, the mercantile system began to manifest itself in all its strength. Grants of commercial privileges were made the conditions of peace with the maritime powers, and territorial concessions were made with a regard to the interests of trade rather than power. Justly as the British negotiators at Utrecht may be blamed for not taking sufficient advantage of the position in which their country was placed by the victories of Marlborough, it is undeniable that the treaty they concluded laid the foundation of the commercial superiority of England; it also contained the germes of two future wars, but these consequences were slowly developed; and at the commencement of the eighteenth century, the republic of Holland was still the first commercial state in Europe. The accession of George I. produced a complete change in the English administration; the tories were dismissed with harshness, the whigs were the sole possessors of office, and on the new election consequent on the demise of the crown, they obtained a decided majority in parliament. Unfortunately they used their power to crush their |