The Georgians (who are a Chriftian nation) had long fubmitted to an ignominious tribute, of delivering up every year, for the ufe of the Turkish feraglios, a great number of their nobleft and moft beautiful virgins; their country having in all ages been famous for producing the finest women in the world. The Georgians, fpirited by Heraclius, refufed to continue this fhameful tribute, and offered to commute for it, by paying a certain fum of money; which propofal was rejected by the Turks. In the war which enfued, Heraclius bravely afferted the rights of mankind in the liberties of his country, and is faid to have defeated the Turks in many battles. Our accounts of thefe tranfactions, paffing through a barbarous and confufed medium, are hitherto, and will probably continue for fome time, imperfect and inaccurate. There are no authentic accounts of national affairs published in Turkey. The ftories of the victories obtained by this prince, were probably fomething exaggerated, and the great confequences which were fupposed to be the refalt of them much more fo. It was faid, that Heraclius, having fubdued feveral of the neighbouring countries, had extended his conquefts to the coafts of the Blackfea, had taken the imperial city of Trebifonde, and, at the head of 2 vaft army, threatened nothing

The infurrections which happenned in Egypt and Cyprus. feemed to confirm, that the dif temper was epidemical throughout the greateft part of the globe. We fhall, under their refpective heads, give the beft accounts we have been able to collect, of fuch of thefe commotions as come within the plan of our obfervation and as the clouds are now dispersed without any confiderable effects, which, from fo many different quarters, feemed to darken the political hemifphere; we fhall now confider the general state of affairs, as they appear at present.

Europe, ftill fore with the wounds it received in the laft war, feems as yet defirous of reft and peace. There have been in different periods of hiftory, and different parts of the world, fome very poor, and very military nations, who had no other road to riches or confideration but war. No experience of the mischiefs attending it can affect people of that character; it would be ridiculous to caution a man against danger, wounds, or even death, who had no poffible manner of living, but by encountering them. To the happinefs of mankind, Providence has now circumfcribed thefe hungry nations within very narrow bounds; like the hirds and beafts of prey, their numbers are far from being confiderable, and Europe at prefent is infefted with but few of them. On a review of the wars of this century in Europe, and their confequences, it would be difficult to prove any nation at all a gainer by them. Ambition indeed is not very at[B]2

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tentive to calculations. It is, however, to be hoped, that the total want of any brilliant acquifition, may, for a while at leaft, check that luft of dominion, which has been, for now almoft an age, fo very unfruitful. There is but one prince now living on the continent of Europe, who has been even apparently a gainer by conqueft; and it fill remains a doubt, whether, in three fucceflive wars, he has not paid more for his purchafe than it is worth, exclufive of the risks he has himfelf run, and which his fucceffors will probably be liable to, in confequence of his victories.

In this fituation of affairs, exhausted as most of the principal powers in Europe are of men and money, and involved deeply in debt, it is poffible that they may fuffer mankind to indulge for fome years longer in the bleffings of peace. Our next neighbour and old rival, France, fcems in thefe circumstances, vaft as her natural resources are. The confequences of a ruinous war having reduced her very nearly to a fiate of general bankruptcy, nothing but time, together with the ftricteft economy, attention, and induftry, can reftore to their former ftate, her manufactures, commerce, marine, and finances. To

all these points, however, he has with equal affiduity and fuccefs been very attentive fince the peace; in which time he has recovered her trade, in many parts of the world, to a furprifing degree. It is true, her attempts to retrieve her commerce, have met with difcouragements, and the dreadful hurricanes in the Weft Indies, and fome other misfortunes have put them

back confiderably, in fome articles of it; but on the whole, the natural advantages of that country, in the hands of an enterprifing and induftrious people, have had a conftant operation in their favour, and they recover apace.

The court of France feems at prefent to lay itself out with the greatest care, to cement and culti vate the strict alliance and family union with the other branches of the houfe of Bourbon, in Spain and Naples. The prefent king of Spain, however difagreeable it may be to the Spaniards in general, gives entirely into French meafures, and makes a common inte reft of the affairs of both nations. Mutual ceflions of lands, it is faid, have been made in America and the Weft Indies; the French having given up to the Spaniards what they poffeffed on the Miffifippi; and the Spaniards, as it is univerfally reported and believed, have relinquished to them the part that fill remained in their hands of the great and valuable ifland of Hifpaniola. Many have been furprifed that this exchange of territory was not by fome means attempted to be fruftrated by Great Britain; confidering how much it muft affect our poffeffions in the Weft Indies, and fo great and valuable a branch of our commerce as the fugar trade.

France feems, as well as England, to have entirely dropped her fubidiary connections in Germany. With her new ally, the house of Auftria, the however keeps upon the most friendly terms, and there feems to be a cordial harmony between them. In the north, her intereft feems to have declined greatly; though it is faid, not

withstanding thefe appearances, that her ambaffador at the court of Petersburgh has lately got leave to establish a factory at Archangel, on the White fea. It is alfo be lieved that he has attempted to negotiate a treaty of more confequence with Sweden; whereby fhe has offered to pay the fubfidy arrears due to that court, upon condition that the Swedes fhould build her a certain number of men of war at a ftated price, and fupply her for the future, in cafe of war, with a fixed number of fhips and failors, in lue of the old ftipulation of land-forces.

This feems an improvement of her plan of northern politics. Indeed both France and Spain, fenfible of their paft errors, and of the great importance of the object, are increafing their marine with the most unwearied affiduity; in which the former has been greatly affifted, as well by the Genocle, as by the great quantity of hip timber with which they have fupplied their arfenals at Toulon, from Corfica, fince their troops took poffeflion of the Genoefe part of that island.

The affair of the Canada bills, which was the only cause of altercation that remained between the courts of Great Britain and France, has been amically fettled to the fatisfaction of both. Though the court of Spain has not yet thought proper to manifeft that regard to juftice and honour, with refpect to the Manilla ranfom, which might have been wifhed and expected, yet it is not probable, that it will fo fuddenly venture to involve itfelf in a fecond rupture with Great Britain. Spain has already fuffered by her obitinacy in that affair, if it be true, as is generally

believed, that it was in confequence of her fears for the vengeance that might have been taken upon that account, that the flota which had already failed for Europe, was ftopt in its voyage, and remanded back again to its port. The deteution of their Weft India treafure is always attended with ill confequences in that country; nor are thefe confined to the commercial part of the nation, the people in general fenfibly feel them, The mifchief however did not flop there; the fleet having afterwards received orders to fail for Europe, met with a violent ftorm, by which fome of the hips were drove afhore, and the reft obliged to put back in a fhattered condition to the Havannah.

The alliance by marriage, which we have formerly taken notice of, between Great Britain and Denmark, as well as that which took place about the fame time, be tween a fifter of the prefent King of Denmark and the Prince Royal of Sweden, by cementing anew, and drawing clofer together the Proteftant intereft, feems in a great mealure to counterpoife the clofe union of the houfe of Bourbon.

Though the death of the late King of Denmark has hitherto made no vifible alteration in the fyftem of the north; yet it may not be vain to expect, that a total change will take place in the conduct of that court. Influenced entirely, as it has been for fome years paft, by French councils, we may now hope to fee an Anglo-Pruffian fyftem take place in their ftead. It is not to be doubted, but the amiable Princefs whom his Danish Majefty has efpoufed, will contribute greatly to increafe thele [B] 3

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good difpofitions, as well as the har-, mony and friendship which fubfifts between our court and nation, and thofe of Denmark.

The Prince of Orange, perpe tual Stadholder of the united Proallo 8th March, vinces, being

happily arrived of 1766. age to take the adminiftration upon him, may he looked upon as a great addition and ftrength to the Proteftant fyltem. The great and voluntary rejoicings which were fo univerfally made upon that occafion throughout the whole United Provinces, and which exceeded, even as to outward appearance, thofe that are the offfpring of fear or neceffity, in defpotic governments, fufficiently teftify the great weight which the Princes of that illuftrious houfe will ever bear in the republic.

The Emprefs of Ruffia (excepting the part he has taken in the affairs of Poland, which we shall take notice of in the next chapter) ftill preferves the fame pacific afpect towards the rest of Europe, and the fame attention to the intereft and improvement of her fubjects, which we have already with pleafure remarked in our former volumes. Her court is become the afylum of the fciences, to which the invites learned men from every part of Europe. Among the reft the celebrated profeffor Euler from Berlin is at prefent one of her moft remarkable guests; on whom her Imperial Majefty has fettled a large annual ftipend, made him a prefent of a houfe, befides many other marks of her royal favour and protection.

Germany, as well as Italy, afford, at prefent, but little room for political obfervation. The two

great rival powers in the former, at the fame time that they take the greatest care to complete their armies, and remount their cavalry, feem for the prefent to have no particular intention to give umbrage one to the other. The part which the King of Pruffia has taken, in concert with Ruffia, Denmark, and England, in the affairs of Poland, does not appear, (partly through the inability of the Poles to contend with the great powers in quef tion) likely to be attended with any extraordinary confequences ; unless the Emprefs-queen, stimulated by her hatred to the King of Pruffia, fhould make the Catholic caufe a pretext for interfering in favour of Poland; in which cafe there can he no poffibility of forefeeing how far the confequences may extend.

The most remarkable incident which this year produced in Italy, was the Pope's abfolute refufal to acknowledge, by any of thofe vain titles, which he pretended to claim in right of his father, the eldest fon of the unhappy family of Stuart. This example has been followed, even by thofe RomanCatholic Princes who had formerly given the greatest protection to that family; to that as the father had lived long enough to fee every hope of fuccefs to his claims on thefe kingdoms extinct and dead, the fon has already found his very pretenfions difavowed by every power in Europe. power in Europe. The fuperiors of the English, Scotch, and Irish colleges in Rome, having thought proper to pay thofe honours which the Pope had himfelf refufed and forbidden, were, upon that account, fent into exile; while the unfortunate adventurer retired into

the

On

THE

HE difputes which have fo long fubfited between the French king and his parliaments, feem nearly fubfided; at least they lie dormant for the prefent. The unfortunate parliament of Brittany has been the victim to thefe difputes, having fuffered an entire diffolution. A new commiffion, confifting of fixty members, has been appointed by the King's authority in its room. A levere profecution was, at the fame time, carried on against the degraded members. However, in the instant when sentence was to have been paffed against them, the king himself thought proper, by a politic lenity, to put ftop to the procefs, and to publifh letters of amnefty in their favour. By thefe letters they have leave to retire to their own eftates, except M. de Chalotais, and his fon, who are exiled to Saintez.

The other parliaments of the kingdom were far from being indifferent fpectators of the fate of their bretheren of Brittany; they made ufe of the most unwearied applications, and the moft fpirited

1765.

remonstrances in their favour. During the vigorous exertions that were made on this occafion by the parliament of Paris, the fudden and unexpected 3d March, arrival of the king in that metropolis, gave fufficient cause of furprize and alarm, as well to them, as to the Parifians in general. He was no fooner arrived in that city, than he immediately went to the grand chamber of the parliament, to hold a bed of Juftice; when the chambers being affembled, he told them, "He was come himself to answer all their remonftrances; that what had paffed in his parliaments of Pau and Rennes, did not any ways relate to his other parlia ments; that he had acted in regard to those two courts, as from his authority it behoved him, and was accountable to no body. That he fhould not have had any other answer to make to the remonftrances which had been made to him on the fubject, if their reunion, the indecency of ftyle, the temerity of the moft erroneous principles, and the affectation of [B] 4

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