COXe’s TRAVELS IN RUSSIA.

73 °

of Catharine. The oppofite party, however, denied thefe fentiments to be fo clear asthe fecretary chofe to infinuate, and infilled, that as their late monarch had failed to no-minate his heir, the election of the new fovereign Ihould revert to the Hate. Upon thisthe Archbilhop further tellified, that the evening before the coronation of the Emprefsat Mofcow, Peter had declared, in the houfe of an Englilh merchant, he Ihould placethe crown upon her head, with no other view than to leave her miftrefs of the Empireafter his deceafe. This atteflation being confirmed by many perfons prefent, Mentchi-kof cried out, “ What need have we of any tellament! A refufal to conform to the in-clination of our great fovereign, thus authenticated, would be both unjuft and criminal.Long live the Emprefs Catharine !” Thefe words being inftantly repeated by the greaterpart of thofe who were prefent; Mentchikof, faluting Catharine by the title of Emprefs,paid his firft obeifance by killing her hand, and his example was followed by the wholeaffembly. She next prefented herfeif at the window to the guards, and to the people,who Ihouted acclamations of “ Long live Catharine,” while Mentchikof lcattered amongthem handfuls of money *. Thus, fays a contemporary, the Emprefs was raifed to thethrone by the guards, in the fame manner as the Roman Emperors by the Praetorian cohorts, without either the appointment of the people or of the legions f.

The reign of Catharine may be confidered as the reign of Mentchikof; the Emprefshaving neither inclination nor abilities to diredt the helm of government; and fhe placedthe molt implicit confidence in the original author of her good fortune, and the foie in-ftrument of her elevation to the throne.

During her Ihort reign her life was very irregular ; Ihe was extremely averfe to bufi-nefs, would frequently pafs whole nights in the open air, and was particularly intemperatein the ufe of tokay-wine, in which ihe often indulged herfeif to excels J. Thefe irre-gularities, joined to a cancer and a dropfy, haftened her end, and fhe expired on the 17thof May 1727, a little more than two years after her acceffion to the throne, and in the39th year of her age. ,

As the deaths of fovereigns in defpotic countries are feldom imputed to natural caufes,that of Catharine was alfo attributed to poifon ; as if the diforders which preyed uponher frame were not fufficient to bring her to the grave. Some afiert, that fhe was poi-foned by a glafs of fpirituous liquor; others by a pear given to her by General Diever .Sufpicions alfo fell upon Prince Mentchikof, who, a Ihort time before her deceafe, hada trifling mifunderftanding with her, and who was accufed of haftening her death,

* This account of the ele&ion of Catharine is chiefly extradled from Baflevitz, who aflifted Prince Mentchi-kof in this revolution, and certainly muft deferve credit as far as he chofe to difcover the fecret cabals. Otherauthors relate this event fomewhat differently ; but this difference is ealily reconciled, and the main faftscontinue the fame. Bufching afferts, as he was informed by Count Munic, that Peter was no fooner dead,than the fenate and nobles affembled in the palace, unknown to Mentchikof, who, being informed of theirmeeting, repaired to the palace, and was refilled admittance; upon which he fent for General Butterlin,with a company of guards, and burfting open the door of the apartment, declared Catharine Emprefs.Bufching, vol. i. p. 15 ; alfo Ebauche, &c. p, 50. The Auftrian envoy fays, that General Butterlinthreatened to malfacre the fenate if the members did not acknowledge Catharine. But we have alreadyfeen, from the authority of Baflevitz, that many of the nobles, &c. repaired to the palace in oppofition toMentchikof; that General Butterlin had high words with Prince Repnin and the oppofite party ; thatMentchikof’s prefence utterly difconcerted them ; and it is probable that both he and Butterlin might havethreatened the nobles, which Baflevitz might not chufe to record, as he was willing to make the nominationof Catharine as unanimous as poffible; although he fays, “ C’eft ainfi que Catharine faifit le feeptre,qu’elle meritoit a fi julte titre.” In a word, thefe three accounts are eafily reconcileable; they all proveone faft, that Mentchikof, either by himfelf or his agents, by bribes, promifes, and threats, forced the- no-bility to proclaim Catharine.

f Auftrian envoy in Bufching xi. p. 502. I 13 uf. Flift. Mag. iii, p. 192,

4

that