Jan., 1741.

This is the Chétardie-L'Estoc conspiracy of 5th December, 1741; the pitching up of Princess Elizabeth, and the pitching down of Anton Ulrich and his Münnichs, who had before pitched Bieren down; after which, matters remained more stationary at Petersburg: Czarina Elizabeth, fat, indolent soul, floated with a certain native buoyancy, with something of bulky steadiness, in the turbid plunge of things, and did not sink. On the contrary, her reign, so-called, was prosperous, though stupid; her big dark Countries, kindled already into growth, went on growing rather; and, for certain, she herself went on growing, in orthodox devotions of spiritual type (and in strangely heterodox ditto of non-spiritual!); in indolent mansuetudes (fell rages, if you cut on the raws at all); in perpetual incongruity; and, alas! at last in brandy-and-water, till, as "infâme Catin du Nord," she became terribly important to some persons.

At her accession, and for two years following, Czarina Elizabeth, in spite of real disinclination that way, had a War on her hands-the Swedish War (August, 1741-August, 1743), which, after long threatening on the Swedish side, had broken out into unwelcome actuality in Anton Ulrich's time, and which could not, with all the Czarina's industry, be got rid of or staved off; Sweden being bent upon the thing, reason or no reason. War not to be spoken of, except on compulsion, in the most voluminous History! It was the unwisest of wars, we should say, and in practice probably the contemptiblest, if there were not one other Swedish War coming, which vies with it in these particulars, of which we shall be obliged to speak, more or less, at a future stage. Of this present Russian-Swedish war, having happily almost nothing to do with it, we can, except in the way of transient chronology, refrain altogether from speaking or thinking.

Poor Sweden, since it shot Karl XII. in the trenches at Fredericshall, could not get a King again, and is very anarchic under its Phantasm King and free National Palaver-Senate and subaltern Houses-which generally has French gold in its pocket, without cause). Iwan's Mother, Princess Anne, (mercifully) 18th March, 1746. See Russian Histories, Tooke, Castéra, &c., none of which, except Mannstein, is good for much, or to be trusted without scrutiny.

and noise instead of wisdom in its head.

Jan., 1741. Scandalous to think

of or behold. The French, desirous to keep Russia in play during these high Belleisle adventures now on foot, had, after much egging, bribing, flattering, persuaded vain Sweden into this War with Russia. "At Narva they were 80,000, we 8000; and what became of them!" cry the Swedes always. Yes, my friends, but you had a Captain at Narva; you had not yet shot your Captain when you did Narva! "Faction of Hats," "Faction of Caps" (that is, night-caps, as being somnolent and disinclined to France and War): seldom did a once valiant, far-shining Nation sink to such depths, since they shot their Captain, and said to Anarchy, "Thou art Captaincy, we see, and the Divine thing!" Of the Wars and businesses of such a set of mortals let us shun speaking, where possible.

To

Mannstein gives impartial account, pleasantly clear and compact, to such as may be curious about this Swedish-Russian War, and, in the didactic point of view, it is not without value. us the interesting circumstance is that it does not interfere with our Silesian operations at all, and may be figured as a mere accompaniment of rumbling discord, or vacant far-off noise, going on in those Northern parts, to which, therefore, we hope to be strangers in time coming. Here are some dates, which the reader may take with him, should they chance to illustrate any thing:

“August 4th, 1741. The Swedes declare War: 'Will recover their lost portions of Finland, will,' &c., &c. They had long been meditating it: they had Turk negotiations going on, diligent emissaries to the Turk (a certain Major Sinclair for one, whom the Russians waylaid and assassinated to get sight of his Papers) during the late Turk-Russian War, but could conclude nothing while that was in activity; concluded only after that was done, striking the iron when grown cold. A chief point in their Manifesto was the assassination of this Sinclair; scandal and atrocity, of which there is no doubt now the Russians were guilty. Various pretexts for the War: prime movers to it, practically, were the French, intent on keeping Russia employed while their Belleisle German adventure went on, and who had even bargained with third parties to get up a War there, as we shall see.

September 3d, 1741. At Wilmanstrand-key of Wyborg, their frontier strong-hold in Finland, which was under Siege-the Swedes (about 5000 of them, for they had nothing to live upon, and lay scattered about

Jan., 1741.

in fractions) made fight, or skirmish, against a Russian attacking party; Swedes, rather victorious on their hill-top, rushed down, and totally lost their bit of victory, their Wilmanstrand, their Wyborg, and even the War itself; for this was, in literal truth, the only fighting done by them in the entire course of it, which lasted near two years more. The rest of it was retreat, capitulation, loss on loss without stroke struck, till they had lost all Finland, and were like to lose Sweden itself-Dalecarlian mutiny bursting out (Ye traitors, misgovernors, worthy of death!"), with invasive Danes to rear of it, and had to call in the very Russians to save them from worse. Czarina Elizabeth at the time of her accession, six months after Wilmanstrand, had made truce, was eager to make peace: 'By no means!' answered Sweden, taking arms again, or rather taking legs again, and rushing ruinward at the old rate, still without stroke.

"June 28th, 1743. They did halt; made Peace of Abo (Truce and Preliminaries signed there that day: Peace itself, August 17th); Czarina magnanimously restoring most of their Finland (thinking to herself, 'Not done enough for me yet; cook it a little yet!') and settling who their next King was to be, among other friendly things. And in November following, Keith, in his Russian galleys, with some 10,000 Russians on board, arrived in Stockholm, protective against Danes and mutinous Dalecarles; staid there till June of next year, 1744.”7 Is not this a War?

On the Russian side, General Keith, under Fieldmarshal Lacy as chief in command (the same Keith whom we saw at Oczacow, under Münnich, some time ago), had a great deal of the work and management, which was of a highly miscellaneous kind, commanding fleets of gunboats and much else; and readers of Mannstein can still judge-much more could King Friedrich, earnestly watching the affair itself as it went on-whether Keith did not do it in a solid and quietly eminent and valiant manner. Sagacious, skillful, imperturbable, without fear and without noise; a man quietly ever ready. He had quelled, once, walking direct into the heart of it, a ferocious Russian mutiny, or uproar from

› Adelung, ii., 445. Mannstein, p. 297 (Wilmanstrand Affair, himself present)-365 (Peace)—373 (Keith's return with his galleys). Comte de Hordt (present also, on the Swedish side, and subsequently a Soldier of Friedrich's), Mémoires (Berlin, 1789), i., 18-88. The murder of Sinclair (done by "four Russian subalterns, two miles from Naumburg, in Silesia, 17th June, 1739, about 7 P.M.") is amply detailed from Documents in a late Book: Weber, Aus Vier Jahrhunderten (Leipzig, 1858), i., 274–279.

more.

8

19th Feb., 1741.

below, which would have ruined every thing in few minutes He suffered, with excellent silence, now and afterward, much ill usage from above withal, till Friedrich himself, in the third year hence, was lucky enough to get him as General. Friedrich's Sister Ulrique, the marriage of Princess Ulrique— that also, as it chanced, had something to do with this Peace of Abo. But we anticipate too far.

CHAPTER IX.

FRIEDRICH RETURNS TO SILESIA.

FRIEDRICH staid only three weeks at home, moving about from Berlin to Potsdam, to Reinsberg and back: all the gay world is in Berlin at this Carnival time; but Friedrich has more to do with business of a manifold and overearnest nature than with Carnival gayeties. French Valori is here," my fat Valori," who is beginning to be rather a favorite of Friedrich's: with Excellency Valori, and with the other Foreign Excellencies, there was diplomatic passaging in these weeks; and we gather from Valori, in the inverse way (Valori fallen sulky), that it was not ill done on Friedrich's part. He had some private consultation with the Old Dessauer too, "probably on military points," thinks Valori. At least there was noticed more of the drill-sergeant than before in his handling of the Army when he returned to Silesia, continues the sulky one. "Troops and generals did not know him again,” so excessively strict was he grown on the sudden. And truly "he got into details which were beneath, not only a Prince who has great views, but even a simple Captain of Infantry," according to my (Valori's) military notions and experiences! 1

The truth is, Friedrich begins to see, more clearly than he did with Gloire dazzling him, that his position is an exceedingly. grave one, full of risk in the then mood and condition of the world; that he, in the whole world, has no sure friend but his Army, and that in regard to it he can not be too vigilant! The world is ominous to this youngest of the Kings more than to an

Mannstein, p. 130 (no date, April-May, 1742).

1 Valori, i., 99.

19th Feb., 1741. other. Sounds as of general Political Earthquake grumble audibly to him from the deeps: all Europe likely, in any event, to get to loggerheads on this Austrian Pragmatic matter; the Nations all watching him, to see what he will make of it: fugleman he to the European Nations, just about bursting up on such an adventure. It may be a glorious position or a not glorious, but, for certain, it is a dangerous one, and awfully solitary!

Fuglemen the world and its Nations always have, when simultaneously bent anywhither, wisely or unwisely, and it is natural that the most adventurous spirit take that post. Friedrich has not sought the post, but, following his own objects, has got it, and will be ignominiously lost, and trampled to annihilation under the hoofs of the world if he do not mind! To keep well ahead-to be rapid as possible-that were good; to step aside were still better! And Friedrich, we find, is very anxious for that; "would be content with the Duchy of Glogau, and join Austria;" but there is not the least chance that way. His Special Envoy to Vienna, Gotter, and along with him Borck, the regular Minister, are come home; all negotiation hopeless at Vienna, and nothing but indignant war-preparation going on there, with the most animated diligence, and more success than had seemed possible. That is the law of Friedrich's Silesian Adventure: "Forward, therefore, on these terms; others there are not; waste no words!" Friedrich recognizes to himself what the law is; pushes stiffly forward, with a fine silence on all that is not practical, really with a fine steadiness of hope, and audacity against discouragements. Of his anxieties, which could not well be wanting, but which it is royal to keep strictly under lock and key, of these there is no hint to Jordan or to any body; and only through accidental chinks, on close scrutiny, can we discover that they exist. Symptom of despondency, of misgiving or repenting about his Enterprise, there is none any where. Friedrich's fine gifts of silence (which go deeper than the lips) are noticeable here, as always; and highly they availed Friedrich in leading his life, though now inconvenient to Biographers writing of the same!

་

It was not on matters of drill, as Valori supposes, that Friedrich had been consulting with the Old Dessauer; this time it