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came and traded at Zergolto, or Surgoot, on the river Ob, bringing with them plates of silver. Whereupon Michael Pheodorowich the Russian emperor, in the year 1619, sent certain of his people from Tooma to Alteen, and Cathay, who returned with embassadors from those princes. These relate, that from Tooma in ten days and a half, three days whereof over a lake, where rubies and sapphires grow, they came to the Alteen king, or king of Alty; through his land in five weeks they passed into the county of Sheromugaly, or Mugalla, where reigned a queen called Manchica; whence in four days they came to the borders of Cathay, fenced with a stone wall, fifteen fathom high; along the side of which, having on the other hand many pretty towns belonging to Queen Manchica, they travelled ten days without seeing any on the wall, till they came to the gate; where they saw very great ordnance lying, and three thousand men in watch. They traffic with other nations at the gate, and very few at once are suffered to enter. They were travelling from Tooma to this gate twelve weeks; and from thence to the great city of Cathay ten days. Where being conducted to the house of embassadors, within a few days there came a secretary from King Tambur, with two hundred men well apparelled, and riding on asses, to feast them with divers sorts of wine, and to demand their message; but having brought no presents with them, they could not be admitted to his sight; only with his letter to the emperor they returned, as is aforesaid, to Tobolsca. They report, that the land of Mugalla reaches from Boghar to the north sea, and hath many castles built of stone, foursquare, with towers at the corners covered with glazed tiles; and on the gates alarm-bells, or watch-bells, twenty pound weight of metal; their houses built also of stone, the cielings cunningly painted with flowers of all colours. The people are idolaters: the country exceeding fruitful. They have asses and mules, but no horses. The people of Cathay say, that this great wall stretches from Boghar to the north sea, four months journey, with continual towers a slight shot distant from each other, and beacons on every tower; and that this wall is the bound between Mugalla and Cathay. In which are but five gates; those narrow, and so low, that a horseman sitting upright cannot ride in. Next to the wall is

6 Purch. part 3. p. 797.

7

7 Ibid. 799.

the city Shirokalga; it hath a castle well furnished with short ordnance and small shot, which they who keep watch on the gates, towers, and walls, duly at sun-set and rising discharge thrice over. The city abounds with rich merchandise, velvets, damasks, cloth of gold, and tissue, with many sorts of sugars. Like to this is the city of Yara; their markets smell odoriferously with spices, and Tayth more rich than that. Shirooan yet more magnificent, half a day's journey through, and exceeding populous. From hence to Cathaia the imperial city is two days' journey, built of white stone, foursquare, in circuit four days going, cornered with four white towers, very high and great, and others very fair along the wall, white intermingled with blue, and loopholes furnished with ordnance. In the midst of this white city stands a castle built of magnet, where the king dwells, in a sumptuous palace, the top whereof is overlaid with gold. The city stands on even ground encompassed with the river Youga, seven days' journey from the sea. The people are very fair but not warlike, delighting most in rich traffic. These relations are referred hither, because we have them from Russians; who report also, that there is a sea beyond Ob, so warm, that all kind of seafowl live thereabout as well in winter as in summer. Thus much briefly of the sea and lands between Russia and Cathay.

CHAP. IV. — THE SUCCESSION OF MOSCOVIA DUKES AND EMPERORS, TAKEN OUT OF THEIR CHRONICLES BY A POLAC, WITH SOME LATER ADDITIONS.9

THE great Dukes of Moscovy derive their pedigree, though without ground, from Augustus Cæsar; whom they fable to have sent certain of his kingdom to be governors over many remote provinces; and among them, Prussus over Prussia; him to have had his seat on the eastern Baltic shore by the river Wixel; of whom Rurek, Sinaus, and Truuor descended by the fourth generation, were by the Russians, living then without civil government, sent for in the year 573, to bear rule over them, at the persuasion of Costomislius chief citizen of Novogrod. They therefore, taking with them Olechus their kinsman, divided those countries among themselves, and each in his province taught them civil government. Hac. vol. i. p. 221.

8 Purch. p. 806.

Ivor, son of Rurek, the rest dying without issue, became successor to them all: being left in nonage under the protection of Olechus. He took to wife Olha daughter to a citizen of Plesco, of whom he begat Stoslaus; but after that, being slain by his enemies, Olha his wife went to Constantinople, and was there baptized Helena.

Stoslaus fought many battles with his enemies; but was at length by them slain, who made a cup of his skull, engraven with this sentence in gold; " Seeking after other men's, he lost his own." His sons were Teropulchus, Olega, and Volodimir.

Volodimir, having slain the other two, made himself sole lord of Russia; yet after that fact inclining to Christian religion, had to wife Anna sister to Basilius and Constantine Greek emperors; and with all his people, in the year 988, was baptized, and called Basilius. Howbeit Zonaras reporteth, that before that time Basilius the Greek emperor sent a bishop to them; at whose preaching they not being moved, but requiring a miracle, he after devout prayers, taking the book of gospel into his hands, threw it before them all into the fire; which remaining there unconsumed, they were converted.

Volodimir had eleven sons, among whom he divided his kingdom: Boristus and Glebus for their holy life registered saints; and their feast kept every year in November with great solemnity. The rest, through contention to have the sole government, ruined each other; leaving only Jaroslaus inheritor of all.

Volodimir, son of Jaroslaus, kept his residence in the ancient city Kiow upon the river Boristhenes. And after many conflicts with the sons of his uncles and having subdued all, was called Monomachus. He made war with Constantine the Greek emperor, wasted Thracia, and returning home with great spoils to prepare new war, was appeased by Constantine; who sent Neophytus bishop of Ephesus, and Eustathius abbot of Jerusalem, to present him with part of our Saviour's cross, and other rich gifts, and to salute him by the name of Czar, or Cæsar: with whom he thenceforth entered into league and amity.

After him in order of descent Vuszevolodus, George, Demetrius.

Then George, his son, who, in the year 1237 was slain in battle by the Tartar prince Bathy, who subdued Moscovia, and

made it tributary. From that time the Tartarians made such dukes of Russia, as they thought would be most pliable to their ends; of whom they required, as oft as ambassadors came to him out of Tartary, to go out and meet them; and in his own court to stand bareheaded, while they sate and delivered their message. At which time the Tartars wasted also Polonia, Selesia, and Hungaria, till Pope Innocent the Fourth obtained peace of them for five years. This Bathy, say the Russians, was the father of Tamerlane, whom they call Temirkutla.

Then succeeded Jaroslaus, the brother of George, then Alexander his son.

Daniel, the son of Alexander, was he who first made the city of Mosco his royal seat, builded the castle, and took on him the title of great duke.

John, the son of Daniel, was surnamed Kaleta, that word signifying a scrip, out of which, continually carried about with him, he was wont to deal his alms.

His son Simeon, dying without issue, left the kingdom to John his next brother; and he to his son Demetrius, who left two sons, Basilius and George.

Basilius reigning, had a son of his own name, but doubting lest not of his own body, through the suspicion he had of his wife's chastity, him he disinherits, and gives the dukedom to his brother George.

George, putting his nephew Basilius in prison, reigns; yet at his death, either through remorse, or other cause, surrenders him the dukedom.

Basilius, unexpectedly, thus attaining his supposed right, enjoyed it not long in quiet; for Andrew and Demetrius, the two sons of George, counting it injury not to succeed their father, made war upon him, and surprising him on a sudden, put out his eyes. Notwithstanding which, the boiarens, or nobles, kept their allegiance to the duke, though blind, whom, therefore, they called Cziemnox.

John Vasiliwich, his son, was the first who brought the Russian name out of obscurity into renown. To secure his own estate, he put to death as many of his kindred as were likely to pretend; and styled himself great duke of Wolodimiria, Moscovia, Novogardia, Czar of all Russia. He won Plesco, the only walled city in all Muscovy, and Novogrod,

the richest, from the Lithuanians, to whom they had been subject fifty years before; and from the latter carried home three hundred waggons laden with treasure. He had war with Alexander king of Poland, and with the Livonians; with him, on pretence of withdrawing his daughter Helena, whom he had to wife, from the Greek church to the Romish; with the Livonians for no other cause but to enlarge his bounds : though he were often foiled by Plettebergius, great master of the Prussian knights. His wife was daughter to the duke of Tyversky; of her he begat John; and to him resigned his dukedom; giving him to wife the daughter of Steven, palatine of Moldavia; by whom he had issue Demetrius, and deceased soon after. Vasiliwich, therefore, reassuming the dukedom, married a second wife Sophia, daughter to Thomas Palæologus: who is said to have received her dowry out of the pope's treasury, upon the promise of the duke to become Romish.

This princess, of a haughty mind, often complaining that she was married to the Tartar's vassal, at length by continual persuasions, and by a wile, found means to ease her husband and his country of that yoke. For whereas, till then, the Tartar had his procurators, who dwelt in the very castle of Mosco, to oversee state affairs, she feigned that from heaven she had been warned to build a temple to St. Nicholas on the same place where the Tartar agents had their house. Being therefore delivered of a son, she made it her request to the prince of Tartary, whom she had invited to the baptizing, that he would give her that house, which obtaining, she razed to the ground, and removed those overseers out of the castle ; and so, by degrees, dispossessed them of all which they held in Russia. She prevailed also with her husband to transfer the dukedom from Demetrius the son of John, deceased, to Gabriel his eldest by her.

Gabriel, no sooner duke, but changed his name to Basilius, and set his mind to do nobly; he recovered great part of Moscovy from Vitoldus duke of Lithuania; and on the Boristhenes won Smolensko and many other cities in the year 1514. He divorced his first wife, and of Helena, daughter to duke Glinski, begat Juan Vasiliwich.

Juan Vasiliwich, being left a child, was committed to George his uncle and protector; at twenty-five years of age he vanquished the Tartars of Cazan and Astracan, bringing

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