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CoxE’s TRAVELS IN RUSSIA, Bot
fitions ; thus tranfmitting the rays of learning to illuminate future ages and a diftant
ofterity*.
e Though Ruffia hitherto abounded in chronicles and annals relative to detached pe-
riods; yet, excepting a dry detail of fats compiled for the ufe of Alexey Michaelovitch,
it poffeffed no regular and connected hiftory. The firft attempt towards fuch a work
was undertaken by Prince Khilkof. This nobleman +, defcended from an ancient
family, had diftinguifhed himfelf as embaflador to feveral foreign courts, before he was
deputed, in 1700, to Stockholm. He accompanied Charles XII. in his defcent upon
the Ifle of Zealand; and on the enfuing truce of Travendhal, between Sweden and
Denmark, returned toStockholm, on the 17th of September, at the eve of the rup-
ture which broke out between the Swedifh and Ruffian monarchs. His charaéter of
embaflador, deemed facred by the law of nations, could not protec him from the re-
fentment of Charles XII.; and, on the 2oth of the fame month, he was arrefted and
imprifoned. |
As an amufement during his captivity, which was long and rigorous, and at the re-
queft of his fellow-prifoner prince Trubetfkoi, he began an abridgment of the Ruffian
hiftory, from the earlieft period to his own time ; and after a confinement of eighteen
years, expired in his prifon of Welteros, when he was on the point of being releafed.
His work called the ‘* Kernel of the Ruffian Hiftory,” is a mere abridgment, and
was publifhed in1770 by Mr. Muller. It forms only one volume in ogtavo, and contains
feven books: the firft commences with the creation of the world, and ends with the
‘foundation of the Ruffian empire under Ruric; the remaining fix carry down the hiftory
to the year 1713. During fome part of his confinement he was permitted to receive
from Mofcow, books, extracts from chronicles, and a few ftate-papers; but as he could
hot obtain the neceflary documents fo well ason the fpot, his performance unavoidably
contains occafional errors, many of which he judicious editor has corrected.
In 1720, Vaflili ‘Tatifchef, who had more opportunities of obtaining information,
began to collect materials for a complete hiftory of Ruffia, and continued his refearches
without intermiflion for thirty years. ‘The indefatigable compiler finifhed his account to
the reign of Teodor Ivanovitch, and was bringing it down to this century, when death
-put.a.period to his labours. Part of this great work was confumed by fire, and the re-
mainder was publifhed after the author’s death by Muller. It confifts of three volumes
in quarto. ‘The firft contains feveral curious differtations relative to the antiquity of the
Sclayonian-nation; the -fecond and third comprife the hiftory of the Ruffian empire,
from its earlieft.origin:to 1237. It can-hardly be called a regular hiftory, but is rather
a conneéted feries of chronicles, whofe antiquated Sclavonian diale&s are merely
changed into the Ruffian idiom; and the author is juftly cenfured for not regularly ci-
ting the various annali{ts as he abridges or new models them, and for not afligning the
xeafons which induced him to prefer the writers whofe relations he has adopted, to thofe
which he has rejected’j.
‘Since Tatifchef, feveral writers’§ have publifhed colleétions of ftate-papers and other
documents; but the honour of compofing a complete:hiftory of this country is proba-
bly
* For the hiftory of Theophanes I have followed implicitly Muller, whofe’ fidelity and accuracy always
@ppear tome unquettionable, See S. R. G. V. p. 564.
“F See Bach: Ruff. Bib. fori1777, :p..78~—87. =. :
Bach. Ruff. Bib. for 1774, p. 433 alfo for 1775, p. 216, L’Evefque, vol. i. p, xxxi.
§ Particularly Novikof, in his ancient Ruffian Library, in ten volumes, a work thus charaéterifed by
TL Evefque ; “ Recueil de pieces originales et authentiques, tirées des cabinets et des archives; on y trouve
522 des
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