50 chapters
17 hour read
Selected Chapters
50 chapters
AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
When I left Constantinople for Odessa my principal object was to investigate the geology of the Crimea and of New Russia, and to arrive by positive observations at the solution of the great question of the rupture of the Bosphorus. Having once entered on this pursuit, I was soon led beyond the limits of the plan I had marked out for myself, and found it incumbent on me to examine all the vast regions that extend between the Danube and the Caspian Sea to the foot of the northern slope of the Cauc
1 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
DEFINITIONS.
DEFINITIONS.
Geographic miles are of 15 to a degree of the equator. A Russian Verst (104-3/10 to a degree), is 1/7 of a geographical mile, 1/4 of a French league of 25 to a degree. It is equal to 3484.9 English feet, or nearly 2/3 of a statute mile. It is divided into 500 sazhenes , and each of these into 3 arshines . A deciatine (superficial measure) is equivalent to 2 acres, 2 roods, 32 perches, English. A pood is equal to 40 Russian or 36 English pounds. 100 tchetverts (corn measure) are equal to about 74
56 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER I.
DEPARTURE FROM CONSTANTINOPLE—ARRIVAL, IN ODESSA— QUARANTINE. On the 15th of May, 1838, we bade adieu to Constantinople, and standing on the deck of the Odessa steamer, as it entered the Bosphorus, we could not withdraw our eyes from the magnificent panorama we were leaving behind us. Constantinople then appeared to us in all its grandeur and beauty. Seated like Rome on its seven hills, exercising its sovereignty like Corinth over two seas, the vast city presented to our eyes a superb amphitheat
10 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER II.
STREETS OF ODESSA—JEWS—HOTELS—PARTIALITY OF THE RUSSIANS FOR ODESSA—HURRICANE, DUST, MUD, CLIMATE, &c.—PUBLIC BUILDINGS. The day of our release from quarantine, was as full of bustle and annoyances as that of our arrival, the spolio alone excepted. How we regretted the freedom of the East! There the traveller's movements are shackled by no formalities, but he is free from the moment he quits his vessel, to roam about the town as he pleases, without being pestered with the custom-house an
11 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER III.
THE IMPERIAL FAMILY IN ODESSA—CHURCH MUSIC—SOCIETY OF THE PLACE, COUNT AND COUNTESS VORONZOF—ANECDOTE OF THE COUNTESS BRANISKA—THE THEATRE—THEATRICAL ROW. The brilliant fêtes that took place on the arrival of the imperial family, happened most opportunely for us, and enabled us to see many celebrated personages. All the foreigners of distinction who had been present at the famous review of Vosnecensk, followed the emperor to Odessa, and prolonged their stay there after his departure. The whole t
9 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER IV.
COMMERCE OF THE BLACK SEA—PROHIBITIVE SYSTEM AND ITS PERNICIOUS RESULTS—DEPRESSED STATE OF AGRICULTURE—TRADE OF ODESSA—ITS BANK. From the destruction of the Genoese colonies in the Crimea, in 1476, down to the treaty of Kainardji, a period of 300 years, the Black Sea remained closed against the nations of the West, and was the privileged domain of Turkey. Its whole coast belonged to the sultans of Constantinople, and the khans of the Crimea. The Turks, and the Greeks of the Archipelago, subjects
29 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER V.
NAVIGATION, CHARGE FOR FREIGHT, &c. IN THE BLACK SEA. Of all the seaboard of the East, the coasts of the Black Sea are those from which the expense of freight are the greatest. Different circumstances combine in producing this effect. 1. The amount of importation being inconsiderable, most of the vessels must arrive in ballast, or with a very scanty cargo. 2. The vessels are exposed to long delays in the Archipelago, and still more so in the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus. Fifty days may
4 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VI.
CHAPTER VI.
AGRICULTURE AND MANUFACTURES OF SOUTHERN RUSSIA—MINERAL PRODUCTIONS—RUSSIAN WORKMEN. In justification of its prohibitive system, the government alleges the protection and encouragement it owes to native industry. Now it is evident that absolute exclusion cannot favour industry. The high tariff, it is true, seems to secure a certain market for Russian manufactures; but it results from it that those manufactures, being kept clear of all competition, are worse than stationary; for the manufacturers
9 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VII.
CHAPTER VII.
DEPARTURE FROM ODESSA—TRAVELLING IN RUSSIA—NIKOLAÏEF, OLVIA, OTSHAKOF—KHERSON—THE DNIEPR—GENERAL POTIER—ANCIENT TUMULI—STEPPES OF THE BLACK SEA—A RUSSIAN VILLAGE—SNOW STORM—NARROW ESCAPE FROM SUFFOCATION—A RUSSIAN FAMILY—APPENDIX. After some months' stay in Odessa, we left it in company with General Potier, a Frenchman by birth, to pass the winter at his country-house. Travelling would nowhere be more rapid than in Russia, if the posting-houses were a little better conducted and more punctual in
25 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER VII.
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER VII.
A propensity to sedentary habits is not peculiarly a female failing in Russia, as will appear from the following extract: "The Russian has as little taste for promenading on foot as any Oriental. Hence, with the exception of the two capitals, and the north-west provinces, in which German usages prevail, there are no public walks or gardens for recreation. True enjoyment, according to the notions of the genuine Muscovite, consists in sitting down to a well-furnished table, either in his own house
4 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER VIII.
CHAPTER VIII.
AN EARTHQUAKE—LUDICROUS ANECDOTE—SLEDGING—SPORTING— DANGEROUS PASSAGE OF THE DNIEPR—THAW; SPRING-TIME—MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE LITTLE RUSSIANS—EASTER HOLIDAYS—THE CLERGY. That same winter at 10 P.M. on the 11th of January, we had a smart shock of earthquake, but which happily did no mischief in that part of the steppes. We were seated at the whist table, when we were suddenly startled by a loud rolling noise, that seemed rapidly approaching us, and the cards dropped from our hands. The sound w
26 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER IX.
CHAPTER IX.
EXCURSION ON THE BANKS OF THE DNIEPR—DOUTCHINA—ELECTION OF THE MARSHALS AND JUDGES OF THE NOBILITY AT KHERSON—HORSE-RACING—STRANGE STORY IN THE "JOURNAL DES DÉBATS"—A COUNTRY HOUSE AND ITS VISITERS—TRAITS OF RUSSIAN MANNERS—THE WIFE OF TWO HUSBANDS—SERVANTS—MURDER OF A COURIER—APPENDIX. We left Clarofka in May, to explore the banks of the Dniepr, and the shores of the Sea of Azov. The object we had in view was purely scientific, but the journey became doubly interesting by affording us a closer
21 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER IX.
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER IX.
Petty Larceny. —"Highway robbery and burglary, with violence, are things wholly unknown in the greater part of Russia. The peasants laugh when they see foreigners travelling about with swords, pistols, and a whole arsenal of weapons. The Russian trader journeys from one end of the empire to the other, often with all he is worth in the world, and does not think it necessary even to carry a knife in his pocket; yet one never hears of their being robbed by force on the highways, at least in the par
11 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER X.
CHAPTER X.
DEPARTURE FOR THE CASPIAN—IEKATERINOSLAV—POTEMKIN'S RUINED PALACE—PASKEVITCH'S CAUCASIAN GUARD—SHAM FIGHT—INTOLERABLE HEAT—CATARACTS OF THE DNIEPR—GERMAN COLONIES—THE SETCHA OF THE ZAPOROGUES—A FRENCH STEWARD—NIGHT ADVENTURE—COLONIES OF THE MOLOSHNIA VODI—MR. CORNIES—THE DOUKOBOREN, A RELIGIOUS SECT. About the middle of May, 1839, we left the shores of the Black Sea, accompanied by a Cossack and an excellent dragoman, who spoke all the dialects current in Southern Russia. After we had travelled
30 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XI.
CHAPTER XI.
MARIOUPOL—BERDIANSK—KNAVISH JEW POSTMASTER—TAGANROK—MEMORIALS OF PETER THE GREAT AND ALEXANDER—GREAT FAIR—THE GENERAL WITH TWO WIVES—MORALITY IN RUSSIA—ADVENTURES OF A PHILHELLENE—A FRENCH DOCTOR—THE ENGLISH CONSUL—HORSE RACES—A FIRST SIGHT OF THE KALMUCKS. Our arrival in Marioupol unpleasantly reminded us that we were no longer in the German colonies. A dirty inn-room, horses not forthcoming, bread not to be had, nor even fresh water, rude employés —every thing in short was in painful contrast
17 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XII.
CHAPTER XII.
DEPARTURE FROM TAGANROK—SUNSET IN THE STEPPES—A GIPSY CAMP—ROSTOF; A TOWN UNPARALLELED IN THE EMPIRE—NAVIGATION OF THE DON—AZOV; ST. DIMITRI—ASPECT OF THE DON—NAKITCHEVANE, AND ITS ARMENIAN COLONY. As we turned our backs on Taganrok, we could easily foresee what we should have to suffer during our journey. A long drought and a temperature of 99° had already changed the verdant plains of the Don into an arid desert. At times the wind raised such billows of dust around us, that the sky was complet
16 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIII.
CHAPTER XIII.
GENERAL REMARKS ON NEW RUSSIA—ANTIPATHY BETWEEN THE MUSCOVITES AND MALOROSSIANS—FOREIGN COLONIES—GENERAL ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY, CATTLE, &c.—WANT OF MEANS OF COMMUNICATION—RIVER NAVIGATION; BRIDGES—CHARACTER OF THE MINISTER OF FINANCE—HISTORY OF THE STEAMBOAT ON THE DNIESTR—THE BOARD OF ROADS AND WAYS—ANECDOTE. New Russia, which we have now traversed in its whole length, from west to east, consists of the three governments of Kherson, Taurid, and Iekaterinoslav. It is bounded on the north
11 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER XIII.
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER XIII.
"Count Cancrine was the only statesman in Russia who possessed some share of learning and general information, though somewhat deficient in the knowledge specially applicable to his own department. He was a very good bookkeeper; but chemistry, mechanics, and technology were quite unknown to him. His sense of duty overbore all feelings of German nationality; he really desired the good of Russia, while at the same time he did not neglect his own affairs, for the care of which his post afforded him
1 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIV.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE DIFFERENT CONDITIONS OF MEN IN RUSSIA—THE NOBLES—DISCONTENT OF THE OLD ARISTOCRACY—THE MERCHANT CLASS—SERFDOM. The Russian nation is divided into two classes: the aristocracy, who enjoy all the privileges; and the people who bear all the burdens of the state. We must not, however, form to ourselves an idea of the Russian nobility at all similar to those we entertain of the aristocracies of Germany, or of ante-revolutionary France. In Russia, nobility is not exclusively conferred by birth, as
35 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIV.
CHAPTER XIV.
CONSTITUTION OF THE EMPIRE; GOVERNMENTS—CONSEQUENCES OF CENTRALISATION; DISSIMULATION OF PUBLIC FUNCTIONARIES—TRIBUNALS—THE COLONEL OF THE GENDARMERIE—CORRUPTION—PEDANTRY OF FORMS—CONTEMPT OF THE DECREES OF THE EMPEROR AND THE SENATE—SINGULAR ANECDOTE; INTERPRETATION OF A WILL—RADICAL EVILS IN THE JUDICIAL ORGANISATION—HISTORY AND PRESENT STATE OF RUSSIAN LAW. The existing division of the Russian empire into fifty-six governments dates from the reign of the Emperor Paul. A nearly similar organis
24 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XV.
CHAPTER XV.
PUBLIC INSTRUCTION—CORPS OF CADETS—UNIVERSITIES AND ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS; ANECDOTE—PLAN OF EDUCATION—MOTIVES FOR ATTENDING THE UNIVERSITIES—STATISTICS—PROFESSORS; THEIR IGNORANCE—EXCLUSION OF FOREIGN PROFESSORS—ENGINEERING—OBSTACLES TO INTELLECTUAL IMPROVEMENT—CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCLAVONIC RACE. In contemplating the development and organisation of public instruction in Russia from the time of Peter the Great to these days, one cannot help thinking that the Russians attach infinitely more value
15 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVI.
CHAPTER XVI.
ENTRY INTO THE COUNTRY OF THE DON COSSACKS—FEMALE PILGRIMS OF KIEV; RELIGIOUS FERVOUR OF THE COSSACKS—NOVO TCHERKASK, CAPITAL OF THE DON—STREET-LAMPS GUARDED BY SENTINELS—THE STREETS ON SUNDAY—COSSACK HOSPITALITY AND GOOD NATURE—THEIR VENERATION FOR NAPOLEON'S MEMORY. Beyond Nakhitchevane, several valleys abutting on the basin of the Don, isolated hamlets, and a few stanitzas, diversify the country, and make one forget the sterility of the steppes, that spread out their gray and scarcely undulat
7 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVII.
CHAPTER XVII.
ORIGIN OF THE DON COSSACKS—MEANING OF THE NAME—THE KHIRGHIS COSSACKS—RACES ANTERIOR TO THE COSSACKS—SCLAVONIC EMIGRATIONS TOWARDS THE EAST. The origin of the Don Cossacks has, like that of the Tatars of Southern Russia, given rise to interminable discussions. Some have represented this people as an offshoot of the great Sclavonic stock; others consider it as only a medley of Turks, Tatars, and Circassians. Vsevolojsky adopts the former of these opinions, in his Geographical and Historical Dictio
39 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XVIII.
CHAPTER XVIII.
JOURNEY FROM NOVO TCHERKASK ALONG THE DON—ANOTHER KNAVISH POSTMASTER—MUSCOVITE MERCHANTS—COSSACK STANITZAS. Beyond Novo Tcherkask the road to Astrakhan runs northward along the right bank of the Don; the country still continuing the same naked and monotonous appearance; it is only in the neighbourhood of the river that its desolation is here and there relieved by a few clumps of trees in the ravines. It is certainly not without reason that the Russians boast of the rapid travelling in their coun
20 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XIX.
CHAPTER XIX.
FIRST KALMUCK ENCAMPMENTS—THE VOLGA—ASTRAKHAN—VISIT TO A KALMUCK PRINCE—MUSIC, DANCING, COSTUME, &c.—EQUESTRIAN FEATS—RELIGIOUS CEREMONY—POETRY. At eight in the evening we left Sarepta, delighted in the highest degree with the good Moravian brethren, and the cordial hospitality they had shown us. At some distance from the colony, a dull white line, scarcely distinguishable through the gloom, announced the presence of the Volga. We followed its course all night, catching a glimpse of it f
37 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XX.
CHAPTER XX.
HISTORICAL NOTICE OF ASTRAKHAN—MIXED POPULATION; ARMENIANS, TATARS—SINGULAR RESULT OF A MIXTURE OF RACES—DESCRIPTION OF THE TOWN—HINDU RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES—SOCIETY. The history of Astrakhan is so well known that the reader will no doubt thank us for not recapitulating the various political revolutions that have taken place in the regions of which this town has been for so many ages the brilliant metropolis. After having made part of the empire of the Kaptshak, founded by Batou Khan, and after a
22 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXI.
CHAPTER XXI.
COMMERCIAL POSITION OF ASTRAKHAN—ITS IMPORTANCE IN THE MIDDLE AGES—ITS LOSS OF THE OVERLAND TRADE FROM INDIA—COMMERCIAL STATISTICS—FISHERIES OF THE CASPIAN—CHANGE OF THE MONETARY SYSTEM IN RUSSIA—BAD STATE OF THE FINANCES—RUSSIAN POLITICAL ECONOMY. There is no city, perhaps, of eastern Europe, which has played a more important part than Astrakhan in the commercial relations between Europe and Asia. Situated at the lower extremity of the largest navigable river of Europe, it communicates on the o
35 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXII.
CHAPTER XXII.
DEPARTURE FROM ASTRAKHAN—COAST OF THE CASPIAN—HAWKING—HOUIDOUK—THREE STORMY DAYS PASSED IN A POST-HOUSE—ARMENIAN MERCHANTS—ROBBERY COMMITTED BY KALMUCKS—CAMELS—KOUSKAIA—ANOTHER TEMPEST—TARAKANS—A REPORTED GOLD MINE. We left Astrakhan at eight in the evening, and were ferried across the Volga in a four-oared boat. It took us more than an hour to cross the river, its breadth opposite the town being more than 2000 yards. When we reached the opposite bank we might have fancied ourselves transported
14 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXIII.
CHAPTER XXIII.
ANOTHER ROBBERY AT HOUIDOUK—OUR NOMADE LIFE—CAMELS—KALMUCK CAMP—QUARREL WITH A TURCOMAN CONVOY, AND RECONCILIATION—LOVE OF THE KALMUCKS FOR THEIR STEPPES; ANECDOTE—A SATZA—SELENOI SASTAVA—FLEECED BY A LIEUTENANT-COLONEL—CAMEL-DRIVERS BEATEN BY THE KALMUCKS—ALARM OF A CIRCASSIAN INCURSION—SOURCES OF THE MANITCH—THE JOURNEY ARRESTED—VISIT TO A KALMUCK LADY— HOSPITALITY OF A RUSSIAN OFFICER. On returning to Houidouk, we found the postmaster in still greater perturbation than he had been cast into b
33 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXIV.
CHAPTER XXIV.
REVIEW OF THE HISTORY OF THE KALMUCKS. The account we have given of our journey on the banks of the Volga, and the steppes of the Caspian, will have afforded the reader an idea of the strange and striking habits of the nomade hordes that wander with their flocks over those vast deserts, and worship their Llamite deities with all the pomp and fervour of the nations of Thibet. Our historical and political sketch will serve as a complement to those primary notions. It is by no means our intention,
33 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXV.
CHAPTER XXV.
THE KALMUCKS AFTER THE DEPARTURE OF OUBACHA—DIVISION OF THE HORDES, LIMITS OF THEIR TERRITORY—THE TURKOMAN AND TATAR TRIBES IN THE GOVERNMENTS OF ASTRAKHAN AND THE CAUCASUS—CHRISTIAN KALMUCKS—AGRICULTURAL ATTEMPTS—PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, AND MORAL, CHARACTERISTICS OF THE KALMUCKS. After the departure of Oubacha, the Kalmucks that remained in Russia were deprived of their special jurisdiction, and for more than thirty years had neither khan nor vice-khan. It was not until 1802, that the Emperor Paul, i
27 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXVI.
CHAPTER XXVI.
[48] After the curious researches of M. Ferdinand Denis, respecting the cosmography and the fantastic histories of the middle ages, we can no longer wonder at the singular conceptions of the Kalmucks. The world of Cosmas has likewise its four great sacred rivers, and he, too, like the followers of the Dalai Lama, makes the sun and the stars revolve round a mystic column. We might point out many other analogies between the Mongol myths and those of the medieval writers; but we will rather refer t
1 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXVII.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE TATARS AND MONGOLS—THE KAPTSHAK—HISTORY AND TRADITIONS OF THE NOGAIS. Perhaps no people has given occasion to more discussions than the Tatars and Mongols, nor is the problem of their origin completely solved in our day, notwithstanding the most learned investigations. Some admit that the Tatars and Mongols formed but one nation, others allege that they are two essentially different races. According to Lesvèque d'Herbelot and Lesur [50] the Tatars are but Turks. Klaproth, [51] while he asser
30 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXVIII.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
BANKS OF THE KOUMA; VLADIMIROFKA—M. REBROF'S REPULSE OF A CIRCASSIAN FORAY—BOURGON MADJAR—JOURNEY ALONG THE KOUMA—VIEW OF THE CAUCASIAN MOUNTAINS—CRITICAL SITUATION—GEORGIEF—ADVENTURE WITH A RUSSIAN COLONEL—STORY OF A CIRCASSIAN CHIEF. Notwithstanding the dangers and hardships that had attended our desert wanderings, it was not without some degree of regret we bade a final adieu to the Kalmucks, whose patriarchal simplicity of life we had shared for more than a month. But as we approached Vladim
21 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXIX.
CHAPTER XXIX.
ROAD FROM GEORGIEF TO THE WATERS OF THE CAUCASUS—A POLISH LADY CARRIED OFF BY CIRCASSIANS—PIATIGORSK—KISLOVODSK—HISTORY OF THE MINERAL WATERS OF THE CAUCASUS. From Georgief we set out for Piatigorsk, the chief watering place of the Caucasus, and travelled for three hours over a dreary plain, with nothing for the eye to rest on but here and there a long conical mound, that scarcely broke the dull monotony of the landscape; and even these were scarcely visible through the foggy atmosphere. We felt
18 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXX.
CHAPTER XXX.
SITUATION OF THE RUSSIANS AS TO THE CAUCASUS. HISTORY OF THEIR ACQUISITION OF THE TRANS-CAUCASIAN PROVINCES—GENERAL TOPOGRAPHY OF THE CAUCASUS—ARMED LINE OF THE KOUBAN AND THE TEREK—BLOCKADE OF THE COASTS—CHARACTER AND USAGES OF THE MOUNTAINEERS—ANECDOTE—VISIT TO A CIRCASSIAN PRINCE. Among the various Asiatic nations which force and diplomacy are striving to subject to the Muscovite sceptre, there is one against which the whole might of Russia has hitherto been put forth in vain. The warlike tri
38 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXI.
CHAPTER XXXI.
RETROSPECTIVE VIEW OF THE WAR IN THE CAUCASUS—VITAL IMPORTANCE OF THE CAUCASUS TO RUSSIA—DESIGNS ON INDIA, CENTRAL ASIA, BOKHARA, KHIVA, &c.—RUSSIAN AND ENGLISH COMMERCE IN PERSIA. The treaty of Adrianople was in a manner the opening of a new era in the relations of Russia with the mountaineers; for it was by virtue of that treaty that the present tzar, already master of Anapa and Soudjouk Kaleh, pretended to the sovereignty of Circassia and of the whole seaboard of the Black Sea. True t
58 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXII.
CHAPTER XXXII.
A STORM IN THE CAUCASUS—NIGHT JOURNEY; DANGERS AND DIFFICULTIES—STAVROPOL—HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE GOVERNMENT OF THE CAUCASUS AND THE BLACK SEA COSSACKS. At four o'clock on a dull morning we left Piatigorsk of charming memory, to strike once more into the mountains, where by the by, in less than an hour, we were met by one of the grandest and most violent storms I remember ever having witnessed. We had to endure its force for two long hours; and our situation was the more critical, since our yem
22 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXIII.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
RAPID JOURNEY FROM STAVROPOL—RUSSIAN WEDDING—PERILOUS PASSAGE OF THE DON; ALL SORTS OF DISASTERS BY NIGHT—TAGANROK; COMMENCEMENT OF THE COLD SEASON—THE GERMAN COLONIES REVISITED. It would have been impossible to travel more rapidly than we did from Stavropol to the Don. The steppe is as smooth as a mirror, and the posting better conducted than in any other part. We no sooner reached a station, than horses, which had been brought out the moment we were descried, were put to, and galloped away wit
14 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXIV.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
DEPARTURE FOR THE CRIMEA—BALACLAVA—VISIT TO THE MONASTERY OF ST. GEORGE—SEVASTOPOL—THE IMPERIAL FLEET. After a winter spent in the pleasures of repose, we left Odessa at the end of April to visit the Crimea, on board the Julia , a handsome brig, owned and commanded by M. Taitbout de Marigny. Our departure was extremely brilliant. The two cannons of the Julia , and those of the Little Mary , that was to sail in company with us, announced to the whole town that we were about to weigh anchor. Our p
21 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXV.
CHAPTER XXXV.
BAGTCHE SERAI—HISTORICAL REVOLUTIONS OF THE CRIMEA—THE PALACE OF THE KHANS—COUNTESS POTOCKI. After our excursion to Inkermann we left Sevastopol the same day, glad to quit the Russians and their naval capital for Bagtche Serai, that ancient city, which previously to the Muscovite conquest might still vie in power and opulence with the great cities of the East. Even now, though much decayed, Bagtche Serai is the most interesting town in the Crimea. The road which leads to it runs parallel with a
18 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXVI.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
SIMPHEROPOL—KAKOLEZ—VISIT TO PRINCESS ADEL BEY—EXCURSION TO MANGOUP KALEH. Under the Tatars Simpheropol was the second town of the Crimea, and the residence of the Kalga Sultan, whose functions were nearly equivalent to those of vice-khan. He exercised the regency of the country on the death of the khan, until his successor was nominated by the Porte. The Kalga's court was composed of the same functionaries as that of Bagtche Serai, and his authority extended over all the regions north of the Cr
12 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXVII.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
ROAD TO BAIDAR—THE SOUTHERN COAST; GRAND SCENERY—MISKHOR AND ALOUPKA—PREDILECTION OF THE GREAT RUSSIAN NOBLES FOR THE CRIMEA. The country we passed over, next day, on our way to the southern coast, had a wild sylvan appearance strikingly in contrast with what we had hitherto seen. Between the valley of Karolez and that of Baidar near the coast, lies a chain of mountains with deep gorges filled with forests. Sometimes the road passed along the bottom of one of these gorges, where we were constant
8 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
THREE CELEBRATED WOMEN. Every one is aware of the mystic influence which Madame de Krudener exercised for many years over the enthusiastic temperament of the Emperor Alexander. This lady who has so charmingly portrayed her own character in Valérie , who was pre-eminently distinguished in the aristocratic salons of Paris by her beauty, her talents, and her position as an ambassadress, who was by turns a woman of the world, a heroine of romance, a remarkable writer, and a prophetess, will not soon
27 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XXXIX.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
IALTA—KOUTCHOUK LAMPAT—PARTHENIT—THE PRINCE DE LIGNE'S HAZEL—OULOU OUZEN; A GARDEN CONVERTED INTO AN AVIARY—TATAR YOUNG WOMEN—EXCURSION TO SOUDAGH— MADEMOISELLE JACQUEMART. The proximity of Ialta to the most remarkable places on the coast, its harbour, and its delightful situation, make it the rendezvous of all the travellers who flock to the Crimea in the fine season. A packet-boat from Odessa brings every week a large number of passengers, and the harbour is further enlivened by a multitude of
9 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XL.
CHAPTER XL.
RUINS OF SOLDAYA—ROAD TO THEODOSIA—CAFFA—MUSCOVITE VANDALISM—PENINSULA OF KERTCH—PANTICAPEA AND ITS TOMBS. Leaving my wife to return with Mademoiselle Jacquemart to Oulou Ouzen, I took my way by the lower part of the valley of Soudagh through a labyrinth of vineyards and meadows covered with blossoming peach and apricot trees. Passing the paltry village that has borrowed one of the names of the celebrated Soldaya, we soon arrived at the sea beach at the foot of the triple castle erected by the i
26 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XLI.
CHAPTER XLI.
POLITICAL AND COMMERCIAL REVOLUTIONS OF THE CRIMEA. EXTENT AND CHARACTER OF SURFACE—MILESIAN AND HERACLEAN COLONIES—KINGDOM OF THE BOSPHORUS—EXPORT AND IMPORT TRADE IN THE TIMES OF THE GREEK REPUBLICS—MITHRIDATES—THE KINGDOM OF THE BOSPHORUS UNDER THE ROMANS—THE ALANS AND GOTHS—SITUATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KHERSON—THE HUNS; DESTRUCTION OF THE KINGDOM OF THE BOSPHORUS—THE KHERSONITES PUT THEMSELVES UNDER THE PROTECTION OF THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE—DOMINION OF THE KHAZARS—THE PETCHENEGUES AND KOMANS—TH
18 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XLII.
CHAPTER XLII.
COMMERCIAL POLITY OF RUSSIA IN THE CRIMEA—CAFFA SACRIFICED IN FAVOUR OF KERTCH—THESE TWO PORTS COMPARED—THE QUARANTINE AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE SEA OF AZOF, AND ITS CONSEQUENCES—COMMERCE OF KERTCH—VINEYARDS OF THE CRIMEA; THE VALLEY OF SOUDAK—AGRICULTURE—CATTLE— HORTICULTURE—MANUFACTURES; MOROCCO LEATHER— DESTRUCTION OF THE GOATS—DECAY OF THE FORESTS—SALT WORKS—GENERAL TABLE OF THE COMMERCE OF THE CRIMEA—PROSPECTS OF THE TATAR POPULATION. When the Russian authority was fully established in the Cri
32 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
CHAPTER XLIII.
CHAPTER XLIII.
HISTORICAL SKETCH OF BESSARABIA. TOPOLOGY—ANCIENT FORTRESSES—THE RUSSIAN POLICY IN BESSARABIA—EMANCIPATION OF THE SERFS—COLONIES—CATTLE—EXPORTS AND IMPORTS—MIXED POPULATION OF THE PROVINCE. To complete our account of the southern regions of Russia, it remains for us to speak of Bessarabia, the most remote province which the tzars possess on the shores of the Black Sea, and the country which formed, down to the commencement of the present century, one of the most valuable possessions of the princ
24 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter
NOTE.
NOTE.
To complete our author's account of Sevastopol, we subjoin an abstract of a paper by Mr. Shears, C.E., which was read at the meeting of the Institution of Civil Engineers, January 12, 1847. "Sevastopol is very peculiarly situated, amidst rocky ground, rising so abruptly from the shore, that there was not space for the buildings necessary for a dockyard. On account of the depth of water close in shore, and other natural advantages, the emperor determined to make it the site of an extensive establ
2 minute read
Read Chapter
Read Chapter