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I
THE BANQUET OF THE BEGGARS
{TIm fUbUm of Holland and Bolglum Vow to Fifht for Freodom acaliMt Spain)
From the painting by the contemporary FUmidi artiet, Charles Soubre
THE Netherlands, or at least that northern portion of
them which we now call Holland, date their independent
existence from the year 1506. They had been subjects
of the mighty empire of the terrible Spanish king Philip II.
But the awful cruelties and executions caused by his religious
''Inquisition" drove them to a revolt of despair. When the
rebellion began, Philip's half-sister, Margaret of Parma, was
his regent in Brussels, the capital of the Netherlands. A huge
gathering of the people drew from her a promise to try to
suppress the Inquisition. ''Are you afraid," asked one of her
courtiers contemptuously, "of these beggars?" He referred
not only to the rabble of poor folk, but also to the lesser nobles
who had become impoverished by their opposition to King
Philip.
At a banquet held by these nobles the same evening the
name of "beggars," which had thus been applied to them in
soom, was adopted in defiance. A beggar's bowl and wallet
were passed around the cheering assembly, and each man took
oath to give up eveiyting for the cause and become a beggar
in very truth. In the midst of the tumult the great leader of
the Netherlands, William of Orange, entered the banquet-hall.
He was at once called to join the new organization; and though
as a great noble of vast estates he did not and indeed could not
promise to become a beggar, he drank to the success of their
cause. From that moment the armed rebellion began; and
William became its hero.
U-
•' » . •
.11.
• I
■ •/
r
I
The Story of the Greatest Nations
A COMPREHENSIVE HISTORY, EXTENDING FROM THE
EARLIEST TIMES TO THE PRESENT, FOUNDED ON
THE MOST MODERN AUTHORITIES, AND
INCLUDING CHRONOLOGICAL SUM-
MARIES AND PRONOUNCING
VOCABULARIES FOR
EACH NATION
Alld
The World's Famous Events
TOLD IN A SERIES OF BRIFJ? SKETCHES FORMING A
SINGLE CONTINUOUS STORY OF HISTORY AND
ILLUMINED BY A COMPLETE SERII':S OF
NOTABLE ILLUSTRATIONS FROM
THE GREAT HISTORIC PAINT-
INGS OF ALL LANDS
By
Edward S. Ellis, A. M.
N- .
AND
Charles F. Horne, Ph.D
PUBLISHED BY
FRANCIS R. NIGLUTSCH
New York
^2
k/0
CopvRjQiiT, 1913, 1914
BY
F. 11. NIGLUTSCH
CONTENTS-VOLUME X.
MODERN NATIONS
TURKEY.
PAGE.
Cbapteb I. — Founding of the Kingdom op Osman, .... 1737
Chapter II. — The First Period of Power and the Fall of Bajazet, 1742
Chapter III. — The Recovery of the Empire and the Capture op Constan-
tinople BY Mahomet II 1751
Chapter IV. — Religious Supremacy Established Under Selim the
Destroyer, . 1759
Chapter V. — ^The Splendor op Solyman the Magnificent, 1768
Cbapteb VI. — Internal Decay and its Temporary Arrest under Murad IV., 1777
Chaptes VII, — Downfall of Turkish Power and Efforts of the Kiuprili, 1786
Chaptes Vin. — The Eighteenth Century and the Wars with Russia, . 1793
Chapteb IX. — ^Rbforhs of Seliu III. and Mahmud II 1797
Cbapteb X. — The Recent Generations, 1802
Chbokology Qp the TuRKtsa Empire, 1807
RULEMS op the OsMANU, I808
SCANDINAVIA.
Chaptbe I- — The Legendary Days op Odin 1809
Chattk* H- — '^'^^ Viking Age and Canute the Great, .... 1813
Cbapixb H^- — Fower of Denmark under the Three Waldeuars, . . iSas
tv
Contents — Volume X.
Chapter IV. — Queen Margaret and the Union of Kalmar, . • ^
Chapter V. — Breaking of the Union under Christian II.,
Chapter VI. — Gustavus Vasa and the Rise of Sweden, ....
Chapter VII. — Gustavus Adolphus and the Thirty Years' War,
Chapter VIII. — The Zenith of Swedish Power and its Decline under
Charles XII., .
Chapter IX. — ^The Union of Sweden and Norway under Bernadotte,
Chapter X. — The Nineteenth Century and the Present Day,
Chronology of Scandinavia,
Rulers of Scandinavia ....
THE NETHERLANDS
Chapter I. — The Early Days,
Chapter II. — ^The Feudal Age,
^Chapter III. — Rise of the Great Cities,
Chapter IV. — The Burgundian Period,
Chapter V. — The Great Rebellion,
Chapter VI. — Glory and Decay of Holland,
Chapter VII. — Later History of the Netherlands
Chronology of the Netherlands,
Pronouncing Vocabulary,
Index, •
i8!3C
1840
1847
1855
1863
1871
1876
1878
1^79
1883
1889
1897
1906
1915
1921
1926
1928
1929
»" > ^ •
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS VOLUME X.
FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS.
TO PACE PAGE
The Netherlands, Frontispiece
The Gateway of History Title-page
The Turkish Empire, . ' 1738
The Revival of Mahometanisiu, ........ 1740
Starting the Career of ContHK-st 1742
Osman's Greatest Triumph 1744
The Norsemen Aid Constantinople, ....... 1746
Solyman Attacks Europe , 1748
Servia Ravaged, 1750
On the Field of Nicopolis 1752
The Downfall of Bajazet, 1754
Mahomet I Regains Empire, ........ 1756
Murad Repulsed from Constantinople, ....... 1758
Scanderbeg Rouses Albania 1760
Downfall of Constantinople, 1762
Scanderbeg Abandons Albania, 1764
The Romance of Prince Djem, ........ 1766
Selim Unites the Mahometan World, 1768
Death of Selim the Destroyer, 1770
Solyman's Ambassador Slain 1772
The Hungarian Vassal King, 1774
Barbarossa's Captives, 1776
Solyman at Home 1778
Hungary's Uprising, 1780
The Captives from Lepanto 1782
A Harem Tragedy, 1784
VI
List of Illustrations — Volume X,
The Last Great Victory,
The Defeat at St. Gotthard,
The Repulse from Vienna, .
The Loss of Buda, .
The Servian Uprising,
A Moment of Victory,
The Russian Advance,
Turkey Establishes a Parliamentj
The Berlin Conference,
Turkey's Last Successful War,
Abdul Hamid's Downfall, .
The Opening of the Balkan War
Scandinavia,
The Stone Age in Sweden, .
Odin's Death Voyage,
-«:gir the Sea God,
The Last of the Inglings, .
Ragnar Seeks Adventures, .
Thyra, "The Ornament of Denmark,
Heathen and Christian,
Establishment of the Danish Flag
The Dead Queen Speaks, .
Downfall of Waldemar,
The Sack of Wisby,
The Later Kings of Denmark,
King Eric Deserts His Kingdom,
Sweden Defeats Christian H,
Death of Sten Sture, .
Kings of Sweden's Power, .
Protestantism Enters Sweden,
Sweden's Catholic Martyrs,
Madness of King Eric,
Eric Forced to Abdicate,
Repulse of the Polish Invaders,
Farewell of Gustavus to Sweden,
Germany Welcomes Gustavus,
Prayer of the Swedes at Lutzen,
Gustavus Returns to Sweden,
Denmark's Greatest Naval Victory,
The Danish Victory of Oland,
Charles XII at Narva,
tt
TO FACE PAGE
1786
1788
1790
1792
1794
1796
1798
1800
1802
1804
1806
1808
181O
1812
1814
1816
I818
1820
1822 '
1824
1826
1828
1830
1832
1834
1836
1838
1840
1842
1844
1846
1848
1850
1852
1854
1856
1858
i860
1862
1864
1866
List of Illustrations '—Volume X. vii
TO PACE PAGE
The Swedes Reconquer Scania, .
Bringing the Hero Home, .
Death of Gustavus UI,
Coronation of King Christian IX,
The Victory of Peace,
Norway Separates from Sweden,
Finding the South Pole,
The Netherlands,
Vdeda Rouses the Netherlands, .
Flight of the Qergy from Utrecht,
The Rise of the Flemish Cities, .
Baldwin of the Axe, .
Baldwin IX in Constantinople, .
The Revolt of the North, .
"The Great Fleming,"
The Last Count of Flanders,
Burgundy Gains Holland, .
Granting "The Great Privilege," .
The Young Ruler of the World, .
The World Ruler Grown Old, .
Spain and Holland Part,
The Fear of King Philip, .
Alva's "Council of Blood,
Alva's Downfall,
The "Spanish Fury,
Death of William the Silent,
Spanish Rule in the South,
Royalty and the Republicans,
Queen Wilhelmina's Wedding,
The Belgian Labor Troubles,
tf
• •••••••
99
ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT.
868
870
872
874
876
878
880
882
884
886
888
890
892
894
896
898
900
902
904
906
908
910
912
914
916
918
920
922
924
926
PAGE
Ertoghrul Taking Possession of Sultan-QEni, 1737
The Vision of Solyman, 1742
Ornament, 1750
Mahomet the Conqueror at Belgrade, .1751
Janizaries Seizing Christian Children, 1758
First Siege of Rhodes, 1759
Swords of Selim the Destroyer, 1767
viu List of Illustrations — ^Volume X.
TO FACE PAGE
Khaireddin's Victory off Prcvesa, • . 1768
Solyman the Magnificent, 1776
The Siege of Szigeth, • / . . . 1777
Turkish Warrior {from a contemporary print), 1785
The Turks Besieging Vienna, 1786
Kara Mustapha, 1791
Cossacks Raiding the Turkish Crimea, 1791
Battle of Navarino, • 1797
Coronation of Abdul Hamid II., i8oa
Modern Turkish Types, 1806
Prehistoric Relics in Sweden, 1809
Sweyn Forkbeard, 181 3
The Last Cruise of Ragnar Lodbrok, 1821
Setting Out of the Esthonian Crusade, 1822
Eric of Pomerania Repelling the Poles, 1830
Escape of Christian from Stockholm, 1834
Coronation of Charles IX., . . • . 1840
Gustavus Welcomed by the German Cities, 1847
Ornament, 1^54
Bearing Home the Body of Charles XIL, 1855
The Palace of Charles XII. at Stockholm, 1862
Battle of the Danes against Nelson, 1863
Germans Bombarding the Danish Fleet, 1849, 1870
Death of Frederick VII. Announced in Copenhagen, 1871
Ornament, . 1875
The Batavian Cavalry, 1879
In Ancient Flanders, 1883
The Flemish Crusaders, 1883
The Attack on Van Artevelde, 1889
Mary of Burgundy Entreating Pardon for her Courtiers, .... 18J97
Medal of the "Beggars," 1905
Margaret of Parma Receives the Beggars' Petition, 1906
The Dutch Capital in the West Indies, 19x4
The Dutch Capital in the East Indies, 1915
The Belgian Labor Strike, 1931
Queen Wilhelmina and her Consort, 192^;
THE
THE STORY OF
GREATEST NATIONS
MODERN NATIONS — TURKEY
Chapter I
FOUNDING OF THE KINGDOM OF OSMAN
^^t^ [Amtkfritiri—GenemI- Von HuDiner Pmgstail, ■■History of the Oltomaii Empire" (in Gcfnwn);
^HuMar. "Hittor)' uf the Ollomui Turks"; Larpent, "History of the Tutkfsh Empire"; Lamaitine.
■rVViHorr of Turkey"; Cantemir, ■■Hitlory of the Growth and Decay ol the Ottoman Empire"': Morris.
•The Tiukith Emiiire"; Unc-Poolc. "The Story of Turkey"; G«mett. "Turkish Life in Town and
Couiury"; Gtotyenor, ■■Constantinople, "—iiima/.- Vainbery. "The Turkish Races."]
CONSTANTINOPLE, the Turkish capital, the mysterious,
ancient, ever- flourishing city, sacred alike to Christian
and Mahometan, stands in its wondrous beauty upon
European shores; yet Turkey is an Asiatic State. Her
story belongs to Asia, the world of dreamy fancy and
lurid legend, not of sober fact and accurately dated
history. Hence one can speak of Turkey only after
the fashion of her own clime, repeating the poetic fan-
ta^es with which her writers have adorned her early days, enjoying
the beauty and noling the symbolism of each new tale, but with
not loo deep a faith in its mathematical veracity.
ITie story deals first with Ertoghrul, whose name means the right-hearted
man; and the hero who succeeds him is Osman, the Umb-breaker. The
1737
1738 The Story of the Greatest Nations
significant titles indicate the chief qualities for which the Turks take pride
Uieir far ancestors. Those founders of the race were sturdy warriors a
"right-hearted" men of honor.
This is certainly not the general conception of the Turks, held by t
peoples of the West; but if we are to appreciate or understand at
the marvellous rise of this fierce yet romantic race, we must begin by castii
aside the false ideas which many of us have acquired through dwelli:
only on the evil side of the character of a fallen foe. Let us start on the ba
of a few plam facts. Western ignorance and indeed indifference as regards thir
Asiatic, are so dense that we blunder over the very name of this people and of th
land. To speak of the Turkish Empire at Constantinople is as mistaken as
speak of the Caucasian Empire at London. Turk is really a general name coveri
all the nations and tribes which once spread over northern Asia and most of Russ
The name, to a gentleman of Constantinople, suggests something of wildness a
barbarism. His own nation is a special branch of the Turkish race, the one tt
has risen above all others in intellect, in civilization and fame. The memb<
of this noteworthy people are called the Osmanli, for they are the followers
Osman, or as the West has carelessly spelled it, Othman. Their domain, by
still further perversion of sound, we entitle the Ottoman Empire.
Turn now to the tale of its beginning. The first leader, Ertoghrul, steps ir
the light of romance as a hero of about the middle of the thirteenth century, t
central figure of a striking and characteristic episode. At the time of his appearar
the great religious crusades were just at an end, and if they had disrupted Europe
kingdoms, far more had they shaken and shattered the East. The vast emp
of the Mahometan Arabs had fallen into fragments; and Western Asia, the regi*
of Persia, Syria, and Asia Minor, the birthplace of civilization, was occupied
a confusion of many peoples, the most numerous among them being perhaps
Turkish race, descendants of the many bands of Turks which for centuries hi
wandered down from the wild and barren north-east. One tribe of these Turl
the Seljuks, had even founded a sort of empire of their own in Asia Minor. Th
rulers or Sultans had established their capital at Iconium and had fought valian
against the Crusaders. But their power had wasted to a shadow, they were sU
gering under the assaults of other invading hordes.
Into this world of tumult and confusion there entered another Turkish peep
as yet a tribe without fixed name, the Osmanli of the future. They were "khaza
or cossacks, which means wanderers, — nomads, owners of vast flocks and hei
with which they roamed over the wide grassy wildernesses of the north. FoUowi
in the footsteps of endless earlier tribes, they grew numerous and strong and beg
to push their way southward, seeking ever pleasanter, warmer dwelUng-lan
with richer pasturage. They had crossed Armenia, taking uncounted yea
•
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toiJ • ,— - • ' * ■>' — . I — '• ' . ' . - * * ^ ■ ,\
THE TURKISH EMPIRE
(TtM Empir* at Ito WldMt Eitant Uadar Salynwn tha Maanifient)
Drawn *p*Bialty for tku itrit* by Autlin Smith
RECENT events have driven the Turk almost out of
Europe. He still clings only to its extreme shore where
his two SHcred cities, Constantinople and Adrianople,
form DOW the outposts of hiis domain. This retreat from his
once widespread European possessions has been his "manifest
destiny" for more than a century; so that it is a difficult mat-
ter for the present generation to realize what a power the
Turks once had, what a terribly menacing overwhelming flood
their advance once seemed to Ihe European nations.
To gain some realization of Turkey's past strength, give
a glance at the accompanying map, which shows her empire
as it stood a little over three centuries ago, in tlie year 1590,
under the great Sultan, Solyman the Magnificent. To the
east, it extended farther than Rome's power had ever done,
crowding close against tlie capital eity of a defeated and al-
most eonijuered Persia. To the south, the Sultan ruled over
Egypt and all northern Africa. The fleets of hia adherents
swept the Meiliterranean and held as provinces all its great
islands, Sicily, Sardinia and even at times the far westward
Balearic Isles. Northward the Turks held all the Black Sea
Coast and had defeated the Russians and the Poles, pausing
only when the land seemed too barren and too cold for con-
quest. AVestward they had been moving onward for two cen-
turies despite all the concentrated opposition of Europe. And
over all this vast empire Solyman ruled as absolute master.
Turkey — Ertoghrul in Sultan-OEni 1739
perhaps generations, in their advance. They were moving down the Upper
Euphrates River into Syria, when their chief was drowned in the stream, leaving
part of his inheritance to a young son, Ertoghnil, loo youthful, thought his wild
followers, to give them protection or to deserve obedience. So the tribe scattered
in all directions, as fancy moved them. Only a remnant of the most loyal clung
to Ertoghrul, leaving him a band of four hundred and forty-four horsemen, a
fitting, symbolic number of faithful and valiant clansmen.
In his wanderings the new chief had heard of the great Turkish Sultan at
Iconium, and with this lord he resolved to seek shelter and ser\'ice for his people.
Journeying through the valds of Asia Minor, he and his followers heard one day
a furious dash of arms. Watching from a hill, they saw two armies in the shock
of battle, and the weaker side, though fighting desperately, began to give way
before overwhelming numbers. With characteristic chivalry and impetuosity,
Ertoghrul stayed not to learn the causes of the quarrel, but crying to his band that
they must restore the uneven balance, he led them in a wild charge into the aflFray.
Small as the troop was, the shock of its unexpected appearance and attack decided
the fortune of the day. The enemy fled, and Ertoghrul, showered with the
thanks and praise of those whom he had rescued, found that their general was the
very ruler he was seeking, — the Sultan of Iconium.
It may be imagined how eagerly the Sultan accepted the adherence of these
proven veterans. He conferred on them the lordship of a province in northern
Asia Minor, centering about the city of Saguta, and charged them to defend the
land against the ever-recurring invasions of the Tartar hordes. Ertoghrul ruled
wisely, and gathered round him a strong army from the inhabitants of the district
and from the many adventurers, chiefly of Turkish race, who joined his standard.
He soon found that he was really an independent ruler, who must rely on his own
resources. Wandering bands like his own were constantly appearing to attack
him. The Sultan's authority was only a shadow. Each warlike Emir (lord) of
a city fought against the others, and the only law was that of the strongest.
By that law Ertoghrul proved his right to rule. Verj' gradually he made him-
self assured master of the territories that had been granted him. In a battle fought
against the forces of the Greek cities bordering the coast of the Black Sea, he
originated a new style of tactics which remained for centuries the favorite mode
of attack among his people. He repeatedly sent his light troops against the enemy,
not to lock with them in death-grapple, but to harass, bewilder and exhaust the
foe. Then seizing the vital moment, the chieftain swept his lighter forces aside
and charged with his own veterans, fresh, fierce, and eager to prove their right
to the proud supremacy they held. .
A complete victory resulted, and Ertoghrul was thereafter recognized as the
chief lieutenant of the feeble Sultan, and as defender of all the northern frontiers.
I740 The Story of the Greatest Nations
His province was greatly enlarged, and to it was given the name of Sultan-CEni,^
the Sultan's stand.
The new Emir of Sultan-CEni always remained loyal to the trust he had ac-
cepted, and maintained his nominal allegiance to the Sultan at Iconium. Hence
he was not the founder of a new kingdom, though his province was practically
an independent state and the best governed and best ordered in Asia Minor. The
"right-hearted" Emir died in 1288 and left his authority to his son Osman, the
limb-breaker.
As to whether Ertoghrul and his people had adopted the Mahometan faith
before entering Asia Minor, the Turkish historians differ. The more commonly
accepted legend represents them as rude, uncultured pagans. Their leader,
we are assured, was first made acquainted with the Koran in the house of a Mahome-
tan whom he saw reading it. Being told the book was the word of God, Ertoghrul
examined it and was so impressed that he stood erect and in that attitude of rever-
ence continued reading the entire night. Then, as if in a vision, he heard a solemn
voice from above which spoke a promise: "Since thou hast read with such respect
My Eternal word, even in the same manner shall thy children and thy children's
children be honored from generation to generation."
Despite this vision, young Osman seems to have been brought up in the pagan
faith of his ancestors, for the pretty love legend of his youth, a favorite theme
©f Oriental poets, is based on his conversion. According to the tales, there was
a learned Mahometan sheik who dwelt in a village near Ertoghrul's capital. More
famed even than the learning of the sheik was the beauty of his one daughter Mal-
khatoon or the moon maiden; and the lad Osman, first attracted to the house
by the wisdom of the sire, remained as a suitor for the daughter. The sheik refused
the alliance because Osman was an unbeliever; and the young prince submitted
reverently. Still raving however, of his lady-love, he described her beauty in such
impassioned terms to a neighboring Emir that the latter also became enamored,
and striving to win the maid by rougher means, drove her and her father to seek
shelter in the home of her more respectful admirer. Here the discourses of the
sheik completed the conversion of Osman. Like his father Ertoghrul, the shrewd
young convert had a vision. In this, if we omit the flowery details and symbols
so dear to Turkish fancy, he saw a picture of the descendants of himself and the
moon maiden governing the whole earth and, through the power of many crescent
sdmeters, spreading throughout their domains the religion of Mahomet.
So impressive a vision would scarce allow itself to be misunderstood or dis-
obeyed. The young pair were wedded, Osman's warlike followers adopted his
new religion with its invitation to conquest, and Mahometanism took a fresh lease
of life. Over five centuries had elapsed since the exhaustion of that first impulse
which sent the Arab followers of Mahomet across half the known world with the
*'.-.
, I
, I
i .
f:t''
' ■'*
THE REVIVAL OF MAHOMETANISM
(0«man and His Turks Adopt th« Mahomstan Faith)
From the Turkith hittorical seriet by T, C. Jack, of Edmburph
THE advance of the Turks may fairly be said to have
begun with their acceptance of Mahometan ism under
their leader Osman at the close of the thirteenth cen-
tury. Before this they were a wild Tartar tribe who, wander-
ing forth from Central Asia, had accepted service under a
Mahometan king or sultan of Asia Minor and had been given
rule over the district of Sultan-CEni. At this period, nearly
seven hundred years after Mahomet's death, his warlike re-
ligion had lost its original impulse of conquest. The tide of
Mahometanism no longer threatened to engulf the world; on
the contrary it was ebbing. The Christian Crusades had
broken its power and its enthusiasm ; and Mahometans talked
of martyrdom and death rather than of victory and glory.
Then Osman, the young head of the Turkish tribe, had or
declared he had, a vision urging him to accept Mahometanism
and promising that under his leadership the faith would re-
vive and sweep the earth in conquest. He was wooing at the
time the daughter of a Mahometan religious teacher. She
was called the Moon Maiden ; and Osman 's vision mingled the
crescent of the moon with the crescent-shaped scimetars of his
followers, and chose the crescent as the symbol of his new
faith and purpose. His followers eagerly accepted his mystic
promises of exalted deeds and much plunder; and they fol-
lowed their chief into his new faith much as they would have
followed him in any other dashing enterprise.
X-3
Turkey — Osman Founds a Kingdom 1741
Koran and the sword. Their remarkable empire had long disappeared, but their
religion remained, and now a new myriad of scimetcrs were consecrated to the
work of conversion.
In many respects Mahometanism resembles Christianity. It has indeed been
called a debased form of the earlier faith; for its followers accept the teachings
of Christ, whom they regard as a great prophet whose commands have, however,
been supplanted, and to some extent superseded, by those of the later and greater
prophet, Mahomet. His doctrines are eminently fitted to inspire a rude and
warlike race, for they expressly direct the spreading of the faith by the sword,
and they promise physical bliss, instant and perfect, to all who perish in the holy
strife. Thus by the word of Osman, what had been only a band of nomads,
doubtless a mixture of many races, Mongols and Turcomans as well as Turks,
growing like a snowball larger and more heterogeneous in their wandering advance
— this mass was welded into a single nation, inspired by one common impulse.
Osman followed quietly at first in his father's footsteps, completing and en-
forcing his power over Sultan-QEni. He was a wise and just ruler, and not until
after many years of peace did he (1299) begin to extend his territory through con-
quest. One of his earliest aggressive expeditions gave rise to another legend,
treasured by his people as typical of their race. Being about to seize one of the
Greek fortresses upon his borders, Osman called a council of his warriors. His
aged uncle, who had accompanied Ertoghrul in all the wanderings of the tribe,
pleaded for caution. Whereon Osman, fearing that his followers would begin to
look coldly on his schemes, snatched up a bow and shot his uncle dead. No man
after that dared counsel him to peace.
It was not, however, until twenty years after his father's death that Osman as-
sumed a wholly independent sovereignty. His wars were fought and his provinces
held in the name of the Sultans of Iconium. In 1307, the last of these to whom he
had sworn allegiance died; upon which Osman abandoned the few remaining forms
of vassalage and continued his career of conquest as a monarch in his own right.
He did not change his simple title of Emir or lord for that of Sultan or supreme
ruler; but about this time he took to himself the two most distinctive attributes
and privileges of sovereignty in the East. He bade that the public prayers of Sul-
tan-CEni be said in his own name, and he coined money bearing the stamp of his
own head- Thus it was he, rather than his father, who became the founder of
a new kingdom. It was he who gave it its new religious impulse, and from him
it has become known as the realm of Osman and of his successors, the Osmanli.
Chapter II
THE FIRST PERIOD OF POWER AND THE FALL OF BAJAZET
^ROM the doubtful kingship of a petty border state to the
aisured sovereignty of a mighty empire, is no easy
climb; nor did the Osmanli achieve it in a single geneia-
tiQn. Emir Osman himself was busy all his life waning
against the Greek cities of the Black Sea. These had
seen the rise and then the fall of many a power such as
his, and, protected by walls and fleets, had managed to
maintain a practical independence of all. They treated
the new conqueror with but half-veiled scorn. They
admitted that he might be able to ravage their outlying territories
as others had done, or storm an occasional country fortress; but
the great cities themselves he could not hann — and he too woiild
pass away.
Osman, however, was more p'.itient than earlier conquerors.
Outside each city's gates he erected forts which served to shelter
pennanent garrisons ; his soldiers remained year after year to plunder
all who ventured forth. Yet the cities, provisioned by their fleets, continued to
defy him, and it was not until the very year of his death that Osman, or rather
his son Orchan, achieved the capture of Bnisa after a siege of eight long years.
Bnisa, situated on the little sea of Marmora looking toward Europe, was one of
the three greatest of the Greek cities of Asia Minor, and its fall drew the startled
tttention of all the East. The dying Osman commanded with pride that his
body should be buried there in remembrance of the triiunph he had achieved.
1 74*
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STARTING THE CAREER OF CONQUEST
Oaman Shoots tho Timid CounMllor Who Would lUstraln Him From War))
From thti hiMtoriral iterieg by T. C Jack
IT i.s not imny to phu^e the vivid events of Osman*s leader-
Nhip in Htriet elironolo^ieal Nueeession. Perhaps he began
his (!anM*r of warfare even before he adopted Mahometan-
JHin. A typie.'il Orient}!] h'<;end connects the opening of that
(•iircer with a deed of nnirder. ()snian*s aged father had been
eoiilent, imy proud, i\\ hnving nia<le his little band of Turks
nijislrrs of tin* rich I'egion of Sultan-<Kni. Young Osiuan
ur^'rd that they shoidd go on and extend their sway over all
Asia Minor. lb* was opposed in council by his aged uncle,
wlio dccjjircd tlijit their followers were too few and feeble
for such e\li«nsive warfare, so lie counseled peace. Even as
the vtMierabh* speaker argued, Osnuin snatched a l>ow and shot
liiiu dead, crying out that thus would he deal with all cow-
ards and fi'eble-niindt>d followei*s. After that, the young
tyrant was given his own way; indeed, his w^arlike tribe ac-
C(*pted hini enthusiastically.
i't»nquest of the shifting, wandering Asiatics was never
hani to win by a s\idden stroke; but all ah>ng the sea-coast
t»f .\sia Mint)r there lay stionir walled (J reek cities, each prac-
tically iud(*peiulent. impregnable again.st the assault of the
tVebly-arnietl Asiatic tribes, aiul secure in their fleets and the
freedtini o\' the sea. Osman rescilved to conquer these. He
placet 1 a besieiring force bel'ore the gates of each and main-
taiiicil tills siege l\>r yeai-s. sliutting each city off from all com-
nnniicatiiUi with the la ml. until oni* after another the proud
< J reek commuiiilies surrendered to starvation and aeknowl-
Cikotl (>sn»an as their overlord.
Turkey — Aladdin and Orchan 1743
In studying the career of Osman we can see what has given such permanence
to the Turkish dominion. It was established, at least in its earlier advance, by
love, not fear, by benefits conferred, rather than sufferings inflicted. Other Asiatic
monarchs have built up more sudden, more wide-spreading empires; but these
terrible men have flashed like blood-stained meteors before the eyes of a devastated
world. Their conquests have been vast raids of destruction, which left behind
only hatred of themselves. Their captured provinces, held only by force, have
broken away at the first sign of the conqueror's exhaustion. The power of Osman
was not thus lost in the winning. It was extended slowly. Between his wars,
there were long periods of peace. As each neighbormg province was acquired,
it was carefully assimilated. Though known to his people as a warrior, he was
even more admired as a just and generous ruler. They called him Kara Osman,
which means the black Osman, but not in the evil sense the term would have with
us, for the Turks admire swarthy men. Hence the phrase suggests to them Osman
the darkly beautiful, the nobly attractive and commanding. Despite that sudden
slaying of his uncle, so repellent to Western ideas, Osman is regarded by his country-
men as almost a saint. The wish with which each new Sultan of Turkey is
greeted is that he may be, not as great, but as good as Osman.
The death of the founder of the kingdom left his authority to his two sons,
Aladdin and Orchan, between whom a contest of generosity at once arose. Aladdin
was the elder, but the European rule of succession was by no means fully estab-
lished amid the Turks. Indeed, in their old days of wandering, it had been the
youngest son who remained to care for the aged parents, and who finally took
possession of the homestead. Each elder lad, a^ he came to manhood, started oflF
with a few comrades to seek new fortunes. Moreover, it was Orchan who had
proved his ability and gladdened his father's heart by the cai)ture of Brusa;
so the dying Emir named Orchan as his successor.
Emir Orchan ofi'ered his disinherited brother whatever he desired, even to
the half of his domains, but Aladdin refused to destroy by division the power which
their father had built up. He would accept only the revenues of a single village.
"If you will take nothing from me,'' said Orchan, "then you must be my Vizier;"
which means bearer of burdens. To this x\laddin consented and became the
real administrator and director of the afi'airs of the kingdom.
To him the Turks attribute almost all their characteristic institutions. He
gave them a code of laws, and established a feudal system not unlike that of Europe.
He created a standing army, antedating by over a century the earliest known among
the nations of the West. Schools were instituted and mosques erected, as were
palaces and other public edifices of magnificent architecture. In short, if we
re«^ard the ancestors of the Osmanli as having been barbarians when they first
entered Asia Minor, their progress in civilization was rapid almost beyond parallel.
1744 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Of all Aladdin's institutions, the best- known to the West was the band of soldiers
called the Janizaries. The idea was suggested to him by a warrior relative; the
name Janizaries,"" which means "new troops," was given the first recruits by a
holy dervish who blessed them; but Aladdin's was the brain and Orchan's the
hand that brought them into being. The purpose of their creation was partly,
at least, religious. When the Turks conquered a people opposed to the faith of
Mahomet, they did not compel conversion by massacre, but sought to induce it
by milder means. One of their methods was to exact from the subjected territory
a yearly tribute of the fairest and strongest boys who were not Mahometans.
In this manner, a thousand such lads were gathered every year and separated
from home and all the softer influences of life. They were brought up as Mahome-
tans, trained in warfare and, if deemed worthy, became members of the band of
"new troops," the chief instrument of Turkish warfare, the central band on whose
final, desperate charge, like that of the four hundred and forty-four warriors of
Ertoghrul, the rulers relied for victory.
The weapons thus prepared by Aladdin were wielded by Orchan. Within a
year of his father's death, he had captured Nicomedia, the second of the three
Greek cities which had defied his father. Three years later (1330) he put an end
to the dominion of the Greeks in Asia Minor, by compelling the surrender of
Nica^a, the last and greatest of their strongholds, inferior only to Constantinople
itself in size and splendor. The Turkish kingdom of Karasi, with its capital at
the ancient Greek city of Pergamos, was also conquered (1336). This established
the authority of Orchan over all north-western Asia Minor, and gave him a king-
dom nearly as large as modem Italy. He became the nearest neighbor and in-
deed the real master of the ancient and decrepit Roman Empire of the East This
still lingered as a Greek kingdom with its capital at Constantinople and its feeble
authority extending over most of what to-day is European Turkey. The cities
of Asia Minor had acknowledged a vague allegiance to this Empire, and in seizing
them, Orchan began its dismemberment. Throughout the latter part of his
reign, he was the practical dictator of its policy. Crusaders from the West gathered
to aid this outpost of Christianity against the Turks. But Orchan was repeatedly
appealed to by the rival§ who fought for its throne, and in viewing the intrigues
of father fighting against son, he gained such an introduction into European
statecraft as could hardly have roused in him much admiration or even respect
for the civilization of the West.
Nearly a quarter of a century was devoted by Orchan to establishing himself
in Asia Minor, while his waftiors became ever more clamorous for a new advance.
Several times bands of them crossed from Asia and raided the provinces beyond
Constantinople, but these expeditions aimed only at plunder and were not intended
to establish a permanent dominion. In 1.^56, came what was really the next great
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OSMAN'S GREATEST TRIUMPH
(0»nan Hwrt of tti* CsnquMt af Bniaa by Hi> Son Orehmn)
From a painting by th» Oerman artiit, (J. Bin»emfltnd
MOST notablo of all the cun<|u»)ts of Osman was that of
the great (ireek city of Brusa, which lay on the coast
of Asia Minoi-, facing Europe and thus leading on-
ward to conquest in that direction. Brusa surrendered to
Orchan, the son of Osman, after a siege of eight years. Its
final capture was achieved only in the very year of Osman 's
death (1327) ; and he at once moved thither in person and
made Brusa his capital. He was buried there, and it re-
mained for a century and a half the capital of his people, the
Osniauli or followers of Osman, as they continue to be called
even to-day.
Within three years after Osnian's death his son and anc-
eesHor, Orchan, achieved the conquest of Nicea the last of the
independent (irocian cities of Asia Minor. When news of this
victory reached Brusa, the Turks held a special and solemn
thanksgiving to God and Mahomet ; for now at last they held
complete control of all the East. Their advance had not been
startlinfrly rapid but it had been steady and most sure.
Orchan had as his Vizier his brother Aladdin, celebrated
throughout the East for his wisdom and generosity. Aladdin
remained at Brusa binding fast what his warlike brother con-
quered. The shrewd Vizier made friends of the defeated
peoples, restored their prosperity, promulgated just laws
which protected them in peace. Thus they found themselves
as happy under Turkish rule as they had been before, and far
more secure in their good fortune. They became devoted ad-
herents of the Osmanli.
Turkey — First European Conquests 1745
forward step of the Osmanli, their first acquisition of European territory. Solyman,
the son of Orchan, was in command of his father's troops along the Hellespont.
As he stood gazing across its waters, he* had, according to legend, one of those
visions characteristic of and so useful to his race. A crescent moon rose before
him, linking the two continents with its light; he heard voices summoning him
to advance and saw palace after palace rising out of nothing, for his possession.
A band of forty warriors with young Solyman at their head rowed secretly
across the Hellespont by m'ght and stormed the European fortress of Tzympe,
capturing it by surprise. The Greek Emperor remonstrated, but Solyman re-
fused to give up his prize. A large ransom was ofTered him, and peaceful negotia-
tions were in progress, when suddenly, unexpectedly, a terrific earthquake swept
over all the region, breaking and battering the walls of many cities. The oppor-
tunity seemed too providential to be lost. The Turks cried out that God himself
had interfered to deliver the country into their hands. The troops of Solyman
advanced from Tzympe and seized Gallipoli, the chief city and seaport of the
Hellespont, marching in over the ruins of its walls without resistance from the
terror-stricken inhabitants. Other towns were captured in similar manner,
and though the Greek Emperor protested, he dared do no more.
Solyman died, and his body, like that of Osman, was buried near the scene
of his last conquest. Soon afterward, Emir Orchan closed a long life full of honors
and fame. He was succeeded on the throne by his eldest surviving son, Amurath
or Murad I (1359-1389).
Murad, the last of the Osmanli rulers to be satisfied with the simple title of
Emir, was a worthy representative of his able, energetic race. He had first to
defend himself against a revolt incited by the Emir of Caramania, chief rival of the
Osmanli for dominion over Asia Minor. Despite the intrigues of the enemy,
Murad suppressed the rebellion with a vigor and rapidity which thoroughly con-
vinced his subjects of his right to rule. Then he returned to the Hellespont,
and following in the footsteps of his brother Solyman continued the advance
of the Osmanli into Europe.
His reign was practically one long war against the West, and to him were due
most of those Turkish acquisitions in Europe which have lasted to this day. The
great city of Adrianople was wrested from the Greek Empire in 1360, and Murad
settled his court there permanently, made the place one of his capitals, and the
seat from which he pushed on to further conquests. The degenerate Greeks
opix>sed him with no effective force, and retained in their power only the massive-
walled capital, Constantinople, with its immediate surroundings.
The invaders found a much more vigorous foe when they approached the Balkan
States the little principalities which we have seen revived in our own generation,
after their national life had been extinct for over four hundred years. In the
Z746 The Story of the Greatest Nations
fourteenth century Servia was a powerful state, an empire in the estimation of its
rulers, one of whom had assumed the grandiloquent title "Emperor of the Roume-
lians, the Macedonian Christ-loving Czar." Bosnia and Bulgaria were also strong
kingdoms of the Scla vie race, while beyond, and aiding them, lay Poland and Hun-
gary, at that time two of the chief powers of Europe.
A league of all these states was formed to expel from the continent the invading
Osmanli. The Christian forces took the field and advanced almost to Adrianople.
In the pride of their numbers and prowess, they neglected all precautions; and,
as they lay one night by the Marizza River engaged in a drunken carouse, they
were suddenly set upon by the Turks and completely overthrown (1363).
The battle of the Marizza was the first of the long series in which for five cen-
turies the Eastern invaders have held their ground against all the efforts of the West.
The Turkish historians rise to poetry in celebration of the triumph. Says one
of them: "The enemy were caught even as wild beasts in their lair. They were
driven before us as flames are driven before the wind, till plunging into the Marizza
they perished in its waters." By 1376, both Servia and Bulgaria had become
tributary states to Murad, and the great Emir set himself to the peaceful task of
consolidating the kingdom which he had more than doubled in size.
Once only in later life was he compelled to encounter rebellion, and that was
not from his subjects but from his younger son Saoudji. The tale is strikingly
Turkish, Saoudji was in command of all his country's forces in Europe. He
thought himself neglected by his father, and joining an equally discontented son
of the Greek Emperor, ordered the Turkish troops to follow him in revolt. The
wrathful Murad hurried back from Asia. He accused the Greek Emperor of
being the instigator of their two sons; and the trembling Emperor, to prove he
had no part in it, agreed with Murad that if the youths were captured, they
should both have their eyes put out. Marching onward from this interview, the
Sultan encamped his troops in front of his son's forces, and himself spurred forward
alone in the night. Riding up to the rebels he called out to them to return to
their allegiance. At the sound of the well-known voice, the Turkish warriors
rushed around their Sultan in multitudes, beseeching pardon since they had
been bound in loyalty to follow the command of his son.
Thus the rebellion was over, but Murad seized Saoudji, blinded him according
to his pledge and then beheaded him. The Greek nobles who were with the rebel,
were drowned in batches, the Sultan showing a grim pleasure in their suflFerings.
He bound the Greek prince in chains and sent him to the Emperor, informing the
latter of the punishment already inflicted on Saoudji. The feeble Emperor blinded
his own son also, but unwillingly and so imperfectly that the youth was left with
some slight power of vision. Murad took no further notice of the matter.
Equally important with Murad's European conquests, at least to Turkish
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THE NORSEMEN AID CONSTANTINOPLE
<TIm Nona Saa-Wanaww* San CsnatanUDapU Ftobi tka ThMatulns Turin)
From a polntte; i% 1S88 bg Don Joti Itorena Carhonero
THE fall of Nicea alarmed all Europe. The fact became
startlingly evident that Mahoinetanism had indeed re-
ceived a new lease of life, that Christianity was once
more threatened, that the East was rising again to pour forth
its hordes and seek to overwhelm the West. Moreover, the
danger waa all the greater because these new leaders, the
Osmanli, were merciful and allowed subject races to keep
their own religion. Thus the conquest advanced in the subtle
guise of increased prosperity.
Constantinople was at this time the Christian capital of
the East. In its palaces ruled the so-called Roman Emperors
of the East, direct successors of the ancient Romans, the only
sovereigns whose land had never through all the Dark Ages
suecumbed to the barbarians who overran Rome. Constanti-
nople, which had held a vague suzerainty over the great Qreek
cities of Asia Minor, now found the last of these wrested from
her, and her own security threatened in its turn. She raised
a cry to all Europe for help. No united nation answered to
her call, but individual adventurers came in numbers. Some
were religious enthusiasts, but more were seekers after worldly
fortune. Most important of these defenders were the Norse-
men. Quite a little array of these stalwart fighters voyaged
to Constantinople, where they were received, as our picture
shows, with more suspicion than gratitude. The courtly
Greeks of Constantinople looked on them as rude and danger-
ous barbarians.
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Turkey — Bajazet Ilderim 1747
eyes, was his victory over the Emir of Caramania, the hereditary rival of his house.
Caramania was the land of south-eastern Asia Minor where a Turkish power
similar to that of the Osmanli had grown up from the ruins of older empires. The
two rival states had swallowed one by one the lesser principalities between them
and finally stood face to face disputing the supremacy of the entire region. The
decisive struggle broke out in 1387, and Murad completely overthrew the enemy
in a great battle at Iconium. It was here that Bajazet, Murad's son and successor,
gained the title of Ilderim, "the lightning," through the speed and fury of his
attacks upon the foe.
Scarcely were the Caramanians overcome, when the aged monarch found
himself confronted by another danger. A second league of the Christian states
was formed against him with Ser\'ia at their head. This kingdom and Bulgaria
had been apparently his submissive vassals, until in 1388 their troops suddenly
assailed and almost annihilated a Turkish army which was advancing into the
unsubdued province of Bosnia. Murad hurried from Asia for revenge. His
troops crossed the Balkans into Bulgaria, desolated the land with grim fury, con-
quered and annexed it. The Turkish frontier was advanced to the Danube.
Then Murad himself led his forces against Ser\'ia. The enormous army which
was gathered against him from many Christian states, greatly outnumbered his,
but the aged conqueror did not hesitate to attack the foe on the plain of Kossova
(1389). A brilliant Turkish victory followed, due once more, we are told, to the
dash and daring of Bajazet Ilderim.
While the contest was raging, Murad was stabbed by a Ser\nan assassin, who
penetrated to his tent under pretense of being a deserter with important news.
The Emir lived long enough to be assured 1 hif last great x-ictorj' and to order the
execution of his rebel vassal, the Scr\-ian King, who was brought before him a
prisoner. Then he died, and Bajazet Ilderim succeeded to the throne.
In Bajazet I (1389-1402) we find a ruler of wholly different type from the earlier
Osmanli. Four generations of the house of Ertoghrul had shown themselves
fierce and strong, but also wise and just and even generous, caring for the reality
of power rather than its outward trappings. Bajazet seemed to inherit only
the ferocity of his race. He was vain and ostentatious, false and foolish, an evil-
minded voluptuary, who brought to ruin almost all that his ancestors had labored
to accomplish.. Perhaps we ought not to accept these statements too freely. The
Turkish writers, with their love of allegory and poetic justice, always insist that
vice must be punished and virtue rewarded. As Bajazet fell, it follows therefore
in the estimation of his people that he must have been wicked; and the tales of
his folly and perfidy have perchance been pictured with too dark a hue.
Yet the record seems plain to read. The new Emir's first act on the very field
of battle, was to seize his only surviving brother and cause him to be put to death-
1748 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Remembering that Orchan, a younger brother, had superseded an elder, Bajazet
meant to allow no rival near the throne, which he had akeady resolved to hold by
force if not by justice.
Fickle fortune seemed to welcome him as a favorite and showered upon his
undeser\ing head all the conquests for which his father had laboriously prepared
the way. Servia, crushed by the defeat of Kossova, became a vassal state, its
king remaim'ng the most valued and the most faithful of the allies of Bajazet.
Wallachia also became tributary to the Turks without much resistance; and thus
their expanding territory for the first time crossed the Danube. In 1392, Sigis-
mund. King of Hungary, afterward the Emperor Sigismund, attacked them, but
was driven back in utter rout.
Bajazet was next obliged to return to Asia to re-establish his dominion over
Caramania, whose emirs were recovering from their defeat at the hands of Murad.
They do not seem, however, to have been able to offer Bajazet any considerable
opposition, and he annexed their entire land as a permanent part of his empire.
He then marched his victorious armies to the eastward, and extended his power
over the last remaining fragments of Asia Minor.
Having thus made sure of his domains, Bajazet sank into a state of indolence
and evil pleasure. The tales of his debaucher}' and licentiousness are too hideous
to repeat. His pride, however, led him to do one noteworthy thing. The simple
title of Emir seemed to him insufficient for his glory. He^ applied to the Caliph
in Egypt, the religious head of the Mahometan world, and was by him authorized
to assume the illustrious title of Sultan, or lord of lords.
In 1396, Sultan Bajazet was compelled to return to Europe to meet the most
formidable effort yet put forth by the West to resist the advance of the Turks.
In the Hungarians, the invaders had at last encountered Roman Christians, instead
of the Greeks who looked to Constantinople as their Church's centre. Upon the
appeal of the defeated King Sigismund of Hungarj-, the Roman Pope preached a
crusade against the heathen foe. An army, perhaps twelve thousand strong,
composed not of peasants but of the proudest knights of France and Germany, took
up the holy war. So splendid was their array that they boasted that if the sky
should fall they would uphold it on the points of their lances. They planned to
defeat Bajazet, then take possession of Constantinople, then conquer Asia Minor,
march on to Syria, seize Jerusalem, and re-establish a Christian kingdom there.
King Sigismund received this aid with joy, and marshalling his own forces,
joined the advance of the Crusaders. The King of Servia refused to desert Bajazet
and join them, so this Christian state was laid waste by the followers of the Cross.
Its warriors were slain without quarter and its cities stormed.
The Sultan made haste to gather the most powerful army his dominions could
supply, and met the enemy before the city of Nicopolis. The Crusaders haJ
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SOLYMAN ATTACKS EUROPE
tHJTgmahr a VUIon th« Tiulu Crow Uia HalUapant Ints Europa)
From a painliny bg She Poliih artitt. A, Baittoorotetky
NOT until the Turkish kingdom had been established for
over half a cerilury and had gradually welded firm its
power in Asia, did its leaders attempt the conquest of
Europe. In the year 135fi Solyman, a son of King Orchan
and the commander of his armies, determined that despite all
the Christians who had come to aid the Empire of Constanti-
nople, his soldiers were strong enough to begin the attack.
While marching an army along the Asiatic shore of the Helles-
pont, the narrow strait which separates Europe and Asia,
Solyman had a vision in which the crescent moon of the
Osmanii seemed to reach across the Hellespont and bridge the
strait with its light, beckoning him on to immeasurable riches.
So Solyman with forty picked men from among his fol-
lowers rowed seci-otly across the strait at night and stormed
an unsuspecting Christian fortress. His army joined him;
and before they could be expelled or even attacked a natural
disaster came, as though in fulfilment of Solyman 's vision,
to make his conquest secure. A mighty earthquake shook all
this eastern coast of Europe, toppling down the walls of its
cities. Solyman at once marched against those nearest him
and entering over the fiillen walls, took possession of one
strong place after another almost without resistance from the
dazed and despairing inhabitants. Thus quite a province in
Europe, almost as much as Ihey still hi)ld to-day was won by
the Turks at a single tjrasp, though Constantinople still de-
fied them.
'^'^i''i^'Sf"S''S"'iii"Tii">ii''>E'"S?"'ifc' i£*3?^"Si^ifc'''Si''^f"'Sf''S'"^^^^'^6'
Turkey — NicopoHs ^ 1749
boasted that this notorious voluptuarj' would never dare encounter them; they
had refused to believe the news of his approach. When at last his troops suddenly
faced them, the Crusaders were eager to attack at once. Sigismund, who knew
to his cost the Turkish style of battle, explained to his impetuous allies that they
were confronting only the lighter troops, whose attack meant nothing. He en-
treated them not to exhaust themselves until the Janizaries should appear. But
the Crusaders, especially the French knights, refused to be advised; they would
not condescend to alter their form of battle to please the Turks, but insisted on
charging the foe at once and bearing down all who opposed them. Their light-
armed opponents scattered, but there were always other troops beyond. The
Frenchmen were led on and on until at length, when they were exhausted and their
wearied horses were stumbling at ever}' step, the last curtain of light horsemen was
drawn away, and they saw before them the long, stern ranks of the steel-clad
Janizaries. Slowly the grim foe closed about them in a circle, and the Frenchmen
were slain or captured almost to a man.
Following them, hoping yet to save the fortunes of the day, came the Hun-
garians and the remnant of the Cnisaders. Both sides fought valiantly; but the
Servian troops under Bajazet, furious at the cruel devastation of their land, made
a charge that swept all before it. The Janizaries advanced to join them, and soon
the Hungarians and their allies were fleeing in utter rout. King Sigismund escajx^d
almost alone from the disastrous battlefield of Nicopolis fi.^96).
The slaughter was immense. Christian historians say that sixty thousand
Turks were slain. The next day Bajazet, vowing to be avenged for the loss of
so many subjects, caused almost all his prisoners, at least ten thousand in number,
to be massacred in his presence. A few of the richest Crusaders were "spared for
ransom, and when these were released, the Suhan sent back by them the scornful
message that he would always be pleased to have the Franks come and try their
strength against him.
The Turks did not pursue their advantage far. After ravaging a portion of
the enemy's domains, Bajazet fell back. ]\Thaj)s his losses had really been
too great to bear, though his own historians ex])Iain that he was seized with ill-
ness. He sent his troops into Greece instead, and all that ancient land was added
to the Ottoman Empire. Then in 1400, Bajazet disj^aiched to the Emperor of
Constantinople a haughty notice that the divinely ai)ix)inted con(iueroi-s would
wait no longer, that Constantinople must be surrendered to them, or they would
slay every soul within its walls. The Emperor l>ravely res]X)nded that he knew.
his weakness, but would defend his capital, and only Heaven could decide the
issue.
Heaven had already decided. This last easy triumph was to be denied the
savaee Bajazet. Already his doom was at hand. The great Tartar conqueror,
1750 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Timur the Lame, or Tamburlane, had established his empiie in Central Asia,
His forces swept westward and dashed with those of the Osmanli. A son of Bajazet
defended against the invaders the city of Sebastia on the eastern borders of Asia
Minor. Sebastia was captured and all its defenders slain with torture. The
Sultan vowed to avenge his son. Timur's hordes had surged southward into
Syria, but would soon return. Bajazet had two years in which to gather all his
forces; then Turk and Tartar met on the plain of Angora to contest the sover-
eignty of the East (1402).
Vague and marvellous legends have reached us of this tremendous battle.
The Turkish historians seem to assign to Bajazet a hundred thousand troops
and to Timur eight hundred thousand. Yet, despite this enormous discrepancy,
they represent their own chieftain as acting with the blind self-confidence of a
madman or a fool. To show his contempt of his adversary, he withdrew his troops
from before the foe and employed them in a gigantic hunt, miles upon miles of
mountain land being encircled by the army and the game driven forward to be
killed by the Sultan and his court. So exhaustive was the labor, so barren the
region, that thousands of the warriors perished of thirst; and when at last the
senseless tyrant would have permitted his victims to return to the streams of the
plain, they found the vantage ground occupied by their watchful foe and they could
reach the water only by fighting for it. They struggled heroically but in vain,
and the gallant army perished almost to a man, through exhaustion rather than
the blows of their enemies.
Of these legends we may believe what we choose. It is certain that the Turks
were utterly defeated; Bajazet was captured, and Timur marched in triumphant
procession over the Asiatic territories of his foe. The tale has passed into litera-
ture of his carrying the fallen Sultan around in an iron cage and forcing him to
drag his conqueror's chariot. But in truth the captive seems to have been borne
about in a comfortable litter, to which bars were only added after he had attempted
to escape. Timur's treatment was apparently as kindly as was consistent with
holding a rival prisoner. Bajazet soon died ; and Timur did not long survive him.
The Tartar chief had conquered all Asia, but his successors did not know how
to hold together his vast domains, and at his death the Asiatic world fell into
chaos.
^
THE RAVAGING OF SERVIA
(Murad Makaa th* Turks a T«nw ta All Etuopa)
From a pttinting by tk« FrtHck artitt, O, D. V. QiUUuttt
SO long as Orehan and his son Sulyman confined their alow
and cautious advance to the devouring of the possessions
of the feeble Roman Empire of the East, Europe felt no
serious anxiety. But both Orehan and his son died soon after
the first advance into Europe and another great conqueror,
Murad I, succeeded to the throne. Murad at once turned all
his forces against Europe. In 1560 he stormed Adrianople
and let loose all the hordes of his Asiatic followers against
the other Balkan States, Chief of thpse at the time was
Servia, whose king called himself Czar of the old Romans.
Bulgaria and Bosnia were also strong Christian kingdoms,
constantly lighting against Servian aggression. These foes
were all most cruelly ravaged by the Turkish hordes.
The three Christian States united, drew to their aid the
forces of their next neighbors, Hungary and Poland, and
in a vast confederated army pursued the Turks. The latter,
loaded with all the plunder of Servia and Bulgaria, retreated
as far as the Marizza River close to Adrianople. Here oc-
curred the first great battle in the long series in which the
Turks clashed against the strength of Europe. The Chris-
tians were surprised by a sudden night assault and were com-
jiletely overthrown. Murad at once advanced again over their
stricken lands and was able within the next ten years to estab-
lish his empire firmly over all the land that had been Bul-
garian and Servian, that is, over most of the Balkan Penin-
"1
J
Chapter III
THE RECOVERY OF THE EMPIRE AND THE CAPTURE OF CON-
STANTINOPLE BY MAHOMET II
[Autifhtift.- As before, also Mnmnuen. '■II[sli>ry of the Roman Empire": Von Ranke, "Ili-^tory
ofServia"; Pears, "The Fnll o( ContUnlinople"; Vambeiy. "The Stoiy of Hungary"; Besanl. "Con*
Mantinopte and its Sieges."]
^ T is curious to reflect that after the deaths of Timur and
Bajazet, the empire of the victor perished, while that
of the vanquished sunivcd. This was because of the
manner in which the latter power had been established,
so thoroughly, so wisely, that all the tyranny and folly
of Bajazet had not been able to destroy the esteem in
which his family was held, Sultan-CEni and its sur-
rounding territory, with some part even of the more
rt'cenily acquired domains of Miirad and Bajazet, remained faith-
ful to the Osmanli. Yet their empire had to endure an even
severer shock than that delivered by Timur, Bajazei's eldest son,
Solyman, was ruling the European jwrlion of the Sultan's domains
at the time of the battle of Angora. Three younger sons escaped
from that fatal field, and the four brothers plunged at once into
civil war, each claiming a portion of their father's domains.
Mahomet, the youngest of the four, had inherited the high
character and abilities of the earlier generations of his house; the
otners seemed to possess little beyond their father's savagerj-. Gradually Mahomet
gained possession of all the Asiatic region and established himself at Brusa, the
capital of the empire. He even allied himself with the Greeks against his brother;
and his troops garrisoned Constantinople, .\siatic Turks fought European Turks
in defense of this ancient capital of Christianity.
I7SI
17$2 The Ston- of the Greatest Nations
A: la.=5t the -.-irtues of Mahomet and the ^-ices of hi? brothers caused the fol-
lowers of the bttr.-r to deser. them even on the ndd of battle, and, by 1413, Mahomet
had reu^Lited under his sinde 5ce::»tre all thai was left of the shorn and desolated
enr.p.'re. In Europe he then sought peace nther than reconquest. His friendly
alliance with the Greek Emperor was continued, although the Greeks had regained
manv oi their cities formeriv caotured bv the Turks. The Sultan held at Adrian-
ople a general conference with all the little lords who had seized a dty or a province
on his European borders and made themselves independent He promised to
leave them unharmed in their possessions. '"Peace/' he said to them, "I grant
to all, peace I accept from all. May the God of peace be against the breakers
of that peace."
The shrewd Sultan thus gained opportunity to devote all his attention to his
Asiatic dominions, which were in even more precarious condition. The Emir of
Caramania had been re-established as an independent nder by Timur. By degrees
he had regained much of the former power of his race, and burning with inex-
tingiushable hatred, was once more rarishing the lands of the Osmanli. His forces
even besieged Brusa, their capital. Mahomet hurried to its rescue, and after a
long campaign was victorious over his hereditarj- foe. The Emir was brought
before him a captive. With his usual mild policy, Mahomet only demanded an
oath of submission, which the Emir gave by placing his hand ^nthin the robe upon
his breast* and saring, "So long as there is breath within this body, I swear never
to attack or covet the possessions of the Sultan."
Even as the captive left the presence of his conqueror, he began giving orders
to his captains to renew the struggle. They reminded him of his oath, but he
grimly drew from the concealment of his bosom a dead bird, and told them that
it was onlv while breath remained in that bodv that he had sworn to submit. So
the war began again. Once more the Sultan broke the dwindling power of his
foe, and once more he pardoned him.
Mahomet, in his earlv davs of strife, had been called bv his followers the "cfaam-
pion/' because of his strength and skill with weapons; but in later years he became
a builder of palaces and mosques to replace those that had been ruined in the years
of anarchy; he became a lover of the arts, and his added name was Tschelebi,
which means the noble-minded or the gentleman. It was Mahomet the gentleman
who thus forgave his foes, yet restored his domains to peace and security. He is
remembered by his countrjmen as the second founder of their empire, its rescuer
after the period of devastation.
It is strange that this lover of life's purer side should have been forced con-
stantly to engage in war. The Denishes of his own faith raised a revolt against
him, the only religious strife which for centuries diuKted the fanaticism of the Turks
against other than external foes. This was suppressed only after several bloody
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ON THE FIELD OF NICOPOLIS
(Destruction of tho First Gro«t CruMidins Army Acainst tho Turin)
From a drawing by the French master, Outtave Dor4
WHEN Murad had grown very old, he faced and de-
feated a wide rebellion of his Servian and Bulgarian
subjects. This was supported by the mighty Sigis-
mund, King of Hungary and afterward Emperor of Ger-
many. Murad defeated the combined forces of Hungary and
his former vassals, but perished in the moment of victory.
His death gave the Hungarians breathing time. At Sigis-
mund's entreaty a Holy War was preached against the Turks,
and a powerful Crusading army gathered from all Europe
came to Hungary's aid. So mighty was this army that its
members laughed at the idea that from all Asia any force
could be gathered to stand against them for an instant. The
Crusaders boasted that if the sky should fall they were nu-
merous enough to uphold it on the points of their lances.
This mighty host was met by Murad 's son and successor,
Bajazet, on the stricken field of Nicopolis. The Crusaders
charged furiously ; the wily Turks led them on in true Orien-
tal warfare, evaded them, pretended to flee, exhausting and
scattering the heedless Christians, then turned on them sud-
denly in grim destruction. All over the field little knots of
Christians fought and fell, slaughtered to the last man. Only
King Sigismund and a mere handful of his Hungarians es-
caped. This was in the year 1396, and thus the Osmanli less
than a century after starting their career as a nation had
met and broken the chief strength of Europe.
X-9
Turkey — Murad Consolidates the Empire 1753
battles. A pretender claiming to be a son of Bajazet caused another civil war,
was defeated and escaped to Constantinople, where he was imprisoned. There
was a quarrel with the Venetians, and the Sultan built against them the first of
those Turkish fleets which afterward became the terror of the Mediterranean.
There was also fighting along the Hungarian frontier. Fortunately for the Turks,
Hungary had been so crushed by the great defeat at Nicopolis that she remained
quiet through all the Turkish period of weakness. But her people finding them-
selves unassailed, now began to recover courage and to renew the strife.
Mahomet died of apoplexy in 142 1, and his death was concealed for forty days
to enable his eldest son and acknowledged successor, Murad, to return to Brusa
from the eastern frontier where he was learning the art of war. Murad II (142 1-
145 1 ) ^^^ ^ youth of only eighteen when he was thus unexpectedly called to assume
the difficult position and responsibilities of his father. Once again, however,
the Osmanli had found a chief worthy of their fame.
The Greek Emperor, presuming on the new Sultanas youth and hoping to
renew the civil wars which had proved so destructive to his dangerous neighbors,
released his prisoner, the pretended son of Bajazet. The expected strife did follow,
but it was soon terminated. Murad displayed a skill both in statecraft and in
battle which completely overmatched his opponent, who was defeated and slain.
The youthful Sultan vowed to end forever the perfidy of the Greeks by cap-
turing Constantinople. In 1422, he besieged the massive walls of the metropolis,
advancing against them with good generalship and reaching the point where a
preliminary assault was begun. Both Greek and Turkish accounts tell us that
this was repelled by the miraculous appearance of the Virgin Mary at the most
threatened spot. The assault certainly failed, and Murad was soon compelled
to withdraw his forces to meet another danger.
This was an Asiatic rebellion headed by his younger brother and supported by
all the power of the Emir of Caramania. It was suppressed and its leader slain.
Murad himself remained for a long time in personal government over the people
of Caramania; and from that time onward they became the devoted followers of
his house. We hear no more of their persistent and formidable revolts.
Along the Hungarian border the Turkish troops were engaged in an endless
though not serious warfare, and after many years of patience had fully established
Murad*s power in Asia, he resolved to crush forever this petty contest in Europe.
He was destined, however, in the new strife to meet at last his equals if not his
superiors in the art of war, the two ablest champions brought by the West against
the East; — Hunyadi, the hero of Hungary, and Scanderbeg, the hero of Albania.
The decisive war began in 1442 when the forces of Murad were repulsed from
Belgrade, the chief fortress on the Hungarian border. At the same time, Hunyadi
leaped into fame by defeating with great slaughter a Turkish army which had
1754 The Story of the Greatest Nations
invested the town of Hermanstadt in Transylvania. We have spoken of the
savagery of Bajazet, who slew his Christian prisoners after Nicopolis; but there if
certainly little to choose between the methods of either side. After the battle of
Hermanstadt, Hunyadi caused the Turkish general and his son to be chopped
into little pieces; then, at a banquet of victory, he entertained his guests by havinj!
Turkish captives led in one by one and slaughtered in various interesting ways.
Hunyadi followed his success by an even greater victory at Vasag. Encouraged
by this turning of the tide, the Roman Pope preached another crusade, and volun-
teers from all Europe joined Hunyadi's force. The next year, 1443, he led a
strong army into Turkish territory. He won the battle of Nissa, drove the Turks
out of Bulgaria, and fought his way across the Balkan Mountains in most remark-
able manner, opening to the ravages of his army the thoroughly Turkish district
around Adrianople. That year, however, he advanced no farther; his great
force broke up, and its members scattered to their homes.
Murad had not personally encountered this terrible foe; but having found his
ablest generals defeated, he had no wish to put his life and throne on the hazard
of so desperate a contest. He proposed a peace with the King of Hungary, yield-
ing the latter large advantages and surrendering all his claims to suzerainty over
Servia and Wallachia. These liberal terms were accepted and a truce was made
which both parties swore should not be broken for at least ten years (1444).
Ha\dng thus after many trials established peace through all his domains.
Sultan Murad performed an act rare in the annals of any land, rarest in the East
He resigned his throne. His eldest and best-loved son having just died, the second,
Mahomet, a boy of fourteen, was declared Sultan and girded with the sacred sword
of Osman. Murad retired, not to a monastery of austerity like his later and more
celebrated imitator, the German Emperor Charles V, but to a retreat made attract-
ive by cverj' pleasure that could appeal to the cultured intellect.
He was not, however, allowed to remain in his seclusion. The truce with
Hunyadi had roused vigorous protest from the Roman Catholic Church. A
crusade had been preached, it had achieved splendid victories, yet its object was
not accomplished. The Turks must be driven wholly out of Europe. Their
appeal for peace proved their weakness; the successes of Hunyadi attested the
irresistible might of the Christian arms. No faith was to be kept with infidels; despite
the oaths of ten years' peace, the war must be renewed at. once. Hunyadi opposed
this. Having freed his own land and those nearest it, he had no desire for further
war; but he was overborne. Without warning, waiting only till the promised
fortresses of Senia and Wallachia had been handed over to them, the Christiana
invaded the Turkish lands.
Their advance was as successful as it was unexpected. All down the Danube
Hunyadi marched his forces, seizing the fortresses and cities by the way. He tb^
THE DOWNFALL OF BAJAZET
Uia T*>tw Conqiuror, H«Ma tha Sultan CaptWa in ■ Caga)
'rom a paintinjf bf lh« 0»rman artiil, H. Merti
m~ the Christians at Nicopolis and enforced his rule over
the whole of Asia Minor, felt himself the chief ruler of
all the Mahometan peoples, so he sent to the religious head of
Mahometanism, the Caliph of Cairo, and asked and received
the high title of "Sultan." His predecessors among the
Osmanli con((iierors had been content to call themselves
"Emir" or prince.
Sultan Bajazet was to test the extremes of human fortune.
Scarce had he received his gorgeous title when he lost every-
thing. Out of the wilds of Central Asia there came another
conqueror, Tiniur the Lame or Taniburlaine, Timur led a
gri^at horde of Tartars, wild rovers of much the same stock
as the Turks themselves bad been originally. The hordes of
Tiuiur devastated all Central Asia, then they spread over
Syria and Palestine and laid waste those lands. They were
thus encroaehiut! on tJie eastern end of the Turkish Empire,
and BHJa;iot (lathered all liis forces and met tbeni on the plain
of Angora (1402) to decide the sovereignty of the East. Ba-
jazet was completely defeated and was made prisoner, Timur
carried his royal captive about with him in a wheeled cage,
as our picture shows. Legend adds tliat the victor compelled
the unhappy Bajazet to iiert'orm every sort of menial service
to him and to his men, but of this there seems little evidence.
The captive's fate was surely sad enough without, for he re-
mained a cnired prisoner until his death.
Turkey— Battle of the Violated Treaty 1755
moved southward along the Black Sea, penetrating as far as the important port
of Varna, which he captured.
The storm which Sultan Murad had thus far avoided, he could not leave to
burst upon his son. Instantly upon news of flimyadi's advance, his resolution
was taken. Leaving his retirement, he hastily gathered his best troops and hurried
to repel the invader. Crossing the Balkan Mountains in unexpected fa^ion,
he advanced against Hunyadi from the rear, and for the first time these two able
generals met at Varna. The encounter that followed is known to the Turks
as the Battle of the Violated Treaty, for the Sultan, hoisting a copy of that document
upon a lance, bade his soldiers follow it as a standard. Hunyadi On his side,
having grown confident through success, drew up his forces on the plain outside
the city and charged without waiting for the attack of the foe. Both wings of the
Turkish army were driven back, and we are told that for a moment Murad con-
templated flight. But in the centre, the Janizaries held firm. The Hungarian
king who attacked them was slain and his head raised upon a lance, as fitting com-
panion to the treaty to which he had sworn. Bearing these two grim standards
the Janizaries advanced, and the Christians fled before them. Even Hunyadi,
though he performed prodigies of valor, could not stay the tide. He himself
escaped, but his army was annihilated (1444).
The battle of Varna broke forever the power of the Balkan States which had
joined Hunyadi. Not only Servia and Wallachia but Bosnia also became tribu-
tary Turkish states. Having established garrisons there as a bulwark against
Western Europe, Murad for the second time abdicated in favor of his son and
withdrew to his philosophical retreat. He is the only sovereign in history who
has ever twice resigned his power.
The peace and pleasure for which he longed were still denied him. The boy
Mahomet was not yet strong enough to control the wild Turkish warriors. The
fierce Janizaries in particular were little likely to obey a child. They engaged in
open plunder and murder and laughed at all efforts to restrain them. The coun-
dllors whom Murad had left around his son, hurried to their former master and
besought him to return agairi from his seclusion, for only he could prevent the
estabHshment of a mihtary tyranny, a despotism subject to these "new troops"
once slaves of the empire.
Then Murad, feeling that he was indeed the servant of his subjects, abandoned
his dream of rest. He came forth from his beloved retreat and dispatched young
Mahomet thither to study and obey, until he should be capable of leading and
commanding. The turbulent troops welcomed with delight the return of their
trusted master. The ringleaders of sedition were executed, the remainder
pardoned, and Murad began again the task of keeping order both at home and
on his frontiers*
1756 The Story of the Greatest Nations
The chief enemy of his remaining years was the Albanian hero, Kara George,
or Black George, frequently spoken of as Scanderbeg, a corrupted form of "Lord
Alexander," a name given him in youth by Murad himself in admiration of the
lad's fiery valor, which the Sultan said was like that of the great conqueror, Alex-
ander. George was the son of an Albanian chieftain and was sent to Murad's
court as hostage for his father. He was brought up a Mahometan and became a
chief favorite of the Sultan, then one of his most valued and trusted lieutenants,
commanding in several Asiatic campaigns.
In secret, however, the courted and admired "Kara George" had never for-
gotten the home of his childhood. On his father's death he hoped to be established
in the family lordship, and as the Sultan failed to send him home he planned a
bold revolt. Seizing for its execution the moment of Hunyadi's great victories
of 1443, he went to the chief secretary of the empire and forced him with a dagger
at his throat to write out an order to the governor in Albania, directing that
all the fortresses should be placed in the hands of the bearer. Then, slaying the
Amhappy secretary lest the secret be betrayed, George hurried to Albania and
without difficulty secured command of almost the entire region. He threw off
the pretence of having come in the Sultan's name, and declared the land inde-
pendent and its ancient religion re-established. The wild Albanian moimtaineers
eagerly joined this son of their former leader. The peaceful Turkish inhabitants
of the land were massacred; their remaining armies were defeated and put to
flight.
Murad by abdicating had thought to leave to his son rather than himself the
struggle against his well-beloved page and favorite, Scanderbeg. But even 01^
his second return to his throne, he found the task still unbegun. So taking thi.^
trial also upon himself, he invaded Albania with a mighty army. One fortress
after another was recaptured. The Sultan, however, found his progress so
and so costly in the lives of his followers, that he resorted to his old tactics
sought peace, offering to make Scanderbeg his viceroy over Albania. The
banians steadily refused all terms of accommodation, and the Turks were
compelled to fight their way out of the land through the mountain passes, even
they had forced a passage in.
This was in 1448, and the Sultan's departure was made necessary by the retu
of his other foe, Hunyadi, who had recovered from the defeat of Varna and yr
again leading an army out of Hungary, attacking the Turks in Servia, their bord
dependency. A second time did Murad defeat his greatest enemy, this
in the terrific three-day battle of Kossova. It was his final triumph; he di<
in 1 45 1, and was by his own command buried, not in a grand mausoleum, but L--
a simple, open grave, "nothing differing," says Knowles, the picturesque EnglisI^
historian of the time, "from that of the common Turks, — that the mercy and blessii^
MAHOMET I REGAINS EMPIRE
(Thk Turks Ally ThamHlns With Ih* ChrUtiant, utd March Forth Frau
CoIutaDtliwpla to IU-«aiiqiHr TlMlr Enplrat
From a drauiinp bg Quttaee Doti
TWO things saveil Hie Osiuanli empire from extinction
when Sultan Bajazot was overtliroivn by the Tartars.
The first was the devotion which the justice of the
Osmanli rulers had won from their people. The sons of Ba-
jazet were able to draw around them what remained of the
scattered forces of the empire. The other cause was tlie weak-
ness of their foes. The Tartars of Timur were soon left as a
headless mass by the death of their great leader. The Chris-
tians had been so completely overthrown at Nicopolis that for
a whole generation they wei-e unable to renew their warlike
efforts.
Thus left free to restore their empire, the four sons of
Bajazet added to tlie general confusion by plunging into a
civil war among themselves. Piom this bitter domestic strife
the ablest of the four finally emerged as victor, and became
Sultan as Mahomet I. He was the first Turk to make an
equal alliance with the Christians. In warring against his
brothers, he joined forces with the Em[>eror of Constanti-
nople. Thus his trooiH! were admitted to Constantinople to
aid in protecting it against the otlier Turks; and it was from
the gallery of a Con-ttantinople palace that Mahomet ad-
dressed his troops ere leading them forth to the decisive battle
in which he defeated the la.st of his brothers and so reunited
the Osmauli empire. Mahomet made large concessions of
territory to his Christian neighbors and so secured peace to
consolidate his rule.
Turkey— Mahomet II Attacks Constantinople 1757
of God might come unto him by the shining of the sun and moon and the falling
of the rain and dew of Heaven upon his grave."
Mahomet II (1451-1481), called the Conqueror, was that son of Muradwho
had been twice removed by his father from the throne because of his inability
to control the empire. By 1451, however, the young man had learned at least
the blacker part of his hard lesson. On receiving the news of his father's death,
he cried out, "Who loves me, follows me," and leaping on a horse rode without
pause until he reached the capital. There he was immediately proclaimed Sultan;
and his first act was to order the death of his infant brother, justifying the crime
by the example of Bajazet, and by pointing to all the civil wars which had been
caused by the weakness of his own father and grandfather in not following this
firm course. In the latter part of his reign, Mahomet actually proclaimed this
slaughter of all the brothers of a new sovereign as the law Of the Empire. It be-
came the established policy of his successors.
The first warlike movement of Mahomet's reign was against Constantinople,
Its last Emperor, Constantine, judging the man by the incapacity of the boy seven
years before, sent a demand for an increase in an annual sum paid him for keeping
in confinement a claimant to the Turkish throne. Mahomet responded encourag-
ingly until he had taken full possession of his inheritance and felt secure of his
subjects' allegiance. Then he began building a huge fortress which still towers
above the shores of the Bosphorus, close to Constantinople. The Emperor Con-
stantine, himself a youth but little older than Mahomet, remonstrated agains*
this threatening demonstration, whereupon the Sultan, with fury suddenly released,
answered that the Osmanli had borne too long the insolence of a dependent, and
that he meant now to chastise Constantinople once for all and to take rightful
possession of this arrogant metropolis which obtruded itself like a foreign island
in the midst of his domains.
Early in 1453, the Moslems gathered round the doomed city, the capital of a
thousand years, whose mighty walls had resisted the siege of so many armies of
Asiatic invaders. Constantine sought help from Western Europe, but secured only
a few hundred troops, while the effort cost him the allegiance of the mass of his
own people, who declared him a heretic. Some of them vowed they would sooner
see the Mussulmans in possession of their homes than open them to the hated
Roman Christians. Thus it was upon a city hopelessly divided against itself
that Mahomet made his attack. He conducted it with great skill, casting enor-
mous cannon with which to batter down the walls, sapping the defenses with mines,
and creating a fleet to prevent the provisioning of the besieged by sea. His people
irere as yet untrained in naval warfare, and once a relieving fleet fought its way
past his vessels, though Mahomet in fury forced his horse into the very waves
and passionately urged on his defeated sailors. At length, however, the blockade
1758 The Story of the Greatest Nations
was complete, and the defenses were so battered, the loyal defenders so decimatei
and exhausted, that a general assault was made.
Constantme and his troop resisted this heroically but without avail, and the
last of the Caesars perished with the downfall of his empire. The city was sacked.
For a time the Moslems slew all they met, then they began seizing as slaves all
the fairer women and stronger men. Thousands of the fanatical Greek Christians
gathered in the great church of St. Sophia, believing that a miracle would save
them from the foe. None occurred, and most of the foolish and factious inhabi-
tants who had refused to join in the defense of their city, thus met the fate they
had invited, almost deserved.
Finally Mahomet checked the slaughter. This grandest metropolis of the
world was henceforth to be his capital; he did not want it wholly without people.
The remnant of the miserable Greeks were therefore promised mercy. They were
even permitted to continue their religion, and Mahomet conferred office on a new
Patriarch or head of the Greek Christian Church, assuring him that he should be
unhampered in his religious authority. But the splendid palaces, the gorgeous
churches, were all taken possession of by the Mahometans. The Osmanli might
at last feel themselves fittingly housed in a capital worthy of their fame. They
were masters of a broad and undisputed empire, united around its natural centre,
the ancient city most celebrated in all the world for culture and magnificence.
jAHiwaiM BiuiM* CuuniAN Chiuhwh
MURAD REPULSED FROM CONSTANTINOPLE
iTha Tiuks tLrng* Halpbulr Acalnit tl» Michlj Ships ml th* ^^-■— '"•)
From a drawing bt/ Omtme Dori
TPIE successor or Kdiliutnet i wus his son, Murad 11, one
of the most renin rknbli- of all the (ireat Osmanli nilerR.
Aseendiug the throne as a Ind of eighteen, he had first
to face treachery nnd civil wiir from variouH claimants to hia
throne. These were ail eiicminip-il and aided hv the Emperor
of ConHtanI inopie, who IhonKlil thus to weaken the power of
tliese dnntfeiMus Turks with whom he hail allied bimaelf.
£iira}:e<:l at the Hmperor's I rL'iieher.v. Murad as soon as be had
triiiinphe<.1 over the hist of his rivalH. turned all his energies
to an attack on (_'oii»tantinople.
(']) to this time the power of the Turks had lain wholly in
their iirniies: Ihey were a Ian<l power, possessing no navy
whatever. But to win Constantinople, the great seaport of
the East, ships were ahsolutely neei'ssary, Murad conducted
his land sie^e with skill and vigor: liut the ships of the Chria-
tians who caine to aid Constantinople, hroke easily through
his sea defeURCB. The fiery Turk saw his peojile slain in vain,
and himself defied and ridiculed, lie prepared a great land
assault ; but this also faik'd. and he was compelled to abandon
tlie hopeless siege.
Except for this failure Murad's reign was most successful.
He ti'storod the empire of the Turks to the full extent it had
attained before Timur's invasion ; he met the great Hungarian
leader llunyadi and defeated him and a huge Crusading army
at Varna, thus once mure crushing the renewed strength of
the Christians.
FuBT SiuoM or Raoon (Awk •
AntinU Mamutri/O-
RELIGIOUS SUPREMACY
Chapter IV
ESTABLISHED
DESTROYER
UNDER SELIM THE
AHOMET II, through his capture of Constantinople, is
perhaps belter remembered by Europeans than is any
other of the Turkish monarchs. Hence the typical
idea of his race is taken from him, one of its most un-
favorable specimens. The career of the Osmanli had
dawned with glorious promise. Their noonday splendor
only furnishes us with another instance of a nation
admirable in the rude strength and virtue of its youth,
but sinking into degeneracy under the enervating in-
fluences of wealth and victory.
Much of what is most evil in the Turkish empire, much that
has led to its decay, was inaugurated by Mahomet. He was undoubt-
edly an able man, shrewd and strong, but as false as he was cruel,
ami ac!f-indulgent, and enamoured of every vice. In the murder
of hi^ iafant brother, he had chosen for his model, not Orchan and
Aladiiin, the brethren of the generous strife, but Bajazet, the
monster, and like Bajazet he found a hideous pleasure in licentious-
ness, ia the ruin and destruction of innocent young lads and maidens.
Having mastered Constantinople, Mahomet in the pride of youth, strove to
cam and justify still further his title of the Conqueror. He easily gained possession
>7S9
1760 The Story of the Greatest Nations
of the remaining fragments of the Greek Empire, the cities of Sinope and Trebizond
in the far East, and the Peloponessus and the islands of the iEgean in the West. The
unhappy Greeks fled from their homes in multitudes, often without waiting the
approach of the enemy and without any idea whither to turn for shelter. They
perished by thousands of starvation and exposure. Mahomet then gave play to
his craft and subtlety against Servia and Bosnia, never as yet wholly submissive
in their dependency.
We are told that when Hunyadi negotiated with these states, he was asked
what terms he would give them if they aided him against the Turks. He an-
swered frankly that he would compel them to abandon every doctrine of Greek
Christianity and conform to the Roman Church. The despairing people then
asked the same question of the Sultan, who, less bigoted and less honest, assured
them of full protection in their own religion. This may not be true, but it is certain
that the Bosnian king and his sons came to Mahomet under a sworn promise of
safety and he used against them the very doctrine that Hunyadi had adopted against
Murad. No pledge, he declared, was binding toward unbelievers. He slew his
guests.
•
The next year (1456) the Conqueror advanced against Hungary. Belgrade,
the famous frontier fortress, was besieged, and Mahomet boasted that he would
take it as easily as he had Constantinople. Another religious crusade was preached
against him, and Hunyadi with a band of desperate adherents forced an entrance
into the beleaguered town. Then heading a sally against the Turks, the great
Hungarian chieftain won his last and most important victory. Mahomet saw
his troops put to flight by a fanaticism beyond their own. In his fury he struck
down his closest adherents and wielded his sword almost alone against the advanc-
ing foe. He was wounded and carried from the field, still raging and resisting in
the arms of his devoted followers. Twenty-five thousand Turks perished, and
not for many years did the OsmanU venture any further advance against Hungary.
Never again do we hear of Mahomet the Conqueror appearing in person on
the field of battle, nor did he for nearly two decades attempt any military move-
ment of importance. He developed, however, a strong and intelligent interest
in civil matters and in art, establishing a widespread sjrstem of law and life
among his people. Religious doctrine he placed under the charge of a special
order of learned men called mujti. The whole system of government was noade
so elaborate and minute that it had much to do with checking the progress of the
Turkish race. It took away the necessity and also the incentive to initiate new
methods of action, it destroyed the power of invention, and the "march of civiliza-
tion" ceased. The Turks remain to-day almost exactly where Mahomet II left
them.
In middle age the Conqueror turned again to military g^ory, but souf^t it
T'>'«;:t ny^,'
SCANDERBEG ROUSES ALBANIA
(Ha Dnauuls th* Sumndn of tha TurkUh Gan<«aa)
from a painlinff bg tht R««*fai> artitt, Paul Iranoviteh
THE little coiiiiti'y <^f Albania which the Powers of
Europe have just rfstored tu independence in our' own
dny, had al»o its roiuunci' of resistance to the Tarla.
Till? <^]iii.'f hi-ro of this rcsiKtanof. the name luuHt celebrated
in Albniiian nniials, was Scanderliep or .Mesander Bey. Al-
bania had been eon<iueved by the first wave itf the Turkish
advance, but her peoide had hi-eii .illowed to retain their Chris-
tian faith and local iiitilitutions: and now in the period of
Ilunyadi's assault upun tlie enfeebled Turks the Albanians
attempted to regain Iheir independence.
Scamlerbeg was the soil of an Albanian chief and was
brought up in the court of Murad II as a hostaiie for his peo-
ple. He became a favorite jta^e of ^lunul and seemed the
Sultan's most devoted friend, but at heart he was yearning
for the independence uf his peojile. Taking advantage of the
confusion into which Ilunyadi's >!roat crusading army
plunt,'cd Murad's court, Scjimlerbefr .secun-d a forged order
appointin<f him ruler of Alhnuiu. iind with this he fled to his
native land. Here, by bis preteiuk'd authority, he gained
cnntiol i)f the chief fortresses. Where his commands were op-
jiosrd he enforced lliein by surprise or sudden violence. His
eoiuiliymen rallieil ciijjcrly to bis call, and soon every Turk in
.\lbaiiia had been slain nr put to tli|:ht. Scamlerbeg then de-
feated one force after aiiolher which tlio Turks sent atfainst
him. I'iVen Sultan .Munid had to retreat from the Albanian
nioniitains without ii victory.
Turkey — First Siege of Rhodes 1761
Along an easier path. Hunyadi was long dead, but Murad's other great antagonist,
Scanderbeg, still reigned over Albania. The strife between him and the Turks
had never wholly ceased, and gradually they wore his followers down by numbers,
took his fortresses one by one, and compelled him to flee from Albania, which be-
came a Turkish province. When, a little later, Turkish inva'ders came upon his
grave in a Venetian city, they broke open the tomb and devoured the hero's heart,
hoping thus to become as brave as he.
Herzegovina also )rielded to the Turkish advance. Mahomet then, in 1475,
quarrelled with Genoa, which was still a powerful maritime republic, owning most
of the northern shore of the Black Sea, what is now southern Russia. The people
there were "khazak" or cossacks, wanderers, Turkish nomads such as the followers
of Ertoghrul had been. They were at enmity with the Genoese and eagerly aided
an army sent by Mahomet to attack KaflFa, the chief seaport of the Crimea, a
Genoese colony so opulent as to be known as "the lesser Constantinople." Kaffa
and all the Crimea fell easy victims to the Turkish arms.
Finding there was little real strength in these Italian city republics, Mahomet
quarrelled with Venice, and his troops plundered her territories along the Adriatic,
venturing almost to the site of the venerable city of the doges itself. In 1480,
the last year but one of his life, his generals attacked Italy from its southern end
and captured the famous stronghold of Otranto.
Only one repulse checked the Ottoman arms during this period. The same
year that Otranto was won, Mahomet sent a formidable fleet and army against
the island of Rhodes, which was held by the Knights of St. John and formed the
last bulwark of Christian power in the East, the last remnant of the conquests
of the Crusaders. Both the attack and the defense of the citadel of Rhodes were
conducted with noteworthy skill, but the final Turkish assault failed just when
it promised to be successful. The reason assigned by the Turks for the repulse
is that at the very moment when their troops reached the summit of the ramparts,
their general issued a command that there must be no plunder, that all the spoils
were reserved for the Sultan himself. Indignant and disgusted, ihe bulk of the
Turks abandoned their advance; their comrades on the ramparts were left un-
supported and were hurled back. The siege failed and Rhodes for the time escaped.
Mahomet died rather suddenly the next year, in the midst of the preparation
of a vast armament whose destination no one else knew. Treacherous himself,
he was always suspecting others and concealed his purposes from even his closest
councillors. Consequently the great expedition stood still, and the Grand Vizier
tried to keep secret the death of his master while he dispatched hurried news of
the event to the Sultan's sons, Bajazet and Djem. These two were each in com-
mand of a distant province, and as the Vizier was specially devoted to Djem, the
younger, he arranged that the word should reach his favorite first. Djem had
1762 The Story of the Greatest Nations
many partisans in Constantinople; he was known to be as energetic as Bajazet
was quiet; and since, under their father's law, one of them was likely to die, Djem
might prefer being Sultan himself.
The Vizier's scheme failed because the Janizaries suspected the Sultan's death.
Mahomet had increased both the number and the power of these famous troops.
Their turbulence had grown greater in proportion, and now, finding that the master-
hand was indeed removed, they broke out into open rioting. They slew the Viziei
who would have deceived them, and began, as at Mahomet's first accession, to
plunder their more peaceful and milder fellow citizens. In the general tumult, the
messenger to Djem was slain. So Bajazet got the news first after all, and came
post-haste to Constantinople where the Janizaries declared in his favor, being still
angry with the Vizier who they knew befriended Djem. The troops even conde-
scended to entreat the new Sultan's pardon for their outbreak, though at the same
time they demanded from him a large sum of money to pay them for their adher-
ence.
Bajazet II (1481-1512) was at the time thirty-five years old; he might in child-
hood have seen the members of this same troop crowding in passionate devotion
round his grardi thcr, Murad; but those old days of obedience had passed away
under Mahomet. Bajazet, perforce, submitted to the insolence of his servants
and paid the money they exacted. Thereafter this became the custom, and
the Janizaries insisted on a donation from each future Sultan.
Djem, however, was not yet disposed of. His whole career reads like a romance
and has been much enlarged on and embroidered by the poets of the East. He
was himself a poet of no mean order, and his works are still cherished by his country-
men. He was, moreover, if not one of the ablest members of his race, at least a
warrior and statesman of no mean merit. He may well have felt that he was
fighting for his life, Mahomet's specious legalizing of murder being well fitted to
produce death and discord, but never peace. So Djem maintained the mastery
of his own province and raised civil war against his brother. The ablest gen-
erals of his father were dispatched against him by Bajazet; and these with all
their forces found the conquest of the rebel no easy task. When driven from
his province, he sought aid from the Sultan of Egypt and renewed the struggle.
Crushed a second time, he turned to the Knights of Rhodes, but they while prom-
ising him alliance and assistance made him prisoner. He was hurried from one
European court to another. Bajazet paid an enormous price for his detention,
and each of the Western monarchs, under pretense of aiding the fugitive, sought to
secure his person and thus receive a portion of the spoils. The Pope urged him
to turn Chnstian, promising in that case a real support; but Prince Djem * haugh-
*As illustrating the impossibility of translating Turkish words into English spelling, it may be
ventioned that the name of this unfortunate prince has been written by good authoritiM in Midi
varied forms as Djem, Zizim, Jen, Jem, and Jimschid.
DOWNFALL OP CONSTANTINOPLE
(Th« Turks SUuffhtsr th« H«lpl*M Christians in ths Grsat Church of St.So^U)
From a paint iinf hif thv (Srrmttn nrii»t, E, liillf marker
MIIKAI) was Kiu'<'tMMl(Ml liy his son Mahomet II, called
the Coiiquoror. Mahonit^t H at Inst achieved what the
Turks had so loiijr dosirrd, the conquest of Constanti-
nople, (iradually their advance into Europe had engnilfed all
the territories of the Honian Empire of the East, and had
left Constantinople stan<lin^ as a single island of Christianity
amid the Mahometan possi'ssions. Now Mohamet made a sol-
emn vow that no other task slioulil distract him from the con-
quest of this mi^'lity city. Tie jrathered all his forces, he built
blockades across the waterfront to bar the Christian fieeta of
rescue; and he constructed hu*re cannon, the largest the world
had yet seen, wherewith t(» batter down the enormous walls.
Thus equipped the Turks Ix'^an the fiiud siejjfe of Constanti-
uopK*. Tht» metropolis recciveil but little aid from western
Europe, so its walls were at leiiirth battered down, and in a
furi<»us assault the Turks swarmed over the ruins and slew
all they m<»t.
Thousands of the Christians trathered in the jrreat church
of St. Sophia, hopinj; that a miracle there wouhl check the
Turkish advance. It did not: and the church became the cen-
ter ol' the massacre. At lenjrth Malioniet himself clieeked the
slaujrhter. declaring that Constantinople was henceforth to
be the capital of his empire, and be did not want it left wholly
without inhabitants. This was in 1 1')!^ and the city has ever
since remained wluit Malit>met madt* it, the Turkish capital.
X 1 1
Turkey— Bajazet the Dreamer 1763
tily refused and dragged out in foreign lands a weary exile of thirteen years.
At last, he fell into the hands of the worst of all the Popes, Alexander Borgia, and
was by him poisoned, Bajazet having promised for his brother's death a reward
even larger than for his restraint.
Despite this evil bargain, Sultan Bajazet II was not at all a bloody or cruel-
minded man. He only purchased his brother's murder when the necessity of it
was forced upon him. He was not even a soldier, disliked war and devoted him-
self mainly to religion. He was called by his people *'Sofi," which means the
mjrstic or the dreamer. Yet he was not without worldly wisdom. *' Empire,"
he sent word to Djcm, **is a bride whose favors cannot be shared." He built up
a navy which made him respected and feared by European powers, and which
for the first time gained victories for the Turks at spa.
On land, his armies were unfortunate. The success of Turkish soldiers de-
pended always on their enthusiasm, on the fanatic courage roused by the presence
of their Sultan. The "dreamer" failed to aid them with this inspiration. Hence
no foreign conquests were achieved in his reign; and he failed to win the admira-
tion of his warlike people. He even abandoned Otranto, the foothold which his
father had secured in Italy. Such wars as Bajazet was compelled to undertake
were in the East. He attacked the Persians, who from his time appear in the
place of the former Emirs of Caramania as the hereditary Asiatic rivals of the
Osmanli. He was also forced to fight against Egypt, then under the sway of the
famous Mamelukes, a band of noted warriors who had broken the power of the
French in the last crusade of King Louis IX. The powerful Mameluke Sultans
repeatedly defeated the forces of the Turks, and acquired some portions of the
Osmanli territory to the southward.
The old age of Bajazet the Dreamer was moreover long embittered by strife
with his fierce son Selim, afterward Sultan Selim, the Destroyer. He was neither
the eldest nor the best-loved of Bajazet's sons, but he early distinguished himself
in war and became the favorite of the soldiers, who despised the peaceful Bajazet.
The latter, as we have seen, never possessed any real control over his people, such
as made the earlier members of his house so powerful and so beloved. Selim even
dared to raise frequent rebellions against his father. Once Bajazet was forced
to lead against him such portion of the army as remained loyal, and Selim was
decisively defeated. His intrigues, however, never ceased, and at length the Jan-
izaries insisted that he should be called to the capital in preference to his brothers.
Selim came with an army, and the turbulent troops, gathering round the palace,
shouted to the Sultan to come forth.
** What will you?" demanded the aged ruler as he calmly faced them.
''Our monarch," they answered, *'is too old and too sickly, and we will that
Selim should be Sultan."
1764 The Story of the Greatest Nations
**So be it," said Bajazet philosophically, "I abdicate in his favor. God grant
him a prosperous reign." Then the deposed Sultan left the city in a litter, Selim
walking respectfully by his side. Yet Bajazet must have taken the matter more
deeply to heart than he admitted, for within three days he was dead.
With the dethronement of a Sultan by the Janizaries, we enter a new phase of
Turkish history. The servants have grown as powerful as their master; the
unquestioning devotion to the ancient line of Osman has disappeared. Here-
after it is always a disputed point as to which shall rule, the Sultan or the Janizaries,
<vhichever is stronger and more subtle holding temporary control.
Selim the Destroyer (1512-1520) was eminently fitted to cope with the corps
which had raised him into power. If they v/cre fierce, he was fiercer. They slew
with little hesitation, he with none at all. They were passionate for war, he
devoted his life to it. Once more the Turks became a nation of warriors on the
march. In his brief reign of eight years, Selim doubled the size of the Ottoman
Empire.
He trusted no one. Among his followers the executioner was ever at work,
until the common curse with his people grew to be, " May you be made Grand
Vizier to Sultan Selim." The average term of life of these Viziers is said to have
exceeded scarcely a single month.
"Will your highness grant me a few days to arrange my affairs?" queried one
of them, venturing a jest in the moment of his greatest prosperity. "You are
sure to order my execution some day or other."
Selim laughed with grim appreciation. "You are right," he said; "in fact
I have been intending to order it for some days, but have not found any one fitted
to take your place."
Yet this ferocious man was in his way deeply religious, a fanatic in his devo-
tion to his faith. He found no enjoyment in voluptuous case, and when not engaged
in war r'c voted himself to hunting. All his pleasures were of the sterner sort.
Nevertheless, he was an admirer of literature. A "royal historiographer" accom-
panied his campaigns, and other men of letters were given high posts in his service.
Selim even displayed in himself somctliing of the genius which glowed in so many
of his race, and composed poetry of no mean order.
A ruler of such varied ability could not fail to make his impress upon the world.
Bajazet had left sevcra^ sons and grandsons; Selim promptly slew the seven who
were within reach. Then he attacked the others, until all had been defeated and
killed in civil war. On Sclim^s first entrance into Constantinople as the acknowl-
edged sovereign, the Janizaries planned to form a double line and cross their swords
above his head as he passed between. This, while it would show their loyalty,
would also be a hint to the Sultan of the power which had made and could unmake
him. Sooner than submit to their yoke, Selim avoided them entirely, passing
SCANDERBEG ABANDONS ALBANIA
(Tlu H« Laanrn HU IMMit«l Couatrr Rathar Than SurmtdM ta th
Prom a painting by tht Auwlriait artitl, BrntI Htyn
OUTSIDE of tile capture of CoONtantiiiuple, Mahomet II's
chief warlike success was apaiiiHt Albania, where for
thirty years ScaiiderbcK had maintained hie country's
independence ngainst all attacks. Mahomet II had indeed to
face both of his father's greatest foes, Hnnyadi and Scander-
beg. Against Iliuiyadi and his Himirariniis Mahninet failed.
The celebrated Hungarian chieftain made a most desperate
attack against the Turks at Belgrade and put them to flight.
He then made with them a treaty which secured the indepen-
dence of his country. Scanderbeg was less successful. He
had not, as had Hunyadi, the armies of crusading Europe at
his back; but alone, with desperate heroism, his little foi'ces of
Albanian mountaineers defemletl theniselveB against army
after aruiy of the Turks. Bit by bit their land was torn from
them, fortress aflcr fortress was captured, until at last the
aged Scanderbep with a mere handful of followers abandoned
his last stronghold and withdrew from Albania, to let his poor
land have the only peace that was still possible for her as a
submissive Turkish province,
Seanderbeg soon die<l broken-hearted, in exile among the
Venetians. The Turks declared he was the bravest opponent
they ever met, and even to-day he is remembered as the most
ilaringly heroic of all the ancient champions of the Balkan
States,
Turkey— Defeat of Persia 1765
through the dty by another route. To pacify )he turbulent warriors he sent them
an immense present or "donation" which well-nigh emptied his treasury. After-
ward, one by one, he executed all whom he suspected of being leaders in the move-
ment. Once when his religious teachers ventured to remonstrate against his
endless slaughters, he put them gravely by. *'My people," he said, *'can only be
controlled by sternness."
The Mahometan world, then as now, was divided into two religious sects, the
Sunnites and Shiites. The Osmanli were Sunnitcs, but the other sect had begun
to spread from its stronghold in Persia and to take root in their dominions. Selim
axranged a vast and subtle system of police spies who enveloped his empire as in
a net, and made record of every Shiite. They found seventy thousand of the
heretics; and on a single day, without warning, these were all made prisoners.
Forty thousand were slain, while the remaining thousaads met the even crueller
fate of being immured for life in the fanatic's dungeons. Thus did the holy Sultan
purge his domains of heretics at a single stroke. It was a massacre of St. Bar-
tholomew, only of earlier date and more successful issue than that which later
stirred Christianity to its depths. The Turkish orthodox writers hailed the slaugh-
ter -with enthusiasm. Its perpetrator is styled *'the devout," *'thc just/'
**the humane."
The '/humane" Sultan was planning a still more comprehensive effort of
religious zeal. The Shah of the Persian Empire, who was a Shiite, had sheltered
one of his rebellious brothers. Selim sent the Shah a long, eloquent letter pointing
out the wickedness of all Shiites and of the Shah in particular, and explaining to
the latter that he was a reprobate needing chastisement, a tyrant who abused his
people, a criminal who slew them without justice. All these atrocities, declared
themild and clement Selim, he meant to put an end to; and he invaded Persia with
an army of nearly two hundred thousand troops, perfectly organized and equipped.
The management of the Turkish armies of this period, the preparations for
their supplies, their nourishment, and the care taken for their health, demand
admiration even in our own day, and were centuries in advance of the commis-
sariat arrangements of European troops. Selim's invasion of Persia would have
been impossible to any other monarch of his time. It was difficult even for him.
His army crossed deserts, and marched hundreds of miles without serious loss.
The Persians wisely fell back before them, devastating the land on their approach,
until the Janizaries complained loudly of their hardships. Selim turned on them
with furious scorn, and taunted them with having become children, who only
clamored for war when it was at a distance. Some of the murmurcrs he slew with
his own hand; then he offered to let each soldier go home who found himself unable
to endure what their Sultan was suffering with them. Not one accepted the con-
temptuous proposal.
1766 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Meanwhile, Selim was sending ^ne taunting message after another to the Shah,
until the latter's rage overmastered his generalship. On the plain of Calderan
he attacked the Turks with an army almost equal to their own, but unprovided
with the artillery which had become the chief weapon of the Osmanli. The Shah
was defeated and fled, wounded, leaving Tabriz, his northern capital, to the plunder
of the enemy (1514).
An extensive portion of Persia was thus added to the Turkish Empire; but
Selim, yielding to the protests of his soldiers, ventured no farther through the deserts
to complete the conquest of the East. He turned southward instead. The Ma-
hometan world had long been divided among the rulers of Turkey, Persia and
Egypt. One of the Turks' rivals having been overcome, they attacked the other,
— Egypt, the land of the Mamelukes, a band of famous slave soldiers like the
Janizaries, only that the Mamelukes — bolder than the Janizaries — had long since
overthrown their master and established in Egypt bl government and Sultan of
their own.
Bajazet the Dreamer had quarrelled with them and been defeated. Hence
they despised the Os^ianli. When Selim's forces invaded Syria, they met him with
little preparation; they were disputing among themselves and considered thdr
internal strife far more important than any menace from the invaders. Through
the power of artillery, the Turks gained an easy victory near Aleppo (15 16), and
all Syria with its celebrated holy cities, Jerusalem, Antioch, Damascus, passed
into their possession.
No longer underestimating the foe, the Mamelukes retreated into Egypt. They
awoke to the vast difference between Janizaries taking orders from a dreamer in
his capital, and the same troops headed by Selim in the field. The Egyptians
placed their mightiest warrior on the throne; they had still the desert for defense,
and prepared to guard its passage, to hurl troops fresh and strong against the
exhausted warriors who would come staggering out of its burning wastes. But
the thorough preparations of Selim thwarted them. He gathered thousands and
thousands of camels to carry water and make the journey easy for his men. Not
only soldiers but cannon were successfully transported across the sands. The
Mamelukes were defeated at Gaza, and again in a last desperate stand at Ridania,
near Cairo their capital. So furiously did they charge in this last battle, that
Selim was himself in danger. The warrior Sultan of Egypt pierced to the very
centre of the Turkish army, where mistaking the gorgeously apparelled Gra9d
Vizier for the Sultan, he slew the lesser man, wheeled horse and escaped. The
Turkish artillery, however, once more decided the fortune of the day. Twenty-
five thousand Mamelukes fell, and the Csiiianli became lords of Egypt (1517).
His new empire brought to Selim authority over Arabia also, and the guanUan-
ship of Mecca and Medina, the holy cities of his faith. More attractive still to
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THE ROMANCE OP PRINCE DJEM
CDJam'* SKNt FU(ht ta tha ChrirtUu)
From a fMialiajr by tht HnmgariaH arlUt, Prof. Frsaz Zt*ii»a
THE successor to the throne of Mahomet II, the Con-
queror, was Bajazet II, the Dreamer. Bajazet 11 wu
the first of the fierce Osmauli who maile no effort to ex-
tend his territories. He indeed H&tly refused to plunge into
war unless forced to it. Durinjr his reign the chief center of
romantic interest lay less with him than with his younger
brother, Djem or Jimschid.
The frequent family wars among the descendants of Os-
man as to which of them should win the throne had resulted
at length in the establishment of a law that the Sultan on-
coming to the throne should slay ail probable rivals. Now
Mahomet the Conqueror died suddenly, and his Vizier being
a friend of the Sultan's younger son Djom, concealed his
master's death while he sent word of it to Djem, hoping that
the younger brother might (hiis seize first upon the throne
instead of being slain by Bajazet. This plot led to a civil
war. Djem was defeated, fled to Egypt, and there gained
a second following. Again defeated, he fled alone and secretly
to Europe. There, single handed, aided only by bis powerful
personality and flnent elo4iuence, he gained many supporters,
and for thirteen years strove to raise an army to renew his
warfare with Bajazet. Ife was finally poisoned by Pope Alex-
ander Borgia. Djem was eerlainly a remarkable figure, a poet
and a soldier, one of the ablest men of his race and the one
best known to Europeans.
Turkey — The Sultan Becomes Caliph 1767
the religious devotee (or was it the subtle statesman who saw the value of the
change?) he became master of the nominal religious chief of all the Mussulmans,
a feeble descendant of the Prophet Mahomet, who dwelt in empty state among
the Egyptians. This chief ** caliph" was induced or compelled to transfer his
authority to Selim and his descendants, and the house of Osman, children of the
wandering khazak Ertoghrul, became Caliphs as well as Sultans, religious as well
as temporal heads of the greater part of the Mahometan world.
I Selim himself assumed the sword, the mantle and the standard of the Prophet.
Now, indeed, was he armed against heresy. Only the Shiites of Persia still opposed
him and denied his authority; and there can be little doubt that had Selim hved
he would have completed the conquest of the Persian Empire.
Having organized a government for Egypt, he returned to Constantinople
in 1 5 18, loaded down with spoils. He had resolved to compel the Greeks within
his domain to join also in his faith, planning to slaughter the refractory ones, as
he had the Shiites. "Which is better," he asked a mufti, his leading spiritual
adviser, "to conquer the world, or to convert its nations to the true faith?" The
mufti pronounced eagerly in favor of conversion; and the Sultan promptly ordered
every Greek church to be changed into a mosque, every Christian to become a
Mahometan or die. The Greek Patriarch protested, and appealed to the pledges
made by the conqueror of Constantinople. He quoted passages from the Koran
itself which forbade such violence as Selim's. Even the Mahometan preachers
remonstrated with their new Caliph at his excess of zeal, and he reluctantly re-
signed the truly stupendous pleasure which he had promised himself in the slaughtei
or conversion of six millions of his subjects.
The restrictions upon the Christians became, however, iT?creasingly severe,
and only the sudden death of Sehm in 1520 relieved them, and indeed the entire
^ empire, of an ever-increasing burden of fear. The "Destroyer," as all men knew,
was not yet glutted with bloodshed, not yet weary of forcing his owu 6erce way
upon the world.
SELIM UNITES THE MAHOMETAN WORLD
(Th* Cenquwrlnt Tuika Entn Cairo In Triumph u Maatwa of
From a patnlin/f 6y tJit Atutrian artUl, KonttOHti* Makotetky
BAJAZET THE DREAMER was ultimately deposed and
possibly murdered by his own son, who succeeded him
as Selim the DeKtroyer. Selim was not the eldest of his
father's sons, but he was the moat warlike. The fightjng
Turks grew more and more discontented with the lack of bat-
tle and plunder under Bajazet's peaceful rule and more and
more eager that Selini should succeed him. At last the chief
troops, the Jani^taries, would wait no longer, but gathering
around the royal palace in Constantinople, cltUDored for Ba-
jazet to resign. He yielded perforce to their sudden outburet;
resigned bis authority quietly to Selim, and thred days later
was found dead.
Selim at once began a career of conquest. He was a
sternly religious man, and had resolved that all Mahometans
oupht to be reunited under a single head, as they had been in
Mahomet's time. lie meant to be that head, and with his
united Mahometans to conquer the world. Hence he con-
quered Persia, then Syria, and then advanced against Egypt.
At this time Egypt was ruled by the celebrated body of sol-
diers. the Jlamelukes. These were crushed by Selim's Jani-
zaries in two tremendous battles, and he became lord of Egypt
(1517). He thus accoinplisbed bis first aim; when he entered
Cairn in triumph he was in control of the entire Mahometan
world. The menace of the Turks against Christianity now
reaeheil its height.
Turkey— Power of Solymar 1769
sixteenth century was in many respects one of the most remarkable periods in
history. It was the age of the Reformation; Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin were
preaching their doctrines. The Renaissance was in fullest flower; Raphael and
Michael Angclo were beautifying the churches of Italy. Columbus had discovered
America, and its riches were pouring into Europe. Ferdinand and Isabella had
expeUed the Moors from Spain, and their grandson, the Emperor Charles V.,
wielded a combination of Spanish and German power the most extensive since
Charlemagne. Francis, called the Great, ruled over France, as the most munif-
icent of art patrons, most chivalric of heroes, most sumptuous of monarchs.
Yet amid all this rising splendor and power of the West, the Turkish Emperor was
not eclipsed. Bickering sovereigns who heaped insults upon one another, united
in admitting the greatness of the infidel, the most hated among them all. From
Western Europe itself. Sultan Solyman received the name of **the Magnificent."
His own people knew him by a yet more lordly appellation, perhaps not unde-
served. They called him Solyman the Lord of the Age.
Let us see how far the title was merited. When the young prince at the age
of twenty-six ascended the throne of his fathers, he ruled over an empire terri-
torially as large as all Western Europe combined. His capital had been for a
thousand years the centre of the culture of the world. His subjects, it is estimated,
were forty millions in number, at a time when England contained only four mil-
lions, and even the German Empire, most populous of European lands, boasted of
but thirty million subjects. Moreover, Solyman was absolute master of his realm,
not constantly thwarted and antagonized by nobles almost as powerful as he, not
bound by charters and constitutions, not antagonized by a Church that claimed
from his subjects a still higher allegiance. Solyman was spiritual chief of a region
even wider than his temporal domains. He bowed to no law except the Koran,
of which he himself was the interpreter. No nobility existed in his land, except
such as he created.
In personal character also, the young monarch was a worthy example of the
Osmanli at their best. Even in the reign of his grandfather, Bajazet the Dreamer,
Solyman's budding youth had been distinguished by military success. Selim had
found him a valuable lieutenant. Moreover, he was^an only son, hence his acces-
sion to the throne was undisputed. He was not driven to trickery and intrigue
during his father's reign, and sudden fratricide at its close. He came into his
great inheritance with hands unsoiled by crime, with heart in the first warm flush
of youth, with a reputation already high for generosity as well as valor; and his
people welcomed him with a hopefulness and enthusiasm, which measured the
intensity of their relief in escaping the terror of Selim.
The very opening of his reign was marked by notable military achievements.
The two great bulwarks of Christianity, Belgrade on the borders of Hungary, and
1770 The Story of the Greatest Nations
the Island of Rhodes in the eastern Mediterranean, fell before his arms. From
these two famous strongholds Mahomet the Conqueror had been repulsed. They
had dealt him the two great defeats of his career; and for half a century the attack
had not been renewed. The Dreamer had not dared attempt it. The Destroyer
was himself too soon destroyed. The last eflFort of Selim's life had been the gather-
ing with his customary thoroughness of a vast armament against Rhodes. While
awaiting the completion of this, Solyman turned his attention to Belgrade.
The young King of Hungary had merited chastisement by putting a Turkish
ambassador to a cruel and shameful death. Solyman advanced swiftly into Hun-
gary, captured several fortresses, and by a vigorous siege made himself master of
Belgrade (1521). He so strengthened its already enormous fortifications, that
it remained for two centuries the chief bulwark of the Turkish Empire against
Europe.
Returning next to his'already formulated project against Rhodes, the Gibraltar
of its day, Solyman invested the island with an overpowering force, and at the enor-
mous sacrifice of one hundred thousand lives, gradually sapped the strength of the
defenders. The tremendous artillery of the Turks was employed with its usual
effect. The modem science of attack, by means of trenches slowly advanced and
carefully protected, here first received its full study and development. After five
months of a most memorable defense, the exhausted Knights of St. John sur-
rendered; and the only remaining fetter which had been imposed upon the Elast
by all the toil and bloodshed of the Crusades, was broken. No foe remained
anywhere within the circle of the Turkish Empire. Its outspreading bounds were
unified at last (1522).
All the world recognized the valor which the defenders had displayed. The
Sultan granted them honorable terms, and they were allowed to depart from
Rhodes unmolested. Solyman even spoke to their Grand Master with character-
istic generosity, reminding him of the varied fortunes of war,* and saying that
he grieved to drive from home so aged and so brave a gentleman. The Emperor
Charles V conferred upon the Knights a new Mediterranean fortress to defend,
the island of Malta; and to this they withdrew, making of it another memora-
ble centre of defense against the Turks.
Having satisfied his martial ardor by these two celebrated achievements and
by the suppression of revolts in the recently conquered regions of Syria and Egypt,
the young Sultan betook himself to the pleasures of peace and to the improvement
of the internal order of his empire. Ambassadors sought him from all the turbu-
lent courts of Western Europe. Their letters to their homes make marvel of the
splendor of his surroundings and the wisdom, justice, and generosity of his char-
acter. In 1525, Francis of France, held prisoner by the Emperor Charles, wrote
to Sol)mian, Sultan of the infidels, entreating him to compel his release. Sol}nnan
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DEATH OF SELIM THE DESTROYIR
<Ha Doubt, tha RlahtHuwma at Hii Smitntm af IUII(l(nu AlthMltv)
From tht hiitoriral eerif of T. C. Jack
SELIM, the conqueror of Syria and Egypt, was a strange
and remarkable fijiure, a great tighter but an even greater
devotee to his religion, a stern and bloody fanatic who
perpetrated religious niassneres on a scale that no European
has ever equalled. Selini found the Mahometan world divided
between two roligiouH sects. Persia had been the stronghold
of the sect opposed tu his own, and he made this the excuse
for attacking, and so I'ar as possible destroying the Persiang.
He then commanded the slauKlilei- of all members of this sect
throughout his own domains. Forty thousand of the unfor-
tunates were slain and many more imprisoned for life. So far
as force could accomplish it the sect was trampled out. Then
when Selim captured Egypt, he compelled the feeble "Caliph"
or religious chief of his own Mahometan sect to transfer to
Selim 's head the spiritual leadei-ship. Thus Selim became,
and all his successors on the Osmanli throne have since re-
mained, both Caliph and Sultan, the rulers of both Church
and State, leaders of the Mahometans in the same sense that
once Mahomet himself had been.
Selim died so<m after seizing on this high eminence. On
his death-bed he is said to have been shaken by doubt as to the
righteousness of his bold and terrible course. But he declared
that his turbulent foUowei-s co\ild only be ruled by a force
even greater than their own, so that he persisted in savage se-
verity of slaughters until he too expired.
Turkey— Overthrow of Hungary 1771
answered in terms well befitting the " Lord of the Age," speaking of his own
court as the asylum of sovereigns, the refuge of the world; and assuring Francis
that, having appealed to him, he should have justice. ** Night and day," says his
letter, "our horse is saddled and our sabre girt."
The continued appeals of Francis had undoubtedly considerable eflFect in
fomenting the wars which arose between the Turkish and the German Empires.
Their immediate cause, however, was less romantic and more serious. The tur-
bulent Janizaries protested against peace and began plundering Constantinople-
Sol)n3ian hurried to the scene of their rioting and, after cutting down the leaders
with his own hand, executed a number whom he suspected of instigating the dis-
order. But to quell it wholly and by the most effective means, he marched to war.
Himgary, with which no peace had been made since the capture of Belgrade,
was the victim of his attack. Its young king hastily gathered his forces, but he
directed them with little judgment or skill and was slain and his army annihilated
by the overwhelming numbers of the Turks on the field of Mohacs (1526). This
battle, still remembered as "the destruction of Mohacs," caused the downfall of
the Hungarian kingdom, which for a century and a half had held back the Euro-
pean advance of the Osmanli. Now it lay helpless at the feet of the victor. ** May
Allah be merciful to this youth," he said as he gazed at the body of the dead king,
"and punish the counsellors who have misled his inexperience. I had no wish to
cut him oflF when he had but just begim to taste the joys of life and sovereignty."
Advancing up the Danube, the Turks seized Buda, the Hungarian capital*,
but the purpose of the Sultan seemed rather to punish the land by devastation than
to take permanent possession of it, and his army withdrew laden with plunder and
burdened by a mass of one hundred thousand unhappy prisoners.
In the extremity of their despair, the Hungarians broke into civil war. One
party sought the aid QjF Germany. To strengthen their resistance against Turkey,
they gave the Hungarian throne to Ferdinand, brother of the Emperor Charles V.
The other party, insisting on a native king, elected Zapolya, one of their nobles.
Being defeated by Ferdinand, Zapolya appealed to the Sultan for assistance. The
rival kings laid their claims before his court, where they were treated with arro-
gance as vassals of the Turks. "Thy master, "the envoy of Zapolya was told, "is
only king because we make him so. The crown does not make kings, it is the
sword." The ambassador from Ferdinand, having been less submissive and hav-
ing demanded the restoration of Belgrade, was assured that the Sultan would pun-
ish him even if the Turks had to march all the way to Vienna, the capital of the
German Empire, to drag him from the protection on which he relied.
Thus was the gage of battle fairly ofiFered to the great German Empire; and
over the prostrate lands of the Greek Empire, the Balkan States and Hungary, the
Turks advanced into central Europe. In the spring of 1529, Solyman, with a
1772 The Story of the Greatest Nations
quarter of a million men, began his threatened march from Constantinople. This
time the elements were against him. Constant rains made the advance of his
troops almost impossible, and much of his heaviest artillery had to be left behind.
Not until September did he reach the Hungarian capital, which after a brief siege,
surrendered. Ferdinand had fled, and Solyman, as he had promised, placed Za-
polya upon the throne. Then, taking his vassal king with him, he continued his
advance upon Vienna.
From that city also Ferdinand took flight, and the energies of the Emperor
Charles V were absorbed elsewhere in his dominions; but fortunately for Christen-
dom, its capital had more resolute defenders. Lacking heavy artillery, the Sultan
could make no effective breach in the walls, and assault after assault was vigorously
repelled. The weather grew more bleak, winter approached, and sickness spread
through the camp of the warm-blooded Turks. After a single month of ineffectual
siege, Solyman, recognizing that he had met the first check of his career, withdrew
his troops. Vienna remained unconquered, but almost all Austria had been ravaged
as had been Hungary three years before. Thousa:nds of captives were slaughtered
and other thousands carried away by the withdrawing Turks. Sol)m[ian boasted
that the Christians dared not meet him in the field, and at Buda he held a great
celebration of his triumph.
Three years later the Sultan invaded the Austrian territories again and laid
all Styria in ashes. The little fortress of Guntz made a memorable defense against
his arms, giving the Emperor Charles time to gather an imperial German army
and march against him. It seemed as though a great decisive battle might again
settle the fate of an entire continent But Solyman had already weakened his
forces by his long and trying campaign; he challenged Charles to lead the Imperial
army against him, but did not himself march toward Vienna. The Emperor with
even greater caution remained within reach of the sheltering walls of the capital,
and saw his fairest provinces made desolate without an effort to protect them.
The next year, 1533, a truce was agreed upon. Solyman was too sensible to
exhaust his armies by repeating such distant and profitless invasions. There was
little left to plunder, no army would give him battle, and he only sacrificed his
troops by thousands against the stone walls of the innumerable fortresses. More-
over, the old religious quarrel with the Persians had again broken out, so that
from this time Solyman, like Selim, turned his attention mainly to the East. He
fought at least six great campaigns against the Persians, broke their power, and
wrested from them the fairest portion of their empire. The entire valley of the
Euphrates and Tigris Rivers with the great capital Baghdad, the last of the sacred
places of the East, passed under the sway of the Osmanli, where it still remains.
The **arch of Turkish Empire" curved from Baghdad in the east, to Belgrade and
even to Buda in the west
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SOLYMAN'S AMBASSADOR SLAIN
(Tlw HuD««Ui» BriDB Uu CaptuMd AmbMHdo* Brfsn Tliar Kli
From a paintlmff bg lAi Hmngarian artitt, J. PawUtatk
SOLTMAN THE MAONIFICEXT was the boh and s
sor of Selim. Solyman's reign marks the culmination of
the Oamanli power, the "golden age" of the Turks; thwr
zenith not only of military but of int«)lectual and literaiy
success. Solyiiian rule<] from 1520 to 1566 at the time of
Europe's great religious upheaval of the Reformation, and he
displayed not only more power but mure magnanimity than
any other European sovereign of the time. Probably he was
more powerful than all of them combined.
Yet the beginotng of Solyman's reigu was hailed by his
European neighbors as a deliverance. They had been fearful
indeed of the grim might which Selim the Destroyer, having
established his supremacy over the Klahometan world, seemed
about to hurl against them. Solyman, they felt, was an untried
youth likely to be harassed at first, like most Osmanli sov-
ereigns, by civil war. So the young king of Hungary took
heart, and when a Turkish ambassador was seized by the fierce
Hungarians and brought as a bedraggled prisoner before the
king, he had the unfortunate envoy slain. The Hungarians
delighted in this defiance of the Turks, but Solyman exacted a
fearful vengeance. He came at once in hot haste against
Hungary and stormed and captured its great frontier fortress
of Belgrade. He then completely crushed the Hungarian
power in the battle of Mohacs. Hungary became in its turn
a Turkish province.
Turkey— Naval Supremacy 1773
Fortunate indeed for Europe was the respite thus granted her from Solyman's
attacks, and some of her sovereigns frankly recognized it as such. "Nothing but
these Persians, " writes Ferdinand's ambassador, ** stand between us and ruin/'
And again, **This war affords us only a respite, not a deliverance."
Another important addition to Turkey's empire was acquired by her navy.
Or rather the navy was presented to her as a voluntary' tribute to her now recog-
nized position as head of the Moslem world. The little Mahometan states of North
Africa had long found in piracy their chief source of revenue. A Turkish sea-
rover known to Europe as Barbarossa (Red-beard), and to his own people as
Khaireddin, distinguished himself by establishing a piratical control over all
Algiers. As the magnitude of his operations increased, he recognized his need of
protection from the Christians he despoiled and, voluntarily placing himself under
the protection of Solyman, became a ** vassal of the Porte." His example was
soon followed by other African states. Solyman, gladly accepting this addition
to his empire, increased his own na\y and made Khaireddin his chief admiral or
Kapitan Pasha.
The Turkish sea power thus suddenly created, disputed with Venice and Genoa,
with Spain and France, for the naval supremacy of the Mediterranean. Khaired-
din, who had made himself master not only of Algiers but of Tunis also, was driven
from the latter stronghold by a formidable fleet and army led by the German
Emperor in person. In 1538 he avenged himself by a great v-ictory over the com-
bined fleets of the Emperor, Venice, and the Pope, off Prevesa. For a time there-
after he ravaged the Italian coast almost at will, plundering some of its fairest
cities. In 1 541, another elaborately planned Christian expedition attacked him
in Algiers, but failed disastrously.
Encouraged by Khaireddin's example, the Turks became experts in the art of
seamanship, and other admirals arose to emulate his deeds. The fleets of Soly-
man were, if not masters of the Mediterranean, at least far more powerful than
those of any other single state. The Christians could withstand them only by
uniting.
In 1 539, Zapolya, the Sultan's vassal ruler over Hungary, died. Ferdinand of
Austria, who had been allowed to keep a small portion of the country, at once
laid claim to the whole. The widow of Zapolya appealed to Solyman to preserve
the land for her infant son; and the great Sultan, postponing his Persian com-
paigns, hurried westward once more (1541). He drove Ferdinand and his Aus-
trians out of the districts they had seized. As fortress after fortress surrendered
it was garrisoned, not with followers of Zapolya, but with Turkish troops. Turkish
officiaJs were also installed in civic control, and thus almost the whole of Hungary
sank to be a mere province of the Ottoman Empire. In 1547, a five-year truce
WIS conc^.Jdc^ between Solyman and the f)owcT5 of Europe which lay beyond
1774 The Story ot the Greatest IVsitions
Hungary. Not only the Emperor Charles V, but also the Pope, the Doge of Venice;
and the King of France were parties to this treaty, by which most of Hungar]f
was formally surrendered to the Turks. For the small part of the land which
King Ferdinand was allowed to keep, he was to pay a heavy annual tribute to the
Sultan. This treaty marks the high tide of the power of the Osmanli. It may
perhaps be regarded as justifying Solyman's claim to be "Lord of the Age."
Nor was it through military successes alone that the great Sultan's reign won
its renown. This was also the most noted period of Turkish literature. Solyman
was its patron. A cultured admirer of the art of verse, he even dabbled in its
mysteries himself, though without noteworthy success. Yet if not gifted
with this special form of genius, he could recognize it in others. One of his poems
addressed to the lyric poet, Abdul Baki, prophesied that future ages would name
Baki," the Immortal." He is so called to-day; and though the Sultan*s prophecy
doubtless helped to work out its own fulfillment, Baki is generally regarded by
Turkish critics as the chief master of their language. On Solyman's death the
poet whom he had so admired composed in his honor an ode accounted by the Turks
the grandest paean ever uttered in human praise.
Nine other noteworthy poets adorned this culminating age of the Turkish
race, in addition to a crowd of lesser singers, at least one great historian, and one
great jurist, beside numerous minor writers on these themes, on philosophy
and on religion. Architecture likewise reached its fullest development, as did
the decorative arts. The luxury of the court of Solyman became such as only
revenues vast as his could have supported.
To see the inevitable "other side" of the picture, the sorrows of the "Magnifi-
cent" Sultan's lot, we must turn to his domestic life. He was easily susceptible
to the softer emotions. For the first time in the story of the house of Osman, we
find a vast and baneful influence exercised over the entire realm by a woman.
She was the daughter of a Russian priest, was brought to Constantinople by Cos-
sack raiders, and sold into the Sultan's harem. She was called Khurrem, "the
laughing one," though European courts spoke of her as Roxalana. She soon
gained a great influence over Solyman. He valued her wisdom as highly as her
charms and took counsel with her upon every subject. She was in fact an empress.
Before Roxalana's rise, the chief aids and counsellors of the Sultan had been
his eldest son Mustapha and his Grand Vizier Ilderim. Ilderim was a Greek slave
boy to whom Solyman had become attached in youth, and whose marvellous rise
and great ability form a favorite theme of Turkish legend. His devotion to his
master secured him by degrees a power second only to that master's own. He
even signed himself "Sultan Ilderim." Ferdinand of Hungary when negotiating
with the Porte, addressed Ilderim as "brother." Roxalana secured Mustapha's
banishment from court and Ilderim's execution (1536).
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THE HUNGARIAN VASSAL KING
{Zapclra EntrsaU AudUnu With Solyinwi tha M*c>*lla*Bt>
Frmu a pa'mtinij Inj the Ilalian iirtiil. Allivrlo Pattimi
SOLYMAN (lid not take complete posseatiion of Hungary
after destroying its military strength at Mohacs. His first
impulse wus tnerely one of veit^ireaiice ; and he ravaged the
land from end to end, tlien returned to Constantinople loaded
down with spoils and prisoners. Some of the despairing Hon-
garians appealed to Ferdinand of Austria, afterward Emperor
of (lennany, to be their kinir. Others elected one of their own
nobles, Zapol,va. Bot]i Ferdinand and Zapolya boukM to
make friends with Solyman by appealing to him to uphold
their claims. Zapolya even came in person and waited outside
Sulyman's palace until he eoulil secure audience with the
great Sultan. So Solynian declared in favor of Zapolya ; and,
to support his candidate uuninst Ferdinand, marched his im-
perial army once more into Hungary. It became a Turkish
dependency under Zapolya.
Solynian then pursued Ferdinand as far as Vienna; but
finding that city too strong for assault, he withdrew. His
troops ravagHl Austria (ir>:2!)l, as before they had ravaged
Hungary, So liei-e were the Turks threatening to enter the
very heart of Eui-ope. In another advance a few years later,
Solynian n^iain ravaged Austria, and sent a defiance to the
German Enii>eror. Charles V, challenging the Germans to
meet him in the field in defense of their devastated province.
But the (ierniatis kejit witVly within the walls of Vienna, and
the cold of wiuler dttive Solyuian home. He proclaimed him-
self "Lord of the Age."
Turkey— Influence of Roxalana 1775
She thus became unrivalled in her power, her strong nature impressing itself
upon Solyman's as he grew old. When her two sons approached manhood,
she resolved that they, not Mustapha, should succeed to their father's throne.
For this purpose she secured the promotion of Rustem, her daughter's husband,
to the office of Grand Vizier. Rustem was wholly under Roxalana's control;
he was a miser, false and wholly venal, who corrupted the entire state by selling
its chief offices to the highest bidders, men who naturally sought to recompense
themselves by every method of extortion.
At the Sultana's urging, the Vizier systematically poisoned his master's mind
against the distant Mustapha. Solyman, who had known his son well and loved
him, long refused to believe the evidences laid before his eyes, but finally yielded
and in 1553, probably in the father's presence, the son was executed.
The grief of the entire empire was extreme. Mustapha had been one of the
worthy members of his race, devoted to the service of his father, beloved and
highly -honored by the people. His very virtues wrought his destruction, for it
was reported that the Janizaries of their own accord were planning to substitute
him for his aging father upon the throne. To the necessity of fratricide which
the house of Osman already felt, the rising power of the Janizaries thus added a
further horror. Fathers began to slay each able son lest he depose them as Bajazet
the Dreamer had been deposed. They adopted still another method of protection,
keeping their sons in ignorance and seclusion, that the young men might lack both
the ability and the influence to revolt. Under such policy as this the house of
Osman was doomed I
Roxalana's eldest son, Selim, was declared heir to the throne, but so incom-
petent and so vicious did he prove himself, that many of his troops rebelled
in favor of Bajazet, his younger brother. This Bajazet, of whom we have scant
records, seems to have been an able and honorable youth; but Roxalana, with a
mother's partiality, clung to her first-bom. Bajazet was declared a rebel, and the
royal army marched against his followers. Roxalana died while the campaign
was in progress. Bajazet was defeated and executed. Thus in his old age Soly-
man was left alone. The friend of his youth, the hero son of his early manhood,
the promising child of his later years, each had been slain by his orders. The
siren at whose bidding he had acted was also gone; and to his desolation there
remained only a ferocious drunkard, an imbecile, the false and worthless Selim.
Such are the declining days of despotism.
Military reverses also came upon the aged Sultan. The Knights of St. John
whom he had expelled from Rhodes, had made of Malta another powerful citadel,
where their ships reposed in safety, or rushed suddenly forth upon the Turkish
Beets. If master of this island, Solyman felt that he would be master of the Medi-
ferranean^ and in 1565 he sent a tremendous armament against it. After a long
1776 The. Story of the Greatest Nations
and bloody siege, the attack was repulsed, and though a second expedition was
planned for the following year, it was perforce abandoned because of the renewal
of the war on the German frontier.
King Ferdinand, who had become the Emperor Ferdinand, died; and his son,
the Emperor Maximihan II, succeeded to his claims over the small remainder of
independent Hungary. The Turkish vassal king who held the rest of Hungary,
claimed the part which had been Ferdinand's, and so fell to fighting with Maxi-
milian. Once more Solyman led an army across Hungary, He was now ovei
seventy years of age and so feeble that he had to be borne in a litter. But he
had no son that he could trust, to take his place.
Fortress after fortress in independent Hungary surrendered. The Austrians
abandoned the hapless land to its fate. One of its own sons saved it at the sacri-
hce of himself. The count palatine Nicholas Zrinyi defended his town and fortress
of Szigeth with such valor and ability that Solyman was compelled to settle down
to a regular siege with his entire army. Month after month slipped by. September
came, and the enfeebled Sultan one night complained with childish quenilousness
that he could no longer hear the beating of the huge drum of victory. Then turn-
ing his back upon a world that had grown dark to him, he died in .solitude. With
him departed the glory of the Turkish race.
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BARBAROSSA'S CAPTIVES
(Th« Noted Turkish Pirate Flmy With the Agony of His Prisoners)
From a painting by the French artist, Pailleux Saintange
WHILE Solyman was thus triumphing on land, his fleets
achieved equal glory on the sea. Before his time the
Turks were still admittedly inferior to the Christians
in seamanship. But the uplifting of Selim and Solyman to
be the religious leaders of Mahometanism brought to their
standards a new race, the wild corsairs of northern Africa.
These men were, in truth, savage pirates. The most noted
of them all was Khaireddin or, as the Christians called him,
Barbarossa (Red-beard). Barbarossa established himself as
master of Algiers ; and having acquired much religious merit
by plundering many Christian ships and enslaving and tor-
turing their passengers, he applied to Solyman for protection
against Christian vengeance. Solyman, who eagerly desired
good seamen, made Barbarossa his chief admiral and supplied
him with more ships and men. Barbarossa then seized upon
Tunis also ; but a vast Christian naval expedition attacked and
captured Tunis, liberating all the captives whom Barbarossa
found no time to slay before his flight.
After that Barbarossa 's fleets disputed the supremacy of
the Mediterranean on equal terms with all the combined pow-
ers of Spain, France and the Italian States. The Turks be-
came almost at a bound, the strongest single naval power of
the world. Solyman stood at the summit of his splendor and
renown.
X-21
Till SlECB OF SziCETH {Fftm an Ancimt UanuscripCi
Chapter VI
INTERNAL DECAY AND ITS TEMPORARY ARREST UNDER
MURAD IV
As before, also Stirling- Maxwell, "Don John of Auttri*"; Dyer, "History of
es, "Turkey Old and New."|
LhE death of Solynian was concealed from his troops by his
devoted Vizier, Sokolli. The Vizier was well aware
that the news would cause the soldiers to abandon the
siege of Szigeth in discouragement; and he was deter-
mined that the fortress before which his master had
perished should not remain untaken to boast of its
resistance. For seven weeks the body of the dead
"Lord of the Age" was borne about in a closed litter, as though
the empty shell still held its former tenant. Officers approached
ami bi)wed low to it and heard Sokolli, stooping within the cur-
tains, repeat feeble words of command.
The fortress succumbed at last, and its heroic defendants
rushed forth to death in a final charge. The Countess Zrinyi,
remaining behind, blew up the powder magazine at the entrance
oi th& victors, hurling the entire fortress into air and carrying
with it skyward three thousand Janizaries. Sokolli announced
that the object of the campaign was accomplished, and withdrew the army in
good order. Only when the homeward march was well advanced, was the
demise oi the great Sultan proclaimed and his outworn body permitted to
have rest. His authority passed to his only surviving son, the drunken,
imbecile Selim, called even by his own reverent historians, Selim the Sot.
1777
1778 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Of no land has it been more true than of Turkey, that the fortune of the people
followed that of their rulers. For three centuries the descendants of Ertoghrul
had handed their kingship steadily from father to son. Ten generations of leaders,
all efficient and only one or two falling below real greatness of mind or body,
had establishefl for the Osmanii an almost superhuman reverence in the hearts
of their fx-ople. But with the death of Solyman, the genius of his race suddenly
disapix*ars. His successors sink to a general level of feebleness as impressive
as was the grandeur of the earlier generations. One or two of the later Sultans
rise, perhaps, to the ordinary stature of mankind, but as a race they grovel beneath
contempt.
For this evil change we must hold Solyman responsible, Solyman and Khurrem,
"the laughing one," the Sultana whose machinations destroyed all the capable
sons of her royal lover and left him only Selim, the worthless child whom, with
a mother's instinct of his need of her, Khurrem had made her favorite.
The character of Selim II (i 566-1 574) had come to be well understood by
his father and all his people, but such was the absolute devotion of the nation
to the house of Osman, that no one thought for a moment of disputing his succession.
The lives, the fortunes, and the consciences of the whole Turkish race were placed
unreservedly in the hands of an acknowledged drunkard and half-imbecile. Through
him this power descended to the children of his vile amours.
The weakness of one man could not of course cause the immediate downfall
of so vast and firmly founded an empire. For a time the high spirit of Solyman
still ixjrvaded its counsels. Except when swayed by his Sultana, he had been a
keen judge of men, and he had drawn around him a body of noble servitors. The
venal Vizier Rustem, the creature of Khurrem, had been succeeded in his high
office as second head of the empire by Sokolli, the artful secreter of his master's
death, a soldier and statesman worthy of the rank.
Sokolli, by a wise diplomacy, managed to retain until his death, not only his
place but also his honor, and was the real niler of the empire throughout Selim's
reign and during the first years of his successor. Selim was awed by his Vizier's
high repute, and being content to revel in idleness with boon companions, seldoo?
intruded on affairs of state.
The Turkish troops, however, were accustomed to being led to battle by their
Sultan, and their incTiciency without the religious enthusiasm aroused by his pres-
enc'e, or at least by his guidance from afar, was soon sadly demonstrated. Sokolli
had conceived the bold and statesmanly project of uniting by a csLnaA the two great
Russian rivt-rs, the Volga and the Don, and thus securing for the Turkish fleet
a i)assage from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea. This would assuredly have
resulled in the concjuest of all northern Persia, which was no longer protected
from the Turks by the valor of its warriors, but only by the difficulty of approach
. 1
SOLYMAN AT HOME
[Raulsna DamaiHi* Fram SalTman Ui* Haad ol HU Vlalw)
From a painting bg (Ab Frgnck artul, Qeorgtt Claudu
WHILE Solyman was thus extending his sway over alt
tlie world abroad, be was falling under the sway of a
most treacherous despotism at home. He became the
dupe of his own slave, the woman whom he made his EmpreflB,
the remarkable woman known tn western Europe as Roxalana.
Solyman himself called her Khurrem, which means gayety or
the laughing one. Roxalana was a Russian girl, carried off
in a Turkish raid and sold as a slave in Constantinople. Her
beauty led to her being purchased for the Sultan's harem,
and she soon gained an unbounded iuHuence over Solyman.
Once established in power, Roxalana used her keen wit to
destroy Solyman 's most trusted counsellor, his Vizier Ilderim.
She accused Ilderim of so many treacheries that at length
Solyman had him executed. Next the treacherous empress
directed her darts against Solyman 's eldest son and natural
successor, Mustapha ; she had him banished and finally secured
from the unhappy father the death of tliis favorite son. Then
as Roxalana 's own two sons grew t^iwnrd manhood, alie elected
the more worthless of the two to he Solyman 's successor, and
drove the other son into rebellion, so that he, too, was atain.
Then Koxalaiia herself died : and Solyman was left in his old
age alone and desolate. He had been driven to execute the
friend of his youth and the two ablest of his sons. He had
lost even the woman for whose smiles he eacrificed them.
Turkey — Lepanto 1 779
across its dreary deserts. Azov, the city at the mouth of the Don, was already
in Ottoman hands; but the region of the canal and Astrakhan, the famous port
at the mouth of the Volga, had half a century before been taken from the Tartars
by the Russians.
Sokolli's project, therefore, brought Russians and Turks for the first time into
armed conflict. A force was sent to build the canal, another to soize Astrakhan,
and the great Khan of the Crimea, ruler of all the northern Black Sea shore under
the suzerainty of the Sultan, was conmianded to aid the expedition. Instead, he
naturally did all he could to discourage it. He did not wish the Ottomans brought
closer to his domain, and in greater numbers. He worked upon the religious foars
of the soldiers, reminded them of their distance from the Sultan, and explained that
the short nights of the north would make it impossible for them to perform the
duties of their faith, which required them to pray at evening, at midnight, and
again at dawn. While in this superstitious mood they were attacked both at Astra-
khan and on the Don by Russian forces. The disheartened Turks easily allowed
themselves to be driven back and abandoned the expedition (1569). To the Otto-
man Empire this appeared a mere frontier repulse by a barbarian tribe, and not till
a century later did the two predestined rivals meet again in strife.
A far more noted disaster of Selim's reign was the great sea-fight of Lepanto
(1571). According to some authorities this was directly attributable to the Sultan's
drunken folly. He had acquired a special liking for the wine of Cyprus, and
insisted that the home of so delicious a beverage must assuredly be added to hi^
domains. The island of Cyprus belonged to Venice, and SokoUi, who on Solyman's
death had hurriedly made peace with Western Europe, had no wish to revive
against the ill-governed Turks, a coalition of the Christian powers. For once,
however, all his arguments and diplomatic maneuvrcs in opposition to his master
were without avail. With besotted stubbornness Sclim insisted that Cyprus he
must have. It was invaded and captured for him at a cost of fifty thousand lives.
The struggle left Venice, like Hungary, exhausted by her long resistance to
the Ottomans. Another Solyman might have seized upon her territories with
ease; but Selim's utterly unjustified aggression against Cyprus roused all Europe
and startled the other states into a selfish fear for themselves. What Sokolli had
dreaded took place. A Christian league was formed by the Pope, and an immense
fleet was gathered not only of Venetian but of Spanish, Papal, Maltese, and other
galleys, over two hundred in all. This armament, under the leadership of the
renowned Don John of Austria, advanced to the Turkish coast and was met off
Lepanto by the navy of Selim, superior to it in numbers, but hastily gathered and
ill-prepared.
The battle of Lepanto was the greatest naval disaster the Turks ever encoun-
tered. If we except only the defeat of the Spanish Armada in the same genera-
1780 The Story of the Greatest Nations
tion, no other sea-fight in history can compare with this, in the number of men
and ships engaged, and in the completeness of the defeat. The entire Turkish
fleet was destroyed or captured with the exception of a single squadron of about
forty ships. The commander of this wing, the celebrated Ouloudj Ali, Bey of
Algiers, had protested against encountering the enemy while the Turks were so un-
prepared. He was overborne in council, but in the battle he held his own. At
its close, seeing the destruction that had come upon the Turkish centre, he with
the ships of his wing broke boldly through the line of the Christians and escaped.
When news of this disastrous overthrow reached Constantinople, even Selim
was startled from his indiflference. He devoted his own private treasures to ship-
building, he gave up a portion of his garden for the ship-yard. Ouloudj Ali, with
the ships that he had rescued, cruised from port to port collecting around this
remnant of the navy all the scattered craft that could be pressed into service. The
Christian admirals, on the contrary, had dispersed to their homes to sing Te Deums
of victory. When another year came around, there was a second Turkish fleet
apparently as powerful as before, which under Ouloudj Ali, now sumamed Kilidj
(the sword), baffled the Christian advance at every point.
A peace was agreed upon in 1573. Not only did Turkey retain Cyprus, but
the helpless Venetians agreed to repay her for the cost of its conquest. Chris-
tian writers learning this said bitterly, that despite all the celebrations it was
really the Turks who had won the battle of Lepanto.
Selim died from a drunken fall, and his son, Murad III (1574-95), a weakling
in mind and body, succeeded him. The first words of each new Sultan on assum-
ing power are regarded by his superstitious subjects as prophetic of the character
of his reign. Murad's were, "I am hungry, bring me something to eat." His
first official act was to command the slaughter of five brothers, apparently as worth-
less as himself. Murad was a woman-lover, always in his harem and completely
under the influence of its occupants. His early reign was still marked by victories.
Turkish generals conducted a successful and even glorious war against Persia,
wresting from her all Georgia and the ancient capital, Tabriz. The peace of 1590
confirming these conquests marks the date of the greatest expansion of Turkish
territory.
But the drain which for a quarter of a century had been sapping the resources
of the empire to supply the debauchery of its base rulers, now began to be apparent.
Not from the strength of its enemies without, but from decay within, came the
downfall of the Turkish State. The marvel seems only that it so long withstood
the evils gnawing at its root. Let us enumerate again the more obvious and gen-
erally recognized of these causes of decay. They were the repressive laws of
Mahomet H, which arrested the development of the people; the ferocity of Selim
the Destroyer, which taught them fear and falsehood ; the increasing number and
HUNGARY'S UPRISING
(Cauntau ZHnrI CliHk* Uh TutU^ Advuw* bf BIb«1b( Up Har Cutla>
Prom a paMmy 6y th* EngUth artitt, T. AUom
SOLYMAN THE MAGNIFICENT had drifted into an old
age of Bolitude ; it was also to be one of military reverses.
The nlory of the Turkish crescent was waning at last, and
perhaps the renowned Molyinan by the destruetion of his two
ablest sueeesBors liad done most of all men to bring about ita
fading. In 1565 all the arniainonts of Solyman were repulsed
from the island of Malta. In 1566 a dispute arose as to the
tribute to be sent Solyiuan by the ruler of the small fragment
of Hungary still reckoned as part of the German Empire.
So for a fifth time, Solyman, now grown very old and feeble,
marched into Hungary.
As he approached close to Vienna, his progress was
stopped by the obstinate resistance of a little fortress called
S>:igelh. The Huntcarian Count lirinyi defended this with
such valor that the Turkish army settled before the castle
for a regular siege. During this Solj-man died. His Vizier con-
cealed the death and ordered a general assault upon the
fortress. When it was stormed, the wife of its commander
stood by the powder magazine with a flaming torch ; and,
waiting till the last moment so as to destroy as many Turks as
possible, she exploded the magazine and devoted herself, her
home and her foes to a common destruction. The disheartened
Turks retreated. The high tide of Turkish conquest began
slowly now to ebb.
Turkey — Revolt of the Janizaries 1781
turbulence of the Janizaries, whose whole training urged them to insolence and
oppression ; the corruption in office, which was introduced by the Vizier Rustem
and which after Sokolli's death pervaded t*he entire empire ; and above and behind
all these, lay the inherent evil of an hereditary despotism, the decay which sooner
or later must enervate its rulers.
In 1 590 the foreign nations little suspected the change that had come ovef the
conquering Turks. France sought their alliance. Elizabeth of England wrote
them long letters urging their attack upon her enemy Philip ll of Spain, and ex-
plaining to them how similar their faith was to that of Protestant England ahd hoW
opposed were both to Catholicism. It was a common sayirig among the Turks
that very little Was needed to make the English genuine Mahometans.
Thte miseries of the people could not, howevi?r, be longer ignored. The de-
voted peaisaniry of Asia Minor had given of thieir substance to repeated tax-
collectors until they faced starvation. The unpaid troops lived pierforce by
plunder, while their money was held back by thieving officers. In 1589 tht stbtiii
broke. The Janizaries in the capital, furious at a new fraud imposed on them,
surrounded the royal palace clamoring for the heads of the officials whose guilt
they suspected. Sultan Murad yielded in instant terror, and the heads which they
demanded rolled at their feet.
If one head, why not another? The Janizaries had learned their power.
Twice within the next four years they repeated their clamor and compelled the
removal of Grand Viziers who had not pleased them. Rival bands of troops
fought civil wars against one another in the streets of Constantinople. Internal
revolt, a thing hitherto unknown among the Turks, broke out in Asia Minor among
the starving peasantry. The Christian border dependencies were also harassed
beyond endurance. The mild and humane treatment previously accorded them
was changed to intolerable oppression. Their people rebelled. In the "Walla-
chian Vespers" (1594) all the peaceful Turks of Wallachia were suddenly slaugh-
tered. Both there and in Transylvania, the disorganized Ottoman armies were
repeatedly and disgracefully defeated. The surrounding nations began to rouse
themselves and take fresh heart against the hitherto irresistible Osmanli. The
German Empire declared war and joined the Transylvanian insurgents. Even
the Persions defended their threatened frontier with the vigor of new hope.
Amid these disasters Murad III died in dreary dissatisfaction and despondency.
He was succeeded by his son Mahomet III (i 595-1603), who signalized his acces-
sion by the execution of his nineteen brothers and also eight of his father's wives.
The brothers were all young, probably all worthless, and the slaughter deserves
mention only as being the most extensive of those hideous holocausts offered by
each new Sultan to the evil policy of his race. Mahomet III instituted what became
the practice P^ the future, by keeping his sons in a special part of the palace called
1782 The Story of the Greatest Nations
the "cage" from which they never emerged except to die or to reign. Their unfit-
ness to do either seems thus to have been most efiFectually insured.
Meanwhile the advancing armies of the Germans, Hungarians and rebels had
driven the Turks from almost all their European possessions north of the Danube.
Every counsellor who still cared for the preservation of the empire, now vehemently
urged the new Sultan to take the field in person. Only by his presence could the
fanaticism of the soldiers be once more aroused, their obedience secured, and the
triumphant enemies checked. After long hesitation and evasion, Mahomet III
consented to lead his troops as his ancestors had done. Moreover the sacred stand-
ard of his namesake, the Prophet Mahomet, the most holy and treasured relic of
the empire, was taken from its sanctuary and borne before the soldiers to inspire
them.
They met the allied Christian armies on the plain of Cerestes near the river
Theiss, and there were three days of fighting. The first day the Mahometans
lost several standards and even the sacred relic of the Prophet was endangered.
The terrified Sultan insisted he must withdraw and leave the troops to protect
his retreat. Long and passionate entreaties from his generals persuaded him to
remain, and the second day the Turks made some advance. The third day saw
the final issue. Almost the entire army of the Turks was driven from the field,
but a sudden charge of their cavalry caught the enemy unprepared and swept the
whole Christian array into panic-stricken flight. Fifty thousand were slain. This
was the last great triumph of Turk over Caucasian, of Mussulman over Christian
(1596).
The Sultan took advantage of his tremendous victory to retreat to his capital
and resume his Ufe of indolence. Fortunately his generals proved able to main-
tain themselves against the weakened enemy, and the contest dragged on without
much success on either side until in the reign of Mahomet's successor, peace was
made by the treaty of Sitavorak (1606). This is worthy of note as the first diplo-
matic meeting in which the Turks condescended to deal with the Christians on
equal terms, sending them high ambassadors, consenting to forego the customaxy
presents, and employing toward the German Emperor titles of dignity equal to
those with which the Sultan was addressed.
Why follow further the full list of the feeble rulers who now disgraced the throne
of Osman? The irresponsible supremacy and tyranny of the Janizaries had be-
come fully established, and their former masters were obliged to bend to their
every whim. Osman II (1618-1622), the grandson of Mahomet HI, deserves
mention because, though only fourteen when crowned, he had evidently some con-
ception of the disgrace of his position and endeavored to reassert his power.
He was a savage youth who practised archery by shooting at prisoners of war,
and when the supply of these ran low, he fastened up one of his own attendants as a
■K
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THE CAPTIVES FROM LEPANTO
(TurUak Prlaaiun Suit to Vlaniu to lUatar* thm Courai* of Ita Paopb)
From a painfing by the Oerman artitt, E. Zimmvrptan
THE aged Solyman was succeeded on his throne by that
iacapable boh whom Boxalana had selected. He is
called Sultan Soliin the tiut. In his day occurred the
first great disaster to the Turkish arms, the celebrated sea-
fight of Lepanto (1570). This is said to have been brought
on by Selim's own folly. He was extremely fond of the rich
wine of Cyprus, a fair Mediterranean island which still be-
longed to Venice. So as soon as he ascended the throne he
insisted that this island must be added to his domains. The
able Vizier of Solyman cautioned Selim against thus defying
Europe. But Selim insisted.
This war saw the great seafight; and here again the Turk-
ish admirals knew themselves unprepared for the fray and
would have delayed it, but Selim insisted upon immediate
battle. Don John of Austria, a brother of the great Spaoiah
king Philip II, led the allied Christiana. They attacked tlie
Turks off the Greek gulf of Lepanto, and destroyed almost
their entire navy. The Turks rallied and built another navy,
but thereafter they were on the defensive. Captured Turks
from Lepanto were sent to all sections of Germany to show the
inhabitants that these Turks were not such terrible fellowi
after all. Especially were prisoners sent to Vienna, where they
were compelled to work on fortifications to protect the tuty
from any further assaults by their countrymen.
Turkey — Reform under Murad IV 1783
target. To weaken the Janizaries, he made war on Poland and sent them thither.
They preferred however to return and quarrel at home. Osman then announced
ms intent of making a pilgrimage to Mecca; but the Janizaries learned that his
real purpose was to collect an army in Asia and return to crush them for their fre-
quent seditions. In iury they demanded the heads of his advisers, and having
secured these, they swept on to the farthest extreme of rebellion. Seizing Osman
himself, they dragged him to prison and slew him there with excesses of cruelty
equal to his own. They then placed upon the throne his predecessor Mustapha I,
who had been deposed for utter imbecih'ty. Even the feeling of personal loyalty
and exaggerated reverence for the reigning descendant of Ertoghrul was thus
broken down at last. The divinity which in Turkey had actually grown to ** hedge
a king" now shielded him no more. It was life for life; and the successors of
Osman II could no longer slaughter their subjects with the same comfortable and re-
assuring sense of personal inviolability which had so upheld the successors of Osman I.
Murad IV (1623-1640), son of the poor imbecile Mustapha, was the next Sultan
to assert himself. For a time he stayed the fall of the empire, holding the Jani-
zaries in subjection and suppressing extortion and injustice by means of an injus-
tice even more relentless. When Alurad ascended the throne the Persians were
victorious on the frontiers; all Asia Minor was in successful revolt; fleets of Cos-
sack marauders were plundering even along the Bosphorus itself; the royal treas-
ury "was empty; and Murad was a boy of only twelve. In one of their tumults,
the blood-thirsty rabble still dignified by the name of troops demanded the heads of
seventeen of the young Sultan's closest friends and councillors. These he yielded
to them perforce. But the mere fact that he protested against yielding led the
Janizaries to talk of his dethronement.
It is evident that Murad studied the situation long and thoughtfully; but he
made no movement until he reached the age of twenty. Then slowly and cau-
tiously he gathered round him what little remained of better sentiment within the
capital. He employed the antagonism of the Janizaries against the other troops
to suppress the latter. Afterward he seized upon the leaders of the Janizaries
themselves. A few faithful followers supported him, and the soldiers were bullied
into submission. A celebrated gathering was held at which Murad himself and
then each one of his officials swore to restore the ancient order, justice and honor
of the empire.
Then began a reign of terror, a scries of wholesale executions. The Sultan
had kept track of every servant who had ever insulted him, every soldier who had
rioted in the streets. They were killed by hundreds. Unwarned victims were
summoned from their homes night after night by secret messengers and haled
before secret executioners. No man knew but his own turn might come next,
and no man dared oppose this grim and watchful young avenger.
The Sfory" of the Greaien
I7»4
Having thus estabtishi'd himself iu his capital, Murad Diacle a royal
throDgh his empire, taking note of tlie state of every district and slayil
unjust official he encountered, liis character has often been paralleled \
of Selim the Destroyer. At tirst Murad struck down only the guilty, but t
of massacre grew. Tlie value of hiunan life was lost lo him, and at tiw
suspicion against the officials who came forth from eacli town and knel
His diarger, he would strike out savagely with his scimeter. Their heai
beneath the hoofs of his steed. Worse and worse grew his unrestrained
until it was a madness in itself, and in his later years he seemed scarce
A party of women were making merry in a field, and he ordered them
merely because their laughter disturbed him as he passed. If, as he roc
any nn fortunate crossed or impeded the road, the offender was shot dow
by the Sultan himself.
Before Murad's severity thus degenerated into atrocity, it had already
back to the empire something of the ancient military order and prestigi
more a Sultan led his armies in person, and the Persians felt the weight of
hand. They were defeated and reduced to such a degree that it was
century before they again measured themselves against the might of Tui
Murad had no sons of his own, hence he had permitted one of his
Ibrahim, to survive, though keeping the unfortunate in confinement and
, stant fear of assassination which reduced him to a pitiful state of mental weafc
Murad in his own last hour resolved to slay this brother also, and comma
his execution. The attendants of the Sullafli, horrified at the thought of L
extinction of the sacred race, strove to dissuade their master from bis |
and when he persisted, they only pretended to have obeyed him. Tlic fiert
in the very pangs of death insisted on seeing the corpse, and expired in a d
effort to rise and be thus assured of the fulfillment of his order. Ibrahim, I
hurriedly told of his brother's fate and hailed as Sultan, refused to belies
fortune, barricaded his door and swore to fight for life. Not until Mun
was in its turn bonie before him, did he accept the truth, and realizefl
chance had come to rule.
Sultan Ihrahun (1640-1648) promptly proceeded to undo what liti
his brother had accomplished. He presents to us the type of Ottom
at its very lowest, a fool so dull as to know no pleasure but debauchery, a f
coward who dared not leave his palace walls, who squandered untold v
his harem and thought of his subjects only as the source of all the t
which he robbed them to satisfy his immeasurable extravagances.
Fiction is outdone by such tales as that of his "fur tax." An old woi
dering through ancient fairy stories for the amusement of his idle t
scribed a king clothed all in sables and having every drapery about 1
[!omma
at t^
us]^|
lerdH
A HAREM TRAGEDY
lM>h»in«t 111 OrdiTi the Eucutlon of Hi> Fsthir'a WiiHi
I'riiin (I jiaintlHi] 6y tl" French arlitt, Paul Boarhartt
THE triumphs of the Turks had been largely the result
of the siil^niliii leadership of their rulers, the remark-
able men of the vigorous and able race of Osman. Now
the power of that race seemed to have exhausted itself with
Solyman. His son Seliui was, as we have seen, described IqrJ
his own devoted subjects as "the Sot." Selim was succeedM"
by his son, Murad III, another weakling, who began his career^
by ordering the slaughter of his five brothei-s, lest they become
his rivals. Murad, like Selim. spent his life in idie debauch-
ery, taxing his subjects extravagantly and squaudering the
money in folly, while the people sank into wretchedness.
Murad was followed in 1595 by his sou Mahomet III
who sigitaltzed his accession by the most wholoBwle imirder oH
relatives which had yet disgraced the family of the Osmaiili.4
Murad had hred up many children, he had twenty soa8,T
Mahomet dispatched his neyro slaves to slay the whole nins-fc
teen of hia brothers who wpre unlucky enough to be youugegpl
than he. The murderer also extended this savage method c
protecting himself fronj jxissible rivals, by slaying his father'tl
many wives, These nnfortunate women were murdered ;■
the harem, by his orders.
Thus the splendor of the house of Osman sank beneatH
these successive slaughters by its own members, Solj^aoJ
Murad and Mahomet III. The glory of the race was drowned
in its own blood.
Turkey— The Folly of Ibrahim 1785
toA even its carpets underfoot of the same rare and costly fur. The impossible
vastness of the idea challenged Ibrahim's weak mind. He vowed he could do as
much and immediately laid a "fur tax" upon his entire empire, orHcring every
high official to send him such quantities of sables as in reality did not exist in the
entire world. Homes were desolated and officers tortured to compel their com-
pliance with this impossible demand, and Ibrahim long insisted upon enforcing
the punishments though he could not get the furs.
At another time, finding that his ladies delighted in buying all sorts of fineries.
but that paying the bills was less pleasant, he eommanclerl that every shopkecpe.
must al'ow members of the royal harem to take what they pleased without pay-
ment. Then, one of his capricious beauties complaining that shopping by day-
light was uncomfortable, he further ordered the unlucky merchants to keep their
traces open through the night, and well lighted so that no part of their wares
might pass unobserved by their expensive customers,
Ibrahim was so fortunate or unfortunate as to secure a \'izier who, caring only
for his place, not for his country, humored his master's folly to its fullest bent.
Whenever the feeble minfled Sultan himself expressed amaze that what he desired
was invariably approved as right, the Vizier replied, "My Sultan, thou art Caliph;
thou art God's Shadow upon earth. Every idea which thy spirit entertains is
a revelation from Heaven. Thy orders, even when they apf»car unreasonable,
have an innate reasonableness, which thy slave ever reveres, though he may not
always understand."
This comfortable doctrine Ibrahim eagerly accepted, and he insisted upon
using it to justify every whim, every cruelty, every foulest abomination. Surelj
00 ruler, no government, could have sunk to lower depths of self-abandonment
than the Osmanli had tbu;: reached.
Chapter VII
DOWNFALL OF TURKISH POWER AND EFFORTS OF THE
KIUPRILI
[AulAeritits: As before, also Coxe, " Iliitor; of the House of Austii*"; Cnillt, "The TnA
and his Lost Provinces"; Finlny, "Greece under Ottoman Dominion."]
? NE of the surprising facts of history is that the Ottoman
empire, having fallen into such utter decrepitude at home,
still i:onlinucd, and to this day continues, to exist. Fo^
more than a hundred years, even after the accession of
Selim the Sot (1566), it managed to retain its wide terri-
tories practically undiminished, its frontiers on the whole
advancing rather than receding. This century of
empty Iwmbast, this semblance of strength after the reality had de-
parted, was due largely to the condition of Western Europe. There
the fierce religious strife of Catholic and Protestant had cuhdinated
in the terrible "Thirty Years' War," which left the Empire of th»
Germans even more exhausted than was that of the Turks.
Other causes for the apparent vitality of the Ottoman State
lay in the enormous and preixmderating strength which it had
attained <luring the three centuries from Osman to Solyman, and
in the high character of (he common Turks for honesty and valor,
tr^ts which all these later generations with their indescribably evil govern- .
mcnt, have not whoUj' eradicated. Moreover something must be accredited to
the gootl fortune of Nfahomel III, who had so unexpectedly seen defeat shift into
overwhelming victor)' at Ccrestes (1596), to the fury of Murad IV who fought
fire with fire, and finally to tlit noted family of Kiuprili. Five of the sons of
this house hekj tlie Grand Vizicrute at intervals between 1656 and 1710, and
THE LAST GREAT VICTORY
'Tb( Turks LoM Thalr Slandardi and Ar* Thui RouHd to Victor; at C<rut«*>
From a painting by the duitriaa arliil, Joatf po» Brandt
MAHOMET III proved a weakliug like his father and
his eramlfather. And now al IbsI Europe bejran lo
realize the iiioreasinp degenerncy of this terrible race
of ita foes. Moreover, the pnicl and f^rasping taxation whicli
supplanted the just and encouraging rule of the earlier Os-
manli, drove the Bubjeet Christian races to rCToll* of despera-
tion. On the borders of Poland and Hungary also, the Chris-
tions revolted and seciired help from the (rerinan Empire,
In this extremity Mahomet III was ijnally persuaded to
take the field in person as his mighty ancestore had done.
He was most unwilling to leave the safety iiiid pleasure of his
palace life: hut he did finally place himself at the head of his
troops and met the advancing Christian annj' in a huge three
days' battle at Cerestes (1596), On the first day the Turkish
advance guard was broken and its standards captured. Not
since the days of Hunyadi had a royal Turkish army been
thus repelled, and the Christians rejoiced exceedingly. But
tlieir triumph was premature; on the second day Mahomet
appeared in person on the field and his troops held their
own. On the third day, in a sudden access of fanatic fury,
they swept the Christians utterly from the field. For the last -
time the might of the dwindling crescent asserted itself above \
all the strength of Kurope.
Turkey — The Kiuprili 1787
were the real nilers of the empire, displaying a spirit of wisdom and patriotism
scarce inferior to that of the early Osmanli.
Sultan Ibrahim, the foolish, had been at length deposed by the exasperated
victims of his tyranny, deposed and slain, protesting to the last that his words
'were inspired of God and that this assault upon him really could not be. His
child son, Mahomet IV (1648-1687), was girded with the sword of Osman, and
anarchy ran riot. Sultanas and slaves contested for rule over the child and the
empire, until a general council or divan of the chief officials was called in despera-
tion, and all agreed that the only escape from the endless disaster and horror
on every hand was to place a strong Vizier in full control.
Mahomet Kiuprili, seventy years old, who had begun life as a kitchen-boy
and risen by stem rigor, and justness through all the ranks of state, was the chosen
man. He made every general, every sultana, swear absolute obedience to him
before he would accept the office. Then he held it with a hand of iron. Every
offender whom he ever suspected was executed without mercy. He never repri-
manded. "His blows outsped his words." Thirty thousand officials are said to
have perished during the five brief years of his sway. Then he died, handing
down his authority to his son, Achmet Kiuprili, a young man of only twenty-six,
but a patriot and statesman yet greater than his sire.
Mahomet Kiuprili had restored order to the state; Achmet sought to restore
its ancient military strength. The degeneracy of the Turkish arms had long been
suspected in Europe; the German Empire recuperated rapidly from the Thirty
Years' War; and, after a peace of seventy years enforced by the weakness of both
East and West, hostilities in Hungary were renewed. In 1664, the Vizier, having
gathered an army that in numbers and outward appearance resembled one of
the old-time levies of valiant and victorious Turks, advanced against Austria,
capturing fortress after fortress. He was met by the Imperial general Monte-
cuculi, eminent as a writer and tactician as well as a soldier. Montecuculi points
out for us how much the Turkish military organization had degenerated in the
previous seventy years, spent only in Asiatic warfare; and he shows also how
vastly European arms and tactics had developed by the experience of the Thirty
Years' War. Though his troops were much inferior in number, he completely
defeated Achmet in the battle of St. Gotthard. The tide of victory had turned
at last.
Achmet hastened to make peace. Yet with such art did he take advantage
of the internal dissensions of the German Empire, that he exacted his own terms
of profit rather than loss. The respite thus secured he devoted to the training
of his antiquated army. A war for the conquest of the island of Crete had been
diagg^igon for twenty years; he ended it with vigor and success (1669), and next
turned his attention to the north. The Cossacks beyond the Turkish border line.
1788 The Story of the Greatest Nations
in what is now southern Russia, admitted some vague allegiance to either Poland
or Russia and were domineered over by both governments. In 1672, they appealed
to Turkey for protection, and their district, the Ukraine, was enrolled in the list
of Turkish dependencies. Both Poland and Russia protested and threatened
war.
Kiuprili defied them in a letter worthy of the days of Solyman: "If the in-
habitants of an oppressed coimtry, in order to obtain deliverance, implore the aid
of a mighty emperor, is it prudent to pursue them in such an asylum? When the
most mighty and most glorious of all emperors is seen to deliver and succor from
their enemies those who are oppressed, and who ask him for protection, a wise
man will know on which side the blame of breaking peace ought to rest. If,
in order to quench the fire of discord, negotiation is wished for, so let it be. But
if the solution of difiFerences is referred to that keen and decisive judge called
*The Sword,' the issue of the strife must be pronounced by the God who has poised
upon nothing Heaven and earth, and by whose aid Islamism has for a thousand
years triumphed over its foes."
War with Poland followed. At first the Vizier was so successful that not only
the Ukraine but other parts of Poland were surrendered to him. Then how-
ever, arose the famous Polish leader, Sobieski, who twice defeated Kluprili, at
Khoczim (1673) and at Lemberg (1675). A general under the Vizier, more for-
tunate than his master, restored the balance of power by checking Sobieski, and
the dissensions of the Poles led them to accept the loss of their territory and con-
clude peace (1676).
^ 'This same year.Achmet Kiuprili died. Despite his repulses at the hands of
Montecuculi and Sobieski, he had outranked both their governments at the game
of diplomacy. He extended the frontier of the Turks to its widest European ex-
tent, and he restored among his people their ancient confidence in themselves
and in their destiny. Better still, he did all this with justice and without
extortionate taxation. Under him the prosperity of the Turkish common people
began to revive. Blessings, not curses, were heaped upon him at home, and he
was hailed with truth as the "light and splendor of the nation."
His death may well be taken as marking the last expiring glow of Turkish
power. The boy Sultan, Mahomet IV, was now grown a man, and he conferred
the Vizierate not on one of the Kiuprili, but on a brother-in-law of his own, Kara
Mustapha, who in contradistinction to his predecessor, has been poetically called
by the Ottomans "the curse of the Empire." His ambitions were as vast as his
abilities were weak. Like the common Turks, he seems really to have believed
in the invincibihty of his race, and he planned to conquer all Germany and hold
it as an empire of his own.
He had first, however, to encounter Russia, which now began to assert herself
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THE DEFEAT AT ST. GOTTHARD
(Eumpa LaanuFra
From a drawittg mad* n
■ ■ Mor* Efcetln War of FUht-
lU th. Tiuk<)
9 by TF. ffow*
WE toTD now to watch the retreating tide of Turkish
conqnest The battle of Cerestes broke for a moment
the advance of the Cbriatiaiiii. But immediately after
this success Mahomet III returned to his palace life of indo-
lence and selfishness. He had been too near to death and
disaster at Cerestes to have any wish for military glory. Yet
that last victory had been so overwhelming as to preserve the
Turkish domains in Europe from further attack for alinoBt
a century. Germany was distracted by the horror of her own
great "Thirty Years War," and the Turkish Sultans spent
their time in idle pleasare or in war against the feeble Aaiatis
tribes to the east of them. Meanwhile the military science of
Europe advanced with gigantic strides. The German Wallen-
stein, the Swede Gustavus Adolphus, and the Frenchman
Richelieu, taught men a new art of war.
When, in 1664, Germany was once more freed from in-
ternal dissension and ready to renew the interminable war
between cross and crescent, the armies of the two races met
on a wholly dilterent footing. A vigorous Turkish Vizier,
Achmet Kiuprili, advanced against Vienna and was met by
the Austrian general, Montecnculi, in the battle of St. Gott-
hard. The Austrian troops were a mere handful as opposed
to the Turkish hordes, but the superior weapons of Uie Euro-
peans and their vastly superior steadiness and training en-
abled them easily to sweep the Turks from the field.
Turkey — Last Siege of Vienna 1789
•
against the Porte and started that victorious southward advance by which she has
assumed the role of the avenger of Greek Christianity upon the Moslems. Russia
had not been a party to the treaty by which Poland transferred to Turkey the
land of the Cossacks. She encouraged the Cossacks in rebellion against their
new suzerain, and when Kara Mustapha led an immense army into the disputed
territor>% Cossacks and Russians joined in defeating him at Cehzr\'m (1677).
Astonished at the wholly unexpected overthrow, the Turks recalled their failure
at Astrakhan a century before, and acquired toward the Muscovites an instinctive
fear never afterward overcome. Mustapha yielded the Ukraine to Russia and
sought an easier glory elsewhere.
A revolt of the Hungarians against Austrian tyranny furnished an excuse
for the interference of the ambitious Vizier. The greater part of Hungary was
already Turkish, and the remainder now asked, as had the Cossacks, for Turkish
protection against Christian oppression. Mustapha raised an army of two hun-
dred and seventy-five thousand regular troops, beside vast swarm.^ of irregulars
more like brigands, whose numbers probably swelled the total to half a million
men. With this enormous force he advanced in 1683 to accomplish the project
of his dreams, the conquest of Vienna, that barrier which had broken the first
tremendous wave of Ottoman advance under Solyman.
Christendom, divided into its many petty states, could muster no such host
as "Nlustapha's to oppose him; but it had now soldiers better than the Turks,
a spirit nobler than theirs, and generals immeasurably superior to the incompetent
Vizier- The Emperor fled from Vienna, but its citizens defended it under Count
Stahremberg. For two months they held back the Turks; then the end seemed
near. The walls were in ruins; the besieged garrison was wofully depleted and
a final assault must almost inevitably have been successful. But Mustapha
suddenly displayed an avarice as ill-timed as his previous ambition. If Vienna
were stormed, his soldiers would plunder it at will; if it surrendered, he could
hold them back and exact an enormous payment for himself. So he negotiated,
and the Viennese negotiated and thus kept him in check while the Emperor who
had fled, strove desperately to persuade some one to lend him an army for the rescue
of his capital. Sobieski of Poland, the victor over Kiuprili, finally marched to
Vienna's aid. Mustapha refused to believe the news that the Christians were
advancing against him. The Poles and Germans combined had managed to
raise less than seventy thousand men, and the Vizier was sure they would not
dare attack him. Hence he was culpably negligent, and Sobieski's final assault
was somewhat in the nature of a surprise. The Viennese joined in the attack
and the Turks gave way under it almost immediately. Their vast army dispersed
in utter rout. Mustapha, bewildered and furious, blamed the defeat upon every-
body but himself, and. as he fled southward with his officers he had them slain one
1790 The Story of the Greatest Nations
after another, day after day, until finally there came from Constantinople the
dread order for his own execution.
As news spread of the great national disaster, the Ottoman Empire was attacked
on every side. Her foes had only been held in check by fear; they leaped on her
like wolves on a wounded stag. In the north, Russia declared war and advanced
with the Cossacks against the Khan of the Crimea. From the north-west came
the Poles. The Imperial armies entered Turkish Hungary. The Albanians
revolted. Even feeble Venice found an able general in Morosini and reconquered
the lower part of Greece, the ancient Peloponessus. The Imperial forces repos-
sessed themselves of Buda, the Hungarian capital; in 1687 they gained a great
victory at Mohacs, the very field on which Solyman had crushed the Hungarian
power. The Sultan Mahomet IV was compelled to abdicate. Once more
there was tumult and unbridled riot in Constantinople.
Yet the proud Turks did not yield readily to their foes. For a brief time a
third Kiuprili was made Vizier, a brother of Achmet. He crushed the Albanian
revolt; he recapturc*d Belgrade, which had surrendered; he inaugurated vast
internal reforms. Then — if he could not save his country he could at least die
for it — he attacked the Imperial armies at Slankamen, rashly we are told, and
perished leading on a last desperate, unsuccessful charge of his devoted soldiers
(1691).
The next Sultan, Mustapha II (1695-1703), for a moment promised better
things. He defeated the Imperialists in several minor battles, but in 1697 he
was overthrown at Zenta by the celebrated general Prince Eugene. Thereon
Mustapha fled to Constantinople and abandoned himself like his predecessors to
the life of the seraglio.
In the extremity to which the staggering empire was thus reduced, it was saved
by a fourth Kiuprili, Housein, descended from a brother of the first Vizier of the
race. Being invested with the Vizierate (1697), Housein sought for peace; and
England and Holland, alarmed at the increasing power of the other European
States, aided his efforts. Much against the will of some of the combatants, a,
general treaty was arranged in 1699. From the town of the Danube where thej
envoys met, this was known as the Peace of Carlowitz.
Reckoning from the first ill-starred advance of Kara Mustapha against Viei
this war had lasted sixteen years. It left Turkey shorn indeed, but by no mt
crushed. Poland, after the first great victory of Sobieski, had taken little
in the contest, the death of her king involving her in difficulties of her own.
in recognition of her sen'ices to their cause, the victorious Powers insisted
by the treaty she receive again the provinces of which Achmet Kiuprili had
prived her. Russia during the early years of the war had found her best
checked by the Khan of the Crimea, who with hjs wild Tartar riders proved a
THE REPULSE FROM VIENNA
(St*hr>int»if Uaci. Forth Hi> Man to AihII th* Vk*t Turklih Herd*)
From a painting by Ike Austrian artlil, A. OriH
ASTONISFIED by llie defeat of St. Gotlbard the Turks
hasleiied lo make teniis of peflw. Then they devoted
lliemselves to the trniniu^ of their soldiers, and so im-
proved these that for a timi- they fought Poles and Russians
upon equal terms. Soon, however, there arose among Ihe
Turks a new Vizier, a inou of no practical expmence, a raei-e
paince favorite, as foolish as he was ignorant. This man,
Kara Mustaphu, seems to ha.ve believed, as did most of the
more ipnorsnt Turks, that the nation was as invincible as
ever. He planned to conquer Europe; and gathering all the
troops of Ihe empire, he deliberately defied Germany and
marched to attack Vienna (1683),
In this ]ast rush of tlie Turks upon Europe, they wera
formidable in nothing but their numhera, There seem to have
been half a million of them; and Kara Mustapha boasted
that he would march thi-ougli Europe from end to end as be
thought his predecessors should have done. Count Stahrem-
berg, the Austrian eommaiider of Vienna, held the city
bravely for two months. Then a Polish army under Sobieski
came to his aid. The Poles numbered less than eighty thou-
sand and Kara Muatnpha laughed at the idea of their attack-
ing his vast army. But Staliremlierg led his soldiers boldly
forth from Vienna to join Sobieski : the two assailed the Turks
suddenly and unexpectedly; and the undisciplined maasesM
proved wholly incapable of resisting them. The Turks fl«f
in utter ront.
Turkey — The Peace of Carlowitz
179!
valuable Turkish ally. Toward the end of the struggle, that mightiest of the Czais,
Peter the Great, had come into complete authority, and in a siege noteworthy upor
both sides, he had won from the Turks their chief northern defense, the fortress
city of Azov at the mouth of the Don. This with its surrounding territory, Russir.
retained, thus winning the first step of her advance, a foothold on the Sea of Azov.
To Venice was given up the whole of the Pcloponessus, though the Turks probabl;
intended this concession to be only temporarj-, knowing that the region could
some day be recovered. One of their ambassadors scornfully told the Venetian
minister a story of a pickpocket who, creeping up while some mighty wrestlers
were engaged in contest, stole the garments of one. He added point to the sarcasm
by remarkii^ that later the pickpocket would probably have to yield up the pur-
loined robe and his own skin as well.
The main loss to Turkey was on the Hungarian frontier. There she had met
the Imperial forces, and there suffered her principal defeats. Most of Hungary
and all Transylvania, her possessions of nearly two centuries, were given ovei
to Austria, and certain rights and privileges were exacted for the Christians of
the Balkan regions which remained under Ottoman rule, thus establishing a pre-
text for further interference. The disintegration of European Turkey was vigor-
ously begun.
a THB Tdkuik Cumka
Chapter VIII
THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY AND THE WARS WITH RUSSIA
Ruuell, "Rnuiui Wars with
LhE treaty of Carlowitz (1699) may [airly be regarded as
marking the entrance of Turkey into Europe's dii^o-
matic circle. Hitherto the Ottomans had stood beyond
that circle,- indifferent, half contemptuous of its intrigues
and disputes. They had been foes to all the Christiao
States, had defied united Europe, and in their warfare
had sought no allies except from their own conquered
df pendencies.
Now this was changed. The statesmen of the Porte no longer
made any pretense of being a match for all Christianity combined.
The inefficiency of their brave but untrained troops was fuUy real-
ized. The Sultan expressed his gratitude to both England and
Holland for having intervened between him and the many enemies
that had beleaguered him. Short-sighted theorists even began to
rtcJion on the speedy expulsion of the Turks from Europe. But
if not a match for all the peoples of the West, the Osmanli still fdt
themschcs the equal of any single power. They began, therefore, to imitate ths
others in the game of statecraft, to seek alliances and bargains, to stir up stiif^
and division among opponents.
In this new diplomacy, the Vizier Hausein, last of the greater Kiuprili, had no
part. Finding it impossible to make head against the corruption which permeato*
1793 1
THE LOSS OF BUDA
(Tha Aiutriani Entn In WaDdH at tK* Flight af Tkalr Fom)
Front a painling by the Auttrian artitl, Q. Bmnur
THAT repulse from V'it^ima was the breaking point of
Turkish power. Mustapha in his blind over-confidence
had left no rallyinj; point from which he could evade
complete disaster. His men fled; he himself was executed
by his Sultan's order; and the Kuropenn domains of Turkey
were left helplessly exposi.'d to the advance of her foes. At
first these did not realize the completeness of their triumph.
Sobieski led his Poles hoine, s'orying at having saved Vienna.
The Austriaus advanced slowly ami cautiously. They re-took
Buda almost without resistance. This city, the ancient Hun-
garian capital, had been in Turkish possession for over a cen-
tury and a half ; and only «hen they found it undefended did
the Europeans realize in full the panic of their foes.
Then they hurled themselves eagerly forward. Albania
revolted, so did all HungHry. IJussia, Venice, Austria plunged
into the wai'. Tiie Turks rallied and fought for a while, then
consented to a peace by which they surrendered all Hungary
to Austria, and also yielded substantial slices of territory to
their other foes. Turkey in Europe took on somewhat the
form which it *vas to hold for another century or more, until
modern Europe consented to the continuance of its dismem-
berment in 1878.
■"IMiW
'^j^^^mmL^
Turkey — Surrender of Peter the Great 1793
the entire Empire, he resigned and died (1703).* With him departed Turkey's
last chance of regaining' her and^nt honor abroad and prosperity at home. There
was another eruption of the Janizaries, and another Sultan deposed.
Under the new Sultan, Achmet III (i 703-1 730), the wars of Charles XII
against Russia were eagerly encouraged by the Turks. Definite promises of
assistance were given him — and not redeemed. When defeated, Charles fled to
Turkey and the Sultan became his protector. Jt was then that the great Russian
Czar Peter encountered the most serious failure of his remarkable career. He
had consented unwillingly to the peace of Carlowitz. It gave him Azov but he
hoped for more, and he believed Turkey to be well-nigh helpless. Hence the
shelter given Charies, his enemy, and a dozen other trifling complaints, were mag-
nified into cause for war and Peter marched against the Turks. He was lured
far southward, even as Charles had been. Vain promises of help reached him
from the litfle semi-dependent chiefs'of the wild borderland between Russia and
Turkey. On the banks of the Pruth River, the Czar found himself with an ex-
hausted and^ enfeebled army, suddenly surrounded by masses of the Ottoman
troops. Capture being inevitable, Peter philosophically negotiated a peace with
the Vizier who had so cleverly entrapped him (171 1).
Though capable as a soldier, this Vizier, Bultadji,'once a wood-cutter's son,
proved weak as a diplomat and allowed the Czar to depart upon terms so mild as
to excite the ridicule of the Russians and the anger of the Sultan, who dismissed
Bultadji from office. Peter was compelled to do little more than promise to return
Azov and the surroimding region into Turkish hands. Once in safety again, he
evaded the fulfillment of even this slight pledge imtil the Turks threatened another
war. Being just then busily engaged in robbing Sweden, the wily Russian con-
sented to be boimd by his agreement and surrendered Azov, sooner than fight
two foes at the same time.
The Turks next turned their attention to the Peloponessus, reconquered it
from Venice, and were pressing forward to attack Italy itself, when the Austrian
Elmperor once more interposed. Ostensibly in aid of Venice, he declared war
and sent the celebrated Prince Eugene to win further glory from the Turks. Eugene
defeated them at Peterwardein (1716) and again at Belgrade (1717) and thus
enforced another peace. By the treaty the Austrian Emperor abandoned the
interests of Venice and consented that the Turks should retain the Peloponessus,
he receiving in return another large portion of their Danubian territory.
We next find the Turks in actual alliance with the Russians, the two empires
agreeing to aid each other in attacking feeble Persia (1723). A little territorial
plunder was secured by the despoilers, but there was no real friendship between
*One other Kinpiili, the leit Onmd Vixier of the race, held office in 1710, X711. He was appointed
auunlj because of hit name and was not particalarly successful as a ruler.
1794 The Story of the Greatest Nations
them, the Russians in truth waiting only till they should feel strong enough to
throw themselves again upon their southern neighbor and wipe out the disgrace
of Czar Peter's defeat and capitulation.
The time did not seem ripe until 1736, when Constantinople had again passed
through the throes of a Janizary revolt and the Turks were suffering severe repulses
from the Persians. Then, without a declaration of war, the able Russian general
Munnich was sent to attack Azov and ravage the Crimea. He did his work with
a thoroughness and cruelty that have kept his name vividly before the world.
Azov surrendered; and the slaughter of all classes of helpless non-combatants in
the Crimea was widespread and hideous.
Envious of Russia's ''glory" and plimder, Austria joined hands with her and
began a second war of unprovoked aggression against the Sultan. His envoys^
still new to the etiquette of diplomacy, and xmwilling to face so many foes at once,
urged upon the Austrians the oath of peace sworn to Turkey by the Emperor.
When the Austrians tried to evade the responsibility of this oath, the Turkish
ambassador called all present to join him in an earnest prayer that the authors of
the war might suffer the curses of the war, and that God would distinguish
between the guilty and the innocent. The appeal was solenmly offered up by
both Mahometans and Christians.
Doubtless it would be going too far to regard this ceremony as the reason for
the failure of the Austrians. They had overestimated both the strength of their
own arms and the decay of the Turks. Their victories in the previous generation
had been mainly due to the military genius of Prince Eugene. Now their leaders
were rash and incompetent. They were repulsed again and again and finally
defeated in a decisive battle at Krotzka (1738). Belgrade was besieged by the
Turks; and Austria terrified and panic-stricken sought peace on any terms, sur-
rendering not only Belgrade but all her other conquests of Eugene's last war.
The Austro-Turkish frontier then became practically what it remained until 1876.
The treaty left the Porte free to fight Russia single-handed. So far, Marshal
Munnich had been very successful, having won possession of almost all the Tuiidsh
territory along the Black Sea and beyond the Danube. It is significant, however,
of the high repute in which the Ottoman Empire was still held, that Russia on
finding herself alone to face the victorious army which came marching from Bel-
grade, promptly made terms of peace by which she surrendered all her recent
acquisitions in the Crimea. It was agreed by both parties that Azov, the original
bone of contention, should be destroyed.
Following upon this vigorous effort of the Turks, their empire was allowed to
repose in peace for a generation. The warlike spirit of their race seems largely
to have disappeared, and despite several opix)rtunities offered by the increasing
weakness of Austria, they were well content to leave matters as they stood abnMuL
THE SERVIAN UPRISING
iBIaek Gx-ri* Rsuhi HI* CDuntrrman la Fl(hl Fer Fnxliiini
After a painting Uy tka Bitffliih nrtiit. It. Calon WoodrilU
DURING the ceutiiry and a lialf thnt followed tlie loaa at
Buda, Turkey was slowly falling i'urtlier and further
liL'hind the rest of Enropp iu thi- ujaruli of civilisatioB.
Her Sultana became as feeble in practical alTuirH as they
were revered for Iheir ri'liglous sanctity. The Jani7.artes,
that powerful body of troops who had once terrorized Europe,
became a mere riotous rabble, so busy plundering for fhvm-
selves at home that they more tbaa once refused flatly to
march against a foreign enem.v. The empire almost fell
apart; the ruler of each province governed it as an indepea-
dent state and plundered ita people as he chose.
Under this savage and reckless reeime, so different from
the firiu and liberal rule of the earlier Osnianti, the subject
peoples, especially the Christians suffered horribly. The first
to break into open revolt were the Servians. In lS04a peasant
leader arose among them, "Black Oeorge," whose descen-
dants hold the Servian throne to-day. George by repi^ated
fiery appeals roused his countrymen to desperation. They
attacked the Janizaries, who were ravaging the province and
drove them out. For over twelve years George held Serria
independent. Then he was diiven to flight by a Turkish army.
Other peasants, however, took np his work and the straggle
never wholly ceased until Scrvia was free. The disintcgra- i
tion of the Tiirkisii empire thusi i'eean within its own bordet
Turkey — War Against Catharine II 1795
^hile sloth, treachery and extortion held sway at home. To Russia this period
uvas one of preparation. Twice had she defeated the Turks in battle, and yet
lost the reward for which she sought, the possession of an outlet to the Black Sea.
Her statesmen were fully convinced that destiny pointed their way to Constantino-
ple, and under their great empress, Catharine II, they deliberately prepared for a
renewal of the struggle. Their encroachments roused Sultan Mustapha III (1757-
1773) to sudden, unreasoning anger, and without taking time for preparation, he
unexpectedly declared instant war. The wiser counsellors who besought him to
wait at least untQ armies could be gathered, were dismissed from office, and he
attempted with his own untried hands the gigantic task of rousing his lethargic
people from their torpor (1768).
The sharp-tongued Frederick the Great of Prussia called this war a victory
of the one-eyed over the blind. The Turks had certainly fallen far below Western
Europe through lack of discipline among their troops, the uselessness of their anti-
quated weapons, and the ignorance and folly of their leaders. The Russian gen-
erals were subtle and well-trained, though still half savages and utterly indifferent
to the lives of theii conmion soldiers. Thousands upon thousands of these were
allowed to perish on the march and in the camp. Fever and exhaustion preyed
upon them because of the lack of the commonest necessities of life.
The Russians, however, were all in readiness for the war, and they swept their
opponents out of the Crimea, drove them back from the Danube, and advanced to
the Balkans. The Turkish rabble, miscalled an army, was put to flight again and
again. Never had the Ottoman troops been so completely disgraced. At the same
time a Russian fleet sailed from the Baltic to the Mediterranean, roused a rebellion
in Greece, and destroyed the few hastily gathered ships of the Turks at Tchesme,
though the success of the Russians was due, not to their own conunander, but to
the English officers who accompanied him.
As illustrative of the density of the ignorance into which the once enlightened
Osmanli had sunk, it appears that they had been warned of the coming of this
northern fleet, but scornfully insisted that no passage existed from the Baltic to the
Mediterranean, from the ocean of the north to that of the south. When the fleet
actually appeared among them, they sent a formal and threatening protest to
Venice, assuming that thejr enemies must somehow have come south through the
Adriatic Sea«
So crushing were the Turkish disasters, that the Porte itself begged for peace,
the first time this confession of weakness, this downward step had been taken in
its career. So exacting however, were the terms insisted upon by the Russians,
that the peace negotiations were broken off and the war resumed.
This time the Turks attained better results. Incompetent leaders had been
weeded out, and genuine patriotism and the desperation of despair nerved the
1796
The Story of ihe Greatest Nationq
JupnatfR
falteiing anns of the remainder. Besides, the Empress Catharine had entcrew'^
upon the partition of Poland. She needed all her troops to crush resistance tfaeiegy
The "Oriental project" could wait. Hence in 1774 another peace was made, and*-*
a new treaty, that of Kanjierdi, was signed, the Russians insisting that it should dal^^
from the anniversary of that which Peter the Great had been compelled to acced^t
to at Pruth, sixty-three years before. Tlie triumph, and what they called the taod—M^
eration of the lalcr peace, would, they felt, outweigh the shame of the other. Azov^*
and a few other fortresses were surrendered to Russia, and the Khanate of the^*-
Crimea was declared a wholly independent kingdom, this being a rather obviou^^^
prelude to its annexation by its powerful northern neighbor, though the Empre
took the most solemn vows not to undertake any such procedure.
Our story now passes over a long period containing little of importance 1
record, except the continued decay of Turkey and the steady aggression of Rusl^
enveloping her prey like a giant octopus. Such an advance must be indeed impi
sive in the strength displayed by the conqueror. But to our modem age the en
of the attack, the falsity to each solemnly proffered pledge, the horrible murderi
women and children, the slaughter of thousands upon thousands of helpless men
driven into battle merely to gorge their leaders' lust for territory— these horrors
infinitely outweigh the "glory" that was gained.
The Crimea was taken possession of by Russia in 1783, In 1787, Catharine
entered into an alliance with Austria which deliberately planned a division of the
Ottoman Empire similar to that previously begun in Poland. The troops of the
allies advanced suddenly, Austria, as in her last previous attack, pretending lo
peace, until her iroops were ready and actually on Turkish ground. Nevertheless
they were beaten back, and along the Austrian frontier the Turks for two yean
held their own, until the turmoils consequent on the French Revolution compelled
Austria to seek peace.
Against Russia the Turks were less successful. They were repeatedly defeated
and became hopelessly disorganized, so that the mighty Empress fancied she saw
Constantinople already in her grasp. England and Prussia interfered. The huge
Muscovite power began to terrify them, and from this lime forward England, at
least, assumed the role which she has since maintained, of Turkey's protector.
Catharine moderated her demands. She was given some further provinces along
the north coast of the Black Sea and in the Caucasus. Affairs both in Poland
and in France compelled the attention of Europe; the great French Revolution had
begun; and the annihilation of Turkey was again postponed to a more convenient
opportunity.
A MOMENT OF VICTORY
WEIILB S«rTU and otkvr provincn T«re irroltxDg
■irainsi their ralerc' tjrrumjr. Rnssia attacked
Turkish Enpin fnw> witbcKil. Foctnnatdv foe I
Turks iht'iv arnt^ atBeaic thtem at this nonieot a really ■
aatl patriiitio chief'c" '*>- -.-■■■■•-■i Bairvetar. He s
in iufiisiiti; into h - ^ Miiuetbing of his ovri
fire, atnl lie coini'l- "rer-rtmfident Rossiatis.
sem^intc Ibeiu tlwi;^,- \i
Iiniutilialt'lj- a(ti'rvi;LrU ^ 1N.V; . Bairaetar had to face i
even Dion- <lHtiKvn>u» itituaiico. The Januanes at Ccwstuitl
Qople hfli) in ihi'ir uaital tliMMnlerly fasfaioo refused to t
to join hint ill thr war aud i]i-(Kwr<i the Sultan. Setim. Bai-
raetar, fnwh fnun his um-spM-ietl triumph otpf the Russians.
retiirnetl siiddprily Id Constauitmifilc. and altarked and d^
feattHi tho .Iniiicitrira. But be vas too late to save Selim,
who hn<) Ixi'ii {tKsaN»inal^. So Bairactar ntsed lo the throne
ajiotlii'i- iiii-iiitHM- of the sabred ro>-al race. Uahuiud II. Un-
focturiuti'ly Ittiiraclar was i."-' . ii.>p-''-ir'™i in cope with the ■
trMcht-ry which now hom-v i;,.]
feelwi Jniiimnes prelni.it ; i
anddonly npon the patrioin
have depnsi-d Mahmud also, but l-
member of the n'.val bou»e, aiwl T-i-
woold not submit lo uay rater not 1-
Chapter IX
REFORMS OF SELIM III AND MAHMUD II
[Amligrilia .■ At before, aEso Paton, " Hiatuiy of the Egyptiari Kcvolu
die Turkish Empire"; Howe, " Historical Sketch of the Creek Rtvoluli.iii
Turkey in the Nineteenth Cenlury"; Diplomatic Papers of Mettemich.]
bHE disintegration and panic of the Turks before the resistless
advance of the armies of Catharine II, marked the lowest
ebb to which the Ottoman Empire had yet descended.
Even in our own day and despite its recent losses, Turkey
is stronger than it then seemed to be.
In 1787 the intenention of England and Prussia
appeared useless to preserve the Turkish domain for
more than a moment. The death of Catharine when she was plan-
ning another and final attack, gave it further respite. Then the
Titanic struggles of Napoleon drew all eyes away from the Osmanli
and so altered ancient enmities that we find Russia and Turkey
for a moment in alliance. France defeats a Turkish army in Egj-pt,
English forces aid the Ottomans in an heroic ilcfense of Acre against
[lie French, and most amazing of all, an English fleet threatens
Constantinople and is forced to escape from the Hellespont, suf-
fering some loss from Turkish batteries.
All these kaleidoscopic changes were, however, only temporary. The Na-
poleonic madness passed; and the disruption of the Ottoman Empire would
inevitably have been resumed, had not the Turks themselves undertaken inter-
nal reform. Two Sultans, SeUm III and Mahmud II, were really awake to the
needs of their country, and understood its desperate condition. By their vigorous
1797
1798 The Story of the Greatest Nations
efforts they saved it from what seemed the very throes of dissolution. The fir
these, Selim HI (i 789-1808), was girded with the sword of Osman during the 1
sian war. He saw its hopelessness, and after securing peace began the reorgaz
tion of his dominions. Schools were instituted that the dense ignorance of theT
might be overcome, and with it their disastrous contempt for everything Chris
or progressive. At the same time, Selim made an effort to introduce the Euro]
system of discipline among his soldiers; but at this the Janizaries rebelled
compelled its abandonment.
Selim saw that he had no real power over his empire. Not only did the ,
izaries force him to do their pleasure, but each Pasha of a distant province a
as an independent ruler and treated with contempt the orders of the Porte.
Barbary States had long yielded the Sultan only a nominal allegiance. But
Egypt under its great Pasha, Mehemet Ali, showed equal independence. Sc
the Syrian governor, and the rulers of Bosnia and the other Balkan States. Ex
in some districts in the heart of Asia Minor, the Sultan could find no^^ere
subjects who offered him real obedience. He began operations in Servia.
Janizaries there had completely cast off their allegiance and were plundering
inhabitants, Mahometan as well as Christian. SeUm summoned the peopl
defend themselves, encouraging to resistance even the despised rayahs or CI
tians. These, under their peasant leader "Black George," overthrew the J
zaries, but naturally refused submission to the Mahometan governors who y
then sent to rule them.
The fanatic Moslems cried out against their Sultan; he was deserting tl
they said, abandoning their faith and ancient laws and upholding even their ra]
against them. The Turkish troops everywhere revolted. Leaders who rema
loyal to the Sultan were defeated and slain. In Constantinople the Janizaries i
more went through the ceremony of overturning their camp kettles — ^the;
declaring that they would accept no more food from the reigning Sultan-
marched against the palace. Selim submitted to the inevitable and abdicated,
cousin was proclaimed Sultan as Mustapha IV. Anarchy had again triump
The Janizaries were king.
But through it all, one of Selim's lieutenants remained loyal. He was Gen
or Pasha, Bairactar, who was defending the line of the Danube against Ru
The Russian war with France relieved Bairactar of his opponents, and he prom
marched his troops to Constantinople. Defeating the Janizaries in a pitched
tie in the streets, he demanded the surrender of the palace and the restoratio
Selim.
Then ensued the last of those too common scenes of turmoil and horror wi
the walls of the seraglio. Sultan Mustapha bade his servants hold the gates aga
the invaders, while he hastily ordered the execution of Selim and also of his
> :*
f^ I ■*■
■ ■!.'
: ■'■ ■ - •■ i;
. I
f f.
I..
f^' •
»r.
' "»
THE RUSSIAN ADVANCE
CVha Sumndw af Vanu In ISU)
From a painting by th» AmttrbtH arti*t, W. WMpU
MAHMUD II sought, as his predecessor Selim had done,
to free his kingdom from the tyranny of the Jani-
zaries. He at last succeeded by a treachery equal to
their own. In the year 1826 he managed to surround the
homes of the Janizaries with other troops and cannon, at-
tacked them fiuddenly, set their houses and barracks on fire
and slew tbetn to the last man. Mahmud then tried to organ-
ize a new urmy of bis own. But before he could recruit the
strength of his weakened forces, war burst upon him from
every quarter. Serviu liad, as we have seen, been long in
rebellion. So had Albania. Greece also began fighting for
freedom, and all Europe came to the aid of Greece. The
Turkish navy was destroyed by the European powers; and
when Mahmud still fought on, desperate though hopeless, a
Russian army marched into his domains.
Following down the shore of the Black Sea, the Russians
besieged the chief Turkish defense of the north, the fortress
city of Varna. It was almost empty of troops and surren-
dereil after little morp thnii a nominal resistance. Th^ the
Russians seized the sacred Turkish city of Adrianople, which
had not seen a foreign enemy for four hundi'ed years. Sul-
tan Alahmud abandoned the struggle in di-spair and threw
himself upon the mercy of Euroiie. From that time the
Turkish government has been "the sitk man of Europe,"
continuing to exist only by the -.rrudginir consent of the
slronirer nations.
Turkey — Downfall of Bairactar ^790
younger brother Mahmud, the only other surviving member of the royal house.
Were these two dead, Mustapha knew he would himself be safe. No Turk would
venture on the total extinction of the race of Osman. Selim defended himself
desperately, the cries of his rescuers without, ringing in his ears. But he was finally
overcome and strangled, and his body was thrust out to Bairactar as proof of the
impossibility of restoring him to power. The infuriated general continued for ven-
geance the assault which he had begun for loyalty.
Mustapha's other victim, Mahmud, escaped the slaves sent to destroy him.
He hid in the furnace of a bath and while the murderers were still hunting for
him, Bairactar's soldiers burst in the gates and proclaimed him Sultan.
Mahmud 11 (1808-1839) had been the companion of Sclim in the royal kawah or
cage, where they were held by Mustapha. There the deposed Selim, the ruler who
had failed in his reforms, imparted to this untried cousin, this recluse from birth,
the story of his own reign, his struggles, and his defeat by the power of the Janizaries
Hence Mahmud II was in a way a reincarnation of Selim, possessed of his views
and aims. Mahmud had also the support of his rescuer, Bairactar, and for some
months reform progressed rapidly. Then the Janizaries, who had pretended sub-
mission to Bairactar, suddenly attacked his troops. He had unwisely dismissed
most of them from the city; the remainder proved insufficient for his protection.
His fortress home was stormed. Its tower citadel in which he took refuge, was
blown up; and Sultan Mahmud was forced in his turn to become the servant of the
triumphant Janizaries. He was only saved from deposition and death by the fact
that he had slain their former creature. Sultan Mustapha, and was thus the only
remaining member of his race.
In this extremity Mahmud showed himself subtle as well as resolute. He
atfected submission to the old order of things. At the command of his tumultuous
masters, he proclaimed the recent innovations and all other Christian customs to
be accursed. Each reform was solemnly repudiated.
We must regard Turkey at this period as merely a set of Mahometan provinces,
each vartually independent of the others and making little pretense of obedience to
any central authority. Servia continued in rebellion and could not be suppressed,
though the Turkish Pasha of Bosnia warred against it on his own account, hoping
to add Servia to his government. The Pasha of Egypt made war upon the Mame-
lukes and showed his nominal master at Constantinople an example not afterward
forgotten, by coaxing these formidable soldiers into a trap and there massacring
them all (181 1). The Pasha of Albania had long been accustomed to make treaties
with the Europeans quite as an independent monarch, and in 1820 he embarked in
open war against Constantinople. Encouraged by his successes, the Greeks also
rose and began their war of independence.
The Albanian Pasha, ** the old lion of Jannina," was overthrown, as much through
'^i8oo The Story of the Oeatest Nations
fraud as by force. In Greece, however, the disorderly hordes of Janizaries
were repeatedly defeated. That body being thus discredited, Sultan Mahmud
at last ventured upon the attack he had been long maturing. Recognizing the
value of artillery against such a mob as the Janizaries had become, he care-
fully strengthened that branch of his army. Then, pointing out to the mufti
the failures of the Janizaries and the successes of his own better-ordered
troops, he secured from these religious judges a declaration that the discipline
of the Janizaries must be restored. The insulted and unsuspecting bullies of
the empire promptly overturned their camp kettles and advanced against the
palace. Met by Sultan Mahmud at the head of his twelve thousand loyal
artillery, they were mowed down in the streets. They defended themselves
with a valor worthy a better cause ; but the artillery steadily continued its fire
until the barrack buildings crumbled into ruins and nothing was left of the
Janizaries of Constantinople but their dead bodies and the burning, blood-
stained ruins which had been their homes (1826). The grim massacre ex-
tended throughout the empire.
Time, however, was not given Mahmud to carry his reforms to their full
fruition. To check the successes of the Greeks he had appealed for aid to his
powerful Egyptian vassal Mehemet Ali, and Ali so cruelly and completely
suppressed the insurgents that Europe interfered. A combined English, French
and Russian fleet entered the harbor of Navarino, where the Turkish navy lay.
There had been no declaration of war, but the intrusion was threatening* if not
openly hostile, and the Turkish admiral fired on the advancing ships. A battle
ensued in which, after an heroic defense, the Turkish navy was annihilated
(1827).
With it disappeared most of Mahmud' s hopes. The Western Powers in-
sisted on the freedom of Greece. The Sultan, infuriated though despairing,
refused to consent. War with Russia followed, and Mahmud's new troops,
few as yet and incompletely organized, failed to hold back their foes. A
Russian army, acting for Europe, seized the ancient fortifications of Varna
and took possession of Adrianople. Every behest of the Powers was agreed to.
Greece was made independent. So were ancient Moldavia and Wallachia
under the name of Roumania.
The unhappy Sultan had next to face the revolt of Eg3rpt. Mehemet Ali,
seeing the helplessness of his ancient master, extended his authority over
Syria as well as Egypt ; and when the Turks sought to expel him from his new
possession, he asserted a complete independence, defeated their armies, and
marched his forces to the walls of Constantinople. Nothing saved the Sultan
but the interference of the Western Powers, which had promised to protect
him in the weakness to which they had themselves reduced him.
. ■4'> :-:-.■ :
TURKEY ESTABLISHES A PARLIAMENT
(Sultan Abdul Hamld S««1m to Pacify Europe by Croatlns • PariiaoMBt)
From a sketch made at the time
UNDER the tutelage of the western powers, the Turkish
rulers made a pretense of modernizing their govern-
ment. In reality, the secret purpose of more than one
of the Sultans of this time was to f?et rid of all his Christian
subjects, who were becoming moi'e and more rebellious. They
were to be exterminated by massacre. Finally in 1876, one
Sultan lent his aid so openly to this slaughter that the Euro-
pean i)owers drove him from the throne and raised another
Osmanli to be Sultan as Abdul Hamid IT.
Abdul reigned for over thirty years. His first step in the
world of Turkish artifice was to proclaim tliat his people were
going to beconn? just like other Europeans, that all his sub-
jects were ecpml, whether Christians or Mahometans, and
wei'c to govern theniselvt»s by means of a parliament. So this
first Tiirkisli pjirlijiiiieiit met at Constantinople in 1876. It
was iu\ u1t(M' fiinM*; and when the Powers still continued to
insist on piolecting the Christians under Turkish rule, Abdul
llamid ])r()niptly dismissed his toy parliament and defied
Kiirope. The war of 1877-iS t'olh)wed. In tliis, the other
]*(>wers auth(M*izod iviissin to act for them, and she e<mipletely
(h'l'cjited the Turks, just as she liad done fifty years before.
Thru Kuropi^ once iiuwv sav«'d Turkey fnmi })eing swallowed
l)y Ixussia. KN'piesciitativi's oF all the Powers gathered in the
hotrd ^'Reilin ( 'onlVrenci^'' and arranged to make Turkey's
Christian jH'oviuccs ])ractically imlependent.
X-a.'i
Chapter X
THE RECENT GENER.\TIONS
LHE career of Turkey since western Europe took charge
of the "sick man" as her ward, has been a course of
slow disintegration. Sultan Mahvnud was succeeded
by his son Abdul Mejid ( 1S39-1861), a quiet, dreamy
Oriental who consented to be "modernized" by his
western advisers- He wore Parisian clothes, and
talked of government reform, and tried to keep his
fanatical subjects from murdering Christians. Really,
however, he and his conntry changed not at all in spirit. He
borrowed large sums from Europe, nominally for government
improvements, and spent them on the. pleasures of a most gor-
geous court. Meanwhile the Christians of the Balkan regions
continued to be abused, until in 1853 Russia declared her in-
h tention of rescuing them by force.
This led to the celebrated "Crimean War." It began by a
Russian naval attack which destroyed the Turkish fleet at Sinope. Then the
Powers intervened to protect their obedient ward. Since Russia refused to
abandon her attack, England, France and several lesser states came to Turkey's
aid. Russia was defeated in a giant struggle, in which Turkey herself took
little part, leaving all her defense to the French and English, once these had
reached her shores.
Abdul Mejid was succeeded by his son Abdul Aziz (1861-1876), a ruler
of wholly different type. Abdul Aziz was a Moslem fanatic, who chafed
■'J
1802 The Story of the Greatest Nations
bitterly at the tutelage to which his father had so cheerfully submitted,
secretly encouraged the massacre of Christians, meaning to make his emp£
all Mahometan and thus strong in its unity. So terrible grew the oppressi
that the Christian peoples in European Turkey began revolting, in defiance
the peace commands of the western Powers.
Meanwhile the financial difficulties of the government at Constantino
had reached a climax. Abdul Aziz had acquired a taste for building palac
on which he squandered enormous sums. He had traveled with Orien
magnificence through Europe, being the first Ottoman Sultan who ever I
his own domains except in war. From this venture amid western civilizati
the Sultan returned unenlightened, and only more ferocious and fanatical th
before. He readily seized at an expedient proposed to him for escaping
financial worry, declared his government bankrupt (1875), and repudiated
its debts to Europe.
Even England, which had been Turkey's chief friend throughout, w
roused by this blow at her bankers* pockets. Europe moved against Turk
in concert. The alarmed Turks had a "palace rebellion" in which Abdul Az
was slain and his nephew raised to the throne as Murad V. But the new ml
was found to be an utter imbecile, and so he was promptly superseded by h
younger brother, who became Sultan as Abdul Hamid H (1876-1909).
Abdul Hamid sought to regain the friendship of Europe by proclaiming, -i
himself, like his grandfather, a friend of reform. He declared that Turkej^'^
was to become a "constitutional'' kingdom, and he summoned a parliament:^
This parliament, however, had no real power. It was paraded before the eye^-
of Europe for a year or two and then abolished. Europe indeed was no\M^
aroused and suspicious of everything Turkish. Mere verbal promises o9^
reform were no longer accepted. The Powers demanded that the Christians^
of the Balkan regions be allowed to govern and protect themselves. To this ^
the Sultan refused to agree, and his obstinacy brought on the Russo-Turkish
War of 1877. This resulted in the freeing of the Balkan States.
For over twenty years following the creation of the Balkan states Abdul
Hamid followed the policy of his grim uncle Aziz, pretending to approve
reforms but secretly encouraging Christian massacre. The people of the little
Balkan states, watching the suffering of their compatriots in the lands still
under Turkish rule, were driven almost frantic in their desire to aid their
fellows. Finally in 1897 Greece did interfere in behalf of the Cretans and
Macedonians. In defiance of all Europe, which insisted on peace, the Greeks
forced their government to declare war on Turkey. Their enthusiasm had
outnin their strength. The Turkish army had by this time been thoroughly
disciplined by European officers. It was in good modern condition ; and like
J
Turkey— Revolt of the "Young Turks" 1 803
some mighty machine it simply rolled over the crushed and humiliated Greeks,
until Europe interfered to save them from destruction.
This easy triumph over Greece somewhat restored Turkish prestige abroad.
At home it opened the eyes of the Turks themselves to the fact that Europe
was right They must really adopt European ideas and civilization if they
were to continue to exist. A genuine party of reform sprang up among them,
known as the Young Turks. These, after a decade of preparation, engineered
in 1908 an almost bloodless revolution. On July 22 a body of troops under
Major Niazi Bey revolted and demanded a parliament. Other troops every-
where joined the movement and the helpless Sultan accepted the situation.
On July 24 he issued an "Irade" proclaiming parliamentary government to be
his dearest wish* His old pestilent advisers were swept out of office ; a few
of them were murdered by the delighted populace; and on December 10 the
parliament gathered and took actual charge of the government.
Difficulties, however, faced the Young Turks from the start. Both Austria
and Bulgaria seized the moment of revolution to snatch territory which was
nominally Turkish. Some of the subject races of the empire, both in Asia and
Europe, showed symptoms of revolt The treacherous Sultan thought the
opportunity favorable to reassert his power. Suddenly, in 1909, he accom-
plished a coup d'etat, declaring the parliamentary government a failure and
himself once more supreme. The Young Turks were taken by surprise ; for a
few days the old regime was re-established. But the progressive leaders
gathered their forces, and in a revolutionary^spirit even more determined than
before, marched against Constantinople. Some of the Sultan's troops with-
stood them; there was desperate fighting in Constantinpole's streets; but the
. Young Turks were completely victorious. They compelled the treacherous
Abdul Hamid to resign the throne, and they proclaimed his son, Mahomet V,
as Sultan in his stead (May 10, 1909).
This internal reform of Turkey came too late to save the remnant of her
European dominions. In 1910 and again in the two following years there
were formidable revolts in Albania, which all the force of the Turkish armies
proved scarcdy able to suppress. In 191 1 there arose also a revolt in Yemen,
the extreme southern part of Arabia. These Arabs defied the Turkish power,
despite its modem equipment, and held its army at bay for almost a year.
Then in 191 1 came the Italian War. Italy had long desired colonial ex-
pansion. Now, seeing how utterly helpless were the Turks in the midst of
their domestic troubles, Italy suddenly exaggerated a trifling quarrel in north
Africa into a cause for war, and seized possession of Turkey's last African
posaessions in Tripoli and Cyrenaica. The Italians opened the war by sinking
Arte Turldih toipedo boats off Prevesa. This was to prevent the Turkish
1 804 The Story of the Greatest Nations
fleet from interfering with their plans. They then bombarded and took pos-
session of all the African ports. The Young Turks' party, despairing and
desperate, refused to surrender their country's authority over Tripoli. Had
they done so they would have caused the downfall of their own movement
Their ignorant and superstitious countrymen would at once have turned
against them. Even as it was they faced a parliamentary crisis and had to
dismiss from office their prTme minister or Vizier and summon to the leader-
ship of the country as Vizier the celebrated Said Pasha, a keen old conserva-
tive statesman, over ninety years of age, who had been seven times Vizier
during the absolute reign of Abdul Hamid.
At first Italy had assured Europe she would confine her attack to Africa
and would not increase Turkey's parliamentary difficulties at home by assail-
ing her other domains. But as the Turks obstinately continued to refuse to
admit what had happened and acknowledge^taly's power over Tripoli, the
Italian fleet began, in the spring of 1912, to take possession one after another
of Turkey's islands in the western Mediterranean and iEgean seas. Then at
last Turkey consented to a peace ; but while this was yet under discussion, the
Balkan War broke out.
For years the little Balkan states had talked of leaguing against Turkey
and achieving by their united strength what Greece alone had failed to do
and Europe still refused to do, the rescuing of the remainder of -their com- '
patriots from Turkey. But so jealous was each Balkan state of all the others
that their union seemed impossible. Now, in face of the fading of this best
opportunity, Turkey's entanglement with Italy, the Balkan peoples united
hurriedly against their common foe and struck suddenly.
They had excellent excuse. The Turks were always furnishing that by
their cruelties to Christians. There had been a massacre of Bulgarians at
Ishtib in 191 1, and now in August of 191 2 there was a most treacherous mas-
sacre at Kotchana, where some bombs were exploded in the market place
apparently by the Turks themselves. At any rate, the Turkish troops were
already gathered in readiness around the scene of the bomb throwing, and at
its signal they rushed forth crying that it was a Christian plot, and began
murdering all the Christian populace in sight. King Nicholas of Montenegro
began the war. He declared he would no longer watch idly the murder of his
Christian neighbors in Albania and the other surrounding provinces; and on
October 8 he summoned his people to a "holy war." Within a week Servia,
Greece and Bulgaria all joined the Montenegrins. The European Powers
commanded them to stop, but they defied Europe and persisted in their attadc
Of the four allied states, Montenegro was the weakest, and could do little
beyond her own immediate vicinity. Bulgaria was the strongest, and to her
(
TURKEY'S LAST SUCCESSFUL WAR
(TurUih TrOQp* Muchiof Into CrMca In IMT)
From a drairing tin Ihf ipiil by Olio Orrlack
FOR twenty years after the Berlin Conference had
stripped Turkey of half her European territory, the
Sultan Abdul Hnmid remained a nullen, secretly plot-
ting ruler. He kept peace becausti he knew he must. He had
learned his lesson. But he gniduully si renfithened his army
and prepared for more slaiisrhtors of Chriatians within hia
remaining provinces. War arose ajrain in 1897. This time
little (ireeee started the turmoil. Her subjects had Iour been
ea)zer to rescue their remaining compatriots who still suffered
under Turkish rule. At length they forced their king to de-
claro war. The shrewd Sultan placed himself under the di-
rection of the Powers; and these, having done everything
possible to restrain tlie excited (Jreeks, felt compelled to per-
mit Turkey to defend heisejf.
Instantly the Sultan's armies sjirans forward with a vigor
of action and excellence of discipline that astonished Europe.
Here was no despicalile force! The soldici-s, stirred to their
ancient religions enthusiasm, ehar^'cd Inavcly forward shout-
ing "Allah ! Allah !" Thoy swejit back the lireek army like
erumpleil paper; and then, with rare self-restraint, when the
Powers strelched forth inter|iosinfr hands, the Turks stopped.
They surrendered their coit(|uesls and peace was made.
Turkey— The Balkan War 1805
assigned the chief task of the capture of Adrianople, which lay just
beyond her borders, and then the advance on Constantinople itself. Greece,
which had a navy, was to destroy the remnant of a navy which Italy had left
to Turkey, and was thus to make it difficult for the Turks to bring reinforce-
ments from Asia. Meanwhile both Greece and Servia, by attacking the Turk-
ish armies already gathered in Albania and Macedonia, were to prevent these
from going to the aid of Constantinople.
All these plans worked out admirably. The Greeks seized possession of
the waters, while their soldiers fought their way successfully onward through
Macedonia burning to retrieve their defeat of fifteen years before. The
Servians pressed southward over what had been Servian territory ages before.
They defeated a Turkish army in a severe two days' battle at Kumanovo
(October 23) and recaptured their own ancient capital of Uskub. Meanwhile
the Bulgarians had also achieved their larger task. Furious with the hatred
of centuries they rushed across their border, shut a Turkish army up in
Adrianople and drove the relieving forces back in two tremendous battles,
that of Kirk Kilisse (October 23), and then that of Lule Burgas, a terrible
three days' fight (October 28-30), in which the Bulgarian peasant soldiers
sacrificed themselves by thousands in reckless charges of frenzied desperation.
The Turks were swept back to their last series of defenses, the Chatalja lines,
within sight of Constantinople. Three weeks of rapid and stupendous fighting
had changed the fact of the Balkans forever; and on November 13 Turkey
begged for peace, ready to yield to the allies all that they had conquered.
The peace negotiations began at once in London; but it was soon made
manifest that the allies intended to demand much more than the Turkish
government would or indeed could yield without facing a rebellion at home.
So the war reopened in February of 191 3. Greece indeed had refused to stop
fighting with the others and had gone on seizing one by one the unprotected
islands still held under Turkish authority. With the renewed outburst of
hostilities the Greek troops also resumed their advance and succeeded in cap-
turing Janina, the Turkish stronghold in the west, and compelling the sur-
render of all the Turkish forces there. Servia, having already mastered the
central region, lent her aid to Montenegro in the west to besiege and capture
the Albanian capital Scutari, and also joined the Bulgarians to the eastward
in the siege of Adrianople. This celebrated city surrendered after a brave
defense (March 26, 19 13), and only Constantinople itself was left in Turkish
hands.
Now again the Turks cried for peace, and this time they left everything
in the hands of the European Powers, promising to consent to whatever these
dedded on. The Turks even yielded on the point which touched them most
ABDUL HAMID'S DOWNFALL
Cuu^lnt th* A|*d Sultan From Poiton Diuinf tha Ysun« Turin' R«n>lull<Mi)
From a paintinp bg F, Frta^tay
OUK uwn generation has seen another act iu tliis stov-
iijoviag drauia of tlie Turk's expulsion from Kurups.
Thi? "Young Turks" started a ix^al revolulion within
llieir country. They tried lo do in the closing days of Abdul
Hnmid what he had pretended to do thirtj- ypars before,
establish a parliamentary iioverument^ Tbi'y rose in revolt
and fofoed tJie Sultan to agii'e to a constitution.
Abdul had grown suspicious of all the world. He thought
I'veryone as treacherous aa hiniaelf, and dwelt in his old age
in deep seclusion witliiu his iialaeu. He feared poison, and
even the eating of his meals was made an elaborate sy
each dish being lasted hj' an official "iJister" and then s
and brought to the Sultan in that fashion and unsealed J
his presence.
Yet the rebellion brougrht about bis death, for after pre-
tending to accept the Tounp Turks' demands, he plotted a
counter-revolution. There was desperate fighting in Constaa-_
tinople streets. Again the Toung Turks gained the uppOj
hand : and this time they refused to accept the false pK
of the aged Sultan. They deposed him. and shortiy stte
ward he was reported dead. A new sovereign, Mahom^,^
was proclaimed Sultan of n new and reall^' modernized 1
key (1909).
CHRONOLOGY OF THE TURKISH EMPIRE
A.D. ia5o( ?) — Ertoghrul rescues the Sultan of Iconium. ia6o — Ertoghrul
made ruler of Sultan-CEni. ia88 — Ertoghrul succeeded by his son Osman.
1301 ( ?) — Osman had the public prayers said in his name, 1307 — Osman cast
oflf the last remnant of vassalage to Iconium. 13 18 — The Turks besieged Brusa.
1326 — Surrender of Brusa. I3a7( ?) — Death of Osman, and generous rivalry
of his sons Orchan and Aladdin. i330^Capture of Nicaea, 1336 — Karasi
added to the Osmanli domains; which extended over all north-western Asia
Minor. 1356 — Solyman led the Turks across the Hellespont; earthquakes
facilitated the capture of Gallipoli. 1360 — Murad I conquered Adrianople and
most of the Roman Empire of the East. 1364 — Turkish victory over the
Servians at the Marizza. 1387 — ^Decisive defeat of the Caramanians at Iconium.
1389 — Murad crushed the Servians at Kossova; Bajazet Ilderim annexed
Scrvia. 1396 — Crusade and Christian defeat at Nicopolis. 140a — Timur
overthrew Bajazet in the huge battle of Angora. 1403-13 — Civil war among
the sons of Bajazet, ended by the triumph of Mahomet I. 1442 — Victories of
Hunyadi at Hermanstadt and Vasag. 1443 — Revolt of Scanderbeg. 1444 —
Abdication of Murad II ; his return to the throne, and defeat of the Hungarians
at Varna. 1451 — Murad defeated Hunyadi at Kossova. 1453 — Final siege
and capture of Constantinople by Mahomet II. i456^Mahomet repulsed by
Hunyadi at Belgrade. 1460 — Greece occupied by the Turks. 1475 — Kaffa,
the Genoese metropolis of the Crimea, captured. 1480— The Turks seize
Otranto in Italy. 1481 — Civil wars of Bajazet II and his brother Djem.
151a — Bajazet II forced to abdicate in favor of his son, Selim the Destroyer.
1513 — Massacre of the Shiites. 1514 — Selim overthrows the Persians at
Calderan. 1516 — He adds Syria to his domains by the victory of Aleppo.
1 51 7 — ^The Mamelukes defeated at Ridania, and Egypt conquered; Selim be-
comes Caliph of the Mahometans. 1521 — Solyman the Magnificent captures
Belgrade. 152a — Knights of St. John driven from the Isle of Rhodes. 1526 —
Destruction of the Hungarians at Mohacs. 1529 — Solyman ravages Austria
and besieges Vienna. 1533 — Truce between Solyman and Europe. 1538 —
Naval victory of Barbarossa off Prevesa. 1547 — Most of Hungary surren-
dered to Solyman; Ferdinand of Austria pays him tribute. 1566 — Solyman
dies before the fortress of Szigeth, and Selim the Sot begins the decadence of
the royal house. 1569 — First encounter of Turks and Russians. 1571 — Cap-
ture of Cyprus ; the sea-fight of Lepanto. 1589 — Great revolt of the Janizaries ;
frightful interval of disorder. 1590— The cession of Georgia by the Persians
expands the Turkish Empire to its widest extent 1594 — Uprising of the
1807
The Story of the Greatest Nations
Christian tributary states, "tlie Wallachjan Vespers." 1596 — Mahomet ]
overthrows the Christian armies at Cerestes; the last great Turkish vicUl
1632 — Osman II murdered by the Janizaries. 1636 — Murad IV recaptv
Baghdad. 1664 — Defeat at St. Gotthard. 1673 — Victories of Sobieskfl
Khoczim and (1675) Leniberg, 1683 — ICara Muslapha driven back trt
Vienna; European coahtion against the Turks. 1687 — Turkish defeatj
Mohacs. 1699 — Peace of Carlowitz, by which Turkey loses Hungary,
1711 — Victory over Peter the Great. 1717 — Second defeat at Belgrade!
1787 — England and Prussia rescue Turkey from the Russians. 1808 — Sehin
III attempts reform and is overthrown by the Janizaries. 1820 — The Alban-
ians and then the Greeks revolt. 1826 — Mahmud II exterminates the Jani-
zaries. 1827 — Battle of Navarino. 1828 — Russian war establishes the
independence of Greece. 1839 — War with Egypt; Turkey rescued by the
Western Powers submits to Iheir tutelage. 1853 — Russian aggression leads
to the Crimean War. 1861 — Turkish reaction under Abdul Aziz. 1875 — ■
National bankruptcy; the Balkan rebellion. 1877 — Russia chastises the Turks
tigain; freedom of the Balkan States. 1897 — Grseco-Turkish War. igo8 —
Rebellion of the Young Turks; establishment of constitutional govemtnent
(July 24); Austria and Bulgaria seize Turkish provinces, igog — Abdul
Hamid again snatches tlie government; brief war of revolution; deposition
of Abdul, and coronation of Mahomet V. 1910 — Revolt in Albania.
1911 — Revolt in Yemen; war with Italy begun {Sept, 29); Italy proclaims
the annexation of Tripoli {Nov. 5). 1912 — Italy seizes Turkish islands;
peace treaty signed (Oct. 15) ; Montenegro declares war (Oct 8) ; the Balkan
allies declare war (Oct. 17) ; Turks defeated at Kumanovo and Kirk Kilissc
(Oct. 23) ; at Lule Burgas {Oct. 28-30) : Salonica captured (Nov. 8) ; peace
negotiations begun. 1913 — War with the Balkan allies renewed; Turks sur-
render Janina (March 5) and Adrianople (March 26) ; peace treaty signed
(May 31) : Balkan states fight among themselves and Turkey regains AdrU—
anople. 1914 — Turkey begins her rehabiltation by placing the rebuilding «
her navy in British hands.
RULERS OF THE OSMANLI
SCLTAKS
1389— Bajaict I.
1403 — In terregnum.
1413 — Mahomet I.
1421— Murad II.
1451— Mafiomct II.
14B1— Bajaiet 11.
1512 — Sclim I.
1520 — Solyman I.
1566-sd.m n.
i5?4— Murad III.
1594— Mahomet HI.
1603— Achtnet I.
1617— MusUpba I,
1617— Osman II.
1623— Murad IV.
1640 — Ibrahim I.
1648— Mahomet IV.
1687— Solyman II.
1691 — Achmet II.
T695— Mustapha II.
SlTLTANS
1703— Achmel IIL
1730— Mall mild I,
i7S4-Osman III.
1757— Mustapha III.
1 773— Abdul- Hamid.
1789— Sclim III.
i8o7^Mustapl« rV.
1808— Mahmud II.
I SjiJ— .^hd ul -Me jid.
1861— .Abdul-.Aiii.
1876— Murad V.
i876~Abdul-Harnid n.
1909— Mahomet V.
THE OPENING OF THE BALKAN WAR
tITh* M<>nt.n.r>ln Aintr Bl«»d'by ll. Pr>..l> Befor. Staxin* For <h* War)
li^ tht ronlpmjKirary Unpliih arliil, H. Cat>-a \yo<,ilviil»
FKW political events have ever taken ihe Powers of
EiiroiHT so compli'tely by surprise as did the outbreftk
of the Balkan slates in 1912. Turkisli milrages upon
the Christian people still subject, to tliem in Europe. bn>l l>i*cn
«o limg continued without retribution, the little independent
Balkan stalest had sewned so obedient to the Powers' com-
mand about maintaining: peace, tbnt it seemed as tbough the
Turkish Empire in Europe might, still last for generations.
Then suddenly in October of 11*12 the King of Montenegro
declared he would no longer aMoiv the massacre of liis coun-
trymen across the Turkish border; and he sent his troops to
war. To the Montenegrins it was a holy war. The army in-
cluded every man who eonld march forth. Their priests
blessed them, and they set out with religious ceremonials,
vowing to free llieir eonntryinen or perish,
Secretly the Montenegrin king had alrsady arranged his
alliances with the neighboring states oF Bulgaria. Servia. and
Greece, These statcB now also declared war, and det'eatetl
Turkey eoni]dete!y. They seiiied for theiiiBplves praeticnlly
all her European possessions. The Bulgarians even cnn-
aiiiered .\driaaople and pressed forward to Ihe siege of Con-
stantinople. Then al last the allies fell to nuarreling over the
division of the spoil, and Turkey, raising her despairing head,
managed to recapluie Adrinnople. So at least she still holds
a fragment of her European territory. Praetieally, linwi-ver,
s!ie ba.^ brenrne '•tiei- mnv? n mert-ty A.siatie, power.
THE STORY OF
[E GREATEST NATIONS
ScinditiBfii
Notih.-]
lODERN NATIONS — SCANDINAVIA
Chapter I
THE LEGENDARY DAYS OF ODIN
— Gtntral : li«tjer, "'HiHory of the Swedes"; Sinding. " Hislory of Scaiidina'
mipleie Hitlory erf Sweden": Boyeien, "History cA Norway"; Dunhnin, ■' Denmark,
Irwty": Croiiholiii. "A History o( Sweden"; Crichton and Wheaton, " ScnndiiiaTfa";
[v of Uenmark "; One. " Scandinavian Hiilory." Sptrial : Stiorre Slurleson, " Heitns-
ll Elder Eiida": '■The Younger Edda "; Wheatoii, "History of the Northmen";
c Mythology "; Millet, " Northern Antiquities"; Nilsson. " Primitive Inhabitants of
' '' 1, "Civiiiiation ol Sweden in Ancient Timci"; Wonoar. " Pre-hiitoiy of the
bci
southern stacoast
desolation bchin
CANDINAVIA is a name employed to-day to include all
the peninsulas and islands of Norway, Sweden, and
Denmark. Politically these regions are now divided
into three separate countries, but they are occupied by a
people of the same race; and as all Scandinavia has gone
through much the same history and been frequently
under the reign of the same sovereign, its story is often
.s that of a single land.
Scandinavians first became known to the more civilized
'orld between the fourth and tenth centuries of the Christian
ihey grew to be the masters of the ocean, daring sea-rob-
iraies, who suddenly appeared and disappeared along the
flashes of the destroying angel's wrath, leaving death and
■uge fair-haired vikings ihey were, with winged helmets,
The Story of the Greatest Nations
round shields, and coats of linked mail; grants of unequalled strength and t
measured daring, about whom romance loves to ding.
Writers of Uie Southland called them vaguely and rather indiscriminatdj
Northmen, though sometimes catching their more local names, as Danes or Jutes
or Angeln. In their own books the Northmen speak of themselves as all out
race though scattered over many disliicts, occupying in fact what they regarded as
one of the three great divisions of the earth. Tliey separated the world into Asia,
the vague, far-otf, populous mother-land; Europe, the warm and wealthy South-
land; and "Greater Sweden," the world of snow and ice, in which they included
not only Scandinavia, but northern Russia, and sometimes Great Britain with ^l|
its surrounding islands extending even to Iceland and the faint half-myl
region beyond.
So it is the story of the Northland we have here to tell. This in its way is |
haps older than any other European tale. In Scandinavia we find no sudden, :
break of a new-coming race driving out the old. The inhabitants to-day a
ently the descendants of those who dwelt there in the very earliest epoch thai
fan trace. The evidence of Scandinavian grave-mounds and other prehist
reUcs seems to be that, without change of race, the land has seen a steady deva
ment extending back through the iron age and the bronze age to that far-ofif a
stone when men were of closest kin to the beasts and met them in not unc<
warfare. The many Northern legends that deal with dragons are probably!
inventions, but vague recollections of those monstrous crawhng lizards
science now assures us once dwelt on earth.
Indeed, scientific students are to-day discussing a new theory which p
the dismal shores of the Baltic Sea as being the original home of the whole mid
^jyan race, from which some of their tribes wandered off to Asia at an ep<
distant to be dated- The travellers retained always a vague recollection of, pcrU
even a communication with, their earlier home, and after many centuries began
back toward it that clearer movement of the Aryans, in which coming from the
East they peopled Greece and Italy, Gaul and Germany.
Both philology and archeology offer ai^uments in favor of this theory, but its
strongest evidence to the unscientific mind lies rather in the character of the andeot
Northmen themselves. It is from such men and from long ages in such a land,
that we would expect the Aryan characteristics to develop. Fairness of color.
huge size and strength of limb, slowness in maturing, combined with length of life,
steady endurance and calm, shrewd alertness in the face of danger, the joy of
strife yet with a touch of kindness toward all feebler life, these are the traits of the
Aryan as baienced against the Semite or Turanian, and these were in their fullest
measure the traits of the Scandinavian. They are the quahties of the semi-atctk
North with its long, hard winters and the brief, sweet >^pite of its summer monthfc
SCANDINAVIA
CHia CrudU <
Frfpart't tptciailij for
V pr,
nith
SCANDINAVIA is a peneral name given to the ancient
Northhiud of EuropL', the cliill utumtri^sstirroundiiip the
broad nnj shallow Baltic Sea. To-day tlie eastern part
of this region is all siihjet-t to Russia; Ihe smith eon/^t of the
Baltic has become Oenimn; and of the string of islands in the
north Atlantic, only Iceland and G'reenland still reninin iiii-
der Scandinavian control. The three countries, ho-.vever.
which have always been the heart of this region, continue to
survive as independent liingdoms, Sweden, Norway and Den-
mark. No one of these three is very powerful to-day; but at
one time or another in the past, each of them has held a com-
manding position in European hisloi-j-.
A glance at the map will show how closely the three king-
doms are connected. Their people have been sailors, aea-
rovers, since the earliest dawn of our knowledge of them.
So that their narrow, island-crowded straits and seas have
not divided but united thetn, Thej' have often been held by
a single ruler and their history is so closely interwoven, their
people are so alike, that really they are one nation rather than
three, Norway has always been what the map shows il, a
single narrow strip of mountainous Atlnutic coast line, deeply
indented with roekbouiid fiords. Denmark is s. region of
many sea-washed islands, low and sandy. Sweden has a
mountainous highland of Daleoarlia sweeping down into broad
lake-covered plains, a land almost as much enwrapped in
n'ater as the Danish islands.
WM^'*'^^- ^ :jg 4-- » » '*■ 't^w. -fc. ♦ 4-' + •!■ :*:SS3E*^
Scandinavia— The Ancient Gods 1811
From the legends of Scandinavia we can, however, gather no clear trace of any
such southward movement and return. Their earliest tale is of Odin and the
Asa-folk. So confused a figure is Odin, treated sometimes as a god, sometimes as
a man, that it is not easy to draw any definite historic outline of him — unless wc ac-
cept the suggestion that there were two Odins, the early god and a later man who
assumed the name. The man Odin, says the Yngling saga, came from the south,
perhaps Asia, with his people the Asa-folk, and settled in central Sweden. Here
he met an already existing race of Gotas or Goths and after many a trial of
strength and wisdom with their king Gytha, Odin and his followers settled
amicably in the land. The two races united and they, or Odin's more immediate
followers, became known as Svea-folk or Swedes.
Another race was also encountered by Odin. These were the ancestors of the
Lapps and Finns, and are represented in the sagas as being physically feeble but
dealers in treachery and magic. Elsewhere however, they arc called Jotuns or
giants and declared to be the original owners of the land. Against them Odin
warred successfully and drove them into the farthest north. He became not only
a conqueror but an all-wise teacher, the inventor of runes or written words, and the
founder of a priesthood with its chief temple at Upsala (the high halls), which is
still the centre of Swedish learning. Hence our \QTy earliest record of the North
is of Sweden and of its division into three districts which exist there to-day, Goth-
land, Svealand, and Nordland, the region of the wandering Lapps.
Odin died and his body was doubtless placed in his favorite war-'boat, which
was set afire and with sail full spread to the blast, bore him off alone acDss the
stormy waters of the Baltic. Such were the obsequies of many a later chief, and
the legend soon grew up among the followers of Odin that he was not dead, but
had only left them for a time to visit his kindred in the Asa-land. He was deified
by his people, or perhaps there had been a previous deity of the name whom the
adventurer had dared impersonate. Odin is the same as Woden, the one-eyed,
the chief god of all the Teutonic races. Friga, the goddess of peace, is his wife, and
possibly represents a northern princess, by marr}^ing whom King Odin secured
peace and lands for himself and followers.
Yet more dimly ancient in the Scandinavian mythology, perhaps supplanted
by the newer gods, was Thor, the war-spirit, the thunderer. There was also
iEgir, god of the sea, with his dread wife Ran, the storm-goddess. She and her
servants, the waves, hate and seek to destroy all men who dare invade their realm;
but iEgir, the friend of man, guides him across the fiercest waters to wealth and
glory. To these early Scandinavians all nature was alive around them, and it
is probable that the mass of Teutonic legends about Woden, Baldur the sun-god,
and the others, originated in the far North. The more famous of these myths
have been already told in our story of the Germans.
i8i2 The Story of the Greatest Nations
After the death of Oflin or his return to Asa-land, his descendants, k
as the Ynglings from his grandson Yngve, ruled over the Swedes. Grad
their power decreased, or their people grew too numerous and too widely
tered over the almost impassable wilds to submit to a single local ruler. Sc
navia became the seat of dozens of little settlements, each with its own sma
or small king whose rule amounted to no more than that of a leader volun
followed in time of trouble.
Against the raids of these sma-kings the Yngling rulers or high priests
often to defend themselves by strength of arm. Any divinity that may have he
them_ in the early days, disappeared with the centuries; and the last of the Yng
Ingiald Illrada (ill-ruler), was finally destroyed and his family driven from U
by a coalition of these petty chiefs. The high halls of the Yngling settle
continued to be distinguished above others only by a vague religious rank.
The tale of Ingiald*s expulsion lies on the vague borderland betwixt
and legend. On his father's death Ingiald invited to a feast all the chiefs c
nearer districts. According to custom, he sat humbly at their feet, not assu
the royal seat and rank until his father's funeral should be ended. Then :
among his guests to make the customarj' "funeral vow," Ingiald vowed to do
with all "sma-kings" whatsoever and to rule alone over the Swedes as his ano
had done. In fulfillment of this pious oath, he immediately burned the house J
the heads of his assembled victims. Then with fire and sword he marched aj
such other brds as he could reach.
Among the slain was the king of Scania, or Scandinavia, a name then rest:
to the extreme southern part of modern Sweden. This king's son, Ivar Widft
gathered a small but infuriated army of his subjects, and with grim puipose st
on the long march northward. His force increased like a snowball as it :
onward over the desolate and devastated lands; and when at last the avc
reatlied the high halls of Upsala, their strength had grown to be irresistible. Ir
saw that his doom had come. The hall which he had burned above his i
had l:)cen replaced by a new and more gorgeous dwelling. With his own ha:
now set fire to this; and surrounded by his faithful followers, holding in liis
the daughter who had aided him in all his plots, he perished in his turn
the flames (A. D. 623).
Young Ivar was thus the first to supplant the Ynglings and drive them v
from their vague remnant of overlordship in the north. He was the chief ru
Scania and perhaps the island and peninsula beyond it, the land now kno^
Denmark; so that the tale seems to preserve some first vague triumph of the s
em regions over the northern. Ivar is reckoned the first great king of
mark, and is said to have ruled not only over all Scandinavia, but ove
Saxons and Northumbrians.
THE STONE AGE IN SWEDEN
(Sundicuviaai of Many Aia* Ago (nd tb> Moiuttr* of Tlulr Tin
Frum a pahitinj/ l/g tlir Grrman -irtUl, Iritz P. Sehmtdt
OUITE recently men of science have ilug up among t
highlamls of Sweden relics which, show ua not onljj
that men esisteil there innny ages af^o. but also 1
there has been a conlinuous development throiiph all the agia
That is, tlie Swedes and Norwegians of to-day are direclljl
descended from those of the Stone Age. In other Earopes
countries we know that one set of wnudering invaders afW
another have superseded the earlier inhahitants. In y^oen
these invaders have eonje from the east, from Ihe dirt^ctio)
of Asia, None of lliem, however, ever penetrated the icj
north or crossed the suvu^^e waters of the Baltic to iiivadt
Sweden. There the original inhahitants developed undifi
turbed. The man of the Stone Age is the man of to-da^j
Indeed many scientists now incline to belieVB that it was Ihes
Scandinavians who tirst ventured forth from their cheerle
homes and wandered southward, perhaps over part of i
and tlien turned westward lo become the ancestors o£ mcM
of the races of southern Europe.
lu the wild days of the earliest Scandinavians, mac i
still a savage. He may have faced and fought against 1
animal monsters of an earlier geological epoeli. We find Ij
Sweden relies of huge and terrible oxtinet antinals,
lizards such as our picture shows, cold-blooded,
beasts whom northern legi'nd has remembered as dragooi
supposing that they must hnve fire within to keep them alivS
amid the awful cold.
J
Chapter II
THE VIKING AGE AND CANUTE THE GREAT
\^trial Aiitt^Het : Cu'lyld " Early Kings of Nocwaj'" ; Adam of Bremen, " IliKiorla Ei:cl(-si
astic*"; DuChaillu, "The Viking Age"; Keary. ■' The Vikings in Wesleni thrislenilom " ; "Saw".
Cbnuiide" ; Sidgwick, "Story of Norway " ; Slorm, " Pages of Early IJani^li llislory."]
^FTER Ivar Widfadmc, wc enter on the second period of
Scandinavian story. The purely mythical age give^
place to one dimly historic, of which several sagas an'
other records exist, though their chronology is confusei!
and contradictory, each tale, as is natural, magnifying
its local hero.
Of the home life of the Northmen of this time we
know but little, though they were probably quite as
civilized in their way as any of the liindred tribes to the south ofthem,
even tlie half- Romanized Franks, In seamanship the Northmen ac-
quired askill and daring truly remark;iblc. Odin, inventor or introducer
of so many customs, was [XThaps the first to teach his people thai
attacks by sea were far more easy and effective than toilsome marches
and assaults by land. The myths ascribe to him a magic boat in
which he and his men could be carried anywhere. Doubtless this
means that they appeared suddenly and unheralded along the little
fjords, to the consternation of their enemies.
The generations that followed Odin became shipbuilders, and, after hanying
one another's homesteads and learning all the seamanship they might along the
Baltic shores, they sailed through the channels to the great ocean without, and
(laied its wrath. Thdr settlements spread up the Norwegian coast; their ships
i8i4
The Story of the Greatest Nations
ventured over to Scotland and even to Ireland beyond They also began tl
quest of England and plundered ihe shores of France.
A century or so after Ivar's time, the Northmen had become so QUI
al home that they seemed like a flood pouring out to overflow the earth. '
of what we know of their exploits comes from the monkish chroniclers of t
they ravaged; and it is but natural that to their terrified victims these fierce f
marauders should have appeared everything that was sa^-age, merciless ;
fiendish in the form of men. In truth, however, they seem to have compe
most favorably with other conquerors. Each land that submitted lo iheir s'
quickly became prosperous and progressive, and assumed for a time the ialellecl
leadership of the European world. Their chief conquests were of En|
Normandy, and southern Italy. But we hear also of their dominion over '.
and their assaults upon Paris and Orleans. Their ships ravaged the Medilcni
and even Constantinople yielded to their arms.
This remarkable outpouring of warriors from the North continued I
more than six hundred years, from the beginning of the fifth century or even
down to about iioo A. D. Moreover during all this period there v
bloody wars between rival kings at home. Such prodigal expenditure
could not continue forever, and there came a time when the Northland co
with weakness and exhaustion. Its sons had been given to the world, a
once populous coasts of Scandinavia sank back into an almost deserted wile
The various expeditions of this period belong lo the history of the I
which the conquerors settled. The strife between the kings at home ]
only a wearisome sameness of bloodshed, over which we need not linger
was succeeded in all his dominions by his grandson Harald Hildetand, w
positive and impressive historical figure, and who, coming to the throne
lad, ruled for the almost incredible period of four-score and eight yeare (64
He extended the vague empire he had received, by further conquests ii
and South, and he put down his turbulent vassals or sma-kings with an iron
Harald's death is the theme of the great epic war-song of the North, the £
navian "Siege of Troy." In his extreme old age the celebrated chiefts
possessed of the true Norse desire to die in battle; for only those thus slal
borne al once to Odin's banquet-hall in Valhalla. To die peaceably in fa
well-nigh a disgrace. Yet looking forth over the Northern world, Harald'
see no king remaining who might oppose him in war. He therefore delib
raised a quarrel with his nephew, Sigurd Ring, his regent over Norway.
Sigurd, driven to defiance, gathered his fleets and advanced southward
Denmark. With him came every sma-king who in all the long years of I
ragn bad formed a grievance, every earl whom the monarch's sav^ery h
offended. Their ships covered the ocean; the saga sings of their twa
ODIN'S DEATH VOYAGE
(Tha Bodr of Odin. Scandln»ia-i Fi»( Hero. CU>n lo Flr>
From un olit aO'iHj/mvut print
GRADUALLY in this far dim norlJilaml thfre gr6i_
a whole series of legends, myths telling of del
ascribed to the pods. Probabiy tlicse gods were origi-
nally kings in thi^ laud and The stoi-ies had a basis nn fact*
But what was real and what imaginarj'- who the kings were,
or who llie gods, we ran no longer tell. We can only accept
Ihe legends as we find them.
They make as their chief god and hero, Odin or Woden,
whom we have already nii't as Ihe chief German god. But in.
(lerman story he is wholly a.god. it creator of men. In Scan-
dinavian story he is still ehiefly a man, a king ruling only hts
own people and dying among them. According to this leg-
end, Odiu, king of the Asa folk, led his followers from the
mainland into central Sweden, fought llie sturdy Galhs of
Gotland in southern S-wedeu, and the treacherous cunning
Lapps of Nordland. and united all three under his rule, mak-
ing a threefold kingdom such as exists in Sweden to-day.
Then Odin taught his people all wistlom, and built for them
the "high halls" or Up-sala which became their chief shrine
of faith and learning. When he died his body was seated in
his favorite war-ship, surrounded by his chief treasures, and
was launched upon the waters of the Baltic. Fire was set
to the sliip and it sailed Saming out of sight across the stormy
waves bearing its glorious burden. Some day, says legend,
Odin is to come back and once more lead his people.
Scandinavia — Ragnar Lodbrok 1815
hundred sail. The invaders landed in Scania, mooring their fleet at the mouth
of the River Braa. Harald hearing this, eagerly marshalled his army, and met
the enemy in the battle of Bravalla, the most terrific combat of the North.
Here the god Odin appeared for the last time among men. Mounting into
Harald's chariot, he urged the horses of the aged king into the midst of the foe.
Haraldy recognizing his charioteer, besought him for this one more glorious
victory; but Odin pointed out that young. Sigurd had too well learned the art
of war and had ranged his men in that irresistible wedge shape by which Harald
had himself won all his battles. At this the aged king grew desperate. Dashing
madly amidst the foe, he slew all who opposed him, dealing his great blows with
resistless power. No man could stand against him, until at length Odin, to stay
the interminable slaughter, raised his own weapon and smote Harald down. Then
Sigurd, lamenting that such a hero must die, built a vast burial-mound, burned
his uncle's body with high honors, and succeeded him in his domains. The lord-
ship of all Scandinavia thus passed from Denmark to the Norwegians (735).
The next ruler over the North — dates remain vague and events uncertain —
was Sigurd's son, Ragnar Lodbrok (leather-breeches), of whom also the sagas
have many deeds to tell. His odd surname was earned in youth, in the days of
wooing. There was a maiden so famed for beauty that her father, to protect her
and guard his home, filled its fore-court with hissing poison-snakes. No man
dared approach, and the maiden languished. But Ragnar, seeing her fair face,
wrapped leather thongs around his legs, and so day after day strode unharmed
amid the adders, winning for himself a bride and a name.
Like his father, and indeed all his race, Ragnar thought far less of welding
and governing the turbulent world of w-hich he was called the ruler, than he did
of pro\'Tlng his own individual prowess. He wandered forth on many a wild viking
cruise. Finally, sailing away with only two ships, he was wrecked on the English
or pxjrhaps the Irish coast, and his forces were overpowered by those of iEUa,
the king who reigned there. Ragnar, refusing to reveal himself, was cast into a
pit of snakes and died of their bites, chanting a wild Norse death-song which
is still preserved.
*^There will be grim doings here," said Ragnar, *Svhen the young cubs learn
what has happened to the old bear."
Wlicn his sons feasting in Norway heard the tale, they sped at once to ^Ella's
land and took fierce vengeance upon him and all his people. They made a "spread-
eagle" of him, as the cruel torture was called, hewing his ribs from the backbone
one by one. Then these sons divided the domains of Ragnar among themselves,
and thus the North was once more headless, its forces scattered among many petty
rulers.
Another period of confusion follows. There was a king in Denmark, perhaps
i8i6 The Story of the Greatest Nations
a grandson of Ragnar, who quarrelled with Charlemagne. This appears to have
been the first lime that it dawned ujxDn the Northmen that there was, somewhere
in the Southland, a power so organized and concentrated as to be mightier than
their own. Even then it was the distance and the wilderness that restrained
them from assault rather than the troops of Charlemagne. Gottrik, a Danish
or Jutish king, attempted to surprise and capture the Emperor in his capital at
Aachen. The effort failed, but the Prankish ruler made peace with the Danes as
equals. No demand was made of them, as of the nearer tribes, that they should
adopt Christianity, the symbol of alliance and submission to the Franks. Im-
portant as it must have seemed to all the Southland that these wild, pagan ravagers
should learn the softer faith, Charlemagne lacked the power to compel them to
accept it.
Christianity first penetrated into Scandinavia during the time of Charlemagne's
successor, Louis the Pious. In the monkish chronicles, under the year 826, the
QTitry is made with much detail and elaboration, how^ Harald Klak, a king in Jut-
land, having been expelled from his possessions, came with his wife and all his fol-
lowers sailing in a hundred ships to the court of Louis at Ingelheim. Doubtless
his purpose was to seek aid, for he adopted Christianity and was baptized with gor-
geous ceremony. Then he returned to Jutland accompanied by many Franks^
and temporarily reconquered some portion of his kingdom.
In Harald's train a number of Christian priests entered Jutland, headed by
Anskar or Anscarius, **the Apostle of the North." A year or two later Harald
was again driven from his throne and sank into permanent exile as duke of a Frank-
ish province conferred on him by the pious EmjxTor. At this second expulsion
of their protector, the priests fled also; but Anskar, their chief, soon accepted an
Invitation to return to Scandinavia under humbler auspices.
Some Swedish merchant sailors who had adopted the new faith, offered to
convey him to their own distant capital. On the voyage they were attacked by
pirates and lost most of their possessions. They w^ere shipwrecked also, and only
after sore experience of the dangers of the sea did the devoted teacher reach his
destination. There the Swedish king, Bjom, consented to the expounding of the
new doctrines, and finally became himself a convert. But on Bjorn's death the
old animosity against Christianity blazed up again, and once more Anskar had to
flee for his life. On the whole he spent nigh forty years in the Northland with
little permanent result. A rougher hand than his was needed for the mastering^
of this rugged race.
■
Meanwhile, the hundred little Scandinavian kingdoms were assuming more |
definite outlines, becoming reduced in number, and fixed into the three estab-
lished States which we know to-day. Sweden had continued as a single united
kingdom from the days of Ragnar Lodbrok, and she still traces back her successiov
^GIR THE SEA GOD
PraUcr* Men From Hi. CKIldxn. tK> WIM Wa*H)
artitf, V. Ehrtnlrfrif
a paiHling Uy the Srtiadini
ODIN was reiaembereil as the iiiHiii god of Ihe nurlhlaiKf.
Hut man; other gods tvc-re ranked wiUi bm, and aiuoag
these was the aea-goil. The sen eanie to be the chief
lioiiie of the men of ihe north, Everj- siinimcr they set out
in their little ships explarin^ and plundering. At fifBt they
dn-aded the neeau exceedingly and made up slflries of a fierce
and terrible sea goddess. Ran. who hated men and was always
urging the waves on to attack and devour their. By degrees,
however, they eame to be such skilful sailors that they no
longer fciired Ihe storms. They saw also that the sea by
guiding them to other lands which were ill defende<l. enabled
them to become rich. Hence they talked nf old ocean in a
more confiding mood. They invented a sea-god /Egir, who
was really man's friend, old and very wiae. Ran was his
ivife, who souielimes roused the fieree waves; but then vEgir
would calm them again, moving as our picture shoirs him
upon the face of the wfltei-s.
The boats of these northern aea-wanderers, or vikings £
they called themselves, would have seemed very unsafe to t
The men had no compasses to guide them; and, tbo^igli ttu
used sails, they trusted mainly to oars. Thus they sat i
close to the water as they rowed and must really have felt tjift
huge waves as personal enemies rushing to overwhelm them.-j
Scandinavia — Harald Haarfagr ^ 1817
of sovereigns to that wild viking in unbroken if not wholly reliable records of
descent. In Norway, apparently grown by this time the most populous and power-
ful region of the North, there appeared another conqueror. This was Harald
Haarfagr, or Harald the Fair-haired, said to be sprung from the stock of the ancient
Yngling rulers of Upsala. Harald was sma-king over a little Norwegian district
when in early youth he sent to ask the hand of Gyda, a neighboring princess. She
returned word that she would wed him when he was a real king, like Eric of Sweden
or Gorm of the Danes. Harald's counsellors regarded this as an insult and urged
him to seize the maid by force; but the youthful warrior accepted the answer in
another light, declared that Gyda was right and vowed never to cut nor comb his*
hair until he had reasserted his ancient birthright and become lord over all of Nor-
way.
Then followed battles and surprises and innumerable stratagems of statecraft
through all of which Harald fought and plotted onward toward his goal. Finally
in 87s there was a last, celebrated sea-fight in Hafurs (now Stavanger) Fjord, in
which all the little kings and earls who still dared oppose Harald were completely
overthrown. Having accompUshed his vow, the victor cut the long, matted yellow
hair which had given him his title "Fair-hair," and wedded the beautiful Gyda
who had waited for him so long. The romance of the tale is a little injured, how-
ever, by the fact that the hero had in the interval married another woman, and
Gyda was only his second or lesser wife.
This imion of Norway under Harald caused great changes in the land. He
did away completely with the old system of sma- kings, and established his own
adherents as earls or jarls over the various districts. He enforced the laws, some
old, some of his own proclamation, against duelling and robbery. He even — and
this was felt by his people as the most unreasonable and unjust of his oppressions
— ^forbade the viking raids upon other districts. If these time-honored enjoyments
were to be given up, most Norwegians of noble birth felt that existence would be
no longer a pleasure. They disobeyed the king openly, and when he proceeded to
punish them, they left the land in great numbers.
This, the most noted exodus of all those by which the North was depleted of
its strength, took place about the years 874 and 885. At the later date the gigantic
Rollo or Rolf the Ganger (goer or walker) was exiled, and going ** a- viking" into
France, conquered Normandy and became its duke. In 874, Iceland was settled
by other exiles, who preferred the harshness of its climate to the severities of King
Harald. Ireland also was colonized. Norway, half depopulated, became a
land almost without an hereditary nobility, a land of peasants who ruled their king
perhaps as much as he ruled them.
When Harald had grown old, he divided his kingdom among his sons (933)1
ynH there was more civil war extending over generations. At last one of the few
i8[8
The Story of the Greatest Nations
remaining nobles. Earl Hakon or Hakon Jarl, drove all the suniving descendants
of HaraM from ihe country, and assumed the throne himself. After many years
his tyranny roused the peasants to revolt, and he had just hidden hiniAcif with a
single servant in a secret den beneath a pigslye, when Olaf Trj-gvesson, Ihe lasl
of the house of Harald, appeared unexpectedly upon the scene.
Olaf was another of Norway's noted kings. He had already gained fame as a
viking, had been in Italy, ravaged England, joined the Danish prince, Sweyn, iD
taking toll of London, and even, acccrding to legend, had wedded an English
princess, Olaf, having determined to reassert his right to his ancestors' domain
and coming so opportunely upon the assembled peasants, received by acclamation
the crown for which he had meant to fight.
Through all the ceremony Jarl Hakon listened from the pigstye, not daring
to make the slightest sound lest he be discovered, afraid even to sleep lest his com-
panion betray him. It is one of the grim pictures of Norwegian history, those two
men crouching there through all the long day and longer night, each suspicious,
neither daring to attack the other, because of the noise and discovery and death
that would follow, Tlie scn'ant repeatedly assured his master of his loyalty, and
at last Hakon was exhausted and slept. Then the thrall killed him and came out
to Olaf with the severed head for his reward. Olaf slew the wretch for his faith-
lessness.
Olaf Trygvesson, through his descent from Harald Haarfagr, came from the
ancient .stock of the Ynglings, the priest kings of Upsala, He was the last of his
race, and, like Odin its originator, Olaf also became the founder of a new religion in
the North. Somewhere in his wild viking life he had become a Christian— though
the convcreion does not seem to have produced much of the expected softening effect.
He was sincere, however, at least to the extent of being determined to Chrislianii«
Norway at whatever cost. Another king had made such an attempt, and perished.
Olaf was more successful. For five years he and his followers traversed the land '
attending the assemblies or (kings of the i>easants, smiling down their images of
Thor with his great battle-axe, and convincing them in this rough fashion of Ibe
helplessness of their gods. More than once he and his men had lo do battle for
their lives. But in the end Norway was Christianized and Olaf stood forth a
shining conqueror, the mightiest monarch of the North, holding his people &rroly
as no other could.
His arrogance, rising with his fortunes, brought him lo disaster. He proposed
marriage lo the dowager queen of Sweden but stipulated that she should lura
Christian. When she refused, he struck her in the face and repudiated her with '
scorning. So Sweden was roused against him. Then he insisted on marrj-ing
the sister of his old comrade Sweyn, the Danish king, though the union was against
Sweyn's wishes. Worse still according lo the Norse view, Olaf quarrelled >i^th '
J.
THE LAST OF THE YNGLINGS
(Kln( Inttald kiul HI* Dauihtat Slain by th* V*n(><inc< a
From 1 painllnff bf Alurnnilrr /.ieifn-J/ a !/?/■»
I y"^ DIN'S descendants ruled as kings in Sweden ilown lo
[ IJ the days of the seventh century aftei- Christ. At that
time thei-e ruled in Upsala. lopinld Illradn. or ill-rul^,
itwn ns the last of the "Yniflings. " which was the iiauM!
en to the kin^s descended from Odin. Ingfiald's ancestors
had lost most of their authority over Swedi^n. Iiitiiald won
, it all back by a savage massacre of all the lesser rulers. He
invited iheui to a feast aud then burned tlieui to deiith in his
I hall at Upsala. After that he ravaged their territorj-.
Among the chieftains thus treaelieroiisty slain was the king
I of Seaoia or Scandinavia, a name then applied only to the
I province in the extreme south (if Sweden. This king had «
I son, Ivar Widfadnie, who voned to avenge him. Ivar gath-
I ered about him all the infuriated folk whom Ingiaid's mur-
ders and ravages had roused to desperation. With this ter-
rible army, young Ivar attacked Upsala and again burued
the great hall there. But this time the occupants ivbo were
[ burned within it were King lugiaJd and his wicked daughter
I who had inspired and guided her father in his bloodthirsty
I career. Then Ivar became king in place of the slaughtered
; tyrant.
With Ivat begins the genuine history of Scandinavia, as
opposed to the merely legendary remembrance of the Yngltng
kings.
Scandinavia — Thyra Builds the Dane-work 1819
the Jomsburg vikings, a terrible horde who had banded together in a stronghold
on the south shore of the Baltic, and were become strong as a kingdom. All these
forces allied themselves with certain discontented earls of Olaf's who clung secretly
to their heathen faith. Olaf, betrayed and caught unexpectedly among the fleets
of his foemen, fought at the head of a few faithful ships, the last great sea-fight of
Norse history. With his own *'long dragon'' he attacked the Swedes and Danes
and put them to flight. But his exhausted forces were then set upon by their own
countrymen and by the Jomsbergers. In the end Olaf, seeing all his followers
stricken down and finding that his dulled sword could no longer bite, raised his
g^stcning shield above him and leaped overboard. He was seen no more of men,
but his countrymen long cherished a belief that he would some day return and
lead them again to victory.
The supremacy of the North, thus lost to Norway, was again assumed by Den-
mark. Here, about a centurj' before Olaf's time, Gorm the Old had suppressed
the last of the scattered sma- kings and built up a strong and wealthy kingdom.
Gorm was one of the leaders of the immense viking horde that besieged Paris in 884.
He had wedded Thyra, *'the ornament of Denmark," daughter or perhaps other
relative of that Harald Klak who had vainly attempted to introduce Christianity
into Jutland. Gorm proved a bitter foe to his wife's faith, harried it out of Den-
mark and made many a viking raid against its home-lands to the southward.
The Saxons had been compelled by Charlemagne to accept the new faith;
Gorm, marching his wild warriors into their land, attempted to force its return
to the ancient pagan worship. This ill-advised bit of proselyting brought him into
conflict with another great Emperor, Henry the Fowler, who defeated the Danish
monarch and compelled him to permit the preaching of Christianity even in
Denmark itself.
Meanwhile the wiser and kindlier Thyra was attempting to make life happier
and milder among the Danes at home. While Gorm thought of attack, she thought
of defense. During one of Gorm's viking absences, Thyra finding the land left
almost defenseless, gathered her counsellors and proposed the building of a huge
protective wall, extending across the base of the Danish peninsula. The people
set to work with enthusiasm and erected the *' Dane-work," seventy feet high, the re-
mains of which may still be seen traversing Schleswig from sea to sea. Even the
stubboiTi Gorm approved her efforts and became lenient to her faith. Thyra's
seems to have been the first truly softening influence ujx)n the North.
Massive as was the Dane-work, it could not long hold back the tide of the fast-
rising German power. In the reign of Gorm's son Harald Bluetooth, the Emperor
Otto II defeated the Danes, demolished their wall and, marching his forces the
whole length of their peninsula, hurled his spear into the straits beyond, as an
emblem of sovereignty over the farthest seas. He compelled Bluetooth to accept
l820
The Story of the Greatest Nations
Christianity, thus rousing against that unfortunate king a rebellion headed by
own son Swc7n Forkbeard.
Bluetootli was slain (985), and Sweyn ascending to the throne became inhi3ti
i noted conqueror. Of his victory over Olaf Trygvesson, we have already hea.*^,
and it would seem be must have played a better part in the great sea-fight than tl«
Norse sagas will allow, for he was thereafter the acknowledged overlord of Nop«i''ay
as well as Denmark. England too was added to his domain. There had bi^^'^"
some vague English conquest under Gorm, probably.little raore than a har^ytl 3ig
followed by the usual payment of ransom money and a possible agrrement to cc^o-
tinue a regular tribute, which however was never collected. Sweyn in his early d^i— js
found this sufficient pretext for a raid upon the "rebellious province," and h.-^sd
joined Olaf Tryg\esson, in their oft-told attack on London.
Afterward, Sweyn being ovcrbusy with his quarrels at borne, the Engd— ^
king, unhappy .^thelred the Unready, by a sudden plot had all the Danes in El^^g-
land slain (1002). This brought Sweyn back to the land bent on vengeance a^^sA
more lasting conquest. A man of rather modem type was this Sweyn, poli^M3C
and seeking power rather than mere personal renown as fighter and killer. 1" M
twelve years he remained in England, fully accepted as its king, and on his dci -IJ
in 1014, he was succeeded there as well as in Denmark and Norway by his s^^*M
Canute, or Knut, the Great.
Canute was but a lad, and he had to prove himself in many battles before fc — "
made good his claim to all his father's lands. English history speaks largely
him, for England was his favorite habitation, and he sent Englishmen lo t(
their arts and learning to the Danes. His people boasted that he was lord of
kingdoms, for in addition to Denmark and England he was overlord of both
way and Sweden, and ruled Scotland, and also Cumberland, the home of the anciei
Britons or Welsh. Canute unquestionably was a very remarkable man, not onl„,.»^
as a warrior but as a lawgiver and lover of the kindlier side of life. Most impoT"*'
tant of all, he became converted to Christianity; and under his vigorous direclJoiV
and command the faith was at last permanently established throughout Denmaik
and southern Norway.
In the remoter regions of the North the ancient Odin-worship still struggled
to reassert itself against the milder faith of the "white Christ." Men swore devo-
tion to one or the other God, as they would have sworn to follow an earthly sov-
ereign. Norse legend abounds with tales similar lo that of the outlaw Grettir,
who in 1015 appeared suddenly at Trondhcim and slew the Christian priests and
worshippers before their ahar.
When Canute died (1035), the power of Denmark faded. Two of his sons
ruled England, but they failed, to uphold their position as lords of Scandinarift.
The entire region began to feel the effects of the interminable bloodshed. The
ofsH
RAGNAR SEEKS ADVENTURES
Youni Klni Rboki Enclnnd'i Coail In ■ Sin(U Ship)
dftt-r a iiamliiig Iv tUi Urnwiii urlitl, II. I'rcll
IN the early days it seeni» clear that Sweden was Uie clud
seat of Scandinavian power. Slowly, howex'er, her e
wanderers spread themselves abroad over Norway nnd
Denmark. They penetrated Russia also and became kings
there. They conquered northern Britain and innch of Ire-
land, A typical viking of the times was Ragnar Lodbrok.
His father had led the men of Norway in a great tight against
those of Sweden and Denmark and had won the lordship of
all the north. Ragnar succeeded to all the power of hiyj
father; but be cared nothing for this honor or its attendftoT^
duties. Instead of slaying at home to govern his people ant
consolidate his power, Ragnar went off upon one viking cmise-'
after another. He explored the coasts of England and Ire-
land. Sometimes he took ninny sliijiB with him, sometimes be
went almost alone. Always he came back loaded with plun-
der, rejoicing in the fierce fighting lie had done.
At length in his old age there was one expedition f
which he did not return. He was wrecked somewhere on t
British Isles, with only two tiny ships of followers, His U^
tie band were overcome hy the king of the region ; and 1
nar was cast into a pit of snakes aud died of their bite*, i
fying his foes and chanting to the last the song of hJa c
many victories. His people avenged his death most savagetj
They praised him as a great hero, and never dreamed i
blaming him for neglecting his kingdom.
Scandinavia— The Struggle for England
1821
re still intermingled with wild viking raids, but these were the final
thaustive efforts of the North. Harald of Norway sought to reconquer
England, and was slain by the Saxon king Harold at Stamford Bridge (1066). In
the same year the Norman descendants of Rolf the Ganger did what the other
I -Norwegians had failed in — they conquered Saxon England at Hastings. Robert
iGuiscard made himself lord of Sicily. Sigurd, a later king of Norway, headed a
icrusade. Each of these expeditions left the Northland emptier than before. In
tao69, Sweyn of Denmark, a nephew of Canute the Great, sent a ileet of two hun-
i and forty sail against England, to compel the homage and submission which
Kjts new ruler, William of Normandy, seems to have half promised him. The
■fleet was ignominiously defeated, and only a fragment of it escaped to Denmark.
iThe survivors found Scandinavia almost a desert; the teeming population had
Icxpatriated itself at last. Moreover the feeble remnant who still clung to their
landent hearths were learning a milder creed, and began of their own accord to
Eprefer a milder life. The viking days were over.
Chapter III
POWER OF DENMARK UNDER THE THREE WALDEMARS
[Sferial AulAorilUs: Allen, "Hislotyof Denma
"The Hniiseatic LesEiie am) King Waldemar" ; Mu
■' D.ioi-.li HiMiiry " tlranslated by O. Ellon, I.
" ; C'hninu-le of Arnold of Lubeck ; Sch>efe>
h, " [lisloiy (if the Nonemen " : !mxo Gnn>
..ion).]
LHE decjidcncc of the powtr of Scandinavia may be reckoned
from the death of Canute the Great, founder of Christian-
ity in the North. \Vithin a generation after came the
two unsuccessful attempts of the Norse Harald and
Danish Sweyn to reconquer England; and then for
more than a centurj' there is no Northland triumph l»
record, no great effort even, but only darkness, siiflcr-
, and decay.
Sweden, the most remote and least civilized of the three countries,
ilrifled back almost if not wholly into paganism. Norway was
swept by repeated civil wars. It was only in Denmark that events
occurred of sufficient note to enter into our narrative. Demnark,
^o recently the most powerful state of the North, became for a time
iht- weakest and the most desolate of all. The primal cause of this
(loivnfall was, of course, the depopulation of the land. But a second
and none the less notable cause lay, not in Christianity itself, but
in the evils which followed in its train.
As the communication between the North, especially Denmark, and the rest,^
of Europe became closer, the whole social system of the more southern land^ j
began to impress itself upon Scandinavia. European society was founded upo~^^
feudalism; and feudalism maintained the power of the noble, the helplessae:^^
1833
THYRA. "THE ORNAMENT OF DENMARK"
(Quwn Thri« Rouui H« PcopU la Build ■ Huia W»ll o' D«(ei»**>
,iW. ^ri,
AS t.hp powpr of these meu of the north spTpad si'iitli-
wani, they came naturally into eoutiicl with llie Ger-
niHiis and Fri'nchmcD. Thesp had been joined in one
ureal emjiire by Chftrlemaaue. But even the niifihty Chsrle-
mai^ne could not stop the ravages of the northmen, who ap-
peared suddenly on his coasts with their tiny ships, phiuder-
ing. nnd were gone long before he could march an array
atfaiust them. The successors of Charlemagne began tn take
up the conflict seriously and sought to follow the northin«;n
back to their frozen homes in the land of cold. The main
Eigui-e in this struggle of the?, north to hold back the south v
(lonn the Old, a king of Denmark. Oorm fought tJie advi
iug (lennans in many battles; but slowly they pressed 1
back, and for the first tiirx' the northmen found themselvl
engaged in defensive warfare.
(lOriii's ipieen was Thyra, a brave and most abl
While her hnabund and all hia warriors were awaj", Th;
enconrngetl the old nion and the women who were left at bond
to build an enormous defensive wall. This remarkable strnq
ture, knuwn as the "Danework." was erected about the y^
tItH). f It stretched from sen tu sea across the base of tbe I
ish peninsula shntting it otT from Germany. Some traces 4
this huge Duiicwork slill remain.
Scandinavia— Decay of the Danish Peasantry 1823
of the peasant. Now the Northland peasants were not helpless, they were the
strength of the land; and when the Danish kings began taxing them, the Danisl
lords insulting them, and foreign-bom bishops, strangers to the land, began ex
acting a heavy church tithe, whether a man wished to offer it or no — when these
evils fell upon the peasants, they revolted. There was constant tumult. Kings
were elected and deposed, imprisoned and murdered along with lesser men; prov-
inces separated from the central state; there were years when the soil and its
crops were utterly neglected. Famine became so widespread that one of the
Danish kings was known as Olaf "Hunger." Hunger was king.
The reign of that grim monarch undermined the resistance of the peasantry
as no other could. Moreover, when the Northmen themselves abandoned pirating
^as a livelihood, it was taken up by those who had been their pupils, the still un-
civilized heathen races to the east of the Baltic, especially the Wends. These
pagan freebooters ravaged Scandinavia even as the Scandinavians had ravaged
Frarcc and England. The Northmen in their period of weakness suffered all
(hat they had once inflicted upon others. Especially was this true of Denmark,
the most southern and most civilized of the regions. Its long stretches of marshy
coast lay waste and uninhabited. No man dared dwell there, within reach of
the plunderers. All fled to the heart of the country or entrenched themselves in
the fortified seacoast towns.
So grew up the cities, the havens. Denmark, be it remembered, still included
at this time not only its present peninsula of Jutland and the surrounding islands,
but also Scania, or what is now the southern point of Sweden. Indeed, the Danish
capital itself had been at Lund in Scania. But Lund now began to decay and the
coast havens to become populous in its place, especially Copenhaven (kopjes
havn)y the merchants' haven, afterward the capital.
The first gleam of light across the darkness came in the times of Waldemar I,
the Great, one of the three noteworthy Waldemars who held the Danish throne.
Under this monarch's reign (i 157-1182) opened the third and final period of
Denmark's greatness. The first had been under Ivar Widfadme and his de-
scendants through Ragnar Lodbrok. The second extended from the reign of
Gorm the Old to that of Sweyn Forkbeard and Canute the Great, ruler of six king-
doms. The third began with Waldemar the Great.
Before coming to the throne, Waldemar had established himself as the favorite
of the nation. Although a member of the royal house at a period when each of
its descendants was fighting to seize the crown, Waldemar made no effort to gain
the prize for himself, but strove only to end the civil war and ameliorate the miser-
able condition of the exhausted people. By so doing he became while still a youth
the most trusted and best loved man in Denmark. One of the contestants for
Ihe throne sought the aid of the great German Emperor, Frederick Barbarossa,
1
1824 The Story of the Greatest Nations
and accepted Denmark from him as a fief of the Empire. Another, carrying sub-
servience still further, assumed the German costume and German manners. At
length it was agreed, with Barbarossa's consent, that Denmark should be divided
into three parts and shared among those two unworthy rivak and Waldemar.
The people consented joyously to this arrangement. It might mean the down-
fall of Denmark, but it promised at least peace. Evil ambition however, was
not yet content. Even at the feast held in celebration of the agreement of peace,
the king whose castle had been chosen for the festivities, attempted the assassina-
tion of his two rivals. One fell, but the other, Waldemar, defended himself val-
iantly, and holding his assailants in check, escaped from the castle in heroic style.
The ci\nl war recommenced. But now Waldemar claimed for himself the
sovereignty of the entire nation, and soon drew all the people to his side, ffis "^
murderous foe was defeated and slain. Waldemar, to escape an exhaustive foreign
war, acknowledged himself and his kingdom subject to the German Emperor.
Then he set to work to restore prosperity to his desolate and almost deserted land. 1
Waldemar is noted as a lawmaker. The body of laws authorized if not actual^
composed by him, long remained the basis of Danish government. The provisions
are simple and direct, such laws as every man could understand, and all honest
men would wish to follow.
In his own day, however, Waldemar was most notc*d as the conqueror of the
pagan Wends. Determined to rescue his country from their piracy, he built
strongholds along all the island channels, and in each fortress placed a band of
seamen with ships ready to sally out against any suspicious boat that passed.
Most inif)ortant of these forts, with the town that sprang up around it, was Copen-
haven, then called Axclborg from Axel Hvide, the fosterbrother and most trusted
servant of the king. Axel, better known to later generations as Bishop AbsaloOi
made his burgh famous throughout the North by the ever-increasing line of pirate
heads which rotted on the summit of its walls.
Waldemar and his warlike bishop brother led in all more than twenty expe-
ditions against the Wends, several of the attacks rising to the length and impor-
tance of regular canijxu'gns. Finally the ]jirates were bes^'eged in their huge and
apparently im])regnable citadel, Arkona, on the island of Rugen. Raised hi^
on a ])rccii.)ilous hill and defended by strong walls, tliis pirate city had long resisted
all assault; but Waldemar captured it by stratagem. His soldiers secretly stuffed
the hollows of the rocky bank with dr}* wood and brush, to which they set fire, and
soon the roaring tlamcs covered the whole face of the cliff, and rushing upwaid
consumed tlie wooden walls ujx)n the summit. Following the flames came the,
soldiers of Waldemar, who easily rushed over the defenses from which the Wends
had alrcadv been driven bv the terrific heat of the fire.
The defeated pirates submitted; and for two whole days Axel and Waldemar
HEATHEN AND CHRISTIAN
{Cralllt. Ih* OutUo, Slayi (he Prixta of Trondhalml
Frum a paiHt'mij Ity Ihr .Srirn-Jiniirjan arlitl. M. Zmo Ditmtr
CHRISTIANITY made iUs way only very slowly among
these wild warriors of the north. Its acceptance was
really a long warfare of savage Heathens against some-
times etiimlly savage Christians. Queen Thyru had been a
Christian, but had found few followers among her people.
The man who chiefly Chrislianizeti the north was the great
kinj;, Olaf Tryg\'esson. Olaf was a chief descended from the
ancient stock of Odin. He had been e\iled from Norway in
his youth and had engaged in viking raids against England.' J
There he had learned of Chrislianity and accepted it, L«t«lfj
he became king of Norway, then the most powerful of t'
Scandinavian kingdoms: and ho resolved to compel his sul}>9
jects to adopt his religious faith. He did this by fopcejJj
marehing over his kingdom, knocking down the idols in itaM
' sacred places and selling up Christian churches insteftdJ^
Those who opposed him were slain -or outlawed. Naturall;
after Olaf 's death many of the outlaws sought to return a
there was a re\'ival of the old pagan worship.
A noted case of this was the one here pictured. The mcw
celebrated of all the outlaws, Grettir, the hero of a Nora
saga, or hero song, suddenly appeared at Trondheim, the chift]
religious center of the far north. Here he slew with hia owl
hand all the Christian priests aud restored for a moment t
pagan worship of the past, rjrettir, however, was soon alai^^
Christianity had irrown loo deeply rooted, and the idoU t
Odin nnd Thor disnppearfd lieforc it.
]
1
1
k.
^^^i^mi
1
1
Scandinavia— Height of Danish Power 1825
maintained their weaiy place upon the judgment altar, the bishop baptizing or
the king condemning, until all the pirates had accepted Christianity. Then the
great four-headed idol of the city was solemnly bumed in the public square. As
no avenging bolt fell upon the destroyers, the Wends concluded that their god
was indeed powerless — and they remained Christians.
In similar fashion Waldemar extended his power over many other Wendish
tribes, and won for Denmark a security of peace under which the land prospered
gieady. Dying when fifty-one, Waldemar left a kingdom as strong and united
as his accession had found it feeble and divided. Never was monarch so mourned
by his people. Even the stem bishop Absalon was overcome, and could not for
tears pronounce tLe burial service at the hero's grave.
When the German Emperor Barbarossa sent to King Canute VI, Waldemar's
son and successor, calling on him to acknowledge himself in his turn a vassal of
the empire, and to do homage for his kingdom as a fief, Canute returned defiant
word that if Denmark belonged to the Emperor he had better send some one there
strong enough to take it. This was an open denial of vassalage; but so powerful
had Denmark grown that the Emperor let the haughty message pass unchal-
lenged.
Canute extended the Wendish conquests of his father, capturing Pomerania
and Mecklenburg, and in his triumph, he assumed the title " King of the Wends."
Canute's sister Ingeborg married Philip Augustus, the great king of France; and
Denmark assumed in many ways the position of a leading I^uropc»an state. Dan-
ish students were numerous in Paris. Old chronicles speak of the rapid improve-
ment of the land, its wealth, its commerce, its devotion to the arts, the military
renown of its leaders, especially the aged bishop Absalon. Two of the greatest
German cities, Lubeck and Hamburg, did homage to the King of Denmark; and
Canute ruled over wider territories than any of his predecessors since the time of
his namesake, Canute the Great.
Following Canute VI upon the throne, came his brother and chief supporter,
Waldemar II, called the Victorious (i 202-1 241). It is illustrative of the encroach-
ment of feudalism upon Danish life and of the decay of the stalwart Danish peas-
antry, that Waldemar received his nomination to the crown not from the peasants
but from the nobles of the duchies and provinces in northern Germany, of which
he had become master during his brother's reign. These nobles, having already
accepted Waldemar as their overlord, now eagerly evaded his too close supervision,
by raising him to the Danish throne. The choice was natural and fitting, and
the Danes readily acquiesced in it.
Waldemar's victories were obtained mainly over the Esthonians, the heathen
races occupying the east shores of the Baltic where Narva and St. Petersburg now
stand. He led against them what statisticians have reckoned the largest fleet and
1 836
The Story of the Greatest Nations
utny ever sent out from Denmark, probably sutty thousand men. The 1
nians were overwhelmed, and baptized by wholesale (1219).
This conquest marks the height of Denmark's power, the widest spread off
dominion. To one of the Esthonian battles is ascribed the origin of the Dai
flag of lo-day, the white cross on a red ground. As the white cross was the e
of the Crusaders, it seems probable that this flag was sent to King Walder
the Pope in token of approval of his rehgious war or crusade against the powi
pagans of the North. Danish legend, however, represents the flag as falling E
heaven in the midst of a great battle, when the Christian forces had been s
by the heathen, their royal standard captured, and flight already begun.
denly the miraculous emblem appeared before the troops; and, reanimated t
presence, they gained an overwhelming victory.
Waldemar also attempted the conquest of Sweden, but met with a severe j
feat. Against Germany he had the satisfaction of seeing an emperor — or hal
emperor, for Otto of Bavaria was never very firmly fixed upon the imperial t]
in flight before him, Otto not daring to give battle to the Danes. For the I
vices thus done Otto's rival, Frederick II, the latter rewarded Waldemar by ij
rendering to him all the coast lands of Germany "north of the Elbe and the Eidi
So proud wore the Danes of the triumphs of their king that the path of his j
was marked out among the stats. The "Milky Way" is still known in I
as "Waldcmar's Way,"
In the veiy midst of his glorious victories Waldemar's downfall come I
bolt from a clear sky. Count Henry of Schwerin, one of the German lords i
had been made his vassal, laid a trap for him, and suddenly in the night, whi
king and his son were hunting, they were seized and bound. The victims 1
flung like sacks across a couple of horses and driven madlyover the country tl
the night, until a strong castle was reached, where they were held prisoners, j
A Danish army was hurriedly raised; but all the German lords who had c
of complaint against Waldemar united in its defeat. The fortress in which (
Henry held his v-ictims proved impregnable. The Pope commanded him to I
render them, but he refused. The Emperor also commanded it, but in such I
hearted fashion as suggested that he would not be sorry to see the ruin of iJ
powerful northern king. Waldemar remained for three years a prisoner, 1
to the cruellest severities; and when at last he regained his freedom, it was i
by consenting to such terms as stripped him of his power, and his kingdoi
added territories.
This celcbratid though unfortunate sovereign was twice, perhaps thrice, d
ried. The wife of his youth was Dagmar, a Bohemian princess, who was so li
(o the poor that they treasure her in memory as a saint ; and so devoted was s
her husband that legend represents her body as coming back to momeota)
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DANISH FLAG
(Waldtmur tka Victarlswt !• Culdad hy th* S*er«l FUi'in • C>u*ul»
tlraien from an itinVxr />iinMA print
DENMARK, beiog the moat suutlierii of Die SL-uniliriiivian
kitiffdftiHs, wBs naturally the earliest ti> he ilrawii ioti*
the largt>r circle of European atfairs. During the
twelfth and thirli^iitli eenturies she wus reeognize'l as one of
the chief stateH of the ilay. Under her celebrated king.
W&ldeiuar the Viclorious. she nwe lo such [lowcr that the
German emperor granted to Waldeniar all the north German
iieaci>ast,
Waldemar led against the Esthoniana. the heathen peoples
cast of the Baltic, an army which wits prohabl.v the larjosl
Denmark ever put into thv- field. The war was regarded as
a tioly one and the defeated £&thonians were compelled to
aci-ept <'hristianity, It was uti (his occasion that the Danes
lukiptod their national flap, the "Danebrog." a white cross
on A red Imch^roimd, As this ntis the commonly uavi\ cru-
suding banner, they iirobably receiveil it from the Pope,
But Danisli h-geml says the flag fell from the skies just as the
Gstlioniaus first attacked iheni: and that tlie standard led
King Waldemar ouwnnl. The heathen fell away from it on
oveiy side and the kint; rotle on to easy victory. At any rate,
ihe D«ues adopteil the hanni^r of the cniss as their natioool ^
nag; and the Estlionians snri-euderetl to Waldemar, who thu
t>ceanie lord of all the southern shores of Ihe Baltic.
■
1
■
i
^^^^B^ ..^K^^' ^V^^J^^^SiBM^I^^^^^^kLXc^w
i
1
J
1
^^Sir^^.y^ ^ 'V"'** V
1
L.
Scandinavia — Waldemar Attertag 1827
ft
even in her coffin in answer to his prayers. The last of Waldemar's wives was
Berengaria, a Portuguese princess, who in the Danish tales stands as an antithesis
to Dagmar, and is represented as the source of every evil that afterward befell the
land.
The death of Waldemar left Denmark to another century of decline and civil
war. The king, perhaps at Queen Berengaria's supplication, had given his younger
sons such vast estates as practically to divide the kingdom among them; and they
and their sons after them were engaged in constant quarrelling. Few members
of the royal race died in their beds, most were murdered. At last, in 1340, the
third of the great Waldemars, known as Attertag (other day), came to the throne.
and for a time bade fair to restore the strength and prosperity of the land.
His accession marked the dose of a period in which the Danish monarchy
sank to the lowest depths it has ever reached. For eight years previous there had
been no king in Denmark. Christopher II, the last nominal holder of the title,
had died in exile so powerless, that once when a poor count, thinking to curry favor
with Denmark's enemies, captured Christopher, the prisoner was freed again
because no one cared enough about him to keep him in duress. Demnark itself
was wholly under the dominion of German nobles, chiefly the Counts of Holstein,
one of whom, called Geert the Great, administered the government and finances
of the country as he pleased. All the various provinces had been pawned for
enormous sums of money, which were loaned to meet the extravagances of poor
Christopher and his predecessors, or rather were exacted from their weakness.
Scania was held by the last of the ancient kings of Sweden, Magnus Smek, in
I^edge for such a sum as seemed impossible to raise. The mainland of Jutland
was pawned to Count Geert himself, and the large island of Zealand to his brother,
neither of whom had any idea of ever surrendering his possessions.
Suddenly however, in 1340, the downtrodden Danes flared into desperate re-
bellion, and Count Geert was murdered. A message was sent by roundabout and
secret ways to a son of the aged Christopher, an exile in Germany. The young
man was invited to assume his father's abandoned crown. He instantly accepted
and hurried to Denmark. He was Waldemar Attertag, eminently the man for the
moment, cold and strong, restrained, persistent, and when the need arose, false.
His character won him his surname, Other day; for, finding himself foiled in many
a project by utter lack of means, he did not despair but quietly laid each scheme
aside saying, "There will come another day."
For a time it seemed as if that other day always did arrive. To secure his
accession the new king had to pledge himself not to protect the murderers of Count
Geert; but to give them up for execution would have enraged all Denmark. Some-
how they managed to escape to Sweden, and the astute monarch was relieved
bom bis ^»'l^"ima. A dangerous rival threatened the throne. Instead of losing
i838
The Story of the Greatest Nations
3 confficti
Their d
a kingdom in precarious fight, Waldcmar wedded the rirftl's sister and recdn
comfortable dowry. All his life he was engaged in gathering money, until his p
bitterly spoke of him as a miser. Yet surely never had man greater need of c
mous sums, never ilid one pul them to Ixtlcr use. He sold the distant and o
profitable prorincc of Esthonia, and with the proceeds, added to the whtde of hi
wedding dowry, he redeemed Jutland from the heirs of Count Geerl. Partly b
purchase, partly by treachery and by much fighting, he drove the Holstcinws ou*-
of Zealand as well as from the other islands. He promised the feeble Swcdie^
king aid against a rebellion, exacted some rights over Scania as a r
then seized the province by force. Once more the Danish lands were f
foreign tax-collectors, and thiir people could raise their heads among the n
Some authorities have derived Waldemar's surname from this. He caused a
and a better day to dawn upon his people.
Waldemar, the Restorer as he is sometimes called, next caine into c
the Hansa, the great league of the North German commercial cities,
port on the Baltic was Wisby on the island of Gothland off the Swedish c
direct defiance of a treaty he had made, the Danish king suddenly attacked 1
with all his naval power. The inhabitants, he said, had sung satirical songs ad
dim; and he battered down their wall, rotle in over the breach and carried fl
enormous a booty that the town was ruined, and never again do we see ii
in the H'ii oi the rich trading cities of the North (1360).
Proud of his exploit, Waldcmar called himself King of the Goths,
made, it seemed, a real step toward the conquest of Sweden, Bui now 1
enemies united against him. The Swedes forced their king, Magnus Stc
abandon his alliance with Denmark. Magnus' son Hakon, already King t
way, repudiated his betrothal to Waldemar's daughter and was betrothed i
to a German princess of Holstein. Sweden, Non\ay, the German lords, the 1
league, all at once and together bore down on Denmark.
The Hansc towns, the most powerful of his foes, seem always to have I
underrated by Waldemar, It was the one weakness in his well-played gatna
feudal arrogance which could not conceive of prowess or power as connected I
common tradesfolk. He had deliberately defied the Hanse le^ue by his s
on Wisby. Now when the cities declared war, he answered their deputatioal
jeering, scurrilous verses, beginning.
For a time he made head against all his enemies. The mighty Hanse fleel
dominated the Baltic for almost a century, forbidding the Danes to fish i
* TIm'* were ie<enij>.men towiu tn th« iMgue, and Hinia might be interpreted. ■ ptoae.
'
■
1
^^Kg^S
1
L
THE DEAD QUEEN SPEAKS
(Wald.m>T th* Victoria^* b, )hi Bi« of Hi. WIUl
From a paintin,/ b„ (/. ron H<»f«
P
rrnilE private life of Waldemar the VictoriouH was bo aw
1 as to destroy all joy that his national successes inig)|
have roused in him. He wedded for loves sake a B»
hemian princess called Daginar. She was beautiful ami a
saint, so full of charity that all her Dauish subjects loved het
from the moineut she entered the kingdom. She was aUc
devoted to her husband. But be was summoned away to i
war wilh Oennany: and when he returned in haste and eagit
:riuu]ph, it was to iind his young wife di-ad. Legend teU
that, as our picture shows, the passionately grieving huabani
so entreated his wife to speak lo him thai At length she raisH
her dead head from the coffin and rebuked him for tJibkiD|
more of this world than the next. ;
Waldemar afterward married a Portuguese princesa, B^
rengaria. who is represented as having been just theoppow^
of Dagmar in everything. This last wife is said to have df
iberately led her aging lord into every kind of difficulty. I
s certain that his life clnse-d in defeat and dieaster; and t^
sons of Berengaria snatched at their inheritance and fon(d6|
>ver it, tearing the kingdom to fragments in their brutg
p'recd.
^
1
1
1
1.
-i
Scandinavia — Supremacy of the Hansa 1829
own waters, allowing the Danish King himself but a single day each year in which
to gather herring for the use of his private household. This fleet was so com-
pletely defeated by Waldemar that its admiral was executed by his o\vti townsfolk
of Lubeck. The unlucky Holstein princess, setting sail to Norway for her wed-
ding, '^'as shipwrecked on the Danish coast. Waldemar, with many protesta-
tions of resi>ect, refused to allow her to proceed upon her dangerous voyage until
a calmer season of the year. Meanwhile, he sent hurriedly for the Swedish Magnus
and his son Hakon of Norway; and these two, still at heart preferring alliance
with Waldemar rather than with their rebellious subjects, came at the call. Hakon
resumed his earlier pledge and weddi^d Waldemar's daughter Margaret, still only
eleven years old. The poor Holstein princess found herself led to a cloister instead
of a palace, and was forced to become a nun.
These successes enabled Waldemar to patch up a "perpetual peace" with his
enemies (1363). He retained all that he had seized and stood for a time at the
summit of his power. Unfortunately he failed to preserve the affections of his
own people. The enormous expenses entailed by his wars and his negotiations,
had led to the imposing of very heavy taxes throughout Denmark. At first the
people, recognizing the necessity for this, eagerly upheld their king in everything.
But after a quarter of a «entury or so, they forgot the far worse conditions they
had suffered under the German domination of Count Geert, they became more
and more rebellious, and accused their ruler of hoarding the vast wealth he took
from them. His earlier title of the Restorer was lost in a later one; he was called
Waldemar the Bad. Neither had the Hanse league forgotten its defeat and the
insults heaped upon its deputies. It was slowly gathering a fleet intended to be so
enormous as to make resistance impossible.
In 1367 there was a sudden uprising of the Jutland nobles against the king.
The powerful Hanse fleet took part with the rebels; and Waldemar, seeing him-
self outmatched, justified his name. ** There will come another day," he said, and
departed with his family into exile. His subjects declared that he carried with
him all the enormous treasure which he had been collecting for so many years.
From this time Denmark lay in the power of the Hansa. It was even agreed
that the approval of the League must be secured in electing all future Danish kings.
In 1372, the League consented to restore Waldemar to his throne, but on such
harsh terms as made him little more than a vassal of the traders. A few years
later he died, before finding time to put in operation any of the schemes, which his
resolute brain must surely have been planning, to regain his power.
•■Iliiloty n( DcDinaili I
14110": Dahlin«a. "Hinoiyal
ALDEMAR ATTERTAG set on foot one train of <
whose consequences even his far-seeing brain i
scarcely have expected. His daughter Mai^aretJI
)a\vn of his political schemes, wedded at the aa
eleven to Hakon of Norway, Ixcame Margaret the C
the "Semiramis of the North," the n."uniter of the tl
Scandinavian kingdoms in the Union of Kalmar.
union, which lasted in some shape for almost two e
centuries, was formally proclaimed in 1397, but 1
had been shaping toward it long before. Let us review brieSy i
causes which led to this sudden union.
Of the happenings in Norway and Sweden during the
and thirteenth centuries, it is scarcely necessai^' to speak.
kings who descended from Ragnar Lodbrok had all slain 1
other at last. The best of them in Sweden was Eric the 1
whose coat of arms is still seen upon the Swedish flag, and wbf
his father's side was a son of the common peasantry. He i
1155, and then came a century of his successors, the "Bondar" or peasant |
chosen alternately from the Svca or Swedes and the Gota or Goths. WeQ-n
century followed of the "Folkingar" kings chosen from one family of nobte
motely allied to the royal line, until in 1319 there wq.s but one remaining i
1830
DOWNFALL OF WALDEMAR
Afttr
Jnq by Jhn firr
WALDEMAR THE VICTORIOUS suffeml uot only in
his family life, but also in his national cBrt-er. Sel-
dom has a reign which opened so spleuditlly as his,
clofied in so much of miafortuue. His power had become sa
great that no man dared oppose him openly; but a clever plot
was formed against him by some of the German nobles who
had become his subjects. W'ilh a small but resolute tome of
meu-at-arnis they kidnapped the king and his eldest son, and
carried them off as prisoners to a strong castle. Here they
were held in close and cruel confinement.
At first no one knew- what had become of the royal vic-
tims. A long and patient search at lenglh disclosed what had
happened, and King Waldeniar's Danish subjects, who laved
hira dearly, gathered an army for his rescue. The subjugated
German nobles, however, took part with his captors. A foi-mal
demand for his release was made by the Danes and refused
by the Germans. Battle followed; but tliough the Danes
were vietoi-s in the field, they could not storm the strong
castle where the king was held. Ultimately an agreement was
patched up by which Waldemar surrendered almost all his
German territory in exchange for his liberty. Denmark
never again reached to so much power.
Scandinavia— Accession of Margaret 183 1
descendant even faintly connected with the ancient royal house. This was a
child three years old, an'd him the Swedes crowned as king. The common people
of Xor^^ay, rebelling against the tyranny of their nobles, sent an embassy to re-
quest that this last feeble branch of the ancient royal tree be allowed to rule them
also. It was this king, the weak-minded Magnus Smek, who was in alliance with
Waldemar Attertag.
The people of Sweden and Norway had small cause to be proud of having
chosen Magnus; for as he grew up he proved contemptible in many ways, aban-
doned himself to gross pleasures and was wholly under the dictation of liis worth-
less queen and debased favorites. In Sweden the people deposed him and crowned
his son Kric in his stead. The Norwegians also demanded his abdication, con-
ferring their crown upon his second son, Hakon, the youth who wedded Waldemar*s
daughter Margaret after once jilting her for a (icrman princess. So Hakon be-
came King in Norway, but in Sweden young Eric died, and Magnus temporarily
regained his throne. The Swedes however, could never forgive Magnus for sur-
rendering Scania to Waldemar. In 1363 they again rose in rebellion and, deposing
their feeble king, offered the throne to a powerful German prince, Albert of Meck-
tnburg, in the hope that he might prove able to defend it against Magnus, against
his son, Hakon of Norway, and even against their ally, Waldemar.
Waldemar, as we have seen, had disasters to encounter at home. Hakon,
after one })rief and not over-successful campaign, made no further effort to aid his
father against Sweden; but only provided the aged incompetent with a home in
Norway. Over this latter kingdom, Hakon and his wife Margaret ruled wisely
for several years, and had a little son, Olaf, destined to be king of both Nor\vay
and Denmark.
In Denmark the sons of Waldemar Attertag died before their father, leanng
him the last male descendant of his race. So on his death (1375) the Danes, who
had always been devoted to his daughter Margaret, elected little four-year-old
Olaf as his grandfather's successor, and invited his mother to become regent. Her
pacific government won her the friendship of the Hanse towns, which upheld her
every measure. So successful was her rule that when Hakon of Norway died
(1^80), Margaret was at once proclaimed regent over that kingdom also, to govern
it for her son.
Olaf was a bold and intellectual lad and bade fair to become an energetic ruler
in his own nght; but he died when only seventeen (1387). Margaret's enemies
' accused her of poisoning him in order to retain the power in her own hands, but
there seems little in her character to justify the suspicion. She mourned her son
S&nc and though both Norway and Denmark immediately besought her to con-
tinue to rule over them, she was slow and seemingly hesitant to assume the actual
tide and dignity of a reigning sovereign.
1832 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Sweden did not fall so peacefully into her hands. The German prince who
had been invited to defend it from the follies of King Magnus, became a tyrant in
his turn; and the Swedish peasants, contrasting their evil plight with the happy
state of Denmark and Norway under Margaret, declared him deposed and en-
treated Margaret to assume the throne. The Swedish nobles, however, were by
no means united in her favor. Many of them preferred rapine to peace, license
to restraint; and it was not until 1389 that Margaret finally accepted the repeated
call of the Swedes and marched an army against their German king. He was
defeated and made prisoner; but Stockholm held out in his favor and endured a
three years' siege. It was not until 1398 that this last stronghold of the Germans
in the north finally passed into Queen Margaret's hands.
Meanwhile, being practically assured of victory, Margaret had planned and
consunmiated the union, meant to be perpetual, of her three kingdoms. Her
only son being dead, she sent for her sister's grandson, Duke Eric of Pomerania,
and announced him her heir. As soon as she could persuade the council of each
kingdom to accept him, she resigned the throne, and at Kalmar in 1397, Eric was
proclaimed King of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.
It was agreed that in future the three kingdoms should have but one ruler,
though each should retain its own laws and its own coimdl of government. If
one became involved in war, the others must aid it, and a treaty made by the com-
mon sovereign was to be binding upon all.
Though Margaret had thus hastened to relinquish her nominal title as a sov-
ereign, she continued to direct the government with rare strength and tact until
her death (141 2). Probably in her later years the power of her united realms was
more than equal to that of the great Hansc league, which had crushed her father.
But she was far too wise to put the question to the test, and always maintained
the most amicable relations with the German merchants, a matter not difficult
for any monarch who would simply flatter their vanity by treating them as
equals.
Young King Eric remained a mere figurehead in his own empire. He managed
to stir up a quarrel with Denmark's old enemies, the Counts of Holstein; and
Margaret seems to have been quite willing that he should continue fighting there,
and thus engross himself and the other young hot-heads of her domains, -whose
energies must needs find outlet somewhere. After Margaret's death, however,
Eric's irresponsible character became another matter. So set was he on his Hol-
stein war and its vengeances, that he wholly neglected his own realms. The
Holsteiners could not meet him in open battle, but they manfully defended their
strong castles, and Eric laid siege to one after another with very httle success. He
was always calling on Sweden and Norway for more troops and more money. Of
these kingdoms themselves he Knew nothing, and kept sending Danish and Ger-
n..' •
if
i
THE SACK OF WISBY
(The Chief German City of the North is Plundered and Ruined by the
From ft paint in tj at Mtniirh in tfiS..' hi/ C. O, Hellquift, the 8w0di»h arii$t
TIIK power ni' DtMiniark, which had so shrunk in the last
<lays ol' \Val(lt»inar the Victori(»iis, was once more up-
rais(»(1 by ainithtT WaUleuiar, called the Restorer, or
Waldeniar Att(»rla^. This kiujr eaiiie to the throne in 1340
when his coiuitry was iillerly trodden underfoot by the sur-
i'Oun<lin^ (lennan nobles and also by the (lornian townsfolk.
The lattiM' had established a jrreat counnercial leH<nie known
MS the Hansa: an<l the seventy-seven cities of the Hansa had
by tlieir niijrhty fleet established eoniidete dominion over the
northern seas. Thev onlv allowed tlie Kintj of Denmark him-
self to fish in the waters of the Baltic one day ont of the year.
Mt)st powerful of all these Hansa cities was Wisby, sit-
uate<| far up the Swedish etiast on an island in the Baltic.
Waldeniar Afti-rtai: stca<lily increaseil the strength of his
kinizijoin and «|ni''tly built up a fleet of ships until he felt
stroni: enough tt> «l«'fy tbr llansa. Then he suddenly attacked
and eajituriMi Wisby. lie maib* tin* tt)wnsft)lk pay him such
.•in enornmus ransom that Wislu- was completely ruined and
• lisapprai's fj'nm Ww list >»f tin* llansa cities. The rest of the
li-airue attackf'd WaMcma!': but he held his own a«;ainst them,
;ind tlicy inatic jjchm' un iMpnil terms. Later WaMemar's own
people n"bcll«*d a.LMifist his severity, and the llansa took
advantaL^e of the civil w;ii' tn th-ivc Waldemar into exile.
Once moi'e the (I'rrman cilics c(»nti'(»llcd all the north.
N I'.'
Scandinavia— Downfall of King Eric 1833
man officials to hector them and extort taxes, until he was as hated as his foster-
mother had been loved.
For her sake the Swedes and Norwegians bore with the consequences of her
ill-starred union as long as might be. In 1427 the Hanse League declared war
against Eric and twice its fleets attacked Copenhagen. On the second occasion
the fall of the capital seemed inevitable, but it was heroically defended by Eric's
queen, Philippa, daughter of Henry IV of England.
At length (1433) the peasants of Dalecarlia, the mountainland of Sweden,
rebelled and established their leader as governor of the country. A year or so
later Eric managed to patch up a peace with them, but they revolted again, and
one of the great nobles of Sweden, Karl Knutsson, or Canutesson, became prac-
tically sovereign of the land.
In Denmark also, the j^easants revolted against Eric; and while he was vowing
furious vengeance, the councils of both Sweden and Denmark met and declared
him deposed (1439). He took refuge in the island of Gothland and sent out pirate
ships to ravage his domains. But ultimately he was driven fron* Gothland also
and fled to his native lano of Pomerania, whence he continue his piratical plunder-
ing until his death. Once when the people appealed to his successor on the
Danish throne to suppress Eric's raids, the new king rcsi)onded that since the
people had taken three kingdoms from Eric, they could well affcrd him a stray
dinner or so.
This new king was Duke Christopher of Bavaria, who was a German nephew
of Eric, and had been elected to succeed him on his three thrones. In Sweden the
governor, Karl Knutsson, might probably have seized the throne for himself.
The peasants and even some of the nobles, heartily disgusted with ever}^thing
Danish, urged him to do so. But the clergy insisted on the maintenance of the
union; and Karl after welcoming King Christopher, went into a sort of voluntary
banishment as Duke of Finland.
Norway was even slower to accept Christopher. The ancient loyalty to Queen
Margaret led the people to cling to Eric and insist on calling him king even when
he was a distant pirate, displaying no desire to reach or dwell in their poor and
barren land. Finally, however, Christopher was proclaimed in Norway also.
He was a good-natured though somewhat thoughtless and lazy king, his idle com-
ment on Eric's piracies being characteristic of his usual attitude of indifference.
Hence he roused no dangerous enmities and his reign proved a period of peace.
Under him the union of Kalmar seemed at length permanently established. Its
im'tial diflSculties had been overcome, and all Scandinavia seemed united in a
conunoii destiny.
E*CAV« or Chuitiah ntm Stockholm
Chapter V
BREAKING OF THE UNION UNDER CHRISTIAN H
L T seems unfortunate that at this time so many of the Scandi-
navian monarchs should have left no direct successors.
The result was that strangers were constantly being
called to rule, foreigners who knew little of the people
and could scarce be expected to care deeply for their
welfare. Moreover, the ill-arranged union of Kalmar
exercised always its baneful influence. The moment
, a king was elected to one throne, he began to claim the
others also, and to scherop i^nd fight for them.
As the monarchs resided almost wholly in Detunark, that land
knew first of iheir death and was usually first to elect a successor.
King Christopher, dying in 1448, left no heir whatever, so the Dan-
ish council turned to another German duke, whose descent could
bt- traced back through a couple of centuries of intermarriages to a
Danish princess. This new King, Christian of Oldenburg, ended
thu shifting of families for Denmark at least. His direct descend-
ants, the Oldenburg line, still constitute, after four and a half cen-
turies, the Danish royal house,
Sweden, however, refused to submit to the rule of another German stranger.
The former leader of revolt, Karl Knutsson, was placed upon the throne. Both
he and Christian of Denmark sought to secure the Norwegian crown, and first
one then the other of iheni was recognized by the Norwegians. In truth the desire
1834
. '-f.*
. 1'
THE LATER KINGS OF DENMARK
(Tha ChUf K1b« Who Alfr th* Union of Kalnar Rulad fTinwih m^ 8— ■
tillH* NoTwar ILiiil Swadan)
Deiigned and arranged for th4 prtMenl nrlai
BEFORE the days of the tyranny of the Hansa League
over the north, Scandinavia had been divided among
many little kings, each chosen by his own district, and
then extending his I'ealtn by conquest if he could. But now
there came a change ; the need of a united defense againgt the
Hansa became evident, and finally all the northland was vol-
untarily drawn together under one sovereign in what was
known as the Union of Kalmar (1397).
This union was accomplished by a very remarkable woman.
Queen Margai'et, a daughter of King Waldemar Attertag.
On her father's death she became regent of Denmark for her
baby son. She ruled so wisely that both Norway and Sweden
asked to come under her dominion also, and when her little
son died slie was made Queen in her own name over all, the
north. She established a permanent arrangement for the
union of the three countries and was thus so powerful that
she was able to break the grip of the tyrant Hansa and, not
by war but by treaty, cstJiblished her people once more on
terms of equality with the (lermans.
After the TIniiiii of Knlmnr the Danish kings retained
for centuries something of their lordship <>! the north. They
established an hereditary instead of an elective kingship; and
its chief rulers are here pictured. Sweden afterward broke
from the union, but Xorwa,v remained attached to Denmark
until the days of Napoleon.
Scandinavia— Sweden's Struggle for Freedom 1835
of Norway at the time appears to have been only for jx^acc. She had no native
kings to uphold, and aimed only to avoid conflict with cither of her more powerful
^ghbors. As King Karl proved unable to maintain himself even in Sweden,
Norway ultimately accepted Christian.
The Swedish nobles and bishops, on the other hand, felt themselves strong, and
acted quite independently. They quarrelled with King Karl, exiled him, and
called Christian to the throne. Then they deserted Christian in turn, and restored
Karl. There was continual plotting, continual civil war, always a Danish force
quartered in some part of the country, laying it waste, plundering the peasants.
Four separate times in his eventful life was Kari Knutsson driven into exile, yet
he was seated on the Swedish throne when he died (1470). His power, that is
the pwwer of the party of the nobility, descended to his chief supporters, the family
of Sture; and its representative, Karl's nephew Sten Sture, became governor of
the kingdom.
Karl's last advice to his young relative was never to assume the title of king,
as it would only bring upon him the jealousy and treachery of his fellow nobles.
So the new governor made vague acknowledgments of Christian's overlordship,
while excluding him from any real share in the Swedish government. Sometimes
Christian fought for what he considered his rights; but he could never gain any
permanent authority over the Swedes, nor could his son Hans, who succeeded him
in Denmark and Norway, and nominally in Sweden (1481).
It should be remembered that all three of these thrones had continued elective
ever since the ancient viking days. That is to say, a general assembly of each
nation selected from the royal family the member whom they thought best fitted
to bear rule over them. This was in direct opposition to the feudal custom preva-
lent throughout most of Europe, by which the eldest son was heir to everything.
It was a survival of the days of the old Northmen, when all the warriors met on an
equal footing to choose their leader. Gradually, with the growth of feudal ideas,
the poorer classes had been deprived of their rights, crowded out of the general
assembly, until it was really only the nobles and bishops who voted for the king.
There were always several candidates eager for the ofiice; and the nobles bargained
when they could, demanding from each new king fresh privileges, until in Sweden
the king had become a mere figurehead.
In Denmark, King Hans now found himself little better off. He had a younger
brother, Frederick, who intrigued for the crown; and Hans had to buy the sov-
ereignty from each of the three kingdoms by enormous concessions.
The most noteworthy event of his reign was his disastrous defeat by the Dit-
maishers (1500). These were the peasants of the German marshes along the
North Sea. Their poverty and their valor had kept them practically independent
for ccnturitt* A GeniWi w^pcror had once made gift of the whole worthless
1836 The Story of the Greatest Nation^
region as a fief to a Danish king; and now Hans, urged on by his brother Fredei
resolved to convert this nominal lordship into an actual and profitable one.
penetrated the marshes with a large army, its members so assured of victory
many came in their himting clothes, as if to a new sport of himting marsh-i
Meldorf, the chief town of the region, was sacked with the most savage cru<
"to terrify the rest." But a few himdred Ditmarshers waited on a narrow ca
way. When attacked they fought desperately, and in the midst of the tm
opened their sluice-gates and let the ocean flood the neighborhood. Aided
long stilts and accustomed to rapid movement over the marshes, the Ditmars
escaped to safety; but the invaders perished by thousands. The king and
brother fled through the mad confusion, not knowing how they escaped,
royal standard of Denmark was captured and displayed by the Ditmarsher
a parish church.
A few years preceding this crushing defeat, King Hans had succeeded in for
the Swedes to grant him a real sovereignty; he had been crowned in Stockhc
and, after scolding Sten Sture furiously for his alleged misgovemment, had
prived him of much of his authority. Now the Swedes rose again. "If the
mighty," said they, "has rescued seven parishes of Ditmarshers from the Dai
thieves, surely He will not suffer them to devour an entire kingdom." Hans
no longer a sufficient army to bring against the rebels, and on one occasion he
obliged to flee from Stockholm, leaving his queen a prisoner in Sten Sture's hai
Even the Norwegian nobles thought the time opportime for revolt and
demanding of fresh privileges. The sorely badgered Hans entreated his bn
er's help to subdue them; but the ambitious Frederick demanded the regenc
all Norway in return for his services. Sooner than grant this, King Hans ra:
a force of foreigners, German and Scottish mercenaries, and dispatched then
Norway under command of his son Christian (1506).
Thus comes into the story one of the most remarkable and contradictory
ures in Scandinavian history. This prince, afterward King Christian II, was
last holder of the three imited northern kingdoms. Viewed from one standp
he has been represented as an able and earnest reformer with the good of his
pie ever at heart. Other writers have described him as an utter madman, in
in his savagery and lust of blood. Perhaps the true interpretation lies mid
He saw how the nobles by their exactions and quarrels were ruining all the N<
he saw how they had destroyed his father's power; he hated them and, reali
the rising strength of the middle classes, sought to duplicate what had been <
by other kings in other lands, — to rule through the favor of the common pe<
to be their king, and to crush the power of the nobility.
Christian was undoubtedly a man of rare inielligence, one of the most lea
and accomplished of his time. In boyhood, during the long military absena
-*
KING ERIC DESERTS HIS KINGDOM
iTha Klnt FImi and Bauma* a Pint- to Rairaca HIa OwB iMtit)
Afttr an old 2>aui«A drawing
THE one unwise act of the great Queen Margaret seems
to have been her selection of a Bucceesor. She named
as her heir her nearest relative, a grand-nephew, Dnke
Erie of Pomerania. Doubtless she thus hoped to draw
Pomerania into her strong "union of the north." But Eric
proved a most narrow-minded and obstinate king. His whole
mind was set on war, lie never visittnl Sweden or Norway
at all, but from his Danish capital kept calling on the other
lands for more soldiers and more money wherewith to ftght
his private quarrels in Germany.
Finally his exactions grew so severe that all three of his
kingdoms united in deposing him. He attempted to resist^
but found the opposition so unanimous that he took to sudden
flight instead.
Escaping with a few ships, he established himself on the
i.sland where Whitby had once been, and making that his
stronghold, he l>egan a pirate career. Furious against his
former subjects, he ravaged their coasts and plundered their
towns when he could. The Danes and Swedra entreated the
king whom tiie.v had elected in his i>l;ice to lead an espedi-
tion n;rniiist Erie; but llie new sovereign refnsed, saying that,
having dejirived I'Irie nt' ii kingiiniti. they ought not to be-
grndsje iiiin au neeasiiina) dinner.
Scandinavia — Youth of Christian II 1837
King Hans, Christian was not left alone in his palace home, but was entrusted to
the care of a Copenhagen burgomaster, probably a bookbinder. It was here that
the lad gained his familiarity and liking for the tradesfolk of his kingdom. He
even became a chorister and sang with other lads in the church services. Such
extreme democracy seemed too shocking to his royal father, and the prince was
snatched from his burgher friends and placed under the charge of a learned scholar,
who made him a proficient in all the knowledge of the age. His free youth had,
however, given him a taste for wild life and adventure; and there is a tale that
his father once caught him slipping secretly out of the palace on some roistering
expedition and flogged him mercilessly with a horsewhip.
This was the young man to whom, at the age of twenty, was entrusted his first
kingly office, the pacification, of Nonvay. An aged bishop was sent with him as
his companion and adviser. But Christian had no wish for advice. To be rid
of the bishop he imprisoned him, and then proceeded to crush Norw^ay \vith an
iron hand. The leader of the revolt was invited to a conference, and slain. An-
other great noble was defeated and captured by Christian, and tortured, until in
his agony he accused almost every important man in Norway of plotting against
Denmark. Tortures and executions followed without number, until we are told
that the anci&t Norwegian nobility was practically exterminated. Christian
and his successors found no further trouble in keeping Norway subject to the
Danish crown.
The grim young prince next marched his army into Sweden; and though he had
not force enough to reduce the country, he compelled the Swedes to surrender his
captive mother, and restored something of his father's authority in the land. King
Hans however, refused to sanction further violence. On his deathbed (1513) he
solemnly warned his son against low company, and urged him to resign all great
projects of conquest and reign in peace and moderation. Hans himself, despite
his moments of passion, had really endeavored to do this. But it may be judged
how little likely Christian was to follow in his footsteps.
King Christian's choice for his chief adviser was an old Dutch woman, known
as Mother Sigbrit. She had been a tavemkeeper, and Christian seems to have
been honestly in love with her daughter, a beautiful maiden called Dyveka (the
dove) who died young. She was said to have been ix)isoned by a noble, and Chris-
tian hounded this man to his death. Mother Sigbrit hated the nobility, and seized
every occasion to express toward them her contempt and defiance. What wonder
that the great lords dreaded her influence with the King!
The nobles were still further antagonized by a vast system of reforms, which
Christian began for the benefit of the common people. He made education com-
'>ulsory. The religious Reformation was sweeping over Germany, and he in-
vited the reformers to preach in his country — though as they spoke only in German,
1838 The Story of the Greatest Nations
the effect upon the Danes was not noteworthy. He prohibited the selling of serfs
as slaves, and authorized them to flee from their masters and settle elsewhere when
ill-used. He even dared to forbid the ancient custom of plundering all wrecks
that came ashore. This had been so profitable an industry that it had been seized
upon as a right by various lords along the coast. Even the great bishops shared
in it, and some of them protested vehemently against this' invasion of their long
established right to rob and murder the unfortunate mariners. Christian also
sought to teach his people the best methods of agriculture; he compelled the builJ-
ing of good roads; he established public inns for travellers, and started the first
postal service in Denmark.
All these reforms were inaugurated within the brief space of ten years. Only
that long did Christian manage to retain his throne against the growing fear and
suspicion of the all-powerful nobles. It was not his tyrannies that destroyed him,
\ but his reforms.
His tyrannies were, nevertheless, terrible enough. Sweden looks back on
him as the most hideous of monsters. On his father's death he was acknowledged
King of Sweden without demur, and with this simple acknowledgment he remained
content until 15 16, when the party which upheld his authority in the rebellious
country found itself driven to extremity. Sten Sture the younger, a grand-nephew
of the previous governor of that name, was hailed by the Swedes as their chosen
governor and by his energy and valor swept the Danes completely out of Sweden,
Christian himself being defeated in the celebrated battle of Brennkirk (1518). In-
deed the king only escaped capture with his entire fleet by a sudden charge of
wind. This enabled him to flee from the harbor of Stockholm, where he had been
practically a prisoner, la 1520 a Danish general reversed matters by defeating
the Swedes. Sten Sture, fleeing alone across the broad, ice-bound lakes in the
cold of winter, died of his wounds; and the Swedes, left helpless and without a
leader, surrendered themselves to Christian's mercy.
Of that he had already shown a sample in Norway. He entered Stockholm
with many protestations of forgiveness; but six months later, at the close of the
ceremonies attending his formal coronation, he suddenly accused as heretics all
the Swedish nobles who had opposed him. The ground of this remarkable charge
was that they had disobeyed a bishop who upheld the king; the consequence was
that all the leading Swedes within reach were made prisoners. The next day they
were beheaded in the public square of the city. The common people were simi-
moned to attend the execution and any who, on ^dewing the slaughter, dared
express pity or regret were seized and given into the headsman's hands.
On the day following, the king issued a proclamation to the astounded and
terrified citizens assuring them that they might now freely show themselves, as
he intended to punish no more. Many who had hidden, ventured out; and Chris-
SWEDEN DEFEATS CHRISTIAN II
(Th« Danish Kin^ and His FlMt Escape from 9wMl«n, Flghtla« Tlwir Wmf
Out of Stockholm Harbor)
After a painting by the Dutch artist, Hans Bohrdt
THE ** Union of the North'* was broken during the reign
of (-hristian II, Denmark's great reforming king.
Denmark itself remembers Christian with love and
sorrow, but Norway and Sweden think of him as a nfoat
hideous monster. In truth he had learned to distrust and
hate the nobility of his three kingdoms, whom he found ever
selfishly plotting for their own power; and lie resolved to
rule as the friend of the peasantry. For this purpose he
instituted many reforms, all looking to the uplifting and pro-
tection of the people. He thus antagonized the nobles. At
the same time, by welcoming the preachers of Luther's refor-
mation which was then sweeping over Germany, he antag-
onized the clergy.
The nobles of Norway revolted against Denmark; and
Christian went among them, executed their leaders under tor-
ture, and continued the slaughter until he practically exter-
minated all the Norwegian nobility and left the land a nation
of peasants. Then the Swedish noi)les revolted, and Chris-
tian h*(l an army and a riet»t against them. Here, however,
the rel)els were ])repanHl for him. They met force with force;
the army of Christian was defeated and ln"s fleet w-as be-
leaguiM'cd in the Stockholm harbor, surrounded by the
Swedish forces and threatened with starvation. A sudden
chanire of wind enabled Christian to turn unexpectedly upon
the Swedisli sliips, bn^ak his way through their unprepared
line, and so escape back to Denmark.
X-52
Scandinavia— Downfall of Christian 1839
tian gave orders that they also should be slain. The Danish soldiers went wild,
and broke into houses as if in a captured city, plundering and killing. The third
day all the corpses were burned in one huge hecatomb. This was the ** blood-
bath" of Stockholm (1520).
Similar executions were ordered all over Sweden; and the noble ladies, wives
and daughters of the murdered leaders, were carried away by Christian into cap-
tivity in Denmark, where several of them died cf the severities to which they were
subjected. The grim king then commanded that no one, not even the peasants,
in Sweden, should bear arms, and his soldiers went through the land disarming
everyone. It was even rumored that Christian had declared that in case of another
rebellion he would cut a hand and a foot from every man in Sweden, and so stop
their fighting forever.
All this savagery, however, instead of crushing rebeUion, roused it afresh, and it
had already assumed formidable proportions when Christian met his overthrow
from another source. His own Danish nobles conspired against him. Their chief,
if not their instigator, was his uncle Frederick, the same who had been so often a
thorn in his father's side. The rebels declared Christian deposed and gathered
their forces against him. The common people seemed everywhere in his favoi
and he threw himself into Copenhagen, apparently intent on a resolute defense,
But suddenly he changed his mind and sailed away with his fleet, his friends and
his treasure.
Fortune deserted him. A tempest wrecked his ships on the coast of Norway
and he himself escaped with difficulty to Flanders. The intriguing Frederick
reached the goal of his ambition, and was declared king in Denmark and Norway.
Sweden, now in open rebellion, proclaimed a monarch of its own (1523). The
next year Frederick recognized the independence of the defiant land, and the Union
of Kalmar, though sometimes afterward made a subject of contest, was never again
enforced. It had perished in the blood bath of Stockholm.
In Denmark, all the reforms of Christian were immediately abolished. The
nobles resumed absolute power; the peasants were helpless. The deposed king
was not yet, however, wholly resourceless. He was a brother-in-law of the great
German Emperor, Charles V. Charles lent him aid, negotiations were opened
and battles fought. The conmion folk were always on Christian's side; his cause
was theirs. At one time he regained possession of almost the whole of Norway.
But disaster had marked him for its own. Another of his fleets was destroyed by
storm. Then he was defeated, and besieged in Christiania. There he was per-
suaded to entrust himself to a conference with King Frederick, who seized and
imprisoned him (1532). The remaining twenty-seven years of Christian's long
life were passed in durance, and the greater part of the time he was kept in a hor-
rible, dark and doorless dungeon. If he inflicted evils, he also suffered them.
I !
COIOHATION or CHAlUt IX
Chapter VI
GUSTAVUS VASA AND THE RISE OF SWEDEN
[Sfiecial AuihoriHti; Celsius, "History of GusMvus I"; Wation, "The Swedith Rei
lier Guilavus Vasa" ; Buller. 'The Refonnatioii in Sweiien " ; De Flam. "HiMoryof;
Her the House of Vasa"; Ahlquist. " King Eric XIV ; Celsius, ■■Hislorj' of Eric XIV."]
LhE Story of Sweden's escape from the Danish thralld
the stor>' of Gustavus Vasa. He was a young S»
nobleman so strong and resolute that, though onl;
of age, he was entrusted with the bearing of his cou
royal standard in the battle of Brennkirk, in which (
tian II was defeated (1518). Then, when Christian
his fleet was trapj^d in Stockhobn and compcll
iHgotialc with the rebels, }'oung Vasa was one of the hostage;
wxtA voluntarily on the king's ships to guarantee him safety c
the debate. A sudden change of wind enabling Christian to e
from the harbor, he bore off the hostages with him as prisoD'
Gustavus escaped from captivity in daring fashion, and fl
I.iiljeck. The king demanded that he be given up; but the
folk after much debate, sheltered him and helped him back to
i.kn. They were anxious to keep King Christian busy else\
so he should leave them in peace, and they foresaw that this
ous and angry young man was likely to make trouble enough in Sweder
The moment of Gustavus' return saw his country's cause at its lowest
This was just before the "bloodbath" of Stockholm. The regent, Sten :
had been completely defeated and was dead. Christian was in absolute f
The returning exile heard of one fortress which still held out agains
Danes, and he hurried thither. Instead of welcoming him, the garnsc
1840
1 - / - <•
J
• Xi
DEATH OF STEN STURE
(TlM L*ad« ef th. 5w*dl>h Ranlt Di*> In Fll|ht)
From a painting bg the SirKitith arlitt. C. O. H*Uq¥M
THK stnigplv between Hnedi'ii ami Denmark, thus began
afTJiiiist ChriHtiau 11, was earriod to the point of a final
and coniplotc break bftnt-L-ii these two chief couptries
of the north. The leader on the Swedixh side whh the head
of the ehief family of Sweden's nobility, the Stiires. Sten
Stiire "theytmntter," as he was i-iilk-d to distinttiiish him from
a noted ancefltor of the smne name, was the ranniiander who
had driven Christian to tiitrlil. For a time Sten remained
practically kinfr "f Swwleu, The Danes, however, dispatched
another army asrainsl him. Tie was defeated and fled
wounded aeriww the frozen lakes of Sweden, hearing with him
his regal sword and erown in a nm^'li slcdfie drawn by a ainglo
horse, lie jierished from tiie eold and the exhanstion, and
was fonnd dea<1 in his sledge by some loyal Swedish peasants.
After that King (.'hristiau came again to Stockholm and
treated the Swe<lish luiliility as he had the N'orwegians, slay-
ing all he eonld reach. But before he had completely crushed
Sweden, his own Danish nobler rebelle<l a^rainst him in their
turn, and these sneeeeded in drivinir bim from his throne
and making his nncle king. The entiimon folk of Denmark
loved Christian and stiMxI by him, and he spent years strug-
gling to regain his power. Finally his foeseaphired him, and
he was held prisoner in a dnngecin for the remainder of his
lilV.
Scandinavia— Adventures of Gustavus 1841
fused him admission, fearing his presence would further enrage the king against
them.
So Gustavus became a hunted fugitive in his own land. His adventures read
like the wildest romance. Moving secretly through the country districts, he strove
t© rouse the peasants to one more revolt, one last eflfort for freedom. But every-
where they refused to follow him. They dared not, so great was their terror of
King Christian. "We have still bread and salt left," said they, "if we rebel, we
shall lose even these." A price was set upon Gustavus' head, and Danish soldiers
rode everywhere through the land seeking him.
Some of his own coimtrymen tried to betray him, others to save him. At one
time he was borne past the Danish soldiers in a load of hay. They even thrust
their spears into the hay to be sure it contained nothing. Gustavus was wounded
and blood trickled down from the wagon; but the ready-witted peasant who drove,
slashed one of the horses with his own knife and pointed to that .as the source of
the stains upon the road. Other escapes of the outlaw were equally wonderful.
Swedish romance has delighted to dwell on them.
Then came the Stockholm massacre, in which Gustavus' own father was one
of the chief men among the slain. His mother and sisters were with the captives
carried to Denmark, where afterward they died. At last Gustavus turned his
back upon the land in despair, and began climbing the mountain-passes which
should lead him into solitude and safety in upper Norway. But the news of the
'^ bloodbath" had done its work for him. The sturdy mountain peasants of Dale-
carlia, ever the wildest and freest of the land, saw at last that submission to King
Christian would only involve worse evils. They heard rumor of his threat to cut
a hand and foot from each of them. Nothing seemed too hideous to believe of
this monster, and they determined to resist to the death. They remembered
Gustavus' stirring words, his power and his energy. They wanted him for a
leader, and sent messengers, who caught him on the very summit of the mountain-
passes. Gustavus returned with them, returned to become King of Sweden and
founder of a great dynasty of kings.
At first he had scarcely two hundred followers, but he trained them in warlike
arts, and seized outlying fortresses. At length he captured a Danish, treasure
convoy. His forces increased; the nation heard of him in Stockholm; an army
of several thousand Danes was sent against him, and was defeated. The bishop
who commanded the Danes expressed his astonishment. ''How can this bare
region support so many people!" He was told that they lived on water and a
bread made from the birch bark. "Then they are indeed unconquerable," he
exdaimedy "nor have we aught to gain from them."
Gustavus won another victory, and soon he was besieging Stockholm. At
»hig time occurred the Danish rebellion against Christian. The Danes in Sweden
1842 The Story of the Greatest Nations
were left without succor from home. The few Swedes who had supported them,
now turned against them. The Union of Kahnar was declared dissolved, and
Gustavus was elected king (1523).
The young hero demurred and urged that the throne should be given to some
older and wiser man; but the peasantry insisted that he who had freed them should
rule them; and they would hear of no other. So Gustavus said if all classes would
promise to obey him, he would do his simple best to rule and guide them. As
Frederick, the newly elected Danish king, refused to acknowledge the independ-
ence of the Swedes, Gustavus began warring against him, and soon gained pos —
session of all Scania, the Danish portion of the Scandinavian peninsula. This wac=
the second time that Sweden had come into possession of Scania, which is her^
to-day. Once before, you will remember, it had been purchased by Eling Magnur.^
Smek, and snatched back by Waldemar Attertag.
Scania's loss now brought the Danish king to terms. He dared not leav^^
Denmark for fear of his brother Christian, so he made a treaty with Gustavus^
Scania was again returned to Denmark, but the independence of Sweden
fully acknowledged. Norway remained for some time in dispute between Gus
tavus, Frederick, and Christian; but was finally attached to the Danish crown
a free elective monarchy. Denmark and Norway remained united until the err-::
of upheaval caused by Napoleon.
At home Gustavus found his kingship a thankless task. The nobles an^-
clergy jealously guarded every one of their excessive privileges. One of thes^--
was immunity from all taxation. This threw the whole burden of supporting,
the government upon the common people. So accustomed were these to regarc::^
tax-collectors as their deadly enemies, that they revolted at every hint of a ne^fi^
impost.
Gustavus was in despair, and calling a national convention, laid the state of ^
affairs before the members (1527). Both lords and clergy agreed that the position -
was unfortunate, but declared they could see no way to better it. At that Gus-
tavus flew into a rage. "The worst man in the world," he cried, "would not wish
to be king for such as you!" and he resigned his office on the spot.
This summary act brought them to terms. They knew well that no other
man could control the peasants and keep the Danes at bay. In the end they went -
humbly to Gustavus, entreating him to resume his kingship, and agreeing to sur- -
render whatever of their privileges he thought needful.
With everything thus placed in his own hands, Gustavus proved himself «•
great and beneficent sovereign. He completely remade Sweden, transfoi
it from a wild and semi-barbarous land of fighters, into a powerful, civilized
well-organized state. He built roads and opened mines; he founded cities
construct(»d fleets. His resources of government he took chiefly from the clei
THE KINGS OF SWEDEN'S POWER
De*igntd and arrnagtii for the j>r«t«i>( wricf
WHILE Christian 11 was thus battling in his own land
(if Deniiinrk, the Swedes apiiin revolted. This time
(152:{) they achieved complete independence under
their celebrnttt] leader titiMtavuH Vusa. From this period
dates theii' lupid rise to puwer. Sweden became rect^nized
as one of thf leaders of Knrope. As for Denmark, civil war
reduced hi-r to such weaknesK that she sank to be a minor
power, tlioiip)! she niaiiatiod to retain lier hold on exhanxted
Norway for eentiirit.«, and she still contiiines to hold tlie
other yet iiioiv cold and empty revolts of Iceland and GreeU'
laiid, the last relics of ihe once iiiitrlity "Union of the North."
In Sweden (Justaviis Vasa bei'iniie liustavus I. His de-
sc'cndunls bccaiiic hereililiiry kiriirs of tile land. The great
(iharles IX briinpht 1ho kiiijrdiini iiitii prominence as a bul-
wark of I'roli-sl autism in Knrope. His son Custavus Adol-
phus or (iiiNtavns H was one of the inost I'debrated frenerala
in history. His siieetssor Cliarles X was another able king;
and then I'harles XII. 1li<- "niadnian of the north," made
SwHilen feiircd by all Kuii'pi-. I lis wars e.xliaiisted his COUD-
Iry, and with IJnssia's rim- ti> power Swi'deii sank into feeble-
ness, (iiistavns III and IJuslavns IV Imth sti'uctrled ably to
defend their kinirdnm. but Russia and then Napoleon proved
t(") stronir for theiu; and finally Napuleuii's marshal Bema-
d(it1e was jilaeed upon lite throne and became the ancestor
of h.-r present kiiiirs.
Scandinavia— Protestantism in Sweden 1843
As early as 1523 there was a great "disputation" held at Upsala between Catholic
and Protestant divines over which Gustax'us presided; an.l he declared the Protes-
tants the winners. In his wanderings and during his stay in Denmark, he had
g^o^vn to favor the doctrines of the Reformation. Moreover he found in his'bishops
little loyalty to Sweden and much to Rome, hence, partly perhaps from belief,
partly from policy, he deprived the Catholic clerg)' bit by bit of their privileges
and possessions. Rebels against Rome were given high office in the King's
Church, until before his death Sweden had become a thoroughly Protestant
domain.
The struggle did not lack its martyrs. Two of the foremost of the Catholic
clerg}'. Chancellor Peder and Martin Knut, withdrew into Norway sooner than
yield to Gustavus. He insisted on their being surrendered to him; they were
driven in scorn through the streets of Stockholm, mounted upon sorry nags, and
finally executed after a mocker)' of a trial (1527).
One wise step taken by Gustavus was the abolishment of the old elective form
of the kingship, which had caused its weakness. He made the throne hereditar)*
in his own family. He could not, however, control the character of his descendants.
Three of his five sons ultimately succeeded him on the throne; and of these only
one, the youngest, inherited in any degree the ability or vigor of the father.
Eric, the eldest son, succeeded his father in 1560 as Eric XIV. He was in
some respects intellectually brilliant, but so erratic, extravagant and even silly,
that many pcx)ple believed him insane. Perhaps that was why he could get no
queen to share his throne. His matrimonial efforts were certainly strenuous and
desening of better success. He wooed half a dozen princesses at once. Mary
Queen of Scots, was one of those thus honored. So was Queen Elizabeth of Eng-
land, to visit whom he prepared a fleet and splen Hd retinue, assuring her by letter
that all his other matrimonial advances were only to veil his political designs, while
she was the real object of his affections and goal of his desires. Before his expe-
dition could sail, he had changed his mind, and addressed a German princess of
Hesse, and then a French one of Lorraine. In the end he took for his mistress a
prasant girl whom he saw standing in the marketplace of Stockholm, and in the
last year of his reign he married her.
It was not to be expected that a king of such type would long escape war abroad
or revolt at home. His war with Denmark deserves remembrance only as one of
the most causeless and culpable ever waged. The ancient ill-feeling between the
two lands had almost died out during Gustavus' long and peaceful reign. But
now, in the very year of Eric's accession, a new and youthful prince came also
to the Danish throne. This was Frederick II, who distinguished himself by rak-
ing up the old Danish grudge against the Ditmarshers. He was determined to ex-
tinguish the disgrace of a defeat two generations old ; and taking advantage of a dry
1844 The Story of the Greatest Nations
season when the waters and dykes of the Ditmarshers could be of little avail, he
led a powerful army through the land of these poor peasants, and almost extermi-
nated them.
Returning to his capital with such glory as he had gained, Frederick declared
the Union of Kalmar to be still in force and assumed on his royal standard the
arms of all three of the Scandinavian kingdoms. Eric of Sweden promptly re-
sponded to this arrogance by assuming the same arms himself. Next, Frederick
intercepted some of Eric's matrimonial correspondence, and by forwarding it to
the wrong princess, broke ofif another match. Such bickerings in a quarrel between
two schoolboys might have been amusing; passing between two powerful mon-
archs, the ill-feeling plunged their countries into the "Seven Years' War of the
North" (1563-1570).
There were a great many battles both by sea and land; rivers of blood were
shed. Then in the end a treaty of peace left the two contestants where they had
begun, only that both states were impoverished, their lands laid waste, their peo-
ple slain. It was carefully inserted in the treaty as matter of grave importance
that both sovereigns thereafter should have the right to bear the arms of the three
kingdoms, but that neither should deduce from that a claim upon the other's
lands.
This treaty was not concluded until Eric had lost his throne, a calamity which
he brought upon himself. His actions had grown more and more irrational.
Gustavus Vasa before his death, had made John, his second son, Duke of Finland,
the vast region then owned by Sweden, east of the Baltic. Apparently Gustavus
had feared to trust his entire domains to Eric; but while Eric was flighty, John was
treacherous. Eric accused this brother — probably not unjustly — of many kinds
of treason, and imprisoned both him and his wife for four years. Several times,
we are told, Eric in his fits of rage rushed to his brother's cell determined to slay
him with his own hands; but each time the brotherly resemblance checked him,
and finally he set John free. Suspicion, however, having been implanted in his
mind, became a madness with him. He suspected everybody. He accused the
entire family of the Stures, descendants of the former heroic regents, of conspiring
to seize the crown. In truth they had given repeated evidences of their devotion
to Gustavus. Yet Eric had them all thrown into prison and in a sudden frenzy
slew with his own hands Nils Sture, the son and hope of the race. The sight of
blood changing the king's mood as usual, he threw down the dagger (Nils' own
dagger proffered to the king in proof of loyalty), and rushing into the cell of Nils*
father besought pardon for having arrested the family, promising every amend if
only the old man would forgive.
"I will forgive everything to myself and the others," the old father responded
steadily, **if only you will spare my son."
/«
■ }■: . - . L
PROTESTANTISM ENTERS SWEDEN
IGuUSTu* VaiB PrHldM Onr th* Diiputatlcut at Upwk)
: p<iinriii^ On Ihr Sirediuh arlitl, C. O. UellquUt, do»* at Psriv
in 11183
WIIKX Kiistavus Vitsii had after an heroic struggle
driven the DaticN from Swetieu, his people insisted
on iiiakiiitr him Itiii^;. He was a mere youth and
n)oc]est)y uir>'<) tiiat amiihiT au'l older man be chosen in
hJH sti-ail. Hut ft>w of t)ii> older nobles had been left alive
by (Miristian*^ •rrtiii tyrniiTiy: and th<? peanantry whom Guft-
taviis bad tiinrKliiilIrd ii<;ninst tbf Danes swore in a body that
tlicy wiiuld tnist no nlbi-r lender. So Onntavufi accepted the
kiiiUNbip. iiiKl lie held it worthily.
The yimn^ kin:; bad idready spent some time in Denmark
iind (ieriiiaiiy ns a |iri.s<ini'r under Cbristiaii and a fugitive
from him: and in tlieKe liinds the unba[)py exile had heard
nnii'h oi' Lnilier's vast itioviTiifnt for tlie reforming of re-
liiriiin. Sii scjwTfly bad (Instiiviis aeeepted bis throne when
be arr!in;:ed lor ii formid ilispntation to 1k' held before him
in tbe ureiit chiin-li iialls «f I'liKnla. between the Catholic or
estaliiisb.'<l Swi-ilisli el.Tiry ami ibe I'roteslants. After listen-
iiiir well, (iitsliiviis ileelared ihat tlie Protcsl.ints should be
In Ibe yiars iliat I'i'llitwed the yoniii: king threw his infla-
.iin- iiiiiii- iLtjd iMnri' niHUi Ihi- I'mlestant side. His reipn was
liiMi:. iind 1<y ib<' lime nt his death in 15i)0 Sweden had be-
.■niue vi>jii|>lelely Pn>teslaiil.
Scandinavia — Catholic Reaction under John 1845
But the son was dead: "Then you must all die," cried Eric in a frenzy, and
fled wildly out of the tower and out of the city. He despatched servants to com-
plete the slaughter of the Stures; and afterward he wandered through the woods
for days wringing his hands and lamenting his hard fate. His counsellors could
not persuade him to return; but finally his peasant mistress drew him back, and
he rode into the dty garbed as a penitent, mumbling prayers, and raising his arms
to heaven for forgiveness.
It was not .difficult for John, the schemer, to have Eric declared insane and to
depose him from the throne. ''I was only insane once," said Eric looking John
in the face, ''and that was when I released you and your false wife from prison."
The defiance, if true, was hardly wise. John hated Eric and haled him from
one fortress to another, encouraging his jailers in the cruelties inflicted on their
helpless victim. Eric, upheld by the devotion of his peasant wife, bore everything
with dignity and fortitude. He cultivated music in his solitude, and wrote a very
readable book of meditations. John seemed always in a panic of terror lest the
deposed monarch should escape, forced him to sign repeated renunciations of the
throne, and finally had him poisoned.
King John (156&-1592) brought two new elements into his country's history:
first, a religious reaction with its natural result of deeper religious intensity, and
second, the long antagonism against Russia, the strife with her for possession of
the east coast of the Baltic. The Poles were already at war with Russia; and
John, devoted and admiring husband of a Polish princess, must needs take part
with them. Even during the reign of Gustavus, John as Duke of Finland had
b^un intriguing against Russia. Now he engaged in open war, in which upon the
whole he had the advantage, though the barbaric Russians desolated most of
Finland, burning their prisoners alive.
It was under the influence of his Polish wife that John attempted to lead his
subjects slowly back to Catholicism, adopting a middle course which pleased
nobody. He invented a ritual of his own, and punished both Catholics and Protes-
tants for refusing to employ it. John's eldest son, Sigismund, was educated as a
Catholic and was elected King of Poland; so that it became clear to Swedish
Protestants that on John's death they would be in even woi'se plight, subject to a
king fully Catholic, obstinate as his father, and master of foieign troops with which
to coerce them at his will.
In this extremity, they turned to Charles, the youngest son of Gustavus. Some
writers have seen in Charles a most ambitious and far-sighted hypocrite, deter-
mined from childhood to grasp the throne, and working toward it through many
subtle ways. Others have found him the echo of his father, resolute only to do
his duty as he saw it, as honest as he was strong and wise. He had been but a
boy at his father's death, and had followed John in opposing Eric's extravagances.
1846 The Story of the Greatest Nations
John had then refused Charies his promised share in the government, but the lad
remained loyal. From the first however, Charles had announced his finn devo-
tion to the religious forms established by his father; and, as John carried his
changes further and further, the ducal court of Charles grew to be regarded as the
stronghold of Protestantism in Scandinavia. Foreign rulers became his corre-
spondents, including Elizabeth of England, Henry IV of France, and the German
princes. He was repeatedly urged to seize the throne fitom John, as John had
snatched it from Eric.
Charles, however, went no farther than to refuse to allow the religious changes
to take effect in his duchy of southern Sweden. When John died (1592), Charies
as regent summoned a council, but made no effort to seize the throne, and Sigis-
mund was declared king. Before the new monarch arrived fitom his Polish do-
mains a famous resolution was passed at Upsala in 1593, declaring that Sweden
was to remain unchangeably Protestant. Charles required each member present
to swear to maintain this resolution with his life, and the date of its adoption is
celebrated by the Swedish church to-day as the most important of its centenaries.
The Upsala resolution did not meet Sigismund's views at all, and his brief
reign was almost wholly occupied with a struggle against it. In truth he was sd-
dom in Sweden. He preferred Poland, where his subjects were in harmony with
him, and left Charles to act as regent and practical king among the Swedes. More
than once the Swedish council warned the king that if he did not spend part of his
time in Sweden, he would be deposed. In 1598, he brought a Polish army into
Sweden, but Charles defeated it and was hailed as a worthy successor to his
father, a second savior of his country from a foreign yoke.
At length in 1600, the threat of deposition was actually carried out against
Sigismund, without eliciting even a remonstrance from that easy-going sovereign.
Charles was obviously next in line for the kingship, and though he was not actually
crowned as Charles IX until 1604, his reign is usually reckoned from Sigismund's
deposition in 1600, if not from the even earlier date of the Upsala Resolution. As
regent he had driven the Russians out of Finland and compelled them to acknowl-
edge his sovereignty over Esthonia. Livonia had already been won during John's
reign, so the victories of Charles made the whole upper part of the Baltic a Swedish
lake.
Charles IX completed the task Gustavus had begun. He raised his coimtry
to the rank of a great power. He was recognized as one of the leading monarchs
of Europe, a bulwark of the Protestant cause. His only son, Gustavus Adolphus,
was trained by him from early childhood to uphold that cause. It is scarcely
too much to say that upon the course chosen by these two depended the religious
future of Europe.
SWEDEN'S CATHOLIC MARTYRS
nt Churchman DranHl Thrsuah S
Thalr Eiacutlenl
THE struKKte bphveeii the CiithoHcs aiid Protestants in
Swedi'ii WHS at leiist as inuuh political as it was re-
li^ioiiH. TUf yoiinir Vhijz (riistavns had found himself
in a position of extrciin' diffieiilty at thi> opening of hiB reign,
lie had no money; tho Swedish law exempted both nobles and
elergy fi-oni the piiyiiieiit of any taxes; and the peaaantry
were now utterly impoverished. Bolh the church and the
nobles refused (lustavus's demaiiils for money, until he
threatened in his distrust to i-esiirn his thnnie and leave all
these selfish aiisloenits In the fnvy of the peasants. Then
both lords and priests eonseiileil to be taxed, but only very
trriidsjinyly; and they were always planninjr to escape fur-
ther ic.rifi'ssions. Thus (inslavus found himself perforce
/iflhtiii;.' the ehurch.
liil liy bit he took from the defenseless churchmen their
privileyes and llieii' jiropi'rty. The Calholie cause was not
wilhnnt its ruai-lyrs. In ITrJT two ol" its leaders. Chancellor
IViler and llislii>|i Kiiiit withdrew fiooi Sweden sooner than
yii'ld tn the liinir's eoniiriaiids. (instavns piii-sued them, com-
pelled llietr siiri'erider. and had Ihom <l]'iven on hoi-seback in
tnnckery ibnniirli the stiveis of Sti"-Uholni. Then they were
tried as traitors and .'Xeented.
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Chapiter VII
GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS AXD THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR
[Sftiial Aulharitiii : Chapman, "GuMaviif Ailol(iliiis" ; fi.mrnc, "Life of rpii^i.iviis Adiilphus " ;
Sieveus, " lliit.iry of GiiMaviis A.U.IijIius" ; ['rciiLh, ■■ (^isUvus Adalphu- in Crriiisnv" ; Le Ki.yer de
Prade. - IH,iory c.f Gustavu^ Aiioli.hus" ; lie Kiaiix, ■■ History tif Sneileu uiulcr ili« 'iluiise of Vasa " ;
Slanne. - Kii'g Chrislian IV."]
LhE vast religious contest of 1618-1648, the Thirty Years'
War, which so devastated and altered Germany, had a
profound cffi'ct upon the two Scandinavian monarchies.
Both of them were sooner or later draggcfl into the ter-
rific struggle. Denmark, while it had not advanced so
rapidly as Sweden during the si.\teenth century, had
not be-en without i>rogresa of its own. Its kings were a
succession of Christians and Erefierieks, these two names becoming
an established formula, so that even to-day each monarch on ascend-
ing the throne discards liis own proper name and adopts either of
these alternately.
Christian III, the son and successor of the usurper who had
seized the crown in 1523, made several important changes in Den-
mark, [n isjfi, he followed the cxam])L set by GusLivus Vasa in
Swfdfjj, and established Protestantism as the religion of the state.
Christian, after imprisoning all the bisho[)s who protested, look
possession of the vast properties of the Church. He jjurchased the sup-
port of his powerful nobility by granting ihcm one-third of the confiscated
revenues; one-third he retained for uses of stale, and the K^mainder was allowed
for the support of the Protestant churches and ministers. At the same time Chris-
tian endeavored to have the monarchy made hereditary, and thus save future
Lings from the suicidal grants by which his ancestors had been compelled to pur-
1847
1848 The Story of the Greatest Nations
chase the throne from the nobility. In this he was only partly successful, but he
secured at least a promise that his own son should succeed him. In Norway he
carried out his wishes by force, overthrew entirely the elective right of the council
there and caused a law to be passed declaring Norway a^i inalienable part of the
Danish monarchy, "the same as Jutland, Funen, Zealand or Scania."
Christian III died in 1559, the year before Guitavus Vasa, and these two
vigorous rulers were followed by their young and heedless sons, who squandered
the power and the wealth the fathers had accumulated. Of Eric's extravagances
in Sweden we have already heard, and the Danish king was that Frederick II who
fought against him the inexcusable Seven Years' War of the North.
Frederick was succeeded in turn by his son Christian IV, who is accounted by
the Danes the most able and honorable of all their Oldenburg monarchs, though.
his evil fortune brought the land almost to ruin.
Christian IV was only a child of eleven when he came to the throne (1588),
and his long reign saw five different monarchs on the Swedish throne. With every
one of these he had disputes, though actual war did not develop until 161 1, the
closing year of the reign of Charles IX. Christian was an adventurer and ex-
plorer, who loved to do things for himself. He could fence and fight and ride and
swim, and talk in many languages. He learned to build ships with his own hand,
and modelled the chief vessel of his navy. He explored the Arctic coast of ^Scan-
dinavia, that he might personally settle the northern boundary line between Nor-
way and Sweden, which was much disputed, valueless as were the icy wastes
through which it extended. He planned bridges and fortifications, founded mili-
tary and naval colleges, created a standing army, and built palades and public
buildings to adorn his capital. He encouraged trade, founded the Danish East
India Company, and made Danish settlements in India. He extended his sov-
ereignly over the vast American continent-island of Greenland, so that in the days
of his prosperity the flag of Denmark was seen in all waters, and the land bade
fair to take its place among the great commercial nations of the earth.
Two things united to bring all Christian's plans and eflforts to failure in the
end. He lacked the wisdom to abstain fron war; and he had not the strength
to crush the ever-increasing power and sclashness of the Danish nobles. The
latter were roused against him by his attempts to better the condition of the peas-
antry. The gulf between lord and serf was gradually lessened by the king's
liberal laws and benefactions. The nobles, seeing this, grew more and more de-
termined in their opposition to all his wishes.
Then his wars! In 161 1, Charles IX of Sweden being old and his son Gus-
tavus still a boy, Christian deemed the opportunity favorable for acquiring that
military success so strangely miscalled "glory." By reasserting the ancient Danish
claim to sovereignty over the whole Baltic Sea, he forced Sweden into the war of
> ■
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MADNESS OF KING ERIC
iTha KInt tmprluin* th* Loyml Nobla, NiU Stun, mnd
Frum (1 pnintinij bg Ihe ,1irfili»h a
H Ctdtrtlrom. Ut tlu Stata
TIIR triotit (iiistatiis Vasa made the kiiijrsbip of Sweden
hereditary in )ii» own fiuiiily. and was .succeeded on the
thront! liy three of his sons in succession. First came
the eldest sun Ei-ii.-. who ruled fur only eight years. King
Erie during the early years of his i-eiyn was rather light &nd
frivolous; but uratiually he became suspicious of everybody
around him inid his ill hnnuir };re\v uiilil it became a positive
mania. What liail been extravagance became iosanity. He
es|)e['iaily suspected his nobles, and so had all the members
of the frrrat Stnre family arresleil tosrether. The Stures were
tilt' fhief himse uf the Swedish nobility, descendants of the
i-elebrated Sli'ri Since, who had been the people's patriotic
Ifjidi'i' Iji'fiirc (luslaviis. hi trnib Ihe Sturcs had been nu»t
liivjd to iJuslavns, his i-hii-f aids, and now the active head
of the hi.nse. Xils Slnie. had servcl Kinfi Erie faithfully.
Erie in one ..|' his mad Ills burs! inlo Hie cell of Nils Store
to aceusi' him. Nils pnilesled his iiatriotism and offered the
kiiiii his own dimp-r to slay him if ihei'e was any pi-oof of his
ti'eaehei'v. Kv'u-. snalrhini: tin- weapon, did indeed slay his
prisoiier. Then he ri'iienled. but loo late; and fearing the
venu'c'iinei' of ihe Shires, he had the entiri' fainilv slain.
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Scandinavia— Christian IV of Denmark 1849
Kalmar. King Charles, seeing the approaching storm-clouds that hung above
all Protestant Europe, unwilling that the two Protestant powers of Scandinavia
should weaken each other by reviving their ancient enmity, sought every means to se-
cure peace through skillful negotiations. When Christian insisted upon war,
Charles, old as he was, challenged his adversary to decide their dispute by the
ancient fashion of personal combat, which would leave their kingdoms unharmed.
Christian laughed at the "dotard" as he called him, and the struggle dragged on
for two years. It is mainly memorable because in it the youthful Gustavus, Swe-
den's most celebrated king, first learned the art of war. Despite his youth, he
maintained himself successfully against his renowned adversary. The heroic and
romantic incidents of the strife recall the earlier days of viking battle. Once
Christian's life was saved by a follower, who gave up his own horse to the king,
and then held back an advancing band of Swedes while his sovereign escaped.
At another time Gustavus was rescued by a Swedish knight from the advancing
Danes, when he had fallen through the ice over which he tried to escape. In
161 3 the war was ended by a truce which made little change in the situation of
either land.
In 1618 began the Thirty Years' War of Germany, in which both of these
Northern kings took part, and which was to be the ruin of Christian though he
survived the struggle, and the glory of Gustavus though he perished in its battles.
The war began in southern Germany, and not until 1623 did its tumult cross the
Scandinavian border. Then the Protestant princes of North Germany, unable
longer to maintain themselves against the Catholic forces of the Emperor, called
on Christian for help. The Danish king must have suspected the hollowness of
his own apparent power. He had a strong army and a splendid fleet, but he knew
of the disaflFection of his nobles. Their disloyalty had hampered him seriously in
the Kalmar war, yet now, relying on their cooperation, he plunged into this far
greater contest.
His nobles betrayed him; his German allies left him to bear the brunt of battle.
Yet by- his own heroic exertions he for three years maintained the unequal strife
against the celebrated German generals Wallenstcin and Tilly. His fleet retained
control of the Baltic, but gradually all his dominions on the mainland fell into the
hands of Wallenstcin. With his land ravaged and his forces exhausted, Chris-
tian yielded in despair and accepted such terms of peace as the foe would grant.
Pledging himself never again to interfere in the affairs of Germany, he set him-
self to recuperate as best he could his desolate and exhausted land.
Let us follow Christian's career to the end. For fourteen years he labored to
restore prosperity to Denmark. As Sweden rose to greater and greater heights
through lier victories in Germany, he became fearful of her power. He endeav-
ored by diplomatic negotiations to thwart and lessen her advance. At length
1850 The Story of the Greatest Nations
so angered did the Swedes become against him that in 1643, without waiting fot
a declaration of war, they invaded his territories. Christian had long foreseen
the falling of this blow. He had repeatedly entreated his royal council and his
nobles to prepare against it, but they had refused.
Once more the main peninsula of Denmark fell into the possession of a cruelly
ravaging foe. And this time the northern province of Scania was invaded also.
Nothing was left to Christian but his fleet, with which he conducted an heroic
defense. The navies of Sweden and Holland were combined against him. With
inferior forces he attacked them in the great sea-fight of Colberg (1644). In this
celebrated battle the aged king was repeatedly wounded, but he fou^t on, direct-
ing fhe battle from his mighty flagship the ''Trinity," which he had built himself.
At length he fell unconscious to the deck; a cannon-shot had huried a mass of
splinters into his face, tearing it terribly and destroying an eyt. His crew cried
out that he was dead, but the brave king staggered to his feet and rallied them.
''No," he said, " God has still spared me life and strength to defend our countij,
if only you will do the same."
He won the victory; and the tale of this great fight is still sung to-day as the
national anthem of Denmark. It begins,
" King Christian by the high matt ttood."
It was impossible, however, for the few faithful Danes to continue to defend
their land against her many enemies; and in 1645 the King concluded another
ruinous peace, which brought Denmark to a low level indeed. Three years later
Christian died. No monarch has ever led his coimtry through more varied for-
tunes, been more loved by his common people or more foolishly antagonized by
an arrogant and contemptible nobility.
Turn now to Gustavus of Sweden, who succeeded where Christian had failed,
and changed the fortunes of the Thirty Years' War in favor of the Protestants.
Gustavus, from childhood, had been trained by his father to look upon himself as
the destined savior of Protestantism. For this express purpose had Sweden been
prepared and made strong by the far-seeing Charies. She had become a military
monarchy. A century of the rule of the vigorous Vasa kings bad changed the
selfish arrogance of her wild nobles into an enthusiasm for warlike g}ory in the
service of their chief.
Gustavus conducted four wars in all. The first, that of Kalmar, was forced
upon him by Denmark when, as a mere lad of sixteen, he came into his inheri-
tance (161 1 ). The second was with Russia, which had been for some years in a
state of anarchy, with a dozen pretenders striving for its throne. One of these was
a Swedish prince, upheld by the Swedish government. Ultimately the founder
of the present Romanoff dynasty succeeded in establishing himself as Csar. Mean-
ERIC FORCED TO ABDICATE
(Eric'a Trsachorous Brother John Extorts From Htm tho RopMitod SlaiilBC
of His Abdication)
From a pnint'iHg by the Swedish artist, Q, von Rosen
THROUGH aJI Kirif^ Eric's suspicious moods, fhe man
he dreaded most was his own younger brother, John.
He kept John in confinement for some years, and hav-
ing proof of his treachery, planned to execute him, but was
always turned from this j)urpose by family affection. At
length the weak king allowed John to go free. John promptly
gathered a party who declared the king to be insane, seized
him and forced him to abdicate. Then John achieved the
goal for which he had long secretly schemed and was made
king.
King John kept his deposed brother in close confinement.
Fearing the vengeance of the people, he hesitated to kill the
unhappy inadnian, but continued in a frenzied sort of way to
compel him to sign repeated oaths of abdication, each one more
stringent and more vehement than the preceding. The only
person who stayed by Eric in his downfall was his peasant
wife, a young girl from Stockholm, whom he had married
just before his deposition. During the early years of his
reign Eric had talked of marrying one foreign .princess after
another, including the great Queen Fllizabeth of England;
but all had feared him because of his reputed insanity. So
ultimately he marri<Ml the peasant lass, who proved his only
consolation in his fall. King John finally had him poisoned.
Xns
Scandinavia— Early Wars of Gustavus II 1851
while, King Gustavus fought two campaigns in Russia in support of his country-
man and secured the surrender to Sweden of the district around the present site
of StPetersburg, the provinces of Ingermanland and Karelia (161 7). In report-
ing the result of his efiForts to the Swedish diet, Gustavus showed a deep realiza-
tion of the growing strength of Russia and the need of keeping her from the Baltic
Sea. His acquisition had temporarily accomplished this, had pushed back her
frontier to a distance of many leagues from its coast, '^and this," he said, *' we will
hope may by God's help prove too wide a jump even for a Russian."
More serious and more desperately contested was his war with Poland, whose
ruler was his cousin Sigismund, the deposed King of Sweden. Sigismund, easy-
going as he was, had never wholly given up his pretensions to Gustavus' crown,
and continued with nagging persistence to send manifestoes to the people of Sweden,
seeking to sow discontent among them, and commanding them to obey him as
their rightful soverdgru The district of Courland, southeast of the Baltic, had
long been in special dispute between the two kingdoms, and Gustavus resolved
to pimish Sigismund by pushing the contest there vigorously. He soon drove
out the Poles; and, as their claim upon all Sweden was still maintained, he ad-
vanced his victorious arms into Poland itself and into Polish Prussia. So striking
was the personal contrast between the two monarchs, that the Poles openly pre-
ferred Gustavus. A party of their nobles even declared him elected to their throne;
and as he rode through Polish Russia, the peasants crowded around him crying,
''Here is our KingI"
Four successful campaigns did Gustavus lead against the Poles. He almost
won possession of their capital. But imperial Germany was awake to the rising
power of this "Lion of the North." The Thirty Years' War was in full progress,
and the Catholic Emperor had well-nigh crushed the Protestant princes. Chris-
tian of Denmark had gone to their aid. To prevent Gustavus from doing the
same, Imperial troops were despatched to aid the Poles against him, and thus keep
him occupied. Even with this addition to his forces, Sigismund could not match
his rival, and in 1629 consented to a peace by which he not only formally resigned
all daim to the Swedish throne, but also yielded Courland and a considerable part
of Polish Prussia to Gustavus. K the position of these territories be noted on
the map, it will be seen how Sweden under the Vasas was gradually extending
its sovereignty around the Baltic, enclosing in its grip the northeast coast, then
the east, and now reaching toward the south.
Gustavus dreamed of a great Scandinavian empire. So amiably and with
such generosity did he manage his negotiations with Poland, that it was very gen-
erally agreed that he should be elected king there upon the death of the aged Sigis-
muixL Still another reason why he was lenient and eager to hurry forward this
peace, was that the momentous hour of decision had come for him, the hour in
1852 The Story of the Greatest Nations
which, if ever, he must take up that lifework which his father had prepared foi
him, and which vague prophecies had foretold. He must assume the high posi-
tion of leader and protector of Protestantism in Europe. As such he must defy
ahnost the entire force of the German Empire.
It was not a moment which most men would have chosen, to intrude upon the
German quarrel. The gallant Christian of Denmark had been overwhehned, so
completely defeated that he sued for a most humiliating peace. The Protestants
of the Empire were driven to despair. The Imperial power stood stronger than
it had for centuries, and in Wallenstein and Tilly the Emperor possessed two |
generals whose illustrious military fame has not been dinmied by the passage of
three centuries.
Yet Gustavus had confidence in himself, in his cause, and in his people. He
was statesman as well as general — and a hero also. He took up the cause of which
all others had despaired. First, however, he made careful and successful alii--
ances. The German Protestant princes eagerly promised him aid. Englanc^^
sent him a few thousand troops, though in a roundabout way, so that she coul^
appear to have been neutral if matters should go badly. Most valuable of all
a poor and barren land like Sweden, France, Catholic France, guaranteed hi^-^gjn
money, so long as he maintained the war. The far-sighted French minist^,.^-^j,
Richelieu, dreaded the rapidly increasing power of the Emperor, and meant to
keep alive the desolating war in Germany, even at the guilt of upholding Prot3^Kes-
tants.
At home, Gustavus had the support of his entire kingdom. With rare
he had selected the ablest men as his assistants. Never was monarch better sei
Sweden stood as one man behind its hero. In the fall of 1629, he devoted h — — ™"
self solemnly to his great cause, and entrusted the government of the kingdom^^^^ ^^
his chancellor and friend, Axel Oxenstjema, who shares with him the glory of ^
reign. The King's only child, his daughter Christina, was declared his heir ^
he should never return, and with fifteen thousand of his picked Swedish troo^J^^^
he departed for Germany.
The Emperor's courtiers laughed when they heard of his approach. "Anothc^^^ .
of these snow- kings has come against us," they said, meaning that his forces woulc:^
dwindle in the southward advance and dissolve and disappear as other
had done before. The German princes who had promised Gustavus alliance,
left him as they had left Christian, to fight alone. The Imperial troops imder
Tilly sacked the great Protestant city of Magdeburg almost before his face, while
he was powerless to interfere.
Then Gustavus took a resolute course. Marching his troops to the capital of
the nearest Protestant prince, he compelled him to declare himself for or against
the cause. Seeing no escape, the timid ruler bade his troops join Gustavus, and
REPULSE OF THE POLISH INVADERS
lA SmdUh Klnf LHd( th* PoIh te ImuU HI* Own CouMir)
AfUr a pinHtinij hg HfrmtiH PrrU, of Damig
THEKE was yet !i third sou of Uie great GuatavuB Vaaa
wUu came iiltiiiiately to the throne. This was the noted
soverei^i Charles IX, the only son who seems to have
inherited his father's greatness. Charles made no effort to
snatch the throne from oither of his elder brothers. He did,
however, strive to restrain the excesses of them both. King
John after killing King Erie became morbidly repentant;
he talked of entering the church as a monk. He sought to
restore the Catholic relipiiiu in Sweden, and thus antagonized
almost all his people, who were now firmly Protestant. More-
over John brought up his son Rigismund as a Catholic and
got the youth elected King of Poland; so that when John
died, Higisniiiud bccnnie the lord of both countries, Avith a
Catholic army i>f i'liles In compel Sweden to obey his re-
ligions commands.
Then and then only did his ITncle Charles take action.
Chiiries headed his emmtiymiii in a declaration that they
would remnin I'rotcslant. King Sigismund responded by
leading a Polish army to invade Sweden: and thus the first
clash l)elween these two peoples was ordered by the king of
both. Clinrles guthered the Swedes against the half Asiatic
invaders and defeated ihem. Ilis people then elected him
king in Sigismniid's stead. As King Charles IX, he became
one of the leaders of Europe.
Scandinavia— Triumphant March of the Swedes 1853
at Leipzig the Swedish king attacked Tilly in the first of the great battles of the
war. In numbers the two armies were about equal, but as Gustavus' German
allies fled before the first assault of Tilly's veterans, the Swedes were really out-
numbered almost two to one. But their valor and their leader's generalship won
them a decisive victory.
Gustavus had proved himself. The Swedes were at once acclaimed as the
finest soldiers in Europe. All Protestant Germany, seeing at last some promise
of success, flocked to the standard of this new champion. He attacked Tilly
again at the passage of the river Lech. The dreaded Imperial general was slain,
and his army scattered to the winds.
All central Germany now lay open to Gustavus. For the moment there was
no one to oppose him, and his passage was a triumphal progress. City after city
handed him its keys, the Catholics with prayers for mercy, the Protestants with
prayers of joy. As this huge, blond-bearded giant of a king passed along the roads,
the country folk knelt before him in thanksgiving. "These people," said he
deeply touched, "worship me as a god." And never was conqueror more merciful
or more watchful of the interests of the helpless.
In this truly glorious advance he reached as far as Nuremberg. All Protestant
"Germany lay rescued behind him; but hiy most dangerous foe was still to be en-
countered. Wallenstein, the victorious, the unconquerable, the so-called favorite
of devils, had been dismissed from the Imperial service, the Emperor fearing lest
this dark and impenetrable servant might even aspire to the throne. Wallenstein
was now recalled, entreated to save the Empire and granted every power that he
asked. Raising an immense and terrible army as only he could raise one, he
threw himself across the path of Gustav-us. Through a memorable campaign,
the two maneuvred brilliantly against each other. At last the final clash of arms
came at Lutzen (1632).
Lutzen is one of the most celebrated battles of history. Wallenstein was de-
feated; his troops fled in utter rout, but Gustavus was slain. His one fault as a
general had ever been that he exposed himself too rashly on the field. The old
fighting blood of the viking race was strong in him, and he was always eager to be
wielding weapons with his own good hands. Not only in that first war with Den-
mark had he run desperate risks; a dozen times in his Polish campaign he had
been close to death. He had been wounded in head and body, horses had been
ref)eatedly slain under him, he had grappled bodily with foes dragging him off to
capture. Perhaps only thus could he have won such utter devotion from his sol-
diers, only thus have trained them to that calm scorn of danger which made them
irresistible. But at Lutzen he took at last one chance too many. Almost alone
he galloped recklessly from one body of his troops toward another, crossing a
icfifon swept by the enemy's fire. Two shots struck him; and as he sought feebly
1854 The Story of the Greatest Nations
to ride away from the zone of death, a httle troop of German cavairy surroui
him and cut him down. Instead of retreating at the news, his entire army chargd
madly at the foe for vengeance, swept them from the held, and pursued them
slaughter far into the darkness of the night.
Vast possibiHtics, vast plans — only he himself could say how vast — perished
with Gustavus. The war did not end, but it assumed a more equal balance.
little daughter inherited his throne; his trusted chancellor, Oxenstjema, governed
as regent; generals trained under the ejte of Gustavus commanded his armies
proved not unworthy pupils in conducting the unequal strife. All went on as be
had arranged that it should go, only he, the master, was no longer there.
Wallenstein fought no more after his one defeat. Two years later he
slain by some of his own officers on a charge of seeking to seize a kingdom for hita-
self. No other German general could oppose the Swedes. They penetrated
almost to Vienna, and would have captured it had not France suddenly withheli
her promised aid. Richelieu feared his allies were being too successful. The
German princes also were unwiUing to crush the Emperor too completely, and
drew back from aiding these terrible Swedes. Denmark joined the attack upoa
them, though with such poor success as we have already seen.
The war drifted on for years in ^ rather purposeless way. The Swedes
victory after victory with only one or two defeats; but they grew fewer and fewer
in number, too few to conquer the Empire, too few even to hold such districts u
they had mastered, and finally in 1648, the celebrated treaty of Westphalia settled
all disputes and restored peace to distracted Europe. Sweden received a big
indemnity and gained extensive territories along the northern German coast, in-
clud'ng Western Pomcrania and other districts. More than ever did her terri-
tories seem extending to enclose the entire Baltic Sea and to make of it a Swedish
lake. But these rewards were poor compensation for what the sparsely peo^Jed
Swedish homeland had lost, the hves of so many of her bravest, ablest, and moat
loyal sons.
•> *
FAREWELL OF GUSTAVUS TO SWEDEN
(GustftTus AdolphuB LeaTM HU Little Daughter and Sets Forth to FIffht
for Protestantlam)
From a painting by the Swedish artint, E, hinders, made at Stockholm
in lf(99
CHARLES TX was sncce«Mled on the throne of Sweden by
his even more noteworthy son Gustavus Adolphus.
Gustavns came to the throne in the year 1611, when the
relifrious troubles of Europe had risen to their fullest and
were about to burst forth into the terrible ** Thirty Years
War." Of this, Oustavus was the chief hero.
He had first, however, to maintain himself against Den-
mark. In that land a warrior king had arisen, Christian IV,
an eager seeker after military glory. Christian, thinking
Gustavus young and inexperienced, fairly forced a war upon
him. In this, the two Scandinavian powers exhausted eadi
other, without cause and without result, until Christian, findr
ing his young opponent quite a match for him, consented
to a peace. Then Christian threw himself into the Thirty
Years War as a leader of the north rjermans in the Protestant
cause. He was defeated by the Catholic Germans, and Den-
mark was reduced to utter exhaustion. Protestantism seemed
on the point of being hopelessly crushed out. So Gustavos
brought Sweden to the rescue. By this time he had been
king for nearly twenty years: he had slowly and carefully
developed the resoun^es of his land : he had trained his soldiers
to perfection : and he led thrni forth solemnly as to a holy
war. He had no sons to leave in charge of his kingdom, only
a little daughter. Christina. So with solemn farewell to her,
entrusting her to his ablest counsellors, he set forth upon
his great undei-taking against the might of the German
Emperor.
X r.n
Chapter VIII
THE ZENITH OF SWEDISH POWER AND ITS DECLINE UNDER
CHARLES XII
ChiMlina"
ChrisllnaQoCEnof S>fe^lc»," "Cliiirlei Xll": Alderfclilt. "Mililitr)' lli-[»ry al
rg.-ClutiMXIl"; Br..*nmg. "Chmi.-s XII"; Co.c, " Memoirs of Hit Duke of
Liiion. "Accounv of Swcilen m 1717 "]
I HE general peace of 1648 Icfi Sweden one of the chief [wwers
of Europe; but she had not yet reached her greatest ter-
ritorial expanse. Neither was this attained under Chris-
tina, the daughter of Gustavnis, though she was assuredly
one of the ablest women of her day, and one of the most
spectacular figures that have ever flashed across the page
of historj-. Gustavus Adolphus, his father Charles IX,
and his grandfather Gustavus I present to us three successive gen-
erations of remarkable ability, ]>erhaps even of the highest genius,
in the house of Vasa, Christina, sole direct representative of the
fourth generation, was not lacking in the insight, the courage and
the intellectual power of her race; but she had not their steadiness of
purpose, and so her career became not glorious but only h'lZiirre.
Upon the course of Sweden in the Thirty Years' War Christina
exercised Utile influence because of her youth. The struggle was
carried on and the peace terms arranged by the famous chancellor
Before the war had quite reached its close, the queen, at the
of eighteen (1644}, was given the full royal authority. But she showed
a interest in the serious work of government; and while wisely continuing her old
'855
1856 The Story of the Greatest Nations
• .
and trusted ministers in office, she devoted her own career to pleasure. Her
amusements were at first those of harmless vanity, but they soon began to trans-
gress the bounds of decency. She lavished enormous gifts of the crown lands upon '
unworthy favorites. She seriously embarrassed the finances of the kingdom. When
her counsellors remonstrated, she threatened to resign her crown; and such was
the devotion to her father, still warm in the hearts of the nation, that this threat
brought the sternest of her lecturers to submission. They entreated her to many,
but she persistently refused; and matters grew worse and worse until under her
influence the manners of the once staid capital of Stockholm became such as one
is pained to contemplate. The protests of the grave Oxenstjema were distasteful
to the gay young queen. She dismissed him from office, and he died in sorrow.
At length, ten years after her accession (1654), Christina actually carried out
her threat and with elaborate and ^solemn ceremony abdicated the throne. She
had outworn the patience of her nation; and there were none now to protest,
except a few favorites who saw their power slipping from them. That she acted
without full meditation and realization of what the change meant, seems evident
from the fact that twice afterward she endeavored to win back the crown, and
failing that, sought to be elected Queen of Poland. The real motive of her startling
act seems to have been partly pique roused by the disapproval of her countrymen,
partly a real dislike of the weariness of ruling, and mainly the desire to attract
attention, to proclaim herself superior to others, and to enact before the world
a drama absolutely unique. She arranged to receive an enormous income from
Sweden, and then abandoning the country with expressions of disgust, she became
a wanderer through Europe, a queen without a country, a visitor at many courts,
received with high honors at first, but so imperious, so dangerous, that by degrees
she was barred out of many lands. She settled at Rome, and became a Catholic,
renouncing the religion for which her fathers had so heroically striven. She re-
ceived a pension from the Roman Church, and under its protection she remained,
a brilliant, petulant, intriguing power. Old age could not calm her blood nor
bring its peaceful repose to her restless brain. Only death released her from
that insatiable craving to impress her name upon the world.
Meanwhile the Swedes found themselves much relieved by their queen's deser-
tion. Her cousin, son of the only sister of Gustavus Adolphus, was proclaimed
king as Charles X. He also sought the reputation of a conqueror; and after a
successful war with Poland, marched his forces suddenly across Prussia against
Denmark. The most memorable feature of the brief war that followed, was
Charles' spectacular crossing of the Danish straits upon the ice. Over the " Little
Belt" between Jutland and Funen, he forced his way in defiance of a Danish army
drawn up to oppose him, and despite the weakness of the ice, which broke in places
and caused several companies of his troops to be swallowed by the sea. This
GERMANY WELCOMES GUSTAVUS
(Th* Adrane* o( th* Triumphant Smda* CutIm Tham to Nunmb«c)
From a pnintini) by Paul Ritttr, of HartmbtTg, in 1884
GUSTAVUS led his Swedes into the }ti-eat German rc-
li(;iaii3 war nt a time wIioti Protestantism seemed
utterly defeated. So feaifiil liad the Protestant
princes of Germany become that though they had prayed
Giistavns to help them, they dari'd not help him. They left
his Swedes «lone to face all the power of the Catholic Em-
peror,
In this extremity Ciistavus proved himself a remarkably
able Rcneral. lie met the Emperor's celebrated general, Tilly,
and defeated him in two decisive battles, though the Imperial
forces were double the iniinbers of the Swedes, GnstaTns
proved himself a statesman also and fairly forced bis German
Protestant allies to aid him. Then, having swept the German
armies fmm his path, Gustavus advanced in a sort of tri-
umphal profrress across all the north of Germany and far
into the south. City after city opeued its gates to him, the
Protestant towns wehHimiii); him as a saviour, and the Catli-
olie ones not daring to oppose him.
The furthest point the Swedes reached in this Bucceasful
march was Nuremberg, which lies in the very heart of
southern (.Jcrmany, Their hero king was now in a wholly
Catholic region; yet even there the people welcomed him not
unwillingly, so great had his fame become, both as a soldier
and as n wist; and generous siivereiKU who might be troBted
to be just to nil men.
Scandinavia — Sweden Seizes Danish Territory 1857
remarkable battle ended with the surrender of the entire Danish force; and Charles,
pressing forward, crossed without accident the "Great Belt" which separates
I'uncn from Zealand. He was thus enabled to assail Copenhagen in a manner
never before attempted, and to besiege it without the aid of a fleet.
The Danes, finding themselves helpless against him, submitted to a peace the
most ruinous that had yet been forced upon them (1658). Their ancient posses-
sions upon the Scandinavian peninsula were taken from them for the third time,
and were now permanently joined to Sweden. The conqueror was also given
possession of several of the Baltic Islands and the northern half of Norway. These
latter concessions Sweden soon lost again, but the ancient land of Scania is still
hers to-day. The treaty of 1658 saw Sweden at the widest extent of her territorial
expansion.
So easy did the partitioning of Denmark seem that Charles X hungered for
another slice, and within a year he discovered new cause of quarrel with his vic-
tim. Copenhagen was again besieged. The triumphant Swedes threw them-
selves with eagerness upon this last stronghold of their former foes and ancient
oppressors. "We will divide D'^nmark first," they boasted, "and discuss the
causes of the war afterward."
The Danish king, Frederick III, son and successor of Christian IV, found help
in bis extremity by ajp.aling to Holland and England. They sent ships which
aided the Danes in driving off the Swedish fleet; and a large portion of the Swedish
army, caught thus in a trap without supplies, was compelled to surrender. Charles
X carried the war into Norway. He had one or two successes there, and then he
died (1660). The Swedish government hastened to make peace, resigning its
hold on northern Norway, but retaining Scania.
Charies X was succeeded on the throne by his son, Charles XI, a child of four,
and a long period of comparative peace followed between Sweden and Denmark.
Only once was it broken during nearly forty years, and that was when the two
lands were forced to take part in the great continental wars that opened the reign
of the French monarch, Louis XIV. The Swedes, tempted into an alliance with
Louis, sought to aid him by attacking the " Great Elector" of Brandenburg. They
were badly defeated at FehrbcIIin and elsewhere and lost much of the high military
prestige which they had formerly possessed. The Danes were in the alliance
against Louis, and their splendid fleet crushed the Swedish nsivy in a great sea-
fight off the island of Oland, the Swedish flagship blowing up at the beginning of
the battle. The Danish army however was defeated in a bloody battle in Sweden,
so that the strife left the two nations about as before. The districts from which
the Swedes were driven in Germany, were restored to them at the peace of Ryswick
("1679), Louis XIV insisting that they should not lose by having been his friends.
Much more important to all Scandinavia during this period was the final break"*
1858 The Story ot the Greatest Nations
down of the power of the nobility. We have seen how absolutely they had held
control of Denmark. Their opposition had brought disaster to the land under
Christian IV, and again in the more recent wars by which Sweden had so nearly
completed the conquest of the country. So embittered did the rest of the inhabi-
tants become against these haughty oppressors, that in 1660, when the great council
of the kingdom assembled in Copenhagen, there was a sudden, complete, and
bloodless revolution. Deputations from the clergy and from the citizens of Copen-
hagen, the burghers whose sturdy defense of their city had saved Denmark from
complete dismemberment, appeared before the king, Frederick III. They en-
treated him to assume absolute power, to withdraw all the privileges he had been
compelled to grant the nobility, and to strike at the very root of the nobles' power
by declaring the monarchy hereditary instead of elective. Frederick feared and
hesitated; the nobles protested; but the burghers locked the gates of the city and
insisted. In the end, secretly aided by the king, they achieved their purpose.
The nobles consented to the new order of things, and Denmark became an abso-
lute monarchy, Frederick's power being limited only by such laws and regula-
tions as he himself arranged for the benefit of the three orders, the nobles, the
clergy, and the burghers. The peasantry, it should be noted, had no part whatever
in the change; they had sunk to the position of mere slaves.
For a time the country prospered under the new order of things, and even the
nobles were content. But by degrees Frederick and his successor Christian V
laid such heavy taxes upon these former enemies of the throne that they sank into
poverty, and Christian completed their ruin by creating a new order of nobility
from among the wealthy townsfolk and his German favorites. This new-born
and more pliant aristocracy soon completely supplanted the old.
A similar revolution occurred in Sweden. The nobility there had been sub-
dued by Gustavus Vasa; but they had gradually regained power, especially when
the death of Gustavus Adolphus left them without adult monarchs of assured
fight to the succession. Almost the first public act of the child" king, Charles XI,
after emerging from his minority, was to induce the council of Sweden to join him
in passing a law of " reassumption " (1680), by which he was authorized to take
back some portion of the crown lands which had been so lavishly scattered by
Christina. The early form of this law was very mild, but the king kept increasing
its scope by degrees, until he had impoverished all the nobility. The great lords
protested repeatedly; but the common people, who both dreaded and hated them,
upheld the king, and finally in 1693, a law was passed which made Charles "the
sole depository of the sovereign authority, and entitled to govern the realm accord-
ing to his will and pleasure, without being responsible to any power on earth."
It was to this absolute power over a people who both loved and respected the
race of their royal rulers that Charles XII, a boy of fourteen, succeeded on the
PRAYER OF THE SWEDES AT LUTZEN
(Gustavus B«fore Lcadinf His Troops Into His Last Battle Asks HaavMi's Halp
From a painting made in 1894 ^y Wilhelm Rauber
AT Nuremberg, Gustaviis knew that he was approaching
the crisis of his career. He had completely defeated
the Imperial German army; but the Emperor in his
extremity had sought aid from Germany's greatest warrior,
Wallenstein. This dark and terrible leader of men had been
dismissed from the Emperor's service as a traitor; now he
was recalled at his own price, and by tremendous effort he
raised a new army against Gustavus. During an entire cam-
paign th^se two remarkable military geniuses maneuvered
against each other, until at length, each feeling that there
was no further advantage to be gained, they hurled their
forces against each other in the great battle of Lutzen (1632).
The troops of Wallenstein w^ere wild adventurers, riotous
followers of a master whom they half believed to be the devil.
The men of Gustavus looked to their leader almost as a saint.
He gathered his cavalry around him in a final prayer to
Heaven, and then led them across the plain of Lutzen in a
determined charge against the foe.
After a terrific fight the troops of Wallenstein were com-
pletely broken and dispersed in flight. But Gustavus himself
perished in the moment of victory; and hv had been the soul
of his army. Protestantism and Catholicism both shrank
back dismayed from that stricken field of Lutzen. Victory
seemed as costly as defeat.
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Scandinavia — Conspiracy against Charles XII 1859
death of his father (1697). This is the Charles XII who has become so widely
known to other nations as "the madman of the North." He was the last of the
series of great military leaders who had raised Sweden to such heights of renown.
Under him her overstrained resources gave way at last, and she was plunged into
ruin.
A regency was established to govern for the young king till he should be eight-
een. But within six months of his accession, he asserted himself, and compelled
the annulment of the regency and his own formal coronation. At this ceremony,
instead of waiting for the diadem to be placed upon his head, he snatched it from
the oflBciating prelate and crowned himself. The people applauded him. They
desired vigorous kings; such had protected them before. The act seemed, how-
ever, but a momentary spark of self-assertion; the youthful monarch made no
use of his power. He devoted himself to hunting and other sports; he revelkd
in fine clothes; he acted like the mere boy he was. Obser\'ing this, three ancient
enemies of the kingdom conspired secretly against him. Sweden's weakness had
been fully revealed in the wars of Louis XIV. A feeble kingdom unJcr a chil !ish
king oflFered tempting opportunity for regaining those ancient provinces that she
herself had seized by strength of sword. Peter the Great, Czar of Russia, poured
his barbarian hordes into Ingermanland to reassert his country's dominion over
what was to be the site of his future capital, St. Petersburg. Frederick Augustus,
King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, marched his armies into Livonia, once a
Polish dependency. Frederick IV of Denmark attacked certain German dis-
tricts allied to Sweden (1700).
The plotters had underestimated young Charles. He rose suddenly to the
full stature of manhood, put aside forever his boyhood's amusements, and an-
nounced to his people that while he would never begin an unjust war, he would
never abandon a just one without destroying the aggressor. With the military
genius of his great race, he saw at once the weak point in the apparently over-
whelming combination against him. Leaving the distant provinces to defend
themselves as best they could, he attacked the nearest foe. He besieged Copen-
hagen, and so vigorously did he press the attack upon it, that King Frederick of
Denmark abandoned his distant and ill-advised German expedition, to hurry
home. The frightened burghers of Copenhagen paid Charles a large sum as
ransom for the city; and the Danish king was glad to patch up a humiliating peace
before worse befell.
Having thus detached from the alliance the nearest and most dreaded foe,
Charles without loss of time transported his troops across the Baltic against Rus-
sia. Peter the Great at the head of eighty thousand troops was besieging Narva,
and had reduced it to sore straits. But his army was an undisciplined mob; and,
when they learned of the rapid approach of the celebrated Swedish soldiers, they
i86o The Story of the Greatest Nations
fell into panic. The young Czar himself deserted the field, leaving the command
to a German general whom the Russians distrusted. Charles attacked them like
a madman with scarcely six thousand men, and the Russians fled. Thousands
were slain, and thousands drowned in a neighboring river. Finding flight impos-
sible, the great bulk of the army surrendered as prisoners. So far did they out-
number their captors, that Charles, fearing they would recover from their ter-
ror, hastened to disarm them and order them off to their homes.
This battle of Narva (1700) fixed the eyes of the world on the young Swedish
conqueror. The following spring he led his forces into Livonia, drove out the
Poles and Saxons who had been harassing it, and pursued them into Poland.
Three years were spent in overthrowing the Saxon rulers of that land, and reducing
it to a condition of submission; but by 1704, the Poles were so humbled that they
took a new king of Charles' selection. He might have had the crown himself^
but he affected to despise it.
Had Charles XII but known when to pause he would have been a conqueror
indeed; but his successes led him to believe he could accomplish an3rthing. Find-
ing that the Czar's forces still attacked the borderlands in his absence, and that
the deposed Saxon king of Poland still annoyed the Poles from his retreat in Sax-
ony, Charles determined to complete the destruction of both of his opponents.
In 1706, he braved the wrath of the entire German Empire by crossing its borders
and attacking the Saxons in their own country. So great was the acknowledged
excellence of the Swedish soldiers, so widespread the terror inspired by Charles
himself, that hardly any resistance was offered, and soon Saxony was completely
in his hands.
Charles XII was now at the zenith of his power. All Europe feared him.
He even exacted concessions from the Emperor. The famous victories of Marl-
borough and Prince Eugene had just broken the power of Louis XIV; and it was
felt that should Charles elect, as his father had done, to ally himself with the French
monarch, he might still restore the balance in Louis's favor. The Duke of Marl-
borough journeyed in person to the Swedish camp to placate the fiery king.
But Charles had no thought of aiding France. He had fostered for the Czar
Peter, the one enemy he could not reach, a savage and implacable hatred. He
was resolved to subjugate Russia, as he had Poland. Beyond that, the vaguest
dreams of conquest allured him. He was but a madman after all. He would
dethrone the Pope, conquer the Turks, march an army over Persia — as Alex-
ander the Great had done.
Against Russia he advanced in the fall of 1707. He had gathered nearly eight)'
thousand Swedish troops, the envy and admiration of the world. But Russia is
an illimitable wilderness. Napoleon's half million of men were swallowed up in it.
The invasion of Charles could only terminate as did the later and vaster one. AU
GUSTAVUS RETURNS TO SWEDEN
(Th* Bodr of tlu Kara Kin( Bama Horn* hy HI* Moun
From a painting bg thf mailer of Svediih hiitorieal art, C, O. H»OqmH
WHEN the great Ouatavus fell at Liitzen, he left hia
piirpuseH only half acuunipliahed. He had saved
Proteataiitisiri iiml s(.'t it <m an e<|iiHl ftxtting with the
older Catholic faith in (lermmiy. But he had dreamed of
conquering a permanent peaee, whereas now the religions
warfare still enntiniied. The devoted soldiers of GastaTns
bore his dead bo<]y back to Uwe<len in solemn state. There it
was received by hJN wise cliiinecllor, Oxenstjerua, and by his
still tiny daufrhter Christina, who became Qneen of Sweden.
OxenRtjcrna continued Ihe religious war in Germany. So
great had become the prestige of the resolute Swedish soldiers,
that the (ierman armies scarcely daretl to face tbera. These
grim, sterii-faccrl veterans won victoi-y after Victory. But
their niunbei's hail been fi'W even at the .start; Sweden was
but a sparsely settled land. And now it became evident that
the ever-dwindling little army of Swedes could never conquer
an<l hold all ("ierniany. Resides. ()flier nations liegan to fear
these extending concpiest.-* and to unite against the Swedes.
Kven their Protestant allies in (lennany deserted them; so
that finally thej' consented to a general peace. They had
saved I'riitestiintisni : bul they bad exhausted Sweden, and
they bad lo.st Uustavus.
Scandinavia— Charles in Turkey 1861
ihat winter, all the following year, Charles advanced. The Russians fought and
tvxre defeated, fell baci:, and fought again. The next winter came, and the Swe-
dish army had dwindled to a remnant of twenty thousand. They could advance
nu farther; but their leader, obstinate in adversity, would not retreat. He turned
southward, seeking alliance with the Cossacks; but in vain. His troops suflFered
miseries indescribable, until the Russians put an end to the long agony by making
a final successful attack. The Swedish army was overwhelmed by them at Pul-
towa (1709).
Charles, who had been wounded a few days previously, was carried through
this, his last great battle, on a litter. He did all man could do, to urge his soldiers
on ; but the end had come. With only a few hundred followers he escaped from
the disastrous field and fled southward into Turkey. The Sultan received him
with honor, as who would not have welcomed so renowned a sovereign? When
Peter, who had set his heart on capturing the person of Charles, demanded that
he be given up, the Sultan refused. Charles even succeeded in embroiling the
two potentates in war, and accompanied the Turkish army on a successful cam-
paign, in which Peter in his turn was close to capture. A coiitemptuous peace
was accorded Russia by the Turks, at which Charles, furious at his enemy's escape,
raved in vain. The Sultan in dignified fashion ordered his too assertive and
abusive guest to leave Turkey. Charles refused, and with his remaining followers
barricaded himself in his mansion, defying the forces sent to evict him.
This disgraceful brawl was overlooked by the Sultan, whose admiration for
Charles had not wholly faded, and the fugitive Swede was allowed to remain yet
a while longer among the Turks. Then hearing that his country' was once more
being assailed by all his foes, he shook of! the lassitude of despair which seemed
settling upon him. Unattended and in disguise, he executed a daring ride across
the breadth of Europe. Passing like the wind through the realms of his enemies,
he appeared suddenly at the gates of his beleaguered fortress of Stralsund (17 14).
Six states, Russia, Prussia, Denmark, Saxony, Poland, and Hanover, had
united to seize what territories they wished from unprotected Sweden. The
Swedes, notwithstanding the loss of the flower of their nation in Charles' ill-fated
Russian expedition, defended themselves heroically. The seaport of Malmo,
the key to the invasion of the land from southward, was taken and retaken. A
Danish army was driven out of Sweden. Denmark was invaded and once more
ravaged even to the border of Germany, where the city of Altona was burned.
But the overwhelming forces of Russia and of the Germans soon enabled them to
take possession of all Sweden's territory beyond her own peninsula, except the
fortress of Stralsund and one other.
The reappearance of Charles reanimated his people once again; but it also
made more determined the eflFort of the allies to end the war at a blow by the cap-
The Story of :
ture of the king. The siege of StnJsund was kept up with tlespcmte valor ti
both sides for over a year. Then, tlie fall of ihc fortress having become inevita
Charles escaped in a fishing-boat 1.0 Sweden. Still he struggled; stUl his c
encompassed him. His pc^ ^e supported him with tlie most heroic cjcvotion. j
bare was the land stripped of men that there was danger of a famine. TTie b
resorted to negotiations. He attempted to detach Russia from his foes, by g
ing all she demanded- The project seemed successful, but in the morou
its completion Charles perished. He was attacking the Danes in Nor^v-iy. I
ing the fortress of Fredcricshald, when he was shot down by an unknon-n hai
His death ended the war. The exhausted Swedes made his sister 1
queen, with the express stipulation that peace should be sought on any ted
Most of Sweden's German territories were surrendered. The Russians, who I
seized all the provinces east of the Baltic, withdrew reluctantly from Finland.]
were allowed to keep their other conquests. Sweden, half depopulated, anill
duced to the rank of a minor kingdom, abandoned her insane strife for I
pire. She sought to secure instead Ihe prosperity which only comes with \id
DENMARK'S GREATEST NAVAL VICTORY
IKInf Chriilian. Woundid. Wini lh< C»» Sea F)(ht Off Cvbuia
Afirr in nnliijur I'ltni/i/i ;yrinl
THIS treraendoua Thirty Tears* War did not end mth-
out seeing Denmark ami Sweden onee more in oppo-
HitioD. That same King Christian of Denmark who had
ehallenged Oiistaviis to war at the he^inninsit "f his reign, re-
mained tile warlike champion of Denmark thi-ough a reigm
of sixty years. As the long religions war dragtred tjiwanl its
close, and all the other nations began In unite in fear of the
conquering Swedes, King: Christian led Denmark also into
the lea^ie against his aneient enemies, This action was dao-
gerous and reckless, the sort of deed lliat always appealed to
Christian. HLs land was at oner a.saailed Viy the combined
navies of Sweden and Protestant Holland, Christian met
these dangerous foes with a much smaller Sett off the harbor
of Coburg.
The Danes still sing with pride of the great victory they
gained at Coburg. The battle was desperate. King Christian
was sorely wounded in tlie head : but when his people thought
him dying, be rallied and declared that God had spared him
80 be might save their country from destrnetion. Then after
a solemn prayer he led his men back into the fight, and won i1
in the end. Yet he could not save exhausted Denmark from
yic!ilin<r to a ruinous peace, by which tibe surrendered mucli
territory to Siveilcn.
Chapter IX
THE UNION OF SWEDEN AN!) NORWAY UNDER BERNADOTTE
[Sfidal A ulhsriliei : Berimilt He's Cut re
Brown. •■Mein'iiri of ihe SiivereiKim ()( Dti
Mfrciilh, ■•Memorials of Chaxl« XIV: Sli
ce: Itnin. "Gusravuslll .iiid
: Hcllfrieil, -The EiiKli-h .\
■' History of ihe Laic Ktvuliii
\ HE ancient glorj' and greatness of Scandinavia was at an
end. FrLm ihc time of the fall of Charles XII, the
political histon' of all three of tlic Scandinavian king-
doms becomes a mere pathetic repetition of the hope-
less struggles made by the small states of Europe during
the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries lo pro-
tect themselves against ihe aggression of Ihc larger
Powers. In Sweden this struggle had not even the glow of patriotism
to enhance its interest. With the acc:;ssion of Ulrica, i-liler of
Charles XII, the nobles regained their power. Before admitting
her to the throne, they made her agn'c lo a constitution which placed
all the authority in the hands of the diet or general council of the
kingdom. The queen became a mere figurehead; and even her
nominal authority she soon resigneii to her husba-id, a German
pnnte, who as Frederick I reigned from 1720 to 1750.
The only lesson to be gathered from his reign or (hat of his suc-
cessor is the danger of party government and the lengths lo which
partisan animosity may go. The nobles, like every one else in the exhausted
country, had become very jxjor; and finding the government in their possession,
thev began a disgj-aceful scramble for the ofticial i)ositions and their [wnjuisitcs.
Two parties sprali^ up nicknamed the Hats and the Nightcaps, the chief differ-
snte ■>f opinion between them being as to which should be permitted to plundci
1863
1864 The Story of the Greatest Nations
the gX)yemment. Each side accused the other of treason, and the axe and the
block were called into frequent use for judicial murder.
Both France and Russia, the two chief Powers then interested in the North,
found it cheaper to bribe Sweden than to fight with her. Many of her ofi^cials
were almost openly in the employ of one of the rival Powers; some of them man-
aged to draw funds from both. In 1741, the French influence predominated, and
the diet proclaimed war against Russia, a mad war for which the state was wholly
unprepared, so that the Russian troops had no difficulty in seizing Finland. Part
of it they retained; part was restored in return for the obsequious submission of
Sweden. The Swedes selected as heir to their childless king a German prince,
dictated by the Russians.
This ruler, Adolphus Frederick (1750-1771), followed the course of his pre-
decessor in a comfortable indifference to the miseries of the land over which he
possessed no real authority. The nobles clung tenaciously to their monopoly
of the government. Even to suggest a change in the constitution was made a
crime punishable with death. Sweden joined in the general European attack
on Frederick the Great of Prussia in the Seven Years' War (i 756-1 762). So
feeble, however, and even ludicrous were the military efforts of the Swedes that
when, in the general peace which Frederick won from his enemies, arrangements
with Sweden were pr9posed, the sarcastic monarch remarked that he had not been
aware he was at war with that country.
In 1 77 1, there came a change; King Adolphus Frederick was succeeded by his
son, Gustavus III. For the first time in over half a century the Swedes had a
king bom and reared among them, one who could speak their language, could
feel for their miseries and shame. Gustavus was resolved from the first to rescue
his country from its thralldom to the nobility. Whether he was most actuated
by patriotism or by self-interest, we need not too closely inquire. He was both
bold and subtle; he took the coronation oaths to observe the constitution, but at
heart he had already repudiated it. A pretended rebellion was raised by some
officers in the army as a pretext which enabled the king to call around hiijfi a large
body of special troops. To these he appealed elocjuently for suppoit, and on their
pledge to follow him, he surrounded the house in which the diet was ass«nbled,and
forced from its members the abrogation of the constitution. Well knowing how
both they and their laws were hated, the nobles had not the courage to defy the
king; and in two hours the coup d^etat was completed. Gustavus became an
absolute ruler; but in accordance with promises made to his supporters, he at
once promulgated another constitution, giving some slight degree of power to the
people (1772).
Gustavus III was not a man to devote his life to a single purpose. He hon-
estly endeavored to increase the prosperity and with it the military strength of
THE DANISH VICTORY OF OLAND
(Tha Duilsb FI«Bt A(aln Sam ths CountTj fnin Sw«
Afttr a painliag by Ihe Dutch artitl. Ham Bohrdt
THE religions wars which had exhausted all Europe came
to an end in 1648. Yet the iiii fortunate division of the
Scandinavian peoples into two kiiiEfdoms prevented the
north from having peaee. ■ Dtinniark and Sweden stil! con-
tinued to exhaust eneh other. The Swedes continued to harass
enfeebled Denmark. Up to this perioil Denmark had always
included as part of hiT doniitinH. Scnnia. the southern prov-
ince of the Swedisli uiairihin<l. This was regarded as an
integral part of Denniiirk, which was the country of the
Baltic's mouth, iuchuiin^' the islniulK and the mainland on
both sides of them. Xow, however, the Swedes seized Scanis.
Denmark seemed about to be enjinlfed by her stronger rivaL
Once more, however, tlie Danisli navy saved the country,
when its land forces were helpless. In lt)76 the Danes, aided
by some Oernian tihips. attacked the Swedes near the island
of Oland. The Swedish flajrsliip blew up at the beginning of
the fifrht: and the di'iruinili/ed Swedes were completely de-
feated. At about the same lime the Swedish anny was de-
feated by the (icrnians. Sweden lost most of the prestige
which she had held since the days of Gustuvus. Europe be-
gan to feel that the Sweiles no lont,'er possessed their former
warlike skill.
J
Scandinavia — Splendor under Gustavus III 1865
Sweden ; but most of his time was spent in frivolities which he imitated from France.
His court became a centre of fantastic extravagances such as it could ill support.
He posed as a patron of the arts, had operas and plays, tournaments, mascjuerades,
and fetes of every kind. Taxes increased and became oppressive. Discontent
grew loud.
In 1787 Gustavus seized a favorable opportunity for declaring war against
Russia. Sweden could not forget her lost possessions, and Russia was at the
moment in desperate strife with the Turks. Almost unopposed, the forces of
Gustavus approached St. Petersburg; its inhabitants were in terror; but a number
of Swedish officers, members of the nobility, suddenly refused to follow their king
farther. Under the constitution he had himself granted, he could not begin war
in a foreign land without the consent of the diet, and this had not been obtained.
So his carefully gathered armament sailed back to Sweden, like that of the nurscrj'-
rhyme King of France which marched up the hill and down again. The nobles
who had thwarted Gustavus were accused by him of being in the pay of Russia,
which they probably were; and the people, whether they had approved the king's
exp>edition or not, were infuriated against its betrayers. The leader of these was
executed, and new laws were passed still further restraining the nobility and making
the king almost absolute.
In the midst of these bickerings came the tremendous French Revolution sweep-
ing over Europe with its sudden shock to monarchs, forcing old foes to become
friends in face of the common danger. Gustavus made peace with Russia. He
had vast and rather visionary plans of an alliance in which he himself was to com-
mand the armies of Russia, the German Empire, Sardinia and Spain, which with
his own troops he was to lead against the French. A treaty looking toward this
had even been signed by the German Emperor, when Gustavus was assassinated.
He wasshot down by a black-cloaked masquer during the revels at one of the royal
balls (1792).
So many people might have found advantage in his death, that the true source
of the murder has never been definitely placed. Duke Charles, the brother of
the king, has often been accused of planning it. More probable culprits were
the Empress of Russia, to whom Gustavus had caused such anxiety; or the gov-
ernment of France, against which he was about to move; or his own nobility, whom
he had crushed. At any rate the assassin, no fanatic but a cool and calculating
murderer, entered the ballroom, shot the king, and escaped under shelter of a
group of accomplices disguised like himself. He was traced, captured, and exe-
cuted; but whatever confessions or accusations he may have uttered, have never
been revealed.
Gusta\'us IV, son of the murdered king, was still a boy; so a regency was
established under his uncle, Duke Charles. Charles made peace with ever>'lx)dy,
1 866 The Story of the Greatest- Nations
including the French. He reversed at every point the policy of his predecessor,
and even sought to wed the new king, his youthful charge, to a Russian princess.
Gustavus, a strange, silent lad, journeyed to Russia at his uncle's command, con-
sented to all the preliminaries of betrothal, but at the last moment when all were
awaiting him, failed to appear for the final ceremony. He had learned that his
bride was to be allowed to keep to her national faith; he insisted she must be-
come a Protestant like himself, and the negotiations were broken oflF.
This act of the youth was characteristic of the man, honest but fanatic, and
silent, almost sullen, in his obstinacy. He was declared of age at eighteen (1796),
and became the bitterest though by no means the most formidable opponent of the
rising star of Napoleon.
The French conqueror dominated all the western part of continental Europe,
but Gustavus opposed him at every turn. This policy lost Sweden her German
territories, which she only feebly defended; but as English fleets kept Napoleon
off the sea, Sweden was not otherwise incommoded until Russia and France be-
came allied in 1807. One reason for the alliance was that Russia could thereby
seize on Finland, which she promptly did.
For over a year the Swedes struggled bravely against their fate; but Finland
was conquered and their country invaded from the north. Denmark also declared
war against Sweden. All Europe seemed eager to share the spoils of her dis-
memberment. In this extremity King Gustavus continued obstinate and unyicli-
ing; he would hear no word of seeking peace with either France or Russia. Be-
lieving himself the chosen instrument of Heaven to overthrow Napoleon, he ex-
pected the divine favor to manifest itself at any moment. His people protested;
they declared him insane; at length they took matters into their own hands, and a
party of officers, upheld by almost universal approval, seized and imprisoned the
king. He was declared dethroned, and his uncle Charles was once more called to
rule the country, this time as King Charles XIII (1809-1818).
Charles, as he had once done before, sought peace at any price. It was not
aow so easy to obtain. Finland and also Bothnia were surrendered to Russia;
and Sweden was compelled to join Napoleon's *' Continental Alliance," which
forbade all trade with England. As the Swedes depended on England for some
of the actual necessities of life, this treaty strictly carried out would have meant
starvation. But except for its secret evasion by much smuggling, Sweden became
a submissive vassal state to France.
Her dependence caused what was, perhaps, the strangest of her many strange
experiences in choosing rulers. Her aged king was childless. He strove to pro-
pitiate his many enemies by selecting as his heir a Danish prince. This adopted
son died; and the Swedes, in their abject submission to Napoleon, appealed to the
conqueror to select whom he pleased, as their future sovereign. He failed to
g
s
^K
s
CHARLES XII AT NARVA
(Tha Uttia SwsdUh Army SwMps Ovar tha Untralnad Ru
After a drmcing by th» Gernian artill, Jaliui
AT this time Sweden held almost all the coastlaads Bur-
rounding the Baltic. Only Denmark and a very amail
strip of German coast had not succumbed to her. But
if she had really lost her military strength she could not
hope to retain these lands. A dozen neighbors were only too
eager to snatch them from her. A favorable chance seemed
offered them by the accession in 16!)7 of a new sovereign, a
boy of only fourteen, the cclebratetl Charles XII.
Hoping to take advantage of Charles' yonth, Denmark,
Poland, Saxony and Russia all at the same time seized upon
some of his outlying territories. Charle.s met his many foes
with the skill of a great general. Attacking Denmark first
with all his sti-ength. he besieged Copeidingen and forced the
country to a despairing peace. Then Charles transported
all hia troops suddenly to the Russian border, where he had
to face the newly ris^n geiiiiis of Peter the Great, Peter
had gathered an euormoiis army of Hn.s.sians to besiege ihe
Swedish seaport fortress of Xurva. Charles attacked him
with a little army, wot ono-fenth the iiumbei-s of the Russian
hordes. Yet such was the daring and -skill of the young
Swedish leader, such the confusion and fear of the Russians,
that the latter took to almost instant flight. The Swedes
hacked at the retreating mass and slew or made prisoners
at will. Narva drew the adtniring eyi-K of Kiirope once moT«
njinn Sweden and upon the now wiii'rioi' who had arisen there.
Scandinavia— Election of Bernadotte 1867
indicate his choice with clearness, seeming to lean now toward one candidate,
now toward another. The Swedes suggested that one of his own marshals might
be chosen, and this also he approved. The diet was already met; there was much
confusion and uncertainty as to the tyrant's real desires. Finally, thinking to
oblige him, the Swedes elected that one of his marshals whom probably he least of
all desired, whom he both feared and suspected, and with whom he was already
secretly engaged in quarrel. The man who thus, as by an accident, became crown
prince of Sweden, was Jean (John) Bernadotte, once a corporal in the French
army, but risen to be an able general, a shrewd statesman, and a polished man of
the world. He was ready enough to become a king, promptly accepted the prof-
fered position, and abandoned his own Catholic religion for the Swedish Lutheran
church (1810).
" Go then," said Napoleon to him ungraciously, "let us each fulfill our destiny."
Those destinies soon led them wide apart. Bernadotte, or Prince Charles
John, as he was christened and thereafter known, became at once, as by the
force of the man it was inevitable he should become, the real ruler and guiding
jx>wer of Sweden. He seemed to bow to Napoleon's wishes. He even de-
clared war against England. But secretly, seeing the necessities of his people,
he encouraged trade with the English, and the war was a sort of opera-bouffe
affair which could not long deceive the astute Napoleon. The Emperor in
axiger took away from Sweden all the German provinces which he had restored
to her. This punishment seeming insufficient, he notified both the English and
Russian governments that he no longer cared to what extent they might choose
to plunder Sweden.
" Napoleon has himself thrown down the gauntlet," said Prince Charles John,
now thoroughly a Swede, "I will take it up."
He made a secret treaty with Russia, whose Czar Alexander had also grown
restive under Napoleon's insolence. To Alexander in his great war with France,
the Swedish alliance, every alliance, was of vast importance. To secure the sup-
port of Prince Charles, he was even ready if necessary to restore Finland to Sweden.
The two monarchs however, effected a compromise; it was agreed between them,
that instead of Finland, the Swedes should be allowed to take possession of Nor-
way, which Denmark had grown too feeble to defend.
With both Russia and England thus on his side. Prince Charles felt his northern
peninsula safe against anything Napoleon could do, and openly defied his former
master. He aided Russia greatly in her terrible struggle of 181 2, and when Napo-
leon was crushed in the vast campaign of 1813 in Germany, it is said that the plan
of operations against the French really emanated from the brain of their former
marshal, Bernadotte. A.t all events, a Swedish army under Bernadotte took part
in the stupendous war of the nations; and at its close the allies confirmed the
THE SWEDES RECONQUER SCANIA
(Th« SoldUrs of Charles XII Recapture Malmo, the Moat Southam Port of
Sweden)
From a paint in p bjf the Swedinh urtiH, Otutav van C€d0r$trom
THE warlike career of Charles XII was like that of a
brilliant shootinjr star, blazinjr fiercely, but soon burn-
ing? itself out to nothinjr. Charles defeated Poland and
Saxony as he had defeated Denmark and Russia. He was for
a moment master of all the north; but he knew not where to
stop. Convinced by his easy victory at Narva that the
Russians could not fio:ht, he was resolved to make a complete
eon(|uest of their vast land. For this purpose he invaded
Russia in 1707 with by far the largest army Sweden ever
managed to send forth, sixty thousand men. Almost all this
splendid fighting force perished in the Russian wastes. The
great (-zar Peter wisely refused to giv<* them battle, but con-
stantly retreated and lured them on, until at last they were
utterly exliaustod. Then turning on the feeble remnant,
Peter crushed them in tin* battle of Pultowa. Charles escaped
almost alone and tied to Turkey and thence back home.
Wliile the Swedish king was thus wandering in exile, all
liis enemies again (•om]>ined against him. The Danes invaded
Sweden and seized tlu^i* lost ]»rovinoe of Scania or southern
Sweden. Hut the little rtMnnant of the Swedes whom Charles
had left at home rallied gallantly to defend their land. The
regions ])eyon(l the Baltie tliey eould not save; but they
fought back the invading Panes inch by inch, and finally
drove them \vh(>lly out of Scania. The last spot recovered
amid grim rejoicing was the south most seaport of Malmo.
X «;
> 1
Scandinavia — Spoliation of Denmark 1869
The royal family fled from fhcir Copenhagen palace, but the burghers and
ion folk prepared for resistance. British trooi)s were landed and encircled
doomed city ; Nelson's fleet bombarded it for three days. Then the command-
surrendered, and the unprepared Danish ships were given up to the piratical
.nts. England has lauded Nelson to' the skies as a hero, while she accuses
American Paul Jones of having been a pirate; and Americans, reading her
irature, have been too apt to accept her verdicts. Yet no just judge can hesi-
to say that Jones in his strength and solitude was the real hero, while Nelson
all the Knglish lords and lawyers who abetted their countrj''s assault on Den-
ky were pirates, though perhaps driven to their criminal courses by necessity.
The same necessities of the situation, no less than her fury against England,
forced Denmark into alliance with Napoleon. She declared war on Eng-
and afterward upon Sweden, which under Gustavus IV was England's ally.
ing to England's conmiand of the sea, communication between Denmark and
ilorway became increasingly difficult; and the plan of annexing Norway to Swe-
[ien, afterward arranged by Russia and Prince Charles John, was first suggested
petween England and Gustavus.
' At Napoleon's downfall Denmark, impoverished and ruined by England, was
jBie last of his allies to continue to uphold him. When called on by the ccnfeder-
ited nations to surrender Norway, she had no choice and consented, being given
bome small portions of German territory in exchange (1814).
The Norwegians themselves did not yield so easily. For over four centuries,
rvcr since the days of Queen Margaret, their land had been united with Denmark,
irhile wars with Sweden had been frequent. They refused to be handed over
lamely to the enemy. In a hastily convoked assembly, the people proudly pro-
claimed that since Denmark had cast them off and absolved them from their oaths
of allegiance, they were a free nation, and such they would remain. Norway was
Bedcred an independent kingdom. A form of constitutional government was
hastily drawn up; and the throne was proffered to Prince Christian, the Danish
ficegerent of the land (May 17, 1814). Christian, afterward King Christian VIII
rf Denmark, accepted the offer on the same day; indeed, he had been a leader in
Ehe whole movement.
Thus Prince Charles John, hurrying back to Sweden to receive the gratitude
rf his people for the splendid province he had won them, found himself confronted
hff a nation in arms. He promptly led an army of thirty thousand Swedes into
Norway to enforce the dubious rights he had acquired. The greater right, the
lidit of common folk to speak for themselves, was little regarded in those days.
Having given Norway to Prince Charles, the European Powers insisted that their
bandate should be carried out. England lent him the aid of her ships to blockade
be coast. Russian troops were made ready to join him if needed. The Nor
1870
The Story ot' the Greatest Nations
vegians could sec no faintest prospect of success, Stil! they fought \-alkiil
jod Prince Charles, knowing how little value for Sweden the province would I
if its submission were obtained by bloodshed, and if its obedience must consta
be compelled by force— Prince Charles proposed an armistice.
Speaking in the name of Sweden he offered to permit Norway to re
the extremely hberal constitution she had just established. All she need do
to accept the Swedish kings as her hereditary nionarchs and to make such si
changes in the constitution as the Norwegians themselves would agree \
needed to establish the union harmoniously. The Swedish assembly was to I
no authority over them.
These generous terms were accepted. King Christian resigned his brief aut
ity. Swedish commissioners came to confirm the form of the agreement,
before the end of the year Charles XIII, the old and feeble King of Swo
was proclaimed King of Norway also, with Prince Charles John as his succea
The French corporal, Bernadotte, had travelled far.
The next year (1815), a formal Act of Union was drawn up and the Swed
government sent a declaration to the Powers that the treaty in Sweden's fan
which they had promised to enforce, was formally abandoned; that Norway
Sweden were being united not under that treaty but of their own desire, "not
force of arms, but by free conviction."
t
BRINGING THE HERO HOME
(Tha Body of Charlu XII Broufht Homa by HI* D«p«lrinB
from (I painllng by the NirerlM arlUt, Otulav von Ced»tttrom
TO this (iespprately fighting remnant of his people
Charles XII en me home at last. He had escaped from
Turkey by a wild ride acrass all Europe through laoda
where every man was his foe. He rallied his people for
resistance against their many enemies. Of these, as always,
the Danes seemed the iimst dan<reroii.s. So when the Danes
were driven out of Sweden. Charles attacked them in Norway.
He was hesieginjr a foi'tress there when he was shot dead.
He had knelt to jieer over the edge of the Swedish defenses
air.iinst the foe. His otlieei-s thought him praying there, he
remained w) still. AVhen at length they ventured to arouse
him. they found him dead. So, suddenly, terminated his wild
career.
The soldiers of Chnrles Imd loved him devotedly, and they
bore liis body home in sorrow over the mountain passes that
separated Norway from tlieii- own hind. Ilis death ended
the war. S\\eden yielded most of her oversea territories to
her foes, and snnk hai-k I'xhausted into the position of a minor
jwwer. Her ptvple, however, have never blamed Charles XII
for plunging them into sueh ItMs and disaster; they feel that
he fought for their good, and with tivmcndous skill, against
overwhelming odds. They account him a creat national hero.
Other nations called him -tlie -Madiujui of the Xorth.'*
Chapter X
THE NINETEENTH CENTURY AND THE PRESENT DAY
[Sptcial Atitkeritiii : Bunten, "Constilut tonal Ktghis of tlic I
GuscL "Deiitnark and Gertnuiif since iSis" : Lsinf;. " J'tiirnnl uf
■■Niirwmy"; Wr«i«ll, "Visit to the Seat of Wat in the North, "]
J HE spoliation of Denmark, begun by England at the open-
ing of the nimtti-iHh ccntiirj' ami continued by Sweden
in i^^:4, was not to end lliL-re. Slowly after 1814 the
Danes recovered their prosperity. The unhappy king,
Frederick \1, who had sought to guide them through
that i>criod of tribulation, was led by the European
revolts of 1830 to promise his people constitutional
government; but this remained feeble and imperfect during his
reign and that of his successor, Christian VIII, In 1848 Frederick
VII succeeded to the crown, and amifl the successful revolutions
which were overturning thrones throughout tliat year, he retained
the confidence of his subjects by promising to grant them com-
plete self-government.
The immediate arrangement of constitutional details was de-
fayed by a more pR'Ssing matter. The people of Holstcin and also,
though in less degree, those of Schleswig had always been partly
German and not thoroughly in accord wilh the true Danes farther
north. The use of the German language was spreaiiing among the discontented,
and their leader, Duke Christian of Augustenburg, began to show signs of a desire
to reassert the ancient independence of ilol-^tein. Moreover there had been
a pledge made by the Danish king:i of old tliat IlolsteJn and Schleswig should
never be separated. Schleswig had belonged to Denmark for ages, and Holstein
1871
1872 The Story of the Greatest Nations
had for four centuries fully shared aU the sorrows and vicissitudes of the remainder
of the kingdom. How much, therefore, this sudden spirit of independence was
due to the fostering of German emissaries, it would be diflScult to say. Eariy in
1848 the State Assemblies both in Schleswig and Hoktein suddenly demanded
that their independence should be acknowledged by Denmark, as a preliminary
to their joining the German confederation.
Two years before, a Danish commission had examined carefully into all the
ancient documents bearing on the relation of these two provinces to the remainder
of the kingdom. This commission reported that Schleswig was a fully and law-
fully incorporated portion of the kingdom, lying as it did within the ancient wall
or Dane-work built a thousand years before. Holstein they declared in a more
dubious position. It was a fief belonging to the king and to his family by inheri-
tance, but not necessarily a part of the kingdom. King Frederick, therefore, as
far as Schleswig was concerned, refused absolutely to sanction its withdrawal from
Denmark; and, as the rebels began seizing fortresses, he hurried the Danish army
to check them. It was easy to expel them from Schleswig, where the people in
general were divided in their preferences; but in Holstein the rebels had a regular
army, which the Danes defeated.
Meanwhile however, the Duke of Augustenburg had appealed to Prussia for
aid. A large German army joined the insurgents and drove back the Danes in
urn. There was considerable diplomatic wrangling, and all Europe became
involved in the discussion. Several battles^ were fought between the Danes and
Germans in which the Danes gained a temporary advantage. Finally the insur-
gents were left to themselves, whereon the Danes defeated them at Idstedt and
elsewhere and reoccupied the rebellious provinces ^(1850).
King Frederick celebrated this, the last triumph of the Danish arms, by con-
ferring on his loyal people the self-government he had promised. A constitution
was framed, giving them absolute liberty and authority, and to this day there are
no people in Europe more wholly masters of themselves and their government
than the Danes. At the same time, a generil conference of the Powers was held
at London (1852), intended to settle the Scl.leswig- Holstein matter. The rights
of the Duke of Augustenburg were purchased from him by Denmark; and as
King Frederick had no children, it was arranged that the ultimate succession in
both Denmark and the provinces should pass to Prince Christian of Glucksburg.
who is King of Denmark in our own day and who was a distant relative of Kiaff
Frederick.
This arrangement neglected to consult the people of Holstein and Schleswig;
hence it not unnaturally failed to make a final settlement of the dispute. When
Frederick died in 1863, King Christian was not permitted to succeed in peace.
The son of the old Duke of Augustenburg asserted his claim as next in succession
.>
.*
■ *■* ■
DEATH OF GUSTAVUS III
(Th« R«£«n«rator of Exhausted Sw«d«n AsMMsinatad at a Maskad Ball)
From a painting by Edmund Brunuy, of Dusseldorf, in 1891
SO low did the power of Sweden sink during the eighteenth
century, that her very kings were selected by the foreign
powers, France or Russia, which had become dictators
over the north. The peasantry were impoverished by ex-
cessive taxation and sank to utter misery. In 1771, the
Swedes again secured a king born among themselves, though
of German descent. This was Gustavus III, who really tried
to restore the country to something of strength and pros-
perity. In doing this he made many enemies, the most marked
of these being his own nobles, who had thriven on the weak-
ness of the peasants and w^ho bitterly opposed the reforms
of Gustavus. He also ventured to quarrel with Boasiay
marched an army against St. Petersburg and almost captured
it. Then the French broke into their great Revolntion; and
Gustavus abandoned his other sueeesses and made peace with
every one else in order to be f I'ee to attack the French.
At this moment the bold king was slain. Gustavus had
aroused so many enemies that the world has never known
which of them it was that instigated his murder, though
Catharine the Great of Russia has been most suspected. At
any rate, Gustavus was shot in the back while attending a
masked ball in his own royal palace. Several men garbed
in disguises similar to that of the assassin gathered round
him and so enabled him to escape in the confusion. With
the fall of Gustavus expired Sweden's last chance of political
power.
X no
Scandinavia — Denmark's Recent Troubles 1873
to rule in Holstein. Austria and Prussia, despite their agreement in the
London conference, seized the opportunity of plundering Denmark. They
supported the duke and sent armies to take possession of Holstein. Another
war followed, brief, but desperately contested by the Danes against overwhelm-
ing numbers. Gradually the German armies conquered all the mainland of
Denmark; and the new king. Christian IX, was compelled to assent to a peace
by which not only Holstein but Schleswig and one other German district
which Denmark still possessed, were incorporated in the German confedera-
tion (1864). The claims of the Duke of Augustenburg, who had caused all
the trouble and battle and slaughter, were ignored entirely.
Denmark then enjoyed forty years of peace under King Christian. A
long but by no means bitter strife was carried on between the two houses of
the government, the lower house or "Folkething" objecting to all military
expenditures as being useless for so small a state. In 190 1 the elections turned
overwhelmingly in favor of the party of peace and economy, and as a result
of this the government was placed wholly in the hands of the economists.
King Christian died in 1906 at the advanced age of eighty-seven, and was
succeeded by his son, Frederick VIII. King Frederick died in his turn in
19 1 2. He fell dead while walking alone in the streets of the German city of
Hamburg. No one knew of his presence there, and his body was not recog-
nized until after it had l^een carried to the common morgue. He was suc-
ceeded by his eldest son, King Christian X. Frederick's second son had already
become King of Norway.
If we turn now to glance over the past century in Norway and Sweden, we
find that they have also had their difficulties to encounter though, more fortu-
nate than their southern neighbor, they have escaped the misery of actual war.
Their union, consummated in 181 5, caused constant friction between them.
This was inevitable, if we consider the misapprehension under which the
alliance began, the Swedes regarding Norway as a captured province to which
they had been extremely, perhaps mistakenly, lenient, the Norwegians feeling
themselves a free people who had deliberately accepted a king and some points
of government in common with their neighbors.
The friction was slight at first, for Bernadotte, or King Charles XIV as
he became in 1818, was a diplomat, clever at glossing over difficulties and
soothing wounded susceptibilities. Norway was allowed to use her own flag,
only it was not to be borne on distant oceans. She had her own army, her own
assembly or "Storthing,*' and Iier own constitution, far more liberal than that
of Sweden. Indeed, so democratic was the Norwegian government that, in
direct opposition to the king, it passed a law abolishing all orders of nobility,
saying the country was too poor to support them, and that the peasants were
the only real descendants of the ancient Norsemen.
1874 The Story of the Greatest Nations
As Bernadotte grew older he grew more conservative, more distrustful
of the progressive attitude of his people. He persecuted liberal writers and
openly expressed his fear of assassination. Thus, though he had once been
tremendously popular, and though he certainly did a vast deal of good in
restoring prosperity to both Sweden and Norway, he was disliked in his old
age, and his death was rather impatiently awaited. It came to him at the age
of eightv, and his popular and liberal son succeeded him as Oscar I (1844-
1859). '
So freely did King Oscar sympathize with his people, and so fully did he
grant all they desired of self-government, that the revolution which shook the
rest of Europe in 1848 found no echo in his domains. He broke away from
Russia, which had been his father's friend and chief support, and he relied
more and more upon western Europe to protect him against Russian aggres-
sion. His policy was followed by his eldest son, Charles XV (1859-1872),
and also by his other son, who next succeeded to the throne as Oscar II.
All three of these successive sovereigns, the descendants of Bernadotte,
did everything they could to bring their two refractory kingdoms into a closer
and more kindly union, but Norway always insisted on equality, Sweden on
superiority. At one time, the struggle centred round the question of the flag,
until the kings granted Norway as much right to her flag everywhere as
Sweden had to hers. Then the dispute turned upon the appointment of a
viceroy for Norway. She wanted none, since his presence implied that the
covereign's real home was in Sweden. The office was long left vacant and was
finally abolished (1873); but the great central question of equality did not
die with it. The persistent refusal of further concessions by the Swedish
government and king finally led the Norwegian people to extremes. A popu-
lar vote was taken and resulted in an overwhelming majority in favor of
dissolving the union. Thereupon the Norwegian Storthing formally pro-
claimed the union at an end and King Oscar dethroned (1905).
Every means was tried by the Swedes to prevent this division of the two
states. They even threatened war; but fortunately the world has reached a
stage of progress where physical compulsion hi such a case seems hardly a
possible resort. Norway sought a king in other lands. Her throne was
offered to Prince Christian, second son of Frederick, the King of Denmark;
and in November of 1905 Christian accepted the difficult position. With his
English wife. Princess Maud, a daughter of King Edward VII, he was royally
received in Norway. The new monarch adopted the name of Hakon VII, as
successor of that Hakon VI w^ho was the last active independent king of
Norway, the husband of the great Queen Margaret who established the union
of Kalmar. Christian's son and heir has been named Olaf, after the son of
Margaret and Hakon VI.
CORONATION OF KING CHRISTIAN IX
Olu Dmn» Rejal» Om th* E]ipKt«l Addttlan* tD T
From a pholograph of the timt
ENFEEBLED ami cxliHiisteJ Scandinavia made but a
poor showing during ihe upheavals of the Napoleonio
period. Sweden accepted as king Napoleon's marshal,
Bemadotte; and his descendants still bold the Swedish
throne. For aiding the other Powers in the overthrow of
Napoleon, his former master, Bemadotte was also giyen
Norway. This land was thus after centuries of unioD with
Denmark, handed over to Sweden without the consent of
its people. As for Denmark she had been so ill oaed hy
England during the Napoleonic wars, that in her resentment
she clung t« Napoleon to the end, and thus was deprived by
the' allies of much of her territory.
Denmark was still, however, to fight one more war. In
1863 a new king ascended her throne. Christian IX. There
had long been a dispute as to the ownership and allegiance
of the two half-Danish, half-Oemian duchies of Schleswig and
Holstein. All the powers of Europe had finally agreed that
these lands belonged to Christian and thai when he ascended
the Danish throne they should be formally incorporated with
Denmark. So the Danes hailed Christian's coronation with
particular joy. But Prussia and Au.stria both broke their
pledge in the matter and seized the disputed duchies. The
cheated Djines refused to yiekl and fought bitterly against all
the strength of tiennany; but tlicy were gradually beaten back
and compelled to surrender the disputed territory. Denmark
thus assiiiiii'il its prcscut am:
Scandinavia — Recent Progress toward Democracy 1875
King Oscar of Sweden at once sought to establish amicable relations with
the new sovereign family and expressed to them his hopes for their prosperous
reign. Thus the two sister nations began their separate careers in friendship,
yet there can be little doubt that King Oscar's private grief over the division
of his realm hastened his death, which occurred in December, 1907. He was
succeeded by his eldest son, as Gustavus V.
Thus it will be seen that there has been within the last few years a con-
siderable shifting of thrones in the north and all three of the Scandinavian
kingdoms have come under the control of men of a younger generation. A
still greater change has been the rapid progress in democracy. In Norway,
as we have seen, the peasantry have held control for a century past. In Den-
mark they seized control in the elections of a dozen years ago ; and when King
Christian X came to the throne in 19 12 he at once proclaimed more liberal
laws which were put in operation in 1913. Sweden has been slower but not
less positive in her democratic movement. The narrowly restricted Swedish
suffrage long gave the conservative upper classes overwhelming control of
the upper house of parliament. In 1909 there was a laborers' strike which
spread all over the country but failed because of government opi)osition. This
so angered the lower classes that they insisted on an extension of suffrage.
The elections of 191 1 made the lower house of parliament overwhelmingly
liberal; and this house waged against the upper house such a struggle as the
English House of Commons recently waged against the Lords. Indeed, the
English struggle was regarded by the Swedish liberals as a precedent. Labor
strikes were renewed and finally, under the lead of prime minister Staaff, the
people won a much broader suffrage, which now enal:)les them to control the
upper house of their parliament.
Almost the first act of the reconstructed parliament was to give Sweden
woman's suffrage (1912). In this measure of widest 'democracy Norway had
already shown the way, establishing woman's voting right in 1907, the second
year of their country's independence from Sweden. Denmark also established,
or rather, expanded woman's suffrage in 191 3. So that now tliroughout all
Scandinavia government rests upon the entire body of the people.
Thus in some ways the far north has becon.e tlie very freest part of Europe.
Her kings are indeed but the servants of the people : and her peoples are pledged
to democracy and to peace. Both Denmark and Norway have abandoned all
pretense of keeping up military and naval armaments for national defense;
and while the people of Sweden recently complimented their King Gustavus
by a present of money to build a new battleship, they have probably as little
thought as their neighbors of ever again attempting war.
THE VICTORY OF PEACE
iTIia Dmnlth Puunta Carrr Thair Lan<f> ElKtloiu and Eatabllsh ■ rMyla'a
7 l-s Iht dirrn.,!
■lilt, Wilhclm Zimmtr
SIXCK tliat liiKt lu.iu'I.ss litlli- war <if Denmark against
<!pitii,iiiy, nil Si-aiidiiiiivin lias knimn peace. Indeed, the
Scini'litiKviaii in-npli-s have tfrowii ton wise for war.
They have recoiriii/c<l tin; fact thsit the inferiority of their
iiiiiiibei'K and tlu' bat-rt'iini'ss of tlitiii- laiidH place them in a
hn[H>li-sH jiiMilioii as against llie riclier and more popnloas
lands to the siintliward. Tiny liavi- i-caliziKl also that earth
1)1)8 reaclicil a imirit nf civiliitiilion wlinv "thi- eimitent of the
SMVi-med" is ri'iilly ni'L-esMnry fur any srovcrnnient ; and on
that tliey Imse tln'ir hnpu that ullier nations will leave them
to ruli; tln'Kisrlvcs,
IK'niiiark was the lirKl: uT tlit> Si-anilinnvinn peoples to
assniiii' lranl<ly this attituik' of ahandonin^ military reaist^-
anct'. Foi- a loii<; liiin- Ilii> ujipiT classes in Denmark i^toined
partial control of elections, and their representatives con-
tinned foi-tifyinir eilii's and trainin'r rcfrinients to annd^ The
solid sense of the peasantry "j)posed these feeble pretenses of
rendiiieNK for war. At lenirth. in VM)\. the pensanbi managed
to carry the national clcetion.s by siioh larire niajuritiea that
they yaincd eoiiipletc conln.l of the -.'overnmcnt. They at
oiiee eunsed the einuilry ti> iibaniloii all iiiililary expenditure,
and devote its fnnds lo Ibe industrial devehipnicnt of peaceful
life. Xtirway and Kweden have since copied something of
this sensible anil pi'i><;i'essivi- attilnde.
Scandinavia— Chronology ♦ ^^77
uniting her three kingdoms. 1412 — Death of Margaret ; misrule of King Eric.
1442 — His deposition accomplished in all three kingdoms. 1448 — Karl
Knutsson elected king in Sweden, Christian I in Denmark and Norway.
1497 — Hans of Denmark and Norway conquers Sweden. 1500 — He is de-
feated by the Ditmarshers; rebellion of the Stures in Sweden. 1506 — Prince
Christian of Denmark crushes revolt in Norway. 1520 — Christian, now
King Christian H, reconquers Sweden; the "Bloodbath of Stockholm."
1522 — Rebellion drives Christian from Denmark. 1523 — Gustavus Vasa
rescues Sweden and ends the Union of Kalmar; he introduces Protestantism.
1536 — Protestantism established in Denmark and Norway by Christian HI.
1593 — Religious strife in Sweden ended by the "Upsala Resolutions.'' 161 1 —
Gustavus Adolphus becomes King of Sweden and wages successful wars
against Denmark, Russia and Poland. 1625 — Christian IV of Denmark takes
part in the great "Thirty Years* War" and is crushed. 1629 — The Swedish
king enters the war, and wins his famous victories. 1632 — He is slain at
Lutzen; the Swedes continue their successful strife in Germany. 1644 —
Christian IV wins the sea-fight of Colberg against the Swedes, but is forced
to a disastrous peace. 1658 — Charles X crosses the Danish straits on the ice
and captures Copenhagen; Scania and northern Norway added to Sweden;
her territory reaches its widest extent. 1660— Bloodless rebellion in Denmark
overthrows the nobility. 1700 — Russia, Denmark, Poland and Saxony attack
Sweden; Charles XII repels them all; defeats the Russians at Narva. 1709 —
He is overthrown by the Russians at Pultowa. 1718 — Death of Charles XII ;
Sweden sinks to a minor kingdom. 1772 — Gustavus III suppresses the
Swedish nobles and grants a constitution to his people. 1792 — Assassination
of Gustavus III. 1801 — The British attack Copenhaj:]^en and fight a drawn
battle with the Danish fleet. 1807 — Russia, supported by Napoleon, seizes
Finland; England seizes the Danish fleet. 1810 — Bernadotte adopted by the
Swedes as heir to their throne. 1814 — He aids in the overthrow of Napoleon,
and Norway is taken from Denmark and given to Sweden. 1848 — Schleswig
and Holstein declare independence • of Denmark. 1850 — They are finally
crushed at Idstedt. 1864 — Second Schleswig-Holstein War; the Germans aid
the rebellious duchies; the Danes are defeated and the duchies joined to Ger-
many. 1905 — Separation of Norway and Sweden ; Prince Christian of Den-
mark elected King of Norway as Hakon VII, 1907 — Norway establishes
woman suffrage; Oscar II of Sweden succeeded by Gustavus V. 191 1 —
Extension of the franchise in Sweden, and triumph of the liberal party.
1912 — Further extension of Swedish suffrage to women; sudden death of
King Frederick of Denmark and succession of Christian X. 1913 — Chris-
tian X establishes still more liberal laws and policy for Denmark.
.s^^^^»- .;'«r.j^-, >^i^|^
* * * -KINGS. 1047-^^'* Olaf Kyrre. "" ^^ VI.
■^^a^"^^"'- .3.9-^Sr ,;<;V.a>de.« Va
,3„_Mama«'- ,3,7-T* J^'^e^ria.
' 'S'3 ^^^.tian ni.
,_Oostavas Vasa-
^,^' .rViarles IX- _ ,^. ^,^
1C02 — ^'^^ , iv
0^0— Oscar U-
^--Frederick I-
'5'C-cUtianItt-
'^J Frederick IV.
^^^^Tchrisuan VI.
^"rrrederick V.
x863-ChnsU3
xQo6^r^«?^J
NORWAY SEPARATES FROM SWEDEN
IPanils of Votan In Chrlitiania Farorlnc th* Sapamtlsn)
From a photograph in Chritliania
THE union of Sweden and Norway, which had been
foi'ced upon Ihe iattpr state at the reorganization of
Europe in 1815. coDtiniied for almost a 06111017.
Always, however, the Norwegians viewed it with discontent.
They io»isted on being treated as in every way equal to the
Swedes, while the latter regarded the union as a conquest
and Norway as a dependent province. This led to constant
bickering: and though the Swedish kings did everything they
could to soothe Norway's injured pride, the friction increased
until at lonRth the Norwegians in l!t05 declared the Swedish
king deposed from their throne. The Swedes were almost
inclined to go to war; but fortiumtely tlio progress of all the
world's civilization toward sclf-povornnient prevented this
appeal to force. The Swedish parliament declared that if
Nor%va,v w-uuld hold a fnrTi1.1l vote on disunion and amajori^
desired It. the Swedes would accept the situalion.
So the Norwegians held their vote. All through the land
they hold processions such as the one here pictured, bearing
statues of N()rse freedom with the word Ja (Yes) to show
how tiiey mejnit to cast Ihcir liallots. The secession was
earried by a practieally unanimous vote, and Norway became
an independent slate.
THE
THE STORY OF
GREATEST NATIONS
MODERN NATIONS THE NETHERLANDS
Chapter I
THE EARLY DAYS
[Alti^ritUi—aiural .■ Dlvies, "The Ilinlui
l«y of ihe N«herUniii"; Koi^rH, "The Sioty i
Louis Bonapuie, " Hiilonod Documcnliof Holla
CKur, "Commenrariei"; Tfccilus, "GermBiiia."
J of HdIIbiicI and the Daich Nuion"; Gratun, "Ri»-
pf Holland": Young, "■ Hiilory of ihe Netherlands";
nd "; De Aniicis, " Holland and in Tcople " ^ttial;
" Annais"; Pliny, "Nalursl History,'']
O tale has ever been told more truly manellous than that of
the Netherlands. No people ever made greater sacri-
fices or achieved greater labors for the progress of human-
ity than the race inhabiting the "low countries." This
appropriate name is given to the flat mud-plains occu-
pied tti-day by the States of Holland and Belgium, and
formed by the deltas of the three rivers Rhine, Maas,
and Scheldt.
To the geologist the Low Coiuitries have a special interest, for
they are the latest formed of all the habitable lantis. There Ine
scientist can see our modem world in the making. In Roman days the |K)ssessiOD
of the district was still disputed betwe':n earth and ocean, and the Titanic striff
1879
i88o The Story of the Greatest Nations
has only lately been decided in earth's favor by the intervention of the pifSfOfi
man.
One can scarcely speak of the beginning of things in the Netherlands with-
out quoting Pliny, that shrewd old Roman commentator upon the history of
beasts and men. He says, "There the ocean pours in its flood twice every
day, and produces a perpetual imcertainty whether the country may be con-
sidered as a part of the continent or the sea. The wretched inhabitants take
refuge on the sand-hills or in Uttle huts, which they construct on the sum-
mits of lofty stakes, whose elevation is conformable to that of the highest
tides. When the sea rises, they appear like navigators; when it retires, they seem
as though they had been shipwrecked. They subsist on the fish left by the refluent
waters, and these fish they catch in nets formed of rushes or seaweed. Neither
tree nor shrub is visible on these shores. The drink of the people is rain water
which they preserve with great care; their fuel, a sort of turf, which they gather
and form with the hand. And yet," he concludes in a burst of arrogant amaze-
ment, "these unfortunate beings dare to complain against their fate, when they
fall under the power and are incorporated with the empire of Rome."
The same traits that Pliny saw, one sees to-day among the Dutch peasantry,
who still patiently toil to snatch from the sea a hard-won sustenance. And the
same resolute defiance that puzzled the haughty Roman has astounded many a
conqueror since. Age after age these dwellers on the bleak sand dunf^ have pre-
ferred liberty above comfort, above wealth, and even above life itself.
Caesar, writing about a century before Pliny, gives us our earliest gUmpse at
these Ncthcrlandcrs. He found the district occupied by tribes partly Gallic,
partly German, the fiercest fighters he had anywhere encountered. The southern,
more Gallic region having been longer snatched from the sea, was covered with
a vast, dense forest, amid whose twilight deeps he fought ferocious tribes. Among
them were the Ncrvii, who saw resistance hopeless yet refused all submission and
were well nigh exterminated; and the Belgae, whose name became a general term
for the entire region, whence our modem "Belgium."
Farther north Caesar found the Batavians or people of the bet-auw (good meadow
land) the group of islands formed by the diverging mouths of the Rhine. From
them Holland (hok-land, hollow-land) was long called the Batavian RepubUc*
These Batavians in their impenetrable swamps were never really mastered by the
Romans. They became allies of the great conquerors, famous as the dashing
*' Batavian cavalr}^*' From them was drawn the trusted body guard of Augustus^
the nucleus of the Praetorian guard.
Beyond the Rhine, the strange half-land, half-water region was occupied by the
Frisians, a wild Germanic race who, like the Batavians, became the dependent
*Soine ety.nologists derive the name from holt-land or woodland.
FINDING THE SOUTH POLE
(Th* Eiplar(r AmundHO ThUbi HI. Euct Po^Usn at tha PaU)
A draicmg from Atnnndttn't deirription, by Fr*d4ric d4 Ua»mtm
THE year 1912 brought Nofway once more before the
eyesi of the world; for it was a Norwegian, Captain
Koald Amundsen, who penetrated to the South Pole,
ihe last re):ii>n of our planet which had remained unknown.
There arc still hits of outline to be added to our maps of the
•"ar North ami South, There are still jungles in Africa and
South America and the Indies where the white man has not
penetrated. But the last large gap has been filled. What
Peary did for the North, Amundsen has done for the South.
The estremes of earth have been exploretl.
Five men, including Captain Amundsen, left thrir ship,
the Fi-aui, about 700 miles from the pole and traveled with
dog sledges over the ice field covering Robs Sea to within
about ;i(HI miles of their goal. Then they encountered a land
of tremendously high mountains, and climbed a glacier to
an altitude of over 10,000 feet. At this elevation, along the
.suunuit of u huge table-land, they traveled through most
bitterly cold aud stormy weather to the pole. They traveled
in December, which, it must be remembered, is midsummer
in the soulhern hemisphere, and gained the pole on Decem-
ber 14, IKll; though news of their success did not reach the
world till some months later. The.v speut three days at the
|)ole, making observations of the sun to assure themaelves of
their exact position.
The Netherlands — Roman Dominion 1881
allies but never the defeated slaves of Rome. Indeed, the Romans relied much
upon these friendly tribes in the attempt to conquer Germany. Batavia was thtf
gathering place of the Roman troops and ships against the German national hero,
Arminius. Frisian seamen manned their vessels, Frisian pilots guided them
through the indescribable chaos of sea and land. When the legions of Drusus
retreated before Arminius to the North Sea coast (A. D. 15) the boats which brought
him back to Batavia were largely Frisian. Two of his legions could not be taken
on shipboard and were forced to march along the treacherous coast. Tacitus,
the Roman historian, paints for us a weird picture of the place and of their peril.
"Vitellius [the commander] at first pursued his route without interruption,
having a dry shore, or the waves coming in gently. After a while, through the
force of the north wind and the equinoctial season, when the sea swells to its high-
est, his army was driven and tossed hither and thither. The country too was
flooded; sea, shore, fields, presented one aspect, nor could the treacherous quick-
sands be distinguished from solid ground or shallows from deep water Men were
swept away by the waves or sucked under by eddies; beasts of burden, baggage,
lifeless bodies, floated about and blocked their way. The companies were mingled
in confusion, now with the breast, now with the head only, above water, sometimes
losing their footing and parted from their comrades or drowned. The voice of
mutual encouragement availed not against the adverse force of the waves. There
was nothing to distinguish the brave from the coward, the prudent from the care-
less, forethought from chance; the same strong power swept ever}'thing before it.
At last Vitellius struggled out to higher ground and led his men up to it."
The name of the Roman general Drusus, or Germanicus as his countrymen
entitled him, is the first that can be distinctly associated with the development of
the Netherlands. Drusus built embankments or dykes to protect his armies from
these sudden tides, and he dug canals that his ships might pass from river to rivei
without venturing on the dangerous North Sea, for whose terrors Tacitus can not
find words, declaring it inhabited by strange monsters and frightful water birds.
Drusus also began the apportioning of the land west of the Rhine into regular
provinces. The Netherlands and the region just south of them were thereafter
known as Germania Inferior or Lower Germany. Cities sprang up, Cologne and
Nymwegen. Civilization progressed rapidly even among the slow Bata\nans^
who were ridiculed by the poet Martial for being as svupid as they were sturdy, as
foolish as fierce.
Our knowledge of these people and of their day closes abruptly with the last
fragment of Tacitus. He tells with full detail of the revolt of Germania Inferior
during the confusion caused by the fall of Nero (68 A. D.). Claudius Civilis, a
Batavian leader, whose services had made him a general under Rome, urged his
people to rebel. In a famous speech he cried out that the Romans no longer
i882 The Story of the Greatest Nations
treated the Batavians as allies, but ground them down as slaves. A prophetess
called Veleda, deeply revered by the Gennanic race, lent CivUis her aid. The
Belga= and other Gauls joined him, and the Roman legions were defeated and
wholly driven out of the region (69 A, D.). A year later, they returned. The
Gauls were subdued; Batavia was ravaged, but the Batavians and some Germans
from beyond the Rhine continued the stru^le, roused to frenzy by the impassioned
prophecies of Veleda. Civilis made a dctennined and skillful resistance, and
after several battles, a conference between him and the Roman general was ar-
ranged to take place upon a bridge over the river Yssel. The centre of the bridge
was purposely broken away; Civilis advanced upon the ruin from one shore, the
Roman from the other — and there our only manuscript of Tacitus breaks oflf and
leaves them standing. What became of Civihs and the prophetess, we do not
know.
Vaguely from other sources, we gather a general impression that the Batavians
thereafter were treated with greater wisdom and justice. They remained loyal
to the empire even in the days of its decline, and their race was almost extenni-
nated in the constant strife with the hordes of Franks, Bui^ndians, and other
Germans who in the fourth and fifth centuries surged over the feeble barrier of
the Rhine and swept into Gaul. In the confused maelstrom of seething, wander-
ing tribes that followed the downfall of Rome, the people of the low countries
must have become widely scattered over Gaul. The Frisians indeed, remained
upon their barren coasts, which no one coveted. But the Batavians disappeared
as a separate race, and their "good meadow land" became the chief home of the
Salian Franks.
These Salians gradually extended their power southward, over the ancient
land of the Bclga?, and finally Clovis, the leader of the Salian Franks, rose to be
the first king of France. Most of the Franks moved southward in the wake of
Clovis, and by degrees portions of the Frisians occupied the land thus left almost
vacant. Hence, roughly speaking we may say, that the Hollanders of to-day are
the descendants of the Frisians with some small admixture of Batavians and Franks.
The race, therefore, is almost wholly Teutonic, though with traces of the Roman
and the Gaul. The Belgians are Franks and ancient Bclgie with a fuller Roman
tint, half Teuton and half Gaul.
r-
■ V
I • '/
M;
■ .;
r .
THE NETHERLANDS
CTfaa MhUbtbI Fntrlnsu New Inaludwl In Hollarul and B»l«liun)
Prepared tpeeially for thit lerU* by Anttin Smith
THE re^OQ shown here upon our map is geolc^eally the
newest land in Europe. That is to say, it is the low
land formed by the delta of the Rhine and its neigh-
boring rivers. Long after the rest of Europe existed, the
Rhine, bearing down masses of earth from the mountains,
kept filling up the shallow seas around it^ mouth, and so
constructing Holland and northern Belgium. Henee in the
middle ages these regions were called the "low lands" or
Netherlands.
Ouly within the past century have they been apportioned
into the two countries of Holland and Belgium. Always
before that they had constituted a doubtful borderland be-
tween Prance and Germany, divided into many small prov-
inces. Some of these were at times independent; at others
they passed under German or French or oven Spanish do-
minion. Most important of tbost.' medieval provinces were
the great bishoprics of Lii-jrc and Utrecht, the duchy of Bra-
bant, and the counties of Flanders. Holland and Gelderland.
Even these distracted and divided Netherlands had at
least two periods of greatness, the fii-st that of the South, the
rich and powerful trading cities, (Jhent, Bruges and Liege, in
the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries; the second that of
the North, the heniie republic of Holland in the sixteenth
and seventeenth centuries.
Tm FLUtUH CtUIAOKU
Chapter II
THE FEUDAL AGE
E have seen how the ancient civilization of Rome laid its
hand upon the Netherlands, firmly upon the Batavians
of the Rhine mouth and the Belga; further south, but
very feebly in the north, the wild Frisian sea-land of
mystery and fear. Let us look now for the first faint
glimmerings by which these regions become visible in
a more modem light.
Batavia, the "good meadow" in the Delta of the
Rhine, remained for centuries a doubtful border district between Fris-
ians and Franks. The Frisians were heathen and wholly barbarian;
the Franks adopted Christianity and assimilated something of the cul-
ture of the Roman world they had overrun. One Frankish king,
Dagobert I, a descendant of Clovis, made a determined effort to
convince the Frisians of the force and reasonableness of Christian-
ity. He marched an army into their unprotected land and in 622
erscled a church at Utrecht. But the sand dunes and the mists and
marshes soon grew wearisome to Dagobert, so he marched home again.
The Frisians came to examine his church, and it disappeared. After that the
Frankish kings grew feeble, and the defense of the Batavian border was left to
the local chiefs. We find the Pepins, who were to supersede the family of Clovis
on the Frankish throne, first rising into prominence in this valiant strife. Both
of the royal races which supplied the early sovereigns to France and Germany
1883
1884 The Story of the Greatest Nations
had thus their origin in the Netheriands, which to-day belong to neither country.
Pepin of Landen, the earliest distinguishable ancestor of the mighty Charle-
magne, was lord of Brabant, the frontier land along the M^as River, which he
held against the Frisians. His grandson Pepin of Heristal, defeated Radbod,
King of the Frisians, and compelled him to diminish his title to that of Duke, as a
subject of the Franks. This Pepin was the real chief of the Franks, "Mayor of
the Palace" to a sluggard king. Yet despite Pepin's power his son, Charles Martel,
had to fight Radbod again, and later was obliged to defeat Radbod's son before
the resolute Frisians would yield him even a nominal sovereignty.
Charles Martel refounded Dagobert's vanished church at Utrecht and made
the Irish Saxon Willibrod, the first bishop of the northern Netherlands. Willi-
brod's labors extended from 692 to 739 and under him such small portion of the
Frisians as accepted the Frankish yoke, began the practice of a sort of hybrid
faith, mingling their ancient superstitions and barbarous rites with fragments of
the Christian ritual, little understood. Willibrod was followed in his episcopate
by Winfred or Boniface, an English Saxon, the celebrated converter of the Germans.
Boniface, dissatisfied with the debased and debasing worship of his Utrecht fiock,
insisted upon fuller conformity with the teachings of the Church, and met a mar-
tyr's death, welcoming his slayers with open arms (775).
The first real conqueror of the Frisians was Charlemagne himself. He was
probably bom in one of his family's ancestral homes in Belgium near Liege, and
gained his earliest warlike training in strife with these wild pagans of the marsh-
land. During his first Saxon wars, the Frisians aided their Saxon kinsmen; but
by degrees the mingled kindness and stenmess of Charlemagne won them to his
side. Half of them, however, were slain before this result was achieved, or they
were transported by the resolute monarch to other portions of his domains.
By wisdom rather than by force Charlemagne attached the remainder to his
empire. They were confirmed in the proud title by which they called themselves,
"the Free Frisians." Thus reassured, they were induced to look with some favor
upon Christianity, hitherto sternly rejected as being a mark of submission to the
Franks. Charlemagne gave them a written constitution guaranteeing their ancient
laws. "The Frisians" so runs the wording, probably far older than the date
when it was written down, "shall be free so long as the wind blows out of the
clouds and the world stands."
U we attempt to picture the Netherlands at the time they were thus incorporated
into the empire of Charlemagne, that is at the opening of the ninth century, we
see in the North a land still imformed, where churches were built on artificial
hills^ and bishops went about in boats, where a few rude dykes held back the waters
in some places, and a few rude canals, sadly decayed since Roman days, partly
regulated the rivers' overflow. Utrecht or Trajectum was the only town of note,
VBLEDA ROUSES THE NETHERLANDS
(A Prsphatau Stira th* Natharlkrwhr* ta Ra«ilt AoIm* Rama)
From a painting by the Frtnck artuf, Oeorgtt Mortau, of Tourt
OLDEST of all the known people of the Netherlands
were the Frisians, from whom the province of Fries-
land is still named. Way back in Roman days tliese
Frisians dwelt in this strange region. It was not then de-
fended from the sea by dykes ; the waters of the ocean awept
at will over the low sand banks, and they were desolate, un-
touched by vegetation or by animal life. Only man ventured
here. The Frisians built their huts on piles raised above
the waters, and subsisted chiefly upon fish. Rome never con-
quered them ; she could not reach them. So she made a sort
of friendly alliance with them, promising them eternal free-
dom. They were known as "the free Frisians."
When Rome had conquered all France and part of Ger-
many she became more tyrannical in her attitude toward the
Netherland people, and these began a great revolt under a
leader whom the Romans called Civilis. He had risen to be
a general in Rome's service. But now he and his countrymen
were roused by a prophetess called Veleda, who promised
them renewed freedom. Civilis and his followers, now half-
trained to Roman methods of warfare, defeated the Romans
more than once and finally made peace with them, apparently
on terms which re-established their liberty. Thus we find the
Netherlands asserting from the very bejrinning a sturdy in-
dependence.
The Netherlands— Ravages of the Northmen 1885
though Charlemagne built a palace at Nymwegen. The people, recently converted,
were still rude and barbarous. Yet thcv cultivated farms, were sole masters of
the art of weaving a certain much admired cloth, and were already noted as shrewd
and venturesome traders, driving their cattle and horses for sale as [far as Paris.
They were sailors, too, and sought the markets of England as far north as York.
In the south, civilization rose much higher. There were several important
cities including not only Liege, the Carlovingian home, but also Ghent and Bruges,
Brussels and Antwerp. One chronicler speaks of the land as **rich" Brabant,
** overflowing with milk and honey." The dykes and canals were extensive and
well protected, whole communities sharing amicably in their carefully regulated
benefits. In Flanders there were even **guilds," that is, associations, among citizens
pledging the members to mutual support in case of disaster. These took on a
political tone of opposition to government oppression, and in consequence they
were suppressed by Charlemagne and his successors. Unfortunately the full
details and purposes of these ancient associations have not been handed down to
us, but the guilds evidently stand at the basis not only of the city development of
the Middle Ages, but also of modern trade unionism.
Thus, whether we look to the "guilds" in Flanders, or to the written consti-
tution of the "Free Frisians," we find that, in the Netherlands, the ancient liberty
erf the savage was never wholly lost, never wholly forgotten. It struggled on
against all the tyranny of the feudal ages, and brought forth the earliest flower of
liberty in modem times.
The bright promise of Charlemagne's reign faded, as we know, in every portion
of his broad empire. His son and grandsons exhausted in civil war the lives and
resources of their people. The Northmen plundered the coasts almost with impunity.
Then ensued a period of direst tragedy. The North Sea coast was of all lands
the most exposed to the Norse raids, and it was harried without mercy.
Utrecht, the bishop's city, was plundered as early as 834. Soon all Friesland lay
wholly in the invaders' power. They came there year after year, and established
permanent camps to avoid the necessity of returning home between expeditions.
Ghent was seized by them in 851. They learned to use horses instead of ships,
and rode unopposed over all the Netherlands.
What portion of the original inhabitants remained in the conquered lands, it
would be difficult to say. Those who survived were ruled by Norse dukes, Heriold,
Roruk, and Godfrey. The last named is even called "King of Friesland." He
extended his ravages beyond Cologne, and his men stabled their horses in its
cathedral built by Charlemagne. The feeble Carlovingian Emperor made God-
frey duke of the regions he had plundered (882); the inhabitants were little better
than his slaves. During his reign every **free Frisian" was compelled to go about
with a halter looped around his neck.
FLIGHT OF THE CLERGY FROM UTRECHT
(Tha Biahop sf Utracht, tha Laat Champlsn «( CiiiUntlon In th* NMbarUnda
Flaaa from tha Narthman)
From a paintiag bg B. Chigol
IN the days of Rome's downfall, t)ie Netherlands suffered
more perhaps than any other part of Europe from the
ravage and destruction of those "Dark Ages" of har-
barity and ignorance. The land beeame almost depopulated,
Charlemagne did what he could for its desolate wastes, re-
pairing the Roman canals and sea walls and building his
capital of Aix or Aachen close to the borders of Belgium, so
that he might beat back the barbarians of the north. This
great ruler even refounded cities in the Netherlands and
established the bishopric of Utrecht far out among the sand
dunes to be the center and stronghold of civilization there.
But after Charlemagne's death came the Northmen, the
dreaded sea-iovei's of Scandinavia. These pirates found the
Netherlands the first shore they ericountereil in sailing south-
ward; so they plundered il a^ain and asrain, until it was once
more a desert. Even the sturdy and devoted bishops of
Utrecht gave up at last, and tied, as our picture shows them,
with all their t-hiirchly treasures, to more sheltered regions.
They lefl their stronghold i*mply in its useless solitude.
The Netherlands— Early Counts of Holland 1887
his glory abroad, and leaving Flanders to much internal disaster and dvil war.
Farther north the Counts of Holland emerge from obscurity in 992, when a
certain Count Dirk of Kennemerland, having shown himself a gallant warrior
against the Northmen, was by Charles the Simple intrusted with the defense of
the entire region around him and given the title of Dirk I of Holland. He was
followed by a long line known among their people as Dirk (Dietrich, Theodoric)
or Floris (Florence), several of whom rose- to prominence and extended their sway
over Fiiesland and Zealand, as well as over their own smaller province among the
Rhine morasses to which the name Holland was at first confined.
These Coimts were at constant war with their rivals, the Bishops of Utrecht.
The German Emperors, dreading the ever increasing influence of the Holland
Counts over the wild Frisians, sought to weaken the rebellious noblemen by con-
ferring their fiefs upon the more loyal Bishops. But not even to the Emperor would
the sturdy Dirks yield an inch of territory. So between Utrecht and Holland there
was constant strife. One war specially memorable began in 1058, when Holland
was invaded by the warlike Bishop William I, at the head of his own troops, a
large nimiber of neighboring allies and also a great force sent in the name of the
child Emperor, Henry IV. Count Floris I of Holland, met the overwhelming
masses of his enemies at Dordrecht, entrapped their cavalry in pits and then scat-
tered their infantry. The chronicles of the time with their usual prodigality of
numbers, assert that sixty thousand of the allied troops were slain.
Undiscouraged by the disaster. Bishop William, the mightiest prelate of his
age, raised a second army of invasion. This also Floris repelled; but exhausted
by his personal efforts in the battle, he, rather imprudently it would seem, lay down
beneath a tree to sleep. There he was found by some of the enemy who, having
killed him, attacked and slew the larger portion of his men (1060).
The defeat seemed to portend the total extinction of the county of Holland;
for Dirk, the little son of Floris, was but a child. Bishop William took possession
of the helpless land; whereupon the desperate widow of Floris sought aid from
the Flemings and married Robert, a son of their great Count Baldwin V. Robert
fought so valiantly for Holland that the Emperor, Bishop William's protector,
sent to the scene an Imperial army under Godfrey the Hunchback, Duke of Lor-
raine (1071). Robert was driven back upon the coast lands, forced to take refuge
among the marshes and the dunes. "Count of the waters," he is dubbed by the
jesting chroniclers.
For a time Godfrey and Bishop William held all Holland and Friesland in
their hands. This, however, was the period of the first great strife between Em-
peror and Pope. The young Emperor Henry IV had not yet bowed to Pope
Gr^pry at Canossa; instead he was upheld and encouraged in his defiance of
the Papal power by both Duke Godfrey and Bishop William, the two most powerful
1 888 The Story of the Greatest Nations
of his subjects. So long as they lived the Emperor was triumphant. It was William
who led the council of Worms in passing the resolution to depose the "perfidious
monk on the papal throne;" and from his great cathedral at Utrecht, William
preached to the Imperial court a most fiery sermon against the Pope. On the
very day of his preaching, according to the story, lightning blasted his cathedral.
That same year he died (1076); Godfrey of Lorraine perished also, assassinated
in the city of Delft, which he himself had built to be the capital of his new pos-
sessions in Holland. The sudden death of these, the two strongest supporters
of the Emperor, was very generally regarded as an evidence of the wickedness
of upholding him against the Pope.
In the civil war that broke out everywhere against Henry, little Dirk of Holland
recovered his possessions, the more readily since his step-father Robert had now
become Coimt of Flanders, and the new Duke of Lorraine was that Godfrey
of Bouillon who headed the first Crusade.
Crusading was much in favor among the Netherland barons, and perhaps it was
a fortunate thing for the exhausted provinces that the military ardor of their rulers
thus foimd vent at a distance rather than at home. The wars among the various lord-
ships became less frequent and less extravagant. We hear of no more indecisive bat-
tles with "sixty thousand slain;" though perhaps this is only because we approach
nearer days and more exact mathematics. The strife of Emperors and Popes contin-
ued. In 1248, the Pope having declared the Emperor Frederick II deposed, Count
William II of Holland was chosen as the Emperor's successor and solemnly inaugu-
rated. Soon however, he was compelled to hurry home to suppress a formidable re-
volt among the Frisians. It was winter, and the marshmen lured him onward over
the frozen shallows until he and his heavily armored horse broke through the ice.
He could neither fight nor flee, and the peasants slew him in triumph (1256).
Holland was thus plunged again into turmoil; and indeed all Germany suf-
fered for twenty years from "the Great Interregnum," during which there was
no Emperor, and every locality, every little town, had to depend upon itself for
defense against the swarms of robber bands which revelled in the universal anarchy.
In the tumult and disaster Friesland almost disappears from our view, but we
know that in 1282, a sudden great inrushing of the waters swept away the pro-
tecting sand dunes, and the ocean flooded much of the ancient land. The broad
"Zuyder Zee" or sea was formed where before had been only a lake. Towns
and villages were destroyed, and fifteen thousand people drowned despite boats
and dykes and every other aid. The whole face of the land was changed.
Friesland was cut in two. What little was left of the province south of the
Zuyder Zee was easily annexed by Holland. The isolated northern portion be-
came practically independent, a republic of the poor, a dangerous far-oflF wilder-
ness which no army would dare to penetrate, where no noble ¥^uld care to live.
THE RISE OF THE FLEMISH CITIES
L with tha CUi
A. llemttbteq
E Baldwin VI of Flondirs Maki
PlsdElnc Thi
From <i j'ai„li«;i f.y llie Fl.
OF till' ci'iiMincs (liiriiiji which Ihe Nctlierlands were held
hy the Northincii ho kimw vci-y little. (Jrmlually thiB
region sr-ttJi-il into n I'lu-iii of jfixliil civilizntion, as did
the re*t of Kiiro[n'. Whou iiuiiiii we haw any rpMi-d of these
Noi-oiy sutl'oniis; iii'i)|ilu «!■ iin- not i-vi-ii sniv hs to what extent
thoy am still Fnsiiins. lU^ci'iuljinls of tin; ancient natives, or
Iiow far wt' .slionjii ii-iranl llicm ax Northnii'ii ur perhaps as a
itcw ini-nt-Nioii nf t<^-niil:s arid (icrniiins. At all events we
(uiil tlu'tn hiiildini; citii-s. each little i^oniinunity maintaining
itsi-lf by loi-w afraiiisl tin- iiUu-rn.
Fhnnlccs wtanils out i-arli-st as an inipurtant "county,"
rnJcd liy ii srrii-s of stnnly t-hii^naius nanuvl Baldwin. But
Ih.'si- Miildwins \vi>iv luil ahsohiti- niJiTs, I'or as early as at
]i';;s( llii' y.'in- 1('70 we find a dui'nirii'nl hy which one of them,
Cfiiiiit lijildwiii Vr. L'rarits a charter tif lilHTtics to the cities
williiiL !iis doiriiiin. It is In tills i-h;irici- that all the sOHthern
NrihnlMiids Idiiks \m:k jis the li.-u'iiiiiinfr of its civic liberties.
("oniil Maldwin swoiv \n liis asH-inlile.l siili.jcfts that he would
ii.jI altiMiipl In arv/.i- llii'ir Inwtis willi his soldiei-s or to exact
Mioiu'vs I'rniii lliciii : ;iiliI in I'cliiMi Ilie liurf-hcrs swore to 8Up-
jii>i-l liiiii in wnr with Imlh nieti and nioin-y against all invaders
of the linid.
Chapter III
RISE OF THE GREAT CITIES
'- Oft^N to the dose of the thirteenth century, wc can
extract from the records of the Netherlands Httle
except the titles of its nobles and the dreary tale
of their endless, profitless wars waged for a little
territory, a little honor more or less. But by the
year 1300, the Low Country cities had grown
greater than their lonls. In this land and in this
alone of all Europe, do the citizens stand out dur-
ing the last two centuries of the Middle Ages, as holding a more
prominent place than cither the nobility or kings.
It is worth noting that there had never been any real monarcbs
of tlic low countries. The Romans accepted the Batavians as allies.
Even Ciiarlemagne left the "Free Frisians" their own laws. The
shadowy Norse king endured but for a moment. France never
claimed supremacy except over part of Flanders; and the German
Emperors were constrained to exercise their feeble authority over
the Netherlands by deputy through its own local rulers, Bishops
of Utrecht or Liege, or Dukes of Lorraine. The Counts of Flanders or of Holland
might indeed be regarded as independent kings of their domains, especially after
the "Great Interregnum," during which young Dirk of Holland completely humbled
Utrecht. Both of these semi-regal houses however, waned in power, while the cities
oftheland grewstrongand,recognizingthcirstrengthat last, asserted theirsupremacy.
How was it that these cities had so advanced in wealth, in population and in-
1889
1890 The Story of the Gaeatest Nations
telligence ? The story is not clear to read, though much study has been expended
on it and argument has waxed hot. Dimly we know that the great Flemish muni-
cipalities, Ghent and Bruges, came down from Roman times and were never wholly
destroyed. Utrecht and Liege grew up as bishop's courts, then turned upon their
feeble masters. The other more northern cities were of later growth. .Wealth
came to all of them through industry and trade. The Flemings were the doth
weavers of Europe; the towns of Holland held control of the fisheries at a time
when all Catholic Europe dined on fish during the long periods of abstinence
commanded by the Church. The Nctherlanders, like the Frisians of old, were
bold travellers by both land and sea, shrewd traflSckers, and sturdy holders of their
own. They became the merchants of Europe. As to their liberties, these had
been granted inch after inch by generations of Dutch and Flemish counts who,
cautious bargainers themselves, had seen that there was much more to be gained
by a steady income of taxation from prosperous merchants than could be secured
by a single complete plundering, which would leave the victims without means
to continue their profitable toil. So the Dirks and Baldwins, the Godfreys of
Lorraine and the Johns of Brabant had encouraged trade.
Various Netherland cities seem to have had charters or some sort of grant
which made them partly self-governing, as early as 1060. Belgium celebrates
its civic independence as originating in a document conferred on the municipalities
of Flanders by Baldwin VI. Then comes a more definite event. In 11 27, when
Charles the Good was Count of Flanders, there came a famine in Bruges. A
few of the leading merchants and lesser nobles gathered all the grain into their
barns and held it for famme prices. Despite their protests, Charles ordered the
granaries thrown open to the people. A conspiracy was formed against him by
the disappointed speculators, and he was slain. Then the people rose in their
fury against the murderers, besieged them in their castles and mansions and killed
them all, those who were captured being tortured to death.
Following on this grim tragedy and grim reprisal, the men of Bruges and
other places took oath to one another (1128) that they would acknowledge no prince
who did not rule the country honestly and well. From this period we may fairly
date the beginning of the supremacy of the cities or, as they and their people are
sometimes called, the communes. These did not yet assert independence, but
they began to recognize their own strength, to trust in themselves. Their era of
wealth and splendor also commenced. A writer of the times asserts that in 1184,
Ghent sent twenty thousand armed men to aid the King of France, and Bruges
sent many thousand more. We need not accept the numbers as exact, but it is
certain that at this time Flanders held over forty cities, Brabant had twelve, Hain-
ault seven, Liege six. By the year 1240, the preponderance of the cities was so
established that Count Guy of Flanders was aided in his government by an '*ad-
#.
•=4-
■»^- ■'■
BALDWIN OF THE AXE
(Count Bmldwin VII of FUndan Punl*h« tlu Rsbbn NsUm VHh DMtb)
From a pamting by the PUmith arlitt, Jottpk Lift
STRONG in the allegiance of their city folk, the later
Counts Baldwin of Planiierx became among the most
powerful nobles of tbeir time. The successor of Bold-
win VI, hia son Baldwin VII, became known as Baldwin of
the Axe, because of his customary and effective use of that
weapon. This ruler proclaimed himself openly as the cham-
pion of the common folk. Flanders was infested, as was all
weslern Europe, by robber nobles who plundered the peas-
antry at will. Baldwin besieged one after another of the
castles of these haughty plunderers: and when he captnred
them, he summoned against them as witnesses the victims of
tbeir robberies. This confronting of nobles and peasants
deeply impressed all the people of the time, especially as
Count Baldwin acted as both judge and jury, and often as
executioner as well. A nobleman convicted of wrong was
put to death upon tlie spot, sometimes by the Count's axe,
sometimes by torture.
Thus Flauders became a safe laud to live in, and a pros-
perous one, escaping the tyranny of the aristocracy at an
earlier periotl than an,v of the neighboring regions. Aided
by this frewlom. its cities grew strong, and its rulers also.
As early as the twelfth eentury the Flemings were accoanted
the wealthiest people and their Counts the strongest rulers
iu all Europe.
The Netherlands— The Flemish Cities . 1891
vjsoiy council," consisting of the head magistrates of the five principal communes.
In the north the cities were slower of development. In all of what we now
^^^ Holland, there were at the close of the twelfth century not more than seven or
c'ght chartered cities, and it was not until 1296, that the northern towns imitated
"^^ir neighbors of t*he south by combining in opposition to the nobles. The oc-
<^^ion was similar to that which had roused the Flemings against the murderers
^^ Charles the Good. Floris V of Holland had been shifting his alliance between
*^^gland and France. Moreover, his nobles were jealous of his great popularity
^^ong the common people; they distrusted his designs. So a dark conspiracy
^as formed, which certainly involved the Kingof England, and perhaps other foreign
rulers as well, though all the secret windings of the treachery may never be un-
veiled. Floris was decoyed to Utrecht and there separated from his personal
attendants during a hawking party. Deep in the woodlands, he was seized by
some of his own nobles, who until the last moment had remained fawning on him
with false pledges. Bound hand and foot, he was hurried to the seashore to be
sent to England. But news of the seizure had become noised abroad. All along
the coasts, the people rose in arms for his rescue; so that the conspirators, unable
to escape with their victim by sea, strove to carry him off inland. Again they
found themselves encircled by the infuriated people; and in desperation they
slew their dangerous prisoner. His sad story has become one of the chief themes
of the poetic literature of Holland.
The murder did not save the conspiring nobles. So devotedly had Floris been
loved, that the people everywhere swore to avenge his death. The false lords
who were proved to have been in the plot were executed; others fled in terror from
Holland; and the enfeebled remainder lost much of their authority. The burghers
and even the country peasants assumed some voice in governing the land. The
line of Floris died out with his weak son John, and. there was much war both at
home and with the Flemings. Finally whatever dignity still remained attached
to the vacant throne of Holland, passed through the female line to the Counts of
Hainault.
Meanwhile, the power and splendor of the Flemish cities were reaching to
their fullest assertion. Ever since the early days of the partition of Lothair's
kingdom (843), the Flemish counts had vaguely acknowledged the King of France
as their overlord. But his supremacy remained an idle name until the great battle
of Bouvines in 1 204. In this decisive contest, the German Emperor Otho, backed
by all the forces of the Netherlands, was defeated by the French. Thereafter
the Flemings were left without German help, and could scarcely maintain their
independent stand alone. The French king asserted more- and more authority
over them, until the Flemish Counts retained but a shadow of their ancient greatness.
In 1297, Count Guy rebelled against King Philip the Fair, the shrewdest,
£ paid I
1892 The Story of the Greatest Nations
;raftiest, strongest monarch of his time. After four years of wrangling,
leposed and imprisoned the count, declared Flanders confiscated, and i
.hrough his own officials. With his haughty queen, Joan of Navarre, he
visit to the great cities there, Lille and Ghent and Bruges. The royal pair were
astounded. "I thought I was the only queen here," said Joan, "but I find a thou-
sand who can dress as richly as I."
From that time, both Philip and she seemed to set their evil hearts on ruining
Flanders, on bringing ils proud citizens to the same hideous yoke of slavery that
ground French peasants in the dust. The charters and privileges of the cities
were ignored; magistrates who protested were cast into prison; taxes were heaped
upon taxes; French troops insulted the citizens; French officials laughed at them.
In 1302, rebellion flared up ever\'whcre. The lower classes of Bruges took
the first step, as ihty had in the days of Charles the Good. Issuing suddenly from
their city, they attacked and slew the French in the forts around. Then, returning
secretly to Bruges by night, they fell upon the Frenchmen theR', in the early dawn-
ing. The foreigners were caught wholly unprepared, while the townfolk had
made thorough plans for the assaiJt. Some portion of each French soldier's
equipment had been stolen by his hosts; chains were stretched across the streets
to prevent a charge. Even the women took part in the fray, tossing the hated
Frenchmen out of the windows, or helping to drag them to the shambles where
they were slaughtered like cattle. The "Bruges matins" as it is called, was a mas-
sacre rather than a fight.
The old Flemish standard was at once unfurled everywhere in the province.
Only Lille and G'.ient, whose strong garrisons were now upon their guard, re-
mained in possession of the French. King Philip hastened to raise a powerful
army. All the nobles of his kingdom marched against Bruges. Most of the
nobility of Flanders, of Brabant, and of Hainault Joined them. Only a few Flemish
lords cast in their lot with the commons.
The opposing forces met at Courtrai in the noted "Battle of the Spurs" (1302).
The Flemings are said to have numbered sixty thousand, the French still
more. So confident were the latter of success that we are told they brought with
them casks of ropes to hang every rebel who had slain a Frenchman Queen
Joan, with the chivalry of the time, had sent her soldiers a message that when they
were killing the Flemish pigs they must not overlook the Flemish
But the French knights quarrelled amongst themselves; they sneered at tl
Nethcrland allies; and, the spirit of rivalry being thus aroused in many breasi
each faction charged forward blindly to outdo the other. Thus in tumultuous
rush they came upon the Brugeois — or rather they came upon a ditch, a small
canal that lay as an unseen trap in front of the burgher army. Into this ditcl
plunged the chivalry of France, so that the burghers bad litlle more to do
4
BALDWIN IX IN CONSTANTINOPLE
fThs N.«b»tl.nderi Take ■ Leading Port In Ih. Ctji
> Croon*
Front a painting bg the
'neh arliMt, Louw Oatlait
WHEN the crusadiug enthusiasm swept nver Enrope in
Ihc twelfth century, the Nether! a oilers vdth their in-
leiiinl streiigth «uil peace were specially seciin- at
home and hence specially reatly to venture after glory aud
relig:'ius strife abroad. Giwlfrey of Bimillon, tJie celebrated
leader of the Fii-st Crusade, came from this reaiim. So did
many other champions of the Cross. In tbir Crusade eoui-
monly called the Fourth, Baldwin IX of Flanders was the
leader.
When Baldwin and his army approached Conatantinople
they found that its Emperor, the ruler of the remnant of the
ancient Roman Empire of the East., was bitterly opposed In
them. So the crusaders stormed Constantinople, captHred it,
and placed Baldwin on its throne as Emperor of the East,
Thus a descendant of ancient Frisians and wandering North-
men held the throne of the Ciesars.
In that position, regarding himself as the military de-
fender of Christianity against the hordes of Asia". Baldiriii
lived and died. The people of Flanders were left more and
more to their own government. Thus they grew, ever
stronger, until their cities of Bruges and Ghent were the moat
Celebrat«d in Europe, the largest, the wealthiest and the most
independent.
The Netherlands— War with France 1893
beat their enemies' brains out as the victims lay helpless before them. The
French were utteiiy defeated. Twenty thousand were slain. Of gilded spurs,
emblems of highest rank, seven hundred, or according to some accounts, four
thousand were gathered from the battle field. The nobi'ity of France was almost
exterminated in that fatal charge.
King Philip hastened to raise fresh forces. The Flemings, drunk with pride
and self-confidence, began a war of invasion against Holland; in which they were
defeated and their fleet destroyed. The cities quarrelled among themselves.
Fresh battles, less decisive than Courtrai, were fought against the French. Amid
all these difficulties the resolution of the sturdy merchants seemed only to increase.
Their cities were practically emptied of men, the whole nation took the field.
King Phibp in despair cried out that it seemed to rain Flemings; and he made peace
with them, granting almost all they asked.
From this time forward, the Flemish counts become practically exiles from
their own land, mere servants of the French king, warring against the Flemish
cities with his aid. United, the cities might have defied all foes, but they were
generally quarrelling among themselves. Their merchants were rivals for the
trade of Europe, and the disasters of one metropolis meant the aggrandizement
of others. Only some common danger, imminent and obvious, could ever unite
them for a moment.
Ghent was aristocratic in its government and hence was usually to be found
in alliance with its count; Bruges was democratic and relied for support upon the
analler towns and country folk. Lille soon became separated from the rest of
Flanders, fell into the power of the French King, and was united permanently
to France. In 1328, twelve thousand Brugeois were defeated at Cassel by their
Count Louis and his Frenchmen, the Flemings standing up heroically against
their foes and fighting till the last man fell. After that, Bruges sued for peace,
and Ghent became the chief city of the Netherlands.
In 1335, began the long war, the Hundred Years' War between France and
England. This had a vast influence upon the fortunes of the Netherlands. In
the first place, England was at that time the chief sheep- raising country; and
Flanders and the other Belgic provinces, the cloth makers of Europe, imported
En^ish wool in vast quantities. This mutually profitable commerce drew England
and Flanders into close economic relations. The Flemish count, Louis, after
crushing the army of Bruges, grew more and more domineering. He insulted
the buiighers, and they endured it; he interfered with their English trade, and
they rebelled.
At the head of this new rebellion stood the weavers of Ghent, and at tffe head
of the Ghent weavers, chief of their guild, stood Jacques Van Artevelde, sometimes
faH#iri "the great Fleming," a far-seeing social reformer and revolutionist, destined
1894 The Story of the Greatest Nations
to become one of the main economic forces of his age. The Arteveldes had lonj
been among the leading families of Ghent, and Jacques, brilliant and eloquent
shrewd and energetic, came naturally to be the chief burgher of the city. A
"Captain" of Ghent he was the recognized leader of the people's party throughou
Flanders, and commanded their forces in a battle in which he overthrew the aristo
cratic adherents of Count Louis.
So strong became the position of Van Artevelde, that when the war broke ou
between France and England, the rival monarchs dealt with him as with an in
dependent prince. Each sought his alliance. Philip of France reminded him c
his feudal allegiance. Edward came in person to the Netherlands, visited th
Ghent captain as an equal, and offered him vast commercial advantages for Flanders
Van Artevelde saw only too plainly that, whichever side he joined, the Netherland
would become the theatre of the war and be exposed to all its miseries. Hence h
sought to maintain a middle position between the two contestants. So skillfull
did he manage that it was actually agreed by treaty that Flanders, despite he
feudal dependence upon France, was to remain neutral throughout the war.
This neutrality did not long continue. Count Louis naturally intrigued t
reestablish his shrunken authority. His eflForts caused an angry outbreak agains
him in Bruges. The people sought to make him prisoner; and, barely escapinj
with his life, he^fled to France. When he returned with French troops, Van Arte
velde allied himself openly with England.
The main difficulty in persuading the Flemings to this step was their oath 0:
allegiance to France. Therefore upon the Ghent captain's advice, Edward re-
asserted an ancient hereditary claim to the French throne. The burghers were
thus relieved of their conscientious scruples, and readily joined this new madi
"King of France" in his attacks upon his rival. English and Flemings combinec
drove the French out of the Netherlands. Flemish marines aided Edward ir
his great naval victory off Sluys, in which the French navy was destroyed. Int-
such distress was King Philip driven that he negotiated a separate peace wit!
Flanders, remitting all taxes and making the province practically an independem
state under Jacques Van Artevelde (1340).
The Ghent Captain or **Ruward of Flanders' as he was now called, proceedea
to a reorganization of his countr}', giving the common people power above th*
aristocracy. The main opposition encountered was in his own city, where tha
aristocrats had still the upper hand. Artevelde joined the popular ** brewers' guild,"
whence he has been called the brewer of Ghent, though he probably knew nothing
of the actual trade. There were street battles, a massacre of aristocrats at Bruges,
five hundred armed men slain in a strife between the guilds in the public square
at Ghent. Finally the commons triumphed everywhere. Artevelde reached the
summit of his career.
*«*
.1
i ft
1
ft
I ■
4 ■
THE REVOLT OF THE NORTH
(Th« Nobles of Holland Capture and Slay Thalr Lord)
From a pmnting in 1882 by the Dutch art\$t, L, de H$rt$rick
DUKING these early centuries the northern Netherlands
were wilder, more barren, and far less developed than
the south. Gradually we see the Bishops of Utrecht
arising once more to be as in Charlemagne's time the chief
military lords of the North. Then we see them overthrown
by the Counts of Holland, one of whom even rose to be an
Emperor of Germany. After a time we find these Counts
doing as those of Flanders had before, standing oat as cham-
pions of their people against the nobles. Then, in the year
1296, the .cities of the North also asserted their independence.
In the North, however, the freedom of the cities sprang
from a noted tragedy. Count Floris V of Holland was be-
loved by his people and hated by his nobles. He had also
asserted his independence against the powerful neighboring
kingdoms of Prance and England. Hence he had among his
own subjects many open friends and a few secret foes. The
latter planned a hawking party at Utrecht. Count Floris
was cunningly separated from his real friends and suddenly
attacked by three of his nobles. He defended himself bravely,
but was made prisoner and carried away. The peasantry rose
in a body to rescue their beloved ruler; his captors were pur-
sued and so hard pressed that they slew their prisoner. The
infuriated peasants joined hands with the city folks to achieve
revenge. The nobles dared not oppose this united strength.
Many of them, both innocent and guilty, fled; others were
executed. Tin* cities })ocamo the chief power of the North.
X-80
The Netherlands— Death of Van Artevelde 1895
His influence extended far beyond Flanders. The poor folk throughout
Europe heard of this land where the commons ruled. Uprisings were attempted
in other countries. The Italian pod Petrarch sang of V^an Artevelde, and en-
couraged the rebellion of Ricnzi at Rome. The hideous revolt of the Jacquerie
in France is attributed to the Flemish example.
In the end, **the Great Fleming" fell a victim to the rash forces he had evoked.
Edward of England became too friendly with him, visiting him repeatedly in Ghent,
calling him **dear comrade." They stood as godfathers to each other's children.
All this aroused the suspicion anrl perhaps the jealousy of Artevelde's fellow citizens,
a suspicion which Count Louis of Flanders knew well how to fan into flame. The
intngues of Louis became so dangerous that Artevelde formed the bold project
of stripping him of his rank, and creating a new Count of Flanders, the young
English Edward, Prince of Wales, afterwards famous in histor}' as the Black
Prince.
This was farther than the Flemings wou« ' ^o. They might quarrel with Count
Louis, hold him prisoner, slay him even; but they were still loyal to his house,
their rulers for uncounted centuries. They accused Van Artevelde of having sold
himself wholly to England. There w:,s a sudden tumult; and the great chieftain
was slain in the streets, struck down, toil Uj pieces almost, by a mob of those
commons who had been his most devded adherents (1345).
His passionate plea to his assailants has come down to us in the chronicle of
Froissart "Such as I am, you yourselver have made me: you formerly swore you
would protect me against all the wond; and now, without any reason, you want
to murder me. You are certainly masters to do it, if you please; for I am but one
man against you all. Think better of it, fo* the love of God: Recollect former
times and consider how miny favors and kindnes/es I have conferred upon you."
Though he could not save himself, Artevdde did not die unavenged. The
p)eople recovered from their sudden frenzy and repented of their deed. They
accused Count Louis of having fomented the disturbance, and when he came hurry-
ing to reassert his power, they drove him once more out of Flanders. The next
year he perished in the English victory at Crccy and was succeeded by his son
Louis of Male, the last of the ancient race.
Meanwhile Flanders, released from Artevelde's restraining hand, fell into
anarchy. City fought against city; guild against guild. Louis of Male was able
to reassert his dominion, though France was too exhausted by the English war
to give him aid. Finally another revolt broke out in Ghent in 1380, and Louis
laid siege to the city.
Finding themselves in utmost danger, the men of Ghent went to the house of
Van Artevelde's son Philip, the godson of the English queen. Philip had lived
quietly among his neighbors until he was past the age of forty years. Now, despite
1896 The Story of the Greatest Nations
his protests, he was forced for his father's sake to become the leader of the city;
and once aroused, Philip proved not unworthy of his people's faith. At first he
counselled submission. Ghent was starving; and Philip, going himself to Louis's
camp, pleaded for mercy. The Count fiercely demanded that all the citizens
should come out to him unarmed and barefoot, with ropes about their neckb,
to be dealt with as he chose. Philip refused to submit to these grim terms; and
the burghers, finding courage in despair, became ^Idiers again, as their fathers
had been under Philip's father.
A famous contest followed. Louis was forced to raise the siege of Ghent;
but the merchants of Bruges aided him against their rivals. The lands of Ghent
were ravaged. Van Artevclde with his fleets gathered provisions from distant
lands. He captured city after city from the Count. Suddenly the troops of Ghent
marched upon Bruges and stormed it. Louis and his knights were defeated, and
the haughty Count had to hide for his life in the house — under the bed, says one
narrator — of a poor widow till he found a chance to flee. Bruges was sacked.
So were the other cities that upheld the aristocratic cause. Once more an Artevelde
of Ghent became undisputed master of Flanders.
For two years Philip defended his land against all the forces of France and
Burgundy combined. But at last his troops were defeated by overwhelming
numbers and he himself perished, sword in hand, at the battle of Roosebeke (1382).
The town of Roosebeke is close to Courtrai, and the French felt that this victory
balanced the defeat "of the spurs." In fact Froissart pauses to point out the im-
portance of Roosebeke as checking the vast movement of peasant revolt which
was everywhere in progress. The downfall of the Flemish burghers was a calamity
to the common folk through all of Europe.
For two years afterward the men of Ghent still heroically defended their city.
But the rest of Flanders yielded to Count Louis. He died in 1384, and as he left
no direct heirs, the countship passed through his daughter to her husband, Philip
the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. Philip made peace with Ghent. His supremacy
was acknowledged, and as he ruled mildly, yet with all the power of Burgundy
behind him, his authority was not opposed. The "heroic age" of the Flemish
guilds was at an end. It is generally reckoned as extending from the revolt of
Bruges in 11 27 to the defeat at Roosebeke, a period of more than two hundred and
fifty years.
JT
"THE GREAT FLEMING"
(Jacqu«s Van Art«v«ld« CounMis His Nttithbors of Chant to Dafy Fn
From a draining by the French artUt, A. de yeuvtUs
THE Netherland cities had, by the beginning of the four-
teenth century, reached their fullest power. France
tried to conquer them and failed. In 1302 the flower
of all th(* French nobility were almost exterminated by the
Flemish townfolk in the great battle of Courtrai. Then came
the ** Hundred Years AVar" between France and England;
and the Flemings, though nominally subjects of France,
espoused the cause of England. Ghent was at this time the
chief city of Flanders, and its leading citizen, Jacqnes Van
Artevelde. is often called **the great Fleming."
Kings negotiated with this powerful burgher as with an
equal. He was liiuiself a wealthy aristocratic merchant; but he
chanipioihMl tlie poorer citizens of (xhent, the members of the
laboriuLT ** guilds.'' against the rich. Van Artevelde even
passed a law that compelled every merchant to join one of
these laboring sruilds. For himself he became a member of
the brewers* guihl. and so was called '*the brewer of Ghent."
The irreat Kinir Edward III (»t' Enirland courted him, visited
him as a friend in (ilieiit, and stood as godfather to his Son.
Thus ill the einl the Flemings beeanie suspicious of their great
leader, thinkiiiir him to«> aristocratic. He had saved Flanders
from beiiiir irrt>uml to powder between England and Prance;
he had won Eleiiiish freedom by repeated victories on the
battliMield: lu* lia«l established the first democracy in Europe.
Vei liis «uvii ])e.»ple ipiarreled with him and finally slew him
duriiiiT a riot in the streets i.l.'Uo'.
X SI
.f:^
Chapter IV
THE BURGUNDIAN PERIOD
GRADUALLY the house of Burgundy obtained possession
of ibe tnlirt Nelhtrlands. Philip ihc Bold was a son of
the French King John, and was given ihe duchy of
Burgundy by his faLher in recognition of his knightly
conduct at Poiliors ( 1356), where almost alone, he had
dcfcndc'd his father and striven to protect him from
capture by the English.
How Flanders fell to Philip in 1384, we have seen. His grandson
Philip ihe Good secured Holland, Hainault and Brabant. In
Holland the ancient line of the Dirks and Florences became ex-
tinct (1345), and the sovereignty passed through the female line
to what was called the house of Bavaria. There was a long civil
war between mother and son, during which the Dutch cities, courted
by l»th sides and taking small part with cither, rose lo a commercial
prosperity rivalling that of the Flemish towns. Utrecht was still
only a bishop's see, but Dordrecht, at that time the chief city of the
realm, became a great commercial centre. So also did Amsterdam
and Delft, The North made such giant strides in advance upon the South, that
during the early years of the fifteenth century, William VI of Holland shared
equally with the Burgundian dukes in the rule over not only the territory but also
the wealth of the Netherlands.
WilUam VI of Holland left no sons, only a daughter Jacqueline whose tragic,
ttic, pitiable career is relcbrated in history. Even the dry chronicles
1897
THE LAST COUNT OF FLANDERS
(Count Loul* Auallsd In BnicH bj tha Vlctarloiu M»i of CbMtt)
from a painting by tht Otrman artitt, A. Z4ek
THE downfall of Flemish indepeodeoce may well be
traced to the death of Jacques Van Artevelde. His
powerful personality had held all the Flemings united.
After bis death they took to quarreling among themselves.
City fought against city. Especially was there bitter strife
between the two chief towns, Ghent and Bruges. Thus the
Counts of Flanders who had before been living at the Freoch
court, exiles from their own land, were enabled to return and
even gained some show of power. Prance was too exhatuted
by her English wars to lend the Flemish Counts any aid, but
by throwing in their lot first with one city, then another, they
constantly advanced their fortunes.
At length in 1380 Count Louis, the last of the ancient
race of Counts of Flanders, aided Bruges against Qhent.
Another Van Artevelde, the son of Jacques, was now the
leader of Ghent. He headed his towufolk in a sudden attack.
Bruges was stormed and Count Louis seized in the streets.
He escaped by hiding under a bed, and so got back to France.
Then came a final decisive battle. Ghent, with only the
unwilling troop.s of her half-eonquered neighbor cities to sup-
port her, met all the combined forces of Prance and the
rapidly growing state of Burpuudy. The Flemings were
crushingly defeated, and all the southern Netherlands was
annexed to Burgundy. The cause of Flanders had really been
that of democracy throughout Europe, so democracy was here
set liack four hundred years.
The Netherlands— Countess Jacqueline 1899
he was ruler of a neighboring state, but because being a member of the house of
Burgundy, he would have the support of its powerful duke.
As the man for the pla^:e, John of Brabant proved a failure. He was even younger
than his wife, and a feeble, enervated youth, one of those sapless, worthless branches
so conunon to the French royal stock. Jacqueline's first husband had been the
same, only his early death leaves his figure less clearly outlined on the historic
page. John of Liege, on the other hand, was at least a man. The Pope took up
his cause and relieved him of his priestly vows that he might found a new family
of counts of Holland. Hence he was Bishop John no longer, but only John the
Pitiless.
When he and yoimg John of Brabant met in battle or diplomacy the result was
a foregone conclusion. John the Pitiless won contest after contest. City after
city of Holland declared in his favor, until Jacqueline's feeble husband, abanr!oning
the strife, retreated into Brabant, making a treaty with his rival which left the
latter in practical possession of Holland. Naturally Jacqueline protested; but
her husband foimd that bullying her was a far easier and more congenial task
than matching himself against John the Pitiless. He ignored her complaints and
made her life a misery. Driving away all her Dutch attendants, he surrounded
her with his own tools. She was insulted and neglected — and she was not the
woman to endure forever.
She fled suddenly from his court, from what was really a prison, and escaped
to England (1419). There she was received with high honor. Humphrey, Duke
of Gloucester, the king's brother and afterward regent of the kingdom for the child
Henry VI, became a suitor for her hand. Her marriage to her cousin John of
Brabant had been performed in opposition to an express command from the Pope.
Advantage was now taken of this to declare the unhappy union void, and Jacqueline
and Hiunphrey were wed. In 1424 the couple led an English army to Holland to
reestablish the bride in her inheritance.
They were partly successful. Humphrey defeated the forces of Brabant;
the royal pair were welcomed in Hainault; and John the Pitiless died, poisoned by
one of their adherents. But even in death he avenged himself by willing Holland
to John of Brabant. Now this childless and feeble Brabant Duke had for heir
the mighty Duke Philip the Good of Burgundy, who seizing the opportunity,
espoused his nephew's cause with all the strength of his powerful domains. Eng-
land had long been allied with Burgundy against France; and Duke Humphrey
of Gloucester was thus placed in a peculiar position, maintaining his wife's cause
against his country's ally. He and Philip had hot words and finally agreed to
settle their differences in ancient knightly style by personal combat. Before the
contest could take place however, Humphrey, doubtless moved by many mingled
emotions, abandoned Holland and withdrew to England.
1900 The Story of the Greatest Nations
Poor Jacqueline, thus left once more to her own resources, defended herseL3
desperately against the Burgundians, and sent passionate appealing letters tc=
Humphrey. "By my faith," she writes, "my very redoubted lord, my sole con —
solation and hope, I beg you for the love of God and St. George, consider the
situation of me and my affairs more carefully than you have yet done, for you
to have forgotten mc entirely." And again, "Alas, my most dear and redoubt<
sire, my only hope is in your strength, seeing, my sweet lord and only delight^
that all my sufferings have come from my love of you." Her moving words were
of no avail. Her English husband solaced himself with another lady; her subjects
m Holland hesitated between her and her discarded John, and at last, seeking
peace most of all, surrendered her to Burgundy. She was imprisoned in the castle
of Ghent.
Still however, the resolute woman refused to yield. Some of her adherents
both in England and Holland yet clung to her. Disguised in boy's clothes, she
escaped from her confinement and for three years led a wild life of adventure,
fighting at the head of such troops as she could raise. She held her castle of Gouda
against all comers, and in the field achieved more than one brilliant victory over
the Burgundian forces. Dul^e Humphrey roused himself sufficiently to selid a
fleet from England to her aid, but it was wholly defeated. John of Brabant died
in 1427, and it were well to record one good thing of him; he was interested
in learning and founded the university of I^ouvain (1425), the earliest in the Neth-
erlands.
His death brought the great duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good, more directly
into the struggle against Jacqueline. Philip now claimed Holland as his ovm,
and summoned England as his ally to counsel the Countess to peace. On the
other hand, Jacqueline, freed from the last traces of her marital chain to John,
entreated Duke Humphrey to reestablish their abandoned union. The English
Duke most ungallantly obeyed Philip, urged his deserted wife to yield, and wedded
the English mistress who had been her rival.
In face of these blows, Jacqueline surrendered (1428). It was agreed that
she was still to be called Countess of Holland and to receive some part of the
revenues of the state; but she made a progress through all her cities in company
with Philip, formally releasing them from allegiance and bidding them be obedient
to the Burgundians. She also promised not to wed again without Philip's consent.
Her claims might still have been dangerous in some strong king's hands.
Here Jacqueline passes out of political history, the tale of jangling states.
But romance was still to be hers, happiness perhaps, after all her sorrows. Philip's
governor over Holland was Lord Francis Borselen. The governor's duties threw
him much into the company of Jacqueline. Love, most unaccoilntable of flowers,
seems really to have sprung up between the two. In 1432, they were secretly
BURGUNDY GAINS HOLLAND
iCountess Jacqueline Rides Through Holland With the Duka of Bursmuly
Proclaiming Her Surrender)
After a drnwiiuj by F, Scott made in Bnuteh
THE ** heroic age" of Plandei-s disappeared with the de-
feat of Ghent, and the establishment of Burgundian su-
premacy in 1384. The great Holland cities, Amsterdam
and Dordrecht^ also passed, though with less of tumult, under
the control of Burgundy. This came about through the tragic
fate of Jacqueline, tiie last Countess of Holland. She, as the
inheritor of the domains of the ancient and well-loved Cotuits
of Holland, became ruler of the Dutch cities in 1417. In
those grim days, however, a woman had small chance of hold-
ing an inheritance except by wedding a powerful husband to
defend her. Jacqueline's first husband was a prince of
France, but he died. Her «ounselloi's then wedded her, while
still little moi'e than a child, to the Duke of Brabant. But
when Jacfjueline's foes tried to seize her inheritance, the duke
proved but a worthless champion, abused and then abandoned
her. She wed again, a brother of the English king, and he
fought well for her, but was defeated. Thus in the end
Jacqueline was compelled to yield to the powerful duke Philip
of Burgundy.
Holland had been intensely loyal to its unhappy countess,
and she was obliged to ride by Duke Philip's side through
each Dutch city formally announcing to its people her abdi-
cation of her power in his favor. Then she was allowed to
live in i)eace on her own private estates, where, having thrice
married for policy, she now married for love.
X s:{
The Netherlands — Duke Philip the Good 1901
married. Philip learning ol this, threw Borselen into prison and .threatened his
death. To save him Jacqueline abandoned everything that rems^ed to her,
renounced her empty title, and with her liberated husband retired to a secluded
estates, where the two dwelt in peace and apparent devotion until her death in 1436.
Lord Francis was then restored to a post of trust, and had what must have been
the keen satisfaction of defeating Duke Humphrey of England when the latter,
his alliance with Burgundy having failed at last, attacked the Netherlands once
again.
Jacqueline's long struggle is important historically. It must be compared to
that of the Arteveldes in Flanders; for little as the Dutch cities realized it, their
liberty was dependent upon her victory. She ruled in the policy of her ancestors
wh^ had encouraged them in self-reliance and assertion. Her fall placed her
people with Flanders under the house of Burgundy, a race of rulers who guarded
the material prosperity of their subjects, but vigorously tramjded every liberty
underfoot.
With the establishment of the supremacy of Philip the Good, the history of
the Netherlands becomes merged for a time in that of Burgundy. Philip, though
in name only a Duke, was in reality more powerful than any sovereign of his time,
imposing his will upon the enfeebled rulers of both France and Germany. At
this period only Italy could rival the Low Countries in wealth; and Italy was
divided into many petty states; the Netherlands had now been all absorbed into
one. Moreover, its military strength while vigorous in Philip's hands, was useless
for defense against him, since each city was antagonistic to the others, easily to be
brought to Philip's side by some promise of commercial advantage over its rivals.
Hence, playing one metropolis against another, Philip became the despotic
master of alL One by one, he took away their ancient privileges. He heaped
taxes on them till his was the richest court in Europe. Bruges rebelled (1436),
and seized upon the person of the Duke's wife and little son, afterward Charles
the Bold. Philip liberated the captives, half by force, half fraud, and blockaded
the city until its people starved and surrendered, so trampled down as never to
r^;ain their former splendor. Ghent also resented the Duke's exactions, and
was vigorously suppressed.
In return for the Uberty he took away, Philip gave the Netherlanders security.
The nobles who had preyed upon the country from their strong castles and, arms
in hand, exacted toll from what merchandise they could, now became dependents
of Philip, mere silk-clothed courtiers idling in his train. Hence the Netherland
tradesfolk, valuing prosperity and quiet far more than any abstract ideal of
self-government, gradually acquiesced in the new order of life. They were in
fact the first to give their new ruler the name of "the Good," which soimds oddly
enough whcsn contrasted with some of his treacheries and usurpations.
GRANTING 'THE GREAT PRIVILEGK"
(Mary at Burcundy CIth ■ Chart« to tha NrthMlaadal
Afltr iiH 'inliqae Flttnith print
IT seemetl the fafo nf tin- Nt'dierlaiulH to fall into the hands
of women. Within half a century after Jaeiiueline had
fiurrendei-ed Holland to t)te Btirpinilian dukeK, their fam-
ily alao failed to have male heirs, and all their many landa
passed to a daughter, Duchess Mary of Burgundy.
Mary's experience nearly paralleled that of poor Jacque-
line. King Louis XI of FrHuce tried to seize upon her heri-
tage. He did gain part of it ; hut the rich cities of the Nether-
lands decided that they would sooner endure Mary's feeble
rule than Louis' stem one. So they united in making an
agreement with Mary by which they promised to remain loyal
if paid for their loyalty by the grant of a charter contaicung
many privileges. This Mary ajrived to; and in 1477 she swore
to what is called the "'firejit Privilege" nf the Netherlands,
grantinff ainio.st complete independence t" the cities. Then the
cities defended hor asrainst Kinfr Louis.
Fortunately for Mary, she chose an able husband, Maxi-
milian of Austria, and he came to the Netherlands and ruled
for her. When she died he rontinued to rule as regent for
their baby son I'hilip. Philip in his turn became Duke of
Austria, and thus the Xftberlands passed from Burgundy to
Austria, ^laximilian. as reirent. (juarrcled nmeh with the
Flemish cities and finally took away ihcir "Oreat Privilege."
They, however, never fiu'imt Ibal precious charter, and in after
ycaiN Ihey won it back again.
F^^^
The Netherlands— The Struggle against Maximilian 1903
Burgundian dukes had wrested from them. So helpless was Mary in the hands of
her tyrannical subjects, that they executed two of her chief officials before her very
eyes. These men had been detected in treacherous correspondence with Louis XI
against Flanders; and though Mar)- rushed before their judges with dishevelled
hair and robe,and appeared afterward at the place of execution in the same desperate
plight to plead for her friends upon her knees, the two courtiers were beheaded
in the market place of Ghent.
Then came the problem of Mary's marriage, that like Jacqueline she might
have "a man to defend her heritage." Her arrogant father had once refused
her hand to Maximilian, the son of the impoverished German Emperor. Now
the rejected suitor was selected by Mary and her Flemish advisers as the most
available of the long list of candidates who approached her. Maximilian, after-
ward Emperor and head of the great Austrian house of Hapsburg, thus became
the bridge by which the low countries passed under the dominion of Austria and
afterward of Spain, both of which states came under Hapsburg rule.
Yet Maximilian was never himself the titular sovereign of the Netherlands;
he was only guardian of the provinces for Mary, and when she died five years
later, he became guardian for their baby son, Philip the Fair. The hatred bred
in the Netherlands against Charles the Bold passed down as an inheritance against
Maximilian. During Mary's lifetime it did not break into open violence, especially
as the Flemings dreaded Louis of France and his dangerous schemes. Maxi-
milian put an end to these by defeating the French in the battle of Guinegate (1479)
and Flemish independence of France was again secure. The power of Maximilian
seemed to the burghers to become more dangerous with each of his successes;
and on his wife's death, instead of admitting his authority, the States-General
of Flanders made virtual prisoner of his son Philip and claimed the regency for
itself \n Philip's name.
Civil war followed between Maximilian and the cities. Step by step the Haps-
burg lord re-established his authority. In 1485, he defeated the troops of Ghent
and rescued his little son from the hands of the burghers. ' In 1488, it was their
turn. Maximilian was made prisoner in Bruges and confined there for seven
months, until he yielded all that his jailors demanded. The French king, not
Louis XI but his successor, was made guardian of little Philip; and Maximilian
agreed to abandon the Netherlands and return to Germany.
No sooner was he released from confinement, than he repudiated the oaths
he had taken under compulsion, and re-invaded the Netherlands at the head of
a German army raised for him by his father, the Emperor. He was not specially
successful, and for four years more the war dragged on. It was no longer con-
ducted by Maximilian, who as heir to the dominions of his aged father had other
tasks, but by his German generals. These in 1492 were able to report to him
THE YOUNG RULER OF THE WORLD
(Charles V Begins HU Rcif n Orar Europ« by a Proeassion In Ant
From a jyaintlng by the Austrian master, Hans Makart
MAXIMILIAN of Austria was kept fighting all his life
to retain the Netherlands and his other kingdoms. He
finally made them secure for his little son Philip, or
rather, since Philip died youuj;;, for Philip's little son Charles.
Philip had married a princess of Spain, so Spain too and all
its new-found world of America became part of the heritage
of the baby Charles. The child was thus born to be absolute
lord over more territory, if we include his American pos-
sessions, than any other sovereijrn before or since. He was
later elected Emperor of Germany also, as Charles V, and
so became the chief sovereign of Europe.
His connection with the Netherlands was more intimate
than with any other portion of his vast domains. In the first
I)lnco, he was ])orii th(M*o, born in (ihont in 1500. In the next
l)lace. as the enormous wealth of his future possessions was
already rococ:nized, the wealthy Flemin«?s eagerly accepted
him as one of themselves. They iirnored his Austrian father-
hood and Si)anisli motherhood, and declaring the babe a Flem-
ing, they welcomed him with pride. Brouirht up in Ghent,
Chnrlrs spoke tht' tongue of Flaii(hM*s and wore its garb. More-
over, he succeeded to supreme authority here before he did
in anv other couiitrv. As a hul of fifteen he was declared
ruler of the Netherlands, and entered the city of Antwerp and
thence passed to the other cities in royal processicm. He was
welcomed with evrry sort of pageant, and with figures of alle-
gorical si)len(lor.
x-.sr>
The Netherlands — Changes under Charles V ' 1905
The outbreak was not even under way when Charles learned of it, and hastening
from Spain, he gathered his Imperial armies and advanced into the city. For a
month, he gave the burghers no warning of what he intended. Then he suddenly
declared that the unhappy metropolis had forfeited all its rights and privileges
whatsoever. The leaders of the recent movement were seized and executed;
all the communal property of the city and of the guilds was confiscated; and the
tribute demanded of the citizens was heavily increased. The great b^ll "Roland"
used through all the heroic struggles of Ghent to summon the people hastily to-
gether, the palladium of their liberties, was removed from its tower. The people
were to assemble for conference no more. Having gone thus far and ruined Ghent,
Charles forgave its contemplated rebellion because, as he explained, he had been
bom there.
It is not however, to Charles alone that we must attribute the decay of Ghent
and the other Flemish cities. Natural cause were at work. The discovery of
America was shiftiiig the commercial routes cf the world. England had learned
to turn her wool into cloth in manufactories of her own. Above all, the Low
Countries were, as we have said, still unfinished by the hand of Nature. Gradually
the rivers of Flanders were extending their mu'Jbanks into the sea, choking up their
own courses with shallow bars. Ships, moreover, were increasing in size. Bruges
ceased to be available as a seaport, Ghent also lost much of its trade. By degrees,
instead of Ghent and Bruges, we hear talk of Brussels and Antwerp. Thither
the merchants removed with their ships and storehouses; and thither the nobles
followed, and the artists, and the kings.
The new cities, upheld by imperial favor, inclined to be far more submissive
to Charles than were their more ancient rivals. Yet it was from these new cities
and their merchants that sprang up the final, great and celebrated "rebellion of
the Netherlands," the heroic story which we now approach.
Hammut or Paha Rickivu thi "Bcgcau"' Pbtitioh
Chapter V
THE GREAT REBELLION
[Aulhoriliti .- Ai before, also Schiller, " RevoU of the Netheilands"; Venteeg, "The Soi
B^gars "; Molley, '■ Rise of the Dulch Republic "; Prescott, "Reign of Philip II."]
t HE era of Charles V was the era of the Refonnatioa, and it
was this religious upheaval that led to the great Nether-
land revolt. Yet the Netherlanders were not as a rule
enthusiastic in the support of Luther. The attitude of
Erasmus, the Dutch scholar of Rotterdam, the most
learned writer of his time, may be taken as typical of
that of his countrymen. They desired reform withm
the Church, not a violent breaking away from it. Most of the Dutch
and Flemish churchmen were agreed that changes should be made.
Even Charles V himself was convinced of this. Thoughtful men
argued freely among themselves as to what should be the character
of the reforms which seemed clearly at hand.
Ht-nce the more violent attitude of those who would destroy
' the old Church altogether, found little sympathy in the Netherlands,
except among the ignorant and the evil. A sect callii^ themselves
Anabaptists sprang up in Holland, but committed such extravagances
and atrocities that they were put down by the Dutch bmxhers them-
selves, men the most tolerant of their age to every form of religious faith. The
"inquisition" as it was called, which examined into the beliefs of men, remained
as it had existed for centuries, a duty of the civil magistrates. These continued
their work as before, executing an occasional victim for heresy, as they would for
any other crime, when they felt that public order positively demanded it.
In 1550 however, Charles determined that his civil magistrates were too lax
1906
THE WORLD RULER GROWN OLD
(Charlas V LUt«ninc to th« Soncs of th« FUmlsh Ctrl Barbara)
From a paintintf by the Flemish artist, W, Oeets
THE reigii of C-hiirles V covered the period of Europe's
frreat ivli*rious iii>liOiival, known as the Keformation.
The rulers of the time took easilv for irranted the idea
that the ripfht whieh they had assumed over their subjeets'
property and lives conveyed also the rijrht to dictate the sub-
ject's relijxion. llenee Cliarles V was ke])t so busy quari"el-
ingf hi liis other domains tiiat lie had little tiiim to devote to
the Netherlands. Yet amon<r all his many peoples the Nether-
landers were the most loyal and the most obedient. They
reallv loved liim as one of themselves. Their reward was that,
beyond sendinjr them oeeasional orders about religious
** heresy" and innumerable rails for money to pay his armies
in other lands. Chai'les left tin* Netherlands almost entirely
to their own irovrrnmcnt.
As to tlu' nnun'y, the city burtihcrs eould alTord to pay.
So rich weiv tliry that th«\v contrilinted to Charles' income
almost as miu'li as all his wm-ld beside. As to religion, the
wei«rht of his hand (li<l not at fii'st toueh th(MU heavily. When
Charles was old and dislirartcned over what he considered
the intrratitiide of all the I't'st of his sub.jccMs. he came back
to dwoll amoii<r th«' j)»M)|)i(' of his l)ii'tli])huM', (ilient. A young
Flemish *rii'l. Barbara Hl(»nm])tM*.ir, b«M*ami» his favorite com-
])anioii, and he woiihi sit i'«)r li(»ui's likt» any other world-worn
old bnr^htM', roi-.LU'ttin*r his many cares in listening to the
music of \wv voice.
x s«;
The Netherlands — Establishment of the Inquisition 1907
^^gainst this ever-increasing heresy. Lutheranism was robbing him of his power
in Germany; he would take no risk of its gaining permanent root in the Nether-
iands. Hence he introduced there a form of Inquisition conducted by churchmen
instead of civilians. This had already crushed out heresy in his Spanish domains;
and, as the easy going Dutch and Flemish prelates seemed to him too mild, he
brought Spanish Inquisitors to introduce their sterner judgments and cruder
tortures. The Netherlandcrs were alarmed; they protested; a rigid, uncom-
promising Spanish priest might easily call every one of them a heretic. Yet they
disapproved actual rebellion against the Church; they liked Charles; and so they
submitted, though unwillingly. The Inquisitors began work; and though for
some years they confined themselves to slaughtering the more extreme reformers,
yet the stream of blood expanded into awful volume. Estimates disagree wiJcly
as to the number of these executions during the reign of Charles. They have been
set as low as a single thousand, and as high as a hundred thousand.
Despite the persecution, the Emperor himself, the hearty, good-natured com^
rade, "one of themselves" as the Flemish burghers called him, retained his popu-
larity in the Netherlands, and looked upon the country' with a friendly eye. When,
worn out with his life of toil, he resolved to abandon all his many thrones, Brussels,
which he had made the capital of the Low Countries, was the city he selected for
the ceremony of abdication.
As he closed his farewell speech to his "well- beloved subjects," the listening
multitude were moved to honest tears, regretted their rebellions, and pledged them-
selves readily to be loyal to the son of this kindly monarch. That son, a youth of
twenty-eight, afterward the celebrated Philip II of Spain, then arose to address
the "Estates," and, speaking through an interpreter, promised to be even more
devoted than his father to the interests of the Netherlands. The millennium of
peace and mutual good will seemed surely to have arrived.
Probably no one of all those present suspected the terrible war that was to
come. Philip himself, secret and subtle, knowing his own heart, may have seen
nearest to the truth; but what Philip did not know was the sturdy spirit of these
Netherlandcrs, whom he counted on crushing into submission to his will. Therein
lay Philip's blunder. Unlike his father he had been neither born nor bred in
Flanders. He was a Spaniard through and through. His haughtiness took
constant offense at the free manners of the Flemings, and he hated as much as he
despised them. Charles had ruled them through their o\yn officials; he had even
placed some of his trusted Netherland nobles in high position in Spain. Philip,
despite his father's warning, reversed this and brought his Spanish associates
to govern the unruly lowlands.
For a time all seemed well. The young sovereign promised many reforms.
There was a war with France, and a great victory at St. Quentin (1557), due largely
1908 The Story of the Greatest Nations '
to Flemish troops and'fb the brillianqr of their general, Count Egmont. A year
later Egmont and his Flemish cavalry crushed another French army at Gravelines.
The enemy was forced to a humiliating peace; and one of the secret articles of
the treaty between Philip and the French king was that all the military forces of
the latter were to be loaned to Spain, if needed to crush revolt in the Netherlands.
Thus did their new sovereign measure and reward the loyalty of his people.
Here enters into the tale William, Prince of Orange, called William the Silent,
the great antagonist of Philip. He ranked at the time with Egmont among the
chief nobles of the Netherlands, and so high was his repute for ability that though
only twenty-two at the time of Charles V's abdication, he had already become that
monarch's most trusted counsellor. Indeed Charles, disappointed in his own son,
who constantly opposed and defied him, had made the young Dutch noble in some
sort a protdgd, introduced him to the most secret interviews of state, and trained
him in the methods of diplomacy. It was on the shoulders of this youthful coun-
sellor, already nicknamed "the silent," that Charles leaned as he made his abdicatiocx
speech; and the loyalty which William had given the father he seemed ready t:^
transfer to the son. Philip, as we know, trusted no one; but the French kii^^rt
not realizing this and seeing William apparently high in his sovereign's confideiL ^^ ^e,
talked freely to the young man of the secret treaty against the Netherlands, '^^^^^^e
silent WiUiam, true to his name, listened witnout comment, and so learned of jjj^
destruction intended for his country.
Still he gave no sign, but continued on every occasion to proffer Philip ^ ^rj^
and temperate advice, which was little heeded. In 1558 Philip, leaving the Ne^ Ithcr-
lands for Spain, appointed as regent Margaret of Parma, his half-sister, an iU^K^-gftj-
mate daughter of his father. The departing sovereign had planned a tra^^ foi
the "States-Gejieral"; he hoped that body, lulled by his professions of good willy
would resign all its powers to Margaret until his return. Thus through his regent
he would be able to rule as an absolute monarch, unrestrained by a protcr sting
assembly. Instead the States- General, at William's suggestion, urged f^^Wlip
to withdraw all the Spanish troops which upon one pretext and another he- ^^^
quartered upon the country to overawe it.
Philip unprepared as yet to face open revolt, yielded with such grace a -^ *J^
could; but for one moment, as he stepped on shipboard, his wrath flamed ou^ ^^
his celebrated last interview with William. **It is you who have done this,''
said, gripping the young Prince of Orange by the arm. **Nay, it is the Sta. ^
General," responded William. "No," flashed out Philip, using an untrans^^'
able form of address, insolent and contemptuous, "it is you, you, you!" K^^
of insight as always, he knew that if strife came, it was not with a confused a-^"
many-headed States- General he would have to deal, but with this one composeQ
and self-reliant youth.
SPAIN AND HOLLAND PART
Inv Philip M Partmin Ant«From Ydukk William tha Sllan
Champion)
From a drairing in JM!U by Herman King
POOR old Cluirles V iiivw so disheartened over trying to
regulate llie world tliat lie abdicated at last and gave
half of his doninins. inelmliu^ Spain and the Nether-
lands, to his son, Kinj: Philip II of Spuin. Unfortunately
the harmony which had existed between Charles V and his
Flemings did not extt^nd to Philip. Charles had been a Flem-
inp hinisflf, I'hilip was a tlionm^ih Spaniard. Under him the
reliKious "In'iiiisitiou" bceanie a horror in the Netherlands,
and hounded the people Into their great rebellion.
Their leader in (his tremendous struggle was the chief
of their nobles. William, the ruler of the little principality
of (>Mini!e, known to history as the oHebrated William the
Silent. Kintr I'hilip I'esentinii tlie independent spirit of the
\etberliiiiiier-s, plotted to ernsli them with his armies. But
as he himself was lenviii^' for Kpain, the Xelherl antlers, in-
spii'i'ii by William, eimrteinisly insisted on the king's taking
bis Spjiiitsli Jinny with birii. I'liilip's plans were not yet
matured for his iittaek. so be willuln'W his army with fci^ed
willitigne.ss. He eoiild not, howi'ver. wholly restrain his
temper. IIisk,>en mimi saw eleiU-ly that il Wits I'rince William
wild bad iiiain'uvered his det'eiil. ami our jiieinre shows the
noted iii<-i<le]i1 of Ibeir |1arti1L^^ As Willinm made his dutiful
farewells to Ibe dei.arlirig TNoimreh. I'bilip seized liini by the
wi'isl iniil Hashed oul a warning that be knew what the .VOimg
princM had dom- and meant 1o make liim pay for it.
The Netherlands— Rising of the "Beggars" 1909
The strife soon came. From the safe distance of Spain, Philip sent word to
the Netherland Inquisitors to increase their severity. He also commanded Mar-
gareti his regent, to ignore the advices of the States- General and the charters of
the people. A general protest arose, and grew more and more determined. Mar-
garet, dreading the consequence, entreated her brother to be more lenient;
and at his suggestion Count Egmont, the popular military leader, was sent to Spain
to lay the matter more fully before him. The wily sovereign, seeking only delay,
listened to Egmont's complaints with seriousness and apparent respect, promised
to give heed to his mild advice, and then gave him to bear back to Brussels sealed
letters which contained orders for yet greater cruelty (1565).
Open revolt now flared out at last. The magistrates in many places refused
to obey the commands of the Inquisitors. A petition protesting against the king's
orders was signed by thousands of prominent nobles, citizens, and even priests,
and was presented to Margaret by the leaders of a vast procession representing
every class of society. Trembling and distraught, the regent promised to do what
she could.
"Are you afraid of these beggars?" demanded one of her courtiers, scornfully,
referring not only to the rabble but to the lesser nobles among them, impoverished
now that their ruler bestowed on them no favors. The sneer was repeated at a
banquet held by many of the younger nobles who favored the revolt. Some cried
out that they would accept the name thus given them in scorn. Their leader,
De Brederode, promptly secured a beggar's bowl and wallet, and passing these
aroimd the timiultuous assembly swore to give up everything to the cause. The
others joined him in the oath. William of Orange, Count Egmont, and Count
Homy another member of the more conservative nobility who were striving to keep
peace between the court and the people, happened in upon the banquet and drank
the toast that was going round, "Long live the Beggars.'' From this event (1566)
is usually dated the great "Revolt of the Netherlands."
To trace all the windings of the struggle, describe all its heroic moments, would
far exceed our space. There were a few minor contests between small forces of
B^gars and Royalists; then William and Egmont succeeded in restoring a tempor-
ary peace, Margaret yielding to the demands of the insurgents for religious toleration.
The Protestants, thus released from immediate danger, appeared everywhere in
great numbers; they seemed suddenly a majority among the people. The "image-
breaking" furor swept over the country. Bands of frenzied peasants burst into
churches and cathedrals, desecrating and destroying every object of worship and
of art. The nobility and the Catholic members of the Beggars sought to punish
these excesses; and so dislike and distrust were sown among the various forces of
rebellion. King Philip by many treacherous devices increased the mutual sus-
picioii that spread among the Netherlanders; and at the same time be despatched
iQio The Story of the Greatest Nations
to the country a Spanish army under his grim and terrible general, the Duke of
Alva.
Then came the time for decision that tried men's souls. A imited resistance
might have held back the invaders; but few of the patriot leaders felt themselves
compromised beyond hope of pardon. Coimt Egmont, having received from
Philip letters of personal friendship and approval of his course, declared that he
would again trust wholly to the sovereign who had deceived him; he would be
loyal to the end, and oppose all rebellion. Coimt Horn took a similar attitude;
and so high was the veneration in which these two were held that their course
induced thousands of others to do the same. In vain did William of Orange plead
with Egmont. "You will be the bridge," he told the somewhat pompous general,
"over which the Spanish will enter our coimtry." And he added with charac-
teristic keenness, "Having entered, they will destroy the bridge."
Finding Egmont inflexible, and deeming resistance impossible without him,
the Prince of Orange and his immediate associates withdrew into Germany. The
two leaders parted amid tears, each lamenting what he considered the suicidal
decision of the other.
"Farewell, landless Prince," said Egmont.
"Farewell, headless Coimt," responded William.
To the common people was also presented the same momentous problem, and
while many took Egmont's course, many took William's. A hasty exodus began.
Thousands fled to England; other thousands wended their way in long caravans
across the German border. The regent Margaret entreated them to stay, she
entreated Philip to recall his army. He would find himself ruling, she wrote, over
naught but a desert. Finally on Alva's arrival, learning that his authority ex-
ceeded hers, she left the Netherlands in despair and retired to a religious life of
quietude.
Alva and his army came (1567). The general received Egmont's welcoming
speech with ominous scorn. His first public act was to summon the nobles to a
general coimcil, at which he arrested not only Egmont, but Horn and every other
patriot who had ventured within his grasp, who had trusted Philip's promises.
The Inquisition was revived in its most awful form. In addition to this a civil
coimcil was created to try the Netherlanders for treason. Its members were tools
of Alva, and under his leadership the body soon became known by the frightful
name, "the Coimcil of Blood." It condemned thousands of patriots to the gibbet.
It confiscated the estates of those who had fled. As soon as its authority was fully
established, it sent Egmont and Horn the way of its other victims. They were
beheaded in 1568.
Meanwhile the silent William seeing his forewarning so terribly fulfilled, had
resolved upon new e£Fort. All Europe was in protest against the horrors bdng
THE FEAR OF KING PHILIP
(TiM N*tharUnd*ra FIh Pblllp'* V>nfMnM Datpit. HI. Slati
^rutn a painting in 18'J9 by llermaa Orimm
FROM Spain, the center of his power, King Philip II tept
sending orders to the Netherlands urging his ministers
there to ever sterner and sterner enielty. Especially
did the "Inquisition" become a horror of rObbery and murder.
At length the people of many towns refused obedience to
Philip's orders. The great revolt of the Netherlands thus
began in 1566. As yet the people were divided; many clung
to the side of the government. They fought among them-
selves, and then King Philip sent conciliatory orders prom-
ising to withdraw all objectionable laws and pardon every-
body. Some of the Netherlanders believed and trusted him;
some did not. He had deceived everybody so often before,
that the wonder was he conid still win faith anywhere.
The active fighting ceased; but a strange and memorable
scene ocenrred. Thousands upon thimsands of the rebels, in-
stead of waiting for Philip's enviiys of peace and pardon, left
the country. Lonfr trains of them marched away, eanying
with them their families ami alt their possessions. Philip's
regent in the Netherlands at the lime wa.s his half-sister,
Margaret of I'jinua. She wa« ii well-meaning woman, who
seems to have really believed in her brother's promised len-
ioiiey. Riding forth to Tucet the caravans of emigrants, she
entreated them to remain, urged on tliem the folly and the
hariiships of their flight, and aiided her woi'd to Philip's that
they should he safe. The emigrants listeneil to her coldly,
shook their heads in silence, and passed on out of the Nether-
lands to Germany.
The Netherlands — Cruelties of Alva 191 1
enacted in the Netherlands. The Emperor Maximilian II wrote to Philip, his
nephew, warning him that such severity must produce a revolution of despair
William raised an army. In addition to his exiled friends, he found thousands of
volunteers, German, French and English, to assist him.
Even before the execution of Egmont,\Villiam invaded Brabant,while his brother
Louis led a detachment into Friesland. Louis, after one victory, was defeated by
Alva; but with William, Alva avoided a contest There was clever maneuvring
on both sides; then William, unable longer to support his army without funds, was
obliged to disband it and withdraw. Alva returned unopposed to his executions
and his extortions, to his Council of Blood.
For a time there was peace in the Netherlands, the peace of fear. Alva built
a fortress in the heart of each great city and garrisoned these strongholds with
Spanish troops. He increased his exactions; but his savagery had driven commerce
from the Netherlands, and despite his every effort the provinces which had supplied
two million ducats annually to the government of Charles V, now supplied to Philip
less than their expenses. He had to send money from Spain wherewith to pay the
sixty thousand troops who trampled the merchants under foot.
Naturally Alva was blamed for the deficiency; rumors became current that
all taxes flowed into his capacious hands — and stayed there. Philip insisted that
the Netherlands must pay for the troops. Taxes were doubled and redoubled;
yet the troops remained unpaid. At last the merchants of Brussels, of the capital
itself, situated under Alva's very eyes, refused him money. He could but hang them,
they said, and payment had become impossible. The relentless duke erected
gibbets before the doors of forty of the principal citizens. The order was given
for the execution of each man in front of his own home. Then it was rescinded;
for suddenly, not in Brussels but in distant Holland, the turning of the tide had
come; the "revolution of despair" began, and even Alva saw that he must halt
(1572).
The first success with which the Netherlanders now reopened their desperate
war was gained by the "sea-beggars." These were a few scattered members
of the "beggars' " conspiracy who, driven into exile, had become sea-robbers,
roving vikings like the Norsemen of old. Many a ruined merchant joined then.
with a ship saved from the destruction of his fortunes; and, urged on by hunger,
the wanderers plundered the coasts of the unhappy Netherlands, or seized the
treasure ships of Spain, fleeing for shelter to the ports of England or Germany.
At length, yielding to King Philip's repeated protests, both the Emperor and
Elizabeth of England excluded the sea-beggars from their ports. This, which
seemed to portend the ruin of the sturdy patriot pirates, proved their salvation.
They appeared suddenly before the town of Briel in Holland, captured it almost
without resistance, and held it in the name of William of Orange. Before his
191 2 The Story of the Greatest Nations
exile William had been governor or "Stadtholder" of Holland and Zealand;
was known to be still trying to raise funds for another army to rescue his peopj
Now the daring exploit of the sea-beggars was li!;e a spark set to the waiting traE
All the northern provinces flashed into revolt. City after city expelled its Spani^sli
garrison and declared for Orange. They did not, be it noted, claim independenc:^;
those were days when "independence" was still an unknown word in the moutins
of common folk. The cities still acknowledged Philip as their overlord; th^z^y
merely rejected Alva, and declared that, under Philip, William was their rightE'^iJ
governor.
Alva, driven by necessity, made truce with the semi-rebellious merchants in
Brussels, and hurried northward to check this vaster outbreak. For seven montlis
Haarlem resisted a Spanish siege. William, enabled to raise another army at last,
sought to relieve the city, but in vain. Haarlem surrendered to starvation in the
summer of 1573. The city was plundered, and every man of its garrison was
slaughtered. The next spring Louis of Nassau, William's brother and chief aii
was slain and the troops under his command totally defeated by Alva. Leyden,
besieged in its turn by the advancing Spaniards, held out with desperate heroism
through thirteen weary months. Starvation crept hideously close.
Then came relief. The defense of the northern sections lay in the hands of.
the assembly of Holland, the largest province. The only successes of the patriots
had been on the ocean, where the "sea-beggars" had repeatedly defeated the
Spanish ships; and now William urged upon the assembly that the dykes must
be opened in order that the ships of the sea-beggars might sail over the submerged
farms and rescue Leyden. After violent dispute and solenm deliberation this course
was adopted. The ocean was unchained; its destructive power was made wel-
come; and, aided by a favoring storm, the ships swept up to the very walls of the
despairing city. The Spaniards fled and. Leyden was saved (1575).
This was the turning point of the heroic war. The assembly of Holland asked
the citizens of Leyden to name their own reward for the service their long resistance
had done the common cause; and the burghers, to their glory be it recorded,
chose to have a University founded in their town. So rose the University of Leyden,
the great centre of religious freedom in northern Europe.
Alva had failed. His influence over King Philip was lost; he was recalled.
His successor tried to rule by mildness, but it was too late. The sea-beggars held
the ocean. Trade, driven by taxation from the southern provinces, poured into
the North. The men of Holland were triumphant in their success, determined
in their resistance. They insisted on retaining William as their leader, and would
listen to no terms of agreement which did not include self-taxation and complete
religious toleration, terms wholly impossible to Philip's views.
The Spanish soldiers, unpaid for years, broke into open mutiny against theii
ALVA'S "COUNCIL OF BLOOD"
(The T«nribl« Duk* Condemns th« Netherlandora to Doath)
From (I paintinij by the (Jerman artist, O. A. Clo»»
THE fugitives from the Netherlands had well divined the
grim purposes of King Philip. All authority in the
Netherlands was now handed over to the able but
terrible Duke of Alva. He entered the provinces with a
Spanish army. He listened to the welcoming speeches of the
cities with open scorn. lie ordered the arrest of every person
who had taken any part in the late revolt; and he established
a council of creatures of his own, which tried each one of his
prisoners on the charge of treason to King Philip.
This hideous council soon became known as the ** Council
of Blood.'' The Netherlands ran red with the blood of thou-
sands of its best citizens. Margaret of Parma tried to save
the victims, insisted that her word to them must be kept,
though Pliili[)'s might b<* broken. Alva, acting under Philip's
orders. swt»pt her aside, and slie retired in despair and horror
to a convent. Alva wwi} his master held the situation wholly
in their hands, and they meant to crush the Netherlands into
a submission utterly abject. Financially the country was
ruined. Its trade, the source of all its wealth, disappeared.
Margai-et had sent word to King Philip that he would find
himself ruling only over a desert. In part at least she was
right. This region, which had been the main scmrce of all
Charles V's wealth, becanu^ to Philip a constant expense.
Alva taxed and eontiseated and killed; but there was no
longer any money in the land, and he coubl not gather enough
even to pay the expenses of his army.
X SI)
The Netherlands— Separation of North and South 191 3
leaders. Instead of marching against Holland, they plundered the submissive
southexn provinces. The ''Spanish fury" swept over many cities, most notably
Antwerp, which was seized by the mutineers and ravaged for three days with most
hideous accompaniments of outrage and slaughter (1576). Driven by such miseries,
the South joined the North in its resistance. The ancient privileges of Flanders
and Brabant were once more insisted on, and a treaty of alliance, ''the Pacification
of Ghent," was arranged among all the "seventeen provinces" of the Nethcriands.
In the face of this imited opposition even Philip yielded, or at least he postponed
the subjugation of the Low Countries to a more convenient period. He was com-
pletely bankrupt He could neither pay his troops nor compel their obedience.
No alternative was left him but submission. Another new governor was therefore
sent to the Netherlands, Don John, the hero of Lepanto, most famous of the ille-
gitimate children of Charles V. Don John agreed to the "Pacification of Ghent,"
agreed to everything. The Spanish soldiers were paid by the Southern provinces
and marched for home.
For a time political intrigue superseded actual warfare. Don John endeavored
to imdermine the Prince of Orange. So also did the Flemish nobles, who wer^
jealous of his power. But the conunon people everywhere learned to cling to
him more and more, to see in him the one earnest patriot not to be duped by Spanish
trickery, not to be bought by Spanish gold, nor even by promises of an almost
imperial dignity. That these were ofiFered him we now know from Spanish sources;
but he remained true to his cause and his people. By these he was elected governor
of Brabant as well as of the northern provinces; and finally he became the acknowl-
edged leader of the entire Netherlands.
But even the genius of William could not keep the seventeen provinces in
harmony. The South under Alva's stem hand had become thoroughly Catholic.
Its revolt was only against its loss of liberty. The North on the contrary had
become wholly Protestant, and William himself in the days of desperate
struggle had openly adopted the new faith. "Calvus et Calvinista," he defined
himself, "Plain and Protestant." Hence the northem provijices demanded from
the South freedom of worship for themselves and their co-religionists ; the south-
em provinces refused this. William, striving to keep peace, fell under suspi-
cion from both parties. Soon Don John was able to raise a Catholic army
against him. Once more there were victories and defeats. The Duke of Anjou,
biotber to the King of France, was invited by William and his adherents to
become ruler of the Netherlands, that they might gain French assistance. This
alliance so strengthened the Protestant party that Don John died of fever and dis-
appointment, deserted even by Philip, who has been accused of poisoning him.
By 1580 the "Pacification of Ghent" had come to naught. The seven northern
piDvinces had imited themselves firmly into a single state under William's leader-
I9I4
The Story of the Greatest Nations
ship. Flanders also held with them, the citizens of Ghent and Bruges and the
other towns being still somewhat inclined toward the new faith. So also were
portions of Brabant; but the other southern provinces made peace with Philip,
were promised protection in their privileges, and under a new Spanish governor ■
they even began subscribing anew for Spanish troops to war against the North.
In 1 581, the Assembly of Holland finally took the decisive step of declaring PhiUp
deposed for all his misgovemment. Then asserting its own right to select another
king, the Assembly offered the nominal rank to the Duke of Anjou, while reserving
the real authority to William.
So a Frenchman came to be King of the northern Netherlands, while the Span-
iards still fought in the south. Soon the French ruler and his courtier followeis
found they had little real power, and no opening for wealth. They planned a
conspiracy of their own, and suddenly attacked the Antwerpers in the street, trying
to gain possession of the city. The "French fury" this outbreak was called, though
it could bear no comparison with the horrors of the "Spanish fury." The French-
men were soon defeated, and with their feeble chief took refuge in France, where
Anjou died.
The Spaniards meanwhile had begun a more subtle warfare. By fair promises
they lured many of the prominent patriot leaders to their side. William was declared
an outlaw, and a huge price was set upon his head. The Church promised to
forgive all the sins of any man who could reach and slay him. Five separate times
assassins, lured by the promise of earthly gain or spiritual reward, attempted
William's life. His friends guarded him jealously, but at last a religious fanatic
eluded their every precaution, reached William under pretense of being a messenger
from France, and shot him down (1584). The freedom of Holland was sealed
and consecrated in its founder's blood.
ALVA'S DOWNFALL
(Dracfinc th« Tyrant's Statu* Throufh the Str««ta of Antwarp)
From a paint bit/ now in the Antwerp Museum, by the Flemish artUt,
Charles Verlat
FOR eight years the awful tyranny of Alva desolated the
Netherlands. The country was only saved from him by
those exiles who had fled before his coming. Chief of
these exiles was Prince William of Orange. He organized
them into an army and led them back to fight for their homes
and the rescue of their countrymen. Often they were de-
feated, for Alva was really a great general; but still they
fought on in their desperation. Many of them had owned
ships, and they gathered a strong navy, against which the
Spaniards could not compete. These wandering, homeless
*' sea-beggars'' saved their country. They gradually won
control of all the northern provinces. City after city drove
out its S[)anish garrison \\u{\ drrlarerl for William of Orange.
He was made irovernor of Holland and Zealand, the pi*ovinces
most surrounded by water and therefore open to the *''si»a-
brggars. " There were glorious heroic struggles at Haarlem,
Leyden ainl other towns, until William held all the north and
Alva th(^ south. Then Kinir Philip decided that Alva had
faih^l. that severity was too ex{)e?isive a policy in the Nether-
lands; so he r(»eall(Ml th<» leri'ihle Duke and sent a '*con-
ciliatory" rejzent in his stead.
The UKUneiit Alva's back was turiuMJ the people roused
to vent upon him their fiii'v of exeeraticm. He had made
Antwerp the ehief city of the soutii. but even in Antwerp
a mob tore down his statue and dragged it through the streets
with every insult.
X-JM)
Chapter VI
GLORY AND DECAY OF HOLLAND
. PAIN had long predicted and confidently expected that the j
death of William of Orange would end the struggle in
the Netherlands. Spanish grandees, even after all the I
years of heroic resistance, could not conceive of common
people as acting for themselves, but persisted blindly
in regarding them as the tools of a self-seeking aristocracy.
The way in which William's sudden assassination ^
J met, must have gone far to convince all Europe that these Dutch
merchants were resolute as any knightly warrior and watchful as
J any courtly statesman. On the very day of the disaster, the Holland
Council of State sent to each of its generals and absent members
a grave and noble letter urging all to stand firm, since now the
* need of the land was greater than before.
The Nctherlandcrs had not yet realized cither their own strength or Spain's
increasing weakness. They despaired of being able to continue the strife
alone, and despite their disastrous experience with the Duke of Anjou, they
sent ambassa<lors to both France and England, entreating that the royal
houses would supply them with a king. Henry HI of France and Elizabeth
of England both seemed to look with favor on these appeals; and trusting
upon kingly promises, the Netherlanders were slow in preparing for self-
defense.
This reliance upon the exertions of others rather than ujxm themselves, re-
■915
THE "SPANISH FURY"
(Th* Unpaiil Spanlah SoiaUn «>*>■• tho Natharlanda for Thamaabu)
Priim a piiiHtini/ hy Ihe Flnmih arlhl, K. Govt*
TIIK first fruits ol" Alva's downfall and King Philip's
policy of cniK-iliution wciv (.'veti more horrible than the
preriouH severity. Alva had nt least been a strong
itiiin who kopt his own soldiers under control. He bad no
money to pay Iheni, their wjifri's were m arrears for years;
l)ut aifainst Alva they dared not revolt. Searcely was bis
iron hnnit withdrawn when the soldiers beennie elamorons for
pay. At lensrth Ihey deehired they would pay themselves
and began lavHKUijr the eilies. All over the southern Nether-
lands they burst inlo most awful horrorw of plunder and bru-
tality. In Antwerj). which Alvii hiid specially protected, their
devastiilion wns Ihe njosl terrible of all. Tliis outbreak was
I'litled the "Spanish Fury."
It WHS s1(i|>|ieil by the "■(•(iiiciliafory " K(ianish regent.
e piiiil niT Mild linrried home to Spain,
n Nethei'liuuls were airaiii tillnwed some extent
iietit. 'I'liis was |io.ssilile because of Alva's
U: luul killed ..H" every niiui of the south who
Only the irmst devoted Catholics remained,
wholly submissive ti> authority. Thus the
e s()utluTn Nelberlauils were actually ready
ii'ir tiirnn'r breibren of the north, who now
iii.l free under Willii.m i,( Orange.
The revoltinir tn
and tbesoullierii
of self-governni
bl.indv work. II
dared prntesL
.Jf ■
The Netherlands— The Empire of Holland 191 7
aovereignty which the rebels offered him; but Queen Elizabeth sent them English
Hoops and an English leader, her favorite, the Earl of Leicester. It was under
Leicester that the celebrated Sir Philip Sidney took part in Holland's struggle
and met his tragic death in the battle of Zutphen. The alliance of England with
the Dutch had also much to do with ELing Philip's despatching the Spanish Armada
against Ejig^d, and Dutch ships took no small part in the succession of naval
▼ictories by which the Armada was destroyed. Its defeat meant fully as much to
Holland as to Eng^d.
Gradually the scenes shift and the men; for this was a war of generations
not of years. The Prince of Parma, u:iaided by Spain with either men or money,
continued toiling at his impossible task of making armies out of nothing, until
he died of despair. Leicester offended the Dutch burghers by his arrogance, and
withdrew to Eb^bnd, as dissatisfied with them as they with him. Philip II also
died; and his successor, Philip III, inherited the feeble struggle, inherited a bank-
rupt Spain eidhausted of every military resource.
Only the "Seven Provinces" seemed to thrive upon the contest. The Protest-
ant exiles from Belgium added to the population and wealth of the North, added
algffc to the bitterness of the opposition against Spain. Unhampered by com-
mercial restrictions at home, the Dutch became the masters of the carr}'ing trade
of the world. Their captains ventured even into the ports of Spain, and were
welcoxned there; for they brought food without which the improvident Spaniards
must have starved. The daring visitors were accounted loyal subjects of King
Philip — ^until they were out of harbor.
Their ships explored the earth and brought home wealth from every land.
Spain and Portugal, temporarily united as a single state, claimed the sovereignty
of America and Asia; but Dutch merchants ventured into the farthest Indies.
In a celebrated contest o£f the coast of Malacca, a Dutch fleet manned by twelve
hundred men defeated the entire Spanish navy of India, a force four times the size
of the Dutch. The empire of Holland was thus established in the East, an empire
of which she still retains some fragments after all the vicissitudes of three centuries
of strife.
Two men rose to be leaders of Holland during this period of its expansion.
One 'was John of Olden-Bameveldt, who stands among the purest patriots of any
age» a. statesman and financial genius. The other was Maurice of Nassau, younger
of the martyred William. Maurice became the chief military figure of the
He originated a new system of siege and defense, by which he gradually
forced back the Spaniards upon the frontier, capturing their fortresses one by one.
As a general he was greater than his father, but as patriot and statesman he
sank far lower. William had repeatedly been offered the kingship of the land,
and had refused it. Maurice sought the high rank all his life, he schemed and
i
1918 The Story of the Greatest Nations
planned for it, and was refused. His chief opponent was the patriot Bameveldtj
and at length Maurice so roused the people against their aged protector that Bame-
veldt was condemned and executed as a traitor (1619).
A reaction followed the excitement, and Maurice found himself farther than
ever from his goal. He had long been governor or "Stadtholder" of the United
Provinces; that was the highest he could rise. Fortune deserted him. The cause
of freedom, stripped of the statesmauship and financial wisdom of Bameveldt, sank
in the scale. Even those who had supported Maurice, began to point at him in
horror. He died in 1625 a gloomy, disappointed man.
Still the war continued. From 1609 to 1620 there had been a truce in Europe,
but in Asia the fighting was continued. Then the world-wide "Thirty Years' War"
of Germany drew both Holland and Spain once more into the vortjx of rjligious
strife. Maurice was succeeded as Stadtholder by his younger brother Frederick
Henry, who upheld the high reputation of his race. In 1628 the Dutch Admiral,
Pirt Heijn, captured the Spanish silver fleet and brought treasure worth millions
of dollars into Holland. In 1639, Admiral Tromp attacked and completely
destroyed a Spcmish fleet of fifty ships in "the battle of the Downs" oflf England's
coast. This completed the destruction of the vast navy of Spain, and raised the
naval repute of Holland to the highest point.
The haughty house of Hapsburg, rulers of Spain and of the German Empire,
saw their sea-power crushed by Holland and their armies exhausted by the Swedes
in the German war. So at last the Emperor and the King of Spain, another
Philip by this time, the fourth of the name, consented to the general peace of 1648,
by which the entire independence of Holland was formally acknowle 'gcd. She
took her place among the great Powers of Europe, not as a monarchy but as a re-
public. The house of Orange retained a very high authority as **Stadtholders/'
but the burghers had become fully accustomed to self-government. The States-
General was the acknowledged authority of the land; and its members, dreaming
of empire in the East, assumed all the airs of royalty. They officially styled
themselves "The High and Mighty Lords."
No sooner however, was the peace with Spain completed than these High and
Mighty Lords found themselves in conflict with another enemy. During the
entire period of the ''Eighty Years' War," England and the United Provinces had
been the bulwarks of Protestantism against Catholic Spain; and their common in-
terest had kept them more or less closely in alliance. As the commercial pros-
perity of Spain and Portugal grew less, that of England and Holland advanced
with mighty strides. But now, with the complete downfall of the foe, the two
conquerors were left to dispute over the spoils of victory, the merchant commerce
of the world.
To any far-seeing eye, a business war between the two rivals, both keenly
«, '•
DEATH OF WILLIAM THE SILENT
(An AauHln frsm Klni Philip Slaya Holland'a CnBt CU*«Uta>
from a paintini/ bg Iht Oenaan arlitl, W. Lindttuehrndt
THE struggle against Philip's tyranny split the Nether-
lanJs iu twain. For centuries after this tremendous
eoDtPst, men spoke of two Netherlands. The southern
or "Spanish Netherlands" remained a Catholic province.
The northern region became the independent Protestant re-
public of Holland.
This definite assumption of the form and name of a
i-epublic was gradual in the north. At first there were aeven
separate provinces there, of which Holland was merely the
strongest. William of Orange was its "Stadtholder," an
office far more' like that of a permanent king than of an
fleeted presidout. Jloroover, AVilliani and his followers kept
ottVriug the kiiitrship nf their land to France, to England,
luid to other states or princes, to any one, in short, who could
ju-otect them iij-'ainst ^paiu. But (ine royal ruler after an-
other faili'd them. They could rely only upon themselves and
the genins of their tri'eat chieftains.
The Spaiiiaiwis eaine to believe that in William lay the
whole beiu't and strength of the revitliilion. King Philip
hired assa.isin iifler assassin to slay this "chief foe of the
Ohuich." William was zealously guarded by his people, and
one attempt after another was defeated Iiy their vigilance.
At last, however, in ir)84. he was shot on the stairway of his
home in Delft and perished there amid his weeping friends.
Netherlands— The War with France 1919
grasping^ both superbly self-confident, must have appeared inevitable. The quarrel
gre-w rapidly. At length Admiral Blake in command of an English fleet fired a shot
at a Dutch vessel; Admiral Tromp responded with a broadside; the memorable
naval war began (1652). There were two years of desperate, deadly, glorious naval
fights. On the whole the advantage was with the English, who had the heavier ships.
But both Admiral Tromp and Admiral de Ru)rter defended the Dutch coast with
vigor and success, and won for themselves and their countrymen undying renown.
A peace was patched up in 1654, but the inevitable commercial antagonism
led to a renewal of the strife in 1665. Holland lost her colonics in North America;
but one of her fleets under De Ru)rter penetrated up the Thames River almost to
London and did incalculable damage to England's shipping, so a second peace
was wrung from the startled Englishmen (1667). A year later Holland interfered
in the war between Sweden and Denmark and by some vigorous sea-fighting com-
pelled Sweden to accept her proposals of peace. For a moment the "Seven United
Provinces" stood at the summit of their power, the dictators of the North.
The man who had led HoUcuid to this height of influence and renown, was
John De Witt, chief of the celebrated family of that name. Unfortunately it was
he also who brought his coimtry to the very verge of destruction. His attitude
and that of the Dutch people in general was construed as an insult by the new
"rising sun" in France, the youthful monarch Louis XIV. Or rather, to put it
more broadly, the very existence of Holland, a republic, was felt as an insult by
every sovereign of Europe. Here were these "mere tradesfolk" assuming airs of
equality and even of superiority toward the most eminent royal houses. When in
1672, Louis suddenly proclaimed himself offended and without warning hurled
his armies upon Holland, not a voice was raised in her favor. The English, mind-
ful of recent injuries rather than more recent treaties, sent their fleet to join France
in the attack.
Once more as in their memorable war with Spain, the Dutch stood alone, friend-
less and apparently overwhelmingly outnumbered. But now their cause seemed
even more hopeless thstn before, because they were wholly unprepared for an at-
tack by land. De Witt had persisted in courting alliance with France, in trust-
ing upon Louis's friendship. No precautions had been taken against attack; the
invading Frenchmen found their work at first a mere pleasure trip, a plundering
expedition amid a helpless people. The infuriated Dutchmen cried out that De
Witt was a traitor, that he had expected, nay invited this disaster. He and his
brother Comelis were slain by a mob in the streets of The Hague, savagely beaten
and trampled almost out of recognition as human forms.
The martyrdom of these two pure and high-souled patriots left the way open
for the return to power of the princes of Orange. The young heir of the house,
now grown to manhood, was at once made Stadtholder as William HI. In fact
1920 The Story of the Greatest Nations
it was his partisans who had slain the De Witts, nor was the prince himself ever
wholly cleared of complicity in the crime.
His sudden appearance at the head of affairs roused the people from the despair
into which they had been thrown by Louis's sudden attack. Half the country was
already in French hands; but Amsterdam set example to the remainder by cutting
her dykes, flooding her own surrounding fields, and so opposing a barrier of water
to the enemy's advance. Yet so desperate seemed the situation that William and
the States- General, finding every overture for peace rejected, discussed in solemn
council the necessity of destroying all the dykes, taking the entire nation on board
their ships and sailing away to their empire in the E^t — cleaving a drowned land
to an insatiable foe.
Fortunately this extreme of heroism was not demanded of them. The partial
flooding of the land by Amsterdam and other cities, sufficed to check Louis's
progress. Moreover, on the checkerboard of European politics, the Hapsburg
rulers of Germany and Spain seeing their rival the French king apparently on the
point of subduing Holland, lent their aid to the very land that had broken down
their ancient supremacy. William also secured the friendship of England by
marrying Mary, the king's niece (1677). Against this array, France fell back,
baffled. Holland was once more saved by a prince of the house of Orange.
From that time William IH devoted his life to his celebrated strife against
King Louis. Again and again he managed to draw Europe into an alliance against
France. In 1689 he became King of England; and that high office also he em-
ployed to defeat Louis. In the end he was successful. At the time of William's
death (1702), England, the United Provinces, and the German Empire were at-
tacking Louis in the ''War of the Spanish Succession"; the towering might of
France was already crumbling.
William left no nearer heir than a youthful cousin, so the Provinces elected no
new Stadtholdcr to succeed him. Once more the States- General took entire charge
of the government. Its members resolutely continued William's plans for war
with France; and their troops took a prominent part in those great victories of
Blenheim, Ramillics and Malplaquet, for which England is so apt to daim entire
credit.
Yet the Provinces were becoming exhausted both in men and money. These
perpetual wars were at last sapping their vitality beyond its power to recuperate.
England was crowding them from the ocean; their trade was languishing. When
in 1 71 2 the English queen suddenly decided to make peace with France, the Prov-
inces had no choice but to acquiesce in the arrangement. They accepted what
award the mightier disputants chose to assign them, and sank back from the
high rank which they had so briefly yet heroically maintained among the "Greatest
Nations."
SPANISH RULE IN THE SOUTH
([■■balls af Auilria Fr»> Htw Polltiul PrU<>Da»>
From a pninting by F. J. rim dtr Omleraa
FOR nver two centuries after the division of the Nether-
lands into north and south, the history ot the southern
or "Spanish" pronuei-s is one of peace, and even of
prosperity. King Philip, *aught by eostly experience Ihat
these proi-iuctfS eciuld only be made profitable by according
them a certain amount of liberty of trade and selE-goveru-
meut, erected the Spanish Netherlands into a serai-indepen-
dent slate. It became a sort of minor Idnjirdom. a family
heritage wherein younger sons and daughters of King Philip's
Hapsburg race first learned and exercised the art of gov-
ernment.
This kingdom was first conferred on Philip's daui^btar
Isabella and her husband the Duke of Austria. Isabella and
tier consort made a triumphal journey from city to city;
and as evidence of her intent to be a friend and protector
(o her people, Isabella in each city liberated all the political
prisoners. Moreover, this time the Spanish promise was kept.
The cities really flonrisheJ under Isabella. Something ot
their trade revived, their wealth came back. They grew pros-
perous, and cultivated the art-s, Rubeus, the great Flemish
painter, arose, and others scarcely less noteworthy. The
people, governed in kindness, became apathetic and contcQtJ
I
Chapter VII
LATER HISTORY OF THE NETHERLANDS
HAT remains to be said of the Netherlands may be briefly
told. The southern portion, the Spanish or as they
had come to be called, the Austrian Netherlands, Iftid
been the main baltk' ground between Louis XIV and
the European coalition. The land lay wasted and deso-
latL-. Holland, impoverished and exhausted, was in
little better condition. Peace slowly restored both
regions to a mati/ria] prosperity, but not to that high
national pride and vigor which had once made them famous,
Holland joined in the war of 1744 against France and lost what
little prestige remained to her. The people, in an outbreak of re-
sentment against their feeble government, not only restored the
Stadtholdership to the house of Orange (1747), but declared it a
permanent office and hereditary in the family forever. William
IV, the Stadtholdcr thus appointed, was a nephew of William III;
and his patriotism and ability seemed to promise him worthy of the
Ttnowncd race from which he sprang. But his sudden death in 1751 left his
rank to an infant son, William V, so that the difficult duties of the position fell
into the hands of regents.
* The first of these was the child's mother, Anne, a daughter of King George H
of England; and after her death came the Duke of Brunswick, who was also in-
timately allied with the EogUih royal house. The people of Holland felt that their
193 1
ROYALTY AND THE REPUBLICANS
(TluSaUUnof LauUXlVBurat with Cn»l IUtbi* Upon Helhad MAvmws
Hl> DlcnltyJ
Front an antique i/rmcinjf fcj Romain de Roogkt
THE people of Holland had no such ensy life as that of
their former brethren further south. The Hollanders
had made themselves indepeudent; and thus freed o£
kingly tyranny they beciinie u mighty nation. Their unre-
stricted trade brought to them the wealth of the world. They
established colonies in the far East, which they still possess.
They fought great naval wars, matching themselves on an
equality with all the might of England. They were feared,
and their favor was courted. Yet the kings of Enrope coald
never forgive them for being a republic. It was forever
galling to those haughty moiiarchs to have to deal on equal
terms with '"Inidi'.sfolk."
At length, in lfi7-2. Louis XIV of France in the first
splendor of his power decljired that the Hollanders had in-
.sultcd his dignity. For this "worthy cause" he suddenly
hurled an army into itn'ir unprfparud domains to plunder
and slay, until "dignity" should lii' fonsoled by sufficient
murders. Hullaud was drivi^n to tlii' point of despair, and
only saved hei-HcIf from (■orM]>]i'te corir|iifsl by the desperate
expedient of opi^niiig her dykrs and drowning her own land.
This drove the Freiiphmen back: and the Dutch leader
"William III iiiaiTii'd an Ent:lish wife, got himself made King
of England and defeated Louis iu the i-nd. He won his tri-
luiipli, howevi'r, as an English h-ader. Exhausted Holland
The Netherlands— Belgian War of Independence 1923
received with a warm aflfection that forgot former causes of dispute and remembered
only his race, the great race of Orange, and its long devotion to the cause of Hol-
land. The nation had been surfeited with republican forms of government; the
stadtboldership was abolished; William was eagerly invited to become a king
and in March, 1814, was solemnly inaugurated as King William I.
In the general rearrangement of European affairs undertaken by the Con-
gress of Vienna in 1814-15, it was imiversally agreed that this new ''Kingdom
of Holland*' should not only be accepted but enlarged, so that it might become
a real restraint upon France's northern border. Austria, receiving compensation
elsewhere, surrendered its outworn claim upon Belgium ; and once more after the
lapse of centuries all the low coimtries were reunited into a single state, the "King-
dom of the NetheilandSy" under the sovereignty of William I, no longer Prince of
Orange, but EJng of the Netherlands.
This ill-advised union of Belgium and Holland lasted only fifteen years. It
had indeed been hopeless from the beginning, a purely geographical alliance
which took no account of the differences of religion and race, nor of the even keener
antagonisms roused by centuries of alienation and war. Nobody really desired
the union except a few purblind diplomats and the ambitious King William.
The Dutch accepted it with hesitation. The Belgians were not consulted at all.
They felt themselves treated as a conquered and dependent people; and when
the French revolution of 1830 gave them the impulse and opportimity, they rushed
immediately to arms and proclaimed their independence.
The Dutch however, had become proud of their superior position in the imion;
they would not lightly relinquish it. King William, grown old and narrow, was
haughty and uncompromising. A Dutch army attacked Brussels and was vigor-
ously resisted by the citizens. There were four days of fighting in the streets.
Barricade after barricade was stormed by the Dutch troops, but always there were
others beyond, and at length the invaders were compelled to retreat. Belgian
independence had been sealed in blood.
Everywhere throughout the coimtry the people rose in arms. The Dutch
garrisons were driven out. The most notable struggle was in Antwerp, where the
Dutch troops, driven from the streets, took possession of the citadel and bombarded
the city they were supposed to be protecting. Both France and England inter-
vened. If Belgium was so determined on independence, the great Powers would
no longer stand as sponsors for the imion they had created. So the Netherlands
were again declared divided. Belgium was allowed to select a king of its own
from the royal families of Europe, and after negotiation with two or three candidates
conferred the dignity upon a German prince, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg. Lines of
demaxcatkm between Belgium and Holland were then agreed to by the Powers,
tbou^ naturally the boundaries assigned satisfied neither of the belligerent little
^
1924 'I'he Story of the Greatest Nations
states. Indeed the Dutch king secretly resolved to defy Europe. He sent hi^
army suddeilly into Belgium in a renewed attack. The new Belgian king^^
Leopold, appealed to the Powers for help ; and they came vigorously f orwarcE^
to support their previous decrees. A French army marched into Belgium t
drive out the Dutch ; and a British fleet threatened to bombard the coast oi
Holland. So Holland yielded and called home her troops.
The career of Holland remained peaceful through all the rest of the nine-
teenth century. She became, as she had been of old, a trading country. Sh^
still retained some of her Eastern and South American colonies, including th^
huge and vastly rich tropical islands of Java and Sumatra. From these weal
flowed into her ports, and her thrifty p'eople cleared new waste lands behin
protective dykes and made their flat meadows blossom ever more and mor^
Old King William never got over his loss of Belgium. He opposed the a
rangements for her freedom at every step, and when in 1839 he had signed
last long delayed document separating the two states completely, he soon af teiK-
ward resigned his own throne. His son. King William H, reigned tmtil i84»
and was then succeeded in turn by his son. King Killiam HI, who reign
tmtil 1890. William HI was succeeded by his ten-year-old daughter Wilh
mina. For some years the little child queen was ruled by her mother as regen^rrmr^i
but full power was formally vested in Wilhelmina in 1898.
Queen Wilhelmina was repeatedly urged by her coimcillors to marry. H^ f^(
people were devoted to her and wanted her children to continue the royal linMr:*: ni
The young queen, the greatest "match" of the day, with all the nobility of Er,ZSu
rope to choose from, unfortunately selected as her husband a Prussian nobl
Duke Henry of Mecklenburg. He was a handsome and dashing young ca
airy officer ; and the match was proclaimed to the world as one of genuine lor
upon a throne. The wedding, which took place in 1901, was certainly a f
tunate thing for Prussia, as German ascendancy thereafter gradually increas*
among the upper classes. Rumor, however, pictured the Prussian prince
anything but a devoted husband, and the mass of Dutch people showed li
love for him. In 191 4 the people of Holland showed themselves mark
in sympathy with Belgium and the cause of Democracy, as the upper clas-^=5ses
were with their German relatives and the cause of Autocracy.
Meanwhile Belgium, starting on her independent career in 1830, was, "i" tit
have seen, the protege of the great Powers of Europe. They had created the
new State — or at least allowed her to create herself — and they had rescued her
from Holland. They also pledged themselves to her preservation. l^SicA
Power, including Prussia, pledged itself to respect Belgian neutrality, nmzz:>t to
I
QUEEN WILHELMINA'S WEDDING
<TI» QuHn Amid tha PiaM" «' Har PcQpl* W*d. th. Gumu Duba lUwfy)
From a painting on the ipol bg E. Linmsr
WIIEX nil Europe was reeonst meted after the apheaval
of Napoieoo's days, the Netherlands were erected into
a little independent kin^om under Holland's rule.
The santhern Catholic provinces, however, had been so long
estraiiK*-'tl from the north that they insisted on a separate
independence and fought for it. Thus the Netherlands bfr^
came divided into Holland and Belfriuni. The existence of
these two little kin^oms is piiaranteed by the great Powers
of Europe, so that they give every promise of remaining as
permanent states.
Holland, more acciistoined to self-government and with its
pmud traditions of liberty behind ii, has been the more suc-
cessful state of till' twix Its (iionaruh-s are descended from
the it'lebrated family nf William the Silent, and are deeply
loviil and trusted by iheir people. The present queen, Wil-
heliiiiiia. ■ame fo the tJiiDue as a young child in 1S90. Her
pei>|ile uii:tHi her to uiarry. so as to perpetuate their beloved
nice 111' ruleih; anil in l;*l'l WilheJniiua iiiiide choice of a
Ceniian prinee for her hu,l>and. Duke Henry of ilecklen-
luiri;. Tlie pair were wedd.-.l in the irreat church of The
llairue surrouudi.i by all Wiib.-jmiria's devoted subjects.
There is no eountry in Kurope n lioso pei)ple seeiu more happy,
prosperous and well-e^'ulent.
The Netherlands — The Peace Conference 1925
profound upheaval shook Belgium to its center in 191 3; but young King
Albert still struggles for his people and still retains their confidence.
In Holland meanwhile there has been far greater national sentiment
and greater unity of feeling; hence her course has been one of peace and
progress. King William I abdicated in 1840, soon after he had been finally
compelled to consent to the formal release of Belgium. His son, William H,
ruled until 1849, when he was succeeded by his son, William HI. This king,
gfTown old and feeble minded, died in 1890 without male heirs, so that the
throne passed to his ten-year-old daughter Wilhelmina. For several years the
child's mother ruled as regent, but in 1898 Wilhelmina assumed full sov-
ereigfnty amid the congratulations of all nations. She soon selected a husband
suited to her taste, a dashing young Prussian officer, Duke Henry of Mecklen-
burg*. The choice was approved by her devoted people; Duke Henry was
created a general, and also "Prince of the Netherlands," and in 1901 the
happy pair were wedded with splendid ceremonials at The Hagite. Rumor
has since represented them as proving less congenial to each other than their
subjects hoped. A daughter was born to the queen in 1909, and became the
heiress of her mother s crown.
Wilhemina makes an excellent ruler; she is devoted to her people, and
they to her. She has also brought her country into note as the seat of the
International Peace Conference, which held its first meeting at The Hague in
1899, and has since by the young queen's invitation made her capital its home.
A second great Peace Conference was held there in 1907, on w^hich occasion
a splendid Palace of Peace, gift of Andrew Carnegie, was erected as a perma-
nent home for the tribunal.
Only one shadow has recently disturbed the quiet of this sturdy little
kingdom. The government in 1912 planned to devote large sums of money
to making the port of Flushing a great naval fortress. This was felt by
England to be a sign of German influence. Germany was supposedly eager
to have the Dutch seacoast made strong against English ships, while the land
frontier bordering on Germany itself lay wholly undefended. A similar con-
dition had been noted in Belgium the year before when France and Germany
had been at quarrel and Belgium was shown to l3c unprepared to prevent
Germany from invading and using her territory as a basis of attack on France.
Hence France and England have lx)th accused the Netherlands of "Germaniz-
ing" tendencies. Holland has answered by protesting strongly her unalterable
resolve to remain wholly independent; and Belgium, in 19 13, increased her
army budget so that she now stands ready to defend her hard-won territory
against all intruders. Thus even on these two tiny states is laid the heavy
burden of Europe's military policy.
CHRONOLOGY OF THE NETHERLANDS
B.C. 58 — Caesar begins the conquest of the Belgae and Nervii. A.D. 28—
Roman conquest of Frisia. 70 — Civilis heads a Batavian nebelHon. 28o( ?)-
Invasion of the Franks. 481 ( ?) — Clovis leads the Franks out of the Nether
lands. 622 — ^Dagobert reasserts Frankish dominion and founds the first Chrir
tian Church at Utrecht. 692 — Pepin conquers King Radbod. 695 — Willibr
made first Bishop of Utrecht. 755 — Bishop Boniface martyred. 785
Charlemagne begins the conquest of the Frisians. 843 — Treaty of Verdun ii
eludes the Netherlands in Lotharingia. 864 — Baldwin of the Iron Arm wi
the Emperor's daughter and becomes Count of Flanders ; his domain is attach^^^-crf
to France. 880 — The rest of the Netherlands annexed to Germany. 911 .
Lorraine added to France. 923 — Dirk I rules as first Count of Holland. <i
1036 — Baldwin V makes Flanders practically independent. 1061 — Floris I ^Df
Holland overthrown by the Bishop of Utrecht; Holland saved by Robert of
Flanders. 1127 — Assassination of Charles of Flanders and revolution of tbe
people of Bruges; rise of the communes. 1248 — William of Holland macfe
Emperor of Germany. 1301 — Philip of France confiscates Flanders. 1302—
The "Bruges Matins''; Battle of Courtrai. 1335 — The Flemish cities under
Jacques Van Artevelde dragged into the Hundred Years' War between France
and England. 1345 — Death of Van Artevelde; supremacy of Ghent 1382 —
Overthrow of Philip Van Artevelde and the Communes at Roosebeke. 1384 —
Flanders passes to the house of Burgundy. 141 7 — Death of William VI of
Holland and accession of Countess Jacqueline. 1428 — ^Jacqueline transfers her
authority to Philip of Burdundy. 1436 — Death of Jacqueline; war of Bur-
gundy with England. 1477 — Death of Charles the Bold leaves the Nether-
lands to his daughter Mary; the "Great Privilege'' granted to the citizens.
1482 — Death of Mary ; Maximilian, her husband, imprisoned by the Brugeois.
1492 — The Netherlands completely subjugated by Maximilian. 151 5 — Charles
V made Count of Flanders and Holland, etc. 1540 — Charles crushes Ghent
for its rebellion. 1550 — He establishes the Spanish Inquisition in the Nether-
lands. 1555 — Charles abdicates to his son, Philip H of Spain. 1559 — Philip
withdraws to Spain, Margaret of Parma regent. 1566 — The "beggars" pre-
sent their petition; image-breaking furor. 1567 — Alva reaches the Nether-
lands; William of Orange and many patriots flee; the "Council of Blood."
1568 — Execution of Egmont and Horn; William of Orange begins the Eighty
Years' War. 1572 — Alva's tyranny drives even Brussels to revolt; the "sea-
beggars" seize Briel ; the burghers rise everywhere against Spain. 1573 — Siege
and sack of Haarlem; Alva recalled to Spain. 1574 — Siege of Ley den; its
rescue; University of Leyden founded. 1576 — The "Spanish Fury" at Ant-
werp; Don John of Austria arranges a truce. 1580 — The northern provinces
1926
THE BELGIAN LABOR TROUBLES
(Th« Belgians Demand "One Man, One Vote" and Refuse to Lletan to tlio
Arguntents of Capital)
From a painting by Robert Kohler
THE recent career of Belgium has been less happy than
that of her sister kinjirdom. Having no hereditary
sovereigns of their own, the Belgians necessarily chose
a foreign king, a German; and his descendants have never
won the confidence and devotion of their people, as have
the royal race of Holland. Hence there has been in Belgium
no ameliorating influence to soften the modern clash of
classes, aristocracy against democracy, the rich against the
poor. In Belgium, labor troubles have taken a hard and
bitter course. There have been many strikes, and in 1912-13
there arose great strikes, which were political rather than
finnncial.
Belgium has long had a system of "i)lnral voting," that
is, men of wealth, position or edueiition have two or three
votes apiece. This hns enabled the upper classes to retain
power in all elections; and at last the laborers have reached
the point of refusing to submit. Their Civil War has not
been enrried on, as in old times, by bullets, but by strikes.
These cost Capital just as much, and cannot be so readily
supi)ressed by armed force. Thus the sti'ife of Capital and
Labor in Belgium holds the attention of all the world. War-
fare seems passing out of military hands, discarding military
weapons and entering the field of eeonomic sti'ife.
x-o^^
The Netherlands — Chronology ^9^7
declare their independence. 1581 — ^They offer the sovereignty to William of
Orange; he proffers it to Anjou; union of the "Seven Provinces." 1583 — ^The
"French Fury" at Antwerp; Anjou flees to France. 1584 — Assassination of
William of Orange. 1585 — Parma captures Antwerp; final break between the
northern and southern provinces; Leicester leads an English army to Holland's
help. 1 59 1 — Maurice of Orange begins his victorious career. 1596 — Found-
ing of the Dutch East India Company. 1598 — The "Spanish Netherlands"
conferred on Albert and Isabella of Austria. 1605 — ^Destruction of the Span-
ish Indian fleet off Malacca; establishment of Holland's supremacy in the
East. 1609 — ^Truce with Spain. 161 9 — Maurice executes the patriot Bame-
veldt i6ai — War with Spain re-opens. 1624 — Founding of New Amster-
dam in America. i6a8 — Piet Hein captures the Spanish silver fleet. 1637 —
The tulip mania. 1639 — Admiral Tromp destroys the Spanish sea-power.
1648 — Final peace with Spain. 1652-4 — First great naval war with England.
1665 — Second naval war. 1667 — The Dutch bum the Thames shipping;
peace with England. 1672 — Louis XIV invades Holland; England joins him;
murder of the De Witts; William III made Stadtholder ; opening of the dykes.
1689 — William becomes King of England; forms various coalitions against
Louis XIV. 1702-9 — Victories of Marlborough. 1713 — Treaty of Utrecht
leaves Holland exhausted. 1747 — William IV made hereditary Stadtholder.
1780 — England declares war and seizes Holland's colonial possessions. 1787 —
Revolt in Holland suppressed by William V. 1789 — Rebellion in Belgium
against the Austrians. 1 792 — French win the victory of Jemappes and annex
Belgium. 1794-5 — French overrun Holland; they aid in its reorganization as
the "Batavian Republic." 1806— Napoleon creates a "Kingdom of Holland"
for Louis Bonaparte. 1810 — Holland annexed to the French empire. 1813 —
Uprising against the French. 1814 — William of Orange made king by his
people; Belgium and Holland united as the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
1830 — Revolt of Belgium; battle in Brussels; Powers accede to Belgian inde-
pendence. 1 83 1 — Leopold of Saxe-Coburg chosen King of Belgium; Dutch
troops invade the land; they yield to France and England. 1839 — Holland
finally assents to Belgian independence. 1865 — Leopold II becomes King of
Belgium. 1885 — He is declared king of the Congo Free State. 1890 — Will-
iam III of Holland succeeded by his child daughter Wilhelmina. 1892 —
Serious labor riots in Belgium. 1898 — Coronation of Queen Wilhelmina.
1899 — ^International Peace Conference at The Hague, 1901 — Wedding of
Queen Wilhelmina. 1902 — Holland proffers her services for peace in the Boer
War. 1907 — Second Peace Conference held. 1908 — Belgium annexes the
Congo Free State. 1909 — King Leopold II dies and is succeeded by his son,
Albert I. 1912 — Holland plans a naval fortress at Flushing. 1912-13 — The
laborers of Belgium enforce a great political strike to secure equal franchise.
PRONOUNCING VOCABULARY FOR VOLUME X
Absalon (ahb'sah-16n)
Achmet (ahk'mSt)
/Ella (sna)
Angoln (ahng'Sln)
Anjou (6n-zhoo')
Anscarius (a.n-ska'ri-iis)
Arkona (ahr-ko'nS.)
Artevelde (ahr'ta-vSlt)
Astrakhan (ahs-tr3.-kahn')
Axel Hvide (ahk'sgl-hvidO
Azov (ah-z6v')
Baghdad (bahg-dahd')
Bajazet (b3.j-3.-z6tO
Ejom (be-yom')
Eat:ivia (bS-ta'vI-a,)
Borsclen (bor'sS-lSn)
Bouvines (boo-ven')
Brabant (brah'bSiit)
Bruges (bru'jSz)
Brusa (broo'sah)
Buda (boo'da)
Canute (k&-noot')
Caramania (kah-rah-mahn'5[-&)
Cerestes (ka-rSs'tez)
Civilis (si-vi'lls)
Colberg (kol'berg)
Copenhagen (ko'pfin-ha'gSn)
Courtrai (koor'tra)
Djen (jfin)
Dordrecht (dort'rgkt)
Drusus (droo'sus)
Ertoghrul (gr-tftg'ghriil)
Fehrbellin (fair-bSl-len')
Fjord (fe-yord')
Frederikshald (frgd'Sr-flcs-hahld)
Friesland (frez'ia.nd)
Gallipoli (gai-Hp'o-lI)
Ghent (gSnt)
Gravelines (grahv-len')
Guntz (guents)
Haarlem (hahr'lSm)
Hainault (ha-no')
Housein (hoo-sin')
Hunyadi (hoon'y6d-e)
Iconium (i-c6'ni-um)
Idstedt (id'stgt)
Ingermanland Otn'ggr-m&n-land)
1928
acqueline (zhahk'lin)
emappes (zha-mahp')
^otun (yer'tun)
Kalmar (kahl'mahr)
Karasi (kah-rah'si)
Karelia (kahr-a-le'3.)
Khara (kah'rah)
Knut (knoot)
Kossova (k6s-so'v&)
Leipzig (llp'sflc)
Leyden (li'dSn)
Liege (le-azh')
Lille (lei)
Louvain (loo'v&n)
Lund (loond)
Mahmud (mah-moodO
Malkkatoon (mahl-kh&'toon)
Marizza (mah-rlt'sJl)
Mohacs (mo-hahch')
Murad (moo'r&d)
Mustapha (moos'tah-fah)
Narva (nahr'vah)
Njrmwegen (nSm-wa'gSn)
Osman (6s-mahn')
Oxenstjema (6ks'6n stSr-nS.)
Pultowa (pul-tov/a.)
Ragnar Lodbrok (rahg'n&r-lad'
brok)
Roosebeke (roos'bek)
Rugen (rue'gSn)
Saoudji (sah-ood'jl)
Scania (skah'nS-^)
Schleswig-Holstein (shlas'wek-hor
stin)
Selim (se'lim)
Sinope (sin-o'-pe)
Sweyn (swan)
Szigeth (se'ggt)
Tabriz (tah-brez')
Trebizond (trgb'I-zSnd)
Ukraine (u'kran)
Upsala (up-sah'lah)
Waldemar (w61'dS-mahr)
Wallachia (wSl-la'kJ-a)
Wisby (wiz'H)
Yngling (eng'ling)
Zealand Cze'iand)
c:
I N DEX
Aadim, 544. 54(^ 553. l8i6
Aahmet, laS, tap
Aames, u6, 117
Abucal. Usrdul, 1714-1717
Abawtua, battle of, 1336
Abbaridcs, iSSs ,
Abderahmui, toe Emir, 534, tSBo
AbdenhnuD, Caliph of Cordova, 1283
Abdul Ani, 1378, 1379, 1801, 1802
Abdnl BaU, m4
Abiba Hamid II, ito-lSoi
Abdul Uelid, 1801
Abdard, S08
Abotddr, 1109
Abraham, ao, 41-43, 60
Absalon, 1814
Abn-l-Hasan, lau
Abydoi, iia, ig6
Abjrsnina, 84, 486^ Iias
Aadia, 1554
Accad, 17-ift a6
Achxani, 153-166^ 170, 199, 357-361, 341
_ -J, 163-165
AduiKt UI, 1703
Adunet Kinprili, 17S7, 178S
Admlgu, aiftaie of, i^
Acre, 813-835. "ooo, i?97
Acropolii, i77i 183, 303-320
Adalbert, Safait, 712
Adalbert of Bremen, s&t
Adwna, John, 1369, 1586-1596
Adanu, Jdm Qiiincy, 1614. 1615
Adams, Saniiid, 1503, 1563, 1589
Adaadieff, 1161
Addington. iioS
Adela, Queen of England, 990
Adelaide of Saxe Meiningen, 1118
Adelheid, 555, 556
Aden. 1138
Adhemar, 1308
Adherbal, 350
Adimantus. 303
Adolf of Nassau, 592
Adonis, 61
Adowa, battle of, 486
Adrianople. 445, 1745. 1746, 1752, 1754, i8c
1805
^^tes, 72, 326
JEgeana, lso-160, 177
^Igean Sea, 213. 214
-tgina. 193-254
i^r, 181 1
^Kus, 254
jEhrenthal, Count von, 746
yl^lian bridge, 426
^lla, 181 5
>Emilianus Scipio, 34t, 347
JEmilius, Paulus, 334, 335
^neas, 71, 164, 296-303
j£olians, 169
^uians, 3i-k 315
iCschylus. 210
^thefbald. 972. 973. 1886
^thelred. King of England, 972-980
.Ethelred, hlucil, 973
^thclred the Unready, 1820
i&lielstan, 972-978
yEthelwulf, 971, 972
«the1«rulf, King. 1886
Aetiui, 446, 447. 5>7
-Etolia, 168, 258-360, 338
Afghanistan, 1120, 1122, 1251
193° The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Afghans, 95
Afnca, 322-32S, 33S. 339. 355. 397. 399, 408.
43S. 443. i6Q3. "924
Agamemnon, 162-166
Aga-Uohammed, 95
Agatho, 216
Agathocles, 72
Agesilaus, 332
Agincourt. battle of, 838, 1024
Agis IV, 257, 258
Agricola, Cnxus Julius, 965
Agrigentum, 325. 338
Agrippa. 409
Agrippina., 420
Aguinaldo, 1680, 1681
Agumkakrimi, 2j
Ahab, 63
Atiaz, 46
Ahlula, Empress, 385
Ahmed Mirza, 99-I01
Ahriman, 78
Ahura-Mazda, 78
Ainos, 1426
Aix, 3S3, 544. 557. 588
A)x-la~Chapelle, peace at, 1097
Alabama, Ihe privateer, 1651
Aladdin, 1743
Alamance Creek, battle of, Ijfil
Alamo, the, 1620
Alaric. 270, 445. 775. 1273
Alaska, 1136, 1254, 1660
Alba Lonea. 303
Allian, Saint, 96s
Albania, 274, 286, 720, 1753, 1756, 1761, ijgo,
1804-1806
Albania, I'actia of, 1799
Albany, settlement of, 1518
Albany, Congress, 1552
Albemarle, settlement of, 1543
Alberich, S'9
Alberoni, 1309
Albert I, of Germany, 591-593, 715
Albert II, of Germany, 602
Albert of Brandenburg, 61J
Albert of Saxe-Coburg, iiJO, 1129
Albert I, of Belgium, 1924, 1925
Albert of Mecklenburg, 183I
Albigenses, 458, 819
Albinus, 350
Albion, 962
Alboin, 450
Alcibiades. 216-226
Alcnueonidx, 179-182
Akolea, battle of. 1322
Alcoraz, batile of, 1289
Alemanni, 434, 443, 514-548
Aleppo, 1766
Alesia, 766, 767
Alexander ihe Great, 35, 48, 65, 88, 89, 129,
235-269, 340
Alexander ][. of Greet;, 255
Alexander of PherK, 233, 234
Alexander Borria, Pope, 473, 474. 1693. itS^^^j
Alexander I, of Russia, 1126, 1203-1229, iayW=*>c^
Alexander 11, of Russia, 1236-1248
Alexander III, of Russia, 1247-1251
Alexander, Prince of Parma, 1916
Alexandra, Queen of England, 1127-1135
Alexandra, Empress of Russia, i253-ta63___^
Alexandria, 66, 129-137. 248-269, 382, A^^^^f^o
f)3. 433. 1 801
Alexieff, Admiral, 1470
Alexis I, of Russia, 1168
Alexis, son of Peter the Great. 1 183-1 i^E__^C
Alexis, the crarevitch, 1252, 1263
Alfinger, Governor. 1699
Alfonso I, of Spain, 1286
Alfonso VI, of Leon. 1287
Alfonso IX, of Castile, 1288
Alfonso the Battler, 1289
Alfonso the Wise. 587. S88. 1289
Alfonso XI, of Castile, 1290
Alfonso XII. of Spain, 1321. 132&-1333
Alfonso XIII. of Spain, 1333-1338
Alfred the Great, 786, 971-977
Algiers, 929. 948. 1773. 1780
Algonquins, 1519
Alhambra, 1923
Alien and Sedition Laws, I«|6
Alise, 368
Allen, Ethan, 1566
Allia, 317, 318 ,
Alma, battle of the, 1233
Almagro. 1697
Almansa, 1089
Almanzor, 1284, 1286
Alps, 73, 332. 479. 500. s66, 604
Alsace, 615, 673, 686, 693, 942
Altona. 1861
Alva, Duke of, 1303, 1910-1913
Amadeus of Spain, 1325, 13^ 13^1 ^ ^
Amatcrasu, the Sun Goddess, 1420, 142^^^^^^^
Amazon, 1 694- 1 720
Amazons, 159, 164
Ambrose, Saint, 438, 443
Amelia, Princess, 1113
Amenemhat I. 115
Amenhotep IV. 118, 120 _^— ^^i
America. 54. 62, 607, 639, 898, 1051, ^^^^^
1090, 1296, 14^-1694
Amerigo Vespucci, 1701
Amherst. General, 1555
Amiens. 368
Aminias. 206. 208
Amon, 118-125
1374.
Amphis'
Amraphel. 21
Amsterdam, 54, 1897, 192a 1925
Amurath, 1745
Amyitis, Queen, 34
Amyntas, 234
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1931
^^^nabaptists, 1906
.^Xnarchists, 1239, 1334
-^\nchiscs, 296
-^^ncus, Martius, 303, 304
.^^ndalusia, 1281
-rf^nderson, Major, 1632- 1634
-^\ndcrsonvillc prison, 1654
^^ndes Mountains, 1694-1728
-^ndrc, Major, 1578
^^.ndrew, Saint, ^4, 1090, X155
^^.ndrew, King of Hungary, 818
.Andromeda, 158
.Andros, Sir Edmund, 1521, I535-I546
.Angcln, 1810
-Angles, 446, 966
-Anglesey, 964
-Anglo-Saxons, 966
.Angora, 1750
.An^^ouleme, 856
-Anjou, Count of, 797
-Anjou, Duke of, 1913-1915
-Anna of Bohemia, 724
-Annam, 1382-1389
.Annapolis, 1543
.Anne of Austria, 880-884
A.nne of Beaujeu, 853, 854
Anne of Brittany, 605, 853-856
Anne of Qeves, 1039
Anne of Denmark, 1057
Anne of Orange, 1921
Anne, Queen of England, 1 080-1 091
Anne, Empress of Russia, 1191
Anne of Russia, 1187-1191
Anscarius, 1816
Anselm, Count, 782
Anselm, Saint, 991, 992
Anskar, 1816
Anson, Commodore, 1096
Antalddas, peace of, 230
Anthem of Denmark, 1850
Anthony, Mark (see Antonius)
Antietam, battle of, 1645
Antigonus, King of Asia, 254
Antigonus Doson, 258, 259
Antigonus Gomatus, 256, 257
Antioch, 92, 201, 263, 267, 419, 575» 802-809,
1766
Antiochus, 226
Antiochus III, 48. 340
Antiochus IV, 50, 51
Antipater, 245, 254
Antoninus Pius, 426, 965
Antonius, Marcus, 365-403
Antonius Primus, 422
Antony, Marc (see Antonius)
Antwerp, 1885, 1904, 1913-1916, 1923
Ann. 9, 10, 20
Apelles, 266, 267
Aphrodite, 267
Apis, 119
Apollo, 154-156, 164
Apollo Belvidere, 474
Apollonia, 389, 395
Appian Way, 329, 375, 425
Appius Qaudius, 313-316
Appius Qaudius II, 346
Apries, 128
Apuleius, 265
Aquileia, 442, 447
Aquinas, Thomas, 440
Aquitaine, 369, 778-782, 791, 824
Arabi Pasha, 135
Arabia, 252, 263, 425, 1350, 1766, 1804
Arabs, 4» ". 32. 60, 94, 132, 133, 487, 534-536,
580, 778-780
Aragon, 583, 1286-1344
Ararat, 6
Aratus, 257, 258
Arbitration, Court of, 1249
Arcadia, 233, 257, iioo
Arcadianople, 711
Arcadius, 444
Archelaus, 235
Archidamus, 220, 221
Archimedes, 336, 33?
Arcole, 915
Arcot, 1099
Argentine, 1 702-1 726
Argonauts, 160-162
Argos, 150-153. 157, 167, 17s
Arp:yll, Samuel, 1512
Arians, 438-445
Ariminum, 333, 375
Ariovistus, 501, 764
Aristagoras, 184-187
Aristarchus, 269
Aristides, 191, 194-215, 265
Aristogaiton, 181
Aristomenes, 174, 175
Aristophanes, 216, 218, 269
Aristotle, 149, 243
Arizona, 1685
Arkona, 1824
Arkwright, 1105
Armada, 191 7
Annada, Invincible, 1048-1050, 1304
Armageddon, 117
Armais, 120
Armenia, 6, 274, 370, 424, 1738, 1806
Arminius (see Hermann), i&i
Arnold, Benedict, 1 568-1 581
Arnold of Winkelried, 597
Arnulf, 546, 547, 709
Amulf, Emperor, 1886
Arpad, 710, 711
Arretium, 333
Arsinoe, 3S
Artaphemes, 184-188
Artaxerxes I, 90, 226, 229
Artaxerxes II, ^28
Artemisia, 206, 207, 265, 267
Arthur, King of England, 967
Arthur, Prince of England, 814, 815, 1003,
1003
1932 The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index
Arthur, son of Henij VII, 1034
Arthur, President, 1066, 1667
Articles of Confederation, 1583-1588
Arundel, Archbishop, 1020
Arvad, 62, 64
Arvcmi, ^8, 760
Aryans. 5. 26, 74, 76-ioS» 499» Si7, 756, 1810
Asa-folks, 181 1
Asan, 1458
Ascalon, 804
Ascension, 11 38
Asculum, 375
Ashdod, 52, 128
Ashmolean Museum, 977
Asia Minor, 1738-1748, 1781
Asiaticus, 422
Aspasia, 215, 217
Aspcrn, 663, 733
Asquith, Herbert, 1131-1144
Asshur, 25, 29, 126
Assisi, 248, 458
Assouan, 137
Assur, 26
Assur-bani-pal, 8, 30-32, 126, 127
Assur-dain-pal, 29
Assyria, 8, 2^-33, 64, 117, 126-128
Astarte, 45, 61
Astor, 1621
Astoria, 1621
Astrakhan, 1162, 1779, 1789
Asturias, 1272, 1285
Astya^es, 80, 81
Asunaon,' 1702
Atahualpa, 1696, 1697
Ataulfus, 1272, 1273
Athaliah, 63, 64
Athanasius, 438, 439
Athelney, 975
Athens. 87, 152, 168, 174-271. 359, 428
Athothis. 112
Atlanta, 1652, 1653
Atlantic Cable, 1660
Atlantis, 1492
Atlas, 158, 160
Attains, 241, 242
Attica, 168, 174-253
Attila, 446, 447, 517, 707, 775
Auerstadt, 658, 659, 922
Augeas, King, 159
Augsburg, 610-61S, 655
Augustenberg, 676
Augustenberg, Duke of, 1871-1873
Augustine, Saint, 437-441
Augustulus, 447
Augustus Csesar, 130
Augustus the Strong, of Saxony, 6^
1 179
Augustus III, of Saxony, 638
Aulus Postumius, 312, 350
Aurelian, 434. 435, 525
Aurelius, Marcus, 426-430
Ausgleich, 745
Austen, Jane, 1106
Austerlitz, battle of, 657, 733, 1207
Australasia, 1141
Austrasia, 531, 532, 777
Austria, 478-487, 542-673, 692, 705-768
1803, 1873, 1903, 1916, 1922, 1923
Austria, Duke of, 1916
Austrian Netherlands, 192 1
Autun or Bibracte, 367
Auzer, Bishop, 1397
Avaris, 116
Avars, 708
Aventine, 315
Avignon, 463. 828
Axelborg, 1824
Axel Hvide, 1824, 1825
Ayacucho, battle of, 1318, 1721
Azim, 98
Azores Islands, 1705
Azov, 1791, 1794
B
Babel, Tower of, 7, 11
Babenberg, 713, 714
Babites, 98
Babylon, 3-48, 82, 106-118, 128, 248-253
Bacon, Nathaniel, 15 16
Bacon, Roger, 1015
Bacon, Sir Francis, 1051, 1057
Badajoz, 11 11, 13 14
Badbee, John, 1023
Radbury, 967
Bagaudae, 773
Baghdad, 1772
Bague, 1373, 1376
Bahia, 1704, 1707, 1724
Bailly, President, 913
Bainbridge, Captain, 1605
Bairactar, General, 1798
Bajazet I, 717, I747-I75i
Bajazet II, 1761-1764
Bajazet, son of Solyman, 1775
Baker, General, 136
Bakhtiaris, 99
Bakunin, Michael, 1240
Balaklava, battle of, 1233
Balboa, 1499, 1694, 1695
Baldur, 506, 507, 181 1
Baldwin I, of Jerusalem, 804, 8o|
Baldwin I, of Flanders, 972, 1880
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^933
Baldwin IV, of Flanders, 1886
Baldwin V, of Flanders, 972, 1886, 1887
Baldwin VI, of Flanders, 1890
Baldwin VII, of Flanders, 1886
Baldwin IX, of Flanders, 1886, 1887
Balearic Isles, 323, 1289
Balfour, Arthur J.. 1131-1140
Baliol, John, loio
Balkan Mountains, 1754, 1801
Balkan States, 1745, 1791, 1798, 1801-1806
Balkan War, i8o4-i8oiS
Balkans, 285, 286, 487, 746, 747, 1250^ 1262
Balmerino, Lord, 1099
Balthes, 633
Baltic, 69
Baltimore, Lord, 1542
Balue, Cardinal, 850
Bamberg, 558
Bannockbum, 1013
Barbarossa (see Frederick), 1773
Barbarossa pirates, the, 1301
Barbar^r States, 322, 1599, 1798
Barbengo, John, 717
Barcelona, 1273, 1334- 1338
Barebones, Parliament, 1067
Barnabas, 263
Bamet, battle of, 1028
Barney, Commodore, 1608
Barons of the Exchequer, 992
Barron, Captain, 1600
Barton, Edward, 1142
Basel, 589
Basil V, 1 160
Basing, 973
Basmanov, 1165
Bascjues, 755, 756, 778, 1270
Bastidas, 1499
Bastille, 903-907
Batavia, 1880-1889, 1922
Bath, 977
Bauge, 840
Bautzen, 666
Bavaria, 542-557» 57i» 572, 596, 619-686, 710,
7^ 892, 1897
Bayard, Chevalier, 856, 859
Bayeux tapestry, 995
Bazaine, Marshal, 684. 685, 936, 940
Beachy Head, 892, 1085
Beaconsfield, Lord, 1124
Beam, 871
Beatrice, Countess of Burgundy, 573-575
Beatrice of Swabia, 579
Beaufort, capture of, 1639
Beauhamais, Josephine, 919
Beauhamais, Viscount, 918
Beauhamais, Eugene, 919
Beaure^rd, General, 1636
Beauvais, 851
Beauvais, Bishop of, 817
Becket, Archbishop, 810, 997, 998
Bede, 984
Bedford, Duke of, 840-844, 1025
Been^ V^lliam, 1127
Behring, Vitus, 1190
Behring Sea, 11 90
Beggars, 1909-1911
Bet 35
Belgae, 756, 764, 1882, 1883
Belgic War, 367
Belgium, 523, 527. 598.673.777,911,1879-1925
Belgrade, 721, 728, 1753, 1760, 1769-1772, 1790^
1794
Belp;rano, 1714, 1715
Behsarius, 448, 449
Bellovaci, 767
Bel-Merodadi, 22, 28
Belshazzar, 34, 35
Bem, Commodore, 740
Benevento, 585
Beneventum, 320
Bengal, 1099, 1142
Berditold, Count, 746
Berengaria, Queen, 1827
Berenjrer, 555
Berenice, 422
Beresina, 1224
Berkeley, Sir William, 1514, 1516
Berkeley, Lord, 1540
Berlin, 629-677
Berlin, Congress of, 1239
BemadoUe, 1863, 1867-1870, 1873, 1874
Bemadotte, General, 667, 668
Bemard, Saint, 572, 806-809
Bernardo del Cajpio, 1287
Bernicia, 974
Bersekir, 512
Bertha, Countess of Blois, 794
Bertha, Empress of Germany, 565, 566
Berthold, 606
Besan^on, 574
Bessus, 249
Beust, Count von, 745
Beybars, 133
Be-zau, 11 1
Beziers, 820
Bilboa, 1334
Birmingham, 1105, 1 115
Biron, Ernest de, 1 192, 1194
Bismarck, 508, 676-692, 938-942
Bithynia, 340, 356, 359, 360
Bituit, 760
Bjame Herjulfson, 1493
Bjora, King, 1816
Black Death, 59^, 832, 1016
Blackheath, 1020
Black Hundreds, 1258
Bladensburg, battle of, 1607
Blaine, James G., 1667
Blake, Admiral, 1919
Blake, Robert, 1066, 1068
Blanche of Castile, 820, &21
Blanco, Marshal, 1673
Blandina, 772
Blenheim, 633, 925, 1089, 1920
1934 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Block, Adrian, 1518
Blois, 801
Blondet, 1 00 1
Bloodbath of Stockholm, 1838. 1839. 1841
Bloreheath. 1027
Blucher, General. 657. 659. (S61-670
Boabdil, laga. 1296
Boadicea, 420, 431. 964
BobrikoS, 1260
Boccaccio, 470. ^I
BcBOtia, 168, 209, 233-245
Boer War, 692, [129-1132
Boers, 1925
iB, I2S7
Bogota.' 1699, 1716-1720
Bohemia. 544-560. 573, S9t-62b, 641, 678, 707-
747
Bohemond, 801-605
Bokhara. 1250, 1251
Boleyn, Anne. 1036. 1039
Bolingbroke, Henry, 1019
Bolingfaroke, Lord, 1090
Bolivar, 13IS. I7I.S-I723
Bolivia, 1702-1723
Bologna. 384
Bomarsund. capture of, 1234
Bombay, 1073, 1099
Bonaparte. Joseph, 1297, U"
Bondar, Kings, the. 1830
Bonhomme Kicbard, the, 157"
BonifsLce, 1884
Boniface, Saint, 532, 533
Boniface VIH, 828
Boone, Daniel, 161 1
Booth. I. W., 1657. 1658
Bora, Catharine, 014
Bordeaux, 779, 736. 846, 912, 1017
Borgia, Cajsar, 473- 474
Borgia. Luerece. 473
Borneo. 11 38
Borodino, battle of, 1276
Borselen, Lord Francis, 900. 1901
Bosnia. 747, 1746. I75S. 1760. 1798. 1803-1806
Bosphorus, 61. 175?, 1783
Boston, 1529-1536. 1561-1568, 1662
Boston Massacre, 1 56 1
Boston Port Bill, 1562
Boston Teaparty. 1562
Bosworlh Field, T030
Botandai, Fort. 1465
Botha, General, 1 142
Bothnia, 1866
Both well. Earl of, 1047
Botta, M. Paul, 7
Botzarris. Marco, 278-280
Boulanger General. 947
Boulogne, Boi, K02, 921, 932, 1039
Boulogne, Count of, 817
Bourbaki. General, 685, 686, 041
Bourbon, House of. 878, 945. 1308-1338
Bourbon, Antony, 865, 867
e;. 580. (
Bowen, 16S5
Boxers, 693," I395-I4i3. 1681
Boyaca. General, 1720
Boycott. 1 1 25
Boyne, 891. I0S4
Bral'ant. 1884-1915
Braddock, General, iioo, 1553
Bradford. William. 1525-1527
Bradshaw. John, 1064
Bragg, General, 1643-1650
Brandenburg, 598, 628-635. igS7
Brandon, Saint, 468
Brandon, Charles, 1041
Brandywine, balile of the, iST*
Brasidas. 223. 224, 236
Bravalla. 1815
Brazil. 1693-1726
B reck en ridge, John, 1629
Bremen, 564, 5«6, 655, 673
Brenneville, 807
Bresc. .. . .,_.
Ereslau, 582. 6^6
Bretigny, 833
Bretigny, peace of, 1017
Brewster, William, 1525
Bridlington, io6t
Briel, 1911
Brienne, 918
Brindiey, James, 1105
Bristol. 1116, 1497. 1498
Bristol Castle. 993
British Africa. 1138
British Museum. 977
Briiwis. 323. 386. 962-966
Brittany. 776, 777
Brittany, Duke of, 837. 849
Brock. General, 1(04
Brooklyn, the man-of-war, 1677
Brouges, 765. 841
Broussel, 885
Brown, General. 1608
Brown, John. 1628
Bruce, Robert, loio
Bruges. 605, 'oji, 1885, 1890-tgio, 1914
Bruges' matins. 1892
[iruiidWuTn, 37S-378
BrunhiJd, i/i legend, 519-521
Brunhild, of history, 528, 539
Brunswick, 580
Brunswick. Dukes of. 658, 674, losi
IlTiiiiswickLTS, Black. 663
liru.sa, 742- l75l
Brussels. 1865, 1907-1912, 1923
Brulium, 338
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1935
Brutus, Dedmus, 390, 392
Brutus, Ludus Junius, 307, 310
Brutus, Marcus Junius, 390-399
Bryan, William J., 1670, 1683- 1685
Buccaneers, 1706
Bucephalus, 250
Buchanan, President, 1628-1633
Bucholtz, G>niniander, 1401
Buckingham, Duke of, 1058, 1059
Buda, 716, 723. 727, 1771, 1772, 1790
Buddhism, 1348, 1428
Buel, General, 1643
Buena Vista, battle of, 1622
Buenos Aires, 1702-1726
Bulgaria, 709. 1238, I239, 1746, 1754, 1803-
1806
Bull Run, battle of, 1636
Bull Run, second battle of, 1645
Bulow, General, 667, 668
Bultadji, 1793
Bundesrath, 689
Bunker Hill, battle of, 1567
Btmyan, John, 1073
Buonarotti (see Michad Angdo)
Burgos, 1286
Burgoyne, General, 1572, 1573
Burgundians, 1882, 1897-1905
Burgundy, 446, 514-573, 593, 77S'777
Burgundy, John, Duke of, 836-839
Burgundy, Duchess of, I0s3i
Burke, Bettv, 1099
Burmah, 1368
Burmah, King of, 1122
Burnet, Bishop, 1072
Bums, John, 1134
Bums, Robert, 1106 •
Bumside, General, 1647
Burr, Aaron, 1597, 1598
Busentinus, Richard, 446
Bute, Lord, 1108
Byblos, 60, 61, 64
Byron, Lord, 280, 1106
Byrsa, 341
Byzantine Empire, 444-448, 709, 11 59
Byzantium, 245, 270-275, 437, 774 (sec Gm-
stantinople)
Cabal, 1074
Cabera de Vaca, 1500
Cabot, John, 1034, 1497, 1498
Cabot, Sebastian, 1142, 1498, 1499, X702
Cabral, 1701
Cabrera, 1319
(3abul, iiao
Cade, Jack, 1026
Cadesia, 94
Cadiz, 69, 73, 1093, mo, 1269
Cadmus, 150, 157
Cadoudal, 911, 920
Cadwallon, 963
Caedmon, 984
Caen, 839, 912
Caepio, 343
Caermarthen, Marquis, 1175
Caernarvon Gastle, loio
Canar, the Constil, 354
Caesar, Julius, 130, 202, 360-393, 414, 432, 501,
508, 762, 7<57, 962, 1272, 1880
Cairo, 133-137, 1706
Cajamarca, 1696
Caj^tanus, Gtrdinal, 610, 611
Calais, 8I32, 846, 862, 1015, 1042
Calatafimi, 4IS4
Cakutta, 1099. ^'^' ^^^
Calder, Admiral, 11 10
Calderan, 1766
Calhoun, 1616-1627
California, 1482, 1506, 1622-1626
Caligula, $2,419,420,770
Callao, 1721
Callicrates, 260, 261
Callimachus, 190* 192
Callippus, 256
Calpurnia, 392
Culvert, Leonard, 1542
Calvin, Jean, 617, 863
Cambridge, 1002, 1035
Cambyses, 65, 83-85, 129, 183, 248
Camden, battle of, 1578
Camerinum, 354
Camillus, 316-318
C:ampania, 334-357.
Campbell, Colin, 1122
Campbell-Bannerman, 1 131 -i 137
Campeggio, 1036
C^mperdown, 1109
Camp Formio, 654, 732, 916
Campos, Marshal, 1329, 1335
Campus, Martius, 409
Canaan, 42, 43
C^anada, iioi, 1136, 1142, 1498, 1506, 1547-
1557, 1603-1609
C^nalejas, 1338
C^nares, 279, 280
Candia, 284
Canea, 282
C:annae, 334, 335
Canonicus, 1526, 1532
Canossa, 456, 555. 566, 1887
Canovas, 1332-1335
Cantabri, 1272
1936 The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index
Canterbury, 968, 977
Canton, 1359. 1367-1376, 1417
Canute, 981
Canute the Great, 1820-1822
Canute VI, 1825
Cape Colonv, 11 38
Capet, Hugh, 792-794
Capetians, 792, 793
Capistran, 721
Capitoline Hill, T/go, 300, 309
Cappadoda, 356-300, 378
Capri, 419
Capua, 337, 349, 375 ,
Carabobo. battle of, 1720
Caracalla, 130, 433, 443
Caracas, 1710, 1716-1728
Caractacus, 964
Caramania, 1745, I747-I753
Carbo, 351-360
Caribbean Sea, 1694- 1728
Oirinthia, 560, 615, 708, 709
Carlisle, Bishop, 1046
Carlists, 1316-1336
Carloman, 536
Carlos, Don, 1316-1318
Carlos Luis, 13 19, 1321
Carlos Don, the third, 13^-1329
Carlovingians, 537-548, 786
Carlowitz, 1790, 1792
Carlyle, 1123
Carnegie, 694, 1925
Camiola, 591
Camot, 912
Caroline of Brunswick, 1108, 11 14
Carpathian Mountains, 710
Carpet-bakers, 1660
Carson, Sir Edward, 1143, 1144
Cartagena, 1331, 1699, 1707, 1716, 1717
Carteret, Lord. 1540
Carthage, 65. 68-74. 84, 169, 208-349, 387, 4I4»
446, 1270-1272
Carthagena, 1096
Cartier, 1506
Carver, John, 1525
Casca, 390, 391
Caserta, Count of, 1335
Casimir-Perier, 947
Cassander, 253-255
Cassandra, 165
Cassel, 1893
Cassini, Count, 1255
Cassius, Avidius, 427
Cassius, Caius, 390-399
Cassius, Dion, 427
Cassivelanus, 963
Castile, 1286-1344, 1496
Castriot, George, 274
Castro, President, 1728
Catalans, 1306, 1335
Catana, 323
Catesby, Robert, 1055
Catharine of Aragon, 1034, 1036, 1298
Catharine of Braganza. 1073
Catharine of France, 840, 1025
Catharine I, of Russia, 1178-1190
Catharine II, of Russia, 1194-1203, 1795-1797
Cathay, 1356
Catiline, 364, 365. 432
Cato of Utica, 363-384, 413, 4M
Cato, the Censor, 413, 414
Catti, 427
Catullus, 414, 415
Catulus, 353
Caucasus, 1231, 1795
Cavaignac, General, 931, 932
Cave-dwellers, 4
Cavendish, Lord, 1125
Cavite, 1674
Cavour, Count, 483-485
Cawnpore, massacre of, 1122
Caxton, 103 1
Cecil, William, 10^
Cecil, Robert, 1046, 1051
Cecropia, 177
Cecrops, 177
Cedar Creek, battle of, 1656
Cehzrym, 1789
Celer, 29iB
Celts, 168. 256, 756, 1270
Censors, 316
Centennial International Exhibition, 1665
Central America, 1499
Cerberus, 160
Cerdic, 9i59
Cerestes, 1782
Cerro Gordo, 1623
Cervantes, 1306
Cervera, Admiral, 1335, 1675, 1677
Ceylon, 1104, 1138
Chacabuco, battle of, 1718
Chxronea, 240, 243, 359
Chaffee, General, 1406, 1409-X414, 1478
Chaldaea, ^z
Chalons, battle of, 447, 5 17, 775
Chamberlain, Joseph, 1133-1136
Chambord, Henry ojf, 929
Chambord, Count, 945, 947
Champagne, 821
Champigny, 941
Champlain, Samuel, 1506, 1518
Chancellorsville, battle of, 1648
Cha-pu, 1375
Chapultepec, 1624
Chares, 267
Charlemagne, 453, 530-544f 708-713, 78i, 1281,
1816, 1884
Charles Martel, 531-537, 779, 7^0, 1280, 1884
Charles the Fat, £mperor of Germany, 546^
785-787
Charles IV, of Germany, m6, 7i6
Charles V, of Germany, d(Kr-oi6, 724, 858-
861, 1035, 1296-1302, 1699, 1770, 1839,
1904-1908
Charles VI, of Germany, 639, 729, 1088, 1308
The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index 1937
Charles VII, of Germany, 640, 641
Charles the Bald, King of France, 783-785,
1886
Charles III, of France, 788-791
Charles IV, of France, 829
Charles V, of France, 833-835, 1017
Charles VI, of France, 836-840, 1024
Charles VII, of France, 840-847, 1025
Charles VIII, of France, 853-855
Charles IX, of France, 865-^0
Charles X, of France, 901, 929, 948
Charles I. King of England, 1057-1063, 1306,
1514, 1531
Charles II, of England, 890, 1065-1077, 1515,
1521, 1532
Charles I, King of Spain (see Charles V,
of Germany)
Charles II, of Spain, 1308
Charles III, of Spain, 131 1
Charles IV, of Spain, 1311-1314
Charles IX, of Sweden, 1843-1850
Charles X, of Sweden, 1856, 1857
Charles XI, of Sweden, 1857, 1858
Charles XII, of Sweden, 1177-1182, 1783,
1858
Charles XIII, of Sweden, 1865, 1866, 1870
Charles XIV, of Sweden, 1867-1870, 1873
Charles XV, of Sweden, 1874
Charles Albert, King of Sardinia, 480, 481
Charles the Simple, 18^
Charles the Good, of Flanders, 1890-1892
Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, 848-
851, 1901, 1902
Charles, Archduke of Austria, 733
Charles of Anjou, 585, 826
Charles of Bourbon, 873
Charles, son of Charlema^e, 54^, 546
Charles Augustus, of Weimar, 652
Charles Edward Stewart, 1081
Charleston, 1544, 1569, 1577
Charlotte, Queen of England, 1107
Charlottenburg, 635
Charon, 231
Charter Oak, the, 1540
Chartres, Count of, 786
Chatalja, 1805
Chateauroux, Duchess of, 897, 898
Chatham, Lord, 1083
Chatillon, 846
Chattanooga, 1643, 1650, 1651
Chaucer, 1021
Chedor-laomer, 20, 42
Chemulpo, 1476
Cheops, 113
Cherasco, SB3
Cherry Valley, massacre of, 1575
Cherusd, 509, 510
Chesapeake, the frigate, 1600, 1605
Chibcnas, 1699
Chicago, 1665
Chicago fire, 1662
Chicakamauga, battle of, 1650
Chifu, treaty of, 1474
Chi-hsin, 1414
Chile. 1697-1728
Chi-h, 1387, 1398, 1408
Chilperic, 5129 •
China, 693, 1252-1255, I345-I424, 1428-1433,
I455-I474» 1681
Ching, Prince, 141 2, 1413, 14 16
Ching-yih, 1370
Chin-hai, 1374, i375
Chi-li, 1412, 1416
Chinon, 841
Chioggia, 465
Chios, 225, 226
Chippewa, battle of, 1608
Chiu-lien-cheng. 1469
Chlopicki, General, 1230
Choshu, 1444- 1 448
Chosroes, 93, 94
Chouans, 911
Chouiski, 1166
Chramn, yjy
Christ, 418, 419
Christ Church College, 1035
Christian II, of Denmark, 1836-1839, 1840,
1842
Christian III, of Denmark, 1847, 1848
Christian IV, of Denmark, 1848-1850
Christian V, of Denmark, 18518-1863
Christian VI, of Denmark, 1868
Christian VIII, of Denmark, 18^1871
Christian IX, of Denmark, 1872, 1873
Christian X, of Denmark, 1873-1875
Christianity in Rome, 421-446; in Gaul, 524-
526; in Saxony, 53^-540; in Frisia, 533;
amon^ the Wends, 550; the Sclavs, 558,
709; m Hungary, 712; in France, 769-
774; in England, 965-984 ; in Russia, 11^5,
1 1 56; in Spain, 1272-1288; in China, 304-
366; in Japan, 1431-1436
Christina, Queen of Spain, 1315-1321
Christina, Regent of Spain, 1333-1336
Christina, Queen of Sweden, 1852-1856
Christopher II, of Denmark, 1826
Christopher, of Bavaria, 1833, 1834
Chronos, 154
Chrysostom, John, 439
Chun, Prince, 1412-1417
Churchill, Lord, 1081, 1088
Churubusco, 1624
Chu-san, 1374
Cibola, Seven Cities of, 1501
Cicero. 363-398, 434
Cid, 799, 1287-1289
Cilicia, 263, Z72, 378, 399
Cimber, 390-392
Cimbri, 351, 353, 500, 501, 761
Cimon, 195-204, 217
Cincinnatus, 314, 315
Cingulum, 375 *
Cinna, 357-36o
Circassians, 1237
1938 The Story of the Greatest Nations - Index
Circe, 166
Cisalpine, Gaul, 329-390, 759, 914
Citeaux, 820
Ciudad Rodrigo, iiii, 1313
Civil Service, i6(56
Gvilis, 1881
Civita Vecchia, 425
Clarendon, Constitutions of, 997
Oarendon, Earl of, 1074
Clarke, George R., 161 2
Clarkson, Thomas, 1106
Qaudius, the Tribune, 324
Claudius I, Emperor of Rome, 420, 770, 963
Claudius II, of Rome, 434
Clay, Henry, 1603, 1613-1627
Claybome, William, 1542
Claypole, Elizabeth, 1067
Geander, 259
Qeisthenes, 182
Qemenceau, 947
Cement VI, Pope, 1016
Cement VIl, Pope, 475, 476, 1036
Ceombrotus, 232
Ceomenes, 175, 181, 185, 186, 257-268
Ceon, 223
Ceopatra, 130, 380-404
Ceopatra of Macedonia, 241
Cermont, Council of, 800
Clermont, the steamboat, 1612
Cleveland, Grover, 1667- 1671
Cinton, Sir Henry, 1575-1581
Cinton, DeWitt, 1616
Cisson, Oliver, 837, 838
Citus, 246, 248
Cive, Lord, 1099, iioo
Coaca Maxima, 308
Codius, 371
Cotar I, 777
Cotar II, 529
Cotilde, 525-527
Covis, 518-528, 776, 1882
Cuny. 562, 563
Clyde, Lord, 1122
Cnaeus, 386
Cobbett, William, 11 16
Cochrane, Lord, 1718, 1719, 1724
Codrus, 178, 179
Coclho, Duarte, 1703
Colberg, 1850
Colbert, 889
Colchis, 161, 162
Cold Harbor, battle of, 1655
Coldstream, 1069
Coleridge, 1106
Colet, John, 1034
Coligny, 861-868, 1704
Coloctrones, 276
Cologne, 580. 586, 655. 1881
Colombia, 1682
Colonna, 463, 464
Colosseum, 409, 422, 432, 464
Columbia, District of, 1591
Columbus, 465, 1034, 1295, 1492-I498, 1693-
1695, 1701
Comitia Tributa, 316
Commagene, 378
Commodus, 433
Commonwealth, the English, 1061, 1064-1070
Communes, 806
Communists, 931, 934
Comorn, 741
Compiegne, 844
Comyn, Lord, loii
Condia, Marshal, 1328
Concini, 880
Concord, fight at, 1563
Conde, Prince Louis of, 865-867
Conde, Prince of, 884-891
Condorcet, 913
Confederate States of America, 1631-1657
Confederation of the American States, 1583-
1589
Confederation of the Equator, 1724
Confederation, the German, 676-682, 921
Confucius, 1346-1348, 1414
Conger, Minister, 1398-1418
Congress, First Continental, 1563
Congress, Second Continental, 1565-1583
Congress, the frigate, 1640
Congress of Vienna, 1923
Connecticut, 1630, 1639
Conon, 227, 230
Conrad I, of Germany, 548, 549, 711
Conrad II, of Crermany, 560-562
Conrad III, of Germany, 570-572, 808, 809
Conrad IV, of Germany, 582-584
Conrad of Hohenzollern, 628
Conradin, 585, 714
Constance, city of, 574-600, 614
Constance, Council of, 598-600, 717, 1018
Constance of Aquitaine, 794, 795
Constance of Brittany, 998
Constans, 442
Constantine, 1757, 1758
Constantine I, Emperor of Rome, 270, 273,
433-442, 773f 774
Constantine II, of Rome, 442
Constantine, King of Greece, 283-286
Constantine, Prince of Russia, 1229, 1230
Constantine Grand Duke, 1237
Constantinople, 270-278, 437-450, 466, 534,
572, 721, 801-818, 1239, 1262, 1737, 1744-
1896, 1814, 1887
Constantius, Emperor of Rome, 442, 443
Constantius, Chlorus, 435, 436
Constantius,General, 1274
Constellation, the frigate, 1599
Constitution, the frigate. 1604-1606
Constitutional Convention, 1 586-1 588
Continental Alliance, the, 1866
Contreras, battle of, 1624
Cook, 1 141
Copenhagen, 1109, 1823, 1833, 1837, 1839,
1857-1869, 1873
The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index 1939
G>perniciis, 1034
Copts. 136. 137
Corcyra, 218, 2tg
Cordav, Charlotte, 913
Cordoi>a, 1714
Cordova, Caliphate of, 1281-1288
Corea, 1256, 1427-1433, 1455-1468, 1476-1481
Corfinum. 375
Corinth. 167, 168, 198-271, 341, 387
Coriolanus. 313
Corioli. 313
Cork, 1033
Com Laws. 11 19
Comeille, £84
Cornelia, mother of the Gracchi, 345, 347
Cornelia, wife of Caesar, 364
Cornelia, wife of Pompey, 380
Cornwall 888. 1034
Cornwall, Ehike of, 11 29
Comwallis, Lord, 1560- 1582
Coro. 1699
Coronado. 1501
Correus. 767
Corsica. 169, 323. 3^7^ 464. 9i8
Cortenuovo, 583
Cortes, the. 1299, 1315-1338
Cortez, 1500
Corunna. battle of, iiii, 1313
Cossacks. 619. 1 162-1268
Coster. Lawrence, 1902
Cotton gin. 1618
Council of Blood. T910, 191 1
Courbet Admiral, 1388
Courbierc, 659
Courland, 1851
Courtrai. 827, 830, 1892
Covadonga, battle of, 1285
Cowpens, battle of, 1579
Cowper, 1 106
Cracow. 1 109
Cranfield, Edward, 1538
Cranmer, Bishop, 1037-1042
Crassus, J564-371
Craven, Governor, 1544
Crecy, 596, 831. 832, 1015. 1895
Creek Indians. 1609
Cremona, 329
Crete, 150-153. 169. 170, 178. 282-286, iTftr,
1803
Crimea, 1761. 1794, 1796, 1801
Crimea, Khan of. 1779, 1790
Crimean War, 934. 1121, 1232-1234
Crispus, 441
Croatia, 713. 725, 739
Croesus, 82, 179-183
Cromer, Lord, 135
Crompton, 11 05
Cromwell, Oliver, 1037-1039, 1059-1070
Cromwell, Richard, 1069
Cromwell, Henry, 1069
Crotona, 170, 171
Crusades, 66, 271, 272, 567-575, 581, 799-82S
1002, 1744, 1748
Cuba, 131S, 1335, 1499, 1628, 1673-1680
Culloden, 1098
Cumana, 1699
Cumberland, 1820
Cumberland, Duke William of, 1098
Cumberland, the man-of-war, 1640
Cunard steamers, 1625
Cunaxa, 229
Cunegunde, 558
Curiales, 77$
Curiatii, 303
Cyprus, 1779
Cyrenaica, 1804
D
Daaa, 424, 432
Daedalus, 151
Dagmar, 1826
Dagmar, Empress of Russia, 1247
Dagobert, 772
Dap^obert I, 1883
Dai Nippon, 1425
Daimios, the, 1432-1453
D'Albret, Jeanne, 865-868
Dale, Sir Thomas. 1512
Dalecarlia, 1833, 1841
D'AUyn. 1504
Dalmatia, 419, 706, 716
Dalny, 1478
Damascus, 26, 121. 248, 263, 1766
Damietta, 822. 823
Dampier, 1141
Dandolo, 466
Danes, 554, 969. 973
Dane-work, the, 1819
Daniel, 34, 35
Danish East Indies. 1848, 1868
Danish West Indies, 1873
Dante, 469, 470
Danton, 909. 913
Dantzig, 582
Dantzig, battle of. 1192
Danube, 1747, 1801
Danube Valley, 705
Dare, Virginia, 1508
Darfur, 1138
Darien, 1695
Darius, 86. 87. 183-196, 247-251
Darius III, 88
1 94° The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Darnley, Lord. 1047
Da Sousa, 1703
Datis, 180, 190
D'Aumale, Duke, 940
David, King of Israel, 43, 44
David of Wales, loio
Davis, Jefferson, 1623, 1627-1656
Davis, 0. K., 141 1
Davy, Sir Humphrey, 1106
Dayton. Minister 123
Dealt, Frands, 74J, 744
Deal. g62
De Brederodc. 1909
De Burgh, Hubert. 1005, IO06
t)ecatur. Stephen. 1596, 1604
Decius. Mus, 320
Decius, Emperor of Rome, 434, 438
Declaration of Independence, 1569
Declaration of Rights. American, IS63
Deerfield. massacre of, i549
De Gourgiies, 1505
Dei n Derates, 265
Deioces. 79
Deira. 974
De Luna^, 906, 907
De Lauria, Roger, 1289
Delaware, Lord, 1512
Delaware, 1540, 1588. 1634
De Leon, 1499, 1504
De Lesseps, 134
Delft, 1887. 1897
Delhi. 95. 1 122, 1142
Delian League. 213-21S
De I'IsIe. Roget. 909
Delphi. 154. 168, 172, 174. I?8, 181. 199, 203.
237. 239. 256
De Maulac, 1003
Demetrius Phalerius, 254, 255
Demetrius Poliorcetes, 255. 256
Democratic- Republican Party, 1593-1685
Demosthenes, 238-254
Den, 113
D'Enghien, Duke, 920
Denis, Saint, 772
Denm&rk, 5?3. 621, 675. 969, 1809-4878, 1919
Dennewitz, 667
Dentatus, 320. 321
"Dcrhy. 974, 1116
Derbyshire. 1098
Dervish revolt, 1752
Deshima, 1436
Desiderius, 539
De Solis, 1702
De Soto. I Sot
Despenser. Hugh, 1013
Dessau, Prince of. 636, 641
D'Estaing. 1575
Detmold, 541
Detroit, 1604
Dettiniren. battle of, 1097
Deucalion. 156
Pewey, Admiml, 693, 1674. 1675, 1678, 1680
DeWitt, Cornelius, 1919, 1920
DeWitt. John, 1919, 1920
Dims, 261
Diana of Poitiers, 861, 864
Diderot. 1203
Dido, 71. 2q6, 2()7
Diederich, Admiral von, 693
Dietrich of Berne. S19-S22
Dimitri Don^ki, 1157
Dimitri the Impostor, 1 164
Dinwoodie, Governor, 1551
Diocletian. 435, 436, 965
Diodorus. 209
Diogenes, 244
Diomedes, 159
DIonysiac theatre, 251
Dionysius of Athens, 264, 772
Directory, the French, 910, 917
Disraeli, 1124
Dissenters, the, ID72
DIvitiacus. 367
Dixwell, Colonel, 1 072
Djem. 1761-1763
Doggctt Colonel, 1411
Dolgorouki. ngi
Dominicans. 458
Domitia. 425
Domitian, 423-433 ■
Domitius, ^5-37?
Domoko, 284
'Domremv. 841
Don River, 1778
Donatello, 474
Donchery, 68s
Donelson, Fort, 1641, 1642
Donophan, 1623
Doomsday Book, 989
Dordrecht, 1897
Dorin. rictrn, 465
Dorians, 167-179, 199
Dorward. General, 1405
Dorylieum, 802
Douay, General, 683
Douglas, Earl, 1023
Douglas, Stephen, 1627-1629. 1634
Dover, Trea^ of, 1075
Dover, N. H., IS37
Dowager. Empress of China, 1384-1418
Downs, battle of the. 1918
Draco, 180
Draft riots in New York, 1648
Drafting in the Civil War, 1647
Drake. 1048-1052, 1506, 1S07, 1707
Dresden. C144. 664. 668
Dreux, 866
Dreyfus. 947
Druidism, 7s6-77t, 962, 964
Drusus, 508. iSSi
Dublin. 1084
Ducrot, General. 941
Dudley. John, Duke of Northumberland, 1041
Dudley, Lord Guilford, 1041
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 194!
Dufferin, Lord, 135
Dugenne, Colonel, 1388
Duma, Russian, 1259-1263
Dumas, General, 1225
Dumfries, loii
Dumouriez, General, 911
Dunbar, battle of, 1065
Duncan, Admiral, 1109
Dunkirk, 8S4> 885, 1049, 1068, 1073
Dunois, 843
Dunstan, 979, 980
Dupont, Commander, 1639
Du Quesne, Admiral, 890, 892
Duquesne, Fort, iioo, I552-I5S5
Durbar, the. 1142
Durer, Albert, 604, 605
Durham, 984
Dustin, Mrs., 1548
D>'ing Gladiator, 268
E^kes, 965
Dyrrhachium, 379
Dyveka, 1837
Ea, 9, 20
£arly. General, 1655, 1656
Clberhard, 549, 554
K)ro, 33^
Hcbatana, 79, 253
Kcnomus, 72, 203, 326
Ecuador, i6g6
£ddington, 975
£den, 6
Edessa, 804, 808
£dgar. King of England, 979
Edgehill, 1060
Ed^eworth, Maria, 1106
Edmburgh, 1039
Edith of the Swan's Neck, 988
Editha of England, 5S4
Edmund, King of England, 978
Edmund Ironsides, 980, 981
Edred, King of England, 978, 979
Edward the Elder, of England, 978
Edward the Martyr, of England, 980
Edward the Confessor, of England, 981, 982
Edward I of England, 825, 1007-1012
Edward II of England, 1010-1013
Edward III of England, 830-835, 999, 1013-.
1018, 1894
Edward IV of England, 1028, 1029
Edward V of England, 1029
Edward VI of England, 1039-1041
Edward VII of England, 972, 1127, 1130-1139
Edward the Black Prince, 832-835, 1015-1017,
1289, 1895
Edward, Prince of Lancaster, 1026-1028
Edward, Fort, 1554
Effingham, 1048
Egbert, King of the English, 969
Egeria, 302
E^p;ihard, 782
Egmhard, 782
Egmont, Count, 1908-1910
Egypt, 5. 18, 26-33, 44-47, 84-87, 106-148, 195,
248-281, 322, 408, 425, 822, 916, 1 133, i^i,
^m. 1797, 1798, 1801
Egypt, Sultan of, 804, 823
Eighty Years' War, 1908-1918
El, 60
Elagabalus, 434
Elamites (see Susa)
Elba, 669, 924
El Caney, 1676, 1677
El Dorado, 1699-1701
Eleanor of Aquitaine, 808-810, 996
Eleanor of Provence, 1006- 1009
Electoral Commission, 1662
Eleusis, 327
Elfrida, 979, 980
Eliot, Captain, 1374
Elissa, 70
Elizabeth I, Empress of Russia, 647, 1187,
1190-1193
Elizabeth, Empress of Austria, 747
Elizabeth, Queen of England, 862, 870, 1039,
1043-1053. 1781, 1843, 1846, 191 1, 1915,
1917
Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia, 619. 1057, 1061
Elizabeth of York, Princess, 1030-1032
Elizabeth of France, Princess, 913
Elizabeth Farnese, 1309
Ella, King of Sussex, 967
El Mahdi, 136
Emancipation Proclamation, 1646
Embargo Act, 1601
Emmanuel, Duke of Aosta, 487
Empire of the East, 1 744-1 760
Ems, 682
Ena, Queen of Spain, 1337
Endicott, John, 1529
England, 96-101, 134-137. 280, 285, 458, 621-
680, 692-694, 797, 816, 830-846, 948, 961-
1150, 1232-1239, 1364-1415. 1475. 1481,
1497-1499, 1506-1583, 1639, 1670, 1684,
1700, 1713, 1781, 1790. 1796-1805, 1814,
1818-1821, 1852, 1866-1869, 1893-1923
En-lil, 9-22
Ennius, 413
En-shag-Kush-anna, 12
Enzio, 582, 584
Epaminondas, 231-233, 237
1942 The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index
Epcries, 727
Ephesus, i86t 246, 265, 340
Ephialtes of Athens, 217
Ephialtes the Malian, 200
Epidamnus, 218, 219
Epimetheus, 155, 156
Epirus, 2:55-261, 282, 378
Episcopahans, 1060
Eponina, 771
Erasmus, 1034, 1906
Erech, 10, 14, 16, 20
Eresburg, 554
Erfurt. 609
Eric, King of Kent, 967
Eric the Red, 1493
Eric, son of Magnus, 183 1
Eric of Pomerania, 1832, 1833
Eric the Saint, 1830
Eric XIV of Sweden, 1843-1846
Ericsson, John, 1640
Eridu. 6-9. 16
Erie Canal, 161 5
Erie. Fort. 1608
Erie, battle of Lake, 1605
Erivan, capture of, 1230
Ernest. Duke of Swabia, 561
Ertoghrul. 1737-1740
Esar-haddon, 30. 31, 46, 126
Eschenbach, Wolfram, 586
Escurial, the, 1304
Espartero, 1318-1324
Essex, 967
Essex, Robert, Earl of, 1050, tOSl
Essex, Robert, third Earl of, 1060
Essex, Arthur, Earl of, 1077
Esthonia, 1828, 1846
Esthonians, 1825, 1826
Eth-baal, 03, 70
Ethelbert, 968
Ethiopia, 125-128, 134
Etruna, 304-3^7* 365, 4^0
Etruscans, 757
Etzel (see Attila)
Euboea, 184, 199, 202
Euclid, 269
Eudes, Duke of Aquitaine, 778-780, laSo
Eudes, Count of Paris, 787, 78B
Eudoxia, Feodorowna, 11 72
Eugenie, Prince of Savoy, 633, 727, 728, 89*
897, 1088. 1793. 1794, 1800
Euphranor, 266
Euphrates, 5-35, 42, 229, 252
Euric, 1274
Euripides, 216
Eurybiades, 199-207
Eustace the Monk, 1006
Eustace, of St Pierre, lois
Euxenes, 760
Everett, A. H., 1377
Exeter, 974
Eylau, battle of. 659, 1208
Ezekiel, 63
Ezra, 48
Fabian tactics, 334
Fabius, 334
Fadinger, 620
Fafnir, 519
Fairfax, Lord, 1062, 1064
Fair Oaks, battle of, 1644
Falaise, 796
Falkirk. 1098
Fallen Timbers, battle of, 1594
Fallieres, 947-949
Farnese Bull, 268
Farnese Hercules, 266
Farragut, Admiral, 1641-1652
Fashoda, 948
Faure, President, 947
Faustulus, 297
Favre, Jules, 937-941
Fawkes, Guy, 1056
Fayoum. 115
Federalist, the, 1587
Federalist Party, 1 590-1 596, 1602
Fehrbellin, 1857
Fehrbellin, battle of, 630
Feng-hwang, 1470
Fenris, 503-506
Feodore I of Russia, 1164
Feodore II of Russia, 1165
Feodore III of Russia, 1169, 1170
Ferdinand I, Emperor of Germany, 613-6
724-726, 1771-1776
Ferdinand II of Germany, 618-625
Ferdinand III of Germany, 625
Ferdinand IV, Emperor of Austria, 675, 7
740
Ferdinand the Wise, King of Spain, i
1299, 1494-1496
Ferdinand VI of Spain, 1310
Ferdinand VII of Spain, 1311-1316
Ferdinand, King of Sicily, 478
Ferguson, Colonel, IS79
Fernan, Gonsalez, 1280
Fernando III, King of Spain, 1288
Ferrer, Francis, 1338
Ferrers, Alice. 1017
Feudalism, 789, 799, 817, 982-984, 1822, i
1848
ii7
>
The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index 1 943
i^l< Qrnis W^ 1660
.5«1<I of the Qoth of Gold, 858
^M^inos. 1675-1681
*^ino War. 1680. 1681
^xnore. President, 1438, 1626
mstcrre, Cape, 921
msterre, battle of, mo
land, 1235, 1249, 1253, 1258, 181 1, 1845,
1862, 1864, 1866. 1867
M. 547
:hs, 96s •
ler. Olert, 1868
ler. Bishop, 1037
'%er. Prime Minister, 1142
sherbert, Mrs., 1108
:-Osbom, William, 988
<xus, 359
mborough Head, 1050
minian Way, 329
.minius, 3^333
.nders, 598, 801, 827, 1014, 1839, 1885-1915
Lvius, 512
^^ timings, 830-862. 891, 911, 1886, 1890-1893
xJ^ry, Bishop, 897
^^^^Ddden, 1035
^^orence, 460, 469-478
^Jores, President, 1726
^orida. 1500, 1557, 1613
^oris I of Holland, 1887
^oris V of Holland, 1891
Floyd, John B., 1632, 1641
Flushinj^, 1052, 1925
Folkethmg, 1873
Folkingar Kings, the, 1830
Fontainailles, 784
Fontainebleau, 924
Fontenoy, 897, 1097
Foo-chau, 1388
Foote, Commodore, 1642
Force Acts, 166 1
Forchheim, 548
Formosa, i;^5. ^3^7. 1388, 1474-1478
Fomovo, 854
Forum, the, 323. 338. 356, 409» 4^5
Foster, General John, 1474
Fotheringay Castle, 1048
Fournier. Admiral. 1387
Fox, Charles, 1108
France, 54« 55. I35» 280, 457, 527, 546, 580,
614-671, 732, 73»* 755-960, Ii33» 1192.
1254, 1382-1389, 1399-1416, 1475, 1499,
1504, 1 546-1557. 1573-1582, 1591-1596,
1700, 1781, 1795-1805, 1852, 1864-1867,
1886, 1892, 1919-1923
Franche Comt6, 851, 890
Francis, Saint, of Assisi, 458
Francis Xavier, Saint» 1412, 1704
Francis I. Emperor of Germany, 639-649
Francis II of Germany and Austria, 653-675,
731-735. 916 ^ ^
Francis I, Kmg of France, 607, 856-863, 1035,
1036, 1770
Francis II of France, 864, 865
Francis Ferdinand of Austria, 746, 747
Francis Joseph, Emperor of Austria, 675,
706, 740-747
Francis Joseph Land, 747
Francis, John, 11 28
Franciscans, 458
Francisco D'Assis, 1319-1323
Franco-German War, 680-687, 934-941
Franconia, 528, 548
Frankfort, 655, 673-675
Franklin, Benjamin, 1552- 1586
Franklin's Plan of Union, 1553
Franklin, State of, 1585
Franks, 272, 434. 44^ 452, 543, 501-550. 569.
633-647. 773-7^1* 1749. 1882, 1883
Fredegund. 528, 529
Frederick Barbarossa. Emperor of Germany,
460, 461, 572-576, 812, 1823-1825
Frederick II of Germany, 462, 578-585, 818,
822
Frederick III of Germany, 602, 603, 719, 722,
723
Frederick I, King of Prussia, 634, 635
Frederick the Great of Prussia, 637-650, 730,
1193-1198, 1795. 1864
Frederick III of Prussia, Emperor of Ger-
many, 678. 683, 691
Frederick, the Empress, 693, 1127
Frederick V. King of Bohemia, 619, 620, 1057
Frederick IV. Count of Hohenzollem, 589,
628
Frederick VI of Hohenzollern, 607, 628, 629
Frederick II, Duke of Austria, 714
Frederick III, Duke of Austria, 715
Frederick of the Empty Pocket, 718
Frederick, Duke of Swabia, 569, 570
Frederick the Wise, Duke of Saxony, 606-
612, 628
Frederick of Augustenberg, 676
Frederick of Baden, 714
Frederick of Buren, 570
Frederick, Prince of Wales, 1096
Frederick William I, King of Prussia, 635-
639
Frederick William II of Prussia, 651-654
Frederick William III of Prussia, 654-3674
Frederick William IV of Prussia, ^4-676
Frederick William, the Great Elector, 628-
635. 897. 898
Frederick of Saxony, 1859, i860
Frederick I of Denmark, 1835-1839, 1842
Frederick II of Denmark. 1843, 1844, 1848
Frederick III of Denmark, 1857, 1858
Frederick IV of Denmark. 1859
Frederick VI of Denmark. 1871
Frederick VII of Denmark. 1871, 1872
Frederick VIII of Denmark, 187A
Frederick I of Sweden, 1863, 1864
Frederick II of Sweden, i^
Frederick Henry of Nassau. 1918
Fredericksburg, battle of, 1645
1944 The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index
Fredericshald, 1862
Free Soil Party, 1626
Fremont, 1622- 1636
French and Indian War, 1103, 1 550-1 557
French Knights, 1748, 1749
French Revolution, 1922
Freya, 506
Friedland, 621, 664
Friedland, battle of, 659, 922, 1208
Friedrichsruhe, 692
Friesland, 1885, 1886, 1888, 1904
Friga, 181 1
Frisians, 323, 533. 587, 1880-1888
Frobisher, 1048, 1049. 1507
Froissart, 1895, 1896
Fronde, War of the, 885
Frontenac, Count, 1548
Fugitive Slave Law, 1626
Fu-hi, 1345
Fujiwara. 1429-1431
Fukushima, General, 1404
Fulke of Anjou, 800
Fulton. Robert, 161 2
Fulvia, 398
Fulvius, 348
Funen, 1856
o
Gaels, 755. 756
Ga^e, General, 1563- 1568
Gaillard, Chateau, 815
Gainas, 973
Gainsborough, 11 07
Galatia, 378. 758
Galba, 342, 421, 422
Galens, 445
Galerius, 435, 436
Gallipoli, 1745
Gallus. 442
Gamaliel, 263
Gambetta, 938-947
Gandis, 23
Gapon, Father, 1257, 1258
Garfield, President, 1666, 1667
Garibaldi, 481-486, 941
Garonne, Tjy
Garrison, William L., 1619
Gascony, 778
Gates, General, 1 572-1 578
Gaul, 1882
Gauls, 316-333. 355-387. 434-446, 756-769
Gaveston, Piers, 1012, 1013
Gaza, 1766
Gazette, 884
Gebal, 60
Geert the Great, 1826
Geese save Rome, 318
Geiseric, 446, 447
Gelon, 208
General Armstrong, the. 1607
Genet, 1592, 1593
Geneva, 747, 763. 863
Genghis Khan, 582, 1353, 1354
Genoa, 460-465, 479, 1761
Gen-san, 1464
Gentiles, 263, 419
Geoffrey of Anjou, 993
Geoffrey of Monmouth, 1020
Geok-Tepe, 1250
George, Black, 1798
George Saint, 1090
George I, King of England, 634, 638. r
1095, 1 1 86
George II of England, 1 096-1 102
George III of England, 1103-1112, 1558-
George IV of England, 1113-1115
George V of England, 11 39-1 144
George I of Greece, 282-286
George. Prince of Greece, 285
George, Prince of Denmark, 1080, 1081
Georgia, 1780
Georgia, in Asia, 96, 1202
Georgia, U. S., 1544, 1577, 1652-1654
Gepidae, 446
Gergovia. 765, 766
German army, 691
German Confederation, 676-682, 921
German legends, 502-507
German women, 502
Germania Inferior, 1881
Germanicus, 419, 510-512, 1881
Germanos, Archbishop, 277
Germans, 386, 418. 427-476
Germantown, battle of, 1573
Germany, 452-457. 499-694, 948, 949.
1 136, 1475, 1674. 1685, 1781, 1786,
1849-1854, i860, 1865, 1886
Gero, 336
Geryon, 159
Gessler, 593
Geta, 433
. Gettysburg, battle of, 1648, 1649
Geyza, 711, 712
Ghent, 605, 1885-1905, 1914
Ghent, treaty of, 1610
Ghibellines, 460-462
Ghizeh, 113
Gibbon. Edward, 432, 1106
Gibraltar, 62. 893, 1089, 1309
Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, 1507
Giolitti, 486
Giotto, 471
582
131-
1826
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1945
910-913
[121-1126. 1 134* "35. 1394
.^5. 979
Owen, 1023
Earl of. 994
Duke of, 1019
1872
[431. 1432
Bouillon, 801-805, 1888
i Hunchback, 1887
: Norseman, 1885
tons, 1 164
luel de, 131 1
trl, 981
olonel, 1682
I
•al, 1072, 1534
1.596
rde. Empire of the, 11 57
Oliver, 1106
;. 86
isident, 1728
20
434
\7
tharine, 1033
neral Qiarles, 135, 136, 1381
»rd George, 11 04
trick, 1 1 70- 1 1 77
leral, 740, 74i
•dinand. 1537
I
:im, 1260
)ld, 1819
irtholomew, 1509, 1 5 10
ierick of, 639
811, 1828, 1833
^-440, 513, 775. 1272-1286
Hugh, 1375
m, 1021
laius^ 348-350
Tiberius, 345-347
dsh War, 1805
288-1296
46
eral U. S., 1386, 1624, 1641-1660,
566
5
>59
1908
battle of, 1303
battle of, 683, 684
passage of the, 1857
tin, 3^7, 368, 420, 436, 765, 963-
Great Elector, the, 628-632, 1857
Great Interregnum, 1888, 1889
Great Privilege, 1902, 1904
Great Wall of China, 1349
Greater Sweden, 1810
Greece, 35. 7h 82, 149-294, 296, 327, 375-38o,
445. 1749-1806
Greeks, 127-130, 1739. 1742, 1745-1760, 1767
Greeley, Horace, 1061
Greene, General, 1 579-1581
Greenland, 1493, 1668, 1848
Greenwich. 1092
Gregorian calendar, 388
Gregory the Great, Pope, 451-457, 968
Gregory VII, Pope, 565-567
Gregory IX, Pope, 581-584
Gregory X. Pope, 588, 589
Gregory XIII. Pope, 388
Gregory Nazianzen, 439
Grenvifle, George. 1108
Grenville. Sir Richard, 1053
Grettir, 1820
Grevy, President, 947
Grey, Lady Jane, 1041, 1042
Grey, Sir Richard, 1029
Grierson, Colonel, 1650
Gross-bccren, 667
Grouchy, 670
Guam, 1678
Guararapes, 1708
Guelphs, 460-469
Guesclin. Bertrand Du, 834, 835
Guiana, 948, 1693- 1 701, 1728
Guildhall, 988 ^
Guilford Courthouse, battle of, 1581
Guinea, 1138
Guinegate, 851, 1035, 1903
Guines, 862
Guiscard, Robert, 460-469, 1821
Guise, Francis, Duke of, 861-866
Guise, Henry, Duke of. 868-872
Gulhana, 180^
Gundling, 636
Gunther, 517-522
Guntz, 725
Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, 623-
625, 883, 1540. 1846-1855
Gustavus Vasa, 1 840-1844
Gustavus III of Sweden, 1201, 1864, 1865
Gustavus IV of Sweden, 1202, 1865-1866
Gustavus V of Sweden, 1875
Gutenberg, 603, 1002
Guthrum, 975, 976
Guy of Burgundy, 796
Guy of Flanders, 1890, 1891
Gyda, 1817
Gylippus, 225
Gyptis, 7i6o
Gytha, 181 1
1946 The Story of the Grertest Nations — Index
Haarlem, 191 2
Habeas Corpus Act, iO?6
Hachetle, Jeanne, 851
Hades, 154
Hadrian, 425. ia6. 963
Hafurs Fjord, 1817
Hageberg. 667 >
Hagen. 519-522
Hague, igig, 1925
Hague Peace Conference, 113S
Hague, treaty of the, 1585
Hague Tribunal, tbt, l68s
Hainault. 1890, 1891. i&J?
Hakkas. ihe, 14/8
Hakodate, 1440. MSi
Hakor VI of Norway, 1828-1831
Hakon VII. 1874. 187s
Hakon. J3tl. 1818
Hale. Nathan. 1569
Halfdcnc. 974
Halicariiassus. ao6, 246, 207
Hall of Ancestors, 1347
Halleek. General. 1641
Halsbury, Lord, 1141
Hamatii, 26
Hamburg, 58O, &5S, 673, 1825
Hamilcar, 72, 73, 329, 330. 1270
Hamilton, Alexander, 1586-159S
Hamilton, William, 1 128
Hamiles, 5. 10. ^6, 107*
Hammond, Colonel, 1062
Hammurabi, 21
Hampden, John, loS9-lo6l
Hampshire. 967
Hampton Court, 1055
Hancock. John, 1563-1569
Hancock, General W. S.. 1648, 1666
Han-kow, capture of, 1380
Haii-Hu College, 352
Hannibal, 73. 330-34O. 759. '271
Hanno, 70, 322. 329. 564. 5^5
Hanover, 645, 673-678. 1861
Hanover, Duke of. 634-638. 656, 658
Hans of Denmark. 1835-1837
Hansa. 182^-1^,13
Hanscalic League. 586. 607, 1158
Hapshurg, 1903. 1916. 1918, 1920
Hapsbnrgs. 601-626, 641
Hara. siege of, 1435
Harald Bluetooth, 1819. 1820
Harald Haarfagr. 1817
Harald Hardrada. 1821
Har.i1d Hildetand. 1814. 1815
Harald Klak. 1816, 1819
Haran. 42
Harbin. 1480
Hardicanute, 981
Har
:. 181
Harold, King of England. 797, 981-987, l=
Haroun-al-Raschid, S42. 781
Harpagus, 81. 82
Harpalus, 253. ^54
Harpers Ferry, 1628, 1645
Harris. Town send. 1441
Harrison. William Henrv. t603-t6o6, l6t^^
Harrison. Benjamin, 1668
Hartford. 1539
Hartford, the frigate. 1641, 1652
Hasdrubal, 73, 3y>-3^. 1270
Hastings, battle of. 797. 987, l8ai
Hastings, Count, 786, 976
Hastings, Lord, 1029
Hastings, Warren, 1104
Hatfield, 1 107
Hatovana. Kazuro. 1479
Hatto, Bishop. 548, 549
Hautcville. Roger of, 799
Havana, 1673, 1680
Haveiock, General. 1122
Haverhill, massacres at. 1548, 1549
Hawaii, 1669, 1670
Hawkins, 1048, 1049
Hawkwood, Sir John. 463
Hay. Secretary of State, 1253
Hayes. President, 166.J, 1666
Haynau. General. 74I
Hayne, Senator. 1616
Hebe, 160
Hebrews, 4, 23 (see Jews)
Hector, 164
Heidelberg. 633
Hela. 506, 507
Helen of Troy, 162-166
Heleneof Cypress, 585
Helene of Montenegro, 487
Heliopolis. 119
Hellen, 153, 156
Hellenes. 153
Hellespont. 1 97-209. I74S
Helots. 173, 200. 209. 224
Hel sing for s. 1253
Helvetians. 76JI
Hengist, g66. 967
Hennebnrg. Coimt of, 587
Henri of Laroche-jaquclin, 91 1
Henrietta Maria. 1065
Henrj' I. Emperor of Germany, 549-35^''^'
791
Henry H of Germany, 557. 558, 582 .
Henry III of Germany. 454. 455, S6^„^
Henry IV of Germany. 455-457. S63-5«^ "*
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^947
f Germany, 568, 569
)f Germany, 577, looi
of Germany, 595, 596
ing of England, 990-993
f England. 573» 993-999
of England. 822. 998, 1005-1008
3f England, 1019-1024
I England, 838-840, 1024, 1025
3f England, 840-846, 1025-1028
of England, 636, 1030-1034, 1497
[ of England, 607, 855-858, 1034-
France, 563, 795. 796
f France, 860-864
)f France, 867-873. 191 5. 1916
)f France, 867-878, 1846
f Castile, 1289
>f Castile, 1290- 1292
nt of Chambord, 929
:e of Bavaria, 554
Fowler, 181 9
Proud, of Saxony, 571, 572
Jon, of Saxony, 572-575
iecklenburg, 1925
chwerin, 1826
ilesia, 582
rhuringia, 584
of Frederick II, 583
her of Frederick the Great, 648
ice, of Prussia, 693, 694
idc, 1560, 1566
t, 1641
tlie, 967
[52 (see Juno)
4
m, 423
J, 65, 158-161, 168
99
ike, 1885
^8, 419. 508-513
f Salza, 581, 582
f Thurihgia, 586
It. 1754
ippa, 422
6, 15, 35. 46, 79. 83, 107, no, 115,
a, 747, 1 761, 1803
160
677. 678, 1843
^l 634
568
77
S., 1 123
1707
o, 46, 126
nel, 136
1432, 1433
. 1 379- 1384
lis. III
326, 33f>
Hildebrand, 454-456
Himera, battle of, 208, 209
HimlicOi 322
Hincmar, 784
Hindus, 5
Hipparchus, 181
Hippias, 181, 182
Hippolyte, 159
Hiram, 62
Hiroshima, 1464, 1471
Histiaeus, 185, 187
Hitosubashi, 1448, 1449
Hittites, 26, 44, 121-124
Hoang-ti, 1346
Hobert, 1141
Hobson, Lieutenant, 1676
Hoche, General, 912, 916
Hochkirch, 647
Hoder, 506
Hofer, 663, 664, 733
Hogarth, William, 1107
Hohenfriedberff, 641
Hohenlinden, 65^, 919
Hohenstaufen, 462, 4&, 570-585
Hohenzollem, 627, 028, 074
Hojos, 1431, 1432
Holland, 527-546. 580-598, 626, 673, 890, 912,
919. 1066-1075, 1303, 1435-1439, 1517-1522,
1700, 1707, 1790, 1850, 1879-1925
Holstem. 676, 1826-1829, 1832, 1871-1873
Holy Alliance, the, 1228
Homer, 152-166, 170, 254
Hong merchants, the, 1368
Hong-kong, 1120, i373'^37^
Hong-wou, 1357
Honorius, 444, 1273
Hood, Robin, 560
Hood, General, 1653
Hooker, Richard, 1051
Hooker, Thomas, 1539
Hooker, General, 1648-1651
Hooper, John, 1042
Hopetown, General, 1142
Hopital, Michael de 1', 685
Horace, 398, 406, 414
Horatii, 303
Horatius, 311
Horem-heb, 120, 121
Hormuz, 90
Horn, Count, 1909, 1910
Horsa, 966, 967
House of Commons, 1007, loio
Housein, Kiuprili, 1 790-1793
Houston, Sam, 1620
Howard, Catharine, 1039
Howard, Lord, 1048, 1049, 1053
Howard, John, 1105
Howe, Sir William, 1568-157$
Hsin-yen, battle of, 1470
Hsu Ching Yu, 1414
Huaqui, battle of, 1714
Huascar, 1696, 1697
1 948 The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index
Hubert, 778, 779
Hudson, ftenry, 1517, 1518
Hue, 1387
Hugh the Great, 701, 792
Hugh of France, 801
Huguenots, 863-869, 882, 891, 1504, 1544
Hull, Captain 1604
Hull, General, 1604
Humbert, King of Italy, 486, 487
Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, 1899-1901
Hunald, 780, 781
Hundred Years' War, 826-846, 1014-1025, 1893
Hungarian Diet, 736-740
Hungary, 517, 542-641, 705-747, I746-I749,
1770-1776, 1782-1803
Hung Sin Chuen, 1380
Huns, 445-447. 514, 542, 547-555, 7"
Huntington, Henry of, 995
Hunyadi, I753-I750
Hun>iadi Janos, 721-723
Huskisson, 11 15
Huss, 600, 717
Hussite Wars, 600, 601, 717
Hutchinson, Anne, 1539
Hwai-tsung, 1361
Hyksos, 20, 42, 116
Hypatia, 130
HypostylCi 122
I
Iberians, 346, 386, 1269-1272
Ibrahim, 1 784-1787
Ibrahim Pasha, 280
Icarus, 151
Iceland, 1810, 181 7
Icenians, 964
Idlius, 315
Iconium, 1738-1741, 1747
Iden, sheriff of Kent, 1026
Idstedt, 1872
Ignatieff, Count, 1383
Ignatius, Saint, 1045
Igor. 1 155
llderim, 1747, 1774, 1775
Ilerda, y]7
Illyria, 218, 235-258, 327-330, 443
lllyrian Provinces, 733, 'jyj
Illyricum, 381, 389, 435
Ilva, 323
Immigration to America, 1625
Impeachment of President Johnson, 1659,
1660
Incas, 1696- 1698, 1 710
Independents, 1045. 1060
India, 83, 95, 250, 898, 1051, 1099, 1 122, 1142
Ine of Wesscx, 976
Ingeborg, 1825
Ingelheim, 1816
Ingermanland, 1851, 1859
Ingiald Illrada, 1812, 1813
Inkermann, battle of, 1233
Inland Seas, the, 1426
Innocent III, Pope, 457. 458, 462, 578-580,
1003
Innocent IV, Pope. 584
Innocent XI, Pope. 1079
Inouye, Count. 1443
Inquisition, the, 458, 864, 1290-1297, 1906-1914
International Peace Conference. 1925
Interregnum, the Great. 587, 714
In\'incible Armada, 1304, 1707
lolantfae, 583
lonians, 169-196, 213, 220
Ipsus, 255
Irala, 1702, 1703
Ireland, 891, 968, 970, 99S^ 1050, lofiSt «^
1090, 1104, 1119, 1124-1128^ 113&— X.
1814
Irene, Empress, 543
Ireton, 1065
Iroquois, 1518, I544-I557, 1575
Isaac Angelus, 272
Isabella of Spain, 1290-1298^ 1494-1496^ -
1916
Isabella II of Spain, 1316-1324, 1330
Isabelle, Empress of Germany, 583
Isabella. Queen of England, 1012-1014.
Isabelle, Queen of England, 1019
Isabelle. Queen of France, 8^7-840
Isauricus. Z17
Isdigerd III, 94
Ishtar, 18, 41, 45, 61
Ishtib, 1804
Isis. 119
Ismail, 95. 134-136
Israel. 42-46. 124
Issus. 248
Istrias, Count Capo d\ 281
Italy, 295. 321-397, 407-453, 546, 555, S7^^,
706. 743. 853-864. 919, 1804-1806, 1901
Ithaca, 164
Ithome, 174
Ito. Count. 1443, I474» I481
lulus, 297
Ivan III, 1157-1160
Ivan the Terrible, 1161-1164
Ivan V. 1169-1172
Ivan VI, 1192-1196
Ivar Widfadme, 1812, 1813
Ivois, 563
Ivry. 874
lyeyasu. 1433-1436
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^949
'ackson, General Stonewall, 1624, 1643
'ackson, General Andrew, 1609, 1613-1617
^acob, loii
facobins, 910-914
facobites, 1083, 1093
[acqueline of Holland, 1897-1903
facquerie. TJ^, 833
facques, 902
_3alapa, 1023
Jamaica, 1068
fames I of England, 1013, 1047, 1051, 1509,
1524
James II of England, 891, 1065, 1075-1082,
1521. 1535. 1546
James of Aragon, the Conqueror, 1289
James IV of Scotland, 1033, 1034
James V of Scotland, 1039
James of Douglas, 1013
Jameson, Dr., 1139
Jamestown, 15 10. 15 16
Tamie, Prince of Spain, 1327-1329
faniculum, Mount, 486
[anina, 286, 1805
[anissaries, 717, 720, 725
Janizaries, 1749, I755» 1762, 1781
Janizaries, creation of, 1744
anizaries, usurpation of, 1764, 1771, 1775,
1797, 1800
Japan, 1131, 1132, 1256, 1399-1414, 1425-1488,
1492-1495, 1682, 1683
Jarnac, 867
Jasomirgott, 714
Jason, 161, 162
Jassy, siege of, 1181
Jay, John, 1587-1589
Jazyges, 427
Jeanne of France, 855
Jebusites, 44
Jefferson, Thomas, 1569, 1585-1602
Jeffreys, Justice, 1078-1081
Jellachich, Ban, 739, 740
}elum, 260
emappes, 653, 910, 911, 1922
Jena, 658, 922
{enkins. Captain, 1096
enner. Dr., 1086, 1094, 1095
Jennings, Sarah, 1090
Jeremiah, 15. 36
Jerome, 36, 66
enisalem, 30-33. 44-53. 125, 1 27, 263. 264. 272,
^3, 422, 457, 800-814, 1748. 1766
Jesuits, 1045, 1300, 1360-1368, 1547. 1704-1709
Jesus, 52, 54
Jewell, 1051
Jews, 30-35. 41-60. 419. 829, loii, 1068, 1124,
1249-126^, 1280-1297, 1349
Jezebel, 63, 64
Jimmu Tenno, 1426, 1427
ingo. Empress, 1427
oan of Arc, 841-S46, 1025
oan of Navarre, 1892
oanna of Spain, 724, 1298, 1904
obst of Moravia, 59JB
ohannesburg, 1140
ohn Maccabeus, 52
ohn. Saint, 264
ohn, King of England, 457, 458, 812-817, 999»
1001-1005
ohn I of France, 829
ohn II of France, 832-848, 1016, 1897
ohn. Prince of France, 1898
ohn III of Portugal, 1704
ohn VI of Portugal, 1712, 1723. 1724
ohn. King of Bohemia, 596, 716, 830
ohn, Don of Austria, 1304, 1913
ohn, Duke of Brabant, 1898-1900
ohn the Paricide, 593, 715
ohn of Saxony, 614
ohn of Gaunt, 1017, 1018
ohn of Constantinople, 452
ohn of Nepomuck, 597
ohn the Fearless of Burgundy, 838, 839, 848
ohn of Holland, 1891
ohn the Pitiless, 1898, 1899
ohn of Olden-Barneveldt, 1917, 1918
ohn of Sweden, 1844-1846
ohnson. President, 1657
ohnson. Dr. Samuel, 11 06
ohnson, Sir William, 1554
ohnston. General A. S., 1642
ohnston, General J. E., 1636-1656
oliet, 1547
omsburg, 1819
onathan Maccabeus, 52
ones, John Paul, 1576
oseph, of Israel, 42, 116
oseph I, Emperor of Germany, 639, 729
oseph II, Emperor of Germany, 649-653,
730, 731
osephine. Empress, 663, 919, 923
osephus, ^
oshua, 43
osiah, 47, 128
otunheim, 506
otuns, 181 1
oubert, 1139
ourdan. General, 912, 915
ovian, 443
uan, Don, of Spain, 1327
udah, 41-48
udas Maccabeus, 51
udea, 30, 48-53
udith of Bavaria, 783, 784
udith of Flanders, 1886
udith of France, 972
ugurtha, 350-352
195° The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Julia of Rome, 366
Julian. Emperor, 93, 439, 442, 443, 774
iuhan, Count, 1275
ulian calendar, J87
ulius, Pope. 474, 475
ulius Nepos. 447
luio, 152-1(36, 290
Jupiter (see Zeus)
Jupiter Amon, 248
Juricsics. 725
Justinian. Emperor, 387, 448, 449
Jutes. 066, g67, 1810
Jut- ■'"'••
Kadesh. 26, It?, 122-124
KafFa, 1761
Kafitt. 60
Ka^oshlma. 1446
Kaisers we rth. 564
Kalmar, War of, 1849
Kalmar, Union of, 1830-1844
Kamakura. 1429, 1432
Kaiicko, Baron, 1479
Kan|i-hi. IJ64-1367
Kanjierdi. 1796
Kansas, 1627, 1628
Kansas* Nebraska Bill, 1627
Kaoti, 1350
Kara Mustapha, 17S8-1790
Karakorum, 1354
Karasi, 1^44
Karchemish. 26, i3i
Karelia, 1851
Karl Knutson, i833-l83S
Karnak, 122
Kars. capture of, 1239
Kashgar, 1368. 1371, 1377
Kaskaskia, 1612
Kassites. 23-27
Katsura, [482
Katie. Lieutenant, 638
KaUbach, battle of the, 668
Kannitz. 644
Kazan. 1162, 1240
Kearny, 1622
Kcarsarge, thp, 1652
Kellerman, General, 910
Kem^ff. Admiral, 1401
Kenil worth. IO08
Kennan, George, 1259
Kcnnemcrlan.!, 1887
Kent, q66, 967, 977, 1026
Kent. Duke Edward of. 1118. II26
Kentucky, i('M, 1635
Kcsscbil'..ri. (ijl
Ketteler, Baron von, 1402
Kh aired din, 1773
Khalifa, 136. 1138
Khalupsaru, 123
Khammvirabi (see Hammurabi)
Khartoum, 134-136
Kbatti, 26
Khiva, capture of, 1231, 1250
Khoczim, 1788
Khodynsfcoye Patuc, 1248
Khufu. 113
Khurrem, 1774
Kia-king. 1370, 1371
Kia-chau, 693. 1397
Kief. 1154. 1169, 1256-1358, 1363
Kieft, William, 1519
Kiel, Canal, 693
Ki en-lung, 1368, 1369
Kilidj, 1780
Kilmarnock, 1099
Kimberley, 1139, 1I4O
Kimi Ga Yo anthem, 1454
Kimmerians, 31, 78
King Philip's War, IS34
King's Mountain, battle of, 1579
Kioto, 1429- 1450
Kirk Kilisse, 1805
Kish. 12, 17
Kishineff, 1256
Kitchener, General, 137
Kiuprili, the, 1786-1793
Kleber, 912, 917
Knighthood, 552. 994
Knossus, 150-153. 168
Knowles, 1756
Know- Nothing Party, 1628
Knul (see Canute)
Knut Martin, 1843
Kobad 1 1, 94
Kochome, 112
Kocniggratr, 678, 744
Koenigsberg, 634, 658, 659, 664, 714
Kokovtsov, 1262, 1263
KoUin, 645, 647
Komura jularo, 1479
Kondrachenko, 1479
Kong. 1346
Kong Vo Wai. 1394
Koran, 133. "740, 1767
Kosciusko, 1198, 1205
Kossova, 1747, 1756
Kossuth, 1803
Kossuth, Louis, 739-745
Kotchana, 1804
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1951
Kottanner, Helen, 719, 720
Kotzebue, 674
Kowshing, the steamer, 1460
Kremlin, 1157, 1219, 1248
Kremsicr, 742
Kriemhild, 520-522
Krotzka, 1794
Kruger, President, 948, 1139
Kublai Khan, I354-I357, 143'
Kudur-lagamar, 20, 42
Kudur-nankhundi, 20, 42, 60
Ku-klux, 1661
Kumanovo, 1805
Kung, Prince, 1384, 1385
Kunnersdorf, 647
Kuper, Admiral, 14^6
Kurbski, Prince, 1162
Kuroki, General, 1477
Kuropatkin, General, 1477-1480
Kutusoff, 1216-1226
Kwang-su, 1385-1415
Kyberg, 561
Kyfhauser, 576
Kyushu, 1425-1453
Labanim, 436
Labrador, 1493
Labuan, 1138
Labyrinth, 115, 116, 151
Lacedemonians, 190, 219-231
Lachares, 255
Laconia, 172, 232, 258
Ladislaus, King of Poland, 1166
Ladislaus of Austria, 719-721
Ladislaus of Bohemia, 722, 723
ladrone Islands, 1370, 1678
X^aevinus, 338
Lafayette, 907, 9o8, 929, 1 575-1 581
Lagash, 7-13
X^gos, 892
Xja. Hogue, battle of, 892, 108^
X^ake Champlain, battle of, 1609
lake Erie, battle of, 1605
lamachus, 224
lamartine, 931, 932
lamb, Charles, 1106
l«anibert. Count, 1236
lambert, John, 1069
Xampagie, 779» 1280
lamsacus, 226
la Navidad, 1495
Lancaster, House of, 1022-1032
Xandsthing, 1873
Xanfranc, Archbishop, 991
Xangensalza, 677
Xangson, capture of, 1387
Xangton, Stephen, 1004
Languedoc, 819
Laocoon, 165, 267
Laon, 792
Lapps, 181 1
Lar^e, Robert, 1031
Larissa, 284, 379
Laroche-jaquelin, Henri, 911
La Rochelle, 866, 880, 882
Lars Porsena, 311, 312
Lartius, Spurius, 312
La Salle, 1547
Las Casas, 1697, 1698
La Serna, General, 1719
Las Guasimas, 1676
Latimer, Bishop, 1042
Latium, 321, 325
Latins, 304, 307, 320, 321
Latour, 740
Laud, 1059, 1060
Laudonniere, 1505
Laurier, 11 42
Lausanne, 589
Lavoisier, 913
Law, John, 896
Lawrence, Captain, 1605
Lawton, General, 1682
Layard, Sir A., 7
Lebanon, 60, 62
Lech, battle of the, 624, 711, 1853
Lee, General Charles, 1569, 1575
Lee, General Fitzhugh, 1674
Lee, General Robert E., 1624, 1643-1656
Leeds, 1105, 11 15
Lefort, Francois, 1171
Leicester, 974, 11 05
Leicester Abbey, 1037
Leicester, Earl of, 1917
Leignitz, 582
Leipzig, 668, 924, 1853
Leisler, Jacob, 1522, 1548
Lemberg, 1788
Lens, battle of, 884
Leo I, Pope, 447
Leo III, Pope, 453, 454
Leo IX, Pope, 454. 455, S63
Leo X, Pope. 47s
Leo XIII, Pope, 486
Leon, 128(5-1296
Leonidas, 200-203, 243, 257
Leopold 1, Emperor of Germany, 630-632,
726, 727
Leopold II of Germany, 653
Leopold of Dessau, Prince, 636, 637
Leopold of Hohenzollern, Prince, 1325
1952 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Leopold I of Austria, 713
Leopold III of Austria, 1000, tool
Leopold VII of Austria, Duke, 593
Leopold VIII of Austria, Duke, 597
Leopold I of Belffiuni, 1923, 1924
Leopold II of Belgium, 1924
Leotychides, 209, 210
Lepanto, 467, 1304, 1779. 1780, 1913
Lepidus. 376, 383, 392-399
Leptis, 339
Lerroux, 1338
Lesbos, 170, 380
Lessing, 652
Lestocq, 1193, 1 194
Lettres de cachet, 903
Leuthen, battle of, 646
Lewes, battle of, 10C7
Lewis the Pious, 545, 54^ (see Louis)
Lewis the German, 546 (see Ludwig)
Lexington, fight at, 1563
Leyden, 191 2
Lhassa, 1132
Liao Yang, I477-I479
Lia-tung, 1471-1480
Liberator, the, 161 9
Libussa, 707
Libyans, 124-128, 323
Lianian Rogations, 319
Licinius, 318, ji^.
Lief Ericson, 1493 "^
Liege, 850, 1885, 1886, 1890, 1902
Lignano, 461, 574
Ligny, 670, 925
Li Hung Chang, 1381-1394. 14"
Li-kung, 1361, 1362
Lille, 1892, 1893
Lima, 1697, 1710-1724
Limerick, 1085
Limes, 434, 435
Limoges, 1017
Limoges, Viscount, looi
Lincoln, President, 1629-1658
Lincoln, General, 1577
Lincoln, city of, 974, 993
Lindisfarne, 968
Liniers, General, 17 13, 1714
Lin-yu, 1350
Lisbon, 1712
Liscum, Colonel, 1405
Lisle, Alice, 1078
Lissa, 646, 744
Lithuania, 1160-1169
Little Belt, passage of the, 1856
Little Big Horn valley, 1665
Liu-kung, 1472, 1473
Liverpool, 1 105, 1 1 17
Livingston, William, 1569
Livius, 338
Livonia, 1846, 1859, i860
Livy, 415, 416
Li-yuen, 1351
Llewellyn, 1008, loio
Lloyd-George, David, 1137, 1 138
Lobowitz, 644
Lochau, 614
Locke, John, 1544
Locrians, 23';
Lodi, 915
Lodroc, 074
Loire, 776
Loki, 504-507, 519
Lollards, 1018
Lombards, 449-452
Lombardy, 400, 478-484» 539
London, 797, 815, 965-1081, 1130, 1818, 1872,
1919
London Company, 1 509-1525
Londonderry, 1084
Longchamps, Bishop, 1000
Longeau, 766
Long Island, battle of, 1569
Lookout Mountain, battle of, 165 1
Lopez, Carlos, 1726
Lopez, Francisco, 1726
Lorraine, 560. 632, 673, 686, 791, 1843
Lorraine, Duke of, 727
Lost Colony, the, 1508
Lothair, Emperor of the Franks, 546, 548,
784
Lothair, Emperor of Germany, 569-571
Lothair, King of France, 792
Lotharingia, 548, 550
Loubet, President, 947, 1254
Louis the Pious, Emperor of the Franks*
545. 546, 781, 784, 1816
Louis II, Kin^ of France, 785, 788
Louis III of trance, 786
Louis IV of France, 792
Louis V of France, 792
Louis VI of France, 806-808
Louis VII of France, 808-810, 997
Louis VIII of France, 819, 820, 1005
Louis IX of France, 819-825
Louis X of France, 829
Louis XI of France, 847-853, 1902
Louis XII of France, 853-056
Louis XIII of France, 880-884
Louis XIV of France, 628-633, 793, 884-894,
911, 1306-1309, 1547, 1857. i860, 1919, 1920
Louis XV of France, S^S-^oo, 1097, 1183,
1192
Louis XVI of France, 793, 899-909
Louis XVII of France (or the Dauphin),
908, 914
Louis XVIII of France, 901, 915, 924-929,
1205
Louis Philippe, King of France, 929-932,
1128, 1316
Louis of Flanders, 1893-1895
Louis, King of Hungary, 723
Louis the Dauphin, 838, 839
Louis of Male, 1895
Louis of Nassau, 1912
Louis Napoleon, 1922
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^953
Louisburg, 1549, 1555
Louise, Queen of Prussia, 657-659, 676
Louise of Savoy, 856
Louisiana, I547-IS57, 1597
Louvain, 1186, 1900
Lovat, Lord, 1099
Loyola, Ignatius de, 1300
Lubeck, 573, 586, 655, 659, 673, 1825, 1829,
1840
Lncanians, 359
Lucar, battle of, 1329
Lucca, 367
Lucceius, 366
Luceres, 302
Ludan, 421
Lucius Sextus, 318, 319
Lucknow, 1 1 22
Lucrece of Rome, 307
Lucrece Borgia, 473
Lucretius2^4i5
Luders, Count, 1236
Ludwig the German, 546, 708, 784
Ludwig III, King of Germany, 547, 548
Ludwig IV, Emperor of Germany, 595, 596
Lugal-zag gisi, 13, 14
Lugdunum, 770
Lule Burgas, 1805
Luliya, 64, 65, 126
Lund, 1823
Lundy's Lane, battle of, 1608
Lupe, Duke, 781
Lusitania, 342, 343, 1272
Lutetia, 772, ^^z (see Paris)
Luther, 468, 609-614, 1035, 1299, 1906
Lutterworth, 1018
Lutzen, 624, 625, 666
Lutzen, battle of, 1853, 1854
Luxembourg, 596, 716
Luxembourg, Marshal, 892
Luzon, 1682
Lycurgus, 171, 172
Lydia, 80-82
Lyme, 1078
Lyon, Nathaniel, 1635 "
Lyons, 770-772, 866, 912
Lysander, 22(5-230
Lysimachus, 243, 253-256
Lysippus, 266
M
Maas, 1879, 1884
Macao, I359-I3^» 1377
Macartney, Lord, 1369
Maccabees, 51, 52
Macdonald, Sir Claude, 1^99
Macdonald, Flora, 1098
Macdonough, Commodore, 1609
Macedon, 168, 198, 209, 218, 234-260, 286, 341,
446
Macedonia, 1803-1806
Macedonians, 379, 397, 398
MacMahon, Marshal, 683-685, 936, 946
Macrinus, 434
Madagascar, 948
Madison, President, 1586, 1587, 1602-1613
Madoc, 468
Madras, 1099
Madrid, 859, 1304-1338
Maecenas, 414
Maesa, 434
Magdala, 1123
Magdalen College, 1079
Magdeburg, 615, 623, 659, 1852
Magenta, 483, 743, 934
Magna Charta, 1005, 1076
Magentius, 441
Magnus Smek, 1826- 1 831, 1842
Mago, 336
Magyars, 547-558, 706-747
Mahdi el, 136, 1138
Mahmud II, 1797-1801
Mahomet, 533
Mahomet I, 1751-1753
Mahomet II, 273, 274, 721, 1754-1762, 1768
Mahomet III, 1781, 17&
Mahomet III, 1781, 1782
Mahomet IV, 1784-1790
Mahomet V, 1804-1806
Mahomet Kiuprili, 1787
Mahometanism, 1740, 1741, 1773
Mahometans, 54, 94. 132-137, 273, 285, 464,
466, 533-539, 632, 721-728, 779, 800-825,
1275-1296, 1352
Maine, province of, 797
Maine, the man-of-war, 1673
Maintenon, Mme. de, 891, 894
Mainz, 533. 560, 575, 583, 603, 655
Maipo, battle of, 1718
Makaroff, Admiral, 1476
Malacca, 1017
Malalos, 1682
Malkhatoon, 1740
Malmesbury, William of, 995
Malmo, 1861
Malplaquet, 683, 893, 1089, 1920
Malta, 1775
Malvern Hill, battle of, 1644
Mamelukes, 133, 134, 824, 916, 1763, 1766, 1799
Mamertines, 323, 324
Manassas, 1^6
Manasseh, 31, 47
Manchester, 1105, 1114-1117
1954 The Story of the Greatest Nations— Index
Manchester Massacre, 1114
Manchuria, 1256, 1263, 1360-1418, 1471. 1476-
1481
Manchus, 1360-1424
Mandeville. Sir John, 1018
Uanetho, no
Manfred, 584, 585
Manhattan, 151&-1523
Manila, 693, 1360, 1480, 1674-1681
M&nila,, battle of, 1680
Manin, Datiki, 4St
Manlius, 318, 336, J65
Mansfield, Count, 620-623
Mansion, Colard, 1031
Mantes, 990
Mantinea, 259
Mar, Earl of, 1093
Marat, 913
Marathon, 87, I83-I95
Marcel, Eiiennc, 833
Marcellus, 329, 336, 372, 373
March, Earl of, 1027
Marchand, Major, 948
Marcian aqueduct, 344
Marcomanni, 424, 427. 5"-SM. 70?
Mardonius, 188, 196, 207-210
MarduV, 22, 28
MarenETO. 65s, 919
Mar fori, 1322
Margaret, Queen of England, 1025-IO2S
Margaret, Queen of France, 868, 876
Margaret, Queen of Navarre, 856-865
Margaret, Queen of Scotland, 1034
Marsarel the Great, 1829-1833
Mar^ret of Hapsburg, 1904
Margaret of Parma, 1908-igio
Margherita of Savoy, 486
Mar^erite oi Provence, 821-823
Maria de las Mercedes, 1333
Maria Louisa of Austria. 663, 734, 923
Maria Louisa, Princess of Parma, 131 1
Maria Theresa, 639-650, 729, 8971 Ii93i II94
Mariana, 1166
Marie Antoinette, 653, 899-909, 9^3
Marie Henrietta, 1058
Marietta. 1612
Marignano, 857
Marion, General, 1578
Marius. 352-360, 501, 761
Marizxa, 1746
Mark Antony (sec Antonius)
Marlborough, 633, 892, 893, 1088, 1069, i860
Marlowe, lOSi
Marmora, 1742
Maroboduus, 511, 513
Marquette, 1547
Mars, 156. 297. 298
Marseillaise, 909
Marseilles, 169, 760, 912, 948
Mansion Moor, battle of, 1062
Martha (Catharine the Great), 1176
Martin, Saint, 774
Martin V, Pope, 599
Martiniti, 6ig
Martyrs' Causeway, the, 779
Mary I, Queen of England, 862, 1040-1043,
1302
Mary 11, Queen of England, 1075, 1080^ 1920
Mary, Qiieen of England, 1143, 1143
Mary, Queen of France, 856
Mary, Queen of Hungary, 717
Mary, Queen of Scots, 864, 865, 1039, 1043-
1048, 1843 .
Mary of Austria, 724
Mary of Burgundy, 605, 723, 851, 1902, 1903
Mary of Modena, 1080
Maryland, 1542, 1634
Masham. Mrs., 109a
Mason. Captain John, 1532
Mason, John, 1537
Mason, Robert, 1538
Mason. Senator, 1639
Massachusetts, 1529-1538, 1561-1568
Massacre of the Shiites, 1765
Massasoit, 1526. I53+ 1539
Massilia, 376, 377
Massinissa, 335-339. 414
Massoiiah. 1 123
Mali, biiiile of, 283
Miuilij;i of Flanders, Queen of England, 797,
(J72, 988
Matilda, Queen of England, 992, 993
Matilda, Princess, of Germany, 504
Mattathias, S'
Matthias, Emperor of Germany, 618, 619
Matthias, King of Hungary, 721, 72a
Mauclerc, Pierre, 821
Maud, Queen of Sweden, 187^ 1875
Maurice of Saxony, 614-616, 861
Maurice of Nassau, 1917, 1918
Mauritania, 383, 420
Mauritius, 1138
Mau solus, 267
Maxentius, 436, 774
Maximian, 435, 436
Maximilian I, Emperor of Germany. 604-611,
723, 1160, 1298, 1903, 1904
Maximilian II of Germany, 618, igii
Maximilian of Bavaria, 610-624
Maximilian of Austria, 1660
Maximinus, 434, 441
Maximus, 333. 334
Mayenne, Duke of, 873-875
May laws, 6ga
Mjv/lorver. Ihe, 1525
Mayors of the Palace, 530-537
Mazarin, 883-886
Mazep[>a, 1180
Mazzini. 480-482
McArthur, 1682
McCalia, 1355-1401
McOellan, General. 1624, 1635-1644, 1658
McDowell, General, 1636
McKinley, President, 1668-1682
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1955
General, 1648, 1649
Methuen, General, 1139, "40
840
Melternich, 663, 672. 675. 734.738
\-j(A
Mctz, 683-685. 861. 862, 936. 938,, „
iburg, 1835
Mexico. 1315, 1500, 1620-1624. 1660, 1685
161, 162. 178
Mexico, city of, 1623, 1624
VillSii*
Miau-lsz, 1368, 1371
Michael, the Archangel, 551. 552
Michael. Emperor of Russia, I166
Catharine di. 8S4-«72, 8:*, 1304
Cosimo di, 471
Michael. Grand Duke, of Rusua, 1247
Lorenzo di. 47*. 473„
Marj' di. 681, B76. 880
Michael- A nEcIo, 474-476
Midas, 247
Middle Ages, =144-607
ranean. i773. 1775. 1814
Mikado, the, 1429-1482
1,98-100
Milan. 435-483. 486. 574. 656. 857
Milan, Edict of, 436
,158
1123
Miles, General. 1668. 1678
a, 179-181
Miletus. i6g, 170, 185-188
Ktlis, 259
Milford Haven, 1030
180
Mill, John S., 429
>, 36, 47, 117, 128
Milo. 371. 372
\ All, 133. 134. 200, 281, 1798-1802
Miltiades, 188-195
Milton, 1064, 1066. 1073
General, 633
hon, 613
, 1836
Minamoto family, 1429
, General, 1244
Minerva. 154, 158. 177, 217,296
h, fa, 65, 759
Ming dynasty, 1357-1362
465
Minorca. 830
8io
Minos, 150. 151, 154, IS9, 178
IS. 350
Minotaur, 151, 159. 178
s, 108-131
Minto, Earl of, 1143
fas, 361
Minuit. Peter. 1519
er, 269
Minute men, the. 1563
s, 162-166
Mirabeau, 906. go8, 1003
Miranda, General. 1715. 1716
.486
Mirskj. Prince. 1257
», 150S
Missionary Ridge, battle of, 1651
109-112
■ff. Court, 1178, 1189-1191
ff. Prince. 1233
Missolonghi. 279. 280
s. Queen of Spain. 1^33
8, Pnneess o( Asturia, i333-"335
Missouri, 1618, 1627. 1635
Missouri Compromise. 1618
907. 973-977
Mthra. 78
. 158
M thridates. 262, 356-363
■tah, 121, 122. 124
Mtre.1725
«. 528
M tylene, 223
giana. 528-537. 798
Mnevis, 119
%, the ironclad. 1640, 1641
Mobile Bay, battle of, 1652
General, 1675, 1681
Modder River. 1139
rg, 549-552. 5^7. 7"
Mffisia, 425
358
Mohacs. 723, 727, 1771. 1790
!5o. 1251
Mohammed Ali, 1(8, 99
100
Moimir 1. 709
amia, 424. 433. 434
Moimir II, 710
a, 420
Moldavia. 445, 1801
. 323. 324
Uoliere. 888
, 167. 173-175
Molino del Key. 1624
ins, 224, 239, 258, 260
Molhi'ilz, 640
175.486
Moloch, M, I SI
Moltke, General von. 678-685, 690
, 351-354. 376
the yacht, 693
Monardiist Party, 945, 946
1956 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Monitor, the, 1640
Monjuidi, 13J8
Monk, General, 1066, 1070
Monmouth, Duke of, 1077-1079
Monmouth, battle of, 1575
Monroe, President, 1613-1615
Monroe Doctrine, 1615, 1660, 1670
Mons Sacer, 313
Montague, Charles, 1086
Montague, Lady Mary, 1094
Montaverde, General, 17 16, 17 17
Montcalm, 1554*1556
Montecuculi, 1787
Montenegro, 1803-1806
Monterey, battle of, 1622
Montesquieu, 904
Montevideo, 1713, 1714, 1725
Montfaucon, 438, yS^
Montfort, Simon de, 819, 820
Montfort, Simon de. Earl of Leicester, 1006-
lOIO
Montfort, Simon de, the younger, 1008
Montgomery, General, 1568
Montgomery, dty of, 1631
Monti jo, Eugenie de, 934-936
Montlheri, 806, 849
Montmartre, 772
Monza, 486
Moore, Sir John, iiii
Moors, 54» 323* 386, 447, I275-I297
Morana, 590, 709, 710
Morat, battle of, 851
Mordaunt, 1089
More, Sir Thomas, 1034, IQ37^
Moreau, General, 655, 915-920
Morgan, General, 1579
Morgan, Sir Henry, 1706
Morgarten, 593, 594, 7i5
Morillo, General, 1 717-1720
Morley, Mrs., 1090
Morocco, 692, 948, 949, 1337
Morosini, 1790
Morot, 860
Morris, Robert, 1584, 1586
Morristown, 1571
Mortimer, Edmund, 1022
Mortimer, Ro^er, 1013, 1014
Morton, Cardinal, 1033
Morton, Thomas, 1527
Moscovites, 1805
Moscow, ii57» 1217-1223, 1259, 1260
Moses, 43, 124
Mosquera, President, 1727
Mossul, Sultan of, 803
Moultrie, Colonel, 15&
Mount Janiculum, 486
Mount Vernon, 1585, 1595
Mouravieff, Count, 1249
Mozart, 899
Mucius, 311, 312
Mufti, 1760
Mukden, 1470, 1471, 1478-1480
Mummius, 261
Munda, 386
Munnich, 1192-1195, 1794
Murad I, 1745-1747
Murad II, I753-I757
Murad III, 1780, 1781
Murad IV, 1783, 1784
Murad V, 1802
Murat, 1217-1225
Muravieff, Count, 1383
Murcia, 1280
Murfreesboro, battle of, 1643
Musa, 1275-1280
Mustapha, Son of Solyman, 1774, 1775
Mustapha I, 1783
Mustapha II, 1790
Mustapha III, 1795
Mustapha IV, 17^, 1799
Mutsuhito, 1393, 1448-1482
Muzaffir-al-din, 97
Mycale, 215
Mycenae, 150-153, 162-167
Mylae, 72, 325
N
Nabis, 259
Nabonidos, 34, 35
Nabopolassar, 32, $3
Nadir Kuli, 95, 96
Nagasaki, 1432, 1435, 1442, 1452, 1478
Nancy, 1902
Nancy, assault of, 851
Naniwa, the steamer, 1460
Nanking, 1358, 1362, 1375, 1380. 1381, 1417,
1 418
Nanshan, 1477, 1478
Nantes, 786
Nantes, Edict of, 631, 876, 891
Napier, Sir Charles, 1121
Napier, Lord, 1373
Naples, 459, 482, 484, 585. 1312
Napoleon Bonaparte, no, 133, 252, 479, 651-
671, 732-734, 912-926, 1108-1112, 1205-
1228, 1312-1315, 1 597-1601, 1797, 1860^
1866, 1869, 1922
Napoleon II, 932
Napoleon III, 483, 681-685, 932-936, IMQ,
1232, 1322, 1660
Napoleon, Prince Victor, 948
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^957
Naram-Sin, 19
Narbo, 375
Narbonensis, 397
Narbonne, 530. 779i 780, 1273
Narmer, iii, 112
Narragansetts, 1526, 1531, 1535, 1539
Narses, 448, 449
Narva, 1825
Narva, battle of, 11 77, 1859, i860
Narvaez, De, 1500
Alarvaez, General, 1320, 1321
^aseby, 1062
Nashville, battle of, 1653
Nasica, Sdpio, 347,
Nasr-el-Mulk, 99
>Jatal, 1 138
X^ational Assembly of France, 906-914, 931-
937. 944, 946
^^ational Council of England, 994, 1005-1007
^^ational Guard of France, 907, 929
^^ations, battle of the, 668, 924
^avarino, 281, 1800, 1801
^^avarre, 1286
Navarre, King of, 830
Navarette, battle of, 1017, 1289
Navigation Acts, 1559
Navy of the Turks, 1753, 1763
Nazianzus, 439
Neander, 437
Nearchus, 251
Nebuchadnezzar I, 27, 28
Nebuchadnezzar II, 3^* 34* 47, 65, 80, 128
Necessity Fort, 1552
Necho, 128
Negro question, 1659
Nenemiah, 48
Neisse, 667
Neithhetep, 1 11, 112
Nelson, 1868, 1869
Nelson, Admiral, 916, 921, 1109-1110
Nemea, 159
Neptune, 153-166, 177
Nerazzini, Major, 486
Nero, Caius Claudius, 338
Nero, Emperor of Rome, 264, 420, 421, 431-
433, 770, 771
Nerva, M., 424
Nervii, 764, 1880
Nesle, 851
Nestor, 161
Nestorian missionaries, 135 1
Netherlands, 605, 732, 871, 1879-1925
Neustria, 531, 777
Nevill's Cross, 1016
Newbury, 1062
New Carthage, 336
New England, 1493
Newfoundland, 1136, 1 142, 1507
Newgate, 11 04
New Hampshire, 1537
New Jersey, 1540
New Mexico, 1622-1624, 1684, 1685
New Netherlands, 1519-1522, 1530, 1540
New Orleans, 1609-1641
Newport, Christopher, 1510, 151 x
New Sweden, 1540
Newton, Sir Isaac, 1076, 1086
New York, 1073, 1517-1522, 1569-1582, 1588,
1616
New York, man-of-war, 1677
New Zealand, 1121, 1142
Ney, Marshal, 667, 923-925, 1225, 1313
Niazi Bey, 1803
Nibelung, 518-522
Nibelungen Lied, 520
Nicaea, 801, 1744
Nicaea, Sultan of, 802
Nicanor, 51
Nice, 479, 483. 934
Nicholas I of Russia, 1121, 1204, 1229-1234,
1248
Nicholas II of Russia, 1251-1263, 1476-1481
Nicholas, King of Montenegro, 1805
Nicholas V, Pope, 471
Nicholas, Prince of Greece, 283
Nicias, 223-225
Nicolls, Colonel, 1521
Nicolson, Margaret, 1107
Nicomedia, 435, 441, 1744
Nicopolos, 717, 838, 1748, 1749
Niemen River, 659, 1208, 1214
Nightingale, Florence, 1121
Nihilists, 1239-1262
Nile, 106-137
Nile, battle of, 916, 1109
Nimes, 759
Nineveh, 8, 29-33, 80
Ningpo, 1359, 1374, 1375
Nintoku, 1427
Ninus, 29
Nippur, 7-14, 18-22
Nissa, 1754
Nitokris, 113, 114
Nitra, 709
Nobrega, 1704
Nodzu, General, 1478-1480
Nogi, General, 1478-1482
Nombre de Dios, 1707
Nordland, 181 1
Nordlingen, 884
Norfolk, 967, 1014
Norfolk, Duke of Mowbray, 1019
Normandy, 791, 1702, 1814, 1817, 1821
Norman life, 995
Normans, 455
Norsemen, 271, 546, 547, 783-789, 795-807, 969,
985-995, "54. 1403
North, Lord, 1198
North Carolina, 1543, 1580, 1654
Northmen, 1810-1821. 1885
Northumberland, Earl Percy of, 1020
Northumbria, 1812
Northwest Territory. 1585, 1588
Norway, 969, 1809-1878
1958 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
NotdnaJiam. 973, W4, 1014, 1060, ttl6 Nnmanda, 343. 345
Novara,48i ■"
Novgorod, IIS4-II59. "<»
Nubia. 108, 12S-128 „, , ,
Nullification RewlutiotiJ, 1586, 1616
Oates, Titus. 1076, 1078
O'Connell, Daniel, 1114
Octavia. 40a
Octavius, Caius, 389. 392-406 (sec Augustus)
Ot-tavius, the tribune, 348, 357, 35*
Oder River, 582
Odessa, 1258
Odilo, 563
Odin, 968, 1811, 1813, 181s (see Woden)
Odo. Bishop of Bayeux, 988
Odoacer, 447-449, 5i8
O'Donnell, General, 1321
Odysseus, 163-166
(Edipus, 157
Ocslmark, 713
Offa, Q76 _
Ofterdingcn, Henry, S86
Oglethorpe, General, 1091, 1544
O^iggins. General, 1718
Ohio, i6ia
Ojeda, 1694
Ojin, 1427
Ujin, 1427
Oklahoma, 168S, 1684
Olaf Hunger, 1823
Olaf, King, 1493
Olaf Trygvesson, 1818, 1810
Olaf, son of Hakon VI. 1831
Olaf. son of Hakon VII, 187S
Oland, iSq?
Old Ironsides, 1605
Old Saruni, 11 16
Oldenburg line, 1834-1874
Cleg. 1 154
01^ IISS
n-of-»
1675
Olympia, the m;
Olympiad, 150, I
Olympias, 241, 242. 254
Olympic games, 173
Olympus. Mount, 153-166, 168, 198, 199
Olyathians. 236. 238
Otnar, Khalif. 132, 133
Omdunnan, 136
Omeyyads. 1283
Omnibus bill, 1626
Ophir, 1141
Opimius, 349
Opium War, 1120, 1372-1378
Orange, House of, 190S-1933
Orange River Colony. II32
Ordian, I743-I74S
Orchomenus, 157, 359
Ordono II, 1286
Oregon. i6at, 1624
Oregon, the man-of-war, 1677
OrcUana, 1700
Orcslcs, 447
Oriflammc, 807
Origen, 437
Orihuela, capture of, 1278
Orinoco River, 1694, 1700-172S
Orknejjs, 963
Orleanists, 840
Orleans, 786, 841, 842, 866, 1814
Orleans, Regent of France, 895, 897
Orleans, Duke of, 836. 838
Orlof, 1199
Ormond, Duke, 1079
Ormuzd, 78
Orontes, i^
Oropus, 241, 260, 261
Orpheus, 156, 161, 162
Orsini, 464
Osaka. 1426, 1442, U49
Osbnrh, 971
Oscar 1 of Sweden, 1874
Oscar II, 1874, 1875
Oshima, General, 1461, 1466
Osiris, 109, 119
Osman, i737-i743
Osman 11, 17S2. 1783
Osman Pasha. 1236, 1802
Ostermann, QianccUor, [192
Ostrogoths, 446, 449, 513, 517, 521
Othman, 779
Ocho, Emperor of Rome, 420-422
Oiho de la Roche, 2^2, 273
Otho of Bavaria, King of Greece, 2S1, aSa
Otis, James. 1559
Otis, General, 1681, 1683
Otori, 1458
Oto-Tachibana. 1436
Otranto, 1761. 1703
Otto 1. Ihe Great, 553-557. 7". 713. «»
Otto 11, Emperor of Germany, 556-559. 713.
1819
Otto III of Germany, 556, 557
Otto IV of Germany, S7«-58o. 816
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^959
Otto, Duke of Saxony, 548, 549
Otto of Wittelsbach I, 574, 575
Otto of Wittelsbach H 578, 579
Otto of Bavaria, 1826
Ottocar II, the Great, 590-592, 714. 7^5
Oudenarde, 633, 893, 1089
Ouloudj AH, 1780
Ovid, 265, 416
Oxenstjerna, 1852-1856
Oxford, 977, 994
Oxford, Dukes of, 1033, 1090
Oxford, University of, 1002
Oyama, Marshal, 1471, 1473, 1478-1480
Paardeburfif, 1131
Pacific, 1661
Pacification of Ghent, 1913
Paderborn, 542
Padua, 449
Paez, Jose, 1719, 1728
Pago Pago, 1681
Pakenham, General, 1609
Palamedes, 164
Palatinate, 626, 633, 683, 890, 892
Palatine Hill, 298-309
Palestine, 20, 41-74* ii7i 121, 248, 425, 824
Palestine, Duke of, 796
Paliano, 1049
Palladines, General de, 940
Pallas Athene (see Minerva)
Palmyra, 130, 434
Palo Alto, 1622
Palos, 1494
Pamphillus, 266
Panama, 1693-1728
Panama Canal, 16B2
Pandora, 155, 156, 265
Pandosia, battle of, 320
Panku, 1348
Pannonia, 419
Pantheon, 409
Papirius, 317
Para, 1705
Paraguay, 1315, 1703-1726
Paris, 528, 658-686, 772-7S7f 879, 907, 938-942,
1814
Paris, siege of, 940-942
Paris, Count of, 931, 945
Paris of Troy, 162-166
Paris, Matthew, 1020
Parisii, 772
Parliament of England, 1007, loio
Parma, Duke of, 874, 875, 1048-1050
Parma, Prince oif, 191 7
Parroenio, 246-249
Parnassus, 154, 156, 168
Pamell, Charles, 1126
Parr, Catharine, 1 039-1041
Parthenon, 179-181, 217, 225
Parthians, 36, 89-91, 370, 399, 420, 425, 433
Parzifal, 586
Passau, 707
Patay, 845
Pate, Lieutenant, 1128
Paterson, William, 1085
Patrick, Saint, 969, 1090
Patroons, 15 19
Paul, Saint, 262-264, 421
Paul, Emperor of Russia, 1203-1206
Paulinus, 964
Paulistas, 1703-1709
Pausanius, 210-214, 242
Pavia, 449, 555. 558, 732, 859
Pearson, Captain, 1577
Peary, 1668, 1684
Peasants' Insurrection, 613
Peed, Cardinal, 486
Peder, Chancellor, 1843
Pedro I of Aragon, 1289
Pedro III of Aragon, 1289
Pedro the Cruel, 1017, I28i9
Pedro I of Brazil, 1723-1725
Pedro II of Brazil, 1724, 1725
Peel, Sir Robert, 11 19, 1128
Pe^, 1 121
Pei-ho, 1374, 1382, 1401
Peit-sang, battle of, 1400, 1409
Peking, 1354-1418
Pelasgi, 153
Pelayo, 1285
Peleus, 163
Pelopidas, 231-234
Peloponnesus, 167
Pelusium, 84, 124, 132, 380, 382, 403
Penelope, 164-166
Peninsula War, 1313, 1314
Penn, 1540-1542
Pennsylvania, 1541
Pepin of Herestal, 531, 532, 778, 1884
Pepin of Landen, 1883
Pepin le Bref, 452, 453, 466, 536, 537, 7^0^
781
Pepm, son of Charlemagne, 542, 545, 708
Pepperell, Sir William, 1550
Pequods, 1531
Perceval, 1108
Percy, Earl of Northumberland, 1020
Percy, Sir Henry, 1023
Percy, General, 1564
Perdiccas, 219, 234, 246
i
i960 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Pergainos, 1744
Pericles, 19J, 215-224
Perigord, Count, 792
Perigord, drdinaJ, 1016
Pernambuco, 1703, 1708, 1724
Peronne, 850
Perote, 1623
Perovski, Sophia, 1241
Perpena, 348
Perry, Commodore M. C, 1437-1440, I479
Perry, Commodore O. H., 1605
Perryville, battle of, 1643
Persepolis, 249
Perseus, 157, 158, 260
Persia, 5, 3i-35» 7^ioS, 129, 183-251, 434,
11^, 1186, 1191, 1250, 1262, 1350, 1763,
1765-1767, 1772, 1778. 1793
Pertinax, 433
Peru, 1694-1728
Perune, 1156
Pescadores, 1474
Pcsth, 739, 740
Peter, Samt, 421, 451
Peter the Hermit, 800
Peter the Great, 1169-1189, 1791-1794, 1859-
1861
Peter II, Emperor of Russia^ x 189-1x91
Peter III, Emperor of Russia, X193-1196
Peterborough, Lord, 1088
Petersburg, siege of, 1655, 1656
Pctcrwardcin, 727, 1793
Petra, j>3
Petronius, 770
Petropaulovsk, 1476, 1477
Pevcnsey, 987
Pharaoh, 11 2- 131
Pharisees, 263
Pharnal)azus, 226. 230
Pharnaces, 382, 383
Pharsalah, ^
Pharsalia. 379, 380
Phidia, 180, 215. 217
Philae, 119
Philadelphia, 1570-1575. 1586, I59I-I594
Philadelphia, the frigate. 1600
l^hilip. King of Macedon, 177, 234-242
Philip V of Macedon, 258-260
Philip, Em^ror of Germany, 578, 579
Philip 1, Kin« of France, 795-806
Philip 11 of France. 811-819. 1000. 1003
Philip 111 of France. 826, 827
Philip IV of France. 827-829. 1891-1896
Philip V of France, 829
Philip VI of France, 830-832, 1015
Philip I of Spain. OiO, 801-864, 873, 1298
Philip U of Sixiin. 1042, 1043. 1048, 1302-
iv^S 1704. 1781. 1907-1917
Philip 111 of S^vain. 1305. 1917
PhiUp IV of Sivain. 1300, 1918
Philip V of S^in. 802-890, 1087. 1308-1310
Philip of the Netherlands, 00^, O07
I'hilip of Burgundy. 839» 846, 848
Philip the Bold, 1806, 1897
Philip, Duke of Orleans, 906, 913
Philip the Fair, 1903^1904
Philip the Good, i^7-igo2
Philip, Patriarch of Russia, 1163
Philip, King, 1534
Philip, Commodore, 1677
Philippa, Queen, 1016
Philippa of England, 1833
Philippi, 264
Philippico, 396
Philippine Islands, 1360, 1674-1681
Philippus, 244-249, 336, 434
Philistines, 43, 61
Philomelus, 237
Philopcemen, 258-260
Phips, Sir William, 1548
Phocaeans, 323
Phocia, 200, 201, 237-240, 760
Phocion, 238
Phcenida, 60-76, 121, 363
Phoenicians, 28, 59-76, 156, 169, 187-208, 322
759, 962, 12(69-1272
Phoenix Park, 1125
Phrygia, 246-253, 356
Phung Island, battle of, 1459
Pianldii, 126
Picart, 947
Picenium, 363, 375
Pichegru, General, 912, 920, 1922
Pichincha, battle of, 1720
Pickett, General, 1649
Picts, 966, 974
Piedmont, 478-485. 735
Pierce, President, 1627
Piet Heijn, 1918
Pilgrim Fathers, the, 1 523-1 528
Pindar, 245
Ping-yang, 1 461 -1467
Pinto, Mendez, 1432
Pinzon. Martin, 1491
Piraeus, 227, 230
Pisa, 328, 464, 465
Pisistratus, 180, 181
Pithom (see Pelusium)
Pitt. William, 1095, iioi, 1555-1560
Pitt, William, the younger, 1 108
Pittsburg, 1551-1555
Pius IX, Pope. 481. 485
Pius Metellus. 357, 358
Pizarro. 150a 1694-1698
Pizarro. Gonzalo, 1698, 1 700
Placentia. 329, 333
Placid ia. 1273
Plantagenet. Geoffrey, 998
Plantagenet. Henr>'. 810^12
Plantagenet, Richard, I0t27
Plassey. 11 00
Plata. Rio de la, 1702-1726
Plataea. 200-241
Plato. 216
Plattsburg, battle of, 1609
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1 96 1
Plautus, 413
Plelo, Marquis of, iig2
.I^essis-lcs-tours, 852
F^evna, 1802
i^levna, siege of, 1238
Pliny, 416, 1880
Plutarch, 269
Pluto, 155, 158
Plymouth, 1523-1528
P^lymouth Hoe, 1049
Po, 332. 333, 353
Pobiedonosteff, 1248-1259
Pocahontas, 1094
Podiebrad, 719
Poincar6, 949
Poitiers, 527, 536, 832, 1016, 1897
Poland 573, 631-634, 649, 732, 744, 870, 1160-
1169, 1177-1183, 1198-1237, 1261, 1746,
1783, 1788-1791, 1796. 1845. 1851. 1856,
i860
I^oles, 558, 629, 673
Polish Prussia, 185 1
Polk, President, 1621-1624
Polo, Marco, 465, 1356, 1425
Polybius, 269, 33^
Pomerania, 631, 637, 1825, 1832, 1833* 1854
Pompadour, 898, 899
Pompeii, 423
Pompeius, Cneus. 130, 358, 362-392
Pompeius, Sextus, 397
Ponce, i^
Pondicherr]^, 1099
Poniatowsla, 1x98
Pontefract Castle, 1020
Pontiac, 1556, I557
Pontine Marshes, 425
Pontius Cominius, 317
Pontus, 359, 360, 382
Pope, General, 1645
Popham, George, 1523
Populist Party, 1669
Port Arthur, 1256, 1397, 1471-1480
Port Arthur, massacre of, 1472
Porto Bello, 1096
Porto Rico, 1315, 1495, 1673, 1678, 1680
Port Royal, 1504, 1505
Portsmouth, 1481, 1537
Portugal, 1292, 1313, 1359-1364, 1432-1436,
1693-1725, 1917
^orus, 250, 251
X^oseidon (see Neptune)
loosen, 654
^osidippus, 269
Potato War, the, 650
^otemkin, 1200, 1201
I'othinus, 380-382
Pothinus, Saint, 771
Potidaeans, 214, 219
X^owhatan, 1510-1514
X*o Wing Woey, 1394
X^rsetorian Guard, 419, 431
Prague, 596-623, 712-743
Praxiteles, 265, 266
Preble, Commodore, 1519
Premysl. 707, 708
Premy slides, 708-715
Presbyterians, 1060
Prescott, Colpnel, 1567
President, the frigate, 1603
Presque Isles, 1551
Preston, 1093
Preston Moor, 1063
Prestonpans, 1098
Prevesa, 1773, 1804
Priam, 164
Pride, Colonel. 1063, 1070
Priestley, Sir Joseph, 1105
Prim, Marshal, 1322- 1325
Princeton, battle of, 1571
Printing, beginning of. 1031
Prisdllian, 774
Probus, 435
Procrustes, 178
Proctor, Greneral, 1606
Prometheus, 155, 156, 160
Promontory Point, 1661
Prophet, the, 1602
Protective Tariff, 161 4
Protestantism, 609. 617
Provence, 353, 761. 776, 838
Providence, 1539
Province, 765. 766. 775
Prusias, 340
Prussia, 548, 582, 589. 612, 629-691, 1585, 1796,
1797, 1872, 1873, 1922
Pruth River, 1793
Psammetichus I, 127, 128
Psamtek ^see Psammetichus)
Psyche, 205
Ptah, 46, 127
Ptolemaeus, 380
Ptolemais, 813
Ptolemy Auletes, 380
Ptolemy Ceraunus, 256
Ptolemy Dionvsus, 380
Ptolemy Epiphanes, 129
Ptolemy Lagos, 129, 238, 253-255
Ptolemy Philadelphus, 129
Puebla, 1623
Pueyrredon, President, 171 7, 1718
Pugachev, 1200
Pul. 29, 30. 46, 64
Pultowa. 1861
Pultowa, battle of, 1180
Punic Wars, 324-341
Punjaub, 1121
Puritans, 1045, 1055-1063, 1513, 1529-1536
Putiloff Hill, 1480
Putnam, General, 1569
Pu-yi, 1415-1418
Pydna, 2i6o, 341
IVgmalion, 70
Pym, 1060
Pyramids, 11 2- 114
I
1962 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Pyramids, battle of the, 133, 916
Pyrenees. 756. ?78
iVrha, 156
Pyrrhns, 25s. 256, 320-323. 340
Pythagoras, 170. 171
I^eas. gSa
Quakers, 106S, 1106, 1531, 1540-1542
Quaneriiv Act, 1559
Quatre Bras, 670, 925
Quebec, iioi, 1506, 1556. 156S
Queenstown, battle of, 1604
Quesada, 1699, 1700
Quito, 1696^1700
Raamses (see Rameses)
Rabelais, 860
Racine, 888
Radbod, 1884
Radcliffe, Charles. 1099
Radetsky, 481
Rapiar Lodbrok, 1815
Raleigh, 1039, 1056, 1507-1509, 1700
Ralf, 991
Ramalho, 1703
Rameses I, 121
Rameses II, 49, 122-125
Ramillies, 892, 1069, 1920
Ran, 1811
Raphael, 475
Raskilniks, 1169
Ratisbon, 655
Ravaillac, Francis, 876
Ravenna, 5>8
Ravenna, Exarchs of, 449
Raymond, Count of Toulouse, 801-805
Raymond VI of Toulouse, 819, 820
Reading, 973
Reconcentrados, 1673
Reconstruction of the South, 1657-1664
Red Sea, 121, 129
Redmond, Mr., 1I38-[I44
Reform Bill, 1116
Reformation, 46& 609^17, 859. 863, 1037,
IS04, 183?, 1843,1906
Regillus, Lake, 312
Regin, 519
Replus, 32s, 326
Rehoboam. 45, 125
Reichenbaeh, 647
Rdchstadt, Duke of, 932
Reichstag, 689, 690
Reid, Captain, 1607
Reign of Terror, 912-914
Remigius, Saitit. 526
Remus, 297, 298. 308
Renaissance, 468-477. 857
Reno. Major, 1665
Republican Party, 1626-1683
Resaca de la Falma. 1622
Revenge, the ship, 1053
Revere, Paul, 1563
Revolt of the Netherlands, 1909
Revolution, American, 904, II03, II04, I
1583
Revolution, French, 879, 901-909
Reyes, General, 1727, 1728
Reynolds, Sir Joshua, 1107
Rhadamanthus. 154
Rhegium. 324
Rhcinis, 524, 526, 784, 841, 842, 875
Rheinsburg, 638
Rhenish Palatinate, 615
Rhine, Confederation of the, 657-666
Rhine, 1879, 1881, 1883
Rhode Island, 1530, 1538
Rhodes, 1761, 1770
Rhodes, Cecil, 1139
Rhodope, 114
Ribault, 1504, 1505
Richard 1, King of England, 812-8IS,
looa
Richard 11 of England, 1018-1022
Richard 111 of England, 1029, 1036
Richard, Prince of England, 1029
Richard, Duke of Normandy, 796
Richard of Cornwall, 587. 588
Richelieu, 623, 880-884, '3o6, 1852, 1854
Richemont, De, 845
Richmond, dty of, 1636-1656
Eidania, 1766
Ridle:^, Bishop, 1042
Rienzi, 464
Riff War, 1337, 1338
Riga, 631
Right of Search. 1600-161O, 1639
Rio de Janeiro, 1704-1726
Rivers, Lord, 1029
Riixio, 1047
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1963
Roanoke, 1507
Robert, King of France, 793-795
Robert the Magnificent, of Normandy, 796
Robert Duke of Normandy, 801, 990, 991
Robert Duke of Orleans, 947
Robert the Strong, 787, 793
Robert Count of Paris, 791
Robert Count of Flanders, 1887, 1888
Robespierre, 913, 914
Robinson, Minister, 1 524-1 527
Rochelle, La, 866, 880, 882
Rochester, Earl of, 1073
RockhiU, W. W., 1415
Rocroi, battle of, 884
Roderick, King of the Goths, 1274
Roderick, Kin^ of Connaught, 999
Rodgers, Admiral, 1479
Rodolf of Burgundy, 792
Rogers, J., 1042
Rojestvensky, Admiral, 1480
Roland, Mme., 913
Roland, 782, 1281, 1287
Rolf the Ganger. 786-789, 800, 978, 181 7
Rolf, John, 151 1
Roman Churdi, 1 754-1856
Roman Empire, 405-449
Roman Empire, the Holy, 542-544
Romanoffs, 1 166-1268, 1850
Romanova, Anastasia, 1161
Romans, 1748, 1757
Rome, 50-54» 7i, 129-131. 258-272, 295-498,
508-511, 963. 1270-1274, 1843, 1856, 1880
Romilly, Sir Samuel, 11 06
Romulus, 297-301, 308
Roncesvalles, 781, 1 281, 1287
Rooke, Sir George, 1089
Roon, General von. 678
Roosebeke, 1896
Roosevelt President 137, 1481, 1674, 1676,
1677, 1682-1685
Roosevelt, Miss Alice, 693
Roruk, Duke. 1885
Rosas, General, 1725
Roscius, 770
Rosecrans, General, 1643- 1650
Roses, Wars of the, 1022-1032
Rosetta stone, no, 131, 916
Rosny, 875
Ross, General, 1607
Ross, district of, 992
Rossbach, battle of, 645, 898
Rostislav, 709
Rothschild, Baron, 1124
Rotterdam, 1906
Rouen, 787. 814, 815, 839, 1003
Rough Riders, 1674, 1676
Roumania, 18^-1806
Roumelia, 1840
Rousillon, 883
Rousseau, 651, 904
Rowena, 967
Roxalana, 1774, 1775
Roxana. 249, 254
Roxlani, 418, 425
Royal Academy, 884, II07
Royal Society, 1076
Royalists, 1909
Rubens, 1916
Rubicon, 374
Rudolf of Hapsburg, Emperor of Germany,
588-592, 714, 715
Rudolf II of Germany, 618, 715
Rudolf, Archduke of Austria, 747
Rudolf, Duke of Swabia, 564-507, 802
Rufus Pompeius, 357
Rugen, 631, 1824
Rump Parliament, 1063-1069
Runny mede, 1004
Rupert Prince, 1 061 -1063
Rurik, 1 154
Ruskin, 1123
Russell, Lord, 1077
Russell, Admiral, 1085
Russell, Lord John, 11 16, 1123
Russia, 55, 96-101, 276-282, 542, 644-665, 706,
741, 746, 922, 1121, 1153-1268, 1383, 1399-
1414, 1475-1482, I779» 1787-1803, 1810,
1814, 1845-1874
Russo-Turldsh War, 1802
Ruward of Flanders, 1894
Ruyter, Admiral de, 1066, 1919
Rye. N. H., I537
Rye House Plot, 1077
Ryswick, Peace of, 1857
Ryswick, treat>- of, 166$, 1087
Saarbruck, 935
Sabines, 299-302, 316, 317
Sabines, J., 771
Sabines, r., 422
Sacrovir, 770, 771
Sadi-Carnot 947
Sagasta. 1332-1337
Saghalien, 1442
Saguntum, 330,* 1721
Sajfuta, 1739
Said Pasha, 134, 1804
Saigo, 1453
Saigon, 1382, 1387
Saint Albans, 963, 965, I<n7
1964 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Saint Angelo, castle of, 457, 464
St. Augustine, 1500, 1505, 1544
Saint Bartholomew, massacre of, ' 618, 867-
860
Saint Bernard, Mount, 919
Saint Denis, abbey of, 807
Saint EUas, Mount, 284
Saint Gotthard, Mount, 726
St. Gotthard, 1787
Saint Helena, 920, 1138
Saint Jacob, battle of, 603
St. John, Knights of, 1761, 1770, 1775
St. Lawrence, 1506
St. Louis, 1665
Saint Martin, abbey of, 793, 807
Saint Marys, settlement of, 1542
Saint Omer, Monastery of, 536
St Paul, 1703, 1709
Saint PauFs Cathedral, 1134
Saint Peter's Cathedral, 475
Saint Peter's Church, 1134
Saint Petersburg, 1121, 1178, 1182, 1257, 1825,
1851, 1859. 1865
St. Quentin, 1907
St. Quentin. battle of, 531, 778
St. Quentin. battle of, 861, 1303
St. Roque, Cape, 1701
St. Sophia, 1758
Saint Stephen's Mount, 730
St. Vincent, battle of, 1109
Saionji, 1482
Sais, 112
Saladin, 133, 812, 814, looo
Salamanca, I ill, 1314
Salamis, 168, 203-215, 227
Salians, 1882
Salic Law, 829
Salisbury, 989
Salisbury, Lord, 1131, 1132
Sallust, 414, 415
Salonica, 286
Salons of France, 903
Salzburg, Bishop of, 715
Samaria, 45
Samarkand, 1251
Samaurai, the, 1434- 1453
Samnites, 320, 357-359
Samnium, 347
Samoan, Islands, 1681
Samoset, 1526
Sampson, Admiral, 1676, 1677
Sancha of Navarre, 1286
San Domingo, 1481
San Francisco, 1626
San Jacinto, battle of, 1620
San Juan, 1676, 1677, 1678
San Marco, 472
San Martin, 1715-1721
San Salvador, 1495
San Souci, castle of, 643, 649
Santa Anna, 1620- 1624
Santa-Croce, 1049
Santa Cruz, 1068
Santa Fe. 1506, 1622
Santa Maria, 1495 *
Santander, 1334, 1723
Santiago de Chile, 1718
Santiago de Cuba, 1675, 1676-1678
Santos, 1704
Saoudji, 1746
Sapor I, 91, 92
Sapor II, 93
Sappho, 170
Saracens, 583, 823, 824
Saragossa, 1289, 13 15
Saratoga, battles of, 1572
Sarchedon, 31
Sardanapalus, 29
Sardinia, 169, 322-336, 376, 464, 479. 480^ 584,
743, 1865
Sardis, 82, 184-187
Sargon I, 16
Sargon II, 30, 46
Sarmatians, 443
Sarto, Cardinal, 486
Sassan, 90
Sassulitch, General, 1477
Sassulitch, Vera, 1240
Satsuma, I445-I453
Saturn, 154, 302
Saturninus, 34
Saul, 43, 44
Savannah, 1544, 1654
Savonarola, 472, 473
Savoy, 478-493, 934
Sawtry, W., 1023
Saxe, Marshal, 897, 1097
Saxons, 434, 446, 514, 527-550, 565, 781, 827,
966, 985, 987, 1812, 1819
Saxony, 608, 624, 638-678, 1859-1861
Saye, Lord, I02i5
Scaevola, 347
Scanderbe^, I753-I756, 1761 (see Castriot)
Scandinavia, 974
Scania, 1812, 1823, 1842, 1850, 1857
Scarron, 891
Scaurus, 350
Schaal, Adam, 1364
Schamyl, 1239
Scharnhorst, General, 662-666
Scheldt River, 1879, 1886, 1916
Schenectady, massacre at, 1548
Schill, 663
Schiller, 652
Schleswig, 676, 1871-1873
Schley, Admiral, 1677
Schluter, 635
Schmerling, 743, 745
Schuyler, General, 1572
Schwarzenberg, 668, 734, 1227
Scilly, 1089
Scio, 196-246, 278
Scipio, P. Cornelius, 332-340
Scipio, C. Metellus, 372, 378, 383, 384
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1965
ScUvs, 542. 550, 573-596, 7o6-747, 1249-1253
Scone, Abbey of, loii
Scopax, 265, 267, 279
Scorpion, 11 1
' Scotland, 966-1013, 1060-1063, 1090, 1814,
1820
Scott, Sir Walter, 1106
Scott, General Winfield, 1604-1608, 1623-1627,
i6^
Scutan, 1805
Scythians, 32-35, 78-81, 87, 127, 183, 184, 249.
386,446
Sebastia, 1750
Sebastopol, 1121, 1233, 1259
Sedan, 683-685, 936
Sedgemoor, 1078
Segestes, 509-511
Seidlitz. 648
Seine, 772
Seiyu-kai, 1482
Sejanus, 419
Sekigahara, 1438
Seleuda, 35, 370
Seleucus, 89, 253-256
Selim, 133
Selim I. 1763-1768
Selim II, 1777-1780
Selim III, 1797-1799
Selim, son of Roxalana, 1775
Seljuks, 1738
Semiramis, 29
Semites, 4, 25-76
Sempach, 597, 716
Sempronius, 332, 333
Sena, 338
Senate of the United States, 1587
Seneca, 420, 421
^Benlac, 987
Senlis, 1886
Sennacherib, 3O1 3i» 46, 65, 126
^eoul, 1456-1465
^Sepoy, Mutiny, 1121, 1122
iSeptennat, 690
•^Septimius, 381
Serfs of Russia, 1236
CSer^us, Duke, 1258
Sermgapatam, 11 04
Serrano, Marshal, 1322-1329
Sertorius, 363
Servia, 713, 737. 747, I746-I749» 1754. 1760,
I7?8, 1799, 1803-1806
Servihus, 313, 333, 334
Serbius TulHus, 304-308
Sesostris, 122-124
Sestos, 246
Sethos, 121, 125
Scti I, 121, 122
Seven Weeks' War, 678
Seven Years' War, 643-648, 898
Seven Years' War of the North, 1844, 1864
Scverus, Septimius, 53, 433, 965
Severus, Alexander, 91, 434
Seville, 1496
Seward, Wm. H., 1123, 1627-1639, 1658 l66o-
Sextus Tarquin, 306, 307, 311, 312
Seymour, Jane, 1039
Seymour, Lord Thomas, 1041
Seymour, Admiral Lord, 1049
Seymour, Vice-Admiral, 1400-1414
Shackamaxon, treaty of, 154X
Shafter, General, 1677
Sha-ho, 1479
Shakespeare, 313, 1051
Shalmaneser, 64, 65
Shanghai, 1380, 141 7
Shannon, the frigate, 1605
Shantung, 141 2
Shashang, 125
Shay's Rebellion, 1585
Sheffield, 1105
Shelburne, Lord, 1008
Shelley, 1106
Shenandoah Valley, 1543, 1655, 1656
Shen-si, 1418
Sheridan, General P., 1643, 1652-1657
Sheridan, Richard, 1106
Sheriffmuir, 1093
Sherman, Roger, 1569
Sherman, General W. T., 1651-1657
Sheshonk, 45
Shih, 1349
Shiites, 1765-1767
Shiloh, battle of, 1642
Shimoda, 1440-1442
Shimonoseki, battle of, 1429
Shimonoseki Strait, 1444-1447
Shin-nung, 1345
Shintoism, 1428, 1451
Shipka Pass, capture of, 1239
Shishak, 45, 125
Shogun of Japan, 1429-1450
Shotoku, 1428
Shovel, Admiral, 1089
Shrewsbury, battle of, 1023
Shun-chi, 1362-1364
Shun-tsung, 1357
Shuster, Morgan, 100
Sian-fu, 141 1
Siberia, 1250-1254, 1261, 1477
Sicambri, 526
Sicilian Vespers, 827
Sicily, 71, 151, 169, 175, 209, 225, 3i^3d5r 455»
459, 583-589 >
Sicyon, 257, 292
Sidney, Algernon, 1077
Sidney, Sir Phillip, 1051, X052, 1917
Sidon, 61-71, 170
Sidonia, Duke of, 1049, 1050
Siegbert, 518-529
Siegfried, 518-521, 787
Sierra Leone, 1138
Sigambri, 368
Sigbrit, Mother, 1837
Sigeric, 1273
1966 The Stoiy of the Greatest Nations — Index
Stgjnnuiid, 597-601, 716-718. 83S
Sigiimund, Emperor, 1748
Sigiimund of Pohnd, 104
Sigurd, Ring, 1814, 1815
SilMigi, 5&>, 640-66S, 730
SilveU, 1338
Simon, $14
Simon Bar-cochba, 53
SimoD Maccabeus, 53
Simonides, 301
Simony. 454. 456, 473
Sinai, 17, 18, 84. 112, 131
Sinope, 1760, i8ot
Sioux, 16O4
Sipahdar, 99
Sipyagin, I3S3-I2S5
Sirens, 102
Sirmium, 435
Sistiiie Chapel, 475
Sitavorak, 1782
Sitting Bull. 1664
Sixtus IV, Pope, 1297
Skobelef. General, 1250
Sfcye. logg
Slankamen, 1790
Slavata, 619
Slavery in America, 1513, 1587, 16)4-1657
Slavery in England, 1 106
Slidell, Senator, 1639
Sloughter, Colonel, 1523
Slujs, 831, 1014, 1894
Smallpox, 1094. 1095
Sma-kings, i8i2-i8io
Smerdis, 83-86
Smith, Adam, 1106
Smith. Captain John, 1310, 1511, 1524
Smith Held, 1033
Smorgoni. flight from, 1224
Sobieski, 632-634, 72/, "98, 1788-1790
Socotra, 1138
Socrates, 149, 316-224
Sodom, 20
Sofia, 1806
Soissoiis, 524, 526, 536
Sokolli, 1777-1779
Solferino. 483, 743. 934
Solid South, the, 1063, 1671
Solomon. 44, 45, 63
Solon, 180
Solway. Moss, 1039
Solyman, 724, 725
Solyman, son of Bajuet, 1751
Solyman, son of Orchan, 1745
Solyman. the Magnificent, 17^1777
Somerset. Duke of, 1040^ 1 041
Somersetshire, 97s
Somne River, 10(5
Song-htvan, battle of 1461
Sophia, capture of, I239
Sophia, Princess of Constantinople, 1159
Sophia, l^egent of Rusna, ii6{Hll76
Sophocles, 2i6
Sophonisba. 335, 339
Sorel, Agnes, 846
Sorr, 641
Sosisenes. 387
Soudan, 108, 134-137. ^'33
Soult, Marshal, 1314
South Africa, 1136. 1142
South America, 1336, 1499, 1(^)3-1738
South Carolina, 1543. i577-is8i. i6t6, 1631-
1C34, 1654
South Sea Co., J093
Spain, 54, 169. 323-367, 386. 425-452. 483, 607-
616. 644. 681. 1255. 1269-1344, 1494-1509.
1557. 1673-1678, 1693-1728, J865, 1904.
1.907, I9I4-I9.M
Spanish American War, 1333. '334. 1672-1678
Spanish ^Succession, 1930
Spanish Succession, War of the, 633. 802,
893, 1309. 1548
Sparta, 8z, 163. 167-261
Spartacus, 363
Spechbacher, 663
Spenser, 1051
Sphinx. 109, 157
Sphodrias, 231
Spichercn. 684
Spires, 568, 633
Spoils System. 1616
Spottsylvania, battle of, 1655
Spurs, battles of the, 828, 855, 1035, 1893
Staaf. [875
Sta eke 1 berg, General. 1478
Slab remb erg. 1789
Stamp Act. 1560
i:>tan<i3rd of Maiiomet, 1783
Standish, Miles, 1525-15^
Stanford, 974, 98^
StanW, Sir William, 1030
Star Chamber, 10J3, 1059
Starving Time, the, 1512
Stales -General. 905
Slat
I, ^51
_ vangcr Fjor
Stein, Baron, 661-665
Stephen. King of England, Sot, 990-994, I030
Stephen, Saint. King of Hungair, 713
Stephen the Martyr, Saint, 263
Stephens, Alexander H., 1631
Stephenson, George, 1117
Stephenson, Robert, iiiS
Steuben, Baron. 1575
Stewart, Captain. 1606
Stockholm. 1832, 1S36, 1838. 1841, 1843, 1856
Stoessel. General. 1477-1480
Stolypin, Count. 1260-1262
Stone he n^c, 964
Stony Poml, capture of, 1576
Storthing. 1874. '875
Strabo, 35". 358
Strafford, Earl of, 1059, 1060
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1967
Straffordshire, 1027
Stralsund, 622, 631, 1861, 1862
Strasburg, 683-686, 694, 891, 938
Strelitz, the, 11 72-1 176
Strikes, 1665
Stuart, James, the Old Pretender, 1080, 1087,
1088, 1093
Stuart, Charles, the Young Pretender, 1097-
1099
Stuart, Henry, Cardinal, 1099
Students' Celebration in Germany, 674
Sture, Nils, 1844, 1845
S(ure, Sten, 1835, 1830
Sture, Sten, the Younger, 1838
Stuyvesant, Peter, 1520, 1540
Styria, 591
Sucre, General, 1 720-1 722
Suetonius, 964
Suevi, 446, 501
Suez, Canal, 121, 134
Suffolk, Duke of, 1025
Suger, Abbot, 807-810
Suiko, 1428
Suliotes, 278
Sulla, 354-361
Sullivan, General, 1575
Sulljr. Duke of, 875-881
Sulpicius, 372
Sultan CEni, I739» I74i» I75i
Sumer, 11-26
Sumner, Charles, 1627
Sumter, Fort, 1632-1634
Sumu-abi, 19, 42
Sung, General, 1469
Sun Yat Sen, 1417, 1418
Sunnites, 1765
Supreme Court of the United States, 1586
Surrey, Lord, 1035
Susa, 7-1 1, 17-32, 79, 186, 249, 251
Sussex, 967
Suvoroff, 1205
Svatopluk, 709, 710
Sveaborg, bombardment of, 1234
Svea-foUc, 181 1
Sviatoslav, 11 55
Swabia, 548, 559» 570-580
Swarrade, 974
Sweden, 623, 629, 1793, 1809-1878, 191^
Swedes, 425, 624-647, 969, 1177-1186
Sweyn, 980
Sweyn Estridson, 1821
Sweyn, Forkbcard, 1818-1820
Swiss, 592-598, 603, 857
Switzerland, 561, 589-598, 626, 631
Syagrius, 524, 776
Sydney, 1141
Sylvester, 11 51
Symnel, Lambert, 1033
Syphax, 335, 339
Syracuse, 169, 208, 224-253, 323-336
Syria, 26, 62, 116, 117, 129, 229, 256,^ 363-
378, 425, 802, 1748, 1750, 1760, i8qi, 1806
Szechenyi, 736
Szigeth, 725-729. 1776, 1777
Tabriz, 98, 99, 1766, 1780
Tachimi, General, 1467
Tacitus, 417, 431, 507, 512, 1881
Taft, President, 100, 1681, 1683-1685
Taharqua, 126
Taillebours, battle of, 822
Tai-pings, 1379-1381
Saira family, 1 429-1 431
Tai-tsu, 1353
Tai-tsu II, 1357, 1358
Tai-tsung, 1351
Tajiri, Baron, 1479
Taku, 1398-1401
Talavera. iiii
Talbot, General, 846
Talbot, Earl of Tyrconnel, 1079
Talien Bay, 1469
Tallapoosa, battle of the, 1609
Talleyrand, 672, 927, 928
Tamburlaine, 1750, 1751
Tancred, 801
Tangier, 1073
Tannhauser, 585
Tanut-amen, 127
Taoism, 1348
Tarentum, 163, 337, 338, 349
Tarentum, Bohemond of, 801-805
Tarik, 1 275-1280
Tarki, capture of, 1186
Tarleton, Colonel, 1579
Tarpeia, 299
Tarquin, Lucius, 304-308
Tarquin, Lucius Superbus, 305-308
Tarquin, Sextus, 306-312
Tarquin. Collatinus, 307-317
Tarquinius, Lucius, 314
Tarraconensis, 1272
Tarshish, 69, 1269
Tarsus, 262, 263
Tartars, 517, 582, 707, 1157-1162, 1350-1418,
1739, 1750
Tashkent, 125 1
Tasmania, 1140-1142
Tatius, 302
Tau-kawang, 1371-1378
Taylor, President, 1622-1626
1968 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Tchernaya, battle of the, 123^
Tchemyschevski, 1240
Tchesme, I795
Tecumseh, 1602-1606
Tcgea, J65
Tcgcthoff, Admiral, 744-?47
Teheran, 94-100
Teias, King, aa9
Telamon, lialtle of Cape. 768
Tel-el Amarna. 26
Telemachus, 166
Telesilla, 175
Tell, William, 593
Templars. 8^8
Tennessee, i6ia, 1658, 1659
Tetmessee, the ironclad, 1652
Terauchi, 1481
Terentius, 413
Teitullian, 437
Testri. battle, 531, 778
TeUd, John. 610
Teutoberger forest, S09
Tcutones, 351, 353. 500. jtl
Teutonic Order, faii
Teutons, 444. 966
Tcwfik, 135. 136
Tewkesbury, 1028
Texas, 1620-1624, '^
Texas, the man-of-war, 1677
Thais, 249
Thales. 170
Thalia, t2Z
Thames River, 1919
Thames River, battle of, 1606
Thanet, 966
Thankmar. 554
Thapsus, 384, 386
Thebes in Egypt. 31. 108, 11S-131
Thebes in Greece, 157, '68, 198-zoi, 223, 230-
■i45, 2h4
Themislocles. 191-214. 223
Theocritus. 269
Theodemir, 1278, 1279
Theodora, 448
449. 517. 1274
Thcodosius, General, 443
Theodosius. Emperor of Rome, 130, 438. 439,
444-446
Thcodolus, 380
Thermopyla, 198-20J, 238
Theseus, 161, 177, 178
Thespians, 201
Thessalonica, 235. 264, 378
Thessaly. 161, 163. 168. 199, 207, 209, 233-
239. 2S9. 282-284, 379
Thetis. 163
Thialfi. 504, S05
Thibaut of Champagne, 821
Thibet, 4. H32, 1250, 1368, 1418
Thirty Year? War, 6lB^527, 724, TA 8^
1786, 1847-1855, 1918
Thistlewood. 1114
Thomas, General. 1643, 1650-165*
Thor, 504-506, 533, 968, 1811, 1818
Thorbccke, Jan Rudolf, 1924
Thorisraund, 517
Thothmes III, 26. 117. I18
Thrace, 184-198, 2z6, 230, 244-253, 346, 378;
446
Thuringia. 548, ^76, 591
Thurm-and-Taxis, 606 *
Thlisnelda, 419, 509-511
Thyra, 1819
Tiber, aw-3il, 344
Tiberius, Emperor of Rome, 419. 508-511
Ticinus, 3^2
Tjconderoga, capture of, 1566
Tien-ming. 1361
Tientsin. 1382. 1 400-1408
Tien-tsung, 1361
Tiflis, 100. 1202
Tiglath-pileser, 28, 29, 46, 64
Tigranes, 363
Tigris, 5, 26-33
Tilden, Samuel J., 1662, 1663
Tilly, 620-624, i&B, 1853
Tilsit, 659, 1208
Timur J 356
Timur the Lame, 1359. 1750, 1751
Tjng, Admiral, 147J, 1474
Tiiilurn Abbey 990
Tio, I4;'i
Tippecanoe, 1602
Tippo Saib, 1104
Tirhakah, 126
Tissa, Count, 746
Tissaphernes. 225-228
Titans, 154. 155
Titus, 53, 264. 422. 423
Tobacco Parliament, 636
Togo, Admiral, 1476-1481
Tokio, 1430-1482
Tokugawui family, 1434
Toleration Act. first, 1543
Tolly B:ircby de, 1215
Tolosa. Navas de, 1287
Tolstoi, Count, 1258, 1259
Tomyris, 83
'ioiig-kicig, 1387-1389
Toral. General, 1677
Torquemada, 1297
Tory Party, 1076-1117
Tory Party in America, 1565
Toul. 861
Toulon, 663. 912
Toulouse, 777-786, 820. Ill, 1274
i. ?93
Tours, 53-1- 774- 78o.
Tourvilk-, Admiral, i
Towton, 1028
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1969
!Jrafalgar, 657, 921, iiio, 1312
frajan, 424. ^5. 432
^rajectum, 1884
transalpine Gaul, 351-355, 3^7
«ffansvaal, 1131, 1132, 1142
^ransylvania, 713* 7^ i754» ^T^h I79i
ji'"«bizond, 1700
i*"«bonius, 390. 392
JL«^enton, battle of, 1571
rr?v«^ 435, .655, 774 ^
'p.^^^d Soaetses, 1370, 1380
rrS^Mjans, 2A4, 24s
^^"^bonian, 448
'^^nidad, 1694
^^nitarianism, 439
i:^^mty College, 1035
i^^'mVy, man-of-war, 1850
i^Tiple Alliance, 487. 689, 747, 948
J^riple Entente, 948
^[ripoli, 487, 1599. 1804
Jl ripoUs, 804, 948
Tristan, 823
Triumvirate, 397, 398
Trochu, General, 939, 940
Trojans, 152-166, 296, 297
Tromp, Admiral, 1066, 1918, 1919
Trondheim, 1820
Trouin, Admiral, 1709
Troy, siege of, 152-166, 296
Troyes, 839, 1025
Truce of God, 562, 705
Tryon, Governor, 1561
Tsdielebi, 1752
Tsi-hssi, 1384, 1415
Tsung-li-Vamen, 1383, 1402
Tuan. Prince, I395, 1414-1416
Tuan Fang, 1416
Tucuman, battle of, 17 14, 171 5
Tudor, Henry, 1030
Tugendbund, 662
TuUia, 305, ^06
Tullus Hostilius, 302, 303
Tumbez, 1696
Tung-che, 1384, 1385
Tung-chou, 1409
Tunis, 322-326, 825, 948, 1773
Tupac Amaru, 1710, 171 1
Turanians, 4, 10
Turcnne, 633, 884-890
Turp^ot, 904
Turin, 479, 481, 893
Turkestan, 83, 1250
Turkey, 1737-1808, i860. 1861
Turks, 6. 66, 133-^37, 271-286, 471, 487, 614,
617, 632, 719-72S, 746, 800-821, 1121, 1180-
1182, 1230-1234, 1238
Tuscany, 460, 478
Tuscany, Duke of, 1068
Tuscaroras, 1544
Tutuila, 1681
Tweed, 1662
Tyburn, 10^
Tyler, President, 1619-162X
Tyler, Wat, 1018, 1019
Tyrconnel, 1084
Tyre, 33, 61-71, 129, 170, 248, 466
Tyrell, Walter, 901
Tyrol, 592, 663, 664, 733, 737
Tyrtaeus, 174
Tzympe, 1745
u
Uenestes, 112
Ukraine, 1788
Uladislaw, 720
Ulfilas, 445, 513
Ulm, 921
Ulrica, Queen, 1862, 1863
Ulster, 1 143, 1 144
Ulysses, 163-166
Umaydo, Prince, 1428
Umma, 13
Uniformity, Act of, 1072
Union Jade, 1057, 1090
United States, 693, 1123, 1136, 1253-1255,
1302, 1398-1418, I437-I447» X4fili 1482,
1491-1685
United States, the frigate, 1604
United Colonies of New Enghtnd, 1532, 1539,
1546
Unterwalden, §93
Upsala, 1811-1813, 1843
Upsala Resolution, 1846
Ur, 14, 19, 41
Uranus, 154, 155
Urban IV, Pope, 585, 800, 805
Urguiza, 1725
Ur-gur, 19
Uri, 593
Uruguay, 1711-1713, 1725
Uru-ka-gina, 12, 13
Usertesen III, 115
Uskub, 1805
Ut^rd-Loki, 505
Utica, 69, 339, ^3, 384
Utrecht, 1883-1891, 1897
Utrecht, Peace of, 893, 1090
197*^ The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
Valencia. 1287, 1289, 1334
Valens, Flavius, 443, 444
Valentinian I, Emperor, 438, 443
Valentinian II, Emperor, 443
Valerian, Emperor, 'j2, 434. 438
Valerius of Rome, 310
Valerius, Bishop, 441
Valhalla, 503, 5O6. 512
Valkyries, 503, S'2, 520
Vall^ Forge, 1574
Valmy, 653, 910
Valois, 830
Van Artevclde, Jacques, 1893-18516
Van Artevelde, Phifip, 1895, 1896
Van Buren, President, 1617-1620
VandaU. 44>. 44^44^, SI4> 775
Van Dyke, 1059
Vane. Sir Harry, 1066, 1532
Van Eyck, 1902
Vannovsky, 1258
Van Twiller. Wouter, 1519
Varennes, 908
Varna, 720. !7SS, 1801
Varro, TerenOus, 334. 335
Varus, 418, S08-510
Vasag, 1754 , ^,
Vassy, massacre of, 866
Vatican, 474. 485
Vauban, 88g
Veii, 316-318
Velasquez, 1306
Veleda, 1882
Vellada, 513
Velletri, 4^
Vende, 911-914
Veneii. i^y
Venetia, 483. 48S. 743 ,
Venetian Three, the, 467
Venetians, 1753
Veneielos, 285, 286
Venezuela, 1136. 1669. 1670, 1681. 1694-1728
Venice, 274, 275. 449-469, 478. 481, 482, 486,
717. "761. 1779, 1791-1793, 1795
Ventidius, 396
Venus, 162-166, 296
Venus de Medici, 268
Venus of Milo, 268
Vera Crui, 1623
Verbiest, Father, 1364-1366
VercclL-e, 354 ,, _^
Vercingetorix, 368, 762, 7^7
Verden, 540 , , „ „
Verdun, treaty of, 546, 782, 784
Vermandois, 788
Vermont, 1585, 161I
Vernon, Admiral, IO96
Vers^Ues, 628, 68«, 687, 8S9, 907
Versus, Lucius, 426. 427
Vespasian, 53, 422, 771
Vespucci, Amerigo, 1701
Vesta, 298, 317
Vesuvius, Mt., 416, 423: battle of, 449
Veturia, 314
Viborg, 1260
Vicksburg, 1643-1650
Victor Emanuel II. 481, 483-485
Victor Emanuel III, :|87
Victor. Count of Turin, 487
Victoria, Queen of England, 677, 693, Itti,
1118-1129, 1332, 1639
Victoria Adelaide, Empress of GennuQi
693, 1 127
Victory, Berlin statue of, 66g
Vieira, 1708
Vienna, 603-639, 655, 669, 67S. 721-743. !•«•
1772
3-1791.
Vienna, Congress of, ^2. 673, 734, 738
Vienne, ford ot, 52?
Vikings. 1 809- 182 1
Villacampa, 1333
Villars, Marshal, 892-897
Villavieiosa. battle of, 1306
Vimiero, battle of, iiii, 13:3
Vincennes, 1612
Vind, Leonardo da, 474, ^5. 857
Vindex. 771
Vin eland, 1493
Violated Trea^, battle o£ the, I75S
Virgil, 164, 406, 414
Virgin Mary, 1753
Virginia of Rome, 31S
Virginia. U. S., 1067, 1507-1516, 1579-iSW
1631-1656
Virginius, 315, 316
Viriathus, 342
Vishtaspa, 78
Vitellius. 4J2, 1881
Vladimir, Saint, 1156
Vladimir Monomachus, 1156
Vladivosiock, 1251, 1256, 1481
Volga, 1778
Volo, 284
Volscians. 313. 3M
Voltaire. 638, 643, 651, 904
Volumnia, 314
Von Bcthman-Hollweg, 694
Von Bulow. 692
Von Phull. General, 1215
Von Plehve, 1255-1257
Vortigern, 966, 9^7
Vortimer, 967
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index 1971
W
Wagner, 585
Wagram, 66^, 7ZZ
Wahlstadt, 667, 668
Wahu Proclamation, 1391
Waibling, 571-575
Waifre, Duke, 536
Waldeck- Rousseau, 948
Waldemar I, 1823-1825
Waldemar II, 1825-1827
Waldemar III, 1827-1831, 1842
Waldemar's Way, 1826
Waldensees, 819
Waldersee, Marshal von, 693, 1409-1412
Wales, 992, loio
Walker, Admiral, I549
Wallace, William, loii
Wallachia, 1748, 1754, 1781, 1801
Wallachian Vespers, 1781
Wallenstein, 1849-1854
Wallenstein, Albert of, 621-625
Waller, Major, 1405
Wallia, 1273, 1274
Wallingford castle, 994
Walloons, 15 19
Walpole, Robert, 1093- 1097
Walsingham, Sir Francis, 1046
Walter the Penniless, 801
Waltham Abbey, 988
Walworth, Mayor, 1019
Wampanoags, 1526, 1534
Wang, 1371
Wang-hai, treaty of, 1377
Wantage, 971
War of 1812, 1 1 12
Warbeck, Perkin, 1033
Ward, Frederick, 1381
Wareham, 974
Warsaw, 654, 673, 1230, 1258
Wartburg, 586, 612
Warwick, Earl of, the Kingmaker, 1026-1028
Wasconia, Duke of, 778, 781
Washington, city of, 1591, 1607
Washington, Fort, 1569
Washington, George, 315, iioi, 1104, I55i-
1590
Waterloo, 670, 925, 11 11, 1922
Watt, James, 1105
Wau-lich, 1360
Wayne, Anthony, 1576, 1594
Webster, Daniel, 1616-1627
Wedmore, 976
Weimer, 652
Weinsberg, 571
Weissenburg, 683, 936
Wei-hai-wei, 1397. I459. I47i-I474
Welf, 571-575
Welf, Count, 571
Wellington, 670, 671, 925, I111-II17, 1313
Welsh, 977
Wends, 550, 629, 1823-1825
Wentworth, Thomas, 1059
Wenzel, Emperor of Germany, 597-600, 716
Wenzel III, of Bohemia, 715
Werder, General, 686
Werner, Duke, 463, 588
Werner, Count, 561
Wesley, Chas., iioi, 1102
Wesley, John, iioi, 1102
Wessex, 967, 969, 973-977
Wessex, Goodwin, Earl of, 981
Westerburg, Countess, 613
West Indies, 1495
Westminster, 981
Westminster Abbey, 988, 1134, 1135
Westphalia, Peace of, 626, ^
Westphalia, Treaty of, 1854
West Virginia, 1635
Weyler, Marshal, 1335, 1336, 1673
Whalley, Edward, 1072
Wheeler, General Joseph, 1674
Whigs, 1076, 1087, 1092, 1 117
Whig Party in America, 1614-1627
Whiskey Rebellion, 1594
Whitby, 969
White, General, 11 39
White, John, 1508
White Terror, the, 928
Whitefield, George, iioi, 1102
Whitehall, 1063
Whitney, Eli, 1618
Wight, Isle of, 971, 1134, 1136
Wiju, 1469, 1477
Wilberforce, William, 1106
Wilderness, battle of, 1654
Wilhelmina, 1925
Wilhelmina of Prussia, 637
Wilkes, Captain, 1639
Wilkes, John, 1107
William I, Emperor of Germany, 676-691,
1325
William II, Emperor of Germany, 691-694
William, the Conqueror, 796-798, 981, 986-
990, 1886
William II of England, 890, 891, 990-992
William III of England, 1080-1086, 1174,
I 522- I 535
William IV of England, 1115-1118
William of Hesse, 673
William of Malmesbury, 1020
William I, Prince of Orange, 1048, 1075,
1908-1915
William III of Orange, 1920, 1921
William IV of Orange, 1921
William V of Orange, 192 1, 1922
1972 The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index
William VI of Orange, 1922-1924
WilUara II, Count of HoUand. 1888
WilUam VI, Count of Holland, 1897
William I, King of Holland, 1922-1925
William II of Holland, 1925
William III of Holland, 1925
William I of Utrecht, 1887
Williams, Roger, 1532, 1538
WilUbrod, 1884
Wilmington, 1540
Wilmot, Lord, 1065
Wilson, Richard, 1107
Wilson, President Woodrow, 1685
Wilson Bill, the, 1669
Wilson's Creek, battle of, 1635
Wiltshire, 975, 989
Winchester, 973, 977, 992
Winchester, Bishop of, 971
Winchester, Sheridan at, 1656
Windischgratz, General, 738, 740
Windthorst, Dr., 690
Winfred (see Boniface)
Winkelried, Arnold of, 597
Winslow, Joseph, 1535
Winter, Sir William, 1040
Winthrop, Fitzjohn, 1548
Winthrop, John, 1530
Winthrop. John, Jr., 1539
Wisby, 1&8
Witan, 972, 982
Witte, Sergius, 1253-1260
Wittekind, 540, 54i
Wittelsbach, 650
Wittenberg, 609, 610
Woden, 153, 503, 504, SiQ, 968, 181 1
Wojen, the, 1463
Wolfe, General, iioi, 1555
Wolseley, Lord, 136
Wolsey, Cardinal, I535» 1536
Woman Suffrage, 1144
Wood, General Leonard, 1680
Woolsthorpe, 1076
Worcester, 1065
Worcester, Earl of, 1023
Worden, Lieutenant, 1640
Wordsworth, 1106
Worms, 514, 520, 566, 583, 611
Worth, 683, 936
Wounded Knee, battle of, 1668
Wren, Sir Christopher, 1074
Writs of Assistance, 1559
Wuchang, 1416
Wurtemberg, 514, 628, 639, 657, 673
Wu San-kwei, 13(52
Wu Ting-fang, 1402- 1417
Wycliffe, John, 1017, 1018
Willie-Curzon, 1142
Wyoming, massacre of, 1575
Xanthen, 518
Xanthippus, 195, 326
Xenophon, 83, 229
Xeres, battle of, 1275
Xerxes I, 35, 87, 195-214, 235
Ximenes, 1299
Yalu, 1458, 1464-1470, 1476, 1477
Yamagata, Marshal, 1465, 1472
Yamaguchi, 1410
Yamanoto, Yoshto, 1480
Yamato, 1426
Yamato-dake, 1426
Yang-tse-kiang, 1376, 1380, 1416
Yaroslav the Just, 11 56
Yaroslavets, battle of, 1223
Yashan, 1463
Yeamans, Sir Tohn, 1543
Yedo, 1434-1482
Yemen, 1804
Yermac Timoslaf, 1521
Yggdrasil, 502
Yildiz Kiosk, 1806
Ying-kow, 1472
Yin^lings, 181 1, 1812, 1817, 1818
Ymir, 502
Yngve, 1812
Yokohama, 1442-1445
Yoritomo. 1429-143 1
York, 966, 987
York, General, 664-668, 734
York, Archbishop of, 997
York, Dukes of, 443, 1020, 1026
Yorktown, sieges of, 1581, 1644
Yoshihito, 1482
Yoshitsune, 1429
Younghusband, 1132
The Story of the Greatest Nations — Index ^973
Young Turks, 1803-1806
YpsUanti, 277, 278
Yssd, 1882
Y11 the Great, 1346
Yuan Shi-kai, 1412-1418
Ynng-chiiig, 1367
Yung-lo, 1358
Yung-lu, 1417
Yu Shien, 1397
Yuste, 1302
Yusuf, 1283
Zahara, capture of, 1293
Zanardelli, Signer, 487
Zapolva, 1771
Zaratnushtra, 78
2^ea]and, 1826, 1857, 1887, 1904, 1912
Zedddah, 48
2^eiiistvos, 1247-1262
Zend-Avesta, 78
Zeno, Emperor, 447* 449
Zenobia, 130, 434, 435
Zenta, 633, 727, I790
Zembbabel. 48
Zens, 152-160, 247, 296, 298, 300 (see Jupiter)
Ziethen, Marshal, 648
Zipango, 1425, I495> 1498
Ziska, John, 600, 601
Zola, 947
Zoltan, 711
Zorilla, 1326
Zomdorf, 646, 648
Zoroaster, 78-88
Zrinyi, 724, 1776
Zrin^, Countess, 725, 1777
Zulpich, 526
Zululand, 1138
Zurich, ^
Zusmarshausen, 884
Zutphen, 1052, 1917
Zuyder Zee, 1888
3 6105 126 937 601
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