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land_n	city_n	great_a	lord_n	2,295	5	3.5103	3	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A64345	An account of Poland containing a geographical description of the country, the manners of the inhabitants, and the wars they have been engag'd in, the constitution of that government, particularly the manner of electing and crowning their king, his power and prerogatives : with a brief history of the Tartars / by Monsieur Hauteville ... ; to which is added, a chronology of the Polish kings, the abdication of King John Casimir, and the rise and progress of Socinianisme ; likewise a relation of the chief passages during the last interregnum ; and the election and coronation of the new King Frederic Augustus ; the whole comprehending whatsoever is curious and worthy of remark in the former and present state of Poland.; Relation historique de la Pologne. English	Tende, Gaspard de, 1618-1697.	1698 (1698)	Wing T678; ESTC R20715	178,491	319

Presents of Flesh Fish Stuffs hay and Oats The Starosties ought only to be given to old Officers who have serv'd long time in the Army and are as it were Super-annuated for the Polish Word Starosc signifies old Age and he who enjoys one of those Estates is call'd Starosta from Stary which signifies an Old Man There are Two sorts of Starosties some are empower'd to exercise a Jurisdiction thro' the whole extent of their Territory whereas there are others without any Jurisdiction The first are the most considerable tho' they are not always the Richest Each Starosta is oblig'd to give the fourth part of the Revenue of his Starostie to the Republick and no Man can possess Two of those who have Jurisdiction The King may bestow the Reversion of a Starostie upon the Starosta's Wife except in Rússia which is a Frontier Province for since a Starostie is a Government the Republick supposes that the Governor ought to reside upon the place but Polish Gentlemen may be made Governours of Frontier Places because the Republick relies more upon their Fidelity than upon that of Forreigners tho' they are sometimes deceiv'd in this Maxim For he who surrender'd the City of Caminiec to the Turks without making any Resistance was not only a Gentleman of Poland but even a Palatine As for the Salt-works of Poland the most considerable are those of Vieluczka and Boehinia about Five Leagues from Cracow which yields about 400000 Livres Yearly They were found out in the Year 1252. They resemble deep Mines dug in the Earth to which they descend by a hole like to that of a Quarry The Workmen who are employ'd in Digging out the Salt begin to enter the Pits at Midnight and those who go down first begin to come out about Noon because they must be let down and drawn up with a great Rope like that with which large Stones are rais'd up out of Quarries As they dig the Salt out of the Mines they must leave great Pillars from place to place to support the Earth and since these Vaulted Pits are all cover'd with Salt when one goes down into them he seems to be surrounded with a Thousand Crystals which reflect the Light of the Torches There are some parts of 'em dug so far that it would be dangerous to go into 'em because one might easily lose himself in these Labyrinths The Salt is taken out in large Columns which being loosen'd from the Mine are drawn by Horses just under the Mouth of the Pit and afterwards drawn up like Stones out of a Quarry The Horses continue always in those Subterranean Caverns but the Men come out every day and which is very remarkable there is a Spring of Sweet Water in the Salt-pits of which both the Men and Horses drink After the Salt is brought out of the Pits they carry those great Pieces or Columns through the whole Kingdom except Prussia where they only use French Salt Before the Polish Salt can be us'd it must be beaten to pieces and then ground in a Mill. Besides these Pits of Bochnia and Vieluczka there are other Salt-works at Halicz in Pokutia on the Neister at Kolomey in the same Province on the River Prut and at Pinsk a City of Lithuania in Pol●sia and besides these there are some others which belong to private Men for there is an express Law that the Republick shall not pretend a Right to the Mines of Salt or of any Metals which are found in any Gentleman's Lands There is also White Salt made in many other places of Poland as in the Palatinat of Craeow between Oswiecin upon the Vistula and Mount Crapat But this Salt is for the King's use besides they make great quantities of Salt in Russia by Boiling Salt-water which costs 'em little because that Province is all cover'd with Woods There are also some Mines of Lead mixt with Silver in the Burroughs of Ilkusch Slankow Kranow and Nowoguiia which are in the Palatinat of Cracow and in that of Sandomir there is Salt-peter at Vieliczca there is also Vitriol found at Byecz and Quicksilver at Tustan in Pokutia towards the Mountains The Ecclesiastick Estates are the Benefices as Bishopricks Abbacy's Priory's Canonships Curacies and all the Lands that are possess'd by the Regular Clergy The Benefices are not so numerous as in France for there are but Sixteen Bishopricks and some Abbacy's But the Bishopricks are of a great extent and endow'd with large Revenues some of these Prelates having above 100000 Livers Yearly Rent The Patrimonial Estates belong properly to the Polanders whether the Right of Succession be by Purchase or Inheritance and consist in Houses Lands Towns Villages Lakes Mills Meadows and Woods but especially in Peasants for a Gentleman's Riches are valu'd by the Number of his Peasants every one of them being worth 100 Livres a Year to his Master These Peasants are Slaves and cannot possess any thing all that they heap together belongs to their Lord whom they cannot leave without his permission unless they turn Priests or Fryers But these miserable Wretches work so hard without intermission that they have no time to study in order to fit themseives for admittance among the Secular or Regular Clergy except only in the quality of Lay-Brothers which the Polish Gentlemen take also care to prevent by obliging them to Marry young that they may not be receiv'd into the Convents To settle a Peasant upon a Piece of Land or in a Village the Lord causes a Cottage of Wood to be built for him and gives him Two little Horses one Cow some Hens Geese and Rye to subsist upon for a Year In the mean time he appoints a certain Piece of Ground in the Village which the Peasant is oblig'd to Till for his Landlord and upon which he is to maintain himself for the future for all the Goods of the Village belong to the Lord. The settling of a Peasant costs a Gentleman nothing but the price which he pays for him Because the other Peasants of the Village build the House and furnish the Cattel Poultry and all that he gives to his new Subject who with his Wife and Children is oblig'd to work Four days in the Week for his Master and to spend the other Two days in Tilling the Ground which is given him for his Subsistance When Harvest comes all the Peasants of the Village go out together to cut down and gather in the Corn for their Lord who appoints certain Persons to Oversee their Work and to beat 'em when they are idle For the Punishment of the Peasants there is a sort of Pillory in every Village on which those Miserable Wretches are sometimes forc'd to stand a whole day One would think the Peasants in Poland should reckon themselves the most unhappy Creatures in the World to see themselves reduc'd to perpetual Slavery and oblig'd to Work continually without the prospect of one day of rest But they do not so much as know that there are

which they use for their ordinary Drink 'T is said that in Muscovy which lies more Northwards there is a much greater abundance of Honey which supplies the defect of Wine and Beer and enables 'em to subsist comfortably in their Cold Habitations 'T is strange that there should be such vast swarms of Bees in so cold a Countrey since 't is observ'd that these Animals are more delighted with the Flowers that are found in hot Countreys than with those that grow in a Cold Climate It must be concluded then that the Bees find some agreeable Liquor upon the Firr-Trees and that they are pleased with that sort of Wood which the Polanders have very well observ'd for all the Hives which they have in their Gardens are made of the Hollow Trunks of Firr-Trees I proceed in the next place to show how the Polish Gentlemen Improve their Estates and how they raise their Revenues It is not the Custom in this Countrey to let Estates for Money except only the Farms of Beer Brandy and the Inns which they call Karczma All the other Rents are paid in Corn which they send to Dantzick to be Sold in Fish which is bought by the Merchants in Horses Oxen Cowes Calves Sheep Hogs Ceese Ducks Turkey Hens Common Hens Chickens and Capons which the Peasants very carefully bring up not daring to eat or sell any of 'em or otherwise embezel them for fear of the Rod. As for the Butter and Eggs after the Landlord's Kitchen is sufficiently furnish'd he bestows the rest with the Flax which the Peasants make upon his Wife which she sells for Pocket-Money for the Women in Poland are not suffer'd to keep the Purse but when they want any thing they pray their Husband to give it them embracing his Knees and calling him My Patron or Benefactor The Men do all the Business and the Women meddle with nothing but Eating Drinking and Dancing there being orders given in the Kitchen to give them whatever they demand Upon every Mannor the Lord keeps a Pod Starosta that is an inferior Gentleman who takes care to gather in the Cattle and other Rents from the Peasants to send part of 'em into his Master's Kitchen and to sell the rest But tho' there cannot be an exact Computation made of the Revenue of Land in Poland because consists almost wholly in Commodities a considerable part of which is consumed in the Landlord's House there are Persons of Quality whose Yearly Revenue is esteem'd to amount to more than 100000 Crowns And formerly the Polish Gentry were so Rich that some Lords usually came to the Diets with a Train of above 1000 Men and others upon pressing occasions have furnish'd the Republick with 3000 Men rais'd at their own Charge as did Leo Sapieha Chancellor of Lithuania after the great Defeat of the Polish Army at Pilaveze in Vkrania on the 29th of September 1648. But at present Poland is not so Rich because it is not so well Peopled as formerly Nor can it be reasonably suppos'd to be either so Rich or Populous after it has been harrass'd by so many Irruptions of the Muscovites Turks Tartars and Cossacks who have at several times carry'd away an infinite number of Slaves and after the Bloody and Expensive Wars which the Republick has maintain'd against all its Neighbours And besides the Plague which succeeded these Desolations has Contributed in a great measure to Dispeople part of the Countrey CHAP. XXIII Of the Customs Humour and Inclinations of the Polanders THE Polanders are naturally so extremely desirous of Money that they are willing to submit to any terms to procure it But those who are acquainted with their Temper will never give them more than what they intend to lose for it is not their Custom to Pay their Debts nor so much as to return a Civil Answer to their Creditors Since it may seem incredible that any Commerce can subsist among a People who never Pay what they Borrow it will not be improper to give an Account of the way of Lending Money in Poland for Bonds and Obligations are of no use in this Countrey Those who want Money must either procure a Supply from the Gentlemen Merchants or Burgesses When one Gentleman sends Money to another the Borrower Mortgages or makes over a Village to his Creditor till the Money be Re-paid As for the Burgesses and Merchants they never lend Money to the Gentlemen but upon Pledges at 14 per cent Interest as 't is allow'd by the Laws of the Kingdoms There is a Note or Inventory taken of the Quantity and Kind of the Pledges which the Borrower gives to the person who Lends the Money and if they consist of Jewels as for example a Pearl-Necklace it is Seal'd at the two ends with the Borrower's Seal In the same Note after both the Quantity and Value of the Jewels or Plate that is Pawn'd and the Sum of Money that is Lent are specify'd the Borrower obliges himself to Pay the Money at Six Months Warning and in the mean time to pay Interest at the rate of 14 per Cent. 'T is also stipulated and agreed upon betwixt both Parties that if the Borrower shall neglect to pay Interest for the space of Three years the Creditor shall in that case have full Power to send them to Dantzick to be Sold And this is the only way that the Merchants and Burgers Lend Money to the Polanders for otherwise they would never be paid Tho 't is certain that the Polanders are passionate lovers of Money and will leave no means unattempted to procure it 't is no less certain that they do not desire it to Purchase Lands or to Build Fine Houses or encrease their Revenues but only to buy Silks Stuffs Furs Fine Horses and Arms and above all good Hungarian Wine The Polish Gentlemen are all naturally civil They usually invite Travellers to their Houses and Entertain them in a very kind and obliging manner The Great Lords are very Generous and Magnificent and to my certain knowledge some of them have taken into their Houses Frenchmen Italians and Germans and Maintain'd them till they found some Employment I know particularly that that Chancellor Patz has given both Horses and Money to Strangers who had done him no Service at all The Polanders are generally very fond of Magnificent Habits after their Mode Most of them wear very handsom Boots the heels of which are shod with Iron a Furr'd Cap and Vests that reach to their Mid-leg and are Furred in Cold Weather The Great Lords have them Furr'd with Sable which is brought them from Muscovy and the rest with the Skins of Tygres Leopards Panthers c. Some of the Fine Furs cost above 1000 Crowns but they are only worn at Diets and are kept from Father to Son Some though few are Cloathed after the French Fashion and wear Linnen Lace Point Perukes and Swords for those who retain the Polish Habit wear no other Linnen but Shirts and Drawers and some of

Firing of the Artillery of the place and with Three Salvo's of all the Saxon Forces Incamp'd under the Walls of Cracow The next Day His Majesty being Cloathed in His Royal Robes went in Great Pomp to the Town-House and being Set upon a Throne Erected before the House the Magistrates came to Assure Him of their Fidelity and Presented Him with the Keys of their Town in a Silver Dish The Chancellor in the King's Name Assur'd them of His Maiesty's Clemency and Affection and Read with an Audible Voice the Oath of Fidelity which they took Kneeling After which they Presented according to Custom a Purse full of Ducats to His Majesty who was pleased to Confer the Order of Knighthood upon some of them All the People being about the Throne a Gentleman who had the Office of Treasurer scatter'd some Money amonst them which Liberality was Proclaimed by Great Acclamations of Joy and Long Live Friderick Augustus Our KING The Dyet which was Called some time before Met at Cracow according to Custom and at their first Meeting some of the Deputies of the French Faction made some Reflections on the Castellan of Cracow and other Senators who had advisd the Hastning of the King's Coronation which as they said ought to have been deferred till the great Dispute concerning the Crown was accommodated to which they said the Primate and his Party were enclined but they were Silenc'd by the rest of the Deputies who would not hear such Discourses The Contest about the Choice of a Mareschal went so far that the Sabres were drawn but at last the Matter was Composed and the Starost Minsky of Lithuania was Chosen on the 24th of September and so the Dyet went on upon Publick Business Some days after the Coronation the King held a Great Council of War wherein it was Resolved to send a Detachment of His Forces towards Dantzick to prevent the Prince of Conty's Landing and another to Warsaw to Secure the Place and Disperse the Rebels which was accordingly done the King in ending to repair in few ways to Warsaw at the Head of His Army But the Primate having received Advice of His Majesty's Coronation and of His design to March to Warsaw caused the Corps of the Late King with all the Artillery and Ammunition of the Place to be Embarked on the Vistula for Jarreslow designing to retire himself with the Mareschal of the Nobility of his Party to Lowitz a Strong Place in a Morass belonging to his Eminence which he did few days after The whole Party was much Surpris'd at the News of the King's Coronation for they did not think that the Saxons would have proceeded to it because of the Reasons I have mention'd however they were not Disheartned and they Summon'd the Nobility of Upper Poland to Meet at Lenovi under the Command of the Castellan of Calish In the Lower Poland at Zawickhorst under the Command of the Palatine of Be●z but the Rendesvous of the Lithuanians was left to the Prince Sapieha who was to have the Chief Command till the Arrival of the Prince of Conti who was daily expected That Prince set out form Dunkirk the 6th of September on board the Chevalier Bart and Arrived at Dantzick the 25th He sent a Gentleman to give Notice of his Arrival to the Magistrates and desire a free Passage through the City To which they Answer'd That they had a great Respect for his Highness but that the Elector of Saxony having been Crowned they could do no more for him than give him the Liberty to come ashore himself with his Servants alone but not suffer any Officers or Soldiers to Land or Pass through their City The Prince was very much Mortifyed at the Answer of the Magistrates but his Mortification increased much on the 29th of the same Month that he was an Eye-witness of their Proclaiming his Competitor with all imaginable Solemnity which was a great disappointment to his Party who thought to have had their Rendesvous in that Place They had also bought several Pieces of Cannon and Ammunition but the Magistrates would not suffer them to be carry'd away and forbid the Inhabitants upon Pain of Death to Sell any Arms or Ammunition to Strangers The Primate came Incognito to Confer with his Highness with Five or Six other Gentlemen In the mean time the King thought fit to send Circular Letters to all the Provinces of the Kingdom as well to notify his Coronation as to Answer some Calumnies raised by his Enemies The Substance of those Letters were That his Majesty being by the Free Choice of the Kingdom Elected and Crowned King of Poland he was concerned to find there should be any Persons so much Enemies of their Country as to go about to Violate the Rights of the Gentry and disturb the Publick Peace That he understood they Complain'd of his having Possess'd himself of the Castle of Cracow and brought Forces into the Kingdom but that he had done nothing therein but with the advice of the Senators and Great Officers of the Crown and that the Troops he had with him were no more than were necessary for the Security of his Person That notwithstanding the unreasonable Opposition of the Adverse Party he had used all endeavours to gain them by fair Means but the same not having had the effect he hoped for his Majesty Places his Confidence in the Protection of Almighty God and doe's not Doubt but they who Chose him King will be careful to maintain their own Honour and Liberty Immediatly after the Coronation the Castellan of Cracow was sent to the Army who having receiv'd the Arrears due to them declar'd they were ready to obey his Majestys Orders The Primate had sent some Deputies to ingage them to come over to his Party but he having been inform'd at lemberg of the disposition of the Troops they did not think fit to venture to go to the Camp for fear the General should proceed against them as Publick Enemies Thus stood the affairs of Poland towards the latter end of September 1697. and notwithstanding the Obstinacy of the Primate and his Party one may reasonably believe that the Prince of Conti will find himself disappointed his Competitor having many great advantages over him for altho one would suppose which is certainly false that their Parties in the Republick are equal yet the Electors Territories bordering upon Poland and all the Neighbouring Princes as Sweden Moscovy the Emperor Brandenburgh c. having declar'd for him his Party must needs prevail upon the Prince of Conti who has nothing to rely upon but the supplies from France which will be very uncertain considering the distance from France to Poland and the dangers of the Sea in this Season of the year The Reader doe's perhaps expect that we should inquire which of the two Elections is conformable to the Polish Laws or whether either of them may be said to be so which is neither improbable nor impossible but this inquity would

the Borysihenes the Water of which Congeals to Salt by the heat of the Sun so that it may be broken in pieces and carried away in Carts like Ice but it Melts immediately with Rain The 34th is the Palatin of Pomerania whose Palatinate is in Royal Prussia The 35th is the Palatin of Minsk a City in the Dutchy of Lithuania seated on the River Suislocz The 36th is the Palatin of Czernichowia a City of Lithuania scituated on the River Derna This Palatinat which is also a Dutchy is only a Titular Dignity Having thus given an Account of the 32 Palatines 3 Castellans and one Starosta who are Senators it may not improperly be observ'd that tho' the Quality of Castellan and Starosta is inferiour to that of a Palatin there are Four of them who possess almost the First Ranks among the Lay-Senators I have already intimated the Reason why the Castellan of Cracow is the First Temporal Senator and as for the other Three 't is probable that this Precedency was granted them in Recompence of some Brave Actions which the Castellans of those Cities had perform'd The Office of a Palatin is to Lead the Troops of his Palatinate to the Army to Preside in the Assemblies of the Nobility in his Province to set a Price upon Merchandices and Commodities to take care that the Weights and Measures be not altered and to Judge and Defend the Jews He hath a Vice Palatin under him who must take an Oath to him and who ought to have an Estate in Land which they call Possessionatus The Castellans are the next in Dignity to the Palatines and there are two sorts of them in the Kingdom who are usually distinguish'd by the Titles of Great Castellans and Petty or Sub Castellans The number of the former both in the Kingdom and Dutchy amounts to 32 and that of the latter to 49. ' Twou'd be equally tedious and unprofitable to give a particular account of 'em all and therefore I shall content my self with observing in the general that they are all Senators Lieutenants or Deputies of the Palatines and Heads of the Nobility in their respective Jurisdictions In the next place I shall proceed to mention the Officers of State who are Senatours The First is the Great Marshal of the Kingdom The Second The Great Marshal of the Dutchy The Third The Chancellour of the Kingdom The Fourth The Chancellour of the Dutchy The Fifth The Vice-Chancellor of the Kingdom The Sixth The Vice-Chancellour of the Dutchy The Seventh The Treasurer of the Kingdom The Eighth The Treasurer of the Dutchy The Ninth The Sub-Marshal or Marshal of the Court of the Kingdom And the Tenth The Sub-Marshal or Marshal of the Court of the Dutchy These are all the Members of the Polish SENATE I have in another place given a sufficient Account of the Privileges and Functions of the Officers mention'd here and therefore I shall conclude this Chapter with observing that besides the Four Senatours who ought always to attend the King and to assist him with their Counsel in all Deliberations and Judgments all the other Senatours who are at Court have also the privilege to assist in such cases And all those who are present in Council and Consent to the Decree or Sentence are obliged to Sign it not only in Criminal but also in Civil Cases that they may afterwards be accountable for their Proceedings to the Whole Body of the Republick CHAP. XI Of the Order of the Nobility or Gentry THE Third Order of the Republic of Poland is that of the Nobility who are only capable of possessing all the Offices and Lands both in the Dutchy and Kingdom For all the Peasants are Slaves and the Burghers of Towns and Cities are only lookt upon as Tradesmen who can possess at most but some Houses in the Cities and the Lands about a League round them As for Strangers how Noble soever they may be in their own Country and whatever Services they have done in the Army to the Republick they can neither possess an Estate nor rise to any higher Preferment than the Command of a Regiment of Foot or at most the Place of a Major-General which is an Office not much different from that of a Brigadeer in France for the Polanders will never suffer that a Stranger tho' never so expert in War should have the general Command of their Army The Nobility or Gentry are the Guardians of the Laws and Liberties of the Republic and the Electors of their Soveraign They bestow the Crown and Scepter upon him and furnish him with Ministers and Counsellors They make their own Laws and determine both their Duties and Privileges They are oblig'd to defend the Rights of their Countrey against the Incroachments of any aspiring Prince whose Ambition might carry his Designs beyond the limits prescrib'd to him by the Laws Since the number of the Gentry is so great that they cannot all assist at the General Dyets they chuse Deputies in the Petty Dyets whom they send to the General Dyets to preserve their Ancient Privileges and Constitutions and to contrive and Enact new Laws for their Security The Polish Gentry are generally perswaded that 't is their Interest to preserve an Uninterrupted Peace with their Neighbours that they may be able to preserve all their Provinces But 't is plain from the Event that they are extreamly mistaken in their Politics for Poland lying open on all sides and being surrounded by so many Enemies we may easily suppose that every one of them may find an opportunity to surprize some part of the Kingdom before the People can put themselves in a posture of Defence All that the King can do in such a juncture is to summon the Nobility together to oppose the Enemy which is the same with the Arriere Ban in France and is called the Postpolite in Poland Upon such occasions 't is to be observ'd that the King must send His Circular Letters thrice into each Palatinate to Assemble them That none are exempted from the Service but the Chancellour and the Starosta's of Frontier Places That the Nobility of Poland are not oblig'd to go above Three Leagues out of the Kingdom That those of Lithuania and Prussia are not oblig'd to go out of the Kingdom at all That the King cannot keep the Gentry in Arms above the space of Six weeks and that all the Courts of Justice are shut up during the time that the Arriere Ban is Assembled It is so far from being the Interest of the Republick to maintain a constant Peace with their Neighbours that 't was this very Maxim which occasion'd the loss of the Third part of their Country For in the Reign of Vladislaus the IVth they built Fort Kudack on the Boristhenes to hinder the Cossacks from Cruizing on the Black Sea for fear of Irritating the Turks But this False Step in stead of securing the Quiet of the Kingdom engag'd 'em in a War with the Cossacks and Tartars and even