Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	faith_n	prove_v	3,810	5	6.3590	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A69607	The Present condition of the Muscovite empire till the year 1699 in two letters : the first from a gentleman who was conversant with the Muscovite ambassadour in Holland, the second from a person of quality at Vienna, concerning the late Muscovite embassy, his present czarish majesty, the Russian empire and Great-Tartary : with the life of the present emperour of China, by Father J. Bouvet, missionary / by the author of The antient and present state of Muscovy.	Crull, J. (Jodocus), d. 1713?; Bouvet, Joachim, 1656-1730.	1699 (1699)	Wing B3862; ESTC R19507	51,096	122

High Esteem he has of our Religion by the Satisfaction he takes in the Conversion of his Subjects to the Christian Faith which gives its no small hopes that in time by the Grace fo God be entirely united to the Church For considering what favourable Inclinations God has been pleased to inspire into his Heart for the Christian Religion by the means of our Arts and Sciences we are not beyond hopes that one day he may prove the Destruction of the Pagan Idolatry in China endeavouring in this as in many other things to tread in the footsteps of Your Majesty who have made it Your Chiefest Glory to root out Heresie in your Dominions and to propagate the true Religion throout all Parts of the World Will it not be the greatest Happiness and Glory of Your Majesty's Reign that the same Arts and Sciences which have been brought to the highest pitch of Protection by your Encouragement and protection should be the happy Instruments of these favourable Inclinations the present Emperour of China shews for our Religion and if the Chineses should be convinced in time of the Great advantage the Truth of the Gospel has over their vain Philosophy to serve as a Means both for the Soveraign and his Subjects to submit themselves notwithstanding all their Self-conceit in which they surpass most Nations to the forcible truth of the Christian Religion These are the hopes which may be conceiv'd from true Historical Portraicture of this Prince the only thing I fear is that the Pencil of the Painter has done considerable wrong to the Original But if all the Lineaments are not so Nice and Exact as they should be I am sure they are true and all the Favours this Monarch has been pleased to heap upon us have not been Powerful enough to induce me to deviate in the least from the Respect due to Your Majesty and Truth it self in so Nice a Point in which the Interest of the Gospel which was never separated from Yours is so narrowly concerned The Present CONDITION OF THE Muscovite EMPIRE TILL THE YEAR 1699 In a LETTER from a Gentleman who was Conversant with the late Muscovite Ambassadours in Holland SIR IN your last you desired me to acquaint you with what I had been able to learn concerning the present State of Muscovy during the Stay of that most solemn Embassy of His Czarish Majesty in this City I am extreamly well pleased you have put me in the way of satisfying in some measure your Curiosity having by the frequent Conversation with the said Ambassadours had the opportunity to inform my self of several Matters of great Consequence not commonly known in these Parts I cannot but be amaz'd at the strange Notions the greatest Part have form'd to themselves of the present Condition of the Muscovites being prepossess'd with an Opinion that this Monarchy is of so little Consequence in respect of the other European Kingdoms as scarce to be worthy taking notice of But whoever will take the trouble to make a true insight into the present Posture of their Affairs will be forced to confess that there are few Kingdoms in Europe which at this time may be look'd upon as a more proper Object of our Curiosity It is not to be denied but that before the Year 1645 when Czar Alexis Michaelovitz his present Czarish Majesty's Father came to the Crown the Mascovites were much more barbarous that they cultivated but a very slender Correspondence and had but little Commerce with foreign Nations and that being ill vers'd in all manner of Sciences they were consequently very ignorant of the Military Art and Discipline at least as it is practised now a-days in Europe which was the true Reason of their ill Success in so many Encounters and that tho' naturally fierce and hardy they were frequently worsted by their Enemies tho' much interior in Number The Czar Alexis Michaelovitz a Prince of a vast Understanding and a Great Politician having immediately after his Accession to the Throne investigated the true Cause of the Disadvantage the Muscovites lay under at that time in respect of other foreign Nations applied all his Thoughts to remove this Obstacle The best Expedient he could pitch upon was to draw into his Service as many foreign Officers as possibly he could to instruct his Subjects in the Modern Art of War And the better to compass his Design he made use of all the Politicks that could have been invented by the most refined Politician For being sensible that it would be no easie Task to engage a considerable Number of well qualified foreign Officers into his Service he insensibly brought them over to his Party by the Promises of great Pay of entire Liberty of Conscience of what Religion soever and by taking them into his Service but for a little time all which was very punctually observed on his side Thus he put his projected Design in execution with so extraordinary Success that according to the Account given by the Baron of Meyerbergh who was in the Year 1662 sent by his present Imperial Majesty Leopald as his Ambassadour into Muscovy there were among the foreign Officers in the Czar Alexis Michaelovitz's Service two Generals two Marshals de Camp above a hundred Collonels a great Nnmber of Majors Captains Lieutenants and Ensigns in prodigious Numbers who were all paid very punctually This Account coming from a Person who otherwise seldom speaks well of the Muscovites and their Affairs deserves to be particularly taken notice of in this place These abovementioned Officers having made their Levies in divers parts of the Country subject-to the Obedience of the Czars of Muschovy and brought them under a regular Martial Disciplines did afterwards in several Encounters with the Poles and Swedes give sufficient Proofs that the Muscovites don 't want Bravery when they are led on by good and experienc'd Officers But besides these new Levies the Czar had always on foot a certain standing Number of old Troops not unlike to the Roman Legions those the Muscovites call Strelitzes consisting of forty Thousand Men under the Command of the Chiefest of the Nobility of the Empire It is further to be observed that the introducing of a more regular Discipline among the Muscovite Forces was not the only Reason which induc'd the Czar Alexis Michaelovitz to entertain so vast a Number of foreign Officers in his Service it having been prov'd by Experience That the same was in a great measure founded upon the Security of the Prince's Person who before that time having committed the whole Management of their standing Forces to the Nobility thereby gave them frequent opportunies of abusing their Power in opposition to the Royal Authority This Great Prince died in the Year 1676 much lamented by his People whose Darling he was as having not once in all his Reign in the least abused his Absolute Power but given them a thousand Demonstrations of his Moderation Justice and Piety It was he that first changed the face

soon after his Czarish Majesty's arrival at Vienna he receiv'd the News of a Revolt among the Strelitzes in Muscovy and of their Defeat by General Gourdon which made the Czar take a Resolution to go to Venice before his Return into Muscovy but the event has shewn since that they were not so entirely despersed but that their Party appear'd very formidable notwithstanding their last Rour For by the Confession of some of the Rebels that were put to the Rack they were back'd in this Enterprize not only by the Princess Sophia the present Czar's Sister but also by a great many of the Nobility who had been disgusted at the Czar's Severity against some of their Kindred and by a considerable Part of the Army upon the Frontiers of Poland The Princess Sophia with her Adherents taking the Advantage of the Czar's Absence left no stone unturn'd to insinuate into the People that he had over-turn'd the whole Frame of the Antient Russian Government by reducing the Standing Forces of the Strelitzes to so inconsiderable a Number and depriving Them of their most antient Priviledges in lieu of which he had set over them a great number of foreign Officers who were his absolute Favourites and Domineer'd over the Natives at pleasure That the Chief aim of his Journey into foreign Parts was to bring along with him such a Number of Foreigners as should be able so entirely to subdue the antient Nobility of the Empire as to be past all hopes of recovering their former Priviledges and Dignity There were also some among the Clergy who being jealous of the Czar's Favour towards these Foreigners that were not of the Greek Church blew up the coals clamouring with great Zeal to their Auditors That their Religion was in most imminent Danger by the Encouragement given to Foreigners of another Religion who as they were the Instruments of overturning the antient Foundation of the State so they would in time prove the utter Ruine of their Religion To this it was added That the Czar being at present in far distant Countries they could not wish for a more seasonable Opportunity to recover their Loss by putting the Government into the hands of the Princess Sophia which of Right belonged to her in the Czar's Absence and which she had managed with so much Dexterity during her Brother's Minority These Insinuations were so prevailing with many that they had brought over to their Party not only the Strelitzes and other Malecontents of the Nobility who were ready at all times to join against the Czar but also some of the Head of the Clergy many of the Chief of the Army and among them the General that Commanded upon the Frontiers of Lithuania as likewise some Lords and Courtiers of the first Rank who were always look'd upon as absolutely devoted to the Czar's Interest Notice having been given to the Czar of these Cabals against his Person and Government when he was just upon his departure for Venice this obliged him to alter his Resolution being sensible that the surest measures he could take at such an extraordinary Juncture were to endeavour to divert by his Royal Presence the Storm that threatned the destruction of his Government in his Absence According to this to this Resolution he took the nearest way through Poland with a few of his faithful Friends and after a Stay of three days at Rava near Leopold where he had an Interview with his Polish Majesty about Matters of great Moment especially concerning the approaching Treaty with the Turks he continued his Journey with so much expedition that he appear'd in Muscovy when his Enemies believ'd him to have been at Venice His so unexpected Appearance as it fill'd all his faithful Subjects with Joy so it struck such a Terrour into the Rebellious Party that being thereby bereav'd of all hopes of Success they durst not as much as make any Attempt to put their projected Design in execution His Czarish Majesty having in the mean while taken a firm Resolution to strike at the Root of this Rebellion and to eradicate Root and Branch this Factious Crew of the Strelitzes above two thousand of them were executed in sight of the Princess Sophia all the rest being banished into Siberia and some other remote Provinces Mary of the Nobility of which number were prince Colorin and the General Romanodokowski with several Ladies of Quality some Fryers and other Priests of the first Rank were some Emapal'd some broken upon the Wheel others buried alive I don't question but that you will look upon these Transactions of the Czar as favouring of too much Severity both in respect of the Number and Quality of those on whom these Rigorous Punishments were inflicted but if you will call to mind the reiterated Conspiracies carried on by this Party ever since his Czarish Majesty's Accession to the Crown both against his Person and Government you will I am apt to believe be obliged to own that what was done upon this Account by the Czar was not an Effect of his Natural Disposition which is in no wise inclinable to Cruelty but must be attributed to the present Urgency of the Affairs of the State which required that those Members who after all the Lenitives had been made use of in vain to allay their malignant Humours were now to be treated with Corrosives and such as were quite degenerated into an incurable Gangrene must be separated from the rest by cutting off the infected Parts You cannot be ignorant that since his Majesty's return into Muscovy a Truce has been concluded with the Turks for 25 years in respect of his Imperial Majesty and the Crown of Poland but for two years only with his Czarish Majesty The Treaty betwixt his Czarish Majesty and the Turkish Sultan was sign'd under the Tents near Carlowitz December the 25th 1698 by Procofet Bogdanovitz Wolnitzin as Plenipotentiary and Ambassadour Extraordinary of the Czar of Muscovy and Mehemed Rami and Alexander Mauro Cordati de Scarlati as Plenipotentiaries of the Ottoman Port consisting in these three following Articles 1. That by Vertue of this Treaty a Truce is concluded betwixt these two Potent Empire for two years to begin from the 15th day of December S. N. 1698. And that in the mean while all possible Endeavours shall be used on both sides to re-settle a perfect Amity and good Understanding betwixt both Parties either by a firm and perpetual Peace or the prolongation of this Truce for a longer space of Years 2. That in the mean time all Acts of Hostility under what Pretence soever shall be forborn and all Animosities laid aside betwixt both Parties 3. That the Chan of Crim-Tartary shall be comprehended in this Truce who in the mean while shall be obliged to prevent all Excursions on his side And effectual Care is to be taken on both sides that none of the other Tartarian Hords or any of the Cossacks as well those under the Muscovite as Ottoman Jurisdiction may commit any