STATE PAPERS. 



253 



grand duchess Alexandra Pa vlovna, 

 allowed himself to offer her several 

 indignities (grossicrtcs). His ma- 

 jesty orders that no answer shall be 

 returned to this notification. 



Subslayice of the Declaration of the 

 Emperor of' Russia relative to an 

 armed Neutralilij by Sea. 



THAT on mounting his throne 

 he found his states involved in 

 a war, provoked by a great nation, 

 which had fallen into dissolution; 

 that conceiving the coalition a mere 

 measure of preservation, this motive 

 inducec" him to join it ; that he did 

 not at that time think it necessary to 

 adopt the system of an armed neu- 

 trality on sea for the protection of 

 commerce, not doubting but that 

 the sincerity of his allies, and their 

 reciprocal interests, would be suffi- 

 cient to secure the flag of the north- 

 empowers from insult. But that be- 

 ing disappointed in this expectation 

 by the perfidious enterprises of a 

 great power, which had sought to 

 enchain the liberty of the seas by 

 capturing Danish convoys, the inde- 

 pendence of the maritime powers 

 of the North appeared to him to be 

 openly menaced. He consequently 

 considers it a measure of necessity 

 to have recourse to an armed neu- 

 trality, the success of which was 

 acknowledged in the time of the 

 American war. 



Extractfrom the Petersburgh Court 

 Gazette of the 7th of Nov. 1800. 



WHEREAS we have learned 

 that the island of Malta, 

 lately in possession of the French, 

 has been surrendcfcd to the English 



troops ; but as it is yet uncertain 

 whether the agreement entered into 

 on the 30th of December, 1798, will 

 be fulfilled, according to which, this 

 island, after capture, is to be re- 

 stored to the order of St. John of 

 Jerusalem, of which his majesty, the 

 emperor of all the Russias is grand- 

 master, his imperial majesty being 

 determined to defend his rights, 

 has been pleased to command that 

 an embargo shall be laid on all Eng- 

 lish ships in the ports of his empire 

 till the above-mentioned conven- 

 tion shall be fulfilled. 



Order of the Emperor of Russia lay-, 

 ing an Embargo on English Ves- 

 sels. (From the Court Gazette.) 



Petersburgh, Nov. 18 and 23. 



THE crews of two English ships 

 in the harbour of Narva, on 

 the arrival of a military force to put 

 them under arrest, in consequence 

 of the embargo laid on them, ha- 

 ving made resistance, fired pistols, 

 and forced a Russian sailor into the 

 water, and afterwards weighed an- 

 chor, and sailed away, his imperial 

 majesty has been pleased to order 

 that the remainder of the vessels in 

 that harbour shall be burned. 



His imperial majesty having re- 

 ceived from his chamberlain, Ita- 

 linskoi, at Palermo, an account of 

 the taking of Malta, has been 

 pleased to direct that the following 

 note shall be transmitted to all the 

 diplomatic corps residing at his 

 court by the minister presiding in 

 the college for foreign affairs, count 

 Rostoptschin, and the vice chancel- 

 lor, count Panin : 



" His majesty, the emperor of 

 all the Russias, having received the 

 circumstantial account of the sur- 



