148] ANNUAL REGISTER, ]8l6. 



quence, mentions that they were 

 sent back to Poloczk, vvheie they 

 were settled till the reign of the 

 Emperor Paul. 



A private account of this trans- 

 action communicated from Pe- 

 tersburgh, refers its origin to the 

 influence of Prince Galitzin, the 

 minister of public worship, who 

 was greatly exasperated at the 

 conversion to the Romish faith of 

 his nephew, a youth educated at 

 the Jesuit's academy. The ge- 

 neral of the Jesuits was sent for 

 by the minister on tlie occasion, 

 and severely reprehended; and 

 although the society employed all 

 their caution to avoid giving far- 

 ther umbrage to government, and 

 determined to admit none but 

 Catholics in future into their in- 

 stitution, they could not recon- 

 cile the Prince, who continually 

 urged their expulsion from the 

 capital. The restoration of their 

 order by the Pope augmented the 

 suspicions against them ; the con- 

 version of some ladies more in- 

 flamed the public mind ; and on 

 the return of the Emperor from 

 his long absence he was pre- 

 vailed upon to issue the ukase 

 above cited. 



Alexander is generally re- 

 garded as the principal promoter 

 of that remarkable convention 

 or treaty between the sove- 

 reigns of Austria, Kussia, and 

 Prussia, signed first at Paiis on 

 September 26"th, 1815, and pub- 

 lished at Petersburgh in the be- 

 ginning of LSI 6, which lias borne 

 the name of the Sacied or C hris- 

 tian league. By its articles (see 

 State Papers) the j)arties I'ccipro- 

 cally bind themselves lo consider 

 «ach other as 'brethren united in 

 the principles of Christianity, and 



resolved to act towards one ano- 

 ther, and towards their subjects, 

 according to the precepts of that 

 holy religion. They promise, in- 

 deed, " on all occasions, and in 

 all places, to lend each other aid 

 and assistance ;" but lest this ob- 

 ligation should give umbrage to 

 other sovereigns, they declare 

 their readiness to admit into their 

 alliance all other powers who 

 shall avow the same principles ; 

 and it will appear in the pajlia- 

 mentary history, that the Em- 

 peror of Russia communicated to 

 Lord Castlereagh the substance 

 of the treaty before it was signed, 

 in order to be transmitted to the 

 Prince Regent of England, with 

 the hope of his conc\UTence. As 

 politicians could scarcely con- 

 ceive of a convention between 

 powerful princes, the sole pur- 

 pose of which should be to put 

 into practice those maxims of 

 universal justice, charity, and 

 good- will, which have always 

 been held forth in the declara- 

 tions of sovereigns, but never 

 acted upon, a variety of conjec- 

 tures were on float respecting its 

 leal and secret object ; but the 

 tenor of its language, and the 

 total want of all diplomatic eti- 

 quette, seem to denote it the pro- 

 duct of feeling rather than of 

 design. The manifesto issued by 

 the Emperor Alexander on Christ- 

 mas day, accompanying a copy 

 of the alliance, and oidered to 

 be read in all the churches, 

 beais every mark of sincere in- 

 tention. 



The vast empire of Russia has 

 afforded few memorable incidents 

 during I he present year. The 

 Emperor, with his habitual acti- 

 vity, undertook in the summer 



a progress 



