U R N E T^S 
peopled, to be capdbls of a great Defence. There is a 
Citadel on the higheft Part of tlie Hill that commands 
the Town j it is encompaffed with a dry Ditch that is 
confiderably deep. The Walls of the Town are faced 
with Brick, and regularly fortified i but the Counter- 
fcarp is not faced, lo all is in a fad Condition, and the 
Fortification is the weakeft on the Side of the Elector’s 
Palace. There is one Side of a new Palace very nobly 
built in' a regular Architedture, only the Germans ftiil 
retain fomewhat of the Gothick Manner. It is of a 
great Length, and the Defign as to build quite round 
the Court, and then it will be a very magnificent Pa- 
lace, only the Stone is red j for ail the Quarries that 
are upon the Rhine ^ from Baftl down to Coblentz^ are of 
red Stone, which does not look beautiful. The Elector 
of Mentz is an abfolute Prince *, his Subjects prefent 
Lifts of their Magiftrates to him, but he is not tied to 
them, and may name whom be will. The ancient De- 
mefne of the Eledtorate is about forty thoufand Crowns, 
but the Taxes rife to about three hundred thoufand 
Crowns ; fo that the Subjedfs here are as heavily taxed 
as in the Palatinate. There are twelve thoufand Crowns 
a Year given the Ele6for for his Privy-purfe, and the 
State bears the reft of his Expence. He can arm ten 
thoufand Men, and there is a Garrifon of two thoufand 
in Mentz. This Eledlor has three Councils j one as 
he is Chancellor of the Empire, confifting of three ; the 
other two are for the Government and Adminiftration 
of Juftice in his Principality : He and his Chapter 
have Months by Turns for the Nomination of the Pre- 
bends. In the Month of January he names, if any die ; 
and they, luch as die in February^ and fo all the Year 
round. The Prebendaries, or Dome-heers^ have about 
three thoufand Crowns a Year a-piece. When the E- 
ledlor dies, the Emperor fends one to fee the Eledtion 
made, and he recommends one, but the Canons may 
chufe whom they pleafe ; and the prefent Eledfor was 
not of the Emperor’s Recommendation. Befides the 
Palace at Mentz, the Eledor hath another near Franc- 
fort, which is thought the beft that is in thofe Parts of 
Germany, 
The Cathedral is a huge Gothick Building j there is 
a Cupola in the Weft End, and there the Choir fingeth 
Mafs. I could not learn whether this was done only 
becaufe the Place here was of greater Reception than at 
the Eaft End, or if any Burying place and Endowment 
obliged them to the Weft End. Near the Cathedral 
there is a huge Chapel of great Antiquity, and on the 
North Door there are two great Brafs Gates with a long 
Infcription, which I had not Time to write out, but I 
found it was in the Emperor Lotharius^s, Time. There 
are a vaft Number of Churches in this Town, but it is 
poor and thinly inhabited. The Rhine here is almoft 
half an Englijh Mile broad, and there is a Bridge of 
Boats laid over it. From Mentz all along to Baccha- 
rach, there are a great Number of very confiderable 
Villages on both Sides of the River. Here the Rats- 
tower is fhewed, and the People of the Country all 
firmly believe the Story of the Rats eating up an Elec- 
tor ; and that though he fled to this Hand, where he 
built a fmall high Tower, they purfued, Iwimming af- 
ter him, and eat him up : And they told us, that there 
were fome of his Bones to be feen ftili in the Tower. 
This extraordinary Death makes me call to Mind a very 
particular and unlook’d for Sort of Death, that carried 
a poor Labourer off the Ground a few Days before I 
left Geneva, The Foot of one of his Cattle, as he was 
Ploughing, ftruck into a Neft of Wafps, upon which 
the v/hole Svv'arm came out, and fet upon him that held 
the Plough, and killed him in a very little Time ; and 
liis Body was prodigioufly fwell’d with the Poifon of fo 
many Stings. 
But to return to the Rhine : All the Way from Bac- 
charach down to Cohlentz, there is on both Sides of the 
River, hanging Grounds, or little Hills, fo placed, as 
if many of them had been laid by Arr, which produce 
the rich Rhenifb Wine. They are indeed as well ex- 
joofed to the Sun, and covered from Storms, as can be 
imagined ; and the Ground in thofe Hills, which are 
in fome Places of a confiderable Height, is fo culti- 
vated, that there is not an IriCh loft that is capable 
of Improvement and this brings fo much Wealth in- 
to the Country,, that all along there is a great Num- 
ber of confiderable Villages. Coblentz is the ftrongeft 
Place that I faw ot all that belong to the Empire \ 
the Situation is noble, the Rhine running before it, and 
Mofelle paffing along the Side of the Town. It is 
well fortified, the Ditch is large, the Counterfcarp high, 
and the Cover’d Way is in a good Condition : Both 
Walls and Counterfcarp are faced with Brick, and there 
are Ravelins before the Cortins i But on the Side of the 
Mofelle it is very flightly fortified, and there is no Fort 
at the End of the Stone-bridge that is laid over the Mo^ 
Jelle, fo that it lies quite open on that Side, which feems 
a ftrange Defetft in a Place of that Confequence : But 
though the Fortifications of this Place are very confi* 
derable, yet its chief Defence lieth in the Fort of Her^ 
7 nanjlan, which is built on the Top of a very high Hill, 
that lieth on the other Side of the Rhine, and which 
commands this Place fo abTolutely, that he who is 
Mafter of Her?nanjian, is always Mafter of Coblentz. 
This belongs to the Eleblor of fTnVrj', whofe Palace 
lies on the Eaft Side of the Rhine, juft at the Foot of 
the Hill of Hermanjian, and over-againft the Point 
where the Mofelle falls into the Rhine j fo that No* 
thing can be more pleafantly fituated ; only the Ground 
begins to rife juft at the Back of the Houfe with fo 
much Steepnefs, that there is not Room for Gardens 
or Walks. The Houfe makes a great Show upon the 
River, but we are told, that the Apartments within 
are not anfwerable to the Outfide. I fay, we were told ; 
for the German Princes keep fuch Forms, that, without 
a great deal ado, one cannot come within their Courts, 
unlefs when they are abroad themfelvcs : So that we 
neither faw the Infide of the Palace at Mentz, nor this 
of HermanFtan. 
32. It is but a few Hours from this to Bonne, where 
the Eleftor of Cologne keeps his Court. The Place hath 
a regular Fortification, the Walls are faced with 
Brick *, but though the Ditch, which is dry, is pretty 
broad, the Counterfcarp is in fo bad a Condition, that 
it is not able to make a great Defence. This Eleftor 
is the nobleft born, and the beft provided of all the 
German Clergy ; for he is Brother to the great Maxi- 
milian Duke of Bavaria, and befides Cologne, he hath 
Liege, Mun§ter, and Hildefhem which are all great Bi- 
fhoprick. He hath been alfo fix and thirty Years in 
the Eleblorate. His Palace is mean, confifting but o-f 
one Court, the half of which is eaft into a little Gar- 
den, and the Wood-yard is in the very Court. The 
lower Part of the Court was a Stable ; but he hath 
made an Apartment here, that is well furniflied with 
Pidures i where as there are fome of the Hands of the 
greateft Mafters, fo there are a great many Foils to 
fet thefe off, that are fcarce good enough for Sign- 
Pofts. ^ 
The Elector has a great many Gold Medals, which 
will give me Occafion to tell you one of the moft ex- 
travagant Pieces of Forgery that perhaps ever was, 
which happened to be found out at the laft Siege of 
Bonne ; for while they were clearing the Ground for 
a Battery, they difeovered a Vault, in which there was 
an Iron Cheft, that was full of Medals of Gold, to the 
Value of one hundred thoufand Crowns, and of which 
I was told, the Eledor bought to the Value of thirty 
thoufand Crowns. They are monftroufty large, one 
weighed eight hundred Ducats, and the Gold was of the 
Finenefs of Ducat Gold ; But though they bore the Im- 
preffions of Roman Medals, or rather Medailjons, they 
were all Counterfeit ; and the Imitation was fo coarfely 
done, that one muft be extreme ignorant to be deceived 
by them. Some few that feem true, were of the late 
Greek Emperors. Now it is very unaccountable, what 
could induce a Man to make a Forgery upon fuch Me- 
tal, and in fo vaft a Quantity, and then bury all this 
under Ground, efpecially in an Age in which fo much 
Gold was ten times the Value of that it is at prefent ; 
for it is judged to have been done about four or five 
hundred Years ago. 
The 
