Chap. IL tfito Persia* 863 
glorious rombs of the Perfian Saints therein, fully defer ibed, with an Account of the adjacent Country, 
21, A Befeription of the City oj Cafhan, with an Account of the fever al MamfaBures carried on there, 
and of the fruitful Country about it. 22. fhe Author's Account of two other Roads leading from 
Warfaw to Ifpahan, and from Ifpahan to Mofeow. 2'^. Remarks and Obfervations upon the forego^ 
ing Sediion. 
j w "Y E have very large and confiderable Col- 
' % M of Travels through the Empire 
\J\f pire of Per/m, and the Provinces depend- 
^ 1 ing upon it ; and indeed there are very 
few Countries that better deferve to be vifited, or which 
afford either the Traveller himfelf, or whoever perufes 
his Accounts, more Entertainment than Perjia. Not- 
withftanding this, many Inconveniences would arife from 
inferring numerous Accounts of Travels through this 
Country, becaufe of Neceffity it muff produce many Re- 
petitions, which would appear tedious and troublelome^ 
as well as perplexing to the Reader. The Method there- 
fore that we fhall take, is to give in this Seflion the 
Travels of Sir John Chardin, from ConftanlimpU into the 
Dominions i and in the fubfequent Seaions,we 
Iball give a Defeription, in as regular a Method as is 
poffible, of the whole Empire, diftinguiflied into its 
feveral Provinces, with whatever occurs remarkable of 
worthy of Notice in the Works of other celebrated Tra- 
vellers, fo as to preferve the Marrow and Quintefcence 
of their Relations, without embarraffing ourfelves with 
Things of lefs Confequence and Particulars, that with- 
out the leaft Prejudice to the Defign of this Work may 
be as well omitted. By this Means we ffiall bring into 
a reafonable Compafs all that is requifite, and give a 
diftinft and clear Notion of the paft and prefent Con- 
dition of one of the moft powerful and famous Empires 
of the Earth. rM ]• 
The Reafon we made Choice of Sir John Chardin^ % 
Travels, by way of Introdudion, was his taking a dif- 
ferent Route from moft other Travellers, viz. by the 
Black Sea, and the Countries that border upon it, which 
are fcarce deferibed by any other Traveller, or at leaft 
are deferibed by none with equal Plainnefs and Perfpi- 
cuity. It fifes from hence, that, generally fpeaking, 
we have only confufed and imperfe6t Conceptions con- 
cernino- thefe Countries and their Inhabitants, which 
however it is of fome Importance that we fhould know 
more diftindly, becaufe as they made a^great Figure, in 
ancient Hiftory, fo it is not at all impoffible, that as low 
and defpicable as they now feem, they may hereafter 
come to change their Circumftances, and appear with 
new Luftre, if not in ours, yet in the Eyes of our Po- 
fterity. It is very evident, that from their Situation 
they are very confiderable, and if their Inhabitants were 
well governed, and lived in tolerable Correfpondence 
with each other, they might be now, as they were here- 
tofore, equally formidable to the Grand Signior, Suc- 
ceffor 'to the Greek Monarchs of Conjiantinople, and to 
the Perfian Emperors. We have a late Inftance of this 
in the Cafe of Nadir Shah, who received from thefe 
defpifed and barbarous People, that Check which pro- 
ved firft fatal to his Authority, and in the End to his 
Perfon. The Author of thefe Travels was a Gentleman 
of a o-ood Family in France, and of a liberal Education ; 
he applied himfelf to Commerce very early, and pro- 
fecuted with great Succefs the moft confiderable Branch 
of Foreio-n Trade, that of dealing as a Merchant in 
Jewels, which he underftood perfedtly, and by which 
he acquired, with an unfpotted Charafter, a very large 
and affluent Fortune. He made feveral Excurlions into 
the Eaft, by different Roads, and refided feveral Years 
in Perfia, had very great and uncommon Opportunities 
of entring deeply into the Subjeds of which he has 
treated and digefted his Accounts, with great Accuracy 
and Perfpicuity, fo that they have been efteemed not 
only here, but in France, and throughout Europe in 
general, as the moft perfed in their Kind that have hi- 
therto appeared. 
This Gentleman, when the Perfecution againft the Pro- 
teftants broke out in France, came over hither, and 
brought with him great Riches. He was received with 
much Refped at Court, and King Charles the Ild, as a 
Mark of his Favour, beftow’d upon him in the Month 
of March, 1693, the Honour of Knighthood. He 
publilhed the firft Edition of his Travels in our Lan- 
guage, in a large Folio Volume, but they have been fince 
feveral Times printed with many Corredions, great Im- 
provements, and confiderable Augmentations m French, 
He continued to refide here, and purchafed a confiderabie 
Eftate, fo that in the Reign of Queen Anne, we find 
him frequently mentioned by fuch as took Gccafion to 
fhow how much the Wealth of England Was improved, 
and its Trade increafed, by encouraging Foreigners of 
the Proteftant Religion, to come and fettle amongft us. 
Sir John died , at a good old Age, on ChrifimaS 
Day, 1712. He left behind two Sons, and feveral 
Daughters. 
His eldeft Son was created a Baronet of this Kingdom 
by his late Majefty King George the Firft, and having 
purchafed from Grantham Andrews, Efq*, of Sunbury^ 
the noble Seat of Kempton-Park^ in the County of Mid- 
dlefexi and not far from Hampton-Court, fix’d there, and is 
ftill living and unmarried. The old Gentleman employ’d 
a great Part of the latter Period of his Life, in compleat- 
ing his Book of Travels, and intended, as himfelf informs 
us, to have written a diftindt Treatife, explaining a great 
Variety of Paffages in theScripture^ from; the Cuftoms and 
Manners of the EaflemNdAion?,, with which no Man was 
better acquainted than he ; but by many unlucky Acci- 
dents was hindered from fulfilling thatPromife, to the no 
fmall Concern of the learned World, who expedled with 
great Impatience fo ufeful and inftrudfive a Book, of wri- 
ting which He was extremely capable, and of feeing 
any Thing of the fame kind, the Publick fmee his De- 
ceafe feem to defpair., 
2. Sir John Chardin left Paris, Aug. ly, iSyi, with 
an Intention to go to the Eatl-lndkSi and travelling by 
way of Milan, Venice, and Florence^ arrived at Leghorn 
in the End of Odioher, and embarking in a Ship, under 
a Dutch Convoy, arrived at Smyrna, March 2, 1672, 
and twelve Days after at Conjiantinople. He.remaineci 
in this City four Months, and in the mean Time there 
happening a Quarrel between the Grand Vizier and the 
French Ambaffador, which caufed a Report, that the 
Grand Vizier intended to arreft the Ambaffador, and 
all the French Nation, he was afraid that his Goods,' 
which were very rich, and very confiderable in Quantity, 
would be feized ; and fo fought all Means to get out of 
Conjiantinople, and to proceed on his Journey to Perjia; 
The Caravans in thofe hot Months did, not travel 5 
but the Port being about to fend a new Commander^ 
with fome Soldiers and Money, as they do yearly, to 
the Fort of Azoph, which ftands upon the Lake Mceotisi 
he obtain’d Paffage in a Purkijh Saick belonging to that 
Fleet, and embark’d, July 27, at a Port in the Tbra^ 
dan Bofiphorus. This Chanel, which, is about fifteen 
Miles in Length, and about two in Breadth, in moft 
Parts, but in others lefs, fo called, becaufe an Ox may 
fwim over it, is certainly one of the Jovelieft Parts of 
the World \ for the Shores are rifing, and cover’d over 
with Houfes of Pleafure, Woods, Gardens, Parks, de^ 
lightful Profpefts, and Wilderneffes, watered withThoti- 
fands of Springs and Fountains ; The Paffage through 
it, in fair Weather, is exceeding diverting, by reafon 
of the great Number of Barks which are continually 
failing to and fro, and the Profpedt of Conjiantinople 
from the Top of it, which is about two Miles diftant, 
is the moft charming that ever Eyes beheld. There 
are four Caftles {landing by it, all well fortified with 
great Guns, two of them eight Miles from the Black- 
Sea, and two at the Mouth of the Channel,- which is 
the moft dangerous Place for Shipwrecks in all the 
EuxineAea. 
3. On the 3d of Jugufi, in the Mornings he arrived 
at Cajfa, a Port in the Pauric Cherfonefe, or Peninjiila, 
f© 
