82S B E A 
•'authors : this poet was Co-convinced that the beard was a 
lynibol of vvildoni, that lie thought he could not bellow a 
greater encomium on the divine Socrates, than by calling 
him the bearded mafter, Magijlrum. barbatum. While the 
.Gauls were under their Sovereignty, none but the nobles 
and Chrifti.an priefts were permitted to w ear long, beards. 
The Franks, having made themfelves mailers of Gaul, 
aflinned the lame authority as the Romans : the bondfmen 
were exprcfsly ordered to (have their chins ; and this law 
continued in force until the entire abolilhment of fervitude 
in France. So like wife, in the time of the firll race of 
kings, a long beard was a fign of nobility and freedom, 
'i he kings, as being the higheft nobles in their kingdom, 
were likew ife emulous to have the larged beards : Eginard, 
fecretary to Charlentain, fpeaking of the lad kings of the did 
.race, lays, they came to the alfentblies in the Field of 
Mars in a carriage drawn by oxen, and fat on the throne 
with their hair difhe-velled, and a very long beard, crine 
profujo, barba fubmijja, J'oli rejidcrent, et fpecimen dominantis 
■ejfingerent. 
To touch any one’s beard, or cut off a bit of it, was, 
among the fird French, the mod facred pledge of protec¬ 
tion and confidence. For a long time all letters that came 
from the fovereign had, for greater lancfion, three hairs 
of his beard in the leal. There is dill in being a charter 
of U2i, w hich concludes with the following words : Quod 
■tit ratum el Jlabile pcrjtverct in pojlervm, prafentis JcriptoJigilli 
mei rebur appofui eum tribus pilis bar bee mccr. 
Several great men have honoured themfelves with the 
furname of Bearded. The emperor Conlhmtine is diftin- 
guilhed by the epithet of Pogonade, which (ignifies the Beard¬ 
ed. In the time of the Crufades, we find there was a Gcf- 
fery the Bearded: Baldwin IV. earl of Flanders, was fur- 
named Handfome-beard ; and, in the illultrious houfe of 
Monlmorenci, there was a famous Bouchard, who took a 
prkle in the furname of Bearded: lie w as always the de¬ 
clared enemy of the monks, without doubt becaule of their 
being fliaved. In the-tenth century, we find, that king 
Robert (of France), the rival of Charles the Simple, was 
.not more famous for his exploits than for his long white 
beard. In order that it might be more confpicuous to the 
•foldiers.when he was in the field, he tiled to let it hang 
down oullide his cuirafs: this venerable fight encouraged 
the troops in battle* and ferve.d to rally them when they 
were defeated. 
A celebrated painter in Germany, called John Mayo, had 
fitch a large beard that he was nicknamed John the. Bearded: 
it was fo long that he wore it (aliened to his girdle; and, 
though lie was a very tall man, it would hang upon the 
ground when he ltood upright. He took the greateft care 
of this extraordinary beard ; fometimes lie would untie it 
before the emperor Charles V. who took great pleafure to 
lee the, wind make it fiy a gain ft the faces of the lords of 
his court. 
In England, the famous chancellor Thomas More, one 
of the greateft men of his time, being on the point of fall¬ 
ing.a victim to court intrigues, was able, when on the fa¬ 
tal fcatfold, to procure refpett to his beard in prefence of 
all the people, and laved it, as one may fay, from the 
ftroke which he could not efcape himfelf. When he 
had laid his head on the block, he perceived that his beard 
was likely to be hurt by the axe of the executioner ; on 
which he rook it away, faying, “ My beard has not been 
guilty of treafon ; it would be an injuftice to punilli it.” 
But let us turn our eyes to a more flattering objeCf, and 
admire the ever-precious beard of the great Henry IV. of 
France, which diifuled over the countenance of that prince 
a majeftic fweetnefs and amiable opennefs, a beard .‘ever 
dear to pofterity, and which fliould ferve as a model for 
that of every great king, as the beard of his illuftrious 
minifter fliould for that of every minifter. But what de¬ 
pendence is there to be put on the (lability of the things 
of this world l By an event, as fatal as unforefeen, the 
beard, which was arrived at its higheft degree of glory, 
all of a fudden loft its favour, and was at length entirely 
R D. 
proferibed. The unexpefled death of Henry the Great, 
and the youth of his fuccelfor, weie the foie caufe of it. 
Louis XIII. mounted the throne of lits glorious anceftors 
without a beard. Every one concluded immediately, that 
the courtiers, feeing their young king with a fmooth chin, 
would look upon their own as too rough. The conjecture 
proved right; for they prefently reduced their beards to 
whilkers, and a fniall tuft of hair under the nether lip. T he 
people at firft would not follow this dangerous example. 
The duke of Sully would never adopt this effeminate cuf- 
tom. This man, great both as a general and a minifter, 
was likewife fo in his retirement : he had the courage to 
keep liis long beard, and to appear with it at the court of 
Louis XIII. where he was called to give his advice in an 
affair of importance. The young Crop-bearded courtiers 
laughed at the light of his grave look and old-falhioned 
phiz. The duke, nettled at the affront put on his fine 
beard, (aid to the king, “ Sir, when your father of glo¬ 
rious memory did me the honour to conlult me on his 
great and important affairs, the fitft thing he did was to 
lend away all the buffoons and ftage-dancers of his court.” 
The czar Peter, who had fo many claims to the fur- 
name of Great, feefns to have been but little worthy of it 
on this occafion. lie had the boldnefs to lay a taxon the 
beards of his fubjefls. Me ordered that the noblemen and 
gentlemen, tradefmen and artifans (the priefts and peafanrs 
excepted), fhould pay 100 rubles to be able to retain their 
beards ; that the lower clafs of people finould pay a copeck 
for the fame liberty ; and jie eftablifhed cierks at the gates 
of the different towns to collect thefe duties. Such a new 
and Angular import troubled the vaft empire of Ruflia. Both 
religion and manners were thought in danger. Complaints 
were heard from all parts ; they even went fo far as to 
write libels againrt the fovereign ; but he was inflexible, 
and at that time powerful. Even the fatal feenes of St. 
Bartholomew were renewed againrt thefe unfortunate 
beards, and the mort unlawful violences w’ere publicly ex- 
ercifed. The razor and feirtars were every where made 
ufe of. A great number, to avoid thefe cruel extremities, 
obeyed with reluctant lighs. Some of them carefully pre¬ 
ferred the fad trimmings of their chins: and, in order to 
be never feparatfed from thefe dear locks, ordered that 
they fhould be placed with them in their coffins. 
Example, more powerful than authority, produced in 
Spain wiiat it had 'not been able to bring about in Raffia 
without great difficulty. Philip V. alcended the throne 
with a ffiaved chin. The courtiers imitated the prince, 
and the people, in turn, the courtiers. However, though 
this revolution was brought about without violence and 
by degrees, it caufed much lamentation and murmuring; 
the gravity of the Spaniards loft by the change. The fa¬ 
vourite ciillom of a nation can never be altered without 
incurring difpleafure ; and they have this old faying in 
Spain, Defde quo no hay barba, no bay mas alma ; “ Since 
we have loft our beards, we have loft our fouls.” This 
grave romantic nation has always regarded the beard as 
ornament very highly to be prized ; and the Spaniards 
have often made the lofs of honour conlift in that of their 
whilkers. The Portuguefe, whole national character is 
much the fame, are not the leaft behind them in that re- 
fpeift. In the reign of Catherine queen of Portugal, the 
brave John de Cuftro had juft taken in India the callle of 
Diu: victorious,, but in want of every thing, he found 
himfelf obliged to alk the inhabitants of Goa to lend him 
a thoufand pi Holes for the maintenance of his fleet; and, 
as a fecurity for that fum, he fent them one of his vvhif- 
kers, telling them, “ All the gold in the world cannot 
equal the value of this natural ornament of my valour; 
and I depolit it in your hands as a fecurity for the money.” 
The whole town was penetrated with this heroifm, and 
every one interefted himfelf about this.invaluable whifker : 
even the women were defirous to give marks of their zeal 
for fo brave a man : fevei al fold their bracelets to increafe 
the futn afked for; and the inhabitants of Goa fent him 
immediately both the money and his vvhilker. A num- 
