S 2 S 
K NIGH' 
• 
CXXXIII. The Order op the Crescent, in Tur¬ 
key. Since the celebrated ltory of a pretended miracle 
performed by Mahomet, in the prefence of his difciples 
and numerous followers, when, leaving the Harry holt be¬ 
hind in the firmanent, the moon obeyed his command, 
and, defcending from the fpheres, concealed part of her 
filverdilkin his garment; the crescent became an objef! 
of great reverence among the Muffulmans, and has fuc- 
ceffively adorned the turbans and the ftandards of the 
caliphs and of the Ottoman tnonarchs. It has often led 
the undaunted legions of the Janiffaries to battle and to 
victory ; its rays have illumined the voluptuous apartments 
of the Seraglio, the Harem, and the Zenana; it Alines Itill 
the exclufive badge of the Sublime Porte, and has been 
railed, of late, to a greater office, that of confecrating the 
gratitude of the grand-fignior toward the Britiffi heroes 
■who fought for his rights; and now Hands, refplendent, 
upon their breafts. 
The French, under the boafted aufpices of the invinci r 
ble ftandard, and led by Bonaparte, had taken polfeffion 
of Egypt, and the tricoloured flag waved oftentatioufly 
on the banks of the Nile. The frightened Pacha, and 
his once-formidable Mamalukes, had fled from the walls 
of Cairo, and retired higher up to the mountains where 
has long been concealed the myflerious fource of their fe¬ 
cundating river. Britannia, ever ready to offer the hand 
of friendlhip and affiftance to the diftreffed, liflened to the 
invitation of the Ottoman potentate; the exertions of our 
troops expelled foon the ufurpers from the plains of anci¬ 
ent Mifraim, and the grateful Selim conceived the generous 
idea of creating an order to reward, in a manner moll 
agreeable to them, thofe who had fo courageonfly expofed 
their lives to reftore to him the poffeffions which he had loll:. 
It is well known that the exiftence of an order of chi¬ 
valry is totally incompatible with the religious and civil 
conltitutions of the Mahometan empire ; therefore this 
was created by the grand-fignior merely for the fake of 
diftinguifliing, by a rnoft brilliant mark of gratitude, the 
fervices of our brave generals, officers, and others, in their 
oriental campaigns. 
The badge is very fplendid, and favours much of Afia- 
tic magnificence. It confiftsof a precious ftone decorated 
in the centre with the crefcent, and a ffar of eight points 
in brilliants, furrounded with thirty-fix rays of gold, 
adorned alfo with brilliants; to be worn on the leftbreaft. 
There is befides a gold jewel, which is pendent to a broad 
watered tawny ribbon, worn fcarfwife. It is perfectly 
round, and compofed of two pieces of the fame fize. On 
the one is the crefcent and ffar within a bordure of laurel - 
branches and knots, with the date of the creation, 1801 ; 
and on the other a cipher in the Arabic language, as re- 
prefented in Plate V. 
We underftand that the precious ffone of the ffar given 
to major-general fir Eyre Coote, K.B. was a ruby, the value 
of which was eltimated at about two thoufand pounds : 
the others were more or lefs valuable, according, very 
likely, to the importance of the fervices which had been 
rendered, by the refpeftive individuals, to the Ottoman 
empire. Ambaffadors, and feveral other perfonages of great 
confideration, have been prefented with the fame honour. 
Among them are the following : 
Sir Eyre Coote, K. B. Sir John Stuart, K. B. 
The late Vifc. Nelfon, K. B. Sir John Francis Cradock. 
Lord Keith, K. B. Sir David Baird, K. E. 
Earl of Elgin. Sir Harford Jones, Bart. 
Sirjohn BorlafeWarren,K.B. Sir Richard Bickerton, Bart. 
Earl of Cavan. Marquis Wellefley, K. B. 
Sir John Doyle. Charles Arbuthnot, Efq. 
William Drummond, Efq. 
CXXXIV. The Legion of Honour, in France. A 
man of fo extenfive a mind as the prefent ruler of the 
Trench nation ; a man, who, by a concatenation of events 
which he could not forefee, and by a feries of aftonilhing 
fuccelfes which the Almighty allowed him, in order to put 
"'HOOD. 
an end to the moft dreadful anarchy, was flung, from the 
valleys of an infignificant ifland in the Mediterranean, 
upon the throne of thefirft empire of the continent;—Bo¬ 
naparte could not be ignorant of the power which mili¬ 
tary rewards exercife upon the fpiritof a foldier. In imi¬ 
tation of other princes, he thought that nothing would be 
more conducive to excite the bravery of his army, and 
the emulation of his generals, than to difplay with mag¬ 
nificence, before their eyes, all that military honour holds 
moft dear. He added dignity to pecuniary rewards ; 
created a new caft of nobility ; and, finding himfelf, by 
the will of Providence, in the centre of a new lyfteln, and 
the real focus of authority, he furrounded his radiant 
throne with conllellations, whofe exiftence originated 
from the creative emanation of his breath, and which were 
thrown into the fphere of his extenfive empire, to gravi¬ 
tate upon and attrafi each other, and conlequently to 
confolidate the whole. Chivalry was no more; and the 
ancient nobility of France were either vegetating unknown 
in a voluntary exile, or crouching unwillingly at home at 
the feet of what, in their ufual and pardonable dialed!, they 
uled to call an adventurer. All ties of military alfociation 
were loft; the fprings of fociety were deftroyed by ten 
whole years of miftruft, fucceifive tyrannies, and general 
infubordination ; religion herfelf had refigned her wonted 
influence; and, in fad!, all was gone except a latent fpark 
of honour which ftill burnt in the breafts of his fubje&s, 
but, like the lamp of the fepulchre, without warmth or 
light. This faint and dying fpark he fortunately con¬ 
ceived the idea of blowing into a blaze; and the inftitution 
of the Legion of Honour was adopted to fan that renovated 
fire which was long fuppofed to have been extinguiftied. 
It was propofed to the legiflative body, by order of the firft 
conful, as “auxiliary to the power of the laws, as a confo- 
lidation for the great work of the revolution.” It was 
not merely calculated, like the ancient orders of knight¬ 
hood, to recompenfe the bravery of the foldier and officer 
in the field of battle or on the breach of a befieged town, 
but alfo “to repay the civil mngiftrate for his courage in 
the exercife of his duty.” It united them at once in the 
rays of the fame glory, and in the fame proofs of national 
gratitude. It was intended “ to place under the confi¬ 
deration andfthe oath of dignified men the facred rights 
of liberty, equality, and property ; to erafe for ever acci- 
dental diftindtions which uled to place hereditary glory be¬ 
fore acquired honour, and the offspring of great men be¬ 
fore great men themfelves.” It was reprefented, accord¬ 
ing to the then exifting enthufiafm, “ as a new coinage, 
much more valuable than the fpecie which ilfues from the 
national treafury ; the value of which could not be de- 
preffed, the llamp counterfeited, nor the ore exhaufted ; 
becaufe it fprang from honour itfelf; and, in fine, as a moll 
precious coin which alone could be the reward of actions 
deemed fuperior to all forts of reward.” Such was the 
emphatic ftyle ufed in the difcourfe addreffed to the legif- 
lators, when the Legion of Honour was propofed. The au¬ 
thority of the firft conful could not be refilled; his wilh. 
was approved, and it became law. The plan was unani- 
moully adopted, and the Legion of Honour was created and 
organized. Therefore it was decreed, on the 19th of May, 
1802 : 
1. That a Legion of Honour fliould be conftituted, to re¬ 
ward civil and military fervices and virtues. 
a. That the Legion fhould be compofed of a head coun¬ 
cil of adminillration and of fixteen cohorts, each having its 
peculiar chef-lieu, or place of meeting. 
3. That each cohort fliould be poffeffed of national de- 
melnes, bringing the fum of 200,000 francs per annum! 
4. The great council Ihall be compofed of feven great 
officers, and four other members ; one of whom Ihall be 
elecfed from among the fenators, by the fenate; one from 
the members of the legiflative body, by the legillators 
themfelves; one out of the tribunes, by the tribunes; and 
the laft by the council of ftate, out of its own body. 
5. Each cohort (hall be compofed of feven great or fu- 
1 __ perior 
