Retrospect of French Literature-=History. 
ple materials. The office for the minis- 
ter of foreign affairs, presented him with 
all such public dovuinents as existed in 
France, while the courts of ‘Vienna, 
Dresden and Berlin, opened their am 
chives for the same purpose. Not con- 
teng with an official correspondence on 
‘the part of his government, he actually 
visited all these capitals in 1776, and 
thus was enabled on the spot, to ascer- 
tain facts, compare authorities, and ob- 
tain information, both direct and colla- 
teral. 
But whether it was, that Rulhiere 
was getting old, or had become indolent; 
that he was no "longer spurred on by ne- 
cessity, or actuated by a love of glory, 
ecrtain it is, that death overtook’ him in 
1791, by the time he had finished the 
narrative to the end ofthe year 1770. He 
had intended to conclude the whole at 
the epoch of the peace of Kainardgi, but 
this task was left to his executors, who 
have now completed the labours of more 
than twenty years. 
The fate of Poland has been singular 
in the extreme, and in her fate, we have 
beheld the extinction of a great state, in 
consequence of the sudder rise ofa bar- 
barous but powerful monarchy. This 
country was originally possessed by the 
Vandals, and in consequence of the in- 
vasion of the neighbouring nations, be- 
came divided into small principalities, 
each nearly independent, but all at times 
acknowledging a superior, or pararaount 
‘ford. In or about the year 700, the body 
of the people conferred the supreme com- 
mand, with the title of Duke, upon the 
“founder of Cracow, on which he conterred 
his own name. On the failure of his poste- 
rity, a peasant called Piastus, was nomi- 
nated to the ducal dignity, and it must 
~ be conceded, both according to the testi- 
“mony of history and tradition, that he 
proved worthy of his exalted rank. At 
length, in the year 999, Boleslaus, for 
the first time, assumed the title and in- 
signia of king, and by his victorious 
sword, Prussia, Bohemia, and Moravia 
" were ‘rendered tributary. In conse- 
“quence of a marriage between one of 
his successors (Boleslaus_ II.) and the 
heiress of Red Russia, in 1059 that 
country was annexed to the crown of 
Poland, while Jagello, in 1884 united lis 
hereditary domains, as Grand Duke of 
Lithuania; and these extensive territories, . 
which had now become a great king- 
dom, descended to his posterity. At 
length, however, in 1572, the mate line 
became ated in Sigismund Augustus, 
681 
who sion indulged all the sectarists, 
including these of the Greel* communion, 
not only with liberty to sit in the diet, 
but also pronioted them to’all the ho- 
nours,ant privileges hitherto ‘confined 
to the cathotics alone,» Happy would i 
have been for his successors, thrice 
happy for his subjects; had they -- 
swayed by asimilar policy! © | 
After.a disputed succession, and some 
civil comimotions, Stephen Baton, Prince — 
of Transylvania, was elevated to ‘the yar 
cant throne towards the latter end of 
the sixteenth century, and:he thought fiz 
to strengthen his pretensions by a mar- 
riage with Anne, the sister of Sigismund 
Augustus. On his death in 1586, an abe 
dicated king of Sweden was:duly elected. 
Under Uladislaus and JohuI1.the opprese 
sion of their Cossack subjects produced, 
as usual, a‘certain degree of resistance, 
and this resistance under Schmielinski, 
who-was aided by the Russians, proved 
fortunate and successful, in consequence 
of which, by the-treaty of ‘Oliva: the splen- 
-dor of the Polish crown, was suddenly 
eclipsed. 
Immediately after this, John 
Casimir iesigned his throne. .and by a 
strange reverse of fortune, employed the 
remainder of his days as a poet. He 
closed his eyes as Abbot of St. Germains 
in France. . 
The sole merit ‘oF his successor, con- 
sisted in his descent from Piastus ; it is 
therefore “not at all astonishing if his 
reign should prove inglorious; but that 
of Ins successor, John Sobieski, the 
crown-general, proved brilliant, partica- 
larly by the signal defeat of the Turks, 
‘and the rescue of one of the greatest 
states in Christendom, from therr hitherto 
victorious arms. But the latter part of 
his reign was exposed to jealousies and 
discontents, in consequence of a wish 
either real or suppositious, that he in- 
tended the throne to be hereditary 4 am Tis 
own fanaily. 
After a short. interregnum on his 
death, Augustus, Elector of Saxony, was 
crowned in 1697, but he was tor a time 
dethroned, in consequence of that me- 
morable irruption effected by Charles 
XII. and afterwards restored by the more 
regular efforts, and superier policy of - 
the Czar Peter the Great, Stanislaus, 
father-in-laty, to Louis XV. having been 
obliged to make a hasty retreat. On the 
death of the former, in 1763, the Em- 
press of Russia, ambitious of giving a 
king to Poland, placed her fucourite, 
Stanislaus Poniatoweld, on the vacant 
throne, and maintained him there, in 
violation 
