It; and if not, I will burn it down."

[Illustration: Situation at St. Petersburg.]

Peter, however, determined that it should not be left within the power of

the King of Sweden to take his town, or even to molest his operations in

the building of it, if any precautions on his part could prevent it. He

had caused a number of redoubts and batteries to be thrown up during the

summer. These works were situated at different points near the outlet of

the river, and on the adjacent shores.

There was an island off the mouth of the river which stood in a suitable

position to guard the entrance. This island was several miles distant

from the place where the city was to stand, and it occupied the middle of

the bay leading toward it. Thus there was water on both sides of it, but

the water was deep enough only on one side to allow of the passage of

ships of war. Peter now determined to construct a large and strong

fortress on the shores of this island, placing it in such a position that

the guns could command the channel leading up the bay. It was late in

the fall when he planned this work, and the winter came on before he was

ready to commence operations. This time for commencing was, however, a

matter of design on his part, as the ice during the winter would assist

very much, he thought, in the work of laying the necessary foundations;

for the fortress was not to stand on the solid land, but on a sandbank

which projected from the land on the side toward the navigable channel.

The site of the fortress was to be about a cannon-shot from the and,

where, being surrounded by shallow water on every side, it could not be

approached either by land or sea.

Peter laid the foundations of this fortress on the ice by building

immense boxes of timber and plank, and loading them with stones. When

the ice melted in the spring these structures sank into the sand, and

formed a stable and solid foundation on which he could afterward build at

pleasure. This was the origin of the famous Castle of Cronstadt, which

has since so well fulfilled its purpose that it has kept the powerful

navies of Europe at bay in time of war, and prevented their reaching the

city.

Besides this great fortress, Peter erected several detached batteries at

different parts of the island, so as to prevent the land from being

approached at all by the boats of the enemy.

At length the King of Sweden began to be somewhat alarmed at the accounts

which he received of what Peter was doing, and he determined to attack

him on the ground, and destroy his works before he proceeded any farther

with them. He accordingly ordered the admiral of the fleet to assemble

his ships, to sail up the Gulf of Finland, and there attack and destroy

the settlement which Peter was making.

The admiral made the attempt, but he found that he was too late. The

works were advanced too far, and had become too strong for him. It was

on the 4th of July, 1704, that the Russian scouts, who were watching on

the shores of the bay, saw the Swedish ships coming up. The fleet

consisted of twenty-two men-of-war, and many other vessels. Besides the

forts and batteries, the Russians had a number of ships of their own at

anchor in the waters, and as the fleet advanced a tremendous cannonade

was opened on both sides, the ships of the Swedes against the ships and

batteries of the Russians. When the Swedish fleet had advanced as far

toward the island as the depth of the water would allow, they let down

from the decks of their vessels a great number of flat-bottomed boats,

which they had brought for the purpose, and filled them with armed men.

Their plan was to land these men on the island, and carry the Russian

batteries there at the point of the bayonet.

But they did not succeed. They were received so hotly by the Russians

that, after an obstinate contest, they were forced to retreat. They

endeavored to get back to their boats, but were pursued by the Russians;

and now, as their backs were turned, they could no longer defend

themselves, and a great many were killed. Even those that were not

killed did not all succeed in making their escape. A considerable

number, finding that they should not be able to get to the boats, threw

down their arms, and surrendered themselves prisoners; and then, of

course, the boats which they belonged to were taken. Five of the boats

thus fell into the hands of the Russians. The others were rowed back

with all speed to the ships, and then the ships withdrew. Thus the

attempt failed entirely. The admiral reported the ill success of his

expedition to the king, and not long afterward another similar attempt

was made, but with no better success than before.

The new city was now considered as firmly established, and from this time

it advanced very rapidly in wealth and population. Peter gave great

encouragement to foreign mechanics and artisans to come and settle in the

town, offering to some lands, to others houses, and to others high wages

for their work. The nobles built elegant mansions there in the streets

set apart for them, and many public buildings of great splendor were

planned and commenced. The business of building ships, too, was

introduced on an extended scale. The situation was very favorable for

this purpose, as the shores of the river afforded excellent sites for

dock-yards, and the timber required could be supplied in great quantities

from the shores of Lake Ladoga.

In a very few years after the first foundation of the city, Peter began

to establish literary and scientific institutions there. Many of these

institutions have since become greatly renowned, and they contribute a

large share, at the present day, to the _йclat_ which surrounds this

celebrated city, and which makes it one of the most splendid and renowned

of the European capitals.

[1] See map on page 221.

CHAPTER XII.

THE REVOLT OF MAZEPPA.

1708

Progress of the war--Peter's fleet--The King of Sweden's

successes--Peter wishes to make peace--The reply--Plan changed--Mazeppa

and the Cossacks--Plans for reforming the Cossacks--Mazeppa opposes

them--The quarrel--Mazeppa's treasonable designs--The plot

defeated--Precautions of the Czar--Mazeppa's plans--He goes on step by

step--He sends his nephew to the Czar--The envoy is arrested--Commotion

among the Cossacks--Failure of the plot--Mazeppa's trial and

condemnation--The effigy--Execution of the sentence upon the

effigy--New chieftain chosen

In the mean time the war with Sweden went on. Many campaigns were

fought, for the contest was continued through several successive years.

The King of Sweden made repeated attempts to destroy the new city of

St. Petersburg, but without success. On the contrary, the town grew

and prospered more and more; and the shelter and protection which the

fortifications around it afforded to the mouth of the river and to the

adjacent roadsteads enabled the Czar to go on so rapidly in building

new ships, and in thus increasing and strengthening his fleet, that

very soon he was much stronger than the King of Sweden in all the

neighboring waters, so that he not only was able to keep the enemy very

effectually at bay, but he even made several successful descents upon

the Swedish territory along the adjoining coasts.

But, while the Czar was thus rapidly increasing his power at sea, the

King of Sweden proved himself the strongest on land. He extended his

conquests very rapidly in Poland and in the adjoining provinces, and at

last, in the summer of 1708, he conceived the design of crossing the

Dnieper and threatening Moscow, which was still Peter's capital. He

accordingly pushed his forces forward until he approached the bank of

the river. He came up to it at a certain point, as if he was intending

to cross there. Peter assembled all his troops on the opposite side of

the river at that point in order to oppose him. But the demonstration

which the king made of an intention to cross at that point was only a

pretense. He left a sufficient number of men there to make a show, and

secretly marched away the great body of his troops in the night to a

point about three miles farther up the river, where he succeeded in

crossing with them before the emperor's forces had any suspicion of his

real design. The Russians, who were not strong enough to oppose him in

the open field, were obliged immediately to retreat, and leave him in

full possession of the ground.

Peter was now much alarmed. He sent an officer to the camp of the King

of Sweden with a flag of truce, to ask on what terms the king would

make peace with him. But Charles was too much elated with his success

in crossing the river, and placing himself in a position from which he

could advance, without encountering any farther obstruction, to the

very gates of the capital, to be willing then to propose any terms. So

he declined entering into any negotiation, saying only in a haughty

tone "that he would treat with his brother Peter at Moscow."

On mature reflection, however, he seems to have concluded that it would

be more prudent for him not to march at once to Moscow, and so he

turned his course for a time toward the southward, in the direction of

the Crimea and the Black Sea.

There was one secret reason which induced the King of Sweden to move

thus to the southward which Peter did not for a time understand. The

country of the Cossacks lay in that direction, and the famous Mazeppa,

of whom some account has already been given in this volume, was the

chieftain of the Cossacks, and he, as it happened, had had a quarrel

with the Czar, and in consequence of it had opened a secret negotiation

with the King of Sweden, and had agreed that if the king would come